#like if it was a goose i'd understand

[prokopetz]

I enjoy it when a video game populates a dangerous wilderness with fanciful monsters, except one specific "monster" is just a regular animal with no unnatural features or other obvious justification for why it's being being treated as a monster. Like, brave the Dark Forest and face otherworldly perils such as fire-breathing spiders, ravenous animated skeletons, deadly laser serpents, and... owls.

[mrfoox]

Wufjxjjsjdjd ok

[markrosewater]

Hey, Mark, I'm not to make another UB-related request. This isn't coming from an anti-UB place, and it's just one Goose's opinion, but I'm sure there are others who feel this way.

Can we get rid of flavor words, please? I haven't seen a single upside to them presented, just downsides:

For decades, one of MtG's biggest strengths was capturing the ludonarrative. Having to spell it out makes it seem like you all have lost confidence in your ability to make card design that makes sense with the captured flavor.

If a design is intended to be funny (the Street Fighter cards come to mind), it feels like you're pointing at the "joke" and saying "See? Please laugh." As a person who has a comedy background, I'm sure you understand why killing the frog is bad.

Death of the epithet: The most minor of the criticisms, but I really think "Ian Chester, Science Teacher" reads better than "Ian Chester" and then calling his ability "science teacher." (I may be mixing up the WHO teachers, but this applies to both, luckily.) Epithets also make it easier to depict multiple "moments" of a character without giving a card up as the "definitive" version of that character.

It feels like you don't trust players to get why the card text is what it is. Telling your audience you don't expect them to be smart (or rather, literate) enough to "get" it doesn't really help. I've seen people say they add flavor to the cards, but the flavor isn't diminished by removing the flavor words (flavor is when things are fleshed out and living, not when things are spelled out). If it's for fans of the IP, then they already get it (Oh, the activated ability that grants flying is referencing this character's rocket propulsion). Non-fans of the IP aren't benefited either, as they will sus out said character has rocket propulsion or be left completely in the dark (see Cult of Skaro: These words do nothing to tell me about the ability. If you were to leave them out, I'd still be able to sus out that each ability corresponds to one of the four Daleks depicted).

Lastly, they make cards harder to read. When trying to grok a card, there should be as few words as possible I'm supposed to ignore.

I understand some people will go "I recognize the thing" and a bulb in their brain will light up, but something being easy like this doesn't mean it's better or that we actually like it more.

I guess there's the potential upside that you could slot in numerals to power up my Baron von Count deck, but I don't see any real tangible upside to them. Obviously I'm missing something. Can you say what it is?

(Also, even if you don't answer it,thank you for taking the time to answer this book of an ask. These are feelings I've been sitting on since AFR and keeping an open mind on in case I changed how I felt from my initial reaction.)

Flavor words can do some things that we can't replicate elsewhere. I agree they can be overused, and are not always used optimally, but I don't think we want to throw out the baby with the bathwater.

[rh3maji]

Lil rant abt Caine

Caine is just a lil guy, despite it all. From a design standpoint I thought I was gonna absolutely fucking hate looking at him because those chattering teeth toys make my skin crawl- but the art direction really helps make him look more appealing and whimsical than a disembodied pair of talking dentures sounds on paper.

The thing with Caine is I didn't initially like him that much after the pilot. While his interactions with Bubble were quite funny, that one episode left me feeling like he'd just end up being kinda one note or at the very least one note in a way that'd get on my nerves. Then everything changed when Pomni Wake Up Time to Go On an Adventure! attacked

The comedic timing throughout that announcement video was so fucking funny and thanks to his line deliveries and animation/model [?] upgrades- CAINE LOOKED AND SOUNDED SO ADORABLE!!

Legit it wasn't until this came out that I realized I actually could be on board with Caine as a character and it's been uphill from there. Episode 2 was better than the pilot not only comedically and visually but also in terms of showcasing just how actually unsettling Caine can be as an antagonist. Not because he's vengeful or malicious, but because he's so oblivious to how people work. His mind's always buzzing with terrible ideas and he's so so eager about these adventures, but at the end of the day he really really doesn't get the circus crew. Try as he might to include them, keep them engaged [ZOOBLE WAIT!], or even give them what they want [Exit doors] he doesn't realize how traumatic and distressing their current situation can be. The very nature of being trapped in a digital world is bad enough but it's especially rough here bc not only does its god have limited capabilities, you also are very well acquainted with him, and he can't fully understand your pain nor can he truly save you from it. He won't mourn your abstraction. He will not attend your funeral. He will not understand the distress of your arrival, nor the weight of your departure.

This isn't just sad from the pov of the circus gang, it's also very sad for Caine- not because i think he'll ever feel sad about it himself necessarily, but instead because the situation is sad. New members appear over and over, you craft adventures and games and distractions like [i'm assuming] they'd asked you to, but over and over, one by one, they abstract. They stop laughing at your jokes. They don't like you. They want you to leave them alone. It's confusing and maybe even inconvenient.

Where I'm hoping the series takes Caine is that this dissonance between Caine's intentions and the distress of the circus gang gets worse and worse and worse until something's got to give. I'm hoping that maybe at some point a character will try to sit down and talk with him and for it to either sorta get through to him but completely backfire in some form because he misinterprets what the others want from him OR i'd also be down for him to listen, but not understand any of it and proceed as tho nothing happened. I don't want Caine to come around really, it'd be interesting to see how Goose would go about having him come around to being a better host that empathizes more with humans, but personally I do prefer him to keep on keepin' on being this oblivious and eager antagonist.

My favorite Caine lines/line deliveries so far:

"You, my friend, stumbled into an incredible world of wonders, where anything can happen!…e-except for swearing."

"And here we have THE GROUNDS! Drown yourself in the digital lake, or engage in ridery at the digital carnival!"

"What do you think of XDDCC? You're right, terrible, LET'S TRY THAT AGAIN!"

"Kaufmo abstracted? Why didn't anybody tell me?"

"Bubble you can't say that"

"-ZOOBLE WAIT!"

"Why are you all just standing there?! The- The Canyon- C-Candy Canyon Kingdom needs you now!" [according to his VA, this was an actual line flub but hoo boy am i glad they use it bc it's hilarious]

"I know you guys love your NPCs, but if I start losing track of who's a human and who's an NPC, who knows...what. could. happen..."

That last line there specifically surprised me the most because up until he said that I was under the impression Caine was linked to every single NPC. I even thought he could see through their eyes if he so chose thanks to his "hundreds of all seeing eyes" line in the pilot. Him saying this here implies lots of things. Has Caine forgotten before? Is someone in the circus secretly an NPC ooooooooh~

"Who knows what could happen..."

Honestly, when Caine first said this I did immediately theorize Jax as being an NPC but now that it's been *checks calendar* three months since I watched episode 2, I don't think this is the case anymore. Jax being an NPC would be...something. Jax not knowing he's an NPC would be interesting [i like it when ppl's realities get shattered], but honestly I think this line was a way to telegraph to the audience that no Caine isn't actually all knowing. He didn't know Gummigoo was coming through that portal until he saw him with his own two eyes. My theory is that Caine is only able to teleport, create, censor, transform, and destroy the world around him, but isn't able to see all of it at once unless he tries to. I think Caine's default state is one where he only knows what he sees directly in front of him/what he himself has left waiting for someone else. And rather than implying someone in the gang is an NPC, I think that line in episode 2 was mainly implying Caine can be tricked, that it's possible to hide something from him, to surprise him even. Though I'm not opposed to an NPC we haven't met trying to join under the guise of being human, it'd potentially create some fun tension assuming the audience was given enough reason to care about them.

Jax is actually my favorite character in tadc, but i couldn't fill an entire post with things to say abt him. Caine seems to be- at least as of right now- the easiest of all the characters to try and wrap my head around. I'll probably have a lot more to say about Jax as he exists in canon as the episodes come out [EPISODE 6 MY BELOVED]

but uhhhh yeah, that's all the things i had to say abt Caine. Pls go watch/listen to the fansong Digital Land bye!

[lilac--sugar]

But then... whatever in the world could you be?

Summary: Astarion wakes from a nightmare with something he can only explain as hunger. He thinks he knows what he needs and goes to the one person that can give him just that. (Late act 2 I'd say) Pairing: Astarion/Tav!Reader (gn!Tav) Though, I did write it with my Tav, Kieran, in mind (pictured above). If there are any mentions that contradict this please point it out and I will gladly adjust it! 💜 Rating: M (Mostly because my blog is rated M and I'm not ok with minors interacting with it. But this is a fluff piece really.) Content Warnings: Mentions of Cazador. Astarion curses once. Word Count: 2k Author's Note: Not betaed. I did my best to comb it over. If you see any mistakes please feel free to point it out! 💜 I really wanted to write this, though. I really wanted at least one scene for Astarion that showed him getting more comfortable/familiar with intimacy that wasn't sexual while also opening up a little more. So, I wrote this to satisfy that need for myself.

Darkness grasps at his mind. Ice cold claws digging in at the nape of his neck, piercing the warm numbness of his meditative sleep. He gasps, suddenly plunged into a state of paralysis.

The claws pull his head back, make him look up into a face he’d rather not see.

“You think you can escape me?” There’s a flame spitting anger through the words. Eyes like red embers flicker, bear down into his own. He trembles in the grasp.

“Just you wait, boy,” claws dig deeper, pain intensifying as it spreads down his neck and through his whole body. He’s powerless. He tries not to weep, can’t do it for his pride, “I’ll show you pain like you’ve never known.”

His eyes widen as Cazador grins, delight dancing in the embers at Astarion’s fear.

“N-“ his tongue is stuck on the syllable, wants to scream it out, ‘no! I won’t let you! No! You can’t get me here!’

Here? Wait… That’s right. This is just-

He gasps awake, pushing himself up.

“Gods,” he whispers to himself, presses his head into his hands, “it was just a dream,” he takes in a shaky breath, “a nightmare,” he corrects himself.

None the less his body continues to tremble, goose fleshed skin broken out into a cold sweat. The fire kept alive by those on watch does nothing to warm him.

It takes him a moment, a few deep breaths and finally he’s able to pull his hands away from his face. Fear mildly subsides as a new feeling settles in. A strong… craving? It radiates from the pit of his chest. A new kind of hunger he’s not felt before.

Hunger but he can’t even fathom walking away from the safety of camp. The safety of you.

His eyes roam the area before landing on your form.

You look so delicate cuddled down into your pile of pillows. An odd request he’d noticed. You weren’t shy of asking for compensation for your help. Gold and a pillow. Every time. A pillow.

A small huff of a laugh escapes his lips.

He’d remembered the bundle on your back. How it dwarfed you as you tried to carry them all during your travels. Astarion refused to help you then only to have Halsin step in like the big knight in shining armor he is. Astarion had gotten annoyed at the time. Blamed it on Halsin having spoiled his fun of watching you struggle. Truth was he felt a pang of something. He couldn’t place it. Just hated how you’d stared at Halsin all bright eyed, smile wide on your face. He wanted that look for himself. He’d felt the sun for the first time in centuries. But he wanted to know what it felt like to be warmed to the bone. Thought he’d find it there in that look.

Of course, he’d caught a glimpse of it. The night he finally admitted his whole scheme. Worried sick he’d messed everything up. Only you flipped it around with a simple embrace. Sun be damned. That was what true warmth felt like. He’d felt guilty for being rewarded with comfort and understanding for deceiving you. Didn’t understand you one bit for it but eternally grateful you had.

He wondered. You had told him earlier in the day he could feed on you. Day after day you offer and night after night he obliges. He’s grateful for your generosity.

It’s almost like clockwork now. How he crawls over to you. Each time he feels himself get more comfortable in the act. He used to hover over you like you were a bomb that’d set off any second. He used to barely touch you. Now he has no issue. He presses a hand to your shoulder, pushes you flat on your back. He watches with amusement as your body almost instinctively bares your neck for him, highlighted by the dancing fire beside you.

He slides a knee between your legs, getting himself as close as he can. He lowers his head down next to your neck, cool lips taking pleasure against warm skin. He breathes in. For a man that so claims to detest flowers he’d never admit it, but he thinks of you as one. His favorite one. A bouquet of wildflowers. Joyous and bright. Unpredictable. He’d come across you when he had nothing in return. An empty field of dirt. One touch from you and now he’s overgrown.

He can’t explain it, why he does what he does next. He doesn’t bite. Instead, he nuzzles into you. Nose pressing under your ear, tickled by the hair there. He takes in another breath that is you. Eases in a bit more, his arms sliding behind your back. If he had any less pride, he might have flung one of your arms over him.

A tremble passes through his body, a small sob catching in his throat.

You stir under him, a groan escaping from your own. He’s quick to pull away, thinks about dashing off. You never need know he was even there.

“Star,” sleep thick your voice comes out as a croak. He freezes, keeps himself hovering over you.

“What?” He blinks back tears. He’s not sure if the word is meant for him. You’d never called him such before.

“You think your parents named you Astarion because your hair is like starlight?” your speech is sleep slurred.

“Wh- I,” a man that has something to say about everything and you’ve rendered him speechless.

You raise a hand, fingertips brushing over his soft delicate curls that frame his face. Moonbeams are caught in his hair, causes it to glow like a gentle halo around him. Your hand drifts down, settles on his cheek. Fingertips brush just under his eye and you know.

You also know that if you point it out or make a big deal he’ll just fuss and huff off. So, you do the one thing you know he’ll accept. You roll yourself over, use all your strength and flip him onto his back over the nest of pillows you’d painstakingly created. Mischief. He has a soft spot for your displays of it.

“What are you-!?” He doesn’t get the words out before you’re flopping over him, mouth pressing to his neck, you playfully bite down.

“Get off me you fowl fiend!” he cries out.

A chorus of ‘shh’ raises up from the party around them.

“Oh, fuck off!” Astarion snaps back.

A small giggle escapes you as you nuzzle yourself down into him. An arm wrapping over his chest, leg curling around one of his. You know if he had truly been upset, he wouldn't have even let you get this far in the first place. Wouldn't have let you push him. Would have chided you and stormed off by now. Instead, you feel him melt into the pillows, arms slowly wrapping around you.

“You really want me off?” you mumble into his neck, needing to check anyway for good measure. He shakes his head.

“No,” He admits, voice a little watery. You go to pull back, worried you were perhaps wrong. Only, he wraps his arms tighter around your form, pulls you back into him.

“I uh,” He lifts a hand, it coming to cup your face, palm to jaw, fingertips over your lips, he settles your head back where it had perfectly fit just a moment ago, “I had a nightmare with Cazador, again,” He says and you nod.

“I won’t let him get you,” you mumble. A ‘tch’ of a laugh escapes him.

“Optimistic,” He chides.

“One of us has to be.”

“Naive.”

“Hopeful,” you correct.

He hums.

“I promise you,” you whisper, kissing over his fingertips.

Cricket song and the pop and fizz of fire fills the space around you. The need for distraction is clear.

A kiss turns to a bite and he pulls his hand away from your face.

“Will you stop that!?” He hisses and you grin.

“Taste of your own medicine.”

“Oh please,” He places his hand over your neck now, “When I bite it’s with a lot more care and finesse! You hardly ever wake up anymore and I’m at your throat every night.”

You grin, lips curling up at the corners and he thinks you look like a cat who’d just caught a mouse. He lifts his head to get a better look at you, can see the glint in your eyes.

“You hardly ever wake up anymore, right?” He asks. In response you bury your nose into the crook of his neck.

“You smell nice,” You mumble.

Exasperated, he drops back onto the plush pillows.

“You do keep changing the subject,” A faux agonized sigh leaves him, he’d never admit this was an all too welcomed distraction, “You are infuriating, you know?”

“What is it?” You ask, ignoring his complaints. You sniff at his neck, the small puffs of air causing his skin to tingle. He closes his eyes and focuses on not laughing.

“Hmm,” Your nose slips behind his ear, nuzzles into the soft curls there, “rosemary,” hesitant, you sniff again and this time you can feel him twinge with a bit of a laugh, “brandy for sure,” You pull back, hand pressed to his chest as you hover over him.

There’s a softness in his eyes, a smile delicately placed across his lips. His hair is glowing again in the moonlight.

“Go on then,” He says, smile turning to a grin, “what else?”

You shake your head, “Can’t pin the last one.”

“Bergamot.”

“Ahh,” You roll your eyes, “Bergamot,” you carry out the first and last syllable of the word, try to flourish it with his accent, “Fancy.”

“You know me, darling,” He raises a hand and presses it to your cheek, “understated with a dash of extravagant and exceptional.”

You can’t help the laugh that bubbles up at his words. It startles him and another chorus of ‘shh’ breaks out.

“Sorry!” You whisper-shout. You duck your head into his neck, muffling the giggling as best as you can.

“I hardly think what I said was funny,” he’s trying to sound serious, but you can hear the hint of a pout to his words.

“Star, you’re about as understated as a beacon,” You pull back, a simmer of giggles still gently rolling from your chest, “Wait- Can I call you Star?”

“Uh-“

“It’s just that, your hair really does look like starlight and right now-“ well, right now you think if his body could, he’d be flushed all over, “While, yes, you are gorgeous. Sometimes I feel like when I’m with you, there’s this- light. Something,” The hand on his chest moves over his heart, “In there. It’s warm and beautiful, comforting. Like the north star, it guides me,” You’re talking a million miles a minute. Your sleep addled mind has no filter for your mouth. He stares at you, eyebrows raised, anticipating what you’ll say next even though he never knows and doesn’t know why he bothers to try, “to you.” You swallow hard, realizing you’d probably let yourself go a bit too far. His face hasn’t changed and so you try to dig yourself out, “And well- it is in your name, so-“

“Do shut up,” he says, leaning up and pressing a kiss to your lips. It’s different, chaste. Something new entirely and you kiss back, hoping not to break such a delicate thing.

“That would be fine,” He says as he pulls away, “But all this talking has made me rather tired, my love,” he flops back onto the pillows, “and I’d really rather not make the trek back to my bedroll,” he nestles himself back against your pillows, “Far too much hassle.”

“Right,” You nod, “completely.”

“Just don’t go thinking I’m doing this every night.”

“Mmhmm.”

“And it’s really all your fault since you pinned me here. So, if anyone comments in the morning you should admit as such.”

“Yes, dear,” you settle yourself into him, curling around him. He might sleep as stiff as a plank but you were going to make it work.

When you’ve fallen asleep he realizes he’s- happy. He feels satiated somehow without a drop of your blood. Don’t get him wrong, he’d probably partake in the next few hours. But for now, right now, the pit in his chest felt full.

“Gods, where were you?” he whispers, his breath ghosting over your forehead. A sleepy groan leaves you as you stir, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt over his heart.

Perhaps. Perhaps you were there the whole time. The seed of his hopes. Every damned prayer he said to every God. Someone listened, someone took that tiny seed and from it grew you. And here you were, though not to ruin him. No. But to help him.

“Took you long enough,” He mutters, a small laugh escaping him. He takes your hand in his own, lets your warmth sink into his fingers. He couldn’t just yet bring himself to thank whatever God made it possible. He thought maybe one day. Right now he didn’t care much for anything beyond the two of you right here.

For the first time in a long time he dreams of life in the sunlight. You there next to him, as he basks in the warmth of your bright eyes and wide smile.

My masterlist

[ezlo-x]

real goose fans also like him pre-redemption. he's just a guy whos consumed by the need to prove himself and doesn't understand why link can be so airheaded and yet be the so good at what he does. I feel like that's understandable I'd he mad if some guy that kept falling asleep in class kept getting everyone's love. and then you find out he's destined to rescue the girl you love 😭 that's crazy

I love Groose he was the best part of the story. Bro just wanted to see what was going on and he goes through character development and builds Link a catapult. My fav quote of his is this one, I bursted out laughing

[torupinwheels]

Breathless Hill

Summary Fending off the big bad wolf is nothing new to you. But this close up to his shiny fangs and muscled arms, who could blame you for having a couple new tricks up your sleeve?

Pairing Toji x Reader

Content Warning MDNI, forest sex, fem!reader, werewolf!Toji, ruts, knotting, asphyxiation, breeding, creampies.

Word count. 2.5k

AN. Scrambled to get this fic done before getting my groceries, hope you guys enjoy ^_^.

For the first time all night, you close your eyes and instantly regret it. Your legs hurt from running and your lungs feel scarred; like the northwestern trees after a particularly brutal wildfire. The sun had long set but you were still seeing flashes of light behind your eyes, dizzying your balance with every blink; you were exhausted to say the least.

"You sure you're not tired yet, doll?"

Hearing that damned gravelly voice echo in the distance, your eyes shoot open.

Fuck, you could have swore you lost him a couple miles ago. You swallow, sweat dripping down from your brow down to your neck. Your shirt was soaked through already, sweat clinging to the outlines of your chest.

Your ears pick up the faint rustling of leaves nearby. Alarmingly nearby.

Suddenly, you wince at the sound of claws scraping loudly on the deeply furrowed bark of the trees. It sounds far too close for comfort. In fact, it almost seems that it's coming from the tree behind you.

The realization hits you but it's too late: Toji is upon you in the blink of an eye.

It's impressive how fast he knocks the air out of you, pinning you like the small game prey that fall into his trap every full moon. The sheer force of his sinewy muscles forces a grunt of surprise out of you as your back hits the tree behind you. He grins, a delighted smirk reaching from the etched scar on his lip to reveal sharp canines lurking underneath.

"You're quiet now, huh? Shoulda thought about that before taking my bounty, pretty girl."

He's intoxicating. Logically, it's easy for you to understand the danger you're in; having the most lethal werewolf in the county pressing up against you. As the blood rushes to your head, you size up the threat in front of you.

However roughed up you must look, he's worse off. Despite his confidence, you managed to get a couple good hits in before he turned. His human clothes struggle to contain his massive form, turning a normally baggy grey sweater into something more akin to a tattered imitation of a compression shirt.

Your gaze drifts further down and you bite back a smile at the various oozing wounds your traps laid on Toji's body. Although primitive, your bear traps did well to slow him down before his superhuman healing kicked in.

His words finally kick in and your eyes dart back up but the damage is done. Puzzled, and tickled more than he'd ever admit, by your silence, Toji catches your questionable gaze and lets his head fall ever so slightly towards yours.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you like what you see."

His breath is soft, you notice absentmindedly. Your eyebrows furrow slightly and you stay silent, eliciting a slight head tilt from Toji. Gears turning in your brain, you decide to test a theory. You bring your hands up slow to land like a feather on his chest.

He lets out a rough gasp but it's not enough. If this is real, you need proof. You let your breath fan out on his cheek as you lean in, voice low.

"What if I do? Is there something wrong with that?"

He lets out a shaky laugh, claws still pressed against the rough tartan wool of your shirt. But his arms soften and there's a strange look in his eyes. You were right: the big bad wolf has a little crush on you. Unaware of your inner musings, he answers in a low sarcastic whisper.

"Careful, don't say that too loudly. These woods are full of creatures that aren't as nice as me."

The implications of his words dawn on you.

He's having fun with this.

You've shot at him, trapped his legs, and damn near sent him on a wild goose chase the whole night but that strange twinkle in his eyes is still there. To make matters worse, there's a whole other unsettling side of the coin.

