#i’m kinda hoping there will be an arc where his voice deepens

[fevley]

spirit box radio podcast

I’ve been really enjoying it. It tried for horror, but it landed on wholesome and creepy instead. The host presents as just some guy, but as soon as he hit the spotlight all the typical moster things have been, “gasp! My precious cinnamon roll! I will love and protect you!” Also the big bad is a witch that specializes in love potions/relationships and this is what he wears:

[picathartidae]

random OC ask: say your OC is a love interest (in BG3 or a relationship-heavy game format of your choosing) — what does their first romance or "deepening the relationship" cutscene look like?

Oooo. Oooo!

So. So so so. He’s still Dark Urge, just as a companion? That’s what I’m going with. Though I’m not entirely sure why anyone would want to romance Alassane because he’s complicated and insane while also being unabashedly asexual, but hey, it’s fun to think about.

The whole romance route would be kinda really dark. He’d swing wildly between wanting to be close to the PC because he’s desperately depending on their support, and wanting to be as far away from them as possible. Alassane’s whole gimmick is that he’s losing his grip on both himself and reality in general, and his overall arc has some psychological horror elements to it that would have to be a major part of his romance as well. It probably wouldn’t be the funnest of times.

I feel like it would trigger after the unavoidable death that happens with Dark Urge in Act I, either soon after or later, depending on his approval. I imagine there was a choice of actively supporting him, simply agreeing to keep him around, forcing him out of the group, or just straight up killing him in response. So, by this point, the PC has taken his side at least once in a pretty major way — whether they outright supported him, or just allowed him to stay.

The actual scene itself would probably be similar in structure to Shadowheart’s first romance scene, I think. He’d approach the PC and ask to talk privately, and probably make a point of proving that he’s unarmed and doesn’t intend any harm.

In the event they agree, he’d lead them away to a different area, where he voices his genuine surprise at and appreciation of the PC’s support, despite everything. He’d try to get to know the PC, asking more questions about them in an effort to deflect away from himself, but there would be an insight check to figure him out, and if that’s successful, an option to push him. Upon success, he’d open up about what he actually remembers of the murder in camp (very little), his blackouts, his amnesia, his nightmares, his dissociation, and his dysphoria. Eventually, he’d suddenly cut himself off and kind of disbelievingly note that he never thought he’d ever actually tell anyone any of this, concluding that he trusts the PC, which genuinely surprises him.

Regardless, because he’s more comfortable with the PC, more of his pre-amnesia personality starts to come out as his guard is lowered and he stops masking. He would do this sort of very noticeable and mildly uncanny shift into something much more charismatic, flirtatious, predatory, and generally dangerous. He would suddenly pull in very uncomfortably close when it happens, as well. Things wouldn’t go further than a kiss before he’d sort of catch himself and very abruptly pull away in a panic, ending the scene.

I hope that made sense? I really hope that made sense. This idea fascinates me so much.

[sandraharissa]

Part 2/3: Fishbones

Jinx talks to Fishbones in LoL. There could be some stuff I’m missing, I can only look up fandom wiki and from the lines available there you can see a clear attitude toward Fishbones.

I’m gonna start by saying that based on Arcane and knowing that Jinx talks to Fishbones I assumed Jinx will hallucinate Silco’s voice coming from the gun alike how Claggor and Mylo hallucinations worked. There’s even this moment where, as Jinx is about to use the gun for the first time she recollects Silco’s “We’ll show them all.” which I think was supposed to be her memory of his words however it perfectly sets up why her mind would go on to associate Silco’s voice with Fishbones. That would also allow for the ghosts of the dads, Warwick and Fishbones, to haunt their daughters and continue informing their arcs.

Now those are the lines Jinx says to Fishbones and in italic it’s her narrating his responses:

"Hey Fishbones, should we blow something up? 'You might inconvenience people and hurt their feelings.' You're the worst weapon ever!"

 "Fishbones, you know what we oughta' do? 'Do the laundry, wash dishes and pay some bills.' Stupid dumb rocket launcher."

 "Hey Fishbones, think we can wreak havoc forever? 'No, you should buy a home and save for retirement.' You know I can replace you, right?"

 "Maybe we should settle down and live peaceful lives. 'Really? I always hoped one day you'd---' Haha, nope! You're a death machine for life!"

Firstly lol, secondly what the hell? Am I missing smth? Are those all the lines there are?

So Fishbones, presumably voiced by Silco, tries to get Jinx to chillax and be a more functional human being and she mockingly shuts him down?

That’s so funny.

But also fascinating. Idk how likely it is that they’ll keep this interpretation for future Arcane seasons, they could go with smth completely different, but the idea that Silco’s voice is trying to be a positive influence fries my brain cos I’d assume the opposite. That it’d be a corrupting influence and not one that tries to be her voice of reason and empathy.

So if her interactions with Fishbones look like this in Arcane, then it’s possible maybe he isn’t a hallucination of Silco. Cos it’s also weird she narrates the responses of the gun, so does she really hear it speaking or it’s more that she plays with it like a doll?

Or it’s possible they’ll simply expand on her interactions with Fishbones in future seasons. Maybe sometimes she hears (and even sees) Silco and sometimes she doesn’t and so then she narrates imaginary conversations with him cos that’s the only way she can talk to him at that point in time? Or the narrating (where she deepens her voice btw) is just her joking but she does hallucinate him on other occasions. Then the real hallucination could be saying stuff that’s more in character like ‘drink some water Jinx’ but later jokingly she exaggerates the way he talks like ‘get insurance and solve world hunger’.

Or maybe they’ll scrap the way she talks to Fishbones altogether and make up their own version.

-

I guess another thing worth pointing out is that despite her constantly mocking Fishbones she’s attached to him. She claims she can replace him but she doesn’t despite how annoyed she seems to be with him, and she even says ‘we should settle down’ like he’s a person. And then there’s this line from LoR (which came out more recently and includes Ekko naming Powder and Benzo and Cait’s line to Jinx "She's too far gone..."):

"Just you and me Fishbones! Ugh, and them." (when they’re in the presence of another champion)

Which could be the game developers getting inspiration from Arcane (when it was still in development) and leaning even further into her attachment to Fishbones. Which actually would reflect the kinda attachment she would have toward a hallucination of Silco after the events of Arcane (just you and me).

So like, I still think there’s 99% chance that Jinx will hallucinate Silco through Fishbones however those game interactions really caught me off guard and I’d expect the writers to change them drastically or at least put a difference spin on them. But unless the game canon is completely disregarded then we’re still in for a pretty interesting twist where Jinx is mostly annoyed with/jokingly mocking the visions of her father, her only family as far as she’s concerned, that she very tragically killed.

[magicalforcesau]

Dancing With Ghosts in Your Garden~ Chapter 13 - Year 2: September

(ao3 link)

King’s Cross station was buzzing with life just as it always was. Crowds were pulling in all directions, making it difficult to follow a specific current. Still, Anakin and his mum navigated the onslaught of people with practiced experience that came more from Shmi’s instincts rather than Anakin’s. It was for this reason that he allowed her to hold his hand as she swam them upstream until they arrived between platforms 9 and 10.

“Now, mum, this is difficult for me to say, but I’m the chosen one now. I’ve got a reputation to uphold. So, while I don’t mind holding your hand, I don’t need anyone else thinking their chosen one is a wuss.”

She raised her eyebrows at him, “Is that so?”

“It’s a shame, it is.” He said with a nod, “We had some good times.”

Shmi snorted, “Who does Spider-Man love and protect more than anyone else in the whole world?”

“His Aunt May.” He said, surprised that his mother would even doubt him knowing that, “Who’s like a mother to him. During the clone saga arc of the Amazing Spider-Man comic run, Aunt May died! Well, we all thought it was her, but-”

“-Exactly,” She smiled, “And would you call Spider-Man weak?”

“Of course not,” He scoffed, “He can take down the entire Sinister Six all by himself!”

“Anakin, even heroes are allowed to love their mothers. Only a fool would brand you weak for that.”

And with that, she clasped Anakin’s hand tightly and led him through the brick wall that divided his two realities. He couldn’t really find much else to say on that, because she’d bested him in his own language. He might have pondered about how unfair this was, but was far too distracted by the tingly feeling that permeated through him as he caught sight of the Hogwarts Express again.

When he tried to push further into the crowd of wizards, who all said their goodbyes to their parents before getting aboard the train, his mother’s grasp tightened a bit.

“Mum?” He looked up at her to see that her eyes were teary, though she ran her arm along her face in a quick attempt to hide this. “What’s wrong?”

She knelt down to be at his level, “Nothing’s wrong, dear. It’s just… Don’t try to grow up too fast on me, okay?”

He wanted to make that promise, but everyday Anakin learned something new about who he was and what he could do. Even just doing his homework this summer made him feel inspired by his own gifts. He could see in his mother’s eyes that she saw the same thing. Still, he wanted nothing more than to take that melancholic look from her. 

“I told you I’ll never grow too old for you, mum, and I meant that. Even when I save the world, I’ll still love you.”

She brushed his bangs, which had grown a bit longer, out of his eyes and kept his face between her hands, “I know, my darling, but you know I worry.”

“But why?” He had to try one more time. He really believed that his mother might share more about her experiences in the wizarding world with the prophecy becoming public information. He was wrong on that account. 

Instead, she just seemed to only grow sadder. 

“Ani, the only thing harder than being the chosen one expected of all this responsibility and heroics, is to be the mother that must let her child fulfill that.”

He blinked, “I’ll be safe, I promise.” 

“Do not make promises you cannot keep,” She sighed.

“I can try.” He said quietly.

“And I’ll hold you to that,” She smiled and stood back to her feet, “I look forward to hearing of all the safe adventures you embark on.”

He returned her smile, though couldn’t help but notice that she still seemed quite forlorn. He wished they had more time to talk about it. He still wished he could bring her with him, try as he might to seem like he didn’t.

Behind her, some of his classmates waved excitedly at him and whispered amongst themselves to their parents, likely saying exactly who Anakin was. He smiled back and then looked back to his mother’s curious eyes.

“And remember those who chose you before this prophecy did.” She said.

“How could I forget- Oh, hey Ferus! Good to see you!” He cut himself off to wave to an older student that regarded him from across the platform.

His mum kissed his forehead and he didn’t resist too much for her sake (or that’s what he told himself), “I love you, Anakin. I’ll see you again soon.”

“Love you too!” Anakin chirped and then turned to the train, still awestruck at how magnificent it truly was. Sometimes, he struggled to realize the fact that this got to be his life. 

He turned around once more on the edge of the train, waving proudly at his mum. 

It was going to be a great year.

***

Rex had to resist rolling his eyes in good nature over his best friend’s obvious liking to the sudden stardom he’d risen to. He could understand why, on some level, everyone had taken a sudden interest in Anakin. The chosen one prophecy had existed longer than any of the other orbs in the Ministry of Magic. Valorum, the Minster, himself, did an entire exposé where he discussed just how untouched the prophecies had been for the past millennia. 

And sure, it did sound rather incredible what was going to happen, if anyone ever got around to deciphering what it meant. To Rex, Anakin was always going to be just Anakin- his best friend and co-conspirator, whose tongue turned fat whenever talking to a certain Gryffindor third year girl.

Speaking of such, Anakin was going to have a conniption when he noticed Padmé and her group of girls were in the compartment just across the way from the one Rex chose. Since he already knew he was going to ask, he claimed Echo and Fives’ extendable ear in an attempt to listen in. 

The engine on the locomotive let out one final warning call, alerting any stragglers to get their bums into high gear lest they miss the train altogether. Rex had never known anyone to do so, but Fives and Echo allegedly had a classmate their first year who missed the train and no one ever saw him again. 

Whether or not that was true or just a means of them getting him out of bed early, was debatable. Hogwarts was full of strange urban legends.

Finally, Anakin meandered his way down the aisle, stopping to talk to every single person who called out to him. This time, Rex did roll his eyes, especially as Anakin was even conferring with Asajj Ventress, who was nothing but nasty about him the previous year. 

Really, he hoped all of this wouldn’t get to his head.

Surprisingly enough, when Anakin walked past Padmé’s compartment and into the one Rex occupied, he offered little more than a polite greeting after the girl said hello. Instead, he sat down across from Rex without much explanation. He didn’t even look the least bit flustered after encountering Padmé of all people.

“Rex!” Anakin said cheerily.

“I’m sorry, are you daft?” Rex shot back with a questioning look.

“What?” His friend stared back blankly.

“Are you daft?” Rex repeated slowly and then leaned forward to whisper, “Do you not see who’s right over there? I thought you would be over the moon right now! In fact, why aren’t you over the moon right now?”

“Because I’m over all of that,” Anakin waved off, “Is Padmé the most beautiful girl in the entire world? Yes, but I’m gonna be busy with all of this world-saving I’ve got to do.”

“Oh brother,” Rex leaned back in his seat, “You’re kidding me.”

“I’m serious!” Anakin squeaked and then leaned forward to shut the compartment door so they had more privacy to discuss this, “She’s still the love of my life, but I’ve made my peace that I can’t have her.”

“Okay, so you’re giving up.”

“Not giving up.” Anakin said, “Heroes don’t give up.”

Rex’s frown deepened as he considered the cocky Gryffindor across from him, “Kinda sounds like giving up to me.”

“My mum got me thinking about Spider-Man.”

“You’re losing me, mate.” Rex groaned. 

“So,” Anakin sat up, “Superheroes can’t have girlfriends or boyfriends, because then the villains use them as a pawn to get to the hero. I already have my mum! I can’t risk having anyone else that Dooku could use to foil my plans of foiling his plans.”

“Why the bloody hell would Dooku care about a tween romance?” Rex asked, “Particularly a one-sided one?”

“Because that’s how bad guys work, Rex!” Anakin insisted, “Trust me on this, because I’m an expert.”

“Because let me guess, you’re the chosen one.” Rex returned.

“Well, yeah, but mostly because I’ve done my homework on that account.”

“If by homework, I’m sure you mean watching copious amounts of television.” Obi-Wan drawled as he leaned against the now-open compartment. Even as a prefect, he was the only student fully dressed in his robes already. Rex was unsure how he didn’t notice him standing there. 

“You don’t even know what television is!” Anakin countered in a high-pitched voice that drew the girls’ attention from across the way. He sat back and grimaced at their muffled giggles.

“I do so.” Obi-Wan said, “I just don’t understand the full logistics of it.”

It was true, most wizards didn’t know much on the technological aspects of the muggle world. From what Anakin told Rex about television and electricity, it all sounded very exciting and thrilling. They were clearly missing out on something pretty great and Satine gave great indication of this too, even if her idea of exciting programming probably wasn’t the same as Rex’s.

“Please tell Mr. Chosen One that giving up on love simply because an orb decided to glow for him is utterly ridiculous.” Rex said.

“If anything, Obi-Wan would support my decision to side on the airs of rationale.”

Obi-Wan snorted, “Perhaps, if you were considering this on a school-level, but not to become a hero in tights.”

“I would look good in tights.” Anakin argued, which only told Rex that he likely had a version of his own superhero image sketched out somewhere. If someone was going to see it, it was going to be Rex.

“No one looks good in tights.” And Obi-Wan said that like he unfortunately had experience on this matter, “Anyway, remain in your seats, boys, we’re heading out soon.”

When he shut the door behind him, Anakin scowled, “Why would you tell him about my plan to sacrifice love? I don’t want it getting around!”

“Who’s he going to tell?” Rex asked, “My brother? Satine? Those are the only people he talks to.”

“Yeah,” Anakin said, “You have a point there.”

Rex caught him sneaking a small wave in Padmé’s direction.

***

When Obi-Wan finally entered the compartment he usually shared with Cody and Satine, he dropped down into his seat with a sigh.

“Mate, the term hasn’t even started yet.” Cody teased, “Don’t stress me out with your stress.”

“On the plus side, no potions for you this year.” Obi-Wan smiled, “As for me, I just didn’t sleep well last night, which is strange, since it’s usually my best sleep of the summer.”

“I know the feeling.” Cody grinned, “This season of Quidditch is going to be insane! It’s going to be Gryffindor’s big comeback year, I tell you, and here’s why:”

Obi-Wan allowed his best friend to go on his lengthy rant about just why Gryffindor was going to pull through that year, which included the fact that Rex was going to try out and show up all the other second year tryouts, especially with how hard Cody trained him that summer. Other than that, he lost Obi-Wan in a lot of random dribble that didn’t really register, considering Cody was still trying to be vague about his plan.

“Can’t exactly squeal the goods to you, mate. You are technically a House Cup champion, after all.”

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, “Yes, of course, well, get your rants out now before Satine joins us. You know she’s not nearly as keen to listen to this as I am.”

“Where is she, anyway?” Cody asked, “I’d hate for you to be the only prefect with a stick up their bum this year.”

“Rest assured, she’s in the restroom getting changed.” He said, “Not without teasing me for arriving dressed in my robes.”

“It is hot outside, you know.”

“And you know that the clothes my parents would have me wear would have me teased forever.” He retorted.

“Yeah, you can’t afford that after the-”

“-Pajamas, I know. Satine mentioned it in about seven letters this summer to remind me. Anakin hadn’t even seen them and mentioned them too. I swear, you all need new material.”

“And so do you,” Cody snorted, “New clothing material, that is.”

Obi-Wan groaned, “That was pitiful.”

“Really? Because I found it quite funny.” He said, “Not as funny as Ventress’s face is going to be when Gryffindor takes the house cup and shakes up the entire division by-”

Obi-Wan was more than happy to allow him to continue, letting his eyes drift to peer down the aisle of the train, catching a glimpse of Satine as she walked their way, robe in hand. When they’d been to Diagon Alley just a couple weeks prior, he’d of course noticed that she’d… Matured over the summer. However, seeing her in the uniforms that she wore practically every day was something of a divine intervention.

She always carried herself with confidence, but it seemed like the rest of her caught up to such a bold nature. He suddenly found himself feeling very childish in comparison- all skin and bones- while she no longer looked like the young girl that occasionally had him flustered. He couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious about how starkly different they seemed now.

She looked sophisticated, wise beyond her years, and utterly brilliant.

Her legs looked like they went on for days.

He shook his head, trying to bring himself back into the present, but only found his face grow red as she drew nearer.  He wasn’t even sure if Cody was still excitedly talking, as the boy only would go on until he was stopped. He never ran out of things to say about Quidditch.

Whatever spell he’d been under broke the moment someone whistled as Satine walked by, causing her to turn to them and spit back in retaliation. Obi-Wan felt himself see red for a different reason entirely. It seemed as she passed, even more people took notice of how much she’d transformed over the summer. 

And many of the boys, including the seventh years, liked what they saw. 

Obi-Wan did not like the way that made him feel.

“Can you believe the utter buffoonery?” Satine groaned as she sat down beside Obi-Wan, cutting Cody off from his rant about defensive measures in overtime. 

“Can you be more specific?” Cody asked without missing a beat.

“These… Arseholes are acting like they’ve never seen me before.” She said, adjusting her skirt and then looking at Obi-Wan, which he averted his gaze immediately, “It’s like they all woke up with their heads on backwards.”

“It’s extremely inappropriate.” Obi-Wan found himself agreeing with a little too much enthusiasm that drew a cocked eyebrow from Cody. “She’s a person for God’s sake! Not to mention a prefect. It’s like you’re some kind of walking carnival act for them to gawk at.”

“It’s just because they think you’re hot now.” Cody said with a shrug, “They’ll get over it.”

“That doesn’t make it right.” Satine said. “And I haven’t gotten hot. I haven’t done anything!”

“Exactly!” Obi-Wan said, and cringed as Satine glared at him.

“You don’t need to always be so agreeable, you know.” She snapped.

“Well, what would you rather I do? Hoot and holler like some sort of invalid?” He retorted, opening a book on his lap to hopefully distract from how red his face was, “For the record, I’ve always thought you looked quite fit. Didn’t you, Cody?”

Cody, who had been staring very intensely at the candy cart, snapped back to them, “Oh- er, yes, sure.”

“Very convincing stuff, boys.” She grimaced, “Thank you.”

Obi-Wan sighed, “Yes, well, I still maintain that they’re all idiots.”

“I’m sure you do.” Cody said.

It was going to be a long train ride.

***

Ventress glowered as she watched more students gather around Skywalker’s compartment, asking eager questions about what he’d done with his summer. It was pitiful to see how the masses swarmed to their newest morsel of gossip and intrigue like they were quite literally dependent on it for sustenance. They would suck the life out of Skywalker until he had nothing else to give, turning on him in seconds flat. In a way, she knew what that felt like better than anyone- to be used.

Her culture, her people, was familiar with it. It was engraved in their history to be cast to the sidelines in favor of a more civilized age. They were marked savages, heathens, monsters while the filth known as muggles got to parade about and mock them with pointy hats, cartoonish movies, and stereotypes that only fueled the fire of their isolation.

Relegated to the castle that approached from over the hill- not allowed to flaunt their gifts amongst the whole world, to display dominance. It was vile. 

Wizards, after all, did the proper thing if their child was born without magic. They didn’t allow them to go and ruin someone else’s culture. Ventress always believed in nature as opposed to nurture and all the nurture in the world couldn’t make a muggle-born an actual witch or wizard. It just wasn’t possible.

She knew how people saw her. Her bone white face, icy blue eyes, and close-cropped white hair made her stand out in a crowd. While her family never spoke of it, she represented the witches of olde- not nearly as posh and significantly more malicious than what proper wizards prefer to display at the surface. 

Where muggles would have thrown her to the gallows, the elite purebloods took her in. 

Skywalker was a fool for believing he was lucky. In fact, the stark realization between how people treated him now vs. the year before (when no one cared or knew that he existed) would have been startling to anyone with a working brain. However, the little second year just continued to eat up the fact that he was chosen.

Ventress knew something about that as well and considered, as she absently doodled in the top corner of the open spell book on her lap, how it wasn’t always what it was cut out to be. 

“You think he’s going to be a problem this year?” Faro Argyus asked as he leaned back in the seat opposite to hers. 

Faro always looked like he smelled something bad. To his credit, this time might actually ring true. 

She sighed, unsure when she agreed to having him sit in her compartment at all, “If you truly believe some snotty little second year is going to pose any true threat to you, Argyus, perhaps you aren’t as tough as you believe you are.”

He growled, “I’m not talking about Quidditch.”

“I never said that you were.” She leaned on her hand as she looked at him.

His face needed work, but he was quite chiseled otherwise and even Ventress could appreciate that. Luckily, he was about as smart as a forest troll, so he never exuded much critical thinking. If he did, she believed the sky would truly open up and rain pigs on them all.

“To answer your original question,” She added and folded up her book nicely, “I think Skywalker is a walking problem in general.”

“I wish he’d start up that cheating ring again.” He huffed and shifted in his seat, “Maybe come up with one that’ll take care of NEWT’s.”

“That wasn’t even him.” She rolled her eyes, “That was the muggle-born from Calgary.”

“Figures.” He sniffed, “Only a muggle-born would get caught.”

“Thank the maker he’s gone.” Shu Mai, a Gossam sixth year with deep gray and wrinkly skin and a long head that curved up, said tactly, “Their lot is lucky they go here at all. If they blow their chance, that should be it.”

Ventress glanced down the aisle to where the incessant do-gooder, Kenobi, and his muggle sidekick, Kryze, shooed away the gathering crowd, saying something of it being against safety measures to be up and standing on a moving train. 

Before they, themselves, moved to sit down, they were stopped by a Ravenclaw named Fenn Rau, who seemed quite interested in talking with Kryze about something indistinct. Whatever it was, it made Kenobi’s face go intriguingly dark in a way that Ventress believed suited him. He should tap into it more often to unleash the power that he was truly capable of. However, that was just her opinion. 

“Seems Skywalker isn’t the only one gaining more attention this year.” She said and kicked Faro in the shin as she caught his stare lingering on Kryze, “Have you any self-respect?”

“Pretty packaging, that’s all.” He shrugged, but glanced back, “If Kenobi gets a good shag out of her, I’ll get why he’s put in so much time.”

“You’re swine, Faro.” Shu Mai accurately assessed with her heavy-lidded eyes.

“And I’m okay with that.” He said. “Actually, there’s plenty of hot merchandise up for sale this year.”

“I don’t remember asking you to sit with me.” Ventress fired back.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. You’re on the list.” He winked.

“Come anywhere near me and you’ll be turned into an actual piece of merchandise to be immortalized in some generic department store.” She fired off.

Faro blinked, trying to process that, before listing off the many girls he’d taken notice of this year. Shu Mai also looked like she regretted her choice of seat, but that was what happened when your friends were all upperclassmen and graduated already. Ventress thought she would suffer a similar fate, but realized instantly that she was above the sentiment. 

Night was approaching outside of the train as stars began to break up darkness’ monotony. Away from all the bustling towns and cars that polluted the sky, they were afforded only a clear display of night as it was intended. 

Perhaps, the state of affairs would be just as transparent. 

Soon.

***

The train hissed into Hogsmeade station and Anakin and Rex looked up as prefects started opening compartments looking for first years.

“Oh yeah! The boats,” Anakin thought back to his experience the previous year, “That’s just for first years right?”

“Yep, Fives told me they make the rest of us walk, but with the look Echo was giving him I’m assuming that’s not true,” Rex told him as he stood, pulling his shoulder bag off the rack above him.

“I certainly hope not,” Anakin had walked partially to Hogsmeade last year and it hadn’t gone very well at all, “And I doubt they’ll let us break off to use the tunnel.”

“That tunnel was practically longer than walking,” Rex shook his head.

“Hey you lot? Planning on riding all the way back or are you coming to school?” Cody popped his head in waving at the two of them to follow. It seemed Anakin and Rex weren’t the only 2nd years who weren’t sure how they would be traversing to the castle this year, as many of them flocked towards any older students they happened to know.

Anakin ducked as a trunk soared over their heads and slotted itself neatly onto a cart pushed by an old witch Anakin hadn’t seen before. In fact there were several carts all loaded precariously with trunks and rucksacks. One was filled purely with empty owl cages, seemingly having let all their owl friends free. Anakin hadn’t gotten a cage for Artoo yet, but he knew the owl would have no trouble finding Hogwarts as it was his first home after all. He made a note to check up on him later.

“They’re volunteers,” Cody said suddenly and Anakin looked up to see him waving at a few of the older witches and wizards, “Hogsmeade survives off business from the school, although you two aren’t allowed in yet,” He reminded them with a stern look, “Every year they help get our things to the castle so we don’t have to try and squeeze them into-” He didn’t need to finish, and if he did Anakin didn’t hear him. Carriages, pulled by seemingly nothing were dotted along the road, waiting for students to file in. Cody hardly blinked as he grabbed the edge of one and swung on up.

Rex beat Anakin to the edge of the carriage climbing up with a little more caution and a lot more interest than his older brother. Anakin made to follow when someone called his name from behind.

“Skywalker!” A 7th year was calling for him. He was fuzzy on the name, but what did it matter. 7th years ruled the school, in more ways than even his former mentor could. The boy was waving him over, he wanted Anakin to join him and his fellow 7th year friends.

He flicked his gaze back to where Rex was laughing at something Cody had said. Surely Rex wouldn’t miss him, it was only a short distance to the castle after all. He made up his mind and hurried over.

“The name’s Ozzel,” The boy stuck a hand out and Anakin shook it, “Glad to have you, Chosen One,” Anakin felt pride swell like a balloon in his chest as he climbed the steep steps into the carriage.

“Ey, Chosen One!” He ended up being sandwiched between Ozzel and a Hufflepuff girl he didn’t recognize. Across from him was a Hufflepuff boy and two Slytherin girls. He sat as tall as a 12 year old boy could and happily answered a few of the questions he was most often getting asked. Things about the beast that had plagued their school just a year prior or about vanquishing Dooku. When they were finally satisfied Anakin glanced over his shoulder, he’d missed the good view of the castle.

They all stepped off the carriage and waved goodbye to Anakin before looping around the back to enter the Great Hall. Anakin moved to enter as well, but a large hand grabbed his shoulder to stop him. Looking up he was greeted by the stern expression of his least favorite professor.

“Go this way and you’re going to get yourself trampled,” Anakin wrinkled his nose, trying to figure out what on earth Windu was on about as it seemed a little early in the semester for riddles. Windu sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose with his opposite hand, “The carts are pulled by thesterals,” He took Anakin’s hand and brought it forward until it hit something fleshy and cold. Anakin yanked his hand back in shock.

“But, what? They’re invisible!”

“Invisible to some, not all,” The Professor put his hand on what Anakin could only assume was the creatures neck, “Only those who have seen death first hand can see them,” Anakin was just about to ask if Windu could see them when he heard Rex call his name angrily from behind him.

“Where did you go?” He crossed his arms, “Figured we lost you at the station or something.”

“Sorry Rex I-” He thought for a minute before continuing, “I just saw a friend I wanted to say hi to,” Rex didn’t look convinced, but still waved for Anakin to follow him into the Great Hall.

“Sure you did.”

***

The sorting ceremony went on without a hitch as it typically did. It was nice not to have the stress of watching to choose a mentor. Obi-Wan had quickly eaten through the main course of dinner. Meals at Hogwarts were always so warm and inviting, definitely a great way to welcome back students for the year. He was, as usual, a little more interested in the desserts, but before he could grab a second slice of pie a hush drew across the Great Hall.

He turned and gazed up towards the teacher’s stand to see Headmaster Yoda raising his hands in the air, asking for silence.

“Welcome you, I do, back to Hogwarts,” He hummed as the remaining chatter died out, “Many announcements to make, I have,” Many students groaned at that, desperate to have the night to catch up with friends. Yoda was always one who could sense such notions though so he smiled, eyes glinting, “Leave those for later, I will. All but one,” He extended out his hand and an adult, who was sitting at the Professor’s table, stood up. Obi-Wan didn’t recognize the man. He was green, clearly aquatic in nature, with long tendrils extending from his head like hair, “Your new DADA teacher, this is, Professor Kit Fisto.”

The Great Hall all clapped politely, before slowly the atmosphere drifted back towards the meal. The new professor sat down and the Headmaster turned to talk with Mace Windu at his side.

“Kit Fisto,” Satine considered the name, “I haven’t heard of him, haven’t read of him… What about you Ben?”

Ben looked away from her for a moment pondering, “Not that I can recall.”

“So that’s a no then,” Satine sighed. There was very little he couldn’t recall after all. Professor Fisto was probably another retired auror, but before he could continue down his line of possibilities he was nearly shoved to the side as a Ravenclaw 5th year squeezed his way between him and Satine. Obi-Wan had to blink a few times just to make sure that this indeed was reality, while the boy stuck his hand out to Satine.

“Nice to see you again, Satine,” He greeted her, and because Satine was always polite she shook his hand.

“Fenn Rau was it?” Satine asked and Obi-Wan felt like his eyes were glued on their hands until he let hers go, “I helped you with your charms paper last year right?”

“And I’m forever grateful,” His voice sounded awfully cheery to be talking about homework, Obi-Wan thought. Surely he and Satine were the only ones who truly appreciated a good paper. As if just now feeling Obi-Wan’s eyes on the back of his head Fenn turned to shake hands with him as well.

“Of course, I don’t want to leave you out of the loop either, Kenobi,” The boy smiled as Obi-Wan took his hand and gave it a firm shake, not unlike his father’s, “I’m excited to work with you as well, as one of Ravenclaw’s newest prefects,” it was only then that Obi-Wan saw the glint of a prefect’s badge sitting atop the 5th years robes. Perhaps it would be a long year after all.

***

They had all thankfully been given the opportunity to catch up with their friends- exchanging summer anecdotes, talking about the upcoming year, speculating about the mystery that was their new DADA professor. Regardless of their various experiences, everyone could steadily agree that it was good to be back.

Because of the various security breaches from the previous year as well as the actual monster that nearly destroyed the school and those who inhabited it, parents and guardians had justifiable reason to be concerned for the incoming school year. Headmaster Yoda’s answer to this had been to implement a conference day. This allotted time for concerned parents to meet with their child’s professors, view newly implemented security measures, and assuage their fears.

“Safe, our students should feel.” Yoda had announced from his propped podium at breakfast. All of the students were haphazardly mixed together as they always were for meals that were not dinner. Even in the midst of the excited chatter full of catching up from summer break, everyone stopped dead when Yoda began to speak.

Anakin didn’t know what it was about the little green wizard, but he sure knew how to command the room. 

“Welcome, all parents are.” He said firmly and cast his bright green eyes across the entire student body, “All blood types, of course.”

He had been, of course, referring to the muggle-borns, which was surely the question on everyone’s mind. This meant, to the shock of many, that muggles would be allowed at Hogwarts for the first time since its opening. As guests, sure, but it was still a big deal. Despite growing up around muggles his entire life, Anakin could see how this would bristle people. They didn’t know or understand magic. This school was meant for wizards only. Muggles could get hurt on the grounds and no one wanted to see that. 

In lieu of this announcement, the student body didn’t fall into that comforting sense of easy camaraderie that made the castle feel like home. Instead, the knowledge that their parents would be invading their spaces to inspect and essentially deem Hogwarts fit for them in a week’s time, made it very difficult to relax at all. 

Even Anakin was a bit worried that his mum might learn of the more dangerous events from his first year. She certainly would not have enjoyed hearing he was kidnapped for a brief period of time or that nobody notified her immediately. 

Despite how low he felt at one point in the spring, Anakin couldn’t imagine being anywhere else but at Hogwarts. His recent surge in popularity was proof of his belonging. How else was he supposed to protect his people if he wasn’t trained to do so? They needed him and he liked the concept of them needing him. 

Obi-Wan was probably the only student not at least a little on edge, which Anakin found more peculiar than anything else. After his potions class, which afforded him the chance to visit one of his favorite professors, Anakin slipped away from the crowd of chattering students to find his mentor calmly shepherding some new first year Ravenclaws. Of course, he was still incredibly diligent about his job- taking care to make sure they got on their way without getting lost. He just lacked that rigid demeanor that every other student seemed to carry with them or in Obi-Wan’s case, the kind he carried most of the time anyway. 

Anakin sighed as he considered the new students. It was hard to believe that it had been an entire year since he was in their shoes. They were so young, so unknowing, so naive. They could learn a lot from him.

“Did you need something, Anakin?” Obi-Wan looked over at him. 

“Oh, I was just seeing if you needed help rounding up the little kids.” He said casually, “Seeing as I probably know this castle better than most at this point.”

Despite the quirk that pulled at his mentor’s usually serious mouth, Anakin knew Obi-Wan couldn’t exactly contest the point with all of Anakin’s misadventures through the secret tunnel system. 

“I’m sure you heard that the tunnels are open for public transit now.” He said, “And are guarded at all times by enchanted suits of armor so as to prevent any mischief.”

Anakin did hear that, but he didn’t appreciate the way Obi-Wan took care to cast an accusatory look at him when he said the word mischief, even if it wasn’t entirely misplaced. He also didn’t voice his obvious disappointment that the tunnels were no longer just his little secret that he shared with Palpatine and Rex. With everyone knowing, they basically just became additional glorified hallways. 

“Well, everyone should be thanking me for finding them quicker ways to get to and from class then.” He said with a nod.

Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer with what would no doubt be a well-timed sarcastic reply, but was cut off by a loud “WOOP” and cheer of Anakin’s name by a third year Ravenclaw named Jax Pavan, who was merely passing by. This was soon followed by his friend, a Hufflepuff named Tru Veld’s, own loud acknowledgement of Anakin. 

“Hey guys!” Anakin waved and beamed at them. 

“My my, you’ve certainly gained some instant popularity.” Obi-Wan said once the boys passed down the moving staircases. 

Anakin shrugged like it wasn’t as big of a deal to him as it was. After all, he’d never been popular before. Hearing Obi-Wan admit it made it feel like he had pop rocks in his stomach. It was confirmation.

“Well, word does travel fast.” Anakin said with the wave of a hand at another passing fan, “I am just choosing to embrace that fact for once.”

“As long as you don’t allow it to interfere with your studies.” Obi-Wan said sternly, “Even chosen ones need to pass their classes.”

“We’re not even through the first week of school and you’re already lecturing me?” Anakin complained, “You’re worse than Windu.”

“Just because I’m no longer technically your mentor doesn’t mean I don’t have your best interest in mind.” Obi-Wan said with a shrug.

“Oh, that’s right, so that means I no longer technically have to listen to you anymore.” Anakin puffed out his chest in pride at deducing that one. 

“I’m still a prefect, Anakin.” He deadpanned, “The only thing that’s changed between us is I am now in the jurisdiction of being able to give you detention should you require it.”

He remembered his detentions with Windu with the disdain of someone that was never going to get those hours back. He really did not want to repeat the same strokes and end up there again. Plus, he quite liked having Obi-Wan as his mentor. While innately powerful and necessary to the fate of the universe, Anakin still couldn’t quite figure out how to scribe the perfect essay.

“I suppose it would be quite lame if I don’t score high marks.” Anakin reasoned, “Being the chosen one and all.”

“If I’d known a prophecy would have gotten you to do your homework on time, I would have taken up poetry at some point last year.” He said.

“You’re telling me you haven’t been reading that goofy stuff this entire time?” He asked.

