#jays stitch bitch corner

[youaremysunshine-court]

knitters are great because they know three inches is actually quite a lot, especially when it comes to stocking stitch

[casspurrjoybell-28]

Alpha's Temptation - Chapter 22

*Warning Adult Content*

The next few days are long and harrowing.

I'm able to leave the hospital because physically I'm stitched up and starting to heal.

Mentally, on the other hand, I'm not doing so well.

I keep telling myself not to be dramatic.

Because Henry is somewhere in a coma or whatever and I'm with Lucien.

'I'm safe.'

But it's hard to feel safe. Not when the dark creeps in at night, reminding me of that dark road Henry found me on.

I have to check multiple times to make sure the window to my room is locked before I sleep, worried that Henry will climb through and get me when I'm at my most vulnerable.

And it's fine when Daemon is with me.

But it's not like he can be with me all the time.

He's busy.

And it's been strange between us since the incident.

The nightmares have become worse.

Instead of just featuring my stepfather, they feature Henry too.

Sometimes they torture me together or they take turns.

I feel stupid because all Henry did was batter me around a bit, he didn't get the chance to do the worst thing.

But here I am so anxious and paranoid over him.

I try to act like I'm fine.

Lucien and my friends check in on me constantly but I just tell them everything's okay.

I don't want to worry them, not more than I already have.

I don't mind keeping it all to myself.

Suffering in silence is what I do best.

Then the day comes when I have to stand before the Pack Council.

I have to miss school for it.

I confess everything that happened with Henry, feeling all their judgemental eyes on me as they deem whether my account adds up.

It's ridiculous, in my opinion.

It's obvious what happened.

But it's pack rules so I have to follow them.

Even Lucien can't get me out of it, despite being Head Alpha.   

After the long, invasive trial I'm finally free to go.

"You did well," Lucien tells me.

Perhaps he's trying to comfort me but all I feel is sick.

The next week at school is even worse.

It seems like everyone knows what happened, evident from the stares and whispers I get as I walk down the halls.

There's also a rumor that I actually fucked Henry, which is just revolting.

Lylah, of course, is my number one defender.

She shuts people up left and right, giving them a piece of her mind.

When some guy passes by our table at lunch and not so discreetly calls me a whore, she pounces on him angrily.

But it's like a chipmunk attacking a dog and because the guy is much bigger than her so Jay quickly pulls her off before she gets hurt.

"Fuck you, douchebag," she flips him off as his friends help him up, giving us all dirty looks as they scramble away when Jay glares at them.

After the altercation, I'm so mortified by all the attention we've brought to ourselves that I just need to get out of there.

I abruptly stand and excuse myself to the bathroom.

"Wait, Ash..." Lylah tries to stop me but I ignore her.

I just want to be alone and get away as quickly as possible.

I run out of the cafeteria to the empty halls, finally out of the scrutiny of the entire school.

I let my tears fall, wiping them into the sleeve of my sweater as I walk down a random hallway.

I'm thankful that everyone's at lunch, not wanting to give anyone a front-row seat at my pity party.

I decide to head to the bathroom so I can wash my face before fifth period starts.

"...and that little minx obviously seduced my brother so he could get him in trouble. Henry's still in the ICU from what Ash's guard-dog did to him."

I stop in my tracks as I'm about to turn the corner to the stairwell, flattening myself to the wall.

That's Trent's voice.

What shit is he talking now?

"But what about the bruises on Ash's face?" Trent's friend says.

"Hah, he probably deserved them. He's always been a fucking bitch. My brother just put him in his place."

I feel my face heat, my blood boiling at his words.

How dare he?

How dare he, after what I had to go through?

I won't stand for it.

I step out from my hiding place, making my presence known to the both of them.

"I think someone needs to put you in your place, asshole," I seethe through clenched teeth.

Trent's friend looks alarmed at getting caught and he quickly retreats down the stairs and out of sight, saying he'll catch up later.

Trent just crosses his arms, giving me a condescending snarl.

"Eavesdropping's not very classy. But I guess you can't expect class from a whore."

"Don't call me that. Your brother a-assaulted me."

"'Assaulted' you? Don't be a snowflake. I saw you that night at the game. You were asking for it coming out dressed like that."

Thinking back to what I had on, it was a cropped t-shirt and skinny jeans. But I know it doesn't matter what I was wearing.

"You're disgusting. Both you and your brother," I snap back. Trent doesn't like that.

"Watch your mouth, runt." he growls, advancing up the steps towards me.

Before I can move away, he's grabbed my arm, yanking toward him.

I flinch at the feeling, remembering how forcefully Henry grabbed at me in the back of his car.

I'm sick of these Alphas thinking it's okay to man-handle me as they like.

"Don't touch me," I hiss, violently ripping my arm from his grasp.

In the next moment, I realize I was too forceful and Trent teeters, losing his balance before falling down the stairs.

He doesn't fall completely backward, it's more that he loses his footing and slips down three steps before landing with a sickening crunch on his face.

Ouch.

I gasp at what I've done, putting my hands over my mouth as I stare with horror at the Alpha sprawled on the stairs moaning in pain.

"Ash."

I look to see Jay behind me, looking just as shocked as I feel.

From the looks of it, he saw everything.

Not long after, the school security finds us, quickly getting Trent to the nurse and me to the main office.

I've never been called in before, so it's nerve-wracking.

I expect I'm in big trouble after what I did to Trent.

It's not long before the principal, Ms. Whitaker, calls me into her office and Jay's also there as a witness.

"Do you understand that you have injured a fellow student on school grounds?" she asks me.

"Y-yes," I nod, folding my hands nervously in my lap.

"I know you have been subject to some controversial rumors the past few days but that is no excuse to lash out. We don't tolerate violence here at Shadow Creek High," she tells me.

"I u-understand. I'm sorry, I..."

"Ah-ah," she scolds, holding up a finger to silence me.

"I'm not finished. Normally, expulsion would be the consequence of an offense like this but I've decided to suspend you instead. Two weeks. You can thank your friend here for that," she smiles, batting her lashes at Jay and twirling her hair with her finger.

I look to Jay questioningly, wondering how he swayed her.

But I keep my mouth shut, thankful that she's spared me.

Because getting expelled would be terrible.

Then she goes on to tell me that she's already called Lucien to come pick me up and has notified him of my suspension.

That's the major downside to this.

"By the way, congratulations on your win last Friday, Jason. I'd expect nothing less from my school's star quarterback," she waves at Jay as we leave, acting like I'm not there. 

Jay thanks her awkwardly, bowing his head.

Once we're out of there I turn to him.

"Jay, you didn't have to do that for me," I tell him.

"No, it wasn't much. I just told her that Trent had been harassing you and that's why you had to resort to that. And that a case of Alpha on Omega discrimination wouldn't look good for the school."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's all it was," I say teasingly, wanting to lighten the situation.

"Not that you're her favorite or anything."

"Don't remind me..." Jay groans, putting a hand to his face.

"Still, thank you," I give him a strained smile, trying to hide the feeling of incoming dread I'm having.

I mean I'm lucky the situation's not worse.

That Jay followed me out of the cafeteria because of a bad gut feeling he had because if he hadn't I might be clearing out my locker right now.

But I've never messed up like this with Lucien before.

And I don't look forward to seeing how he's going to react.

Jay lingers, obviously worried about me but I assure him it's okay.

Eventually, he has to go back to class so I'm left to walk to the parking lot on my own.

Lucien's car waits to pick me up.

I trudge to it reluctantly, my hand trembling as I open the door.

He doesn't look at me when I get in.

He doesn't give me his usual greeting.

He's silent the whole way home and I don't dare speak up.

I almost think he's not going to say anything until we get inside.

I realize Daemon is there too, sitting on the sofa.

"Daemon, I thought I told you to go home," Lucien's voice is on edge.

"What happened?"

Daemon ignores him as he looks past the Alpha, his eyes landing on me. 

Lucien just shakes his head in growing irritation, turning back to me. 

"Why did you do it, Ash? Turning to violence... this isn't like you. I mean I'd expect it from my son but not from you."

I want to cower and hide as he raises his voice at me.

"I-I didn't mean to," I say, trying to defend myself.

"He was just saying all this stuff and..."

"Did he throw the first punch?"

"Well, no but he..."

"Then why the hell did you do it?" he cuts me off, not letting me explain.

He looks furious.

"He upset me."

"And you think that's good enough reason to knock two of his teeth out? The boy's parents called me and said they were able to get the teeth transplanted back in but God, Ash what if they weren't? His canine teeth, Ash. An Alpha can't be without them."

"D-Daemon would have done it," I sputter, blinded by anger.

Why isn't he letting me explain?!

"But you are not Daemon, are you? I'm starting to think he's a bad influence on you..."

"Wait, how the fuck did you reach that conclusion?" Daemon interjects, his brows creased in annoyance.

"Ash was obviously trying to defend himself."

"I don't want to hear it from you," Lucien growls.

"In fact, you two are banned from seeing each other."

"What?" I nearly shout, my heart dropping.

Not that, anything but that.

"Y-you can't do that."

"Yes, I can," Lucien's expression darkens. "It's final. And you're grounded. Now get to your room, before I lock you up in it."

I freeze.

Lock me up? 

He wants to lock me up?

No... no.

I can't go through that again.

I stare at him in horror, my body shutting down as I remember the basement I used to be chained in for days on end.

I turn around and bolt up the stairs, not wanting to see him for another second.

"Fine," I yell before I slam my door shut.

Fine, don't listen to what I have to say.

Don't hear me out about what Trent fucking said.

I hate Lucien.

I hate him so much right now.

So I take my anger out on myself.

I grab my pillow and violently shove my face into it, pressing so hard into it that there's no way for air to get through.

And I hold it.

I count the seconds in my head.

Ten seconds. Thirty seconds. Fifty seconds.

My lungs are burning.

I feel lightheaded.

It hurts.

It hurts so much but I don't stop.

I can't stop.

I reach past Seventy seconds and finally let myself breathe.

It's like a high comes over me as my body recovers, my heart beating a mile a minute as I pant dizzily.

And then I do it again.

[enchantedblackrose]

Flesh Wounds & Somedays

Flesh Wounds & Somedays

Jay Halstead/Reader

¡!Warnings: Infant abduction/kidnapping. SIDS. Violence against women. Swearing. Fluffy ending.

Still unedited, hoping to have the nice version up soon. Sorry in advance! Happy New Year's Eve, everyone! Please be safe ❤

Upon exiting the very stereotypical "mom van" you're greeted with harsh Chicago air stinging your face and it instantly makes your eyes water. You hastily blink back the tears though it's fruitless. Instead you pull the knit hat you're wearing further down your head and pull your scarf tighter. You keep the door open, huddling near the inside of the vehicle. Anything to stay warm. You scan the parking lot for any sign of your suspect. Anxiety starts setting in. It doesn't matter how long you've been doing this. The moments leading up to a confrontation always send your stomach plummeting 

"Easy now," Jay, sporting the store employee smock, whispers as he rolls a grocery cart by, indicating to your foot mindlessly tapping against the cement. Immediately you stop. You give him a small smile. He winks in response. You pretend to dig around in your purse, anything to give the impression you're distracted when in reality all your senses are in overdrive. 

Voight's voice barks your last name through your strategically placed com. "Suspect approaching from the east. You know what to do. Everyone else, stand down for now! We don't wanna spook him."

You open the back passenger door before closing the driver's. Your fingers work quickly at unfastening the baby from the seat. You then drape a blanket over the baby for protection against the cruel elements.

It's subtle, but you cannot ignore the feeling you're being watched. The reality is you are. Your whole team is looking out for you. But this is something different entirely, something sinister. You suppress a shudder. Securing the blanket once more, you hoist the baby from the carseat and hold the infant against your chest. With a push of a button, the passenger door slides shut. You fiddle with the keys, making sure the van locks before tossing them in your purse. 

You coo at the little bundle snuggled against your chest. Your steps deliberately appear hurried.

And that's when he emerges from a dark blue conversion van parked one whole row over. You spot him out of the corner of your eye and he is unmistakably walking towards you. But you stick to the plan. Your pace slows just barely, not wanting your target to sense the change. You also don't want to actually reach the store entrance and potentially bring harm to the public even with Al and Ruzek inside.

He suddenly appears in front of you, eyes frantically dart around before resting on you. He's disheveled. clothes are wrinkled and slightly stained. His greasy, unwashed black hair is plastered to his head. He smiles which unnerves you. But you return it anyway. His grin disappears. "Give me that baby. And you won't get hurt...much" He removes his right hand from his coat pocket and you notice the blade he's gripping. That's new, you think to yourself. He's growing desperate. Still, you have to get him to attempt an attack or abduction.

"No!" You pull the baby impossibly closer to you. "Leave or I'm gonna yell for help." The threat is feeble on purpose but still seems to evoke rage inside the man.

He lunges at you. His body weight sends you stumbling but you remain on your feet. He wildly pulls at your arms and at the baby, trying to break your grasp. He swings his left arm and his fist perfectly catches your eye.

"Son of a bitch!" You cry. Your foot slams onto one of his and you use that moment to headbutt him square on his chin. He lets out a primal scream before sticking the blade into your upper thigh and you can't help but yelp in pain. He tugs the baby out of your arms. The blanket drops to the ground.

You watch the changing expressions dance across his ugly face: anger, elation at his success, confusion.

"What the hell?"

It's the opening you need. Your weapon is drawn on him. "That's right, you stupid son of a bitch. The baby's fake. Chicago PD! Get down, face down."

Still in his stupor, he obeys. You kick the blade away just as Antonio and Jay come running from opposite directions. Antonio searches and mirandizes him. You return your gun to its inside waistband holster.

As your adrenaline begins to slow, you feel exactly how much pain you're in. It's evident that your eye has started to swell and there's a throbbing sensation in your thigh. You stagger a bit, but a pair of strong arms steady you. 

He sighs and you look at Jay. "Don't start," you warn. 

"I should have been there. I ended up carrying groceries for this old lady..."  Guilt is written all of his handsome features.

"Did she tip you?" You joke, but he stares at you. "Stop. We knew this might happen. He had to attack me." The rest of the team appears and Jay drops his voice to a whisper.

"Yeah, attack like come at you, not actually harm you." He looks as if he's about to argue more when the sound of tires squealing interrupts.

You flash concern. "He wasn't alone." Your eyes meet those of your colleagues.

Voight breaks the silence. "Antonio, get that piece of garbage out of here.Halstead, get her to Med. The rest of you let's head back." You open your mouth to protest, but Hank won't even let you get a word in. "That leg's gonna need stitches. Now go." He stares at you until you move. Jay lends his support as you gently lean into him. It's not as needed as it is comforting. 

//

You were seen and stitched in no time; the wound to your thigh was mostly superficial. Your swollen eye, which was now bruising, was being iced. You would have left Med sooner if your weirdly overcautious boyfriend hadn't insisted that his own brother see you before checking out. It took Will saying it, but Jay finally seemed to accept you were, in fact, fine.

You want in that interview room more than you've wanted anything in a long time.

"Absolutely not," Voight answers when you ask. "This guy doesn't respect women. I don't need you going in there so he can admire his handiwork." He waves a hand indicating to your black eye you're still icing. Hank returns to the observation window to watch Antonio and Atwater interrogate a very non talkative perp.

You remain in the bullpen with Adam, Jay, Mouse and Alvin to stare at that damn board some more.

Alvin recaps; all of you hoping to discover something, anything at all, that could help solve the case. 

"Here's what we know. 2 or more suspects working to abduct infants. 1 in custody. Greg Jones. Couple of parking tickets, nothing too serious. Attempted three abductions, not including today's, in broad daylight, over the course of two weeks. Only one was he successful, if you call it that, but the infant was later abandoned at Firehouse 51."

You interrupt. "That baby left at 51, was a boy, right?"

Al double checks before answering,  "Yeah."

"The other two attempts were on baby girls," Jay adds, possibly sensing where your mind is going.

You nod. "And today, I had a lavender blanket to cover the doll. One would probably assume it was for a baby girl. Just hold on a sec. Mouse," you holler over to him, knowing he'll pull up what you want faster than anyone. "Check hospital records and obituaries, plesse! Any infant deaths in the last month? Can you look into Jones' social media, too? Girlfriends and such." You've hardly finished the request and Mouse has the information for you. "How many of the babies that died were girls?"

"Two."

"Do you have the mothers' names? Any link to Jones?"

Mouse 's eyes scan the screen in front of him. "Tiffany Young...girlfriend of Jones according to Facebook, lost her baby girl last month."

You nearly hop up from your seat. "Text us her last known." You nod to Jay, asking without words if he's ready. Before you can walk away, Mouse calls your name.

"She was reported missing three days ago." 

The whole team exchanges uneasy glances.

//

In a bizarre turn of events, Tiffany Young had reported herself missing. Jones and Young had been working together to abduct a baby girl with a plan to then flee the state. You and the team discovered that Young was conspiring against Jones going as far as plotting his murder to take place after a successful kidnapping. He would look responsible for her disappearance and his death would appear as a suicide. At least in theory.

It wasn't the best thought out plan, but in these situations they seldom were.

"I still don't understand," said Adam. You were all gathered around a large table at Molly's trying to relax after a long day. Well not all, Antonio made arrangements to see his kids. Al had also rushed off. "Why plan to off Jones?"

"She blames him for their daughter dying." You say taking a sip of your drink. "I read the report, even though it was SIDS, he was the only one there at the time." Everyone is quiet for a moment, presumably lost in their own thoughts.  It takes Herrmann coming around, asking who wants another round for the conversation to resume. 

Thanks to the refills and a few well timed jokes, the mood of the night has drastically shifted to a much happier one. An hour or so goes by when Jay lightly squeezes your knee under the table. You understand the gesture, surprised that he's waited this long to signal his want to leave. Jay hadn't really wanted to go out in the first place. "I'm gonna head out," you tell the group standing  only when you've finished the last of your drink. There's a chorus of goodbyes. As you walk away, you hear Jay excuse himself to use the bathroom. You know he'll leave for your place afterwards. Neither of you know exactly why you keep the fact you're dating from your friends. Maybe the sneaking around is thrilling. Maybe it's just nice having something of your own. Regardless, it's the worst kept secret of the precinct, though no one has any proof and they ultimately leave you alone about it.

You've only changed into a tee shirt when a knock beckons you. You let Jay in. The door has just closed and he's ordered you to take your pants off.

"We need to work on your foreplay," you quip, but Jay's not laughing.