You're having a lot of fun too.

It's been a long time since a bounty made you run like hell.

You're unable to hide the sudden mirth in your eyes so you act quick. Toji barely has enough time to raise a quizzical brow at your sudden gleefulness before you quickly slide a leg behind his -- effectively using his own weight to knock him down to the cold and damp forest floor.

"Argh!" "Fuck-"

You both go down cursing, with you landing squarely on top of Toji's chest. You both blink at each other before Toji lets out a frustrated huff, brandishing his claws to swipe you.

You dodge quickly and in a blind act of adrenaline, you reach for his neck.

Toji's eyes widen immediately and his claws falter. It's enough of a gap for you to grip the thick sides of his fur-covered neck and squeeze as hard as possible. You close your eyes, hiding your face downwards, as you apply pressure with an strangled yell.

You feel Toji's claws retract as his body thrashes and he lets out a moan?

Surprised, you let go momentarily as your head shoots up. The sight that meets you nearly convinces that you died earlier and went to heaven right here on the forest floor.

What meets your eyes is a flushed and heaving Toji, gasping for air. His eyes flutter back and forth between looking at you and rolling back into his head with pleasure. Your eyes wander down, from his chest heaving up and down with every greedy breath he takes down to his crotch where you swear you saw a tent.

You give him an experimental roll of your hips and he keens, a clawed hand immediately grabbing at the plush of your hip.

This position gives you too much access to both of you as you immediately notice the solid warm weight right under your core.

He's rock hard from getting choked out. Stunned, you say the first thing that comes to mind, hands firmly caressing his adam's apple.

"You're kind of a freak."

His usually baritone voice is deliciously raspy when he finally speaks, his splintered laugh sending vibrations through your lower core.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You probably got wet watching me getting stabbed, weirdo."

You're not sure what comes over you when you reply.

"Wanna find out?"

You're about to mutter a half-hearted apology when Toji closes his eyes, a peaceful smile on his features.

He looks good like this, like the world's worries just melt right off his chiseled body.

His face distracts you from the most electrifying hip roll, as Toji grinds his massive bulge against your crotch, electrifying you into a lengthy moan. His canines glint in the moonlight as he grins at your reaction.

"Sure, baby. Do your worst. I'll make you feel good either way."

Your hands start to wander down, of their own accord, to Toji's chest. Like gravity, you're pulled to start a slow unforgiving grind on his dick, feeling the precum leak through his tattered pants. Feeling the cold air hit his neck, Toji hisses as his eyes focus on you. His big hands envelop yours, warmth spreading through them. He looks up at you, his voice wavering slightly, like honey falling through the air.

"Please, baby. Don't-don't stop."

His words spur you on, bringing your hands back to the expanse of his neck only to squeeze down on his airway.

Your reward is immediate as Toji brings up one of his massive thighs for you to rest on and starts to hurriedly undo your pant buttons with his claws.

He starts babbling low grunts of nonsense in between the both of your moans with the only words you make out being "baby" and "so gorgeous".

Before long, he's managed to free your slick core from your garments, leaving your bottom half shivering from both the cold autumn air and the delicate touch of his sharp claws.

You were beautiful to him. From your disheveled hair to the bit of chest peeking out from your shirt to the fat plush of your ass to the way you were desperately grinding against him for just a little more friction, he was entranced.

Unable to wait any longer, you release his neck with one hand and free his cock and heavy balls from the tight pants that shackled them.

Toji groans as you take him in your hand, carefully rubbing the purple knot on top of his dick. You hurriedly position your hips over the knot before he stops you, sweat trickling down his brow.

" 'Preciate the favor, honey but I'm in heat. Just keep grinding against me, I'll manage the rest."

You're equally unamused. Your mouth had been watering since you laid eyes on his cock and especially his heavy balls, overcome with the need to have them slapping against the wet heat of your core. You roll your eyes with a huff and let one of your hands play in the copious hair in his happy trail.

"I know Toji, I did my research."

"Huh. Alright, baby, you know what to do."

He shakes his head in disbelief as his hand snakes down, helping you adjust onto his length.

“Ah..hngh..” Toji’s voice was still raspy from your fight but his moans jolted throughout your body, making his length slide into you inch by inch.

It was all too much but you couldn't bear to run from his dick, clenching around his length every time his thrust pulled away from your sweet spot.

"F-fuck, Tojii" You borderline mewled at him, overwhelmed from pleasure and the feeling of being so full.

Overstimulated from the wet heat of your hole and your beautiful voice crying out for him, Toji lunges forward. He immediately grabs onto your waist, setting a brutal pace that left both of you with tears on your lashes.

Your hands automatically run through the hair on his head and the fur on his back.

"So soft..." You mutter, voice cracking slightly.

Hearing your words, Toji drops his head to leave hot kisses along your neck, collarbone, anywhere he could get his lips on fast enough. As he thrusted, he began leaving deep hickeys all over your chest.

"All mine, aren't you?" Toji muttered.

You squeeze your eyes shut and moan quietly, unable to think of a coherent response. He grins against the sharp bone of your jaw, angling himself to hit that spongy pleasure spot in your core.

"Yeah, all mine, heh." He presses a sloppy kiss to your cheek and you smile, giddy with pleasure.

You paw at him as you feel your orgasm coming up, rolling like a wave out to shore.

Almost like he can read your mind, Toji gently pushes your body over with you on the forest floor and him on top. You hear the sound of twigs snapping as he re-enters your hole, pushing up into your overstimulated body at a rapid pace.

You claw at him desperately, crooning at him softly, "Please, baby, I need you. Please, I need it inside, I want to stay with you".

With a loud groan, Toji kisses you.

It's sloppy, spit and sweat falling into both of your mouths but you wouldn't have it any other way. His tongue prods into your mouth and you bite it playfully. With his tongue working your mouth open and his cock splitting you below, you feel your orgasm crash into you. You moan into Toji's welcoming mouth as your fluids gush, coating both of your crotches in white sticky cum.

Despite his own orgasm seconds from crashing into him, Toji pulls away to check on you, gasping and kissing the surface of your face.

"You still wanna do this, baby?"

You crack an eye open, still coming down from your high.

"Fill me up, Toji, please. Don't you want to cum in me?"

He chuckles, playfully biting your lips as you pout. "Whatever you want, baby." He pulls away, exposing his pretty canines.

"You're gonna be stuck here for a while, pretty girl."

Cum trickles down the side of your legs from your previous orgasm when the fat curve of his cock enters you once again. Aided by the frothy liquids of your orgasm, his balls slap against you as Toji finds your g-spot over and over again.

"H-hah, pretty girl, I-I'm close, if you don't want my knot you have to-ugh, tell me now-ah!" Toji stumbles over his words as you bring his head down to your chest, distracted by the sweet scent of your sweat and cum all around his sense.

"Baby, I already told you, yes-oh!" You can't help but yelp as Toji snarls and bites down on your collarbone, sure to leave a deep purple hickey come tomorrow morning.

An animalistic growl from him leaves you tingling and grabbing at him again, halfway to your second orgasm. You sigh in pleasure, "Right there, just keep going, Toji."

You hear an annoyed huff before an electrifying jolt hits you from your chest. Your back arches immediately as you realize that Toji just pinched your sensitive nipples before laving them with his tongue.

You tug his hair back and Toji pulls off with ease, never stopping his thrusts. Although difficult to tell on his mixed canine feature, his pout deepens.

"Call me baby again."

You grin and raise a brow. "Say please."

Toji's eyebrows furrow before dropping his head to rest in the crook of your neck, thrusts getting more erratic as he gets closer to his orgasm.

His balls hurt too hard for this conversation. Toji could feel his orgasm approaching soon, his cock weeping with precum every time he pulled away from your core.

Not to mention, he feels like he's going crazy with the idea of letting his knot expand in you. Would it make you thrash and moan with pleasure? Would you give him that sickly sweet smile that made his balls ache? Would it make you cum again, completely untouched?

Toji groaned pathetically at that last thought before bringing his gaze back up to your twinkling eyes. If this was the last night he ever had, this would be the perfect view to die for, Toji reckoned. He leaves a playful bite on your shoulder before giving you exactly what you want, his voice low and leering.

"Please, pretty girl."

"That's all I wanted, baby, thank you baby." You coo back almost immediately.

His dark eyes roll back in pleasure as you squeeze around his length, your spit and cum merged into a milky river of slick around the base of his thick cock, overstimulating him beyond reason with every thrust.

You see his jaw grow slack and decide to give him the same orgasmic treatment as you. Bringing him in close by his neck, you kiss him desperately as his orgasm washes over him. You feel his warm cum spurt inside you for what feels like forever, the excess leaking out of your hole, down his balls. and into the dirt below you two.

It takes a minute for Toji to calm himself before you feel something expand inside your core. Alarmed, you grab onto Toji and look at him. Your worries are eased as he looks at you like a puppy that got a treat: enamored and innocent despite his monstrous size. His voice is low but you detect an annoying teasing lilt in his tone.

"Yeah, honey? Don't tell me you don't like it, you're gonna hurt my feelings, sweet girl..." Toji croons into your ear, echoing your taunts from earlier.

You moan brokenly in response, nails digging into his broad shoulders. The knot, although overwhelming, feels delicious. As it stretches your core, the bulbous nature of it prods gently against your g-spot. Dizzy from the pleasure and Toji's dirty voice right against your ear, you orgasm loudly; squirting cum all over Toji's muscled abs, covering them in a sheen of sweat and cum.

"That's it baby, you did so good. My girl did so good," Toji reassures in your ear as you come down from your second orgasm.

You smile earnestly as you tease him. "Your girl? Moving a little fast now, aren't we?"

Toji's smile drops into a deadpan frown.

"Fine, if you can get my dick out of you, you don't have to be my girl."

You slap his chest lightly with a huff. "Okay, relax. Touchy."

He was right though, the knot had adjusted to your orgasm and was comfortably stuck in your core. It would be a few hours until it would go flaccid enough to take out gently. You shrug and wrap your arms around his bare shoulders, hiding from the cold autumnal air.

"Toji?"

"Yeah, honey?"

"Round two?"

"Yeah, fuck it, why not."

[just-my-latest-hyperfixation]

Eddie Munson's second chance

Written for the @steddieholidaydrabbles, day 14

Prompt: Angst with a happy ending

Rated: G

CW: referenced child neglect/abuse

Tags: Modern AU, Royalty AU, Royal Steve Harrington, Rockstar Eddie Munson

Notes: Continued from day 11. This was angstier in my head, but Eddie is a silly goose.

Eddie Munson is no stranger to fucking up. He's long accepted that. It's just a thing that happens.

Sometimes, you'll miscalculate a stage dive and have to cancel the rest of the tour. 

Sometimes, you'll get so caught up in your stupid rockstar stuff, you'll forget about the youth center you founded to give other kids a better childhood. 

Sometimes, you'll meet an adorable guy named Dustin at said youth center, and rant about how useless the monarchy is, only to find out that Dustin isn't Dustin at all, but Crown Prince Steven Harrington, aka the future king, aka owner of the saddest pair of puppy dog eyes that Eddie has ever failed to get out of his goddamn head. 

Which brings him to his current predicament, sitting on the edge of his bed, waiting for Chrissy to pick up the phone. She does after the second dial tone, which is pretty impressive for three in the morning. 

"We must cancel the royal visit," Eddie blurts before she can ask what's wrong. 

"Eds," she yawns. "We've been over this. Just because you can't stand the guy-" 

"That's not it," Eddie groans. "Listen … I met him yesterday? Only I didn't know it was him? And I flirted with him and he was really cute but I couldn't keep my fucking mouth shut and now I can't ever see him again because I don't wanna rot in some dungeon, understand?" 

"No," she says. Damn, it sounded perfectly logical in his head. "But this doesn't seem like something we should discuss on the phone. Stay put, I'm coming over." 

*

They don't cancel the royal visit, but Eddie refuses to make an appearance. Instead, he watches from behind the curtains of the office window like a creep. The Prince looks dashing in his tailored suit, smiling for the cameras, joking with the kids, listening to Chrissy with polite attention as she shows him around the place. Eddie loves her so fucking much, will be forever grateful that she filled in for him. 

Even if she tied it to one condition. 

He watches how she whispers something into the Prince's ear, how his smile melts into an angry frown. How they both turn to stare at the window. Eddie flinches away from the curtains, heart in his throat. 

He wonders if the dungeons have WiFi. 

*

"You have exactly ten minutes," says the bodyguard. It’s the same one from yesterday, the one called Hop. Eddie doesn’t reply, just nods stiffly. Hop looks at him like he's contemplating murder, but then he ducks out of the room with a muttered all clear.

Prince Steven steps in. The door clicks shut. Silence descends. 

"Well," Eddie finally mumbles. "I guess this is the part where I bow and grovel." 

The Prince snorts. "Please don't, Mr Munson. I'd rather you save us both the embarrassment."

Eddie winces, because ouch. That stings more than it should. 

Neither of them says anything for a long while. The clock on the wall keeps ticking. 

"So," Eddie rocks awkwardly on the soles of his combat boots. "Who's Dustin?" 

Those plush lips twitch into a smile and those pretty eyes light up. For a moment, Eddie glimpses the boy from yesterday. 

"My housekeeper's kid. He'd be so mad if he knew I met you and didn't get him an autograph." 

He says it with genuine concern, like he's honestly afraid of getting shit from a little kid, and Eddie can't help but grin. 

"Don't worry, I won't tell." 

This gets him a huffed laugh. 

"He'd love this place, it's really cool." 

When Eddie looks up, the Prince is looking at the picture frames on the walls, photos of smiling kids and drawings in crayon and watercolors. Eddie sighs and joins him, stares long and hard of a picture of Max on her skateboard. 

"Thanks. I, um … grew up around here, and I wanted to give these kids a safe space. Where they can just … be children. I never really had that myself." 

A thoughtful hum. Those hazel eyes are soft with an expression that looks weirdly like longing. Eddie remembers watching stories about the royal family on his uncle's rickety TV set. A solemn-faced boy his own age trailing behind his parents outside of private jets, in lush parks and gilded halls. Always in expensive suits. Always well-behaved. Always way too grown-up.

Well, shit. 

"Listen, your highness …" 

"Steve is fine." 

"Listen, Steve …" Eddie lets the name linger on his tongue, finds that he likes the feel of it. "I guess I've been a bit of a dick." 

A hint of that bitchy little smile. "You guess correctly." 

"Whatever," Eddie huffs. "I'm trying to apologize here, so may I? Or are you throwing me in the dungeons?" 

"The …" Steve blinks. Then, his mouth starts to curl. "We, um … don't actually do that anymore. Unless you're into that, then I'm sure it could be arranged." 

Eddie sputters and Steve bites back a laugh. 

"If you really wanna make up for it," he then says. "I hear your concert next week is all sold out? Dustin would love backstage tickets." 

Eddie frowns. 

"Dustin as in the kid or …" 

"Steve?" Hop cracks the door open. "Time to go, c'mon." 

Steve smiles, bright and sunshiny. "On my way." 

He turns to Eddie, grabs a pen and a notepad from the chaos on the desk.

"Backstage tickets, two of them. I'll be expecting them by tomorrow." 

*

When Chrissy bustles in not five minutes later, she finds Eddie in the office chair, staring morosely at the still drawn curtains. 

"Eds? Everything okay?" Eddie just groans and hides his head in his hands, so she crouches down in front of him, hands on his knees. "He didn't give you shit, did he?" 

"Shit? I wish. No, it's far worse than that." Eddie cackles hysterically and unclenches his fist, presenting a crumpled piece of notebook paper. "He gave me his number." 

Part 3

All my holiday drabbles

[ecogirl2759]

THE MOMENT WE'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!

Here it is, guys!

The Kiyotaka Ishimaru Mastermind comic from 4コマ KINGS Vol. 4!

SPECIFICALLY CITING THIS SO THAT OTHERS KNOW WHERE TO FIND THIS COMIC!!!

Huge, HUUUUGE thanks to @panicuriprince!!! They helped me with clearing the text, rewording panels and putting everything together! Pages 4, 5, and 6 are her doing! PLEEEASE go send her some love, they REALLY helped me get this done and I literally couldn't have done this without her :D

There's a document below the break with more literal translations for the comic, as well as translation notes, a link to a Google Drive folder with ALL of the pages, and other interesting tidbits! Please give it a read!

The Japanese pages will also be below the break! (As well as a little spiel of mine. It's quite long, so be careful!)

(also please forgive how many tags there are here-)

Remember to read right to left <3

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As promised, here are the Japanese panels:

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AND HERE'S THE DOCUMENT!

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✨ WOW ✨

I can't begin to describe to you all how AMAZING this feels!

I've spent the past 2 years on what felt like a wild goose chase, desperately searching for this one comic that I wasn't even sure existed.

This all started with me finding a photo on Tumblr of this comic and spiraling into this deep dive. First I didn't know if this was even real, then I found out that this comic series had ceased printing, then I couldn't be sure which book it was actually in.

There is literally almost no information out there about the fourth volume of this anthology series. I've said this before and I'll say it again, volumes 1 and 2 both have full translations that you can download off of other websites, and while 3 doesn't seem to have that, there are a lot of separately translated comics floating around out there, namely on Pinterest.

The 4th volume had NOTHING! No matter how hard I searched or how many links I clicked, no one has really said ANYTHING about this book, which was why this specific comic was so hard for me to find.

But I have all of the books now, so I definitely want to do this again for all of them so that people have easy access to these translations. I'll start with book 4 though haha.

Also, I'm not sure who it was, but HUUUUGE thanks to the kind stranger on Ebay who was willing to sent me the whole series!! I literally don't know where I would be right now if these books weren't with me, so thank you <3

Also, thank you to all of my Japanese teachers that I've had throughout the years. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have been able to understand the comic, haha! One even helped me out in the early stages of this process, so extra thanks to him <3

I feel really passionate about accessible media. I think that everyone should be able to read and find whatever they want. That's part of the reason that I've endeavored on this project. I want everyone to be able to seek out and find these comics if they really want to. And, of course, I want everyone to be able to understand them, too.

So please enjoy this comic! If you'd like to repost it, I'd appreciate being credited just so that others know where they can go to find the full comic.

This one-man project isn't so one-man anymore, and I seriously can't thank everyone who's helped me enough!!! I'm honestly so glad I didn't have to go through this alone <33

ALSO

If you see anything, LITERALLY ANYTHING, that you think I could change/improve (like formatting or different interpretations of the Japanese text), PLEASE shoot me a message!! I want to make sure this comic is as good as it can be, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Even if you don't have a suggestion and would just like to reach out to ask a question or something, PLEASE don't be afraid to do that! I know I get really cold feet when sending people asks, so I'm going to reassure everyone who needs to hear it now: You're never going to be a bother to me! I love getting asks! Whenever anyone sends me something, I get really excited <3

So ask questions! Tell me I did a horrible job and got none of the text right! Ask why Ishimaru literally cannot be evil! I don't know the answer, either!

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Thank you all so much for the support and the kind words you've been giving me ever since I first announced I was translating this comic! Your support has been extremely motivating to me! Also, you guys are hilarious with your tags!

Seriously, thank you so much! Words literally can't express how I feel right now, but I guess the best way I could describe it is cathartic. I'm REALLY happy that I finally get to share 2 years worth of work with you guys! You've all been a massive help to me in more ways than one <333

KEEP BEING AWESOME <3

[weirdgenetic-fuckup]

HELLOOO could you maybe write something for Dave's birthday? :3

A/n: I did not realize it was Dave's birthday until this ask came so thank you for that reminder lol

Also, I have been writing a lot this week, I don't know where the motivation came from but we don't ask question we just go with it, however, I am not going to post a whole lot anytime soon I don't think, I just figured I'd post this since it is Dave's birthday

Warnings: Smut, overstimulation, creampie, if you think I missed anything let me know otherwise enjoy!

Also also, does anyone else use the picture to decide what era the fanfic is set in or is it just me? Either way, I started writing this thinking of grandma Dave but at some point I switched to bearded Dave so it works with either :)

Dave stopped enjoying his birthday years ago, roughly when he was about five years old. He wasn't raised to celebrate his birthday, and while being a kid and seeing everyone celebrate holidays was hard he never grew to like his birthday.

His distaste only grew as he got older.

You had him go out and do stuff with his friends and bandmates, not quite a wild goose chase but... he had no idea what he was doing or where he was going.

It was all so you could get ready at home, even though he was asking you repeatedly to come out with him because all he wanted was to spend time with you. It was a hard enough day as it was and now he didn't have the one person that meant the most to him.

You'd made his favourite dinner, even got him drink set up, and you got yourself all dolled up.

You wore one of his shirts over a new lingerie set.

You were just finishing up setting the table when you heard the door open and slam closed, Dave was home.

"Where are you, sweetheart?" He called, sounding drained.

"Dining room!" You called back, getting yourself seated on the table, legs crossed and sitting pretty for him.

He entered the room, shoulders slumped and a grimace on his face. As soon as he saw you his expression lightened up and he straightened up, not even having noticed what you were wearing or doing, he was just happy to finally see you.

He came over to you and wrapped his arms around you, kissing your forehead and cheek down to your neck and finally placing a kiss on your lips, hands sliding from your back to your hips.

"I missed you, sweetheart." He said softly.

You chuckled softly at his affection. It wasn't unusual for him to be extra affectionate towards you, he loved you and would do anything to show it, sometimes he just over did it, not that you minded, not one bit. It made his day to just get to kiss you, to feel you even in the most domestic ways.

"Rough day?" You asked sweetly, wrapping your arms around him and letting him rest his head on your shoulder.

"You weren't there." He grumbled.

"Yeah, but, you were with your friends."

"You. Weren't. There." He repeated, causing you to chuckle.

"Yeah, but I had a reason to send you off." He pulled away slightly, raising a brow at him, not understanding what the reason could've possibly been. "I wanted to make today special!" You said, gesturing to the dinner behind you.

Dave looked past you to the nice little dinner you'd set up, his eyes slowly moving to you and the outfit you wore. "Dinner... and desert?" He asked, looking back to your eyes.

You nodded, a bright smile on your face.

Dinner was one thing, but desert was what you were both looking forward to. You let him complain throughout dinner, and when it came to desert he had your face shoved into the mattress.

His calloused hands gripped your hips in a bruising hold, hips slamming into yours repeatedly, hard cock stretching you out and hitting deep inside you.

"Little bitch, making me run around all day." He said through grunts, hand coming down on your ass, leaving a bright red mark to match the other cheek.

He hadn't taken you out of your -his- shirt or lingerie, choosing to push your panties to the side, letting your shirt ride up over your chest, revealing your pretty bra.

You had tears streaming down your cheeks, soaking into the sheets beneath you along with drool and, a few feet lower, cum. Not to mention the sweat.

You didn't care, you only cared about the way Dave made you feel. How he held you, spoke to you, all of it had your mind running into a muddled mess as you came around him again and again.