Obi-Wan cracked a smile and gestured his hand out, neither confirming nor denying this. He wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest. Obi-Wan was always discussing archaic books with Satine or Qui-Gon, “Now, Mr. Chosen One, I highly recommend you see your way off to your Defense Against the Dark Arts class.”

His uniform was pressed and perfect as ever- complete with a prefect button shining from being recently polished and shoes that endured the same fate. There wasn’t a hair out of place on his well-sculpted head and there didn’t appear to be any tension gripping at his form. That being said, Obi-Wan had clearly gone through a bit of a growth spurt over the summer and was even taller than he was last year, making him appear longer and lankier. 

However, Anakin liked to think he could read him pretty well and saw none of the usual signs of unease: no tight frown, clenched jaw or hands, red ears, or intense calculative stare. Instead, he just seemed full of pure duty and focus. 

Yes, Obi-Wan was far too serene for someone that stood a lot to risk with being ripped from school after the parent conferences. Everyone knew he was in the running for Head Boy and Anakin didn’t even fully understand the significance for such a title besides the fact that it was a big deal to wizards. 

“But what about the first years?” He complained, “You might need my help.”

“Professor Fisto might be new, but he’s no fool. He’d never believe I require the assistance of a second year to accomplish such a feat. Besides, I think I can handle escorting a lost child or two. I certainly had no issue getting you to class.”

Well, Anakin had fallen down a staircase on his first day, but he’d had worse days in the past.

“You know, you seem awfully chill.” Anakin finally accused him with narrowed eyes and an outstretched pointed finger.

“I’m always chill!” Obi-Wan objected with a slight crack in his voice, but even the word chill sounded foreign coming from his mouth. Perhaps, this was because it was not usually a word so readily used to describe him. 

“One, no you’re not.” Anakin countered, “And two, everyone in school is freaking out about their parents coming and pulling them out of Hogwarts. I figured this would have you written all over it as far as panic attacks go.”

“Contrary to popular belief, I see no reason for concern,” Obi-Wan said simply and earnestly. 

Still, Anakin stared at him for a long moment to try and look for any of the indicators that he was lying. He didn’t know exactly what to look for with the ever-trained Obi-Wan, but he’d seen enough cop shows to know there were always tells.

He placed a hand on his shoulder, “Anakin, I appreciate your consideration, but really, I’m alright. I do not believe my parents would see any place as a better fit for me than Hogwarts. After all, my family has been in attendance since the first generation of students.”

“Your family is that old?” Anakin couldn’t even trace back to his grandparents on either side, let alone know what his forefathers were doing back in their day. Based on his minimal impression on Obi-Wan’s family, he couldn’t decide if that was a positive or negative thing.

“It certainly has its legacy.” He said instead, but shook his head before devolving into what would surely be a very robotic history lesson, “And besides, my parents are far too busy to just drop everything for a school event. They’ve got much to keep up with the family business.”

That would explain why the Kenobi’s were never at any Quidditch matches, but Anakin had never made such a connection until now. While the sixth year prefect didn’t sound or seem the least bit sad over this, Anakin still felt a bit bad. Even if he was nervous about what she might say should she learn of his incident with Dooku, Anakin was still excited to show his mum his bunk, classrooms, and Quidditch locker. 

Even if he was grown up, he still liked having someone who took the care and time to worry about him. Absently, he wondered why Obi-Wan wouldn’t want that too. 

As he stepped foot into DADA, which would conclude his day, he shrugged off the concern, realizing not for the first time that Obi-Wan was a great deal older than him. Perhaps, worrying about such frivolous matters wasn’t in his coding.

***

“Are we sure bringing all of the parents on property is such a good idea, Headmaster?” Mace Windu asked from his position across from Yoda. As usual, Gryffindor’s head of house never opted to sit, though Yoda always offered it to him. Sometimes, he believed that the former auror liked having him crane his neck even further to look at him. However, the wiser part of Yoda understood that Mace was simply always on the move. 

He had been the most uneasy about the decision to open Hogwarts’ doors to the parents, feeling that they were simply opening their dirty laundry to those that might blow it out of proportion.

“Their children live here for the greater part of the year, Professor Windu.” Sheev Palpatine said carefully, “Should they not feel secure in that decision?”

Mace bristled, “I understand that, Professor, but hosting guests feels a bit like welcoming trouble into our lair so soon after we’ve just increased security.”

“And you believe the parent of one of our students is capable of evil?” Palpatine asked, still maintaining his persistent sense of calm that was often needed in these weekly meetings. 

“One of our own was capable, Sheev.” Windu shot back, “No one is above suspicion.”

“I can’t completely disagree with Mace.” Qui-Gon voiced for the first time. Though this was his first year as Ravenclaw’s head of house, this was not the first meeting he’d attended. It only seemed natural now.

Windu, just as everyone else, seemed surprised by this.

“It’s been known to happen every once in a while.” Qui-Gon smirked at the beguilement of the room, “We aren’t entirely sure who we can and can’t trust. One thing was made clear from last year: Anakin Skywalker is the chosen one, which means attempts on his life will be made.”

“Exactly,” Windu nodded firmly, “We don’t know who Dooku’s got working for him. It could be anyone.”

Unfortunately, they didn’t know much about Dooku’s plots for evil in general. After a relentless search that spread across the entire summer and alerting all aurors to remain on the highest level of awareness since the darkest of ages, it seemed the outed Sith lord who called himself Tyranus had disappeared into the shadows.

Yoda knew it was only a matter of time before he showed himself once again. 

Professor Shaak Ti sighed, “Of course I care for the boy’s safety, but is this school not the safest place for him? I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors. If enough parents pull their children from Hogwarts, we don’t have a school.” 

“And think of the poor muggle borns, who would otherwise have nowhere else to learn magic.” Palpatine said.

“I understand that fears must be assuaged,” Qui-Gon said, “If we lead with fear, we’ve got no true ammunition towards the building Sith offense. We simply do not have the luxury of denying that a darker time is approaching and we must do everything in our power to prevent it.”

“Including gaining the favor of the parents, most of whom, Hogwarts is their alma mater as well.” Shaak Ti said. 

“Why can we not hold these conferences in the office space in Diagon Alley as we’ve done when there were concerned parents before?” Windu asked. 

“Comforting, transparency can be,” Yoda said firmly, “Unsettling, secrets are, but correct, all of your concerns are as well. Prepared for the worst, we must be.”

“And how do we do that if we swing our doors wide open?” 

“Preemptive actions, I have taken.” Yoda nodded, “On duty, officers from the Ministry of Magic will be.”

Former aurors, the toughest of which, rarely fully retired if they hadn’t fallen on the job. It had thankfully been a fairly peaceful age up until the previous year, meaning there were more surviving aurors than in the history of the Ministry. Some went into teaching, as Dooku and Windu had, but most went into security for the Ministry or freelance. Yoda had been sure to nab the best of the best to preserve and protect their school in this uncertain time. 

“Headmaster, as much as I support the notion of protecting our students, that might further instill the notion of fear in the parents.” Palpatine offered.

“Undercover, they will be. Unseen, unless necessary.” 

Yoda prayed they would not be.

***

Satine truly didn’t have the time of day to be nervous for parent conferences. That was due to the fact that she was far too busy being absolutely elated over the whole idea. She’d done extensive reading on the history of Hogwarts (from none other than Hogwarts: A History) and in all its time of schooling, muggles had never set foot within its gates. This meant that even when something as tragic as a student death happened, the parents were not permitted on the grounds to retrieve their child if they were of muggle descent. Such rules changed to simply stating that no parents could step within Hogwarts, but were often danced around by pure and half-bloods, whose parents sometimes came to the Quidditch pitches to watch their matches. 

While she never did (and wouldn’t ever) play Quidditch, she wouldn’t have minded an excuse to drag her mum to at least see the school her daughter had been dedicating time to. Even the graduation ceremony had always occurred in a field discrete enough to shroud the outline of the castle in the distance. This meant that it took a great leap of faith for muggles to send their children away to a school they’ve never so much as seen. Luckily, Hogwarts was extremely reputable and in Satine’s case, witches and wizards were very convincing.

She smiled fondly at the memory of when she first received her letter.

“Did you hear they’re pushing back Quidditch tryouts this year?” Cody complained around a mouth full of eggs. 

“You might have mentioned it once… twice… or what is it, Satine?” Obi-Wan turned to her wryly.

“I’d say we’re rounding on the fifteenth time.” She answered after some thought. “This morning.”

Both laughed, but Cody was far too cross over the matter to join in on their jest. Instead, he continued muttering under his breath about the injustice of it all and how this was going to set them back significantly.

“A load of hogwash it is.”

“It’s only for a week.” She offered as the owls fluttered through the windows, carrying the first batch of letters from home for many expecting witches and wizards. As a carefully sealed letter fluttered in front of her, thanks to her faithful and beautiful snow owl, Copikla, many others followed for the students around her. She gently ran a finger along the belly of the fluffy bird as she used her other hand to peel open the envelope.

She grinned at her mother’s beautiful cursive handwriting and felt an immediate sense of warmth wash over her as someone would when ingesting a pepperup potion. Hogwarts was definitely her home, but sometimes she did yearn to have her two worlds come together- or at least, the better parts of both. 

“I think my mum is just as excited as I am to have her at Hogwarts.” She said brightly, still scanning her eyes across the page, “You know, to finally get the chance to see everything I’ve been dribbling on about for years.”

“You? Dribble on? Never.” Obi-Wan teased as he opened his own elegant envelope, which was naturally enclosed with a green Kenobi family crest sealed at the back.

“My dad would have loved to see our tryouts! Show the parents what the kids are really doing out there!” Cody grumbled as he read his own letter, which was written in much choppier and hurried script, “Now, all he’s going to want to talk about are my grades.”

She wasn’t even sure how he read his letter with how much his burgundy old owl, Fox, crumbled the page.

“You’re not worried he’ll deem Hogwarts unsafe?” Satine asked, “Even I discussed with Qui-Gon a contingency plan where he assures my mother of my safety here. He’s quite convincing in that manner.”

“Hell no!” Cody barked, “When I told my dad about the Zillo Beast, his first question was asking if I fought it myself. I suppose my older brothers have already given him enough heart attacks at this point for him to be too bothered.”

“Your dad would light this place ablaze if anything happened to you and you know it.” She said firmly, “He just knows you’re capable of handling yourself.”

“And he’s right.” Cody said, “I’d just rather show him that on the Quidditch pitch and not in a one-on-one conference with Windu.���

“I think they’re worried the muggle parents might see their children getting knocked several meters to the ground without any safety net.” Satine said, “Need I remind you that your sport has literally seen people dead?”

“Not in like… Three years.” He counted on his fingers, “And even more so at Hogwarts!” 

“Ah yes, so comforting.” She rolled her eyes and turned to Obi-Wan, who’d suddenly fallen incredibly silent throughout this line of conversation, “I’m sure you don’t mind Quidditch being pushed off a bit, do you?”

He didn’t answer, though. Instead, he stared intently at the neatly unfolded piece of parchment in his hands, reading over and over the printed words as though he was having a difficult time understanding. This, of course, was incredibly unlikely since Obi-Wan was easily the fastest reader at Hogwarts. He even gave Qui-Gon a run for his galleons. 

“What’s their excuse this time?” Cody asked, though not without a careful edge to his voice, “Is the Wizengamot physically holding them captive? Or did a hoity toity banquet just spring up from nowhere? Perhaps they’re planning on falling ill that day?”

They’d grown used to a whole array of ridiculous and equally dismissive excuses for the Kenobi’s lack of involvement. Usually, Obi-Wan never seemed to mind much and would even play along to any jokes on the matter. However, he still sat completely unmoving, eyes unblinking and staring so hard at the paper that Satine felt he might burn a hole straight through the center.

She and Cody exchanged a worried look and she slid close enough to Obi-Wan on the bench to glance over his shoulder and read the letter for herself.

It wasn’t an extensive letter, contrary to how long it seemed to take Obi-Wan to read or fully comprehend, but Satine drew in a sharp breath.

“What is it?” Cody asked, dropping all pretenses of humor, “Is someone dead?”

“They’re… Coming.” She said slowly with every bit of disbelief that she felt ringing through her head. “They’re coming to the conferences.”

And there was little more that needed or could be said after that. All three sixth years sat and ruminated over what this could mean or why they were choosing now to show up. Obi-Wan’s father had been the prosecuting attorney on the Zillo Beast case, declaring the beast to be killed, but while he had delivered a scathing speech on the safety of the students being at risk, hadn’t said much on the matter since it disappeared.

In fact, as far as she knew, the search parties for the beast had stopped. It created a sickly feeling in the back of her mind, like either they’d done something to it in secret or the reason for its being left alive was to serve a different purpose. Either way, 97 meter-long creatures don’t just disappear easily and surely the muggles would have reported something by now had they taken notice of it. 

Her worry for the beast did not compare to her concern for Obi-Wan, who always acted differently around his parents- like he was trapped in a crafted disillusionment. It wasn’t his fault, of course. They were his parents; while Satine always tried to hold her tongue on her growing distaste for his family, sometimes they made it very difficult. 

“Ben?” She dared speech after a long moment of silence between the three of them. 

He had placed the parchment down, but his mind was going at a rapid speed, and if she had to guess: was calculating every second of the next week.

“If you’ll excuse me,” He said in an even tone, “I’ve much to prepare.” 

He swung one leg followed by the other over the bench, collected his belongings, and swiftly moved down the center aisle and towards the door before Satine or Cody could say anything else on the matter.

Cody sighed as he leaned on his forearms, “Good luck with that.”

She frowned, “And why is this solely my responsibility?”

He nodded towards the crest on her robe, “You see him a whole lot more than I do, mate. We both know that he’s going to be avoiding meals.”

That thought soured her spirits even more and she sighed deeply, causing the side bangs that framed her face to billow briefly in the air, “I suppose I’ll be taking his meals to-go for the week, won’t I?”

***

“AWE MAN!” Anakin exclaimed loud enough to echo through the emptying Great Hall. He slammed the fist that was not holding parchment onto the table. 

Artoo, who had been among the last of the owls to return with a letter, fluttered in surprise and concern at the outburst, to whom Anakin immediately placated with a gentle pat on his head.

“Sorry, Artoo,” He grumbled sullenly, “It’s not your fault.”

“What’s wrong?” Rex asked. He’d already begun to gather his things to start moving out of the Great Hall and on towards their Charms class, which already wasn’t the best start to Anakin’s day. 

Anakin sighed and moved to follow him, watching Artoo fly off with the other owls towards the owlery to harass the ever-sensitive Threepio, “My mum can’t make it to the conferences.”

“And that’s bad news?” Rex looked at him quizzically, “Me and my brothers are afraid of what the professors are going to say to our dad. Not having him come would cure all of our headaches.”

“The term just started!” Anakin protested, “Even I haven’t fallen behind on homework yet.”

“Sure, but you really think Windu is keen on keeping his trap shut about the antics from the previous year?”

“Maybe,” Anakin shrugged, “I think he still feels sorta bad for making me think he was going to kill me.”

Rex considered that and nodded, “I’m just saying, I love my dad dearly and wouldn’t trade him for all the galleons in the world, but mixing parents and professors just seems like a disaster waiting to happen.”

“I can’t believe they’ve never done conferences before.” Anakin said, “What if a parent is worried their kid is failing?”

“They have them off-site sometimes if pre-arranged by the parent.” Rex explained, “Or if a child is being particularly rambunctious. Fives told me Sebulba’s parents have met with the Headmaster.”

“A lot of good that did.” He muttered.

They moved past the slippery Dug, who was currently taking to firing enchanted spit balls at passing students with Ody and Groff. A few girls vocally complained while some boys retaliated with crumpled paper balls. If he were in better spirits, Anakin might have involved himself, but was far too sullen over his mum being unable to come.

As they took their seats in Charms, Rex turned to him, “So, why can’t she come?”

“Work.” Anakin twisted his face into one of disgust, “For the foulest person on the planet.”

“I thought that was Dooku.”

“Dooku is the worst person on the planet,” Anakin explained, “But Watto is all-in-all just vile and disgusting. Inside and out.”

“And your mum works for him?”

“She says she does it to put food on the table, but she’s the best waitress around. I’m not sure why she needs to stoop so low.”

Rex sighed, “Well, I’m sorry she can’t come, mate. Maybe a different beast will attack the school this year and they’ll hold these sorts of meetings again.”

“I hope so.” Anakin said and then gave him a wry smile, “And if that happens, you know who to call.”

“Headmaster Yoda.”

He thumped him, “Me, you ninny!”

Rex rolled his eyes, “No offense, mate, but I’ll hold off on turning to you until you at least grow tall enough to look our enemies in the eyes.”

“Then why are you calling Yoda?” Anakin asked.

“Big personality, I guess.”

***

“Tell me whose brilliant idea it was to schedule the first Apparition class the night before Parent Day.” Cody yawned as all of the sixth years piled into the courtyard. The air was still muggy, even without the added presence of the sun, and crickets could be heard whistling in the grass surrounding them. 

“And at midnight,” Satine matched his yawn with one of her own and he wasn’t shocked to see she was cross. It was no secret that his friend didn’t do well with being awoken beyond her own readiness. Even that was pushing it, “I thought we were through with this malarky first year with Astronomy.” 

“It’s the only time we were guaranteed a free slot in our schedules.” Kenobi, easily the freshest looking and the only one dressed in uniform, supplied. It was quite likely that he wasn’t able to sleep anyway with the impending conferences in the morning. 

“Don’t they understand the concept of beauty rest?” Ventress scowled as she trudged not far behind them- hair askew, makeup smeared, and bags under her eyes making her sockets look hollow.

“You’ll need more than sleep.” Cody grimaced, which earned him a sharp glare.

“Do try to avoid poking the beast.” Kenobi jested dryly, “Particularly at feeding hour.”

“If either of you were to accidentally apparate into an active volcano, that might just make my year.” The pale witch spat and then scoffed as Professor Windu moved through where she and Cody stood briskly taking the center of the courtyard. “And you can bring him with you.”

“He doesn’t look any more pleased about it than you do,” Satine said, but then frowned as she took another look at Ventress, “Well, maybe not.”

“What good is it that you even take this course?” Ventress twisted up her face in disgust at Satine, “Hadn’t you muggles fancied yourselves too good for convenience in your plaything means of transportation?”

“Are you referring to planes, trains, and automobiles?” Satine rolled her eyes, “Operating those require a great deal more skill, I promise you that.”

“Oh, I’m sure, Duchess. Why not go learn to operate those instead?” She grumbled with crossed arms, “And spare us of your pointless lectures and comparisons.”

“I’m going to consider myself grateful that we haven’t shared classes in a while,” Satine sighed, too tired to take the bait, though Cody did notice she sidestepped that line of conversation. Unlike Ventress, the prospect of learning to pilot a vehicle was incredibly interesting to him. If Kenobi weren’t intent on brooding at the horizon, it would have interested him too.

“Alright, class, I know it’s late, but this is the only time we had for our first lesson.” Professor Windu explained.

“Does this mean not all of these classes will occur at such a late hour?” Lyra Prime asked from the corner opposite to them. Upon looking around, Cody noticed that no one was particularly enthusiastic about being out so late. He knew a couple of second year Gryffindors that would jump at the prospect, but he guessed this is what growing up looked like: pure exhaustion.

“Not all of them will,” Professor Windu said, “Nor will they occur as regularly as your normal classes. I do not want to detract from your studies with this course.”

“Just from our sanity,” Cody murmured to Satine, who nudged him in retaliation. 

“Tonight, we won’t be doing anything crazy. I know we’ve all got a busy day tomorrow, but one thing you’ll learn quickly outside these walls is that life doesn’t wait for anyone. Ever.” Windu, even if tired, had the uncanny ability to sound like he was delivering the final remark on a rollercoaster of a court drama. 

Cody wasn’t that disappointed about being here, really. Once his eyes blinked awake a bit more and he got used to it, he would likely be happy. He’d been excited to apparate since he first came to Hogwarts, after all. Most of the attendees were, save for possibly Ventress, who wouldn’t be excited for anything that didn’t involve dismemberment. Or at least, that’s the conclusion he’d drawn.

Of course, Windu sure had a way of sucking the excitement from the air.

“Where are we going tonight, Professor?” Eeth Koth asked.

“There will be no apparition tonight, Mr. Koth. These first few sessions will be about determining if you can handle the responsibility of apparition. Then and only then, once you showcase your knowledge and respect for the law and the intricacies of it, we’ll practice.”

“This class might as well have been run by you.” Cody said to Kenobi this time, “This is going to be boring as all hell.”

Kenobi only shrugged, likely not bothered or surprised like many of the students were. Cody was just irritated that this was going to be yet another thing he had to study for this year. His dad was definitely going to have questions about that.

“Everyone pair up!” He was unsurprised to turn and find Satine had already claimed the somber Kenobi for herself. 

He frowned as he looked at Zeb. “Why are you taking this now? You took it last year.”

“Doesn’t mean I passed,” The purple Lasat said gruffly, “Wanna partner up?”

Cody sighed. Sometimes, being in a group of three did have its disadvantages.

***

Obi-Wan probably would have signed up for the setup taskforce for “Parent Day” without the obvious obligation of his own parents’ imminent attendance. Such a team took care to assist the professors in making the school not only sparkle for its guests, but appear as safe and functioning as possible.

Well, as possible for a magical school. He noted that they kept the moving staircases as well as allowed the ghosts to wander about. However, he wasn’t sure there was much that could be done about them anyway. Most of the parents would have presumably gone to Hogwarts as children and knew what to expect. He supposed they just needed to see that the attack of the beast hadn’t left any glaring scars. 

He wouldn’t be mentioning to any of them that he still sometimes subconsciously felt the way the astronomy tower shook that fateful day the Zillo Beast escaped.

He really wouldn’t be mentioning that day it escaped to his parents.

“I’m sure you know by now that breakfast doesn’t begin for another hour.” Qui-Gon said the morning of the event. 

“Would you believe me if I said I had first patrol?”

“No.” Qui-Gon said with the barest hints of a smile. 

Obi-Wan had risen before anyone else in his house to get a headstart on the day- performing any last minute touch-ups on his section of the boys’ dormitory in the event that his parents wanted to see how Obi-Wan’s been managing. He was grateful that he’d learned long ago how to contort his more frivolous belongings so they were unnoticeable in his trunk. Still, just to be safe, he moved them over to Cody’s dorm so as to make the optimum impression.

Besides, Obi-Wan hadn’t slept too well all week and was of much better use preparing. He thought about what they would talk about and tried to prepare for every possible situation. They were brief and concise people just as they were busy. He had his doubts that they would stay the entire day, which truthfully, he was betting on. 

He gestured to the towel that was in his hand, “I just figured I would get the jumpstart on taking a bath to prepare for the day.”

“And why do I gather the suspicion that you won’t be at breakfast at all?” Qui-Gon asked with crossed arms.

“Because I’ll eat later.” Obi-Wan waved him off, “You’re up early too.”

“You know I don’t sleep.” He was teasing, but there was definitely some truth to that statement. For an optimistic moment, Obi-Wan considered if this was where he adopted this bad habit. To be fair, Obi-Wan had been eating at least semi-regularly through his focus. Somehow, plates of food just ended up near him that came from seemingly nowhere. Of course, Obi-Wan had his theories, but not much time to ponder them. 

“Like everyone else, I’m simply trying to put my best foot forward and impress my parents today.” Obi-Wan answered the unasked question in Qui-Gon’s eyes, though it felt a bit like he was guessing at it, since without a trace of natural sunlight, it was difficult to tell in merely candlelight. “And what of you? Are you afraid for the fate of the school?”

Qui-Gon frowned, “No, because I imagine most halfblooded and pureblooded families would still allow their children to attend.”

“That result would play straight into the Sith ideology.” Obi-Wan sighed and felt a new form of panic settle over him at the thought of Satine’s mum not allowing her to continue going to school at Hogwarts. He loved school, but he would love it a great deal less without her.

“Well, welcoming muggles through our doors certainly isn’t.” Qui-Gon said with a firm nod and placed a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder, “Keep your chin up, Obi-Wan. The only thing your parents should discredit you for is perhaps your sleep schedule.”

Obi-Wan shifted, “They don’t discredit me. They are just quite particular in their vision for my future. They just want what’s best for me.”

“As parents should,” Though it seemed like Qui-Gon was walking on eggshells and it was not for the first time in this line of conversation, “Just be sure that you are also being mindful about what’s best for you.”

Obi-Wan didn’t quite understand that. He was always trying to secure himself a successful future. He wouldn’t describe himself as solely self-serving, but he did think a lot about his life going forward and how he would try to make his parents proud. Their pride always felt good and allowed him to know he was doing something right. 

“I will, sir.” He said with a nod, and backed away to head towards the prefect bathroom as initially intended, “I might bring them by your office later.”

“I would like to finally meet the parents behind one of my favorite students.”

“One of?” Obi-Wan teased, “Satine isn’t around, professor.”

“At this time of morning? I know.” He snorted.

***

At exactly twelve noon on the dot, the harmonious bells gonged from their respective tower, alerting both students and faculty that Parent Day was to begin. Because there was no excuse to be tardy with the help of magic, the parents appeared from seemingly nowhere just as the doors to Hogwarts swung open.

Prefects, expectedly, still had their duties even with the sudden influx of adult supervision. Unlike most afternoons, students were required to sit with their houses in the Great Hall so as to make the process of parents finding their children easier. Prefects, meanwhile, stood aside and took on the task of guiding the befuddled muggles where they needed to go. 

Satine took her tasks quite seriously and was sure to pass a sharp glare to shut up any smarmy student that tried to make fun of the awe that filled the muggle parents’ eyes. It was preposterous, really, because every student- regardless of lineage- was awestruck at one point or another when they entered the Great Hall for the first time.

In fact, even the wizarding parents had that warm glow in their gaze as you might when walking down memory lane. Hogwarts had once been their home and for a brief moment, Satine wondered if they saw themselves in the students that sat at their respective tables- or if they noticed all that had changed. 

She wondered how she would feel when she returned after graduation should she have any children of her own.

They certainly wouldn’t be little bastards like Sebulba, who fancied himself something special now that he was a fourth year.

“Sebulba, if you don’t get that tongue away from Tiplar, I will be confiscating it.” She scolded.

“Is that a threat or a promise, Kryze? I’m not usually one for blondes, but Sebulba likes what he sees.” He waggled what she assumed would be eyebrows, but they couldn’t be seen beneath the goggles he wore over his eyes. 

“I’d say such disrespect warrants 5 points from Slytherin.” Fenn Rau said airily as he appeared next to Satine. She turned in surprise to find him at all, actually, but was even more startled by the gust of wind to her right. 

“More like 10 points from Slytherin.” said Obi-Wan, who had his fists balled at his side, “And should you continue this flagrant disrespect for personal space and authority, I will have no problem extracting you from this event in front of your parents as well as explain to them why Slytherin is falling behind in the house race.”

“Funny, I’d always known you to be the gentler prefect, Kenobi.” Rau said with a smile at Satine, “Not that it wasn’t deserved, of course.”

“I take the treatment of my fellow prefects very seriously.” Obi-Wan said sternly and if Satine didn’t know better, she’d say his chest was puffed out a bit, but he never kept his eyes off Sebulba, who looked like he debated on saying something else until he caught the intensity of Obi-Wan’s glare.

Sebulba snapped his trap shut so fast it made a clicking noise that she’d never heard, but Satine’s focus was more trained on the venom that seemed to pour from every feature of her best friend. She’d never seen him behave like this before and couldn’t quite explain what it was. There was tension, of course, which she expected from him on such a day, and disgust, which Sebulba obviously warranted. There was also protectiveness, which part of her naturally batted against, because she could discipline a simple sleazebag on her own and certainly didn’t need his interference. However, a smaller and more elusive part of her welcomed it.

He stared at Sebulba until the suddenly shy Dug had the good sense to turn away and duck his head down to avoid Obi-Wan’s silent fury. Satine led them a few meters away by gently tugging him on the arm from Rau and Sebulba. 

“You know,” She kept her voice low, “I could have handled that myself.”

“I am aware of that. Perhaps, I was merely sparing Sebulba from your wrath.” He replied rather cheekily, which she was surprised as she expected him to be reticent today of all days.

“Is that all?” Still, she had to play along, “Need I remind you that I’m a pacifist?”

“Not when you remind me every day,” He quipped, “But you are also quite ruthless when you wish to be.”

“I thought you liked that about me.” She dared.

“I do.” He said immediately and then reassessed his approach, “Just because you can handle something does not mean you should have to.”

That familiar fondness tickled at her chest again and she found she couldn’t look at him for much longer without flushing completely red. He wasn’t looking directly at her either, which made for an easier task of diversion.

“I suppose chivalry isn’t completely dead then.” She said.

“Especially when prats like Sebulba are involved.” He said.

“So?” She pressed, “Just felt like blowing off some steam?”

“Something like that,” He flickered his gaze to her before casting it back to the masses that still poured through the building, likely trying to spot and see if anyone needed assistance. Despite the overwhelming sense of uneasiness that plagued the school for the week leading up to the event, children seemed overjoyed to actually see their parents so soon. Even the gruffer students, like Zeb Orrelios, who played tough during the day, ran into their mother’s arms and allowed themselves to be enveloped without question. 

She noticed Obi-Wan’s gaze was fixed on a rather touching display between a young Hufflepuff first year and his parents and how elated they seemed to all be together in that moment.

When he felt her stare, he snapped his eyes forward towards the door and nodded with a little smile on his face. She followed where his gaze had fallen and felt her own mouth twitch into a grin. A woman strutted in, long and lean just like her, and held herself with a confident strength that was so binding that not a single wizard likely deemed her a muggle. 

“Mum!” She moved at her own accord, letting Obi-Wan fall back as she pulled the taller woman into a tight embrace. It had only been two weeks since she’d last seen her, but she always missed her mother.

“Hello, darling.” 

“I’m so glad you’re here.” Satine said, feeling quite like a first year as she said it. 

“You were right, Satine, this place is fantastic.” Her mum said after they separated.

It always baffled Satine how her mother could maintain such ethereal beauty at all times- all the while maintaining a strength that she longed to possess. One did not raise their three children (including an actual witch) on their own for the past seven years and not be a force of nature.

“Isn’t it?” She beamed, “I’m looking forward to showing you everything!”

“Let’s get this over with.” A voice that was teetering on the edge of a whine said from behind them. 

She was so distracted by the joy she was experiencing from seeing her mum that she almost missed the second and shorter figure that lingered behind her. 

Satine cocked her head to the side in confusion and met the scrutinizing glare of eyes that always reminded her of green tea in color. However, while they used to be as bright as the rolling fields of the countryside in a fresh spring, there was something menacing about them now.

“Oh, you’ve brought Bo.” She tried not to sound disappointed, though internally cringed at how clear she had failed at that account. It wasn’t that she disliked her sister. In fact, the two used to be incredibly close as children. It was that Satine really did not feel like spending the entire day under intense judgment, especially when her kid sister decided she disliked nothing more than magic.

“I did.” Her mother said warily, which sounded like a warning for the both of them to get along. In Satine’s defense, she always tried. “With your brother away at university, there was no one around to stay home with her.”

“I’m not some dumb dog that needs to be watched,” The fiery-haired tween grunted with arms crossed over her chest, “I’m going to be 13 next month! I’m practically an adult.”

“I’ve not forgotten.” Satine said carefully, “Though I still can’t believe how much you’ve grown.”

“An easy thing to miss when you’re busy spending all of your days playing voodoo in this cold castle.” Bo complained and looked all around her, easily the only person to ever walk through Hogwarts for the first time and be unimpressed. “What kind of name is Hogwarts anyway?”

“Behave, Bo-Katan.” As beautiful as Ruusaan Kryze was, she was also formidable.

“It literally means pig pimples.” It was a shame Bo was as unrepentant as ever. 

They hadn’t seen much of each other over the summer, save for the final two weeks when Bo returned from summer camp. However, she had been determined to spend as little time with Satine as possible, making it clear where she stood on her feelings. 

“Always a pleasure.” Satine muttered and turned, surprised to see Obi-Wan had approached them again and was suddenly relieved for the distraction from the rising tension that Bo-Katan brought with her wherever she went. However, she was amused to see that Obi-Wan seemed a bit antsy for some unforeseen reason. 

She placed a hand on his arm and smiled, “You remember my friend and fellow prefect, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mum.”

Something sparkled in her mother’s eyes as she clasped Obi-Wan’s outstretched hand, “It’s good to see you again, Ben.”

He smiled sheepishly and nodded, “And you, Ms. Kryze. I hope you’ll find Hogwarts fit to your daughter’s exceptional talent.”

Her mother laughed, “Oh, I’m sure I will. Satine speaks very highly of Hogwarts, adventures and all.”

“And of you.” Bo commented and looked Obi-Wan up and down as though she was ready to go in for the kill. Satine would not put her above doing so. “Though I don’t see what’s so great about you that warrants droning on and on in her diary-”

“-Anyway!” Satine gritted and fixed Bo-Katan with her most lethal stare, “Let’s proceed with a tour.”

“Er, yes.” Obi-Wan said, clearly befuddled by the change of pace and hopefully not by the way Satine looked like she swallowed a jalapeno every flavor bean. However, he recovered and smiled genially at Satine’s mother, “I will see you all later for dinner.”

“Ah, you’re not coming along? Satine says you know this castle inside-out. So much so that you made a map!”

“Right down to the murderous slaughter chambers, no doubt.” Bo muttered, but was silenced by a warning look in her mother’s eyes. 

Satine and Obi-Wan exchanged an uncomfortable stare, before laughing awkwardly as if what Bo-Katan insinuated was so ridiculous. To be fair, the year prior, it would have been, but with Dooku recently outing himself as a Sith lord as well as an actual Sith temple that lay decimated below, it wasn’t completely out of the question. Who knew what lay within the walls of Hogwarts that they hadn’t yet uncovered?

“I may have made the map, but I’m sure she’s also mentioned some of my questionable artistic choices.” He smiled at Satine, who shrugged. 

“It needed to be made known.”

He sighed, “And anyway, as much as I would love to attend, I must stay on guard for my own fam-”

“-There you are, Obi-Wan.” Mrs. Kenobi briskly stepped through Bo-Katan and Satine’s mother as though they were merely French doors that meant to be parted at her will. As always, she was dressed like she was attending the funeral of a very high-ranking politician. Her mood did not look much cheerier in comparison. 

“Yes, we made the mistake of checking Slytherin’s table first.” His father, who matched his wife in demeanor and in maudlin fashion choices, trailed behind with the airs of constant disappointment clinging to him. Of what, Satine could and would never understand so long as she lived.

“We had assumed you would be with Ventress, but it seems she’s already off with her parents.”

“An easy mistake to make,” Obi-Wan cleared his throat and Satine could once again see that tightness return. Had they been in a different setting, she would have reminded him to take a breath.

“More like wishful thinking.” His mother said dryly before finally seeming to notice that Satine and her family were even present. “After all, you always manage to surprise us with the company you choose to keep.”

“In all fairness, times are changing.” Mr. Kenobi drawled and Satine noticed he clutched his serpent-headed walking stick a little tighter. “I think it’s wonderful that Obi-Wan has diversified his entourage lest he not be branded as bigoted in these… Judgemental times.”

“Funny, that’s not the word I would use for it.” Satine said.

“Entourage?” Bo-Katan asked at the same time. 

“Indeed, we also take care to have a muggle or two in our artillery.” Mrs. Kenobi nodded as though neither Kryze girl had ever spoken, like this was a box that needed to be checked, “Of course, we befriend muggles of royalty or status-”

“-But muggles no less.” Mr. Kenobi sniffed and looked at Satine’s mother, “Seeing as Hogwarts has all but tossed the concept of privatization and prestige into the rubbish, I cannot place blame with Obi-Wan for having limits in who he chooses.”

“It seems to me that this dusty school needed a bit of change,” Satine’s mother raged.

“Mum-” Satine tried to cut in, but there was no use in stopping a Kryze woman when she was already lost to the throes of her own determination.

“-Because my daughter is anything but a token to be claimed like some sort of tax deductible. If you wizards even have taxes, that is,” She said, “I might not know everything about your culture, but make no mistake-”

“-But you, yourself, already have one on your hands, you see,” Mr. Kenobi said plainly, “Magical children born of the muggle world are just that by definition, alone.”

Mistakes.

“Father!” Obi-Wan cried out. 

“That’s not to say they don’t have their strengths.” Mrs. Kenobi added calmly, “I’m sure Saline-”

“-Satine.” Obi-Wan corrected with gritted teeth.

“Is very gifted for her type.” She said in what Satine could only assume was meant to be genial, “But what my husband says is true. You never meant to have a witch for a daughter, correct?”

“You cannot plan for something you do not know of.” Satine’s mother said, “But I’ll have you know, Mrs. Kenobi, that my daughter- the alleged mistake that you claim was never meant to exist, not only is gifted for her type, but is the top of her class. Neck and neck only with your son in terms of merit, isn’t that right, Satine?”

