#it was an incredibly easy fix in the end searching up answers is very helpful haha

[ashisgreedy]

“The Halloween Party”

POV: Garreth Weasley 

SFW

This was written as a collab story with the following amazing people(tagged)! We took turns writing for this story and it took off in many hilarious and dramatic tangents! One person would write a few paragraphs then send it off to the next person to continue. It was so fun to be a part of and I am grateful for everyone's involvement! The end of the segments will indicate who wrote which part. 

@greedyforgarreth - (GFG), @pandanscafanfiction (Pandansca), @daydreamsonacloudyday - (DOACD) @slytherin-paramour , @cuffmeinblack , @blueraineshadows ,  @junie-00 , @eternalremorse, @finalgirllx , @grandeoatmilklatte - (Oat),  @AurorSrag @sevprince-91 (AS)

(Please see the end where @slytherin-paramour drew amazing fanart of Seb-Skein!)

WC: 9,700

Garreth spent quite a lot of time preparing for his Halloween bash. Several cauldrons were bubbling. Some were filled with a mix of alcoholic drinks while others held concoctions Garreth had perfected over the years that would induce different effects on the drinker. He couldn't decide to tell people what the effects were or if they should just find out for themselves.

He definitely wasn't in it alone as he implored his friends to assist him with this massive party. Everyone in the school was making an appearance in the Gryffindor common room. He hoped that if any Professor did get tipped off they would turn a blind eye so the students may have one last party before they graduate from Hogwarts. He adjusts his costume and fixes a big smile on his face as he begins walking through the party while the music blasts through the magical gramophones.

(GFG)

Everyone was dressed incredibly festive. It was so cool to look around the large common area and attempt to figure out who was who under their masks and disguises- with the exception of a few. His older brother Oscar, for one, showed up in his quidditch attire ('how original') and Ominis didn't bother to put much more effort in his costume than a pair of cat ears. In any case, he smiled broadly and wore his own proudly, puffing out his chest as he raised a toast of something even he didn't know high in the air. "Cheers, mates!"

As he took a deep swig, Sebastian appeared next to him wearing… was that Azkaban stripes and broken cuffs? "What are you even supposed to be, Weasley?", he sneered.

Garreth pouted, offended that not one person could tell what he was. Wasn't it obvious?

(Pandansca) 

“Wouldn’t you like to know, Sallow,” Garreth answered, rolling his eyes at the Slytherin. There had to be one person at his party who would figure out what he was. Maybe she would know, she always seemed to know exactly what he was thinking.

Before Sebastian could pester him about his costume some more, Garreth clapped him on the back and disappeared back into the costumed crowd, in search of her. (DOACD)

He stumbled a little when someone accidentally stepped on his costume as it trailed out behind him, turning to rearrange himself with a grin. "Woooah, easy there my friend! We wouldn't want to ruin this masterpiece would we?" 

He laughed as he gestured to the, quite frankly, fantastic costume that he'd been working on for weeks, before continuing to move through the jubilant crowd in the direction of the cauldron station. He couldn't help but give a little jiggle of his hips to the beat of the music as he went.

A giant, pink gaping hole lined with spikes entered his periphery. Several green leaves were stuffed around the edges of this person's collar. Garreth was very confused until his eyes honed in on a small bespectacled face protruding from the center of the monstrosity.

"Hobhouse? Is that you? What in Merlin's name are you supposed to be? You look like the vagina from my nightmare!" 

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Duncan puffed out his chest in a show of indignation, deflating quickly under the stares Garreth's outburst had attracted.

"No! I...do you really not know?" the Ravenclaw shot back in a squeaky voice.

Garreth grinned, a show of friendliness seldom bestowed on the boy. He'd never held any ill will towards Duncan; it just happened to be incredibly fun to wind him up a little. 

"What are you meant to be?" Duncan asked, his bespectacled face scrutinizing Garreth's fantastic costume.

"Never you mind," Garreth sighed, his attention caught by a melodic laugh that he'd know absolutely anywhere. "See you later, Hobhouse!"

Garreth dashed towards the source of the chuckle, barely audible over the cheers of 'nightmare vagina' aimed towards the boy he'd just left. (cuffmeinblack)

There she was. Beautiful, radiant, her eyes sparkling like new stars as she laughed, the sound of it making warmth spread through him as he gazed at her. Her cheeks were beginning to get that first pink flush from whatever she was drinking, enhancing her perfection in a way that made Garreth almost speechless. 

As he paused to admire his biggest distraction, a tap on his shoulder made him turn, his gaze lifting to meet with a face painted in greys and blacks. Surrounding this mask of horror was a tattered black hood, part of a flowing black robe that draped to the floor. It was enough to make one flinch, however, the warmth of those familiar brown eyes took away the chilling Dementor look that Leander had gone for this evening. 

Leander held up a drink, the vivid blue liquid smoking a little. "Is this the one that makes you levitate?" He asked. 

Garreth eyed it, a smirk lifting his lips. "Maybe, why?" 

Leander's smirk was even bigger. "Have you seen what Sallow has come as? If I drink this, I'm going to float over and pick a fight with an escaped prisoner," he chuckled. (blueraineshadows)

“That would be quite the show for our guests,” Garreth chuckled, “Let me grab MC first, I’m sure she’d love to see prisoner Sallow versus a dementor.” He nodded towards his target before beginning to walk towards her, the curiosity in him peeking when he couldn’t get a good look at her costume that was blocked by the bodies of her festively dressed friends surrounding her.

Leander's eyes roamed over her, a sliver between the students giving him a view of her choice of attire for the night. A quick hand stopped Garreth from moving any further, spinning him around so Leander’s eyes could scan him over, “Mate, are you two…” he paused before glancing in her direction once more, “Matching?”

As if it was the universe giving him yet another reason she was downright perfect for the Gryffindor, students cleared from her, giving Garreth a clear view of the girl who never failed to surprise him. “Brilliant!” Garreth trailed off as he excitedly pushed his way through students, his eyes never leaving the magnificent costume she proudly wore. (junie-00)

The various bells hanging from Garreth's belt jingled merrily as he approached MC with a great big grin on his face. His eyes trailed up and down, studying the ensemble that, in fact, did match his own.

"Seems you're a man of culture as well, MC."

Though his words were simply calm and friendly, the one brain cell in his head was bouncing off the walls of his skull.

"Of course! Though it almost got ruined because of one of your silly concoctions, the one that makes you croak and your throat swell like a bullfrog. Probably not the best idea for a costume party, eh? Nellie's costume got a little torn, actually, but that's probably for the better. It's a weird red suit with clown makeup and green hair. Maybe it's some sort of muggle thing."

MC took a sip of her drink, the metal claws on the ends of her fingers making small scratches in the ceramic as Garreth did the same.

(OPHOCC)

Garreth bit his lip as his eyes slowly trailed down MC’s outfit. If there was one person out of the whole charade of people he wanted to see here, it was her. MC noticed his stare and smiled smugly before nudging his shoulder.

“Now, now, Weasley, the night has just begun. Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves with the after-party thoughts already,” she winked.

Garreth chuckled and held up his hands. “Heh, you’re right. But I can’t help it when I see such a gorgeous woman right in front of me.”

MC giggled and a sudden hiccup escaped, her hand immediately covered her mouth in slight embarrassment. She then laughed and looked at her cup. “My word, this drink is getting to me already! It’s good stuff, despite the side effects.”

Garreth looked rather proud of himself in that moment. “Well, I’m glad to see you’re enjoying yourself and my brew. Maybe if you’re a good girl I’ll even give you the recipe for it. Top secret of course!”

MC raised an eyebrow. “Good girl? Garreth, what do you m-“ She noticed a commotion happening over Garreth’s shoulder. “Merlin’s beard! What is happening over there?” (eternalremorse)

Garreth’s head swiftly spun to see the racket happening behind him, and the sight to behold left both himself and MC standing speechless. The surrounding party-goers appeared to have the same reaction, as, seemingly in unison, all attention was suddenly on the spectacle before them. 

Someone had gone all out and dressed up as a Hippogriff. But this wasn't just a simple costume, it was a life-size recreation of the beast. The longer Garreth looked, he could gather that one student formed the front while another, less fortunate, was tucked inside the rear, mostly hidden from view. The sheer scale of the costume and some minor collisions (one which even sent poor ‘nightmare vagina’ Hobhouse tumbling) had drawn everyone's focus.

As gobsmacked as Garreth was, he felt a sense of obligation to find out who made up this horrific ensemble. He took a deep breath, gave MC a gentle pat on the shoulder, and mustered some of that Gryffindor bravery to approach the peculiar, two-person costume. He would need a stronger drink after this. 

"Um, hello there," Garreth began, wondering if the duo inside the costume could even hear him. “Might I ask who you are?” (finalgirllx)

Garreth heard a soft muffled voice come from the top half of the Hippogriff. He recognized it immediately as Poppy. “Don’t you recognize me?” she shouted, trying to make her voice carry considering the thickness of the costume. Garreth laughed. “Merlin’s beard Poppy, how did you pull this off? And who’s the other half of your costume?” 

A symphony of grumbles suddenly came from the second half of the costume. Garreth could not make out what was said, but he could tell whoever was in there was not happy about their predicament. “Imelda!” Came Poppy’s muffled voice once again. “We made bets on the Quidditch game. I bet that if Slytherin lost, she had to be the bottom half of my costume. She was pretty cocky about it, swearing that there was no way Slytherin would lose to Hufflepuff, alas, here she is!” Poppy’s voice was especially cheerful about this as if she was absolutely loving Imelda’s misery. 

Garreth was thoroughly impressed. He turned to the table closest to him, grabbing a drink off the table. He went to hand it to Poppy before realizing there was no way for her to drink it. “Well, Poppy, this costume is incredible. I’d toast to your effort, but I imagine you can’t drink through this.”

“Oh actually, you can pour the drink into my mouth, I added a funnel on the inside for drinks. As for Imelda, you can pass her a drink from the back.”

Garreth obliged, pouring a drink for Poppy down the Hippogriff’s mouth, where there was indeed a funnel. He awkwardly made his way towards the back of the costume, jumping as a hand emerged from the Hippogriff’s butthole, snatching the drink from Garreth’s hand. Garreth simply laughed and shook his head, turning away from the Hippogriff to find MC again, the various objects glued to his hat jingling as he walked. (Oat)

But this was Halloween, the night of chaos and Poppy’s Hippogriff was just the beginning of the show.

True to his words, Leander did take the drink that was supposed to make him fly and was prepared to execute his plan. He stretched out his hands, his sleeves being extra-large, covering his hands and he positioned himself like a dementor would and went for Sebastian, who had his back to him right now, talking to Ominis.

Neither of them had any idea of what was coming.

Duncan felt something hovering above his head and he lifted his head out of his pink flourishing tentacles, right in time to see a dementor floating above his head and he gave a squeal.

Everyone looked up and then someone shouted, “Sallow, behind you.”

Sebastian looked up and gasped. The horror of watching a dementor for real made his blood run cold and he forgot the time and place until Leander spoke up,

“Your soul is mine Sallow!”

But instead of a hoarse ghost-like voice that Leander intended to produce, a high-pitched squeaky voice out of the dementor’s robes made everyone roll on the floor with laughter.

“My voice,” Leander pressed his hands on his mouth and swirled backward but alas he couldn’t get himself down. “Get me dowwwwwwwwwn!” He squeaked. “Garreth! Get me down.” He swirled in the air shouting in his squeaky little voice.

Garreth ran underneath him, his arms extended hoping to catch him in case he falls, his bells madly jingling around his belt. MC ran behind him, her wand out and pointed at Leander, trying to get him down. 

“Sebastian, Ominis, stop laughing and help us out here.” 

MC yelled at the pair, as she ran madly to save her friend, almost tumbling poor Duncan Hobhouse, and his tentacles right into the butt of Poppy’s hippogriff, making Imelda lose her balance as she fell on the ground with Duncan above her and the costume splitting into half, from the middle, turning it into a half-ass Hippogriff now.

“Duncan fucking Hobhouse!” Imelda yelled as she desperately attempted to remove the butt of the Hippogriff costume from above her head and pummel Duncan hard on the face. (AS)

Garreth's eyes desperately sought out the location of his bubbling cauldrons. He really was too sober for this. His eyes landed on a purple brew that he had completely forgotten the effects it had. He decided to take a ladle full of the purple brew into his cup and a ladle full of the pink brew just next to it. He resolved that at least one of them was alcohol and would get him drunk. With his eyes closed, he chugged down the entire cup.

A loud crash of the window made him choke on the last gulp of his drink. Garreth wiped the back of his mouth and turned around to see Everette pummeling through the crashed window on his broom. He was waving something in the air that let off several small fireworks. People below him ducked and weaved out of the way of the sparks. 

Garreth smiled at the display of mischievousness from an obviously very drunk Everette, who most likely had been pre-gaming well before the party even started. MC was already using the repairo spell on the window and Garreth gave her a thumbs up. 

Garreth poured a second cup of his concoction and rushed over to Everette as he landed on wobbly legs. "Cheers, mate!" Garreth handed him the mixed drink. Everette took it enthusiastically and started to take a sip. 

"Thanks! But, uh..." Everette looked Garreth over, the bells and claws decorating Garreth's person making him squint. "What exactly are you dressed up as?"

Garreth frowned "Isn't it obvious?" He swayed, realizing very quickly exactly what potion he'd just downed with his alcohol. (GFG)

Rule number one: never forget your own brews; a mistake he made for not the first time, and especially not the last. He blinked erratically and stumbled over his own feet as suddenly his vision went inverse- the entire room was upside down! Or- well- was it? It certainly seemed so. He didn't remember creating a potion like this but he had mixed two of them together.

Garreth looked around the room with wide eyes as he watched everyone walk along the ceiling as though it were perfectly normal. Even Amit was sitting comfortably in the chandelier as though it were an armchair (wait- wasn't it an armchair?) Good Godric, he was plastered), giggling to himself as he sipped on a drink and tried to nail Leander in the head with magical shooting stars. 

"Stop moving, Prewett!", he slurred.

The Gryffindor rubbed at his eyes and blinked once more as he took in the Ravenclaw's rather… alluring attire. "Um… Amit? Did you lose a bet?", he squeaked.

Amit looked at the ginger as though he had two heads. "Garreth, my clothes are quite normal.", he called back. But since when was a corset, bloomers, and thigh-high stockinged normal?! "You, on the other hand, are rather confusing." The raven-haired boy mumbled as his eyes grew more disgusted and perplexed by the second. "What are you, again?"

Garreth opened his mouth to reply when a curiously green spell suddenly shot right past his head, singing the wall opposite him. "What in the-?!"

(Pandansca)

Garreth looked to the origin of the spell and saw a puffskein.

Wait–a puffskein?

What in Merlin’s name was a puffskein doing at the party? And why was it floating around, completely unbothered with everyone and everything around it? (DOACD)

He swayed a little where he stood, his eye's trying to focus on the small, hairy creature that he now realized was most certainly gripping a wand between it's teeth. Green wisps of magic residue emerged from the tip of the wand and Garreth let out a bellowing laugh at the sight. Somehow, he made his way to the puffskein without falling on his arse and picked the little fuzz ball up, holding it in front of his face with a grin.

"Hello there fluffy fellow, how did you get in here? And whos wand did you steal?" 

He booped it on the nose and tried to pry the wand out of the creatures mouth, only for the Puffskein to clamp down and start writhing furiously in Garreth's arms. 

"Woaaah, calm down! Oi!" He had almost dropped the frantic creature when Ominis appeared beside him, panting and trying to catch his breath. He held his wand up and sighed in relief.

"Oh thank Merlin, you found him! Quick, we need to change him back!" 

Garreth's alcoholic, potion influenced brain became even more confused by Ominis' words.

"What...change who back?" 

The blonde boy gestured to the angry little beast currently trying to roll it's way out of Garreth's arms.

"That's Sebastian!" 

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Garreth's eyes slid out of focus as he tried to process the information, not trusting his drink-addled brain's slow responses amongst the thoroughly irate bundle of fur now trying to roll out of his arms. He looked down at the puffskein, noticing the tufty chestnut fur and big brown eyes, his lips curling into a grin as he realised that oh yes, this was Sebastian alright. Ominis' wand was ready, the incantation to return his friend to his human form on the tip of his tongue.

What a waste that would be.

Garreth bolted, clutching the fluffy menace against his chest as he sped through the crowds once again, trying his best not to go arse over tit with the way his vision swam and the room made absolutely no logical sense. Why was the Hippogriff's arse now tumbling across the ceiling? Did the sofas always have mouths? The only thing he knew was that the cocky, self-satisfied, altogether too handsome Slytherin Sebastian Sallow was now a ferocious little puffskein, and Garreth wasn't about to let Ominis change him back before the entire castle got a peek. He spotted MC once again, her beauty just about the only thing not addled by his questionable concoctions, and Garreth held Sebastian above his head with a triumphant grin spread across his face.

"Guess who this is?!" he shouted across the room, ignoring Duncan's hysterical screams. (cuffmeinblack)

The party goers nearest to him glanced up, the irate puffskein now snarling in ways that definitely didn't sound accurate, the wand clenched in its teeth waving dangerously around the room. Laughter echoed and a few names were called out as Ominis pressed himself through the crowd, cheeks flushed and brow furrowed. 

"Hand him over, Weasley," he demanded. He aimed his wand in Garreth's vague direction, the tip of it blinking brightly.

Garreth chuckled. "But he looks so adorable!"

MC appeared beside Ominis, her eyes narrowing in on the little growling ball of fur. Her eyes then widened, a gasp leaving her lips. 

"I know that wand!" She exclaimed. She put her hand to her mouth, horrified laughter bursting from it. "Who did this?! That's Seb!" 

"What? No!" Leander burst past MC, his Dementor painted face aghast as he stared at Puffskein Seb. He gave a panicked look towards MC. "Please tell me he can be changed back?" He squeaked.

MC narrowed her gaze. "Why do you care?" 

Leander realised everyone was staring at him and his blush was so dark it showed through his face paint. "No… no reason," he stuttered. 

Ominis turned with eerie accuracy, his wand aimed right at Leander's nose. "If this was you, Prewett, you'd better start begging," he said. (blueraineshadows)

Garreth slowly blinked when he tried to follow the commotion unfolding as Ominis pressed his wand against Leander’s nose, but his efforts were in vain when different effects of his mixed potion began to take over his brain. It seemed as if the students were becoming one with their costumes, contorting into ferocious creatures right in front of him. His eyes widened as the students began to close in on them, his palms covered in a thick layer of sweat and his mouth becoming dry from his gaping mouth, paying no mind to the slytherin puffskein wrestling in his loosening hands.

“What the fu-” He whispered to himself before the ball of fur was hastily snatched from his hands.

“Come on!” MC hissed as she tugged Garreth by his arm, nearly dragging him behind her while holding Sebastian snug against her chest. Not so surprisingly, the slytherin turned beast was willingly resting in her arms as she burst through the crowd of students.

Garreth tumbled behind her, his feet failing to meet her fast pace, “Where are we going?” the goggle eyed Gryffindor mumbled as he looked around at every student he passed that looked like they morphed into their costumes. His head shooting to look behind him as he heard Ominis shout their names.

“You’ll see,” she panted as she looked back at Ominis, picking up her pace when she noticed him trailing behind them, “I want to have my fun with Seb-skein before Ominis turns him back!” (junie-00)

MC began sifting through the crowd for a particular Ravenclaw. One that claimed to “feel braver” after she did the dirty work for him finding that Giant Venomous Tentacula, yet he got all the credit for it! But what could she do? She was a naive fifth-year at the time and wanted to be liked by everyone. Maybe it was time for a little vengeance.

She spotted Duncan talking to Amit and Andrew Larson, she smiled and pulled Garreth close, nodding towards the trio. Garreth could barely make them out with the potion effect still in full swing.

MC hushed her voice a little bit. “Seb, I’m going to need your help here.”

She looked down at the brunette Puffskein whose eyes looked up at her with curiosity. She must admit he was super cute as one of the little creatures.

“See Duncan over there? I’d like you to give him the biggest fright of his life for me. For taking all the glory for the Giant Venomous Tentacula leaf he claimed he got himself from the hidden Herbology corridor.”

Garreth heard what she said and his eyes widened. “Waaaaaait, that wasn’t Dun-kein?” he slurred. MC giggled at shook her head.

“It was all me. I felt kind of sorry for him at the time.” She lowered Sebastian to the ground and winked at him. “Go get him, Seb-skein.” (eternalremorse)

Sebastian bounced his way over to the Ravenclaw, whose back was facing him as he chatted with Amit and Andrew. Both of the boys paused when they noticed the angry ball of fur behind Duncan, who was still babbling away, completely unaware.

“Uh…Duncan…” Amit started, trying to get the boy’s attention as Sebastian growled, the wand in his mouth pointed up towards Duncan. But it was too late for the poor boy, as the moment he turned around, he was hit with an array of spells being shot at him from the furry creature. 

Duncan screamed as Sebastian continued to shoot little blasts at him. He attempted to run, but tripped, landing on the floor. The entire party stopped what they were doing to watch as Sebastian dropped his wand from his mouth and jumped on Duncan, bouncing on him a few times before he began to nip at him, Duncan screaming and flailing his arms the entire time. Everyone was laughing, but Garreth could only focus on MC’s laugh. His glassy eyes kept darting back and forth between the madness in front of him, and her. 

Ominis pushed through the crowd and almost went to grab Sebastian, but he too couldn’t help but burst into a fit of laughter when his wand informed him of the scene he had walked into. (Oat)

Leander came floating at the commotion and attempted to grab Seb-skein as he attempted his final favorite trick of shoving his tongue into Duncan’s nose. He will never be able to get over the nightmare of tasting Duncan’s boogies but the fun was worth it. 

Garreth however watched MC with glassy eyes, mesmerized by the tinkle of laughter coming out of her lips that he so wanted to kiss for a long time now. An absurd urge filled him all of a sudden and for a moment he felt like nothing he would do now could go wrong.

So amidst all the commotion of Duncan vs Seb-skein, Garreth almost lunged at MC, grabbed her shoulder, turned her towards him and kissed her! (AS)

A short time later, as everyone forgets the commotion and Duncans's screams, Garreth finds Puffskein Sebastian on the arm of one of the couches in the common room. Someone had put sunglasses on him and replaced his wand with a glow stick. The small creature's head bobbed to the music, eyes closed as he grooved to the beat. 

Garreth knew he needed another drink, the room was finally flipping back to right side up. He pet Seb-skein on the head and smiled. "Puffskein must be lightweights, you're positively sloshed." He chuckled and then made his way to the cauldrons again. 

Before he could make it all the way, Imelda, the ass of the hippogriff forsaken, popped up in front of him. She crossed her arms and eyed him. "I hate parties." She said, loudly so her voice wasn't drowned out by the music. 

"Oh.." Garreth frowned a bit "Well, I could offer you a drink? Or, would you like to play a party game?"

Imelda crossed her arms. "I didn't say I hated YOUR party." She scoffed. "A game then. And be quick with it."

Garreth smiled. "A game it is!" (GFG)

While he ladled a different mix of concoction for the two of them, he mused over what sort of game they could play. His hips swayed to the music while he sipped. The party was getting into the thick of it, now; loud, thumping dance tracks as magic, pulsating orbs of light strobed to the beat in the much darker space. But the flashing lights gave him an odd sense of lost deja vu.

'Wait… Didn't something big happen earlier?' There was an odd lapse in his memory and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't remember anything past Dunkan getting his bogeys licked by Sebastian up until now… How did he get here, with Imelda? Not that he was complaining; she was lovely company. But even still… wasn't what he was forgetting important?

His brows dipped and he handed Imelda her drink but the thought of losing something brought upon a fabulous idea for a game and his eyes lit up. "How about a scavenger hunt?!", he offered.