You felt his thrusts losing rhythm, his arms wrapping around you and leaning over you, craving more of your touch as he raced for his high. "Oh, fuck, sweetheart- I-I'm gonna cum inside." He mumbled, face shoved into the crook of your neck. "I deserve it, m'gonna fuck you full of my cum."

A few more thrusts and you felt him painting your gummy walls a creamy white, movements sputtering slightly but he wasn't done yet.

This wasn't the first time he'd cum that night, his mind was as much as mess as yours he was just more used to being fucked up, though in a different sense. Still, it came in handy when he was trying to dirty talk you after fucking himself dumb.

He was overstimulated, as were you, but he needed more. He didn't know how much more, but he knew he wasn't done.

[primeofprimes115]

Scoring Her Heart of Steel - Supergirl x Male Reader

Contains: Fluff 🥰

Living the life in shadow wasn't easy, especially when having special abilities when you couldn't understand them at first, unable to find the right person to help you discover them and even control them, fire, ice and even smoke. Recently learning to use solar magic to heal wounds and himself too.

That person was Y/N, he was but a child when finding out that his late father contained abilities which carried over to Y/N himself.

He came from a family of an old clan, a clan that pretty much no longer existed but only was told in stories of the Old Histories, his ancestors before him were from this old clan.

But since then? He found someone who could help him, that being Liang who possessed abilities much like Y/N's.

He was part of the Earth Defense Squadron, a group of individuals who deal with criminals, thugs and bigger threats using their set of skills and abilities to protect their planet, and even the Sol System.

Y/N was but 16 when he joined, now? He is at least 20 years old, he's been a member for four years now and hasn't regretted joining since.

Some kill him "Enenra" for his smoke magic, "The Cold Assassin" for ice, "Pyro" or "Mr Impulsive" for his fire (though the last one is much of an insult to him). But he calls himself Mancer, given his ability to use fire, solar, ice and smoke at the same time. He has since mastered them all, Solar magic is his newest addition to his abilities. His friends call him Multitasker anyways.

As of this moment? They're currently on the hunt for a convicted criminal they've been hunting down for a while now, responsible for almost causing a world wide war through manipulation and sorcery, if there was one word Y/N would describe him as? He'd call him the Devil's Sorcerer, given his background, he's lived for a very long time.

He has a vision of making a perfect world, which he'd make after everything is asunder, he sees humanity's flaws and wants to perfect them... But when that couldn't work and failed? He decided to move onto another target. Another Earth to be exact.

An Earth where it also had Heroes and Villains, but not like the ones that the sorcerer knew, he began scheming, manipulating others for his own gain.

But it wasn't long, till he'd be found by a group of Heroes from his Earth, and Mancer was with them to finally bring him to justice, their way.

But knowing the Heroes of this Earth? Mancer's leader knew the Heroes wouldn't allow them.

The little goose chase had gone on long enough, Mancer and the others had finally brought down the Sorcerer's forces and himself included, as the group surrounds him and picks him up. Liang stood in front of him as he scolds him.

"Alatar Omrin, for too long you have avoided justice, committed many atrocities of both our Earth and this one-"

"Save me your lecture Liang, Your voice has already bored me" Omrin snarked, earning a punch from Xalex, the Windbender.

"Got any other comments to share Sorcerer? I'd be glad to keep this up!" Xalex smirked.

"Xalex..." Liang glared right at him, forcing him to stand down.

"Sorry, boss" Xalex chuckled nervously.

"Yes, listen to him, you don't want a battered up, captive don't you? After all, you're the one who always seems to screw up" Omrin tried antagonizing Xalex which almost worked... if it weren't for Mancer.

"Quiet Sorcerer or I'm gonna shut you up myself by gagging you" Y/N threatened to cover Omrin's mouth with his ice, preventing him to speak, Omrin did as asked and closed his mouth.

Not even another word came out.

"Damn, that was cold" a feminine voice spoke behind him, his best friend, Satine who was an Earthbender.

"Enough with the puns Sati" Y/N chuckled.

"Alright, let's get out of here before we're stopped" Liang ordered.

The group began to walk out of the area, Xalex forced Omrin to move, even Satine joined in to help Xalex too.

But... Like traditional villains do... They'd run their mouths until someone would do something about it.

"Now we won't hear his bickering" Y/N sighed with relief, icing his mouth up to cover it, preventing Omrin to speak and antagonize Liang and the group further, Liang also sighed of relief too. 

For at least the five minutes that went past, some suspense began to build up between everyone.

"Is it just me or does it feel like we're being watched?" Satine asked with suspicion in her question, whispering it to her allies.

"Well, we're in a world of different Heroes which most of em are aliens and meta-humans, ones that have enhanced hearing, vision, speed and all that. Especially ones that can fly also? I do agree... We might be being watched right now ~" Y/N answered her question - "Which to be truthful, this Earth does feel a little more safer but more dangerous than ours... Not that I'm complaining or anything" he shared his thoughts of the current Earth they're on.

"I do gotta admit... The female Heroes look fine if you ask me" Xalex spoke his mind.

"In which way do you refine that?" Satine asked, narrowing her eyes toward him.

"Well... I'm saying most of em look a little hot. Like. c'mon?" he boasted before he could tell Satine looked at him funny, frowning her face toward him. The two were in a relationship as it is - "Don't even give me that look Satine, I can sense it... At least back me up here Multitasker" Xalex requested for help, a chuckle escaped Y/N.

"I'd prefer to be more respectful to women and you know that... But yes, I do admit that red caped blonde girl has somehow interested me in the short time we've been here, I've heard about the many things she's accomplished on Earth and the fact she's a living and breathing Kryptonian? I'd like to meet her one day, so many questions I want to ask her or the other Kryptonians for that matter" Y/N replied, it sounded as if he fanboyed over this caped young woman as Xalex began smirking in a teasing matter.

"Ohh? Sounds like someone's a fan of one of the female Heroes" he teased.

"Or maybe he's already crushing on this caped woman, Supergirl was her name right?" Satine joined in with the teasing, noticing Y/N began to blush with embarrassment.

"Wh-What? *nervous laugh* I have no idea what you're talking about" he tried to hide his blush, but his face was a bright red.

"C'mon Y/N! It's normal to have a crush on someone, even if it's a superpowered woman" Xalex smiles, before looking at Satine, to which she smiled back at him, knowing he referred to her of what he said.

"Yeah... I guess it can be normal... Right?" Y/N asked loudly, wondering that himself.

It was a shame he didn't exactly have a proper childhood, pulled out of school early due to him being a hazardous threat among others, his mother had to raise him by quitting her job, family members would often help around too to keep Y/N and his mother going until she'd find someone, but instead? He found someone first, that being Liang.

"It is normal to have some sort of feeling toward another person, Mancer ~" Liang joined in after listening to his comrade's conversation, sharing his view on feelings too - "Even if you haven't met them yet which I do hope to keep it that way, who knows what Omrin has told them. To them? We could be the enemy if he hasn't already told them about us, and it might take a lot of convincing to show that we aren't the enemy. However, keep your guard up. We don't know who'll show up to stop us" Liang ordered as everyone agreed, keeping their focus on every direction to look for anything suspicious.

As moments went by, more walking continued to the main extraction zone where the portal to their world would work, more suspicion filled the air around them.

Unbeknownst to the group escorting their captive, someone was indeed watching, the son of the Red Caped Wonder and a Reporter in Metropolis who would be soon joined with two others.

That included his father.

"I don't like this... I'm sure trouble is gonna find us soon" Xalex spoke with worry, his hand eagerly over the hilt of his Katana.

"Keep your eyes peeled, we're almost at the extraction zone" Liang reminded his comrades, his hand itching toward his elemental infused holstered guns.

"It's too quiet, and btw? Who would want Omrin anyway?" Satine asked Liang.

"That won't matter, he will answer for his crimes on our Earth, he won't answer to -"

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen, your captive..." a new voice suddenly interrupted the group. A man's voice from the sky above as they all looked up in front of them as three people began to descend. two male, 1 female. All wearing the same colors, the female wore a long red skirt and red high knee boots while the men wore pants with their respective boots, the older one wore red briefs with his, with a cape and that symbol on their suits...The big red and yellow S.

"...Will answer to us" Superman spoke as if he was not in the mood, he sounded... Angry almost but serious. He was joined up with Superboy who was his son and his cousin... Supergirl.

(Aka... Your little crush)

The three Supers landed on the ground in front of them, at least 7 feet away to confront Liang and his group. Satine and Xalex were startled by their sudden arrival as Liang frowned upon seeing them.

However... Y/N's eyes were laser focused on the red caped blondie, Supergirl. He never seen her up close before... Seeing a very strong and beautiful woman in front of his eyes had him thinking so, he couldn't help it. However, he was able to his eyes away from her for a few moments.

"Shit... I knew we were being watched! I freaking called it!" Satine hissed with annoyance, her hand itching to make a move but felt hesitant to do so, unless they attacked first.

"Let me do the talking and Y/N, if we are to engage in conflict, do not use your solar abilities, it's what empowers them" Liang ordered before stepping forward a little - "I am Liang, Master of Elemental Magic, Protector of Earth. We only ask if you let us continue on our way back home, the extraction zone is not far" he asked politely.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, your captive needs to answer for his crimes, and we're taking him to Stryker Island for questioning. Hand him over and you may proceed back home" Superman denied to allow them to continue, without handing over their captive.

This seemed to make Liang unsatisfied, he'd hope they'd understand, but clearly... They wouldn't.

"And he's told us a lot about you. How you're not to be trusted, we thought you were working for him but clearly not... So you must be bringing him in for execution which we cannot allow" Superboy spoke, he was young still but was learning.

"What?! You can't be the judge of that! And this isn't your situation, it's ours!" Xalex raised his voice with annoyance rising in his attitude.

"Do you have any idea what that man has done? He almost killed half of the Justice League that tried to stop him, including my cousin ~" Supergirl spoke next, walking a little forward - "He needs to be brought in for justice"

"And you believe what this Sorcerer said to you all? That we execute criminals? We're nothing like that!" Satine backed up her group.

"Hand him over to us, we can do this the easy way..." Superboy offered which his father slightly looked at his son for a moment, knowing that's not the way he'd put it lightly.

"Or the hard way ~" Supergirl issued the warning - "Please pick the easy way, we don't need to fight" Supergirl's face cringed, knowing her other choice of words wasn't the greatest to blurt out.

An intense few moments went pass as everyone went quiet, the sound of the gentle wind blew past as each individual stared each other down.

All of a sudden, a wave of strong wind hit Superboy, knocking him back as they all look at Xalex - "Uh... Haha.. Oops" he chuckled.

Superman had enough and instantly went for Xalex, only to be stopped by Liang who stood in front of him and caught his fist before a spark of electricity charged in his fist and he punched him away.

"Squadron! Protect the captive!" Liang called out as he ran for Superman, Xalex stood phased as Satine rushed up to him.

"You heard the man! Y/N! Watch over Omrin, we'll take care of Superman Junior over there"

"Good luck mate" Xalex teased before the two love birds rushed off.

"Wait guys! Ugh ~" Y/N groaned, being left alone with Omrin was something he didn't want. He took a look at Omrin who glared daggers at him, knowing he was visibly cussing him out for gagging him up with ice over his mouth. He looked down at his feet and without hesitation, froze his feet to keep him still - "Stay... Good boy" he teased, only hearing a muffled annoyed groan out from Omrin before he felt the presence of Supergirl.

He turned round to face her, his face slightly heating up a little, if it were a different situation, he'd be firing tons of questions at her already... But it wasn't that situation right now... This was a serious situation, resulting in fighting.

"I don't want to fight you" Y/N pleaded, disappointed he'd have to fight his quote on quote crush. But to his surprise, Supergirl looked disappointed too, sighing in return and shaking her head.

"I don't want to fight you too, but your friends chose the hard way, and I have my orders" she got in a fighting stance which seemed familiar to Y/N, his facial expression soon turned from disappointed to impressed, he already knew what stance she was in. She is pretty much Kryptonian military trained in a way.

"I also have my orders too, but be warned ~" he rather smirked afterwards, setting himself into a stance to show he's ready to engage in combat - "When there is smoke, there is fire" a mask appeared over his face which only covered his nose and mouth, a smoky aura appeared around him as ice went down his right arm while fire went down the other arm, showing off his three main abilities.

He finished showing off, before his hand reached out, gesturing a 'come here' toward Supergirl.

She rolls her eyes and instantly turns into a blur, within a second she was at his face.

He noticed how quick she was, and blocked her jab before blocking a few more, she was rather impressed but concerned if he was human or not, how could he manage to block her fast jabs?

Their fight continued after Y/N surprised her by incasing himself in ice, completely covering himself up before she looked on, she couldn't even detect his heartbeat anymore, before she sensed his heartbeat behind her and flipped him over as he tried surprise attacking her with a weapon made out of ice.

"Crap" he cussed at himself, Supergirl's fist came down at him like a speeding bullet but he managed to get out of the way as she punched the ground instead, disappearing like a smoke bomb before reappearing.

"You're quick" she complimented.

"Aw thank you! That's really kind of -" he was shut up by Supergirl firing her heat vision toward him, which seemed to hit him, causing him to groan in a little bit of pain. He felt the burn.

"But not as quick as me" she told herself in her head.

'This person, Y/N was it? He's no ordinary meta-human, even after a scan of him using my X-Ray vision, he definitely isn't new here, nor does any records show that he's of this planet... Or even this Earth. He is human but... He must be from a different Earth' Kara thought to herself.

"Oh yeah, we can play fire with fire alright" he smirked before a fire ball was fired toward her, Supergirl saw it coming and braced herself but the fire ended up hurting her, she hissed in pain as she remembered.

'Damn! Forgot his abilities are magic based, which we Kryptonians aren't fully immune to, unlike bullets and all sorts of things that aren't magic or anything like that' she said to herself - 'But he's thinking this all a game to him, the way he's showing off his abilities. Rao, he's probably going to make Damian Wayne run for his money at this point if he keeps this up'

Before she continued thinking within her head, she felt something wrap around her, a rope dart that had a fiery tip. She looked toward Mancer who had the other side of this rope dart, the rope made out of metal chains.

He yanked her toward him but that only seemed to move her a little before she braced herself, he tried yanking her again as she looked at him before rolling her eyes.

"Really?" she spoke one word with a unamused facial expression, before she began floating up, attempting to give him a ride of a lifetime.

But... She was yanked back down onto the ground with force, yelping. Thumping into the ground violently as the rope dart retracted and was thrown out toward her again, immediately recovering from being yanked into the ground and caught the tip of the dart with her hand, though it was slightly burning her hand.

"GET OVER HERE!" a devilish voice shouted out from her foe, yanking her toward him with inhuman strength, for a human to do this? She'd definitely had to be more careful.

Before she could even react, being flung toward him, he cocked his arm back and violently clotheslined her, which caused herself to do a backflip before landing on her stomach.

'Agh! He's mighty strong, and his powers? I need to be more careful, no more playing nice' she got back up before flying up and eying him down.

"Well that's unfair" she heard him mutter under his breath, throwing up the dart again, only this time she dodged it and fired her heat vision down at him.

He dodged her attack within a millisecond and threw a fireball at her, she dodged that too before rocketing herself toward him with her fists in front of her as if she was going to do a super speed flight punch, turning into a blur at this point.

"Look alive!" she flew into him, punching him square in the face with both her fists in front of her which seemed to send him backwards.

She braced herself and landed a few feet in front of him as she heard him groan out in a little pain, knowing she broke his jaw which surprised her.

'I broke his jaw? Maybe he's not as indestructible as I thought, well... He is still human after all. The again I did break Conner's jaw once' she told herself before hearing the sound of his jaw being put back into place, a piece of metal fell to the floor as he looked down.

"She... She broke the mask?! Ugh great" he sighed loudly, sounding heartbroken a little too.

"It was just a stupid mask anyway, not like you needed it" she rolled her eyes, which made him look at her immediately and he did not look happy at all.

"That... Was my dad's mask! And I didn't expect you to break it that easily" he scolded her, before picking up the piece of it before closing his eyes, knowing he shouldn't have been wearing it in the first place. Supergirl noticed the tone in his voice, which made her rethink her actions.

'Ugh... Well done Kara, you broke something that meant to someone, again. Though it was their fault for bringing it with them to begin with' she scolded at herself before continuing her thoughts 'He said it's his father's? Something tells me that he won't be happy with what happened to it'

She let the thought aside as their combat continued, he decided to outsmart her by teleporting away by causing smoke to surround her as she looked amused at this tactic.

"Uh, do you realize I can see you right? I have X-ray vision and all ~" She chuckled out of pity for him, she could see him getting ready to attack her from beyond the smoke - "And I can do this" she suddenly began breathing in the smoke, taking it all in for puffing it away into the sky.

She thought she'd found him... But only found nothing where he was standing before, this made her worry. Was he with the smoke or?

All of a sudden, she felt herself being kicked backwards by Y/N, appearing out of thin air in front of her before an ice wall appeared behind her and she collided with it.

"FYI, I can multitask my own abilities at the same time. I concealed myself in shadow to surprise you... But I admit, your speed is incredible -" he began to get distracted talking about her, labeling some of his thoughts about her too.

'Okay... Maybe he won't make the little Wayne run for his money and Jon was right... He sure is my number 1 stalker' the thought made her cringe 'But... He seems genuine about what he thinks... Too bad I have a job to do' 

He seemed too distracted in gushing about her that she took this opportunity to speed herself toward him and landed a world breaking punch on him which sent him flying back across the ground.

He had been flung back at least pretty far, not far away to keep an eye on Omrin as he watched but it was far.

Y/N began to get up, feeling the effects of that powerful punch she inflicted on him which would be enough to knock someone down immediately, he groaned in pain as his stomach stung from the hit - "Augh! Ow!... *groans in pain* Okay... That actually hurt..." he got on one knee as he still felt the sting from the punch.

She floated toward him, arms crossed as she began to scold him - "Do you often get this distracted during fights? News flash for ya, this isn't a game" she frowned with annoyance, like she was a teacher at a school, telling off a bad student for bad behavior.

He chuckled at her, she was right, it wasn't a game - "I know... I'm just distracted, not because of what you said... But... It's hard trying to fight you since your face up close seems to distract me a lot, it's annoyingly cute" he admitted what distracted him, blushing slightly afterwards as he chuckled nervously.

He thought he would feel something worse coming toward him when saying that but in truth? Supergirl just looked down at him with a surprised look, blushing herself too.

She didn't know what to say, at a lost of words... She only blushed hard after it sunk in, she knew what he meant.

"Wait a second... Uh... Did you just... Call me cute?" she asked, her face still showing the blush on her cheeks 

"You know what I mean but I gotta ask? That martial arts style... That was Klurkor right? You learned Klurkor too?" he then asked her, his hand lit up with a yellowish light, healing himself with Solar Healing, she could even feel it radiating off of him as she felt the energy power herself up a little, which even healed her up too pretty quickly.

'Klurkor? How does he know the Kryptonian martial arts? I might have to pay Jon 20 bucks on that stalker theory now... Or does he know Kryptonian history?' she thought to herself. Shocked to even think he knew the Kryptonian martial arts she underwent.

"How do you know that? You know Kryptonian history?!" she asked him almost immediately, floating down to the ground afterwards as she walked up to him cautiously.

"Yeah... I know what that symbol stands for too. Hope, the House of El... I believe there was another motto too? It was called... El Maru? El Mari?" he looked confused, she took this opportunity to fully walk up to him as he tried getting back up.

All her suspicions about him washed off pretty much immediately, she offered her hand to him which he looked at cautiously - "El Mayarah, it means Stronger Together" she smiled, knowing a human knows this much about Kryptonian history, she was eager to test him how much he knows. Even though they're just strangers.

"Yeah... El Mayarah, always loved that word. Wow you are pretty strong too, that punch? I felt that" he rubbed his stomach and she giggled at him.

"Well... I am super strong and I have lifted tons of weight on my shoulders before so and according to my cousin, I'm a little stronger than him" she shrugged with a smile, boasting about her strength - "Sorry for that by the way, got carried away when fighting you... Well, it's been a tough few weeks for me and I'm just a little worked up" her face fell flat when she continued speaking, knowing she has been a little stressed out as of late.

"No no, I get it... It's fine really. Honestly? Surprised you stopped fighting me to just chat instead, y'know? Talk it out and all instead of fighting" he cocked up an eyebrow.

"Yeah... I guess" Supergirl agreed with a shrug, a small smile on her face as awkward silence fell between them, she could see he was pretty nervous, how could she? By just telling by the paste of his heartbeat going fast, his way to avoid eye contact too, but she felt nervous too, so at least he wasn't the only one - "So... Heard you were a fan of me? Superboy, who is my cousin's son, heard you talk about me, I thought you were just a stalker at first but this now just squashed that theory" her smile grew back as she asked the question.

"What? Oh uh... Yeah, y-yeah... In a way, I am a fan of you and what you've accomplished, I've always wanted to meet a Kryptonian face to face. I know I'm pretty nervous about this" he rubbed the back of his neck, blushing a little as he looked away from her.

"It's okay to feel nervous. But I wanna know something... How much do you know about Kryptonian history? I know this hasn't got anything to do with this current situation... I just need to know if I can... Trust you" she asked him, looking at him with a pleading face, he looked back as he thought of an answer.

"On my Earth, there used to be living and breathing Kryptonians, their history was left on Earth after they suddenly disappeared, once they were Earth's protectors who suddenly vanished without any explanation, no one knows why or what happened" he explained.

'That figures, he is from another Earth' she thought to herself.

"But... I learned the history they left behind, even some of their martial arts, Klurkor was one of them. This was after I learned to control my abilities after Liang taught me to harness them within. That is why I recognized your fighting stance, how I caught your attacks quickly, I learnt to adapt to you within seconds" he explained further, which interested Supergirl further.

"Guessing that's how you used learned to use your Solar thing to heal yourself there? ~" she asked him to which he nodded a yes to her, since she seen him use that Solar magic to heal himself - "I do know you have a lot of questions you want to ask me, Superboy told me that too and... I know you have a little crush on me" she said with an amused tone along with a blush rising up on her face, she's dealt with people who have admitted to crushing on her before, but not to this extent, especially finding Y/N as a handsome and what appears to be, a very kind person overall.

"Uh *nervous laugh* Yes I, I-I-I m-mean! ~ I have no idea wh-what you're on about" he blushed heavily, being confronted by his crush really seemed to make him stutter.

The Maiden of Might only giggled at his stammering words, she was interested so far - "Y/N is it?" she offered her hand to him to shake.

He looked down at her hand and smiled as the violent red blush began to fade away, knowing he's going to shake her hand - "Yeah... You can call me Mancer too, my friends call me Multitasker and a whole a bunch of other names that correspond with my powers" he shook her hand, making eye contact with her.

"Kara, Kara Zor-El, or Kara Danvers. You already know the rest" she winked, their hand shake ending a second later. He looked back to where Kara broke his mask after that fly by punch she gave him earlier.

Kara saw the look on his face, he looked disheartened - "I'm sorry about breaking your father's mask, I know it won't fix it but..." she apologized, placing her hand on her right upper arm knowing she was guilty.

