#make dolls to replace it and it works probably better than the real deal

[kohakuhibiki]

Imagine being granted best in the tabloids over a cheapass tailoring job. What are even these people?

[captain-barnes-writes]

Addiction [2/2]

Summary: Lee Bodecker got one taste of her and couldn’t get enough.

Pairing: Lee Bodecker x reader

Warnings: Age gap, language, mentions of alcoholism, sexual content, some good ol’ BJ, unprotected sex (y’all better wrap it in real life tho bc this is fiction.) SMUT. 18+

Word Count: 5k [NOT PROOFREAD. Any comments, tips, suggestions are greatly appreciated. My Ask Box is always open.] 

Lee Bodecker found himself distracted at the sheriff’s department. His name would be called multiple times to get his attention, eyes strained towards the cream-colored wall with his plaques on it, mind elsewhere. His mind lingered on a particular girl who was driving him crazy. It was a Saturday and his girl was off work meaning he’d be unable to pick her up, unable to see her. In turn Boyd, her father, was her replacement at the store. He was a grouch of a man whose brown eyes always seemed to be half closed. He was slow in his speech, slightly slurred and harsh, as his body still ran under the effect of liquor. He was far worse than Lee in that aspect. Absolutely no self control. Lee thought how the old man should’ve been doing like he had, scouring the town for a different type of rush. One that, fortunately, he’d found in his daughter. One that wouldn’t slowly kill him, yet the old man had already completely succumbed to the liquor’s hold on him.

Boyd was a downright drunk who’d fallen down the slopes of greatness, down to the very bottom of grace, when his wife passed many years ago. He’d been a good man when she was alive, friendly and ever so kind. His store always tidy, shiny new fresh coat of paint every year because it was his pride and joy. He’d care after his customers, bagging their purchases attentively and even sparked up conversations with them whenever he could. Now the store was rundown, paint chipped and his service deplorable. His pretty girl was the only one keeping it afloat, maintaining the inside as best as she could with little to no help from her father.

Boyd’s shifts ran slow for him, snapping at customers with such impatience they didn’t even know why they kept coming back to his damn store. Though it came down to the town’s lack of services, Boyd’s store was at the center of town and the most convenient. But when Y/N was there, the beautiful girl with the usual pastel dresses and pale flats, it was a stark contrast to him. Her illuminating joy and youth was lively, smile large as she handed back change to customers, tending to them with utmost care. It was in her nature, her way of being that made her so delectable. She was the very life of that store, the only one worthy of it.

It was for that reason, that Lee felt himself drowning in his thoughts. Completely inundated not only with the events that had transpired on the back of his cruiser with Y/N, taking her virginity in a sweaty haste, but also of what her home life was like. He was unsure, but he deduced that it mustn’t have been great. His pretty girl had to deal with a drunk at home. God knows how he treated her. And it angered him so badly, the mystery of what went down in that household, inside those four walls. How he spoke to her, if he was kind, if he raised his voice at her. When his mind took the eloquent route of thinking that the drunk bastard could probably as well raise his hand to her, it angered him even more. It made his blood boil to realize that she most likely didn’t have a way out of the toxicity of that place, of the hold her father had on her. And probably of what she felt she owed him, utmost loyalty and company. She was his only daughter and if it wasn’t for her the man would be alone.

Lee didn’t know when he’d turned so damn soft. He’d never been that way, never thought he’d ever fall at the feet of a young girl. He never thought one taste of a girl would have him acting like this, heart beating frantically against his chest with one simple look of hers. He wanted nothing more than to please her, make her the happiest in the whole of Knockemstiff. Most of all he wanted her to be his. Not just physically, but even in the eyes of the law. Her belly swollen with his seed, growing, a part of them both inside her. Yet for the first time in his life he felt dumbfounded as to what steps to take to make that happen. He wanted to take her from his father, pluck her from his grasp.

He huffed to himself, thinking of how to make Boyd coward into giving him the one thing he wanted most. His daughter. Instead of tending to the pile of paperwork on his desk, Lee tried to draft out a plan on how to do so without hurting what he had worked so hard for the last months with Y/N. She seemed to share his affections—kissing him, holding his hand in the car as he drove her home. She’d opened up to him in ways he thought would never have been possible. She was his wildest fantasy come true.

When the clock read 7 PM, Lee placed his brown wide-brim hat back on his head, and stormed out of his office in a haste. He couldn’t think of a damn thing and he’d wasted too much time on absolutely nothing instead of tending to the pile of documents on his messy desk. He needed a cigarette badly, the nicotine of it to bring him some mild comfort. He grunted at the officers letting them know he was off for the day.

When Lee got inside his cruiser, taking off the heavy leather jacket off himself and throwing it on the backseat. It landed right where he’d taken his girl just a few days prior. Despite the sour mood he found himself with, a smirk appeared on his face at the thought of her.

His pretty girl had sucked his cock right at the front seat just the day before. That same abandoned lot only a few minutes out of town had already helped them create unforgettable memories. Stained his backseat with their arousal when he took her most cherished purity just a few days prior and the front seat with his hot cum only the night before. Her hands had been so gentle, inexperienced and soft. She’d wrapped those dainty fingers around his length, applying slight pressure as if afraid she’d hurt him. Grip it a bit tighter doll, Lee had instructed her. Her hands had tightened around him and began to move, the motion of her heavy breathing and movements of hands gaining groans from him.

It seemed as if she did everything he wanted, especially when he’d told her to spit on his shaft and she’d done so almost immediately. The line of saliva had connected with his sensitive head and it made her hands slide up and down a lot easier, a lot smoother. Her eyes were wide at the sight of the bulby head of his cock, covered in her spit and she thought it looked so delicious to taste when she dropped her head down to get a mere sample of him. Her actions had made Lee’s breath hitch at his throat, completely taken aback by her lips wrapped around him. Even her tongue was utterly soft, lapping at the head as if savoring him. Her lips had already been so swollen from his rough kisses and they slid down halfway and came back up again. Her mouth felt so warm to him, a new home for his throbbing dick. Suck it baby yeah just like that, Lee had panted above her. He couldn’t believe he didn’t have to urge her to taste him, she’d done so on her very own and it made his heart swell. He was corrupting her and only he knew what she could do with her hips, what her mouth tasted like and how silky her skin felt underneath his fingers. He felt so fortunate.

Y/N continued slowly licking the shaft, tongue lapping at him before her mouth continued to take him inside. Her hand had taken to stroking the base of him because she just couldn’t take him all. She was so new to it all, choking on him a few times and feeling completely desperate to try to please him as best as she could. Her mind had shifted from the task to thoughts of how the sheriff was already an older man, experienced beyond belief in all areas of his life. Especially that of intimacy and she barely knew a thing. He’d been with many women, at least according to all the gossip of the town, and she’d barely even kissed one boy. Hadn’t gone further with anybody but with the sheriff. It made her frantic to do her best with him, to show him that she could learn with him. That she could satisfy him just as much, and hopefully even more, than any other woman could.

Lee was loud, groaning and panting at the feel of her mouth. His hands had gravitated to the crown of her head, grabbing handfuls of her hair there to alleviate the immense commotion that was swirling inside him. Pooling wildly inside his stomach until he’d warned her that he was cumming, the hot liquid spurting from the tip of his shaft into her mouth. She was taken aback by the racking orgasm Lee had, some of his seed dripping on the side of her lips. Lee had coaxed her to swallow it and she had done so without having to be told twice. He was salty and warm, but she’d swallowed his seed whole so gracefully it made Lee pull her up by the hair and smash their lips together in complete amazement. His girl was too good.

Lee would have been lying if he said he didn’t want to bury himself inside her again the night before. Her virginal cunt had wrapped him in such warmth, her moans and sweet embrace had brought him an immense amount of comfort. He felt delirious with just her presence. He fought the urge to hitch her dress up and take her in his car again because he’d promised himself the next time he felt her walls engulf his cock, it would be in the comfort of his home. Yet he continued kissing her, teasing her until she’d moaned into his lips. He couldn’t shake off the hardness the whole night because being inside her, having his dick lapped in her juices, had been the commencement of an obsession. All his thoughts were her; and he knew. Knew that he wholeheartedly belonged to the young girl. Lee also came to the realization that he’d do absolutely anything for her.

-------

Lee drove to his home in Brewer Heights to the sound of the radio and the darkness of night. Years prior he’d made a promise to himself that if elected, he’d get himself a cushy place on the better side of town. When he won the election, he did just that. His yellow 3-bedroom home was far too big for just him but it also brought him a sense of satisfaction, a reminder that he’d achieved something far greater than himself. Yet it was still too large, too lonely. He was alone in the space of it every damn day and felt it suffocating him, the solitude of it encircling around his throat and closing in. It was for that reason he came to rely on the arduous taste of liquor, craving it as his thoughts got the best of him in the vastness of his house.

When Lee pulled up to his driveway, puffing on a cigarette, his eyes immediately made the figure of the girl he’d been thinking about all day standing on the steps of his home. The sight of her alone had his wheels skidding on a stop, engine off in a haste as he slammed the door to the cruiser shut. He immediately got rid of the half-smoked cigarette by throwing it on the cement floor and rushed to her wondering why she was there.

“Darlin’ what are you doing here?” Lee inquired. Despite being puzzled at her being there, he also felt his heart beating frantically in his chest at the mere sight of her. He drank her in as she gathered her thoughts. She wore a baby blue pleated skirt with a cream chiffon blouse tucked inside the waistline. Her face seemed saddened, eyes glassy and face flushed. It wasn’t until his eyes raked down her body that he noticed the brown suitcase at her feet and his forehead creased in confusion.

“Lee…” Y/N started, eyes peering up at the sheriff. “My d-daddy found out about us...He kicked me out the house. I’m sorry for showing up here, sheriff. I just--I just have nowhere to go.”

Lee’s jaw tightened at her words, hands fisting to his sides before they relaxed again at the way the young girl seemed so broken in front of him. Tears were cascading down her cheeks and bottom lip quivering. He took a step closer and pulled her into his strong arms. Her shuddering body came into contact with the fullness of his chest.

“Let’s get you inside first, yeah?” Lee muttered onto the top of her head, taking in the scent of vanilla.

She nodded, moving from his embrace to grasp her single suitcase when Lee bent down and took it from the floor. It wasn’t even heavy and he wondered if she’d even taken anything from her home, if she had the necessities to begin a life without her father. But something inside Lee leaped at the fact that her father finally knew that his daughter was with him. He was so taken with her that the rupture of the father-daughter relationship had him elated, completely and utterly pleased that their indiscretions were no longer so. That he didn’t have to take matters into his own hands anymore to get her away from the claws of her father, he’d done it all on his own. Pushed her away into his very arms.

Lee walked her into his home and her eyes scanned the rooms of it, noting that it didn’t provide a homey feel with it lacking wall art, pictures or even flowers. He urged her to sit on the couch and she did, hands clasped together on her lap. He sat next to her, one of his hands placed itself on her shoulder trying to comfort her in some way.

“Now, doll, what’d your father say?”

“Someone from town must’ve told him, Lee. Must’ve seen us or something. He came home today and he was…” She choked on her words. She closed her eyes tightly while taking a deep breath wanting to continue. “He was so horrible to me. Screamed at me, called me a whore and told me to never come back home. Not even to the store.”

“Did that bastard put his hands on you?” Lee pressed, voice grating as he awaited for her answer. God, he was going to make him pay if he even put on a finger on his sweet girl. She seemed so broken with eyes red from shedding too many tears.

“No. He just called me so many names...I can’t go back home now. I’m sorry I just showed up here without even calling you, I couldn’t think of anybody else who could help me.”

“I’m glad you decided to come here, doll.” Lee let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding and felt a sense of satisfaction that Y/N had come to him out of all people. She confided in him, trusted him to some extent to care for her. It made him surge with utter bliss.

“You sure?” Doe eyes looking up at him. Despite her frail emotional state and tear-stained face, she still looked so alluring. He couldn’t believe she was in his house.

“Of course darlin’. I’m gon’ take real good care of you, you got that? You won’t be needing a thing here. I’ll give you everything you can ever need, doll.”

A tranquil tone had taken to her face at his words. His arms wrapped around her again, placed a kiss on top of her head and she leaned into his embrace. She didn’t know exactly what he meant or how their dynamic would be at the sudden turn of events that had them under the same household, yet she felt a gleaming hope become alight. As if in some sick way, being away from her alcoholic father was a relief to her. She'd dealt with his antics, losing money to gambling far too often, having to run the store on her own more and more as the years passed.

Her father was only a shell now, nothing of what he once was. He was no longer caring, no longer the hard-working man she’d admired. It felt as if her father had died with her mother all those years ago, he’d changed from one day to the next and left her to fend for herself. She realized she harbored so much resentment inside her, building up throughout the years for the man who’d failed to really properly care for her. To help her fully heal from the trauma of losing the most special person in her life, instead he’d added onto that wound. There was no better place for her than being with Lee now, being in his firm embrace. He clearly adored her, seemed as if he only breathed because of her and it might’ve been selfish but the need he had for her made her feel alive. It gave her some miniscule hope that things would be alright.

That night, Lee had shown her to his room. Seeing no need for her to take the guest bedroom when he’d already filled her sweet cunt just days before, he placed her suitcase in his room. She seemed so bashful stepping into his room, eyes grazing about it and the way it suited Lee so well with the green paint and the large bed that sat in the middle. A nightstand on both sides of the bed and large wooden dressers on the far wall. 

He had immediately emptied a few drawers for her even though he knew she hadn’t brought all her things just yet. He could break down Boyd’s door to get his girl’s belongings back if he wanted to, just to show him who had the upperhand in the situation. To rub it in his face that a man like him had fucked his daughter and she now resided in his home, was completely and utterly his. Yet the sheriff knew he couldn’t do that, not if he wanted to keep his position as the most powerful man in the town, to keep his hefty salary. Not if he wanted to spoil the living daylights out of his girl with roses and those soft-hued dresses she loved so much.

With the gleam of the moon oozing inside the space is his bedroom, Lee undressed her that warm night in a slow manner. His calloused hands delicately removed every article of her clothing and threw it on the floor of his bedroom. Her body met the sheets of his bed, cold against her skin. And he’d felt such pride at seeing the girl who’d clouded every single one of his thoughts for the last months sprawled on his bed. She was in his house, his bedroom. Completely at his disposal. God, he couldn’t wait to sink into her warmth.

He undressed himself in sheer urgency before he crawled up to her glistening pussy, she was already wet for him but he wanted to taste her. Wanted to savor the sweetness, become bathed in it. His lips met her folds, giving it a proper kiss before his tongue delved out and lapped at her. She did taste delicious, so much he felt crazed as his tongue continued its assault. He’d gone down on her to get a taste of her arousal, to get her wet and slick with his saliva for his cock. She was gasping for air, body squirming as Lee continued to lick and suck on her little nub, teasing her in the way only he knew how to.

She was completely helpless, succumbing to his experienced tongue. He was so good at it, bringing her to the brink in minutes. It wasn’t long before two of his fingers had replaced his lips and she’d yelped at the intrusion. He began easing them in and out of her pussy, the sounds of her arousal and moans loud inside the room. When he pulled away from her, he leaned down one last time to kiss her silky folds before he crawled up to be face to face. She seemed winded, face glowing with a thin sheen of sweat as he’d made a mess of her. She smiled shyly at him when she felt the heat of his gaze on her.

“You liked that, baby?” He leaned down to kiss her, already knowing the answer when her cheeks heated up within seconds. She was still too reluctant to voice how she felt, how he made her feel. His lips were still covered with her arousal and she tasted herself on him, feeling even more daring as she placed her hands on the back of his head to deepen their kiss. His cock was prodding at her entrance already, throbbing as if begging to be engulfed within her walls already. His soft belly was on top of hers, warm and heavy.

She scratched his back when he began to tease her entrance and had weaned his way inside her without much of a warning. Her tight cunt took inch by inch, his thickness already savoring the heat of it. Her pretty eyes had pooled with tears again, welling up around the edges. And his heart swelled at the sight. His hand had subconsciously met the side of her face in a gentle graze, tucking away a piece of unruly hair. He kissed her soft lips, traced them with his own in the most delicate manner he could muster before he began a rocking rhythm with his hips. She was broken before him, her moans echoing throughout the four walls of his room.

The wooden headboard of his bed collided with the walls of his bedroom, leaving dark marks on it as the thumping sound mixed with their moans and slapping skin resounded throughout it. He wasn’t giving her everything he could, her pussy still sensitive, still too inexperienced for a man like him to pound into her. She was still so innocent, irrevocably pure despite having given him her very essence. Despite having given herself to the sheriff, she still held those doe eyes with a type of purity that had him pining for her even more. She had him in the palm of her hands and she wasn’t even aware of it. All the chocolates, all the flowers and long conversations, those longing looks and pangs of desperation that felt like it was consuming him had been worth it because he was drowning in her.

“This pussy belongs to me right baby?” Lee questioned, hips still snapping against hers. Filling her up with his cock in a desperate manner knowing he was damn lucky to be fucking her, to have her writhing underneath him and moaning his name in a euphoric manner.

“Only you, sheriff.” She breathed, meaning it wholeheartedly. Her body was wracking in ecstasy at the intrusion of his shaft. He was rocking his hips against her harder than before and his lips were pressed against hers in a sloppy kiss.

Lee hitched her legs up, placing them on his broad shoulders. He felt deeper, if possible, and her eyes shut so tightly at the new position. It brought a new sensation for her. She was unbelievably loud, panting while gripping the bunched up sheets in her hands. His hand was clasped against both her legs, keeping them in place on his shoulder to fuck into her at a faster pace. He felt so desperate, the wild sensation bubbling inside him, he was chasing his orgasm already. But he wanted her to cream on his dick first, for her to come undone before him.

Still holding onto her legs with one of his hands, his other hand came down to her clit. He began rubbing it in circular motions, knowing she’d like it just like that. He watched as a string of strangled moans left her lips at the newly added stimulation, hands messing up the sheets even more with her grip. Within seconds her back was arching off the bed in spasms, pussy clamping his dick. The strong orgasm shattered her into a beautiful mess, crying out his name again and again. Lee thrusted frantically into her, his own orgasm catching up to him. His milky cum seeped inside her as he groaned loudly.

He collapsed next to her, breathing labored as he stared at the young girl who was breathing just as harshly at him. He leaned in to give her a small kiss, feeling utter bliss not only that he'd just came inside her but that she was laying beside him. And that she’d be doing the same for god knows how long. At that thought, he supposed it was a good time to bring up something that had been eating away at him.