"I'm serious. I need to see again that you're okay."

You sigh, but shimmy out of your jeans. His genuine concern for you was slightly overwhelming in the best way, never having experienced anything like it before. Carefully, you pull back the adhesive bandage exposing your fresh flesh wound, still very bright pink and aggravated. 

"I'm so sorry," he murmurs. 

"It's not your fault," you say, trying to reassure him.

"I hate that you were hurting and I couldn't do anything." He pulls you for a tight embrace while mindful of your thigh. He's completely still for a moment, breathing you in and finding peace in your arms.

Suddenly, he picks you up off your feet. It catches you off guard and you giggle. "What are you doing?"

He doesn't answer. Instead he takes you to the bathroom and sets you on the counter near the sink. He starts rummaging through your medicine cabinet, pulling out gauze, bandages, and rubbing alcohol. He grabs a clean washcloth from the towel rack.

You raise one eyebrow in question. "I thought I had Detective Halstead, not Doctor."

"Tonight you have both." You bit down on your lip to keep from laughing, but the misconstruction of his words hit him. "That came out wrong. That's not at all what I meant." Laughter escapes from you and Jay joins in, shaking his head and telling you to keep your mind out of the gutter.

"Mm, it's difficult when you're around." You give him a quick peck on the lips.

He turns the warm water on, letting it run for a minute. He tests it, making sure it's not too hot before soaking the wash cloth. He rings it out and looks you in the eyes. "I'm not sure this is going to feel all that great.'

You nod your understanding and Jay very gingerly begins to clean your wound. You talk to keep yourself distracted. "I can't stop thinking about the case. Clearly, they're competent for trial and I'm not justifying what they did, or tried to do. But I can't imagine losing a baby. Just the thought…" Your voice drops off. You wish you could leave work at work, and sometimes you can, but tonight when you're struggling to do so, you feel extra fortunate to have someone who truly understands.

Jay has almost finished cleaning your wound, allowing it time to breathe before covering it with a fresh bandage. "I know," he says. "I kept thinking about if that had been us and our baby, what would stop me from going crazy."

Your heart flutters a little faster, "Our baby?" It's the first time he's ever said anything like this.

He suddenly avoids eye contact with you. "Yeah? I mean someday...down the road if we are still...and that's something we...you want...maybe?" His cheeks are flushed and he glances at you, his green eyes full of hope.

"Jay Halstead," you offer him a big smile, "have you been thinking about our someday?" He nods, giving you a smile of his own. You wrap your legs around his waist, pulling him close to you. One of his hands rests on the countertop, the other lovingly brushes your cheek before you nuzzle into the spot just below his neck. You plant a kiss there. "Tell me more about your plans."

"Well they definitely don't include you getting stabbed again," he pulls away just enough to cover your thigh with the new bandage. A slight pout plays at your lips having not gotten the answer you wanted. Jay, seeing this, chuckles. "C'mon." He lifts you off the counter, carrying to the bedroom. 

Gently, he places you onto the bed. You watch as he kicks off his shoes and strips down to his boxers. He catches you admiring his physique and shoots you a wink. But you pretend to still pout and cross you arms. It causes Jay to shake his head, bemused by you. 

Pulling the covers back, he slides into bed and brings you to his side. He kisses the top of your head, fingers tracing a nonsensical pattern along your arm. "I see lots for us, love. So many ways things could play out, but it's always with you at my side."

"Yeah?" 

"Oh yeah, definitely," and with that Jay launches into different versions of the future he's envisioned. Some are improbable, others imaginative, many seem possible, but all include you, just as he said.

[babbushka]

Mind & Soul (6/10)

The story of how one man fell out of love and into it again

Charlie (Marriage Story) x Reader

6.8k ; Warnings for angst, mentions of stitches (but there’s some sweet family fluff in here too don’t worry lol)

Tumblr masterlist for previous chapters // Available on AO3

                                                 -----------------

Time after time I tell myself that I'm

So lucky to be loving you

So lucky to be

The one you run to see

In the evening when the day is through

 Charlie thinks that if he never steps inside a courtroom ever again, it’ll be too soon.

He’s sitting on his side, and Nicole is sitting on hers, between them are asshole lawyers that Charlie knows he can’t trust. He can’t, and yet he has to, has to trust that this jerk will say the right things, do the right things, to help him win. He doesn’t think he’s winning, but he just has to trust.

He doesn’t trust anyone but you.

Charlie is sitting on his side, and Nicole is sitting on hers, and you’re up at the witness stand. It’s surreal to have you there, he thinks. Surreal to see you dressed so nicely for court.

If he thinks about it, he knows that you go to really important meetings, he knows you need to dress up for pitch presentations, he knows. But he’s only ever seen you casual, only ever seen you undone. There’s something delicious, about seeing someone so casual, be so dressed up. You’re in a very smart suit, you look more put together than Nicole does. Charlie wonders what that says about her, if it says anything at all.

He doesn’t bother to look at her and gauge her reaction to the way you swear to tell nothing but the truth, although he can imagine the sharp betrayal she must be feeling. Good, he thinks, let her be betrayed, let her have a taste of her own medicine.

He doesn’t bother to look at her, not when his eyes are glued to you.

“Please state your name.” Charlie’s new lawyer, Jay approaches the stand, begins his examination of your testimony.

“(Y/F/N), (Y/L/N).” You say easily, meeting his gaze evenly.

“Ms. (L/N), why are you here?” He asks, formalities, protocol.

“I’m here to act as a character witness, on behalf of Mr. Barber.” You reply, and if Charlie listens he can probably hear Nicole’s jaw clenching.

Once upon a time, you and Nicole had been friends. Not nearly as friendly as you had been with him, but still. Friends. And now here you are, siding with him.

“And why should we take your recommendation of Mr. Barber’s character into consideration at all?” Jay shrugs, crosses his arms as if he’s showing the judge that he won’t go easy on you just because you’re on his side.

“The Barbers moved into the house next door to mine, and over the course of the two years they lived there I acted as a baby-sitter for their son, Henry.” You explain.

Somewhere in the background, the stenographer types away, her nails clicking on a keyboard that doesn’t make any sense to Charlie. He’s laser focused on you, tries not to think about those two years, tries even harder not to think about how he spent half that time fucking you.

He knows the judge can’t read minds, but sometimes the way the judge looks at Charlie says otherwise.

“So it could be said that you were privy to observing the Barber’s family life.” Jay asks, and you have a little knowing smile that quirks up the corners of your mouth.

Charlie sweats, watching you up on the stand, tries not to think about just how privy you were, tries not to sweat.

“I wouldn’t say observing in any conscious sense, but yes. When you live next door to someone you become friendly with them. Certainly when you become their babysitter, you become friendly with the child.” You smile coolly, innocently, genuinely.

And that was the big thing, wasn’t it? That you were genuine, always, in all things. That’s what had drawn him to you initially, that sincerity. As a friend, as a babysitter, and as a lover.

“Who asked you to babysit?” Jay asked, because this was really the most credible part about your testimony, the babysitting.

“Mr. Barber, I only ever really spoke to Mrs. Barber in social settings.” You replied honestly.

“Did Mrs. Barber speak of Henry often, in those social settings?” Jay asks, the leading questions already beginning.

“Objection your honor, leading the witness.” Nora, Nicole’s bitch of a lawyer stands up then.

“Sustained, the witness is to provide testimony on Mr. Barber, not Mrs.” The judge nods, making Nora sit down with a smile.

“Alright, then did Mr. Barber speak of Henry, outside of the conversations where he asked you to babysit?” Jay asks, and you nod quickly.

“Yes, very much so. We spoke about a lot of things, you know. But he was always very very proud of Henry. He would pull out his phone and show me pictures, of Henry or drawings that he made, that sort of thing. He was always a very proud father.” You reply.

“How frequently did you babysit for the Barbers?” Jay asks, just trying to form a narrative. Charlie knows this, but if he thinks about it, if he thinks of all the times he’s asked you to watch Henry simply so that he can come over to your house and steal a kiss or two (or twenty) upon picking him up, if he thinks too loudly then the judge will hear.

“About once a week, on nights where rehearsals were running late at the theater company, or they knew they’d be in meetings, that sort of thing. The odd party now and again.” You brush it off as if it were nothing.

But it isn’t nothing, it isn’t.

“Once a week is fairly often, I imagine you grew quite close to Henry.” Jay prompts.

“Oh yes, I like to think he trusts me. He’s so bright, that boy, and he picks up on a lot, you know? Sometimes if Mr. and Mrs. Barber had a fight, he’d find some subtle way to ask why grownups have to be mean to each other. Or when Mr. Barber was told to sleep on the couch a couple months before Nicole left, he would ask why parents don’t always sleep in the same bed.” You say pointedly, trying to make the point that she left. She left.

“Did Mr. and Mrs. Barber have fights often?” Jay asks, as if this is new knowledge to him.

“Through the entire time I knew them, yes. They fought often.” You nod, chewing your lip.

“Did any of these fights turn physical?” Jay asks, but your eyes widen at the thought, at the implication that Charlie would do anything like that.

“No, not to my knowledge. Just, raised voices. I mostly heard Mrs. Barber yelling, when the fights would happen. There was a lot of yelling at Mr. Barber.” You say and you fidget with your hands for a moment, before continuing, “I try not to listen but, the houses are so close and sometimes the fights would be very late, so the sound wasn’t drowned out by the traffic.”

“Ms. (L/N), what can you tell us about Mr. Barber, his character.” Jay says, wanting to get to the point. “It’s clear that you’re someone around him, around his child. It’s clear that you’ve seen the way he interacts with his family. If you were to make a judgement call, how would you describe him?”

“Mr. Barber is a very hardworking man. He’s the type of person who remembers to take care of everyone that depends on him, he remembers things about the people who depend on him, and even about the people who don’t. He is the kind of father you wish every child has – compassionate and playful, but strict in the right ways.” You say, try to keep it as much to the point as possible. 

“He is well respected in the community, is active in both the theater sphere as well as locally. I’ve never seen him lash out or become violent, in all honesty I don’t think I’ve ever heard him yell in an angry way. His son loves him very much.”

You look right at Charlie when you say that last part, and Charlie has to look away, because he can’t help but feel the tight ache in his chest at the mention of Henry’s love, not now. Not when there’s such a possibility of losing him that he can nearly hear the goodbyes.

“No further questions, your honor.”  Jay says, before returning to his seat next to Charlie.

Nora stands up then, and Charlie nearly wants to hold his breath, but you don’t. You look at her evenly, and Charlie thinks you’re so brave for that, that’s not something he’s still managed to do.

“Ms. (L/N) this is all well and good, but I’d like to bring up the fact that a primary reason that you are here, is because on the night of a home-visit by the state-sanctioned case worker to observe Mr. Barber and his son, you were present.” She says, as if this is a bad thing, as if you’re breaking some sort of rule.

“Yes, I was.” You reply, your shoulders square and your chin raised.

Because, yes, you were.

                                                -----------------

The next day felt like a blur, to Charlie. He woke up with you by his side, kissed you for what felt like an eternity before the alarm even had a chance to ring. He held you in his arms, and for the first time in a long time, woke up with a smile on his face.

He asked you to stay in bed while he went down and made breakfast for Henry, got him dressed and ready for school, and when he came back home from dropping him off, you were still there.

He had hoped that you’d let him crawl back into bed, settle himself against your naked body, let him have a drink of the sweet wine that spilled forth from your lips. But you only eyed his arm, the cut which stung, which needed proper stitches.

So to the hospital you had went, and stitches he had gotten, and after a normal amount of painkillers he had fallen back asleep with his head next to yours on the pillow, dreams a swirling mess of colors and sounds.

He doesn’t remember what they are, when he wakes up. It’s late, in the afternoon, he can tell. Can tell by how rich the sunlight is coming through the window. Maybe it’s three o’clock, he doesn’t know, he can’t see the numbers right now, eyes half-closed still.

You come into the room gently, upon hearing him rustling. You’re so beautiful, he thinks, as he carefully opens his arms for you, groggy and yet still so pleased to see you.

“You’re still here.” He says. He’s not so sure that he hadn’t dreamt your being there, the pain medication addling his system just a little.

“Mhm,” You smile, sitting on the edge of the bed and teasing, “Good morning.”

You reach a hand out and softly brush your knuckles against his cheek. Charlie grasps your hand and gives it a little tug, pulls you down down down until your noses are touching, until he’s nearly smiling against your mouth.

“Can I kiss you a little?” He asks, and your smile lights up his entire world, when you flash your pretty teeth at him.

“Yeah, but then you’ve got to go pick up Henry from school. They’ll freak out if you’re late, it won’t look good for you.” You whisper, rubbing your lips over his, the ghost of a kiss, the ghost of a touch.

“I know, will you come with?” He chases you, careful of the stitches in his arm as he maneuvers you onto your side, on top of the covers.

“Nah, I’m going to stay here, I’ve got to get the most kick-ass dinner made for tonight.” You smile again, and Charlie lets his eyes close in gratitude as your mouth opens for him.

Kissing you is almost as intoxicating, as dangerous as the painkillers. They’re out of his system now, he can feel it from the twinge in his arm, the sting of it. But he doesn’t need them, not when your tongue is so hot against his, not when your hands roam over the width of his body. He wants to have sex with you, but there’s no time today, not right now.

That’s alright, he thinks. Soon this will be over, and you two can have all the sex you’d like. He huffs out a little laugh, post-dream-glow starting to fade only to be replaced with the euphoria of kissing you.

“You’re literally a life-saver, you know that?” He grumbles against your lips as he stretches the sleep from his calves. His nap is over, he knows, he’s got to go get Henry, he knows. But he doesn’t want to leave your side, not right now.

He never knows when the next time he might get you will be.

“I do, but tell me anyway.” You smirk just a little, before sitting up once again, detangling yourself from him. You give his cheek a playful little pat and attempt to lure him out of bed with your body and, “Come on, you’ve had your kisses.”

Charlie sits up too, and for the first time really takes in the sight of the bedroom around him. The last time he was here, it hadn’t even had a bed. Now it was fully furnished to his tastes, and he remembers, he knows you’re the one who did that.

“Do you like it?” Charlie thinks aloud, abruptly.

“What honey?” You ask, rifling through the closet, tossing some clothes onto the end of the bed for him.

“The house.” He says nervously, palms gone clammy for a minute. “You know, do you think it’s nice?”

He hopes you do, hopes Henry does.

Hopes the social workers does.

Hopes the judge does.

But most importantly, he hopes you do.

“It’s a gorgeous home, Charlie. I was impressed even when it was empty, but you know that.” You reply.

And of course he knows that, because you were there with him when he bought it, the house. You were the one who helped him look for a month, when Nicole had made her grand return and served him the papers. They had to sell the house, he needed a new one, and you had helped him find this place.

“I bought it for you, for us.” Charlie says, and he doesn’t know if it’s the way he can just be so himself around you, or maybe it’s the fear of rejection that makes him so overly casual about it, he doesn’t know. But he doesn’t look at you when he buttons on a crisp white shirt, “I was hoping, after all of this, you and me and Henry…we could all live here. If it works out that way.”

“Do you really mean that?” You ask quietly, stunned.

“I really do.” Charlie swallows around his nerves, immediately rushing to say, “But I don’t want you to think I’m pushing you to do it or anything – ”

“You’re not being pushy.” You shake your head, sitting down on the edge of the bed, lightly picking at nothing on the comforter before admitting, “I’d really love that. I’ve sort of, well. I’ve selfishly started thinking of this as my house too.”

“What will you do about your house in the old neighborhood?” Charlie tries tries tries not to jump and scream and shout with joy, tries to keep it cool, tries to keep himself rational. “I don’t want you to uproot yourself.”

“I’ve been thinking about selling it for a long time, to be honest.” You smile sadly.

“Really?” He frowns, the very thought of you being too far away making him nervous, worried.

“Yeah, I’ve sort of outgrown it.” You shrug, blinking away tears of relief at Charlie’s want of you, “I wasn’t thinking of moving far away or anything! But just into a bigger space, a blank canvas. Somewhere with an office. I’m so tired of working at the dining room.”

“There’s space here, you could have an office here.” Charlie says, tucking his shirt into freshly ironed pants.

“I could.” You say with a smile, you ironed those pants.

“I love you.” Charlie says, simply because he has to.

“I love you too.” You reply, because you can. And then, when Charlie’s all dressed, you lean in for one more kiss, one that Charlie lets himself get lost in, before you pull away with a devious smile and a, “Go get Henry.”

                                                  -----------------

I only know what I know

The passing years will show

You've kept my love so young, so new

And time after time

You'll hear me say that I'm

So lucky to be loving you

 You’re in a damn good mood, in the kitchen. There’s music playing off the bluetooth speaker, volume turned up high enough that it fills the whole house as you cook up a storm. While Charlie had napped off the pain from his stitches, you’d browsed the internet for the most impressive recipes you could think of.

Nothing too flashy, nothing that says you were trying too hard, but definitely something nicer than a simple box meal, or something. You wanted this social worker to see how well cared for Henry was, home cooked meals and maybe if he’s good, there’s a chocolate cake you need to frost cooling by the oven.

You whistle along to bright jazz, trumpets and saxophones harmonizing with the sizzle snap crackle pop of spices and vegetables in the skillet, fat rendering away into thick sauces for this grand dinner.

You’re wearing a nice outfit, made sure Charlie had been dressed nice too. You knew how important this was for him, you knew how important it was to come across as put together as possible. Henry had a good thing going here, you needed to prove to her. He had a huge house, all his toys. Friends from school could come over and play in the backyard, you and Charlie would be there to make them all food the way that you did when Nicole was gone and away for those six months.  

This wasn’t about you, you shake the thought from your head. No matter how idyllic of a picture it painted, you knew you were here to help make the case for Charlie, for Henry. You loved them both so deeply, cared about them so much, you had to help. You can think about being a family together again after Charlie wins the case, after Charlie is told he can officially keep his son.

Because isn’t that what you had become, a family?

The kitchen smells incredible, and you’re thanking the insanely long recipe for that, thanking the random food blogger you had stumbled upon.

You add a pinch more salt, before wiping your hands down on the kitchen towel that’s slung over your shoulder the way Charlie tends to do. The music is loud and happy, and you’re in a good mood – until you hear the doorbell ring.

Shit! You think to yourself, casting a glance to the clock above the oven. It’s only four o’clock, you hadn’t been expecting anyone until five at the earliest. You scramble to get yourself presentable, calling out, “Just a second!”