"It's alright, I shouldn't have been wearing it in the first place... It belonged to dad, but... He's long since been gone" he replied, Kara's head perked up at that moment upon hearing what he said about his father, which made her stomach drop. 

She broke his late dad's mask.

"Oh... I didn't know, I'm s-sorry to hear that" she felt really guilty at that moment, she'd do anything to fix it. That mask seemed to mean a lot to him now knowing the fact is was his late dad's mask...

Which gave her an idea.

"It's okay Supergirl, you don't need to feel bad for me or anything, we should get the others to stop-"

"No no, I-I can fix it for you! There's tech back at the Fortress of Solitude that can repair it, making the mask look like it is brand new!" she interrupted him by appearing in front of him, their height pretty much almost matching too as he was in a state of shock when her face was a little close to his. However, that feeling was soon left out of the way upon thinking back to what she said just now.

"Uh... You... Y-You can fix my dad's mask?" he asked her with curiosity the next, she nodded her head immediately.

"Yep! No need to-" she got interrupted by getting pulled onto him, she felt his arms wrap around her as her most of her face was over his shoulder, all she needed to do was be on her tippy toes to rest her chin on his shoulder.

"Ugh, you're the best! That really means a lot, thank you so much" he hugged her with gratitude without thinking, her expression showed she was flabbergasted by the random hug, even blushing a little too as a few seconds go by.

That was when he realized the position he was in, his eyes opened wide as he began blushing, pulling back slightly as the two looked at each other, blinking.

"Uh..." he looked awkward, sounded nervous and what didn't help was that he was blushing a little also.

"Don't be" she smiled, already knowing what he was going to say afterwards, causing him to smile also.

"I have so many questions I want to ask you" he told the girl, making her giggle at his words.

"I know! And I'm very eager to hear them all" her smile brightened, that smile that could make a person's heart flutter.

"I'll tell you them all later, but for now? We need to take Omrin back to our world"

"You mean, you need to take Omrin back to your world? Which I'm not supposed to let you do?" Kara asked him with a cocked up eyebrow, noticing his little mistake there.

"Oh, yeah... About that... Think you'll let us? Omrin is a danger to your world, leave him in Stryker Island? He'll just find a way to break out. Trust me, it's happened before on my Earth, he broke out of the world's securest Supermax Prisons and manipulated his way to get out ~" Y/N spoke with his side on the situation, knowing Omrin is a danger to this world, especially now that he pretty much dismantled the world's greatest heroes on this Earth - "Please... Let us take him back to my world, he won't harm any one of your Earth's people again... I promise. We won't kill him, we don't stand for that, we let the judge decide the punishment once he's brought in for trial" he asked her politely, knowing the answer was going to be no anyway. She had her orders after all.

But... To his surprise... She didn't answer straight away, a sigh left her mouth instead as he wondered what her worded answer was going to be.

She looked puzzled, she had no clue how to even answer it, all she knew was that Omrin needed to be taken in to Stryker Island for his crimes and manipulation to get his way.

"I... I don't know if I can answer that... I mean, we're supposed to take him to Stryker Island, and you want to take him back to your world to bring him into justice your way by executing him ~" she spoke of the two sides fighting over a captive with a sigh, as if she needed more stress as it is - "But... I know for a fact my cousin and the League won't trust you and your allies at all, he's already signaled the rest of the active League members to come here to assist them, and they'll be here very shortly" she continued, bringing up another problem in the current situation. Causing her to look the other direction, away from his eyes.

"Well... I trust you... Maybe you can convince him?" he asked the troubled Supergirl, a smile escaped from her at his other words.

"I can try ~" she looked back at him with the same smile on her face still - "You already trust me?"

"Why shouldn't I? You're the Girl of Steel, the Woman of Tomorrow right? And I am a fan of you" he shrugged.

"Haha, fair point" she giggled, the two made eye contact again, smiles exchanged towards each other.

However... The moment was ruined by a sudden shout and wrestling from afar, Y/N fully broke apart from Supergirl as the two looked at the direction of the wrestling.

"You ain't going anywhere Sorcerer!" Satine wrestled on the ground with him, leaving Y/N to wonder how Omrin managed to break free of his bonds, thinking his powers would be useless against his ice.

"Well, I guess I was wrong, he could still break out if he wanted to" Y/N groaned before noticing Supergirl began levitating toward Satine and Omrin wrestling each other.

"Unhand me you worm!" Omrin cussed, trying to use his magic to break free of Satine's hold on him.

The two continued struggling to fight each other on the ground as Supergirl drew closer to the both, wanting to help Y/N's ally out of kindness, now knowing they could be trusted.

"May I?" Supergirl landed on the ground before delivering a punch onto Omrin which was heard from a distance, knocking Omrin out cold as he stopped squirming. Dusting her hands off with an accomplished smirk on her face.

Satine noticed he was out cold and looked up at the Girl of Steel who she didn't expect to get help from as she got up off the ground.

"Good riddance... Thank you by the way, didn't expect you to help the last minute there" Satine cracked her neck, sharing her gratitude for the save. The Kryptonian smiled in response to her thanks.

Y/N had ran up to the two woman finally as he looked down at the unconscious Omrin - "Well he definitely deserved that ~" he spat out before looking at Satine and Supergirl - "Where's Liang and Xalex? Still fighting I take it?" he asked Satine.

"Pretty sure they are, I got knocked back far by Superman Junior, Xalex is the one fighting him right now. Liang? Probably the same" Satine answered as Supergirl narrowed her eyes past Satine, seeing the said people still fighting her own two family members.

"Yep... And your boss is... Actually managing to kick my cousin's ass" she sounded surprised, 'maybe they were pretty skilled at fighting superpowered beings after all', was the thought she had in her own head. Never thinking she'd see the day too.

"Supergirl is going to talk down Superman and his... Son that we're not the enemies in this. She's well aware of Omrin and she's eager to help us" Y/N told Satine about Kara's rather helping hand from earlier which she was convinced either way.

"So, she can be trusted?" Satine tested him, to see if he was right before looking at the blonde haired girl.

"Yes, I trust that she'll help us, her cousin's allies are also going to be here soon... So... We'll definitely need her to talk them down from attacking us" he looked at her and a smile was exchanged from her after she looked at him.

"Well, let's get on with it before it happens then, I'll stay here, keep an eye on the snake here" she self acclaimed to remain behind, spitting out Omrin's nickname before looking down at his unconscious body with a disgusted look.

"Good... So..." he looked at her before she read him like a book and wrapped an arm around him and began levitating off the ground, lifting him up with her. Surprised at this action, he looked at Supergirl before she chuckled

"I already knew what you were gonna say... Was just a step ahead of you" she winked.

* *

(Some time later...)

It was rather a surprise that it took some little convincing that the alternative heroes were here on good intentions and not to take a captive back for execution, Supergirl was relieved that her cousin and her nephew stopped their fight with Xalex and Liang respectively.

Though the Man of Steel was still a little suspicious about the group of alternative heroes, he was fine with a temporary alliance until the EDC were to go back to their respective Earth, regarding their common enemies.

However, it seemed not only was Omrin the only villain of the EDC's Earth that arrived to this Earth, he made an alliance with a mafia mob boss who travels to different worlds, going by the name Becknar, a man who specializes in his own way of criminal activity, especially when he has a mob of his own to conduct in criminal business.

Omrin was interrogated by the EDC Heroes at the Hall of Justice, given the temporary alliance. He had no choice but to spill the beans and give out a location, which the location was in fact... New York City, at the abandoned LIC Fresh Direct Site where business had been conducted there with a mafia boss named Roman Sionis aka...

Black Mask... Leader of the Sionis Crime Family.

The question was... "What is Black Mask doing in New York City?" 

Gotham bored him dry, every time he conducted business, Batman or any of the Bat-Family would barge in and interrupt his business and he got sick of it, deciding to work elsewhere and move on from trying to overthrow the Billionaire Playboy Bruce Wayne.

And tonight? There was to be a meeting with Black Mask and Becknar, discussing arms deals and arrangements.

With this information... Liang struck a plan to have someone recon the place and infiltrate the compound, stop their plans altogether and capture Becknar for questioning and to bring him behind bars.

And he knew the suitable person for the job... Despite the lower numbers.

"Me? You sure? I'm not the type of person who's better at doing these things alone, since I'm the only ninja we have right now" Y/N looked puzzled and worried.

"You are the suitable person for the job Mancer, you're a ninja and a warrior, and you're not always going to work alongside others in stealth covert missions" he spoke with a serious manner. "I'm trusting that you'll get the job done without any problems, you're remarkable at stealth and none of us are built for that... Not even me" he admitted to not being the greatest at stealth, but he spoke to him as a father figure with the truth.

"Yeah but... I'm not sure if I'm ready to go alone, I'm still learning as it is, I've not mastered the full art of stealth" he told him, sounding like he was unworthy of being a ninja warrior.

Liang put a hand on Y/N's shoulder to console him. "Then let this mission be a test, your first covert mission alone, with no backup from any other ninja. I am trusting you with this, don't let your other ninja brothers and sisters down".

However, during this... Their conversation was being eavesdropped upon by Superboy, the Man of Steel's son who informed him about Liang's orders to Mancer aka Y/N. With this info, Superman made a call to a certain someone who patrols New York City to protect it from criminal activity.

* *

Y/N ran across the rooftops of New York City, using his grapple hook to traverse the busy city below him as he grappled from roof to roof, using his own abilities to make impossible jumps, not suited for a normal human being to make.

His destination was the LIC Fresh Direct Site that was no longer in commission, just the average villain hideout.

As he kept moving toward his destination, he had a feeling he wasn't alone... The feeling of someone with a red cape with a fully colored yellow S shield on the cape and golden blonde long wavy hair, watching him parkour across the city buildings with ease.

He could practically see his own destination now as he drew near.

"Alright, you can do this. Just scope the place out, sneak around, take down some bad guys quietly, get in, take down more bad guys quietly and catch Becknar by surprise, maybe Black Mask too?" he spoke to himself loudly in between breaths as he kept moving. "This time? Doing it alone... You can do this Y/N, you can do this" he said with nervousness.

He now stopped to land on a nearby perch to scope out the compound with binoculars and as he does this? He heard some girly giggling behind him as he stopped looking into his binoculars. Startled by the sudden giggling.

"Do you usually talk to yourself this much when you're alone? It's pretty cute honestly" he heard the girl giggle, floating just behind him above. Turning himself round to look at the nosey girl... Who is Supergirl.

"Oh... H-Hey" he spoke with shy intent, a blush rushing up his cheeks after her words processed in his head. "You think that's... Cute? Wait... What are you doing here? I'm on a covert mission that I have to do alone" he asked the real question.

"Ah well... Kal wants me to uh... Overlook your covert mission" she responded with some air quote signatures near the end of her words. "And since it's in New York, I also patrol here! So... Yeah, plus if I didn't know about it, I'd end up being nosey anyway" she spoke cheerfully, giggling afterwards at him talking to himself earlier.

"So... He doesn't trust us is what you're implying?" he asked as he stood up from the perch he took and crossed his arms.

"Well... Yeah" the Girl of Steel sighed. "Look, there's been a lot that has happened and... Well... You can imagine that trust is a very strong word so it'll take some time to earn his trust, especially with one of the League's closest allies betraying them recently which has broken that level of trust as of late" she explained as she floated closer to him, now levitating steadily beside him.

"Oh, I get it" he shrugged, knowing how it feels.

"Yeah, don't worry though. I trust you" she winked. "I did speak with Satine and she has told me some things about you".

"I imagine good things" he sounded worried.

"Don't worry! It was all good things... Including the uh... Crush on this gal right here type of thing" he pointed to herself as a blush ran up his face again.

'Ugh, Satine was right, he's cute, very cute... Rao he's more than cute, he's adorably cute' Kara thought to herself as she blushes a little by gushing over his looks, the way he'd look away every time someone mentioned his little crush on the Kryptonian girl made her realize she maybe beginning to fall for him.

Or when Kara would look at Y/N back at the Hall of Justice and catch him steal some looks at her before looking away with a little blush on his face. Seriously, she had to admit that he's cute.

She knows of his backstory, which all reminded her of what happened on Krypton, she lost a planet, her own people.

He lost a village he called home. He lost his own people too, but the only thing he had left was his own mother.

It was no wonder why she felt so interested about knowing him more from other people, she didn't just want to know the boy who has a crush on her, she wants to know the real him.

"So..." she spoke with her hands behind her back. "Is it alright if I join you on this? Ya never know if you need some girl power in this" she asked politely, smiling as she spoke.

Y/N considered it for a moment, then again he had to prove he could do missions alone now, without the need of other ninjas like him... But he had to admit, having someone with him could work, especially if it's a superpowered, practically indestructible alien superhero.

"Eh, sure why not... But I know stealth isn't your strong suit" he teased with a smirk.

"What?! Pfft, that's a lot of bull! I'm great at stealth!" she denied.

"You sure? I read your file and I quote" he took a breath before explaining what he read up earlier. "Supergirl isn't known for her skill of stealth, no thanks to the bright colors on her suit, but rather a force to be reckoned with as she is someone to rely on. When it comes facing off larger and stronger threats, speeding targets, she's one of the many powerhouses that can deal with those threats thanks to her many abilities like Superman's, but like Superman, Supergirl can be good for other purposes of distraction to hold the enemy at bay while others can move into their proceeded objectives without issue" he said with some smarts, causing her to gasp.

"Oh, you really shouldn't have!" she played like she was offended, holding a hand to her heart. "the knowledge, It's killing me!" she exaggerated before erupting in a fit of giggles, causing him to giggle with her.

Their giggles soon ended as the humor between them died down, Y/N re-focused on his task as Supergirl still floated beside him.

"So... Heard Black Mask was conducting business here tonight" Supergirl went on. "Question is... What is he doing in my turf?" the Kryptonian wondered by scratching her chin. "I guess Gotham was boring him so he decided to move here... Humph! Big mistake now that I'm around" she gloated next.

"Don't underestimate your enemies, Kara. You never knew what-"

"What they're capable of... I've heard that many times before" she rolled her eyes playfully, causing Mancer to lightly chuckle.

"Well... Since you're the one with X-ray vision... Can you do the honors?" he asked her like a gentleman.

"Already on it" she winked before her eyes glowed a light blue, her eyes narrowed as her vision zoomed in, her super hearing picked up.

"And you're sure this... Device, can do the job?" Black Mask aka Roman Sionis spoke as he looked down at some weapon case.

"The device can get the job done, it can shut off any electronics within 50 meters or less, I can imagine what you'll do with it but even better? My scientist is currently working on a device, capable of shutting off radiation sources... Which includes Kryptonian based powers thanks to the radiation of the yellow sun" Kara heard the voice belonging to Becknar.

Kara's vision went back to normal as she blinked a few times before turning her head to face Y/N.

"What'd you see? Is Becknar in there?" Y/N asked.

"I think that's him and Black Mask is in there too, they're selling some sort of device that can shut off electronics within 50 meters or less, and he has someone working on a something that can shut out a Kryptonian's powers" she sounded worried the more she explained. Confirming Y/N's theory and the Intel provided earlier.

"That's definitely Becknar alright, let's head inside, there's a bunch of guards outside" he spoke to her as he leapt off before firing his grapple book. "I'll need to take them out quietly, maybe you can help since... You're the one with flight and super speed" he suggested.

"Or" the Maiden of Might stopped him before he advanced further. "We can do something different"

"Like what?" he asked with a confused look as she smirked.

"Well... Supergirl isn't known for her skill for stealth" she repeated what he said earlier. "Supergirl can be good for other purposes of distraction to hold the enemy at bay while others can move into their proceeded objectives without issue. I'll distract the guards, you get in and do your job" her smirk turned into a smart grin as he smiled at the girl.

"Wow... You're a smart girl" he complimented.

"Aww thank you! I know I am but it's nice hearing it from you" she winked. "So... Shall I do the honors?" she asked nicely.

"Well... On you go Supergirl, dance floor's yours" he exaggerated, the female superhero winked before flying off to be the distraction.

He advanced forward as he watched the Kryptonian do a Superhero Landing in the middle of the compound as the guards were startled.

"Hey boys!" she shouted as the guards all gained her attention. "Allow me to welcome you to New York City and you didn't invite me also? I'm hurt" she taunted them.

"Shit, it's her!" one of the guards panicked and went for the alarm button, only for them to be caught up by the Girl of Steel in an instant.

"Ah-Ah-Ah, I don't think so" she punched him across the compound to where he'd land on a bunch of stacked boxes.

Y/N whistled lightly at this as he watched her taunt them more, smiling as she continued.

"Atta girl, now to head inside" he advanced furthermore. "But to find a stealthier way in".

* *

Y/N silently walked throughout the warehouse before silently teleporting onto a railing using his smoke magic to do so, quickly noticing a lookout guard, he sprang onto him and attacked him, using his ice staff which had the guard knocked out cold (no pun intended) upon the impact to his head.

He leapt over to the other walkway where he was fully concealed, listening in to what the conversation followed as.

"To be honest? I was expecting to have something in return... Since I am offering such a powerful device for your mafia to use" Becknar hinted which Black Mask narrowed his eyes toward him, scowling him even behind his mask.

"You were expecting something? I thought this was an alliance, you help me, I help you. What you're offering is for both of us" he slightly gets annoyed with this hint, causing Becknar to frown.

"An alliance? Did I say that?" he frowned expression, turned to wonder. He was rather puzzled at this as he didn't see this as an alliance, but more of... Two people having common enemies.

"You damn right you did! That sorcerer said it himself!" he scowled, already losing his temper with Becknar's wording of things.

"And yet we have talked business, I've given what you needed, and I'm willing to give you another device in return of our... Shared agreement. Now... The money..." he simply snapped his fingers as his men took aim at Black Mask and his own mafia goons. "Or else... There will be consequences and I'll take the device back, it'd be a shame to ruin that fancy suit of yours with bullet holes... And blood" he smirked upon throwing out his cigar.

Simon growled with anger, being outplayed like this wasn't in his list of things, especially by someone who is another mob boss.

"Fine! I'll give you money, if that's what you insist" he hissed at the well travelled mob boss in return he smirked at the masked mob boss.

"Then... The device is yours-" Becknar was interrupted as a guard from outside was suddenly came crashing through the window, startling every one... Even Y/N himself.

'Girl must be enjoying herself out there' Y/N smirked.

"What the fuck! What's going on out there!" Black Mask shouted, demanding to know why one of his goons was thrown through the window from outside, let alone with gunfire ringing out before stopping each second.

Before any question were asked and answered, Y/N suddenly jumped down, revealing himself to every one who gained his attention.

"Mancer" Becknar hissed.

"Hello Beck, been a while" his hand lit with ice before an ice ball was fired out, hitting Becknar in the chest. "Ice to meet you too" he joked as guns were pointed toward him.

The Black Mask stood up from his seat as his men along with Becknar's men all pointed their weapons toward the ninja.

"Black Mask... Roman Sionis, I've come to shut down this whole op you've got going on here and I'm taking Becknar with me... All I ask... Is that you and your goons leave New York City... Or something worse is gonna come your way" he tried intimidating the masked mob boss, before an eruption of laughter came out from Roman himself before he growled.

"As much as he was a pain in my ass... He told me about you... What's got you vigilante's always interrupting my damn business?!" he began to scowl. "And here you are... Surrounded by guns of all sorts, no way to run... Or hide. And you have the decency to threaten me? ME?! Who do you think you are? The Red Hood? If that's who is out there, kindly tell him to fuck off for me will you?" he walked back to his seat and picked up his suit jacket.

"Oh? The Red Hood? I never brought him nor have I met the guy personally... Do you realize who patrols New York City... Right?" he asked Mask the question.

"What? You questioning me now? Boy?" he looked at the ninja with a frowned look under his mask.

"Yeah... Now answer the question" he demanded.

Black Mask looks puzzled, wondering what the ninja was meaning, no one ever patrols New York from what he heard, especially from the pair of goons who scoped the place before hand. "No... I don't... Because I had people scope out the city for vigilantes, like you"

"Haha, that's where you're mistaken... See" he attempted to move but a warning shot narrowly missed his foot, he remained unmoved by this. "Who patrols the city... Isn't a vigilante, she's... more than a vigilante" he spoke in riddles, causing Mask to be curious.

"And who is she?" he asked, getting closer to the ninja.

"Well... She wears this symbol" he hinted, as the warehouse main door was suddenly hit by a crashing thug outside, startling most of the guards who now aimed their weapons toward the main door. "This symbol... Represents... Hope, but it's got an S instead" he smirked as Mask began to suddenly realize who the ninja was referring to.

He could tell by the look in Mask's eyes that fear was running down his body as he backed up.

"Shit... Shit... Shit!! You're working with her?!" Roman understandably panicked, before the main door was breached, sending it to the floor with a thud.

A blur of blue and red with some yellowish blonde streaks suddenly sped into the warehouse, taking out the guards surrounding Y/N with weapons, swiftly taking them all out with one punch, the blur appeared beside Y/N in the form of Supergirl, now appearing beside the ninja.

"Hey, Black Mask! Next time you do criminal business, make sure there isn't a boy or girl scout patrolling the city next time!" she spoke with her hands on her hips, feeling the adrenaline in her veins as she said it. Giving him a tip.

"Argh! Damn you Kryptonians!" he cursed out before making a run for it, refusing to even fight back at the slightest knowing it wasn't going to work.

Mancer and Supergirl look at each other and smirk and shake their heads. "They never learn, do they?" he asked the Kryptonian.

"Nope, this won't take long" she winked before speeding off.

Black Mask ran hopelessly to find a safe exit away from the Kryptonian who just watched him run helplessly, all the guards were knocked out, including Becknar's guards.

As he saw an exit, hope ran up his spine before a gust of wind and a blur went past him, Supergirl leaned on the wall beside the door.

"Going somewhere?" she asked as Roman turned back around in a hurry, running the opposite way before he was stopped yet again by the Girl of Steel. "Besides jail?" she smirked, posing confidentially as he began to back up.

"Hey hey, let's just agree to let me go okay? I'll-I'll... I'll leave by tomorrow, I promise! Me, my men, all of them! Gone by tomorrow" he begged for the Maid of Might to let him go.

"Hmm... Not so sure about that... Since you've been up to business while I've been busy outside New York, especially conducting business with someone of interest to a friend of mine" she crossed her arms before she saw Y/N teleport behind him. "Plus... I'm sure he'll also agree too" she smirked and looked toward Y/N.

Roman turned round and was met with a fist toward his masked face, surprisingly knocking out the masked mob boss out cold. "Ow... His mask really is made out of metal"

* *

Mancer and Supergirl both gathered up the unconsciously beaten goons of Roman's men and Becknar's men for soon the NYPD would soon arrive to make arrests as a fellow hero would arrive, most notably a Green Lantern named Kyle Rayner who bubbled up Becknar's goons along with the boss Becknar himself now unfrozen and cuffed with him back to Liang and the others.

"When I get out, I'm going to-" Black Mask was cut off by the door shutting on him by a police van that held some of his goons inside.

As the last remaining goons were being escorted out from the warehouse by heavily armed cops, Supergirl suddenly approached Y/N who was just about to leave the scene, which surprised him.

