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l3m0ncyan · 2 years

Text

New to Life | Chapter 12

MoonKnight System x Hispanic! Teen! Reader

Warning: kind graphic (?) not really but its quick

Masterlist

Next Chapter

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It's been four months since Y/N saw the dark figure that one night. She hasn't seen it in months, and she hopes the person doesn't cause her any problems. She was finally gaining control of her life and didn't want to deal with any new issues.

She continued to attend her college classes and became accustomed to college life. Y/N was familiar with the various paths on campus and knew her way around.

Although she hasn't been late to work in a while, when she is, Mania is there to assist the two in getting to the museum. She sometimes uses this power simply to be early. Aside from moving around, she had her first (lonely) study session and finals. She hasn't made any friends even though she believes shes an interesting person.

She and Mania have grown accustomed to each other over the last few months. Mania kept its promise to let Y/N live her normal life, and Y/N promised to keep it fed. By fed, it meant only chocolate items and maybe one or two people per month.

This did kinda anger Mania but it just accepted.

She was surprised that Steven and Marc had not discovered her secret while dealing with Mania. There were times when she and Mania argued, and it could be heard from outside the apartment. Typically, these arguments would revolve around Mania nearly getting them arrested on campus or wanting to kill more people than promised.

Like once, when Y/N handed in her assignment to her professor, he gave her a disgusted look after reading a portion of her work. Y/N wanted to grab him by the collar and slam him against his desk. She didn't, for obvious reasons, and began to walk away.

Mania, on the other hand, did not hesitate and began approaching the professor from Y/N's shoulder. She looked back, feeling a tingly sensation, and saw Mania making its way over. She would immediately grab Mania's neck and pull it back. Mania would return to the body after struggling with the minor battle.

Thankfully the professor was too busy reading Y/N’s research essay that he only gave her a weird look for her burst of energy.

"I don't like him either, but we don't kill people just because we don't like them!" Y/N grumbled outside the classroom, where no one else was.

“We should add that to the list of people”

Reasons like these would cause the two to argue loudly in their flat, causing Marc or Steven to come and check on Y/N. She'd justify it as an angry phone call with her family or her frustration with her homework. They'd just nod and say to take breaks or deep breaths.

After they leave, the two would then argue about them being almost caught.

“See! If only you had kept quiet about today, they wouldn’t have come!”

“If you had controlled yourself back on campus, maybe we wouldn’t be arguing right now!”

In December, Y/N decided to celebrate Hanukkah with the boys. It was difficult because Marc didn't seem to like the idea at first, but after she surprised them with the blue and white apartment, he changed his mind.

Y/N's family FaceTimed her on Christmas to wish her a Merry Christmas. Her siblings planned it because her parents refused to speak to her still, even though it has been months since she was filmed.

Speaking of which, that video was soon forgotten.

She got to talk about what she's been up to in London on FaceTime, not to mentioning the whole Egypt trip and battle with the gods.

During the call, she was thankful that none of her siblings tried to bring up her powers since she still wasn’t ready to talk about it. Plus they'd only get worried and probably want to visit her.

Yes, she may have fantasized about being a superhero with superpowers. She'd imagined herself sitting above the family, and they all looked up in awe. But how could she be proud of something so monstrous? She was growing fond of Mania, but not of its tendencies to kill every living thing.

Her parents said a quick "Feliz Navidad, cuidate" before hanging up. It hurt her a lot because they usually spoke to her more softly, but this was harsher than usual.

It was understandable though, who wouldn't be angry at their kid for going off to some random country and then hiding a superpower. Personally, she wouldn't, she would first want to know if her child was safe and sound. Still, with parents like hers, they parented differently

Still, walking back into Marc and Steven's house relieved the pain and thoughts of her family back home.

Speaking about the boys, she has gotten closer to them.

It became second nature to talk to them about any problem she encountered. Whether it was about college or relationships, one of the two was always willing to share sound advice.

Like now.

Steven was sitting on the couch, a book about hieroglyphics in hand. His glasses sat on the bridge of his nose as he focused his gaze on the pages below him.

Today was his day off from the gift shop, and with the weather being chilly, a good book and a cup of tea sounded like the perfect way to spend the day.

A knock came on his front door as he flipped a page, and he knew who it was.

He smiled to himself and set his book and glasses on the coffee table. Making his way from the center of his flat to the front, he opened the door to reveal his friend.

Y/N was dressed in sweatpants, a t-shirt, and a zip-up hoodie. He could see beneath her eyes that she had spent the entire previous week studying and stressing over her final exams.

“Yo, can I come in?” She gestured to the inside of his apartment.

He nodded and moved to the side to allow her to enter. She started ranting as she was making her way to the couch.

“I got a fucking low score on a test dude” she plopped down on the couch.

Steven made his way to the kitchen to prepare a cup of tea for Y/N, knowing she would need it.

"Well, that's unfortunate; was the text difficult?" He drained the contents of his tea kettle into a white ceramic mug.

"It was, but only because the professor didn't even teach us what was going to be on it."

Steven walked over to Y/N, handing her cup before sitting next to her.

“Hmm, does this mean you failed the course?”

"I mean, no, but I still got a low score," she shook her head. "Others got higher scores"

"As long as you passed the course, that's what matters," he placed a hand on her shoulder, "besides this is your first quarter, don't stress too much on it. I'm sure you'll ace the next one!"

Y/N scoffed, “Maybe, what if I don’t though…”

“But you will, don’t lower your expectations. I believe in you, now drink your tea before it get cold"

Steven took a sip from his cup, and Y/N followed suit. She felt the warmth spread from her chest to her stomach, removing the chill from the outside world.

"You know, I never believed in tea and its effects, but yours is different," she shrugged, taking another sip.

“That’s because you haven’t tried a British one”

The conversation continues, the stress of earlier leaving Y/N's body and being replaced by comfort. It was a benefit of Steven and Marc's apartment.

The phone then buzzed in Y/N's sweater pocket. When she took it out, she saw that Layla had sent her a photo. When she opened the message, she saw a selfie of Layla with some buildings in the background, most likely somewhere in the Middle East.

“Oh look at her, she hasn’t changed since we last saw her” she smiles.

“She texts you?” Marc who just switched in asks.

“Yeah, she doesn’t?”

Marc hesitates and shakes his head.

“Dang…that’s crazy” she says almost sarcastically.

Marc returns his gaze to the coffee table, "Makes sense, I've hurt her too much, so why would she try talking to me?"

Y/N stares at him with worry and sighs, “Have you ever tried talking to her?”

“…no”

"There you have it, that's why. If you haven't tried to find her, she may believe it's because you don't want to. You've got to break that loop, dude," she says to Marc.

He breathes in, “How would I do that?”

“Text her once in a while. It can be a ‘How are you?’ Or ‘How’s the Middle East?’”

Marc gives a hum in response, nodding his head.

"God, when did I get advice from a kid" He groans.

"When you asked me to go to Cairo with you"

"You whined that you wanted to go"

Marc thanks her after a brief moment of silence. Y/N smiles and enjoys their time together.

“Also, I might be intruding but when me and Steven first met her, what were those papers for?”