“It is.” Satine was suddenly wishing she wasn’t here right now, because as satisfying as it should have been to see her mother drive the Kenobi’s into the dirt (metaphorically speaking), the necessity for this conversation made her mouth feel dry.

This made the Kenobi’s flounder if only a little bit in shock, and looked to Obi-Wan for confirmation with a mixture of outrage and the clear attempt to cover their shock. Obi-Wan, of course, nodded in agreement with Satine’s mother. 

“Well, times certainly are changing.” Mr. Kenobi repeated in a dry tone. “Congratulations, my dear.”

It sounded as hollow as it felt.

“Yes, certainly… A victory for your people.” Mrs. Kenobi’s smile was so tight that Satine truly believed it would tear her face in two, “But we did not come to scrutinize over political differences.”

Satine clenched her teeth. “Political differences” seemed like a rich way of saying that the Kenobi’s believed Satine didn’t have a right to exist while Satine’s politics included just wanting to exist in peace.

“Oh really?” Satine’s mother asked, likely thinking the same thing. 

“We’re here to see Obi-Wan’s chosen mentee.” Mr. Kenobi nodded beyond all of them and towards Gryffindor’s table, where Anakin Skywalker sat alone.

Satine doubted the word chosen was accidental. 

***

Cody had all of his brothers lined up from oldest to youngest, just as his father preferred for the sake of remembering names. He took care to ensure that each was showered, dressed, and fed so that there was no messing around. Jango Fett, while a carbon-copy of each of the boys (but older), had a much less relaxed and more serious demeanor. The only one who fared like him in terms of personality was Boba, who Cody was shocked to see in attendance alongside his father, Hevy, and their eldest brother- who they called Ninety-Nine.

He supposed this made sense. There were four of them presently still in school and only one of Jango to attend all teacher conferences. It was enough to make Cody’s head spin. He just wondered who he was going to get. 

Worst case: Boba, best case: Hevy.  

Boba stood taller than their father- the only one to accomplish such a feat- with dark wavy hair that framed his sharp face and hung above his shoulders. He was easily the most muscular of their group, which was saying something, and always wore his military uniform whenever he could muster. He was the person that most professors turned their heads at, seeing as everyone believed Boba would involve himself in less legitimate dealings as an adult.

He noticed Hondo’s jaw drop in awe at the sight of Boba, which was proof enough of his reputation for smuggling. 

Hevy was the broadest and who Cody reckoned he looked the most similar to; though Hevy always sported a five o’clock shadow that Jango couldn’t stand. Cody wasn’t much for facial hair, even if he teased Kenobi about being able to grow a full beard while his friend could not.

And Ninety-Nine, their eldest and most revered brother, stood shortest- in part to the hump that caused him to slouch and require a cane- however, this did not stop him from walking the proudest towards his little brothers. Ninety-Nine was the best of them, in Cody’s humble opinion, with enough kindness to cover cities and a loyalty that would have made any Hufflepuff proud. He was wise as a Ravenclaw should be, braver than himself and all his other Gryffindors, and ambitious as the best of Slytherin house was. 

There was just one thing: Ninety-Nine did not have magical abilities. 

“Brothers!” Ninety-Nine was the first to greet them, a lopsided smile coloring his face, which could only move on the right side. He pulled Rex into a gentle hug first, “I’m so proud of all of you. The best of Gryffindor house!”

“Wait til you talk to their professors before you say that, mate.” Hevy grinned devilishly, tugging both of the twins into a headlock that made Boba roll his eyes disapprovingly.

“Uncle! Uncle!” Fives begged while laughing.

“Yeah, let us out of these meat sticks you call arms, Hevy.” Echo added, “There’s a reason that’s your nickname and isn’t because you’re teeny weeny.”

 “Boys.” Jango said sternly and each of them fell into line, including Ninety-Nine at the end. After pacing back and forth, inspecting each of them for missing or forgetting anything, he nodded, “At ease.”

They all dropped into more casual positions and Cody smiled at him, “Oi, Dad, I didn’t know you’d be bringing the whole team.”

Jango cracked a smile, “And let three of you get off easy? I think not.”

“Not when you lot are releasing beasts and tracking down Sith lords.” Hevy said.

Ninety-Nine nodded eagerly, “I heard you were at the heart of all that, Rexy.”

Rex grinned, likely happy to have some attention, which Ninety-Nine always had ample amounts of, “My best friend, Anakin and I, were.” 

“That’s me.” Anakin’s blond little head had popped somewhere in the midst of their huddle without anyone noticing. To be fair, the kid was small and their group was big. It was easy to forget who was and wasn’t a Fett sometimes. “I’m Anakin Skywalker.”

Jango and Ninety-Nine took care to shake his small hand while Boba nodded at him appraisingly. 

“I’ve read the news about you.” Ninety-Nine said, “Boy is all over the Daily Prophet! Never imagined my little brother would be tied in with the chosen one.”

“That he is.” Cody said, “These two get into more trouble than even the twins.”

“Hey!” Echo protested.

“Yeah, I resent that.” Fives added, “We had an off year. We hope to reclaim the throne again soon.”

“You can have it.” Rex sighed, “Last year was exhausting.”

“Alright, alright, enough of the chatter. We’re here for a reason and that’s to talk with all of your professors.” Boba said, “We’ve got to make sure your heads are not up in the clouds.”

“Cody.” Hevy crooned and the twins laughed.

Cody glared at him, “My head is right where it needs to be.”

“And it’s bigger than ever.” Rex teased with a smile.

“Careful, I’m the deciding factor that puts you on the Quidditch team or not.” Cody warned. 

Rex had the good sense to slink back at that. Yeah, Cody wasn’t being entirely serious, because he knew Rex could play better than any of the new prospective kids that would be trying out, but he needed to humble the kid out every now and then. 

“Don’t listen to him, Rex.” Ninety-Nine smiled softly, “He would love to have you play.”

***

It wasn’t enough that Anakin’s mother wasn’t able to make it for Parent’s Day, but having to witness the intensely jovial reunion between all of the Fett’s was a lot to take in. He supposed it was for the best that his mother not confer with Windu about Anakin’s dealings of the previous year, but he still yearned for that sense of family atmosphere that everyone else got to have.

Then again, he would have time to reacquaint himself with the castle, perhaps seek out the coat of arms that would be guarding each tunnel. He figured Palpatine would allow him to hang out in his classroom if need be. 

Just as he was about to get up and remove himself from the fuzzy feelings that swirled around him, he was faced with the intimidating presence of the Kenobi’s, who strangely enough, looked at him with welcoming smiles.

“And you must be the wonderful boy our son has told us so much about.” Obi-Wan’s mum said brightly. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

He’d technically met them before, but perhaps, he’d caught them on a bad day. Everyone had those. He wasn’t too nice if he found himself eating a bad burrito or chili cheese dog. Who would be, anyway?

“Officially, that is.” His father corrected with mirth in his eyes, “I do apologize for any rudeness from our previous encounter. I have no excuse for our curt interaction, but I assure you, we meant no malice towards you.”

Anakin’s eyes flickered to Obi-Wan’s, who was standing off to the side and looking very out of place in this circumstance. In fact, he kept studying his parents as if they’d gone mad. Still, Anakin didn’t want to be impolite and reached out to shake their outstretched hand. 

“I’m Anakin. I was Obi-Wan’s mentee last year.”

“You sure were.” Mrs. Kenobi’s smile widened and it looked new on her face, but Anakin was happy to have put it there. She was a great deal less scary when she smiled and while his father did remind him of Dooku in appearance, seemed significantly friendlier as well. “I see what our son saw in you.”

“Yes, we’ve certainly heard of all your various talents.” He said.

“You did?” Anakin smiled hesitantly, “Did he tell you about Dooku?”

“Oh, you know Obi-Wan. He’s so stoic and shy.” His mother said, “We had to do a little digging of our own, but my my Anakin, you are something of a prodigy.”

He’d never heard that term to describe him before, but it made him light up with excitement. These upstanding, high-end, practically royal wizards noticed him. And not only that, saw his merit. Plus, this meant there were newspaper articles about Anakin floating around. 

“I am quite proficient in charms.” He admitted, though he didn’t want to sound too full of himself. 

“You would make a damn good auror one day,” Mr. Kenobi said excitedly, “Especially for conquering such odds last year,” He sat down beside Anakin at Gryffindor’s table, which made Obi-Wan’s eyes widen even more. It made him look a bit like a cartoon character in the moment. 

“I would love to meet your mother. She’s a wizard, no?” Mrs. Kenobi said, “To tell her what a magnificent and brave little boy she has on her hands.”

“Er, I hate to interrupt, but my head of house really was eager to meet you two-” Obi-Wan began, but was cut off by Anakin.

“-My mom isn’t here.” Anakin said glumly.

Mrs. Kenobi quite literally clutched her pearls in surprise, “Heavens! That’s awful. Is she alright?”

“She’s okay.” He said quietly, “Just working.”

“Working?” Mr. Kenobi said it like it was a foreign word, but then again, Anakin knew they were rich. Perhaps, there was very little work to be done even if you owned your own law firm. 

“She works at a small pub beneath our flat.” He said, “Anything to pay the bills, I suppose.”

“So, who’s going to attend your conferences in her place?” She asked.

Truthfully, Anakin hadn’t really thought of that bit. He’d been so wrapped up in the fact that his mum wouldn’t be present that he hadn’t considered that his professors might not love the lack of interaction on Anakin’s behalf. Headmaster Yoda had seemed quite passionate about it.

“No one, I guess.” He shrugged.

“Oh dear,” Mrs. Kenobi placed a hand on her husband’s shoulder, “That is simply not acceptable.”

“Indeed,” He said, “We will go in her place.”

“But what about-” Obi-Wan started.

“-Not everything is about you, Obi-Wan.” His mother placed two hands on Anakin’s shoulders, “This poor boy is new to this world and is likely very frightened of all the changes happening around him. You are top of your class and do not require the same level of concern. Do you not have prefect duties?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “I mean, I could patrol but I do take NEWTS next year and-”

“-It’s settled then.” Mr. Kenobi grinned at Anakin, “We will oversee your meetings to ensure you are receiving the proper levels of attention.” 

“Oh, thank you.” Anakin said, shocked, “I couldn’t ask you to-”

“-Nonsense.” He said, “Don’t mind Obi-Wan. He will be just fine. Right, my boy?”

Obi-Wan nodded curtly, “Right.”

“We are so proud of you for aligning yourself for this boy in need, my dear.” His mother said to her son, “You’ve done well.”

Strangely, Obi-Wan didn’t look like he had.

***

“Well, there goes the neighborhood,” Madame Ventress hissed to her daughter as both sauntered past Professor Qui-Gon Jinn’s office. It appeared he was currently in the midst of a meeting with that wannabe heiress Amidala’s family. Seeing as both Qui-Gon and Padmé were of pureblood descent, she knew her mother wasn’t referring to them, but the myriad of muggle families that were galivanting around the school like they owned the place.

Like this was some play place for them to mingle and take pictures as tourists. It was sickening to someone like Madame Ventress, whose family line extended through the earliest days of Hogwarts and cared a great deal for preserving its integrity.

Asajj Ventress, on the other hand, cared not for the trivial aspects of tradition. Infused in tradition was hypocrisy and she was learning more and more that the two could not be stripped from each other. 

“I think we can agree it’s been on a downhill slope for quite some time,” She offered in her own raspy voice. “Ever since they allowed muggle-borns to come to this school.”

“Indeed,” Her mother rolled her eyes at the thought before her frown deepened as they passed Dooku’s old office. Ventress caught her mother’s eye in curiosity, intrigued to find interest rather than loathing there. Publicly, everyone called the old fart crazy. It was hard not to. To throw away an entire career of fighting off dark wizards to simply become one? In his old age? It felt a little too late.

“What is it?” She asked her mother when they stopped walking. She was staring at nothing more than a closed door, after all. Sooner or later a professor or fellow prefect will find them here and have suspicion, even if it wasn’t necessary. 

After a long moment, she answered, “Regardless of his improper methods, perhaps he was not as crazy as the papers made him to be.”

“Is that so?”

“Times are ever changing, my dear,” She said slyly, “It is prudent that you always find a way to remain on top of them, before they occur, so as to be a visionary of them. That is our family’s way.”

It was true as it did remind her that even in her mother’s picturesque view of Hogwarts, where muggle-borns were deemed abominations and muggles were banned, that not even Ventress, herself fully belonged to that future. 

Not unless she took her mother’s advice in a direction of her own course. 

“I believe Professor Palpatine is waiting.” She said.

“Yes, of course, I do enjoy that man. That’s a proper example of a decent professor. I look forward to hearing that you have excelled to top of your class.”

Close, but Ventress wouldn’t be bringing that up right now. The iron gate of disappointment would have to clamber shut on her fingers another time, because they had meetings to attend and appearances to keep. 

Another day in the life of pretending to be someone she wasn’t. She cursed the putrid muggles that walked by her. How dare they invade her space? It wasn’t a space she even fully fit in its entirety, but it was still reminiscent of something tangible without their grimy little fingers getting in. Seeing them felt like a scathing reminder.

Perhaps, this was a good thing after all. 

***

“I can’t believe you even want to go to this school!” Bo-Katan’s loud voice echoed off the bathroom walls of the prefect bathroom. Satine had decided it was the safest place for her sister and her mother to let out any other grievances that they had. “You’re not even wanted here!”

“Not everyone is like them!” Satine huffed, though she was also reeling from the encounter with the Kenobi’s, “Ben’s not like that.”

“How would you know?” Bo countered, “You’re too busy going moon-eyed over him to notice much else about him. These wizards are bad news.”

“Now, now, Bo,” Satine’s mother placated, “There are good wizards as there are good people.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Bo rolled her eyes, “You heard them! They don’t think Satine belongs here either.”

“That’s not for them to decide and it isn’t for you to decide.” Satine gritted, “The point is I do belong here, because I believe so, and I’ve proved that by being top of my class.”

“You don’t have anything to prove.” Satine’s mother said, “You are allowed to just be.”

Satine could feel tears filling her eyes, but she shoved them down, refusing to give her sister the satisfaction of seeing her waver in her conviction. Instead, she took a deep and calming breath before saying, “To them, I do. And I always will. But in the muggle world, I’d be hiding. So, if I had to choose between hiding and proving, I will choose the latter every single time.”

Bo-Katan frowned, “Hiding? Like being a human is such a pitiful thing? Sorry we’re not all born exceptional, Satine.”

“I never said that,” She glared. “Because regardless of magic or not, I’m still human and at least I know how to act like it.”

“Alright, that’s enough.” Their mum stepped between them, “I’ll have no more of this bickering. You two used to be so close and your father would be so sad to see you no longer get along. We cannot change who we are or how we’re born, but we can change how we act. Now, I want you two to stop acting like those stuffy arseholes got to you, because they aren’t allowed to. Kryze women do not back down especially in the face of adversity. More importantly, they stick with their own. They protect their own.”

“Yes, they do.” Satine said firmly.

“Bo-Katan?” Their mother nudged her. 

Bo ducked her head to the side and didn’t give a committed answer, however, they were running late for the remainder of the meetings, and it was just going to have to do. 

***

Qui-Gon wasn’t quite shocked that Obi-Wan’s parents didn’t show for their meeting with him, but he was a bit befuddled to see them trailing Anakin Skywalker as they walked towards the hall, chatting it up quite fondly with none other than Professor Palpatine.

“Mr. and Mrs. Kenobi!” Qui-Gon forced a smile as he fought to catch up with them, even jogging to show for it. “I’m sorry to have missed you.”

Qui-Gon hated the politics that came with operating these sorts of events, but as head of house, he officially needed to be ensconced in them. Their wizarding world was ever-changing in a constant back and forth between different ideologies. Qui-Gon, of course, held his own, but knew he needed to behave a certain way to placate the less accepting lot of parents that would surely be expecting special treatment.

“And you are?” Mr. Kenobi asked slowly.

“Ah, yes, this is Ravenclaw’s new head of house, Qui-Gon Jinn.” Professor Palpatine explained warmly, “As we’ve discussed when speaking of Anakin’s brave heroics, Dooku’s unfortunate career change did leave us with an empty position. Luckily, Qui-Gon is more than up to the task of stepping in.”

“Hm, well, hopefully he doesn’t make it a continuing trend.” Mrs. Kenobi said archly, “What class do you teach, Professor Jinn?”

“Muggle studies.” He answered, but it was clear it had been the wrong one.

“Oh my... Things certainly are different from when we were in school, aren’t they, Professor?” Mr. Kenobi said, though he looked like he was a good generation older than his wife. In fact, he looked old enough to have been in Sheev’s year- whatever that was.

“That they are.” Palpatine said in good nature, “However, with the expansion of muggle students, there is a need for wizards to see how the other side lives.”

“I suppose there is validity in that,” Mrs. Kenobi debated, “Just makes me question where our donations are going.”

“I can understand those concerns, but I assure you, Hogwarts always has the best intentions for each of their students.”

As Qui-Gon’s eyes landed on Anakin, who just seemed like he was trying to keep up with this line of conversation, he couldn’t help but question that expression. Was having Anakin mixed in with all of these adults that were desperately grabbing for his attention the best for him? And did they really put their students' interests forward or the interests of the school as a whole? It was all so complicated, but now was not the time to bring up such matters.

“I only wanted to say that you have much to be proud of.” Qui-Gon said, “Your son is absolutely brilliant as he is kind and strong.”

“Yes, well, Kenobi’s settle for no less than the very best.” Mr. Kenobi said brusquely, “It is good to hear that he is meeting expectations.”

“And where is Obi-Wan?” Qui-Gon asked.

“Serving his duties as prefect.” His mother answered sternly, “No use in slacking for our account.”

“The prefects were dismissed from duty for the rest of the evening.” He said, “That’s why all professors are fulfilling these tasks instead.”

As they caught a glimpse of two of the Fett boys play-wrestling at the end of the hallway, Mr. Kenobi snorted, “Yes, and what a good job they’re doing.”

Qui-Gon bit his tongue and smiled. It seemed that was the best he was going to get from them for now, but didn’t see why Anakin needed to be with them too. Still, the boy didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, smiling brightly up at him.

“We were just talking about the Quidditch season and how Gryffindor is going to make a major comeback!”

“I would love to see you play sometime.” Mr. Kenobi said, “Seeing as you were scouted as a first year, no less.”

“So was Obi-Wan, right?” Anakin asked.

“Indeed, but Obi-Wan isn’t nearly as gifted as we’ve heard you to be.” Mrs. Kenobi said, “Though he does do what he can in a match. Shame the poor dear just doesn’t have a knack for it the way his father did.”

Anakin nodded sagely, “I’d love to show you some of my moves sometime.”

“What broom do you fly?” Mr. Kenobi asked.

“Uh, a brown one?”

Each of the adults save for Qui-Gon laughed, though he suspected Palpatine’s was inauthentic, and Anakin blinked up at them in confusion.

“Anakin uses one of the school issued brooms.” Qui-Gon explained, though he didn’t see what was so funny about not having the money to acquire something fancy. It certainly didn’t make the player.

“Oh, you’re serious.” Mrs. Kenobi said.

“And yet, Anakin is still the best beater that Gryffindor has ever seen.” Palpatine smiled, “He has even deflected shots with his eyes closed.”

“Now that I really must see.” Mr. Kenobi said.

“Great!” Anakin chirped, “Our first match is in November! We play Slytherin, of course.” 

Qui-Gon felt something twist in his stomach at the smiles exchanged by the Kenobi’s. Just what did they have in mind? And where was Shmi? Perhaps, he’d been wrong to assume that the risk on Anakin’s life would be solely that of an external force. 

Perhaps, it would be someone close and disguised as a friend.

***

Obi-Wan, for his part, was glad to see Parent Day finished. This was coming from someone who hardly had any interaction with his parents, which was likely for the best. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment that they didn’t get to talk to Qui-Gon. Surely, they would be impressed when he told them of his accomplishments. 

He’d figured out pretty quickly that the additional parents that “roamed the halls” were not parents and actually guards of some kind. Maybe, they were from the Ministry. He was unsure of their exact position, but was excited for their presence all the same. This, he was not surprised about. However, he was pleased to note that they weren’t necessary. No physical violence broke out during the entire course of the day, proving maybe that they could all get along for the right reasons. 

Emotional and verbal clashing did happen and he was ashamed to say that his parents took their fair share of cheap shots in this regard. He still cringed at what they’d said to Satine and hoped terribly that she didn’t believe he felt that way. 

They were dated views coming from pure ignorance, but his parents were powerful and capable. It was crushing to see that they didn’t always use that power for good.

And what was up with their interest in Anakin? Surely, it was because of his newly anointed glory that was already going to his head. They’d dropped Obi-Wan for him quicker than they could think of it. 

They had really told Anakin he would be a good auror. 

Did this mean they would think the same of him? He hadn’t told them of his plans yet, hoping to concoct a careful and calculative method to breaking this news. Then again, Anakin had no such responsibilities to uphold a family name. It wasn’t the same and it never would be. 

He’d done the honorable thing and attended each of his conferences alone, save for seeing Qui-Gon. He didn’t quite have it in him to explain what had happened- that his parents had all but came with the intention of being Anakin’s guardians vs. Obi-Wan’s. All of his professors were incredibly confused by Obi-Wan attending alone, claiming that it defeated the purpose, but most carried on anyway.

He had a stack of notes in the event that his parents asked for them, but doubted they would. Last he saw them, they were watching Anakin excitedly tell of how he discovered his prophecy, which to Obi-Wan, was information better kept to the chest. However, it was Anakin’s fate and the boy could do what he wanted with it.

No, he refused to feel any sort of jealousy or resentment towards him. It wasn’t Anakin’s fault that his parents were fawning all over him and it certainly wasn’t Anakin’s fault that Dooku had seen him fit for attack. 

Though, as Qui-Gon came into view and rested a fond hand on Anakin’s shoulders, proudly releasing a laugh of his own at something silly the boy must have said, Obi-Wan still felt a knot grow in his chest. It was pitiful of him, he knew, but he still couldn’t help but feel a bit left out.

He was distracted briefly by one of the secret “guards” who walked briskly by him, knocking into him a bit and stumbling, dropping their wand in the process. 

“Oh here, let me help you.” He offered. 

Obi-Wan leaned over to pick it up for them, but met bright blue eyes. These were not of the lovely variety, though, like he might say about Satine’s. These were artificial and something he’d only ever seen from a textbook.

They were enchanted.

“Are you alright?” He asked dumbly.

“Ayy-o-siss-ssah.” Was hissed back at him before he was launched across the room from a bolt of magic that exploded from her hands. He’d seen that once before from none other than Count Dooku. Although this witch did not speak of any magical words or phrases. She didn’t speak at all; just continued to hiss in a language that Obi-Wan heard from Anakin’s lips once before.

She was human, that much he could see, with rich brown skin that reflected brightly from beneath her dark cloak. 

He hit the back wall with a thunk, but wasted no time in whipping out his own wand to stop her.

Even in his stupor, he noticed a dark and ugly ink-pressed mark embedded in her wrist. His research told him exactly what it meant.

The Sith emblem.

“EXPELLIARMUS!” He yelled and fired back a volt of red energy towards his attacker, who ran at full speed towards where Qui-Gon and company sat. In more of a sense vs. pure knowing, Obi-Wan knew she was going after his mentee and would not allow it.

Luckily, whatever crack of magic he released at full force had drawn a bout of attention, and the enchanted witch went flying as well. Qui-Gon leapt to his feet and stepped in front of Anakin, guarding him of whatever danger would come to them. Obi-Wan’s parents, meanwhile, launched over to where the attacker lay unconscious on the floor.

“What is this nonsense?” His father asked.

Upon closer inspection, Obi-Wan realized the ink on her wrist looked fairly fresh in nature, like the wounds of the tattoo hadn’t yet healed in full. It was easier to tell when she wasn’t firing lightning at him. 

Everyone’s eyes flicked to Obi-Wan, whose head hurt terribly and was trying to play back the previous events back. It all seemed to happen so fast. Satine and Cody lingered on the side, clearly ready to launch themselves at him when afforded the proper chance. 

Headmaster Yoda came onto the scene with a briskness Obi-Wan had never seen from the old wizard, who usually used a cane. In this case, gone was any limp he previously had, and it was replaced by vigor and strength.

“Okay, are you, young Obi-Wan?” He asked with kind green eyes that Obi-Wan was at level with from where he sat.

“I’m alright,” He said, “But I don’t believe she was acting on her own accord. Her eyes glowed as though she was enchanted.”

“Please leave this to the proper authorities.” His mother said. “You could have been killed!”

“Brave, he acted.” Yoda defended. “Dangerous, this was. Close Dooku must be.”

“How did that happen? Did you not account for this? Surely you knew there were risks to opening the school all willy nilly.” Mr. Kenobi asked harshly, “Number one being that these children are not safe here. What kind of operation are you running, Yoda? Do you not know that you have a hero in your midst?”

“Investigate this matter closely, we must.” Yoda said.

“Closely? Like hell I’m leaving this to you alone. You’ll be hearing from the Ministry of Magic directly. You won’t be able to move or breathe without someone knowing exactly what you’re up to, Yoda. I swear to you. You will not continue to put these children in harm’s way.”

And he turned on his heels and marched out of the room, letting the limp body of the attacker drop like a sack of potatoes. For a moment, all that could be heard was the distant clicking of his shoes. 

“So much for a quiet year.” Anakin sighed. “I thought I’d at least make it through one month without something weird happening.”

***

Because the secret tunnels allowed students to traverse all over the castle to places they never could before (within reason and with supervision), it was hardly fair that Ravenclaw’s common room was the only one without a secret door. Evidently, it had to do with how the tower, itself, was built.

Still, because of this imbalance, so long as quiet hours were not in swing, students were allowed to bring one friend from a different house within the common room. This was incredibly convenient, because it allowed Obi-Wan and Satine to bring Cody in as their plus 1 while the star Quidditch player helped the limping Obi-Wan back to their dorm.

After the surprise attack and the Kenobi’s threats against Yoda, everyone had essentially dismissed themselves without much show. Qui-Gon, who feared there were other secret op’s hiding within the castle, teamed up with the other heads of house to scope the grounds. First, he escorted Anakin back to his room, of course. The boy’s safety was to be their top priority. 

Satine had bid her mother and sister adieu and promised that no, this sort of thing did not happen every day. Wizards were either incredibly passive or over dramatic when it came to near-death experiences. She, of course, was quite shaken by the whole ordeal.

She hadn’t even seen it happen. Cody was the one to draw her attention. He and his brothers had been stuffing their faces with cauldron cakes- Hevy making a comment about how he missed the food most of all at Hogwarts, when the flash alerted everyone. Satine had been busy explaining how the ceiling’s weather changed to her mother and unimpressed sister when Cody practically dragged her to the Great Hall doors.

Naturally, Obi-Wan insisted he was okay. Madame Nema wasn’t called onto the scene, but everyone seemed much more concerned about an enchanted secret agent, who actually was employed by the Ministry and had no recollection of the previous events, than they were about Obi-Wan. 

“What’d they even look like?” Cody asked curiously, after Obi-Wan sat back onto the couch with a weary sigh that marked being a little less than okay. Cody took his position on the floor, which Satine guessed was common for him in his own dormitory. Despite it being nice to see her mother, she was relieved they were back in the comforts of their room, where no one could infiltrate their privacy. 

“What did what look like?” He returned. 

“The eyes.” Cody shivered, “Boba’s told stories of enchanted witches. That’s some dark magic right there.”

“They were like the prophecy orbs from the Ministry of Magic.” Obi-Wan explained, “Only smaller, of course, but very bright. I felt like I was going to get sucked up if I stared at her for too long.”

“Surely, you’ve already guessed what this means.” Satine said, the crackling fire sounding crisp from behind Cody.

“Dooku has connections inside the Ministry? Yes, I did contemplate that as I was flying backwards from her sudden bolts of lightning.” He deadpanned, “Forgot about it though until you just mentioned it.”

“So what good is your parents involving more Ministry agents then?” Cody complained.

“I don’t know,” Obi-Wan scrubbed a hand over his head and Satine was trying to decode if this was exhaustion a concussion that was plaguing him. “But what I do know is that they are very keen on protecting our resident chosen one.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Cody said cautiously.

“It’s not!” Obi-Wan defended immediately, sitting up straighter instantly, “Of course it’s not. I just mean that they hadn’t expressed nearly as much interest in him when he was just a mischievous little Gryffindor boy. That’s all. Perhaps, their additional support and connections will bring us to the bottom of things sooner.”

Obi-Wan must have been feeling awful, because he never complained about his parents, even in an indirect fashion such as this. That being said, he certainly had a point. While she had been busy thinking about the terrible implications and insults they’d thrown her way earlier, she had briefly considered that they were not here for Obi-Wan, alone.

“I take it conferences didn’t go as planned for you.” Cody said.

“Obviously not,” Obi-Wan snorted, “But I mean, Anakin is younger and likely needed a presence there for his conferences more. Qui-Gon said he contemplated on stepping in too.”

Satine sighed. The moment of his brief rebellion had since passed just as quick as it came. 

“I would really rather not uncover a slew of dark secrets about yet another professor, that’s all.” She said, “That’s my bar for the year and yes, I understand it’s quite low.”

“Well, I intend to aim high,” Cody said, “I explained my Quidditch strategy for the year to my Dad and he seems pretty confident we’ll pull through too.”

“Ah, so you were able to detract the stoic Jango Fett from just studies.” Obi-Wan teased.

“It helped that Ninety-Nine was there. Having him around always makes Dad a little softer.”

“I can’t say the same for my sibling.” Satine complained, “Though it feels a bit daft to moan and groan about a petulant little sister though when Ben was quite literally abandoned and left for dead during his conferences.”

“It wasn’t my parents’ fault I got blasted.” Obi-Wan said, “And besides, your sister really did not seem to like me or much of anything.”

“Don’t take it personally, mate.” Cody laughed, “When Bo-Katan met me, she told me I had a very square head and that it didn’t suit me.”

Satine and Obi-Wan both burst out into a much needed fit of laughter, unable to control themselves at the visual of the conversation. Satine could picture those very words coming from Bo’s mouth and while it mortified her then, she had to admit it was quite funny, especially since Bo had been 9 years old at the time.

“Well, you do have a square head.” Satine said finally.

“But it suits me!” He said defensively, which caused the three of them to slip into giggles again. “Hey, at least my head is in working order. How hard did you hit that wall earlier?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “Not hard enough to forget that horrible marking that was on that poor girl’s arm. I doubt she consented to that being placed there.”

“The plan had likely been to have her kill Anakin at the party and become unenchanted afterwards.” Satine said, “Which is a horrifying thought.”

“Luckily I was there to take the blow.” Obi-Wan said earnestly and Satine couldn’t help but fix him with a glare to show just how little she agreed with that statement.

“I’m glad Anakin’s okay, but I would also prefer if you could be okay too.”

“I second that notion, mate.” Cody clapped him on the shoulder and Obi-Wan winced, “Maybe you should see Madame Nema.”

“Oh no, absolutely not. I’ve just got some bruises!”

“Oh really? Take off your shirt!” Satine argued and instantly regretted her words as she was returned with a very flustered expression from Obi-Wan and a cheeky one from Cody, “You know what I mean! Prove it’s just a bruise or two.”

Obi-Wan gaped, opening and closing his mouth, before shutting it all together in astonishment that Satine also felt to her very core. Had she really just said that like it was nothing? Was she not supposed to be in Ravenclaw? Actually, wasn’t she supposed to have an active brain in general?

Cody chuckled, “Well, I better go then.”

“F-For what reason?” She stammered and grimaced at her hesitance.

He smirked, “For one thing, it’s almost curfew. Also, I really don’t need to see anything I shouldn’t.”

“Oh bugger off!” Obi-Wan scowled, but his ears had turned a bright and shiny red that Satine couldn’t help but be charmed by.

Internally, she asked herself a question that had been recited through her mind a few times that summer. What if she just went for it? She suspected he didn’t know in full what her feelings were, which put the ball metaphorically in her court. This was fine, because Satine wasn’t sure what she would do if it were the other way around. 

Once Cody did leave and it was just the two of them in front of the crackling fire, sitting far closer than most friends do, and facing each other, she swallowed.

“Here, let me check and make sure you don’t have a concussion at the very least.”

He sighed heavily, as though allowing her to quickly inspect him would be the hardest task in the world, but was obedient when she gently took his face in her hands. She tried desperately not to think about how soft his face was or how fixated he seemed to be on her eyes. 

She raised her wand, reciting “lumos” to bring it to aglow, “Now, follow the light.”

He did as he was told- bright eyes following the tip of her wand with little struggle. 

“What’s 7x7?”

“49.” He answered quickly.

“What’s my favorite color?”

“Blue.” He said.

“What was the last thing we learned in Charms last year?”

“How to make a teacup grow legs.” Ben said, “And yours tried to attack me.”

“It was a smart teacup,” She smirked. “What’s your birthday?”

“Nice try, Miss Prefect.” He smiled and pulled away to give her best mock-glare, “You’re going to have to do better than that to figure out what my birthday is.”

“Hm, bold of you to assume that was my best.” She said, “Though I suppose this does mean you don’t have a concussion.”

And yet, neither of them moved for a long moment.

“Ben-”

“-Yes?” He asked, earnest as ever. “What is it?”

Her tongue went dry as they met eyes and she thought, not for the first time, how brilliant his gray-blue eyes looked when reflected in firelight. Her sister was crazy to believe he was nothing special to write about. Then again, Bo didn’t know him too well.

“There’s something I need to tell you.” She was stalling, because how does one just come right out and say it? How do you take that leap over the edge, even if you know how the other person feels? What if it didn’t work? What if they hated each other after?

No, she could never hate him. She would always-

“Does this have to do with the diary your sister mentioned?” He asked and for some reason, this deflated any of the build-up that was causing her heart to slam against her chest cavity with increased enthusiasm.

“N-No!” She raged, “And don’t go thinking you’re hot to trot simply because I may have mentioned you there.”

“I would never.” He smiled, “Though I suppose if I were keeping a journal, I’d write about you as well.”

“Well, you better!” She said angrily, “I’m your bloody best friend, after all.”

“Yes, you are…” He reached between the minute chasm of space left between them and took her hand in his, causing any other previous thoughts to short circuit. She couldn’t seem to stop flickering her gaze between their joined hands and the intense look in his eyes as he practically beckoned for her attention.

As if it could be anywhere else right now.

“And I…” He took in a deep breath, “I wanted to apologize profusely for what my parents said earlier. It was wrong and quite frankly, embarrassing. I’m even less proud of the way I didn’t step in more.”

“Ben-” She wanted to say some version of “No, it’s not your fault that your parents are terrible hypocrites.” but he didn’t allow for it.

“You are the furthest thing from a mistake or an accident or whatever other crude language they could ever try to use to describe you,” He said, “And you don’t have to be the brightest witch of our age for that to be the case.”

“Even though I am.” She couldn’t help but add in.

“You are,” He smiled brightly, “You’re absolutely brilliant in every meaning of the word. I just meant to say that even if you weren’t, you just being… You…  is what makes you great and well, I don’t think I would have made it this far without you.”

“I’m not sure about that,” She murmured quietly, “You are, after all, my only true competition.”

“And I’m honored to be anywhere beside you.” He said it like it was a prayer and once again, she felt like the ability to breathe was no longer something she could do, “You’re not a mistake. You’re a miracle.”

Satine swore her heart was going to explode. 

He gave her hand a nice, affirming squeeze, before realizing how close they were sitting and getting up to his feet. He turned back to her with hands now in his pockets, seeming like he was unsure of what to do with himself from there. 

“If you think,” She cleared her throat as she got up to follow him up the stairs, “That all of that nice stuff is going to make me forget about checking you tomorrow for further injuries, you’re sadly mistaken.”

“I would have it no other way, my dear.” He smiled roguishly, “Just do try and refrain from asking me to strip again.”

She tossed a book at him and he dodged it, laughing merrily.

***

“Have they concluded initial questioning?” Qui-Gon asked as he and Mace Windu walked side-by-side to the dungeons, where the secret assailant was being kept for questioning. He winced as he heard her panting for breath echoing off the walls. He certainly didn’t have the stomach for some of the more medieval tactics of acquiring information. It was the seedy part of the job that often went unmentioned at career fairs.

“Just about,” Mace said sternly, his eyes like stone as he kept his gaze forward. It was strange seeing him in this environment, even if the man was always a little stoic. It was like he was slipping back into that role before his very eyes.

“And?” Qui-Gon asked after a meaty pause. Was this really the time to mince words?

“And I’m not cleared to release sensitive information,” Windu said pointedly.

“Why call me at all then?” 

Something in Windu’s profile shifted- whether it be the intensity of his furrowed brow or the increased tightness of his jaw, Qui-Gon was unsure. However, it was easy to see that he was uneasy about something specific

“You’ll see.” He said instead.

“That’s very comforting, thank you, Mace.” Qui-Gon drawled, “Anakin’s life was at risk again, you know, and while I disagree with the Kenobi’s for being so…”

“Dogmatic.” He helpfully supplied, “Nosy? Sniveling? Spoiled rotten?”