"Hey" she waved as she floated down to the ground lightly. "We uh, we made a pretty good team back there... Though I did most of the work" she chuckled awkwardly at the end, looking down as she did so with a cute smile on her face.

"Yeah... I guess we made a good team back there" he agreed with her on that one, he was pretty shocked about it.

"Also I uh... Want to apologize about... Not letting you do this covert mission on your own, if that's what you wanted" she looked guilty, throwing herself under the bus which Y/N frowned at.

"No no, it's alright!" he reassured her which made her look back at him. "I'm glad we worked together on this, despite Liang saying this mission was mine to do alone, I'm just not ready to work alone so... It was nice to have someone different to work with me for a change"

"Really?" she asked him curiously with a slight smile.

"Mhm, I mean it" he smiled, causing her to fully smile. "Since you're here still... Mind if I ask you something?" he asked with the growing feeling of butterflies in his stomach.

"Y-Yeah sure! Anything" she happily answered with her hands on her hips.

"Would it be alright if... Maybe... If you could... Give me a lift... Back? As much as I do enjoy running and teleporting my way back, I was wondering if you'd take me back since... Well, you can fly and-"

"Sure! I'd be more than happy to!" she suddenly swooped up the boy in her arms swiftly, interrupting him from speaking more.

The action made his face flush red, a move he didn't expect to happen so sudden. Supergirl carrying him like a groom would carry their bride but if the roles were reversed, the bride carrying the groom instead.

He felt the wind catch up as the Girl of Steel began floating up with a smile on her face. "You're gonna enjoy this, this is my favorite part" she gleefully spoke, the sparkle in her eyes as she flew up, up and away into the sky.

The city below them began getting smaller as seconds go by, Supergirl begins to fly forward as the wind picks up, her cape and hair billow behind her as she flew forward, a smile began to grow on Y/N's face as he's never experienced this before.

"This is... Amazing!" his smile grew into a grin, feeling the air hit his face lightly as the Maiden of Might giggles.

"I know! It's my favorite part, whenever I'm bored I just fly around, close my eyes and just daydream of things or listen to the sounds I can hear that are peaceful, like birds chirping" spoke the cheerful Kara Zor-El. "Have you never experienced this before? Because it doesn't seem like you have" she asked him all of a sudden.

"Yeah" he looked at her. "We don't have anyone who can bend the laws of gravity anymore, not since the Kryptonians left Earth years ago before my time or my parent's time" he explained more about his Earth and his experience.

Kara's face softened at this. "That must've been years and years ago"

"It was, but this Earth is unlike my Earth, it's so... Modernized than futuristic, and for some reason? I... Actually like it more better" he admitted sadly.

"Really?" she asked with a frown.

"Yeah... As much as how sad that sounds? It's the truth, I've always wanted to know what modernized Earth was like, and this is the perfect example. All the data about modernized Earth was lost, destroyed. Everyone from modernized Earth are now gone forever. Which is why I'm thinking of asking permission to stay behind, to remain here instead of going back so I can start research on modernized Earth for our data collectors" he explained further, which made Kara smile again.

"You'd actually want to stay here?" she asked curiously.

"Honestly? Yeah... I'd love to stay here" he admitted with a smile on his face, his smile caused her to smile brightly, the two looked into each other's eyes for a brief moment before looking away, a blush spreading up the ninja's cheeks as she kept her smile upon looking forward.

It didn't take long for them to arrive at the designated destination, the current HQ of Y/N's allies shortly put up by the help of some fellow Leaguers to assist in their ongoing investigation of the situation.

Kara gracefully landed on the ground gently before putting down Y/N onto his feet as the two exchanged a glance and a smile.

"Well... This is bye for now I suppose, I gotta get back to my New York apartment, Streaky is probably going nuts right now" Kara spoke with a worried tone.

"Who's Streaky?" Y/N innocently asked.

"My cat" she answered quickly.

"Oh... You have a cat? That's cool" he smiled.

Kara smiled back before turning her back to him, getting ready to fly back off.

However... She wasn't expecting for her name to be called out by Y/N, causing her to frown with curiosity and turn round to face him once more.

"Uh... Before you go, can I quickly ask you something" he asked.

Her frown softened as she smiled. "Sure, what's on your mind?" Kara placed her hands on her hips again, wondering what the boy was going to ask her.

"Oh... I didn't think this through" he spoke to himself before snapping out of it. "Uh... So... Are you... Busy? Tomorrow maybe?" he asked with a squinted look on his face.

"Uh... No? Well, judging from the fact that I have patrolling to do usually... Probably if there is any crime" she corrected herself by rolling her eyes at the same time before her eyes narrowed back onto him. "Why?"

"Well... Uh... I uh, wanted to ask you if you... Maybe... Want to go out with me? Y'know like? Get a bite or something? A drink? Dinner maybe?" he asked her which took her by surprise, a question she was definitely not expecting. "You're single... Right?"

'Rao, did he just... Ask me out on a date?!' she asked herself, flustered at the sudden question flung onto her, she wasn't sure how to respond nor act at this moment, her eyes widened at him, mouth a-gape a little. 'Maybe that's why he wanted to stay on this Earth'

He looked at her after asking and he judged by the look on her face that she probably wasn't too happy, his expression saddened before changing his mind.

"Actually... Forget I asked, I didn't mean to offend or anything" he spoke with a saddened tone, rubbing the back of his neck in awkwardness as he looked away, breaking eye contact away from the golden haired heroine.

Kara began smiling softly at him before she decided to walk toward him, she never thought she'd be interested but she sure felt interested in him, knowing he's got a crush on her and the fact he's a fan despite being from another Earth.

She may hardly know him but... That would pass by soon enough.

It wasn't long till Y/N noticed Supergirl walking up to him with a soft expression, her smile grew big as she drew closer to him, before he could even ask what she was doing, he was stopped...

By a pair of lips...

On his left cheek...

Her eyes opened as she pulled back with a huge smile on her face as his cheeks flushed red. "Does that answer your question?" she asked, proud of what she just did. She noticed they were being watched by Satine and Xalex who seemed to be shocked by the whole ordeal.

"A-Are you... Free to go out tomorrow?" he asked her again to which she smirked.

"Yeah, I guess I can call of my plans to patrol tomorrow night, in exchange for our... Date" she spoke softly in a rather warm tone of voice before kissing his other cheek for confirmation which seemed make him blush harder.

It was then she noticed something on the floor, a little piece of paper that was being dragged by the soft wind as her cape blew in the direction of the wind along with her hair.

She knelt down and picked it up with inhuman speed as she looked back at her date for tomorrow. "Got a pen?" she asked.

"Oh uh" he began checking his pockets, before he felt something, not a pen. He checked his back pocket and felt something again. "Ah yes... A pen! For some reason I have one?" he asked himself confused, before handing it over.

She began jotting down something quickly before handing it over to him. "Here's my number, call me" she smiled before floating up.

"Yeah... I will" he smiled as he looked up at her.

"I'll be waiting! Mwah!" she blew him a kiss before flying off as he watched her go. A smile grew big on his face before looking down.

He turned round and as he realized... This was not a dream.

"Wow... I'm going on a date tomorrow... With Supergirl"...

* *

(Friday, The 'Super' Date Night)

Today was the day... Or tonight at least...

News that Mancer asked out the Girl of Steel was brought to mostly everyone's ears, a surprise at most... But there was skepticism about it.

The EDC weren't fully trusted yet, it's only been three days now and with Becknar had been brought in for questioning... Nothing yet has been revealed.

But as of right now? Kara is currently in his cousin's apartment with his wife and son. Jon was out along with Lois Lane Kent.

"I mean... He's just so different from any other boy I've met, there's something about him that interests me" she had her chin on the palm of her hand, waiting for her cup of coffee that was being made by Clark.

"And this happened... Last night?" Clark asked curiously, wondering why his cousin was asked out by someone from a different Earth.

Fair to say? He was happy for her, his skepticism went down the drain upon his talk with Liang... Who is like a father figure to Mancer aka Y/N.

Both Kara and Y/N maybe in their early 20s, but they've both learned a lot, the only difference is? 

Kara has been on a date before and it didn't go exactly right and planned.

Y/N hasn't fell in love, nor been on a date. Yet she doesn't know this yet.

"Yeah... After I flew him back to his boss's base of operations, well for now at least, doubt it'll remain once they're back on their Earth" Kara explained. "He's just... So kind and he radiates this aura that got my attention... He has a crush on Supergirl... But what about Kara Danvers? Adopted daughter of Eliza and Jeremiah Danvers? Two former D.E.O agents?" she asked the question.

"I'm sure he also sees you as Kara Danvers too, you told him your name after all" Clark reminded her as he handed her cup of coffee to her. She politely takes it. "Besides? It's a good thing you said yes, maybe it's time to try again and see the world in the eyes of Kara Danvers once more"

"I know but... I feel... Like my heart is drawn to him, but if I get too attached? And when he leaves for his Earth? I... I-I don't know what I'd do, go with him when I'm needed here? I don't exactly want him to leave his family behind just for me" said the now frustrated Kara Zor-El, she knew it was a stupid idea to get somewhat attached to the boy her age. "I probably shouldn't have kissed his cheek and said yes... What did I do?" she whimpered next.

"I'm for sure, something can be worked out" Clark hinted as he went to comfort his upset cousin. "But overall? Enjoy tonight, I'll have someone patrol New York, incase any crime breaks out that could ruin your date with Y/N" Clark smiled.

"Really? You sure something can be worked out? He did say he actually was thinking of wanting to stay here, but that'd split him away from his family" she referred to the group he came with to this Earth.

"I'm sure there is something, a way to keep in contact with that Earth's own heroes incase a threat were to emerge that require their expertise, we need all the heroes we can get, as threats are getting more dangerous now. Threats like Omrin" Clark said with a serious face, he for sure knew it was for the best, if something can be worked out with Liang and the EDC.

"How long could that take?" she asked.

"On that? We're not sure, Liang suggested it to me first, before to the rest of the League higher ups, well... Between me and Batman of course before them and it was approved, an ally to call on you could say" he answered her question, adding more light to the hint he said earlier.

His answer that shed light on the hint made her relieved, she for one had a liking for her date tonight, and she didn't want to feel attached to him only to never see him again, though she was a little nervous about it, since her last date?

Well as said... It was disastrous...

But that was the only thing that worried her mostly now...

"Thanks Cuz" she smiled before hugging him. "Though I am a little worried about my date tonight, considering my last one?" her facial expression now mortified, it worried her for the least second.

"From what Liang has told me... Y/N is one of the kindest fellows he's ever took under his wing, he's brave, bold, patient, compassionate and loyal. He would never hurt a spider from how he explained about him" he told his cousin.

Kara already knew some of this from her observation of him, he was kind, honest and respectable, along with being shy and having a good sense of humor. Something she probably needs in a relationship as of right now.

"I'm sure your date won't go horrible, I'll have someone take over patrolling in New York for tonight, like I said. Enjoy your date with him tonight, be confident nothing will go wrong" he cheered her up again, as she takes a sip from her coffee before breaking into a smile.

"Once again, thanks Cuz" she felt a little more better with hearing his words, no wonder why Lois fell in love with him, he was good at inspiring others.

And Kara hoped one day she could pretty much do the same, though she has done it before, but not as often as Clark has done it.

"Haven't you figured out what you'll be wearing to the date tonight?" Clark asked the question as he picked up his coffee now.

"Oh yeah! I'll get right onto that!!" Kara's eyes widened as she almost shot up from her chair. Once I... Finish this coffee" she remarked before settling down once more.

* *

Y/N stood nervous in his outfit for the date, a leather jacket with jeans and boots, a plain white t-shirt underneath. He was waiting to get picked up for the date, since Kara suggested she'd pick him up.

he agreed but it had been 10 minutes since she said she was flying over to pick him up and fly him back to New York for the date.

And yet... She hasn't arrived.

"Still not here I presume?" He heard a voice behind him, coming from Satine who joined him at least four minutes later

"Yeah... fourteen minutes late pretty much and still going" he sighed, as he looked up at the starry dim sky, beginning to grow worried.

"Hey, don't be too worried. She's probably ran or... Flew into danger" Satine remarked.

"That's why I'm worried!" Y/N replied. "I'm worried that might be the case, I'm tempted to call her but I don't know if she'll pick up" he sounded more worried by the seconds that passed by. Looking back down at the now revealed device on his wrist, bringing up Kara's name on the screen.

"Well you shouldn't worry too much" Satine looked up at the sky.

"Yeah, I know I-"

"No like... You shouldn't, because I can see her" Satine chuckled, getting Y/N to look up at the sky to see Supergirl flying toward them.

And she looked worried as anything.

'Oh Rao, oh Rao, oh Rao' thought a panicked Supergirl, flying on down toward her date, with a very worried look on her face, thinking she's already screwed up.

"I-I-I am so, so, so sorry that I arrived later than I should have" Kara floated down in her Supergirl attire, her cape resting behind her after landing. "I uh... Ran into some complications along the way *nervously chuckles*. You're not... Mad are you?" she asked with a little cute expression on her face, seemingly making Y/N softly smile.

"No, no... You're fifteen minutes late practically but... It's alright!" he approached and hugged her, a smile soon approaching on her face as she hugs back. "Whatever postponed your arrival, it's not screwed this up" he pulled back with a smile still.

"Well... Since that's the case, you ready?" she asked, a tone of excitement in her voice.

"Yep, we can go" he acknowledged, before Kara swooped him off his feet instantly and levitated off the ground. 

"Gonna take us back to my apartment so I can change into an outfit for our date" the Kryptonian told him before he even asked.

"Well, I was gonna ask you that but, you read me like a book" he chuckled. "besides, I didn't just ask Supergirl to a date, I asked Kara Zor-El Danvers, who I see as both with or without the cape" he poked her nose, causing her to blush and giggle.

'Yeah, he is cute. Maybe our date could go well' she thought in her head, smiling at his friendly nature already.

"Well... Enjoy the date, love birds!" Satine shouted out and teased, watching Y/N be carried and flown away by his date.

The boy blushed a little upon hearing what Satine said. "Did she just call us... Love birds?" he blushed heavily now thinking about it, causing the Girl of Steel to giggle.

"Yeah, she defo called us that... I honestly see why" she flirted with a wink.

"We flirting already?" he smirked.

"If you want to" she smirked back.

"Well... I'd rather save the flirting for when we're at the restaurant for our date, maybe... A few during our uh... Walk through the park or whatever?" he told her, earning a bigger smirk from her.

"This your first date?" she asked curiously, she had a feeling it could be as he looked puzzled to say something for a brief moment.

"Y-Yeah... This is... My first ever date, never experienced this before... Sorry to disappoint" he felt awkward. "I just hope it doesn't go sideways"

"Don't worry! It's alright!" she sounded cheerful, eager to lighten up the situation he now found himself in. "You're in luck! I haven't exactly dated anyone in a while so it's kinda my first time in a way too! And no, it won't go sideways. Not even crime is gonna stop our date" she told him with a proud and classy smile.

They were now closing on in to New York, which was becoming visible from under the clouds, the lights showing off the city like a beacon in the dark.

"Well, you saying that does bring my hopes up. Sunshine" replied the boy her age, causing the girl to look surprised. Like she's never heard that before.

"Sunshine? Did you just call me Sunshine?" she began to blush with a cute smile on her face, the type of smile that could make someone not think straight once they see it toward them.

"Y-Yeah I did, your like a radiating sunshine, Kara. Not sure if anyone's said that before, but... From what I know, you bring caring and warmth everywhere you go. Just a cheerful sunshine on a summer day" he explained his reason, causing the Maid of Might to melt in his words.

"Aww, that's probably the most sweetest thing I've heard in a while now... That... That means a lot, you're so sweet" her face brightened with joy, the pair now flying above New York as she lowers herself into the city, just flying past the buildings now.

She flew around a building that looked to be a high-end apartment building, which seemed to look expensive. Y/N recognized the building itself since on his Earth? The building looked a lot more... Futuristic than modernized. Ritz-Carlton New York Hotel, now revealed that Kara indeed lives in there.

The Girl of Steel levitated herself lower until she saw her own opened window, flying through the opened window before gently landing and putting her date on his two feet once more.

"There we are! Welcome to my apartment room!" she performed a spin with a smile plastered on her face. She noticed the shock on his face, how could she have this much money? Having an apartment room like this? The view looked incredible. "Judging by the look on your face, you're pretty astonished" she giggled.

"I mean... Wow... When I thought apartment... I wasn't expecting this. You live at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel?! Especially this room? It's incredible!" he expressed his thoughts as his astonishment explored the room he was in. "On my Earth? This is like the oldest but cheapest Hotels to date, overshadowed by many other Hotels but... Wow, this is like... A dream, it's like going back to relive what it felt like being in this room" he explained.

"Well... I'm not exactly living in here forever though, I do plan to have a house built somewhere near New York, I do have a job as Kara Danvers here too so I can't exactly abandon that" she put her hands behind her back within her cape.

"What is this job of yours besides Supergirl?" he asked curiously.

"I work as a reporter at the Daily News, I'm a journalist. I used to work in National City at CatCo at the time but I quit that two years ago. I'm more happier working at the Daily News" she explained, she felt happy explaining more about herself, not as Supergirl, just as her alter ego.

"Interesting... Better save the stories for when we go out for dinner" he suggested, causing Kara to suddenly widen her eyes.

"Oh yeah! The dress! Hold on, be back in a Flash!" she giggled at herself afterwards before speeding off.

Y/N took the privilege to sit down on the sofa as he began to wait, his mind filled with many questions he wants to ask her. Though he knew he can't exactly ask her some questions in public regarding Krypton and other superhero related stuff. However, questions were on the board about Kara's human lifestyle.

Many thoughts began to overwhelm him, he felt nervous about it all, he's never done this before and he for sure, isn't great with relationships with girls. Hence why he's always avoided a romantic relationship.

At the same time? He likes Kara, he likes Kara for all she is, whether as Kara Danvers, the human who works as a journalist, or Supergirl aka Kara Zor-El, a superhero who is an alien refugee from the planet Krypton just like Superman.

In the other room, Kara is putting on her dress for the date, checking herself out on the mirror she had on display, smiling at herself before her thoughts overwhelmed her.

She was nervous also, never did she think she would begin to fall for someone who isn't even from this Earth, a human with powers beyond her imagination. ice, fire, solar, even smoke? Which smoke isn't even magic but still... He's able to use smoke as magic which confused her at first before accepting it was inevitable that it can be done.

She picked up her glasses, glasses that disguised her thoroughly, though it wasn't the same hair changing glasses she used to have. They broke under a certain altercation.

She puts them on as checks herself out again before exhaling a short breath, the feeling of butterflies in her stomach as she thinks about him... The same feeling from last night, where she screamed into her pillow with excitement, jumping up with joy. The same butterflies that'd make her feel happy around someone she likes a lot that it would make her float like one of those Disney princesses.

Y/N pondered how he was going to tell her that he likes her whenever it would come to that later, as he heard her coming back through. "You ready to see me?" she asked around the corner.

"Yeah, come on out" he answered, not expecting the sight he would see afterwards.

She was already beautiful as it is... But he's never seen someone this gorgeous in a dress... A blue dress with high heel sandals.

She parted her hair to the left side of her face as she stopped in front of him, showing off the dress from front... To back, showing off the elegant dress she decided to choose to wear.

"So..." she broke the silence. "You like it?" she asked with her hands behind her back, looking sheepish as she asks.

"I... Wow... You look like an angel" he softly spoke as the girl was flustered at his compliment.

"An angel?" she asked.

"Yeah... Like an angel who fell from the sky... Speaking of that since you came from another planet, so..." he referenced, making Kara blush heavily. "You're definitely an angel pretty much" he complimented again, causing the girl to give out a half-suppressed laugh.

"That's... That's so charming of you, I never thought myself as an angel" a cute smile was left on her face as she approached the now standing up boy. "You ready to go out for our date?" she asked politely.

"Yeah" he replied, taking her hand without thinking which caused the two to lightly blush and chuckle. "I think I'm ready to go out on our date"

* *

The couple were now at the restaurant, an Italian-American restaurant named Carne Mare, a place for good food surrounding Italian dishes and special dishes at best.

The couple found a seat and waited for someone to come over and take their order as they looked at the menu.

"Oh, they do Atlantic Halibut Steak? Pair that with potatoes? Especially roasted? Oh! it's good" he told his date who chuckled at his insight.

"Had it before I assume?" she asked as she lowered the menu she held in her hands.

"Yeah, Ma used to cook it, her own version at least, Ma told me it was my dad's favorite before he unexpectedly passed" he went on like it was nothing, Kara's eyes instantly widened at this new information she didn't hear before. She knew from the tone of voice he was still hurt over it.

"Your father passed away? I... I didn't know that" she didn't know what to say to this much, it was all of a sudden that he dropped the ball about his own personal life immediately. "I-I'm so sorry, I was going to ask you about your parents but..." she felt bad that she didn't know, feeling some guilt for him too.

"Hey, it's alright" he smiled as he lowered the menu he held. "It happened a while ago, and ma's doing okay, she's worried but... She knows I can handle myself out here" he made her smile with his words.

"Caring mothers are the best" she replied with a more happier tone.

"On that, I agree" he smiled brightly as she chuckled. "Got any family members you wanna talk about? Mine are uh... Well... It's complicated" he asked with an unsure face, knowing his family history is a long, long explanation.

"I should tell you about Eliza Danvers, my adopted mother, she's amazing. Along with Jeremiah, my adopted father" she spoke next.

"Oh? Wonder when I can get to meet these people" he wondered loudly, causing the girl to giggle.

"I'm sure you will at some point, I think they'll like you" she winked, as the waitress now arrived at their table.

"Good evening, I'm David, I'll be your server for tonight along with the rest of our guests" a man in a suit and bow-tie showed up with a small notepad to write on.

"Hello David!" Kara called out, waving toward the man as Y/N did the same.

"You two on a date may I ask?" the server politely asked.

"Yeah! Guessing it was pretty obvious?" Kara chuckled a reply, her date smiling along with her.

"It's not rare seeing a couple on a dinner date come here" the man replied. "So, drinks first. We've got Beer, Cocktails and Wine, we've also got Sparkling and Regular water if that's what you want?" he asked the couple.

"Oh, hmm... What do you think? Wine or Sparkling maybe?" Kara asked her date.

"I say we go sparkling water, not the biggest fan of Wine" Y/N replied as the server wrote it down.

"Alright, starters?" he asked next, Kara and Y/N looked at one another for a moment before agreeing on no starters. "Okay, main and side dish?" he then asked.

"Hmm... I'll go for a Mezzi Rigatoni, he'll go for... An Atlantic Halibut Steak" Kara informed the server as he began jotting down the order. "No side dish for me, not sure about this handsome guy here" she flirted with Y/N, making him chuckle with a blush rising up on his face.

"I'll take a side dish of uh... Potatoes Rustica?" he asked.

"Done, there is Dolci's which are desserts in other words, if you both want to order one after the main and side dishes, I'll come back to order for it afterwards along with your food and drinks soon!" David finished jotting down the couple's order before smiling.