Imelda's smirk was downright predatory with her characteristic bout of competitiveness. She took a swig of her drink and huddled close, her arm wrapping around Garreth's shoulder and pulling him close. "State your rules."

"No one else can know about the game. First person to get all items and meet back at the home base wins."

"And what does the winner get?"

Garreth thought for a moment. "A wish granted- Something doable and within reason. And the loser can't deny them."

The gears were already visibly turning in Imelda's mind as her dark eyes roamed over his lips. "You'd better hope you have more endurance than me, then.", she quipped and took a long chug of her alcohol before crushing the cup in her hand and tossing it aside. "You're going to need it for my wish." Garreth flushed fiercely. "Now- What are we hunting tonight, Weasley?"

What to hunt for indeed…

(Pandansca)

Garreth found a spare piece of parchment and a quill amongst the chaos of the party, and he and Imelda began coming up with their list of things to hunt for. There was something Garreth couldn’t quite remember, something at the edge of his memory, but it kept flitting away as they came up with item after item.

It couldn’t be that important, could it?

When they finished, he made a copy of the list with his wand and handed it to Imelda, who shot him a smirk before sauntering off in her ass end of a hippogriff costume. He reread the list, the words swimming in his vision for a second before he got them to focus again. He grabbed another concoction and downed it before setting off to look for the items on the list. (DOACD)

He chuckled to himself as he glanced over the first couple of things that he needed to find. This was going to be fun. Or an absolute shit show. It was a fine line to be perfectly honest. The fuzziness inside his head was giving him a ridiculous confidence boost, and he set off in search of a certain haughty, blonde Slytherin. 

Ominis had given up on his quest to turn Sebastian back into a human, for the moment. He had thoroughly enjoyed it when his hairy little best friend had tormented Duncan Hobhouse afterall. 

He was sitting on one of the large leather sofas now, swaying side to side and singing along to whatever song was blaring from the gramophone. A goblet of fire whiskey was held precariously in his left hand and he had tucked his trusty wand behind his ear.

The sofa suddenly tilted him to the left when Garreth cannonballed himself into the leather beside him, the shock making the poor Slytherin jump up and spill half of his whiskey backwards over his shoulder. 

"You have a beautiful singing voice, Ominis!" Garreth's deep tone slurred into his ear from beside him. 

Ominis blushed despite his rage at the dopey Gryffindor. 

"Garreth! You've fucking soaked my silk shirt! …But thank you for the compliment I suppose." 

Garreth leaned in close, wrapping an arm around his friend and brought his lips to the blonde's ear. 

"You're very welcome, pretty kitty." His carded his fingers gently up through Ominis' hair to tug on the little black cat ears. 

Ominis stilled, his breath caught in his throat. He was about to speak when he felt a sharp pain at the back of his head and heard Garreth's voice call out cheekily.

"Yoink! I've got it! Sorry Ominis!" And he jumped up and ran away holding a couple of the Slytherin's beautiful hairs.

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Garreth was on a roll, and feeling increasingly intoxicated. The last concoction he'd thrown down his throat appeared to be mostly alcohol—whisky, he'd guess by the burn in his throat. At least the common room was the right way up now, but it was becoming harder to walk in a straight line as he staggered through the crowds.

The next item on his list should be easy enough, he thought as he plunged his hand into a bowl of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. A Ravenclaw tie. Popping the beans in his mouth, he gazed around the room for his next target, spotting Everett mingling with a now traumatized Duncan. The taller bespectacled boy was rubbing the smaller on the back, suspiciously gently. If he was more sober he could have sworn it was a caress.

"Alright, Everett, Duncan?" Garreth grinned at the pair. "Can I borrow one of your ties?"

"Bugger off, Garreth," Everett replied.

"I...what?"

"This is your party, and look what that fluffy menace did to Duncan!"

Garreth tried to suppress a smirk, but his self control and inhibitions had flown out the window with his last drink. With a snort, he burst into laughter, causing an irate Everett to drag Puffskein Dunkein off through the crowds. By the time he'd stopped chuckling and dried his eyes, they were nowhere to be seen and Garreth was no closer to securing his next scavenger hunt item. He needed another Ravenclaw.

Scanning the room again, he saw MC perched on a sofa petting Seb-skein with a lazy smile, and his stomach gave an odd sort of lurch that had nothing to do with his dubious potions. MC. She'd been something to do with what he'd forgotten, he was sure... The thought didn't have a chance to fully form before he felt a searing pain on the back of his head and his vision faded to black before he hit the floor. (cuffmeinblack)

Snatches of muffled sound teased his ears and blurry images appeared through slow blinks of his eyes as a dull throb clamped around the back of his head. The room swayed dangerously as he was bodily lifted, hands holding his arms and legs, and then he felt a softness against his back.

"He looks a bit pale…"

"So would you if you took a whack to the head…"

"Who levitated that lamp anyway…"

"Merlin knows, it's bloody chaos in here…"

Something brushed up against his forehead, and there was an irritating bouncing pressure on his torso. Garreth flapped his hands at it, his coordination poor, and he thought he heard someone laugh as his hand brushed against something fluffy and warm. He blinked a few times, his vision swimming into focus. 

Heads were bent over him, a mixture of amusement and worry on their faces. MC was the closest, her smile just utter perfection as he met her gaze.

"Hello handsome," she said. "Decided to rejoin the party after all?" 

Handsome? He'd take that! He gave her a smile, his mouth trying to form words, but he had no idea what he was going to say. He was just happy to see her face. "Heh… wuv… y..you.." He mumbled. 

The irritating bouncy pressure returned on his chest and a brown, furry puffskein appeared right in front of his nose, it snarled, brown eyes flashing, before it's tiny mouth clamped down on the end of his nose. 

Garreth shrieked as laughter pealed out around him, MC wrapping her hands around a snarling and chaotic Seb-skein in an attempt to get him off. (Blueraineshadows - Raine)

As MC tried to pull the angry ball of fur away from Garreth, it only caused him more pain. The small, but razor sharp teeth had a death grip on the point of Garreth’s nose, clamping down harder with each tug from MC.

“Sebastian! You’re hurting him!” MC yelled as her grip tightened, Garreth’s face being hauled upwards and whimpers escaping his mouth with each desperate pull, “Merlin, you’re a strong son of a bitch!” she murmured through gritted teeth as she yanked Sebastian with all her might. 

“MC stop, you’re making it worse!” Imelda shouted as she nudged MC out of the way, replacing her spot in front of Garreth and beginning to pinch and poke at Sebastian in hopes of finding his sweet spot to make him release the Gryffindor's nose.

A quick pluck of one of his whiskers did the trick, the small but deadly creature let out a yelp and set free Garreth, Imelda quick to pick up Seb-skein and put the single whisker in her pocket, “I needed this for the scavenger hunt, thanks you little shit.” Before Sebastian could sink his teeth into her scowling face, Imelda tossed him to MC like a toy she had no use for anymore, making her way next to Garreth to begin comforting him, putting a napkin to his bloodied nose. 

MC stood with Sebastian tucked against her chest, her face turning red with anger and jealousy as she watched Imelda cuddle up next to Garreth. As she was about to march over to the two, she heard a familiar slytherin cast a spell towards her.

“Vertohumano!”

The chatter and laughter disappeared and were replaced by gasps and screams. Before she could blink, the once adorable fuzzy ball that rested in her hands transformed into a grown man, a naked grown man, who unfortunately happened to be Sebastian.

Her face glowed a bright red with embarrassment. Her arms were wrapped around his bare torso, the tips of her fingers just barely grazing his manhood. She was quick to yank her arms away with a horrified shriek, the attention that was once on Garreth was turned towards a very naked and humiliated Sebastian. (junie-00)

MC quickly removed the mustard yellow poncho she wore about her shoulders and wrapped it around Sebastian, covering his shame. As Garreth watched this, though, he felt his hands ball up into tight fists, which was rather uncomfortable due to the claws of his costume digging into his skin. But it didn't matter because how could she touch him like that? Especially in that state?

Meanwhile, Sebastian silently thanked MC for her assistance before practically bolting out of the room and back to his bed. It would be safe to assume that he wouldn't be returning to the party out of sheer mortification. However, Garreth only remembered the scavenger hunt when he spotted Imelda plucking a ladle out of one of the drink cauldrons, which was coated in a rather unappetizing thick, green substance. The game was still on, and Garreth needed to catch up quick! (OPHOCC)

As the urgency of beating Imelda in the scavenger hunt weighed on Garreth, he tapped his chin animatedly, plotting his next move. What had he been looking for? A Ravenclaw tie? He'd needed to find another Ravenclaw student and fast, knowing how badly he'd already messed up with Duncan and Everett this evening. Given how scantily clad Amit's costume had been, he'd quickly crossed off Amit as an option. He'd certainly not have a tie to spare. 

Garreth suddenly recalled another Ravenclaw he had yet to approach: Andrew Larson. Yes, he'd spotted him before. And if memory served, Andrew had dressed as a... pirate, was it? 

Garreth was aware of Andrew's long-standing infatuation with him since their fifth year. He harbored no resentment toward Andrew for this, given how earnestly Garreth himself had pined for MC before she had given him a chance. While he wasn't one to take advantage of someone's feelings, Garreth's frazzled mind somehow rationalized that this might be the perfect opportunity to address his jealousy over MC and Sebastian while securing that elusive Ravenclaw tie. Up the charm a bit, perhaps a slight accentuation of his bum, and he'd be good to go, or so he figured.

With this fool-proof plan in mind, Garreth embarked on his mission to locate Andrew Larson, who’d be lingering somewhere in the increasingly chaotic party. (finalgirllx)

Garreth stumbled through the party goers, locating Andrew standing by one of the cauldrons, pouring himself a cup of who knows what. Garreth walked up to him, prepping up his good ole Gryffindor charm. “Hey Andrew! Great party, huh?” He shouted over the booming music. “You’re a pirate, right?” 

Andrew looked up at him, and although Garreth was in no place to talk considering how wasted he was himself, he couldn’t help but notice how drunk Andrew was. “Heeeeeey you…fiery little redhead!” Andrew slurred. “You’re looking real cute tonight! *hiccup* What are…you s’pposed to be anyway? *hiccup* 

Garreth sighed, having given up on anyone else besides MC knowing his costume. He ignored the question entirely this time. “Hey mate, could I borrow your tie? I promise I’ll bring it back!” Garreth gave Andrew a flutter of his eyelashes. 

“Oh, of course!” Andrew slurred again as he removed his tie from his waist incredibly slowly. “You can undress me any time, baby!” 

Garreth took the tie from his hands. “Thanks buddy! I appreciate it!” But as he turned to walk away, Andrew put his hand on Garreth’s shoulder. Garreth turned around, expecting him to say something, but within a second of turning around, Andrew was puking pink sludge onto the floor, with quite a bit of it splashing on Garreth’s big red boots. (Oat)

“Woooooah!” Garreth jumped up. He didn’t know whether he should run or help the poor Larson, who had been puking most likely because of his some eerie concoction. Perhaps comforting a puking Larson would be just the perfect way to show MC. And so he did.

He went around Larson, stood behind his rear, holding his hips instead of his back or shoulder that a normal person would do to help a sick person. He rubbed the side of his hips, mumbling words like, “there, there, better out than in. Let it go Andrew my boy.” 

Imelda paused her hunt and watched the pair, her jaw open wide. She winced and cleaned the vomit off the floor. Andrew was now done throwing up and he was now leaning on Garreth’s shoulder, staring up into the depths of his sea green eyes. “Gaarrethhhhhh,” He mumbled, huddling close to him.

Garreth gave one of his cheeky smiles to him and then looked up to see if MC was watching this. 

“Ohhh Ayyy, finally Garreth and Larson!” Someone cheered and the entire common room noticed them now, clapping and whispering. 

“Get a room, boys.” Someone else jeered.

Garreth looked around and stared at a very fuming MC standing at one corner, fuming. Her face red and her lips curled into a thin line as she watched Andrew leaning over Garreth and their arms wrapped around each other.

It got even worse, when out of nowhere Andrew tried to press a kiss on Garreth’s cheek, but he noticed and shifted his head and his kiss accidentally landed on Garreth’s lips.

A huge roar and whistles filled his ears and he just saw a wild mane of hair whipping out of sight and the portrait of the Fat Lady closing. (AS)

It was less than pleasant, the taste of the kiss. Garreth stumbled back and his hand moved to catch him, but it dipped into the cauldron and he fell back onto the ground. The drunk crowd seemed to understand the situation and pulled Andrew back and helped him sit on the sofa. Garreth stood up, shaking the liquid off his arm. 

“Sssorry!” Andrew slurred and dropped his head down. 

Garreth gave him a tight smile. “All good, man.” he wiped the back of his arm and looked around for MC. His stomach dropped wondering what she was thinking. He took a scoop of cauldron liquid and swished it around his mouth in an attempt to cleanse it. He spit it into a nearby planter thinking that was the best course of action in his drunken stupor. 

“Andrew, huh?” MC’s voice came from behind. 

“N-no!” Garreth stumbled dramatically. He tripped forward and MC caught his fall. However, they both tripped with Garreth’s weight and she landed on her back while Garreth was on top. 

He popped his head up and their mouths were inches away. He eyed her and his heart hammered in his chest. 

“Wow, this guy really gets around.” A Hufflepuff murmured as they watched the two on the floor.

MC heard these words, breaking her trance, and pushed on Garreth’s chest to get him off. Garreth wasn’t helping much since the memory of the scavenger hunt came to mind again. 

He leaned in, lips brushing over the shell of MC’s ear. He could feel her hold her breath from this close. He hummed and finally whispered. “I need one of your socks.” (GFG)

  MC reeled back and despite the now rosy hue of her cheeks her expression shone scandalized. "My sock?! Garreth- Haven't you done enough crazy things tonight?" She steered him toward an (mostly, I mean- Grace and Nellie were having quite the passionate snog on it) empty sofa before settling next to him. "You're incredibly intoxicated and you're acting so strange."

Okay, yes, he'd probably had at least three too many concoctions this evening. But there was so much at stake now! He couldn't stop! Especially when his double vision caught sight of Imelda snatching a hair from a now incredibly drunk Ominis before disappearing back into the throng. A shiver of dread (and… arousal? Huh.) raced down his spine at the thought of the Slytherin winning. He could guess clear enough what her wish would be.

He turned to MC. "You don't understand! If I don't win this scavenger hunt, Imelda is going to do unspeakable things to me!"

More confused than ever, MC stared long and hard into her crush's glittering green eyes. Wasn't it not long ago that he'd kissed her…? She could still feel the warmth and taste of him on her lips. She longed more than anything to return his affections, but ever since the kiss he'd acted as though it hadn't happened at all! Her heart fluttered for him but she was receiving so many confusing, mixed signals from him. And his drunken kiss with Larson also hadn't helped matters… Was she just another party game to the Weasley? And after she'd gone through so much tireless dedication to mimic his costume… "Garreth, I don't know…", she muttered.

(Pandansca)

“Please, MC,” Garreth begged, taking her hands in his, the claws from their costumes clinking together. “You can’t leave me to the mercy of Imelda. I have to win.”

MC narrowed her eyes at Garreth, still debating on whether or not to help him. “What exactly does Imelda intend to do to you if she wins?” MC asked.

Garreth swallowed hard, his eyes wide. “I think she wants to devour me,” he breathed, and MC gasped before she furrowed her brows. 

“Not on my watch,” MC said, a look of determination in her eyes. (DOACD)

She gripped Garreth's hand tightly in hers before pulling him along behind her. He nearly stumbled with the force that she dragged him with. Her eyes scanned the chaotic room in search of the Slytherin girl who was so clearly trying to get her claws into her Gryffindor. She found Imelda in a secluded corner of the common room, busy packing away a blue tie into her satchel. She looked up with a smirk as MC and Garreth pulled to a stop in front of her. 

"Oh, it's the competition." She looked at the red head with sultry eyes and then at MC. "And the other competition." 

MC frowned, eyes narrowing. 

"I hope you're ready to pay up, handsome. I've got this scavenger hunt in the bag. Literally." She patted the satchel beside her. 

MCs grip tightened around Garreth's fingers causing him to let out a small "Ow!" 

She took a step closer to Imelda, her magic flaring as she attempted to control her emotions.

"I don't know what you think you're planning, Reyes, but you see this? She gestured at Garreth. He's mine." 

With those words, she turned to look at the flustered man behind her, his mossy green eyes sparkling with a mixture of excitement and confusion. She reached up to grip the back of his head and pulled his face down to meet hers, lips pressing against his softly. It only lasted a couple of seconds before they parted, foreheads resting against each other. 

Garreth couldn’t take his eyes away from hers as she whispered. 

"You're mine." 

(SLYTHERIN-PARAMOUR)

Those lips, that taste...they were already familiar. Memories came flooding back to Garreth as MC kissed him, hazy but undeniably real. That's what he'd forgotten, that odd sort of niggle at the back of his mind when he'd looked at her afterwards—they'd kissed, right here at this party! No wonder she was nothing short of miffed about Andrew and now Imelda, and the possessive darkness in her eyes intensified by the intoxicated glaze was startling.

"Since when?!" the shrill exclamation came from next to him, and he looked up to see Imelda's furious face only inches away.

MC was already rounding on her, and the way she settled into a duelling stance and wand appeared out of nowhere indicated she was deadly serious about her claim.

"Go and crawl back into the rest of your hippogriff and I'll forget you ever tried it on with my man," MC spat at her.

The confrontation was already drawing interest, Imelda's wand at the ready as Garreth watched in awe. He vaguely wondered if he'd accidentally brewed something to induce this madness, but the thought was interrupted by a loud bellow.

"FIIIIIGHT!"

Andrew Larson had stumbled into the commotion, another drink in his hand as he pointed at the two girls. Onlookers had started chanting along with him—fight! fight! fight!—it looked too late to stop the inevitable. It might have been dangerous, and he should try to stop it, but never had Garreth been so turned on as he watched the two girls fighting for him.

(Cuffmeinblack)

He blinked a few times, swaying slightly as he eyed both girls, awed by the determination on both of their faces. Imelda held her habitual scowl, eyes piercing towards MC. You had to admire the nerve of her. Facing off against the Crossed Wands Champion was nothing to be laughed at, and Imelda was not backing down. Garreth raised his eyebrows in respect, but then remembered the challenge and her prize. He touched his fingers to his lips and thought of MC's kiss. He'd definitely like more of those. 

He swung his gaze to MC. She looked formidable, her face set as she stared down Imelda, her pretty mouth in a determined line. Garreth felt something stir deep inside of him, utterly separate from the cocktail of creations mixing together in there. She was marvellous. And he'd had the balls to kiss her. He puffed his chest out a bit at that. 

"You can do it, darling," he said proudly. 

Imelda's mouth tightened, her gaze barely flicking in his direction, filled with rage.

MC took advantage of the distraction. To be fair to Imelda, she didn't even see it coming. With one flick of her wrist, MC shot a bolt of magic from the end of her wand in a wordless charm, it speared through the space between both girls and hit Imelda's satchel with a blast of blue and white sparks. Imelda yelped and jumped back, staring in horror as the bag full of her challenge winnings dissolved into ash. 

MC smirked. "Not so smug now, huh, Reyes?" She quipped. "I'd like to see you try and win now."

Imelda went pink, then red, then a hideous blend of red and purple as she glared, fists clenched. The growl of rage that left her mouth was impressive, and Garreth immediately jumped behind MC, peering sheepishly over her shoulder. 

(Blueraineshadows) 

A few heartbeats stretched into an eternity as Imelda contemplated her response to MC's destruction of her finds. She began to take heated steps in MC's direction, the crowd audibly gasping as tensions flared.

As attractive as a fight between two women over him may have been, Garreth realized it was time to summon his lion's courage. He needed to stand up for MC and stop this from getting worse. Just as he prepared to step forward and give Imelda a piece of his mind, an unexpected figure intervened.

"Enough! I said stop it now," Amit's voice boomed with surprising authority. His scandalous costume seems to fuel the respect he commands rather than detract from it. Everyone stopped in their tracks to listen. 

"This is meant to be a fun celebration, not some feud!" Amit continued his tone firm. He pointed in Garreth's direction. "Especially not over him," Amit added.

"None taken," Garreth replied with a timid chuckle.

"Enough with the seb-skeins, hair plucking, and potion testing. Let's act like respectable young wizards, for Merlin's sake," Amit pleaded to his fellow partygoers. 

The lingering question remained: as sexy as this newfound authority looked on Amit, would they actually listen? (finalgirllx) 

Garreth looked over at MC, who seemed to be considering Amit’s pleas for peace. Her expression was soft as she sighed, turning to Garreth. Her mouth opened as if she was about to say something, but within a second of her turning, she was on the ground, Imelda having taken advantage of MC’s eyes off of her and tackling her.

Imelda straddled MC as the two girls began to slap at each other, screaming and blocking each other’s hits, while the other students cheered and began their chanting of ��Fight! Fight! Fight!” once again. MC’s wand fell out of her hand when she was knocked down, leaving her defenseless. Although MC was wandless, she wasn’t allowing Imelda to overpower her, giving her a few good slaps in the face as the girls fought. Garreth watched in horror, wanting to peel Imelda off his girl, but being a little afraid to get involved. Deciding once again that it was time to summon his lion’s courage, he came up behind Imelda and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her up and off MC.

Once Imelda was up, he watched her turn to face him. He then felt an excruciating pain in his nose as the once loud room fell silent. He wasn’t sure what had just happened, not until he felt a warm liquid begin to coat his lips - blood. Imelda had punched him in the nose, hard enough that he had begun to bleed. 

“Oh no! Garreth I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to!” Imelda began to panic, but her panic was interrupted by MC, who had grabbed a handful of Imelda’s hair, shoving her to the floor, her wand pointed in her face. “HOW DARE YOU!” MC screamed, shooting a silent spell at Imelda that resulted in dozens of spiders appearing out of nowhere, chasing Imelda up the stairs of the common room to a symphony of laughs from the other students. 

Once Imelda was gone, MC turned to Garreth, who had already been handed napkins by other students, trying to stop the blood that was gushing from his nose. “Oh, you poor thing!” MC shouted. “Let’s get you to the hospital wing now!” She grabbed a hold of Garreth’s hand, leading him out of the Fat Lady portrait and into the quiet halls of Gryffindor Tower (Oat)

MC took Garreth by his hand towards the hospital wing. It seems the commotion has already wiped off the effects of his potions on them both. Garreth was holding on to his nose that was now bleeding profusely under the effect of Imelda’s Chaser strength punch, that was directed towards MC actually.

MC stopped on the way watching him bleeding down his nose to his costume now.

“Oh you poor thing, come here,” she cooed, bringing him closer and inspecting his nose. They sat down on a stone bench nearby and MC brought out a handkerchief out of her sleeves and dabbed slightly at his nose.

Garreth blushed.

The whole evening had been something for him. They have kissed...... twice. And then her and Imelda had been fighting over him and lucky for her that he got the punch. And now he was alone with her away from all the commotion. He blushed heavily as MC dabbed at his blood and pressed onto his nose to stop the bleeding. He winced as the pain hit him again.

“I am sorry.” She whispered, tears forming at the brim of her eyes, her eyes now widened with fear at the sight of Garreth’s never stopping blood.

“It’s okay.” He tried to speak through his broken nose. “It wasn’t your fault. I can handle it. Thank Merlin, she didn’t punch you like that.”

MC closed her eyes and let the teardrop down her eyes.

“Hey, MC, don’t.” Garreth said, now holding her face in his hands.

Sod the bloody nose, he will bleed to death; it doesn’t matter. But right now MC’s tears were more precious.

“Come here you silly girl.” Now it was his turn to console her. “I told you, it’s not your fault. It was all for fun. But I loved how you claimed me like that in front of everyone. You are the Hero of Hogwarts; everyone will want you but you chose me!”