“Anyway,” Qui-Gon carefully sidestepped, “Are they so wrong for being upset? We opened our doors to this madness and have the audacity to be surprised it came in?”

“It’s all very suspicious, I’ll give you that.” Windu said.

“Suspicious? It’s obvious.” Qui-Gon sighed heavily, “Dooku is at it again.”

“Well, we never were under the impression that he would stop, not while he still lives uncuffed.” He said darkly and then flashed Qui-Gon what was an honest attempt at sympathy, “It’s not your fault he runs free.”

“It matters not if it is or isn’t. We must get to the bottom of this,” Qui-Gon strutted into the chamber where the attacker was being held, “We must find out how to best protect Anakin and the rest of the students.”

“Join us, you have.” Yoda greeted them from where he was perched in a stone seat beside Minister Valorum and across from a drenched woman with tan skin, who was promptly cuffed to the table between them. To her right was Coleman Trebor and to her left, a large fluffy Talz auror whose two sets of beady black eyes were regarding them with question. It wasn’t often that professors were drawn into private investigations, after all.

“Foul Moudama, this is Qui-Gon Jinn.” Coleman Trebor explained.

At the mention of his name, the furry white auror nodded sagely in understanding, which was not the least bit of a comforting gesture. He supposed there was a reason he was the teacher of small children and these two were designed to hunt bloodthirsty villains.

“And Qui-Gon,” Trebor turned his long, scaly head towards him again, “This is Deena Riss.”

Qui-Gon recognized her, of course, as the cloaked assassin that had attempted to murder Anakin Skywalker earlier that evening. He’d only truly seen her unconscious before, but upon first impression, noted that she didn’t look the least bit aggressive or malicious. In fact, he could only describe her as befuddled and confused.

He nodded and took the empty seat beside Yoda and folded his hands in front of him. Qui-Gon was a patient man. He always was. He never let his feelings get the better of him. Did that mean he had any tolerance towards someone who could be so brazen as to step into this castle and try to take the life of a twelve year old boy? No.

She was still panting, clearly still recovering from whatever waterboarding they’d done to her to try and get information from her.

“Why did you do it, Miss Riss?”

She looked at the two aurors beside her, who seemed more tired than anything else. Qui-Gon was surprised at this. Was it not their whole job to be here right now? To investigate this case?

“I don’t know.” She swallowed, leveling him with her dark brown eyes, never once wavering from her stance. Headmaster Yoda kept his wand outstretched, a white tip aglow on the end of the small wand. If she were lying, it would glow a sharp red.

“Who are you working for?” He tried again.

“I don’t know.” She answered with just as much confidence and even more diction. He turned to see the white light.

“Who are you?”

“I’m an officer for the Ministry of Magic,” She said and no matter how exhausted she likely was from the countless attempts at getting her to spiel something different, she spoke the words verbatim without any hesitance. They were the truth, “I would lay my life down protecting those who cannot. It’s what I signed up for years ago and it’s what I continue to do. I can’t stay away from the job, because I love doing it. I love keeping people safe. That, whatever happened, was not me.”

“Why did you betray your post?” He asked. 

“I didn’t.” She said and then bit her lip, “As far as I know, I didn’t.”

He was surprised to find the tip still white, but then again, the spell was designed to read the truth of the speaker. If for example, Deena Riss truly believed the sky to be green and the grass to be blue, it would show no indication of a lie.

“These are the sorts of results we’ve been receiving too.” Trebor said and Modama merely grunted. Qui-Gon wasn’t sure the latter spoke English, but he felt the sentiment all the same radiating off of him.

Qui-Gon looked back to Deena Riss, “Tell us about your day.”

“I already told them,” She sighed and rubbed her temples. Qui-Gon startled when he noticed the mark on her wrist, “I can’t even remember my week, let alone my day.”

“What do you mean?” He decided to come back to the tattoo, which looked as painful to receive as it was ugly. It clearly hadn’t been done by wand, but by needle and not from a professional’s hand.

“I mean, I don’t recall ever accepting this job in the first place! I don’t remember getting this stupid tattoo! And I don’t remember ever agreeing to any hit target. Seeing as that’s never been my thing, I’d say I would.”

“I’d say you would too,” Qui-Gon furrowed his brow as he looked over to a calm and understanding Yoda.

“So, no matter how much you try to get me to say otherwise, there isn’t anything to say. I am Deena Riss and I have a perfect record supporting my name. I refuse to let this define me when that wasn’t even me doing it.”

“So, who do you suppose it was?” Qui-Gon asked. He didn’t mean to sound like he didn’t believe her. While a perfect history didn’t mean someone was innocent, take Dooku for example, Yoda’s truth detector didn’t lie. 

“All I can tell you is that there was this sinister voice… It was all I heard… And it was haunting me, caging me inside. I was trapped and I could never be sure for how long. I could see the things I was doing but only in small blips… Like my psyche was trying to fight what was happening though none of it was detrimental. Just, talking to some of my coworkers or taking bites of breakfast. I wasn’t strong enough to ward it off. And strangely, it was in the form of a song, but I couldn’t tell you the tune to save my life.”

“Was it a male or female voice?” Windu asked.

“Male at first, but later female.” She shivered and it was a very visceral and real reaction, “The male voice was leathery and thick… Booming… Power… The female voice was shrill and daunting, going out of its way to keep me from escaping.”

Qui-Gon stroked his beard, “So, Ms. Riss, what is the very last thing you remember before waking up today?”

“I was leaving work,” She thought back, “A security job for a buyer that was meeting a collector. He was buying something valuable, but I wasn’t privy to what. It was commissioned straight through the Ministry, you can check for yourself, and was completely legit.”

“Do you remember this man? Any details?” Windu asked more urgently with a hand pressed to the table as he leaned over Qui-Gon. His presence was heavy with frustration and even more so in fear. 

“Well, the buyer was Rish Loo, some Gungan collector who liked to pawn off different types of strange artifacts. He’s got family in the Ministry. It seemed like an easy and quick gig, but I don’t remember anything beyond stepping foot in that pub.”

“Nothing about the seller?” Qui-Gon asked.

“He wore a cloak and was selling jewelry,” She said dejectedly and pleaded with him, “I’m sorry, that’s all that I know of him.”

Qui-Gon stared at her for a moment longer, reading the desperation in her eyes. This woman was lost, that much he could confirm. She didn’t know what her greater purpose in all of this was or if there was one. Whether she was merely delusional or something even more terrifying had yet to be determined.

“A word, Qui-Gon?” Yoda finally spoke again and he didn’t seem nearly as perplexed as to what was going on. Qui-Gon, without taking his eyes off Deena Riss and more importantly, the tattoo on her arm, slowly backed out of the room in tow of Yoda. 

“That mark, Headmaster-”

“-Sith symbol it is,” He whispered in a low gravelly voice. Qui-Gon leaned against the wet stone wall to his left in order to make looking down at the small Headmaster a little easier on his back. He took a deep breath in, not once appreciating the damp and moldy smell that the dungeons always seemed to hold.

“You don’t just get those on any corner,” Qui-Gon pointed out.

“Done by hand, this was,” Yoda nodded, “By Dooku.”

“Or one of his followers. But for what? Free advertisement? She gave no indication to knowing what it was.” He said, “What is her place in this?”

“Fulfilled, it is,” Yoda said curiously, “Gone, the artifact is.”

Qui-Gon’s eyes widened, “You believe that artifact the seller- Dooku was in possession of was cursed to possess its holder?”

“Line up with Obi-Wan’s statement, it does,” Yoda nodded gravely, “Blue eyes, mindless movements, foreign voice.”

Qui-Gon made the mental note to check on Obi-Wan, “And what if she’s just playing into our assumptions, Headmaster?”

Yoda waved his little wand around, which was the only wand Qui-Gon had ever seen be only 6 inches, “Fabricate, this does not. Back her story, her co-workers have.”

“And she’s been acting completely normal all week? What about Rish Loo? The buyer. Can we not ask him?”

A dark look crossed Yoda’s face in the shadows of the gray dungeon hallway and Qui-Gon already knew the answer. “He was found dead?”

“Reported by Deena, he was. Killed by his seller, he was.”

“And how do we know he wasn’t killed by her?” Qui-Gon asked.

“Checked her wand, they did. Killed by the killing curse, he was.”

Qui-Gon ran a hand through his long hair in disbelief, “Dooku’s made his first kill then.”

“That we know of.” Yoda reminded him.

No, that certainly didn’t sit any better. And more frighteningly, that there was an artifact that could possess its holder into apparently trying to blindly murder Anakin Skywalker, lost somewhere in the castle. It couldn’t have gotten far if it wasn’t on Deena. Unless she’d dropped it, whatever it was. 

Or it had been taken off of her in the chaos of the Kenobi's outburst against Yoda. He had to admit that even his focus wasn’t on the unconscious girl during the skirmish. 

“We need to find that artifact,” He said.

“Indeed,” Yoda nodded, “Figure out who has it, we must.”

That sat even worse with Qui-Gon as they walked back into the chamber. He sat defeatedly down in the same seat he’d occupied prior, looking at Deena Riss with new resolve. She was nothing more than a pawn in this whole setup and her name would be dragged through the mud forever. Dooku, it seemed, committed more than one murder that day in his own way.

“What was the voice telling you to do?” He asked, “Was it telling you how to kill Anakin Skywalker?”

It felt like a sick question to ask, but he needed to know in the event that it might provide a clue or two in how to protect and prevent such an incident.

“Skywalker?” She frowned and shook her head, “It wasn’t about Skywalker.”

“Then who?” Qui-Gon asked. 

***

“You wanted to see me Headmaster?” Obi-Wan asked as he cautiously entered Yoda’s office. The boy had a way about him that didn’t want to inconvenience anyone, even if he’d been invited. Yoda’s heart squeezed at the thought of such a thing being possible. How one could turn down the inquisitive mind of a child, he didn’t know.

“Young Obi-Wan, indeed.” He took a calming sip of some of the tea Kit Fisto had gifted him with after getting the position as the new DADA professor. It was supposed to be made solely of properties from the ocean and have the relaxing sensation of sea spray and a warm day at the beach. Yoda didn’t know about all of that, but he’d take any help he could get at this rate.

Obi-Wan took a seat, his knees bending up towards his chin as he’d chosen a seat geared more towards people Yoda’s size. It wasn’t as big of a problem when the boy was in his first formative years at Hogwarts, but now he was stretching out a great deal vertically. Yoda absently wondered why he never changed his chairs to fit his guests more often. 

“Wanted to check on you, I did.” He said.

“Oh, my head is much better now,” He confirmed, “Nothing more than a big bump, it would seem.”

“Good to hear, that is,” Yoda pointed his cane at him, “Interfere with your big brains, we don’t want to.”

“No, my grades will not slip as a result of this,” He chuckled when he said it, but Yoda had a nagging suspicion that he’d said it before to someone else in a more serious tone of voice. 

“Emotionally, I wanted to check on you.” Yoda amended his previous statement.

“I’m alright!” Obi-Wan shifted, “It’s Anakin who should be worried, I suppose, seeing as presumably Dooku is out for him again.”

“Indeed, he is.” Yoda sighed, “Stop overnight, the dark side does not. Fester, it does. Hide under rocks, they will. Before coming out, they do.”

Obi-Wan nodded, “I’m surprised I’ve not spoken to the aurors by now… Given I was the only witness to the attack and based on my parents’... Reaction.”

He was trying to find the words to apologize without completely betraying his family, but Yoda wanted no such thing from the child. It was not his place or fault to mend anyone’s fences but his own. He raised a three-fingered claw and leveled with him, “Moved to hunting Dooku down, they have.”

“Oh,” Obi-Wan actually seemed disappointed by this, which he supposed did make sense given his field of study for the future. 

“Give them your words, I will.” Yoda said hopefully, “Remember anything, do you?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “Sir… It was strange. That girl… I know I mentioned that she was surely possessed, just based on her glowing eyes, but she was speaking parseltongue.”

Yoda considered this, “Sure, you are?”

“I remember it quite clearly from when Anakin passed out last year.” Obi-Wan said with confidence, “I know what it sounds like.”

It was a bit difficult to miss, Yoda had to admit, but it made the entire puzzle more daunting. Why could she speak parseltongue? Unless, Dooku was a parseltongue all these years and never showed it? He did have some royal blood in his family lineage that could do to be explored.

“Notice any odd… Items, did you?”

“Items?” He furrowed his brow in thought.

“Jewelry, trinkets, toys…”

“Besides the tattoo?” Obi-Wan asked.

“Mhmm,”

“Not that I can remember.” He admitted, clearly disappointed that he wasn’t offering anything of notation at the moment. “I was a bit distracted.”

“Acted quick you did,” Yoda commended, “Brave, you were.”

“Thank you, Headmaster, but I believe I only did what anyone else would.”

“What not many could, you did.” He said firmly.

***

Satine quite missed having classes with her friends. She’d taken for granted how nice it was to have Ben, Aayla, or Stass to talk to in between. Perhaps that’s why she hadn’t minded that Fenn Rau had started tagging along between her History and Charms classes. He said he had class in a similar direction and would love to learn a thing or two about how she went about patrolling, so she agreed with an easy shrug. She wasn’t too keen on being any sort of mentor like she had been last year, but she didn’t mind having him along to observe.

“You seem like the type to enjoy a cup of tea,” Fenn suggested.

“I do,” She agreed, as she turned to take them the long way to the Charms classroom. He took note rather quickly, as she expected any Ravenclaw would.

“Perhaps you can give me a few recommendations,” He was smiling rather brightly at her. At least one of them was a morning person. 

“Everyone has a different taste. What I like isn’t necessarily what you’ll like.”

They turned around another corner and his hand bumped into hers on accident, “Now I know this isn’t the fastest way to Charms. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten the way?”

“Of course not,” Satine scoffed, “As prefects it's important we keep track of all the hallways,” Satine explained, “We can’t check everywhere between classes so I’ve taken to making sure my path to class is unpredictable.”

“That’s very Ravenclaw of you,” He chuckled, his hand bumped into hers again. Perhaps, she was walking him too close to the wall. She moved her hand up to grasp the strap of her bag, “I’d expect nothing less from the best in her year.”

“Ben’s actually at the top right now by about half a point,” She corrected, although she counted the two of them to both be at the top, she didn’t want his own hard work and effort to be ignored.

“Speaking of ‘Ben’,” Satine nearly paused, it was always odd to hear anyone other than herself call him that, “I’ve been meaning to ask why do-”

He never got to finish his thought because at that moment they rounded the corner to see what looked to be every girl in the school and a fair few others. Everyone was talking at once, so much so that Satine couldn’t make anything out. She stood on her tiptoes to peer over the crowd and to a mixture of shock and horror, saw her two friends, Stass and Aayla, at the center of attention.

Breaking up large crowds of students was Satine’s specialty. She made short work of waving away students and threatening to dock house points. Rau finished scaring off a few 5th year girls while Satine finally made her way to her friends.

“What happened?” Aayla looked impossibly flustered, which didn’t bode well for someone who was a hard egg to crack.

“Professor Fisto asked her to stay after class,” Stass answered sagely.

Perhaps, Aayla had just gotten into some trouble, but that didn’t explain the crowd, “Did you do something wrong?”

“No I did something right,” Suddenly Aayla’s eyes were twinkling and Satine had even less of a clue to go on.

“Professor Fisto wanted to congratulate her on getting the highest grade on our pretest,” Stass explained.

“He told me I had great promise,” The purple blush coating Aayla’s face seemed to grow at the thought.

“He asked her what she wanted to do after graduation-”

“And then I asked him what he did-”

“He was on the team of wizards that explored the Mariana Trench,” Satine wasn’t sure why this information was so interesting to nearly half the school, but she could see why he’d been selected to be the new Dark Arts professor. The unexplored portions of the ocean surely contained unexplained dark magic.

“So he’s qualified,” Satine said slowly.

“Oh Satine,” She’d forgotten Rau was still here, “Women love a mysterious man.”

Like the final puzzle piece had been slotted into place, Satine shook her head, “Fenn, why don’t you go on to class now,” Rau seemed disappointed by the dismissal, but did as she asked without complaint.

Once he was out of earshot she turned and hissed at her lovestruck friend, “He’s a professor!”

“For only 2 short years!” Her eyes were sparkling with delusion and even Stass rolled her eyes, “Once I graduate, we’ll bump into one another during a routine trip to Diagon Alley. He’ll ask me what I’ve been up to and then he’ll tell me he always knew I’d go on to great things,”

“Perhaps you did hit your head a little too hard during last year’s Quidditch season,” Stass put a hand on their friend's cheek to check for a fever presumably, but Aayla batted her away.

“It won’t be love at first sight! It will take a few more chance meetings,” She stood then, rising from the window sill with too much purpose for something like this, “Then he’ll ask me on a date and it. Will. Be. Wonderful!” She declared.

“Aayla-” Satine started, but Aayla shook her head, clearing it from the clouds.

“I know, I know, but a girl can dream,” She tilted her head back towards the DADA classroom, “Besides, I don’t mind admiring him from afar.”

Stass gave Aayla’s shoulder a quick sympathetic pat, “Well I quite prefer my head to sit on my shoulders.”

***

The last person Obi-Wan was expecting to see on his evening patrol was Fenn Rau. It wasn’t uncommon for prefects to switch with each other, but Fenn Rau looked almost disappointed when he came into view. Obi-Wan felt his teeth grit together so he supposed the feeling was mutual.

“Oh, Kenobi,” Rau greeted with a wave, “I thought Satine was patrolling tonight.”

He hadn’t been completely off base in his suspicions, “Satine wanted to catch up on homework this evening,” He would certainly not be disclosing any more information.

“That’s a shame,” Obi-Wan didn’t think so. Rau scratched the back of his head, both of them strapping in for a rather awkward patrol, “I’m surprised she wanted to switch with you, she’s never seemed like a morning person.”

“And how would you know!” Obi-Wan thought rather bitterly.

“She should have asked to switch with me. I had a mid,” Rau laughed, but Obi-Wan was hard pressed to hear it over his own heartbeat.

“Let’s get on with this shall we,” He gritted out instead. Rau seemed a little taken aback, but followed after him as Obi-Wan turned.

The silence following was blissful. Only the echo of their shoes on the cobblestone and the snoring of portraits to be heard. It was a grave error then, when Obi-Wan decided to ruin it with his own morbid curiosity.

“Why were you trying to patrol with Satine?” He had to ask, it was practically eating away at his heart. Rau fell into step beside him at the opportunity, though Obi-Wan quite wished he’d stayed trailing behind.

“Well you know...” But he didn’t know, and as if sensing this Rau sighed, “I just want to get to know her. We’re both prefects,” Obi-Wan liked that answer, but it didn’t sit quite right.

“I haven’t seen you trying to get to know any of the other prefects,” Obi-Wan pointed out. Rau looked a little uncomfortable, like he was being interrogated, but if Obi-Wan was wanting to interrogate him, he was sure he’d do it in a more professional way.

“What about you?” Rau asked suddenly and Obi-Wan almost faltered in his gait.

“What about me?” Obi-Wan countered, fiddling with the watch on his wrist, “I’ve already gotten to know my fellow prefects.”

“Yeah, but I always see you around Satine,” He pointed out and Obi-Wan scoffed, waving a hand.

“We’ve been friends since first year, it just so happens that we both became prefects,” Rau seemed to inspect him slowly.

“So you’ve been friends since first year,” He repeated slowly and Obi-Wan nodded.

“Of course, best friends,” He confirmed, “Satine, Cody, and myself.”

“I see.”

They lapsed back into silence. Obi-Wan thought once again he should enjoy such quiet, but there was something about the way Rau looked like he was mulling something over that unsettled him. A nagging sort of voice, one that sounded a little too much like Satine, told him he may have missed something important about this conversation. He would have to dissect it later, but for now they wandered through the dark halls of the castle together under moonlight.

***

“It’s finally Saturday!” Cody roared, practically standing on the Gryffindor table as he made his announcement to the entire house. Though Anakin figured he was loud enough for the whole Great Hall to hear, “Quidditch tryouts are today! If you wished there was more time to practice, tough luck! You should have been practicing over the summer,” He paused though as he gazed in scrutiny across the table, “Although, muggle-borns don’t you fear, there will be special consideration for those of you who had nowhere safe to fly over the summer.”

Anakin would rather he just shut it and give this speech out on the field. He was hungry and the food seemed to refuse to appear anywhere it might be stepped on. Rex seemed to have the same thought as he exchanged glances with Anakin. Luckily for both of them, the screech of a particularly loud owl cut off any more that he’d have to say as mail started being dropped all around. Cody dodged an owl going straight for his head, before finally dropping into his seat.

“Woah! Look at that!” Rex pointed up and Anakin followed the motion to a pair of beautiful tawny owls carrying a long thin package. It was near obvious to guess what it was by shape alone.

“Who got a new broom?” Anakin considered as they passed overhead, he did not expect the clatter as the broom was dropped onto silver plates right in front of him, stopping near all conversation in the Great Hall as they all looked over to Gryffindor table.

“Uhhhhhhhh,” Anakin and Rex both looked at one another and then the confused Gryffindor’s across from them. When no one made a move to grab it, Anakin shrugged and pulled it towards him. It’s not like he hadn’t seen anything more dangerous than a mysterious broom. He flipped it over and dropped the handle in shock. His name was written in very well-manicured green script, so he wasted no time ripping it open.

For a moment everything was still as the beautifully polished piece of wood slid out of its wrappings before someone gasped and then everyone was talking at once.

“It can’t be-”

“-Just came out!”

“Firebolt Supreme!”

Anakin, himself, was shocked at the turn of events. This obviously hadn’t been sent by his mother, as this much money could have possibly gotten them a whole new apartment and then some.

“It came with a card,” Cody was looking at him with an unreadable expression, one of those tawny owls sitting primly on his shoulder as if they were old friends. Anakin took the card from his outstretched hand, the green seal… He’d seen it before.

“We couldn’t allow such a special boy to ride around on a plain broom. We look forward to seeing it in action. -The Kenobi’s”

His first thought was perhaps Obi-Wan had suggested such an idea, but why did Cody seem so surprised then? He supposed he remembered discussing brooms with Professor Palpatine, but could they really have just decided to do such a nice thing for him?

“Do you think it’s real?” Rex asked as he tentatively touched the handle with one finger. 

“It’s from the Kenobi’s!” Anakin said much too loudly, causing the surrounding crowd to whisper amongst themselves, “I doubt they’d buy a fake,” His hands itched to grab it though, “Guess we should try it out though, yeah?”

***

“Did you know?” Satine asked as the Gryffindors barreled past them, Anakin holding his new broom over his head in excitement. Cody passed by too, clearly needing to make sure his Quidditch team didn’t get themselves killed, but he sent them a sympathetic look all the same.

“No,” Ben answered simply, nodding at Cody as he left the Great Hall.

“How could they just-” She started, but Ben shook his head.

“They can spend their money however they’d like,” He sounded neutral on the matter, but Satine could see that he was not, “Anakin needed a new broom eventually.”

But Satine disagreed much more about the circumstances than the turnout.

***

“Alright recruits!” The hype over Anakin’s new broom had died down just in time for tryouts and Rex clutched his own Cleansweep 15 tightly. He’d been trained quite brutally this summer in hopes of making it on the team, but he knew Cody wasn’t going to go easy on him.

Anakin was standing a little too proudly next to Fives and Echo, who would also be starting on the team this year. It was a relief not to see Krell and word on the street was he’d skipped town and gone to a different wizarding school this year. Good riddance.

“We’ll offer tryouts for every position, even if there aren’t any openings,” Cody announced, “If you’re better than what we’ve got, you’re in, they’re out. Sound good?” It probably didn’t to anyone already on the team, but everyone nodded anyways and tryouts began.

Rex had picked very carefully the position he would fill. He could play anything as he often reminded Anakin when asked, but given the current openings on the team, and the current players it only made sense for him to try out for-

“Potential Seekers, line up!” He fell into place with practiced ease. Yes, Seeker was his best chance at getting picked. He had exceptionally good vision and was good at strategizing on his own. He’d won a fair few games back home as seeker and he was pretty sure he could dish out whatever Cody would serve.

The Seeker’s tryout was tricky. Cody released 3 snitches, you only had to catch one, but you were allowed to catch the others if you happened to see them first. There were about 10 of them trying out, all different years, and the 7th years definitely looked frustrated enough to knock him clear off his broom if he got in their way. He supposed if he’d failed to get on the team 5 times he’d be pretty mad about it too.

They all flew up into the air, spaced enough apart and clearly trying to find the best vantage point. They weren’t allowed to touch the snitches right away having to wait until the whistle blew to go after them. This meant that if Rex could keep his eyes on at least one, he’d be good to go.

They stayed frozen in the air, Cody watching them all carefully, before the whistle sounded and everyone burst into action. If he’d learned anything from Cody’s rambling, it was sometimes best when you were small to let the bigger members pick each other off. So Rex kept his speed fairly neutral as two 7th years crashed into each other, spinning out and crashing to the ground. He sped forward, snatching the snitch they’d been after with well-practiced ease. He held it up for his brother to see before putting it in his robe pocket, he would not be taking the easy way out.

Looking around the arena, it seemed like maybe one other snitch had been caught, but the way everyone was just hovering and searching, it wasn’t over yet. Everyone was searching pretty high up, even the two 7th years who had crashed had managed to make it back up into the air. Given the amount of eyes on the field right now, Rex could guess if it was so high up it would have already been caught so he casually let his broom flutter lower and lower as he circled close to the ground.

He was lucky, no one paid him much mind, clearly thinking because he’d already found one that he was giving up. He weaved between the Quidditch hoops before finally his eye caught a gleam of gold. The final snitch was hovering at the base of the Quidditch hoop on the opposite side of the field. If he rushed to it, someone with a faster broom could beat him there, so instead he slowly drifted around, weaving on his broom like he was being flippant with the whole thing. When he was close enough though with no one tailing him, he put on a sudden burst of speed snatching that golden spec out of the air and pulling up before he slammed into the bleachers.

Cody blew the whistle.

“That’s three! Everyone get back down here!” Cody was quick to go down the list, giving tips and suggestions to each individual. The older students looked rather annoyed, but the younger they got, the more receptive they seemed to be. Rex thought it would be stupid to blow off Cody’s advice. If there was one thing he knew about his brother, it was that he wanted everyone to learn how to do their best.

Soon enough the tryouts were done and Cody was announcing who would be joining the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Rex could hardly listen past the beating of his own heart. He knew he deserved a spot on that team, but had he shown himself worthy enough? He thought so.

“And our additional Seeker,” Cody looked up from his notes, addressing the crowd and not even looking in his direction, “Will be Rex Fett, for showing ingenuity and aptitude that no one else did.”

“Playing favorites again,” Someone behind him hissed, but Rex dared not turn around. He knew his brother had gotten crap about letting both Fives and Echo on the team- he’d heard from the twins that it was best dealt by ignoring it, lest it get out of hand.

“Rex will be our back up, for Moteé,” Cody confirmed and Rex looked at him in shock. Back up? He knew he was still young, but he thought- “That’s all for now. Dismissed!” Rex waited for the crowd to disperse and disappear into the locker rooms before he approached his brother.

“Cody-”

“Rex! You really-” Cody smiled at him, but Rex shook his head.

“Me? Back-up? Seriously?” Rex asked, “I know I’m only in my 2nd year, but Anakin-”

“Oh,” It seemed to dawn on Cody then, “Anakin’s a special case, Rexy. He’s a natural, and we need talent like that on our team.”

“So I’m not good enough for you then?” Rex shot back, “What was the point of training me all summer then?”

“You’re plenty good Rex,” Cody frowned.

“Then what am I lacking here?” Rex questioned, throwing his hands up, “A prophecy? A rich friend? What is it, oh lord of Quidditch?”

“See here Rex,” Cody jabbed a finger at him, “I’ll be having none of this if you want a spot on this team. Fives and Echo waited their turns just like you will; especially if you keep this up. So what will it be? There’s still time to call the other guy back.”

“Whatever, Captain,” Rex summoned his broom and stormed off towards the locker rooms.

***

Cody was stewing over his interaction with Rex, so much so that he almost got beaned in the head by Ventress’s broom. She’d “accidently” adjusted its position too close to his head, but it seemed like getting his attention was part of it.

“Kindly vacate the field before I have you dragged off, Captain,” She sneered. Ventress had been crowned captain at the very end of last year’s term. Although Cody didn’t like her personality, he wouldn’t deny that she was the best choice for the position.

“Make sure your new recruits know the rules,” Cody ducked to avoid her broom again, flashing her a cheeky grin, “I’d hate to see Slytherin flagged on the first play of the year.”

“Don’t worry your pretty head,” She scoffed, “Slytherins are all familiar with Quidditch, long before their letter,” A clear jab towards muggle-borns, though it was untrue. Whether Ventress admitted it or not, there were muggle-borns in Slytherin, “Might want to make sure your team doesn’t fall apart, what with your pet beater.”

“Jealous?” Cody teased, “Anakin’s got pure talent, and you’ve got what? Scare tactics?”

“Slytherins are built on ambition, you know,” She reminded him before practically walking through him to stand at the head of her team.

The Slytherin tryouts were much different than Gryffindors, Ventress and the Captains before her tended to look for who wanted it the most, who would do whatever it took to win. She hadn’t been wrong about Slytherin's ambition. That’s what made Slytherin the best rival to Gryffindor’s bravery on the field, not that Cody would be caught dead admitting to it.

Normally he’d be more interested in watching the new recruits, but instead he took his time cleaning up in the locker room. Cody had always thought being Captain would be a cinch. He’d read every book, every manual. He knew every rule and practically every strategy. It turns out though, that there was a lot more to being a good Captain than just strategy and knowledge, just as there was more to the game then tossing around a couple balls. His team had a lot of promise. If he could get them to all come together like cogs of a clock, he knew they’d be unstoppable.

***

With the graduation of Galen Erso, Ravenclaw team had passed the torch of captain onto the completely obvious choice of Eeth Koth. He wasn’t the only one who wanted to be captain, but he was the logical choice and Obi-Wan had no qualms in voting for him. Perhaps, it was the Ravenclaw in him or his own distaste for Quidditch, but either way he didn’t mind not having any more added responsibility. He felt he was maxed out on such things. Others though perhaps wouldn’t feel the same. His parents hadn’t even bothered sending him an owl about this, knowing already that he wasn’t as talented as they would like. 

Ventress, however, had been giving him a rather superior looking smirk for the better part of a week.

“Can barely cut it on the field, Kenobi?” She bared her teeth into what he’d come to know as some sort of sadistic grin.

“Congratulations on the title,” He’d said in response. He wasn’t looking to pick a fight, however… “I’m sure there’s no one better to offer the warm and welcoming teamwork that Slytherin’s so often lacking.”

Her teeth nashed together in a snarl, “See to it your team looks up from a textbook long enough to offer a real challenge.”

He wasn’t sure what had gotten her so enthusiastic about her new position. Ventress had always liked Quidditch because of the ability to knock people out without getting into trouble. In a way it’s what made her a fabulous beater. She’d never shown that same concern towards gaining the title of captain. He wondered what it would be that finally captured the true essence of her Slytherin ambition, besides the aim to tear everyone around her to the ground.

A loud and jarring bang sounded, startling all the occupants of Ravenclaw’s locker room. Obi-Wan barely reeled himself back from hurtling a jinx as he connected Eeth’s outstretched wand with the shit eating grin on their new captain’s face.

“A heart attack Koth!” Aayla shouted, “That’s what you’re gonna give us!”

“Ah come on,” Eeth lowered his wand, stowing it back into his Quidditch robes, “How else am I supposed to get your full, undivided attention?”

“Maybe some way that doesn’t make it seem like we’re about to get attacked,” Nadar suggested without even looking up from his potions essay.

They moved swiftly from the locker room. Ravenclaw’s tryouts were often quite boring, usually some sort of simple tests through each position, occasionally even a test of knowledge as that was their strength. This year it seemed quite the opposite with how Eeth was marching excitedly past Slytherin’s team.

“I’ll just get everything set up!” He announced cheerily, “Why don’t the rest of you get to know our prospective teammates?”

Obi-Wan really didn’t have much intention on making small talk. In fact, he considered just offering a hand to Koth as he hauled over the trunk himself, but the sight of someone stopped him cold.

“Rau?” Sure enough the 5th year prefect had seemingly taken a sudden interest in Quidditch and was standing alongside his fellow hopefuls.

“Hey Kenobi,” Fenn greeted with a wave as he walked over to meet him, “Got any last minute tips for a friend?” Obi-Wan wasn’t sure they were friends, but he didn’t bother correcting him or answering his question.

“Why are you here? You’ve never tried out before,” He asked. Rau just shrugged, though his eyes betrayed him slightly, drifting towards the audience.

“Well, it looks pretty fun,” He shrugged, but when it was clear Obi-Wan didn’t buy it, he added, “And I hear women are often impressed by a man in uniform,” He grinned. Obi-Wan squinted trying to follow his gaze into the audience. What girl was so worth it to join something because of a simple crush?

A flick of blonde caught his attention. Satine.

She waved as if knowing she was being scrutinized and Rau waved back much to Obi-Wan’s sudden feeling of horror. He tried to swallow down the green feeling rising slowly in his chest. Perhaps, he’d misunderstood.

“Look I know it’s probably awkward for you. You being best friends and all,” Rau scratched the back of his head, “but Satine’s hot,” Rau shrugged, “I thought maybe you were dating her after all, like the rumors said, but then you said it yourself, you’re just friends,” He laughed, though Obi-Wan was hard pressed to hear it past the blood rushing through his ears.

“Why are you interested in her anyways?” He heard himself say a little more aggressively than he should have and Rau tilted his head, scrutinizing him.

“Are you- Do you like her?” He asked and Obi-Wan shook his head in panic.

“No, of course not!” Eeth decided at that moment to blow the whistle, calling everyone back to the center, but Rau got one last word in.

“No need to worry mate, I’m not interested in breaking her heart,” He patted Obi-Wan on the shoulder before moving to follow the crowd. Obi-Wan was frozen for another moment, heart beating too fast, green gnawing on his insides.

Rau was talking about breaking her heart as if it had already been won. A glance up to the stands revealed Satine once again and he frowned. Satine had always had a distaste for Quidditch, but she was here to watch the tryouts. Could it be that she was here to see Rau’s performance? Would she be won over if he managed to perform admirably? It went against everything he knew about Satine, but sometimes she did seem like a box of puzzles- wonderful, if not occasionally frustrating. Perhaps, he didn’t know everything about her after all.

“Kenobi!” He was shaken from his thoughts by an annoyed looking Koth, “What’s got you all petrified? Get over here so we can start!”

He lined up, bad luck had him looking directly in Rau’s direction and it just made it harder to focus than it should on what Eeth was saying, even if it was just a lot of fluff.

They ran the seeker test first. Koth had hidden a bunch of rocks around the arena. They gave off an unnatural shine and you had to find 5 to be considered. Next was the beaters, they were to hit bludger sized balls into a stack of bottles and would be judged on accuracy. He’d gotten the idea from muggles apparently and if he was less likely to blow his top on a certain unsuspecting 5th year for some reason, he’d be much more interested. There was no need for a new Keeper as they already had himself and Nahdar, so they moved on to the Chasers.

Obi-Wan got into position, hovering in front of the golden rings at the end of the field. Evidently, Koth couldn’t think of anything better to test a Chaser’s skills than by scoring. Either way his job was quite simple. Block the hoops, prevent them from scoring. The first few students to try were younger, struggling to stay on their brooms and throw the ball, but one of them had been smart enough to attempt a fake out, which would be noted by their Captain as potential. The next few students had gotten good at flying and managed to score a few goals on him using quick wit and strategy. The air seemed to change, however, when Fenn Rau fell into position in front of him.

“Don’t go easy on me Kenobi,” Rau winked, “I’ve got to make a good impression,” He should have been talking about the try outs, but Obi-Wan caught his glance into the audience and he bristled. No, he certainly wouldn’t be going easy on Rau.

It was a bit of a blur. Rau tried to score, but Obi-Wan was always there to block his shots. Rau had clearly been practicing and studying strategies because loathe Obi-Wan to admit it, he had the skills. Obi-Wan, however, had 5 years of practice under his belt and a best friend who would constantly feed him tips. He used everything he had to make sure Rau never got a single point out of him and after time was up Obi-Wan had his teeth gritted, head throbbing a bit from a few furious headbutts, and not quite enough air in his lungs. Victory tasted sweet though as Rau, looking shocked at his defeat flew down to make way for the next contender.

When he landed, he stumbled just slightly before straightening up. He’d never felt so accomplished after running drills, or even during a game. His exhaustion was worth it to save Satine from the plight of having her heart stolen by some wannabe jock.

“Alright, I’ve got the results!” Koth announced and Obi-Wan let his attention fall. His eyes caught the glimmer of Satine’s hair. It was a unique shade he’d always thought, so light and airy, like sunshine. His brain rather unhelpfully provided that it was rather soft when it brushed his skin on occasion and how it would probably feel so nice to tuck behind her ear when it fell into her eyes.