You make sure that the stove is set low enough that nothing burns in the few minutes that you need to step away from it, slipping your feet into short heeled house shoes, smoothing down your hair. You make your way through the big gorgeous house and open the door, smiling at a woman in a nice grey pant-suit.

“Hello, my name is Katherine Gonzales, is this the residence of Mr. Charlie Barber?” The social worker checks her clipboard, clearly surprised that you’re there.

“It is! Please forgive me, we weren’t anticipating you until a little later, Charlie’s just picking Henry up from school now.” You offer her a hand to shake and a warm smile, “My name is (Y/F/N) (Y/L/N), please come in, make yourself comfortable.”

You stand to the side and she steps into the house, you close the door behind her. You wince, the music is still so loud, and you quickly pull out your phone to try and lower the volume. You hope you don’t look as frazzled as you feel, as you walk her back to the kitchen.

“Ms. (L/N) – ” Katherine starts, but you laugh good-naturedly.

“Please, call me (Y/N).” You ask, halfway wanting to make that old Ms. L/N was my mother, joke, but thinking better of it.

“Of course, (Y/N).” Katherine corrects herself, standing kind of awkwardly in the kitchen. “Pardon my bluntness, but I wasn’t aware you’d be part of the evening.”

“I’m very sorry, it was a last minute decision. Henry asked that I be here, and well.” You assumed your spot by the stove, giving the stir-fry a nice zhuzh so the vegetables don’t get too charred. “I didn’t think it’d be fair to say no to him, during all this.”

“I understand. And are you and Mr. Barber…?” Katherine prompts, making your heart flutter.

“Oh just friends.” You lie easily. It was an easy lie to make of course, you’d made it a thousand times over the course of a year and a half, “I used to live next door before he moved into this house. Ever since the separation, I’ve been helping out. It takes a village, and all that.”

“That it does.” Katherine concedes, looking around the house.

She’s got a great poker face, if she’s impressed you can’t tell. But how could someone not be? With the open floor plan and high vaulted ceilings, the chandeliers, the tall wide windows that let the light spill in beautifully?

“Can I offer you anything to drink? Really I’m so sorry, they should be here any minute.” You say, checking the clock again.

“If you had any bottled water?” Katherine smiles apologetically but you nod happily, go over to the fridge.

“I’m afraid I’ve only got sparkling, is that alright?” You pull out a bottle of Perrier, and thankfully, she’s the kind of person who drinks that sort of thing.

“Yes of course.” She accepts it with a, “Thank you. Do you cook dinner for Charlie and Henry often?”

You smile about the thought, about cooking for them. The truth of the matter was yes, you did. For six months you all cooked together, ate dinners together nearly every day. In many ways, this felt like falling back into the old routine, the comfort of familiarity making you smile some more.

“Sometimes, yeah. I work from home, this house is only ten minutes away from their old house where I live, so it’s easy for me to help out.” You try to appear as only a good friend, nothing more. You wouldn’t do that to Charlie, you think, you wouldn’t compromise this with your own musings. The timer dings then, and you happily pull out an appetizer from the oven, transferring it to a serving platter on the island. “Here, please have whatever you’d like.”

“I already ate, really I’m fine.” Katherine says out of politeness, but you see right through her.

“Oh but I made it special.” You frown, looking at the beautifully crispy bubbly cheesey dip.

“Well if you insist.” Katherine smiles, and you smile, and you think that maybe she’s only so severe because she has to be, maybe you’ll be okay, maybe you’ll get through this and on the other side there’ll be some positive news.

Katherine has had exactly three tortilla chips when the front door opens and the comforting peace of the kitchen is disrupted by the loud sounds of laughter.

“Ha! I win!” Henry is out of breath from it, bright belly laughs that immediately bring a smile to your face.

“Oh no you don’t -- !” You hear Charlie reply, and then some sort of playful scuffle.

“That must be them, they always race to the front door.” You explain to Katherine who is already writing down stuff on her clipboard, already making notes.

“Hey something smells good.” Henry bounds into the kitchen, throws his arms around your middle for a hug and a, “Hi (Y/N)!”

“Heyheyhey, shoes off.” Charlie calls after him by the front door, his voice stern yet kind. You can imagine him running a hand through his hair, toeing out of his own sneakers.

Henry gives you an exaggerated look that’s got you stifling a laugh as he steps out of his shoes and runs them back to the front door in just his socks, before coming back into the kitchen.

“Hi kiddo, how was school today?” You greet him properly as you let him peer into the skillet for what they’re having.

“It was good – hi, I’m Henry.” He takes notice of the social worker finally, offers her a hand to shake in the way that you know he must’ve learned from Charlie.

“Hi Henry nice to meet you, don’t mind me I’ll just be over here.” Katherine takes his hand and gives it a firm shake.

Kids always had a funny way of showing their manners, you think as Henry does just ignore her and turn back to you immediately upon the permission to do so.

“I was asking dad if I could enter the science fair this year, would you help me?” He asks, eyes wide. His hair is getting long, you think, because he keeps blowing it out from his eyes.

“Science fair huh? What sort of experiment are we thinking?” You ask happily, tending to dinner.

“Something with legos, dad says there’s tons of stuff to do with them.” Henry goes to the fridge and gets water from the filter, chugs it down. You smile and shake your head, they really must have ran ran to the door this time.

“Why don’t you go set the table and we talk about it while we eat.” Charlie hints as he comes into the kitchen, looking handsome as all hell. He too shakes the social worker’s hand, voice warm when he greets her. “Hello, pleasure to meet you.”

“Katherine Gonzales, you must finally be Mr. Barber.” Katherine smiles, and Charlie winces.

“I’m sorry, if I had known you’d be here earlier I’d’ve – ” He starts, but Katherine only waves it away.

“Not to worry. (Y/N) was keeping me company.” She says kindly, before taking her purse and clipboard. “But really, just go about your business as usual. I’ve got to just do a little walk through of the place before dinner, you won’t know I’m here.”

Charlie nods, and when Katherine is out of sight, he sidles up next to you, wraps his arms around you from behind for a moment. He steals the softest kiss against your cheek before stepping away and asking, “How can I help?”

“Nah there’s nothing to do, why don’t you and Henry go wash up?” You ask after him, “How’s your arm feeling?”

“Stings but I’m okay.” He swoops down for one more secret kiss that has you laughing, has you pushing him off of you playfully in case Katherine comes back and sees. He grins, is in a good mood as he claps his hands together and goes into the dining room, “Henry! Great job honey, come on we need to wash our hands otherwise we’ll get sick, let’s go.”

                                                  -----------------

Later, when everyone is washed up and dinner is served, the three of you sit at the dining table. Charlie, being big man of the house and all, sits at the head, with you and Henry on either side. You don’t know where Katherine has gone, but you know she must be close by watching, listening. You and Charlie had both been worried that maybe Henry would act differently, or strangely with her being there, but it seems as though he’s already forgotten about her.

Or at least, for the moment.

“Alright so tell me about this science fair.” You smile as Henry serves himself a big helping of potatoes.

“Um, I know what I want to do but I’m worried about it and messing it up so I was wondering if you and dad would help me.” He says apprehensively, and you frown.

“Why worried, because of the reading?” You ask softly, not wanting to upset him.

“Yeah.” Henry sighs, pushing a fingerling potato around on his plate.

“Has someone been giving you trouble about it?” Charlie frowns now too, concerned, wondering why Henry didn’t say anything earlier.

“There’s this girl, Jenny Henderson. She was making fun of me in the library today during media.” Henry explained, and you and Charlie immediately look at one another.

“Is Jenny in your class?” Charlie asks, jaw clenching, already wanting to get up and call the teacher, wanting to call someone.

“No, she’s in the gifted class.” Henry shakes his head, takes a big sip of water.

“Was she saying anything to you or just…?” You prompt gently.

“She pointed and laughed to her friends.” Henry looks at you, and then at Charlie, and then back down at his plate, voice very small when he says, “And then her friends laughed. She called me dumb.”

Charlie puts down his silverware with enough seriousness that Henry looks up at him with wet eyes.

“You are not dumb. Everyone learns at their own pace, and everything has their own strengths. So what if Jenny Henderson can read more advanced books? That doesn’t make her better than you. And in fact, because she made you feel bad about it, means that she’s definitely not better than you.” Charlie goes to get up, puts his napkin on the table. “I’m going to call up the school and – ”

“No!” Henry says suddenly, “No don’t, that’ll only make things worse.”

You and Charlie look at each other, torn with what to do.

“Honey we aren’t going to sit by and do nothing. She needs to know that there are consequences for her actions. People aren’t allowed to make others feel bad like that.” You say, and remembering how often kids made you feel like garbage at school, knowing Charlie must remember it too. You don’t want that for him, neither of you do.

“But what if she gets mad?” Henry asks sadly.

“Then you tell me, and I’ll handle it, okay?” Charlie says seriously, wanting his son to know that he’ll always be there for him. Charlie sits back down, puts the napkin back on his lap, picks up his silverware again. “How about I wait until Monday, we can call together.”

“Okay.” Henry nods, feeling infinitely better already. You can tell just by the way he’s not hunched in on himself, sitting upright and actually eating happily.

“Since it’s Friday, what do you say we leave homework until tomorrow and do something fun after dinner?” Charlie asks, to get him into a better mood.

“Can we start the project? I can go get my legos!” Henry perks up immediately, looking between the two of you.

“That sounds like a plan to me – but heyheyhey finish your dinner, (Y/N) worked hard on it.” Charlie chuckles as Henry nearly gets up to go bolt.

He sits back down with a sheepish smile, but you only give him a friendly wink to let him know it’s all okay.

No matter what, it’s all okay.

                                                  -----------------

Charlie steels himself for this, for the grilling.

Nora has approached the stand and is walking back and forth in front of it with her hands steepled together like he’s got something up her sleeve. Charlie doesn’t like it, and neither do you.

But you’re strong, so much stronger than Nora expects.

“What were you doing there that evening to begin with, Ms. (L/N)?” She asks you.

“Henry asked me to be there, so I went.” You reply easily.

“If you’re just a babysitter, why did Henry want you there?” She counters.

“If I may speak frankly, I spent a lot of time around Mr. Barber and his son when Mrs. Barber abandoned them.” You try not to feel insulted, Charlie tries not to feel insulted for you, but that barb hits Nora, hits Nicole deep.

“Abandoned is a – ” Nora starts, but you’re not having any of it.

“For six months while she was off galivanting around Los Angeles with not even so much as a phone call, Mr. Barber needed someone to help him get adjusted. We didn’t know if Nico—if Mrs. Barber, would ever come back, and I wasn’t going to stand by and watch them struggle.” You say coldly.

“Struggle how?” Nora turns it on you, twists your words. “Are you saying Mr. Barber was unequipped to raise his son on his own?”

“I’m saying it’s not easy to adapt when you’re blindsided the way he was, equipped or not. Given no warning, no notice, nothing. I heard the argument when she left, in the middle of the night in the pouring rain. He’s my friend, I wasn’t going to make him go through that alone.” Your gaze is hard, and it’s a shame, Charlie thinks. Maybe in another life, you and this lawyer could have been good friends, you both match each other’s wits.

“Did you or Mr. Barber ever think to reach out to Mrs. Barber?” Nora points out.

“I can’t speak on behalf of Mr. Barber, but why would I want anything to do with someone who abandons their family?” You raise an eyebrow.

Nora’s jaw works, and then she turns to Nicole. Charlie does too, tries to read their mental exchange. Nicole gives the slightest hint of a nod, and he wonders if the judge sees it, if the judge sees anything at all.

“In those six months, did you witness anything happen to Henry while he was under Charlie’s care?” Nora asks, but Jay is standing up before you can answer.

“Objection, leading.” Jay calls.

“Overruled, the answer is important.” The judge dismisses it, and dread slips into Charlie’s stomach.

“Not to my knowledge, no.” You reply, trying to keep your tone light.

“Did Mr. Barber do anything reckless in those six months, that could pose as a danger to Henry?” Nora continues.

“No.” You don’t budge.

“What about in the two months that Mrs. Barber has been in communication with Mr. Barber?” She knows, somehow she knows about his arm.

“I don’t – ” You start, but she gets in your face.

“Did Mr. Barber do anything reckless in the two months that Mrs. Barber has been back in communication? It’s a very simple question.” Nora presses.

You and Charlie look at each other, and even though it’s been weeks, even though he’s fully healed up now, you both know you have to mention it, you’re under oath, you have to.

“There was an accident.” You say softly, very softly.

“What sort of accident?” Nora blinks, as if she doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing.

“He cut himself, but it was nothing serious, he only needed a couple stitches – ” You rush to say, and Nora gasps in mock concern.

“Stitches? My god, what did he do to cut himself deep enough to require stitches?” She asks, pushing pushing pushing you.

“I – well Mrs. Barber got him a – ” You start, and even though he’s starting to spiral, he loves you so much, loves you for trying to save him, even now, even here.

He doesn’t know if he deserves to be saved, but here you are, trying trying trying, fighting for him.

“Ms. (L/N). What did Mr. Barber do?” Nora asks, all pretense gone, nothing but a vicious lawyer.

“He used to have a thing, where he’d pretend to cut his arm with a boxcutter, but he’d retract the blade so he wouldn’t be hurt, to make it look like he was invincible.” You say through nearly grit teeth.

“You mean to tell me, Mr. Barber joked about self-harming oneself in front of his young, impressionable son?” Nora scoffs.

Charlie’s blood rushes in his ears, his hands sweat, he’s dizzy. He reaches for a glass of water that’s near the little desk he sits behind, and he’s almost afraid he’s going to drop it, hands too slippery.

“No! it wasn’t – ” You try, only to be interrupted again.

“What if Henry got a box cutter himself and didn’t think to retract the blade, and next time it was him who had to get stitches, or worse?” Nora says, and those are perfectly good arguments, which is why he doesn’t do that anymore, why he got rid of the fucking knife, why he --

“Henry’s not allowed to handle sharp objects – ” You speak, trying to backtrack, trying to fix this mess.

“Maybe so, but children emulate their parents, don’t they? And Henry looks up to Mr. Barber, doesn’t he? Is it not outside the realm of possibility, that he might take Mr. Barber’s boxcutter and do the ‘trick’ on himself?” Nora’s voice remains calm and maybe that’s the most infuriating part, Charlie thinks.

He wants to scream.

It’s tense, in the courtroom, so tense.

You and Nora look at one another, a stare-down that’s going to result in an answer one way or another.

Charlie hates her, hates Nicole.

God he hates her.

Especially when she’s the one who thought the trick was so fucking funny in the first place.

“It’s not outside the realm of possibility, no.” You say softly, not able to lie, not here, not now.

“And that would be considered quite reckless behavior, would it not?” Nora asks.

“Mr. Barber is a good person, and a good father, and that was one accident.” You shake your head.

“All it takes is once, Ms. (L/N), and from the way it sounds, this happened more than once. I wonder how many other funny tricks Mr. Barber showed Henry. No further questions, your honor.” Nora pats the wood of the witness stand before returning to her side of the courtroom, and you are asked to leave.

                                                  -----------------

Charlie floats through the rest of the character witnesses. Nicole has brought someone in, some guy. Charlie doesn’t know who he is, he doesn’t care. He’s too wrapped up in his own head, too stunned that Nicole would have told Nora about that.

He’s got one more day, one more chance in this trial to prove his case, one more. And then that’s it. And then the judge decides.

He’s going to have to play dirtier, going to let Jay dig up as much as he can on this serpent of a woman he shared a decade of  his life with, her and her crocodile tears.

Tears so unlike yours, when later after they’ve been dismissed, your face is streaked with hot salt as Charlie collects you in his arms there in the lobby.                                            

“I’m so—I’m sorry.” You whisper out a little sob, tuck yourself against his neck as he moves you both out of sight. The lawyers are talking about going out for drinks later, and Charlie wants to scream.

How can they be so civil, when they’re tearing his life apart?

“Don’t you dare, don’t you apologize.” Charlie says, soothes you, whispers into your hair, “You did nothing wrong.”

Charlie catches Nicole’s eyes from across the lobby, and she sees the two of you embracing in the comfort of one another, your suits creasing from it.

He stares at her hard, hopes she can feel the venom he has for her. She turns away, hurries down the steps and out the front door of the courthouse, off to who the fuck knows where.

Charlie doesn’t care, not when he’s got you right here, in your pretty court clothes and your heart thudding against his. He doesn’t care, only rubs calming circles on your back, tries to get your tears to subside. You both have to go pick up Henry from school after all this, it won’t do to be salt-stained.

It’s the only reason he’s not a mess right now.

Well, that and you.

“I’m sorry.” You say again, but Charlie shakes his head, and when the two of you step apart enough to look into each other’s eyes, he assures you and reassures you,

“You didn’t do anything wrong.”

You nod, and you walk out of the courthouse, hands brushing but not quite holding onto one another.

He’ll ask you to stay again, he’ll ask, and you will, and it’ll all be okay.

Won’t it?

He passes justice with her scales and her blindfold, and now…now he’s not so sure.

The way you look up at him with sad eyes, he’s not so sure.

 I only know what I know

The passing years will show

You've kept my love so young, so new

And time after time

You'll hear me say that I'm

So lucky to be loving you

                                                -----------------

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[anotheronechicagobog]

Just Like Old Times Pt. 3 Jay Halstead x Reader

written by @anotheronechicagobog

Warnings: swearing, mature themes, Erin is ooc (I like her character but I’m pissed she just up and left still)

It had been three days and your life was still chaotic. “Calanthe, time for breakfast! You can’t stay in bed all day, sleepypants.”

“But mooooooooom...”

“I made scrambled eggs with chive, but if you don’t want them...”

“No! I want them!” She bolted out of Jay’s guest bed and sprinted towards the kitchen. You chuckled before following your daughter. You leaned on the wall near the kitchen and watched as Jay served Calanthe some eggs and toast. You smiled fondly at the scene before you. “Your mom’s the best cook, isn’t she?”

“Yeah she is!”

“Thanks, guys. So, what’s the plan for today?”

“Let’s go to the aquarium! I wanna see the belugas!”

“Sorry, kiddo, but we need to stay here, it’ll be easier to keep you two safe that way. How about we watch a movie?”

“We did that yesterday. And the day before that.”

“I know, but we have to stay here.”

“But I don’t want to stay here, Jay. It’s boring!”