“Of course I chose you. I will always choose you. I have always wanted you, ever since I stole those Fwooper feathers for you in fifth year. Who do you think I am wearing this costume for?” She said, looking up at him now.

Garreth’s eyes darted between their strange costumes of the evening, the one he completely forgot about and now he remembered.

Long forgotten was their trip to the hospital wing. Now they both sat under the star dazzling autumn sky, watching each other like they were seeing each other for the first time again. (AS)

He looked over at MC under the glittering night sky. His hand went up to cup her cheek as a smile grew on his face. The night had been so strange but it felt nice to get some fresh air and to finally be alone with MC. 

She smiled at him as they lay in the grass, eyes on one another, completely ignoring the beautiful night sky. MC had yawned first then Garreth realized just how sleepy he was feeling. His eyes became droopy and he couldn't keep them open anymore despite his effort. He felt his body relax next to her then he was swept off into a dreamless sleep. 

It felt like only seconds had passed when someone was shaking him awake. He blinked into the sunny bedroom and looked around in confusion.

"Where's MC?" He asks, rubbing his eyes and noticing he's in his pajamas and not his costume. His surroundings were also different. He had just been outside, so why was he back in his dorm?

"MC?" Leander gave his friend a look. "I don't know. She's probably in her dorm? Come on man, you've got to wake up. It's almost noon and we have so much more planning to do for tonight!"

Garreth set up, his head swimming with the sudden movement. 

"What do you mean, what's tonight?" He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. 

Leander gave him a look. "Mate... it's the Halloween party tonight in the common room. We've still got drinks to make and decorations to put up."

Garreth was suddenly more awake. "The Halloween party?! But that was..." His head swam from trying to recall the night. Had it all been a dream? 

He went back into his fuzzy memory and recalled some of the crazy things he saw that could not have possibly been reality. He thought of Seb-skein and Amit's ridiculously sexy costume and furrowed his brows. The kiss with Andrew and Imelda being the ass of a life-sized hippogryph costume... 

"Was... none of that real?" He whispered. Garreth looked at his hands as if they were foreign to him. 

"Garreth, come on man. We've got a lot to do if we're going to throw an epic party in a few hours!" Leander tossed Garreth's robes onto the bed. 

Garreth frowned. That means none of the kisses were real and that him and MC were in fact, not a couple. The more he awoke, the more he realized that he'd dreamt the entire party. 

An idea grew in his mind and Garreth tossed off his covers and quickly stood up out of bed.

"There we go! Now come on! We've got to-" Leander's words were cut off by Garreth rushing past him. "Gar!?"

Garreth turned to his friend and smiled "I'm going to ask MC to be my date to the party tonight!" He began pulling on a decent shirt and fluffing his hair in the reflection of the window. 

Leander's face lit up. "It's about time you made a move! Maybe you two can wear matching costumes." (GFG)

The amazing fanart @slytherin-paramour drew as promised! Seb-Skein!

Thank you for reading and thanks to those that joined in! This was a blast and really help rein in the Halloween spirit! 🦇🎃

[ezcater]

Why the Deep Dish Pizza was Made for the Office Party 

Is the deep dish pizza underrated? When offices throw a pizza party, deep dish doesn’t often make the cut. Instead, you’ll find a spread of more traditional pizzas. However, this April 5—Deep Dish Pizza Day—is the perfect time to change that. This doesn’t mean traditional pies no longer have a place at the office pizza party. It means it's time to mix things up!

Deep dish pizza is the kind of pizza that can deliver a substantial bite of pizza goodness from top to bottom, toppings to crust. It’s the kind of pizza you can order from South of Chicago Italian Beef & More when you’re catering Indianapolis office pizza parties. While it might not be offered by every pizza establishment, if you can find it, it can be well worth the order. It’s a Whole Lotta Pizza Deep dish pizzas can vary from pizza place to pizza place. Some are a bit thicker than your average pizza. Others, however, go deep, offering a serious amount of pizza goodness. Either way, you can end up with a whole lotta pizza. This may mean you need fewer pies all around (which can be great for budgeting). Here’s an example of “a whole lotta pizza.” If you’re catering Wilmington NC office parties, Jay’s Incredible Pizza steps things up. You can get more traditional pies and you can go deep with offerings like their Don Chicago Style Pie Pizza (featuring pepperoni, salami, Canadian bacon, ground beef, crumbled Italian sausage, mozzarella, and marinara). It’s a Great Way to Feed a Crowd Deep dish pizzas can be “a whole lotta pizza” in a very practical sense. They’re a great way to feed a lotta people. When your office or workplace announces a pizza party, you know a few ears are going to perk up. Pizza draws a crowd. When you order more traditional pizza options, those pies tend to go fast. Deep dish pizzas, on the other hand, can go a bit slower. You can get more pizza for your party buck and because there is so much pizza per slice, people get their fill. Of course, you can always mix and match different types of pizza. That’s a great thing about pizza: you can order a few pies and get something to satisfy the whole office. The Deep Dish Pizza is Simply Underrated Is deep dish pizza underrated? The simple answer is yes! It’s not always easy to track down a highly-rated pizza place with deep dish. Some cities and regions around the country have plenty of deep dish options, while others may have only a few. It’s not always the go-to order, either. Who knows? You may have someone in your office who’s never had deep dish. Thankfully, if you’re catering Nashville office pizza parties, that’s easy enough to fix. If you think a place called Little Chicago Restaurant has deep dish pizza, you’d be on the money. They have a full section of their menu dedicated to deep dish. It doesn’t get much better than that! About ezCater ezCater is here to help connect you or your business with top-rated, local food options. ezCater is a web-based catering platform. The company started as a way to help medical sales reps find quality catering for sales meetings all over the country. Today, ezCater serves businesses of all kinds. Whether you’re searching for lunch catering for the team or need corporate catering for the entire company, ezCater can help. ezCater is available in every state and has over 100,000 catering partners coast-to-coast. You can order top Cincinnati catering for today’s lunch or put in an order for catering Dallas corporate events ahead of time. With ezCater, you get access to flexible, reliable order tools, and plenty of food options to satisfy any team! Order deep dish pizza for your next office pizza party at https://www.ezcater.com/ Original Source: https://bit.ly/3JhVMjk

[devilart2199-aibi]

how do u make ur pixel art so high res ?

I'm still learning myself, but this is my process! I even forget to change the settings to "hard edges" sometimes and it still comes out fine. I usually bump the scale up by 10, but that really depends on your canvas size. Mine are around 480 x 270 pixels usually and then x 10 for resolution. I imagine you can use this with any program that allows you to edit the resolution.

Here are a few tutorials I found that could be helpful for step by step assistance:

Pixel art resizing discussion

^ if you are interested in the thought process of pixel art and someone who is just genuinely passionate about it, I highly recommend watching this channel. They cover a lot regarding pixel art and analyze retro games.

How to scale and resize pixel art

How to resize pixel art

I've never used this before myself and just found it today, but Lospec is a website full of resources for pixel artists. It even has a place where you can drop your original pixel art and scale it up without having to worry about blurring! Here is the page

Additionally here is a video covering free and paid programs that could be used for pixel art or are specifically made for it!

Pixel art programs

[mypoisonedvine]

ear candy || Mike Weiss x reader

summary: for a good time, call ‘candy.’  she can’t fix your life but she can distract you from it for a while.

word count: about 2k

warnings: technically not smut but definitely close enough (dirty talk/phone sex), some angst, daddy kink, a touch of degradation/objectification kink?? very subtle tho

a/n: my goal with this was to make it very dialogue heavy because I wanted it, like real phone sex, to be mostly about the words rather than anything else!  so I kept the descriptions to a minimum, hope you don’t mind…

You’d heard that more established phone sex operators had companies and screeners and services to help them disguise their number.  All you had was an ad in the paper and a landline, but it got the job done.

Technically, you had no way to know if a call from a number you didn’t recognize was a horny customer or something actually important, but it was pretty obvious when the phone rang at one in the morning on Friday night wasn’t going to be your bank or something.

You let it ring two, three, four times before picking up, putting on a slightly sultry voice as you greeted, “hey.”

“Hey,” the voice returned— so much more assured than you were used to, more confident and casual, nothing like the married men whispering to keep from waking up their wives, nothing like the nervous first-timers who made it clear that you were a mistake they would regret.  “Saw your ad in the paper…”

“I’m glad you called,” you smiled, “what’s your name?”

"Mike,” he answered quickly.  “What’s yours?”

"Hi, Mike,” you purred.  “You can call me Candy.”

“I’m not gonna call you that,” he sighed, and suddenly the air of confidence was gone; not to fear or secrecy, but to obvious weakness, to exhaustion, to an ache that you wish you didn’t understand as well as you did.  “Tell me your real name.”

“You don’t know that Candy isn’t my real name,” you defended.

“Yes I do.  Tell me your real name,” he demanded again, though his tone wasn’t actually very demanding.  You did it anyway.  “It’s pretty,” he decided, a little crack in his voice making your heart twist.

“You don't sound like you're doing too good,” you noted, trying not to make it too pitying but still sympathetic.

"My wife left me."

You nodded, to no one in particular, because you definitely knew how to handle this kind of guy, even if it had been a while since one had called.  "I'm sorry to hear that.  How can I help you?"

"I can't stand being alone," he explained tensely.

"I can definitely help with that…" you trailed off.  “I can just listen, if that’s what you need.”

“No, I... I want you to talk,” he assured, making you smirk slightly.

“Do you have a credit card, Mike?” you prompted.

“Yeah, yeah, lemme give you the number,” he mumbled, the sounds of shuffling indicated that he was searching for his wallet.

He dictated the numbers to you as you sat up and dashed to your computer, entering them in and stalling a bit until the card came back approved.  “So, Mike, tell me what’s on your mind.”

“Nothing, it’s a blank slate,” he murmured, voice lilted with a smirk.  “Wanna give me something to think about?”

“What do you wanna know?”

“Tell me what you’re wearing.”

“Not much, I was in bed when you called… so just a t-shirt.”

“Just a t-shirt?” 

“Yeah… it’s too big for me, it’s an old Cowboys shirt my ex left behind…”

“Cowboys?  You’re breakin’ my heart, honey,” he chuckled.

“You’re a Houston fan?”

“It’s a symptom of being in Houston, right now, as we speak.”

“Fair enough,” you giggled.  “Maybe I should take it off then, if it bothers you…?”

“So if my calculations are correct, that should mean you’re completely naked right now.”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

You set the phone down to remove the shirt, coming back with a chipper announcement: "Done!"

“Yep,” you agreed, popping your lips at the end of the word.

“Then do me a favor and play with your tits a little bit.  Are your nipples hard?”

“Yeah, they got hard when I heard your voice, it’s really sexy.”

“Good, give ‘em a little pinch then…   does it make you wet, when you touch them like that?”

“Mhmm, they’re really sensitive,” you admitted.

“I bet you’d love my tongue on them, wouldn’t you?  You’d like me sucking on your tits?”

“Yes,” you sighed, “please, I’d love it so much.”

“Why don’t you touch your pussy for me?” he prompted, cocky as ever.

“Tell me how, exactly,” you bargained.  “I wanna touch myself the way you would touch me.”

“Two fingers on your clit— slow, smooth circles…”

You moaned a little, following his instructions.  “Fuck, Mike, it feels really good.”

“I like when you moan my name like that.  By the end of the night you’re gonna be screaming it for me, how’s that sound?”

“Sounds like exactly what I need.”

“Yeah, I bet so, bet you really need to get fucked.  And it’s handy, then, that I really, really need to fuck something, god I’m so worked up I could just lose it.”

"Yeah?  Tell me about it."

"M'hard, so hard, can't stop thinking about what it would be like to be inside you."

"I like the sound of that.  What would you do to me, if you could?'

"I'd fuck you so good, sweetheart, until you begged me to stop because you couldn’t come anymore."

"Mmm, I bet so, you sound like you know how to fuck.”

“Hell yeah I do, and you sound like you need a thick cock.”

“Is that what you’re offering?” you hummed, biting your lip.

“If you think you can take it.”

“Fuck, I’ll try my best… it’ll probably be a pretty tight fit.”

“Good.  I wanna fucking ruin you.”

“Oh god,” you groaned, “can I please put something inside me?  Two fingers?”

“Just one,” he instructed.

You whined when you pushed one finger in and it wasn’t nearly enough to satiate your needs.  “I need more, please…”

“Okay baby, just one more but go slow, I like when you get desperate.”

After a few quiet moments where you could only hear his breathing and your own needy moans, curiosity got the better of you.  “Are you stroking your cock, Mike?” you asked softly.

“Yes,” he answered, the little strain in his voice making you confident he was telling the truth.

“How does it feel?”

“Good,” came another hasty reply.

“It would feel so much better if it was my pussy, if I was riding you right now.”

“I’d be so fucking deep in you,” he groaned tensely.  “That’s where I wanna come, too… wanna fill you up right inside that snug little cunt.”

“Oh fuck,” you whispered.  “Please, daddy…”

“What was that?  I can’t hear you,” he taunted.

“I— I said ‘please… daddy,’” you repeated, afraid it would turn him off but he let out a dark chuckle that ended with a groan and a hissing breath in through his teeth.

“Fuck, that’s hot.  Is that what you need, sweetheart?  Need daddy to take care of you?”

“Yes, please, need you…”

“Don’t worry honey, I will, just keep fucking yourself with your fingers, and don’t come until I say so.”

You whined but didn’t dare disobey, moaning with each touch to your sensitive bud, not holding any sound back so he could hear how needy you were loud and clear.

“Please, I need to come, wanna come for you, Mike,” you begged when you were starting to worry you couldn’t hold back much longer.

“I know, but not yet… almost.”

“Please, daddy” you sobbed, weak and almost a whisper, making him grunt a little.

“Just say my name when you come, honey, and don’t stop rubbing that little clit until you’re absolutely sure you can’t take any more.”

“Fuck, Mike,” you hissed.  “Oh god, I’m gonna— fuck, daddy, I’m gonna come so hard for you.”

“Good, just like that, baby, keep going,” he egged you on.

“Mike!” you yelped, shocks reverberating through your body as your back arched up off the bed.  His moans encouraged you further, echoing in your ears and somehow making everything more intense.  It was easy like this to imagine that he was on top of you, moaning in your ear as he filled you with his cock; your walls clenched around nothing, begging to be stretched around something, as you felt a gush of warmth seep from your entrance.  

Like he’d told you to, you kept going past the peak until your hands gave out, until your body was numb with pins and needles from the intensity of your pleasure.

“Oh my god,” you sighed, “that was… I haven’t come that hard in so long.”

“You sound incredible when you come, baby,” he cooed, “think you can do it again before I finish?”

“I’m too sensitive, it’ll hurt,” you whined.

“Give it a minute, then,” he chuckled.  “Did you make a mess, honey?”

“Um, a little,” you giggled.  “I’m so wet it’s dripping onto the sheets now.”

“Fuck, wish I could help you clean that up,” he purred, laughing at your little gasp.  “Would you like that?”

“Yeah, I bet you’d be good at it… you’re good with your tongue so far.”

“And you?”

“Me?  Well, I bet no matter how big you are, I could take you all the way down my throat.”

“Fuck, honey, you’re so dirty, huh?”

“Yeah, and I really like sucking cock…” you added coyly.  “Would you let me get on my knees and taste you, daddy?”

“Whenever you wanted, sweetheart, fuck… I’m close, keep going honey, you’re so fucking good.”

“Please come for me, oh my god, please come,” you moaned, “I want you to come— please daddy?”

“I will, baby, I’m gonna come… fuck, I’m so close.”

“I wish I could help you, daddy, I wish you were fucking me so hard right now, using me, making me your toy.”

“Yeah baby, you just wanna be owned, huh?  Wanna be daddy’s little slut?”

“Yours, fuck, wanna be all yours.”

“That’s it, keep talking— m’gonna come.”

“Yes, daddy, stroke that cock for me, close your eyes and imagine I’m there with you, begging for your come… I want it all in me, daddy, I want it leaking out of me all night, please please please come, please come inside me—”

“Fuck!” he yelped, moaning louder than ever.

“Yes, keep going, fuck, you sound so hot,” you encouraged, “give me all that fucking come, daddy.”

A throaty, exhausted groan preceded a sigh as he began to catch his breath, making you smile pridefully.

“Shit,” he hissed, “I have to clean this up all by myself, huh?”

“Yeah, that’s the less fun part,” you sighed.

“You’re good,” he offered, voice still breathy as he panted a little bit.  “Thanks, that really… that helped.”

“Feeling a little better, daddy?”

“God, don’t say it like that,” he groaned, “you’re just gonna get me goin’ again.”

“Maybe that’s what I want.”

“What you want is to take all my money by keeping me on the phone all night,” he chuckled.

“Okay, I’ll let you go,” you relented.  “I bet you’re gonna sleep well tonight.”

“Better than I have in months,” he agreed.

"Will you call me again sometime?"

A little pause made you worried he wouldn’t.  "Maybe we could meet up instead?" he offered hesitantly.

"Different price than talking on the phone…" you warned him.

"Yeah, I know, that's fine," he dismissed.  “We’ll work that out later.  But maybe you could come to my motel room?”

“I can do that,” you grinned.  “You talk a big game, I’m looking forward to finding out if you can live up to my expectations.”

“Oh, sweetheart, you’re gonna regret saying that.  You won’t be able to walk when I’m done with you.”

You laughed a little, clenching your thighs together.  “Promises, promises…”

[eunoiaflow3r]

i hate u, i love u // spencer reid x fem!reader

spencer reid x reader

aaron hotchner x reader

part one - part two

a/n: did i damn near put this entire song in this fic? yes, yes i did i’m so sorry....highly unedited.

how was your guys’ holiday?

warning(s): language. angst. fluff....

word count: 2.6k

request(ed): yes.

summary: old things try to get fixed, while new feelings and places...arise and get mixed.

(wtf am i dr. seuss now??)

——————————————&———————————

feeling used, but i’m still missing you. and i can’t see the end of this, just wanna feel your kiss, against my lips

and now all this time, is passing by.... but i can’t seem to tell you why. it hurts me every time i see you realize how much i need you...

Seeing Spencer and actually letting all of that out did a number on you. You apologized to Aaron countless times and he said it was okay countless times but you still felt so bad. He didn’t deserve that. He didn’t deserve your drama, and not to mention how embarrassing it’s been. You felt like you ruined his whole night. It was supposed to be fun and yet you didn’t have any. He said he did but you know Hotch didn’t.

You’d have to make it up to him somehow soon but you didn’t know how. How are you supposed to fix this? Any of this??

It feels like you’re being sucked into the eye of a tornado little by little and you just can’t get out. It feels like everyone else is safe on the ground feet planted and they’re all just staring at you and laughing. Staring and not helping.

Your chest hurt. You hated feeling like this. So helpless...and stuck. You were stuck and not ready to fix it...well...part of it. You could still fix one thing. You didn’t have to be stuck here. Here in this small apartment with no room for anything let alone breathe. You needed space. You needed change. You needed control. Everything is spinning in circles and there’s nothing you can do about it. You can’t stop it.

So why not do something that could help you? That you’ve been meaning to do but never had the time for?

Apartment searching. Well...bigger apartment searching.

Where you were staying now was a studio apartment. You loved the open concept except for how small it was. You just need room.

Before...

“I like it here. It’s so small and cute.”

You could tell cute was a foreign word to Spencer when it came to describing a building. But he was trying. You thought he was cute.

“Thanks Spencer but I’m thinking something different. Maybe another bedroom for a roommate...or just a bigger one for y’know...another person.”

You never really brought up the idea of moving in together before. Sure, it’d be easier...his job was nearby, and there was a bus stop at the end of the street, and there was you....so his reaction kind of put you...off.

“Roommate sounds good. One of your friends maybe? Although I wouldn’t want her to y’know...interrupt us.” He had that cute seductive tone to his voice but he wasn’t sounding very cute and seductive.

You weren’t going to argue. “Yeah...a roommate. Who do you think I should ask?” you paused. “Sara or Malia?”

Spencer was quiet for a moment, like he was thinking. “Malia maybe?”

You didn’t have a friend named Malia.

And that’s what hurt the most you think. The fact that you still thought about him 24/7 even though what you had with him wasn’t perfect. You thought it was before..you thought he was before..but now you’re realizing nothing about it was perfect but at least it was something. Now you have nothing.

It was only the afternoon so you decided to look for some places. You found 3 places suitable for what you were looking for. All 3 were good sizes, good prices, and a good amount away from your job and college. You felt almost lucky. This felt almost too easy.

Until you saw the first two places in person. They were okay, but not really what you were looking for.

The last place though...the place was great, the location was great, the neighborhood was great, hell even the yard. Hell, you’d have no use for it, you didn’t have a kid but it was still a nice looking yard. You could tell that someone in the apartment, hopefully your new neighbor, took great care of the gardens.

You looked around at the surrounding mix of apartments and houses (mostly houses) and saw 2 little kids playing in the house 2 houses over. One of them looked like Jack. It couldn’t be, right? Hotch’s house wasn’t over here.

Nevertheless you watched for a few seconds and it was Jack. You decided to go over and say hi.

Jack stopped playing and immediately ran towards you.

“Y/N!!” He grinned. You got down to his level and hugged him back just as enthusiastically.

“Hey Jackie! Whatcha doin?” He only let you call him that. Only you.

“Sleepover. This is Sam. It’s almost time for Ana to drop me off at home though.”

You said hi to Sam and asked if Ana was his mom. She was and as soon as you told Sam your name, Ana came out of the house and waved you over.

“Hey, I’m Y/N. Friend of Jack’s and Hotch.”

She smiled. And shook your hand.

“I’m Ana. I’ve heard about you! Jack talks about you quite a lot.”

You and Ana talked for a while. She seemed like a really amazing person. If you end up getting the place you could see you and her becoming great friends, and since she seemed really busy you offered to take Jack home. She protested but you insisted. It wasn’t like you were doing much anyway. The landlord had already left and you were just going to go home anyway.

On the way to Hotch’s you bought Jack his favorite ice cream. You couldn’t help it.

The whole car ride Jack’s conversation thankfully distracted you but when you got to his house you couldn’t help but remember that night and how embarrassed you felt.

Seeing Hotch only made it worse. Especially since he wasn’t wearing his work clothes- just a shirt and sweatpants, and you couldn’t help but look because he looked incredibly.....good. He looked so great and you were so mad at yourself for how that night ended with him. You were supposed to be having fun and neither of you did.

He hugged you when you got to the door anyway. You explained to him what happened- even the apartment searching while he invited you in for coffee.

A whole year with Spence and he never invited you in. Ever.

Do you miss me like I miss you? Fucked around and got attached to you Friends can break your heart too And I’m always tired but never of you

If I pulled a you on you, you wouldn’t like that shit I put this reel out, but you wouldn’t bite that shit I type a text but then I never mind that shit I got these feelings but you never mind that shit

“Mom, please, I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong.”

Your mom gave you a look over her mug that said, ‘Do I look like I’m dumb?’ And she wasn’t. Perhaps you weren’t any good at hiding your feelings. Could everyone tell?

You were doing better now.

It’s been a month? Maybe two.

Either way it’s been a while and you weren’t as hurt as you were before. Some nights you woke up heart aching, tears falling, but you aren’t as bad as you were those first few weeks.

Truth is, you missed Spencer. You spent those weeks blaming yourself and wondering why you why you?

But you accepted that you weren’t ready for that answer. A part of you had forgiven Spencer. A part.

You were still heartbroken. You were still angry and hurt. But you’ve been trying to move on. In fact, you’d be moving entirely. Yesterday you finished all the paperwork with your new landlord. You were going to finish packing after visiting your mom.

“Momma I’m fine there’s just a lot going on right now.”

She wouldn’t accept that answer. She persisted you told her what was wrong. So you did. You told her about Spencer...and about Hotch...