“You know, people been talking ‘bout us darling. I don’t want them to get the wrong impression, can’t have that being the sheriff and all.” Lee began, fingers caressing the sides of her cheek. “How about we get hitched? What do you think ‘bout that?”

Y/N became pensive. Eyes widening and mouth falling shut seeing as no words were even connecting to her brain. Lee had come to hold her heart in such a short time. The brute of a man, with his scowling face and protruding belly, had leered her in. Yet one of the most obvious things about the pair had surely crossed her mind once or twice. She wasn’t dense about their heavy age difference. She was still colored in youth, skin soft and smooth with not a wrinkle in sight. Lee was close to being twenty years older than her. He also had his unhealthy habits of eating his weight in candy and with the way his breath always seemed to be ladened with the bitter smell of liquor it seemed as if he drank his weight in that too.

She noticed the stark similarities her father and Lee shared. The two most important men in her life, one who’d just filled her with disappointment and kicked her out of his life and the other who looked at her as if she was the only girl left on earth. They were men who relied on liquor to stop whatever it was that consumed their minds; the liquid the only thing that stopped their nightmares, their many languished thoughts.

“I told you I’m gon’ take real good care of you. Spoil the living hell out of you, baby. Just say yes.” Lee almost felt pathetic that he seemed to be begging her to agree. To say the definitive yes that would seal their fate together, that would see her as his even in the eyes of the law. He wanted that so badly, yearned for it. Hell, Lee thought, he’d even throw away the stash of liquor from his pantry. He’d rid himself of anything she didn’t like, do absolutely anything she wanted just to get her to agree. To get her to adore him just as much as he did her.

She came to understand that Lee was the only person in town, quite honestly the only man in the world, who really cared about her. He would drive her home even on his most tiring work days, take her out to different diners, coffee shops. He always gifted her with her favorite dark chocolates, blooming red roses and most importantly, with his undivided attention. That was one of the most important gifts of his, his utter adoration of her and the amount of effort he seemed to put into trying to impress her. In the way he tried to take care of her and protect her. It seemed as though he loved her already despite it not being that long since the beginning of it all. Lee would do anything for her and she found comfort in that. He’d wormed his way into her heart and she realized it as she felt his hands on her face.

Lee gripped the side of her jaw, azure eyes clouded with torment as he stared into her glossy ones. He was holding onto whatever word she’d utter, waiting for her to say it. To comply. He’d be so good to her, he promised himself, so good to her she’d never have to look the other way. That she’d never think about their age gap, or about the softness of his belly that seemed to grow with time or even the way his breath always seemed to be ladened with alcohol and cigarettes. He’d give it all up for her.

“Just say yes, doll.” Lee said again, voice rougher this time. The grip on her jaw a little tighter.

“Yes.” Y/N whispered, sealing her fate.

Someone like him with a girl who was almost half his age—he should’ve felt pathetic, embarrassed even. Yet he felt none of those things. Instead he felt high off of her, intensely enamored with her. He was intoxicated off her very presence. He’d gotten a taste of her already, wasn’t dreaming of it any longer. Didn’t have to make himself cum inside pepsi cups at mere thoughts of her anymore. She was tangled in his sheets and he’d made her his.

Tomorrow he’d make her his in the eyes of the law too.

I’m such a hoe for Lee 😫🥵 I’ve watched the devil all the time so many times already I should be ashamed lmao! And I already have another fic planned for him, I’m a fkin mess 🤭

I’m so happy you guys liked my first Lee one shot that I decided to write a second part! Hope you guys enjoy this one as well ✨

[First time doing a taglist so let me know if I missed you! ]

@jeremyrennerfanxxxx123 @iheartsebandchris @captainkitteh @gloriouspersonbanditrascal​ @sillygamingartghost​ @han-xe​ @awesomerextyphoon​ @princessofdarkwinter @kenzieam​ @lalaparker

[un-beel-ievable]

The demon brothers making plushies that look like MC 🧸

Author’s note: Please do not repost!! If you like my writing, please leave a like and a comment (and follow me to see similar content in the future :D)!

_____

Lucifer ☕:

• It's impeccable, as everything Lucifer does is. Lucifer's attention to detail is second to none.

• He tries to play the plushie off as no big deal, but literally everyone can see how much effort he's put into his handicraft. The eyes of the plushie are the exact same hue as yours are (Remember when Lucifer disappeared for a week and didn't tell anyone where he was going? I'll tell you now -he was wandering from craft shop to craft shop, trying to find thread that would reflect just how beautiful your eyes are.), and he's somehow managed to replicate a tiny version of your favourite graphic tee -down to the small imperfection on the printed design.

• Wherever he goes, the plushie follows. If he's taking a power nap, it sits on his pillow. If he's doing work at his table, it sits on his laptop, ready to help (however much a plushie can help, anyway). Even when he's in student council meetings, the plushie follows. (Diavolo thinks it's adorable, and has a miniature chair custom made for the "newest student council member". Lucifer can't decide on whether Diavolo is mocking him or not.)

Mammon 💳

• He tried his best, he really did. And I'm not saying that because the plushie he made was terrible, no, it was actually pretty decent!

• He doesn't have a clue on how plushies are made, but when he saw the plushie you made of him, he decided he wanted one too. But of you, of course. 

• He's too prideful (More like your big brother than you'd like to admit, huh, Mammon?) and embarrassed to admit to you that he has no idea what he's doing, so instead of asking you for help, he turns to YouTube videos and craft blogs to learn how to crochet. After restarting his 2nd row for the 76th time and having to untangle his ball of yarn for the 40th, he's almost ready to admit defeat.

• But then he imagines how happy you'd be when you laid eyes on the plushie he'd made of you (because "EVERYONE would want a plushie made by the GREAT Mammon, it's an honour to be chosen to be MY model." )...and suddenly he's crocheting like he's been practicing for years instead of hours, breezing through instructional videos and reading written patterns like a pro.

• His final product is slightly lopsided...but other than that it's really good!! Especially for someone who had never touched a crochet hook in his life before.

• Uses mini you to practice asking real you out.

Leviathan 🎮

• Is relatively decent at using a sewing machine. After all, he tailors his own cosplay. (And if a new season of 'Ruri-chan: Magical Girls Forever!' comes out and Ruri-chan happens to be wearing an outfit he particularly likes in it...sometimes he creates a tiny replica of it for his Ruri-chan nesoberi.)

• Ruri-chan has her own shrine in a corner of Levi's room...and now you do as well!

• Your "shrine" is basically a wooden shelf (painted in your favourite colour, of course) with a cork board mounted on the wall above it. Plushie you sits on a tiny throne on the shelf, with all the presents the real you has ever gifted him surrounding your cotton stuffed twin. The noticeboard holds a countless number of momentos -mostly photographs of the two of you and tickets from all the anime concerts and events you guys have been to.

• (The throne you sit on is a replica of the fairy queen's rose quartz throne in season 4, episode 19 of ‘Ruri-chan: Magical Girls Forever!' . Official merchandise, of course; there are only about 50 of the official ones left in existence. Ruri-chan had been perched on this very throne for over a decade, all of the other demon brothers were shocked when Levi dethroned Ruri-chan just for you.)

Satan 📚

• His plushie is perfect. Almost...too perfect.

• He's become an expert in plushie making after ploughing through an endless mountain of craft books and making his way through all the handicraft videos to ever exist. And his work shows the results of his diligent research...his final product looks machine made. Flawless. No one can fault him on technique...his work is outstanding. But somehow, something is still...off. It's too perfect, too lifeless. There's no personality to it whatsoever.

• So he spends the next week experimenting with different techniques and materials. He tries crocheting, knitting, making sock plushies...but somehow he still can't capture what makes you...you.

• Mammon notices Satan giving himself a brain aneurysm over this, and makes a comment on instead of trying to think his way through the situation like he always does, he should just "feel for it, you know? Put some heart into it."

• Mammon usually says some strange things...but this time Mammon's words actually seem to resonate with Satan. So he gives it a shot, and pours his entire heart and soul into the next plushie he makes. While the plushie looks virtually the same as all his other attempts, somehow this one feels different. 

• It feels right.

Asmodeus 👄

• Commissions someone to make the plushie of you for him

• Okay, so he doesn't make the plushie by himself (he doesn't want to break a nail). But he's incredibly involved in the designing process.

• Fusses over everything from the measurements to the exact colour (and I mean exact ) of thread they're gonna use to embroider on your eyes. Makes whoever he's commissioning do multiple samples throughout the process, and if he even finds 1 tiny fault with it he tells them to burn it and start over. His criticism is brutal, but if it isn't going to be perfect then what's the point?

• When a plushie is finally made to his satisfaction, he immediately gets down to the incredibly important task of creating a doll sized replica of your closet. He's incredibly through, there's even a tiny version of that one sock you have that's had a rip through the heel for years.

Beelzebub 🍔

• Poor Beel has no idea what he's doing...not even a little bit.

• He's watched the same crafting video so many times that half of that content creator's revenue is probably generated solely by Beelzebub himself.

• Where is he supposed to insert his crochet hook again? Oops...time to rewatch the video for the 286th time, I guess...

• His massive, beefy hands are just not made to do delicate handicrafts. He's already lost several sewing needles (pray to Simeon that no one steps on them) and his balls of yarn seem to be getting tangled up with each other just from him looking at them?? Oh, and he snapped a crochet hook clean in half just now, because he set it down on the table too hard. He's crying because all these things are happening and he has no idea why.

• Belphie walks in on the catastrophe and is pretty surprised to see his brother sobbing over a ball of yarn. Beel's never really been that into handicrafts. But when Belphie sees that Beel has actually set his snacks to the side just to concentrate on making this plushie of you...Belphie knows it's serious between the two of you.

• Belphie offers to help his twin out and between the 2 of them, they manage to finish the plushie within the next couple of days (instead of the next couple of years...which is how long it would take if Beel was left to his own devices).

• "Look!! I even attached a tag that says 'made by Belphie and Beel'!" :3

• (Please be proud of this wholesome boi.)

Belphegor 🛏

• Isn't that bad at handicrafts.

• He used to do them with Lilith, back before the war. She was amazing with her hands...much better than he was. She made him one of his cow plushies...he's always treasured it, but after she passed it became all the more precious to him. Her namesake now sits on the softest pillow he has in his bed...the cow plushie to lead all cow plushies.

• He's seen the way you've looked at Lilith (the cow plushie)...and knows while you don't hate her or it, it must be difficult to have a constant reminder of someone whose shadow you'll never know if you can step out of.

• So he decides to make a plushie of you. Not to replace Lilith (both the cow plushie and his actual sister), but as a symbol of his affection for you. To remind you that you're just as important to him as Lilith was (and maybe even more so).

• His plushie making process mostly goes off without a hitch; he doesn't encounter any major problems. He still remembers the basics, and unlike Beel he doesn't have the physical strength to snap his tools in half...he's too sleepy (All that potential nap time wasted on plushie making...).

• His finished product takes up a pride of place on his pillow beside Lilith (the cow plushie). Knowing that the 2 of you are watching over him while he sleeps makes him feel truly happy for the first time in years.

[rainbowpacifiers]

Twin Kingdoms (A3! Event story) - Chapter 4

The first day of rehearsals is under way. Some actors struggle more with their portrayals than others. Meanwhile, Haruto contemplates the meaning of continuing work as an actor. 

Chapter 3 | Index | Chapter 5

Reni: We will now begin the read-through. Izumi: (We finally have the first day of rehearsals... The atmosphere is different from usual, so I'm a little nervous.) Haruto: "Father...I am so sorry." Shift: "Where are you going at this hour?" Haruto: "--Why are you here?" Shift: "We have been together since birth. At the very least, I know what you're thinking. Running away won't solve anything." Haruto: "I know that. But my existence creates an idle conflict." Izumi: (Haruto-kun is a little stiff. Shift-kun has grasped Lutz perfectly.) Tasuku: "Tch, that pighead! His brains are fossilising with old age." Azami: "Whatever the circumstances may be, you are going too far, Master Gilbert." Tasuku: "Now while the people are impoverished, it's ridiculous to have a war with North Aria. Neither the high officials nor my father are staring reality in the face." Azami: "It seems we cannot avoid the beginning of a war." Izumi: (Just as you'd expect from Tasuku-san. He does it in a majestic manner. Azami-kun must be a bit nervous because of this atmosphere.)

Reni: ...Hm. With that, we've read through it once. Reni: First, Haruto: I want the spirit you had during the audition. Reni: This might be a read-through, but you're trying too hard to say your lines beautifully. Haruto: --Yes. I'm sorry. Reni: Shift should show the intimacy with Cain. Be more conscious of the fact that you've been by his side as his foster brother since childhood. Shift: O~kay. Reni: Tasuku, the balance between Gilbert's princeliness and his vehemence is good. Keep it up. Tasuku: Yes. Reni: I think it would be better if Izumida's Sasha showed a bit more of his devoted manner in the midst of his hypocritical courtesy. Azami: 'kay. Reni: Do you have anything to add? Izumi: Ah, yes! Erm... Izumi: (Being focused on in the middle of this serious mood is making me nervous too...) Izumi: During the scene when Cain reveals his identity to Gilbert, it weighed on my mind that Cain's feelings weren't really conveyed. Izumi: Because I feel that this is an important scene where the emotions of the two shift, I would like a clearer presentation.  Reni: True, I felt the same way. Haruto, how do you interpret this scene? Haruto: --Eh, erm, this is, that... Reni: What about Tasuku? Tasuku: For Gilbert, I think he may sway between the impression of a prince of an enemy country that he's had for many years and the image of a Cain to whom he felt a sort of closeness. Reni: Hm, that's right. Haruto, think it over a little until the next time. Haruto: --yes. Troupe member A: That's Tasuku-san for you. Troupe member B: He hasn't changed since his time at GOD Troupe. Haruto: .....

Shift: Here is the dressing room of the common room and over there are the changing rooms. Though I think you've been here before. Azami: No, yours is bigger than our theatre, and I wouldn't remember it after one time, so this is a big help. Shift: Well, if you identify even just this area, you shouldn't be in any trouble. Azami: Oh, that's true. Should we get something to eat on the way home? Shift: Ah, today is kind of... Azami: I see. I'll go ahead then. Shift: Okay, see you.

Haruto: ....Sigh. Shift: Haruto-san. Haruto: Uwah! Shift: Your surprise is too extreme. Haruto: Don't just show up out of the blue! Shift: I was standing there for a long time though. Haruto: Your presence is too weak! Shift: There you go again~. Calling the presence of GOD Troupe's top actor weak~. Haruto: Seriously, your self-esteem is too high, it's annoying. Shift: Let's get something to eat. Haruto: Pass. I'm tired; I want to go home early. Shift: If you're going to eat after coming home anyway, we should do it together. A quick meal is fine, so if you wish, let's go to your place to eat together! Haruto: You are the only one I will absolutely not bring home. Shift: Eeeh~, fine, croquette udon then. Haruto: How do you come to that conclusion!?

Haruto: Haah.... Shift: Oh, would you have preferred the kitsune udon? Haruto: That's not it at all. Shift: Today's first rehearsal was fun, wasn't it? Haruto: How. Shift: You know, how Reni-san's instructions have changed too and all. Haruto: Yeah... now, he often asks the actors for their opinions. Shift: What we want to express, how we're interpreting it and such. Shift: It's really fun when a new form is created by combining your own opinion and Reni-san's interpretation. Shift: And he also teaches you what might be good in order to express your own interpretation! Haruto: Although until now, we were required to be something like dolls that were completely devoted in order to embody Reni-san's ideals. Haruto: Now, Reni-san looks like he has fun too. Shift: Are you not having fun, Haruto-san? Haruto: That's not it. It's just that it feels different. Haruto: (Because of the wall so far, I stopped daring to do my own interpretation until the first day.) Haruto: (From now on, I not only have to comply with Reni-san's requests, but will also be asked for my own thoughts...) Haruto: (Precisely because I'm required to do a 180-degree change, the switchover is rather difficult.) Haruto: (Though he, who is like a sponge, just adapts in no time and is enjoying himself.) Shift: Is there something? Haruto: No. Shift: Speaking of different feelings, I'm happy I get to perform with Azami, but it feels weird after all. Shift: Because he's kind of like a relative I've been with since forever, I should say it's sort of embarrassing, I guess? Haruto: The fans will compare us to the actors from their troupe, so absolutely do not let your guard down. Shift: I know that. Shift: But just as I thought, Tasuku-san is amazing. Like, his interpretation and such are perfect. Shift: Reni-san, too, really praised him from day one. Haruto: ——. Shift: We're not going to lose, right? Haruto: That's why I was thinking of returning home early and reading through the script to prepare for tomorrow. Shift: Eh, but your lines already perfect, aren't they? Shift: Isn't it fine if you just believe in the interpretation that simply sprang up in your mind, without reading through the script and thinking it over again and again? Haruto: You--! Haruto: (There are those who can do that without hesitation and those who can't!) Shift: What is it? Haruto: It's nothing! Shift: Weren't you able to do an interpretation of Cain during the audition properly, Haruto-san? Shift: I'm practicing with the image of that Cain with those improvised lines in mind, you know. Haruto: (Back then, my head was full with thoughts of being chosen because I wanted to confront Tasuku one more time.) Haruto: (Also, there was also the envy I felt toward Shift next to me, who did his improvised lines first and without a hitch.) Haruto: (I felt the same thing from Shift, who was discovered by Reni-san just like Tasuku was, as I have felt with Tasuku. Something I can never have myself...) Haruto: (When I took a risk and made lines from those desperate feelings which I noticed in that place, I was able to snatch up the lead role.) Haruto: (And if I think that I shouldn't be excited, it's because of that shameful sight of that first of day of rehearsals.) Haruto: (After all, I...) Haruto: Don't you ever have these moments when you become afraid of continuing as an actor? Shift: Huh? Afraid how? Haruto: Like not attaining success, or suffering setbacks and such. Shift: Hm... well, I am thinking of succeeding as an actor and wanting my family to have an easy life, but if I can't do that, then yeah, I feel scared... Shift: Since I was promoted to a regular troupe member, the stage performance fee and the royalties from the merchandise goods have been steadily increasing, which has helped my household budget. Shift: To be honest, I don't think I'm very worried about the current situation. Haruto: ....so it's like that in your case. Shift: On the contrary, if it's something other than a financial matter for the actor, what else would be the cause for failure? Haruto: ...Something like fear that you might not be the "real thing"? Shift: The "real thing"? Shift: So no one but "really good" people should act?  Haruto: No, that's not it. Haruto: It's just that, as long as you're acting, anyone would think that they probably have real talent and that they want to be acknowledged. Haruto: But the reality isn't like that. If someone is chosen to be the lead, someone else is not. Haruto: There are only a small number of "real deals" that are acknowledged by a lot of people. Haruto: If you know that you're not one of those handfuls, you'd normally become scared, right? Haruto: As a "fake" that will soon be replaced by another actor, should I cling to acting? Or give up on being an actor?... Shift: But if you continue, you might become the real thing one day. Haruto: ——. Haruto: (In any case...you're already one of the people on that side. I can tell by looking at you when you are on stage.) Haruto: (Though it's not like I can say that to your face.) Haruto: (Supposing I can never become the real deal... what would be the meaning of me still continuing with acting?)  Haruto: (Just what am I continuing as an actor for?...) Shift: You will definitely be just fine. I acknowledge you. Haruto: Even if you do... Shift: So let's do our best together from now on too. At the reborn GOD Troupe! Haruto: I'm tellin' ya not to just call us reborn as ya please!