“…the divorce papers I sent her”

"Oh, did you guys ever finalize them?" she asks, surprised.

He shakes his head.

“Figures. Y’all didn’t want to huh?”

Marc raises his brows, puzzled, and asks, "What do you mean?"

"First and foremost, none of you signed the documents. Then there's the question of why. You two are still in love." She grins wide.

“You think Layla still likes me?” Marc said quite hopeful.

"Duh, the way she looked at you in Egypt, plus if I were her, I would have tried to kill you or wouldn't even want to work with you. Also said a lot back on the boat to Mogart's. You almost had a romantic kiss." Y/N leans back and crosses her arms.

Marc can almost feel his face heating up but clears his throat, “Maybe you were seeing things wrong”

"Nah, I see what I see," she smirks, "but for real, you two should fix whatever you've got going on."

Marc nods, and the two depart from the subject. He brings up the case on Harrow, still trying to figure it out. They then discuss possible suspects in the death of Harrow. The majority of these are thought to be Ennead gods.

But for Y/N, she recalls the figure from the previous night. Perhaps it was one of the gods, but which one? She can't even tell Marc and Steven because they'll ask what she's up to late at night. That, or they'd be more on guard, refusing to let her take Mania out for late-night snacks.

Speaking of late night, there have been more and more deaths popping up. Usually at night, which freaks Y/N out more. She doesn’t know which one is better; a serial killer or a villain. A serial killer you can find and just lock up, but a villain usually can’t be stopped.

Calling it a night, Y/N said farewell and walked out of the boys apartment.

Her apartment had changed a lot. She was able to buy more decorations for her home with the extra money she earned from her job. Like a bed frame.

It was one of her greatest purchases yet.

Setting it up, on the other hand, was time-consuming, prompting a call to Marc and Steven for extra help. The two sat on the floor of her living room, trying to figure out if the pieces they had put together were correct. It took them about 3 hours to complete the task, but they succeeded.

She removed her shoes and placed them on a small shoe rack near the door, as well as her bag on a hanger. She let out a relieved sigh as her feet could finally stretch.

“Finally! I am hungry!”

"My bad; I didn't think we'd be over there for that long," Walking to the kitchen, she opens the fridge to find a slice of chocolate cake from the museum's New Year's Eve party. "Cake or candy?" she asks, looking over her shoulder at a pile of chocolate bars on the counter.

“I thought chocolate would be our last choice if there was no bad guys. But there are many on the news!”

“…So cake or candy?”

Mania grumbles, “You are not listening to me, I want to be free!….cake”

Y/N hums and removes the plate with the piece of cake on top. She places it on the table and takes a seat. Mania soon surrounds her and grabs the cake with its bare hands. It eats the large piece in one bite and licks its teeth.

“We should go out tonight! Bad people always come out at night!”

“Sounds like you want to be a vigilante or something” Y/N says from inside Mania.

“What is that?”

Y/N took a second to think but nothing came into her head, "...I really don't know how to explain it"

Mania shook her head and walked over to the counter to get more chocolate. It took the entire bar in its mouth after unwrapping it and walking to the couch. Mania sat its feet on top of the coffee table that Y/N had thrifted and watched television.

A small buzz was heard on the couch and Mania looked over to Y/N's phone. With its long clawed hands, it raised the screen up to view.

On the Lock Screen, it showed an email from the professor she was berating earlier.

Good Evening Ms. L/N,

Regarding your exam from last week, I've noticed a few mistakes on my part. I sincerely apologize for this. Could you please come in today at 7 p.m. in the lecture hall to discuss the grade?

Thank you

Professor Lumbridge

Mania handed control to Y/N and returned to her body. Y/N held the phone up to her face, checking to see if she was reading it correctly. It sounded suspicious, and her intuition warned her that something was wrong.

She checked the email to see if it was an official university one, which it was.

“What do you think?” She asked Mania.

“I say we should go, you have me, so if there’s trouble I can come in”

Y/N nodded, “True, plus if it’s a bad guy, you might be able to get more food for the night”

“Yes!”

"And if it's true, my GPA will look good...yeah let's go" Y/N stood up and walked to the front of her place.

Because it is 27 degrees in London, she put on her zip-up with her jacket over it. She put on her boots, took her bag, and opened the door. When she came to the long corridor with the ugly green carpet, she turned around to make sure the door was and remained locked.

"Are you gonna tell them?"

Y/N blinked and looked over to Steven and Marc's door. Staring at the gold numbers that were on it.

She considered it but decided not to annoy them with something as simple as this; they are now normal. They have no powers. Also, if Mania was needed, she didn't want to reveal her secret so soon.

With the ding of the elevator, she walked in and soon descended to the ground floor.

The campus was dark, with only a few light posts and lit windows from buildings. Most likely a professor working late at night. The cement was wet, with a few puddles here and there caused by the rain.

The cold encircled Y/N, forcing her to hug her jacket closer to her body. Her hands were frozen, and the tip of her nose felt as if it didn't belong on her because it was so cold. She dashed to the lecture hall where her professor had instructed her to meet.

It wasn't a far walk, about five minutes from where she walked in. The building stood there with pale bricks supporting it.

Expecting the front door to be locked, she was surprised to see it swing open easily. She peeked in trying to find her professor but she was nowhere found.

"Mrs.Lumbridge?" her feet slowly walked her into the building, letting the door close behind her.

The lecture hall was big, with many rows of seats leading down to where the professor would teach and point to the whiteboard. The floors were covered in red carpet and the walls were a cream white but with it being dark inside, they seemed grey.

The only thing being illuminated was the small stage with the podium towards the front of the class.

Y/N walked further down, feeling the warm atmosphere of the room warm her back up.

"This doesn't feel right"

"Definitely, maybe we should just leave," she said as she turned around and began to walk back up until she heard multiple footsteps behind her.

The hairs behind her neck stood up, and her heart began to beat fast. She was utterly creeped out.

When she turned around, she saw a group of men standing nearby. She began to back away as she examined each one.

"Alright…well, I think I walked into the wrong class, so if you excuse me, I'm just going to head out," she said as she turned around to try to walk away as quickly as she could but was met with another man's chest.

"Can't happen, you have to come with us" one spoke up and gestured to another to grab her.

"I hate men" she muttered

The man who was called nodded and approached her, ready to grab her. However, before he could even touch her, her arm turned black and linked itself to the man's arm. It soon bent the arm backward, causing it to break.

The man let out a bloodcurdling scream and held onto his arm. All the other men tensed up and drew their guns.

"Bad guys"

"Yup and they're all yours" Mania then took over and won about a few feet in height over the other men.

"What the hell is going on?" A few of the men screamed, and gunshots rang out. Of course, Mania's skin was not penetrated, resulting in all the bullets falling to the floor.

Mania then lunged at the men, grabbing them and throwing them against the wall. Some attempted to attack from behind, but Mania would quickly bite their heads off.

Mania took them all out one by one. With the number of screams and gunshots coming, Y/N was surprised that no security arrived. Whatever the case, Mania got the job done quickly.