Aaron.

You had been spending some weekends with him. Some were alone, just the two of you, and other times it was the three of you. Him, Jack, and you. Whenever you thought about Hotch you had the feeling in your stomach you got whenever you heard from Spencer.

But you still have that feeling for Spencer.

Things were so confusing right now - you weren’t sure if you wanted to move on from Spencer. You didn’t want to rush in with Aaron either though. That’d hurt the both of you.

Last weekend...

“Y/N you cannot tell me you think New Girl is better than Friends.”

Aaron was in a gray shirt and sweatpants while you were in relatively the same. You both sat together on his couch each a cup of coffee in your hands. You had promised you’d help him shop with Jack for new clothes and you had just agreed to stay the night since it had gotten so late.

“Oh a hundred percent. New Girl is way better.”

Hotch laughed.

“Friends is a classic. There wouldn’t be a New Girl without Friends.”

“There wouldn’t be a Friends without Living Single Aaron.”

He rolled his eyes but conceded. “True but still. Friends is better.”

You hadn’t been that happy in a while. You were breathing...you were living. Out in the open. Unbidden.

You ever wonder what we could have been? You said you wouldn’t and you fucking did Lie to me, lie with me, get your fucking fix Now all my drinks and all my feelings are fucking mixed

Always missing people that I shouldn’t be missing Sometimes you gotta burn some bridges just to create some distance I know that I control my thoughts and I should stop reminiscing But I learned from my dad that it’s good to have feelings

There was a bottle of liquor in your hand

You would have gone to the bar but you were too sad for it. You didn’t have the will.

Earlier today you decided that you should get a muffin from the coffee shop and see how Em was doing. Right when you got to the door, who was in the window caught your eye.

Spencer.

Spencer and JJ.

Laughing, and eating, and kissing...

In the open. Out in public.

Were you just not good enough? Was that it? Could you not understand him because you didn’t work in the BAU? Was what you had all one sided?

Unanswered questions and half a bottle later you were passed out on your couch crying.

You thought you were over it for sure this time. But it still fucking hurts. Is keeping your heart open waiting for him even worth it?

The next morning you took a hot shower. The hottest shower you could handle. You were hungover, and you felt like shit but you still had to pack the rest of your things to move. You still had to move.

Your speakers were on the highest level and your music was so loud you didn’t hear the door knock. You only screamed when you felt someone behind you.

It was Aaron.

“Jesus christ!!” You went to turn down the music.

“You could have killed me!”

“Yes I very well could have!” His arms were crossed. He was upset but still in a playful mood. You could tell. “I could have been a serial killer, you have to lock your doors!”

You rolled your eyes. “Okay, okay, I’ll lock my doors next time.”

He nodded approval as you went to the refrigerator to get him a bottle of water.

“What’s going on?”

“Oh I didn’t tell you?” How had that slipped your mind?

He shook his head.

“I’m moving.”

“You’re moving?” He looked disappointed.

“Yeah not far. A few houses down from Ana actually.”

“Oh good.” He said relieved.”

After that, he decided he wanted to help you. It was nice not being alone even though you told him he didn’t have to stay. He wanted to.

He even helped you transfer the boxes to your new apartment. You didn’t know Aaron had a voice on him...but he did.

“We built this city!” he sang/shouted.

“We built this city on rock and -“

“We built this city!” he answered.

“We built this city on rock and -“

“Rollllllllll” you sang together.

You giggled when the song was over and he grabbed your hand for the rest of the drive. You didn’t pull away. It felt too nice. It felt too right.

After helping you put your boxes into your next place it was time for him to head home. He told you that he could stay and help some more if you wanted but you could tell he was tired. You were tired. You told him you’d call if you needed any more help.

He made you promise you would because he knows you won’t if you feel like you absolutely can do it yourself even when you shouldn’t.

You promised.

On his way out there was a moment where you could have kissed him. Where you were saying goodbye and you were in the doorway and you were close enough to...but you didn’t. You weren’t ready. He knew you weren’t ready. He knew.

The feelings you have for Hotch keep growing but the feelings you have for Spencer stay the same. Spencer used to be your everything. But you weren’t his. You needed someone who would put you first. Well...close to first. Jack should always come first. Always.

You need to come first when it comes to women. Spencer didn’t put you first. Would he ever?

All alone I watch you watch her Like she’s the only girl you’ve ever seen You don’t care you never did You don’t give a damn about me

Yeah, all alone I watch you watch her She is the only thing you ever see How is it you never notice That you are slowly killing me?

Your phones ringtone was blaring and when you opened your tired eyes to read the time on your bedside table it read ‘3 AM.’ Who would call this late? Or...early? Either way you didn’t check the screen and just decided to click green and put the phone to your ear.

“Hello?” Your voice was groggy and you were a little annoyed to be woken up so early. It’s rude to do that to someone. Especially someone who only went to bed three hours ago.

“Y/N.” It wasn’t a question and it wasn’t in command. It was a sigh of relief followed by sniffles and a hiccup. It was Spencer.

“I didn’t think you’d pick up.” he said.

“You’re lucky I didn’t check my screen I should just -“

The only form of communication you’ve had with him since the incident was a few texts. Dry texts. On both ends.

“No!” he panicked. “Please don’t hang up please, please, I - I couldn’t sleep.”

You shut your eyes in frustration. “You called me at three in the morning because you couldn’t sleep?”

“No, I - I’m apologizing because I couldn’t sleep, no I - I’m apologizing because I was - I don’t know -“

“Spencer I really don’t have time for this. I have things to do tomorrow. What’s today Tuesday? We’ll have coffee or something Friday, okay?”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds. “I have a date, no I mean plans Friday..uhm, Sunday?”

“Sunday.”

And you hung up the phone. You didn’t mean to sound bitter, you didn’t but seriously? You were actually willing to see him for once - maybe a decision your unconscious, pining, mind made - but still, and he can’t because of a date? A date?

With JJ no doubt. Of course it was JJ. It’s always been JJ. Every single time. “I can’t today Y/N JJ needs,” or “JJ called I gotta go,” or “Shoot I’m sorry I know we had plans but JJ -“

Will it always be JJ? Will she always be number one? Has she always been number one and you just never realized it? Have you been the girl he just hung out with because he couldn’t with her?

A few months ago...

“I bought chinese.” You grinned.

“Smells so good.” Spencer took the bags from your hands and kissed you on the cheek.

Spencer picked the movie this time since you picked it last time. He was sitting in the middle of the couch while you had your legs draped across his. Occasionally he’d bring his hand down to rub your legs.

Things were fine. Things were content. Until his phone rang.

“Y/N, It’s JJ I have to go.”

“What does she need?” you ask genuinely worried.

“Nothing I don’t think. I just gotta go.”

I hate you, I love you I hate that I love you You want her, you need her And I’ll never be her

———————————-—&—————————————-

i literally have no idea what this is i -

team hotch or spence?

if you have any ideas or scene ideas PLEASE tell me

i’m really trying on this happy ending thing

a spencer apology/talk scene is cominggg

i’m liking the idea of two endings? maybe?

spencer tag list: @hotchsbabygirl @pinkdiamond1016 @thefemalestorywriter @sizzlingclamturtlesludge @samyilf123 @mathchampagne @studywithrosie01 @reniescarlett @drreidsconverse @eveliiinnn27 @bweakmybonez

comments tag list: @yeah-just-ignore-me-thanks @geekgirleve @jhiddles03 @carlgrxmes @dreatine @meowiemari @thedaughterofhotchniss @we-are-dreamers42 @unabashedlyswimmingtimemachine @silverchains9182 @realalpacorn @enamouravecleslivresetlechocolat @matthew-gray-g @minami97 @mgg-th1996 @peculiarinsomniac @secondratecomplaint @fallinallinmendes @fantastic-fans @eldahae @psych0crybaby @tclaerh @ashwarren32 @spenciegoob @mustbeaweasleyginger @abschaffer2

[yoongiseesawmp3]

candy kisses - yoongi

don’t judge me. stream butter. stay safe out there

summary: yoongi is y/n’s weed dealer, and he needs help expanding his business portfolio. weed brownies, anyone?

warnings: weed. trifling friends. a small couch. don’t read if you’re a narc or if you’re gonna point out the two grammar mistakes i found that i will not fix

word count: 3.3k

“when was the last time we smoked together?”

you don’t hear yoongi because you’re currently very focused on rolling this blunt correctly. your work in the past has been sloppy, rushed, and you’re worried about disappointing yoongi while also disrespecting his high-quality product, so you’re mega focused on the little pieces of herb in your hands that are trying to run away. you’re half aware of his gaze on you as you work, and you’re also barely aware that your tongue is just slightly sticking out, a sign of your steady concentration which yoongi is about to break.

“you look cute when you’re focused like that,” yoongi says nonchalantly, almost making you drop the blunt just as you’re about to bring it to your lips to wet the paper. 

“thank you?” you reply, noticing how relaxed yoongi is on your couch. just black sweats and a white t shirt on, and yet it’s hard for you not to stare at him. actually, you’re staring right now, so get back to work. you finish up the blunt and lean forward, searching your coffee table for your lighter. 

“looking for this?” yoongi asks, picking it up from underneath a stack of take out napkins that you’ve carefully curated. is that a fire hazard, a lighter underneath cheap napkins? probably. 

“yeah, thanks,” you answer, reaching over to grab it from him. “how’d you know it was there?”

“you always keep it on that little plate thing with the other tiny stuff you lose all the time,” he explains, and you glance at the napkins and see the minuscule design element you barely remembered peeking out from underneath. 

“ok, how’d you know that was there?” you ask, holding the blunt up before you start to slowly light the end of it.

“i go nuts for interior design,” he explains with a shrug. “the colors on the plate match your couch pillows. it’s a nice touch.”

“thank you,” you respond quietly. who notices stuff like that?

“you’re welcome.”

it’s quiet as you take your first puff of the blunt, one quick one just to test it and another, longer pull after for good luck. the acidic smoke hits your tastebuds before you breathe it in. you hold it for just a second, and then exhale, watching the cloud that forms in front of you. you turn to yoongi and intend to pass the blunt to him, but you realize you don’t have an ashtray ready so you pull that little plate from its paper prison and ash the blunt before yoongi takes it from you. your fingers brush as he takes it, and you notice how soft his hands are, so you tell him.

“thanks, it’s your lotion,” he replies, and you laugh at how comfortable he gets every time he comes over. 

“i thought i smelled peaches,” you joke, trying to rearrange the mess on your coffee table now. you push an empty vape pen out of the way as you search for any other trash to throw away, and still yoongi is watching you as he exhales from his first pull. he looks like that caterpillar from alice in wonderland.

“you shouldn’t smoke those little vape things, it’s getting metal in your lungs,” he tells you with a little bit of authority in his voice. you watch him as he pouts his pretty lips and closes them around the blunt, their slight downward slope mesmerizing as he breathes in. 

“well if you didn’t take so damn long to refill our stash i wouldn’t need these little vape things to get a buzz,” you bite back, graciously taking the blunt as he passes it back to you. you watch him hold the smoke just a second longer before pursing his lips to slowly let it all out. you’re still thinking about his lips when he speaks again. 

“do you like edibles?”

“um, it depends,” you reply. “what kind?”

“how many are there?” he asks, curious. 

“why, are you trying to expand your business portfolio?” you joke. “but really anything that you can use butter in, or infuse cbd oil somehow can be an edible i think. but i like brownies the best.”

“so, hypothetically, if i made weed brownies, could i make them here? and could you maybe help me with the recipe?”

“sure, but why do you need to make them here?”

“to hang out with you,” he says with a shrug. “is that ok?”

“that’s ok,” you reply, wondering if your heart is beating fast because of the blunt or the idea that yoongi wants to spend more time with you. “when?”

“are you free friday?”

-

you know how everyone uses phone alarms to wake up now? and sometimes if you hear that ringtone out in your everyday life it brings you war flashbacks? 

well, the timer on yoongi’s phone is going off, playing your typical morning alarm, and he won’t turn it off, so you’re about two seconds away from committing murder. 

“yoongi!” you shout to the man missing in action. “your brownies are done!”

you hear the bathroom sink running followed by yoongi’s shuffling footsteps, and you watch as he dashes to the kitchen while he dries his hands off on his sweatpants. 

“shit, sorry,” he apologizes, grabbing his phone off the counter before ending your misery. 

“thank you,” you sigh as you relax back into the couch. you hear his movements echoing in the kitchen, the oven opening, the pan clattering on top of the oven, and the impressed whistle yoongi lets out as he checks his masterpiece. “how do they look?”

“incredible,” he replies, popping his head out of the kitchen with an excited look on his face. “do you wanna be my first customer?”

“i’m letting you use my kitchen, so you better not charge me for trying one of your edibles,” you warn as you get up. your kitchen is a mess, by the way. yoongi might be a great chef when it comes to meals, but he didn’t know shit about desserts before today. so actually, he’s using your kitchen AND your baking expertise, you should get the entire batch for free. 

“i’m not gonna charge you,” he agrees with a roll of his eyes. “this time.”

“how much are you gonna take?” you ask, peering over his shoulder as he slices the pan of sweets into bite size portions. you get the urge to lean your head on his shoulder as he does, but you’re not sure if that would be weird, so you’ll settle with standing close enough to feel his warmth along with the warmth of the brownies. “just one to start?”

“i’m not sure i did this right, so one could be too much or not enough. it’s better to be safe and start small,” he explains.

“god, look at the delinquent who brought drugs into my home being responsible,” you tease. “it’s cute.”

“i don’t think you’re supposed to call your dealer cute,” he counters.

“good thing you’re not just my dealer, then,” you quip back as you snatch a piece from the corner, the best piece of any brownie, illegal or not. 

“wait,” he semi-shouts, grabbing your hand before you pop the piece into your mouth. “should we have a plan before we take them?”

“what do you mean, a plan?”

“like if something happens,” he explains, a nervous look in his eyes. “maybe i won’t try one, so i can keep an eye on you in case i made them wrong.”

“yoongi, we’ll be fine,” you assure him, picking up another piece and holding it out to him. “i won’t take it without you.”

“is this the peer pressure to do drugs that adults are always talking about?” he asks as he carefully takes the brownie from your hand. again, your hands brush, but this time yoongi just stays there, sort of cupping your hands in his even though you’ve already passed the contraband to him. you whisper his name, snapping him out of whatever thoughts were clouding his head, and he pulls his gaze up to your eyes, which have an excited glint in them that yoongi wants to see over and over again. he especially wants to be the reason for it, but he’ll settle for the simple pleasure of enjoying how it highlights the flecks of light that dance over your eyes. and now you’re noticing the way he’s staring at you, and it’s making your hands clam up, so you try to clear the air. 

“so, do we cheers with these before we take them or what?” you joke, and you’re rewarded with a silent chuckle and the shaking of yoongi’s broad shoulders. 

“i’m not sure, you’re the edible expert,” he replies. “we should just take them.”

“whatever you say, boss man.”

-

taking the edible was easy enough. waiting for it to kick in was another story. 

first of all, you and yoongi both have had butterfly fueled jitters around each other since the longing gaze you shared in the kitchen. that awkwardness was paired with the anxious jabbering of yoongi as he questioned every feeling, sight and sound, questioning if “this is what it feels like.” 

second of all, jimin and taehyung somehow found out you had a whole pan of weed brownies and quickly made their way over, and they might have mentioned this to hoseok too. he’s bringing pizza though, so you’re not mad about that. you had planned on watching your favorite movie with yoongi tonight, so the more the merrier? and also pizza. you were looking forward to that more than having your home invaded by three extra boys.

on top of your house being invaded by boys, you’re starting to wonder what’s going on between you and yoongi all while your mind starts to slowly drift away with your ability to focus. right now you can only think about how yoongi is starting to lean into you more and more and also did he look that good when he first got here? he’s never wearing much more than pajamas of some sort, but today he looks a little more put together than usual. it’s not a drastic difference, he’s wearing adidas track pants paired with a baggy, black button up, so anyone else wouldn’t think much of this outfit choice. but...did he dress up for this? is he trying to impress you? meanwhile, you’re wearing pajama shorts and a t shirt that’s so old it’s basically a family heirloom. 

having jimin and taehyung here keeps you distracted from the way yoongi keeps nervously running his hands over his thighs, and you definitely need a distraction from that. you started the movie a few minutes ago, but you swear you could just sit here watching yoongi and be just as entertained. 

“you know that wasn’t in the original script?” yoongi asks, snapping you out of your thoughts with his little fun fact.

“yeah, i knew that,” you reply, noticing how close he is to you now. taehyung took up the other side of the couch with his big ass self, so you’re slightly squished up next to yoongi in the corner and his eyes keep flitting around, like he’s equally excited and nervous about your proximity. “i thought you said you hadn’t watched this before though.”

“i haven’t,” he responds with a shrug. 

“then how did you know that?”

“...i read the imdb page before i got here.”

“nerd,” you tease, smiling at the thought that yoongi takes an interest in what you like. you’re about to share your own bit of trivia about the movie (because you could talk about it for hours) but hoseok banging on your door stops you.

“special delivery! yummy pizza!! give me weed!!!” hobi shouts from the other side of your door. you rush to your feet to answer it, hopefully to put a stop to his yelling before neighbors complain, but the edible is starting to hit and your knees suddenly feel like they’re made out of jello. you sway slightly and you feel yoongi’s hand on your back steadying you before you step around jimin on the floor to let hoseok in.

“you’re gonna get me evicted,” you warn hobi as you open the door, and he responds by kissing the top of your head. he makes his way to the kitchen and taehyung follows, leaving a loopy jimin and a pink-cheeked yoongi with you in the living room.

“hyung, are you good?” jimin asks yoongi, and he simply nods. “y/n, can you get me some pizza please?”

“go get it yourself, jimin.”

“you’re a terrible host,” he quips back, sitting up too quick. you can tell he’s feeling what you felt when you stood up, and jimin smiles. “hyung, the brownies were really good. can i have another?”

you and yoongi both say no at the same time, and jimin thinks it’s the funniest thing in the world. his giggle attracts tae’s attention as he comes out of the kitchen, several pieces of pizza stacked on one plate.

“what’s so funny?” he asks, handing you each a slice as he makes his way back to his spot on the couch. you take yours and sit back down, even closer to yoongi now because hobi has taken your spot on the couch. you’re practically in yoongi’s lap now, but you don’t mind. 

“yeah, was it actually funny chim or are you just high?” hobi asks, a fleck of brownie on one side of his face and a piece of cheese on the other. why are boys so gross?

“i don’t know, but when yoongi and y/n answered together it just sounded like they’re an old married couple that spends so much time together they start to sound the same,” jimin explains.

“aren’t we all like that though?” you ask. 

“eh, the two of you are getting worse,” taehyung replies. “you have been hanging out a lot lately.”

“that’s because y/n is my business partner now,” yoongi says calmly. business partners? is that all he thinks of you?

“do business partners talk about how kissable their partners lips are?” jimin asks, back to laying completely on the floor. there’s an awkward pause before he speaks again. “are you sure i can’t have another piece of brownie?”

“wait, who said the kissable thing?” hobi asks.

“yoongi hyung. he thinks y/n has nice lips.”

“and a nice ass,” taehyung adds.

“i hate you all,” yoongi grumbles from semi-underneath you. 

“you know you can kiss me if you want,” you tell yoongi before thinking about it. yoongi looks at you with something in his eyes that you can’t read, and your heart skips a beat. you look away from him quickly, turning the sound on the tv up a little louder. “actually, forget i said that.”

“i will if i can have more brownies.”

-

letting jimin have another piece was a mistake. 

nothing bad happened, he just ended up falling asleep on your floor and now he’s asleep in your bed after a nice group effort of carrying him to your room. hoseok left after that, saying he needed to get home for mickey’s vet appointment in the morning. he took some of the brownies with him and he’s going to try to get namjoon to eat one to see if he’ll do a dramatic performance of a poem or something for a dumb bet between him and jin. 

that leaves you, yoongi and taehyung. somehow there’s one less person on the couch now and yet you’re still smushed up next to yoongi, but you’re not complaining. it’s keeping you grounded, feeling him breathing next to you. otherwise you’d go back to thinking about his thighs in those track pants, and that isn’t good for anybody. it’s bothering yoongi though, if only because he’d rather be like this just the two of you, minus the nine foot giant next to him that found one of your newer vapes. it’s banana flavored, and yoongi finds himself wondering if your lips would taste like candy after smoking it.

“taehyung, can you stop blowing your smoke at me?” yoongi finally asks.

“sorry hyung, not many other places i can blow it,” he responds. “it’s a small apartment.”

“sorry about that,” you say, reaching for the vape in taehyung’s hand. 

“not your fault, y/n,” he replies. “you could invest in a bigger couch though.”

“or you could sit on the floor,” yoongi offers.

“why hyung? i thought you’d like sitting so close to y/n,” taehyung smiles. “beside, you can just buy y/n a new couch when your very successful brownie business kicks off.”

“yeah, since i am just a business partner to you,” you mumble, exhaling the sweet smoke. it wisps around yoongi and he tries not to look annoyed, but you like messing with him. he looks cute when he’s flustered.

“or you could buy a bigger apartment when you move in together,” taehyung suggests before getting off the couch. “but i’ll solve the couch problem for you, for now. jimin is awake and he found some of y/n’s school pictures, so if you’ll excuse me.”

“i’m never inviting you over ever again!” you shout, loud enough for jimin to hear you in your room.

“y/n, you were really cute in high school!” jimin shouts back. taehyung shouts “i wanna see!” before he’s gone, leaving you alone with yoongi at last.

“i was really awkward in high school,” you say more to yourself than yoongi. “but whatever.”

“i’m sure you’ve always been cute,” yoongi responds after a beat of silence.

“i don’t think you’re supposed to call your ‘business partner’ cute.”

“oh come on, you know i didn’t mean it like that,” yoongi says with a smirk, silent confidence starting to creep out.

“i would like a new couch, though,” you tell him. you smile at each other and it’s quiet again for a beat before yoongi speaks.

“you haven’t moved away.”

“what?”

“taehyung got off the couch, there’s plenty of space now, but you haven’t moved,” he explains quietly.

“yeah because the space is on your side, you should be the one to move.”

“what if i don’t want to?” yoongi asks, a slight challenge in his voice. you stare at each other for a moment before you lean in. your lips barely meet before you pull away, but yoongi’s cupping your chin and pulling you back in for a real kiss before you can crack a joke. it’s slow at first, but then you get more comfortable with it and move your lips slightly, yoongi following your lead. you part your lips and he deepens it, the hand on your chin falling down to the back of your neck to keep you in place. 

he was right, your lips do taste like candy. he could stay here like this forever, but eventually you have to breathe so you pull back and let your head fall down to the crook of his neck. you stay like that, catching your breath, and yoongi’s arms pull you closer to him to you’re fully seated on those damn thighs and he’s taking the discarded vape so he can have a taste, and he lets the smoke curl around you before he leans back in. now you get a chance to taste the sweetness on his lips, and you can’t believe you didn’t do this sooner. your arms are draped lazily over his shoulders, and you tap his back to signal that you’re pulling away again.

“for what it’s worth, i’ve always thought you had kissable lips,” you tell him. “but i have a better ass.”

“i’m not arguing with that,” yoongi replies with a smirk, cupping his hands around you as he moves so that you’re underneath him on the couch, lips tangled and the world forgotten. 

damn, you really should’ve done this sooner.