_______________

Chapter 3 | Index | Chapter 5

[hitsuackerman]

Unpredictable (Overhaul x Reader) pt.12

a/n: so... this has a special guest in the middle >:) i hope ya’ll like this~ i was thinking of a good character to add and i found the perfect one. but the character will only stay for probs 3 chapters or so :D

warnings: this cannot be read solo, crossover

Links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 11, part 13

Masterlist to my other fics: here :)

Overhaul’s waiting list: @jjk-biased @infinite-universe-love @dirtypride @blackymomo03 @azzie @purple-rabanito @meximorrita @awesomeee19​

“Sit down.”

Now, if that were coming from the person whose face you had just seen you would have obeyed like a puppy waiting for a treat. However, the person inside the room with you carried zero sex appeal. Not an ounce of it. The way he tried to sound sexy was just revolting.

“I’d rather just stand.” You shrugged. “Make this quick. I still have other places to go to.”

“Oh.” He patted the sofa once more before making his way to his desk. “I think you’d want to sit down once I tell you some news.”

With the chief’s back facing you, your eyes rolled and defeatedly went to flop on the sofa. Leaning on to the back lazily. When his chair creaked and sunk, you gestured for him to proceed.

“Regarding the Fukuo Kai case, the meeting will be held 5 days from now, correct?” Your brows furrowed as you fixed your posture. Eyes squinting as to where he had heard that information. He placed his elbows on his desk and tilted his head. A smug look on his face. “Tsukauchi will be taking your place in the stake out.”

“And why is that?”

“You will be attending a meeting with me. The HPSC wants to talk about the arson case.”

“You’re meddling with my cases again.” You snapped. “But, if it pleases you. Okay. However, it won’t be me informing Overhaul.”

Watching as the chief stood up from his desk, he nodded and walked towards you. Filling the emptiness the sofa had to offer.

“It has come to my attention that you two seem rather...close. Rather alarming is it not?”

“Teamwork among the both of us has been going well. Nothing more to it.” What was this germ up to? Your brain couldn’t figure out what his motives were. “I’m being as cautious as I can be. He has not lashed out nor attempted to hurt me in any way unlike the previous people we had to work with.”

“Yet, the mere mention of his name makes you lower your guard down by a significant amount.” Once again, he put his arm behind your neck and squeezed your shoulder. The scent of roses he once had was now replaced with sweat and leather. “You’ve slackened a bit, baby doll.”

Holding on to his wrist, you twisted it as you stood up. Bending it at a weird angle, your eyes bore holes on to his face. The playful fire in his lit up even more. It made you think, did the other women in the precinct go through this? Subtly activating your quirk, you raised his blood pressure.

“You know I’m getting real tired of your shit…” You threatened him. Hand shaking with anger.

Your head snapped to the door when a knock filled the walls. Letting go of his wrist, he rubbed it but the smug look on his face did not falter. Straightening himself and gaining composure once more, he went towards his desk and told the person to enter.

“Right on time. Ms. (L/N), for the next two days, you will be pairing up again with one of the officers from the Kyoto precinct.” His face followed the person who now entered the office. “Mr. Ackerman, we hope you enjoy your stay here.”

You bit your tongue. Internally activating your quirk, you managed to control the blood travelling to your cheeks. You’ve heard about Mr. Ackerman. A few of your previous cases had you teaming up with him. One thing led to another but it was one of your most well kept secrets. One that not even the chief caught scent of.

How many years had it been? Three or four? The scenery was still fresh in your mind. His words that stung and broke you for months. Still, he was a gentleman. Not wanting to diminish the cooperation you two had, differences were set aside and apologies were exchanged. It ended on a rather better note than you had anticipated.

Of course, there was no denying that the sight of Levi still managed to increase the steady pacing of your heart.

“Ackerman.” You greeted him. Eyes focused on the chief. A useless attempt to read him.

“(L/N).” His voice was still the same. Enticing yet dead at the same time.

“Why don’t you two catch up?” The chief gestured for the both of you to leave the office. Hearing both your responses, he watched as Levi motioned for you to leave first and followed behind. Just as you were about to exit, he spoke up. “And, by the way, update Overhaul’s profile. Put in his name.”

Your eyes widened and jaw tightened. Slowly exhaling, you continued walking. When you heard the door closing, you began to feel around your clothes for any sort of mini-chip that he had planted on you. Not feeling anything, your thoughts replayed to all the touching he had done.

“Fuck…”

“Oi, brat. What’s wrong?” Levi asked.

“He fucking bugged me. Eavesdropped on an off the record scenario a while back.” Anger was now boiling in your blood. Not for the chief but for the fact that you failed in detecting his subtle schemes. No wonder he was all touchy this morning. When your eyes met his, his eyebrows shot up and you could see how he put two and two together.

“It’s been three years, he’s still doing those things to you?” The both of you were now walking towards your cubicle. Back when you were dating, Levi could see just how devious the chief was towards you. He may have threatened him once or twice, the scene before him only fused a died out wick. “You could have just told me, you know.”

“I know.” He had told you time and time again that you should watch your back when it came to the man inside the office. Yet you always brushed it off. Basically, you were now reaping the consequences of being ignorant. “You know I hate causing scenes.”

“Tch. Not a single change from you.” There it was. That smirk that made you weak. Pulling your chair for you, he waited for you to sit till he dragged the empty seat next to yours. “What do you have on the arson case?”

Taking out a file, you handed it over to him and gave him the details so far. He simply did the typical Levi gestures. Nodding his head with the occasional comments.

“I’m honestly at a dead end, but Tsukauchi managed to pick up a straw.” You showed him your schedule. “I’ll be meeting up with Endeavor in 4 days. I can keep you updated if you'd like."

"It's fine. I can stay till after the meeting." Typical. Work was always first when it came to him.

"Where are you staying? You can crash the guest room if you'd like."

"You sure? Gei isn't visiting tonight?" That flamboyant man had always amused him but he'd never tell. He did, after all, get a few phrases from the man himself.

"Nope. You're free to crash. It will require you to buy food." You smiled and that sealed the deal. Agreeing, he stood up to take his things from the lockers as you readied to leave the office.

Moments had passed and both of you were now in your car. Levi offered to drive so you gave him the keys.

"You still into (favorite food)?” He asked. Eyes searching for what food to have for dinner. You were the host so your wants came first.

“Nah. Ov-I’ve had it this afternoon. We can go with whatever you want.” You knew where he was going. He would go to Solive Garden. He was always a sucker for their salad and made from scratch soup. Your thoughts were right when he turned on the next corner. The green sign now within sight. Lucky enough, he saw a vacant lot and parked the car.

Meanwhile, the car parked opposite from yours had a rather different aura going on.

“Mimic.” Overhaul threatened the small creature sitting in the backseat. “You had one job and that was to order food from Niller Union.”

“It wasn’t my fault, boss!” He chirped. “They cancelled at the last minute. I already told them that the leader of the yakuza was the one ordering but they just ended the call.”

Massaging his temples, he could feel the hives starting to form due to rage at the small mishap. Somehow, he had found himself in the car with Chrono behind the wheel and Mimic strapped like a child in the back. Perhaps he just needed a change of scenery since he had no interest in demolishing the whole base tonight. Or so he thought.

“Hey… Isn’t that?” Chrono thought out loud to get Overhaul’s attention.

You had just exited your car, with Levi opening the door for you. Seeing how you were all smiles with another male was something he had not expected. More so when the other male was none other than Levi Ackerman. His golden orbs followed as the two of you walked side by side, entering the establishment.

Chrono simply watched his boss through his peripheral view. What would he do in this instance? It was hidden well but he could see Kai slowly appearing from the depths of Overhaul.

“Mimic. Get out of your suit and buy the meal.”

“Aw, c’mon! Just cause your jealous of that lady with Ackerwacker doesn’t mean you get to use me to spy on them.”

Boy, did Chrono wish he had popcorn.

“You caused this mess. Now get the hell out of that suit before I kill you inside this very car. THRICE.”

Incoherent cursing soon followed. Mimic was sporting his true form. Veins popping from anger. Slamming the door, he stomped towards the store before flipping the vehicle off. Now that the two of them were alone, he waited till Overhaul seemingly calmed down.

“They’re probably just teaming up for a case.” Chrono stated. He was secretly living for the moment. It wasn’t too often he’d see the boss in that state. In his mind, he knew that Kai would ask him to trail you till you reach your building.

“Then why the hell is that troublemaker driving her car, Kurono?” His inner thoughts were thinking of scenarios as to why you would spend time with Ackerwacker. That smile you showcased was something he barely got from you. And then we have this shortstack who got it from you effortlessly. “Follow her till she gets home.”

There it was.

“Isn’t she too preoccupied to date?” Conversations were still possible as of the moment. “I thought you were slowly advancing already.”

“She never stated she was single or not.” Not that it mattered. He would do whatever it takes to make you his. No one had ever fallen asleep on the phone with him, spoke to him so freely, or even sent a rather inviting selfie at 11pm. Furrowing his brows at his thoughts, he cleared his throat and let out a sigh. “Forget it. She’s merely a pawn that I can easily replace. Go back to base after this.”

‘He’s back.’ Chrono thought. That was the end of the conversation. But, that small gesture was a sign that he was internally fighting his consciousness. ‘Shit. This is going to be a long night.’

The doors slid open once more. Ackerw-Levi and you were making your way back to your car. You were holding the take out while he held onto the drinks. The two men inside the car watched as the unwanted man stretched out his hand to grab the food from your arms. The car was hella tinted but he could see the small blush growing on your cheek.

Once more, Chrono wished he had some popcorn.

They observed as Levi opened your car door and handed you the food. His jaw tightened and fists clenched when he saw him entering the driver’s side. He was too engrossed that he had not noticed Mimic entering the car. Struggling in the backseat due to his size. When your car revved to life, all 3 men watched as the car left.

Starting the car, Chrono knew his boss’ mind flipped into Kai. Taking his time, he slowly drove out of the establishment.

“Follow them, Kurono.”

- - - -

so... did ya’ll like today’s special guest? xD I love Levi Ackerman so I decided to just use him for the sake of drama huehuehue still :) if ya’ll have comments or questions, feel free to ask :D take care!

[noperopesaredope]

TSYHitD Chapter 11: Part 1

Hi, so, I haven’y finished the 11th chapter of my main fic yet, and it’s been a couple of months. I’m getting there, but I also have some other stuff and am both passionate and not passionate about it. So, I decided to put the first part of it on here, since I’ve got a lot of it (and yet so little) of it done. Here’s the first 10 chapters of the fic in case you want to read them: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29912421/chapters/73620945

[This chapter starts earlier than last chapter, just after the first automaton attack, then it continues to follow the rest of the episode. I didn’t plan this correctly, but it works. This is gonna be a big boy.]

[Excluding Varian’s POV, everyone’s POV in this chapter is gonna be in third person because I’m just tired and this is a long chapter. I just started writing in third person and couldn’t stop, so now everyone is gonna be in third person. Except for Varian. For stylistic reasons.]

[Rated C for cursing]

(Sidenote, I forgot that Varian isn’t here right now and comes in literally right after where this drops off. Sorry. I’ll add more later. At some point)

But anyways, I present part 1 of chapter 11 of my fic, The Sounds You Hear in the Dark!:

~Rapunzel’s POV~

Rapunzel felt a bit shell shocked. She had just been attacked by a giant robot. Scratch that, she had just been attacked by an AUTOMATON. And there was only one other person in all of Corona who had ever seen one. And that person was one emotionally unstable, possibly delusional genius engineer who hated her and was on the run from the law. This realization slowly came to Rapunzel as she stared at the machine down below.

It was...a lot to think about. It felt like she hadn’t slept in days, ever since she had that dream, the dream that changed everything. Conflicting thoughts and feelings ran through her head like flies feasting upon a dead rat. A gruesome description indeed, but an accurate one, since she felt a bit like a dead rat. On the one hand, Rapunzel felt incredibly guilty about Varian, and was more than a little worried about him. But on the other hand, he had just attacked her, and knowing him and their last conversation, he was planning something. No matter how much she loathed the idea, Rapunzel needed to tell her dad. She just hoped it wouldn’t go as badly as all the other times.

-----

Rapunzel slammed open the doors to the throne room and marched inside, halting the conversation in its tracks. A bit of a demanding way to grab everyone’s attention, but it was necessary. Rapunzel’s father stood up, probably a bit annoyed, if not offended, but Rapunzel honestly didn’t care. She was going to be heard, no matter what it took.

“We already know Varian was behind the attack,” Rapunzel announced, “the real question is, what was he trying to achieve, and more importantly, what is he planning to do next?” A look of frustration crossed her father’s face before disappearing, replaced with a more stern look that was ready to scold her or talk down to her, a look she was getting really tired of. She already had to deal with this far too much when it came to Gothel, and even that didn’t feel quite as demeaning (at least, not in the moment) as this did.

“That boy is dangerous, and I assure you he will pay dearly,” Rapunzel’s father said in an almost ominous manner. Oh no, it was gonna be one of THOSE arguments again. Rapunzel had to hold herself back from facepalming or even shouting, knowing fully well that that wouldn’t help her. “Listen, Dad, last time I saw him, Varian was paranoid and angry at us, and this attack is proof that he is willing to act on those feelings. And speaking of which, we never got to talk about him being paranoid. He mentioned some pretty interesting things to me, some stuff about your whole ‘keeping big secrets’ thing and the fact that you may have put him under house arrest for literally no reason. What might that have been about?”

The king paused for a moment, seemingly processing what she just said. “So he did. Well, I will admit that we were somewhat aware he was a potential threat early on, so we may have...neutralized it.” Rapunzel was stunned. A smoke bomb in their psychic battle of wills, catching her completely off guard. She honestly had no clue how to respond or what to say. She never really dealt with these kinds of plot twists all that well, especially ones with such horrifying implications.

“I will admit, you’re right about one thing,” her father sighed. Rapunzel felt a flicker of hope well up inside her and she calmed down slightly. “That boy is willing to act on his paranoia and anger. But that is why I believe him to be so dangerous to you,” he began, and Rapunzel suddenly felt that little flicker of hope get buried in metaphorical sand. “That is why I must do this. I officially declare that as long as Varian remains a threat, you are to remain locked in your room.” WHAT THE FU-

(I know Raps is legally not allowed to curse, but this is an AU in which she knows a few, she just doesn’t really use them)

-----

~Eugene’s POV~

‘Well that could have gone a heck of a lot better,’ Eugene thought before turning to his royal majesty to give him a stern talking to. Unlike Rapunzel, Eugene had a fantastic skill called ‘being willing to tell someone what’s what’, and oh boy was he ready to use it.

“How is this any different than what Gothel did?! Honestly! How is it any different?! Explain to me! Because I’m really not understanding why you would LOCK HER IN A TOWER WHILE KNOWING WHAT SHE’S GONE THROUGH!” Eugene shouted. “I know this may be hard to understand, but you must realize that I had no choice,” the king tried to explain. “Wha- Of course you had a choice! You’re the king! You can’t just keep her up there!”

Regret flashed across the king’s face before his expression hardened. “I must do whatever it takes to keep Rapunzel safe from harm!” Eugene turned away for a moment in frustration, before announcing “you know, this is probably the most harmful, dangerous thing anyone has ever done to her, and you’re the one who’s inflicting that harm.” Then he walked away, leaving the king to reflect on everything.

~Queen Arianna’s POV~

Queen Arianna was conflicted. She loved her husband, but sometimes he could be a bit...frustrating, and unimaginably stubborn. It was also unfortunate that their daughter just so happened to have a bit of a stubborn streak as well. So here she was, trying to mediate between two people who were both technically right in their reasoning, but largely unwilling to listen, both stuck in their ways, their own heads. 

It was hard, trying to be the referee, as when it came to family arguments, if both sides were trying to win rather than come to a middle ground, both would lose. And in this case, both sides were very much trying to win. At least Arianna was an experienced diplomate, though it was annoying that she needed to use her skills on her own family.

First she would need to confront her husband, the harder task. He would require a gentle approach, possibly a bit of buttering to get him to focus on her, before she could carefully slip in the topic. Arianna knew him well enough to know that he would jump right into an explanation the moment she would bring it up, so she would have to listen to him talk for a bit and wear himself out. Then she could come in with her defense, get him to consider Rapunzel’s feelings on the matter and how it will affect her in the long run. Maybe convince him to have another talk with his daughter, listen to her and how she feels?

It would be a tricky thing, getting Fredrick out of his own head, but Arianna could try.

Arianna stepped into their shared bedroom, her husband standing by the window, looking outside with a sad expression. She closed the door behind her, the light sound of the shut declaring her presence, causing Fredrick to turn to her. “My love,” he greeted, smiling slightly. “Hello dear,” Arianna replied lovingly, waiting for a beat just in case Fredrick gave her a good opportunity to start the talk in a way that would go at least somewhat according to plan. “How are you feeling?” he asked. Jackpot! Arianna’s brain did a fistpump, but she externally maintained her composure. 