Many bodies surrounded it, some of which had missing limbs or heads. Y/N then returned to her normal self and looked around at the corpses. She became nauseous not only from the sight but also from the smell. Her head was filled with the odor of iron and gunpowder.

"Damn you overdid it, you couldn't have tried eating them whole or something? What if we were caught?" She covered her nose with her arm.

"But we weren't"

"Yeah, well let's get out before we are" she walked over the bodies, trying to make her way to the exit.

"You think it's late to get food at this hour?"

"I ate, so it shouldn’t”

"The one time I’m glad you did, I'll probably get those onion rings from that one place by the corner" She looked down at her shoes and noticed a bit of blood.

"Man and I thought puddles would be the ones to ruin my shoes," she frowned as she attempted to wipe the blood on the carpet.

"Behind you!"

Y/N turned around fast and saw one man still standing, running towards her with a knife.

"You bitch!" His eyes were crazed out and filled with rage.

Suddenly he grunted and fell back before she could let Mania handle it. Y/N looked at the man's body, hoping he wouldn't get up, but he didn't.

She approached him, wondering if he'd had a heart attack or something. She noticed something glistening over his chest as she looked over his body. She leaned in closer to inspect it and noticed something stuck in it.

Her eyes widened as she took in its shape. It was a crescent dagger.

"I'll be damned"

A man's voice was heard from behind her. She spun around and saw the same glowing eyes from months ago staring back at her.

They got closer and Y/N stood in a defense position.

"I hope you're ready" she whispered to Mania.

Before Mania could get control, the light from the front of the room lit up the figure's body as it came close.

"What?” Y/N breathed out.

White armor covered the figure's chest, knees, shins, and forearm. The rest of the body was covered in black fabric. Aside from that, it wore a white long hooded cape that concealed its face, leaving only the white glowing eyes visible.

This person was the same one from Cairo, the one who beat the crap out of Harrow.

"You're ‘not’ Marc" Y/N declared

"My name is actually Jake. Jake Lockley," His suit then vanished, leaving behind the body of Marc and Steven, who had been renamed Jake. He was wearing a flat hat this time.

“And I see we have met before” he looked down at her.

He had tense body language like Marc, but he gave off a more violent vibe. Jake's eyes were nowhere near as soft as Stevens'. They had a more intense stare that almost gave Y/N goosebumps.

“Okay, Jake Lockley,” she almost mocked his name, “Why are you here? We’re you trying to kill me? Also why do you have the moon knight suit? Do Marc and Steven know about you? Who-“

He shushed her and gestured her to be quiet, “Calladita se mira bonita, mija”

He walked up to one of the corpses on the floor, past her. He knelt and examined the body to see if there was anything he could use that would help him. Since he had gloves on, he didn’t hesitate to touch the body.

Y/N blinked a few before deciding to turn to him, “Wait, you know Spanish?”

Jake ignored her and continued checking the body. Y/N huffed and walked closer to him, kneeling to his level, across from him.

“Don’t be ignoring me, I got questions”

"I got questions too, like that superpower you got, but right now my main one is who these guys were," he continued, looking inside each of the body's pockets. His Spanish accent was noticeable and almost like her fathers.

Knowing she wouldn’t be able to get him to talk, she decided to help. She grimaced as she realized it meant she would have to touch a dead body. Using only her pointer and thumb to move parts, she felt herself almost throw up.

Without looking up, Jake uttered “Andas amarilla, just let me do it, I don’t want you throwing up all your DNA onto a crime scene”

She ignored him and kept searching the body, going through each pocket and feeling if it may have something hidden.That was when she noticed the sleeve revealing something on the man's wrist. She rolled up his sleeve to see what he had.

Her eyes widened once again, wider if it was possible.

The man had a tattoo of the same scale she had grown to memorize months ago. “Look,” she gestured to Jake.

He took a look at it and raised a brow, “Harrow's cult”

She wasn't expecting praise, but it would have been nice. He got to his feet and wiped the blood on his jacket. He had a black jacket and a white button up underneath, so the blood was very noticeable. When Y/N looked at hers, it was clear to say she didn't have any so no wiping was needed.

“Alright let’s go” he made his way out of the lecture hall with Y/N catching up.

“It’s weird how I met you and Marc after a fight,” she commented and walked beside him, feeling the cold air once again hit her.

He stayed quiet and only stared straight ahead. He didn’t seem interested in the conversation, or her. He pulled out something from inside his jacket and Y/N thought it would some cool device he had.

Instead it was just a pack of cigarettes. He pulled one out and put it between his teeth as he took out his lighter. Once lit, he inhaled and let out a large cloud of smoke.

“You smoke?”

“You always curious?” He grumbled.

“Yes, now why do you think the cult is coming back?” She walked beside him.

Jake thought for a while before speaking, “Who knows, maybe they want revenge. To do that, they are probably targeting you in order to get to us”

Y/N furrowed her eyes, thinking of who was ‘us’.

"To get to me, Marc, and Steven," he sighed, sensing her confusion. "Mas para esos pendejos. Still, I thought I killed Harrow, so I'm curious who else could-"

“Wait you killed Harrow?” Y/N exclaimed.

Jake immediately hushed her, “Are you trying to get us killed?”

“I knew it, that’s why I would see them leave at night”

“You knew? And you never thought of telling me?” Y/N whispered.

“I didn’t think it would be that important”

As Y/N groaned at Mania, Jake gave her a side glance.

“How did you get that power?” He inquired.

Y/N narrowed her eyes at him, “You still haven’t answered my question”

“You asked about Harrow and I answered”

“My question is about you, not Harrow”

Jake rolled his eyes and gestured her with his hand to ask her question.

“Why did you have the moon knight suit on?” She looked at him.

“Khonshu cut the contract with Marc and Steven only, not me. So I still have the moon god powers” he replied quickly, “Now how did you get yours?”

“Khonshus back? Is he here right now? Does he-“

Jake cut her off and waved a finger, “Eh, eh, my turn remember”

She groaned and told him how Mania had transferred into her body after she attempted to go late-night grocery shopping. She thought it was a simple tentacle power, but it turned out to be a talking symbiote.

“Por pendeja, why did you even go late night shopping?”

“Pues como podia saber eso iba suceder?, still why do you hide from Marc and Steven?”

For some reason, talking to Jake was becoming infuriating, especially with him having more vocabulary than the other guys.

“They don’t have to know about me, I only act when they are in danger or if Khonshu needs something done when he knows Marc won’t do it”

Jake takes another inhale from his cigarette and blows out into the night air. That same cloud falls onto Y/N, which she tries swatting away.

"That's kind of sad, you never got lonely? In theory, if you've been with them since, you've never had the chance to talk with them. You never had them tag along like they do with each other"

Jake stayed quiet, not responding to the statement. It took a while before he replied how he never felt lonely, that they only held them back. That it was best he didn't interfere.

He continued to smoke until he dropped what was left of the bud on the floor and stepped on it. Y/N took a small glance at it before looking back at him.

“…Why we’re you at my school?” She finally asked.

"I followed you because I wanted to see if you were the monster that they talk about," Jake replied after a few seconds of thought. "Also, I had a feeling you'd get into trouble, so I guess I was right on both counts."