“Calanthe, how about we build a pillow fort and tell stories?” You intervened, trying to keep everyone from getting upset. Calanthe and Jay seemed to have bonded quite quickly, and you wanted to preserve that. Calanthe held her breath for a moment, visibly thinking about it. “Okay.” You smiled, you knew she’d agree, she couldn’t say ‘no’ to a pillowfort. The three of you collected all the pillows, blankets, and sheets you could find in Jay’s apartment. Once all of you had gotten comfortable inside the pillowfort, Calanthe turned to you. “Mom, you go first!” You chuckled and began weaving a tale about a girl befriending a gargoyle and going on an adventure in the catacombs. Calanthe was beaming, focusing on each word that left your lips. You spared a glance at Jay and almost faltered. The way he was looking at you, heavy and wanting reminded you of what almost was. Your throat went dry and your chest constricted, but you managed to finish your story with a flourish. “And when the sun was about to rise she hugged Hugo one last time before he returned to his position at the base of the tower, facing the much more famous, but much younger, Notre Dame. Or the ruins of it at least. The end.”

“Yes! I loved that one, mom!” Then she turned to Jay, “now it’s your turn!” He looked shell-shocked for a moment. “I don’t know, Calanthe, I’m not very good at making up stories...”

“Then tell a story from your childhood or something.” He sighed heavily before staring to the side, trying to remember something. “Alright, this one time when Will and I were kids we decided to prank our mean next door neighbour...” Jay sat up straight as a wide smile spread across his face, his hands were gesturing wildly, and a true form of excitement you hadn't seen in years radiated from his eyes. “... We were still laughing our asses off on Will’s bed, peeking out the window when we could, and then our dad burst in his face was so red! I’d never seen him that angry before, but for some reason we only found it hilarious! He was stuttering sentences together and his hands were waving around, and then he stepped on a piece of lego! He started jumping around on his one good leg before he was able to walk out of our room. He didn’t speak to Will or I for two weeks! It was fantastic!” You and Calanthe were rolling on your backs laughing. You were starting to feel a stitch in your side and your eyes were watering. Calanthe was tearing up too and started to choke out “Haha-I-can’t-breathe! Hahahahahaha!” Even Jay had succumbed to the relentless onslaught of laughter his story had caused. The laughter began to cease when Jay’s cell phone rang. Doing his best not to laugh like a hyena, he answered the phone. “Halstead.” When his face immediately sobered, you and Calanthe stopped laughing too. You put your arm around her and brought her close. “Are you sure?... Absolutely sure? One hundred and ten percent sure? Okay, okay. I’ll tell them. Thanks, Voight.” He hung up and looked at you. “The team caught them. You guys are safe.” His eyes darted between you and Calanthe. “YES! WE CAN GO HOME NOW! Not that I won’t miss you or that staying with you hasn’t been awesome, but I miss being able to go to the park. WOOHOO! THIS IS AMAZING!” You and Jay looked at each other laughing as you watched your little ball of energy run around Jay’s living room cheering with her arms up. There was a hint of... what you thought was sadness on his face. But that couldn’t be it. Why would he be sad? Suddenly Calanthe stopped running and cheering. “We’ll see Jay again, right?”

“Of course! I mean... if you’re okay with that, Jay...”

“Yes! More than okay with that, actually” Awarm smile spread across his face and you felt your heart skip a beat.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You were paged to head down to ED for a consult. “Dr. Choi? I’m Dr. Y/L/N, you asked for a consult.”

“Yeah, right in here, patient broke an arm trying to outrun the police during a bust.” You nodded and followed Dr. Choi into a room with police guarding the door while looking at the man’s x-rays. “Well Mr. Andrews it looks like you have a clean break. You’ll need a cast, but you won’t need surgery which is a good thing.” You smiled, you tried to be friendly with all of your patients, understanding that they came from all walks of life and may not have control of the situation they’re in. “I don’t want your help, bitch.” He then spat on you, causing you to recoil as the two officers came in the room to restrain him. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Look, Mr. Andrews, I won’t treat you if you don’t want me to, but I highly recommend treatment.” He tried to lunge off the bed at you, but the officers held him back. “What’s going on here?” A familiar voice boomed into the room. Jay’s eyes were hard and furious, you briefly flashed back to his argument with Sgt. Voight in the Intelligence break room. “Jay, I’m fine, okay? Everything’s fine.” Jay’s gaze cut to you quickly, and softened, then hardened again when he turned his eyes back to Mr. Andrews. You were an ex-female Ranger medic. You were used to sexist and occasionally violent patients. “Well, when will he be discharged so I can take him in for questioning?”

“Well Mr. Andrews refused the only remaining treatment we offered him so he can be discharged now, actually.”

“I changed my mind! I want to get my arm cast!” Jay snorted and rolled his eyes at the man on the hospital bed. “Of course.” His phone buzzed. He took a look at it and sighed, “I have to call Voight, let me know when he can go Y/L/N?”

“Of course Halstead.” As he turned to leave he quietly told the officers “If he threatens her, moves a muscle, puts her in any danger, shoot him.” You heard him shift to look at you, but your back was to him as you’d started getting the necessary equipment together to cast your patient, “Non-lethally.” He finished the order quietly. You heard murmurs of affirmation and he left. You couldn’t tell if he knew you heard or not. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Calanthe was babbling about her day as you were making dinner. She was excited because Jay was coming over for Saturday night dinners. It had been made a habit after your stint in protective custody. You were making borscht, something you hadn’t made in a while, but Calanthe always loved it. You were hoping Jay would, too. Just as the food was finished there was a knock at the door. You rolled your eyes and went to open the door, because despite the fact that you gave Jay a key he used it scarcely. You opened the door to see two stoney faced detectives. “Detective Dawson, Detective Lindsay, how can I help you?” You frowned, they were wearing their badges and looked like they were here for work. “Y/N, we have some bad news, you might want to sit down.” You nodded numbly and sat on the couch, away from Calanthe who was still seated at the kitchen island. “Hi guys! Are you here for dinner, too?” Calanthe was so young, and couldn’t have possibly read the situation correctly. You looked at Dawson. “I’ll stay with her.” He stood up and went to the kitchen. You looked at Lindsay tears forming in the corners of your eyes. “Please tell me Jay’s not dead. Please.”

“He’s not dead. But he was shot and he’s at MED now, you’re his emergency contact, and Voight thought it’d be better if we told you in person, and one of us staying with Calanthe while you go to the hospital. Presuming you even want to go-”

“Of course I want to go. I want to see him.”

“Alright.” Lindsay sighed and nodded begrudgingly. The ride over was tense. “I get the feeling that you don’t like me. I’m just curious as to why.”

“Y/N can we not talk about this?”

“Alright, fine. I just... You’re Jay’s partner, and Jay is important to me, so I feel like I should get to know you better. But you’re always glaring at me or avoiding me, and I just don’t know what I did to you.” She responded with silence, so you sighed and followed her lead for the rest of the trip.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You sat in the waiting room with Will and the Intelligence team, minus Dawson because he was with Calanthe. You and Will were sitting side by side, sharing your strength. Across from you Erin had her arms across her chest, glaring at you. You were leaving it alone, but Will couldn’t. “What’s with you lately, Lindsay? Why are you glaring at Y/N?” He was snapping and you knew it had to do with worrying about Jay, so you tried to calm him down. “Will, take a deep breath.”

“No. She’s been glaring at you and fighting with Jay because he’s not in love with her anymore!”

“You’re wrong! Jay still loves me! The only reason we haven’t gotten back together yet is because he found out he got this bitch pregnant and she didn’t tell him!” You were shocked. Is that what everyone thought? “Regardless of whether or not Calanthe is Jay’s daughter, you have no right to treat Y/N like this! You should know how much she means to him!”

“Yeah, and it’s her fault he was even shot in the first place!”

“What?” You choked out. You were responsible for Jay being shot? “Yeah. You heard me. It’s your fault! If Jay hadn’t been so distracted talking about you, he wouldn’t have been shot!” You burst into tears, you felt your heart go cold. You didn’t want to believe it was your fault, but you had to. What Erin said, the way the rest of Intelligence was looking at you, you knew she was right. Jay was in surgery and it was all your fault. You tried to get up and leave, knowing you didn’t belong here, but Will wrapped his arms around your shoulders and kept you in your chair. “No, Y/N, it’s not your fault. Just... stay, until he can see you. Please.”

“Will, I don’t-”

“He’s right, Y/N, it’s not your fault. Plus, Jay will want to see you when he wakes up.”

“But what Erin said, the way you guys looked at me-”

“What Voight just said is true, Y/N. It really isn’t your fault. And what Erin said... she took out of context.” Kevin smiled at you then turned to give Erin a dirty look. You nodded and leaned back in your seat, distressed, worried, and confused.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dr. Rhodes told all of you hours ago when Jay was out of surgery, but he still hadn’t woken up yet. You, Will, and Erin were sitting by Jay’s bed. You and Will were on either side, each holding one of his hands. Erin sat near his feet glaring at you both and muttering under her breath. You were trying to ignore her but it was hard when you could hear her saying some nasty things about you.

Suddenly Jay’s eyes fluttered open and his breathing sped up. The three of you stood up. You moved to lean over him, get a better look at his face, but Erin shoved you out of the way and took your place. “Jay, I’m here.” She cooed, her face and voice deceptively soft. “N-no... N oo... Y/... N... Y/N... Y/N...” He was blinking and breathing rapidly, panicking, searching the room, and when his eyes landed on you, he calmed. “Y/N.” He called out to you desperately, trying to wiggle his hand out of Erin’s grasp. “Y/N!” His breaking voice and pleading eyes brought tears to your eyes. You saw Will gesture to come around to the side of the bed where he was, so you did. Jay’s eyes following your form as you went. “Hey Jay, how do you feel?”

“A hell of a lot better now that you’re here.” You laughed, “Jay, that was so cheesy. I’m really glad that you’re okay.” You ran your hands through his hair, his soft eyes taking in your face. He sighed and leaned into your touch. “I love you Y/N.” You stroked his face and hair, making him sleepy. “I love you too, Jay. Get some rest, I’ll be here when you wake up.” Jay smiled, sighed, and let his eyes close and his breathing even out.

[thegremlinofransei]

Welcome to the Family | Ch. 4

Resident Evil 7 AU

Fandom: Split, Glass

Rating: M (strong language, intense violence)

Word Count: ~2.6K

Summary: Kevin has betrayed Casey in this growing house of horrors. Little does she realize that the worst is yet to come.

————–

Sloshing puddles and creaky iron gates. A series of sharp pains in her wrist, followed by a mellow female voice whispering, “You’re not dying on me now.” Casey wasn’t sure which parts were delirious dreams and which were her consciousness fading in for a few seconds.

When Casey finally came to, she heard the clinking of silverware and the messy noises of chewing. Her back was stiff against the hard chair behind her, and her head pounded thanks to a putrid smell emanating from in front of her. As her vision came around, she slowly lifted her head.

Casey was sitting at a family dinner, one that could hardly be called normal. Across the long table from her was the man that rammed her head into the wall, the fluorescent lights from the dank kitchen behind him glinting off his bald head and the candlelight from a few scattered fixtures on the table producing an ominous gleam on his glasses. To his left sat a haggard woman with stringy black hair and a gaunt jawline, and to his right, a young man with a greasy brown quiff and some emerging stubble. Finally, just to Casey’s left was a shriveled old man in a rusty wheelchair, whom she only realized was alive as she watched a slight rise and fall of his chest.

When she was fully awake, Casey looked to the center of the table and had to hold back a heave as she realized what the source of the horrendous smell was. The centerpiece of the dining table was a serving platter piled high with…Oh my God, are those intestines?!

Casey gagged at the horrific realization and took the opportunity to choke out, “What is this place?”

The decrepit woman gave a sinister chuckle as she met Casey’s rising gaze and, through a garish grin and in a calm Cajun accent, cut her off with, “It’s time for supper, sleepyhead.”

Casey shrunk back, flinching as the young man opposite this woman threw small bits of food at her. As her jaw trembled, she began to inquire, “Who…who are you people? Where’s Kev-”

She was interrupted by the woman slamming her fist on the table. After staring deep into Casey’s eyes for a few seconds, she lifted her fork and took a bite of the ghastly meal. “Eat it,” she taunted. “It’s good.”

The younger man jolted up from his seat with his plate in his hand and hollered, in the thickest Southern accent Casey had ever heard, “Stupid bitch wouldn’t know good if it hit her!”

With that, the disgusting plate crashed into her face, and the woman shrieked, “Luke! What the hell is wrong with you?” This was followed by the man directly opposite of Casey grabbing Luke’s hand in his left and a steak knife in his right, sawing off the young man’s hand in a few brisk strokes, and Luke half-heartedly protesting without showing any signs of pain.

As Luke cradled the bloody stub, Casey’s captor stood up and muttered, “Out of my way, Patricia.” Patricia obeyed and scooted her chair further into the table, and the man stomped around the table to where Casey sat, leaning down to gaze into her terrified brown eyes. In a failed attempt at a light tone, he announced, “This girl’s got to eat! She’s gotta have her supper…”

He lifted a spoon piled with innards in his right hand and forcibly held her mouth open with his left. “Come here, kiddo,” he grunted, “let’s do this, come on…”

Casey had already started to choke as the spoon neared her unwilling maw, and the minute the unsavory food entered her mouth, she spit it back out in a coughing fit. This sent Patricia into a hysterical fit, pointing at her and screaming, “Oh shit! She’s not eating it, Dennis! She’s not eating it!”

Dennis whipped around as Casey continued to expel the food from her throat, gruffly yelling, “Shut the hell up, Patricia!” Patricia screamed back to him, “I spent so long making that for her!” and was cut off by Dennis kicking a chair at her and commanding, “Get the hell out of here!”

Patricia stormed out of the dining room to a pair of doors by Luke’s side of the table, but not before glowering into Casey’s eyes and screaming, “You’re an ungrateful little shit!”

Dennis turned back to Casey and picked up what looked like a gallbladder from her plate, holding it in front of her eyes as she tried not to vomit at the horrendous smell. “This,” he started in an ominously calm tone, “was supposed to be a very SPECIAL feast!”

He lifted a knife from the table and moved it closer to Casey’s face, pointed directly at the bridge of her nose. Luke watched in deranged excitement, and the old man, presumably the grandfather in this fucked-up family, remained useless as before.

Brrrrrrring!

The knife point was barely a finger’s width away from piercing Casey’s skin when the broken doorbell rang. Dennis and Luke looked at each other before the assumed son bared his teeth, stood up to leave, and muttered, “I’ll bet it’s that cop again.”

Dennis slowly straightened his posture and tossed the knife back onto the table. Looking down at his yellow shirt, he grimaced at the blood staining his sleeve from the removal of Luke’s hand and grabbed a napkin. With a final look back at Casey, he threatened, “I’m coming back for you,” and stormed out.

Casey made a visual sweep of the room, ensuring that her only companion was the man on death’s doorstep to her left. The scent of the meal still burned at the back of her throat, exacerbating her fearful stupor. She went to bring her left hand up to brush away a snarled hair from her eyes, but it was cuffed to the arm of the chair by a small bracket.

Wait…left hand?

She confusedly looked down at her returned appendage. A smartwatch was wrapped around her wrist, but she could see the hasty and slightly festering stitches under the band. She attempted to move her joints, and, despite the shooting pain throughout her hand, she could somewhat grasp the edge of the chair’s arm with straight fingers.

So I didn’t imagine that part, Casey deduced, recalling her trance from earlier. But…who did this? How…

The odor in front of her face snapped her back to the task at hand, which was escape. She began to rock the chair back and forth, and in a few difficult tilts, she fell onto her side. This sent a shock wave of pain through her freshly reattached hand, but it jarred the bracket just enough to snap it loose, and she fell out onto the floor.

Casey rolled over onto her front and pushed herself up with her right hand, trying her best not to agitate the patchwork on her left. Finally on her feet again, she edged around the table, keeping an eye on the elderly man before turning to the large entryway opposite the door that Patricia had exited through. It led into a small living room, lit up by a bent light fixture and littered with papers strewn about the floor. A stack of newspapers sat on a coffee table in the center of the room, the top dated back only two weeks.

Three Missing During Local Urbex Trip

Identification pictures of Joseph, Jai, and a guy she assumed to be the cameraman Fletcher were plastered on the front page. After stepping away, she began to search the room. One drawer on the opposite wall housed a magazine of bullets, and Casey sighed in frustration. Dennis had taken everything she had picked up in the…other house? Are we in the same house as before? I don’t remember any doors that this room could have been through…Are we in the main house? She tried to make sense of the situation, but she also accurately guessed that she was going to have to navigate out of here like a rat in a maze.

Casey took the magazine anyway and shoved it in her waistband, hoping for the chance to find a gun soon. Cautiously stepping back into the dining room, she looked around at the various notes pinned on the wall surrounding the arches that looked into the kitchen. One was a hardware receipt listing a saw, ropes, and thirty pet collars. Another was a recipe, listing instructions on how to prepare a muscular female in her fifties. This led her into the kitchen, where several similar recipes were stuck on the fridge with magnets. Reluctantly, she pulled the door open.

Her mouth gaped open, but she clapped a hand over it to prevent the disgusted whimper from escaping. A plate of entrails similar to the one disgracing the table sat on the top shelf, and a bound pair of legs rested below it. Despite having been through worse a mere few hours ago, the blunt force trauma had resensitized her to each new shock, and she wished to go back to not feeling a damn thing.

There was a door at the end of the kitchen, and Casey slowly pushed the door open, only to find another room with garbage strewn all over. In its back corner, though, a hatch caught her eye. Lantern light filtered through the worn boards and barbed wire, but when she pulled, it was locked. Yet another locked door, she internally grumbled. I guess they don’t want their food to escape.

Casey turned back to the room and began to poke through the litter on the floor. Mostly papers, except for a small black boot wedged between a plywood pallet and the wall. Noticing something on it, she pulled it out and examined the heel, where one name was written.

Hedwig

That’s odd, she thought. There weren’t any little kids at the table, and I doubt this belongs to ol’ grandpa out there…

Casey let it fall to the ground and gingerly trekked back to the dining room, inexplicably unsettled by how Grandpa’s gaze followed her through the arches over the counter. She pushed open the double doors behind his wheelchair and stepped out into the hallway. 

Across from her was a set of stairs with a scrap metal sign reading Garage. She crept over and down the flight, hoping to find something useful to get away. However, the door was shuttered and the control panel taped shut, putting that plan out of the question. She retraced her steps back to the hall.