“A little tired. A lot has been happening the past few days,” she said as she sat down in one of their chairs, Fredrick walking over to sit next to her, “and the recent attack hasn’t really helped matters.” Putting it on a bit thick, aren’t you Ari? She suddenly wished she had done that a bit better, but it was a little too late for that. She would just have to work around any potential fretting that might come her way.

“I’m sorry. However, you need not worry. The boy will be brought to justice,” Fredrick assured her. Ah. That wasn’t a good sign. She’d have to deal with that later. But for now, she’d have to just press down her dread and push on. Arianna nodded her head and tried her best to look relieved in a way that would make it look like she was trying to hide her relief. She looked back at her husband and became a bit more serious.

“I heard what happened earlier with Rapunzel.” Set the bait. Fredrick sighed. “I just want to protect her. But she never listens to me! She doesn’t understand that everything I do is to keep her safe! I just...don’t want to lose her again.” So that’s what this was all about. Arianna watched sadly as she saw hurt and regret flash across Fredrick’s eyes. She was forced to pause for a moment, desperately trying to push down her own painful memories of nightmare filled nights, sobbing herself to sleep, wishing on thousands of stars for her little girl to come home, the sounds of a baby screaming and crying filling her ears…

Still, a memory managed to escape; about a month after Rapunzel was taken, Arianna privately bought herself a little baby doll. A bit childish, sure, but she couldn’t help herself. The day she got it, she wrapped it up in a little blanket (a gift from the baby shower) and just...held it for a while, walking around what was going to be her little girl’s room. Arianna couldn’t help but hum to her little doll, and eventually, she found herself crying. She broke down at the time, and had to take a rest afterwards. Those little moments used to happen on occasion. Arianna felt her eyes getting wet just thinking about it.

She quickly wiped her eyes, and took her husband’s hand. “We missed a lot, didn’t we?” she said, sniffling for a second and looking down at her lap. “She grew up without us. But that’s the thing, isn’t it? She’s all grown up.” Arianna forced herself to take a deep breath in. “She’s turning nineteen today. She’s an adult now. And we need to learn how to accept that. We can’t always protect her. She already knows how to take care of herself. Besides, Rapunzel’s been through a lot and had her wings clipped enough times to be able to tell the difference between protection and captivity. We’re not the only ones with baggage. Her’s just so happens to go against ours. We need to time about her pain. Because if we start treating her like how she’s been treated for the first eighteen years of her life, no matter the reason, she’ll start to see us the same way she remembers Gothel.”

Arianna finally turned back to her husband, who looked at her with a...conflicted expression. “I don’t want her to see us that way. Please just talk to her. And this time, just listen. Don’t think up a response while she talks, don’t interrupt, none of that. Just listen to what she’s saying.” Arianna stood up, squeezed his hand, and walked out to give him a while to think about it. That conversation hadn’t gone exactly according to plan, but it achieved its purpose.

-----

Now she just needed to deal with the other side of the argument. Rapunzel was a bit easier to talk to than Fredrick. She was also stubborn, but was good at listening to any third parties when approached by someone who wasn’t siding with the opposition. If you approached her right, she would immediately take time to listen and pay attention. Rapunzel would probably go right into explaining her frustration and vent for a bit, but immediately listen when her mother began an explanation.

The nice part was that though Rapunzel inherited a bit of her father’s stubbornness, she also inherited her mother’s diplomacy and ability to pick up on others’ behaviors and emotions. Or maybe it was because she had the misfortune to be raised by a narcissist her entire life. Maybe that’s where she got so many of her more seemingly positive traits.

It was sad, how badly the kidnapper had damaged their minds, even in death controlling their actions and thoughts. But they could be brave. They could move forward. They could be a happier family than they’d ever been.

[randomidiocyncrazies]

going into more detail about the P2/P4/P5 Persona Q idea, I’m thinking of breaking the cast into the following chunks:

P2 IS: Tatsuya, Lisa, Eikichi and Jun (separated from Maya in Xibalba)

P2 EP: Maya, Ulala, Baofu and Katsuya (before Tatsuya officially joins the party but after the P1 party member leaves?)

P4: entire IT (cultural festival like in PQ, or after fighting the culprit)

P5: all PTs (before Casino heist like PQ2)

Having the P2 cast all come from the EP timeline with Lisa, Eikichi and Jun getting accidentally involved & regaining their IS memories works too, but the storyline would have to revolve around that + Tatsuya’s reaction to justify introducing that plot element imo, cause it’s A LOT to deal with. Also if the overarching plot is centered on P2 (particularly the IS party members), then why are the P4 and P5 casts involved? Also while I think it’d be interesting to re-introduce Philemon and Nyarlathotep to the Persona setting and have them play a bigger part—especially since Nyarly isn’t banished until the end of EP—their involvement might skew the plot too heavily towards P2? (although I admit the “nobody remembers this adventure” ending of PQ games would work especially well for Lisa, Jun and Eikichi here) 

tbh PQ had quite a lot of nods to P2 IS (the clock tower, school mysteries + moving statue urban legend on P4-side, and the true form of the main antagonist). I kinda like the idea of the setting being a fake school like PQ, with details of the school influenced by the persona users when they arrive, but the story might have to be tweaked a bit (different final boss probably, and maybe bring in more themes in P2/4/5). 

potential themes

I liked that PQ and PQ2 had plots that were ultimately about the new characters, since it justifies their inclusion (and i think it’s a bit unfair if the game focuses too much on the cast of a particular game). I have mixed feelings about some of the execution of PQ and PQ2, but I do appreciate the intent behind it. I do think reinforcement of the games’ themes could help make the overarching story more cohesive, so here are some potential themes with P2, P4 and P5 in mind:

rumors, gossip and the role of mass media are important in all 3 (4) persona games here: P2 antagonists manipulate various media to generate rumors, and in turn manipulate rumors to bring about the end of the world; the Midnight Channel in P4 reacts to local gossip and it’s about the casual dehumanization of individuals through media (mostly TV); in P5 people’s perception of the PT is literally a plot point, and the game reminds you of the PT approval rating almost constantly

(distorted) memories is primarily a P2 thing (”worse than death\ forgotten”, Nyarlathotep’s manipulation of Jun and Philemon’s deal to the IS kids, Tatsuya’s ‘sin’) but it could work with the mystery aspect of PQ games. Distorted memories arguably lead to distorted self-perception (P5), and uncovering the truth is P4′s jam

as mentioned in the previous post, the tension between P5′s teenage rebellion and P2 EP’s adult guidance could be really fun to explore and incorporate into the plot. Persona games are about coming of age, but with EP there’s also a secondary theme of guiding the younger generation and fully grappling with adulthood—the heroines of PQ and PQ2 are quite young, but I can potentially see the new character(s) being a little older here (maybe 17-18?)

stroll ideas

Of course the reason why this idea exists in the first place is all the potential interactions between everyone! There’s just so much potential with all the different dynamics and topics they can discuss :3 Here are a few ideas:

Stomping Grounds: P2/4/5 discuss where and how they bust Shadows. P2 “we had to sleep in dungeons sometimes!!!” is incredibly envious that demons aren’t running around the real world for the others. P2 and P4 are jealous of P5 for not having to repair/replace ruined clothes (”you just think about cool clothes and they appear on you?!” “man we should try that in Xibalba...” “it’s really not that simple! Morgana can explain it better, but basically it’s our mental image of rebellion” etc etc).

Lisa’s Brutal Makeover Corner: Teddie gets jealous when Lisa demonstrates her makeup skills on Jun and wants to get dolled up too—he won the Yasogami cross-dressing pageant after all! He has to be the prettiest!!! 

Butterfly Effect: several P4 and P2 characters try to use P5 cast’s knowledge to their advantage, but is stopped by the detective trio to prevent potential time paradoxes

Say It With Flowers: Jun and Haru (and Yukiko?) discuss flower language, share gardening tips, and swap demon/shadow intimidation tactics. Everyone around them is slightly afraid of their enthusiasm on the topic...

Fashion Gurus: Eikichi and Yusuke have a discussion about ~aesthetics~ and comment on their companions’ styles. Kanji is roped into the argument

Fashion Gurus Strike Again: Ulala, Ann and Rise discuss latest fashion trends and comment on the others’ fashion choices

The Audiophiles’ Alliance: Futaba and Yosuke chat about headphones and the greatest bops (with Futaba lamenting she can’t make him eat his words because the song she’s thinking of doesn’t exist yet in his time). Eikichi—aka the great Michel-sama—senses a prime opportunity to get some new fans... 

Strangers in a Familiar Land: Lisa and Ann get into how people tend to act... weird about them due to their foreign looks; Teddie, on the other hand, loves the attention his human form gets from the people around town (and the girls conclude that Teddie would probably get into trouble in a big city)

Everybody Loves Kung Fu Fightin’: Makoto, Ulala, Lisa and Chie show off their moves and swap training tips. Lisa and Chie talk about their favorite martial arts movies and convinces the others to check them out

Big Bro’s Worries: Katsuya and Yosuke complain about their younger brothers, while P4 and P5 protags are slightly smug that they don’t get that much trouble from their sisters, especially P4 protag 

Velvet Room attendants

Since P2/4/5 all have multiple Velvet Room attendants, they’re gonna double up on some jobs to avoid over-crowding:

P2: Demon Artist: he’s in charge of the Workshop. Unlike the other attendants he’s human, so Margaret and the twins are probably intrigued/unsettled by him and Marie might also be curious as someone else who also stays at the Velvet Room but isn’t really an attendant

P2: Nameless & Belladonna: they handle the healing service. They can sense something unusual with the P2 cast due to the split timelines, but it has no bearing on the plot. I’m on the fence whether to include a healing service at all, but if there is one I think it suits them, since their music is supposed to put guests at ease

P4: Margaret & Marie: like their PQ and PQ2 roles, Margaret manages the Persona Compendium and Fusions, and Marie handles skill cards

P5: Caroline and Justine: the twins handle the quests, since Margaret does the fusions. Caroline enjoys ordering the persona users about

[you can find more on this AU tagged under PQ Triple]

[crystalninjaphoenix]

New Places

A Stitched Story

JSE Fanfic

Bit of a simple concept, really. With the truth revealed, Jack, Chase, and JJ have to regroup. And meanwhile, Schneep has to deal with his own magical crisis, and things get crazy fast. I don’t want to say too much because of spoilers, but I think it’s fun ^-^ Also google Rot13, Atbash, and Base64 for some fun easter eggs that might just be enjoyable to me but I’m including anyway because screw it it’s my writing. Anyway, even if there’s not too much happening and it looks longer than it actually is, hope you guys enjoy!

Tagging @septic-dr-schneep for inspiring this AU with this post.

Read where it started: Stitched Together | Season One

Previous season two stories: No Strings on Me | Nightmare World | Normalcy | The Notion of The End | Nobody’s Home | Nevermore

Also I’m finally starting a taglist for this dfajklfh: @bupine​ @violet--majesty​

It was a lovely morning to be waiting on a doorstep so you could ask the house’s occupants if you and your friends could stay there because the place where you’d previously been staying had been found by the demon who’d been hunting you.

This thought passed through Chase’s head just before he rang the doorbell for a second time. He couldn’t help but laugh, the sound almost hysterical.

Are you okay, Chase? JJ asked. He was leaning heavily on Jack, his ankle still injured.

Chase shook his head. “Yeah, I’m fine. Guess I’m a little...frazzled.” And who wouldn’t be? He’d just found out the monster chasing them was actually their dead friends fused together, then one of his friends turned out to have magic and proceeded to disappear, and now they’d been run out of Jack’s apartment, where they’d been staying, and he’d turned to the last relatively-safe place he knew. Assuming that she’d let them stay, of course.

The door swung open. There was a woman standing in the doorway, blonde hair pulled back in a messy ponytail. She was wearing the uniform of the diner she worked at, so she must’ve just gotten off a shift. For a moment, she just stared at the three men on her doorstep. And then she gasped out, “Chase?!”

Chase coughed awkwardly. “Hi, Stace. It...it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“You’re damn right!” Stacy’s tone wasn’t angry, just bewildered. “Wh—what are you doing here?! What are they doing here?!”

“Long story,” Chase sighed. “Can...can we come inside first?”

Stacy silently stood aside, letting the group enter the house.

The suburban house was relatively small, but it was very neat and tidy. There was a couch pressed against the window, a television against the opposite wall, an armchair, a coffee table, and two tiny bean bags in the corner, one yellow, one pink. Jack guided JJ over to the couch, where they both immediately collapsed.

“What the hell is going on?!” Stacy asked. “I don’t see you in person for months, your friends say you’ve disappeared but won’t tell me what’s going on, then next thing I know you’re back, and whenever you call me you won’t tell me what’s going on or why you can’t see our kids!”

“I told you, it’s dangerous,” Chase said tiredly.

“What—okay, I-I understand that, but if that’s the case, why are you here now?” Stacy spluttered. “If you’re in danger, why’re you bringing it here? The place where there’s a five-year-old and an eight-year old?!”

“I know, it’s stupid, I’m sorry,” Chase mumbled.

Stacy paused. Chase normally would’ve been more defensive. There was something wrong here. She looked around at the group. “Where’s your doctor friend?” she asked.

Chase flinched. “You, um, noticed he wasn’t here?”

“Well, yeah, the other two are here, and you guys almost always travel in a group,” Stacy said. “Is...is something wrong? Where is he?”

“He’s...we don’t know where he is,” Jack piped up. “It’s a long story.”

“You keep saying that,” Stacy sighed.

“Well it is,” Jack said. “Look, I’m sorry, Stacy, but our last safe place has just been...found out. We don’t know where else to go.”

“...huh.” Stacy ran her hand through her hair, and loosened her ponytail.

“If you kick us out, we’ll find somewhere else,” Chase said.

“I’m not gonna kick you out,” Stacy scowled. “Not now that you’re here. I just—”

“Mom?”

Everyone in the room paused. Standing in the doorway connecting the living room to the rest of the house were two young girls. The taller, toffee blonde one was holding the hand of the shorter, sandy blonde one. Stacy smiled at them. “Hey sweeties.”

The shorter one was holding a plush doll in one hand. Her eyes widened. “Daddy? Is that you?”

Chase waved. “Hi, Lily. Yes, It’s me. Hello, Moira. It’s good to see you.”

“What’re you doing here?” Moira asked, squeezing her sister’s hand.

“It’s complicated, honey,” Chase said. “Me and my friends are gonna be staying here for a while.”

Lily gasped, suddenly looking delighted. “Yea!” She broke free from Moira’s hand, running over to Chase. She threw her arms around him. Chase froze, stiffening. His eyes darted around the room, landing on every adult. Lily was totally unaware of her father’s distress.

Moira, however, wasn’t. “Lils, come on, let’s let them talk for a bit.”

“Aw, okay.” Lily let go and retreated back to the hall, and she and Moira disappeared back into the house.

Chase went and sat down in the armchair, covering his mouth and shaking slightly. Jack stood up and took another seat closer to Chase, though he didn’t move to touch him.

Stacy stared at all of this in silence. “This...this is all so confusing,” she said. “Chase, what...?”

“I-I don’t want to talk about it,” Chase said, the sound muffled by his hand. “Just...can we have some time?”

Stacy nodded slowly. “Alright. You can explain to me later, if you want to. I’ll...I’ll be around.” And she turned and left.”

After a long moment of silence, Chase took a deep breath. He straightened. “Okay. I think we need to decide where to go from here. For starters...” He looked at Jack. “How’d you just instantly come to the conclusion that Anti was Jackie and Marvin? Just...h-how?”

“Um...well...” Jack shifted on his seat. “Me and JJ were talking about this yesterday. I, uh, apparently have magic vision now.”

“What?! Since when?!”

“Since JJ replaced my eye.” Jack tapped the skin under his right eye, the one that was brighter blue than the other. “We’re still not sure why, but it...it means I can sea people’s souls.”

“You can what?!” Chase could only gape at him.

“Yeah. They look like glowing balls of light in people’s chests.”

Chase folded his arms unconsciously, over his chest. “Can...you see mine?”

“Yeah, it’s yellow. And it has these...” Jack shook his head. “I-I don’t know, these groove things. I think it’s because of what An—anyway.” He coughed. “How I knew they were him, was that...I looked at Anti’s soul, and it was a bunch of red and blue...shard-like things. Held together by that green string. You remember that? I-I saw it, and I reached forward, and I pulled it out...and then Anti disappeared and we found Marvin and Jackie. Later, I-I looked at them with this soul vision, and they...didn’t have...normal soul lights. They both had red and blue shards.”

There was evidence that Marvin and Jackie preformed a transference spell before they died. JJ said. It’s black magic. Very black magic. It takes apart people’s souls and switches the pieces around, then enhances them. It will give the two participants special abilities, but at a cost. It must’ve gone wrong, and somehow Anti is the result.

Chase laughed. “Okay. Cool. That’s fine. What...what do we do about that? Ho-how do we get them back?”

Jameson froze. Chase...he signed slowly. I don’t think there’s a way to get—

“Shut up!” Chase shot to his feet. “Of course there’s a way! There has to be a way! They—they’re probably stuck in there! We have to get them back!”

Chase. Jameson leaned forward, trying to be gentle. If their souls were torn  apart—

“There has to be a way!” Chase repeated insistently. “I mean, if magic is real, then we can fix this! I-I know maybe you’ve never heard of one, fancy magic man, but you’ve never heard of something like Anti, either! So there’s got to be a way!” He looked at Jack. “Right?”

“Wh—I mean, yeah, of course,” Jack nodded. “That makes sense. Besides, we’ll never know if we don’t try.”

Jameson shank back, looking a little ashamed. I’m sorry. The signs were small. I suppose you two are right. I was just trying... He stopped. You’re right. We need to try.

“Yeah, but first, we need to find Schneep,” Jack said. “What...what happened to him?”

“I dunno, I guess it’s his magic. That he suddenly has. For some reason,” Chase mumbled. He sat back down, shrinking into the cushions of the arm chair.

“Yeah, what is that kind of magic anyway? Where did it come from?” Jack wondered.

Jameson shrugged. I’m unsure for that latter question, but for the former, it appears Henrik can teleport, somehow. Or maybe it’s that he somehow affects the world around him to make regular walking easier for him. Like wormholes.

A hint of a smile drifted across Chase’s face. “Yeah, explain it to him like it’s wormholes, he’d like that more.” The smile faded away. “So, he freaked out and teleported away. Where did he go? How would we find him? He didn’t have his phone on him, so we can’t even take the risk of Anti finding us to call him.”