“So you were there mostly to protect me...?” she tried piecing it together.

Jake didn't care whose turn it was to question the other person at this point and decided to just answer her questions. Particularly since she had more than he did.

"I only protected you because I knew Marc and Steven would be destroyed if something happened to you. That would interrupt my routine and help stop me from going to work."

It made sense to Y/N because this man was only just getting to know her and didn't seem to want to know her more than he did now. His only mission was to do exactly what Khonshu told him to do.

The two made their way to the street, and Y/N was trying to get to the bus stop on autopilot. When she looked behind her, she noticed Jake wasn't there. Jake whistled at her to get her attention, and she noticed he was walking away from both the bus stop and the apartment. He motioned for her to follow him.

Confused, she did as she was told, “The bus stop is that way”

“I don’t do buses” he said and continued walking along the street.

He took out keys from his pocket and pushed a button. A cab ahead was beeping and blinking its headlights in response. Jake walked over to the driver's side and opened the door.

“Come on” he gestured his head to the passenger door.

Y/N stared at the vehicle with an open mouth.

The cab was long and white. The windows were tinted black, and she noticed the license plates said 'SPKTR'. Marc's last name, Spector, was a play on letters.

She scoffed as she stepped inside the cab. The seats were red leather and extremely comfortable. The dasher was completely black. It smelled like black ice, which surprised her. Based on Jake's behavior around her, she expected it to smell awful and like cigarettes.

When Jake started the car, the radio started playing soft music. That's when he started driving back to the apartment. Y/N just stayed there staring at all the buildings that passed by. She was no longer riding next to strangers this time, and she was finally at comfort.

"Where was this when we were late for work?" she asked, looking over at Jake.

“You mean when you and Steven were running late. This is just for me” Jake replied.

Y/N huffed and turned back to the window.

Only light music was playing in the background during the car ride. She touched the window and noticed how her body heat fogged it up. She drew her hand back and continued to stare at the moving buildings.

—

The two were close to the apartment building after about fifteen minutes. Jake pulled over to the side of the road and finally said something.

“Don’t tell the other two about me”

“If I do?…” Y/N slowly turned to him.

"If you do, I'll have Khonshu curse their memory," Jake said as he gripped the steering wheel. "They won't remember you, which I know you don't want."

She was expecting a threat to her life, but not this. This threat, on the other hand, terrified her. She didn't want to live in a world where she couldn't communicate with the two. It hurt her to think of them passing by on the sidewalk like complete strangers.

“…okay”

“Good, now get back into your flat” he unlocked the door.

She stepped out of the car but paused seeing that he wasn’t coming out. She bent down to the window and looked at him.

“Aren’t you coming too?”

He shook his head, “I have things to do, remember our deal”

Y/N bit her cheek and nodded. She made her way to the front doors of the building. When she opened the door and looked over to Jake, she saw him drive away.

Frowning, she made her way up to her apartment.

"I don't like him!"

The day began with Mania ranting and declaring its hatred for Jake Lockley. This wasn't preferred for Y/N, who hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. She stayed up thinking about how she was now a part of some cult plan, and how she had to deal with a new alter who was ruder than the others.

This time, she couldn't even turn to Steven and Marc for advice because they were already worried about Harrow's killer, and their friendship was in risk.

"I know, he annoyed me too but oh well," She opened the fridge to take out a gallon of milk.

She walked over to the dining table where she had a bowl of dry cereal on top. Pouring the milk inside, she went back to put the bottle back inside the fridge.

"How dare he?! He threatened us and expects us to keep his secret?!"

"Technically he only threatened me, I don't think he grasped the fact you're uh, well have a personality," Y/N said before biting down on a spoonful of cereal.

She was still in her pajamas since it was Saturday and she thankfully had no work shift. Steven however did and was probably now having to deal with Donna alone.

"He threatened you which means he also threatened me! We come in a package!"

"Okay, okay. Well, what do you want to do about it? First, we have to worry about that cult trying to get me" She finished her bowl of cereal and went to put it in the sink.

After, she went to the couch and sat down. She took the remote control into her hand and started to flip through different channels. Mania then appeared out of her shoulder and looked at her.

"Then let us go investigate!"

"I'm studying nursing, not forensics, so I don't know as much about investigating as the next person." She returned her gaze to the television screen after looking at Mania.

Mania grumbled, “You know I don’t know what that means. Either way, you’re just sitting here like a potato while we could be saving the world”

"Okay, then tell me what we'll do once we get there," Y/N said, pausing what she was watching. "Because who knows, whoever is trying to get me might be waiting over there as well."

It took Mania a second to respond. It didn't know how to investigate either; it was honestly so riled up by Jake that it needed to blow off steam somewhere.

Y/N wouldn't lie either; she was annoyed that whoever was attempting to kidnap her saw her as an objective. Still, after the performance she and Mania put on last night, the next group may be stronger and better prepared.

A heavy knock from the door cut the two’s conversation. They both looked over and were slightly confused. Y/N pulled out her phone to check the time.

1:49 pm

Steven didn't come out of his shift for another couple of hours.

Y/N stood up and approached the door with caution. Mania had already returned to the body, but it was keeping a close eye on things. She saw a man and two officers behind him through the peephole. The man had dark skin, a khaki overcoat, and his hair was buzzed except for the top. He continued knocking with a hand inside his pocket, then looked up at the peephole.

Y/N immediately backed away, feeling anxious. She recalls the last time she and Steven had to deal with cops. They weren't even the men in blue; they were just people who pretended to be while they were in a cult.

“Y/N L/N?” The man loudly said, “Are you home? I have a few questions only”

Y/N was already on the verge of panic, due mainly to her excessive overthinking. What if they were the cult and they were out to get her? She could just have Mania deal with them. But what if they were actual police officers? She couldn't just murder people who were simply doing their jobs.

“L/N, are you there?”

The knocking became more persistent and Y/N was still frozen in her own confusion.

“They're not the cult”

“How do you know?” She spoke in a whisper, feeling as if the man outside could hear.

“They aren't being defensive”

A new voice popped from behind the door, most likely one of the officers, “Open up!”

Her earlier anxiety had been replaced by a sense of embarrassment. The neighbors were probably looking out their door to see what the yelling was. Maybe they were now spreading rumors about her, as well as about Steven.

Hesitating, she went to open the door.

The man in the coat was taken aback when she opened the door and revealed herself. After a brief awkward silence, he returned to his serious demeanor and cleared his throat.

"You must be Y/N, I'm Detective Chantel, may we come in?" He brought his badge out and showed it to her.

She glossed over it and remained silent. The three piled in, gesturing for them to come inside. The officers searched the apartment while the detective remained behind to speak with Y/N.

"Who were you talking to earlier?"

Y/N quickly looked back at him after staring at the officers walking through her place, "Excuse me?"

"Yeah, I heard you whispering when I was trying to have you open the door for us" He crossed his arms and stood high.

"Oh, well I was talking to myself"

"Oh? About what?"

"I mean as you can see I live alone," She quickly waved her hand to the whole of the apartment, "and I'm a young woman in this weird world, so I simply thought you might have been an intruder"

The detective lets out a quick 'hmm' before continuing, "You don't get many visitors?"