To her right was a boarded and barbed window, so she turned left, going further down the hall. Before the turn to round the kitchen-and-closet wall, there was a heavy iron door off to the side. Casey tried it despite knowing it wouldn’t budge, then turned her attention back to the hallway.

Just in time for Dennis to storm out from around the distant corner, holding a metal snow shovel.

Casey turned around and ran as lightly as she could back to the previous hall, ducking behind the corner to watch his next move. He turned from the wall and began to swagger closer to her, and she resumed her graceful strides back to a new hideout behind one of the open double doors.

Stomp-clink! Stomp-clink! Stomp-clink! WHAM!

Dennis kicked open the next door from the hallway into the kitchen, and Casey knew she didn’t have a moment to lose. She jumped out of her hiding place, gently pushing the door shut behind her, and ran to the kitchen door. Once that was pulled closed, she began to sprint around the corner and down the hall. A small chest of drawers sat in the next corner, and resting on it was a small key. I hope this is for the hatch, she pleaded to whatever was out there putting her through this, tiptoeing back down the way she came.

“Where’d that little bitch get to?” she heard Dennis ask from behind the closed doors, edging along the wall to keep track of his pounding footsteps. He sighed, then continued, “You know what they say. Once a family, always a family.”

The kitchen door swung open, and Dennis stepped out, facing the opposite direction of Casey. She seized this chance to run to the double doors, threw one open, and stepped back into the dining room.

She made eye contact with Dennis, who had returned through his own door, in the process.

Casey bolted, hearing Dennis chastising her, “You thought you could just slip out before dinner was done?” as he charged toward her. As she sprinted up the hall to the kitchen door, she heard a great crash from the dining room, followed by Dennis’s complaints of how the room looked like an absolute fucking disaster.

After hurrying through the kitchen, she found herself in the closet again, slamming the door shut behind her and dragging a pallet in front of it. Casey knew it wouldn’t do anything, but at least she could get to the hatch. She readied the key and shoved it into the lock, just in time for the wooden door and pallet to crash into the room. In a swift series of events, she threw the hatch open, dove in, and fit the toe of her shoe into a small loop of barbed wire to pull it shut.

“Yeah, you have fun under there, girly,” Dennis spat at her from the room above. “I’m coming back for you later.”

The hatch had led into a long crawl space filled with a bunch of old junk and paced with mud and stone. Casey knew she was near the outside wall, based on the cold draft that blew in through cracks in the walls. She untangled her shoe and moved toward some boards, kicking and shoving at them until she accepted her defeat at trying to escape through here.

That was, until a bright light from up ahead caught her eye.

Casey ventured toward the lights, coming to a small metal ramp that ended at a hole in the floor above. She stood up and looked around, grateful to find the room empty, before climbing up.

It was a beat up laundry room, and two things grabbed Casey’s attention at once. A large, uncharacteristically clean hunting cooler sat in the corner with a bottle of antibiotic ointment on top. Meanwhile, another landline phone and a map, labelled Main House, sat on a counter in the center of the room. For a moment, she considered trying to call the police again, but remembered how that had turned out with the phone in the back house.

She finally came to the door. It was the same iron door that had goaded her in the hallway before, and she turned the lock to exit.

That damned electronic ringing echoed in the room behind her as she went to push the door open, and she turned. The light was flashing. Casey huffed, hoping it was someone from the outside but knowing it was this enigmatic Jade girl. Upon reaching the table, she retrieved the handset.

“You did good, Casey,” the mellow voice said somewhat cheerily.

“Jade, right? What the fuck are-”

“Shut up and listen if you want to stay alive. You gotta get outta that house. There might be a way out through the main hall.”

Casey sighed. “Alright.”

“Oh. And don’t lose that watch. It’s helping your hand heal itself. Don’t want you to get maimed or anything.”

Beeeeeeeeeeeep.

Casey replaced the handset and looked down at the smartwatch, realizing that it was much more elaborate than she had first noticed. Her pulse rate was being tracked, and a small needle held the monitor firmly at the top of her wrist.

“Hell-of-a-girl,” Casey muttered. With the bottle of ointment secured in her belt loop, she turned back to the iron door, ready to face whatever monsters came next.

———————

A/N: Jesus, maybe Patricia SHOULD stick to sandwiches…Anyway, I do promise that I will update at least every Saturday. School’s coming up so that’ll be fun, but I’ll do my best 👍 Be sure to like, comment, and reblog. Drop an ask if you wanna be on the tag list, babes! 😘

Tag List:

@lady-serenitty

@martina-leanza

[hitchell-mope]

After joker and the thief

The crowds run away. The sky gets darker. Carlos loses all his swagger and confidence and hides behind jay. A flock of ravens fly down from a building towards the teenagers. The ravens grow closer together forming...)

Maleficent: well

Mal: um. I’m so sorry. We tried really hard

Evie: thanks for landing us in it magenta

Mal (to Evie): SHUDDIT. (To Maleficent). We did but

Maleficent (eyes glowing dangerously): I do not want to hear it. Once again. You have failed at the most basic and simplistic of instructions. Use your magic and that of your minions to bring down the barrier to free me from this prison. And you keep failing!

(During this little speech the four teens are doubled over in pain)

Carlos: we’re sorry we’re sorry we’re sorry

(Maleficent stalks over to Carlos and grabs him by the chin)

Maleficent: oh I know you are. Believe me. I know how sorry you are. No. No. Don’t cry. Sweet puppy. Don’t cry. It will just make what I have to say worse off for you.

(With that she launches him into the air. Missing the barrier by inches. The other three set the faces in an attempt to stop themselves from helping him. Jay bites his tongue to hold back the tears)

Maleficent: now

(Mal rushes over catches Carlos and holds him until he stops shaking)

Maleficent (unmoved by this display of blatant affection): follow me

(The four of the follow her into the building. They’re greeted by Grimhilde and Jafar)

Grimhilde: sweetheart I do so hope you weren’t eating while you were amongst the rabble.

Evie: n nuh nao

Grimhilde: you know how much I detest mumbling. Enunciate or I shall have to feed your tongue to Diablo

Evie (swallowing hard): I. Found a peach at the market. I took it. And threw it at a commoner.

Grimhilde: good. I have to keep you at the proper size of you are to ever find a husband on this trash heap.

Jafar: oh your majesty come now. (Much to Evie’s horror he caresses her chin with his hand). Your daughter has grown into a fine young lady that any man would be lucky to wed

Evie (small voice): mother. May I.

Grimhilde: permission granted.

Evie: thank you

(Her eyes glow bright sapphire blue and she sinks her teeth into the mans hand. He howls in pain)

Jafar (raiding his hand to slap her): you worthless little who

Jay (grabbing his dads wrist): don’t you dare touch her.

(Jafar stops and contemplates his son. Then slaps jay so hard the teen in knocked to the floor. He grabs his son by the hair and pulls him up to face him. There’s a small trickle of blood on the left corner of jay’s mouth)

Jafar: if you ever. Ever. Talk to me like that again. I will make you kill the pet. Do you understand me boy?

Jay: yes sir. I promise I’ll behave

Jafar: good.

Maleficent (rapping her sceptre on the ground): enough! We are off subject. Girls. Take him outside and clean him up. Nothing should ever blemish such a pretty face

(Once they’re alone. More importantly. Carlos is alone. Among three very powerful adults)

Jay (cleans himself up): there. I’m pretty again. Let’s go back inside and help C.

Evie: too quick.

Jay and Mal: do you really want to prolong this?

Evie: you both know I don’t. But we all know she’ll know if we don’t take our time. I’ve got the ointment. Mal you take the stitches.

(Back inside)

Maleficent: tell me boy. How long does it normally take the girls to clean him up after injuries.

Carlos: anywhere from thirty seconds to three minutes.

Maleficent: very well then. We shall wait three minutes exactly. Or. You are to go home with your mother

(Later)

Maleficent: would you look at that. And with 45 seconds to spare as well. Mal! Sit! Scalp!

(She sifts through her daughters hair growing more and more disappointed by the second)

Maleficent: still nothing. Not even bumps. You my girl need to try harder. The most important lesson I can teach you is how to be me

Mal (at the same time): ...how to be you. I understand mother. And I promise I’ll do better.

Maleficent: I know you will. Because you know what will happen if you don’t

(Carlos’s screams echo in Mal’s head)

Mal: yes

Maleficent: now. On to business. You four have been chosen to go to a new school. In Auradon.

Mal: what?

Jay: I don’t uniforns

Carlos: are there dogs there?

Evie (wistfully): or princes

Grimhilde: I told you my girl would take it well

Maleficent: like everything else in your pitiful little lives you have no choice in this matter or any other. It’s quite simple really. You go to Auradon. You get the fairy godmothers wand. Destroy all those who get in your way. Free me. And I will subjugate the survivors

Mal: what’s in it for us?

Maleficent: the knowledge that you and I have finally triumphed

Carlos: I think she means us?

(He does the “whole lot of us” gesture)

Maleficent: Oh. Well. I suppose Mal does need minions. So I guess I will allow you to live. Mal. Walk with me

(Mal follows her mother out to the terrace)

Maleficent: now. I never thought much of you. The incessant wailing nearly cracked my horns. But it was that wonderful piece of pettiness that convinced me you had it in you to be one of the greatest threats the realms have ever seen

Mal: Oh?

Maleficent: behind me of course dear.

Mal: Oh

Maleficent: my freedom rest on your scrawny little shoulders. Do not fuck it up. Oh for Lucifers sake. She’s back. Hide the human

(Mal looks down. She blanches. She runs back into the room and pulls Carlos into the sleeping area behind the curtain)

Carlos (fearfully): she’s back isn’t she?

(Mal holds his head in her hands. And he falls into a dreamless noiseless sleep. At that moment the door bangs open. A rather tall unkempt doddering figure stands in the doorway smelling strongly of alcohol and cigarettes. Her half black and half white hair tangled and greasy. On her skeletal frame hangs an unwashed moulting coat made of dog fur. She’s swaying slightly in a drunken stupor. Despite the six very powerful magic users in the room already the woman exudes an aura of menace that only a human mortal can have

Cruella: CARLOS. WHERE ARE YOU YOU FOUL LI(hic)TLLE WRETCH

Grimhilde: he’s not here De Vil. We sent him back forty minutes ago.

Cruella: well he isn’t there.

Jafar: listen you gin soaked bitch. You know damn well that it takes an hour to get to your hovel.

Cruella: very weh (brarp) ell the then. But I assure you that if he isn’t there. I will find him.

The other three parents: oh you will

(Cruella leaves)

Maleficent: she’s gone. Wake it up

Carlos: is she...?

Jay: yeah

Maleficent: are you quite happy now Mal? I kept the mutt from the drunk. After all I’ve done for you. Won’t you go to Auradon and do this one measly little thing for me?

Mal (resigned to her fate): how long do we have to pack?

Maleficent: to hours. Starting now

(Evie heads to the door)

Grimhilde: wait. You forgot the appliances!

Maleficent: well then open the safe

(Grimhilde, rolling her eyes, opens the fridge door. She chuck the spellbook at Mal who catches it)

Mal: there’re pages missing

Maleficent: Oh. I tore them out. They’re of no use to anyone. After all. Nobody loves you. And they only work if there are wretched feelings originally

Mal (realising what her mother means and feeling even more useless then usual): Oh

Grimhilde: Evie. This mirror can show you anything and everything you want. I assume you know the incantation

Evie: yes mother

Jafar: I don’t have anything to give to you. Frankly I don’t think you’re worth it.

Jay: ok pops.

Maleficent: So you lot pack. And in two hours meet back here for collection

(They teenagers leave)

Carlos: we’re not going to be here this time tomorrow. I. I want to. To dance. But

Mal: I know buddy.

Jay: where the hell are you going

Evie: I’m saying goodbye.

Mal: to what?

Carlos: I know. Don’t worry. I know

(Elsewhere)

Evie (speaking into the mic): hey. You’re probably still in bed and. Um. I’m not exactly sure how to tell you this but. Me Carlos jay and the one who hates me have been picked to go to Auradon. You know. The uh the place where with the princes. I’ll come back. Once I’ve settled in I’ll come back. This is a promise. I promise you that I will come back and get you and bring you back with me. And I would really like it if you came and said goodbye. But if you can’t. Goodbye sis.

(She darts back to Maleficent’s building)

Jay: got everything E?

Evie: yeah

Carlos: you said your goodbyes?

Evie: yes. I gave her the peach

Carlos: naturally

Mal: so how are we gonna do this?

Jay: I sit up front. You next to me. Carlos next you. E next to Carlos.

Mal: of course. Of course. But I was referring to this

(She opens the door and shows the the thousands of sweets and candy and junk food in the limos snack bar)

Mal: bon appétit

(The other three scramble into the limo. Mal looks back at the terrace to see her mother staring coldly down at her. They’re eyes glow in farewell. And Mal gets in the limo between jay and Carlos)

(Later. POV shot. Someone’s running hurriedly to Maleficent’s. They get there just after the limo leaves the barriers confines. Maleficent notices them and sneers)

Maleficent: you are too late my girl. You know she will forget you right. They all will. That illusion of caring she gives will disappear the moment she gets a taste of the life she thinks she deserves. You’d be better off forgetting about. Because you and I both know she will forget about you

(With that she stalks back inside and it starts to rain)

[bluboothalassophile]

Hey blu❤️i love ur RaeX fics so much, like you have your own style of writing but still manage to have them be realistic and in character, which is amazing💫I can’t wait to read more fics!!! (also can i request an underground boxer!Jason who’s reckless towards his health and nurse!Raven who’s always worried about him) thanks for writing and have a good day❤️❤️❤️

Hello,

I have that AU somewhere at the beginning of this blog I believe. I’m slightly terrified to dig for it but I’ll post the link anyways: here.

But here’s the first meeting of that AU.

Eeyore and Deadpool…

Raven was very used to odd people; she was an ER nurse inBoston on the nightshift; it didn’t get much weirder than that.

Yes, a long ways away from the sweltering desert she’d grownup in, but she’d left that hell for New England. And somethings were nodifferent here than there, only difference now was when she cursed in hermother’s tongue; no one knew a damn thing she was saying; something for whichshe was eternally thankful for.

Anyways, it was her day off. Specifically; it was laundryday; as she was out of clothes, and that was apparent with her Eeyore sleeppants and tattered; threadbare, bright red Deadpool shirt. Pulling on her woolsocks, tossing the soap as she picked up her hair tie for a messy bun behindher head. A few strands of her black hair escaped her as she slipped on her uggsbefore walking through the November cold building. There was a tactical knifein her pocket; one she never left her apartment without and she made her way tothe basement of the building.

Walking into the laundrymat she sighed as she pulled out her book and tossed it with her phone andheadsets on the top of the counter before she claimed her machine.

He walked in rather predatory like with a canvas sack, sheassessed him before ignoring him as he walked to a different machine and got towork with his own load.

“Interesting choice,” the man said as she chose to sit on hermachine and prepare to read and relax; the boiler was humming along in the cornerwarming the tight space.

“Pardon?” she looked up from her book.

“The book, love,” he smiled a bit.

“I find it to be entertaining, not particularly well writtenbut entertaining, reminds me of my grandfather” she admitted.

“Louis L’Amour is not a particularly smiled upon writer,”the man said. He had a smirk on his lip, and it split the already bruised face.His brow was hastily sewn shut without much technique or skill, almost as if he’ddone it himself.

“Do you dare to mock one of the only competent writers ofthe west?” she deadpanned.

“He’s just not a writer,” the man shrugged as he started hisload.

“And I suppose that you favor Zane Grey for an inclinationof what the west was like?” she asked.

“Well, he’s a better writer.”

“Not disagreeing, but I’m not reading this for the writing,I’m reading it for the story. And there’s no finer story teller of the westthan Louis L’Amour,” Raven stated.

“That sounds dangerously like a declaration of passionate opinionrather than facts, love,” he mused as he grimaced and hugged his ribs a bit.

“As a woman of the west it’s a fact, not a declaration.”

“Bold statement.”

“Yes, but true,” she insisted. “And what the hell did you doto your ribs?” She sighed sliding off her machine and walking to him.

“Don’t worry about it,” he tried to shoo her away from himthen.

“You’re hurt, I’m a nurse, now sit the fuck down or I’llpunch those ribs and have you sit down the hard way,” she warned.

“Feisty little bird,” the man rolled his eyes; she notedthen that he had a darkening bruise on his temple and jawline; the same side he’dobviously stitched up.

“Name’s Raven,” she offered her hand. “Raven Roth.”

“Jason Todd,” he tentatively took it and she examined thebruised knuckles.

“So what are you Jay? A bouncer, loan shark debter, or athug?” she sighed.

“Boxer and MMA fighter,” he answered.

“Really?” she stared balefully at him then; skeptism was runninga wee bit high right now.

“Really.”

“Well fuck, what the hell did you fight; a brick wall!?”

“Ah, no, this is from a friend,” he winced.

“What sort of friend does this?” she asked.

“Pissed off big brothers,” he answered flatly.

“I see well, you are in need of stiches on your scalp notjust your brow, and I can redo those,” she offered.

“It’s fine, probably deserve the pain,” Jason chuckled.

“No one deserves pain,” she countered flatly.

“You’d be surprised, little bird,” he murmured, and she sawthe tags then as she shifted his hoodie and shirt aside. The scaring, thepatterns of wounds, she’d seen things like this and she looked up at him.

“So, what makes you fancy yourself an expert in literature,Mr. Todd?” she asked primly as she examined his bruises.

“I’m working on a doctorate in literature,” he answered.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I’m here for MIT engineering though,” he chuckled.

“Well rounded decision there,” she mused, and she frowned ata new blossoming bruise.

“I was a medic darling, I promise I’m good,” he said.

“Forgive me if I don’t take the word of a punch drunk boxerwho holds love for Zane Grey and not Louis L’Amour,” she countered and made himfollow the eye test. “What was your brother’s and yours fight about if I canask.”

“He wants me to go home,” he answered.

“And you don’t,” she stood. “Very well, I conclude you’re inpain but not about to keel over from internal pain.”

“I could have told you that and, no, I don’t want to gohome. I don’t want to be in the family business either,” he shrugged.

“No shame in that. But there be shame in you denying thatLouis L’Amour was an excellent story teller,” she smiled.

“Love he’s a terrible writer.”

“It’s not about the writing! It’s about the story, and JubalSackette has all of that!” she insisted.

“You’re delusional.”