“I guess we’ll have to find him the old-fashioned way,” Jack figured. “By looking around and walking for him.”

“That could take forever!” Chase gasped.

Yes, but it’s the best we can do, JJ said. He winced. Or rather, it’s the best you can do. I’m afraid that I’m still in no condition to walk around. I do appreciate that you two helped me here, but I would just slow down your search.

“It’s okay, JJ,” Jack reassured him. “It’s best if you just stay here and heal up.”

“Should we start looking for him now?” Chase wondered. “I mean, the sooner the better, right? But we did just get here. Would it be weird to leave right away?”

“I don’t think it would be,” Jack shrugged. “We can just tell Stacy where we’re going, and when we’re gonna be back.”

Yes, I think it would be better to start earlier, JJ added. Who knows where Henrik could be now? He could have gone a long way, and be getting even further.

“No time to waste, then,” Chase said, nodding. He stood up again. “C’mon, let’s get going.”

— — — — — — —

With no further ado, Chase and Jack went back out onto the streets of the city. The morning was clear, with a few wispy clouds high in the sky. It was an average morning, with people strolling out along the streets, going about their various business. Chase and Jack would occasionally stop one of them, asking if they’d seen a man who looked similar to the two of them. None of them had.

They stopped for a break around noon, the spring sun high in the sky. They sat down on the curb of the sidewalk. “Should we get something to eat?” Jack asked. “We’ve been out for a while. And we didn’t exactly have a good breakfast.”

Chase shrugged. “I dunno. Whatever you want.”

“Well, I don’t want to go somewhere just for me,” Jack said. “So are you hungry?”

Chase just shrugged again.

Jack stopped talking, looking at Chase and frowning. Something was up, he could tell. Chase was being pretty...passive.  “Are you okay, dude?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Chase balled his fists, scrunching up his pants.

“You don’t look fine,” Jack pointed out.

“Well, I am.”

“No, you’re not,” Jack insisted. “C’mon, you can tell me what’s up.”

“You wouldn’t care about what’s up!” Chase suddenly burst out. He gasped, hand flying to cover his mouth.

Jack was left speechless. “...what?””

Chase suddenly stood up, quickly walking away, down the sidewalk. Jack didn’t hesitate to follow, rushing to catch up.

“Chase?! Chase!” Jack called after him. Chase didn’t turn around, pushing past people on the sidewalk as he rushed away. “Chase! Slow down!” Jack picked up the pace until he was able to reach out and grab Chase by the shoulder. With a yelp, Chase spun around, pushing away Jack’s hand. “You can’t just say something like that! Of course I’d care!”

For a moment, Chase looked like he wanted to keep running. Then he slumped. “I know, I know you would, I-I don’t know why I said that. I just...you have all your shit going on, it feels stupid to bring you into mine, too.”

“No, it’s not. It’s exactly the opposite of stupid. Bring me into your shit. Tell me what’s going on!”

“No, it’s stupid, it really is.” Chase folded his arms, looking down at the ground.

“Well, I’m not gonna drop it until you tell me what’s going on,” Jack said. “So might as well get it over with.”

Chase looked around. There weren’t a lot of people around, and definitely none in earshot. He sighed. “It’s just...you have a cool power, dude. JJ has magic. Schneep has magic, apparently. And then I’m just...here.” He blinked furiously, eyes watering. “I don’t do anything. All that I’ve done is get kidnapped, possessed, get un-possessed, and now I can’t handle anything! I can’t even fucking let my own daughter give me a hug without freezing up! And you guys are doing great! You’ve all had to deal with shit, and you’re not like this! So why am I—just—worthles—” He choked up. And he realized tears were leaking from his eyes.

Jack took this all in, staying silent. His expression was hard to read. And then he stepped closer to Chase, taking care not to touch him. “Chase Brody, never say that you’re worthless.”

“Okay,” Chase said automatically.

“No, I mean it. You think we would’ve gotten this far without you? No! You remember when you shot Anti, despite him still having a hold on you? That was the most badass shit I’ve ever seen! And that was you! You’re amazing!”

“But you guys—”

“No no no, stop it,” Jack said firmly. “Stop comparing yourself to the rest of us, we’re not all the same. You’re right, we’ve all had to deal with shit, and it’s all been different shit. You notice how Henrik avoids going to sleep? Or how I couldn’t leave the apartment for two whole months and outside still kinda freaks me out? None of us are doing great.” Jack shook his head. “And even if it was the same shit, we still would’ve reacted differently. Because we’re different people, and comparing yourself to others only hurts. If there’s any comparison you should be doing, it’s to yourself. And Chase, you are doing so much better. Think of how you were doing a few months ago. You’ve been improving. And yeah, maybe you don’t have magic, but you’re still strong. And don’t you forget it.”

Chase’s tears were still flowing, but for a different reason. “Thanks, Jack.” His voice cracked. “I guess I needed that.”

Jack smiled. “If you ever need it again, just tell me.”

“I-I’ll keep that in mind.” Chase wiped his face on his sleeve. He took a deep breath. “Alright. So, we keep going, then?”

“We keep going.” Jack nodded. “We’re bound to find Schneep eventually.”

Yet, the sun lowered in the sky, the blue faded to pink and then purple, the hours passed, and they still hadn’t found him. They returned back to Stacy’s house, agreeing to look again tomorrow.

— — — — — — —

He didn’t know where he was.

He didn’t know how he got there.

He’d been back in the apartment. Anti had appeared. Anti had taunted them, telling them that he was the other two. And somehow, he knew this wasn’t a lie. Marvin and Jackie had been acting so odd once they’d returned, and he couldn’t...he couldn’t feel where they were, like he could with other people. Now, he wondered if that ability to feel people had anything to do with...what else he could do.

He didn’t know how to describe what happened next. He wanted a weapon, so he reached over and grabbed one. He wanted to attack, to be at the front of the action, and all of a sudden Anti was right in front of him. And so he fought. He fought for the two who’d gone and the three who remained. But it was too much. Things were spiraling out of control. He’d take one step, and suddenly the room reoriented around him, and he was somewhere else entirely. It was spinning around him, he was one place and then another. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t steady himself. His head was swimming. It hurt. He screamed, and then he was somewhere else.

It was a strange place, he knew that much. The texture of the walls were unfamiliar, the furniture in unexpected places, the sound of a construction crew nearby completely different. He couldn’t hear or feel anyone nearby. Maybe it was a living room. In a house he’d never been in.

His vision was different. Well, it was still effectively gone, but that static that he’d been seeing ever since coming out of the Nightmare had disappeared. It was instead replaced with plain blackness. Alright, that was a slight improvement, but why?

He tripped across a wrinkle in the rug, falling to the floor with a cry. He didn’t stand up again. There was probably other things to trip over.

After what felt like an hour, he heard the muffled sound of footsteps. Someone was coming, he could feel it. That got him to climb to his feet. He headed for the nearest wall, feeling along the perimeter of the room. There had to be somewhere to hide, or somewhere to get out, somewhere to get out—

And then the wall disappeared. The sound of construction was replace by tweeting birds and a cool breeze. He stumbled as the floor under his feet became uneven, turning into soft dirt.

“What the fuck...?” He muttered.

“Hey!” Someone shouted. He cried out, turning towards the sound. Someone was coming closer. “This is private property!”

“I-I am sorry, I-I do not know how—how I got—” he stammered.

“Speak proper English, please,” the someone said dismissively. “Stay here while I call the police.”

He yelped, backing up. He felt the prickly branches of a bush dig into his back. No no no, this place wasn’t good either, get out—

And as he was backing up, he tripped over something else, falling over what felt like a wooden chair and landing hard on a carpeted floor. Suddenly, there were a lot of voices. And he could feel a lot of people nearby. They felt different.

“What the hell?!” “Jesus, that scared me.” “Um, Ms. Mae? I think—” “Unauthorized teleportation—” “—supposed to have a smoke effect?” “What’s up with his eyes?” “—don’t recognize him.” “Sir, are you alright?”

Too many people. He tried to stand up, and somehow rammed his head into something. He yelled, withdrawing.

“There’s a bookshelf there, sir,” said one of the voices. “Are you alright? Can you...wait, can you see us?”

He squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head. Not here, somewhere else, not here, somewhere—

And the world shifted again.

And again.

And again.

He wasn’t sure how much time was passing, but it had to be a significant amount. He’d stay in each place for as long as thirty minutes, or as few as thirty seconds. Never anywhere he recognized by touch. Sometimes he’d get his bearings enough to try and find the room’s exit, or walk down the sidewalk, or figure out exactly where the hell he was. But the world always shifted again, even if he didn’t want it to.

Sometimes there were people. He tried not to stay there too long. They’d think he was crazy. Sometimes it was a room, sometimes it was outside. Once there was water lapping around his ankles.

Where was he?

Where were the others? He had to find them. He had to find out if they’d gotten away from Anti, or if he needed to rescue them. Not that he was sure he could, with the world constantly changing. Sure, he’d managed to stab Anti once or twice, but that might’ve been beginner’s luck. Didn’t mean he wouldn’t try, though.

He was outside again, on a sidewalk. The air had cooled down significantly, and he could feel less people around. The sound of the cars passing by were less frequent. Time had passed.

No, he was in a noisy building, people shouting, dishes clattering.

No, he was in a wide-open space, instruments playing discordantly.

No, somewhere boiling hot—

No, somewhere with the ground kicking up sand—

No, somewhere quiet—

Somewhere loud—

Somewhere soft—

Sweet-smelling—

Grassy—

Cold—

His heart was about to pound out of his chest. His mind was swimming, a lightheaded feeling. There were swirls of colors swimming before his eyes. Patterns of phosphenes.

Ticking—

Crashing—

Dizzy—

Heavy—

Too much, too much, too much—

Something broke.

He saw a hospital room, a single bed surrounded by medical equipment. There was a man in a snap-back cap, sitting on the floor like he’d been knocked down, and another man in a ragged white coat, staring down at him. His expression was a combination of shock and anger. “I do not you would forget so easily,” the man in the white coat said. “But maybe I am mistaken. If what I have seen you doing is what I think it is, then maybe your mind is missing entirely.” “Wha—no, I—oh my god, you’re alive.” The man in the cap stood up, looking a bit dazed as he looked the other up and down. “We all thought the worst—I mean, we never gave up hope—well, ░▒░▒░▒ got close, I think, but maybe that’s just the pessimist in him. And there was that fucked up postcard back in March…but you’re back now. You’re back.” He smiled, a small expression filled with relief.

He was in the middle of a dark field, city lights in the distance. They were close enough to make out buildings but too far to walk to. A man in a black cape and purple and white mask was walking. His hand was held up high above him, blue crystallized lights dancing around his fingers, illuminating the area. He spun around, looking for something. He said something under his breath, and the blue light flared, shooting out. Something laughed. “You talk too much,” said a voice, seeming to come from everywhere. The man spun around, blue light twirling away. Shuffling movement in the darkness, and then there was something, something gray and smiling and with blackened sharp nails, tackling the man to the ground. Something red splashed.

he was standing behind someone, a young man in a button-up shirt, who was holding a ceramic mug in two hands. the man was in the doorway of a living room, watching two other men talk. They appeared to be arguing. “i don’t own a green t-shirt, ░▒░▒░!” this man had his hair pulled back, waves falling down his back. “you know i don’t like them! you can go look in my closet and hamper if you want,i don’t have anything like that.” “well, who was it, then?” this one had a snap-back cap and a dirty jacket. “what, are you saying that someone was pretending to be you—” the man in the doorway suddenly paled. he dropped the mug he was holding, and it shattered upon the floor with a loud crash. the other two turned to look at him. “░▒░▒░▒░? are you alright?”

Ur jnf yvfgravat gb na nynez evatvat guebhtu gur nve. Gur juvgr-jnyyrq unyyjnl jnf yvg hc bayl ol erq rzretrapl yvtugf naq n fgenatr terra tybj. Gurer jrer gjb svtherf va gur pragre bs gur unyy, bar ylvat ba uvf onpx, gur bgure xarryvat arkg gb uvz. Gur bar xarryvat jnf cerffvat qbja ba gur bgure’f fgbznpu, jurer n qnex fgnva jnf fcernqvat npebff gur oyhr fuveg. “Fuvg, unat ba, whfg unat ba,” gur bar xarryvat fnvq. “V xabj fbzrbar jub pna uryc, jr whfg arrq gb svaq uvz.” Gur bar ylvat qbja tebnarq, naq bcrarq uvf rlrf. Fbzrguvat jnf tybjvat juvgr. “Fghcvq nynez…” Ur ernpurq hc, unaq gerzoyvat. Fgenaqf bs juvgr yvtug pheyrq nebhaq uvf nez, gura fubg njnl, jenccvat nebhaq n obk ba gur prvyvat. Gur zrgny pheyrq nf vs vg jnf pynl orvat gjvfgrq. Gur nynez fgbccrq, naq fbzr bs gur erq rzretrapl ohyof ohefg, envavat qbja tynff naq yrnivat gur fgenatr terra tybj nf gur bayl fbhepr bs yvtug.

Sv hzd z uzhg ullw ivhgzfizmg, nlhgob vnkgb. uoflivhxvmg ortsgh org fk gsv yfrowrmt, z xlmgizhg gl gsv wfhp lfghrwv gsv drmwldh. Z nzm dzh hrggrmt rm z yllgs rm z xlimvi, dizkkvw rm z xlfkov ozbvih lu xolgsrmt vmwrmt rm z tivvm qzxpvg drgs ufi zilfmw rgh sllw. gsviv dviv yzmwztvh zilfmw srh mvxp zmw z kzgxs levi srh vbv. sv dzh hgzirmt zg hlnvgsrmt zxilhh uiln srn gszg ollpvw orpv z nzm rm z ivw sllwrv, yfg gsviv dzh hlnvgsrmt...dilmt. Rgh uzxv dzhm’g erhryov. “Blf pmld, dv ivzoob hslfow hgzb lfg lu gsrh, ĵŀ½ýªś,” hzrw gsv gsrmt rm gsv ivw sllw. “Bvzs, r urtfivw gszg lfg dsvm gsv wlxgli gsrmt prxpvw nv lfg lu rgh xrgb,” gsv nzm nfggvivw, iloormt srh erhryov vbv. “Gdrxv.” “Yfg.” Gsv gsrmt uozhsvw z hnrov. gsv gvvgs ollpvw...dilmt. “R dlm’g orv, r ivzoob dzmg gl hvv rg tvg rgh wfv. Xzoo rg pzinz, ru blf dzmg.”

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

“Stop!”

He gasped, and suddenly everything was still. Very still, in fact. Almost unusually still. He couldn’t hear anything nearby. He couldn’t smell anything nearby. He couldn’t feel anything other than the ground beneath his feet. But he could feel something...someone? Were they the source of the voice that shouted “stop”?

“Gods, was not expecting that. What’re you doing? How’d you get here?” The voice sounded familiar...but also different.

“I—I—” He couldn’t answer either of those questions. “I do not know. I-I am sorry if I upset you.”

A short burst of laughter. “You didn’t upset me—well I mean, I am kind of busy right now, but I can take a break to figure out what the actual fuck you were doing.”

“Doing? What—where am I?” He realized he was shaking a bit. Nerves, maybe. Or exhaustion. From whatever that had been.

“Hmm. You can’t see, can you? Otherwise you’d be having a stronger reaction than that.” Footsteps approached him. “Here, let me just—”

He felt hands on his head, pressing fingers into his temples. And then he felt something else, some kind of tingly, static sensation. He yelped. And then suddenly, he saw himself. Not from the perspective you would expect, but like he was looking through someone else’s eyes at himself. He could see the scars under his eyes for the first time. Then the perspective changed, like someone was looking to the side. And he saw...lights. Tiny green orbs of light, extending off in all directions, for forever, against a black sky. They were reflected across the horizon, but he wasn’t sure if that was because the floor he was standing on was reflective, or if the floor was transparent, showing a void all around. He gasped, and the hands were withdrawn. “Where am I?” He repeated, in a hushed voice.

“...how do I explain this?” the voice muttered. “Alright. Do you play video games? You likely have a few friends who do.”

“Um...yes, I have friends. I play a few games, I suppose.”

“You know how a level of a game has a map? The map makes up the environment, and it’s made of all the various assets the game has.”

“Yes.”

“You know how, in some games, if you do just the right thing, you can glitch outside of a map and into the empty space beyond? Where you can see the whole map from a new perspective.”

“I...yes.”

“Well. Welcome to the empty space around the map, Henrik.”

Schneep gasped. “How do you know my name?!”

“I mean, I guessed you were one of them.” The voice sounded casual. “The accent gave it away.”

Schneep shook his head, backing away from the voice. “Is—is this real? Am I having a hallucination?”

“Why, do you have those?”

“Someti—that is none of your business!” Schneep snapped. “How do I get back to where I was?”

“Good question, normally you wouldn’t be able to.”

“What?!”

“But the fact that you were glitching outside and looking at other ones is a good sign that you’ll be able to. Though, judging by your reaction and recent memories, this is a new thing for you.”

“You looked inside my—?!” This was too much. Schneep fell to the ground, collapsing to his knees. He covered his mouth and tried not to hyperventilate.

“Oh, I shouldn’t have done that, should I?” The voice asked. “I just thought it would be helpful if I understood where you were coming from.”

“How is this happening?” Schneep whispered weakly. “Jameson, he told me I had magic, b-but I did not think—! It would be like—! Wh-why do I even have this? What happened to make it?”

“Another good question.” The voice lowered, like he was also sitting on the floor. “Well, it sounds like this isn’t something you had your whole life. Were you exposed to any kind of magic for an extended period of time? Say, a few months.”

Schneep immediately started nodding. “I-I got stuck. In this place called...the Ni-Nightmare.” He shuddered. “It was for months.”

“Well, shit. You have to get your soul ripped out to go there.” The voice fell silent for a while. “So, I’m no expert, but I can give you my best guess. Your soul probably got used to being outside your body, and while it was in the Nightmare, it began to adapt to the new environment. Once it was returned to your body, it settled back in, but the properties it picked up started to seep into your body as well. It would probably lay dormant for a while until you needed it to start acting weird, probably triggered by stress or something. And now, I’m guessing everything’s hit the fan for you.”

Schneep nodded. “It was like...everything around me was changing. I could not control it.”

“Of course you can control it.” He could practically hear the voice rolling his eyes. And moderation, of course, so you don’t end up glitching too far. I mean, eventually you would’ve drifted off, bouncing between other worlds. You’re lucky I stopped by.”