[rjhpandapaws]

When He Speaks

Chapter 2: Environmental Enrichment

It didn’t take him long to decide that while he was good at it, detective work was incredibly boring. When it came down to it it was always the same thing that happened; a human or an android was pushed to their breaking point and snapped. They had to figure out the how and why of it. While it could be tragic, homicide was boring. Detective Reed found it exhilarating, but he was only human, these sorts of things were complex to him. It took him days or weeks to unravel clues and evidence Nines had the answers to in hours at most. He brought this up to Connor, and thankfully he seemed to understand. He looked at Nines like this conversation was something he had been expecting for a while now. “Yeah. It get’s pretty boring after a while.” He had said, “Have you tried doing anything while you wait on Gavin’s conclusions?” “No.” He replied, “There’s nothing else that needs to be done. The cases can’t move forward until we discuss our results.” “I wasn’t talking about the case Nine-Hundred.” He clarified, “I was talking about you.” “I don’t understand.” He echoed, “What does this have to do with me? I haven’t done anything to further Gavin’s incompetence.”

Connor actually laughed at that, “He’s not incompetent Nines; he’s human. There is a difference.” He ignored Nines’s disbelieving expression and moved on, “We’re both advanced investigative models. We were meant to always be doing something and taking in information, not waiting. You’re bored because you don’t have any sensory input going on.” “So what am I supposed to do about that, run the tests again? The results won’t be any different.” He remarked. In a very human gesture that he probably picked up from Hank, Connor sighed. “No.” He said flatly, “Do something.” He gestured back toward his own desk, “I have fidget toys and slime that you’re welcome to borrow.” “So I’m supposed to play?” He asked. “No.” Connor sounded exasperated now, “You aren’t being ordered to do anything Nines. I’m trying to help you with environmental enrichment. So you can be rid of this restless feeling.” He still didn’t understand but nodded anyway. He could give this environmental enrichment thing a try. At the very least it couldn’t make things any worse. Connor smiled and that seemed to be the end of it.

As it turned out the ‘Do not eat!’ warning on the play slime Connor kept in his desk applied to androids too. Connor seemed annoyed as he helped to clean out his systems. Nines wasn’t sure if it came from a place of concern or because he was no down a container of slime. Either way, Nines decided slime was not the way he wanted to enrich his environment. It was time to look for something else. His search didn’t go well. Fidget toys, while interesting, didn’t hold up against his grip strength. Computer games were predictable and the holes in their code were not that interesting to exploit or try to patch. Puzzle cubes were too easily solved. There was nothing that didn’t involve disrupting the station in some way what could keep him occupied. He was bored once again and it was staring to get frustrating. He spent a lot of time observing Connor and how he kept busy. It came from efforts to seem more human, in making conversation and using his breaks even though he didn’t need to. Nines wasn’t about to do that, he wasn’t human and there were no benefits to pretending that he was. The boredom was just going to stick around then. He would adjust for it like he did with everything else. It would be fine, just another part of his existence.

The solution to his ever-present boredom presented itself during a particularly drawn out case. They were on the trail of a serial killer and Gavin was starting to spend more of his nights at the station. The time Nines once had to himself was gone. Boredom changed to annoyance and from that annoyance came a plan. Gavin was human and humans needed sleep, but he couldn’t sleep if he was working nights. So he drank coffee in it’s place. Coffee that was nearly black with an unsettling amount of sugar added to it. Coffee seemed to be Gavin’s way to decompress, the way being alone had been for Nines. The station after hours was the only place he was able to be entirely alone. Something that was now being tampered with by Gavin’s constant presence. A fair course of action seemed to be to mess with Gavin’s coffee. It was just a matter of finding his moment. Gavin went through cups of coffee pretty quickly so it came down to either making a cup for him, or waiting for the case to pull him in and tampering with a cup he had made himself.

That problem solved itself when Gavin got up to do something. Nines was quick to seize the opportunity. He took the unguarded coffee cup and headed for the breakroom. He didn’t know how long Gavin would be gone for so he had to be fast. Nines didn’t account for the possibility of the salt lid being loose. It came off in his rush and more salt than he planned wound up in the coffee, but that was fine. He stirred it until he was certain all of it had dissolved, fixed the salt container, and made for Gavin’s desk. He put the cup back in it’s place and the liquid had settled by the time Gavin got back to his desk. To human eyes it looked like an unassuming cup of coffee. A normal cup of coffee had probably been what Gavin was expecting from the size of the drink he took. His reaction was immediate and Nines was elated. Surprise, fear, disgust, and then frustration rolled across Gavin’s face in rapid succession. Then he locked eyes with Nines and finished the entire cup in one go. This was going to be fun. On top of that, Connor had been right. Environmental enrichment was a good thing once he found something that worked.

He had only planned to do it once, but Gavin made it so easy. He was a decent detective, by human standards, but his situational awareness could use some work. When he was in a place he deemed safe, Gavin would have all of his guards down. He did try to get back at Nines, which was something he was ready for. Gavin altered his thirium, sent him a link to a song; which he later learned was called Rick Rolling. None of it phased him, if anything it was amusing. When revenge didn’t work, Gavin resorted to hypervigilance. Any cup he left unattended around Nines was thrown away and replaced once he got back. Gavin threw away a lot of untampered coffee because he assumed Nines altered it, but he would still accept the coffee Nines gave him. Those ones were always salted and Gavin reacted with genuine surprise every time. As entertaining as it had originally been, even this became boring. He would get Gavin coffee from the breakroom, he would be surprised to learn it was salted, and they would move on. His one source of entertainment had become routine, it was just another part of his day.

Gavin’s hypervigilance had changed too, now he wouldn’t accept coffee from anyone. Which combined with Nines’s boredom made things even more difficult. Gavin didn’t bury himself in work to the point of oblivion anymore. Nines at the very least had made him wary of otherwise comfortable surroundings. He knew to be better aware of himself. While that at large was a good thing, it didn’t bode well for Nines’s environmental enrichment. Things picked up again. Like they always did around the anniversary of the Revolution, and Gavin began to stay late once again. He was just as wary of Nines, and would stay at his desk until he was out of coffee and had to make more or risk falling asleep. This week though, Nines had a little luck. Gavin had gone and mouthed off to the wrong kind of android and had a few new bruises to show for it. He was sore and that meant every once in a while he would get up to stretch or do a lap around the station. That left his desk, and in turn his coffee, unattended. It took a few nights for Nines to nail down a pattern and now he had a plan. It was only a matter of waiting.

Midnight was the next time Gavin got up to do a lap around the station. Assuming that he wouldn’t stop for a break, Nines had ten minutes to get this done. Once Gavin was far enough away Nines took his half full coffee cup and headed for the breakroom. He poured the coffee out, rinsed the cup, added cream and the questionable amount of sugar in the bottom, then poured the waiting decaf over the top until it reached the halfway point. Once it was stirred and settled it looked exactly the same as the previous cup. He placed it back on the desk and waited. If Gavin suspected anything when he got back, he didn’t voice it. When four am rolled around he was beginning to nod off. At four-thirty he checked the cup and then looked at Nines like he had done something to declare war. By five he was asleep and by five-thirty he had been asleep long enough that Nines deemed it safe to draw on his face. All that was left to do was wait for Gavin to wake up and take notice. It wasn’t a solid solution to his constant boredom, but this environmental enrichment thing was making him a more creative problem solver. That had to count for something.

[blitzturtles]

Title: Can't Fix Everything

Rating: Teen and Up

Fandom: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (Future Fic)

Pairing(s): JotaHan

Summary: Jotaro frowns when he rings the doorbell and no one answers. It’s not as though he’s unexpected. He and Rohan had discussed this beforehand, but he knows that it’s entirely possible that Rohan got too caught up in his work. That he’s got his eyes glued to the pages with such a hyperfixation that he hadn’t even heard the doorbell going off.

Notes: When I went to write the ‘Flail Chest’ piece, I couldn’t make up my mind if I wanted it to be with Jotaro or Josuke, so here’s the Jotaro version (if it can be called that. Same injury, very different story.) Ngl, kind of frustrated with the end, but I've been sitting on this for a few weeks now.

[Copy and pasted from the Josuke version: Unimportant bit of trivia: the first rib fixation for adolescent flail chest wasn’t actually done until ~2006, but this is fic, so fuck it.

Flail chest: When a section of the chest wall becomes detached due to the ribs being broken in two or more places. The treatment for this can be a wait and see method (with pain management and physical therapy), but there’s also rib fixation, which is a surgical procedure that can help dramatically reduce short and long-term complications.

The rib injury is canon; the extent of it in this fic, not so much.]

-

Jotaro frowns when he rings the doorbell and no one answers. It’s not as though he’s unexpected. He and Rohan had discussed this beforehand, but he knows that it’s entirely possible that Rohan got too caught up in his work. That he’s got his eyes glued to the pages with such a hyperfixation that he hadn’t even heard the doorbell going off. At least, that’s what Jotaro tells himself. How he tries to rationalize the lack of response.

Unfortunately, too many years on this earth-- facing some of the worst creatures to have ever disgraced her surface-- means that Jotaro has a good idea when he’s being pointlessly paranoid and when his ‘gut feeling’ is something to be taken seriously, and he’s feeling the latter right about now.

Star breaks the door’s lock with a particularly nasty twist of the knob. It’s nothing Jotaro can’t fix with a quick trip to the hardware store later, but that doesn’t matter right now.

“Rohan?” He calls into the seemingly empty house. The majority of the lights are off, and there’s no movement. No sound, and it’s far too early for Rohan to consider bed, which means he’s either closed in his studio or gone.

Jotaro makes a beeline for the familiar door that leads to Rohan’s sanctuary. It’s possible Rohan went out on a whim. Impulse control isn’t exactly his strong suit, especially when it might be something related to his manga, but it’s smarter to check the one place Rohan haunts most in life before bothering with anywhere else.

The door is unlocked, which doesn’t necessarily mean anything, though it doesn’t stop Jotaro’s heart from hammering away in his chest. There’s a flash of red across his vision, like a filter of blood, but he shakes it off in favor of taking in the room. He can’t let his past trauma affect him now.

Or maybe he can, because there Rohan is. On the floor, huddled partway beneath his desk. There’s a low whine that accompanies the screwed up features, and it’s all Jotaro needs to know that Rohan is in pain. A significant amount of it.

“Fuck,” Jotaro grinds out. He makes his way to Rohan quickly. Star Platinum itches to freeze time. A natural reaction to walking into an obviously bad situation with little information to work with, but Jotaro won’t waste the opportunity. They might only have one shot to work with, and he can’t waste it before he even knows what he’s walked into.

Carefully, he crouches in front of Rohan, His eyes don’t quite fixate on the mangaka. Instead, he’s too busy taking in their surroundings, searching for a threat.

Rohan startles and yelps. “What the fuck?” He grinds out after the initial shock washes over both of them.

“I could ask you the same thing. What happened?” Jotaro demands. His gaze shifts to Rohan. It’s a raking thing. Slow and deliberate as he searches for any sign of injury. There’s no blood that he can see. No limbs twisted horrifically out of place, and no holes punched where they don’t belong. Jotaro doesn’t allow himself to relax. There’s obviously something wrong; he just hasn’t figured it out yet.

“Ribs,” Rohan breathes out after a moment of hesitation. The mere effort of talking leaves him struggling for air.

Jotaro’s frown deepens, and he tunes out the rest of the world to focus on Rohan.

“Let me see.”

“No.”

“Rohan.”

“Go away.”

“Kishibe,” Jotaro grinds out. He doesn’t have time to put up with Rohan being a toddler when he could have a punctured lung.

“Fine,” Rohan concedes, though doesn’t move.

Jotaro sighs and carefully maneuvers Rohan onto his side. He uses Star’s hands as a cushion between Rohan’s body and the floor. A gentle effort to avoid making the situation worse, and, for once, Jotaro is incredibly thankful for Rohan’s penchant for crop tops. It’s a convenience-- rather than a nuisance and a distraction-- in a time like this.

Slowly, Jotaro pushes the fabric out of the way, and he sucks in a sharp breath out of sympathy the moment he gets an eyeful of the bruising that’s blossomed across Rohan’s side.

“That Stand got you right in that old wound of your’s, huh?” Jotaro asks. He barely resists the urge to reach out and touch the scars hidden underneath the black and blue mess. He’s known about their existence for a while, though Rohan rarely lets him lay eyes on them for more than a few seconds at a time.

There’s three scars in total, and each one runs the length of a rib, starting at Rohan’s sternum and wrapping around midway to his spine. A childhood injury from a freak accident that still causes unnecessary pain.

(”Why not just let Josuke heal you?” Jotaro remembers asking the first time he caught a glimpse of the scars.

“Josuke can’t fix everything,” Rohan had answered, short and irritable.)

Jotaro wonders if Rohan would allow Josuke to help now. If only to take the edge off, but Jotaro will worry about calling his nephew later. For now, he’s more concerned with getting Rohan off the floor and checked over properly. Jotaro hadn’t seen Rohan take a hit, which means that he has no idea how hard it had been or what kind of damage they might be dealing with. There could be internal bleeding, a collapsed lung, or god knows what else. The bruising is extensive enough, and Rohan’s breathing is ragged. Too shallow and a touch uneven.

“What gave you that idea?” Rohan snarls at him, breaking Jotaro out of his thoughts. He forgot how ill-tempered the mangaka is when he’s hurting.

“Good grief,” Jotaro mutters, though he takes it as a positive sign that Rohan’s got enough fight in him to make this as difficult as possible.

As carefully as possible, he scoops Rohan up into his arms. It isn’t easy, given the location of the wound, but he only makes Rohan whimper rather than scream. That has to count for something.

The path to the bedroom is blessedly short, considering the size of Rohan’s house. Jotaro gently deposits the mangaka on his oversized bed and heads for the en suite bathroom to retrieve the bottle of prescription painkillers that he knows Rohan underutilizes whenever possible (Rohan doesn’t like what they do to his head, and Jotaro can’t say that he blames him). It takes some rummaging, but he manages to find the pills and a cup to pour some water into.

“Here,” Jotaro says once he returns to the bedroom. To his surprise, Rohan takes both the cup and the proffered pills without complaint. He swallows the painkillers dry and chases them down with the water before falling back against the pillows with a quiet groan.

Jotaro takes that as his permission to resume his earlier inspection. Once again, he rolls the edge of the crop top up and tries not to grimace at the sight that greets him. It’s definitely no better than before, not that he had expected it to be. There’s more bruising than not on the scarred side, and some of it has branched across, spreading to the other side. Despite how horrific it looks, Rohan’s breathing is mostly even. It’s obvious that he’s in pain and holding back, but the lung seems to be inflating properly, which is… something. Far from great, but definitely better than the alternative.

Slowly, Jotaro palpates the area. All while ignoring the squirming and gasped breaths that he gets from Rohan. At some point, Rohan has enough, and he tries to swat Jotaro away, but he pulls back before Rohan can reach him.

“I don’t think you’re bleeding internally,” Jotaro announces with a barely level tone. Relief edges his words despite his attempt to keep his tone even. He tries not to think of what could have happened if Rohan had been left alone, bleeding internally, and without any way to call for help. Jotaro chastises himself for not noticing the hit or its aftermath. How could he have missed something so obvious? He can’t imagine that Rohan had been able to fully hide it.

“Fantastic,” Rohan grits out with a roll of his eyes. The way he relaxes into the mattress gives him away, though. He’d been scared.

“I’m going to go get some ice for that. Do you need anything else?”

“No,” Rohan says too quickly. His fingers twitch, but he doesn’t speak up again. Jotaro takes that as his sign to go ahead, and he wanders downstairs and toward the kitchen.

The pantries are unsurprisingly bare, though Jotaro manages to find a baggie to put a decent amount of ice into. He grabs the hand towel off the counter to wrap the makeshift pack in and heads back upstairs, where he finds Rohan exactly where he left him. He hasn’t moved so much as an inch. It’s one more sign of the agony he must be in.

“Do you want me to call Josuke?” Jotaro asks, already knowing the answer. He passes Rohan the ice pack, figuring it will be better if Rohan places it himself. The cold is already going to make him tense up, and he doesn’t need the added pain.

“No.”

“He doesn’t have to see.”

“No.”

Jotaro gives a half shrug, “If you insist.”

“I do,” Rohan sniffs, snooty and irritated until he places the wrapped ice against his skin. He hisses and jolts away from it, but it only takes a moment before he relaxes and presses the pack that much closer. “Stop being a mother and lie down. ‘m not going anywhere anytime soon.” It’s not meant to be a reassurance, but Jotaro takes it that way anyways.

“I could call the Foundation.”

“Don’t you dare,” Rohan shoots back like Jotaro’s words had been a threat. They hadn’t. It’s an offer to have a specialist come to Rohan rather than to force Rohan to the hospital, but it doesn’t surprise Jotaro that he took it to be something else entirely.

“You’re wheezing,” Jotaro points out with the same frown he’s been wearing since he found Rohan on the floor.

“I’m fine. Get in this bed or get out.”

Jotaro can’t help thinking the words might hold more weight if Rohan weren’t practically wheezing them, but he decides to let the subject drop for now. There’s no apparent sign of an emergency. Yet. He’s not sure he can relax enough to get comfortable, but he does toe off his shoes. He rolls onto his side after another moment of contemplation. At least this position allows for him to keep an eye on Rohan without jostling him too much.

Rohan rolls his eyes, but he settles against the mattress with a half-shrug. A ‘suit yourself’ sort of gesture that’s far milder than the rest of his responses have been. His eyes slide shut and he keeps his hand firmly pressed to the ice he’s still holding to his side. His hold is still too tight, and his posture is too stiff. Jotaro wishes he could do more, but he knows how chronic pain goes. There’s really nothing more either of them can do now other than sit and wait for the medication to kick in. Rohan won’t see Josuke, and he’d probably bite Jotaro if the older man tried to take him to the hospital. Waiting is their only option, and time moves at an impossibly slow pace.

Nearly thirty minutes go by in complete silence. Rohan keeps his eyes stubbornly screwed shut, and Jotaro watches him unashamedly. The moment he thinks Rohan is getting worse, he’s dragging both of them to the nearest hospital, repercussions be damned.

Likewise, he keeps having to remind himself to take a breath. Rohan is alive and-- well, mostly-- breathing, granted it looks strained and painful, but it’s better than the alternative. Better than the rattle that Jotaro’s heard too many times before, and there’s no needless gasping. Only the occasional, low whine that manages to slip its way past Rohan’s thin-pressed lips.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, Rohan’s body begins to relax. His limbs go slack against the mattress, and his core sinks downwards. He’s no longer holding stiff as a board, and the difference is nearly palpable. Jotaro can see the moment exhaustion takes its hold over pain, and Rohan begins to slip under the blanket that is sleep.

Jotaro takes the risk of removing Rohan’s headband then. His fingers card through the mess of hair left behind. Rohan leans into the touch like it’s the best thing he’s felt in awhile, and it probably is, given what his body’s just gone through. Jotaro won’t deny him that bit of relief, so he continues to pet through Rohan’s hair until there are soft snores escaping the mangaka. Even then, he doesn’t stop. The last thing he wants is to accidentally wake Rohan up.

Eventually being curled on his side and having nowhere to go takes its toll. Jotaro’s eyelids grow heavier the longer he stays put, and he doesn’t bother to fight the sleep that settles in his limbs first and comes for his mind second.

[damn-stark]

We’ll see

Beth Harmon x reader (Hogwarts AU)

Requested by “Idk if you’re still taking queens gambit requests, but Beth Harmon hogwarts au?”

Warning-nothing but fluff

———-

“You’re very good at this, you know. You should join tournaments, you’d probably win them.” You muse to the well dressed redhead girl across from you, feeling completely blown away by her win.

It was unexpected, but that’s probably because you were too cocky and didn’t think a complete stranger would beat you.

“Thank you, but I have to admit you did good.” She compliments you with a sweet smile, the sound of her accent grabbing your now unwavered attention.

“Do you go to Hogwarts, or Ilvermorny?”

“I go to Ilvermorny.”

Your eyes light up as your curiosity increases at her answer. “Oh, that's exciting, what are you doing so far from home?”

“Just visiting.” She shrugs, taking a sip of the tea on the table. “Playing some...chess tournaments.”

“Oh,” you grin, “well that explains it. I sounded pretty stupid then.”

“No you didn’t.” She assures you, soon leaning in towards another subject. “So Hogwarts,” she says as she leans in to rest her elbows on the table. “I’ve heard many things about it, how is it?”

“Well you know it’s similar to ilvermorny, but better.” You claim confidently. “I’m a Ravenclaw. I’ve been told that Ilvermorny has houses too, what’s your house?”

“I was in Horned Serpent.”

You hum softly and begin to fix the board, glancing over to her and not being able to help your curiosity, or answering hers.

“I’ve went to Hogwarts, what house do you think I’d be?”

“Oh well,” you tilt your head and study her for a moment in silence, seeing her offer you a sweet smile as she didn’t break eye contact. “You’re smart, but also seem to have great ambition, I’d add beauty to the mix, but houses don’t base off that. So I’d say,” you take one last look and smile once you find your answer. “Probably Ravenclaw, or Slytherin. But that’s beside the point, I don’t even know your name.”

“Beth Harmon.”

“Pretty name.”

Beth blushes and begins to help you fix the board, sharing lingering looks with you when your eyes would meet.

“Well, it’s a shame you don’t go to Hogwarts, it’d be nice finally having a good competitor.” You share in a soft voice.

She smirks and bats her eyelashes, “Yeah it is a shame.”

——

“...and once again welcome my students,” Professor Dumbledore continues in an excited tone with the same happiness expressed on his face that he shows every year you’ve returned. “Before we move on to housing our first years, I want to introduce and house our new exchange student Beth Harmon.”

Your eyes widen and you sit up straighter in your seat, lifting your head higher to see over the wave of old and new students, seeing their, walking to the stool the same pretty redhead you had played with before. What a surprise.

You watch with a much more curious gaze Beth sit on the stool and Dumbledore place the sorting hat over head, letting the hat speak out loud and begin to try and place her in a house. “Hmm interesting, yet very easy, I see great wits and yet incredible ambition. You would make a good Slytherin, but you are a Ravenclaw at heart, so that’s where you go. Ravenclaw!”

Your house erupts in cheer and applause, just like the other students. Beth smiles brightly and then walks off to sit on the empty spot of the table that was all too soon filled with more new-coming students.

With all the chaos that happened in the welcoming feast it takes you some time to finally let yourself go search for her. Once you finally have the chance to do it, it’s time to go to your common rooms and sleep, but you don’t let that really stop you, it never has, so you search and search until you finally find her admiring the common room.

“Beth Harmon, bloody hell, who would’ve known. Why didn’t you tell me you were coming to Hogwarts? I thought you were just here to visit.”

Beth shrugs and shows a smug smile. “Well I wanted to surprise you.”

You beam at her and fall by her side. “Well it definitely is a good surprise, how are you liking Hogwarts so far?”

“Well,” Beth muses as she keeps admiring the room. “It’s huge and very beautiful. How did you know I was going to be placed in Ravenclaw by the way?”

“Oh well, it was a feeling.” You answer cheekily, glancing at the untouched chess board on a table at the end of the room. “So now that I have you here, before we go to bed, do you want to play a game?”

Beth smirks and nods. “I’ll try and go easy on you and maybe later on I’ll teach you to be better.”

You chuckle and roll your eyes as you go sit by the chess table. “Maybe I'll be better than you after that then.”

“We’ll see.”