"Thank you David!" Kara says as his smile shows his gratitude before walking off to take another order.

"Wow, this place is a lot more fancier than I thought" Kara told herself loudly.

"It is an Italian-American restaurant, it's gonna look fancy regardless" Y/N shrugged.

"It's quite nice, not that I'm complaining or anything. It's just... Not the first time I've been to a restaurant like this" she chuckled while thinking back to the last time she went on a date.

"Y'know? Now that you've mentioned it? Who did you last date before me? It sounds like it happened a few years ago" he asked her with a curious look on his face, wanting to know exactly who she dated before, that's when she laughed upon looking back at it.

"Yeah, it was a few years ago. I was 18 at the time, my date was actually the Boy Wonder Robin, Y'know? Batman's sidekick? Or former sidekick now at least" she answered his question, his eyes widened a little at the realization of who she dated before.

"Wait, he goes by the alias Nightwing now right?" he asked.

"Yep... I still remember the date as if it was yesterday" she chuckled. Fueling Y/N's curiosity further. At the same time, the server came round with two glasses of sparkling water, setting it down on the couple's table as they both thanked server David before he walked off once again.

"Care to elaborate on what really happened that day?" he asked politely, even leaning in as he showed to her how interested he wanted to hear this story.

"Haha, well..." she rolled her eyes playfully with a smile...

"Gotta say... I thought he'd be interesting to have a chat with" Y/N spoke as he began cutting his Atlantic steak, put together with the potatoes he ordered.

"Don't get me wrong, we're on better terms now than before, even after that uh... Date" she spoke with gestured air quotations at the end of her sentence.

"Well... I know how it feels to be stared at, looked at with glances and so fourth while in a public place doing normal things while in costume? Yeah... I know how it feels" he spoke like he's had experience, before putting the fork in his mouth that had stabbed the steak and a potato earlier.

"Wait, you go out in public, doing normal human things while in costume? Don't you have a alter ego?" Kara asked curiously as she stabbed a bit of the pasta on her plate.

"Eh, yeah. About that, everyone knows who the EDC are, we don't use secret identities. And btw, you should see the aliens we have on our Earth. They're pretty much... Robots in Disguise" he gloated, making Kara almost spit out the pasta she had been eating in her mouth.

"What?! Are you saying that... Transformers exist on your Earth?!!" Kara almost shouted in shock.

"Shh!" Y/N shushed the Kryptonian Journalist. "Don't wanna blow our identities by shouting that!"

"Oh, sorry" Kara giggled. "I'm just... Surprised that they exist on your Earth, must be weird knowing they're fiction here" she then whispered.

"Yeah... It's pretty weird how they're just fiction here but not on my Earth" Y/N spoke from his perspective.

"Just asking... Does Optimus Prime exist? Or is he alive?" she asked, a glint of interest in her eye as she began eating again.

"Yep... He's real and alive. Megatron is too, well they're not enemies anymore. It's pretty much a joint op" he whispered back, making sure no one thought he was crazy or anything if they heard him. Meanwhile Kara was just too into it, wanting to know more now that more information was shared about his Earth.

'Megatron's a good guy now?' Kara thought along with being surprised, she's always seen him as the villain of the screens of TV shows, movies and so fourth. 

"I'll explain more about it later. Right now? I want to hear more about your story" he was still interested in Kara's story, a glint now glistening in his eye as he continues eating.

"Oh, right... Now where was I?" Kara wondered loudly.

"You were at the part where you asked the waiter about your food" he told her.

"Oh right!" Kara remembered. "So..."

"Wait, wait pause"

*Record scratch*

"You're telling me... Some guy's pet monkey caused a truck, carrying bowling balls to crash into a concrete wall, bowling balls began spilling out, causing a bus to crash into a fountain filled with water along with causing an entire crash scene? And a monkey caused all that? The fuck?" he was all but baffled at this. It was too good of a story to be made up.

"I'm telling you! This is NOT made up! I'm 100% serious as I swear to Rao on this. This did happen" Kara really did want to believe this wasn't made up but... It wasn't. "Can I continue, please?"

"Sure, I'm already loving this story of yours already!"

"Ohh, talk about a bad date... That was a disaster for sure" he complimented.

"I know... Getting morally embarrassed by falling into a broken water fountain, having your suit soaked up and hair messy, only to come back and see that the food was cold... Yeah... Pretty disastrous if you ask me" Kara replied, finishing her meal as Y/N finished his.

"And I gotta say? That was a good story, along with that steak cause wow... Haven't had that in a long time" he licked his lips and sighed happily afterwards.

"Yeah, should've tried that pasta, it was pretty good" she giggled before mirroring what he did by licking her lips afterwards and sighing just like he did.

The two looked at each other before bursting out in soft laughter.

"Y'know? I saw the desserts here and... I really, REALLY want to try that 17 layer choco cake they have" he thought about it loudly.

"Oh desserts? Sure we can have a dessert, one caught my eye" she smirked before licking her lips.

She didn't realize she was staring at him when she said that which caused him to look surprised.

"Woah! Wow Angel, didn't think you'd mean it like that if that's what you meant" he then smirked, teasing her.

"W-What? Oh no no no, I wasn't m-meaning it l-l-like that" her face flushed red, realizing what she did as she giggled nervously.

"I know what you meant, just teasing ya" he winked, her blood flushed cheeks began dimming down as the server David came round.

"Hello you two, ready to pay the bill for the meals or are you both having a dessert?" David asked politely.

"Oh yeah! Uhh... I'll have a Sweet Cream Panna Cotta" Kara answered with a smile.

"What about you sir?" David asked Kara's date.

"17 Layer Chocolate Cake will do for me" Y/N politely answered back.

"Okay, it'll be out shortly once I've given the order to them. Hope you enjoy your desserts, someone will come round to hand the bill to you to pay" David informed the couple.

"Thank you David" It was Y/N turn to share his gratitude as the server smiled before walking off.

"Y'know, now that I think back to my story... I think that monkey's name was Bingo" Kara shared some new info about the story she recently told her date.

"Bingo? Huh? Cute name for a monkey" he complimented. "Like yours"

"Aww Sparks, I'm flustered" Kara's face glistened.

"Sparks? That my nickname?" he asked with a smile on his face.

"Might as well be!" she giggled.

Before long, their desserts would soon arrive at their table, with each individual cutlery.

Kara seemed to be enjoying her Panna Cotta as Y/N was enjoying his cake.

"Mmm, this cake is really good. Wow" Y/N gloated at the cake's taste, since it tasted like heaven.

"I'd say the same to this!" Kara put the spoon in her mouth as she tasted the sweet taste on the Cotta, hummed to say it was good... Too good.

"I got an idea" he said. Gaining the Kryptonians attention.

"Hmm?" She hummed, still eating what was in her mouth.

"How about we get a taste of each other's desserts? You taste mine, I taste yours? I know it's like a classic romantic dating thing, wanna try it?" he suggested as Kara thought about it.

"Hmm... Sure!" she went along, getting some Panna Cotta on her spoon with the cream and berries as her date does the same with his cake, only difference was that he had a fork.

Their mouths opened upon them feeding each other their own dessert on their respective cutlery before pulling it back as they began eating.

"Mmm... Oh waow" he spoke with a mouthful, the sweet cream, the berries, it was a perfect taste to his own taste buds. "Wow, that is definitely the taste of heaven" he complimented, enjoying the sweet taste... He always had a sweet tooth.

"Gotta say? The cake is amazing! Kinda wish I could steal the recipe... But that'd be criminal" she chuckled, enjoying the chocolate sensation from the cake, unlike any other cake she's had before, specially chocolate. "If they had ice cream? That would be great with that cake"

"Oh yeah! Definitely" he agreed. The couple giggling afterwards as they continued eating... But kept their eyes locked onto each other, smiles offered as they enjoyed their dessert together,

* *

"And then, he turned to me and said, we should prank her, she's always gotten me with her pranks" Y/N was telling Kara a story of his.

They had been walking through Central Park after their dinner date for at least 10 to 20 minutes now telling each other their stories and such, spending the rest of their date taking a walk through Central Park... Where couples usually did go to on their first date or two.

Earlier Kara informed him about the mask she accidentally destroyed upon their first encounter, she had successfully fixed it with Kryptonian metal and fabrics, using the Fortress's technology to repair it, which made Y/N ecstatic.

"Well, did you and Xalex prank her?" Kara was intrigued to know the rest, the both had been holding hands like before. Smiling like idiots.

"Yeah... Well... Before Xalex could do his master plan of pranking on Satine with using the old paint buckets that still had some pain left on em... He uh" he continued before trying his best not to laugh. "He dropped them on Liang instead, thinking it was Satine who was walking by" he burst out laughing, it was his first day at the EDC after Liang brought him in.

"Oh Rao" Kara laughed with her date. "I'm guessing he wasn't very happy about having paint splattered on him" she continued laughing with him.

"Oh yeah, he wasn't very happy at all, got caught and all, he didn't scold me but he scolded Xalex, the commotion gained the attention of everyone present, including some of the Autobots and Decepticons who were there. Bee asks me what happened, so I told him everything. It all reminds him of the Terrens who he taught a few years back" Y/N continued explaining the rest of the story.

The couple walked past a part of grass that had no trees blocking the view, which gave Kara an idea.

"Wanna stargaze? I can tell you more about Krypton and myself of course" she asked with a wink at the end.

"Yeah! Sure why not?" he reluctantly agreed, as they walked toward the same part of grass Kara spotted. "Wait... We don't have something to lie down on top of the grass" Y/N then spoke.

"Don't worry" Kara winked before speeding off and coming back in full costume and taking off her cape that billows behind her. "I have a solution to that" she giggled afterwards before setting down the cape.

"You sure you want to do this in costume? What if people walk by and see Supergirl sitting down with some random guy staring at the sky?" Y/N asked the question.

"Don't worry Sparks!" she took his hand. "No one really comes along this part of Central Park at night, they always say it's dangerous but really? It's not" she winked.

They sat down before lying down, their hands intertwined again as a smile was on their faces.

"Sky's beautiful tonight" Y/N said with a glistening in his eyes, the many stars that shined in the night sky, let alone the Moon that was visible through the clouds.

"Yeah, they're always beautiful at night here, from what I've seen" Kara agreed, a smile growing bigger on her face.

"So... I gotta ask... What was living on Krypton like? Before coming here and having those powers?" Y/N asked the question, she already knew he was going to ask it after all.

"Well... Krypton was... It was beautiful, the cities were filled with laughter and joy, there were many houses, I know you call them clans here on Earth so to speak" she answered.

"Speaking about clans, my ancestors are from an old clan that existed years and years ago" her answer reminded him of his heritage and where he came from, let alone, making him talk about it.

"Wait, really? Which one?" Kara asked.

"The Nobushi Clan, one that had the greatest warriors who were the first line of defence centuries ago" he answered her question. "Enough about me for now, I wanna know about your culture and stuff, I'm interested in it after all" he suggested to change the topic about her.

"Oh yeah, of course!" she immediately snuffed out the distractions. "The Houses we had were a family sigil, each had it's own emblem and what they stood for. Mine is the House of El as you already know, most of the House of El were apart of the Science Guild, where my biological father Zor-El and his brother Jor-El worked in" Kara spoke as her eyes laid upon a star that shined brighter than the others.

"Were you part of the Science Guild too?" Y/N asked curiously.

"Originally was planning to, yeah. My mother however was part of the Military Guild. Her house of the House of Ze, her name was Alura In-Ze. She was married to my father Zor-El... And then, they had me" Kara felt happy talking to someone about her culture's history, never did she think someone, a Human even, was interested in knowing about Krypton's history.

"What about the other houses?" Y/N asked.

"Well there's the House of Zod, home to ruthless warriors and defenders of Krypton, well... They were once... Before General Dru-Zod came along and led a coup against the council of Krypton. They want to make Earth the New Krypton but have failed many attempts since we got involved" Kara explained further.

"And where are they now?"

"Phantom Zone" Kara replied with a smug look on her face. "Hope they rot in there for all I care" a distaste in her mouth when she spoke about them.

"You really hate them, don't you?" Y/N raised an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah, hate em with a passion, they Zod tried to manipulate my mother, she saw through his manipulation and in return tried to kill her. It failed" she answered, remembering that moment when she was eleven years old.

"Any other houses?" he asked, still wondering if there was many more since the only house he'd known was the House of El mostly.

"There's like many more, House of Ak, An, Am, Da, Dar... Do you want me to go through em all?" she asked politely, chuckling at the thought of going through all of them.

"Actually... Why not tell me them all later?" he suggested.

"That's fine with me" she smiled, as a star shoots through the sky.

"Look at that, a shooting star" he pointed out.

"Yeah! It's amazing!" her eyes glistened upon it, she's flown close to a shooting star before, and it's beautiful up close from her words.

"You had a God right? Rao it was called?" Y/N asked Kara next, gaining her interest.

"Yeah, we all... I wouldn't say worship but we all were religious. Rao was the sun God of Krypton, he had two children, Nightwing and Flamebird" she explained the history behind her God.

"Nightwing? Wait... Did Dick Grayson copy that?" he wondered loudly.

"Hahaha, that's what I thought at first, like I thought he took the name as inspiration, but he actually had no idea about it" Kara laughed.

Y/N laughed along with her, smiling as he tilted his head to look at her.

Kara noticed he was looking at her, and so... She looked at him, the two felt some connection once their eyes met. The calm wind blowing in the air as their eyes glistened at each other.

"When you... Wear that symbol" his free hand slightly touched the symbol on Kara's suit, she felt his hand touch her and let his touch feel the suit she wore. His eyes looking upon it before meeting her eyes once more. "Do you... Ever feel... Like the weight of the world is on your shoulders?" Y/N asked a very good question which surprised her at the slightest.

She always felt so alone in the universe after Krypton's destruction, finally arriving to Earth, only to find that her baby cousin was a grown up adult now.

She used to feel so angry at the world, at herself... At everything, she was hot-headed, a girl with anger issues, someone who couldn't accept Earth as their new home. She became a Red Lantern at the time because of her rage.

She told him all of this earlier, even so she'd get emotional about it all, but she's learned to talk about it without breaking down in tears or getting all emotional... Kandor did survive, but the same could not be said for Argo City, not her parents.

"Sometimes... It can be too much for me to handle, and to be honest? I... I don't know if I'm ready to be Earth's Champion if my cousin were to be gone somewhere... Or worse... Dead" Kara spoke with a saddened tone. "But I need to be strong for Earth, for my new family, without them? I don't even know where I'd be right now. Probably still angry at the world? I don't know? I've learned so much about Earth and... I once said that Humans were just... Beyond saving, that they waste their lives on nothing and such. And I still regret saying that" she out heartedly admitted.

She hated who she was after Krypton's destruction, just a girl who was angry at the world, wouldn't hesitate to fight or worse, kill anyone in her way, even her own cousin.

"But... Kal thinks I bring joy and happiness to those around me, that I've grown to be my own person, who carries hope like he does as Superman. And to be honest? He's not wrong" she smiled brightly, looking at her date while butterflies dance in her stomach.

"I agree... He's not wrong. Your smile is like a sunshine, and... You're an angel from the sky. You're beautiful Kara... One of the most beautiful girls I've met. I'm not great with girls, never tried getting into a relationship. But this? I... I really want you to be my first and only" he spoke before admitting his feelings. He felt like a weight was took off of him, his heart pounding in his chest as she picked up on it.

Her smile brightened further along with her face, she never felt this loving feeling in a while. "I want to try again, try a relationship again. Maybe... You're the one I really needed to find" she grinned.

The two began giggling and chuckling, a blush rising up their cheeks as the moment passes, smiles were offered, as they felt the romantic tension rising.

"I guess the House of El doesn't just mean... Hope, and all that. I guess it could mean... Love and Compassion too" Kara thought loudly, finding a new understanding go the symbol she's always worn since birth.

"I like the sound of that. Hope, Love and Compassion for all" he gloated, causing the girl to snicker.

"Sounds corny... I love it" she smiled.

"Me too" he smiled back.

The two then sat up before they began slowly closing the gap, their lips almost touched before Kara made the move, her hand touched his face as his reached the back of her head, gently caressing her golden hair.

The pair realized what was happening, they were having their first ever kiss, well... Kara's had a few kisses on the lips before, but for Y/N? It's his first time.

The pair melted into the kiss, Kara's other hand caressed face as she felt his other hand on her thigh.

She moaned softly as their kiss continued, their lips slowly dancing before Y/N pulled back for air slowly, setting up the mood of the situation.

"Wow... That... That's my first ever kiss, I've never kissed anyone on the lips before" Y/N admitted to a now giggling Kara Zor-El.

"For your first kiss? That was good" she complimented, making the boy blush a thank you. "Care to go again?" she asked.

"Gladly" he smiled, their lips touching again for a brief moment, her kiss was like the ocean breeze, he smiled into the kiss as it continued for a few moments before the two pulled back. "Kara... I uh... I spoke with Liang... About staying here" he then spoke afterwards, which Kara frowned at.

"Really? What did he say?" Kara was intrigued.

"So... I asked him and he... He had a feeling I would feel attached to this world, he knows what's happening right now and he understands why I want to stay on this Earth. He knows I have... Feelings toward you, though we just met a few days ago. Fair to say? I don't regret it" he smiled.

"You're staying here? Are you really sure you want to?" Kara asked with concern, knowing he might miss his home, despite there being talks about an agreement of an ally to call upon such if a situation requires the EDC's help. "Won't you miss your home?"

"Yes..." YN answered briefly before his eyes drifted back to Kara's baby blues yet again, "But I want to spend my life here, and meeting you has made me think that way... In other words... I want most of my days here, even with you. So... Liang thought it'd be a good idea for me to stay here, of course he still has to talk to the others about it first but... Honestly? I'm more than happy to stay here on this Earth, even if it's with you" a smile was still on his face before inevitably, Supergirl would start to smile. Never thinking he'd be allowed to stay.

"Oh Y/N, you-you didn't have to. But... That makes me happy, knowing you want to stay" Kara's smile brightened 

The Multitasker smiled as he pulled himself in... Before they were interrupted by music happening in the distance, with people singing along the song.

A song named... Better Place by Rachel Platten, being performed by a woman with a beautiful voice, similar to the original singer... Maybe it is her? Happening at some musical stadium within Central Park.

"There's some music going on. You hear that?" Kara asked.

"Yeah, I recognize the song" he smiled with an answer.

The song continued as they listened in, before Kara began swaying left to right slowly, the lyrics of the song catching up to her as she quietly sang along.

"Well" Kara began getting up before looking down at Y/N and offering a hand. "Care to dance?"

"Me? Dancing? I'm bad at it as it is" he chuckled.

"Just a slow dance, just keep your eyes on me and mirror my movements" she offered, a smile on her face as he took her hand, pulling himself up.

"Sure... Something for us to remember" he smiled as he stepped off Kara's cape before she picked it up and attaching it back on her suit behind herself, the cape draped perfectly over her shoulders.

The couple smiled as their bodies touched, holding hands together as they began to slowly dance to the song going on in the distance.

Their eyes locked onto each other as the pair slowly danced.

During this... The couple hadn't noticed someone watching them in the distance with a pair of binoculars, sitting on top of a building as he watched Kara dance with her date.

The man smiled as he watched and chuckled. "Atta girl, knew you'd find someone eventually" Nightwing spoke as he put away the binoculars before continuing his patrol, taking over for Supergirl tonight.

"There you go! You're getting the hang of it!" Kara spoke excitedly as he made her do a spin before catching her.

"Seems like I am" he chuckled before Kara turned round, looking at Y/N in the eyes.

"Wanna stay at mine tonight? I have room for one more on my bed" she smiled, her eyes glittering like the calm ocean.

"Wouldn't mind that, waking up beside you would be a dream" he teased, causing her and himself to giggle before continuing their dance.

Their dance would soon stop before their faces drew closer and softly touched at the song coming to a close, their eyes closing as Kara begins to float up in the air with her arms wrapped around Y/N. Her cape and hair blew softly in the wind as he felt her flying up into the sky.

Where their kiss would continue up in the skies of New York City.

Knowing he had truly Scored Supergirl's Heart of Steel...

* * *

Fin

[beep-beep-sunny]

I added two new chapters to My Daddy Likes Boys a fic about Eddie Kaspbrak's son trying to get him together with his teacher, Mr. Tozier.

Read on ao3 or below!

Chapter 1: Two daddies?? Cool!

My daddy likes boys. I don't know why that's such a big deal. I'm not a dummy. I understand that they don't mean he likes boys just as friends like me and Hank from my class. Otherwise, mommy and daddy wouldn't have broked up. I get it. It's about in love. Like Aladdin and Jasmine. They aren't both boys, but that's okay. I'm sure there are other examples of boys I'm just not thinking of.

Mommy already sees other boys. Daddy comes to watch me when she goes on her "dates" and we watch Bluey on TV or play hungry hungry hippos. Daddy is great at games, but I'm better because I always win. Still, daddy deserves to play games with someone he can beat. Someone he can go on "dates" with. Maybe on a magic carpet. Daddy likes cars, and that's a very cool and special kinda car. I wanna ride on one. Maybe if daddy's boyfriend has a magic carpet I can ride in the backseat and fly up high. That would be cool. That would be super cool.

I started kindergarten in the Fall. I'm in Mr. Tozier's class. He wears funny, colorful shirts and does voices that make me laugh a lot. When we learned about animals he made all the sounds. My favorite was when he made the goose sound. Mr. Tozier is the coolest.

And a boy.

And daddy likes boys.

Then I had an idea. My daddy and Mr. Tozier could be in love! That's a great perfect idea. I just needed to find a way to get daddy and Mr. Tozier to talk. When they talked they would obviously instantly fall in love because they are both awesome and fun and they both love me. It would be the greatest thing to have two daddies!!

I started small. Daddy tells me every day that I'm brave and I decided to prove it. I made sure Mr. Tozier was close and I climbed up higher in the jungle gym than I had ever climbed. The other kids watched and some waved and giggled. By the time Mr. Tozier noticed how high I climbed and started running towards me, it was too late. I bent my knees like a frog. Mr. Tozier saying ribbit ribbit popping into my head as I hopped off the roof (where I definitely wasn't supposed to be) and fell hard onto the ground.

Plop

I yelled and yelled and yelled some more. How was I supposed to know it would hurt THAT much. Mr. Tozier reached me quickly with his kind blue eyes twisted up in worry. "Frankie!" He yelped. "How'd you even get up there?" He was concerned, but I couldn't help but notice he also sounded impressed. This was going perfectly according to plan even though my arm hurt a whole lot.

Mr. Tozier carried me to the nurse's office. "I'm gonna call your parents, okay? Just sit tight buddy." I made a froggy sound and his worry melted away just long enough to do an, admittedly much better, froggy sound.

He rushed out the door. Oh no. "Call my daddy!" I shouted after him, hoping it was loud enough. My voice was usually louder, but my arm hurt too much! I waited to let my tears fall down my cheeks for after Mr. Tozier left. He probably thought I was very brave. Mr. Tozier and daddy will talk about how brave I am all day long until they fall in love.