"Is that why you're here?"

He shook his head, "No, I am actually here to talk about an incident from your university"

"How did they find us?!"

Y/N continued to act, "Really? Did someone try mugging someone again? I swear London has been coming up with more crime-"

"A group of men was slaughtered in a lecture hall, one that seemed to be a place where you were supposed to meet with your professor through email. One that was sent around 5:45 last evening?"

Y/N gulped, "What the hell? I mean yeah I got that email but I didn't go because it felt sketchy"

"I see, where were you last night?" The way he said it was much more serious

"I was studying the syllabuses for my classes"

He quickly jots down the information on his notepad and continues, "Do you live alone?"

"I just told you I do"

"That email, it wasn't sent by your professor, we checked. Do you know anyone who might have wanted to get you back? Maybe you made someone angry?"

"I haven't interacted with anyone from school so I am pretty sure no one is after me" Y/N crossed her arms

Except for that fucking cult she thought.

"One never knows"

The investigation continued and Y/N was becoming irritated. Many of the questions were already answered before or were weirdly worded. Plus she was still in her pajamas, so it was sort of humiliating.

It lasted for about thirty minutes until she finally said enough.

"Okay, well this is great and I appreciate your effort to stop the murderer but I am tired and just want to go back to watching tv yeah?" Y/N finally stood up from the couch where their talk was moved to.

The detective stood up as well and looked down at Y/N, "Why the rush?"

"Why are you making me out to be the big murderer? I can't even run a lap without gasping my ass off, so what makes you think I could take down a group of men?"

"You college kids get new drugs each month, maybe one gave you an enhancer"

Y/N scoffs and shakes her head, "Yeah right"

Detective Chantel looks at her and sighs, putting his notepad away, "Look, I'm not here to freak you out but whoever sent that email to you was targeting you for who knows what, but its bad"

Y/N didn't say anything but stared at him.

"Don't go out late at night and lock your doors. I have a daughter your age, and I can't imagine her being in a situation like this"

Y/N nods, "Right, well don't worry about me, no offense to your daughter, but I know how to use pepper spray"

She said it with humor to try to lighten the mood but the detective didn't seem to be liking it.

Y/N guided their way out, with the detective handing her his card in case anything suspicious popped up. She nodded and closed the door after.

Sitting at the couch, she stared at the white piece of paper with the black ink words written on it.

"Are you gonna ask that guy for help?"

Y/N paused for a moment before tossing the card onto the coffee table. "Definitely not, he thinks it's just some ordinary guy, but I'm sure it's not."

Four o'clock came and went, and Y/N was cooking dinner when the doorbell rang once more. She sighed and set down a wooden spoon she was using to stir the soup in a pot.

She eyed the peephole, wondering if it was the detective or if the cult was finally here for her doom. Fortunately enough, it was Steven who probably just got off of work.

Steven marched inside once she opened the door, not saying a word and heading straight to her tv.

"Hello to you too" She trailed and closed the door.

Walking to where Steven was, she eyed how he switched through the many channels on the television. He finally got to the one he was looking for and began pointing at it.

Y/N looked at the screen displaying a news outlet. A woman held a mic close to her chest as she spoke to the camera. Behind her was a scene that seemed familiar to Y/N.

"Last night, ten men were brutally murdered inside one of King's College's classrooms. According to reports, several of the bodies are missing limbs or have been decapitated. A custodian discovered this horrifying scene in the early hours of the morning. The investigation is still ongoing, and we will keep you updated."

The screen then displayed many of the said bodies covered with white tarps.

"The way those men died, was the same way the men from the store died" Steven was unsettled by the news with the way he couldn't even blink as he stared at the television.

She didn't say anything and only listened to him.

"The thing we saw at the store is starting to wreak havoc and is attacking random places now I don't know where it could hit next but I don't want it to be somewhere where either of us is" He tried to say everything at once as his worry consumed him.

He kept rambling and fumbled with his hands as a way to cope with the stress.

Y/N finally spoke up, "Steven, we'll be fine okay? And I'm sure if we ever cross paths with it, I can defend us"

Steven's body tensed up and Marc switched with him, probably due to his stress.

"What if you can't? What if it comes and attacks you when we're not there?" Marc drew his arms across his chest, "We fought together and we had each other's backs. You've never fought on your own before so what makes you think this time will be different. This monster is completely different from a jackal"

"I can defend myself, so don't worry about it. Plus I have been practicing-"

"It doesn't matter if you've been practicing," he slightly raised his voice, "Promise me that if it comes your way that you call me and Steven"

Y/N was taken aback by how serious not only did Marc sound but how Steven reacted to the news. Marc stared at her, trying to see if her next answer will come out as a lie or the truth.

"... I'll call you guys if I'm in trouble, I promise" She breathed out.

Marc's shoulders seemed to relax slightly and he sighed, "Good,"

It was silent which made things awkward. Their argument seemed to have shifted something in the atmosphere with the way they just stood straight. Would she even call this an argument? It ended rather well instead of someone storming off.

"Well," Marc broke the silent stage, "You said you were practicing, show me what you got"

"Huh?"

Marc was waiting for Y/N when her mind went blank. It had been a long time since she had done those extra moves to get her powers moving, but now it was just a question for Mania. It was awkward trying to get a tentacle to come out, but if it worked back then, it can still work now.

Y/N stood tall and breathed in.

"Ok, I am going to stretch out a limb and pick up the couch" She made sure Mania understood her.

"We share the same mind, you do not have to talk like that"

Mania followed the instructions and stretched out a limb over the couch after stretching her arm out. It formed a claw on it and effortlessly picked it up. Y/N would rotate her hand to indicate the rotation of the couch.

Marc stared at her as she placed the couch back down in its respective place. The two stayed quiet for a second.

"See, I still have control" She crossed her arms triumphantly.

"...You looked constipated when you were doing it" The corners of Marc's mouth quirked up.

She glared at him, "Fuck you, but I was able to do it so hah!"

Marc stood quiet and gave a simple nod before Steven took the body back, "Still, promise us you will be careful"

Y/N gently smiled and held a hand up, "I swear I will be careful"

He returned the smile and seemed more relaxed than he was earlier.

"Hey so I made dinner, soup to be specific, want to try it?" She flicked her head towards the stove.

Steven smiled, "That would be lovely"

Y/N served Steven and herself a bowl, placing them on the table. They sat across from each other, taking in the dish's warm flavors. Steven complimented Y/N, saying it was exactly what he needed after a long day.

"Speaking of which, what have you been up to?" He looked up from his bowl.

Police officers and a detective came by because of what I and Mania did last night

"It was for good reasons"

"Uh, you know I never really ask about you, how was yours?" She took in a spoon of soup.

"Oh, well that's different...I guess it was rather boring, the customers being difficult and Donna being even more. Thankfully, Marc helped somewhat"

"Marc was ringing customers in?" Y/N said rather amused.

Steven nodded, "And he was setting up the displays, not eye-catching, but he got the job done"

"Does it matter? People are still going to mess it up"

"Yes, it does matter, not only because it looks nice but if it doesn't Donna would talk my ear off" Steven rubs his ear as he thinks of his manager yelling at him.