[tooruluv]

Tooru Oikawa x F!Reader ( part 11 )

❝ my love for him is much like winter, a skeleton for the world to see. too bad he never liked the cold. ❞

description: being the neighbor and lifelong best friend of tooru oikawa definitely had it’s perks. you were never an outcast, always had a seat at lunch, got into volleyball games for free. the problem was, however, that being in love with him outweighed those perks. you would never tell him that, though, even if it hurt like hell.

genre: best friends to lovers, angst, unrequited love, fluff if you squint hard enough

word count: 2,611

warnings/notes: the next part is the final part. i feel weird that it’s coming to an end! anyway, i hope you all enjoy. i do want to put a small warning because there is mention of a “crash” in this, but it is only a small part and not anything crazy. love you all! <3

tag list: @afuckingunicornn​​​​​​​​ @maii-flowers​​​​​​​​ @clandestinerays​​​​​​​​ @brownandchill​​​​​​​​ @readeretal​​​​​​​​ @wedojustbevibin​​​​​​​​ @shigarakiskitten​​​​​​​​ @shittykawaa​​​​​​​​ @saeranoppa​​​​​​​ @srirachibi​​​​​​​ @tpwkatsumu​​​​​​ @sempiternal-amour​​​​​​ @bokutos-h0e​​​​​​ @pinknugget​​​​​​ @intheawks​​​​​​ @tori218​​​ @seikamuzu​​​ @alexthe80swhore​​​ @ghostly-toastie​​ @bumbledunce​​ @pineapplelantern​​ @ella-solei​

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You had been spending a lot of time alone, again. To sort your thoughts, to avoid seeing Oikawa for the rest of the weekend, you didn’t know. Either way, you were laying in bed and contemplating how askew your life (your love life in particular) had become.

It never was this complicated before.

In fact, it still wasn’t very complicated.

You had been in love with Tooru Oikawa for as long as you could remember. And apparently, he loved you too. The problem was, he was being a dick. And he hadn’t even realized this “love” until very recently, if the man even knew what it felt like to be in love.

The answer should be incredibly easy: tell him you love him and be together. Because at the end of the day, he was the one you wanted.

Kuroo called you just then.

“Hello, hoodie.” He greeted through the phone. “I know you said you wanted some time to yourself today, but I’m bored.”

“Hello, Tetsurou Kuroo.”

“You sound sad.”

“Oh, you know, just another midlife crisis.” You told him. You didn’t even have the phone in your hand, the device on speaker laying beside your pillow.

“Midlife crisis? Aren’t you a bit young for those?”

“You don’t know how old I’ll be.”

He chuckled. It was short-lived, though, his tone turning serious. “Do you want to talk about it? Meet at the hill?”

“You actually want to listen to me rant about Oikawa?”

“Sure, why not? I told you that I was bored.” A movement behind the microphone. “I’m making sandwiches! Meet you there in 20.”

The hill was beautiful even in the daytime. The city life hectic and full of car horns and chatter below, yet it was quiet there. When you arrived, Kuroo was waiting on a blanket with a plastic bag of sandwiches.

“Now that I have the guest of honor,” He moved over so you could join him. “Tell me everything.”

And you did. You told him about how you have loved the volleyball captain, how you were going to tell him but somehow ended up finding out your best friend was gay, how Oikawa dated Sana, how Sana is cool as hell, how Oikawa had ignored you and broke every tradition and completely threw you off, how you got humiliated by said captain and then kissed by him, how you got drunk and made out, and you even told him how you met someone else who had saved you from drowning yourself multiple times, how confused you were.

Kuroo didn’t interrupt, didn’t ask questions. He just sat and listened until you were done. He gave you subtle nods of understanding during it, but that was more for your sake so you knew he was listening.

Once you finished, Kuroo finally asked a question.

“Okay, I think that there’s only one question I can ask.” He turned to you, eyes gleaming in the sun. “Is it really that complicated, or are you trying to make it complicated because you’re scared that actually going through with your feelings would change things even more?”

For that, you didn’t have an answer. You just stared at him, eyes staring into his as though he knew the answer you were searching for. Which he did.

“Kiss me.” Kuroo said suddenly.

Your eyes widened in confusion. You spluttered, “I don’t… why would I… what..”

“It’s for science.” He said, not once moving an inch from his spot.

You scoffed. “For science.”

“If you kiss me and feel either nothing or guilty, it means you want Oikawa and I was right.” Kuroo spoke as if he was giving a presentation and not literally asking you to kiss him. “If you kiss me and you like it and I’m a better kisser than Oikawa, looks like you have obtained a new and extremely good looking boyfriend.”

“You’re ridiculous.” You didn’t move from your spot, either. “I just. I don’t want to kiss you and leave you hanging or like… lead you on? I know that…”

“Babe, I’m literally asking you to kiss me.”

“I know but…”

“Seriously I’m not going to be mad or expect you to…”

You kissed him. You leaned forward and pressed your lips to his. He was sitting cross-legged, and you had put your hands on his knees to give you that extra height to reach him. It only took him a second of surprise before he kissed you back, hands immediately going into your hair and on your neck.

His lips were soft, softer than Oikawa’s. Kuroo was soft in general, his kisses small and many instead of long and passionate. His hands were hovering over your jaw when Oikawa’s were everywhere he was offered.

You were comparing him to Oikawa. You were the one who pulled back.

A breath of air. Your stomach churned.

“…So?” Kuroo asked, chest visibly showing his beating heart. “What did you think?”

“I think you’re a good kisser.” You smiled. “But…”

“But you feel bad?”

“No it’s not that.” You stayed beside him, looking at his hands in yours. You played with his fingers. “I was comparing. Like it was a competition.”

“Comparing me to Oikawa?” Kuroo nodded, thinking. He looked back to you, smile plastered on his lips. “Who’s better?”

“Don’t ask me that!” you threw his hands back into his lap.

“Oh, c’mon. I need to know.”

“Too different.” Was your only explanation.

“Can I tell my friend that you said I was better? He would literally pee himself in happiness.”

“Fine.”

Suzuki Sana arrived at Oikawa’s house that day. It was a quick visit, to give him back some things and get back a couple of things she had left at his. They may not have dated for long, but they had done… a lot. Even before.

“Sorry for bringing you into all of this.” Oikawa told her.

“I’m sorry for being your first girlfriend when your first girlfriend should’ve been the girl next door.” Sana replied.

The friendship between Tooru Oikawa and Hajime Iwaizumi was never complicated, at least between them. Oikawa was the flirty, arrogant, leader and Iwaizumi was the one who brought him back to earth when his head got too inflated. It had always been that way.

Even back when they were kids, just throwing around volleyballs and running around on the playground Iwaizumi was always the one.

When Iwaizumi first met him, Oikawa was standing on the playground’s monkey bars claiming to be the King of the Playground. Iwaizumi told him that he wasn’t and to let the other kids play. To which, young Oikawa replied “There is a princess in need of saving! Help me save her, Jester!”

The princess being you.

You sat in the circle tower on the playground by the slide, pretending to beg for help. Oikawa only left the monkey bars to come “save” you, bringing you down the slide with him. Iwaizumi was at his side, actually laughing when they all got stuck in the middle of the slide and having to scoot the rest of the way with their feet.

“What is your name, Jester?” Oikawa asked.

“Hajime Iwaizumi!”

“Iwa, you are now our friend!” Oikawa introduced you to him.

That was the start of it all, for the most part. After that, the three of you were inseparable, your parents easily greeting Iwaizumi’s into their Adult Friend Group. There were play dates, birthday parties, summer trips, long volleyball tournaments, all together. They say, “two’s company, and three’s a crowd”, but the three of you made nearly a perfect unit together.

Things were different now, full of weird unsolved emotions and secrets that are no longer secrets. And Iwaizumi was so tired.

“Hey, Oikawa.” Iwaizumi said during the end of practice. They had stayed back, practicing a little more just the two of them.

“Whoa, you called me my actual name.” Oikawa replied, grabbing the next ball from the basket. “What’s up?”

“Are you actually in love with her or did you just say that to make her feel better?” He paused. “Or to make yourself feel better?”

Oikawa froze in his spot, ball empty in his hand. His voice was the smallest Iwaizumi had ever heard it. “Why would you ask me that?”

“Because she’s been in love with you for forever, and you have never been in love before.” Iwaizumi said simply, shrugging. “I don’t want to see her hurt anymore.”

“Iwa.”

“Listen, all that I’m asking is do you actually love her?”

“Yes.” It was a fast response, quick and final. “I didn’t know it before, but I know I am now. I heard that she cried over me and I felt like digging my own grave. Whenever she smiles at me from the bleachers at the games, or when she fixes my tie, it makes me want to giggle like a little schoolgirl. I know you’re worried, I know that. But I’m trying to fix things. I’m trying to make up for a lot of lost time I didn’t even realize I was missing.”

Oikawa looked back to the ball. “She hasn’t told me herself that she’s in love with me too. I fucked things up, I took out frustration and confusion out on her that I shouldn’t have. I’m waiting for her to come to me first.”

“Okay.” Iwaizumi grabbed his own ball. “Okay, okay. I needed to know, to be sure.”

“I know.”

You went on a walk with Kuroo through the city streets after the picnic. He put the empty bag and blanket into his backpack, taking your hand to help you up. It was a beautiful day.

“You should come to the tournaments this Wednesday.” Kuroo said. “Nekoma is versing Seijoh, you get to see me beat the love of your life’s ass.”

“I don’t know about that.” You joked, nudging him. “I’ll definitely be there. You can’t be mad if you see me cheering for both teams, though.”

“When she supports you.”

“Shut up.”

You walked for a bit more, taking the longest way home you could. You talked a lot, joked around and pointed out shops and restaurants to try. You even went by the Sakanoshita Store. Your favorite man wasn’t even working at the time.

It was nearly sunset when you ended at your doorstep. You suddenly had a realization that you were wearing his hoodie.

“Oh, shit.” You started to bring your arms through. “Do you want your hoodies back? Now that you…”

“Babe, nothing has changed between us.” Kuroo shoved the red back onto you. “Friends before all else. And you get to keep the hoodies. As friends.”

“Friends before all else.”

As soon as you walked through the doors, your mom announced that your family would be eating BBQ with Oikawa’s as a “Family Sunday Fun Night” (her words, you cringed). Usually these dinners were planned, but sometimes your mom liked to “switch things up, keep things spontaneous” (also her words).

You tried not to be awkward around Oikawa, but it was a bit hard when he wouldn’t stop staring at you and not coming to you. His brother noticed, of course, because he notices everything.

“You two did something, didn’t you?” His brother asked from behind you.

“You would be the one to say something about it.” You felt him put his arm around your shoulders (it runs in the family, Oikawa’s mom does it too). “Is it that obvious?”

“It’s a little obvious to someone who knows.” He brought his head a little closer just in case. “Did he finally find out he loved you, too?”

“We kissed.” You confessed. “Multiple times.”

“Oh, even better. Next question: why aren’t you together?”

“I thought it was complicated.” You leaned closer to him. “It isn’t, though.”

“Send me the pinterest board for the wedding.” He said to you at the same time Takeru ran to him.

“Daddy!!” Takeru jumped into his arms. “Uncle told me to run over and ask what you guys are talking about.”

“Of course he did.” He took a step back and turned around, looking at you over his shoulder. You sent him a look as he went back into the house.

You had crashed into Iwaizumi’s house before. It was nothing crazy, just a kid on a four-wheeler for the first time.

Oikawa’s older brother had gotten two four-wheelers for his birthday and gave you and Oikawa a (very brief) run down on how to drive it before sending you both off in them. The four-wheelers only went so fast, and it was very easy to start and brake, it was made for kids of course.

However, you happened to get the one that didn’t run the best. The brakes didn’t work as well as they should’ve.

So, as you tried to catch up to Oikawa (who just drove full speed into Iwaizumi’s backyard to show off), you couldn’t stop in time and crashed right into their gutter that drained the water from the roof.

Iwaizumi’s parents rushed out, promising you that it was perfectly fine and not to worry about it. But you were on the ground, covered in mud.

Oikawa was the one who rushed to your side like he was an active doctor, asking you if you were okay and telling you to stay awake like you were dying. He always was the dramatic one.

Sometimes, you can still see the small spot where you crashed into the corner of Iwaizumi’s house. Oikawa had always been your knight in shining armor, even if he was the one who got you into a majority of the messes you ended up in.

You sat in Oikawa’s room for the millionth time, feeling out of place as if it was the first time. Like you had to ask permission to breathe his air or look at his generic blue plaid bed comforters.

He noticed.

He patted the place beside him on the bed, and you obliged. The entire room smelled like him, overwhelming your senses. Oikawa always smelled like mint and flowers.

“I kissed Kuroo today.” You said. The first thing you’ve said to him since your little… movie night.

“Okay. You…kissed Kuroo today.” Oikawa repeated. He didn’t have any emotion in his voice but you knew him better than that. “I guess I can’t really say anything about that.”

You rolled your eyes, sending him a smile. You placed your hand on top of his, in his lap. He looked down at you.

“It wasn’t like that. Kissing Kuroo made me realize something.”

“Listen, if you want to date him I’m not going to blame you. I’ve literally come to your house in the middle of the night to escape some girl in my bed while you were in love with me and…”

“I’m going to stop you there, overthinker.” You focused on your hands, rubbing your thumb along a vein on his hand. “Now it’s you who’s saying that I was in love with you.”

“Hm?” He was lost.

You looked up at him again. “You used past tense. As I was going to say, kissing Kuroo made everything very clear for me and I realized that I haven’t told you something that I really should’ve told you years ago.”

“Oh god, it’s happening.”

“I’m in love with you.”

“Well, that’s fortunate.” Oikawa sighed, bringing his hands to your face and tracing the outline of your lips with his thumb. “Because I happen to be in love with you, too.”

[isnt-it-loverly]

little birdie//five hargreeves

Warnings: tried a new pov and it did not go well

Summary: When Five lands in the Sparrow Academy, he must convince one of them to help him reset the timeline. 

Word count: 1540

Author note: part two is out find it here

part three, part four, part five

“This is not your home,” Your father spoke, “this is the sparrow academy.” 

You smirked ever so slightly at his words. Your entire life you had been prepared for this, the day that they would come and threaten everything that your family held dear. This was everything that you had worked for. Soon it would all be over, and you would finally have your chance at normal. 

Number five, he had called you. Much like your umbrella counterpart you were deadly. All you had to do was to look into his eyes and he would be yours to control, you’d have all the information you would need to take them down. 

You watched intently as they pleaded with Number One. How curious, you thought. 

You almost felt bad for them, how they whined like little lost children. You couldn’t help but watch their Number Five intently. He was young like you. Instinctively, you pushed up your sunglasses to make sure that they completely covered your eyes, and wondered if his power came with a price too. 

Soon your father called each of you by number. Then tension in the room was thick, and it was easy to see that it made the Umbrellas uncomfortable. They all flinched as their number was called, just as your siblings did. Maybe they weren’t so different from you after all. 

“Number Five!” Your father's voice rang through the air. 

Five took notice of you, as he had for all of his newfound “siblings”. He watched intently as you straightened your jacket, and placed your glasses in the side pocket. Bewilderment took over as he noticed your eyes.  They were such an unnatural shade of blue, deep like the ocean and endless like space. He also took into account your age as well. So young and innocent appearing, but with a number like 5- he knew your looks were deceiving. 

Reginald called you forward and asked you to demonstrate so they could see the academy’s peak potential. 

“Yes, father,” you spoke timidly. The sound was quiet and didn’t carry very far, but yet still obedient and full of determination. Your gaze soon set on him. 

Five felt a cold feeling wash over him and his knees buckle. Crumpling to the ground, he gasped, “What are you doing?”

He couldn’t look away from you no matter how hard he tried. You knelt down and placed a cool 

hand on his cheek. It was soft and gentle, the feeling matched your innocent physique. “This will be over soon, try not to fight it. It will only make it worse,” he heard your voice but no movement or sound came from your lips. That’s when it dawned on him, that you were in his head. 

“No,” he choked. There was an ache in your heart, something about this felt wrong. However, this was always the part you hated most, the fear in their eyes as you took over. 

Fire danced across the rubble of your newfound surroundings, there was nothing but destruction as far as the eye could see. The worst part about it was the fact that you were entirely alone and incredibly scared. The academy was reduced to ash, and crimson stains filled the street. The burgundy jacket you sported was now a navy blue, picking up a shard of glass you see Five’s reflection staring back at you. This is a memory? You look for any signs of life in the rubble, for anyone or anything that might still be clinging on to life. The only thing you found were the lifeless bodies of everyone you loved- no he loved, sometimes the feelings could get confusing. Yet you felt what he felt, everything from the guilt to the regret to the grief. It was the worst you had ever experienced. Taking a shaky breath, you lean against the rubble, biting your lip as hard as you can to distract from the pain this remembrance had caused. 

“Its awful isn’t it?” a voice called. Your heart dropped into your stomach, it was just supposed to be you here. You turned to see Five staring at you. Rendered absolutely speechless you quickly touch your face and realize that your features are your own. This was impossible, he shouldn’t be here. The fact that he had slipped through your grasp angered you beyond means.

“How are you doing this?” You ask through gritted teeth. Five was amused, you had much more spunk when Reginald wasn’t there to control you. 

“I’m not as dense as your average Joe, once I realized what you were doing I knew I had to divert you here before you had full control. I needed you to see this,” he explained. You looked around at your surroundings once again, there wasn’t much to look at other than death and destruction. Why was this the first thing he wanted you to see? He noticed the look of puzzlement on your face and decided that it would be best to take things slowly.  

“Do you have a name?” He asked. He searched your eyes carefully, they were full of confusion, and yet he could tell that you were intrigued. 

“Five,” you answered. “That’s your number, If you’re going to be in my head we might as well get on a first-name basis,” He retorted. 

You looked down solemnly, “That is my name. Father said names made us weak and that they would place divides in us. But when we were kids we used to pretend to have names. I would always choose (Y/n). What about you?” 

“I thought the same thing my-” he cleared his throat, “our father did when I was younger, thought I was above my siblings so I never chose one. I’m just Five, but I think it kinda suits me,” he finished with a small smile. His warm emerald eyes looked at you and your heart melted. They were so sad and you could tell that there were a million stories hiding behind them. Eyes were the windows to the soul, and suddenly all your malice towards him melted away. 

“This what we were trying to stop. The big Dooms Day of 2019, but it appears my family and I have a knack for royally screwing shit up. We apparently got ourselves unadopted,” he explained. Five made his way over to you, cautious to make sure he didn’t frighten you away. You may have not realized it yet, but you could’ve put a stop to this little rendezvous whenever you wanted. He wanted you to listen, no, he needed you to. He sat next to you and pointed to the remains of the academy.  

“That was our home too, I’m sure we had very similar childhoods. The training sessions must have been interesting with you around,” five said light-heartedly. You knew what he was doing, trying to distract you from your purpose. But you liked the company, it was nice to be able to talk to someone outside your family.

“‘My power is very hard to control. When I was a little girl, I could get stuck. I’ve lived a thousand lives, been so many people. That’s why I look so young, while I’m out of body… I don’t age, don’t hunger, never thirsty. Just still like a statue,” you explained. It was too much information, but who was he going to tell. It felt so right to sit with him, and you knew your secrets were safe with him. 

“I got trapped in this hell for forty-five years when I returned to my rightful time- I miscalculated my equations. One decimal off and now I’m going through puberty again,” he said with a sad smile. He looked at you, and suddenly his smile faded. You searched his eyes and they were full of sorrow and regret. 

“I need your help, (Y/n), this timeline is wrong. This could destroy the fabric of reality, everything could cease to exist. My family, yours, the entire world gone. This is the new apocalypse. If we don’t fix this… I’m afraid this may be our future,” Five explained solemnly. You heart welled when he called you by a name, it had been so long since someone had treated you like a person and not a tool for extracting information. You gulped as the information played over in your head again. This is exactly what your father had warned you about, they always brought the end with them. You stood quickly and backed away from the boy. 

“(Y/n) please, you have to believe me,” he pleaded. Before he could say anything else, there was a flash and the warmth rushed into him. He looked up to see you towering over him, sapphire eyes brimming with tears.

“Well Number Five,” Reginald spoke firmly, “what did you learn?”

“He knows something about the apocalypse, I think them being here causes it,” you replied meekly. All your kindness and bravery you showed Five was gone, your father had a way of doing that to people.  

Reginald stood and cleared his throat. His eerie presence loomed over the room and all fell quiet. “Sparrows, kill them,” he instructed. 

[jolinarjackson]

Hey! Do you have any irondad fic recs? I just started reading Peter and Tony fics again and I would love any recs you have!

Hello!

Yes, I do! :D It's by no means complete because I am still busy compiling, but I have quite a few already.

For all the below stories, please heed the tags and warnings on AO3. And of course, feel also free to check out my stories. :)

My AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JolinarJackson/works

The below fics are not compiled in any particular order.

If I Die Young by MusicalLuna

Summary: Tony and Steve are trying to keep their little boy (who's not so little anymore) out of the superhero business for as long as possible, but when a kid's as stubborn as Peter is, they can't always stop him.

And sometimes things go wrong. Really, really wrong.

Categories: Superfamily, Not MCU!Peter Parker

Comment: This is a wonderful whump story that I go back to again and again.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/423790

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Lightning in a Bottle by Gruoch

Summary: Peter takes the tablet and looks down at the screen, where a picture of Spider-Man intimately entangled in a passionate embrace with Johnny Storm is displayed across the majority of the Daily Bugle’s home page. TORCH CAUGHT IN SPIDER-MAN’S WEB, the headline reads, bracketed by spider and flame emojis. Peter looks back up at Tony, who is still staring at him completely stone-faced.

Tony reaches across the island and taps the screen. “So. What do you have to say about that?”

“Well. For one, I’m a little disappointed with the headline,” Peter offers.

Tony lets his chin drop against his chest, momentarily defeated, before taking a deep breath and once more skewering Peter with a hard look. “You could have at least given me some warning that the two of you are...I mean, I had my suspicions, but—”

“You’re misconstruing the situation. Spider-Man and the Torch are dating,” Peter explains. “Johnny and I are just friends.”

“Boy, you’re really leaning hard into this whole alter ego thing, aren’t you?” Tony deadpans. “How’s that working out for you?”

Categories: Irondad, SpideyTorch

Comment: I love stories taking advantage of the havoc that secret superhero identities can wreak on romantic relationships. The best about this particular story is the witty writing, which makes Peter being a chaotic mess in this even better.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23413219

-----

The doubts that complicate by @frostysunflowers

Summary: "But he’s smart!" May had blurted, looking up at the teacher with misplaced anger. "I don’t...how does this make sense?"

She was worried, unaware, unprepared, not like Peter who had known for a while that some things were trickier for him than other kids. All the rules hidden in cheerful little rhymes and singing songs about which letters get along and those who don’t play nice; all the robotic reciting of the alphabet nearly every day: none of it had ever truly helped Peter understand how it all worked.

A brand new door opened in his life that day. On the front of it, the word ‘DYSLEXIC’ was printed in bold, the certainty of what it meant holding the letters permanently in place.

or

Nobody ever said being smart was easy.

Categories: Irondad

Comment: This is a wonderful read. @frostysunflowers manages to describe dyslexia in a way that makes the struggle understandable. The relationship between Tony and Peter is heart-warming. This is a great read if you're in the mood for something that is not too long and still want a good dosage of H/C.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23989531

-----

Accepting the Tides by Emma_Anacortes

Summary: Tony had dragged Peter from the depths of despair after May's death. It was normal that he'd grown to care a little about him, right?

Yeah, okay. He freaking loved the kid.

So naturally he would feel a little weird when Richard Parker randomly shows up in Peter's life. Naturally he'd feel protective, nervous, and confused because where has Richard been all this time? And why does Tony feel sick every time he sees him around Peter?

All he knows is if Richard hurts his kid, Tony's gonna give him hell.

Categories: Irondad, Steve & Peter

Comment: This story is intense, no doubt about it. Please heed all the warnings and tags carefully. However, if you give it a try, it's so worth it. This story presents a different backstory to the relationship of Peter and his parents (especially his father) while exploring Peter and Tony forging a father/son-bond in the wake of May's death. I have to say that the the relationship between Peter and Steve in this story is just as prominent and amazingly written. I loved every second of it.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11885844/chapters/26843274

-----

with arms wide open by @parkrstark

Summary: Tony and Pepper are expecting a baby and Peter may be the one most excited...just maybe…

Categories: Irondad, Pepperony

Comment: This is undeniably cute and heart-warming: Tony and Pepper get pregnant and Peter is right there with them, freaking out. Peter spends this story preparing to become a big brother while still being unsure about whether this is the role he is going to fulfill in the baby's life. This stoy focsses on the found family that is Tony, Pepper and Peter, but there are wonderful interactions with May, Rhodey and Happy as well.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14540409

-----

the stars the moon they have all been blown out (you left me in the dark) by @madasthesea

Summary: It starts off with his vision fading in and out.