“And our back up chasers will be,” Koth was continuing, but it didn’t matter. Obi-Wan had done his part and sealed the fate of the 5th year prefect, “and Fenn Rau!” Obi-Wan’s head snapped to look at a very surprised looking Rau. He cheered alongside his new fellow teammates. He grinned up at the bleachers once more while raising a fist and Obi-Wan’s grip on his broom threatened to snap the poor thing in half. He was hardly concerned about such material possessions when he imagined Fenn Rau brushing Satine’s hair back after a Quidditch game. He turned slowly, letting his teammates pass by him until he was standing next to Eeth Koth, the last two Ravenclaws on the field.

“You picked Rau?” He asked, trying to capture some of the fake politeness he had become rather masterful of, “He couldn’t even score a point.”

“Yeah, he couldn’t,” Koth agreed, “But only because he pushed you to your limit! I’ve never seen you play so spectacularly! Had to have that kind of motivation on the team,” Obi-Wan nearly dropped his broom, dumbfounded.

“You let him on so what? He could be the team pet?” Obi-Wan spat and Eeth looked at him strangely.

“Certainly you saw that he knows what he’s doing. He’s got good tactics and a good head on his shoulders,” He looked at Obi-Wan pointedly, “I’m sure you could learn a thing or two from him. I’m here to see potential and thanks to you, I found possibly one of our best future Chasers right here!”

Obi-Wan didn’t have it in him to return any such gratitude.

***

Dear Mum,

Fine, I’m breaking the ice and writing to you. Obi-Wan says it’s rude that I still haven’t responded to your letter about not coming to Parent’s Day and he rarely lets up on this sort of thing. It’s like he’s been programmed to act like an eighty year old man even though he’s like 16. I mean, you’ve seen him. He tucks his shirts way too tight to be comfortable. Anyway, I guess he is right in a way, because I did have good news that I wanted to share with you: I got a new broom! Not just any broom either, but a Firebolt Supreme! And it flies SOOOOOOOOOOO fast and high! Before you ask, the Kenobi’s got it for me after Parent’s Day (they filled in when SOMEONE couldn’t make it), because they were pretty pressed that I was still using the school’s brooms.

Not that I NEED the edge, but it definitely feels like I’m no longer playing with a hand tied behind my back. It’s crazy how they make brooms that fly differently. I wonder if it’s different from cars that move faster? I didn’t realize magic was so complicated, but apparently, magical engineers do exist.

Also, Rex made the team too! He’s been pretty quiet about it. I guess he’s just trying to let it all sink in. I know I was pretty amazed when I made the team too. He’s just going to be a backup though, but Cody says that one day he’ll get to start! That’ll be fun, because I feel like Rex and I are a team within the team as it is. 

I haven’t just been hanging out with Rex these days though. I’ve been welcomed into the older, cool kids crew across all the houses. They say I’ve got a big personality to make up for what I lack in height, but I just say I’m due for a growth spurt. Patiently waiting for that to come still. 

I’m trying to distance myself between Padmé, the girl I used to like, because I don’t want her to get the wrong idea. Falling in love with me would be a big mistake and it’s already been proved as a theory! Some hypnotized witch snuck into the school during Parent’s Day tried to kill me. Obi-Wan stopped her before she could even get the chance and I didn’t even realize he’d have it in him to react like that! His parents blame Yoda for her sneaking in, which kind of makes sense since he runs the school. I’m not too worried about it, honestly, because I’m the Chosen One. I can’t die without doing all the things the prophecy says. THAT’S why I’m glad I’m keeping distance between me and Padmé. I don’t want her roped into all of that. Superheroes’ girlfriends are always used against them.

Before you worry too much, I’m totally fine! Everyone is running around like crazy trying to figure out how this even happened. They were bragging about all the security they set up, but I think they forget that Dooku (who is definitely behind this, let’s be real) used to work here for a really long time and probably knows his way around.

That’s about it on what’s been going on around here. School is school and Windu still isn’t a big fan of me, but even he can’t deny that I’m the best in his class. Obi-Wan says my marks are better than last year’s already and I should keep up whatever I’m doing. I try to tell him that heroes can’t fail, but he doesn’t really buy that as an answer. Write back when you can. I still love you!

~ Anakin

[blissfulalchemist]

A Chance for Faith Ch. 5

Finally got Chapter 5 finished! You can read it here below the cut or on

Ao3!

Important timeline note: This happens days after the attempted arrest.

@risenlucifer​ @fromathelastoveritaserum​ @jacobs-pup​ @onshammad​

“Ancient men were killers. They were tenacious. They were strong. Now what are we? Passive. Lazy. Weak,” Chance snorted hearing the sound of the biggest brother of the Seed family preach with his wispy, gritty voice. Chance was squatted in some bushes, Physocarpus malvaceus or mallow ninebark he was pretty sure, watching the operation outside of the armory bunker between his cover’s red brown leaves. Chance had been studying this spot for the last two days trying to work out how the place worked, more than enough time to gather what he needed, though one could never be too sure. He figured that the more he knew the quicker he would be able to take this bunker, and hopefully the whole Seed family, down. Today, though, was the day he would finally find the opportunity to enact his plan. Simple and fast; get in, place as many explosives as he could, get out, and watch the show. 

“Culture and technology hasn't improved us, it has brought us to our knees!” Chance stifled his laughter at the words being spouted in the recording, “If our ancestors could see us now, they would be ashamed. They would be sickened and they would be angry. We have forgotten where we came from. We have forgotten who we are.”

Chance rolled his eyes bringing up his binoculars in an attempt to make out details on the door, “Just because you couldn’t figure out a flip phone doesn’t mean technology is evil, old man,” Chance whispered to himself, chuckling. The door was big, metal, and appearing to need a key card to get in, impenetrable. It just needs one big explosive, that should get the job done I’m sure. 

Chance swept the area once more confirming his game plan to get through step one. He repeated the steps mentally, checking his bag loaded with all the explosives he found over the last few days. He just had to sneak past the guards, place a few remote explosives, and then use the rest of the explosives to get the party going. Once this place was out of commission taking down the rest of Eden’s Gate would be a piece of cake. What about Pratt?, Chance paused looking past the bag, What if he’s in there?, his conscience prodded. 

He shook his head, a fair point but if this plan went as it should then Chance would be down in the bunker enough time to look for him. Besides who would be stupid enough to put prisoners with a bunch of weapons. What if Pratt got out by some miracle? Then he’d have full access to weapons and have the ability to pull a Rambo. Chance rolled his eyes at the thought. He had to save him now, to at the very least prevent Pratt from having a story like that to tell at the bars when this was all over. Pratt’s going to be fine. There’s nothing to worry about.

Chance took a deep breath making his way out of the bush as quietly as possible. He kept his eyes on the guards moving in front of him. They were close to being only a thousand feet from him. Chance’s heart started to race as his eyes moved around for an exit, he just had to stick to the plan. Just make an arc around the area and then-. Snap.

Chance froze, his heart beating rapidly, mouth going dry. The soft click of a gun just behind Chance had him putting his hands up, closing his eyes tightly. Well there goes that plan. “Now keep low,” Chance nodded slowly at the instructions given to him, his chest burning from the breath he held in, “turn around slowly and walk back to the road,” the voice was young and male, even with the lack of gruffness that seemed too common among the men here. Except Pretty Boy, but he doesn’t count as much of a man. 

Chance squinted his eyes open as he turned around hoping to get a look at who was holding a gun to his head. It didn’t work as Chance could hear the mystery man move so he was behind Chance the entire time as he started to face the road. Chance let his breath go and walked, doing as he was told, his legs starting to burn beneath him. “Hey, you grabbed my bag right?” Chance whispered to the guy behind him, “It's kind of important you know.”

Some of the taller plants around him tickled the underside of Chance’s arms, “Oh. No I didn’t. Yeah, just let-,” his tone became light and friendlier before he must have remembered what he was doing, “Hey, you shut up. I figure out what we should have with us, I’m the one with the gun.” There was a hesitancy in his footsteps as Chance continued to walk awkwardly, he was contemplating on going back for the bag or not. Chance heard him walk away quickly managing to return just as fast. The small clink of an enamel keychain against the cheap zipper was the only confirmation that it was his bag. The barrel of the gun tapped Chance’s head, the metal cold, “Hey I didn’t tell you to stop walking.” Chance looked at the ground not realizing he had stopped walking.

Chance started up again, “Thanks for grabbing my bag.” His legs were starting to shake, they were tired, “Can I at least stand at this point? My legs are killing me.” 

There was a few seconds of silence from his potential captor, “Yeah I think it should be fine now.” Chance let out a relieved sigh, “But slowly and face the road the entire time.”

“Yes sir,” Chance let out a low groan as he stood. His legs were sore but they no longer screamed at him, for now. From this vantage point he could see that the road was faster approaching now with the use of his full stride. “Are you taking me to Jacob?” There was no response, “Trench Coat?” Still no response came, “Joseph? Maybe Faith? She’s kinda pretty don’t you think?” Chance heard the small sound of someone trying to hold back their laughter, “Are you taking me to any of them?” Chance was met with silence once more, too foreboding for his liking. 

What is this guy’s plan?, Chance couldn’t help but wonder. As the two of them neared the edge of the road Chance could just make out a brown truck hidden within the trees. “Get in the truck,” Chance was ordered. Chance didn’t hesitate to get into the truck, settling himself quickly so that he could finally get a look at the person calling all the shots. They were about Chance’s height, wearing a red ski mask and the black and white camo, same as what was on the guards outside the armory. Chance recounted in his head all the people he had seen, he couldn’t place where this guy could have come from. Seeing how this situation was playing out so far, Chance doubted he was actually a part of the people that were trained by Jacob. Chance watched as he saw him place his backpack in the bed of the truck.

Chance flinched at the sound it made, hoping that nothing got dislodged. It’s not like Chance was the most adept at packing explosives. Realizing he had his hands up still, Chance placed them on his thighs shaking out his shoulders and arms. He watched intently as his charge made their way around the truck. They got in slamming the door pointing, what Chance could now see was a simple handgun, “Don’t try anything stupid,” he warned, deepening his voice, starting the truck. His head was swiveling as he pulled out of the hiding space. 

It was silent as they made their way down the road putting distance between them and the armoury. Chance started to shift at the amount of silence, trying to prevent the dam of questions from pouring out. Or he just wanted out of this truck. Maybe if he just tucked and rolled he could make it mostly unharmed and-, “What the hell were you doing out there, civilian?” Chance flinched at the sudden outburst from the driver, “You could have blown our cover! I mean, my cover.” His voice became more muffled as the ski masked shifted and moved out of place, a small growl of annoyance ended his turn to speak.

Chance looked to him in disbelief, “Are you kidding me? I was trying to take down the biggest threat. And I had a really solid plan until you showed up. So now it’s ruined,” Chance argued. “Thanks for that.”

The driver nodded towards the bed of the truck an eyebrow raised, “A solid plan?” Chance nodded scoffing, “Blowing the place up? That was your plan?”

Chance crossed his arms giving a small eye roll, “Yeah and it was going to work.”

The captor’s dark eyes went wide, “Are you-,” the mask must have gotten caught in his mouth, laboring his breathing. “Hold on,” he quickly pulled off the ski mask tossing it to the side taking a deep inhale, “Fuck I hate wearing that thing.” Chance was taken aback when he finally came face to face with who took hold of him. Chance had assumed he was young but not teenager young. There was no way this guy could be more than twenty years old. His hair was long, black, and straight even in its current braids. His skin a brown showing some wear from the lack of sunlight he was used to getting if the small sliver of visible tan lines were any indication. His narrowed onyx eyes framed by a furrowed brow were currently staring Chance down, “Back to the point: Are you stupid? Or do you just have a fucking death wish?” 

Chance’s eyes widened as he took offense to this kid’s words, “No.” Chance scoffed at the notion kicking his leg out slightly, “I’m doing the smart thing here. Jacob does all the training, meaning he has access to most of the Project’s weaponry. Taking him out fast and hard is the best thing to do here.” Chance gave him a smug smile.

It was sound logic, no one could argue against it, “You are stupid.” Chance opened his mouth to protest, “I’m not saying you’re wrong, but don’t you think if it was that easy we wouldn’t have done that by now?” Chance’s smile vanished, the kid placed an elbow on the window’s edge rubbing his temple, “Okay I’ll play along, maybe I’m wrong. How long have you been scoping out that bunker?”

“Long enough,” he retorted, suddenly feeling a little self conscious of his answers.

 “So less than a week,” Chance stayed silent seeing the frustration grow on his driver’s face. “You really didn’t think this through,” the young man stated. He let out a long sigh, “Did you at least see any confirmation that the weapons were being taken there?” Chance tried to look back on the last two days, his response time must have been too long, “So I’m gonna take that as a no. What about Deputy Pratt? What if he was in there and you decided to blow up the place? Or all the other innocents down there, were you really going to just let them die?”

Chance flinched at the detail he had managed to overlook, turning his eyes away from the know it all. “Hey I would have figured it out,” Chance yelled, “I’m good at improvising. Thinking on the fly.”

 “Improvising,” he let his eyes leave the road to look at Chance with an open mouth shaking his head, “Wow. You’re not stupid. You’re stupid stupid.” All this guy seemed to be doing was make Chance feel worse, which meant that he was telling the truth. “You can’t just improvise with Jacob Seed. That man has everything thought of. Even the best laid plans we’ve had have failed. Look you’re better off waiting on the fabled Deputy to help save us all from this.”

“Fabled Deputy?” Chance looked at him curious. Did my name seriously get around that fast? 

“Yeah,” he smiled looking at the road in awe, “There was this deputy that got away after the arrest. Seems the Seeds got a vendetta for him,” That was a bit of an understatement, “I heard this guy took out like twenty guys on his own with his bare hands.” Well that was an exaggeration, Chance hadn’t even seen that many members in the four days since the arrest, waking in Dutch’s bunker. “Eli says we can’t rely on one man to take them down though, but he’s gonna be a great help with his skills and knowledge.”

Chance swallowed nodding along to what the kid had to say, tuning out the rest of his repeated tall tales. If these were the stories they got up here in the middle of the mountains then the rest of the county was going to be severely disappointed in who their hero actually was. A twenty-five year old ex-alcoholic that liked to dance the line of death, despite being terrified of coming back to a place he never wanted to see again, with the muscle mass and combat expertise of a child. Some hero he was. 

“Tell me what you’ve heard about him,” his driver wondered, “You had to have heard something.”

Chance cleared his throat, “I heard he fails to live up to the hype.” Chance rubbed his clamming palms against his jeans, “He’s just some guy that everyone chose to be their martyr. All so they could finally be brave enough to take these leaders out themselves.”

Chance was given a sideways glance, “And I thought Tammy was cynical? You might have her beat.” Chance didn’t want to ruin the kid’s fantasy, but maybe if he knew who Chance was he could take him to Eli. Chance opened his mouth to speak before the local started talking, “I’d take you to Eli but he’s not the biggest fan of outsiders.” Well looks like I’m zero to two today, “Though I can tell him about you and maybe he can give you a test.”

Chance’s eyes went wide, “You have to pass a test in order to even have a chance of meeting him?” Chance shook his head, This is proving to be harder than I thought.

“Well you can never be too careful up here,” his voice became hallow and far away, “Another reason why it’s stupid to go after Jacob is because he’s got this method with his training, it makes people into sleeper agents.” 

“Sleeper agents? Like what happens in, Return of the Joker?”

“Maybe...Is that movie,” his brow knitted together trying to piece it together.

Chance waved him off, “Doesn’t matter too much. But in it the Joker puts a chip in one of the Robins to take over his body at a later date,” Chance explained.

“Huh,” the young man thought for a second, “I know Jacob’s smart but I don’t think he’d be using that kind of technology.” His voice trailed off before lighting up again, “Hey! Maybe that’s what you can do! You can try and figure out how he’s doing it!”

That sounded like an easy enough thing to Chance. He just had to either infiltrate into the ranks or spend days watching some place trying to figure it out. “You think Eli would meet me if I did that?”

The driver opened his mouth before closing it hearing the static of the radio come on, “Wheat- Wheaty, come in,” the voice was deep, definitely an older man. Chance looked to his driver and to the radio, Wheaty, unique name.

He grabbed the receiver, “Go for Wheaty.”

“Just got a description of the Deputy,” Chance’s eyes went wide, “Need you to be on the lookout for him.” Wheaty nodded waiting for the voice to make its way through the static, “The guy’s young with a mess of curly brown hair. Green eyes,” Wheaty paused his nodding quickly glancing at Chance. 

“Sounds pretty generic to me Eli,” he said into the radio, his eyes starting to narrow as he watched Chance in his peripheral.

“Well apparently this guy also has tattoos on his hands,” Chance quickly crossed his arms hiding his hands under his armpits. “Chemical formula stuff. Though no one knows of what or can even remember what they are. Unique enough detail for you?”

Wheaty turned to face the now shy deputy, “Yeah that’s unique alright. What do you want me to do with him if I see him?”

“Bring him here, sooner we get him here the better. Less chance that Jacob’s gotten to him,” Eli instructed as Wheaty hit his hand on the steering wheel, letting out a small curse. “Got that, kid?”

He let out a sigh, “Loud and clear. I’ll let you know if I see anything.” Wheaty pulled the truck over, placing the receiver back in it’s holder. He took a breath as Chance shied away from him, ready to jump out of the truck if needed. This isn’t going to be good, “Are you fucking kidding me?! You’re the deputy everyone’s been talking about? The one that’s supposed to be some big hero?”

“Tales of my escapades may have been a bit exaggerated,” Chance said softly, giving him an embarrassed smile, shrugging.

He groaned, “You’re telling me,” Wheaty threw his head back on the seat letting out a long breath, “I’m a little disappointed don’t get me wrong, but now we’re at an impasse.”

Chance tilted his head, “What do you mean? You heard him, you have to take me to him right away.”

“Yeah, but not like this,” Wheaty faced him, hands clasped pointing to Chance, “Look I’m sure you’re capable and will be our famed hero,” his arms moved as if he was showing off some muscle before they fell back to his side slowly, “just, not now. Look how easily I found you? You were ready to blow up a bunker that didn’t even have the weapons in them.” Chance looked down to the stitching of the seat, his plan was a failure from the start. He really didn’t have a clue of what he was doing, what he got thrown into. Chance ran his nail along the thread, “You were going to get yourself killed and we can’t have that.” He shook his head, “If I was Eli I’d send you back out to the Valley or to the Hebane. Give you some time to get your bearings. Have you walk a bit more before you start flying. It’s what he had me do before I became a full fledged member of the Wolves Den.”

Chance shrugged, biting his inner lip, “Eli made it sound like too big a risk if I was left out here too long,” Chance argued, “Just- Just let him meet me and then he can decide what he wants to do with me.” His voice was on the precipice of begging, which annoyed Chance. He just wanted to do the right thing and do it right. Show that maybe, just maybe he wasn’t such a disappointment after all.

Wheaty shook his head, “No.” Chance looked him in the eye, “I am aware of how big a risk I’m taking right now, but you’re just not ready.” Chance glared at him, placing his hand on the handle of the door, “And trust me that’s not a bad thing Dep. None of us were ready for this. You’re far from alone in that department. We just have to be smart about this and if I’ve learned anything from Eli, the smart thing to do here is to have you in the Valley with John. He’s not dumb by any means but he’s the least bright of the brothers.” Chance let out a sigh, “Heard he’s also a little more unstable since you rolled in.”

“You think I’ll be able to take him down?” Chance asked not getting his hopes up too high.

“Yeah,” Wheaty nodded, “I know you can.” Wheaty placed a reassuring hand on Chance’s shoulder, “And don’t worry I’ll be a radio call away! I’ll try and help you out the best I can up here, along with trying to make it down there every now and then.” He held up a hand for a high five smiling, “You can do this. Just get a little more comfortable with the whole situation and how you want to handle it. Then,” he pointed between the two of them, “you and me, we’ll take down that Jarhead of a brother. What do ya say?”

If Chance was being lectured by someone younger than himself, it was obvious he really hadn't been ready to take down Jacob, just yet. Chance ran a hand down his face before slapping his hand against Wheaty’s, “I say you’re right.” The two brought their clasped hands down for a proper handshake, “Call me Chance by the way. Don’t like being called Deputy.”

Wheaty smiled, “Got yourself a deal Chance. Now come on let’s get you down these mountains.” Wheaty pulled a U-turn south turning the radio to his own personal station. It wasn’t long before both young men were air guitaring to the riffs and lamenting on what defined rock music. Which band was better, who was more over played, or how each area has a certain era of rock that dominates what gets played. It was fun and normal, like they had always been friends. For the near two hour ride it took to get to the outskirts of Fall’s End Chance felt like himself again. Chance was wishing that the ride would last longer, but like all good things in Chance’s life, it had to come to an end. Chance pulled his bag out of the truck bed looking at Wheaty one last time, “Seriously, you need anything Chance, and I mean anything you give me a call.”

Chance gave him a smirk, “Same to you. Thanks Wheaty.” Chance rubbed the back of his neck, “You know you might have saved my life back there,” he admitted.

“Hey,” he put the truck in drive, “Now you just owe me.” He gave a laugh waving to his new friend, “Till next time!”

Chance waved back as the truck disappeared back to the mountains, “Till next time,” he whispered before turning in a circle looking for the path he had to take.

[miracle-sham]

Instead of Dead, Become Two Dragons in Red.

| {MaribatMarch2020 — Week 1, Day 5: Transformation} |

| [Ao3 Link] | | [Masterlist Link] |

| {Repost due to original post disappearing from the tags.} |

| Triggers/Warnings: Violence/Implied Violence, Animal Transformation, Explicit Language/Some Swearing, Implied/Referenced Character Death (but not really), Polyamory (not really a trigger/warning but if you don't like Polyamory then this isn't for you). |

| For Gotham vigilantes, rampaging magic-users always make for an interesting fight, that is of course, provided one doesn't get hit by any stray bolts of magic. However for Parisian heroes, it's just your typical Tuesday Akuma situation. |

| Word Count: 3232 |

==‹›==

| A/N: Hi! I'm not dead, sorry for how long I took to respond to comments, I got hit by a nasty cold then sinusitis so I lost basically all my Maribat March prep time thanks to that, so I just barely managed to finish this ficlet/oneshot for today, anyway I hope you guys enjoy, and if enough people enjoy it, I'll make a second part to this oneshot because I had to cut so much material and it'd be nice to be able to use it still. |

| If you want to be tagged in future oneshots/fics, or a specific Au, then comment or send me a DM/ask! |

| Also side note, Don't Like? Don't Read. Also also, please do not criticise any of my writing. This was written for fun and receiving criticism, even in a compliment/criticism sandwich, is the exact opposite of fun. |

==‹›==

Zzzzt-crackle-woosh, a purplish-black bolt of unstable magic flies through the air, just barely grazing passed Dragonbug's side as she flips across the gap between two buildings. Cheerfully, she calls out “Missed again!”

The villain, an amorphous black shadow with dripping molten gold eyes and donning a ruddy patchwork hooded robe (which suffice to say, looks suspiciously like a rip-off wizzrobe from the Legend of Zelda, that or a faceless Gregorian based cultist extra from a film or TV show), scowls furiously, “Oh fuck you! I'm trying my best here!” and blasts another bolt of purplish-black magic towards her.

Conveniently located on the roof she just landed on, is an air vent. She cartwheels behind it and manages to dodge the bolt by a good metre or so. “Well, your best sucks and so does your aim!”

The wizard-villain screeches in fury, “Well my aim wouldn't suck if you didn't keep moving like a goddamn Duracell bunny!”

Dragonbug snorts. “Yeah but firstly, I'm dragon and ladybird themed, not bunny-themed; the bunny theme's already taken anyway. And secondly, where's the fun in that?”

As soon as she says that, her earpiece crackles as Red Robin pipes up on the comms channel. “Ready to see some fireworks?”

“Oh, you bet!” She responds, all too gleefully.

There's a faint clink-woosh-woosh-woosh and out of the corner of her eye, Dragonbug sees a blur of a small round silver ball arcing through the air towards the wizard-villain who's quite stupidly standing in the same place. As the silver ball disappears from her view, she hears a clatter of clink-clink-clink followed by a bwoosh and a bright flash of white light. At this moment, Dragonbug is so glad the Miraculous suits protect against flashbangs of all things.

The wizard-villain screams and once the flash of light fades, Dragonbug can see that they've fallen to their knees, in the middle of the street.

Dragonbug frowns and eyes their form, then double-taps her comms. “Hey, is it me or does our rip-off wizzrobe-magic-cultist look somewhat unresponsive?”

Her earpiece crackles again as Red Robin answers, and really someone should give these things a maintenance check, the crackling can be so distracting. “Our wizzrobe-magic-cultist is looking pretty unresponsive to me too. It could be a trap though because I swear I didn't use one of my knockout flashbangs.”

She nods, despite the fact he can't see her; which upon realising this, she flushes red in embarrassment. After clearing her throat to compose herself, she tilts her head to the side. “That's concerning, unless our rip-off wizzrobe-magic-cultist is susceptible to flashes of light.” She pauses, frown deepening, “You don't think they've got epilepsy do you?”

There's a slight rustle before Red Robin responds, “No, that's not what an epileptic seizure looks like. Again this could be a trap, or they could just be stunned. Either way, we should hurry but be careful.”

“Right.” Dragonbug scurries over to the edge of the roof then flips her way down to the ground. As she lands, she just spots Red Robin vaulting across an overturned car. As he catches sight of her, she gives him a thumbs up, which he returns.

Dragonbug then nods to him and he nods back, silently communicating their plan. They both start to slowly approach the wizard-villain in a pincer movement, her to the left and him to the right.

Red Robin reaches to his bandoliers and whips out a pair of manacles. He skulks behind the wizard-villain and goes to handcuff when the wizard-villain starts cackling maniacally. The laughter is quickly followed by a forming orb of purplish-black light—the same light as the magic bolts.

Oh, fuck! Is Dragonbug's only thought as she immediately dives at Red Robin, who's started backing away; she uses herself to try and block him from the still-forming orb. Please let the Miraculous magic protect us both! She silently begs as the orb expands exponentially, unfortunately enveloping them both completely in a fraction of a second

The maniacal laughter is the last thing they both hear as they're violently launched backwards into an alleyway, and everything fades to black.

==‹›==

Kagami's lounging on the sofa at Tim's Nest and binging Netflix, when the red alert rings across all the comms units.

“Shit,” Oracle falters, “Red Robin and Dragonbug are down. Dragonbug's signature has disappeared from our systems and her comms aren't responding. All Red Robin's vitals are down, his suit isn't registering any more signs of life. But I'm still getting warnings that the villain they were fighting is still active, so everyone available needs to converge on Red Robin and Dragonbug's last known location.”

Fear immediately seizes Kagami's heart, no please, please don't be dead my loves. She double-taps her comms. “I'm suiting up as Kuro Neko, I'll be at the location in three.”

With that said, Kagami flings herself off the sofa. She glances around the room for Plagg who's halted in his eating of cheese and giving her a sad but cryptic look. Her eyes flicker to the window and he nods almost imperceptibly.

“Plagg, claws on.” There's a woosh as the poisonous green light washes over her, donning her in the Kuro Neko suit. She flexes her claws for a split second, tail whipping back and forth furiously, before darting over to the window and vaulting out of it.

As soon as she's out the window, Kuro Neko extends her baton down and begins pole-vaulting her way across the rooftops and over towards where her significant others were last.

==‹›==

When Dragonbug returns to consciousness, the first thing she notices is that she can't move, nor see, nor hear. But she can feel, and unfortunately that means she feels a strange painful pulsing throughout her entire body, as well as an excruciating aching sensation. The second thing she notices is that she's curled up on the ground and her head, or the world, is spinning somewhat. Anyway, I can safely say I'm not doing so good right about now, big ouch.

The first of her other senses to return is her hearing. Which immediately makes her hiss in pain from the sudden cacophony seemingly coming from somewhere above her? She pauses, then realises that something's not quite right, hey wait a minute, why'd my hiss sound so weird? Something's not right, although I suppose that's kinda obvious now, but still! Oh god, what if I'm dying, or I've been body switched, or—or—or—

Her thoughts are interrupted by a sudden scream of fury, ringing out from above. Which is good because it means Dragonbug doesn't get time to dwell on that particular string of anxious thoughts, but it's also bad because it's loud and causes her to whimper in pain from how loud it is.

“Where the fuck are they? What the fuck did you do to them?” A voice sounding very similar to Kagami yells out.

Wait a second, that doesn't make sense, Red Robin and I didn't call for backup, so why would Kagami suit up on her night off? Dragonbug muses to herself, brain immediately latching onto the next train of thoughts. As she muses, she slowly realises that she's starting to regain the feeling in her limbs. Which is another positive? However, the feel of said limbs, causes her mind to immediately blank and lose the train of thought. While her brain tries to figuratively perform an error message, she does finally manage to crack open her eyes, yay sight.

It's at that moment, Dragonbug's superhero experience/training kicks in. She quickly takes stock of her surroundings and quietly thinks to herself, oh fuck.

It looks like she's in a giant—no massive—version of Red Robin's suit. Have I been shrunk? She wonders for only a brief second as something moves, just out of the area of her view. She turns and squints at the movement. Not a second later, a roughly cat-sized red lizard shuffled into sight.

She squeaks in surprise, then has a minute of wait what because her squeak sounded weird and very concerningly not-human-like.

The red lizard tilts its head to the side and coos at her.

Dragonbug glares at the lizard and tries to back away. Emphasis on tries, because as she does so, she ends up tripping over herself? Confused and extremely concerned now, she glances down and oh.

What. The. Heckles. She slowly spins around, checking out her new form, because she's clearly no longer human. No, she's got a snout, scales, fur—well mane—, claws, a long snakelike body, and a tail. Spinning around, she catches sight of a gleaming piece of shiny silver metal. So does what anyone would in the same situation as her, and scuttles over to it to use it as a makeshift mirror.

The reflection that greets her is… frankly quite adorable but also she's now a tiny little lung/long dragon. Which to be fair, makes quite a bit of sense as she was using the dragon Miraculous and Longg is a lung dragon. Her scales are a pretty red with shimmery golden accents and her mane is a dark red-almost-black colour. Her eyes still have the golden yellow iris and sclera that the dragon Miraculous gives. And the rest of her is all done variation of the gold, brighter red, and darker red. So at least her colour palette doesn't clash. Okay, so the colour palette isn't the most pressing issue here, but also I don't know how to fix this or change back so y'know, I'd rather potentially be stuck like this permanently with a nice colour palette, than one that clashes. But also oh god please don't let this be permanent, there has to be a way to undo this!

In her panic, Marinette doesn't notice the red lizard slinking closer to her. As it reaches her, it gently prods her with one claw; startling her badly and causing her to squeak again, loudly.

The red lizard flinches back and Marinette realises that maybe, just maybe, that's not a random lizard. And that maybe the not-a-random-lizard is actually a drake. A European dragon that hasn't got wings. And Tim. Tim's surname is Drake. A coincidence? I think not! It's got to be Tim!

She stares at the probably-Tim dragon and makes a chirping noise because dragons don't have the same vocal cords as humans, so she can't exactly ask him if that's him or not. A minor nuisance, to say the least.

The red drake mimics her chirp. Then cautiously slinks up to her again.

This close, Marinette can see that she's probably around the size of a ferret, in comparison to him being roughly the same size as a cat.

He flops down half beside, half against her and makes a series of clicks and chirps. She can't help but to tense as he flops but as the seconds pass, she finds herself relaxing bit by bit until she's also flopped over.

Enjoying the peaceful impromptu not-quite-a-cuddle cuddle session with one of her significant others, Marinette does try to keep an ear out for any goings-on above, just in case. But all seems well.

That is until, not even three seconds later, the peacefulness is abruptly shattered by a cacophony of screams, yells, zaps, and loud bangs echoing shrilly from above, before ceasing just as abruptly as it started.

However, the unexpected cacophony still manages to cause Marinette to panic. She tenses with a low whine, hunching slightly, and holds her breath. Alert and anxiously vigilant, she can't help but survey the immediate vicinity again and again and again—looking for anything she missed initially or if anything's changed.

Tim shuffles and stumbles into a sitting position. He nudges her gently in the side of the neck with his snout. He makes a cooing noise, followed by a soft rumble—as if he were trying to imitate a cat's purr.

It takes a few seconds, but his actions start to help calm her down. She takes in a deep breath and mentally reassesses the situation. We've been turned into tiny dragons. We're inside-slash-underneath the Red Robin suit which is on the ground. Before we woke up like this, we were battling a magic-user villain who tricked us. We didn't get time to call in backup before we got hit but it sounds like backup arrived anyway. As far as we know, no one is aware of what happened to us or that we're in-slash-under the suit. We are currently safe for now.

As Marinette reaches the end of the reassessment, she feels much calmer. She makes a low trill-like-purr noise to signal to Tim that she's calmed down.

He sticks his tongue out in a blep and mimics the low trill.

Their second moment of calm is then also interrupted because apparently fate hates peace and calmness or something like that.

“I will ask you once more, Where. Are. They?” Kuro Neko questions.

There's a loud thump-snap, followed by the wheezing cackle of the Wizard-villain. “They're gone! Dead! Erased! Exterminated!” With its piece said, the wizard-villain continues to wheeze and cackle maniacally.

Marinette can't help but shiver in fear at the sound, barely able to squash the rising nausea.

A harsh snap sound echoes loudly in the street and the wizard-villain starts choking wetly.

Kuro Neko hisses something but the red robin suit muffles the words to the point of being indistinguishable.

The minutes drag by and the only sounds of note from above, are inaudible mutterings and the clattering of handcuffs and car doors. They must've handed the wizard-villain over to the police, Marinette thinks.

She's about to go nudge Tim to try and communicate that they probably need to go find somewhere to stash his suit and a place for them to hide until they can figure out how to turn back when a conversation between the vigilantes who arrived for backup catches her attention. Partly because of the topic, and partly because of how close the voices suddenly sound.

“They can't be dead, Red Robin's suit is still there.” Dick—or well more like Nightwing, since he probably arrived as backup as well—stresses.

“But Dragonbug an' her suit's gone. You'd think maybe that there'd be a little more left if just organic matter was destroyed.” Jas—Red Hood mutters, the vocal distorter in his helmet making his tone of voice sound strange.

Or maybe that's just a side effect of getting tiny-dragon-ified, thinks Marinette, things sounding stranger. Although I've not really noticed anything bar the distorted voice sounding weird.

“The Miraculous suits are made of magic, and anyway, Plagg says he can't feel Tikki or Longg's presence anywhere,” Kuro Neko admits, reluctantly. “If all living things in the vicinity of the orb were destroyed, then the Miraculous would have still been left behind.”

“And how d'you know that?” Red Hood asks, sounding both genuinely curious and mildly concerned.

There's a split second of almost icy silence before Kuro Neko responds with a clipped tone. “Akuma.”

“Ah, o'course.” Red Hood comments, voice getting closer again. “Hey, d'you think B will want to stick the Red Robin suit in a memorial case like what he did with my Robin suit?”

“Hood!” Nightwing exclaims in a horrified and almost scandalised tone of voice.

Red Hood snorts.

Marinette flinches, and so does Tim beside her, although probably not for the same reasons as her. I don't think I'll ever get used to how flippantly Red Hood jokes about his death. Even if most Parisians who've died in Akuma attacks use the same sort of gallows humour.

There's a few seconds of silence before someone grabs the Red Robin suit and yanks it upwards, causing Tim and Marinette to tumble out of it with a series of startled squeaks and clicks.

Red Hood is the first to respond to the situation, with an eloquent, “what the fuck.”

Marinette glances up and sees Kuro Neko holding the Red Robin suit and looking rather shell shocked, with Red Hood and Nightwing a few steps away.

“Oh, thank fuck they're alive.” Nightwing half mumbles, dragging a hand down his face in exasperation.

“My loves,” Kuro Neko murmurs leaning down and scooping up Marinette and Tim, “I'm so glad you're okay.”

They both squirm for a minute before relaxing into her arms.

Nightwing frowns. “We should bring them back to the cave, maybe call Zatanna and Wonder Woman.”

“To the cave then.” Kuro Neko nods, hugging Marinette and Tim carefully, making sure not to accidentally hurt or squish them.

Marinette looks up at her significant other and bleps. She then trills, content to be held for the journey back to the Batcave.

Tim however, wrinkles his nose and chirrups in protest, he squirms and tries to escape Kuro Neko's hold—probably wanting to return to the Nest and deal with this on his own instead.

Kuro Neko gives Tim a deadpan stare before expertly pinching the correct pressure point to temporarily paralyse him.

Red Hood gives her a quizzical stare.

“Akuma, as well as kwami.” She responds, sagely.

“Right…” He slowly mutters, shaking his head.

Marinette can't help but burst into laughter at that, only because she's currently a ferret-sized lung dragon, the laughter comes out as a stream of trills and chirps.

Red Hood narrows his eyes at Marinette. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, danger noodle.”

Marinette pouts, whilst internally promising herself that revenge will be swift and pasta themed.