"Can't blame him, it is his first-day working" Y/N shrugged.

Feeling offended, Marc came through, "Hey, who said it was my first time working?"

He took the spoon from the bowl and tasted the broth, "Pretty good"

"Oh, so you worked in retail in your young days huh" She teased and plopped her elbows on the table.

His forehead wrinkled with the comment, "Funny, no I went to the military around your age" he waved the spoon at her.

"Once we came to London, I had to do side missions for Khonshu but with Steven still not knowing about me and not wanting to get him fired, I had to do some of his shifts," he continued as he ate from the bowl.

Y/N listened closely, "So you have been doing it for a while...and that means when you did that, Steven was blacked out"

Marc nodded and continued eating.

"...By any chance was one of these shifts when I may have been in the picture. To be specific, I might have called in sick?"

Marc paused and looked up, "That's very specific but I remember taking that chance to search the museum without you clinging on"

Steven who was on the reflection of the spoon stared at Marc, "Was it when I slept through my alarm? I swore I put it too and I freaked out about being fired"

"Yeah, I just took control before your alarm went off, like I said, found my chance to explore"

"Yo! Were you the one who asked that tour guide out on a date? The one that Steven didn't even know when they planned it?" Y/N exclaimed, "Because that was in the same week Steven went missing"

Marc slightly jumped at the burst of energy and thought, slowly his eyes widened. Taking it as a yes, Y/N's mouth dropped slightly.

"It was you! You really are into curly heads" She marveled.

Marc turned red, "What? No! She asked me--Steven out!"

"It was you?!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, okay what happened was that she was trying to carry this box and I went to help her, and things led to the other..." Marc tightened his lips.

Y/N raised a brow, "You fucked her?!"

"No! No! God no, we uh...made out...in a closet and that's when she asked for a proper date" he leaned onto the chair

Y/N was still in shock and gawked at him, "So you said yes and still missed it?"

"I thought it was a good way for Steven to get a girl, I just didn't know I would be busy that day" Marc ran a hand through his hair.

"Oh god, I seem like a total douchebag. No wonder she almost cussed me out when she saw me again at the gift shop"

Y/N covered her mouth with her hand dramatically, "...What would Layla think of this?"

Marc's head shot back up at her and his pupils dilated, "Don't"

She held his eye contact before reaching down for her phone, trying to get her contact before anything. Marc practically leaped out of his chair and stretched to get her phone but she moved it away.

Grinning she held her arm away from him while still sitting on the chair. Noticing him getting up, she stood up as well. Thats where the chase began.

She booked it and stood a good distance away from him. He raised his eyebrow at her, checking if she really wanted to be stubborn. Her smile gave him a go and he started chasing her around the flat.

With Mania's help, she was able to jump over the couch, and table, and even hang onto the ceiling. When she did, she would show her and Layla's messages with the keyboard out, ready to type the message.

This would pump Marc up and use all his ex-marine skills to chase her down.

After a while, she doesn't know how but he was able to grab her and pin her down with her arm on her back. Her face was squished on the wood floor while his body weight kept her down. It was like one of those wrestling moves she had seen many times.

"This is embarrassing"

"Surrender?" he asked

"Too late" A message being sent was heard and Marc saw her lift the phone up.

He grabbed it and let go of Y/N to check the message, hoping he could delete it before Layla. As he read it, he went to sit on the couch.

"Not funny" he placed the phone on the seat.

The message Y/N was just an iMessage game request for Layla.

Y/N let out breathy laughs as she got up and sat next to Marc. She checked the message and saw that Layla accepted it. Marc was regaining his breath when the bright screen came to view.

He glanced at Y/N who gestured her head to the phone, "Play a round of 8 ball with her. I told her I was teaching you how to play and that she would be a good opponent"

Marc didn't say anything and stared at Layla's contact picture. It was one where the top of Y/N's head was popping up trying to take a picture with her. In the background, Marc was trying to walk away from them.

Although he was the first to bring up the divorce papers, he was the last to want to lose her.

"This is the best place to start in trying to fix both of your guys' relationships. Even if you're not going to talk, playing a round or two might bring you two closer together." She kept holding the phone up to him.

Hesitating, he took it and analyzed the screen. Y/N got close and pointed out how to aim and hit the main ball. Explained why putting the main ball in a hole was bad and gave him tips.

For the first two turns, he was terrible but Y/N wouldn't say it out loud. For the purpose of his ego and feelings.

Afterward, Marc was focused on trying to win, that's what Y/N thought. Really he was trying to impress Layla.

Meanwhile, Y/N just put on a movie while he waited for Marc to finish his round. Which turned out to be 4 in total. It was a tie from the total wins and Marc decided to call it a night.

Marc stopped at the door and turned to Y/N, "Hey, thanks for you know,"

She smiled and nodded before he walked out. She shut the door, leaving her and Mania alone again in the apartment.

---

It was as if knocking became a part of her life. It was the middle of the night when she heard the pounding on the door. Peeling her eyes open from her slumber, she groaned as the knocking continued.

Covering her ears with pillows didn't seem to work, so she was forced to get up from the comfort of her bed. The cold night air began to infiltrate and she grabbed her sweater that hung off the bed frame.

Sliding into her sandals, she slowly made her way to the door. She peeked at the peephole and saw it was Steven waiting for it to open. He was standing rather timidly and she felt like something was wrong.

All her sleep went away and she immediately opened the door.

"That's not him"

Before she took in what Mania said, she looked at Steven but his body language soon changed. It wasn't like he switched with Marc, it was more like he was acting to be scared.

He as in Jake.

He put on his flat hat once she opened the door and looked at her with a grin.

Seeing his features closer now, she saw how his eyes had a violent look. Scratch that, there was something physically different.

His left eye wasn't that dark brown color that she came to know, it was red.

Noting that she was astonished was a bit humorous to him, "Happy to see me?"

"What do you want? I didn't tell them about you" she sneered

"You angry because I threatened you?" He pouted, mockingly. "Anyways, I'm not here for that. I actually need your help with something. I'll even pay you"

"...Help you with what?" Y/N muttered

---------

Fuck college fr, stressing my ass off lmao

Sorry if I made them sound OOC

Btw if you want to be part of the tag list just let me know :)

Taglist: @itsjusspele @dustyinkpages @scoliobean @moonywritings

#marc spector x teen!reader #steven grant x teen!reader #marc spector #moon knight #hispanic reader #platonic #steven grant #marc spector x reader #steven grant x reader #layla x teen!reader #x reader #jake lockley

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nobedofroses · 2 years

Text

December 25

pairing: Pero Tovar x reader

warnings: references to sex

words: 589

a/n: this is a little continuation to day 5 with Pero (which I linked) and I used one of the bonus ones this time! Again, this is the vague past lol. Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to those that celebrate and have a nice Sunday to everyone!