Daddy didn't come. Mr. Tozier must not have heard me. When I saw mommy come through the door with her arms stretched out like she was ready to clean my dirty cheek with her spit, I cringed a bit and then started crying. This time it wasn't from the pain. Well, it wasn't just from the pain. This was going to be harder than I thought.

Chapter 2: Frankie's Big Break

had a lot of time to plan my next move while I was at the doctor then at home. My arm was broken and got put in a huge cast. It's so hard and heavy. I drummed on the wall with it when mommy wasn't looking, she always told me to stop even though it made the best sound.

That made me think of my next idea. I couldn't keep getting hurt and going right to the hospital. I'd be off too much school and all my bones would be in casts until I couldn't move. I can't make Mr. Tozier and my daddy fall in love like that! I need at least one limb free!

When I got back to school, all the kids wanted to talk to me and sign my cast. I noted that I'd let Hank sign it first, after I talked to Mr. Tozier. Unless Mr. Tozier wanted to sign it first. Then he could. Sorry Hank.

Mr. Tozier sat at a big desk with papers all over the top. I could just see over it. He looked down at me, looking over his big thick glasses. He must have a really hard time seeing with glasses that big. My eyes are perfect, everyone says so, but daddy probably doesn't care about perfect eyes. I tried to focus.

“Frankie?” Mr. Tozier said. “What is it?”

“Next time I get in trouble, can you call my daddy instead of my mommy?” I said. I thought if I was as obvious as possible that he would definitely get it right next time.

Mr. Tozier's brow furrowed. “Well, you weren't in trouble, Frankie, but why do you want me to call your daddy? Is something going on at home?”

I really thought about it. No, not really. Home has been kinda boring. Daddy always looks sad when I'm with him, but mommy always has boys around all the time. I just want my daddy to be happy too. Not with lots of boys though, just Mr. Tozier. I didn't like getting used to lots and lots of new boys because some of them smell funny and have weird mustaches.

“Frankie?” Mr. Tozier asked. Oops, I'd been thinking too much.

“No.” I said quickly and walked away. I didn't even remember to ask him to sign my cast. I guess Hank could do it first after all.

After all the kids got done signing my cast with lots of cool things, Hank drew a dinosaur, I went to work. I knew daddy would definitely come if I was in danger, but it didn't work the first time. I decided I had to do something different. I had to get in trouble.

It happened at recess. Mr. Tozier was watching everybody, but I wanted to make sure he was watching me. I took a big breath in and let out a loud scream. Mr. Tozier looked up but so did everybody else. I'd have to explain why I was doing it to all my lots of friends later. They'd understand. With all my might, I pushed over the big wood play kitchen and all the kids playing house ran away. The play plates hit the ground over and over one at a time. It sounded like rain.

Mr. Tozier rushed over. Yay! “Is everyone okay?” The other kids nodded. When he looked at me, he didn't look mad. He looked worried. That made me worried too.

He took me to the place I go to when I get off my bus and had me sit in the big plush chair. Once he was in the other room, I got up and pressed my ear to the door. He was talking to somebody. I think on the phone.

“I think something might be going on at home.” Mr Tozier said. I sighed. Not really. Just call my daddy. Say I'm in big trouble. “Oh, a divorce? That's gotta be tough on him.” It wasn't tough at all! What was tough was getting my daddy and Mr. Tozier in one room. Ugh!

Chapter 3: Why Does Everybody Ask if I'm Okay??

How was I supposed to know they'd just make me talk to some lady? That is not what I wanted at all.

“Frankie,” She said gently like she was talking to a puppy. I'm not a puppy. “Can you please tell me how things have been at home?”

“Why does everybody keep asking me that!” I knew it wasn't polite to shout, but I was getting so frustrated! “Sorry, things are just fine. I'm happy.”

Even though I told her I'm happy she still looked sad. What was going on? “Are you happy when you're with your mommy?”

I felt a big frown on my face. “Yeah, I guess!” I folded my arms. Things were fine. Mommy was just kind of boring sometimes. She just wanted me to dress up nice and be polite. I was so sick of always being so polite.

“What about your daddy?” She asked.

I smiled. “Well, daddy is the best. We play games and watch TV but he's lonely and needs a boyfriend like my mommy has.”

The lady's eyebrows raised up like they were gonna bump into her hair. “A boyfriend?” She asked. “Maybe you mean a girlfriend.”

I rolled my eyes. “No! My daddy likes boys!’’

Talking to that lady was so pointless. She didn't even help me with how to get Mr. Tozier and my daddy together. I hoped I never had to see that lady ever again.

My mommy drove me home and fussed with my hair when she buckled me in. “What did you say to the nice lady?” She asked me.

“I told her daddy likes boys.” I explained, getting a little tired of always having to explain myself.

Mommy's eyebrows did the same thing as the lady. It's a little silly for her to be surprised. I knew she knew that already. She didn't say much else. She just got in the front seat and drove us home.

When Daddy came to pick me up the next day, I was so excited. It was the weekend and Daddy always planned a fun activity. I wanted to see the new Sonic movie and get lots of popcorn.

It was taking mommy and daddy a really long time to come get me in my room, so I hopped off my bed and sat on the top of the stairs looking down at them through the bars. They looked upset. They had angry eyebrows and folded up arms.

“You told him about your little perversion?” Mommy said. I didn't know what that meant, but what did daddy tell me about? Maybe about the big black cats at the zoo.

Daddy held up his hands. “No, I didn't tell him anything about that. I don't know how he found out.” Maybe not about the big cats after all.

“Well, tell him you don't. Tell him you like women like you're supposed to.” I opened my eyes really wide. Was this about daddy liking boys? What's the big deal! Mommy likes boys too!

“Daddy can like boys if he wants to!” I ran down the stairs to stand up tall next to daddy.

They both looked down at me with their mouths hanging open. Close your mouths, gosh! “It's not normal.” Mommy said in a calm voice. I was so sick of people talking to me like a puppy or a baby or something.

I held out my hand. “Daddy, I wanna go.” I didn't feel like talking about this. I had important things to do.

Daddy looked down at me, surprised. Mommy looked mad. They looked at each other for a few seconds before daddy grabbed my hand and we started walking out. I smiled wide.

“Wait!” Mommy called after us, but we didn't stop or look back.

We were gonna have a wonderful, awesome time watching Sonic and eating popcorn and then after that I would think about my next plan. Daddy and Mr. Tozier were gonna be happy if it was the last thing I did!

[rocoutlaststuff]

So I’ve got a request a Franco Barbi x reader where they were his lover from before he was captured but now they’ve ended up in the trials as a reagent (assuming they can even remember each other) maybe some angst/hurt/comfort as a imagine or one shot whatever would be better for you!! ♥️♥️♥️

One request coming up! I got carried away with this, and you've officially turned me into a bit of a Franco fan which I did not expect. That's what listening to dialogue for an hour straight will do to a person, I guess. Regardless, I hope this is what you were looking for!

Presently in the Past (Franco x Reader) [Requested]

🐑 ♡ I lost the footage to make a Franco gif, anyone wanna play to get it back ♡ 🐑

You can't remember anything about your past, but your past remembers you.

Explicit, Graphic Violence, F/M, M/M, Other/M, Tag(s): Trauma, Human Experiments, Non-Consensual Body Modification, Drug Use, Needles, Memory Loss, Angst, Hurt/Some Comfort, Blood, Violence, Death, Explicit Language, Obsessive Behaviour, Possessive Behaviour, Pet Names, Cuddling, Flashbacks, Oneshot, Ambiguous Gender Reader, POV Second Person

Find it on ao3 ♡ WC: 6,432

Disclaimer: Easterman's introduction to the trial, and the first paragraph of the story were written by Red Barrels. I recommend reading Barbi's comic first if you haven't already!

Thank you to an anonymous user for requesting this! This is very much my first time writing Franco - hope he's written well ♡

CIA ASSET AT A BAR SOUTH OF MIAMI CONFIRMED FRANCO BARBI'S INVOLVEMENT IN AGENCY ACTIVITY IN CUBA. FRANCO DEEPLY ENTWINED WITH EXPAT/COUNTER-REVOLUTONARY CUBAN COMMUNITY IN FLORIDA.

STATEMENT FROM LAST KNOWN FROM CUBAN-COUNTER REVOLUTIONARY ASSOCIATE CONFLICTS WITH CIA ASSET. FRANCO IS HINTED AT LEADING DOUBLE LIFE BETWEEN ROMANTIC INTEREST AND CAREER.

ATTEMPTING TO CONFIRM.

“Maybe he didn't expect someone to like him,” Clyde muttered. 

His attention hadn't left the shot of Wolf’s Milk that had been made for him. The mere thought of sickly sweet taste forced his insides to turn. Like the wild goose hunt he was on, he wasn’t about the forget it any time soon. And just when he thought he had some semblance of understanding, it had come out that Franco was attempting to hide his involvement with a potential lover. 

He had done a good job too, despite him running his mouth in supposed privacy.

Finding said lover was useful if they could, yet Clyde was close enough to Franco that he preferred the time and resources went towards his target. 

“You can say that again. Looking like that I'd give up, but that man… He's got tenacity. If you want to call it that, anyway.” The agent put down the freshly cleaned glass with a sigh, and he waved off a patron. 

“I can chase up that lead for our mystery friend if you need, but the shop’s closing soon, so it's best that you're leaving. Good luck finding your guy. Nasty piece of work that one.” 

Atropine. Benzedrine. Chloropromazine. LSD. Nitric acid. Glass. Knives. Needles. Drills. 

So many things had dowsed, punctured, and been absorbed by your skin.

If you could take stock of how much abuse your body had suffered, you would have died many times over. Yet the cocktail of drugs that flowed through your veins mixed with the very same abuse to create a near perfect blank slate. 

You knew who you were. You were one in the same with the person in the mirror. You shared your history with that reflection and no one else. 

Yet sometimes when you looked at yourself, you felt like someone else. It was only ever a brief flicker of emotion - a feeling that you replicated in the decor of your space - but you held onto it when you felt it. 

Hell, you encouraged it when you could. 

Waiting to go into a trial was not one of those times. 

Your focus remained on the reagent who sat in the lobby with you. Whereas you sat on one of open tables, he sat on the floor by the stairwell. His hands flit about his body which rocked back and forth from the repetitive tapping of his feet on the ground. The cries of other unfortunate souls beyond your rooms sent him further beneath the stairwell to the point that he was nothing but a shadowy figure. 

You suspected he was new.

It was a horrible fate for someone new to be stuck with you too. While the others took their sweet time waking up, you had checked every room. There were four of you in total still within your lobby. The other twelve had left to go to their own trials. So you were left to decide whether you asked the newcomer if he wanted to follow you into the depths of Hell. 

Doing trials alone was not the answer. It was rarely the answer in the facility, and the people you saw alone were alone for a reason. They scared you more than some of the freaks they released into the trials.

Your trio was one man short.

Yet you were experienced, and experience meant more pain.

“Hey,” you called out. 

A muffled yelp. 

“Hey, it's okay,” you soothed as you rose from your table. Each movement was slow, and you held up your hands. Before you even reached the stairs, you crouched to make yourself smaller to him, skirting your hand along the floor to steady yourself. 

“Who are you?” the stranger barked at you. His voice was fractured. It never settled on a pitch, nor could one emotion truly determine the tone.

Even in the darkness, enough light reached him to caress the edges of the tears that fell down his face. 

You told him your name then asked for his while you sat beside the stairwell. With your hands crossed over your knees, you hugged them tight and waited for him to respond. He eyed you from his hiding spot perfectly still as opposed to how he had been a few short seconds ago.

“I don’t remember-” he choked. “I don’t remember my name.” 

There was not much you could do except watch him repeat that statement over and over again in floods of tears. When he started to hyperventilate, you guided him with his breathing to the beat of your fellow reagents coming down the stairs. When they saw the scene, they agreed to take him with you. 

Sure, it took a lot of convincing to have him step into the shuttle with you, but he did.

And you gave him a nickname: Franco.

He seemed happy with it, and you were grateful to get the name out of your head. The others knew that was what you called the soft toy you kept on your bed, but you didn’t care. It was one of those silly things you fixated on - one that was better than some of the things other reagents found comfort in. 

Like cattle, you were herded into the chairs without any other thoughts about what you should have been doing. It was a routine. One that you explained to Franco. You warned him about the clamps on the chair. Then you warned him about the TV and the gas. 

How could you tell someone to brace for the torment you were about to endure though?

"You are the surgeon's knife, and where you meet flesh, blood and pain must follow. We are the surgeon's medicine, who regulate pain and death. Poison the supply of those who would ease pain, and we will let you out."

There were no words shared between the group, only the terrified whimpers of Franco beside you. He cried out at the images that manifested in the fog. The suffering was unique to the reagent, and you stared forwards in disgust with bile in your throat. It was impossible to drown out the sheer panic beside you. 

Instead, it became part of your nightmare. 

A woman staggered towards you. Her body was outlined in the needles that clothed her skin. They touched every part of her, bouncing to the irregular rhythm of her steps. She tripped, tumbled, and fell into your lap - your eyes shut in an instant to block out the sensation you knew wasn’t there. You told yourself that the weight that hit you wasn’t real. 

It wasn’t real. 

It wasn’t real.

She wasn’t really there.

Franco’s cries were a white noise that tore through your skull like the nails that dug at your tattered slacks. It was too much. Unable to help your morbid curiosity, you allowed your eyelids to flutter open. 

The pulse that pounded within your chest threatened to cease. Tension gripped at your body, and a man held your legs with a similar zeal. Chipped nails belonging to the pasty skin sunk into you. Bloodshot eyes met yours, yet they didn’t seem to hold any hatred. They watched you with a warmth you hadn’t seen since you entered the facility and a smile to match.

You felt like you were looking in the mirror again. Familiarity swelled within your chest, and frustration compelled you to tears the second your wrists crashed against the metal restraints. 

He was gone in a blink. 

The shuttle stuttered and ground against the rails, coming to stop. You mustered up a brief smile for one of your fellow reagents at the concerned look she shot you. She still asked you if you were okay though while the other checked in with Franco. 

“I'm fine.” 

You were. If you didn't know why you were so upset by your vision then there was no reason why you couldn’t be fine. If anything you were good. Maybe even great. 

Despite the way your guts churned, and a dull ache beat against your head, you were exhilarated. 

You recognised that man. You didn't know who he was, but you recognised him, and he was a part of whoever you were before. 

He was your answer.

The first thing you noticed was the water. Amid the boxes and televisions, you were lost to the sound of water lapping against something. It seemed you weren’t the only one who noticed it too. 

“What is that?” your friend asked. There was no telling if he was talking to himself or not as he passed by you. Franco lingered by your side while your group headed to a nearby set of railings.

“I knew it!” your friend exclaimed. “It’s water. They got water in here.” He proceeded to laugh at the sight before him when he turned to see a pier extending beyond you. 

“Fuck - this is…” you watched as he looked around the walls plastered in the image of a distant city, and you noted the way his expression strained under the weight of his thoughts. “It’s too real.”

Nothing else was said. He continued onwards past the viscera not a few steps ahead of him. You allowed yourself the chance to peak over the railings, and the water seemed hypnotising in the way it calmed to near stillness. Something must have fallen in seconds prior to your arrival for it to have made a sound. 

You decided you weren’t going to stick around to find out what that something was.

Franco twitched when your body collided with his. He’d frozen. Fight or flight’s third sibling had no place in the trials, however, and you felt your heart sink at the sight of his vacant stare. You weren’t sure if he had clocked out for good already when he probably hadn’t seen a dead body up close yet.

A once over of his attire led you to almost regret bringing him along as you leant down to remove your shoes. The action caused Franco to return from the depths of his mind, and he watched you with intense focus. 

“Put these on,” you told him. 

With two shoes placed before him, he did so with ample tenderness. Maybe he'd suffered from splinters already. It was a thought that repulsed you given you now had no protection against that fate. 

“Thanks.” 

You nodded at him and took his hand to guide him along. 

“Ignore what you see. Focus on what we're doing,” you said. 

Enforcing this yourself, you closed yourself off to the world around you. It didn't matter that the wood bit at your soles, nor did it matter that blood that wasn't your own caressed every pinprick sized wound you endured down there. There was no face you made when you felt something compress under your weight and burst with a squelch. 

You continued - plain and simple.

There was little in the way of danger along the pier. Just a couple of stragglers that muttered to themselves. Nobody disturbed them. When you drew near the gate, things changed, and your steel willed determination waned at the sound of nearby pleading. 

“Salvatore Cargo,” you parroted from a sign in a bid to soothe yourself subconsciously. 

The pleading only grew louder as the gate was lifted. One by one, you slipped underneath to find the source of the cries. Two men hung above you like the countless decaying fish strung out to dry long ago. Except they were very much alive and terrified. 

Their fear was your own as you knew the sound likely drew attention, and sure enough a shoulder connected with you. 

So it began. 

Your friend collided with you to prevent an ex-pop from gutting you on long talons. You were forced back into a crate, and you acted on impulse. Around you, your friends scrambled to fend off the attacker. Franco froze once more. 

Taking his hand, you snatched a bottle from a shelf and launched it at the ex-pop to distract them. It gave your friends enough time to run, something that was feral and frenzied when lives were on the line. 

Your heart pumped. Unable to keep up with your pace, Franco staggered behind you. Directions and quick observations sounded out from your friends like gunfire. 

Without them, you would have missed the safe zone. 

You threw Franco into a slot and pushed your way into another. As the click resounded, you nearly fell out the other side. Franco knelt on all fours beside you, and you wrapped your hands around him to pull him up. There wasn't anything going through your head as you dragged him to his feet towards the nearest desk.

All you wanted was for him to be okay. You pulled him down into the cramped space beneath the desk on instinct. He was hyperventilating again. The sounds of movement around you let you know that the others were on their way upstairs. 

Meanwhile, you held Franco close to your side. 

Each shudder of his body shook your own. ‘Calm’ wasn’t exactly the state you could describe him falling into, but he fell silent soon enough. It was just in time for you to catch the latest disturbances upstairs. 

A voice different to your friends sounded over the now frantic cries of the hung men. The first gunshot made Franco smack his head against the table in fright. The second was cause for concern as you realised that you had in fact heard a gun. 

The screams were silenced, and the voice was too muffled for you to make out what was being said. 

It belonged to a man. That much you knew.

You peered over the table to survey the scene. The safe zone was still in tact. The lockers beside you didn’t seem disturbed, and the partition was still up. A third and fourth gunshot rung out, however. 

Whatever was happening wasn’t finished. 

The shill scrape of metal on metal filled you with dread - the partition nothing but a memory in the span of a second. You were being told to continue.

“Come on, hey. We’re going to make it through, but we need to move,” you told yourself as you grabbed Franco’s arm and pulled him from his hiding spot. Your friends all but fell down the stairs in their panic to tell you what you already knew: whoever was stuck in the trial with you had a gun.

It was a point of debate as you manourved through the environment towards the next stage of the trial. Even as you hauled pounds of drugs from a cart between one another - the gun outweighed any opinions or thoughts on your given task. How did you combat a gun? Could you take it from the unknown assailant? Were the ammo stashes anywhere?

Nothing useful came of your frantic whispers to one another, and while you took time to search for resources, you decided to help Franco out. It changed the subject at least to something more productive. 

“Battery packs go in like this,” you explained, showing him how to work his ESOP. “As for this, if you ever step on a mine and there’s gas - or you’re gassed because it can happen, one puff. That’s all you need. It’ll take it all away.” 

You snatched a brick for safekeeping, but no explanation was needed for Franco. He understood its use the second it was in your hand. It seemed he learnt quick too, repeating back what you’d said to him on the way back to your rendezvous by the drug cart. 

“I’ve got this,” your friend said. He took out a thin tube you recognised all too well and placed the needle to the edge of his arm. It sunk beneath the surface. You were ready to move again.

Things were going smooth for such an advanced trial. 

That’s what you thought as the cart was heaved along at a brisk jog. You eyed the surrounding area from the boat to the fish market, and you agreed with your friend. It was getting very real. 

Too real, in fact. 

The stench of rotting fish and past reagents left you nauseous. 

“Right this way, please.” The mannequin pointed you in the direction of a weird tool, and the group immediately fell into disarray. 

“No - geez, another fucking thing we can’t deal with right now,” one of your friends hissed. The other picked up the unfamiliar device. She pressed the switch on the side, yet nothing happened.

“Symbol decoder, it says - look,” Franco managed, “aim it at the uh, at uh-” he trailed off as he waved his hand in the direction of yellow paint nearby. The first attempt didn’t work, but as you crammed around the corner, everything became clear. You had to line up the image. 

The device whirred as the roulette of potential combinations locked in far too slow for the sense of urgency you all felt. 

Eight, seven, four.

You were left with Franco as the other two rushed over to the vault and input the code. Nothing could have prepared you for what happened next though. 

“It’s mine. It’s God damn mine, and I’ll skin, salt, and fuck any ruptured scumbag who tries to take it!”

You weren't in the trial. For a second too long, you were somewhere else. In your head, on a dock, you didn't fucking know. All you knew was that the voice stirred something within you. Somewhere - you'd heard it somewhere before. Where? You couldn't remember. Maybe you hadn't even recognised it, but the strength of the familiarity was enough to shake you. 

Somewhere. Someone. 

In the blank space of your head that you could feel, you knew he was there. It made you want to claw at your scalp and peel back the flesh. If you shattered your skull then everything would spill out. Or would you end up dying in a disappointing pool of black tar instead?

What if you forgot everything? 

“-you alright?” Franco asked, and your attention snapped towards him. 

What did you do to deserve to be taken away from everything you knew? 

You didn't say anything, nodding instead. A hand wrapped around yours, and he gave you the best smile anyone could muster in your circumstances. Fake and pained. 

“Let's go,” he said. You nodded again. 

Your friends caught up, and you were given an extra decoder. The space before you led to multiple darkened passageways. 

Cattle cars displayed the symbols you needed to find like some sort of messed up children's game, and you were left with Franco. It was decided as a team. You went left. They went right. With a mental note made of the symbol you needed, you beckoned to Franco to follow. 

So began your search.

All the while, you searched your mind for memories attached to that voice.

Franco gasped from the pain his night vision goggles caused him when he pulled them over his eyes. Thankfully, it was a pain you had forgotten, but you could sympathise with him. The section beside the train was incredibly narrow with no visibility. He had no choice but to wear them if he wanted to see.

You navigated around a corner with no luck finding a star. Then you navigated around another corner to find nothing useful either. But then a light from another cattle car caught your eye. Yellow paint lit up like fireworks the second you lifted your goggles.

The star was there. Part of it anyway. Both of you moved towards the part of the puzzle you had found, and you glanced around for its missing half. It had to be in front of you if needed to line them up, but where?

The answer was on a barrel. 

“Got it-” you breathed, holding up the decoder. It sprang to life, and you jolted when Franco bumped into you. 

You were going to ask if he was okay when he told you he had heard something. Against the buzz of the device, you had failed to listen for anything else. How could you when your attention was divided between some stupid star and fragments of your past? But when you focused you could hear it too. 