==‹›==

When they finally arrive back at the Batcave. They're greeted by the sight of Batman and Robin at the Batcomputer.

Robin turns and sneers at them. “Of course, trust Drake to pull such an attention-grabbing stunt as this.”

Marinette immediately looks up from her snuggled up position in Kuro Nell's arms and hisses at Robin; Tim however, lets out a world-weary sigh.

“Robin.” Barks Batman, but the reprimand does nothing to quell Robin's hostility.

Fixing a glare at Robin, Kuro Neko starts to stroke Marinette's scales like an evil villain would stroke a cat (much to Marinette's delight). “Need I remind you, how you hesitated upon hearing Oracle inform us that Red Robin's suit ceased reading any signs of life.”

“That was not hesitation! I was merely preparing for Grayson or Fatgirl to become hysterical in their distress.” Retorts Robin, who then stalks away, scowling and red-faced.

Nightwing dithers between going after him or staying to check on Tim and Marinette.

Kuro Neko shakes her head. “Go after him, Marinette and Tim will be fine without you hovering like a mother hen.”

Nightwing flashes her a grateful smile and scampers after Robin.

Kuro Neko then heads over to the medical bay and gently plonks the two dragons onto a cot. “Batman, I believe we will need to do as Nightwing suggested earlier, and call Zatanna and Wonder Woman. As this is a magic situation and I am not as skilled or knowledgeable in regards to magic as my love is.”

“Hhrrm,” Batman growls, already calling up the Watchtower.

Kuro Neko smiles softly as she glances down at her significant others, eyes twinkling with mirth. “Let's hope they arrive soon, otherwise who knows what sort of trouble you two could get into.” She winks.

Marinette chirps, tail flicking side to side eagerly. Whilst Tim perks up slightly and tilts his head to the side, mind probably racing with hundreds of pranks and shenanigans they could pull off whilst in dragon form.

==‹›==

| Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little oneshot! Comments, likes, and reblogs are much appreciated! |

| @maribat-march2020 | | @vixen-uchiha |

[gumnut-logic]

We’ll be Home For Christmas 4.4

Title: We’ll be home for Christmas

Day Four – Five Billionaires and No Wives – Part 4 Prologue | 1.1 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.4

Author: Gumnut

23 - 29 Apr 2020

Fandom: Thunderbirds Are Go 2015/ Thunderbirds TOS

Rating: Teen

Summary: The boys can’t fly home for Christmas, so they have to find another way.

Word count: 2999

Spoilers & warnings: language and so, so much fluff. Science!Gordon. Artist!Virgil, Minor various ships, mostly background.

Timeline: Christmas Season 3, I have also kinda ignored the main storyline of Season 3. The boys needed a break, so I gave them one. Post season 3B, before Season 3C cos we haven’t seen it yet.

Author’s note: For @scattergraph​​. This is my 2019 TAG Secret Santa fic :D

I’m nervous about this one. I’m chewing nails. Also it is very late and I haven’t reread it as much as I probably should. Aaaargh! I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Many thanks to @scribbles97​​ and @onereyofstarlight​​ for reading through, fielding my many wibblies with this bit, and for all their wonderful support.

Disclaimer: Mine? You’ve got to be kidding. Money? Don’t have any, don’t bother.

-o-o-o-

The world tipped up and Gordon found himself airborne. It was only lifelong training that saw him in diving form by the time he hit the water.

The various squawks and splashes of tumbled brothers told him that he needed to run more water drills.

Fully dressed, Gordon slid through the water as easily as ever, shedding his momentum and twisting towards the surface. A gasp of air, an image of their upturned boat and a disappearing humpback fluke. He immediately made to locate four brothers.

John appeared first, elegant as ever, but with floppy red hair in his eyes. Scott followed, his expression a mix of worry and anger. A moment later Alan popped up spitting salt water. Of all the brothers, the youngest was the least fish.

There was no sign of Virgil.

Shit.

John was deploying his tablet in seconds. Gordon swam towards the upturned boat, worried that his brother might be trapped under it. “Virgil?”

A deep vibration in the water. Song thrumming from far below.

“She’s surfacing again!” It was Scott, hastily backing away from a shadow rearing up from the depths. Gordon’s eyes widened. Too close. Too close!

But there was no sudden eruption and breach.

The massive whale slowed her approach allowing her head to gently break the surface in an arc.

Virgil lay limp on his belly draped over her rostrum.

Oh, shit.

-o-o-o-

Virgil Tracy was not a fish. He much preferred his feet on dry land. That said, he could swim well. Swimming was great training and an all-over fitness tool. Not to mention that he had to be qualified for underwater rescue as much as his brothers, even if not perhaps as much as Gordon. His brother had taken him down into the depths of the Tracy Island caldera and amongst the amazing wildlife there. He had painted scenes of the coral and the sharks and the fish. He really enjoyed it.

But he was not a natural.

If Gordon had seen how he hit the water with a god-awful slap, he would be training his ass in that caldera for all time to come. The seawater that ended up in his throat and mouth wasn’t much fun either. his orientation was blown for a few crucial moments until he began to sink.

It was then he discovered that his post-operative body did not appreciate the movements required to push himself towards the light now far above. His lungs hated him, desperate to expel the water contaminated air irritating them.

If that wasn’t enough to contend with, the water around him suddenly vibrated with query, with rhythm, with song.

It swamped his senses. The light above dazzled with it. Every muscle in his shoulders and arms desperately tried to climb the water column, but the possibility that this time the strength he so often relied on might not be enough crept into his mind and somewhere deep in his gut true fear began to brew.

Not enough.

A nudge from below, a spike in that intense query and the huge humpback whale came up underneath him. He found himself clinging to her head, soft skin, barnacles and all.

He closed his eyes as her song enveloped him.

-o-o-o-

“Virgil!”

The body under him flinched and he was shaken gently.

It forced his eyes open and sunlight hit his retinas. His lungs noted that he was no longer surrounded by water and promptly puked up what they had been trying to get rid of and Virgil found himself wracked by coughing spasms.

His abdomen decided this wasn’t appreciated in the slightest and yelled at him appropriately.

“Virgil.” Gordon’s voice was much quieter and between coughs he caught a glimpse of his little brother cautiously approaching. A struggle to calm his diaphragm and he caught sight of three more brothers, all with worried eyes.

The mother humpback hummed into his chest and lowered Virgil just a little as if to offer him to Gordon.

The aquanaut slipped alongside and laid a gentle hand on her head, muttering soft words.

She answered with a rumble and a purr.

Virgil found himself smiling with no idea why.

“Virg, you okay?” Gordon reached out and touched his arm.

He grunted. “My appendix hates me.” He let his head drop gently down onto wet and cool skin.

“You don’t have an appendix.”

“That’s probably why it hates me.” His eyes closed. Her voice was so lulling, he could just lose himself in the sound.

“No sleeping on the whale, Virgil. You gonna come down from there?”

He didn’t answer immediately. To be honest he was quite happy exactly where he was. It was odd. It was weird. But he felt perfectly safe lying there, her voice lulling him.

“Virgil, I said no sleeping.” The hand on his arm squeezed.

“Not sleeping.” He wasn’t, really. “Listening.” Feeling. Absorbing. Trying to understand. He hummed deep in his throat, interweaving a harmony with her voice. It was surprisingly comforting.

A click and a groan, the mother tossed her head just slightly, her voice sparking in query again.

Gordon backed off a little. “Virgil, I’d be much more comfortable if you came down from there.”

Virgil let out a breath and his fingers slid over the soft skin cushioning his head. He stroked gently and she rumbled at him.

He hummed in reply.

Her voice wove around his. He half felt, half heard her, rhythm dancing about his body and mind. Rising in crescendo and dipping into depths that spoke of oceans vast and deeper.

It was such a high, such an intricate duet of incomprehensible melody. He sung without thought, giving what little his voice could provide and she compensated, vibrating through him with such an upwelling of astonishment and amazement.

He let go.

-o-o-o-

Scott stared as Virgil lay prone on a whale’s head and crooned some strange song that obviously meant something to him, but nothing to Scott. Every muscle in his body was strung for action, to swim over there and grab Virgil and pull him to safety.

The only thing holding him back was a pair of turquoise eyes.

John had swum over to Scott as Gordon made his way over to Virgil and placed himself in a position to stop Scott from doing exactly what they both knew Scott wanted to do.

“Gordon’s got this.” The words were quiet, barely heard above the lap of water against his collar bone, but they might as well have been a slap in the face.

This was Gordon’s realm, not his. Gordon knew these creatures, he knew the ocean. Gordon would protect Virgil.

Virgil was singing to a whale.

It was ridiculous. It was dangerous. The humpback was many times the size of both his brothers combined and could hurt or injure them at will.

Turquoise continued to stare at him.

Scott let out a non-committal grunt that if examined closer could easily be interpreted as one of distress.

Gordon was talking quietly to the whale, to Virgil, but the engineer was ignoring him as if he was caught in some kind of thrall.

God, he hated this.

Alan swam in closer and Scott was instinctively grateful.

“What’s going on?” His voice was as worried as Scott felt.

Exhaled over the dip and swell of the ocean. “Hell, if I know.”

-o-o-o-

Gordon stared at Virgil as he sang. Deep, ever so deep at the edge of his range, only to spike to a higher register. He lay, eyes closed, on the mother whale’s rostrum, body lax, but diaphragm working hard.

Concerned for his brother’s medical condition, Gordon opened his mouth to interrupt.

A nudge and a cool, wet body came up under his right arm.

He startled and spun. Several gasps from his brothers and Gordon came face to face with the young calf they had saved the day before.

He could feel the vibrations in the water and the echo of Virgil’s odd singing, but amongst it, he also heard the mutter of the little one as she nudged his hand again.

Jaw dropping, Gordon reached out and lay his hand on her rostrum.

She bounced her head lightly, nudging him further and he made his way down her side until he reached her eye. She rumbled at him.

“Hey, sweetheart. How are you feeling?” He reached out and gently touched her eye ridge just as he had the day before.

She clicked at him, deepening his touch by leaning into his hand.

A purr vibrated between his fingers.

The purr was echoed by the mother whale and she moved slightly taking Virgil with her.

Hurriedly, Gordon reached over and re-connected with Mamma whale. He ended up with one hand on the calf and one on her mother. “Hey, guys, you’ve got my brother. No running off with him, okay? We kinda need him.”

The calf snorted.

Virgil burst out laughing.

Startled, Gordon looked back at his brother and found him grinning, eyes still closed as if reacting to an unheard joke.

“What are you guys doing to Virgil?” He muttered it, aware of the audience to this little concert. Scott, no doubt was going into meltdown. While Sam was probably foaming at the bit, desperate to jump in the water and join in.

But no one was moving, thank god.

Gordon ran scenarios through his head, listing off everything he knew about these beautiful creatures and attempting to work out what exactly they wanted with his brother. Ultimately trying to work out whether he should intervene or not.

But then the decision was taken from him.

The music stopped. Its absence was abrupt and disturbing. Water and wind dominated the soundscape by themselves for several moments.

Virgil still had his eyes closed, a slight frown on his face.

“Virgil, you with me bro?”

It took a moment and Virgil’s brow crumpled just a touch more. “I’m good.” Barely heard above the water and the calf who started a repetitive click now that Mamma had fallen silent.

Mamma whale clicked back and suddenly turned in the water, her huge body creating a wake of bubbles around Gordon and sweeping him up.

Virgil yelped and fell off her rostrum with an awkward splash.

That was all it took for everything to start moving again. Gordon dove to where his brother had fallen and, with a grab, caught Virgil’s shirt and dragged him back to the surface.

“Virgil? You okay?”

A splutter and a mumbled something followed by yet more coughing was answer enough for Gordon. “Okay, this little sea venture is over, bro. Back onto a boat for you.” He shifted his heavy brother into a rescue hold and began swimming him back to Sam and Mel’s boat.

There was a protest from Virgil, but it was small. It was obvious a lot had been taken out of the man and for once in his life, he relaxed and let Gordon take control.

That was even more disconcerting.

Of course, ‘relaxed’ was the direct opposite of what Scott was feeling at that very moment and he narrowed in on both brothers almost immediately.

“Virgil?”

“Scott, can I get him aboard the boat before you rip his head off?”

That earned Gordon a blue-eyed glare for the record books.

“Hey, he’s half drowned. Give the guy a break. Hell, give me a break, he’s heavy.”

That, of course, prompted Virgil to protest that he could swim himself.

“You, shut up. You want to sing with whales, you’re on my turf, bro. You do what I say.” A snort. “My ocean, my rules.”

Virgil groaned, but he grudgingly relaxed back into Gordon’s hold again.

With another glare at Scott, Gordon resumed swimming towards Sam and Mel.

He wasn’t surprised in the slightest when his brothers followed.

Both Mel and Sam were ready to help him when he made it to the boat. Virgil muttered something about being sick of having to be manhandled in and out of boats, but Gordon ignored him.

He didn’t ignore the groan from his brother as he was dragged into the boat or the fact he curled into a ball the moment he was gently lowered to lie down. Gordon resisted the urge to jump up into the boat with him. Of course, Scott threw himself out of the water and as soon as he possibly could, clambering aboard and kneeling beside Virgil.

Gordon turned back to their upturned boat. Mamma whale and calf were still hovering not far away and he wondered what their intentions were.

Maybe Virgil knew.

The thought was just out there.

Both whales exhaled in a fountain of wet spray.

Gordon blinked saltwater from his eyes. “John, you wanna give me a hand?”

The astronaut was giving Alan a leg up into the boat, but turned and nodded.

A sigh. Turn over the boat, find what luggage they could, get Virgil aboard A Little Lightning…

And go home.

Mamma whale slapped her fluke and a spray of water was carried across them all.

-o-o-o-

Virgil was exhausted and he had no idea why.

Sure, his abdomen hurt, but he was held down by a whole-body lethargy, as if contact with the whales had drained all the energy from his limbs.

“Virgil? You with me?”

The plastic beneath his cheek was cold, wet and smelled of the sea. Scott was a vibrating presence beside him and Virgil knew he had screwed up again. “I’m sorry.” He tried to wrap himself tighter, his arms pulling on each other as if he was cold, even though he wasn’t.

“Are you okay?”

A cough burnt the back of his throat and his voice was hoarse as a result. “’M fine.”

“Bullshit.”

A survival blanket appeared out of nowhere and Scott draped it around Virgil, tucking it into corners. Something soft was placed under his head.

“I’m fine.”

Exasperation. “Okay. Whatever. I’m not, so just lie there for me, please.”

Virgil grunted, but forced his eyes to focus on his brother. Scott’s hair was plastered to his scalp making him look young and vulnerable. His eyebrows were a worried line that crumpled in the centre. His usual blue shirt was plastered to his chest.

Virgil’s eyes closed without permission.

She whispered to him through the bottom of the boat. A soft hum barely felt and he found himself smiling again. His brothers’ voices were a pleasant background concert to her voice and that of her daughter.

He became vaguely aware that Gordon had righted the other boat and was now working out how to retrieve their luggage.

The world faded a moment there.

“Back away, John!” Gordon’s voice was sharp with command and it carried firmly across the water. “She’s moving! Sam, move the boat!”

An outboard engine started up and it jarred him, roaring out the gentle song. He pushed himself up, the survival blanket falling to his waist. “No! No, engine!”

Sam wasn’t Gordon and didn’t automatically obey a Virgil order. The inflatable headed away from Gordon and the other boat.

“Turn off the engine, Sam!” He yelled and his throat complained, but Mel took the cue, her eyes darting between Virgil and Scott.

“Sam, do as he says.”

The man frowned, but the engine died.

The sudden silence was profound.

John climbed out of the water and into the other boat beside Gordon, now several dozen metres in the distance.

Virgil could feel the thrum of the mother whale in the pads of his fingers and the palm of his hand splayed across the plastic bottom of the boat.

But he couldn’t see them anywhere.

He sat up taller. Where were they?

John yelled something and Virgil could see him reach for his comms…

Mother whale broke the surface of the water between the two boats.

At speed.

A good two thirds of her body shot vertically into the air. Virgil’s eyes widened as her size became immediately apparent as the swath of white and grey skin passed above him. For a handful of moments, she loomed over them, her body arching into a graceful arc.

Time hung.

Virgil’s heart missed a beat.

With a sonic yell, she flung herself onto her back, sending half the ocean into the air in her place.

Virgil blinked as water hit his face, the boat was tossed and his brothers were yelling. He blinked again, holding on tight to the seat beside him.

It was a simple goodbye.

He let out a breath as water ran down his face. The ocean calmed; the boat lulled back to the gentle sway of the swell.

The song was fading. They were leaving.

“Virgil?”

Another blink and he attempted to focus on his brother.

A sigh at the concern in those blue eyes. “Please don’t ask me if I’m okay.”

Scott folded down beside him in the cramped space between the seats. His hair was still in his eyes and he looked as bedraggled as Virgil felt. “What do you want me to say?”

“Nothing.” But he let his head drop to Scott’s shoulder. “They’re leaving.”

“How do you know?”

“I don’t know, I just do.” The song had already faded to almost nothing. God, he was tired.

An arm snaked around his back and pulled the blanket up around him again before wrapping around his shoulder as Scott drew him in. “You know what?”

“What?” His eyes were drifting closed again.

“You’re hard work.”

Virgil snorted, the echo of the accusation he had lobbed at his brother only a few days earlier thrown back him.

“Yeah, well, I learnt from the best.”

Scott sighed. “I guess I’ll have to kick your ass later.”

“I’m sure you will.” But his brother only pulled him closer, there may have even been a kiss in his hair.

The lap of water, his brothers’ voices, the rhythm of Scott’s breathing and heartbeat.

Warmth, song and memory.

Virgil drifted off to sleep.

-o-o-o-

End Day Four, Part Four

[cyn-00]

Moreid one shot, 14 - "this thing"

Season 2, episode 12 "Profiler, profiled" (the one where Carl Buford is arrested for murdering one of the kids from the Youth Center of Chicago South Side, so the whole story about him being a pedophile rapist - and Derek being one of his victims as a kid - comes up. I wanna point out that originally I think only Gideon and Hotch discover Derek's direct involvement in this, but for the sake of this fic we'll pretend Reid does, too)

@tastefulancientwhispers asked me to tag her if I ever wrote a fic based on this scene :) so here I am. I shamelessly abused of italics in this one, heh

Also, I have a long-ish DISCLAIMER to make, that applies to all my works and not only this one. I think it's important to address that in this fic I won't mention the topic illustrated in the episode: this work mostly revolves around the famous line "Derek talks about you", said by Derek's sister to Spencer. My purpose was to write a "light" awkward/fluffy fic - almost love confession if you will - avoiding to focus on Derek's history of abuse. I think that's too delicate and serious of a topic for me to try and describe it merely through Derek's words/thoughts; especially considering that I should "filter" this narrative to fit my actual, sole scope of rendering Morgan + Reid's relationship. I actually HAVE focused more overtly on the Buford arc before, in my One shot 8, referencing a much late episode, but I hope I managed to dissuade anyone who read it from thinking that my intent was to romanticize the sexual abuse Derek suffered. Even though I admittedly enjoy reading fics based on the abused/care-taker trope, I still think it's risky to treat such topics if the writer's purpose isn't to convey some sort of "moral". Which is exactly why I'm always reluctant to treat directly and in depth Morgan's trauma as well as Reid's drug addiction: I haven't experienced either of these things, hence I don't think I'd be able to illustrate them properly and without triggering anyone who might be sensitive to said topics. Thank you if you dedicated your time to reading this intro, I hope the message is clear and of easy understanding :) <3

Read it on AO3

-------------

"Derek talks about you."

Reid couldn't stop replaying that phrase in his head, in an endless loop.

In the exact moment Sarah had said that, his immediate reaction had been to smile - like a total idiot, by the way - but now that everything was over and Spencer had the time to think about it, he couldn't help but wonder what she meant.

"Talk" how? "Talk" doesn't mean anything. It just means SAYING things, PRONOUNCING words. Did he say good stuff? Or did he make fun of him? Why did she feel the need to let him know that Morgan "talked" about him? He must've talked about Emily too, sometimes, but Sarah didn't say "Derek talks about both of you ".

He hadn't had the time to deepen the topic because as soon as he replied - "he does??" : again, a complete moron - Emily interrupted them to, righteously, get back to the actual subject: Carl Buford.

The second Reid remembered about it, all those dumb questions wandering in his head vanished. Poof. How could he keep obsessing about that stupid phrase while Morgan was going through what he was going through? Derek had trusted him enough to tell only him, besides Hotch and Gideon, and what was Spencer doing? Thinking about "Derek talks about you". He probably had MENTIONED him, or said, like: "oh you know there's this kid in my unit, socially awkward, total nerd, only thing he does is read like 20 books a da-"

-

"Reid?"

Emily's voice came loud like a train crushing into his ear drums. Spencer winced in his swivel chair.

"Mh?" he mumbled, looking up at her.

"...are you gonna go home or you're planning to keep working?" she asked him, jokingly.

"Yeah, no, I- I mean, yes I'm going home, no I have no intention to keep working, trust me..." he replied distractedly, checking his watch. It was 9:30 pm: not even that late...so why was she asking? Spencer had the sudden impression that she wanted something, and THAT was just a lame excuse to start a conversation.

"I was just double checking an e-mail I had to send." he continued, noticing that she wasn't even wearing her coat, neither had her bag in hand. She could've studied the scene better.

"Oh- yeah...your computer is off but, whatevs" she shrugged, pointing at the black desktop. He could've studied his scene better, too.

He looked at where she was pointing for a second, then stood up and grabbed his satchel.

"I know I was uhm...just, thinking about a thing " he said, understanding why literally everybody labeled him as a bad liar. Still, he didn't wanna spit it all out.

"A thing ?" she echoed him, raising her brows.

"Yes, a-" Reid interrupted himself before he had even decided how to phrase the thing to keep it vague enough. He saw Morgan get out of Hotch's office and heading quickly toward the sliding doors of the bullpen, with his head down.

"...a thing. Gotta go, see you tomorrow!" he said in a rush, quickly walking in Derek's direction without making it too obvious that he was basically running toward him.

-

"Spencer! Wait- wait a second." she said grabbing his arm from behind, after he'd only got 15 ft far.

He turned around, frowning.

"I, uhm, I don't think he's in the mood to...talk ? right now..." Emily said softly, with an awkward smile on her face.

"You know?" she added, tilting her head, hoping that she wouldn't have to explain further.

Spencer gulped, adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose. She was right, and if only she'd known the whole story, she would've been even righter. If there's even such a thing as being more right than...right.

"Yes, I- I know, but I wasn't planning on talking about... about that, I just have to ask him this... thing." he replied slightly embarrassed, looking down at the floor.

"Is the 'thing' you wanna ask him the same 'thing' you were thinking about earlier?"

"...yes" he answered almost murmuring, like it was some kind of secret - which is what it was still supposed to be, to her: a secret. Because, in the end, he hadn't even TOLD her, so how did she KNOW? How did she do that? Emily always did that. Fuck.

"And is this 'thing' what I think it is?" she pried, lowering her voice to the same volume of Spencer's.

"I...I don't know?" he replied, only not to give her the satisfaction of receiving the millionth "yes". But the answer was: yes.

"Then go, ask him the 'thing'. " Emily concluded, nodding her chin in the elevator's direction.

Spencer leveled his eyes with hers, gladly noticing a reassuring look of complicity appear on her face.

He nodded, smiling at her in a silly way before turning around.

-

Spencer quickly headed toward the elevator, hoping Derek hadn't got too far in the meantime - or, even worse: had already started his car.

He saw the elevator doors closing.

"Wait! Hold it!" he shouted, speaking to whoever was inside it.

He ran, jumping in between the doors.

Morgan was inside. Of course. What the hell was he still doing there? Did...did he wait for him? No, that was impossible and way too optimistic. He'd probably bumped into Penelope, who had kept him talking in the hallway for an amount of time nearing a decade.

They stared at each other for a solid 20 seconds, gaping, while the doors closed behind Spencer's back, leaving them alone - luckily.

Spencer figured the unsteadiness of his breathing wasn't due to the "run" anymore. He gave up on trying to slow it down, and decided he was going to speak up first, since Derek still looked frozen like an ice cube. Maybe he was annoyed by Spencer's presence, and he just wanted to avoid starting a conversation to make the interaction as quick as possible and finally go hom-

-

"R- Reid" Derek's thorough and slightly hoarse voice broke the silence.

"I was kinda looking for you, earlier. Gave up at a certain point." he added, smiling a bit. He looked... embarrassed? Was that even possible? For Derek Morgan to be embarrassed?

Spencer swallowed nervously, flattered. "Me too, actually."

Derek opened his mouth like he wanted to say something first, before the other could continue. But he got interrupted by the doors opening up again behind Spencer.

He pointed at the empty lobby with his finger, seeing that Reid hadn't even noticed they'd arrived at ground floor already.

Spencer turned around. They got out and he stopped 3 ft from the elevator, standing still, fiddling nervously with his hands. Was Derek expecting him to follow him or something? Were they gonna talk the next day? Or was he supposed to drop the topic forever because time was up?

Derek, who had got ahead in the meantime, turned around.

"You comin?" he asked, non-chalantly.

"Uhm, yeah- where?" Spencer replied, finally taking jogging steps forward to reach him, feeling like the marble floor was starting to sink under the soles of his Converses from standing there for so long.

"I'll give you a ride home. I don't know how you take the subway every fucking day." Derek replied, snorting.

Spencer smiled back, shyly.

"...thanks" he mumbled, looking down at his feet while walking outside with him, their arms only a couple of inches from touching.

-

They stayed silent until they arrived to the car. When they did, Derek stopped before either of them could get in.

"Listen, uh, I- I hope you're not gonna ask me stuff about... about Buford because honestly I can't take anymore pity-faces. Especially yours." he said in a deep tone.

"Nonono, no, absolutely not- I mean, if you ever wanna talk about it I'm here but I'm not- I don't wanna pressure you or anything." Spencer answered defensively, feeling his heartbeat racing. He wondered what he meant by "especially yours". Was his pity-face more annoying than the others'? Apparently, saying indecipherable phrases that made Reid go paranoid was a Morgans' family thing.

He saw Morgan nodding uncomfortably. Reid gazed silently at him for a bit, taking a careful look of him as a whole. He didn't look good- well, what the hell, of course he looked good, but he didn't look ok. He seemed exhausted and quite anxious - understandably. Nobody had ever seen him like that, and honestly it freaked Spencer out a little. The first thing that popped into his mind, was that such behavior was partially his fault; hence, he spoke up, trying to put a halt to it.

"You know what, I'm- it's late, actually, and you look like you need to stay alone for a while so, I'm just gonna take the subway it's no big dea-"

"No, kid, can you just- can you just stay ? Please..." Derek interrupted him, grabbing his thin wrist before he could get any further.

Spencer's heart warmed up. He eyed down at Derek's grip, unprepared to how even such a faint touch was sending goosebumps all over his arm. Much to his relief, not one but two layers of clothing - shirt AND jacket - hid that reaction from the other man's sight.

"Alright." Reid nodded after a bit, not because he was undecided, but because he was trying to get a hold of said goosebumps. He raised his gaze again to smile idiotically at him.

Derek grinned back apologetically, before ultimately making his way around the car to get in the driver's seat.

-

"So, I heard that you and Prentiss were the ones who had to go talk to my family, am I right?" he asked, with a tone and a way of phrasing the question that was nothing short of a desperate attempt to make it sound low-key and casual. Especially since he chose to say it while opening the car door. Like it didn't matter that much, or at least not enough to say it once he'd be sitting down comfortably. Unfortunately for him, Spencer picked up on all of that.

"Yeah!" Spencer answered, a little too enthusiastically for one who was trying with all his strength not to give the impression that he wanted to talk exactly about that, that he basically read his mind. Unfortunately for him, Derek picked up on those kind of things too - after all, they were paid to do it. To understand behavior. At times they forgot how much more difficult that made their mutual interactions, as well as more authentic.

Derek smiled to himself a little bit and started the car.

"So, how were they?" he asked teasingly, knowing that even if Spencer thought they were the worst people in the world, he would've never told him so. His heart was too pure.

"They're really nice. And they care a lot about you. You're lucky like that..." Spencer replied lowering his voice, revealing a slightly melancholic inflection.

Derek catched a glimpse of him while driving. He knew he wasn't referring to his mom, but to his dad. And he knew there was a big difference between how he lost his own dad and how Spencer lost his: Derek's father died. Spencer's father purposely left him: grabbed his shit, got on his feet, walked away from his wife and son. How a father could do that, was something that Derek would never understand.

"The cake was good, wasn't it?" he asked after a few seconds of heavy silence, trying to lift up the mood.

Spencer finally shifted his eyes to look at him. "Yeah, definitely" he answered, and Derek's mission could be considered accomplished, as a sweet smile appeared on his colleague's face; sweeter than that cake they were talking about - yes, Morgan thought about such comparison. He could've compared it with another million sweet things: caramel like his eyes; honey like his hair under the sunlight; strawberry like the color of his lips... Oh. Dammit.

"I wanna ask you a thing, though..." the sweet voice of the man object of his current fantasies gently snapped Derek out of his thoughts.

"What's that?" Derek asked, hiding the fact that he was shitting his pants wondering what Spencer's question could possibly be.

Spencer nervously played with the buckle of his leather bag, resting on his lap.

"Your sisters, both of them they- they immediately recognized me." he stayed vague. " "Doctor Reid" " he added making the 'quote' gesture with his fingers, smiling self-complacently.

"Well, yeah, we've been working together for...2 years or something, right?" Derek kept the dumb-play going, as if he hadn't basically been keeping count since.

"...2 years and 18 days to be precise...but anyway," Spencer paused to clear his voice. "Sarah, she specifically said that...uhm...that you talk about me. She- she said: 'Derek talks about you'."

Morgan abruptly hit the brakes of his car to stop at a red light that he noticed at the last second, distracted by what Reid had just said, making him wince.

"Wow. Well- fuck, my sisters really don't how to shut their mouths, do they?" he said, laughing a bit nervously.

"Well they- they didn't say anything- I mean, they just said that you "talk" about me but I'm guessing you talk about all of us, of cours-"

"No, Spencer. She meant a specific thing." Morgan interrupted him softly, parking his car. Yes: they'd already arrived at Reid's place.

After a long silence, during which Reid's face remained stuck in a confused scowl, Morgan turned off the car. He sighed, before turning slightly to his right to stare into Reid's hazelnut-hued eyes. Talking to him while driving was easier, because he couldn't look at that face of his. But now that he could, it got x10 times more difficult.

"She didn't say it to Emily, or both. She said it to you. Am I right?" Morgan was shamelessly giving up, gradually crumbling under the look the other was giving him.

Spencer nodded.

"...did you wonder why ?" he didn't wanna say it. God, he DID NOT wanna say it.

"Yes, I- I did, but honestly the only good answer I could come up with was that Emily hasn't been in the unit as long as I have so...I don't know, we still don't know her that well...?" Spencer replied, stuttering.

"That, too." Derek paused. He was thinking about a proper way to say it without freaking Spencer out. He didn't wanna say "it's because I like you", since he wasn't sure he did. Well, of course he LIKED him, but he still hadn't quite figured out if he liked him in that way.

Plus, he'd obviously noticed that Spencer, too, felt something...different. He was sure neither of them had a clue of what to do with it; on the other hand, he was also sure he had to give him a hint, one way or another. To make sure Reid understood that he wasn't imagining it, that there was something different. Even though that "something" didn't have a name yet. Maybe it would, some day.

After thinking for a long time, during which Spencer respectfully stayed silent, the "right" words found their way into Derek's mind, brooming away the dust that had been weighing down on his courage to say them all along.

"A'ight. 3 or 4 months ago I spent a weekend with my family. I don't know if you remember that I didn't come to get drinks with you guys cause I had to leave early in the morning." he started. Spencer nodded - of course he remembered. Dumb question.

"Ok so, one day I was... talking about you with them at dinner, I'm not sure what I was saying, honestly...but after a while Desirée said a thing that made me think." Derek paused, leaning closer to Spencer to make sure he listened carefully.

"She said, quote unquote: 'you know how you always say that Reid gets excited when he rambles about statistics? Well, that's kinda what you do when you talk about him...It's like, he's YOUR statistics'."

Spencer kept looking quietly into Derek's black eyes, without blinking once.

"She... s- she said that?" he then asked, just to be, you know, sure that he wasn't dreaming.

"Mhmh." Derek nodded shortly. "I remember it like it was yesterday. Guess some of that memory of yours must have rubbed off on me, huh?" he grinned brightly.

The burning shade of red staining Spencer's cheeks didn't but spread further, even if he had to bite back a: "that's not possible, Morgan; it doesn't work like that."

Derek continued. "When she said it, at first I thought she was fucking around, but then it's like...it opened my eyes. I- I don't know. I guess I don't even notice when I do it." he shook his head and stared blankly at an undefined spot outside, as if trying to clear his thoughts.

"...just like when we have to stop you from throwing up random statistics that literally nobody asked for." Morgan concluded cocking his head, with a playful and affectionate smile.

Reid giggled, now feeling his whole face on fire and his heart hammering into his ears. He was speechless. For once.

Derek gently placed his warm hand on the back of Spencer's neck, while the other man kept looking down at his bag, biting his bottom lip so hard he thought it could bleed.

"Do you talk about me to your mom?" Derek asked after a while, almost whispering. He kept his eyes glued on Spencer, even though he had clearly no intention of looking back at him any time soon. He wanted to catch every inch of his facial reaction.

"Should I be prepared for her telling me 'Spencer talks about you' if I ever meet her?" he kept the volume of his voice low, starting to stroke Spencer's neck with his thumb and smiling when he saw faint shivers appear on his skin.

"...m- maybe" Spencer answered, not wanting to reveal that literally 70% of the things he told his mom involved him, of which 40% were specifically about him.

Spencer managed to find a crumb of courage to shift his look and finally return Derek's gaze. But as soon as his so-fucking-handsome face reached his sight, along with that way his pupils were staring into him - a way he couldn't quite decipher but didn't mind, after all - he had to jerk his eyes away immediately, or else his heart would've burst out of his ribcage.

Hence, he decided to quickly and distractedly check his watch.

"I- I should probably go now..." he said. He didn't say it because he wanted to - oh, he SO didn't want to go - he just, had to. He didn't wanna ruin things. He wanted to keep that moment fixated into his memory just like it was, hoping many others like that one would come in the future.

"Yeah, you should..." Derek said, shifting farther from him in his seat and taking his hand off of Spencer's soft neck. It was so hard, to stop touching him, it seemed like when you try to split apart two magnets too strongly attracted to one another.

-

Spencer got out of the car, closing the door behind his back. He turned around and bent to look at Derek from outside.

"Wait!" he squealed, tapping his knuckles against the glass.

Derek, who had already started the car, pulled down the window to hear him better, looking at him confused. "Forgot something?"

"No! No, well- yes. I wanted to ask you one more thing." he paused, scrunching his nose. "What did you mean when you said that- that you can't take especially my pity-face?"

Derek bit his bottom lip. "Nothing too hard to understand." he said, with an enigmatic tone. Now, Spencer was the one looking confused.

"It's just way more painful to handle. Cause it's a much prettier face than the others'."

Spencer looked down, chuckling and nodding like he meant to say: 'oh, yeah, that. Of course.'

"See ya tomorrow, Pretty Boy." Derek said in the end, winking and rolling the window back up to finally leave.

-

Spencer was left there, standing and freezing cold, not knowing what to do with himself.

His phone buzzed into the pocket of his pants, giving him something else to concentrate on, something that wasn't that face, or that voice, or that smile, or that hand on his neck...something that wasn't related to Derek Morgan.

It was a text. From... Emily:

"So how'd the 'thing' go?" Duh. Of course it had to be the umpteenth thing related to Derek Morgan.

He smiled at the screen of his phone. Once again: like a complete idiot.

[firebirdsdaughter]

Random Writing Word Dump…

… Draft… Demo… Thing… Mess… I dunno.

It’s like I took my brain and shook it upside down…

It’s kinda long.

So… I like the second half of this more than the first, but oh well.

Brief context: Horobi and Jin had redemption arcs a while ago, and Yua and Isamu decided to ally w/ Aruto, too. Everyone was at the Hiden building when the Ark usurped control of it and turned the entire security system against them. Yua and Aruto take Jin and Izu and head for the President’s secret lab in the hopes that it will be the most defensible while Isamu heads for the core server room in order to try and flush the Ark out, w/ Horobi volunteering to go as well, bc he’s not about to let the building get destroyed while Jin is in it.

And thus we begin.

The pacing is really terrible here, but here we are.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Fuwa, we made it back to the President’s private lab, but it’s not going to hold forever!” Yua’s words were slightly spotty over the radio as they descended deeper into the Hiden building, but still audible. “Where are you two?”

“Still going down!” Isamu shouted, over the sound of another security drone—until Horobi abruptly sliced it in half with a single swipe of his katana, “But murder bot here says we’re nearly there!” He glanced toward the HumaGear—or, rather, the sword Horobi was re-sheathing. “What is that thing even made out of?”