Schneep paused. “Who are you?”

Laughter. Chillingly familiar, yet somehow...more relaxed. “If I told you my name, you’d probably recognize it. But I probably shouldn’t, in case the me in your world isn’t as nice. Never mind that, though.” A shuffling sound, like the voice was standing up. Then the voice grabbed Schneep’s arm and pulled him up. “I think it’s best if you don’t stay here. Just in case there are more effects.”

Schneep shook his head. Everything was moving fast. “H...how would I get out of here?”

“Well, you got in, didn’t you? You can get out, if your powers brought you here. You just need to control them.”

“How?” Schneep asked in a small voice.

“You start by not controlling them.” Schneep’s expression must’ve shown, because the voice chuckled. “Abilities like this are part of you, if they’re anything like mind. As much as your arm is part of you. Do you make an effort to ‘control’ your arm? No, you just think about what it’s supposed to do, and it does it. Glitching to other places is just an easier way of walking. Think about where you want to go, and go there.”

“What? It cannot be that easy.”

“It is. You might need to practice, though. But for now, just relax. If you freak out, it’s likely that your powers are gonna freak out too.”

“I think I figured that out,” Schneep grumbled.

“Yeah, that’s probably how you ended up here, huh?” The voice sounded like he was smiling. “Just take a deep breath, and think about using your powers to get back where you came from.”

Schneep hesitated. “What if it goes wrong? Are...are you going to give more advice?”

“If you don’t go back to your world, yeah. But once you’re there, I can’t follow you. I can access the In-Between, and my own world, but nothing else without concentrated help. It’s one of the few rules I follow.” The voice shifted, now sounding a bit irritated. “Now can you hurry? I said I was busy, and unless I want some black magic kitty causing havoc, I gotta get back to that.”

“Okay, okay.” Schneep considered asking about that, then decided it was a better idea not to. He took a deep breath. Just think about it, huh? Alright. He wanted to go home. He imagined a doorway opening in front of him, and on the other side was where he wanted to go. He took a step forward—

And ran his shins into a coffee table.

He cried out, jumping backwards. Okay. Alright. This was better. He wasn’t in that weird...place anymore. He reached forward, bending down to feel the surface of the coffee table. It was wood, felt fairly big, and there was an indent right in the middle.

Schneep froze. That wasn’t just an indent. He recognized the feel of the knick in the wood. He ran his fingers over it a few more times, awakening a long ago memory. One time, Marvin had visited his apartment, but neglected to tell him he would be practicing throwing knives. He dropped one right on the living room coffee table. Schneep had ranted his ear off that night about how the blade had left a knick in his table.

How many times had he ran his hand over that dent in the wood? Especially after he’d thought his friend had died...he wasn’t about to forget the feeling of it, no matter how long it had been.

But he had to make sure. Schneep stood up, feeling around the edges of the room. Yes, there was the glass wall to the balcony. There were the houseplants in the corners, now dried up and dead from neglect. There was his second coat hanging off the hook near the door. He’d ended up home.

Schneep sat down hard on the sofa. So. Maybe that voice’s advice wasn’t too bad.

It had been...a long, long day. An absolutely insane day, in fact. He needed to process all this. He lay down across the cushions, staring into nothing. His vision was back to blackness. Which he didn’t mind, in comparison to the static. If that was part of his new abilities, he’d take them all.

Okay. Start with processing the simpler-to-understand stuff. Anti was back. Doing alright so far. Anti was actually Marvin and Jackie—nope, that one needed more attention.

Some part of Schneep knew they’d always been dead. He’d seen their bodies. He’d examined their bodies. You don’t come back from that. And even if they somehow magically recovered for a bit, he knew they weren’t the same. He’d figured out by now that he could feel people, which must’ve also been part of his powers. But he could never feel them. They weren’t people anymore. They were ghosts. Remnants.

Schneep wiped away at the tears suddenly trickling down his face.

And now, all that was left of them was Anti. Anti, the worst parts of each of them, now hell-bent on tormenting them. Maybe if they got rid of Anti, Marvin and Jackie could finally have some peace. In whatever came next.

He reached vaguely to the side. He needed a weapon, something suitable for defeating Anti. And surprisingly, his fingers wrapped around something. He pulled it back, feeling the item over with both hands. A pair of...scissors? Odd, but he supposed they were just a pair of knives attached together. He tried again, reaching to the side, this time thinking about a knife. And this time, he grabbed a kitchen knife. Huh. Apparently, he could summon things now, too. Though...was he actually just reaching through some kind of wormhole to grab something from somewhere else...?

Schneep shook his head. He’d figure it out later. For now...he was tired. And again, he needed to process this. He set the scissors and the knife down on the nearby table.

They needed a plan. They needed to be together. And Schneep needed more time to adjust to these new abilities. 

So that would be what he’d do next. He’d figure out how to use these powers to their best, find their strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. Then, when they came for Anti, he wouldn’t know what hit him.

With a sigh, Schneep closed his eyes. Yes, he’d be prepared for that day. It was coming soon.

[saundraswriting]

Need Some TLC Chapter 6: Gratitude

(I lied on the last chapter? I guess I had one more ready that needed formatted. Told you all I am freaking clueless.)

SUMMARY:You discover just how far these two men are willing to go for you. You wonder at your inability to portray your thanks, they seem to ignore your determination to be polite.

WARNINGS: None. 

Masterlist // Previous // Next

Your eyes popped open, your alarm jarring you to full awareness. You got out of bed and made your way into your apartment, the event of the previous day fuzzy and vague. Until you saw the Blue Planet case on the coffee table.

"Cool. Cool. Yesterday happened, for real. Captain America and The White Wolf broke down my door, in an attempt to save my life. Sort of. Then we had lunch and Captain Rogers replaced said door." You spoke to yourself. "Jeez, those two men." Your tone of exasperation was undermined by the fond smile you had. The apartment was clean enough when you went to bed but it somehow felt more lived in and looked more clean. You shrugged it off as morning fog. "Whatever, breakfast time." You walked to the fridge and saw the note left on the fridge.

"What. What? What?! Groceries? Tony? Tony Stark?" You asked the note in your hand. When it didn't answer-as expected-you shook it and threw it on the counter. You wrenched open the fridge, freezer and pantry. All three were full to bursting with food that was most definitely not there last night. Both made and not, and packaged and not. You knew your mouth was gaping open like a fly trap but You could only blink in awe and confusion, your hands trembling. Your cupboards were full of someone else's time money and effort. The most anyone has every done for you.

'Go thank them you idiot! Be polite.' Your manners snarled at you. The thought hit you in the face. You twitched and raced across the hall.

"Sargent Barnes! Captain Rogers! Open this door. Right now." You knocked frantically. You had a second to be thankful for the lack of neighbors. "Captain! Sargent!" You knock again.

Steve throws the door open, eyes wide. "Y/N! what is wrong? Are you okay? Do you need help?" Steve questioned. You pushed your way inside, ignoring his questions and muttered invitation.

"Where is the Sargent?" You ask. You turned in a slow circle, gaze never settling-searching.

"I'm right here, doll. Everything okay?" Bucky came out of the bathroom in only sweats, leaving his Wakandian arm on display. He was wiping away the shaving cream on his face but missed a spot by his ear. You quickly moved on, not wanting to lose you determination.

"Is Mr. Stark here? I would like if he was." You kept searching, trying to squash your nerves.

"Yes, for exactly one minute. Who is asking?" A man you could only assume was Mr. Anthony Edward Stark came out of Steve's room, thumbing at his phone.

"My name is Y/F/N Y/L/N. I am a nurse at Mercy Hospital. Mr. Stark, I want to thank you for helping these two men dote on me last night. It wasn't needed at all. But I greatly appreciate it." You looked at the other two men in the room. "I woke up to a spotless apartment, and more food then I will eat in a month probably. I-No one has ever stepped up to help me. No one has ever surprised me before with anything, let alone groceries. Honestly, Life is overwhelming and my coping mechanism is to work and work and work, then when I take a breath, I am lost. I have absolutely no idea how to thank you." You paused to blink quickly and sniff. "I can only offer myself. If you need a person for anything, a medical emergency, or an extra player for game night, or a warm ear to ramble to, I will be there." You made eye contact with the Captain and Sargent. Your pause made Tony look up for a half a second. "My door is always open and my coffee pot is always ready." You grew embarrassed by your heartfelt declaration, fidgeting with your hands.

"My, dear. A friend of Frostbite's and Capsicle, is definitely a friend of mine. Now you are positive about refusing F.R.I.D.A.Y.?" Tony for the first time since he came out of Steve's room made full eye contact.

You waved your hands in front of you. "Mr. Stark, No. I am just a nurse. You have much bigger fish to fry than a nurse who doesn't know when to quit." You rejected his offer politely.

"Very well. But if I or they deem it necessary then you lose. They scare me more than you." Tony grinned and shot you a saucy wink. "Now, boys and girl, some of us have day jobs. Chao." Tony waved at the soldiers and headed out. Captain Rogers and Sargent Barnes shouted their goodbyes just as the door shut.

You and Sargent Barnes turn simultaneously to look at Captain Rogers who was looked over from where he was staring at the door. "No. Absolutely not. Drop it. He helped last night a lot. We talked a lot about the girl-across-the-hall and then I sent him to sleep in my bed. God only know when he saw on last." Captain Rogers tried to end the discussion before it began. He pointed a finger authoritatively before stalking towards the kitchen.

"Yes, dad." You and Sargent Barnes chorused. Captain Rogers began getting things around for breakfast. Sargent Barnes joining him.

"Y/N, any interest in joining us for brunch?" Sargent Barnes offered. Captain Rogers smiled and nodded in agreement. You looked around, the facts settling in causing you embarrassment and anxiety. You had just barged into their apartment after demanding them to let you in to thank them aggressively for being so caring and thoughtful.

"Um. No. I think this is my cue to go, Sargent. Captain, sorry to ruin your morning. I don't want to impose or over-stay my welcome." You shake your head. Sargent Barnes glances over at you from where he is putting plates at the kitchen island.

"Y/N, I though we talked about this. I am Bucky, James is you must. And he is Steve, Steven if you must. We are friends, family. You don't have to be so formal. Relax a little." Bucky reminded you. You nodded once a jerky motion. Bucky and Steve could see your growing uneasiness. The looked at each other, in their moment of distraction you took a slow measured step backwards. You pushed down the feeling that you were running away, you would rather avoid any confrontation about your impulsivity. One step turned into two and two turned into three. Finally you could feel your fingers brush the doorknob.

" Bucky stepped in front of you, wanting to squash any miscommunication. His broad bare chest took up your entire field of vision. You were eye level with his collarbones. His scent of sage, cedar and sandalwood made your mouth water. You forced your gaze up higher and higher past his neck and jaw and lips to lock onto his steel-blue eyes. You felt warm and flushed, obviously your extended exposure to these men was not helping you build immunity to their looks as you thought. Bucky's eyes twinkled with mischief and you hoped he didn't know what reactions he caused you. But you knew he probably had some awareness about it with his enhanced senses. 'Can he see my pupils dilate? can he hear my heartrate pick up? My breathing? Can he smell my arousal?'

"Doll, we did that stuff as a thank you and an assurance that you are taken care of. You make my nights better just by knowing you are around. You accepted having Captain America and the Winter Solider leaving across the hall from you without even batting an eye. You just welcomed us into your life like it was no big deal. You reminded us what it means to be normal, and that means the word to me. We-I wanted to do this because you are the most important person to me. Maybe except Stevie over there." Bucky was rubbing your upper arms like he couldn't help but touch you, to push his thoughts into you, make you hear him, understand him.

"But yesterday, you risked your life to save me. Neither of you had any idea the fire was small. Then you fixed my door. Then you decided to provide me with at least a month maybe even more than that worth of food. And you expect nothing in return? I owe you." You tried to argue. Bucky was shaking his head before you even finished.

"Nope. You think we would let you sleep through a fire alarm? That is ridiculous. You could barely walk that morning. The door thing was just manners. and providing for you? That is just to help my state of mind. I won't worry about you so much. I know that you work too much and care for yourself too little. I can't not help. So you have no argument points." He flashed you a toothy smile, trying to relax you.

"Okay then, I guess I should just accept my fate as your girl. Not a bad thing, being Sargent Barnes' girl." You smile at him. "Captain, three eggs sunny side up! Please." You toss over Bucky's shoulder. If you thought you had seen Bucky happy before, it had nothing on the mega-watt smile he was wearing now. His eyes were bright and twinkling, teeth showing, you could even see dimples. You next breath was a half second late-snagged in your throat.

"My girl. That is right. Glad you have come to accept it." He laughed lightly before letting you go. You decidedly did not miss his warmth as the two of you went to sit at the island while Steve made you breakfast.

"Captain, may I ask something of you?" You looked up as Bucky slid you a coffee made exactly the way you like it. Steve hummed while poking at your eggs.

Please ask Mr. Stark out, This is getting sad. Take him to dinner, or coffee. I am not saying drop to one knee-"You stopped at Steve spluttered at you handing over your eggs. You dug in with gusto, needed to get ready for work. "People as smart as him, they need outlets. The need someone to listen as they ramble and talk for the sake of talking. People like him, get shut down a lot. No one wants to listen to the genius rant about something over their heads, they are seen as annoying or snooty. They get shut down a lot. They get easily ignored. Sometimes just having someone listen to them is enough to make a connection." You stood up and rinsed your plate putting it in the dishwasher. "If I may be so bold, you have been given two people to love. Do not squander your second chance." You patted his shoulder and upon seeing what time it was gasped. "I have to go. I am scheduled till 3am, hopefully. Bye Steve! Bye Bucky!" The sound of the door shutting and your dishes in the dishwasher was the only sign that you were there at all.

Bucky blinked at the now closed door and tucked back into his food. He shot a glance to Steve every few minutes. 'Battle plans in nanoseconds but working out feelings will take 7-10 business days.' "Steve, I know you have to rethink every interaction you have had with Tony but we also have to go to the compound later for our classes." Bucky gently reminded his best friend. Steve nodded and hummed in agreement. Bucky just rolled his eyes and began tidying up the apartment.

A few days have passed since your impromptu breakfast with the two super-soldiers. Your bosses had spoken to you about 6 12 hour days rather than 5 8 hour days this week. You gladly accepted because with 32 hours of overtime and each 4 hour shift being 100 cash bonus. Your bills would be paid easily.

'Especially with all those groceries the boys got for me.' You were getting ready for your fourth 12 hour day with some hesitation. You worked a 'catch all' unit, and lately it has been rough goings. The ICU and Med-Surg units had been busy so you had some hard patients to deal with, tracheostomies and chest tubes and packing wounds and IVs and...and...and...You were getting tired. Being the most senior nurse on the floor for the evening shift you had to help the others a lot. Which was fine for you, nursing is a team-effort after all, didn't make you less tired though. Honestly, the long hours helped with that, you knew everything you needed to know, working on muscle memory to get through parts of your shift.

You knew just in the four days you had lost weight, you didn't have time to eat during your shifts, relying on water to keep you going. you were barely think straight as you left your apartment. You stumbled out of the door, drinking a protein shake, cursing yourself vividly. You were going to be late at this rate. You swung your bag hard onto your shoulder not registering the slight resistance it meet. You were busy locking your door and mentally checking your pockets.

"Not even going to apologize for assaulting me with your bag?" A gruff voice interrupted your thoughts.

"Hmm. Sorry, my bad." You tossed over your shoulder having decided you were good to go. You turned around to see Sargent Barnes beside you. "Sargent Barnes! How are you? I've missed you lately. Been busy at work, the both of us." You said, grinning up at him.

"Hello, Y/N. Nice to see you too. We were working at the compound, Avenger-ing has been keeping us on our toes. But we both are okay. Now, are you going to apologize to me properly?" Bucky leaned against the wall next to your door, arms loosely crossed, eyes fixed on your face. He could see the weight loss in your face-cheeks gaunt-eyes dull and glazy, bags large and dark purple.

Your face scrunched up in confusion for a moment before clearing. "It was you? I'm sorry. I am bit in the clouds, I am on day four of 6 12's. It isn't easy right now, census is high on the floor. are you hurt?" You swiftly began running your fingers over his chest and shoulders and arms trying to discern any injury.

"Now, doll, as much as I would love to sit here and have you touch me all day. I can promise ya, that little tap from your bag ain't gonna hurt me. Now, are you eating okay? Do you have a decent lunch packed? What about water?" Bucky was quick to turn the mother hen card on you. He couldn't handle you touching him so innocently so suddenly.

You stepped back, warmth coloring your cheeks. "I think I am late. I am going to leave instead of disappointing you with my answers. you continued backing up not looking away from Bucky and him not looking away from you.

"Y/N, you need to take care of yourself. I can see you lost weight just in these few days." Bucky lectured. You sent him a small smile.

"Bucky, thank you. For caring, I promise, I am fine. This isn't the first time this has happened. I eat a bit, but too much stress caffeine and sleep deprivation leads to limited appetites. I don't have that much time to eat when I am on shift anyway. I do have to go though. Tell everyone I said 'Hi!'. Text me, we'll hang out. You darted into the elevator and were gone in seconds.

Bucky sighed deeply and reached his hand into his hair and gave it a good yank out of frustration. You were ignoring your bodily needs again. He also couldn't shake the sensation of your fingertips slipping over his clothes. You hadn't even batted an eye at touching his left arm. His arm hadn't been a source of insecurities for a while now, but it always caught him off guard when someone accepted it with no thoughts. He entered his and Steve's apartment obviously distracted.

"Bucky, you're back. What took so long?" Steve asked. He had a smirk curling in the corner of his mouth.

"You know what stopped me. Y/N did. She was leaving for work. we chatted a bit and she left." Bucky didn't want to tell Steve how the conversation went. It was between you and him. He could tell the two of you were getting closer and didn't want to jeopardize that with Steve's input. Bucky also knew that Steve knew you two had talked, even if he didn't listen in-he had to have heard you.

Bucky heading into his room to change out of his jeans and into sweats. They had no where to go and nothing to do. Bucky got settled in the living room, him and Steve discussing you and their jobs and which item on the List they would check out today. "I am going to do something for her. Maybe bring her some lunch later?" Bucky mused. Steve voiced his agreement, Bucky got to planning.