Last, Full List, More Pero

🏔️🏔️🏔️

With William, Charlotte, and your two nieces Joan and Mary visiting for Christmas, it was sure to be an exciting time and a full house. Luckily the girls were little enough to find sleeping on the floor by the fire exciting, and Ana was sleeping through the night so when the girls asked for the baby to stay with them, you put her crib out in that room. Just in case she did wake up, you and Pero decided to stay on the ground level and have William and Charlotte stay in your room upstairs.

This also meant that you didn’t have to clear out what you typically only used as your storage room and extra bed to have sex in while the baby was napping upstairs. Now that she would be in the living room, you were excited that you’d also be able to be intimate at night, letting a quiet cuddle turn into loving, completely satisfying sex instead of the quickies you were used to.

Three days into their visit and you were debating whether to just ask them to stay forever. It was so nice to get help with the baby and have time to yourselves and spend more time with your nieces and their parents alike. You’d just have to add on another big room for the girls and you’d be golden.

But that was something to daydream about later, because now it was Christmas Day and all the girls wanted (other than the chocolate and oranges and homemade dolls they had already received), was to go out and play in the snow. And all Charlotte wanted was a nap, so you, Pero, and William went outside with Joan and Mary while Charlotte and Ana were asleep inside.

Joan and Mary, six and five, respectively, had neighbors with kids just a little bit older and therefore had been taught all the best things to do in the snow. Snowmen, snowball fights, of course, were popular, but the girls’ favorites were snow angels. Possibly because it meant less work and not being pelted by older children. As such, it is what they insisted all five of you do, over and over again, until you had an absolutely perfect line from tallest to shortest.

They also asked you, specifically, to help them write the names in the snow underneath because you were sure to have prettier writing than Papa or Tío.

Before you realized what time it was, Charlotte was calling you in for tea and soon after everyone was asleep who had been in the snow, worn out from all the fun.

You were on the loveseat with Pero, a bit squished and loving it, and woke up before the others. Nudging him awake carefully, you whispered to him, “Do you think they would move in?”

Pero chuckled and you shook your head, “I’m serious.”

“I know you are, querida,” he replied lowly, and even though it was just to keep quiet, you still got a little shiver from his voice. “However, William just told me that it is us that should move to them because they already have enough rooms.”

You gasped, loudly, and then slapped your hand over your mouth. After you took a calming deep breath in, you leaned in close and kissed his cheek before asking, “But do you want to, honey?”

He kissed you back, on the lips, and nodded, “I am happy wherever you are, but I will admit I am happier with the rest of our family as well.”

“Me too, Pero, me too.”

🏔️🏔️🏔️

#pero tovar x reader #pero tovar #blurb #fluff #nobedofroses #stephsdecemberwritingchallenge #snowy fics 22

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igarbagecannoteven · 3 years

Note

Helllllo you seem like someone who reads a lot of fanfictions so i wanted to ask if you can recommend some cake fanfictions? Rather longer ones than oneshots that you currently like? That’d be awesome 🤲🏻 no worries if not!

ok i typed up an extremely detailed answer to this ask only to accidentally delete it but! hopefully i can remember everything i said (if not i shall commit major crimes) anyways if i’m missing something it’s definitely because of that and not bc i spaced it,,,, okay take 2 answering this ask

hi anon!!! i am so incredibly honored that you appreciate my taste in fic enough to ask me for recs i am all !!! i do need to issue 2 disclaimers b4 i begin: 1) i only started reading 5sos fic this fall so there are def other people who have better knowledge than me and 2) i don’t read explicit fics which limits the amount of fic i read/the ones i can rec. however! i am pretty sure i’m one of the only people who searches for 5sos fic by wordcount instead of pairing so if you’re looking for long(er)fic you’ve come to the right place :)) cake is a rather popular fic at the moment so there’s tons of good fic out there beyond what i’m going to rec here! i’m just going to list a few of my favs and if anyone knows of any good fics i left off feel free to add them! (i’m only going to be recc’ing completed fic as a matter of principle but if other people want to go crazy!) also, since i don’t know what you consider “longer fic” i’m going to put the word counts by each fic so you know what you’re getting into lol (i did make sure none of these recs are under 10k tho) okay with all that being said i guess i’ll dive right in!

if you’re a fan of cake fic you almost definitely know of the incredibly talented unofficial queen of cake @kaleidoscopeminds but just in case you should 100% check out her ao3! she has several longer fics, but my personal favorites are flatmate au (20k), journalist calum/musician luke au (16.8k), and her roadtrip fic (36.6k). they’re all incredibly written and clever and funny (with just the right amount of angst) so if you haven’t checked them out i highly recommend it!

if when you said longfic you *really* meant longfic, then you have to check out vegas au (88.4k) by @emmybazy from all the way back in 2014! it has some absolutely stunning worldbuilding and has a very unique way of framing the plot that i’ve never seen in fic before which made it a very refreshing read for me! if you’re looking to get lost in a fic this is the one for you 😊

moving along to another member of cake royalty, @staticsounds is a brilliant fic writer with loads of cake fics! (you should definitely check out her ao3 if you’re a cake person) my personal favorites of her longer cake fics are her la au (40.4k) and the cake version of bake off au (17.9k)! they’re both total showstoppers (get it? bc bake off? yes i do think i’m hilarious thank u) while also having very different moods? if that makes sense? like they both fit different vibes i look for at different times which is wonderful!!

and of course i can’t talk about molly and not bring up one of my favorite fic projects of all time, which was her collab with the spectacular @cringeycal for their college dance au (15k) & college pet au (14.7k) (that is a horrible way to describe it and i apologize but it’s also 6 am and i haven’t slept yet so cut me some slack) these are both genius and hilarious and i could go on about them for actual hours so if you haven’t read them yet go crazy go stupid and if you don’t love them i’ll eat scorpions on live television :))

how could i talk about cake fics without bringing up beloved hanukkah fic (13.6k) by the light of my life @clumsyclifford?? this fic is not only just a lovely piece of prose all around it just has so much love and warmth and fluff it’s practically overflowing and i personally think it should be required reading bc it’s so !!! bella hasn’t written any other cake over 10k but i have yet to read a fic of hers i haven’t loved so if you’re looking for some shorter cake (or longer of another pairing) you should def check out her ao3 😊

if you’re looking for some angsty fic, i highly recommend @lifewasradical ‘s fic where calum leaves the band (10.1k) it is absolutely heartwrenching in the best way!! she also has an adorable bakery au (11k) that is extremely fluffy and cute!!

there’s also her collab with @pixiegrl for their wrong number au (16.1k) if you’re looking for some disaster college kids making a mess of falling in love!

ok this post is getting very long and the sun has just risen (insert yikes emoji) so i’ll wrap it off with @michaelsarmbandtattoo ‘s trans luke au (12.8k) which balances fluff and angst extremely well imo and is a great read!

ok it is now past 6:30 am and i have an appointment at 10 and have yet to sleep so! that’s all for now! i am almost certainly forgetting some excellent fic but my brain is fried from last week of the semester vibes so someone else can fill in the blanks. this is probably way more rambly than you were looking for but it wouldn’t be a megs’ production if it wasn’t :)) thanks for asking for recs i’d love to do this again sometime for another pairing! (not this week tho lol) 💙

#this is so fucking long i apologize i just have zero chill #plus there's so much good fic out there! and i love to gush over fic if you haven't figured out yet #i really hope all these links work #i was going to say something else in the tags but now i can't remember #no one yell at me about my bad sleep decisions plz i am well aware i fucked up staying up this late during this week in particular #but! it is too late now #i'm going to go crash on the beanbag for 2 and a half to 3 hours b4 my class 🙃#good night y'all it was a pleasure doing business #answering mail #long post #fic rec #cake

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livesincerely · 4 years

Text

it’s beginning to look a lot like... ch. 4 (END)

Also on Ao3. Chapter three here.