Horobi ignored his question to scowl slightly at him. “I told you to stop calling me murder bot.” He snapped—strangely, though, neither the demand nor the expression actually felt hostile.

“You’ve nearly killed me multiple times, I’ll call you what I want.” Isamu shot back, rushing past the HumaGear and down the stairs rather than giving him a chance to answer. He caught Horobi rolling his eyes, but the robot elected to merely follow him rather than complaining again.

They moved even further down, and the shiny, pristine aesthetic of Hiden Intelligence began to fade, giving way to cement walls, industrial lights, and cables running along the walls. Isamu turned off his radio when the HumaGear suggested the signal might have been attracting attentions—and it did seem to have helped, especially after a drone had gotten a lucky hit on his leg before he’d shot it down. “How many damn floors does this building need?!” Vulcan growled, shaking his head, leaning heavily on the railing.

“They weren’t expecting an aggressive AI to commandeer control when they originally built it.” Was Horobi’s flat reply, looking ahead rather than at the human behind him. On the following landing, however, he abruptly came to a stop then, purple light glimmering in his eyes as he cycled through the blueprints. “This is the floor. This way.” Without another warning, he turned sharply and darted through a door on his right, forcing Isamu to run after him.

Finally, they crashed through a door that Horobi spun around to hold closed, ordering Isamu to hit the emergency lock—the moment Vulcan pushed the button, metal bars shot across the door, and the HumaGear released it, stepping back.

“That should buy us some time.”

“How much?”

“Depends,” Was the curt reply as Horobi turned back to the room they’d sealed themselves in, “How quickly we fix this.”

Isamu followed his gaze to the mass of monitors and equipment lining the walls. “… I hope you meant it when you said you could do it, because Yaiba’s right—I have no idea how any of this stuff works.” Horobi had already crossing the floor to one of the monitors before he finished the sentence, pulling up windows and typing—but the deepening frown on the HumaGear’s face was not a good sign. “… What’s wrong?”

“The Ark is rewriting the security protocols and commands faster than I can enter them.” Horobi paused, leaning against the edge of the terminal. “I should still have at least basic admin access, if Korenosuke’s files are to be believed, but of course without the antennae, I can’t directly connect…” He actually punch the metal in frustration. “Never thought I’d regret…” The HumaGear trailed off suddenly, as his gaze lighted across the wires running between the different stations. “Unless…”

“Antennae?” Isamu frowned. “You mean the earpieces? Is there a way we could-” He stopped at the sound of rubber tearing, and looked over to see Horobi ripping one of the cords out. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I can’t connect wirelessly,” The HumaGear explained, just as bluntly as he said everything, reaching up to yank off his head wrap and feeling the back of his head with his fingers, searching for something as he pulled more of the wire away from the wall, “But if I use one of these, I should be able to create a direct line from my system to the computer.” Whatever he sought on his head, he found at what would have been the base of his skull if he were human.

Isamu was still at a loss until Horobi pulled the cable up and moved to stab it into the spot—at that, Vulcan dove forward and grabbed his arm. “Hold up!” He tried to pull the HumaGear’s arm down, but Horobi refused to budge. “What will that do to you?!”

“At the very least, it will allow me to enter commands faster and maybe outpace the Ark. At best, I may be able to retake control.”

“You’re talking about hooking yourself up directly to the main system for the entire Hiden building. I don’t know much, but I’m pretty sure that’s too much for one HumaGear to handle—you’ll fry your whole system!”

“We have no other choice.” There was an edge to Horobi’s voice that time. He moved to plug the wire in again, but Isamu refused to let go, holding on to the HumaGear’s arm with both hands.

“Your heart-”

“-Is in Hiden’s lab!” The surprise of Horobi raising his voice made Vulcan’s grip slacken, and the HumaGear yanked free and stabbed the end of the cable into the back of his head before Isamu could stop him.

Sparks flashed around the connection, surging all the way up the remains of Horobi’s earpieces, the lights and his eyes blazing so brightly it hurt to look at. The HumaGear’s body shuddering like he’d just been electrocuted, then collapsing forward to barely catch himself on the edge of the computer terminal.

Isamu tried to reach out to him, but got zapped by the floating sparks and flinched back, resorting to yelling instead. “Murder bot! Oi! Murder bot!” There was no answer. “Horobi!”

“… I…” Even Horobi’s voice seemed to crackle with electricity, “… I’m fine… I can… I can see it…” He sounded almost in awe—but very much not fine.

But the computer screen was flashing ‘CONNECTION ESTABLISHED,’ and there was a loud cracking of metal as the door began to buckle behind them. “… Shit!” Reluctantly, Isamu pulled away, spinning around around to search for something to prop the door with, even if it was futile. Horobi stayed clinging to the side of the computer station as Vulcan collected every chair in the room to barricade the door, his head periodically shooting off more sparks, the blaring lights on his head and in his eyes blinking as he worked. When he had done all he could, Isamu repositioned in the centre of the room, readying the ShotRiser and levelling it at the door. A robotic arm burst through the metal, straining at the makeshift barricade, and he could hear more on the other side. Gritting his teeth, he prayed that the doors of Hiden’s private lab were holding better.

A high pitched ringing pierced his hearing, dizzying him for a moment. It continued for several more seconds, then cut off abruptly—the arm reaching through the door froze completely… Then fell limp. On the other side of the door, he could hear crash after crash as more drones dropped to the floor.

A sigh of relief exploded from him, and he folded forward, catching himself on his knees, unable to keep the grin off his face. “Oh… Oh thank goodness…” He dragged himself back upright, calling over his shoulder, “Hey, you did it! You… You did it!”

Nothing but silence answered him.

His relief immediately choked. “Horobi?” Spinning around, he looked frantically at where the HumaGear had been standing, bent over the edge of the terminal—to find Horobi collapsed on the concrete floor. “Horobi!” Rushing over, he dropped the ShotRiser at his side, kneeling down and lifting the HumaGear into his arms. “Hey!”

After a moment of shaking, Horobi’s eyes fluttered open, both them and the lights in his head still glowing abnormally brightly. His lips moved soundlessly for a moment, then, “… Jin…?” Isamu stared at him for a moment, then quickly fumbled for his radio with the arm not under the HumaGear’s shoulders, clicking it back on.

“-wa! Fuwa! Can you hear me? Fuwa!” Yua’s voice burst through the static, making him wince for a moment, but also flooding him with relief again.

But then he felt Horobi shift in his arms, and remembered what was happening. “Yaiba!” His voice broke a little, despite his attempt to keep it steady, “You guys all okay?”

“Fuwa!” He heard her exhale like a weight had lifted off her shoulders. “Oh, thank goodness.” Yua being Yua, however, she recovered quickly. “We’re all fine.” She assured him. “What about-” He muted the line before she could finish the question.

He looked back down at the HumaGear in his arms. Seeing that Horobi’s eyes had closed again, he shook him a little to try and wake him up. “Hey… Hey, look at me.” The too bright eyes cracked open again, looking anxiously at him. “You did it. They’re okay—he’s okay.” He squeezed Horobi’s shoulders gently. “You protected him.”

Even though the HumaGear had no natural muscles, he felt Horobi relax, despite the sparks still dancing around his mechanics. “… Thank goodness…” The HumaGear jerked slightly, wincing. “I… I still have access to the system…” His eyes flicked back and forth, the beaming light shimmering slightly again. “There’s… Something here…”

“Oi.” Isamu shook him again. “Oi, don’t overdo it.”

Horobi smirked, but it quickly turned into a grimace. “I’m afraid… It’s too late for that.” Isamu’s heart skipped, but the HumaGear didn’t wait for him to react. “… It’s a Key…?” For a moment, his eyes shone even brighter. “Transferring to Zea.” The ringing noise came again—then sputtered out abruptly. Horobi convulsed sharply in his hold, an even larger shower of sparks erupted from his head, burning Isamu’s arms and face, forcing him to close his eyes. When the heat stopped, he felt the HumaGear go still once more, sagging into him. Blinking his eyes back open, he squinted through the spots in his vision at Horobi.

The HumaGear’s eyes were no longer glowing so intensely, merely carrying some residual shimmers of violet. The lights in the remains of his earpieces still shone, the colours churning slightly like he was still processing something. He was shivering a bit, but not as if from cold—in fact, he felt unnaturally warm, like an overheated computer. Isamu tried to swallow the lump in his throat, to no avail, leaning back over to try and examine the damage, even though he knew he’d be useless to help. “… What did you…?”

“… System overload…” Horobi’s voice was tired, barely audible, edged with static, “… Shutdown… Is imminent…” He looked wearily up at Isamu, wincing. “Never thought I’d die…” There was a touch of wryness in the words, his mouth twisting into a slight sneer, “… In the arms of a human…”

A sound that was almost a chuckle burst from Isamu unwillingly, but it died quickly, consumed by the understanding of what else the HumaGear had said. It was still a struggle to keep his breathing even, and tears had begun pricking in his eyes despite himself. “… What about the arms of a friend?” Unlike Horobi, his voice was entirely capable of hoarseness, and it cracked under the overwhelming myriad of emotions weighing upon him.

There was a silence, Horobi’s eyebrows furrowing slightly in thought. “… A friend…?” After another moment, the expression gave way to a small smirk—one that was ages softer than any before it. “… That would be acceptable.” His eyes drifted back up to meet Isamu’s, and Vulcan knew he saw the tears, because the smirk shifted into a genuine, sorrowful smile. Slowly, the hand holding Isamu’s scarf released to reach up and wipe away the drops that had spilled onto Vulcan’s cheek, gazing in awe at the wetness on his fingers for a moment. “… Maybe…” Horobi’s voice was beginning to blur and lag, the static in his words becoming more prominent, his system beginning to fail, “… Maybe there is hope for peace between our kinds, after all…” His eyes and the fixtures on the sides of his head flickered, and the HumaGear’s hand dropped slowly back onto his own chest. The smile faded away into a look of heartbreak that should have been accompanied by tears of its own. “… Jin…” Horobi whispered, one last time—and all his lights went dark. The words ‘CONNECTION LOST’ flashed on the computer screen.

There was a short, heavy silence as Isamu waited, just in case, to see if, by some miracle, he would restart—but nothing happened. Finally, Vulcan broke, bowing his head into the HumaGear’s chest, shoulders shaking with choking, deceptively quiet sobs.

He didn’t let the outburst last long. Taking deep breaths to pull himself together, he hauled his head back up, prying the arm not supporting the HumaGear’s shoulders up to reach over and close Horobi’s eyes, hand moving to cup the HumaGear’s face for a moment afterwards. “Rest now.” He managed to croak softly. “We’ll take care of the rest.”

Footsteps made him look toward the door. “Fuwa!” Yua’s voice was half welcome, half terrifying, as he heard the banging and crashing of the dead drones being pushed aside—and soon, the door burst open, and Valkyrie rushed in. “There you are! Listen, Zea started-” She broke off sharply, freezing in her tracks when she saw the scene—him staring despairingly up at her, tears still in his eyes, cradling the HumaGear’s body in his arms. “… Oh.”

In a wild flurry of steps, Aruto, then Izu appeared at her sides—to also skid to a halt to stare when they saw. Aruto clung to the doorframe for balance, and Izu looked even more rigid than usual, eyes wide, and both stunned into silence.

“Horobi?!” The young, anxious voice from behind the others made Isamu’s heart drop right through the floor. It fell even further as Jin pushed to the front, panic and worry already clinging to his features. It felt like a knife in the gut when the young HumaGear’s expression morphed into a look of pure horror. “Horobi!” With a shriek that broke the limits of human hearing, Jin dove forward to crash to his knees across from Isamu. “Horobi!” He didn’t so much as look up at Vulcan, first grabbing Horobi’s shoulders to shake him, then pulling him out of Isamu’s arms and into his own, clutching his father to his chest with more than human strength, dissolving into tearless sobs, burying his face in Horobi’s hair.

Isamu took a few more deep breaths to try and keep himself collected, then took a moment to lean forward and grab the computer cable still plugged into the base of Horobi’s head, yanking it out—there was no reaction, not even a single spark, as the prongs left the HumaGear’s head. Tossing the cord aside, Isamu grabbed the edge of the computer terminal, dragging himself to his feet, and tried to make his way around Jin, toward the door. He only made it a few steps before his leg gave out and he stumbled, but his movement had broken the spell of shock—Aruto and Yua both moved to catch him before he fell, the Hiden President stepping closer on his injured side, pulling Isamu’s arm over his shoulders to support him while Yua’s hand stayed on his other arm. Izu cut around them, walking over to kneel beside Jin and place a hand on his shoulder, even though he gave no notice, just continued weeping hysterically over Horobi’s body.

“… It’s not your fault.” Aruto’s voice was quiet, watching the trouble in Isamu’s expression with undeniable sympathy—but Isamu didn’t have the strength to be angry at it.

“Leave it.” He grunted darkly, instead—but when Aruto tugged on his arm, he allowed the other Kamen Rider to help him from the room, leaving Yua and Izu to see to the newly orphaned HumaGear.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I actually should have written more to this before posting it, but… YOLO?

… Is that even still a thing?

[teddystrap]

[神なる君と] Spirit duo - Rei

なんかちょっとラストスパートな感じですけど…

Rei is the friendly spirit that Sakuya and co. met when they were investigating rumours about hauntings in the old school building. He’s arguably the most ‘mysterious’ character, since nothing is known about his former life, and I was super curious what his deal is. Not to mention he’s the final obstacle standing between me and Mikoto!! Ψ(￣∀￣)Ψケケケ

Truth be told he’s not really my type, though - since I’m not 15 anymore. I mean he’s a ghost but looks more like a forest elf / Mori Boy circa. 2001, and his voice sounds like it’s breaking. Compared to the other characters also he has a personality (or lack thereof) that is blander than konnyaku. In fact I found myself opening all the Yuzuru options in his common route first before going back and redoing them for Rei, because senpai saranghae I only wanna be wit u <3... 

Aaanyway.

-Mizuniwa Rei-

Rei-kun’s common route was actually quite revealing and interesting - in two of his ema, Mikoto actually asked to tag along, so it seemed like there might be some important information there idk. 

In his second ema, Mikoto tells Sakuya that she has the power to push people who are on the brink between Life and Death into one world or another, depending on what kind of guidance she gives.

Which in retrospect seemed like heavy foreshadowing for what’s about to come.

Fuu-san’s backstory was also revealed here:

Around 10 years ago, Fuu-san and his bff, a boy named Kawashina Yuuya, were students at Mikagurayama High School. One day they found a hidden basement storage room in the old school building, and turned it into their hang-out spot.

The basement used to be a bomb shelter, and had some books left over on occult spells and curses, that were used during the war to protect the townspeople. Fuu-san found a book with a spell to summon the powers of the Great Demon, and wanted to try it out of fun/boredom, but Yuuya was against it.

So Fuu-san did it by himself anyway. He got the sealed cursed box from the magical cave and took it back to the basement to perform the spell. Halfway through he passed out... and when he came to, he realised that Yuuya saved him by transferring the spell onto himself. 

Yuuya never woke up again, despite a lot of medical attention and whatnot. After half a year, Fuu-san decided to quit school and skip town to learn exorcism so that he can save his friend. But when he finally returned a few years later, Yuuya had already died...

Fuu-san lived with guilt all these years and thought that Yuuya died hating him. But when he went down to the basement with Sakuya to liberate his spirit, Yuuya’s spirit communicated through Sakuya that he doesn’t ever regret saving Fuu-san, and he hopes Fuu-san can stop blaming himself and go forward in life, smiling... By this point I was pretty much crying like a baby... ｡･ﾟ･(ﾉД｀)･ﾟ･｡

Oh how I wish there was a Su-sa-no-o in my neighbourhood, with a sexy store-owner like Fuu-san... 

But we’re not here to court Fuu-san (I wish we could, mang. I wish we could), so let’s get back to Rei. In his route Sakuya tries to help him to find out about his family and his past. She asks Aki for help ofc, and Aki reports back that she couldn’t find anyone matching Rei’s description in the database of deaths, nor the missing persons list...

And the mystery deepens dun-dun-DUN. This would’ve made for an interesting story development,... except the writers totally abandon it and instead opt for Rei and Sakuya frolicking around in the forest, true to his Mori Boy style (wholesomely tho, since they are both underage XD). Then Rei realises that he’s not long for this world, and he tries to put some distance between them - but Sakuya eventually convinces him that they should spend his last remaining time on earth together and make lots of beautiful (wholesome) memories.

There were a lot of group events in his route, which was nice since I got to see Yuzuru-senpai mucho. (Although he’s not an option here obvsly T_T)

You know I will happily choke on a fish bone for you, senpai <3.

So hoshimatsuri night, Rei undergoes the ceremony to pass into the other world. Sakuya stays home, because she’s not strong enough to go and say goodbye to him. Is this like deja vu from the Yorihito/Nisei story arc or what?? ...After that, Sakuya goes to the old school building one day after school, and finds a note from Rei. SURPRISE - he’s still here.

...

It turns out that Sakuya’s, uhh, clinginess is keeping him from successfully departing. At this rate he’s going to grow weaker and weaker and become trapped in the interstitial space between two worlds - forever. They keep communicating through notes, and through voice chatting over radio, while Sakuya grows enough balls to finally let him go.

Eventually she does. Because let’s face it - Otomate can’t afford to pay their seiyuu to carry on a story for like two gajillion chapters.

In his final moment of departure, he appears to Sakuya in a dream, but they can’t hear each other’s voice. Just as Sakuya is freaking out, he pulls her in and kisses her, then disappears into the ether. (*ฅ́˘ฅ̀*)♡

...I guess Yuzuru and Rei’s routes don’t work the same way as Narumi and Yakumo’s, bc you don’t get the alternative ending by choosing the ‘wrong’ option for the last couple of choices. I wasn’t strong enough for senpai’s bad end, but I was actually pretty curious about Rei’s, although all the same I wasn’t able to unlock it. Either way I hope he didn’t get stuck in between worlds forever, poor kid has been through enough.

1. Good end: Fast forward 10 years, Sakuya becomes a teacher at Mikagurayama High School, just as Rei had hoped. She still goes to the garden every day to take care of Rei’s flowers. The old school building is about to be torn down because it’s too old and might be a safety hazard. She’s on her way there one last time... when she gets a call from Aki, who finally found out what happened with Rei’s past-life investigation 10 years ago. Unfortunately Aki trips on something and the line cuts off before we get to hear it. _(:3」∠)_

So Sakuya is there happily watering her flowers, when guess who appears - ahem *Rei*, now all grown up. He tells her that this time he’s not a spirit anymore... and the scene just ends there. I’ve seen a lot of abrupt endings but this has gotta take the cake. Although I’ll admit adult Rei is kinda sorta smoking hot, so less talk more making out!

[Thoughts] What can I say? This route really didn’t explain as much as I thought it would, although there were some good bits. For one, the Fuu-san backstory really got to me. Fuu-san was always the side character that I was most curious about, since he seems kind of... shady, and like he might’ve had a colourful past. His arc really delivered, and it’s my favourite out of all the four side stories, although I loved them all in their own way.

I was expecting to find out about Rei’s past here, but I guess the writers are saving it for Mikoto’s route / wrap-up, which almost certainly means there’s going to be a surprise revelation. So I am looking forward to that and I hope they don’t fuck it up.

The route itself actually felt like it was mostly stuff that belongs in a fandisk, rather than an individual character route. All the group hangouts, and scenarios that reveal idiosyncrasies about the other characters (e.g. everyone’s drawings in the Fuu-san arc. I finally got to see Yuzuru-senpai’s kawaii creations! :3).

Senpai’s art totally unleashes his inner otome...

As expected, Rei failed to give me any doki-doki feels... except at the end, where we saw grown-up Rei and got to hear Iguchi Yuuichi’s normal voice for like 2 seconds. (I wish this game had a fandisk bc I *definitely* need more of that!!) From the other character routes I got the sense that he’s an iyashi-kei type of guy, and he’s probably the most consistent out of all of them, because he continues being selfless and caring about Sakuya before himself throughout - e.g. helping her to find her future path despite not having one himself. 

Still I gotta admit, when he confessed that he liked Sakuya, I did a silent fist-pump in the air, because FINALLY here’s a guy who said it first. I’m so tired of always having to make the first move >;(

Also the thing that Narumi said really touched me here: that Rei would rather choose a lonely existence as a spirit trapped between two worlds for the rest of eternity, than force Sakuya to let him go. Even when he was weakening, he never said anything to Sakuya. In a way he was perhaps the most adult-like one out of all of them. Admittedly I didn’t like Sakuya very much in this route. She seemed very self-absorbed and immature, refusing to face the truth. But eventually Narumi kind of slapped some sense into her (figuratively ofc, I mean Narumi would never actually slap her XD) and she did choose to do the right thing.

...I guess Narumi is determined to be the guy that has a crush on her and ‘saves her’ one way or another in every route. Kudos to him but he’s still only, like, my third or fourth favourite lols.

Lastly, I felt that this route was actually the most poetic + metaphorical one so far. (Maybe the other ones were, too, and I just wasn’t paying attention?) ...The metaphor of flowers bearing seeds that blossom into new flowers, bearing witness to their relationship and carrying on their legacy. When they first met the flowers were newly planted, and when they said goodbye they were just about to wither. 

Also Sakuya and Rei always met after class at sunset, the time between day and night - like the space between Life and Death. Idk mang but that’s, like, really beautiful or sumshit.

But this is the most poetic thing of them all~!

[imaginetonyandbucky]

Things We Relive: Part 2

Also on AO3! 

When he appeared back in the lab Natasha pulled him into a hug, tugging his head down for him to bury it in her neck. “I’m sorry, James. I’m so sorry you had to be there for that.”

Bucky allowed himself to take the comfort she was offering for a few minutes, letting himself shake after holding himself so tightly while he was there.  Finally he lifted his head and dried his face with his sleeve, sheepishly drying off Tasha’s neck too. “Ok. So now what?”

Natasha touched his face gently before she went back to the controls.  “If he didn’t go back to save his parents, I think there’s only one other time he would have gone.”

“Afghanistan.”

Natasha nodded. “At this point, he’s been gone so long that we have to hope he made some of the same mistakes we did, and that he hasn’t actually managed to change anything yet.”

Just then the door to the lab slammed open, and Steve stormed in. Or, he would have, if he wasn’t holding on to the wall for support, dragging an IV stand and still wearing a hospital gown. “What did he do?”

“Sorry, guys,” Sam called out from the hallway, blocked from view by Steve’s bulk.  “But you know how he gets.”

“I’ll handle this, James” Natasha said, and she hit the button and everything went black.

(Watch out for the break!)

When the world returned, it returned in a rush of noise and flashing lights, making Bucky wince and cover his ears. He had appeared in the middle of a party so he squinted and looked for an exit to escape the screaming synthesizer and seizure-inducing light show.  Thankfully there was a balcony right next to him, and he fled into the chill night air gratefully.  He wasn’t alone out there, but it was a hell of a lot less crowded than the room he’d fled from.  He took a deep breath and started to call Natasha when he saw Tony leaning against the railing on the far side of the balcony from the doors, head in his hands. Bucky hesitated but eventually put the walkie away, approaching Tony cautiously.

Whatever was going through Tony’s head, he didn’t notice Bucky’s approach until Bucky cleared his throat. Then he jumped and scowled at Bucky, so drunk he had to squint to focus on Bucky. “Who the hell are you? Go away, this corner is taken.”

“Are you ok?” Bucky said gently, and Tony’s scowl deepened.

“Always. What’s it to you, anyway?” Tony reached for the drink he’d set on the railing but Bucky tipped it over the rail and it disappeared, crashing onto the concrete below.  Tony gaped.

“You’ve had enough for right now, Tony.” Bucky fished out a bottle of water he’d stashed in the deep pockets of his jacket and handed it to Tony. Tony stared at it like Bucky was handing him poison.  Bucky rolled his eyes. “Have some water already. It’s not going to kill you.”

After a moment of Tony eyeing him and the water suspiciously, Tony took it from it and, after inspecting the unbroken seal, opened it and took a few large gulps.  “Ok, one more time,” he said, screwing the top back on the bottle. “Who the hell are you?”

“A robot from the future, here to save your life,” Bucky said with a small smile.

The bottle of water dropped to the ground as Tony stared at him. “Holy shit.” Before Bucky could react, Tony grabbed his left hand and shoved up the sleeve. “I knew it,” he breathed. “I didn’t just make it all up.”

“You remember me?”

“Uh, how do you forget a guy with a metal arm? I talked about you for months until my dad yelled at my mom for indulging me in my ‘silly fantasies.’ She used to tell me a story about the time she saw a man with a metal arm standing over my crib one night.”  At Bucky’s guilty look, Tony took a few steps back. “Holy shit, that was you, too?”

“Um…” Bucky’s mind blanked on how to respond.  He really, really wanted to hit the button to take him back to the future, but there were too many people around for that.

“Are you like the Terminator? Do I save the world from Skynet?”  Bucky’s heart twisted at the heavy dose of sarcasm in Tony’s voice that didn’t quite disguise the look of hope in Tony’s eyes.  No way he was going to say that Tony kinda sorta helped create Skynet aka Ultron and then had to destroy his own army of robots.

Instead he took a deep breath and put his hands on Tony’s shoulders.  “In the future, the man you are going to become will save the world a lot.  You will save countless lives and inspire generations to come with your passion, resilience, ingenuity, and generous heart. But someone” you “is trying to stop you from becoming that man, and I’m trying to keep them from succeeding.”  Bucky wanted so badly to cradle this Tony’s face in his hands and press a kiss to his temple, to his forehead, to show him the gentle affection that his Tony was starved for.  But he’d done enough, apparently, from the way Tony’s face had gone blank with shock.

Tony opened the bottle mechanically and drank more, never taking his eyes off of Bucky. “Apparently in the future I’m also bi, because you and me, we’re a thing, aren’t we?”  He said after a moment, gesturing between them with the half-empty bottle of water.

Shit. “Uh…” For lack of any better options, Bucky vaulted over the balcony and sprinted away, pressing the activator button on the walkie talkie as soon as he was out of sight of the party.

“When were you this time?” Natasha asked tiredly, rubbing her temples as Bucky reappeared.

“New Year’s Eve, 2000,” he answered confidently.  Lots of people had been wearing those goofy glasses at the party, he had noticed that much before he got distracted by Tony.  “How were things with Steve?” he asked before she could think to ask if anyone had seen him.

“Not great, but I did get him to go lay down.  He’s blaming himself for, you know,” she said, gesturing at the time machine.

“Yeah, lots of that going around,” Bucky said with a sigh.  

“Alright. This is it, if he isn’t here…there…then?“ Natasha scowled. “Whatever, we are back to square one.”

“No, I think this is it.  I think I know what he’s trying to do.”

“Yeah, me too,” she said softly.  Bucky recognized the careful way she was holding her shoulders and he put a hand on her back, suddenly realizing that while maybe a few hours had passed for him, she had been here for almost twenty-four hours without sleeping, sitting at the console with nothing to do but wait and think.

“Tasha, it’s not your fault either.”

She took a ragged breath, refusing to look at Bucky. “I should have seen it,” she said fiercely. “It’s what I do.” Bucky opened his mouth to argue but she shook her head sharply and her hand hovered over the button to activate the Eye. “Are you ready?”

“Yeah.” He patted her back one more time and then stepped away so that she wouldn’t get caught in the time field.  When he emerged from the blackness this time, he had to shield his eyes against the harsh glare of the desert sun, reflecting brutally off the pale sand and rocks.  He spun around when he heard the roar and sharp whistle of a missile being fired, just then noticing the gathering of military officers about a hundred yards away.  Tony’s dark suit stood out amid the pale greens and browns of the Army desert camo.

“Natasha, I’m here,” he said urgently as the missile impacted with a loud thump miles away.  “They’re doing that big weapons demo. He hasn’t been kidnapped yet!”

“James,” she said sharply.  “This is it.  You know what to do.”

“I know, I know.” Bucky took a deep breath and fastened the walkie talkie to his belt so he wouldn’t lose it.  If he were Tony, the best time to intervene would be during the ambush, when the chaos of battle would help confuse the issue.  In the minutes while Tony smiled, shook hands, and handed out drinks Bucky got ready, shifting everything he would need to stop Tony so that it was easy to reach.  As the convoy started to head back to base, he hid himself and managed to grab on to the rear bumper of the last Humvee and pull himself up, careful to stay out of the driver’s line of sight.

If he hadn’t been looking for it so carefully, he would have missed the glint of Tony’s armor in the sky above the convoy.  He was high, way too high for Bucky to reach him before the ambush started, so Bucky gritted his teeth and waited for the first explosion that marked the start of the attack.  Sure enough, Tony came closer at that, close enough for Bucky to see that the armor that he was wearing was painted in desert colors instead of his characteristic red and gold.  How long had he been thinking about this, planning what he would do?

Shaking his head, Bucky set aside the plans he had of kicking his own ass soundly for not paying more attention to Tony and got out his grappling device. As soldiers started to stream out of the vehicles and bullets started flying, he shot the hook at Tony and reeled him in as fast as possible before he could pull the hooks out of the plating on his leg.  When he was close enough Bucky climbed to the top of the Humvee and tackled him to the ground, rolling them out of the line of fire for the ambush.

“Don’t do this, Tony!” Bucky pleaded, prying off Tony’s face plate so he could look him in the eyes. “Please. I’m so sorry for what happened to Steve, but it wasn’t your fault.”   And he was sorry, so, so sorry, beyond words, that he hadn’t seen how far and fast Tony had been spiraling until this happened.

“Let go, Bucky,” Tony spat. Bucky heard the sound of a repulsor warming up and pushed Tony’s arm away so it blasted harmlessly into the desert sand.  “This is where it starts! I have to stop it!”

“I’m not going to let you erase yourself! I know you are hurting but this is- this is suicide!” Bucky pinned one of Tony’s arms with his flesh hand and dug his metal fingers into the plating around the arc reactor, trying to rip it out and kill the suit.

“I’m not going to die, Bucky,” Tony said, lip curling. He hit Bucky in the side of the head with his free hand and twisted his hips, trying to throw Bucky off his chest.  Bucky just set his mouth in determination and kept digging at the arc reactor, hoping that Tony wasn’t truly willing to hurt him in order to go through with this insane plan.  “I’ll just be- everything will be different. It will fix all of it, Ultron, Steve, everything!”

“No. This world is a better place because of you, because of Iron Man. I’m not going to let you change that, change you.” Bucky closed his hand around the arc reactor and hesitated before he ripped it out. Then he let it go and sat back, letting his hands fall down at his sides.  Defeating Tony now only meant that Tony would try again in the future, he was determined like that. “I love you, Tony,” he said instead, staring steadily into Tony’s eyes. “We all do. This Tony, not some Tony that never became Iron Man. Your life, our lives have been hard, and shitty, and painful, and we’ve made mistakes, but they make us better, not worse. So please, please, don’t do this.  Don’t…don’t leave me,” he finished, voice raw.

Tony was silent for so long that  Bucky climbed off his chest and stood, heart heavy, explosions and gunfire still going off in the distance.  After a moment, Tony raised his hand for help climbing to his feet, and Bucky went weak with relief. Bracing himself, he took the hand and pulled Tony up in his heavy-ass Iron Man suit.  When he stood, Bucky’s forehead creased with confusion when he realized that Tony was staring at him like he was seeing him for the first time.

“You were my guardian robot this whole time,” Tony finally said. The suit opened up and he stepped out of it to pull the leather glove off Bucky’s metal hand, just like Bucky had done Tony’s lifetime ago.

“Yeah, Natasha and I have had some, uh, technical issues with that Eye of Amarillo time machine you built.  I bounced around a lot.”

“Agamoto,” Tony corrected absently and Bucky rolled his eyes.  “I-I broke my arm when I fell off that playground…” Tony rubbed his temples as tried to concentrate, memories overwriting themselves as they tried to catch up with the changes Bucky had made to his past.  “And in 2000 I almost died of alcohol poisoning.  But instead, you…saved me.”

“Well, yeah. You saved me first,” Bucky pointed out.  After Siberia life had been a stone cold bitch, even with the safe haven in Wakanda.  It had been Tony that had pressed the issue on the Accords, pointing out all of the Secretary Ross’s heavy-handed, extralegal activities and gotten the warrants against everyone rescinded.  Tony had given them a home at Avenger’s headquarters and then with equal parts sarcasm, sympathy, and screaming matches, forced Steve and Bucky to take steps to start their healing process.  “Come here.”

Then Bucky finally got to put his arms around Tony like he’d been wanting to do for both decades and hours. The feeling of Tony’s warm body against his own had Bucky sighing deeply with relief, from what felt like his bones.  He pressed a kiss to Tony’s temple. “Let’s go home, sweetheart.”

[entamewitchlulu]

Homura’s Top 15 Arc V Characters

and finally my top fifteen favorite Arc V characters!!!! <3 (not including cameo charas)

this was the absolute hardest one to narrow down tbh, there are like a billion other characters that i wanted to also be on this list ;w;

once again under the cut, this was a lot of fun to do~

and can i just say how blessed I feel that there are so many girls in Arc V that most of my list is made of them?? they might not be written the best they could be but damn it’s great to just have so many, especially coming off of the previous series where we’d be lucky to have two or three.

15. Selena

My dumb, useless lesbian daughter who needs to be grounded.  Idk, I just like her cause she’s kind of different than the usual fare for Yu-Gi-Oh ladies.  She’s prideful and brash, abrasive, headstrong, and hard to get along with, and she doesn’t always seem to notice social cues, being first and foremost a soldier and definitely a little gullible (like, she’ll immediately accept what other people tell her about Academia, my dumb child).  I can’t help but find her endearing, tho, for all of this mess of flaws and uncertainties.

14. Yoko Sakaki

Can you say BEST MOM???  Yoko is legit everything I ever wanted out of a mom character in Yu-Gi-Oh.  As someone who is very picky about parental characters, she’s honestly a legit good parent who supports her son, takes care of him, and gives him the right kind of pep talks when he’s down.  Not to mention she was a fucking gang leader???  Dude.  Best mom.

13. Masumi Kotsu

I love her for a lot of the same reasons as I love Selena: she’s a female character who’s allowed to be kind of a dick.  She’s rude and jumps to conclusions and sometimes bullies the people around her, but she’s also a fucking tsundere and I can’t help but like her for it.  In the end, she’s a stubborn butt but she’ll give in once she finds a reason to respect someone.

12. Sayaka Sasayama

God....look at her??? Pure.  Pure and good.  She is a precious child and I will protect her.  I always adopt the young ones, honestly, especially when they’re shy and nervous.  I love Sayaka because she’s the kind of person who overworks herself for the sake of others, who is scared and easily frightened but if she has to, she can pull herself together and fight.  She has to take her confidence from other people, but when she does grab hold of it, she’s a warrior like the rest of them.  She didn’t lose her softness from the war and she doesn’t seem to hold any grudges or resentment, she just wants to participate in making the world okay again.

11. Yuuri

I love him because he’s an absolute shit stain, and maybe he’s kinda tropey and flat, but he’s legit the exact replica of my favorite kind of self-indulgent, guilty pleasure villain.  He smooth talking, suave, talks formally, messes with people in his own creepy way, is incredibly confident and can’t even think of the word “losing,” and he has a legitimately creepy deck.  I love how sassy and confident he is, how he laughs every time someone tries to overcome him, and his possessive sort of nature, his intensity and single-minded focus on winning and being the best.

10. Tsukikage

THIS BOY IS MY S O N AND I WILL FIGHT ANYONE WHO HURTS HIM!!  I was not expecting to love Tsuki as much as I did.  He’s a loyal and reliable person, who really seems to have a great moral core.  He doesn’t have much in the way of back story but I find his aesthetic fascinating and I always want to know more about his clan and where he came from.  I also still really want to see under that mask goddamn.  But anyway, Tsuki is a pure, good boy and he deserves the world.  He’s so incredibly morally upright and I just can’t help but adore him.

9. Yuzu Hiragi

Her more recent appearances in the anime aside, she’s what I wanted out of a female lead in Yu-Gi-Oh since the very first series.  She’s tough and doesn’t back down from a challenge, she takes initiative to rectify her own weakness and isn’t afraid of putting in the hard work to better herself; she’s very morally minded and she’ll put herself in danger if it means doing the right thing.  Even when she’s lost in another dimension, her first priority is finding a way to warn the people there of the danger that’s coming, putting other people’s safety before even finding her way home.  Yuzu is a great girl who struggles with her own uncertainties and still comes out the stronger for it.

8. Reiji Akaba

I could talk for h o u r s about how much I love Reiji Akaba.  Reiji is someone that just keeps becoming more and more great as the series continues and hindsight begins to color his actions.  What he is to me is a sixteen-year-old boy who was forced to grow up all too quickly, forced to discard any and all unnecessary feelings for the sake of the greater good, against his own father no less, someone he was supposed to be able to trust.  I can’t blame him for the decisions he’s been making, for the sacrifices that occur, because he’s being sacrificing himself all this time.  I remember a post once about how Reiji represents selflessness in a way we normally don’t see in media, because it doesn’t look selfless.  But in the end, it is--Reiji hasn’t let himself enjoy anything or do anything for his own sake; everything is and always will be for the safety of his world.  And he will stand up for his convictions, his beliefs, and that safety for the peace of the universe even against the people he should be able to trust.  He’s a fascinating character full of layers of complexity much like rivals before him, and I love him for it a lot.