“You’re punch drunk,” she countered.

“Am not!”

“Are too.”

“Liar!”

“Flipperhead!”

“What the fuck!?”

“Language!”

“What the hell is a flipperhead!”

“It’s an insult,” she shrugged.

“Then you’re a mooseknuckle,” he declared.

“Moose are majestic creatures!”

“Oh God you’re in that fandom!”

“As are you apparently.”

“You’re a bitch.”

“You’re a jerk.”

“I have tea,” he offered.

“I have Alexander Dumas, and one more day off.”

“This could be the start of a beautiful friendship littlebird.”

“Flipperhead.”

“Mooseknuckle.”

[atomicbark-blog]

Sugar Fall and Morailegence

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 6:08 PM

(blood ment.) 

Your name is Jay Harley and you have just started to wake up after being knocked out by Stitch. Clutching your bleeding head you lift it too fast and see stars, almost hurking right then and there. Some common sense has seemed to leak back into your head despite you laughing at this moment. You push yourself up onto the wall and teleport out into the hallway, you hit the floor immediately clutching your mouth. You won't be able to teleport this much like this. 

Crawling over to a wall you pull out your phone and shoot Doze a text before pulling yourself up the wall, your claws digging into the drywall. You start to stagger off, laughing manically under your breath, a raspberry red bloodstain following your trail against the wall.(edited)

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 6:42 PM

Your name, or at least what you call yourself is Doze. John Doze usually...it's kind of a fun play on words. At least you think so.    At least you would if you weren't a bit upset right now. Upset at having been stuck in spot while everything has been going tits up, upset that you weren't fast enough to get far enough so you could be with Clover. Upset you aren't with Clover now and are making him worry even more probably.  And upset that you know you're on your way to do something stupid but here you go. 

It'd have been one thing if Jay had just been candy crush cackle-mad...but the combination of her messages was more than concerning.  You didn't know if these Tricksters were immortal...but if they were and Jay wasn't working right then perhaps not.  And you already have a life of regrets you have forgotten, letting Jay possibly bleed out in the manor alone was not one of them you wanted to add to the mist. 

Leaving your hiding spot, you begin to make your way through what felt like an empty manor, making your way to where Jay last said she was.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 6:52 PM

You had staggered farther down the hallway since messaging Doze, you had to stop to do that or otherwise you would of fallen down right there and you weren't sure if you could get up again from that. Everything hurt and hurt a lot, ever since Clover cracked you a good one you hadn't started to heal like the other tricksters and man did it suck to some point. You keep staggering on despite your pain, it's something you were trained to do. Keep on carrying on, you could even stagger home after getting shot if you really wanted too, but right now with the glitching back and forth and feeling like something.. someone was hunting you down again. You were way to terrified to focus on ignoring the pain, you just wanted to reach Doze. 

Your blood trail skids down for a second as you crouch/crawl your way to the other side of the wall so you can continue towards the Lounge. Having no idea what is keeping you moving or why you do keep moving instead of staying still, you keep trekking along. Making it to the start of the stair way you crumple to your knees an lean against the banister, "Fuck making it down those.. Hahhaha!" You chuckle under your breath and lean your head against the railing, "Please get to me furst Dozey.~" Churring you close your eyes for a second, you just need a breather, yeah. Just a few minute rest.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 7:00 PM

You see the bloodtrail first, momentarily wonder if this is how Trace feels when he's tracking folks down.  Probably more exciting for Trace. Less terrible for Trace. He gets to see people, you just get to see blood.    As you round the corner, you see the figure slumped by the bannister.   Wellp. Here goes nothing and everything as you get closer. 

"Ey. Ey Jay.  What do you say.  Lets go on out and have have a really nice day." You say softly as you get closer.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 7:11 PM

Your bent puppy ears flick as you hear Doze's voice an you groan, looking up slowly an over at him. One of your eyes is held closed, you didn't want to get blood in it. He gets to see it in full and somewhere in your mind that upsets you, having him see you like this. A new jagged wide scar from the left side of your fore head to your right cheek, and absolutely covered in blood. You grumble softly, and try to stand up, shaking tiredly as you do so and nod at Doze, stars flashing in your vision. 

"Mmm.." You stand up fully and rock back and forth before grinning brightly, "Oh really!? I would LOVE that!" Your being glitches for a moment and a more calmer tone takes place, "Anywhere away from Stitch and them would be fine with me honestly."

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 7:18 PM

A noticable frown at the blood.  Oh no...you can't be mad at Clover for doing what he had to do...but its still painful to see. Pulling out a large blue scarf like you were some kind of magician, you start to wrap it around her head and injury.  "Ye ye...sure thing.  Lets getcha outta here.  Ye aint allowed to get anymore badass lookin scars today." 

With careful slowness, you lean down to scoop her up in your arms. "I gotta couple places where I do some of my other business that I can take ye to.  Stitch ain't the only one know knows his way about medical equipment. Kek."  It's true...while Stitch's job was patching people together....yours was often taking them apart.  As slow as possible. Making sure they stay alive for as long as possible.  Torture ain't worth it if the person bleeds out in an hour after all.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 7:28 PM

You are touching the scarf lightly a soft smile on your face when he scoops you up. You let out a yelp of surprise and cling to him before laughing. You grunt and shake your head at that, trying to keep the candy syrupiness out of your brain. You lean away from him an whine, "I don't want to risk turning you." Frowning an wobbling a little you set your head against his shoulder, your breathing ragged an chest shaking with each breath. 

As much as you wanted to make sure he didn't touch you because of the risk, you just didn't have it in you to fight against it. You nod and grumble softly, ears drooping, "Yeah.. That sounds Peachy! Urk sounds pretty good, I'm all there for it." You allow yourself to rest against him and you find yourself smiling again, man he makes you feel so safe  and calm it's absolutely wild.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 7:33 PM

"Iffn I'm gonna get all hit with this crazy kittykat bullshit, I'd rather do it helping ya get to safety than getting kerfuckle kissed by some sappy assed sons of bitches.  Priorities yo.  Maybe I'll end up being the act three goes out like a hero sucker kek."  You grin as you cautiously take her down the stairs and head towards the garage.  Fuck there's blood everywhere and while you have some tools here if folks are on the hunt and she's scared to want out...best not to push it in case she glitches bad. 

"Sides. Prolly ain't gonna work on me.  Know why?  Cause I already happy as shit.  Know why times two?  I already got everything I need to be fuckass happy. I got Clover. I got you. I got skills to pay the bills. And I even got a dumbass fuckface I get to dunk on once all this is over.  Bread and Circuses all the way.  Why the fuck would I need anything else to be happy."  Part of you is saying it for yourself, as you ignore how much her blood smells like raspberry taffy.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 7:48 PM

You genuinely laugh at his words an grin up at him through your daze, "Yeah it fucking sucked lemme tell ya." You glitch a bit, your grin more manic like, "Got my forehead SMOTHERED is kisses be DOC!!!!" You practically slap yourself on the forehead, right on the wound and glitch back, "Never thought I'd see the day he would do something like that. Shit felt cursed." You snort an laugh softly. 

You find yourself gripping Doze tighter as he descends the stairs, you didn't want to fall, in fact now would be the damn worst time for that. You look up at him surprised before nodding, "You got that right. Damn I honestly didn't want this." You feel yourself frown heavily before you glitch like crazy, grunting you hide your face behind your hands and mutter to yourself, "Okay, Okay. No sad feels I got it jesus FUCK!" You bury your hands and face into Doze's shoulder to get yourself to calm down again, "Oof.. Sorry sorry. Looks like trickster me doesn't like thinking about sad shit."

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 7:57 PM

"Sounds like Trickster you is a godamn pussy." you snort.  "Do you think we'd be where we are without the sad and the bad?  It's that sad and bad shit that makes all the good shit special.    If I wanted something fuckin happy without purpose I'd just load up on a dozen how may i serve you mlord click with yo dick games or something."  Carefully opening the door, you note which cars are gone and which remain before getting a set of keys for yourself. 

"That said.  Think about some happy shit. This ain't gonna last forever. And then! We're gonna have some fuckin fine dining on the fanciest daki pillows.   Can watch the best of vine videos till we're cry laughing like dipshits."  A wide smile.  "Don't need no candy ass magic to have a great time.  We're gonna show that candy ass magic that its just a punk ass bitch that only wishes it could have as much fun as we do when you and I are in full swing."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 8:12 PM

You laugh into his shoulder and nod, your gummy like hair bouncing with the movement, "Such a pussy, gotta be what you eat." You crack up more and bite your lip, snorting and laughing though your nose. "God the way you say things are great, honestly never a dull moment around you." You purr, then stop and blink surprised that you can even do that. With a soft oh shit and a tail wag you go back to purring, looking out and watching Doze do his thing. 

"Hell yeah you tell it Doze. We are gonna have a damn good time." You glitch heavily for a moment as you grumble lowly, "I don't need no damn candy to be happy with the people I love an care about." Stars brightly flash in your vision again and your ears flick back and down, "Ough fuck that's bright." You squeeze your eyes shut for a moment and shake your head as you chill out again. 

Tilting your head you look up and blink at Doze with a confused smile, "Are we leaving the mansion?"

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 8:15 PM

"Ye ye. Gonna have a good time."  You nod as you head over to one of hte cars.  "Also ye.  Gonna take ya to my baddass tat parlor. Show you my sweet as fuck studio.  Finally can give you a bonafide tour of the place." 

Helps that you also have some other tools there for your other jobs. Though thats a bit more of a hush hush matter.  "Maybe if some place is open we can get some snacks n shit. Just chillin about while I help patch ya up."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 8:25 PM

"Oh man that sound great. Gonna be honest my candy side has been wanting a tattoo on the fucking ass and I'm all kinds of fucked up to agree with her on that point." You grab onto Doze's shirt as you wobbly lower yourself out of his arms, with a grabby hands motion you more of fall onto the car than grab it. You glitch with that jostle and grin wide, "Honestly!!!! What's so BAD about tattoos!~ Doc won't be seeing my ASS and I'm all UP for some rule breaking FUN!!!!~" A huge part of you is glad you got out of Doze's arms at that moment. You really didn't know how much longer you could of held the fake candy happy side back. 

You adjust the scarf on your head, still grinning and teleport the Kitsune mask to your hand. With a wink at Doze you laugh, "You really don't need to WORRY about this side of me! When I promise something it goes STRAIGHT to my HEART." You do the cross my heart and hope to die sign and hope in the car, glitching as you do so. You sigh, "I'm a bit tired, I'm sorry I can't calm that side down as much as I want too." 

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 8:36 PM

You give a nod as you close the door for her.  "Ye ye I trust ya Jay.  Like you've never lied to me in all yer life why would I think you'd do different now.  Candy or not yer still you."  With that you hop into the drivers seat, stirring the car's engine to life.  "Never understood why he was against you getting tats. Like shit I'm covered in em and most of the guys got'em.  Specially since what you were describin is pretty classy." Pulling out of the garage, you start to drive off at a fairly amicable pace. Go figure, you're the only person in the Felt who drives at the speed limit or under.  Noting the sky and grass, you shake your head.  "What a trip huh."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 8:44 PM

You hum and rub your head, you keep opening the wound up like and absolute idiot. "I don't know either." You grab the handle on the seat and lay back, enjoying the slow ride. "I said dick near him once and like-" You laugh before you can even finish, patting your chest lightly, "He fucking said I was banned from sex." You wipe your open eye, and shake your head. "I think he's trying to keep me...." You open your eyes wide and glitch out like crazy before sitting up quickly and gasping for breath. "Fuck fuck fuck, stop doing that... keep me to himself. Doesn't want my loyalties getting all fucked up and shit." You sit back again groaning, "Like I would even be able to with how damn loyal the animal side of me is." You scrunch your brow and nod, "You know what. Yeah! Let's get me a fucking tattoo! Damn prove it to him! I ain't no DAMN THIN LINED person! I don't fucking BREAK!" You pump your fist into the air.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 9:06 PM

There is a laugh as you turn a corner.  "That's the problem with loyalties really.  Make em too rigid they're gonna rebel. You'd think after raising a shit ton of kids he'd have figured that one out but he's always after his white whale of the perfect example."  There is a shrug.  "The other thing about loyalties, they gotta be about trust.  You can try day in day out to force loyalty but...if you can't ever really be sure they're loyal and trust them...yer gonna keep just putting that pressure on until they break." Another laugh.  "Well tell ya what.  I'll die on that hill with ya when this is said n done and you still want it.  Fuckit I'll take the tank for that why not.  I ain't gonna do it right now tho cause yer pretty damn hurt and I got some principles. Don't do tats when someone's drunk or doped up, also don't know if that'll end up causing some troubles in her state."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 9:23 PM

You nod slowly and sigh, "I, oof.. everything is so muddled in my mind I feel like I'm swimming through a swamp. I don't even feel like this after getting drunk what the hell. Yeah, I get what you are saying, I don't know if he trusts me or not to be honest. I think he just expects me to be 100% loyal to him, and like yeah I am but cutting me off from things that I want isn't the way to go on ensuring that I stay loyal. It's not like I'm gonna betray yall, I can't." You shove your kitsune mask onto your face and flinch when it pushes into your wound. You close your eyes behind the mask and laugh, "Thanks Doze, I do want it, a lot actually, but I won't let you take the heat for it. Can't in fact. My problem" You grin behind your mask, "I'd rather have you protected than deal with something I asked fur." You reach over blindly and pat his shoulder, "I understand that policy, be best too honestly-" You glitch, your candy brightness taking a hold again and gripping on hard. "Hehehe!! Yeah! Don't wanna mess up and get LOTS of tattoos!" Jesus give me a break can't she just come to an agreement with you already and mellow out. You touch the wound and tilt your head, perhaps that will be fixed when you are all fixed up. The crowbar seems to have split you in two like a damn cherub.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 9:34 PM

"Wouldn't be surprised if Doc doesn't trust anyone, even himself.  Ain't anything against you, just how he be I guess."  Or maybe he has a hard time trusting because he knows even if the ends justify the means the betrayals he gave are ever likely to return to his doorstep one day....but you don't voice that part.  That ain't your business to say. "Psssh." You grin back as you glance at the masked face.  "Bitch please.  We innit to winnit.  If I'm out here risking candy toxic shock fer ya you think I'm not gonna take a dunk in the tank if it comes to it.  I ain't lettin ya be the only one to take that heat."  Glancing at the streets, you dodge some rather huh...well ain't this getting crazy with the decor.  Be funny if those stuck behind when this was all over.   But you're just about to your parlor at least and this part of the city seems a ghost town.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 9:47 PM

You sit back up, dragging the seat with you as you turn and face Doze, some good ass feeling jams right here damn, gotta pay full attention. "Hmm!~ The tank? Oh those Goop Tubes! Hehe!! Snow put me in one of those before I forced myself out of the grey magics! Those things are ABSOLUTLY terrifying!!!!" You laugh and glitch lightly, "Damn things are hell thats what they are, first time in one." You shake like you are trying to get water off of you and stick your tongue out, your mask following suit, "If we get dunked together we can chill together then, the after affects isn't something to deal with on your own." You look over your shoulder to the world out side and it finally hits you how much everything has gone to shit, "Wow... I missed this? Where is everyone...?" You don't like this one bit, you feel yourself slightly shift towards Doze as you murmur out, "Thank you... for staying at the mansion and for coming for me.. I didn't know how bad it got."

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 10:23 PM

The laugh turns to a cackle.  "Ye ye the goop tanks. They sure are something ain't they."  You give a nod as you pull into parking lot for the parlor.  Giving a slow glance for any trouble, you step out of the car with shotgun in tow.  You had no problems blasting some candy coated jackass across the wall if it came to it. As you get the door, you shrug.  "Ye ye....shits gone to utter fuckin hell. Rip in the sky's bigger too it seems." You comment as you point up.  "There's a few holdouts of folks trying to wait it out or stay safe but who knows how long its gonna last."  There's a frown.  "....think before I left I saw something about losing Trace to it.  Probably means we're all gonna be kerfuckled considering he can track us down one by one in time."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 10:31 PM

You hop out of the car and decide it would be easier to float then walk, in which you to. You float after Doze humming sweetly as you do, "Oh yeah!! That was my fault.~ I did this SICK NASTY move on Snowman and made her hit the pavement after she made me eat pavement! I was a cherub then though!! And my other side on that note is rather WORSE than this one." Your mask winks, the eye that opens is full of flashing different colours, it's rather hypnotizing actually. You straighten out and look around grinning, "Well hell has some interesting tastes!~" You turn back around and float into the Parlor, "Trace went mad happy then? That's unfortunate." You settle your tippy toes on the ground and drag them as you float around the place, "Hmm.. Wouldn't Nepeta and Fin be in trouble first. Do you know if anyone has gone to help them?" You look back at Doze.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 10:41 PM

You step inside after her before locking it.  It's a pretty nice setup, sterile and well kept with paintings mural'd on the wall.  You noticably frown.  "Hopefully. Maybe. Not sure.  It's Trace.  And he's got probably some similar setups to what ya'll been having so he can prolly chase forever."  The frown deepens but you shake your head.  "Nothing to do bout it here." You lead her to one of the backrooms.  "But I can at least getcha fixed up a bit, so that counts for something maybe.  Have a seat over there and we'll get this all started up."  The chair looks relatively comfortable, obviously designs with tattoo clients in mind who would have to likely be seated in themf or hours.

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 10:48 PM

You put a hand on his shoulder worriedly and pap him, "Fin says my teleporting messes up the trails, If need be I can get us the hell out of here and keep you safe." You glitch and your mask grins as you float over and sit down, "Like I sai-i-id!~ I won't turn you." You tilt your head all cutesy like and look around, "What do you plan on doing? Oh uh shit You are gonna sew my face all up and shit huh? Oh damn." You clutch the mask tightly to your face before slowly taking it off, your thick syrup blood sticking to it, "Oh gross why the fuck did I put that on again." Saying fuck it to the mask and placing it in your lay you shakily reach up for the blue scarf, not really able to see what you are doing.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 10:57 PM

You're washing your hands before putting on some latex gloves. Gotta be pro and sterile about this stuff.  "That's good too know.  Maybe be the ultimate ace in the hole really.  Aight. Gonna try to get that cleaned a bit and see what damage we workin with.  Gonna sting for a few until the local antiseptics kick in. Then prolly just gonna feel weird as fuck." You roll up a wheelie chair along with a tray of tools, bottles, and a pan of water as you help carefully remove the blue scarf, taking time to try to dab and wipe away the blood on her face as you keep gauze on hand to apply pressure in case it starts pouring blood again.  "Gonna have to see what I'm workin with first but looking like you may need a bit of stitches as is.  Gotta say Clover kind of cracked ya good."