What kind of demon drug can make someone go blind by inhaling a single lungful? Whatever it is, Tony doubts it’s reversible. And while Peter’s no idiot, he can be idiotically optimistic. He's determined to fix what appears to be unfixable.

Categories: Irondad

Comment: This story is experienced entirely from Tony's point of view, which make the effects of the drug and his reaction to it all the more poignant. Tony's relationship to Peter is especially highlighted in this story. You can only imagine the worry and pain Peter geos through unil the very end of the story and the pay-off is worth it. I want to highlight the way that Tony's experiecne of the effects of the drug are described here, because I thought that was superb writing and put the reader righ in Tony's shoes.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15795141/chapters/36757500

-----

turn back the clock (and I'll try again in the morning) by @madasthesea

Summary: Peter gets stuck in a time loop. In it, he lives through some of his worst nightmares, only to wake up that morning and have no one remember. He needs Tony to help him get through.

And if that isn't bad enough, his identity is revealed over and over, every day.

Categories: Irondad

Comment: This story is just SO GOOD. Not only is Peter experiencing the same day over and over again and his identity is revealed, but the way it happens also gets more and more taxing and gruesome. This story has emotional highpoints that are written fantastically and the Irondad in this is just heart-warming.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18023177/chapters/42585071

-----

How The Mighty Fall by Meep_Morp

Summary: Since his duel against Toomes on Coney Island, Peter's life has settled down considerably. May knows about his double life and accepts it (mostly). Tony has welcomed him back, and given him more independence as New York's Spider-Man.

One night during patrol he crosses paths with Connor, a teenager who has Extremis in his blood and answers to the wrong kind of people. Though Tony is quick to distrust him, Peter finds himself reluctant to follow his mentor's lead, and a bond develops between the two boys. Their relationship is further complicated when Connor's former master, Negative, makes it a personal mission to destroy them both in his quest for power.

Taking down a superpowered psychopath? Tough, but Peter isn't going to back down.

Stopping Tony from blasting his first potential boyfriend into space? He might need a miracle for that.

Categories: Irondad

Comment: This story is so intricately plotted and just a joy to read. The characters are written to perfection and this includes an absolutely fantastic and fleshed-out OC who, as a reader, you come to care about easily and quickly. Much more subtle is the relationship between Peter and Tony in this fic but every single scene is on-point. I have read and re-read this story several times and it is hard to put aside once you start.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18084407/chapters/42745826

-----

Project Pride by TheSleepingOwl

Summary: In hindsight, it should have been obvious. The signs were all there, unwittingly scattered by Peter like breadcrumbs for Tony to follow—the way he would fall into uncomfortable silence when the topic of dating came up, or become flustered whenever Tony teased him about the mysterious Michelle-Call-Me-MJ character Peter was constantly gushing about, or deflect Tony’s mostly-joking inquiries into whether or not they needed to be having The Talk with a hurricane of splutters and blushes.

And even without the signs, Peter was still his kid. Tony was just supposed to know these things.

So when FRIDAY pulled up Peter’s search history—‘how can i make myself not like boys,’ ‘can you force yourself to be attracted to girls,’ ‘how to stop your friends from knowing youre gay,’ and, most devastating, ‘how can i keep my parents from finding out im gay’—Tony wasn’t surprised so much as deeply, unquantifiably ashamed. Because he should have known.

Categories: Irondad

Comment: This story is an incredibly written POV of Tony coming to terms with Peter's sexuality. It's achingly realistic in the way Tony struggles to connect to Peter, knowing that he's gay. Additionally, this story has a hefty doese of Hurt/Comfort thrown in that hurts when reading it. This is a gem.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22135138/chapters/52834021

-----

Birds Eating Other Birds by aloneintherain

Summary: Peter wishes he hadn’t gotten out of bed that morning. Then, maybe, he wouldn’t be reduced to this - limp-crawling through the rabbit burrows that is Oscorp Tower, a monster of a man on his heels, bloody and bruised and choking on a panic attack.

Categories: Irondad, not MCU!Peter Parker

Comment: I love aloneintherain's stories. I read them when I first got into Avengers fanfic and the way they write dynamics is great. This one is intense and the way it's written sucks you right into it. Norman Osborn is so evil and creepy in this one. Part one is mainly hurt, but stick around for the comfort in part 2!

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7626433

----- And here are some Avengers team dynamic fics as well -----

It Was Probably The Pudding by Serendipity_Cometh

Summary: Given that over the course of the past eleven months Peter Parker hasn't contracted so much as a head-cold, the teenager thought it safe to assume that the whole 'irradiated spider bite' gig had equipped him with an immune system of steel that rivalled Captain America's.

So when he wakes up one night in the midst of the worst asthma attack he's suffered in almost eight years, neither he nor the rest of the team can think of a logical explanation.

And everything sort of goes downhill from there.

Categories: Team, Stony, Clint/Phil, not MCU!Peter Parker

Comment: When I started out reading Avengers fanfictions, I stumbled across this one and go back to it on a regular basis. Lots of whump and great team dynamics.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/953538/chapters/1865305

-----

In the Home by aloneintherain

Summary: The Avengers have been infected, turned violent and aggressive against their will. And Peter, the only one unaffected, is trapped inside the Tower with six feral teammates.

“Natasha,” Peter says cautiously, “what happened here? Steve attacked me, and if there was ever a sign that something was wrong, it’s having the embodiment of Truth, Justice, and the American Way throw you across the room -”

Natasha comes closer, her stride controlled. Nothing necessarily out of the ordinary, but there’s something in her face, in her eyes -

Natasha lunges across the space, and slams into Peter, hard.

Categories: Team, not MCU!Peter Parker

Comment: One of my very early reads when I started out in the Avengers fandom. Excellent whump, hurt/comfort and team dynamics.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5388563/chapters/12446069

-----

Fitting In (Tiny Spaces) by aloneintherain

Summary: Peter's trapped beneath a collapsed building during a mission, hurt and unable to move. Luckily, his comm still works. Unluckily, the Avengers don’t realise how bad of a state Peter is in, and Peter isn’t inclined to tell them.

“Spidey, they’ve got reinforcements. We’ve hit a bit of a snag here, and I don’t think anyone will be able to help you for a while. Think you can sit tight while we deal with this?”

The pressure on his lower back and legs was becoming too much. Peter swallowed thickly, fighting down panic. He could handle this.

“Yeah,” Peter said. “I can do that.”

Categories: Team, not MCU!Peter Parker

Comment: There are so many "Peter trapped under a building"-stories out there but this is the one I read first and it stuck with me. Loved the team dynamic in this.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4232937

[imanes]

hi imane this is super general but do u have any recommendations for learning how to cook? like good recipe websites or any general advice? I always enjoy seeing u post about ur cooking!!

hi angel actually i think a good place to start - but from way older videos than the current releases - is pro home cooks, it used to be known as brothers green eat and they basically had these cooking hacks college dorm students or people who didn’t know how to cook certain things or associate flavours which I found insightful. here’s one of their videos where one of them talks about common mistakes made by beginner cooks and how to fix them. generally I think you can learn a lot from watching cooking videos from chef john or laura vitale who explain why they do certain things a certain way, which I think is key to learn how to cook properly, or even domestic geek (i’m not a fan of her recipes but they’re very straightforward and beginner-friendly). basics with babish may not be super basic but again he walks through every step of the recipe and drop some culinary knowledge 101 throughout the process

now my dishes usually end up being good but the process is messy lmao here are some of my very super general advice:

learn the basics of proper knife skills but don’t overdo it, learn just enough to protect ur fingers from an incidental cut and take your time when you chop food

do not cook the garlic before the onion, garlic cooks faster and will end up burnt

onion, ginger and green onion are delicious together

don’t do a lot of things at the same time, better to take your time in the beginning and do one dish at a time rather than run from one kitchen emergency to the other

it’s all about trials and errors but u shouldn’t let it discourage you!

do not let anything unattended ever. sometimes I hear people like “oh it got burnt” and I ask them why come and they’re like well I sat on my couch to chill for a bit and ended up scrolling on my phone too long... don’t be that fool

if the pasta says it needs to be cooked for 8 minutes, set a timer. i am a believer of precision for certain things and technology helps u keep track of things so might as well use the timer app for it

grilled veggies are incredibly easy to make and super tasty, all u need is: vegetable, salt, pepper, dried herbs, garlic, olive oil, and an oven

don’t overcrowd the pan and try to upsize the pan rather than downsize when you’re in doubt

always salt your pasta water, as chef john says it should taste like the ocean

if you’re scared about time management, prep all your ingredients in advance by chopping what needs to be chopped and aligning all spices and condiments that need to be used so that everything is on hand. this might result in you having a lot of time between steps but it’s much better than the opposite, especially if you’re a beginner cook. tbh I still do that a lot, like i’ll leave a few things to do later or multitask with another dish but if I can I will prep as much as possible

when in doubt, go to youtube and just search “how to + keyword”, like how to cut onions, how to preserve veggies in the fridge, how to sear a steak, and so on, every answer is on youtube in short videos!

hope this helps a lil :-) good luck and ty for your message!

[bestiesenpai]

Gojo lyric challenge

I found this cute lil challenge on Pinterest! A picker wheel chose Gojo, I excluded repeating lines or else I would have gone mad, and the song I chose was medicine by shawn wasabi :)

“I’m so- so sick!” Sniffling like a toddler with a wicked cold on a Friday night wasn’t what you had in mind when you imagined how your weekend would go. Wrapped tightly in a blanket, you shivered on your couch as sweat began to form on your brow.

“How bad is it, (Y/N)?” Satoru asked over the phone, running a worried hand through his hair. You sounded awful, much worse than when he talked to you the day before. Your voice was shoddy and he could hear you breathing through your mouth.

“I’m cold sweating and I love it.” Rolling your eyes, you crumpled into the couch cushions with a groan. “One moment I’m hotter than ever, the next I’m colder than ice! I feel high, not sober.” Deflating even more, just being awake was a struggle for you right now.

“Want me to come over and bring you medicine?” His heart ached for you, and even though he was at the school it was the weekend, surely he could disappear for a few days with no issue?

“No, I don’t want you catching this.” Throwing the blanket over your eyes, you fought back the urge to sneeze. Satoru had begun speaking again but you were too busy scrunching up your nose to listen, head pounding from the effort.

“(Y/N), babe? You listeni-”

“Achoo!” Fumbling with your phone, the force of your sneeze - and the two that came after the first - was enough to push you further into the couch and fumble your phone, effectively hanging up on Satoru and dropping it between the couch cushions.

Ripping the blanket off your face, you blindly grabbed the box of tissues you left near you. There was snot pouring out of your nose, making your face irritated from all the rubbing you were doing.

Too numb to do anything else, you grabbed your phone and trudged to the bedroom, shivering with every pass of air against your face. Once in the dark room, the dull headache you had subsided slightly and you collapsed under the covers after taking a shot of cold medicine.

Tossing and turning in the night, your sickness felt like a fever dream that would never be over. With the medicine it was easy to fall asleep, but through the course of the night you woke up in a feverish fog, not fully conscious but enough to toss the blankets off your sweat covered body and then grab them again.

Waking up in the morning was a struggle, sleep still having a tight grip on you as your body tried to fight the illness. Your blankets were up to your chin, but there was sweat pooling in the ditches of your body.

Just as you were about to throw the blankets off your body and cool off, your phone began to ring, it’s incessant vibrating making the mattress shake.

“H-hello?” Fishing through your blankets, you grabbed it on the last ring.

“(Y/N)! Baby, how are you? I tried to call you back last night but you didn’t answer!” Satoru’s slightly scared voice spewed out over the phone. Taking a few deep breaths, you finally freed your body from the blankets.

“I’m wide awake in bed with my clothes on the floor.” You grumbled, looking to your side to see every article of clothing you went to sleep with in a pile. Satoru chuckled at your answer, relieved that you had survived the night without him.

“Let me come over today, please? I’ll bring some medicine and make some soup for you?”

“I don’t have anything to make soup.” Shivering as all the sweat evaporated away, you burrowed under the blankets again.

“I’ll go to the store.” Satoru answered immediately. There was a heavy pause as you thought over his answer, brain sluggish on forming words. “C’mon (Y/N), don’t leave me hanging. At least gimme a no.”

“I’m thinking.” You said with a whine, making Satoru laugh again.

“You really know how to test my patience.”

“If you come over you have to wear a mask, I don’t want you to get sick.” Now it was Satoru’s turn to whine. You could almost imagine him stamping his feet on the ground like a child and pouting.

“Fine, I’ll wear a mask. Now what kind of soup do you want, I’ll go to the store before I stop by.”

“Surprise me.” Ending the call with a curt grunt, you relaxed back into bed. There was no energy in your body, not even enough to grab the medicine off the bedside table or get a glass of water for your parched throat.

Falling back into a restless slumber, you slept through Satoru calling you once he was at the store and when he was outside your apartment. Luckily for him, he had a key to your place and was able to let himself in, tiptoeing quietly through your house.

“(Y/N)?” He called out for you, taking off his mask once he saw you weren’t in the lounge room or the kitchen. “Are you sleeping?” Walking to your bedroom, he grinned when he saw you passed out and drooling on your pillow.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Satoru fixed your blankets and moved your body into a more optimal sleeping position, one where your neck wasn’t being strained in a weird way and your head was elevated to help you breathe.

“Satoru?” All your twisting and turning had left you tongue tied, mouth feeling incredibly dry as you said his name.

“Hey sleepyhead.” Leaning a little closer to you, he grinned widely at your confused face, his eyes searching you from behind the glasses he had on.

“P-put your mask on, dummy.” Fumbling to push him away, you grabbed the mask that rested on his chin and pulled it over his face. “You’ll get sick.”

“(Y/N), I already am sick.” Fixing the mask on his face, Satoru laughed. “You got me feeling lovesick.”

“Lovesick?” Rolling your eyes at the cheesy line, you couldn’t help the smile that spread on your face.

“Mhmm, and ooh baby do I love it!” Gripping his heart dramatically, Satoru delighted in the fact he got you to laugh. Even behind his mask you could tell he was smiling like a fool as he looked at you.

“So what did-” Your question was cut off by a gross, wet cough. There was sticky phlegm coating the back of your throat, and the force of your actions had snot running down your nose a little as well.

“Here, here.” Grabbing you a few tissues, Satoru sprang up from the bed. “I’m going to make you some tea.” Nodding as he left the room, you coughed into the tissues and blew your nose loudly.

With a spinning head and wobbly legs, you pulled yourself from bed and threw the tissues away, walking blindly to the bathroom to take care of the needs that you’d been ignoring in favor of sleeping.

“What’re you doing out of bed?” Standing at your empty bedside with his arms crossed, Satoru tapped his foot impatiently as you reentered the room.

“Pee.” You said with a sniffle and Satoru immediately dropped his arms, pulling back the covers to help you lay back down.

“I bought some really strong herbal tea from the store, an old lady told me it works really well for sickness.” Picking up the mug he left on the bedside table, Satoru blew away the steam billowing from the top.

“It smells horrible.” Even with your nose blocked you could smell how strong the tea was and your lip curled in disgust.

“I know, but it’ll make you feel better.”

“I don’t want it, Toru.” Your lip formed a heavy pout and you turned away from him, turning your back on the tea that you could smell even with your face pressed into a pillow.

“Just have a little bit, I promise you’ll feel better!” Tugging on your shoulder, Satoru eventually wore you down enough to make you turn over. With watery eyes and a soft glare you took the mug and took a drink of the tea.

“Oh I love how it tastes!” Nearly gagging on the strong taste, you swallowed down a big gulp to appease Satoru. Falling back down into bed, you rubbed a hand down your face. “Happy now?”

“Very. I’ll go start on the soup.”

“Did you get a recipe from that old lady?”

“No, the internet.” Flicking your arm, he left the room. You could hear him digging through a few shopping bags and banging pots and pans in the kitchen. The longer the tea sat in your stomach, the more it warmed you up and soothed your throat. Taking another sip, you slowly got up from bed.

“Hey, what’re you doing up?” Satoru peeked at you from the kitchen, his sharp blue eyes watching you trudge to the couch with a blanket wrapped around you.

“I’m bored just laying in bed sick.” Propping yourself up on cushions, you sank into the couch with a labored sigh. “So why not be sick out here?” Satoru chuckled, mumbling an agreement before returning to the kitchen.

Twenty minutes later, the soup was done. It was a simple recipe, one that Satoru didn’t need to fuss over too much in terms of prep. Carrying another steaming cup of tea in his other hand, he sat next to you on the couch.

“Here’s the soup, and more tea.” Sitting up slightly, you attempted to take the bowl from him. “Are you sure you’re feeling well enough to feed yourself?”

“Yes.” Right as you said it, a sneeze pushed your head back, leaving your temples throbbing.

“Mmm, I’ll help.”

“Whatever.” Sitting up more so he could feed you, you tried not to look at Satoru’s cheesy grin as you ate.

“Ya know, I don’t know if I’m supposed to like it this much, you being sick and all.” He cooed, setting the bowl down to give you some tea.

“If it was up to you, I’d never be getting better.” Taking a sip from the tea, it burned your tongue and made you wince. “I want more, more of the soup.”

“Of course, my love.” Bowing his head, Satoru picked up the bowl again. “Now here comes the airplane!”

Once all the tea and soup was gone, you curled into the side of the couch. Wrapped up tightly in blankets, you weren’t really paying attention to what was on the television. There were slow or sudden conversations that you couldn’t follow, words being spoken that went right over your head.

“How could you sleep with both my father and brother?!” The soap opera character on screen shouted angrily, getting ready to throw a drink at another.

“Toru, what am I watching?” Lifting up your heavy head, you looked to the other side of the couch, where the man in question was watching the show intently.

“Hell if I know but it’s pretty interesting.” He answered with a shrug, taking a glance at you. “Hey, why’re you so far away?”

“Because I’m sick.”

“I’m lonely.” He pouted behind the mask you insisted he keep on. “I want to hug you, you’re not feeling well.”

“Don’t touch me!” You shouted to the best of your ability with a painfully scratchy throat, but it was too late. Satoru was already leaning over to your side of the couch, encroaching on your space and manhandling you to the middle to lay on him.

“It’s always worth the wait, each time we touch.” Snuggling into your blanket clad body, Satoru let out a hum.

“Satoru Gojo, let go of me!” Attempting to wiggle out of his embrace was impossible, he had too tight a hold and your body wasn’t exactly at its strongest.

Your struggling made the blanket you’d wrapped around your head fall off, exposing your face and head to the cold air. Seeing the opportunity present itself, Satoru leaned down and kissed your forehead.

“Satoru! Why’d you kiss me you’re gonna get sick!” You watched in horror as he threw his mask onto the coffee table.

“You should know by now babe, all the rules are always bending, but only for us.” With a smug grin, he gave you another kiss before you could dodge him.

“The principal will be mad if you get sick because of me.”

“Eh, let ‘im. Who cares?” Leaning back, Satoru took you with him, moving more of you into his lap. “I’ll kiss you every day and every night, no matter the circumstance.”

“You’re so annoying.” Mumbling under your breath, you cozied up into his embrace more, no longer having the energy to fight it. Rubbing a hand up and down the full length of your back, Satoru let out a hum. It was quiet between you two for a few minutes, until a tickle in the back of your throat forced your body to convulse in a strong cough.

“Oh baby.” Satoru frowned slightly, giving you a few hard pats on the back. “Have a tissue.” He stuffed a couple in your hand, watching behind his glasses with concern in his eyes. “Hey, how often should you have medicine? I don’t think you’ve had any today.”

“Gi-ve me m-medicine twice a day. That’s what the label s-said.” You answered between coughs, fighting to catch your breath.

“Okay, one sec.” Shifting you off his lap, Satoru dashed to your bedroom to grab the bottle of medicine. When he came back, your coughing had subsided, but you were mentally drained from the ordeal.

“You’re too good to me, Toru, I’ve taken up your whole day being sick.” Dabbing at your watery eyes, you noticed the distinct lack of direct sunlight coming into the room. The sun was setting behind the buildings surrounding you, casting long shadows into your home.

“(Y/N), I don’t care. I won’t leave until you get better, I’ll stay forever if you let me.”

“Forever’s a long time.” You grinned, taking the tiny cup full of medicine that he poured for you and drinking it quickly.

“You make time feel never ending.” Satoru replied, getting comfortable on the couch with you again and cuddling you in his lap.

“You’re so cheesy.” Giggling at the line, you wrapped him in a hug. “Don’t be mad at me if I keep you up at night with my coughing.”

“Keep me up, I don’t mind.” Giving you a kiss on the cheek, Satoru hugged you back even tighter. “Just gives me more time to watch these stories.” He pointed to the TV right as two characters got into a fight.

“What a wonderful doctor I have.” Rolling your eyes, you lay your head in the crook of his neck, letting the dialogue from the TV become white noise and lull you to sleep.

[mageofseven]

Now it's the younger brothers' turns ^^

The older brothers' post can be found here.

Also, just a little warning, Asmo's section starts out... well, in Asmo's specialty lol. The Avatar of Lust tries to act on said lust before the episode happens and the couple is forced to take a raincheck on it. Just a warning in case that makes anyone uncomfortable.

~

Asmodeus:

Oh boy, was this man terrified.

One minute, he was trying to have smexy time with his girlfriend, trailing down kisses from the top of her belly down towards her underwear, ready to slip it away when the episode started.

MC started screaming and hugging her belly. Since the woman was stripped of most of her clothes, Asmo had clear view of her belly, seeing each kick and jab stretch out and bruise her smooth skin.

The demon quickly jumped back from his human, eyes wide.

"D-Dolly??"

The only response he received was more cries of pain from his girlfriend.

The half naked man rushed out of the room, only to return a minute later with Satan in tow, obviously dragged against his will.

Satan's eye went wide at the scene and his face? Very red. I mean, he was just dragged in by his brother to find a mostly naked MC screaming in pain and with her belly riddled with bruises.

Doesn't understand what's going on, but the blonde makes a mental note to chew the fifth brother out later before rushing up to MC.

Starts trying out different spells on the woman, trying to figure out how to stop her pain, but only after he quickly covered her body with a blanket for the sake of his own comfort and MC's later on.

When the calming spell of all things solved the problem, Asmo pushed past the Wrath demon and wrapped his arms around the human, kissing her head over and over again, tearing up.

Any complaints that Satan shot at him in this moment were completely ignored. All that mattered to him in the moment was that his Dolly was okay.

After the couple had their moment, MC looked to Satan, blushing as she realized the state he had seen her in; that he was still seeing her in.

"I...I'm sorry about this." She said anxiously, wiping the tears from her cheek.

Satan waved away her words. It was an awkward and stressful situation, yes, but he most certainly didn't blame her.

The fourth brother asked the two of them to get dressed and meet him in his room so he could look into this matter more for them.

Discovering that MC's body was struggling with the dark energy absorption and that it was causing great distress within their son made the fifth brother beyond stressed. He tried to smile and pretend he was okay, but even MC could see the anxiety in that smile.

Becomes extremely clingy with his Dolly, more so than usual. Touching her in some way, whether with his arms wrapped around her waist, his hand holding hers, or cuddling up to her in bed, he needed her close; it was the only thing calming the anxiety choking his heart.

Satan was searching for a solution for the couple, but all the lust demon could think about was what if things got worse? What if...what if the pain got worse? What if his son hits some vital organs too hard amidst his panic episodes and ends up killing MC? Asmo was scared for his son too, but his more paralyzing fear was with his Dolly.