You went to work. You dashed from room to room to room, changing tubes and dressing and passing medications. You only sat twice; once to go to the bathroom and once to chug a whole bottle of water. Evenings were always busy, you tried to help the other nurses and your aides as much as possible but with the intensity of the level of care right now, it took everything you had to do your job. Finally after several nonstop hours you could take a breather. you were tired and dehydrated and nauseous. It was almost nine and you still had 6 more hours. You still had to chart and begin the discharges for tomorrow-two pleasantly confused fall victims from a local nursing home. Tank goodness, you were here for a few more hours.

You had killed 3 hours with paperwork, You were pointedly ignoring the clock, you had a feeling that it wouldn't be telling you good news. That minute your supervisor walked up to the desk with an apologetic look on her face. You signed and nodded. "What is 4 more hours. I'll stay. However, this is getting old. She isn't showing up for the extra hours she should be stopped from getting them. I know for a fact Annabelle needs some OT. Ask her maybe?"

"Thank you. I will keep that in mind and shoot an email. It's another $100." He shrugged before walking away. You heaved a sigh and darted off for more coffee.

6:30 AM, light turning on made you jump. To help everyone almost all  the lights on your floor turned off, pardon some recess lighting in the ceiling. The housekeeping and Dietary staff were doing their rounds. The sight of disgruntled, coffee-sucking, barely-awake people gave you hope that your bed was soon coming. You were so patient, waiting at the desk for your relief to come in. You had been pushing back tears for several hours now. You had the entire unit to yourself and 4 aides. three people had fallen and one ripped their stitches open. You had completely checked out, staring blankly and bleary-eyed at your computer screen, waiting for the blessed phrase-

"Good Morning!" The chipper voice jerked you out of your fugue state. You blinked and blinked again. There sitting so bright-eyed and bushy-tailed was your relief. Sarah was a pleasant morning person type. "Another 16? Y/N, you must be crazy. You'll kill yourself at this point."

You waved off her concern. "Nope, just broke. I have bills to pay. My rent isn't cheap. Anyway, what beds? I had em all." You grabbed your report sheet, hoping you can read it.

Sarah told you who had what beds. You could see concern still lingering in her eyes. "I can't believe the whole unit was yours."

"Yeah, Beth called off and Jude was pulled to another unit. They know I can handle it. I take it and do okay. My fingers are ready to fall off and it was a terrible night." You two waited for the last nurses to come in and you quickly handed off your patients, "Good thing about all the hours? Report is quick. See you at three." You gathered your things and booked it out of the hospital.

You got in the elevator and shook off your tiredness to make it to your place. Your place, where the door was ajar, but not broken, and you could here two familiar voices arguing.

"I have no idea. What did she say yesterday?" The first voice said, higher pitch than the other, Steve.

"She said day 4 of 6 12's. It has been longer than that! Something could be wrong. Something could have happened. She could be hurt, Steve. This voice was deeper and gruff, steady but stress had it cracking. Bucky.

Bucky, it's Y/N. She is a nurse. Sometimes emergencies happen. Did you try calling her?" Steve was as usual the voice of reason.

"Her phone goes to voicemail." Bucky sounded so lost and defeated. "If something happened...I can't...Steve." Bucky was trying to keep his composure. You couldn't really stomach these two wonderful men worrying about you to this level. You gently pushed the door open. "Well at least my door is still intact." At your comment the two super soldiers whipped to face you so fast your neck hurt.

"Y/N!" They chorused. Steve stepped closer, looking you over with a practiced eye. Bucky stepped right in front of you, reaching out and running his hands over your head and back and arms, checking for injury. You allowed it, not like you had a choice.

So what can I help you boys with?" You stripped off you shoes and bags, putting you lunch bag on the counter. You were so tired but didn't want to kick them out until they were satisfied with your safety.

Bucky watched as you put everything away, a sluggishness and lack of motor control telling him how tired you were. "You didn't come home when you said you were going to. I got worried. I know you are cautious and careful but other people aren't."

"Sorry my relief called off. I needed to stay. My phone died around 2. I didn't bring a charger." You explained. Bucky and Steve nodded. "It happens quite a bit." You muse aloud. "I will put your numbers in my bag somewhere..." You trailed off. Bucky knew you would forget this conversation even happened, so he would take care of it for you. 'Maybe Tony would give you a StarkPhone. As an added safety measure.'

"I'm sorry, I didn't know that you need to be kept updated." You said. Your petulant tone but them on edge.  Bucky pursed his lips. He and Steve knew that you had been alone a lot. You never felt that you had people to help support you.

"No. You don't need to ask us for permission. You can do what you want. I wanted to see you last night when you came home-or rather this morning. As your friend and neighbor, updates are nice but not necessary. I worry. That is all. I may have overreacted." Bucky said, he ran his hand through his hair.

"No. You aren't controlling me. You are asking as my friend to have me check in. I used to do it to my classmates and such in college. Nothing different. In your line of work a missed check in can be devastating. I should be more understanding. We are friends and neighbors, we need to communicate. I will try to do better." You sighed and smiled. You walked over to Bucky and pulled him into a tight embrace. Bucky froze for a millisecond and squeezed back, relishing in your warmth and softness. He pulled away and you took a step back to pull Steve into a similar embrace. "I am the luckiest gal in the world. To have you two caring after me." You looked between your guys.

"I'll try not to panic so quickly. Now, you have been up long enough, sweets. Why don't you head to bed? Steve has to head to SHEILD for a meeting. I was hoping that maybe I could--" Yu cut off Bucky before he could finish.

"Bed. Yes. Now. You? Stay, please? Bye, Stevie" You nodded once at the two men. Steve twitching at the nickname. "I don't mind you staying while I nap. I could use the company." Your end of the shift adrenaline was fading very fast, leaving you tired, unbalanced, and drained.

"Very well. Night, Y/N. See you two later." Steve headed out the door, locking it on his way out. Bucky pulled out a documentary to watch, and you headed to bed-stripping out of your scrubs before leaving Bucky's eyesight. In a flash averted his eyes, preserving your modesty.

After your nap you stumbled out of bed and paused looking between the bathroom and the kitchen. You weren't sure where you wanted to go first.

"Afternoon. I wanted to thank you." Bucky interrupted your debate.

"Thank me for what?" You answered, mentally shrugging off your shower until you were done talking.

"Not many people like me. Even at work. You accepted me wholly. Thank you for that. You have been there through a lot. MY rehabilitation and acclimation. I am glad Steve and I found you." Bucky sent a grin at you from the kitchen. Just like the last time it made your breath catch in your throat. He was so unbelievably handsome. You had always know that from an academic standpoint but lately, it was haunting every interaction you had with him.

Sargent Barnes, Bucky, I am glad you found me too. My family-we don't get along well. Even less so since I decided to move to New York and go to school and get into healthcare. I like to think I don't need anyone but no one should be alone. Not a workaholic nurse or a 100 year old human experiment volunteer, or a victim of 7 decades of torture and evil brainwashing or a multi-billionaire CEO. I want to help people heal mentally, emotionally, physically. People include you and the others and everyone else." You were steady. You peered at him, like you could see every thought and insecurity that passed through his head and were going to single handedly rip them out and stomp on them.

Bucky froze at your earnest declaration. He tuned to you, his pulse quickened in his chest. He knew he was supposed to answer you but he was still processing your words. You in one statement made him feel like he deserved to be here. He knew he was far from healed but he was doing better than ever and it was thanks to you and your unconditional love for him and Steve and people. A love he would spend every day being thankful for. 'I am in love with you,' He thought, desperate. You loved him enough to see through him, and his monstrous past. He decided then and there he would make you see how much he loved you.

You saw Bucky hesitate and decided to end the conversation, seeing it was making him uncomfortable, or so you assumed. "Did you finish Blue Planet? Also I need to shower. I have another 12 hour shift that will probably become a 16 hour shift. So I won't be home until 3 or 7 in the morning. You began hurrying around your apartment gathering your gear and clothes for the day.

“I did. I loved it. The ocean is so scary but cool at the same time. How was your nap? Hurry and shower, I will pack your lunch and make a grilled cheese." Bucky nudged you towards the bathroom. It was all sickeningly domestic and you didn't want to think those thoughts too much.

"Great. I will need some coffee and I will be good to go. A girl could get used to all this constant providing and coddling." You laughed and shut the bathroom door.

"Anything for you, doll. Anything for you." Bucky murmured before starting on lunch for the two of you.

You flew through your shower before sitting down and wolfing down a sandwich and chasing it with coffee made exactly how you like it. "I am going to be late." You raced around gathering your lunch bag and work bag trying to put your shoes on at the same time. "Bye, Sargent Barnes. See you tomorrow." Yu slammed the door shut, thoughts of how much Bucky was growing to mean to you swirling through your head-distracting you. You mad it three steps  when Bucky opened your door.

"Y/N! Your keys and name tag!" He yelled at your back. You turned around and snatched them from his hand. Functioning on sleep deprivation and coffee and adrenaline, you stretched up on tiptoes and kissed his cheek "Thanks, hun." And you were gone. Bucky blinked at you but you had already vanished. He placed his fingertips where your lips just were and smiled. He knew that you didn’t mean it but that didn’t mean he would treasure the feel of you lips on his cheek.

The day passed slowly. You came back after your 8 hours off to find several people were discharged and no one was scheduled to come in today. To pass the time you texted Bucky some of the things your pleasantly confused geriatric patients were saying to you. You texted him about some frustrations with healthcare. He answered every message, actively listening and giving support. You texted him to tell him an aide came in with a possible flu case and didn't wear a mask cause "She didn't feel that sick". With her sick you needed to pick up the rest of your week 11-7 for aide shifts. However, your boss's boss came down and gave you an extended weekend and another $500 in bonuses.

"She is absolutely crazy. Crazy I tell you." Bucky said. Steve looked up from them book he was reading.

"What is she on trouble?" Steve asked. Bucky shook his head. He and Steve had talked about what had happened before she left for work. Bucky knew that Steve would be supportive, had been pushing for this for a while. But Bucky was nervous, he was going to take this slow. It wasn't anything he wanted to rush. He had waited this long, he could be patient.

"she has to do more 16 hour shifts cause someone came in possibly with the flu. She has been busier than usual on the floor and hasn't been eating. I can practically smell the caffeine in her blood." Bucky ranted. He had decided the other day to tell Steve what had been happening between the two of you. Bucky hadn't been one to keep things from Steve and he wasn't going to start now. He also could use another perspective. Steve agreed with his slow and steady method for now.

Steve smiled into his book. Since Bucky admitted his feelings to himself, his mother hen instinct was honed in on you with a vengeance. It was a nice turn of pace from it being honed in on him. "Oh, poor Y/N. Well, she'll come to us if she needs us. Now let her work. Us and Sam and Nat were going to lunch remember." Steve put away his book and swatted at his friend's head.

The next few days passed in a similar manner. You stumbled home at 8-ish to collapse promptly in your bed and sleep until it was time to get up for your next shift. You were tired. Tired down to your toes. Every day though Bucky was in your place working on lunch and coffee. You were in awe. No one had ever been around to help with your workaholic tendencies got the better of you. Bucky helped keep you fueled with more than willpower and sugar. He helped keep you healthy. The last 5 days had been spent working 16 hour shifts and on one memorable occasion 20 hours. This was the most you worked in recent months and the least amount of staffing.

However tired to you were it finally came- you day off. Finally you achieved your first day off out of the 3 that were given to you by your floor's  supervisor. You had worked 20 hours to get to this moment and you could cry you were so tired. The world was fuzzy around the edges but moved too fast to track. You jaw felt loose and you were positive you had been drooling at one point. You tongue was heavy and clumsy. The few words you tired came out broken and slurred. You were wheezing, unable to catch your breath. You were shivering constantly even though you felt warm. You stomach rolled violently anytime to paused to catch your breath. You were at the elevator-waiting to go up. You could see your reflection, you hair stood up all over, you panted trying to keep from puking and passing out in turn. You had a gray tinged to your skin. 'Amy did come in sick. Could I have caught it?'

The elevator opened on your floor with the super soldiers. You dug out your keys and the bight red one caught your eye as it reflected the light.. Th last time you were tired to this point you had slept through a fire. You stepped down the hall, still thinking if you should use it.

In Bucky and Steve's apartment, they and Sam and Natasha and Clint and Wanda and Pietro were enjoying lunch and some board games. Bucky was looking at his phone every 5 minutes.

"Dude, what are you waiting for?" Sam asked.

"Y/N. She has worked a lot this week, 4 16 hour days and one 20 hour day. She is supposed to be home already, for her weekend off. She's usually back round 8. it is past noon. She isn't doing great. I am worried." Bucky spoke to his phone willing it to vibrate with a text.

"Bucky, your girl is fine. She's tired. Probably home asleep already. She is a nurse, give her credit." Natasha said.

"I know. But she isn't mine. I love her, but she isn't used to attention. I don't want to scare her off. Anyway, I am going to start lunch.

Bucky stood up and everyone froze to the sound of a key in the lock.

"Steve! She is coming here?! Quick! Make some room on the couch!" Bucky and Steve jumped up. Steve clearing a path to the couch to prevent you tripping. And Bucky pulled out a shirt and sweats for you to wear and grabbing his pillow and a small blanket for you to use on the couch. He knew you would pass out instantly.

They finished just as their door swung open.

Masterlist // Previous // Next

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So? Longer chapter, I know it is seeming to rush here but I promise I fixed the pacing in the next chapter. I wrote most of this sleep-deprived in the small hours of my own 16 hour shifts.

[howardpotts]

A New Message

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader

Summary: You decide to tease Steve, but it takes a whole other turn and you end up having phonesex.

Warnings: smut 

A/N: The ending is really bad, I’m sorry!! :(( Let me know what you think! I always love comments!

As your shopping bags hang awkwardly on your lower arm, you try to open the door of your apartment with your key. At the same time, your neighbour decides to come out. He’s a cranky old man who always wears pyjamas. His hair grey and ruffled, stank always surrounding him.

He looks at you with big eyes while he walks past you, observing how you keep failing at opening your door. “Hello Mr. Brown”, you say while not letting your eyes go from the door. He doesn’t answer. He never does.

When you finally feel the key going in the lock, you sigh out of relieve. Your eyes now wander to your neighbour, but he’s already around the corner. You roll your eyes slightly, but your attention is back on the key. You turn your hand to the right, the key going with your movement. The lock is off the door and so you kick in the door. The door flies open and hits the wall. You flinch, squeezing your eyes, hoping that there’s no hole in the wall.

Your apartment is old. Everything works, but at every end of every day you preach that nothing stopped working. When you step inside, you hear the wood crack under your shoes. Most people would get that replaced, but for you it felt like coming home. It felt like the apartment welcomed you back.

You drop the four shoppingbags on the floor, a relieve washing over you. Finally home. You inhaled deeply, the musty scent entering your nose. And finally ready for you to watch the movie you so desperately wanted to see since it appeared on Netflix two weeks ago.

Just when you settled down on the couch, you see your phone lightning up on the coffeetable. Quickly you grab it; it could be Steve. He’s touring the world right now with Tony to deal with a few politicians who didn’t agree with something. It was a complicated story, but it was necessary for them to go and talk to them face to face.

Steve was having a hard time. He might be a super soldier, but he hated talking to all those politicians. He wanted to do mission, be out on the field. The urge to just get some action instead of sitting in a chair, energy nowhere to go.

Miss you.

So adorable. He knew how to text and such, but he was still learning. Most of the times he called you, because text felt not that personal. You just nodded, knowing better than to get in to a discussion how sending a ‘I love you more than pizza’ is considered very romantic in this era of time.

miss you too xx

You hit send with a little smile on your face. Every time you had just a little bit of contact, your mood changed completely. Where you first were grumpy and tired, you’re now happy and energetic.

The two of you messaged back and forth, about how both of your days were. The way Steve texted you had you chuckling. It was static as if he was giving very formal updates. He told you that he didn’t mind that you didn’t text him back with proper grammar, but he felt uncomfortable doing it himself.

Can you tell him to stop texting so we can start preparing for tomorrow? Thank you dear.

Tony send you the text and two seconds after, a picture appeared on your screen. Apparently Tony snaked a photo of Steve. It had you biting your bottom lip. He was wearing a three-piece suit. Light grey with a white blouse underneath it. It was perfectly fitted. He was placed on a couch, his arm loosely hanging over the armrest. His right leg was thrown over the other, showing a bit of his black sock. You noticed that he loosened up his tie, which was now messily hanging around his neck.

And he wasn’t looking at Tony, he was looking at his phone. A small smirk on his face, a glint in his eyes. The fact that you knew he was texting you, made your heart jump. That he was looking like that while typing in some message on his phone, made you hungry for attention.

And you, on the other hand, weren’t wearing your best clothes. When you woke up this morning, you scrapped a pair of jeans and some top that had the text  ‘nope’ on it of the floor and put it on your body. The only thing you did put a bit of effort in, was your make-up.  But just a bit.

why didnt you tell me that you were wearing a suit? looks good on you

You know he’s with Tony and you know he has important business to discuss, but you couldn’t help yourself but test the captain on his texting skills. With that in mind, you walk in to the bedroom.

-

Steve’s eyebrow quirks up while he reads your message. How did you know that he was wearing a suit? His eyes went from his phone to Tony, only to be met with a grin on his face.

“Ah, did Y/N finally tell you to put your phone away?” Tony stuffs his phone in his pockets and opens the map full with paperwork. A little sigh left Steve’s mouth. He doesn’t mind the paperwork, but he does mind that it’s not from a mission but from a formal meeting. That’s not something he was carved out for to do. He was carved to fight crime and stopping some bullies.

Steve drops his phone next to him, his eyes on the papers in front of him. “Okay, so tomorrow we’re going to meet with the Spanish minister of Foreign Affairs”, Tony started. Steve nodded, now reforming his trail of thoughts. Turning whining in to business. He did it for the Avengers and himself, for them to keep fighting and to keep the world from big dangers.

When his phone lit up, his attention was gone and Tony noticed. “Cap, come on, two more minutes.” Tony’s voice was leaking in annoyance, as if he was discussing this important matter with a child. Steve, on the other hand, already unlocked his phone, only to lock it after two seconds and his eyes slightly bigger. He corrected himself quickly, turning to the papers again. “Continue.”

Tony shook his head while rolling his eyes, but kept his mouth shut about it and continued. He wanted to get it over with as much as Steve wanted to. “As I was saying..”