7. Sora Shiunin

Sora is a boy that deserves great things, okay?  I loved him almost from the minute he showed up, but that love only deepened as the series continued.  He’s got a great character aesthetic, for one thing, and a ridiculously cool deck.  I love his little quirk of always having a lollipop, and I love his internal struggle with morality and his place in the world.  His decision to defect from Academia because of his friendship with Yuya and Yuzu just felt so pure and I was like oh god this child has been so badly indoctrinated and now he’s experienced real affection and??? he deserves so many good things.  I just love him and I hope he gets adopted by Yoko because he deserves friendship and affection.

6. Zarc

He’s??? why is he so pure looking????  Zarc didn’t get as much development as I was hoping (I’m still crossing my fingers for a bit more) but for what we did get, I found him more than fascinating.  He was a happy, pure, joyful person who could hear his monsters, and was probably overjoyed to be able to actually interact with him once Real Solid Vision came into play.  And yet, circumstances turned him into a demon.  I want to know more about that, but from what I can glean, I think he was just tired.  I think he really wanted to entertain people, and so he gave into their demands, but the more violent things got, the more they demanded, and the more tired he and his monsters became, the more frustrated with being used as a glorified show animal, and that rage and anger just channeled through Zarc and he had no choice but to become a demon.  That transformation is fascinating to me, and I think it mirrors Yuya in a really interesting way, only Zarc continued all the way down the path of the demon and Yuya tried to reject it.  I have a lot of theories and headcanons about Zarc and I really hope we at least get to see him a bit more on screen before the end of the series.

5. Reira Akaba

I have adopted this child and he is mine now.  I found his character arc to be very powerful; this is a child who has survived hell and lost most of himself in the process; he was so broken that he didn’t even know who he was anymore and chose to be an empty shell instead.  But through interacting with others, he started to develop a new sense of self and reclaim not only his own personality, but his own will and strength too.  He’s so inspiring, especially in the wake of the last few episodes where he truly showed how much he had grown and how powerful he had become with his newfound courage and confidence.

4. Ruri Kurosaki

I love her??? A lot??? I fell in love with her the moment her design was revealed; she’s incredibly aesthetically pleasing and what little we were able to glean of her personality (damn you writers for building her up with so little at the end :( ) really resonates with me.  She’s a sweet girl who sometimes trips up on her own strategies, but she has a strong heart and will and would rather fight when cornered than scream and cry.  She deserved a lot better than the narrative gave her, but I still love her with all my heart.

3. Ray Akaba

Okay fuck me but she jumped up fast on my list (and by fuck me I mean I might be asexual but I would be 100% okay with her fucking me).  Ray is just??? Cool??  Like others, she didn’t get as much as I wanted (still crossing fingers for a tiny bit more before it’s all over), but what I did get from her was just exactly what I wanted.  She’s strong and takes on the sacrifices necessary for her family and her world.  It was honestly great to see a girl character being the world’s savior, and what I love the most is how Zarc’s voice actually wavered when he heard that Ray was back; like damn...he was actually scared of her because she was the only one that could take him out.  She’s a beautiful design and I love everything about her.  I only wish she had gotten a real deck ;w;

2. Grace Tyler

step on me Anyway, Grace is really super hot and I’m gay

I could leave it at that but also, I love what a fun antagonist turned ally she is.  She’s one of those villains who does things cause she things they’re fun; it’s fun to fight people and turn them into cards and solidify her superiority over others, she enjoys it.  But once she finds something more fun and more interesting, she becomes obsessed with that instead.  I can’t help but find her strange, cheerful personality and the way she bounces from whatever she finds interesting to the next interesting thing endearing.

1. Yuya Sakaki

I could talk for fucking days on end about why I love Yuya Sakaki, about why he is one of the most important things to happen in my life, about how inspiring he is, about how powerful his character arc is, everything. 

I could talk about how his philosophy is something that has gotten me through depressive episodes ever since I started watching, about how I wear his goggles that I made for my cosplay when I’m feeling sad, about how he’s basically taken over my life in the form of keychains.

Yuya is everything that I want to be and everything that I think that I am.  He wants so desperately to be the person that makes everyone smile, but there are selfish reasons behind it. He wants to be happy, but he doesn’t feel like he’s allowed to be happy unless he’s making other people happy.  He’s vulnerable, he feels things like an actual person, he bounces back and forth from fears and uncertainties and depression to confidence and exuberance and a willingness to try again.  He is legitimately a good living example of a pendulum, swinging back and forth between two sides, depression and confidence, and I have never related more to something than that.

And despite everything, he overcomes.  Despite everything against him, including himself, he steps forward and he never gives up.  For every time he falls back, he jumps forward just as far and farther.  Yuya Sakaki is one of the reasons I get up in the morning, and I couldn’t feel more blessed than to live in a world where his character exists.

He is me, and he is what I want to be, and I will continue to bounce forward from every period of sadness with as much egao as I can muster.

After all, the fun has only just begun <3

[magic5ball]

Nature Trail to Hell Arc I: Nature Trail to Hell (3)

Chapter 3: My First Escape Attempt

           The days were long, at Camp Sham. Long and bleak and miserable. For four days I lived the nightmare, those same long hikes, those same crappy songs before meals, those same stupid dick jokes before bed. And always, always there would be Ms. Hobag with a smile on her butt ugly face, handing out stickers for even the most mediocre accomplishment, as if those would magically take away our sorrows. If the way campers were wore the things was any indication, they were probably repurposed nicotine patches.

           Yet all of these paled compared to the horror that was The Chair. Every day there was at least one kid who acted out of line, did something real dumb, like blow bubbles in his milk, or fall asleep during the mess hall song. When nobody was looking (at least, when Ms. Hobag thought nobody was looking.) That poor kid would be stripped of all his (not exactly) hard- earned stickers and sentenced to The Chair. The Chair is where Ms. Hobag worked her most vile magic of all, turning her formerly free willed charges into mindless stooges constantly vying for her approval. They wouldn’t act like it, though. First they’d go among us acting like regular inmates, but if you did something even slightly out of line, they’d pounce you like a horde of animals. When I first came to camp, I wondered why there were no guard dogs to keep us from escaping. But why have dogs when the campers themselves can be just as vicious?

           Somehow, I dug in and bore it all. Every night I prayed to whoever might be out there to give me an answer, a sign that I might escape, though these prayers were probably lost amongst Howie Ronson’s late night penis jokes. There was a flickering wisp of a fire in my heart, a fire telling me that I wasn’t just another juvenile delinquent, I was a survivor and gosh darn it, I was going to make it!

           Come day five that hope was extinguished for good. The day we started swimming lessons. Now, I know most of you probably don’t think much about swimming, but I was one of those kids whose Mom had to dye the bathwater brown and pretend it was cola just so her son would wash his hair already. Combined with the fact that Lord knows what had peed in the pool, I was not a happy camper.

           Our instructions were simple: form a line outside the pool while the instructor would take us in one at a time and dunk our heads for ten seconds. It was at that moment I realized it wasn’t enough to comply with all the rules. No, they wanted us baptized in the name of the name of our new Lord and Savior CAMP SHAM! And let me tell you that was one commitment I did NOT want to make. I was gonna have to make a break for it!

           I dashed across the poolside, the pavement cooking my feet, a counselor and ten other kids hot on my tail. At first I thought I was out of luck, that they’d catch me before I even made it to the twelve foot area, when I saw it: a life saver. A grin crept across my face. My Dad and I once watched every single Rambo movie in a single night, and now it was time for that father-son bonding moment to pay off. I picked that life preserver up by the rope and started swinging it like a ball and chain. Before I even knew what was happening, four kids were knocked into the water.

“Watterson, what-“

BAM! Into the drip went the counselor! The remaining six campers kept their distance, trying to find an opening. As for me, I kept swinging, slowly backing toward the chain link fence. At that moment, the sun came out from behind a cloud, its’ glorious light shining on yours truly. Any second I knew I’d have my back to the fence, and then it would just be a climb to freedom. I was going to make it! I was going to-!

           A buzzing noise, steady, then louder, cut the air. My mind flashed back to first grade, when my Mom would let me loose in the local park, surrounded by flowers and sunshine. I remembered frolicking through the meadow, pretending to be Godzilla and ripping the petals off of every dandelion and buttercup I could grab with my doughy toddler hands. I was destruction incarnate, until my inevitable insurrection at the stinger of a fuzzy winged monster, whose wrath brought on the most excruciating pain I’d ever experienced. And now, after all these years, finding me at my most vulnerable, it was back to finish what it started.

“BEEEEEEEE!” I screamed, plunging out of the frying pan and into the fryer, seeing as I was in the twelve foot end and couldn’t swim for my life. But I’d escaped the winged terror, so I knew I could die happy.

The last thing I saw before I lost consciousness was a ruby red ladybug drifted by on the wind.

It was then, as the sun dramatically went back behind a cloud, that I realized even God turned a blind eye to this sorry excuse for a camp.

                                                       .   .   .

           When I came to, it was to an air conditioner humming in my face. Now, I’m not usually one for crying, but in that moment I wept buckets. It’d been so long since I’d felt the cool kiss of an air conditioner, I’d almost forgot they existed. The rest of the room surprised me. It looked kinda like the principal’s office at my school: filing cabinet in a corner, big desk topped with a computer dated even in ’06 and football player bobble heads- the whole shebang. Then I read the name plaque on the desk. I may have gotten a C- in literature, but even I knew the words to spell Ms. Helga Hobag. And just my luck, I could hear footsteps echoing down a hall outside. With what little juice left in me, I tried to make a break, only to find my arms were tied to the chair with lanyards, many of which I’d made myself during arts and crafts period. Above, a circular fan spun like a flock of vultures, waiting for fresh meat.

The grim Mistress herself walked in.

“I’m very disappointed in you, Watterson J. Tostig.” She said.

I cringed. Only two types of people ever called me by my full name: my parents, and my worst enemies.

“I know you were scared of a ladybug, but your behavior was very inappropriate.”

“Punish me all you want, woman.” I growled, deepening my voice far as it would go. “You’ll get nothing outta me.”

Ms. Hoefling looked at me like I was one of those weird paintings with the melting clocks.

“I wasn’t going to punish you, Watterson. I was just going to remind you please try to wear more bug spray next time.”

“So I am I off the hook?” For a second there, I swore I saw the bluebird of happiness flying through the window right towards me.

“Unfortunately, no. Because you forgot to take off your underpants while swimming, you silly billy!”

           Just like that, the bluebird smacked itself on the window and died. I cursed. So that’s why my swim trunks felt weird that day! Worse, those tighty-whities were my only pair! (I was supposed to bring ten, but when Dad wasn’t looking I replaced them with Dad’s old Rocky DVD’s. Didn’t count on them swiping my DVD player, though.). But I distinctly recall that at that moment, my pants felt dry. To this day, I don’t know whose underpants I was wearing. It’s probably the only secret I’m fine never knowing the answer to.

“It saddens me to say this Watterson, but you need a time out.”

The last words felt like a sledgehammer to the face. Before I knew what was happening, I was being carried down a long hall that stank of sawdust. At the end of this hall was a door, and through that door…

The room was totally empty, save for a lightbulb hanging by a string and a T.V. against the back wall.

“Now, I know you might get a bit bored in here, so I’m going to put on a happy little show to teach you about friendship. You like dinosaurs, right?”

“HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT, DEMON!?”

“Your Mom told me, silly!”

For a moment I was too stunned to move. Mom, the nicest, most cootie-free woman in the world, had sold me out! My mind trembled as I thought what other dark secrets she might, even at that moment, have been hiding from me.

While I was internal monologing, Ms. Hoebag had left, shutting the door behind her.

The T.V., formerly static, flickered to life. For the last ten years I’ve tried to forget what occurred in that room. No words can appropriately describe what went on in that horrible place, but I will say one thing. The purple nightmare that appeared onscreen ain’t no dinosaur of this planet or elsewhere, no matter what people tell you. At just the sight of that perversely grinning face, I shook the chair I was tied to, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t resist looking at the screen.

I love you, you love meeeeee…

I screamed into the darkness.

[btp-yami]

Not Incarnate Jazz, but I’ve been thinking about reworking Arc 1 for AD a bit. Probably keeping most things the same, I just feel like A) There could prolly be more mention of Duel Monsters and B) Maybe have a little bit better of flow to the plot and to certain reactions a bit. Esp whatever is between Noah and Yugi at first.

So this ISNT that, but its a scene I’m thinking of adding when I figure out how to re-work the Arc.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was almost a hestitency, but Atem sighed and stepped up to the counter, his frown deepening once he was closer enough to Joey. “Do you…have a minute to talk?”

“Of course,” Joey nodded without missing a beat, before whistling over his shoulder. “Hey, T–?” As soon as Tristan poked his head out, Joey pat the countertop. “Watch the front for a sec, wouldya?”

“Y’know, most people say please…?” Tristan drawled, but came up front anyway.

Ignoring Tristan’s quip, Joey ducked under the counter, gently ushering Atem over to the nearest table that didn’t have anyone at it or near it.

“What’s up–?” Joey’s brows rose. “Is Noah there too?”

“No…” Atem sighed again, shrugging and adjusting Noah’s hoodie a bit. “He fell asleep a while ago. I’ve been trying to encourage him to take a nap when things get…difficult.”

Joey frowned, leaning on the table. “Difficult how?”

“Yugi.”

That was all Joey needed to hear to sigh deeply, crossing his arms. He frowned again, lowering his voice. “Yeah, I’m not surprised……So the kiddo’s asleep, then?”

“Yes. But I wanted to take the time to talk you about things. I’m just…at a loss of what to do.”

“Do–?”

“With all this, between Noah and Yugi,” Atem’s gaze moved off to the side, his frown heavy again. “I can practically see the rift between them, the growing hostility and anger…Mostly from Noah’s side, but Yugi’s not forthcoming with information, either. But both are refusing to really talk about things, and Noah gets quiet as soon as Yugi enters a room. Like he’s trying to pretend he doesn’t exist. I just…don’t know what to do.”

“Nothing.”

Atem flinched, bringing his gaze back up to meet Joey’s with wide eyes. “Wha—Nothing?”

“Atem, there are some situations that no amount of freaky spirit guidance can help,” Joey’s hands moved to his waist, fixing Atem with a stern gaze. “First of all, I’m the one who encouraged Yugi to wait until Noah was ready to talk—though, you’re right, he doesn’t really seem ready, either. Secondly, to be quite honest with ya, this is a very personal matter between Noah and Yugi. It’s not really your place to step in as mediater.”

“So you’re just…saying I should let this all happen,” Atem’s shoulders grew rigid. “Even if it means things get worse.”

“Kinda, yeah.” Joey shrugged, gaze still stern. “I know it’s hard not to say anything, man.”

“Hard—it’s not possible.” Atem frowned. “I’m right there when this all happens, Joey, I can’t just sit by and do nothing.”

“Ya have to.”

“Why–?”

Joey heaved another sigh, standing from leaning on the table, and frowned at Atem. “Let’s step back a minute; ya said earlier that you could feel a growing hostility from Noah’s end, yea?”

“Yes…?”

“Well, why?”

“Why what?”

“Why do you think it’s hostile?”

Atem looked off, thinking, before he shrugged and looked back. “I don’t know exactly, I just can feel it, whenever he’s around or thinks about Yugi.”

“A’right, now think about that: say you were hostile towards——me, I dunno. You were mad at me for somethin’. Would you want anyone else buggin’ ya about why you were mad at me?”

“Well…” Atem frowned, crossing his arms. “No, not exactly, I suppose. It would just bring up all the negative emotions. And I wouldn’t want to get anyone else involved when it would just make them upset too.”

“Bingo.” Joey gave a small smile. “And because it didn’t directly affect anyone else, yea?”

“No…” Atem’s frown deepened, and his gaze fell away for a moment, before he straightened himself and looked back up. “But—”

“Atem,” Joey’s stern gaze from earlier returned. “Whatever happened between Noah and Yugi, I think only Téa really knows the details of. And if Noah’s not talking to you about it, I can three-quarters guarantee it’s not personal. He knows you and Yug’s history, and if I know that kid, he wouldn’t want to ruin whatever you and Yugi still have because of what’s going on between them. I know it’s hard for you to watch, with it bein’ your best friend and your new responsibility as ya put it……But tryna get involved when it’s not your place will just make ‘em mad at you. Even if you’re tryna help.”

Atem sighed audibly, understanding and not at all liking the logic behind it. He was quiet, thinking over Joey’s words, even if the result still didn’t make the situation any better.

“Tell ya what, though,” Joey pointed out, brows rising. “I haven’t seen the kid open up so much since before Yugi was gone. He’d get real quiet, never really voicin’ his own thoughts. Whatever you ARE doin’—talkin’ to him, encouraging him—it’s doing something to help him speak up.”

Atem managed a faint smile and nodded, thinking about just earlier when Noah admitted how he was starting to get more emotional about things than he had been for years.

Atem’s attention was diverted when Joey abruptly tossed something at him for him to catch, only for him to see it was a couple packaged baked goods from behind the counter.

“Here; for you and Noah.” Joey passed a nod and a smile. “On da house. Just make sure he gets the one without nuts in it.”

Atem returned a small smile and nodded, stowing the baked goods in the hoddie pocket before sighing. “Thanks, Joey…”

“I feel for ya, man.” Joey replied softly, giving a nod. “I know it’s hard watching the people ya care about fight with each other. But don’t give up on the situation just yet——remember who those people are.” Joey smirked. “They’re both Mutous, after all. And if I know that fam’ly, nothin’s strong enough to break a bond.”

Atem’s smile grew, and he brought his shoulders back up, nodding in agreement.

Bidding goodbye to Joey and Tristan, Atem started back down the street towards the house. As he did, he felt energies stir from the Puzzle, and smiled faintly at feeling Noah was waking up.

After a minute, he saw Noah’s form fade into his peripheral vision. “Hey…” Noah stifled a yawn. “Where’ve you been…?”

“Just talking to Joey,” Atem replied, before smiling at Noah. “He left us both something from the café, by the way.”

“Oh—cool.” Noah smiled, still sleepy. “That was nice.”

After a moment, when it grew quiet and Atem’s smile faded, Noah quirked a brow, eyes concerned. “What-uh…What did you need to talk to him about?”

“Nothing important.” Atem said, quietly, before looking up at Noah with a frown. “Noah…I’m sorry if I’ve been pushing too much, with whatever’s going on between you and Yugi.”

Noah grew rigid, Atem feeling the bristling hostility again, though it was a great deal less.

Atem brought his gaze forward, his eyes narrowed. “It’s just…difficult for me, I guess, not being able to do anything about it. Even if it’s coming from a place of care—I understand that neither of you are ready to handle it, yet. And…I just have to hope that you’ll reach the point where you can, no matter how long it may take. And I have to accept that it won’t be on my timeframe, and be okay with it.”

He looked back up at Noah, relieved to see him more relaxed. “But…I am still here, in case you do ever want to talk. Okay?”

Noah gave him a small smile and a nod. “Yeah…Okay.”

[miracle-sham]

Instead of Dead, Become Two Dragons in Red.

| {MaribatMarch2020 — Week 1, Day 5: Transformation} |

| [Ao3 Link] | | [Masterlist Link] |

| Triggers/Warnings: Violence/Implied Violence, Animal Transformation, Explicit Language/Some Swearing, Implied/Referenced Character Death (but not really), Polyamory (not really a trigger/warning but if you don't like Polyamory then this isn't for you). |

| For Gotham vigilantes, rampaging magic-users always make for an interesting fight, that is of course, provided one doesn't get hit by any stray bolts of magic. However for Parisian heroes, it's just your typical Tuesday Akuma situation. |

| Word Count: 3232 |

==‹›==

| A/N: Hi! I'm not dead, sorry for how long I took to respond to comments, I got hit by a nasty cold then sinusitis so I lost basically all my Maribat March prep time thanks to that, so I just barely managed to finish this ficlet/oneshot for today, anyway I hope you guys enjoy, and if enough people enjoy it, I'll make a second part to this oneshot because I had to cut so much material and it'd be nice to be able to use it still. |

| If you want to be tagged in future oneshots/fics, or a specific Au, then comment or send me a DM/ask! |

| Also side note, Don't Like? Don't Read. Also also, please do not criticise any of my writing. This was written for fun and receiving criticism, even in a compliment/criticism sandwich, is the exact opposite of fun. |

==‹›==

 Zzzzt-crackle-woosh, a purplish-black bolt of unstable magic flies through the air, just barely grazing passed Dragonbug's side as she flips across the gap between two buildings. Cheerfully, she calls out “Missed again!”

 The villain, an amorphous black shadow with dripping molten gold eyes and donning a ruddy patchwork hooded robe (which suffice to say, looks suspiciously like a rip-off wizzrobe from the Legend of Zelda, that or a faceless Gregorian based cultist extra from a film or TV show), scowls furiously, “Oh fuck you! I'm trying my best here!” and blasts another bolt of purplish-black magic towards her.

 Conveniently located on the roof she just landed on, is an air vent. She cartwheels behind it and manages to dodge the bolt by a good metre or so. “Well, your best sucks and so does your aim!”

 The wizard-villain screeches in fury, “Well my aim wouldn't suck if you didn't keep moving like a goddamn Duracell bunny!”

 Dragonbug snorts. “Yeah but firstly, I'm dragon and ladybird themed, not bunny-themed; the bunny theme's already taken anyway. And secondly, where's the fun in that?”

 As soon as she says that, her earpiece crackles as Red Robin pipes up on the comms channel. “Ready to see some fireworks?”

 “Oh, you bet!” She responds, all too gleefully.

 There's a faint clink-woosh-woosh-woosh and out of the corner of her eye, Dragonbug sees a blur of a small round silver ball arcing through the air towards the wizard-villain who's quite stupidly standing in the same place. As the silver ball disappears from her view, she hears a clatter of clink-clink-clink followed by a bwoosh and a bright flash of white light. At this moment, Dragonbug is so glad the Miraculous suits protect against flashbangs of all things.

 The wizard-villain screams and once the flash of light fades, Dragonbug can see that they've fallen to their knees, in the middle of the street.

 Dragonbug frowns and eyes their form, then double-taps her comms. “Hey, is it me or does our rip-off wizzrobe-magic-cultist look somewhat unresponsive?”

 Her earpiece crackles again as Red Robin answers, and really someone should give these things a maintenance check, the crackling can be so distracting. “Our wizzrobe-magic-cultist is looking pretty unresponsive to me too. It could be a trap though because I swear I didn't use one of my knockout flashbangs.”

 She nods, despite the fact he can't see her; which upon realising this, she flushes red in embarrassment. After clearing her throat to compose herself, she tilts her head to the side. “That's concerning, unless our rip-off wizzrobe-magic-cultist is susceptible to flashes of light.” She pauses, frown deepening, “You don't think they've got epilepsy do you?”

 There's a slight rustle before Red Robin responds, “No, that's not what an epileptic seizure looks like. Again this could be a trap, or they could just be stunned. Either way, we should hurry but be careful.”

 “Right.” Dragonbug scurries over to the edge of the roof then flips her way down to the ground. As she lands, she just spots Red Robin vaulting across an overturned car. As he catches sight of her, she gives him a thumbs up, which he returns.

 Dragonbug then nods to him and he nods back, silently communicating their plan. They both start to slowly approach the wizard-villain in a pincer movement, her to the left and him to the right.

 Red Robin reaches to his bandoliers and whips out a pair of manacles. He skulks behind the wizard-villain and goes to handcuff when the wizard-villain starts cackling maniacally. The laughter is quickly followed by a forming orb of purplish-black light—the same light as the magic bolts.

 Oh, fuck! Is Dragonbug's only thought as she immediately dives at Red Robin, who's started backing away; she uses herself to try and block him from the still-forming orb. Please let the Miraculous magic protect us both! She silently begs as the orb expands exponentially, unfortunately enveloping them both completely in a fraction of a second

 The maniacal laughter is the last thing they both hear as they're violently launched backwards into an alleyway, and everything fades to black.

==‹›==

Kagami's lounging on the sofa at Tim's Nest and binging Netflix, when the red alert rings across all the comms units.

 “Shit,” Oracle falters, “Red Robin and Dragonbug are down. Dragonbug's signature has disappeared from our systems and her comms aren't responding. All Red Robin's vitals are down, his suit isn't registering any more signs of life. But I'm still getting warnings that the villain they were fighting is still active, so everyone available needs to converge on Red Robin and Dragonbug's last known location.”

 Fear immediately seizes Kagami's heart, no please, please don't be dead my loves. She double-taps her comms. “I'm suiting up as Kuro Neko, I'll be at the location in three.”

 With that said, Kagami flings herself off the sofa. She glances around the room for Plagg who's halted in his eating of cheese and giving her a sad but cryptic look. Her eyes flicker to the window and he nods almost imperceptibly.

 “Plagg, claws on.” There's a woosh as the poisonous green light washes over her, donning her in the Kuro Neko suit. She flexes her claws for a split second, tail whipping back and forth furiously, before darting over to the window and vaulting out of it.

 As soon as she's out the window, Kuro Neko extends her baton down and begins pole-vaulting her way across the rooftops and over towards where her significant others were last.

==‹›==

 When Dragonbug returns to consciousness, the first thing she notices is that she can't move, nor see, nor hear. But she can feel, and unfortunately that means she feels a strange painful pulsing throughout her entire body, as well as an excruciating aching sensation. The second thing she notices is that she's curled up on the ground and her head, or the world, is spinning somewhat. Anyway, I can safely say I'm not doing so good right about now, big ouch.

 The first of her other senses to return is her hearing. Which immediately makes her hiss in pain from the sudden cacophony seemingly coming from somewhere above her? She pauses, then realises that something's not quite right, hey wait a minute, why'd my hiss sound so weird? Something's not right, although I suppose that's kinda obvious now, but still! Oh god, what if I'm dying, or I've been body switched, or—or—or—

 Her thoughts are interrupted by a sudden scream of fury, ringing out from above. Which is good because it means Dragonbug doesn't get time to dwell on that particular string of anxious thoughts, but it's also bad because it's loud and causes her to whimper in pain from how loud it is.

 “Where the fuck are they? What the fuck did you do to them?” A voice sounding very similar to Kagami yells out.

 Wait a second, that doesn't make sense, Red Robin and I didn't call for backup, so why would Kagami suit up on her night off? Dragonbug muses to herself, brain immediately latching onto the next train of thoughts. As she muses, she slowly realises that she's starting to regain the feeling in her limbs. Which is another positive? However, the feel of said limbs, causes her mind to immediately blank and lose the train of thought. While her brain tries to figuratively perform an error message, she does finally manage to crack open her eyes, yay sight.

 It's at that moment, Dragonbug's superhero experience/training kicks in. She quickly takes stock of her surroundings and quietly thinks to herself, oh fuck.

 It looks like she's in a giant—no massive—version of Red Robin's suit. Have I been shrunk? She wonders for only a brief second as something moves, just out of the area of her view. She turns and squints at the movement. Not a second later, a roughly cat-sized red lizard shuffled into sight.

 She squeaks in surprise, then has a minute of wait what because her squeak sounded weird and very concerningly not-human-like.

 The red lizard tilts its head to the side and coos at her.

 Dragonbug glares at the lizard and tries to back away. Emphasis on tries, because as she does so, she ends up tripping over herself? Confused and extremely concerned now, she glances down and oh.

 What. The. Heckles. She slowly spins around, checking out her new form, because she's clearly no longer human. No, she's got a snout, scales, fur—well mane—, claws, a long snakelike body, and a tail. Spinning around, she catches sight of a gleaming piece of shiny silver metal. So does what anyone would in the same situation as her, and scuttles over to it to use it as a makeshift mirror.

The reflection that greets her is… frankly quite adorable but also she's now a tiny little lung/long dragon. Which to be fair, makes quite a bit of sense as she was using the dragon Miraculous and Longg is a lung dragon. Her scales are a pretty red with shimmery golden accents and her mane is a dark red-almost-black colour. Her eyes still have the golden yellow iris and sclera that the dragon Miraculous gives. And the rest of her is all done variation of the gold, brighter red, and darker red. So at least her colour palette doesn't clash. Okay, so the colour palette isn't the most pressing issue here, but also I don't know how to fix this or change back so y'know, I'd rather potentially be stuck like this permanently with a nice colour palette, than one that clashes. But also oh god please don't let this be permanent, there has to be a way to undo this!

 In her panic, Marinette doesn't notice the red lizard slinking closer to her. As it reaches her, it gently prods her with one claw; startling her badly and causing her to squeak again, loudly.

 The red lizard flinches back and Marinette realises that maybe, just maybe, that's not a random lizard. And that maybe the not-a-random-lizard is actually a drake. A European dragon that hasn't got wings. And Tim. Tim's surname is Drake. A coincidence? I think not! It's got to be Tim!

 She stares at the probably-Tim dragon and makes a chirping noise because dragons don't have the same vocal cords as humans, so she can't exactly ask him if that's him or not. A minor nuisance, to say the least.

 The red drake mimics her chirp. Then cautiously slinks up to her again.

 This close, Marinette can see that she's probably around the size of a ferret, in comparison to him being roughly the same size as a cat.

 He flops down half beside, half against her and makes a series of clicks and chirps. She can't help but to tense as he flops but as the seconds pass, she finds herself relaxing bit by bit until she's also flopped over.

 Enjoying the peaceful impromptu not-quite-a-cuddle cuddle session with one of her significant others, Marinette does try to keep an ear out for any goings-on above, just in case. But all seems well.

 That is until, not even three seconds later, the peacefulness is abruptly shattered by a cacophony of screams, yells, zaps, and loud bangs echoing shrilly from above, before ceasing just as abruptly as it started.

 However, the unexpected cacophony still manages to cause Marinette to panic. She tenses with a low whine, hunching slightly, and holds her breath. Alert and anxiously vigilant, she can't help but survey the immediate vicinity again and again and again—looking for anything she missed initially or if anything's changed.

 Tim shuffles and stumbles into a sitting position. He nudges her gently in the side of the neck with his snout. He makes a cooing noise, followed by a soft rumble—as if he were trying to imitate a cat's purr.

 It takes a few seconds, but his actions start to help calm her down. She takes in a deep breath and mentally reassesses the situation. We've been turned into tiny dragons. We're inside-slash-underneath the Red Robin suit which is on the ground. Before we woke up like this, we were battling a magic-user villain who tricked us. We didn't get time to call in backup before we got hit but it sounds like backup arrived anyway. As far as we know, no one is aware of what happened to us or that we're in-slash-under the suit. We are currently safe for now.

 As Marinette reaches the end of the reassessment, she feels much calmer. She makes a low trill-like-purr noise to signal to Tim that she's calmed down.

 He sticks his tongue out in a blep and mimics the low trill.

 Their second moment of calm is then also interrupted because apparently fate hates peace and calmness or something like that.

 “I will ask you once more, Where. Are. They?” Kuro Neko questions.

 There's a loud thump-snap, followed by the wheezing cackle of the Wizard-villain. “They're gone! Dead! Erased! Exterminated!” With its piece said, the wizard-villain continues to wheeze and cackle maniacally.

Marinette can't help but shiver in fear at the sound, barely able to squash the rising nausea.

 A harsh snap sound echoes loudly in the street and the wizard-villain starts choking wetly.

 Kuro Neko hisses something but the red robin suit muffles the words to the point of being indistinguishable.

 The minutes drag by and the only sounds of note from above, are inaudible mutterings and the clattering of handcuffs and car doors. They must've handed the wizard-villain over to the police, Marinette thinks.

 She's about to go nudge Tim to try and communicate that they probably need to go find somewhere to stash his suit and a place for them to hide until they can figure out how to turn back when a conversation between the vigilantes who arrived for backup catches her attention. Partly because of the topic, and partly because of how close the voices suddenly sound.

 “They can't be dead, Red Robin's suit is still there.” Dick—or well more like Nightwing, since he probably arrived as backup as well—stresses.

 “But Dragonbug an' her suit's gone. You'd think maybe that there'd be a little more left if just organic matter was destroyed.” Jas—Red Hood mutters, the vocal distorter in his helmet making his tone of voice sound strange.

 Or maybe that's just a side effect of getting tiny-dragon-ified, thinks Marinette, things sounding stranger. Although I've not really noticed anything bar the distorted voice sounding weird.

 “The Miraculous suits are made of magic, and anyway, Plagg says he can't feel Tikki or Longg's presence anywhere,” Kuro Neko admits, reluctantly. “If all living things in the vicinity of the orb were destroyed, then the Miraculous would have still been left behind.”

 “And how d'you know that?” Red Hood asks, sounding both genuinely curious and mildly concerned.

 There's a split second of almost icy silence before Kuro Neko responds with a clipped tone. “Akuma.”

 “Ah, o'course.” Red Hood comments, voice getting closer again. “Hey, d'you think B will want to stick the Red Robin suit in a memorial case like what he did with my Robin suit?”

 “Hood!” Nightwing exclaims in a horrified and almost scandalised tone of voice.

 Red Hood snorts.

 Marinette flinches, and so does Tim beside her, although probably not for the same reasons as her. I don't think I'll ever get used to how flippantly Red Hood jokes about his death. Even if most Parisians who've died in Akuma attacks use the same sort of gallows humour.

 There's a few seconds of silence before someone grabs the Red Robin suit and yanks it upwards, causing Tim and Marinette to tumble out of it with a series of startled squeaks and clicks.

 Red Hood is the first to respond to the situation, with an eloquent, “what the fuck.”

 Marinette glances up and sees Kuro Neko holding the Red Robin suit and looking rather shell shocked, with Red Hood and Nightwing a few steps away.

 “Oh, thank fuck they're alive.” Nightwing half mumbles, dragging a hand down his face in exasperation.

 “My loves,” Kuro Neko murmurs leaning down and scooping up Marinette and Tim, “I'm so glad you're okay.”

 They both squirm for a minute before relaxing into her arms.

 Nightwing frowns. “We should bring them back to the cave, maybe call Zatanna and Wonder Woman.”

 “To the cave then.” Kuro Neko nods, hugging Marinette and Tim carefully, making sure not to accidentally hurt or squish them.

 Marinette looks up at her significant other and bleps. She then trills, content to be held for the journey back to the Batcave.

 Tim however, wrinkles his nose and chirrups in protest, he squirms and tries to escape Kuro Neko's hold—probably wanting to return to the Nest and deal with this on his own instead.

 Kuro Neko gives Tim a deadpan stare before expertly pinching the correct pressure point to temporarily paralyse him.

 Red Hood gives her a quizzical stare.

 “Akuma, as well as kwami.” She responds, sagely.

 “Right…” He slowly mutters, shaking his head.

 Marinette can't help but burst into laughter at that, only because she's currently a ferret-sized lung dragon, the laughter comes out as a stream of trills and chirps.

 Red Hood narrows his eyes at Marinette. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, danger noodle.”

 Marinette pouts, whilst internally promising herself that revenge will be swift and pasta themed.

==‹›==

 When they finally arrive back at the Batcave. They're greeted by the sight of Batman and Robin at the Batcomputer.

 Robin turns and sneers at them. “Of course, trust Drake to pull such an attention-grabbing stunt as this.”

Marinette immediately looks up from her snuggled up position in Kuro Nell's arms and hisses at Robin; Tim however, lets out a world-weary sigh.

 “Robin.” Barks Batman, but the reprimand does nothing to quell Robin's hostility.

 Fixing a glare at Robin, Kuro Neko starts to stroke Marinette's scales like an evil villain would stroke a cat (much to Marinette's delight). “Need I remind you, how you hesitated upon hearing Oracle inform us that Red Robin's suit ceased reading any signs of life.”

 “That was not hesitation! I was merely preparing for Grayson or Fatgirl to become hysterical in their distress.” Retorts Robin, who then stalks away, scowling and red-faced.

 Nightwing dithers between going after him or staying to check on Tim and Marinette.

 Kuro Neko shakes her head. “Go after him, Marinette and Tim will be fine without you hovering like a mother hen.”

 Nightwing flashes her a grateful smile and scampers after Robin.

 Kuro Neko then heads over to the medical bay and gently plonks the two dragons onto a cot. “Batman, I believe we will need to do as Nightwing suggested earlier, and call Zatanna and Wonder Woman. As this is a magic situation and I am not as skilled or knowledgeable in regards to magic as my love is.”

 “Hhrrm,” Batman growls, already calling up the Watchtower.

 Kuro Neko smiles softly as she glances down at her significant others, eyes twinkling with mirth. “Let's hope they arrive soon, otherwise who knows what sort of trouble you two could get into.” She winks.

 Marinette chirps, tail flicking side to side eagerly. Whilst Tim perks up slightly and tilts his head to the side, mind probably racing with hundreds of pranks and shenanigans they could pull off whilst in dragon form.

==‹›==

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| @maribat-march2020 | | @vixen-uchiha |