If he lost MC because of this...that would mean his own actions had caused the death of the only person he's truly loved in this way, the only person he's really ever opened up to and let himself be vulnerable with. If she dies...Asmo would be all alone again and the demon didn't think he could bear it.

Hearing that just talking to his son could help calm him and stop MC's pain? The man was overjoyed! Talking is definitely a specialty of his so the relief he felt at this news was immeasurable.

The next episode happened one night in his room while he was doing MC's nails. He was in the middle of painting her thumb when she suddenly flung herself into his chest and moaned in pain, tears filling her eyes.

Asmo dropped the nail polish, causing it to spill over the blanket on his bed, but the man paid it no mind.

He remembered the talk method, but didn't jumped into it right away since MC clung to him so tightly. Instead, he rubbed her back and and talked softly to her, trying to comfort his Dolly enough for her to let go.

After a minute or two, the human let go of her grip on his shirt, only to transfer it to his hand. Azzy didn't mind it all and let her squeeze it as much as she needed, but winced from the strength of it that he never realized she possessed.

Lowers his head down to her belly.

"Hey! It's okay. Go easy on your Mommy, Baby Boy."

Speaks softly and even starts gently rubbing MC's belly as he tells his son that he's causing his mommy a lot of pain, but they still love him and that everything will be okay. Tells his son that it's okay to be scared, but everything will be okay as long as he's patient and trusts his mommy. MC will absorb enough dark energy for him eventually so he shouldn't panic!

Slowly, the demon watched his son calm down, his kicks becoming less hard and less frequent till finally settling down.

Azzy kissed MC's belly a few times before rising from his knees and giving his Doll a kiss as well.

The episode ended in roughly eight minutes, but each one after that took less and less time and eventually, become almost non existent.

Asmo spends so much outside of episodes talking to his son and loving on MC's belly that the episodes almost never occur. It became a normal thing for Azzy to stop and talk to Liam as well as kiss and lay his hands on MC's belly. Their son was getting so much attention daily, feeling so loved and protected that his old panic that led to the episodes of him hurting his mother simply didn't happen like before.

Overall, one of the easier timelines for MC since she has a boyfriend who not only can express his love for their child so easily, but cannot help himself but to be a little excessive with it to the point where the problem all but disappears.

Beelzebub:

The couple was walking back from Madam Screams (MC was really craving chocolate and not only is Beely always down for some food, he's also really sweet and makes her cravings a priority) when it happened.

The woman just suddenly collapsed into her boyfriend, screaming in pain as he held her up, eyes wide.

Kept asking the human what was wrong, but she couldn't really answer. She managed to cry out about her stomach, about their babies, but nothing all that clear.

That was enough for the big guy though. He scooped her up and ran her back to House of Lamentation.

Literally broke down Lucifer's study door because he did not even stop to use the door nob. The oldest didn't even have time to get angry because MC was still crying and begging for her girls to be okay.

Lucifer had Beel sit the human on the couch before working his magic (yes, pun intended lol)

After he stopped the pain, the pride demon turned to his brother before asking various questions, trying to figure out what just happened. Beel was just as clueless as him though so the oldest merely sighed before scolding him for breaking down his door. I mean, Lucifer understood the urgency, but the door wasn't even locked 🤦‍♀️

Has Beel go take MC to lay down and send Satan her way to look into the issue before having him come back and fix the door.

So he did. He brought MC to her room and fixed the door while Satan checked her over, skimmed through book after book, and performed various diagnostic magick.

The sixth brother wanted to come back sooner and hold her hand through the process, but sadly the redhead didn't finish with the door till the tail end of the examination.

Luckily, he was right on time to hear the fourth brother's findings, hearing what happened to his Muffin and his girls.

To hear about the low absorption rate for the dark energy and his girls' fear... it broke the big guy's heart 😔

Satan said he'd need at least a few days to find a safe way to remedy the situation, but that'll be a bit of a challenge. Finding some spell or potion that's fully safe for humans and babies that can fix this problem? It was a taller order than some would think.

Though it wasn't safe in the long term, the couple was able to go to Satan or Lucifer for the calming spell to stop episodes in the meantime.

Getting the news from Satan that talking to his girls should help stop the episodes? The big guy was genuinely surprised. I mean, he's basically been talking to his girls since the very day his Muffin developed a baby bump; it never occured to him to talk to them during the episodes though.

"It's okay. Mama and Papa got you. Nothings gonna happen."

Tells his girls that they are safe in a soft, tender voice. Says that he knows it must scary, but things will get better because their Mama and Papa won't let anything happen to them.

The quickest of all the brothers. His girls were already so familiar with his loving voice that their panic died down rather quickly, ending the episode in about three minutes.

Another brother to talk to his kids outside of the episodes. I mean, he did it before he even knew it was necessary so why stop? In fact, just like with Asmo, talking to his girls became a constant daily thing. Like, MC couldn't even leave to use the bathroom without Beely kissing her belly and telling his girls that he'll 'see them when they come back'. Even little moments like that, the redhead just had to say something to his girls.

Because of the sweet excessiveness of it all, the episodes became incredibly rare, even more so than with Asmo.

Belphegor:

The two were taking a nap up in the attic room when the first episode happened.

Belphie woke up, not just from MC's cries, but from the human frantically slapping his chest, desperate for him to wake up

And boy, what a way to wake up. The sloth demon went from relaxed to panicked within a second.

I mean, he was able to keep his cool more so than Mammon or Levi, but the man was still confused and scared as hell for his girlfriend as she gripped his shirt and begged him to make the pain in her belly stop.

Trapped there by the woman's grip, the demon grabbed his phone from the stand and called Lucifer.

"I'm in the attic. Get up here now." He told the oldest impatiently.

Before Lucifer could ask questions or tell the youngest to watch his tone, he heard MC scream in pain in the background. Belphie quickly hung up and held his human close.

"It'll be okay, Butthead. Just hold out a little longer."

Lucifer was upstairs a minute later, rushing over the bed as MC let out a terrible scream. The two men could even see the painful kicks stretch out her skin even through her shirt.

The babies were extra receptive to the calming spell, even more than the babies in the other timelines, so the twins almost instantly settled within her.

MC buried her face in her boyfriend's chest, trying to calm her breathing as her tears slowed.

Lucifer started asking Belphie questions, but the younger brother didn't know much more than him. After all, he literally just woke up with the situation happening.

MC asked Lucifer if her babies were okay; they were now, but the oldest couldn't say anything else for sure.

This was when Satan was brought in and the couple learned about the slow energy absorption for their twins' souls. It broke MC's heart to hear that her twins were so scared and the woman honestly started to blame herself.

However, Belphie was beyond pissed. The babies were abusing his girlfriend because they aren't getting dark energy fast enough?

Still, the man has learned from his past mistakes. Instead of releasing his anger and flinging the blame on his kids in front MC, he left the room. He knew it would just hurt his Human more if she saw him like that.

The demon went to his own room, closed the door, and almost immediately kicked the wall, leaving a hole.

Belphie then sat down on his bed, head in his hands, and stayed silent for a minute.

Despite the thoughts swirling through his head...he knew they weren't true. This wasn't his kids' fault nor is he truly angry at them.

At this point in the pregnancy, he had already worked through his resentment of the twins because he saw that at the heart of it all, it was really just him projecting his self-hatred onto them and he knew it wasn't right. They never asked to be created; they are here inside their mom because of his own actions; his own choices

But since then, he's just had this empty space within him that he didn't know how to fill. Belphie didn't know how to feel about his kids and this situation almost made him fall back into bad thoughts about them.

Now that he's calmed down somewhat...they're all he could think about. At first, he was only worried about MC, but now that he let the whole thing sit within him, another part of it all stuck with him; his twins were scared.

Even though he didn't know how to feel about them, he chalked it up as another thing that was his fault. He... devil, no matter what, the Avatar of Sloth did not want them to feel that way.

After a couple more minutes, the man let out a big sigh and headed back to the attic to be with MC.

When the demon eventually heard from Satan about the talking method and how it could help the episodes, the seventh brother went quiet.

Belphie is simultaneously the brother who is the most uncomfortable with the method and the one who needs it the most; it really helped him grow and sort out his feelings about his kids.

When a new episode occurred and it was time to talk to his kids, the man was honestly at a loss of words at first.

"Enough. She doesn't deserve this!" He began, but then he looked up at his sobbing girlfriend's face before closing his eyes. He needs to do better; she needs him to. Belphie switched to a softer tone. "Your mom loves you more than anything...whatever it is that you guys need, you'll get it. She's not gonna let anything happen to you...I won't let anything happen to you, alright?"

Focuses on telling his kids just how important they are and how they're gonna be okay. Belphie and MC would never let anything happen to them and the man made sure they knew it.

The episode ended in about eight minutes, but they gradually finished quicker as time when on.

Originally, Belphie wasn't one to talk to his kids outside of the episodes, but sometime towards the end of the pregnancy, he sorta fell into the habit.

Only talked to his kids when MC was asleep though (or at least, when he thought she was asleep).

These talks were the main driving force for him to sort out his feelings for his kids. The demon really did love them, but the fact didn't truly hit him till they were born and he held them for the first time.

[wannabe-fic-writer]

Natasha Romanoff x Reader : Escape

Summary: The Red Room haunts you, from the moment you stepped foot inside to long after you’ve left. Truth is, you don’t think there is any escaping it.

Warnings: 18+ Violence, Depression, Mentions of Death, Smut

Chapter 2

******

The rain outside falls harder, seemingly each time lightening strikes.

Said rain pounds against your body, drenching your clothes even more, as you nail the tarp into the ceiling. Another bolt strikes through the sky, providing the perfect light to hammer in the last nail.

Watching the rain roll off the tarp instead of inside the house, you slide to the edge of the roof and jump down. Quickly going inside.

The lit fireplace heats the room perfectly, but you still shiver from your wet clothes.

The annoying sound of water splashing into a tin bucket is no longer there, so you contentedly move the bucket from the middle of the kitchen.

Admittedly you should’ve fixed that hole when you first got to the safe house a month ago, instead of waiting for a storm to hit.

But you’d been distracted and on edge and there wasn’t much else for you to do at 2 a.m.

Which is proven as you look around the wooden house with a sigh.

Before your thoughts could run wild and your paranoia could set in, you decide to go shower.

The hot water rushing down your bodies soothes you as much as it can. Yet it also makes you think.

Think about everything that’s happened in the past month.

Having travelled all the way from Germany, where you last saw Natalia, to Switzerland, to now Italy.

You didn’t really have any reason to leave the first two safe houses. But you swore HYDRA had found you, or the KGB.

Laying down each night, eyes locked on the ceiling, not an ounce of sleep greeting you. Only to jump up in a panic at the first uncommon noise and rush out of the safe house.

You’re determined, this time, to stay until it was rationally and genuinely necessary to leave.

Finally getting out of the shower, you get dressed, and go to find something to eat.

Your kitchen is horribly stocked.

Still, you manage to pull together a peanut butter sandwich.

It brings a nostalgic feeling to you. You recall all the moments you’d shared with Natasha over this very small, minuscule, snack.

******Flashback******

“Shhhhh.”

The red head beside you giggled again, this time slapping her hand over her mouth to muffle it.

With the shorter girl behind you, you peaked around the corner. Not finding any threats, you tugged her forward with your laced fingers.

The two of you slipped back into the shadows of the hallway and down to the only way out of the building(that isn’t guarded).

Having snuck this way about a hundred times, you and Natalia got to the mess hall easily. And you also easily found the food you were looking for.

With the peanut butter thickly applied, you slapped the bread together, and ripped the sandwich in half. Then offering half to Natalia and biting into yours.

“Is it good?” Natalia asked quietly, voice and eyes dripping uncertainty.

You smiled at the girl,“ try it Natty, I promise you’ll like it.”

Trusting you with her life, and blushing at the nickname, Natalia bit into the sandwich.

She chewed as you watched her cautiously. And the most beautiful smile lit up her face.

She instantly loved how salty and sweet it was. It was nothing compared to the bland soup and bread they had always served.

“This tastes amazing Y/N/N.”

You nodded, finishing your half,“ I know. You promise to keep this our little secret?”

Again the girl blushed,“ I promise.”

*****End Flashback*****

You shake your head, clearing your mind of the memory and thinking how childish it is to feel nostalgic over a sandwich.

“There better be a half for me over there.”

Knife in hand you whip around quickly at the sultry voice.

“We both know you aren’t gonna use that.” Natalia says, pushing the point of the knife away as she grabs half of the sandwich.

Heart slowing to a fairly normal pace, you lower the knife.“ What’re you doing here Natalia?”

“You don’t sound too happy to see me” The slightest hint of disappointment hidden with a playful smirk.

Standing up straight, you quirk an eyebrow,“ answers Nat.”

“I need your help.” She comes clean.“ I’ll explain on the way.”

You don’t move, which she expects.

“Natalia do you know how unsafe it is to just follow me here? I know you know they could be watching.”

Natalia frowns and truly takes in her surroundings.

The cabin in the middle of nowhere. A chair and table set in front of the fireplace, not a single decoration in sight, and your bag by the door.

She knows now how scared you still are. Even though you saw the HYDRA base blow up, and she told you it was the last, you’re still afraid of them.

You haven’t settled in and it’s clear you don’t plan to.

She can’t say she blames you. After escaping the Red Room, thanks to you, she’d always looked over her shoulder. At times, even now, she still does.

Sighing, she steps closer. You freeze up entirely when she takes your hands in hers.

How is it that years and years later, she’s still the same. Her hands are still as soft as you remember.

“There’s no one watching you Y/N. I told you before, HYDRA is done. You. Are. Safe.”

Believing her is almost a natural instinct. With her eyes boring into yours with nothing but conviction you need to believe her.

“It-” she watches you look down at your hands in hers,“ it can’t be that easy.”

She squeezes your hands,“ it wasn’t easy, trust me. But it’s true.”

“Nat I-”

“Jesus Christ! I’m sorry but Steve turned the jet off and it’s freezing out there.”

You push Natalia against the wall beside the door, knife in hand, as the figure approaches.

“Y/N-”

Natalia doesn’t finish, not in time. You’ve already trapped the intruder’s hands behind his back and held the knife to his throat.

“Hey woah, what the hell is this?” He exclaims wiggling against your body to get free.

You here someone else coming in so you kick in the back of the first intruders knees and hold the knife toward the other.

A tall blonde man walks through the door with his eyes on the ground, a cold breeze blowing past him. His hands shoot up in surrender when he looks at the current situation.

There’s a frown deeply set on his brows.

“Natasha I thought you said she was a friend.” He says to the red head.

“She is.” Natalia snips, walking towards you and taking the hand you have wrapped around the other guys neck.“ Y/N it’s okay. They’re with me. They’re friends.”

Looking from the blue eyed blonde man, your eyes connect with Natalia’s green ones. And you let the guy go.

He drops to the floor. One hand rubbing his neck as he breathes raggedly and the other holding him up.

“You-you’re lucky,” he wheezes,“ I didn’t whoop ya ass.”

“Right.” You reply after an eye roll you say,“ sorry.”

Natalia raises an eyebrow at you. It’s not often, if ever, that you apologize to people. Especially a stranger.

The blonde steps further in, finally shutting the door and cutting off the cold.

“Y/N I’m assuming.” You nod.“ I’m Steve, that’s Sam. Natasha tells us you have a skill set that could help us.”

“I’d say I do but I’m unaware of the situation.” You say, shaking his outstretched hand.

He says he’ll explain on the way which causes you to glance at Natalia. Her eyes tell you how serious this is, so you nod.

After you scoop up your bag and shut the power off, your’rewalking on to the jet with the three. To find two others inside.

The man is tinted red, clad in a tight green suit, and stretched out on a cot. Beside him sits a brunette, hand caringly rested on his shoulder.

They’re both beaten up and stuck in their own world. You leave them that way.

Steve goes straight to the pilots seat and Sam is still eyeing you and quite frankly it’s starting to make you uneasy.

Natalia sits down and pulls you down beside her. Sam sits across from you, brown eyes narrowed.

“Are we going to have a problem?” You ask leaning forward.

Sam does the same,“ I don’t know, you’re the one that choked me.”

You scoff,“ you’re supposed to be a soldier and you’re upset over a minor choking?”

“Minor choking? Is choking really considered minor to you?”

“Seeing as I could’ve stabbed you, snapped your neck, or simply slit your throat? Yes, I think choking is minor.”

“News flash, it isn’t.” He snaps.

You roll your eyes, and sit back into the chair, arms crossed,“ did you die?”

“Wh-” he stops to fix a glare at the giggling blonde beside you.

“Stop glaring are her.” You glare at him.

This catches his attention even more than your altercation did.

He smirks and leans back,“ am I sensing a little something here? Like, I don’t know, you two were more than just friends.”

Natalia stops laughing instantly and begins bickering with Sam about minding his business.

But your mind is stuck on his words.

‘You two were more than just friends.’

It couldn’t be more true.

The red head was the love of your life. She still is.

From the second they brought Natalia in and assigned you to train her you knew you were screwed.

You had trained dozens of girls before but there was something about the red head that drew you in. Maybe it was her fascination with you that hid behind her scared confusion. Or the beauty in the smiles she allowed to slip when she was with you.

Whatever it was, it was strong enough to make you ignore/forget all the teaching, beatings, and brainwashing.

Having her in the Red Room made all those incredibly shitty days a million times better.

And even after you helped her get out from under their thumb, the memories of it all kept you from losing your sanity. Or at least all your sanity.

“Hey,” a warm hand on your knee pulls you from your thoughts,“ you okay?”

When you look into her eyes, you’re hit with just how much you felt towards her. How much you still feel.

You gently place your hand over hers,“ yeah, I am.”

“Good,” her eyes search yours,“ cause I should fill you in on what’s going on and why we need you.”

******

“Uhhhh what?” You chuckle in disbelief.

Sam mumbles ‘that’s what I said’ as Steve tells you he doesn’t know much else.

Apparently Steve, Sam, and Natalia has gone to get the two other passengers, who you now know to be Wanda and Vision, when they found them being attacked by “aliens”.

The story isn’t at all far fetched, but you’re curious as to how this should involve you.

“So, aliens,” you gauge everyone’s very serious expressions,“ showed up and attacked Vision and Wanda and threatened to come back. On top of that you got a distress call from your friend and you think the two are related.”

Everyone nods.

“Right, well, I’m just trying to understand where I come in with whatever is about to happen?”

Steve shuts the jet off and stands,“ the call from our friend was a lot more distressing than you think. We’re gonna need all the help we can get.”

With that he walks off the jet.

Frowning, you look to Natalia, who can only nod and gesture for you to follow her.

You take in your sorroundings as you walk. The large buildings, the expanse of trees, and what you assume to be a lake in the back.

You also notice all the people. Everyone dressed in uniforms moving around. It puts you on edge.

Anxiety already struck you on the jet with these people you didn’t know, sans Natalia, and now there are dozens more strangers around.

“Hey,” a familiar hand slips into yours,“ there’s no reason to get anxious.”

For the first time in years, you crack a smile. Nothing major, just a little smirk almost. But it incites a smile from Natalia as well.

“I’m gonna need you to stop reading me so well, it’s a slap in the face to my training.” You joke.

“The same training I had? It works. I just know you too well to fall for it.”

You wonder if it’s possible to die and come alive all at once.

Being reminded, once again, of how important Natalia truly is to you makes your heart pound. It coming from her makes all the difference though.

There was never a moment when you hadn’t thought of Natalia. That includes wondering if she thought of you as well. Maybe, just maybe, she had never stopped thinking of you either.

You’re pulled from those thoughts when Natalia’s hand leaves yours.

You watch as she hugs the darkskin man with metal leg braces.

The man eyes everyone, gaze lingering on you, before he say,“ you guys really look like crap. Must've been a rough couple of years.”

Not having a clue what he’s referring to, you just watch the interaction. Eyes snapping to the new voice that joins

“Uh, I think you look great.” The shorter man wrings his fingers nervously,“ uh, heh, yeah. I'm back.

Silence.

“Hi, Bruce.”

You now look at Natalia, not able to read her expression as her back is to you. But her body language gives away the tension she feels.

The guy, Bruce, also tenses, eyes boring into Natalias’s,“ Nat.”

Behind you, Sam whispers,“ this is awkward.”

You frown at him, then at Natalia and Bruce,“ why is this awkward?”

All eyes fall to you.

No one says a word.

“I’m sure you guys could use a shower and some food, we’ll talk after.” The darkskin guy says, hoping to break the tension.

As everyone starts to break off, he looks at Steve then you.

“James Rhodes.” He introduces himself.

You shake his outstretched hand,“ Y/N.”

“She’s a friend of Natasha’s.” Steve explains.

Rhodes chuckles,“ didn’t know Nat had friends.”

“I take offense to that.” The blonde seemingly appears beside him, Bruce standing close behind her.

“Funny, I’m beginning to think Natasha has a lot of friends.” You remark, not even glancing at her.

Truthfully you don’t know where that quip came from. Well you do. It’s because you’re hurt.

Granted, it was unrealistic of you to think Natalia hadn’t been with anyone since you, but that didn’t stop the glimmer of hope you had that you had been her only one. Cause she’s yours.

Not once had you ever been with anyone else. You couldn’t. No one could compare to Natalia for you so it made no sense to attempt to be with someone.

But you now realize how stupid that had been.

“Would it be possible to use one of those showers you were talking about?” You ask Rhodes.

He nods, but Natasha speaks before he does.

“I’ll show you to one.” You notice her hand move toward you but she stops, instead nodding for you to follow.

“Uh Nat,” Bruce speaks,“ could we maybe talk later?”

Natasha nods to him, glancing at you first.

The silence sets over you two immediately. It lasts all the way through the halls and into a bedroom.

“Y/N I know you’re upset and I-”

“I’m not upset Natasha.”

And that gives you away faster than anything else could have.

The blonde stands up straight, hurt flashing in her eyes,“ what did you just call me?”

You sigh,“ Natasha. Because that’s who you are,or at least who you’ve become.”

Which is a fact you should’ve accepted before.

She isn’t your Natalia anymore. And it’s clear that she hasn’t been for years.

Holding on to the ideology that she hadn’t changed is why you’re so hurt. You saw how differently she moved and you know she took down HYDRA, or at least assisted. But that hadn’t necessarily meant she was completely different.

Still, you saw the way she interacted with everyone, how she spoke, and acted, and in the back of your mind you knew she had changed. But she held your hand and smiled at you the same way she used to.

Every thought you had made your head hurt and it confused you. So you stopped thinking about it.

“What’d you mean?” Green eyes shine with building tears.

“Don’t cry. Please.” You face her completely,“ you’ve changed- we both have. I should’ve known when I saw you on that rooftop.”

Natasha steps closer,“ some things have changed but I’m still me.”

“Do you really believe that? After all these years, everything you’ve been through, can you say you’re still Natalia?”

“Yes,” her hands squeeze yours,“ I’m the same person you used to sneak peanut butter sandwiches with, who you used to hold at night when the guards finally went away, the same person you kissed right before you snuck me on that train.”

She sighs at the hesitance in your eyes.

She isn’t in the least bit surprised at your reaction to all of this, but she never thought you’d doubt her.

“Admittedly I have been through a lot that has affected my character but I’m still me.”

There’s no time to reply as someone knocks at the door and Steve leans in.

His blue eyes flicker between you two and your hands.

“Sorry to interrupt but we need to talk.”

Natasha nods.

Steve disappears, leaving the two of you alone.

“I should uh, shower and suit up.” You finally say and it’s the last thing Natasha wants to hear from you.

The blonde woman needs to know that you believe her. That you still see her as your Natalia. But she doesn’t get that from you.

She just gets a lingering gaze and your retreating form.

******

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