Plush (JS/MI)Yesterday at 11:09 PM

You move your hands out of his way and close your eyes so he can do what he needs to, "Yeah, Though I can't say that I'm mad at him. It helped me break through... and since my trickster ass lunged for him I say I deserved it yeah." You scrunch your face slightly as your pain receptors flare up from your wound being cleaned. With how thick your blood is at the moment it doesn't pour blood as much as it slowly slides down your face again like syrup on pancakes. "Stitch's meaty damn cherub claws got me on the shoulders too, I didn't mention those because they don't hurt as much as my face does. They can honestly probably heal on their own." You force yourself to sit rigidly still for Doze so you don't cause him to mess up. The would is deepest on the top left part of your skull and kind of just drags through across your face. The condition of your eye is unknown, you still have yet to open it, honestly fearing the worst after getting use to having it closed this long. With out her effigy healing her up, she would need stitches for the left side of her face, the right side could heal properly on its own.

Mabs (PI/02)Yesterday at 11:16 PM

You methodically rinse and clean the wound, applying a dab of numbing agent as you go.  The blood's a bit weirder than what you're used to...but almost in a good way since it isn't pouring out faster than you can clean.  "I'll give em a checkout once I finish up the worst of it here.  No sense in leaving a job half-assed n shit." There is extra precaution around her eye, probably would need her to rinse that out at the sink afterwards.  "Oof...ye....looks like her gonna need some stitches pupperoni.  Fortunately I can likely do it without it ending up looking like Stitche's face.  Gonna likely have a mark when its all done though. Gonna look like one of those baddass anime babes with the sword three sizes too big for her."

October 16, 2018

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 12:10 AM

"Oh alright, you gotta point. Plus I shouldn't just leave them to bleed everywhere huh." You pause an snort under your breath, "Is it weird that I kind of want to lick my blood, shit looks hella tasty but also gets all of your teeth rotten in under two seconds." You reach up and carefully tie your hair up and out of your wound. "Alright, I'm fine with that, needles don't bother me too much and with how damn fine your tattoo work is I trust that you will definitely hold to that." You tap your fingers on the chair, feeling honestly kind of bundled up, "Say, anything you want to do after this, can like.. satisfy the damn candy side of me and shit so I can mellow out." You flick your ears an look at him, "Honestly think you out of anyone would be able to help me mellow out so I don't cause any more trouble." You grab your tail and bap it between your hands, something to do so you aren't sitting still and jittering out, "I feel safe an calm around you." You laugh softly and grip your tail.

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 12:18 AM

"Can't deny its too weird. I mean be lying if I said it didn't smell fuckin delicious." You smirk.  "But then perhaps I ain't the best judge of what is delicious considerin my appetites."  You give some of the area near the wound a couple test pokes to ensure that the area was good and numbe before sterilizing the needle.  "If any of this starts to hurt lemme know and I can dab more numbin shit on it.  All about that comfort here." You slowly get to work, hands working with a precise smoothness to them that your powers have granted.  "Hard to say really.  Problem with things is yer gonna be a-ok no doubt no problem but pretty sure me being out and about is the worst thing I can do.  Trying to keep out of the radar in all of this shit.  Whatcha candy side hankerin for?"

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 12:40 AM

"Will do..!" You swipe some blood off of your mask and look at it, "Hm. What's wrong with your appetite?"  You raise the blood up to your nose and sniff, damn that did taste delicious. Like you just snorted a whole can of koolaid up your nose. Resist the temptation to lick it... You don't even flinch as he starts, you more of relax even more, glad to have someone stitching you up. "Hmm I don't know. Nothing to crazy honestly. I'm chill with just hanging out with you and letting myself mellow out and fall out of this trickster state. Kind of tired of it honestly. I only need one good head bashing for me to be done with something." You say fuck it and give the blood on your finger a little lick and scrunch your nose up, that was like opening a whole box of pixie stixs and downing them with the wrappers on. "If you want to go back to the mansion after this I'm up for that. The tricksters seem to be turning their heads from that place fur now."

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 12:51 AM

"Some folks get really nit picky about what is and ain't cool to eat.  Like sure no problem killin a pig or a cow and making ground up burgers.  But then folks are like can't eat rats. Can't eat this. That is gross.  But like...at the end of it all, meat's meat yanno?  Ain't no chicken gonna care what happens to it after its dead, same for every other thing.  Carapaces, trolls...folks...in the end we're all about the same."  As you talk, you carefully make small stiches up the wound, taking pauses to clean and dab and add a bit more numbing agent to it as you go. "Chillin sounds good to me. After this we can prolly vamoose to one of my layday locations.  Keep all my dvds there n shit. Watch some movies. Hang out in pillow land.  Take 20 naps.  Its my fav place to just go and pass time by doing shit all.   Prolly best not to get back to the mansion anymore.  Tho I'll understand if you wanted to. "

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 1:04 AM

"Yeah yeah I get that. Gonna be honest, when I was younger and not really uh hm.. mannerized? I would go in the back yard and dig up the moles an just-" You laugh, "Wasn't pretty. So I understand what you are saying, I don't think anything is wrong with that." As he moves away from your left eye you open it, it's entire colour has changed to a dark cherry red. "Hm." You pat your cheek under it and your ears flick back as panic races through you. "..." You close it again and say nothing on the note of not seeing your fingers from that eye. "Yeah that sounds good. I could use a good rest after this honestly." You smile softly at him, "It will probably be for the best to go there too. Does anyone else know about these layday places?" You shake your head slightly, "The mansion will be fine. I doubt anyone but us could navigate it honestly."

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 1:12 AM

"Ah hell I'm not younger and I'm still not mannerized.  Elbows on all them fuckin tables. Kek!"  You grin wide as you are starting to finish up the last of the stitches.  "Moles pretty alright, though small things got like not much good meat on em so they're a bit a pain.  Like the sunflower seeds of the meat kingdom." You dab up the last of the mess around the stitches before applying some Hello Kitty bandages over them.  "Nah.  Chances are once this blows over I'll move it again elsewhere.  Always good to have little somethings that you can call your own.  And ye ye...highly doubt that the mansion is in any danger. Prolly safer than most of the folks in the city."

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 1:33 AM

You snort and shake your head, "Yeah they are, no way would they satisfy me now. Little dirt creatures." You reach an gingerly pat your head and sigh, "Oh man, that is much better. Thank you." You blink a few times before wagging your tail happily. "I feel like I can think again- Though still being full candy decked out is concerning. How long does it take to go back to normal?" You wave your hand in front of your left eye again and make tsk noise when nothing happens. No worry right? It's just from the head injury, vision should come back soon enough. "Ohh alright then yeah, that sounds like the safest place to go right now." You nod with his thoughts on the mansion, agreeing. You place a foot under you and float up and back, away from the chair and reach back to where Stitch scratched you, "Hmm..?" Not feeling anything you twirl for a second trying to look before floating over to Doze. "So... I'm thinking... Wounds from the crowbar as trickster doesn't heal but wounds from other things do because even though I bled the claw marks are gone."

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 1:40 AM

"No problem.  Always glad to help...glad its helpin ya some."  You roll back a bit as you start to put stuff away.  "Not sure really.  Most grey shit tends to be like....few days. Week tops?  Who knows though.   It'll sort out when it does tho." "Oh?" You tilt your head and notice that yeah, despite the streaks of red there was no indicator that injuries were ever there..  "Huh...kinda cool.  Guessn' its a good thing to know.  Gotta admit, the outfit is kind of fuckin adorbs as well.  Though still think green is a way better color on ya."   You take a few minutes to clean up and wash some tools and offer to let Jay wash her mask, noting her eye.  "Ah dang looks like you may have bust a vessel in there.  Hows yer vision?"

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 2:30 AM

Your ears flick back as he asks what you didn't want to hear. "Uh. My right eye is perfectly fine but uhm.." You wash your mask and put it on easily afterwards. "As for my left eye, I can't see out of it at all." You look over at him and shrug as you touch the floor with both feet, "Oops? I hope it temporary... How do I deal with the busted vessel though uh hm that sounds more important." You let down your hair and bounce it around before curling your tail over it. "Mh! I like my original wardrobe but I wouldn't mind being this pink or having this fun gummy hair."

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 2:37 AM

"Ye ye. Prolly will be fine. Prolly just gotta wear a badass eyepatch for a while to let it rest up and shit."  You were hopeful if only because that was one of the many things you had no idea about.  With a smile, you lean over and whisper the location of your hidey hole. Appears to be an abandoned bunker just a bit outside the city. "The hair is pretty baller gotta say.  If it wasn't for the utter fuckwittery wouldn't have been against this whole thing but shit its just a fuckin mess."

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 2:52 AM

"Oh damn, look like a sick pirate. I even have a Halberd for it, go straight into conquer the sea times." You smile worriedly behind your mask and decide to throw the fear behind you. Best not dwell on it when you guys are about to chill the hell out and wait out the rest of this hell. You tilt your head as he tells you its location, your ear flicking and with a nod you put a hand on his shoulder. "Oh god yeah, I would be totally for this style if the manic shit wasn't behind it." You teleport to the location he told you, and blip back out for a second to teleport the car back home. Maybe that would fuck with the trails even more. Haha have fun Trace. You flash back in next to Doze and wobble a bit, "Damn that was the biggest fucking thing I ever teleported. Straight migraine damn, never teleporting a car again unless absolutely necessary." You look around the place as your vision stills and look around, "Ooh shit, maximum comfort, what movies do you have?"

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 2:59 AM

"Hell yeah.  If things go tits up we can just steal a boat and sail uh...actually we could steal a space ship and be badass fuckin space pirates."  You laugh as you finish cleaning up.

A teleport in, she's gone, then back...and looks pretty wobbley. You hold out an arm to prop her up.  So far you haven't been feeling any of the effects of sugarfication...who knows maybe your slow ass time shit is making it hard for it to stick in small quantitites.  The outside looks pretty ramshackle and barren, but after a couple corridors you find yourselves in a fairly comfortable looking room. Large throw pillows, some tacky beaded curtains for giggles and a nice entertainment system with fridge. "Ah shit I got a bit of everything.  Like to keep up on the Earth flicks going down. Guessn I'm already a pirate as is kek.  Got some cute Disney shit, some action movies, some crazy ass giant animal attack stuff, this kind of sweet ass nature documentary...even a couple rom coms though they're kind of fuckin tropey as shit."

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 3:49 AM

You pause at the beaded door way for a minute and tilt your head, pawing at them and laughing softly at the noise they make. You eventually get your arm stuck in them and have to teleport out to fix them, snickering as you do so, damn you gotta get some of these things. And I just realized you said beaded curtains but we thrive in idjit land here. You wonder around the place, getting yourself use to it before low floating back to Doze and setting down again to listen to his movie list. You snort at his joke and nod, "Pirate buds." You raise your hand for a fist bump but hesitate.. he's already touched you and not changed, this should be okay right? You look back down at the movies. "You got any tacky horror movies? I love those things."

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 3:59 AM

"BPBFs...Best pirate buds forever. Kek."  You smile and shoot her a finger pistol with your index and middle finger outstretched.  Two was your gimick, think of it as a double barrel pistol wink or something.  Bumping her paw digits with the fingers, you sit down next to her  to think. "Oh hell yeah.  The tacky ones are the best. So many of the modern ones are just way too fuckin serious. Gimmie that stupid schlock of dumb college kids summoning zombie devils anyday.  We can take bets who gonna die next."  Normally you'd recommend a drinking game of it but between bloodloss and her state probably not a good suggestion.  "Got a few that have like a whole series. You know you got the good shit when you have like 6 sequals each shittier then the last. Can just que up and marathon."

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 7:59 AM

You laugh an nod, the bestest of pirate buds. "Honestly, and yeah, I can already vote for all of them. The blonde hair girl goes first." You look over the movie titles an think about his idea, "Yeah a marathon of these should be time killing enough huh? I'm up for that, you can choose which to marathon since I picked the genre." You float away from him and around the room, setting things up to make this biggest and most comfiest looking pillowfort in the world. You even go out quickly to get some dope halloween bat and spider lights, absolutely halloweenpimpping the place out. You have to take a moment, your head screaming at how much you've done to it today. You'll soon be at your limit for teleporting for the day, better save those for more important things. Like escaping. You nest into the pillows, churring and getting everything more fluffy and comfortable for the movie. "You got any drinks or popcorn for the movies?" You hum and float back towards Doze, setting down next to him, the pillow fort finished.

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 3:26 PM

"Gonna suggest then hmm...critters marathon. Nothing like tiny lil monchy fuzzums from space. "  You grin as you pull out some soda from the fridge and get some chips.  "Way ahead of ya.  Aint a movie night without the snackrifices." You give a nod of approval to the halloween decor and pillowfort.  "Nice nice.  Ultimate Spoopy comfy town up in here now."  Sitting down, you use the remote to start up the first movie as you settle in close.  At this point you were pretty confident that being close by was not going to change you.

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 5:49 PM

"Hell yeah to both of those." You settle down next to him and tug a blanket onto you lap, your tail swishing slowly as you smile and watch the movie. When you watch movies you tend to blank out the world around you, even when you move your self you don't really register it. So as the movie goes on and you two talk off and on you don't pick up your drowsiness. You don't even pick up when you lean on Doze, draw your knees in and wrap the blanket tighter around you, your eyes drifting closed. You nod off for a few seconds and blink yourself awake, there was some things you wanted to get off your chest before passing out. You turn towards Doze with a tired hum and smile softly, "I wanted to thank you, truly, out of that crazed state of mind. You didn't have to risk yourself to help me at all and the fact that you did really means a lot to me." You rub your good eye as your tail thumps softly against the pillows. "And in the car with the tatts, sayin you'd go down with me, all the time you've calmed me down. Being there for me when few to no others were.." You rub a hand through your hair, pausing a moment as sleep starts to tug at you again. "You mean a lot to me Doze, I'm lucky to have you around." Instinct hits you straight in the heart as you use your left hand to hold up half a diamonds with your pointer an middle finger, the classic morail sign, and you don't even register you do it. "You're a damn great dude.." You continue to sleepily ramble as you move your other hand off your face an look at him with a genuine smile.

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 6:07 PM

This was nice.  At this point you've become so used to the faint smell of candy that it doesn't even register.  Just you and Jay, watching hokey movies.  After a bit you realize her banter is slowing as she slowly starts to drift, and you don't bother to try to stop that.  It's been a helluva day and fuck she probably could use fourty winks.  Need that rest to recover, heal, and all that jazz. As she starts to talk, you tilt your head and give probably one of the rare smiles that isn't a wide grin or an amused smirk.  "Ey.  That's what I'm here for.  We're innit to winnit. Better or worse. A daring duo.  And as I said, rather go down trying to do somethin than wait for the kickback in Die's fuckin closet.  Which, by the way...best hiding spot in the mansion.  Kek." You note the hand gesture, and reach up to match it.  "Pching!  Could say the same for you. Well not the dude part.  But yer amazing Jay.  Through and through.  Can't imagine the mansion or a world without'cha.  Clover has my hearts but yer a sparkly diamond in my eyes."  If the threat of candy dandification wasn't there, you'd prolly have given her forehead a kiss.  Instead you just ruffle the back of her gummy soft hair with your free hand.

Plush (JS/MI)Today at 6:43 PM

You laugh softly, locking this moment, this memory in your mind. Something to recall when you need to. Your tail thumps quicker as he ruffles your hair an completely accepts your pale feelings and returns them too. Your worst day turned to the best day. You churr softly, and just like that, being around him, realizing and being the best damn pirate morails, your sugar high self dissipates. Leaving behind good old Jay, just way more tired this time. You smile genuinely at Doze as you snuggle against him as you start to drift off again, "Hmm I wouldn't want it any other way, damn diamonds for life.. Best fuckin morail to have." Your breathing steadies and slows as you fall asleep snuggled against Doze. Your last thoughts before slipping into dream world are quick, you are going do your damn hardest to keep Doze safe from this trickster mess, you are so ever happy to have a morail and one you connect with on so many levels, you.. you are happy actually happy for the first time in a long time. You fall asleep smiling and for the first time in 15 years you dream something calm and something happy.

Mabs (PI/02)Today at 6:54 PM

You blink, as the sugar disspates and sitting next to you is the familiar Jay you know and adore.  "Same. Same here.  Besties for the resties of our lives."  You lean over to gently kiss the top of her now normal head.

"You get some rest. I'll keep an eye and ear out for trouble..."  You say as you gently pet her head while she drifts off to sleep.  Despite all the shit going down, you can't help but feel...pretty dang good.  Cause heck, this will all blow over eventually. For now, in the tiny little room in the nowhere land, things are alright.  And that's all you needed for now.

[southsidelover]

⭐️⭐️⭐️

stars for our headcanons meme + @cockrch

Trimming for length over here!