Steve wasn’t listening at all to what he was saying. His mind was still on the photo he just saw in your messaging box. It was a picture of you, lying in bed. The photo showed til your belly button. The only thing you were wearing, was a red bra. Laced and dangerously low. A mischievous smile hangs on your face, your eyes are playful. Your hair is spread on the pillow, but in such way that even that looks appealing to him. He wants to go through your hair, tug it while kissing you.

“Tony”, Steve interrupted. He never was one to shove work to the side, but he wasn’t processing any information that was given to him. Tony stops talking and looks at him, blood probably boiling. “What now?”, he says irritated. He ticks with his fingers on the table impatiently.

“Can’t we do this tomorrow morning? I’m tired, you’re tired. We live in each other’s pockets for days now”, Steve sighs. It’s true, they’ve been very irritated with each other lately. But the real reason Steve’s concentration is gone, will never come out of his mouth.

-

The message was seen within two seconds, but no response yet. You weren’t sure if he was busy or shocked, but the fact that he saw the picture had you grinning. You were still laying on your bed in the same redlaced bra, scrolling slowly through your social media. Even though he hasn’t responded yet, you had high hopes he might respond in a few minutes. You just had to be patient.

The minutes slowly tick by, making you more and more impatient. You go to the conversation between you and Steve again, hoping it’d pop up the moment you opened your chat. But it didn’t. Nothing happened.

With a huff you get yourself off the bed, too impatient to wait any longer. With nothing but a bra and panties on, you walk to the couch, grabbing a soft blanket and wrapping it around you.

Ping! Your phone let you know you had a message and you couldn’t be quicker to reach for it. Steve.

That makes me miss you even more.

Hm. Not the response you wanted to get. You might want to- Holy crap. Another message appears on your screen. It’s a photo. His hair is a bit ruffled in this one, as if he didn’t bother to get it right for the picture. Or maybe, he wanted it to be ruffled. He knows how much you like it messy. But you like it because most of the time you’re the one that caused it to look like that. Most of the time, it was after sex.

His blue eyes pierce through the camera right in your soul, they’re screaming sex. But the thing that catches your eyes the most, is that he’s shirtless. You did not expect to receive a shirtless photo from Captain America, but damn, you’re not complaining. His right hand is under his head, left is taking the selfie. He just made a shirtless selfie and you don’t know how to react to it.

You stare at the picture for a minute, still taking in what you’re seeing, before you jump in to action to respond. You decided to test his boundaries, to see how far this can go. And so, you lay on your belly, elbows holding you up. Your arms squeeze your boobs together, your ass pushed in the air. You open your camera-app and take another selfie, making it way more sexy than the first you sent.

When you send the picture, you add a quick message:

wish you were here right now..

You feel a bit nervous sending those things, but at the same time it had you smiling like crazy. You felt like a teen who did something their parents told them not to. And you loved it.

Maybe five seconds after you send the picture, your phone buzzes again, but multiple times. He’s calling you. Oh god, he’s calling you. That can’t be good. Or maybe it is?

With your heart pounding in your chest, you pick up the phone. “Hey sweetie”, you say innocently, a small nervous smile on your face. You shift uncomfortably on the couch.

“Drop the sweetie, doll”, he replied, voice husky and low, causing you to get goose bumps all over your body. You keep your mouth shut, not knowing what to say.

“You think you can send me pictures like that without consequences?”, he asks. You nod, but you know he can’t see. If you know he could, you would not have been nodding.

“No”, you giggle. You can’t hide how nervous but excited you are for this new thing you just discovered. You sent him dirty pics and he likes it.

“When I get home, I want you on the bed, naked and ready for me. Understood?” It’s not a question, but a command.

“Yes, sir”, you answer. You’re not talking much, but whenever it comes to sex, you’ve always been like this. You just tell him yes or no, you mostly beg for him to do something and when he finally does, you let yourself hear in moans instead of words.

“Good girl. Now, since I’m not there for another week, why don’t you touch yourself for me?” You gasp at the question. Is this going to be phonesex? Are you really going to do that?

“O-okay”, you respond. You let your hand kneed your left boob. The hand slowly slides under your bra, pinching your nipples a few times. It makes you breath harder and Steve notices.

“Tell me doll, what are you doing?”, he asks with the same husky voice. He’s definitely enjoying this, you can tell from his voice.

“I- I’m rubbing my nipple”, you say. Where Steve’s voice sounds like he had done it a million times before, yours sounded surprised and not convinced at all.

“Hmm, good girl. Are you wet for me, baby?”, he asks. You hum in response. “That’s good baby, that’s really good.”

“Steve?”, you ask unsure. A small ‘hmm’ comes from the other side of the line. “Are you touching yourself too?”

A chuckle in response. “Yes, doll. Do you like that?”, he asks. You swallow hard. He’s touching himself right now, just like you are touching yourself. It’s a situation you never thought you would be in. Not that he was vanilla in bed, but now you felt like you were outdone by a 100 year old man.

“Yes, yes I like that”, you hiss. Your hand let go of your breasts and slowly makes it way down, making sure to lightly touch your belly. You close your eyes and feel how you’re getting more into the moment.

“Going to finger”, you say with a whisper but more confident than you had this entire conversation. You hear a bit of a shuffle on the other side of the line and a small ‘ah’ after it.

“Do that, baby. Yes, do that. Make yourself feel good.” And with that, you slip your hand in your panties. Now that Steve isn’t here, he can’t stop you or tease you, so you decide to go straight to the point where you want your fingers to be.

You start rubbing your clit, making you moan harder in to the phone. You get a little growl in return and hear a smacking sound in the background. He’s jerking himself off. And you can hear it. It turns you on so vividly, making you moan out loud once more.

A finger enters in you and hurriedly goes in and out of you, a second quickly joins. You close your eyes and let your head hit the armrest. In your head, you try to imagine it’s Steve, but it doesn’t even feel close to him. His fingers are bigger, rougher, better.

“Steve..”, you moan, letting him know you’re thinking about him.

“Fuck, Y/N. You’re such a dirty girl. Are you going to come for me?” The slapping sound on the other line is now harder and quicker. It’s such a filthy sound, echoing through the room. You can only imagine what he looks like right now. Eyes full of lust, legs spread a little, his big hand around his cock while he’s talking to you.

“Yes. Oh yes”, you say while getting your fingers out and rubbing your clit again. You can feel that you’re close. Legs are starting to shake, hips are bucking on your fingers.

“I- I’m gonna come, sir, I wanna come. I need you to come, please, come with me”, you ramble fast. It’s a miracle Steve understood what you said and he answers quickly.

“I’m gonna-“ He doesn’t even finish his sentence. It’s the last thing you need to be send over the edge. A pleasure explodes all over your body, moans coming out of your mouth. Steve’s moaning as well, your name falling of his lips. It makes your orgasm a bit more powerful, but nowhere near the feeling when the two of you are having sex.

You both slowly come down from your orgasms, both breathing heavily in to the phone, not saying a word to each other. The first who says something is Steve, after a solid minute of silence. “Did you like that, honey?”

“Yes, I did. I never expected you to…”, you don’t finish your sentence, but he knows what you mean. “I might be an old man, but I’m in for adventures. Especially if they’re as great as those.”

You chuckle and clamp the soft blanket around you again. “I really miss you, though”, you say with a bit of sadness in your voice. There’s a small sigh on the other line. “I miss you too.”

“I’m sorry if I kept you from doing your work”, you admit. You were sorry, because you know how important it is what he’s doing. He’s having a hard time and you’re not making it easier with your ‘distractions’.

“Oh, don’t you dare think that an easy apology will prevent me from punishing you when I come back.”

________________________________________

Tagging few of my maingirls: (let me know if you wanna be added)

@buckysthot @tranquil--heart @thamuddagirl @cametobuyplums 

[troybarnesbucky]

I woke up and decided to analyze each 9-1-1 pairing with regards to timing and also buddie

I just woke up and all im gonna say right now is this: this is long-winded but basically it takes a look at all the relationships on 9-1-1 and compare the timing and level of intimacy to that of buck and eddie’s relationship. 

at the end of season 1 of 911 I remember watching and realizing they were gonna push the whole bobby and athena relationship, and I was surprised, because I didnt think there was any preamble or much hinting to it. but I guess it made sense to me - they were both single, both in the same social circle, they got along. sure, made sense. and then season 2 comes along and they’re smack dab in the middle of their relationship and we have zero time to adjust to it as an audience, but once again, we quickly did (mind you, I did not watch it live as intently as a fan would, but I do recall a lot of episodes because my mom watches the show and I remembered a lot when I was catching up myself). at this point bobby and athena are happily married and I really do love them together, genuinely.

then, maddie comes along and there’s a bit more to the story. she has a lot going on, a lot she’s been through and we spend much of her first season getting to know her and watching her confront her past and create her own present. chimney had a bit of a rough start with relationships (.... tatiana, sorry love, but you could’ve had it all sis). her and chimney start out as friends but it’s very clear from their blossoming friendship that the writers intend for us to want a relationship for them, and we DO. because theyre adorable together and genuinely have so much chemistry and they’re good for one another. it’s a bit of a slowburn but we get there eventually, so much so that in the season 3 finale, we find out maddie is pregnant! which yes, did make me cry shut up. 

hen and karen had a rough start. even if they did look happy, they went through a ton of shit in the first and second season, especially the first season. which is fair; hen cheated on karen, and a large part of her storyline revolved around her ex and having to fight for denny. but there’s so much love between them, and a heavy history that is palpable through the screen. by the time season 2 comes around, they are a bit more grounded, and more so by the time season 3, too. it was interesting to think about their relationship is comparison to the others, which we watched blossom in real time. especially in season 3, because we see their love and support of one another during their attempt to have another child, and yes I also did cry when they met nia for the first time and no I will not elaborate. hen also went through a lot of shit this season; karen, despite what she went through, was and continues to be super wonderful and supportive, if a bit wary (but its okay because drunk karen and chim was a gift and we were well fed) for a second. their relationship is everything and also karen carries the whole show’s sense of humor on her back, I said what I said. 

then we have three more main relationships: michael and athena’s, which is over in episode 1; buck and abby (im not counting ali because genuinely she was in three episodes, im only looking at the main relationships for each character), which starts and ends in season 1; and eddie and shannon, which technically starts before season 1 and kinda ends in season 2 but then she dies. 

personally I dont think there’s much to add about michael and athena’s relationship. firstly, michael is a doll and if they hurt him in season 4 I will riot. but more so, the show gave us a LOT to work with in terms of their past relationship. also, it was interesting as a viewer, to learn about them from the bottom up. we see the tail-end of their romantic relationship and watch it get replaced with a genuine love and care for each other and their family. it’s a stark contrast to what a lot of shows on television would go for; it has a bit of rough, bumpy start, but by midway through season 2, they’re both on steady ground in terms of personal family life, and it’s actually a breath of fresh air. their dynamic is heavily surrounded by love for family, and we love love love that. 

I think with abby and buck we all liked it a little, at the start. buck was sweet to her and we see a change in attitude and an effort from buck that is clear to have never been made before. abby is also a pretty admirable character; she takes care of her mother, is incredible at her job as a dispatcher, and she struggles with maintaining personal relationships but still gives it a go with buck. and buck, from the start to end of the season, grows a lot, both independently from and surrounding their relationship. as a viewer I watched the show way later on, so I knew abby was leaving and honestly, I really did like her and their chemistry. as we go into season 2, we have buck, who is still living in abby’s place, and then the introduction of eddie.

so here’s the thing; this is where I was trying to get to. the show (the writers) made and continue to make interesting character and relationship choices. with eddie and shannon, there is a very clear closeness and chemistry between them that yes, does get revamped for a little. there is also history, which is very important and can’t be disregarded. but more than anything, we are looking at timing in this meta. eddie comes along in season 2 and there are a lot of things happening: hen and karen are getting back to normal, athena and bobby are suddenly dating, buck and abby are - despite what buck thinks - very over, and chim is single and ready to pringle, plus maddie is new and freshly separated from d*ug. as we go through season 2, we see development with athena and bobby, very clearly on their way to a stable relationship and marriage. hen and karen are working through things, we don't really doubt their relationship either. both maddie and chimney are single, and they become friends, and we very quickly, as viewers, realize where the writers are taking us and what they want us to think. 

so now im gonna get on my clown shit when I talk about buck and eddie. specifically, regarding the writers and their timing and why I think they’re either really stupid or actually very smart.

listen, everyone loves slowburn. hell, I'm writing a buddie au that will probably end up being like, upwards of 80k words and it’s gonna be a slowburn. buck, at the beginning of season 2, is in denial. im not gonna go through details but I will say that like..... okay, he’s heartbroken and thats fair. eddie, through means of “what a man,” is introduced and within one fell swoop, buck is immediately jealous and then like, twenty four hours later, they’re besties. tea. totally fair. in terms of timing, especially regarding relationships, there really aren’t many things to note: buck goes through that weird thing with taylor kelly, eddie goes through his drama with shannon, and when shannon wants a divorce, it kinda all goes to shit. by the end of season 2, we have buck trying to move on (and also nearly dying by means of a firetruck but thats not my point but also writers wtf) and dating ali (guys how do you spell her name lol) while eddie deals with the aftermath of his (ex, technically but I don't know if its mean to say that) wife. there are more than a few moments between buck and eddie that hint to a potential romance and feelings, like the santa scene and multiple others. then, season 3 is very very interesting. 

buck and ally(? seriously I don't know) are broken up, eddie is focused on christopher and actually, also buck, and then the tsunami happens. there is also not much going on in terms of other relationships on the show; maddie and chim get their shit together while also having a crazy season starting and ending with talking about having kids with a brief intermission of “I cant say I love you” and nearly dying on both parts and albert appears lol (and then disappears, too?? wtf). athena and bobby are pretty cool, hen and karen are trying for kids and hen wants to be a doctor. we have some others, like josh, who go through too much shit for my liking and deserve better, and michael, who...... deserves the world. 

okay. cleared that up. but timing-wise, if we look at the writers and their regard for timing, then we see this: any time two characters are single and there’s an ounce of friendship even hinted, they end up together. fine, that’s fair to say because we’ve seen it, right? after the tsunami, which is a WHOLE OTHER thing im not getting into, we have the lawsuit, eddie fighting, lena bosko (yall can be mad but she was hella cool), hen killing that cello (I think) player, michael getting sick, wow this season was fucking insane holy shit.

but in terms of character relationships and timing, a lot goes on with buck and eddie. in this one season alone, we go from eddie being the first one to hug buck at his surprise party and christopher giving buck a card with “bff” on it, then buck almost dies (again) and eddie is, quite frankly, the only one who takes no crap from him after he quits and then the tsunami and buck literally tearing himself apart to find his best friend’s son and collapsing at the sight of them reunited and then “there’s no one I trust more with my son than you” (is that the quote, I don't know it by heart) and THEN heart eyes, and then the lawsuit and supermarket and “you’re exhausting” and “christopher misses you” and “I couldn't even call you to bail me outta jail” and then the “I’m hearing a lotta ‘I’s, buck” and “I forgive you” and then the Infamous Kitchen Scene and me endlessly screaming WHY WAS BUCK’S HAND ON HIS BELT LIKE THAT? but also very pointedly I will say eddie fighting specifically when he can’t talk to buck and then it stops around the time he can hmmmmm. and also “this is eddie’s house im not really a guest here” then the fuckaifajfgkjfglgakjdgag tunnel collapsing and buck literally, once again tearing himself and everything apart for a diaz, digging with his bare hands and the defeated look on his face and refusing to think about eddie dying and eddie very nearly dying but then recalling christopher, his family, buck, then christopher and buck, then christopher and buck again, then a rare shannon appears, and then it’s just-

okay. OKay. O K AY. ok. here’s what I think. either the writers are incredibly smart or just viciously stupid, or the third, lesser liked option, they know what they’re doing and don’t give two shits. they are sitting on, and quite frankly they have created, a fucking goldmine. but in terms of timing, and relationship choices, we have eddie and anna(?) as a brief thing that will either reappear in season 4 or never be touched again, then abby’s lame-ass apology that was just her attempting to justify her actions by claiming she simply just should’ve told buck sooner. but a lot of this season explores buck’s loneliness, and in a way, too, eddie’s. 

yes, eddie has christopher, and the others? they have families and significant others. buck has no one (except maddie but you get my point) to go home to. I think, in terms of timing and thematic elements, this season took the time to explore the loneliness of two men, but also by doing so, only high-lighted their need for one another, their love for one another. in the past, that has lead to two couples getting together: athena and bobby, and chimney and maddie. 

so, my point is, season 4 is the make it or break it point. we got (weak-ass) closure with abby, eddie’s anger and regret with shannon (and yes, christopher), an exploration of both of their loneliness, and a very, very clear rocket launch of their closeness and dependence on one another, in season 3. it started with a lot and ended with closure on all extraneous factors that could have possibly deterred the two of them from a potential relationship. more so, abby is getting married and buck has no choice but to move on; he may not have loved her anymore but he needed the closure (and no I do not think it was good enough and I think buck deserved more but that’s not my point).

this can’t be read that much into. it’s not subtle, it’s not subtext. it’s very clearly there on our screens, with every small or big line. they mean a lot to each other. anyone with eyes can say that, has to say that. the problem is, what’s the intention? like, are the writers actually doing what I've just said, setting up for a slowburn, taking it season by season. you can look at it that way, and it actually doesnt take a lot to get to that point of a thought process. there is a HUGE, fundamental shift in buck and eddie’s relationship in season 3. there is a perceived difference in their friendship versus both their relationship with others and the friendship between others. denny doesn’t call chimney his best friend, “his chimney.” athena has never once told hen she trusts her children with her more than anyone in the world. 

there are a lot of interesting choices that have been made over the course of three season, particularly this past season. there are also a lot of possibilities for the upcoming season. we may see a return of that teacher, we might see buck fall into other women, we may see eddie not fully over shannon, or (hopefully not) an abby return. it’s just a matter of waiting, but there’s no denying the way things were left off; buck and eddie were both single throughout the entirety of season 3, considerably closer and not guests at each other’s place, both very lonely in spite of the people around them, closer to each other than the rest of the 118, both have a family member (or more than one for eddie) to keep them anchored. buck is, yes, more lonely, but they are both left off in the same place. my question, more than anything, is whether it’s intentional after all that’s said and done. and if it’s not, then why, pray tell, are the writers following their OWN very clear and self-fulfilled pattern of timing and relationships to an even stronger extent than they ever have?