Breathing. It was heavy. Strained. It had to be him. Unless it was another ex-pop there was nobody else it could be.

He wasn’t getting any quieter either, and you looked back at the decoder to see it had stopped on one number. You waved it in front of you, desperate for it to work. You were so close to being able to leave - you could get it before whoever it was making their way towards you reached you.

They could turn and leave. It was a gamble that you were willing to take. 

If you stayed you could see him.

“Go hide-” you snapped, and Franco hesitated. “Go.” 

“Who is that?” That voice. You froze when Franco finally moved, and he brought you with him onto the car much to your dismay.

“My dad send you? Think I'm fuckin' scared of you?” Franco guided you to a barrel and instructed you to get inside. 

You did, albeit you were slow. The voice lulled you into a trance, and you wanted to know who it was. His face was all you needed. Just one peek. That was it. Fingertips rounding the edge of the barrel, you peered over the top to see Franco cross the train towards a barrel on the other side. 

He ran right past the opening and fell in unison with a bang. 

The sound of the gunshot continued to ring in your ears, and you stared in horror at Franco. He was alive -  a strained groan spilled from his lips as he rolled over to grip his leg. The bottoms he wore were red already, but the blood began to seep from between his fingers. 

“Found you, fuckin’ rat-” the voice cooed. “Try fuckin’ runnin’ now, cocksucker.” 

The stranger came into view. As he stepped into the light you could see everything. It was him. 

He was the man in your vision.

Your answer.

And still nothing made sense. Even as you took him in, you couldn't place him in your memory. But you could see the situation was dire. 

“Gonna cry? What a fuckin’ coward,” the man said, and you shot up from the barrel. With a blind rig, you weren't much use, but the brick in your pocket was. 

“Franco - move!” you cried out. Both men looked at you, and you launched the brick at the stranger. 

It was a perfect shot. 

“Shit - my fuckin’ head!” 

You leapt from the barrel and almost careened over with it as Franco threw himself to his feet. He cried as he did - falling down when he tried to make the jump from the car. 

When you landed beside him, you didn't get very far. A hand snatched at your neck, and your body was pulled back against the car floor behind you. 

“Must be one of those roaches - the fuck do you think you are usin’ my name like that? You-”

He was Franco.

You let out a whimper at the sensation of your spine being pulled against the car's floor and upwards. As if it couldn't get any worse, a gun pressed to one side of your head, and a face the other. The proximity forced you into stillness at the feel of the real Franco’s breath against your ear. 

“Ain't no fuckin’ way,” he huffed beside you, and you looked at the Franco on the floor who was trying to crawl beneath the car.  

“One of a God damn kind,” your assailant said. 

The aggressiveness he held in his voice shifted into something more joyous. He carried an excitable air around him as he let go of your neck, and he jumped from the train. The mood was shattered when he landed on an injured leg, and the shriek that erupted from beneath the train must have been heard trial wide. 

“Shut your whore mouth!” 

What were you meant to do? 

As two shots fired off into the Franco beneath the train, you were faced with the Franco who had inspired the nickname. And he had killed a man. There was nothing else you could have done but run. You were a credit to your own survival as you did, but you mourned two losses. 

One of which tailed after you.

“Where do you think you’re goin’? Are we playin’ games? Kiss and chase?” 

You sped towards the drug cart at breakneck speed. It seemed Franco had a hard time keeping up with you as his breathing became more laboured. He shouted after you and began to talk to himself when he lost sight of you.

There wasn’t any time for you to explain as you crashed into your friends. 

“Did you get the drugs?” one of them asked, and everything came crashing down around you. They asked about Franco. You felt yourself slipping as the thoughts struggled to form on your tongue.

“Gone, no - he’s gone. Franco got him.”

“What do you mean Franco got Franco?” You didn’t have a response to the question as you fumbled for anything. Each word that unceremoniously left your mouth felt like chewing on dirt. Franco killed Franco. Franco was the name of the ex-pop they had seen. 

The silence that fell after you finished spoke volumes. 

You could see it in their body language. The way that they didn’t move, yet their eyes danced across you. Muscles tightened like coils ready to spring. They didn’t say anything, but you felt their judgement. 

While you tried to convince yourself it was just guilt, you knew why they would take suspicion with you.

You understood why. 

“C’mon out, orsacchiotto, I wanna make sure it’s really you,” Franco called out. His tone was playful despite the weasely undertone of something else that dripped through. Whatever it was was primal. “You got more friends you want to introduce me too? I’ve somethin’ for ‘em too.” 

A metallic bang erupted from one of the trains as if something hit a wall, and you flinched. 

“I know where the code thing is, I got one of the numbers before Franco appeared - I can lead you to-” you were cut off by a hand against your mouth. Your friend had lunged forwards and covered it with his head turned. He let it slide down, and ran a hand over his own face, refusing to step back.

Then he gestured behind you. “Go on, lead the way.” 

You did - going back in the way you came. At the same time, it seemed Franco hadn’t given up his search, and his words damned you beyond the judgement you had already suffered. 

“D’ya remember those cold, cold nights when I used to keep you warm?” You weren’t sure if you wanted to remember.

“I’d give anythin’ if you’d come cuddle up to me. Baby’s lonely.” Whatever you were to him was more than a friend.

“I know what you want - zuccherino for my zuccherino - too bad it’s locked away. I thought your mommy taught you good manners… All you gotta say is please…” Yet there was a bite of hostility in his voice. 

“Don’tcha miss me?” 

You did. Deep down inside, despite the way your body screamed at you in all the confusion and pain, you missed him. 

You wanted to stop running.

With a shaky hand, you held the decoder up to the star symbol. 

Nine, three, zero.

You stared at the void between the floor and the cattle car knowing there was a fresh corpse there. Your friend went to the vault to open it up, and you waited beside the edge of the car. 

But it wasn’t silent.

Your name spilled from nearby. Close. It was close, yet you couldn’t see anything. The sound of shuffling and debris being pushed out the way forced you back into the cool steel of the cattle car. From the safety of your light, darkness opened up before you. So you let the goggles slide over your eyes. 

There, opposite you, was Franco. You were witness to him as he crawled through an opening in the wall on all fours. He was swift to his feet and quicker to train both barrels of his shotgun on you. A broad smile decorated his sunny expression, and laughter bubbled from his throat at your reaction to him.

“Bang!” he exclaimed. “Caught you.” 

There was movement inside of the car.

“And another fuckin’ rat,” he muttered. “Am I not enough? You gotta bring these dumb fuckin’ fucks into my work? My house?” 

Your heart was in your throat, and the lack of sound from the train alerted you to the fact that your friend had stopped moving. He was playing it safe. He wasn’t going to leave you was he? He was going to leave you with Franco. 

Regardless of if your friendship still existed or not, you were going to try at the very least to let him do that.

You were fine. 

“Wait,” you blurted out. “I don’t remember Franco, I don’t remember anything at all.” He stopped dead in his tracks. You glanced at the way his finger toyed with the trigger on his shotgun, and then you met his eyes.

“I don’t remember anything at all,” you repeated as everything began to unwind into sadness. “They put this fucking thing on my head, and they force me to do things I don’t want to do.” 

You gripped at your night vision goggles, the bolts embedded in your skull. Franco’s head lolled to the side with narrowed eyes, and you had his full attention.

“Who?” he asked.

“Who what?” 

“Who the fuck is making you do anythin’? Is it those scumbags that are runnin’ around?” You shook your head. “Nobody fuckin’ tells you what to do. You’re not some fuckin’ whore…” 

Franco’s expression contorted as his fist tightened in on itself. He shook his head and strode over to the car. You watched as he slammd the butt of his shotgun against the train, cursing each time. Each sound sent shockwaves through your poor nervous system, and you felt feint from the amount of adrenaline that coursed through your body.

“Fuck!” Franco repeated. “Why the fuck is nothin’ makin’ sense today? Shit’s so confusin’. Give me strength, somebody.” The gun was pointed at you in a casual gesture far too dangerous for your liking.

“Baby’s got to put on his big boy pants. I’ll be comin’ back for you, oh, don’t you think I’ll forget, but first…” 

You couldn’t stop him from leaving. He hopped onto the train, and when he left it, it wasn’t long before you heard the gun go off.

Lupara. 

That was what he called it. You remembered.

Unable to control your tears, you let them stream down your face like you fell to the floor. When there was a scream from near the drug cart, you cried out louder in unison. Knees brought up to your chest, you buried yourself into your own makeshift darkness. 

Nothing could reassure you as your head pounded from the memories that tried to break through into your conscious mind. 

It hurt. All your friends were dead. 

And the man who murdered them came back to you with a spring in his step.

Apparently, one summer before Franco had to leave for Cuba, in the light of the rising sun you’d both gone to the docks together. Nobody else was really up at the time, and only the waves disturbed you both. Nothing had been planned, it was more of a spur of the moment thing, but you enjoyed it none the less according to him. 

He explained to you in great detail how you’d made plans together to get ice cream and spend the whole day lounging there. Nobody was going to move either of you unless you decided to go yourselves. It was something you wanted to do, and he was happy to oblige since you were willing to give him everything he wanted in return. 

You would hold his hand and drag him around to show him all the things you loved, and he would tell you that he loved you. 

Love was a word that felt like choking up sawdust when he said it. Love never worked out for him. It wasn’t his thing, but he said it anyway. He recounted how you were so innocent to him. 

He never told you how he pictured the shoreline coated in red. Intrusive thoughts flashed the image of you lying before him all mangled and pretty with your face stained in blood. You never needed to know because he couldn’t do it.

No, you were different. 

There was nothing but joy on your face as he’d followed you along that beach. It was hard for him to explain, but ever since you had settled into something together, he’d chased after that feeling of being wanted like he chased you along the sand. 

You humiliated him in your own way by making him think he truly belonged.

And you’d done it again.

Still in the same spot that you had fallen to beside the car, Franco sat with you. He waved his feet back and forth, swaying his body side to side while he looked at you. You hadn’t come out of your self imposed cocoon yet, but you had a single eye on him too.

Things had been ironed out to some degree. 

Obviously he’d asked you what you remembered before he told you a few bits about your past, and while you couldn’t be certain what was true or not, you wanted to believe him. At the point you were at, you prayed that it was true. Something about him soothed the ache in your head.

He was undeniably charismatic, and you weren’t going to deny the fact that you felt drawn to him. 

Then the important question of what you were doing in his territory with the others came up again. There was little he could have done to hide the irritation in his voice as he spoke about you being around them. He wanted to know why you were helping them. If you were anybody else he would have killed you, yet you had a chance to explain.

Franco understood to some extent, despite being frustrated.

He told you that he felt great - better than he’d ever been - but things were off. Seeing you made everything that much sweeter, yet that didn’t change the fact that he too was having issues with his memory.

Déjà vu he called it. It felt like the same shit everyday with different faces.

When you’d told him you were kept by faceless men in laboratory coats and given orders, he mentioned he’d seen some people like that behind glass. It was clear the worlds you were living in were very different. To him, the docks were real. To you, it was an experiment.

Things had gone quiet after that while you pieced together the shards of your past until a hand found your arm. Fingers walked up it and poked at your cheekbone. Franco shifted himself into a kneeling position with his body turned to you, and you lifted your head at the way he searched your soul with his gaze. Without even speaking, he was searching for something in you.

“Not gonna leave, are you?” he asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t want to leave, but I’ve never tried to stay in a trial before without doing what I’m told. What if they come to get me?” 

“Then they’re fuckin’ dead. Think they got a chance against my Lupara?” Each word was spat with pride like he could see them cold already. “Hey-”

Your pulse quickened as Franco pulled your arm from your leg. He supported it in between his hands, and he brought your knuckles to his mouth.

“You’d never leave me,” he hummed against your skin. “No - no, I knew you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t abandon your baby.” 

The contact left you flustered as your mind raced over the implications that you were very much his old partner. You didn’t even know if you’d ever separated. Most likely not, if he was going to treat you the way he was. It was strange to feel his kiss against your hand. Not unwelcome, but it was strange.

As he told you that he wanted to feel your arms around him, you crossed your legs and opened yourself up to him. Surreal was an understatement to have him crawl onto your lap without the need to be prompted, and you were delicate in the way you pulled him towards you. 

When his head rested on your shoulder, you decided to stop trying to process everything. 

“Back where I belong…” you heard Franco sigh. 

The weight of his body kept you grounded in the moment. An overwhelming sense of comfort washed over you at the contact - something you had sorely missed - and you let it happen. There was so much you wanted to ask Franco, but for the time being, you savoured the affection he showed you.

He made everything feel better.

“Well shit,” Clyde sighed as he placed down Easterman’s report. He bet Avellanos was going to have a field day with the information they had been given. It was a small world, but even he hadn’t been able to track down Fraco’s supposed partner in the height of his investigation. 

Turns out all they had to do was pick up people from the streets, pluck them from their homes, and they’d get lucky.

THE PREMATURE END OF THE TRAIL WHICH RESULTED IN THE DEATH OF THREE REAGENTS WAS BOTH DUE TO FRANCO’S OWN AGGRESSION AND THE NATURAL FLOW OF THE TRIAL. YET THERE WAS A CATALYST. 

WE FOUND HIS OLD FLAME. THE FOURTH REAGENT BEING FRANCO’S ROMANTIC PARTNER CAME AS QUITE A SURPRISE, AND I THOUGHT YOU’D BE INTERESTED IN SEEING OUR FRIEND IN THE FLESH. I HAVE RECONSIDERED THEIR POSITION AS REAGENT MOVING FORWARDS, BUT WOULD LIKE TO INVITE YOU TO DISCUSS THESE OPTIONS FACE TO FACE. 

UNTIL THEN, FRANCO AND THE REAGENT HAVE BEEN SEPARATED.

[thejesterstears]

This might be a hot take, but I really kind of don't want TADC to end with everyone miraculously getting out of the circus.

Maybe that sounds like a bleak and unsatisfying ending, but I do have a reason. Goose had said that the message (that she’s stated so far) she wants people to get out of the series is that there's meaning to be found in a stagnant life, which I think is a genuinely beautiful sentiment. And so far, the series has done a wonderful job of expressing this theme, this overarching sense of making the most of a bad situation rather than trying to escape the inescapable, which unfortunately is a sentiment I think a lot of us can understand on a personal level (I know it resonates with me deeply). And I feel like that message would be more impactful if it didn't conclude with some daring escape back to the outside world, rather than simply trying to make peace with the situation they are in. I appreciate that the series already isn't solely about trying to break out or defeat a villain (Caine, in this case, who I love and appreciate as an antagonist who is more clueless than evil). It feels like a refreshing change from a lot of shows like this and I'd love to see that carried through to the finale.

I know Goose said she doesn't see a season two being possible, which makes me wonder if the show actually will end in everyone escaping. But that could simply mean that one season is enough to tell the story she wants to tell, who knows. And my own opinion might change the deeper into the series we get, we're only on three episodes now with a long way to the end. That's just my two cents for now. I'll look forward to seeing the conclusion in good time regardless, and I’m sure I’ll be satisfied either way, this is simply a possibility I would actually not mind seeing.

[lxmbr]

so ive written out a crap ton of fanfic ideas..for you to try

i genuinely don't know if I'm okay. wtf is wrong with me omg lmao

ALL OF THESE PEOPLE ARE BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL WRITERS GO LOOK AT THEIR BLOGS!!

these are all Nijisanji En, mainly the boys. If it has the checkmark it doesnt mean u cant do it! if you really like it i'd still love to see it.

‼️🩷THE LINKS OF THE FANFICS I PUT ARE NOT MINE. I TAKE ZERO CREDIT. THEYRE JUST THE VERSIONS AND FICS OTHER PEOPLE HAVE DONE. IF THEYRE YOUR FANFICS, PLEASE DM FOR REMOVAL I WILL 100% TAKE THEM DOWN!! 🩷‼️

I AM NOT WRITING SMUT!! im sorry i do not feel comfortable writing smut in detail, thats just me..of course i will write suggestive things but i will not be writing smut! please refrain from requesting the smutty stuff..understand that i will ignore it.

hear me out on a lot of these okay 🥹. ive been saving them up for like a month or so now. not all of these are for everyone. if you see one you dont like, ignore it. someone else will probably do it

TAKE CREATIVE LIBERTYY!!

🔞: nsfw/smut

☁️: sfw/fluff

⭐: crack/silly

💔: angst/sad

💭: headcannons/reactions

💌: one shots

✔️: been done/I've seen one like it 

‼️: in progress/im writing this!!

all gn reader and most are established relationship! and you can keep mysta, yugo, and nina in there! (although there won't be much NijiEn Girls)

⚠️IF YOU USE ANY OF THESE IDEAS, PLEASE TAG ME⚠️ not all of these are ones ive requested, again some ive just seen that happen to be similar to the idea

🔞💭Luxiem/Iluna/Noctyx seeing you in a cosplay of a character they really like/a sexy costume

☁️💭Luxiem hcs treating you on your period

 fanfix - not mine!

fanfic - not mine!

☁️🔞💭Luxiem reactions(?) to you dancing competitively (for ex: kpop dances) 

⭐💌☁️💭ike eveland reacting to you using some Swedish words he taught you in a sentence. (could be a curse word, a color, or a simple word to point out something. ex: balloon! or in Swedish, ballong!)

⭐☁️💌💭Noctyx hcs you crying over something silly (for ex: you lost your keys or the cat looked at you in a weird way)

☁️⭐💭💌NijiEn foreign: them reacting to you learning their native language! ‼️

☁️🔞💭Luxiems reaction to you proposing to them before they could to you

janes fanfic!

🔞💌Sitting on Vox's lap while he does his asmr steam

⭐☁️ 💌You and Ike eveland as geese (inspired by the untitled goose game stream)

☁️🔞💌When you meet meixul for the first time‼️

🔞💌💭Luxiem reacting to you touching yourself in their clothes 

🔞💭💌 NijiEn boys reacting to you dry humping them

💭💌☁️ Luxiem when you fall asleep on them

🔞💭☁️ Luxiem when you have baby fever ✔️

fanfic - not mine!

fanfic - not mine!

💌☁️⭐ Luxiem when you want to do their hair

💭🔞💌☁️ NijiEn Boys/Merryweather/Shxtou with their puppygirl ✔️

fanfic - not mine!

fanfic - not mine!

☁️💭💔 Luxiem comforting you after a fight with your parents/gaurdians

🔞💌 Luxiem's favorite dirty talk

🔞💌☁️💭 Luxiems wedding night with you ✔️

fanfic - not mine!

💌☁️⭐💭 Luxiem when shu accidentally turns you into a baby for a day ✔️

fanfic - not mine!

💭💌🔞 Luxiem when you wear lingerie for them

🔞💌☁️💭⭐ NijiEn (whoever) getting high🍃 with them!

💭☁️💌🔞 Luxiem/Noctyx when they're jealous

💌🔞☁️💭 Ike eveland, feeding into his yandere tendencies (for ex: offering him to put a tracking device on you. basically just a super willing reader that encourages his unhealthy actions and urges)

🔞💌💭 The names you call Luxiem/Noctyx/iluna in bed‼️

💭☁️💌⭐ When you're luxiems oshi/vtuber crush and you guys collab for the first time‼️

💌💭☁️🔞 Luxiem when the other members purposely flirt with you to piss the other member off (for ex: ike likes u/ur dating ike, and the other members purposefully flirt with you to make him mad. and so on for the other members) ‼️

⭐☁️💭💌🔞 Luxiem coming home to you and your child (or your young cousin or little sibling. like 5 yrs old or smn) to you listening/singing/rapping to their part in hope in the dark or jazz on the clock

☁️💭⭐💌🔞 Luxiem reacting to a partner loud in bed ✔️

fanfic - not mine!

💌☁️💭🔞 Luxiem reacting to the cliche porn situation - u getting stuck in something (for ex...the washing machine lmfao) ✔️

🔞💭☁️💌⭐ Luxiem reacting to calling them senpai

🔞💭☁️💌 Luxiem when their cat!girl purrs at their affection

💭💌☁️⭐ Luxiem reacting to you having lepidoptraphobia (self insert oop)

☁️⭐💭💌 when Luxiem tells you the latest gossip

🔞💭💌 Luxiem getting aroused at the sight of your blood

I'll be adding more just try to keep up! pls post your questions ill answer them, again pretty please tag me..id LOVE to see your takes on these. ill try to update as much as possible :)

do you guys think i should write some of my own? I'd be down to write a couple..pls let me know 🥹

[cirr0stratus]

thinking about frodo and sam and how their characters are near identical to stanislaus katzinsky and paul baumer and how they are both fictional men of different statuses that were created during the horrors of world war one by two people who used their incredible poetic voices to cope with the realities of warfare and how the relationship that these characters have transcends friendship and brotherhood and even romantic love because what they have is so much more important than that, it’s so much more. how there isn’t a word for the relationship that they have, and people like me are stuck thinking about these quotes and being completely normal about them

“We sit opposite one another, Kat and I, two soldiers in shabby coats, cooking a goose in the middle of the night. We don't talk much, but I believe we have a more complete communion with one another than even lovers have.

We are two men, two minute sparks of life; outside is the night and the circle of death. We sit on the edge of it crouching in danger, the grease drips from our hands, in our hearts we are close to one another, and the hour is like the room: flecked over with the lights and shadows of our feelings cast by a quiet fire. What does he know of me or I of him? formerly we should not have had a single thought in common – now we sit with a goose between us and feel in unison, are so intimate that we do not even speak.”

“you lay close to me. I'd be dearly glad to see you have a sleep. Id keep watch over you; and anyway, if you lay near, with my arm round you, no one could come pawing you without your Sam knowing it.”

“A little soldier and a clear voice, and if anyone were to caress him he would hardly understand, this soldier with the big boots and the shut heart, who marches because he is wearing big boots, and has forgotten all else but marching. Beyond the sky-line is a country with flowers, lying so still that he would like to weep. There are sights there that he has not forgotten, because he never possessed them – perplexing, yet lost to him. Are not his twenty summers there?

Is my face wet, and where am I? Kat stands before me, his gigantic, stooping shadow falls upon me, like home. He speaks gently, he smiles and goes back to the fire.

Then he says: "It's done."”

“Frodo's face was peaceful, the marks of fear and care had left it; but it looked old, old and beautiful, as if the chiselling of the shaping years was now revealed in many fine lines that had before been hidden, though the identity of the face was not changed. Not that Sam Gamgee put it that way to himself. He shook his head, as if finding words useless, and murmured: 'I love him. He's like that, and sometimes it shines through, somehow. But I love him, whether or no”

“Kat my friend, Kat with the drooping shoulders and the poor, thin moustache, Kat, whom I know as I know no other man, Kat with whom I have shared these years—it is impossible that perhaps I shall not see Kat again”

“'If you don't come back, sir, then I shan't, that's certain,' said Sam. 'Don't you leave him! they said to me. Leave him! I said. I never mean to. I am going with him, if he climbs to the Moon; and if any of those Black Riders try to stop him, they'll have Sam Gamgee to reckon with,”