CHILDHOOD DEFENCE SQUAD -They met when they were three, or four, remembering how it was raining that day and Sweet Pea had brought him over to play. That their shoes had mud and Toni had been laughing at first, but they played Super Nintendo in front of the shit television within the living room of her first house. The one right on the same block as his, the one with the tall walls and her height eating up at the corners, marked in pencil denotations. They’d eat cereal out of bowls that they kept pouring too much milk, too much cereal into, in alternating amounts, until by the end of it, they were high on sugar and could barely play, three monsters that shrieked whenever thunder and lighting, bolted down too close. She asked him to be her best friend that day, and her wild-eyed boy agreed.At seven, she felt like a bad bitch; that was what her mother liked to call herself, and she had the kind of friends that made her feel all the tougher for it, and when life ran by playground rules, who was she to be knocked over? It was always Topaz and Murphy, paired ruffians with a hunger in their eyes that reflected back their feral nature, always playing together, rough housing as if it’d cover up the nature of home, of what was, and wasn’t there. Together, they were unbeatable, right? The terrible twos, together, even if they’d long outgrown their playdates and sandboxes, more attuned to learning how to climb fences and sneaking out at night to see if they could catch a movie at the Twilight drive in, as if they belonged. When they’re twelve, they started to see the cracks, the fucked up reality that they were living. Learning to roll jays from the older members of the Serpents, knowing themselves and promising that when they could, they’d join together. Smoking and coughing and looking like fools, the room spun and felt like heaven and he was there, her Icarus. He liked to quote books and make her feel less crazy when she spoke about photography. He let her cry on him when her parents were arrested, watched her self-destruct, throughout the trial. Kept her in bounds, in safer places, while she tried to tear down the world the way it was being torn down inside of her.They were fourteen when they finally joined, though his was bloody, and hers was… well. It was more, but the same that he’d ever seen of her, the same her that jumped into the river in the summer, same amount of clothes, but for some reason, she could tell. He saw her different, an embarrassment clinging to that fact that she couldn’t shake even if she wanted. He handed her a jacket, and she punched him in the face - and when he earned his other brass-fisted beating, she was there at the end, waiting, ready.                                Just another step in their story of growing up.GRADUATION -The statistics were piled up against them; a sign that they weren’t meant for greatness, knowing that they should have listened to their own weakness, and realized that the greater world out there wasn’t meant for hooligans like them. But still they reached with faltering hands, feeling herself halfway slip, her breathing unsteady as she felt her own breath radiate within her lungs, nervous, sweaty palms slipping against his own. Because today, they’d graduate. And after this, they’d have to face their own realities, for what was waiting out there for them. Rehashing the decisions that they’d made midway through the year, setting up their next September well in advance as her head to look at him, her name being called out. A stupid smile blooming on her face before she could fight it, squeezing a little tighter as she stood and moved up.Diploma accepted, and her hat tossed, even if the stupid thing had cost her $25. And that night they sat in his car, still in their graduation gowns, smoking cigarettes on the roof of it as they parked by the river bank. Close to the encampment, but far enough for the illusion of privacy, the excitement fading, the question mark of their future left to grow between them, a yawning gulf of the things that she hadn’t yet asked of him. Already knowing her trajectory, with NYU waiting, and hours between them to stretch, looking his way, tongue darting between the dry, cracked surface of her lips. A puff of her daydream streaming from them as she kissed him slow, forehead left to press against his own.“Come with me.” because he hadn’t asked, his pride peaking through with a viciousness. But she didn’t want to be the one, only now realizing that the spark in this darkness between them didn’t have to end. Wanting him for longer than their last drag, inhaling sharply. “… we’ll come back when I’m done. But I don’t want to do this without you. Please, John, I– Just. I want to do this. But what the fuck is it for if you’re not with me too? Come with me.” there was no plan, no rationalizing this, just a want, a need, that burned within her guts, hoping and praying that he’d put that trust in her the way that she had in him.Teeth catching at her bottom lip when looking to him, with a crooked little smile, “We can make this our own.” because there was no more her without him, and that, she felt she could blame on him.COUNTING SCARS -“Where’s this one from?” it was late, and she was tired, but there was a fascination lit up within her. Fingers left to trace his ribs, careful, careful, she almost rarely tried to touch when she had a patient on the table. Especially one as unruly as Murphy, the kind of wild boy that she knew was born for the Sky Box. Some people just were, not that they could help themselves; there was something about living in the Ark that was bound to leave a few of them ready to pop, the conditions for an uprising there, but the dissidents like him taken out early. But now that they were here upon the ground, did any of that matter? She hadn’t expected to find him again, not after he’d been chased off from the camp but…Here he was, again, but not all in the same piece in which he’d left. And given Clarke’s own pressing matters at hand, Toni was as good as it got when it came to medical assistance, eyes narrowed as she leaned in to help, clean up all the shattered and broken pieces within him. Broken ribs. Cuts. Knicks. But what got her were the old scars, the kind that she hadn’t seen on him before. Not that she was looking before (she was, she was mad about the miss), curiosity getting the best of her when noticing them all, catching that scowl upon his lips and knowing… he just wasn’t that into opening up, a coolness sliding into place, another stitch, carefully threaded through.Maybe a pinch too, for good measure. “How about this. You tell me about each one of yours… I tell you about some of mine.” in Confinement, she’d been one of the lifers, the ones that people rarely messed with; nobody spoke freely of their crimes, and if it was a crime serious enough to have you locked in at the age of 12, more often than not, stories went on, buzzing. Tongue left tracing, her lips curving into a grin, vicious beneath her softened stare. “Show me yours, I’ll show you mine.” the pain, perhaps, and easier wave to ride then the compassion she knew he distrusted down here. Better to be real and in the language he spoke, that violence that seemingly permeated everything.

[youaremysunshine-court]

> be me

> be extremely gullible

> be quite forgetful

> have friends who enjoy taking the piss because im extremely gullible and forgetful

> ask friend A when her birthday is and get told its in october

> have friends B and C loudly and believably back her up

> realise 3 days before her birthday that it is in fact in september NOT october

> start furiously knitting because that is the only thing i can do fast

> hope to god i finish it in the next 48 hours

[morgansmornings]

Really Long Character Survey.

RULES.  Repost, do not reblog !  Tag 10 !  Good  luck ! Tagged by: @brooklynislandgirl and @lilxlionxman Tagging: @tarnishedhalo, @pettydabblermysticboy,  @multi-mused  (Theo?), @lovelornrocketscientist,   @theregoesthebellhop,   @magnetician, @therealgamble, @all-of-the-muses​ (Emily.... I know you can see me), @doctahquinn

And who ever wants to do this!

BASICS. FULL  NAME : Jayden Morgan Specter. (Only one person allowed to call her that. And that is her mother NICKNAME/S :  Jay, Jayde, Morgan, Stitch, Coffee Goddess, Sunflower, Peanuts (Don’t ask and again only one person allowed to call her that), Al Pacino. She-Bitch, Hellbeast, Ma’am. AGE :  27, but looks anywhere from 22 to 30 BIRTHDAY : August 4th, 1987 ETHNIC  GROUP : Caucasian  NATIONALITY : American LANGUAGE/S : English, German, A phrase or two in Hawaiian, A single phrase in Arabic.  SEXUAL  ORIENTATION : Hetrosexual. But that doesn’t stop her from appreciating another attractive woman. (”Have you seen my Aunt Jessica?”) ROMANTIC  ORIENTATION :  Panromantic - Is someone who is romantically attracted to others but is not limited by the others sex or gender. Panromantics will tend to feel that their partner's sex and/or gender does little to define their relationship. RELATIONSHIP  STATUS : It’s complicated.  CLASS :   Upper Middle Class/lower Upper Class HOME TOWN / AREA : New York City, New York. CURRENT  HOME : Manhattan. PROFESSION : Business Owner. Ex-Assistant District Attorney. Assassin, Part time Mother hen, Part time Sass Master.

PHYSICAL. HAIR : Long, thick, prone to curl. Brunette  EYES : Warn brown, Streaked with Gold in certain lighting. Slightly almond and downturned at the corners in shape. NOSE :  A tiny bit long, smooth, with a hint of a tip.  FACE : She has a squared shaped face. With a bit of a broad jawline for a woman. High Cheekbones. Strong Chin. (All features she got from her father.) LIPS : A defined Cupid’s bow with a slightly fuller lower lip. COMPLEXION : Between bronze and amber. BLEMISHES : N/A SCARS : She has a scar along her right eyebrow that almost bisects it. It is located near her temple.  TATTOOS :  She has one along the front of her left hip along the bone. It is an Arabic phrase that says “The Law Above The Will.” Piercings: She has her ears pierced. HEIGHT : Flat-footed 5′ 7′’ WEIGHT : She is 146 lbs, most of that is on leg muscle. BUILD : Curvy, Hourglass.

FEATURES : It’s not so much a feature as it is an aura. She sees almost everything an then Judges it. (”Let me put o my slightly bigger Judgy McJudge pants”) ALLERGIES :  Deathly allergic to Peanuts. USUAL  HAIR  STYLE : down, mostly she just brushes it and lets it do its own thing USUAL  FACE  LOOK :  She usually has a smirk in place. It is not something she does without much thought. USUAL  CLOTHING : Jeans and a shirt. Or her leathers when she is planning to ride her motorcycle. 

PSYCHOLOGY. FEAR/S : She is afraid of failing. She is afraid of turning into her father, the self-proclaimed “Bastard”, and Frogs.  ASPIRATION/S : She wants to prove that she can survive without the need of help. To be that independent country.

POSITIVE  TRAITS : Loyal, Confident, Strong-Willed, Contemplative, Observant, Witty NEGATIVE  TRAITS :  Blunt, Dominant, Fiery, Sarcastic, and comes with a hidden Sadistic nature. MBTI : ENTJ ("I'm really sorry you have to die.") ZODIAC : Leo TEMPERAMENT : The Inquisitor SOUL  TYPE / S : The Warrior~ make natural leaders, as they are known for their persistence, strength and dependability. With all great leaders comes a cold, ruthless side that can appear when  threatened, however their softer side shines through more often than not.  A mage with a Pattern Avatar~ would say that strength comes from order and stability. Such mages are aligned with the cosmic principle of Stasis, and feel a deep urge to protect and preserve what they perceive as valuable. ANIMALS :  Lions, Bears, Horses, Wolves.  VICE  HABIT/S : She drinks regularly, And once a year (New Years to be exact) She smokes a single cigar FAITH : Polytheistic. She believes in all religions, but thinks and feels that all Divine Beings are great Big Bags of Dicks. GHOSTS ? :  Yes AFTERLIFE ? : Yes REINCARNATION ? : Absolutely ALIENS ? : Yes POLITICAL  ALIGNMENT :  Liberal ECONOMIC  PREFERENCE :  Austrian Economics SOCIOPOLITICAL  POSITION :  N/A EDUCATION  LEVEL :  College Graduate, Has her J.D for Prosecution and M.B.A

FAMILY. FATHER :   Harvey Specter MOTHER : Donna Paulsen SIBLINGS :  None EXTENDED  FAMILY :  Beth Riley, (verse dependant) Andrew Riley, Admiral Riley, Emily Anne Spencer, Clan Barton (It’s complicated.), Theo Jensen, John Constantine, Z and Sin NAME  MEANING/S : Jayden~ “God has Heard”, Morgan~ Welsh meaning Dwells near the sea, Specter~ variant of Spector: Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic) : occupational name from szpektor‘teacher’s assistant in a Jewish school’, a derivative of Polish inspecktor ‘supervisor’.” 

HISTORICAL  CONNECTION ? :  

FAVOURITES. DEITY : the Egyptian Goddess Sekhmet and the Hindu Goddess Kali MONTH :  October SEASON : Autumn PLACE : New York City, New York. WEATHER : Cloudy SOUND : roaring engine of her fatboy. The sound of the coffee machine beeping. SCENT/S : Coffee, Sage, Thyme, Rosemary, fresh baked goods, engine grease, motor oil. TASTE/S : Scotch, steak, and salted caramel. FEEL/S : Leather, expensive suits, silk sheets, calloused hands.  ANIMAL/S :  Lions, Bears, (see above) NUMBER :  7 COLOUR : Reds, browns, black, and pale blues.

EXTRA. TALENTS : Cooking, Baking, Multi-tasking,  BAD  AT :  Being nice, Sewing, Knitting. TURN  ONS : Possessive kisses, soft touches, hair being played with. Pushed against the wall in the heat of an argument, bites to the back of her neck just under her hairline, appropriate challenges to her authority,   TURN  OFFS : Needless torture, Flatout murder for no real reason, wanton cruelty to any living thing for fun. (Just because she is an Jassassin, don’t mean she enjoys it.) HOBBIES : Does stress cooking count? How about murder? TROPES :  The Ice Queen, Deadpan Snarker, Alpha Bitch, Lady of War, Action Girl, AESTHETIC  TAGS :  Needs Clarification.

FC INFO. MAIN  FC/S : Holly Marie Combs ALT  FC/S :  N/A OLDER  FC/S :  Same YOUNGER  FC/S : 

Child: Kaitlyn Maher 

Pre/Teen: Madeline Carroll  VOICE  CLAIM/S :  Speaking and Singing

[multi-goodness]

Prince Charming

Chicago Fire tonight! Yes. Thank god they’re back. Anyway because of that (not really ha), here is a story! Enjoy!

PS if you couldn’t tell, I was stuck so I kind of wing it lol (I do that a lot tbh) so I hope it makes sense.

------------------

Sylvie and Gabby were getting ready for their shift when the alarm went off.

“And so it begins.” Gabby said as she slammed her locker shut and Sylvie followed suit.

It wasn’t a good start of the day when the alarm went off so early, however, at least that would mean their shift would go by fast, as long as no one died.

Sylvie rushed over to the passenger side of the ambo and she got inside. She smiled as she looked over at Gabby. “Let’s hope this shift flies by.” Tomorrow night it was girls night out and Sylvie couldn’t wait to hang out with her girls.

Gabby smiled and she nodded her head, agreeing with Sylvie.

A few minutes later, they pulled along side of the scene and she noticed cops were already at the scene. This wasn’t going to be an easy call, she could already tell.

“Hey, look, Antonio is here. Make sure he doesn’t distract you.” Gabby said, teasingly. Gabby knew Sylvie was professional, she couldn’t get distracted, even if Antonio had a shirt off, she would keep her eyes on the patient. It was one of her favorite things about Sylvie being her partner.

Sylvie laughed, shaking her head as she got out of the ambo and she rushed to the back to grab the things they needed.

Although the cops were here, it was just a simple stab wound, which to them, was easy. Sylvie and Gabby walked over to the guy and Sylvie crouched down.

“Hey. We’re Dawson and Brett and we’re going to make you feel better, okay?” She said as she tried to get the young man to calm down.

Sylvie and Gabby were patching up the guy when he said he didn’t want to go to the hospital.

“It’s best if you go, sir. You need some stitches and some medicine to make sure it won’t get infected.” Gabby said, trying to change the guy’s mind, but they both knew they couldn’t force anyone to go to the hospital when they refused.

“He said he doesn’t want to go, bitch!” Some guy on the side said, which Sylvie figured would be the young man’s friend.

“Dawson, let’s just make him some sign papers.” Sylvie was trying to diffused the situation. “We can’t force him to go.”

Sylvie could see from the corner of her eyes that Antonio was busy with other things to really notice them and she sighed. She didn’t have a good feeling about this.

As they were patching up the guy, his friend was walking over to them and Gabby was getting annoyed by this.

“Hey, could you give us some room?!” She snapped at him. Sylvie just shook her head but continued doing what she needed to help the young man.

“Mind your business, bitch! Just focus on your job.” He then turned his attention on Sylvie and she was trying to ignore it.

“You know, I like you. You mind your business and do your job. How about you give me your number?”

Sylvie rolled her eyes internally. “Sorry, I have a boyfriend.” She said, annoyed by all this. Obviously somehow he was involved with this mess, that’s why he didn’t want his friend to go to the hospital.

“Sure.” He said, moving closer to her. “I bet I can make you feel things your boyfriend doesn’t.”

“Step away from her.” Sylvie smiled when she heard Antonio’s voice. She didn’t even think he was paying attention to anything that was going on, but she should have known.

The guy was signing the piece of paper and Sylvie stood up.

“Detective, this has nothing to do with you.” The man snapped at him.

“It does when you’re hitting on my girlfriend.” Antonio said back to him.

Those were the first time Antonio said those words out loud and it made Sylvie’s heart melt.

“Well---you know” he said as he looked at Sylvie which made her uncomfortable. “I think---” he said as he reached over and touched her arm. “Me and her could have a good time together.”

With the day Antonio was having already, and barely spending time with Sylvie because of jerks like him, he lost it. “Get your hands off of her.” He warned.

Antonio walked closer to the guy, daring him to make another move, but in his eyes keeping his hand on Sylvie’s arm was a move in itself. Sylvie’s eyes was glued to Antonio, knowing he possibly wouldn’t kick his ass----would he? She never had anyone get this angry over someone for her.

Before the guy knew what was going on, Antonio punched the guy in the face. The guy immediately went down, and Sylvie sighed a breath of relief when his hand was off her arm. She was too afraid to move it herself, and was thanking god Antonio was there to protect her.

She thought once he punched the guy, he would just leave him alone, but not with the way Antonio was feeling right now. Although Sylvie was against violence, the sight of Antonio beating this guy up for her was well----hot. He was more sexy in this moment than he ever was---if that was possible because Antonio was always sexy to her.

Antonio was punching on the guy, almost forgetting that he was a detective and this was against the law, but he didn’t care. The guy could hurt him all he wanted but no one---no one--- was allowed to put their hands on Sylvie and get away with it. A few minutes later, Jay pulled Antonio off of the guy.

Sylvie was just staying there, biting down on her bottom lip, turned on more than she ever was in her life. Great, she had an entire shift to get through.

Immediately when the incident was over with, Antonio thought Sylvie was going to stand there with an anger look on her face. Laura used to hate how violent Antonio could get. Although he was a cop, he had a temper, but this was the first time he went after a guy on duty that had nothing to do with a case.

Antonio walked over to Sylvie, apologizing. “I’m sorry baby. Damn, I shouldn’t have let him get to me.” Once he stopped apologizing and saw the look on her face, he smirked. He saw that look before. It was the same look she had on her face whenever she wanted him. “What?” He questioned.

He looked over and noticed that no one was paying attention to him and Gabby was packing up the things, allowing them to talk. And at this moment, he thanked god for that.

Sylvie shook her head, a smile forming on her lips. “Why did you do that? You know I would never give that guy a chance.”

Antonio shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant manner. “ Doesn’t matter. No one says that about my girl.”

Sylvie smiled and she leaned up, giving him a kiss. She didn’t care that he wasn’t big on PDA, what he did deserved a kiss. She pulled away after a few seconds. “So, I’m thinking--” she whispered so no one could hear her. “After shift, I come to your place and who knows what I’ll be wearing underneath my coat.” She said teasingly.

Antonio raised his eyebrows and he nodded his head. “Oh, you’re on.” He leaned in again and gave her a kiss, but this time he let the kiss lingered for a few more minutes.

Knowing Gabby wanted to head back to the station, she pulled away from the kiss and grabbed his hands. She observed his hands and she shook her head. “Put some ice on your knuckles. I’ll see you after shift.”

“Hey.” He called out after her. “I love you beautiful.”

Although this wasn’t the first time they said it, this was the first time they said it in public. She smiled widely, loving that she got to see him even just for a little while.

“I love you too, prince charming.” They both laughed and she got inside the ambulance.

[youaremysunshine-court]

sweater curse is when I start knitting one for myself and realise I don't think I'm worth that much work?

[youaremysunshine-court]

tatting 👍

[youaremysunshine-court]

1950s knitting catalogues are simultaneously the most helpful and most confusing things ever