00000

The Twelfth Christmas

“You’re shaking the table!”

“No, I’m not!”

“Yes you are, you dirty cheater!”

“You’re just mad ‘cause I’m winning⁠—”

“You wouldn’t be winning if you weren’t shaking the table⁠—”

“Hey, chill the fuck out,” Jack interjects, wandering over to investigate before things can get out of hand. “We’re gonna get another noise complaint.”

“Charlie’s cheating!” Tony insists. “He’s shaking the table!”

“No, I’m not!” Charlie denies. “Tony’s just a sore loser.”

“I’m not a sore loser!”

“Well, you’re definitely not a sore winner!”

“I said, chill out,” Jack says firmly. “Or I’m gonna be the one sweeping the pot.”

“Aw, Jack!” they whine in unison.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Jack says. “Choo-Choo, stop shaking the table,” —Charlie ducks his head, pouting⁠— “and Racer, stop stealing from Charlie’s pile when he ain’t lookin’,” —Tony’s eyes go wide⁠— “yeah, Tones, I saw that.”

There’s a few grumbles, but no real arguments.

Satisfied that he’s halted World War Dreidel, at least for now, Jack goes back to the living room and crawls into the Pillow Fort.

“Everything okay?” Davey asks, lifting his arm so that Jack can snuggle back into his side.

“Just another throw down,” Jack says, resting his head against Davey’s chest. “You know how they get.”

“There’s no mercy in dreidel,” Davey says, a hint of a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Only annihilation and bragging rights.”

Jack laughs softly. “Yeah, I think they’ve really taken that rule to heart, querido. They’re planning total domination and they ain’t afraid to go through each other to get it.”

He takes another moment to get good and comfortable—arms tucked around Davey’s waist, one hand slipping up under Davey’s shirt to sit against the curve of his stomach. Davey throws his legs over Jack’s, his arm a warm weight across Jack’s shoulders, and he tugs a blanket up to cover them.

Davey asks, “Good?”

“Go for it,” Jack murmurs.

Davey unearths the remote from their nest of pillows and hits play; the dvd picks up right where they left it before Jack got up, with Hiccup finding Toothless in the quarry.

They’re watching the movie and not watching the movie. They’ve probably seen it about a hundred times, it’s not like they don’t know what’s gonna happen, so it’s sort of just on for background noise and because it wouldn’t be Christmas without it. Mostly they’re just sitting together, enjoying each others’ company as the last few hours of the day wind down.

It’s been an impossibly hectic holiday season: Davey’s semester didn’t end until the 20th, leaving only a couple of days for frantic Hanukkah shopping and barely more than that for last-minute Christmas shopping. There’s still a handful of nights of Hanukkah left⁠—they’re spending the rest of the week at the Jacobs’ to finish out the holiday, then ringing in the New Year the night after, leaving tonight as the only lull in the madness.

Well, considering the muffled arguing he can still hear coming from the kitchen table, there’s never really a lull in the madness. But lying here, settled in with Davey’s fingers combing through his hair and his heartbeat beneath his ear, the boys happy and whole just a few feet away… Jack can’t imagine anything better.

He shifts slightly, tipping his head up just enough to see⁠: Davey’s looking towards the TV, his expression soft with relaxation and a hint of sleepiness, the fairly lights casting a gentle glow across his features and leaving specks of color dancing in his eyes.

Jack’s heart does a little loop-de-loop around his chest. He never gets tired of looking at Davey. He’s pretty sure he could spend the rest of his life looking at Davey.

“What’re you thinking about so hard, Jackie, love?” Davey asks after a while.

Jack curls around him that much more, his hands sliding up to splay wide over Davey’s ribcage.

“Nothin’,” he says, quietly content. “Still jus’ thinkin’ about tomorrow.”

Davey hums in acknowledgement, his nails scratching lightly at the nape of Jack’s neck. “Mama’s been hinting that she wants us down there as soon as physically possible⁠. She sounded pretty frazzled⁠—I think Les must be driving them all a bit crazy, waiting.”

“What, and she thinks adding us into the mix is gonna grant her some peace?” Jack asks with a snort. “Charlie, Tony, and Les might distract each other for a while, maybe, but there’s no way whatever Les is puttin’ her through now is worse than whatever the three of ‘em together will cook up and unleash. But either way, I’m not goin’ anywhere until we get at least two loads of laundry done because that sucked ass last year, coming home to a shit-ton of dirty sheets and blankets.”

“Yeah, I figured we wouldn’t be getting there until early afternoon-ish,” Davey says. “I told her maybe 2pm or 3? And, at this point I think she’d take the chaos if it meant she could get a few hours in the kitchen, uninterrupted, without Les trying to talk her into a round of dreidel. Apparently he’s taking the tournament very seriously this year.”

“There’s somethin more serious than whatever the fuck went down last year? I didn’t think that was possible,” Jack says. He pauses for a moment, considering. ”Oh, hell, what am I sayin’? This is Les, Charlie, and Tony we’re talkin’ about.”

“Yeah, Mama said the same thing,” Davey agrees. “She specifically mentioned that they’re setting aside a separate table just for dreidel⁠—somewhere safely away from any food or drinks or breakable glassware, presumably.”

“That’s probably for the best,” Jack says. “Though, I’m tellin’ ya now, if anyone ends up with sufganiyot in their hair again, I’m groundin’ both of ‘em ‘til Easter.”

“God, can you even imagine?” Davey says, laughing. “I thought Sarah was gonna murder all three of them.”

“I thought Racer was gonna shatter a window, with how loud he screamed when she started chasin’ him,'' Jack adds. “Then, remember? We found him hidin’ under your old bed?”

“Oh my god,” Davey says, his laughter bubbling up into a full on giggle. “I totally forgot about that!”

Maybe it’s the holiday getting to him. Maybe it’s the bit of eggnog he had earlier or the smell of pine and the hint of candle smoke in the air or maybe it’s just the way that Davey’s looking at him, expression bright and his eyes crinkled up at the corners, but suddenly Jack’s heart feels too big in his chest⁠—like his entire self might burst open.

“What?” Davey asks, still smiling, when he notices Jack staring at him. “What is it?”

“Do you remember when we were at your parents house?” Jack asks. “Not last Hanukkah, but the one before that? When you first started your grad program?”

“What about it?”

“It was, like, a week before Christmas, a coupl’a days into Hanukkah'' Jack starts, thinking back. “I picked you up from campus right after your last test, already had the car packed and the boys bickering in the backseat, and between the snow and the holiday traffic, it took us, like, four hours just to get to your parents house, and I loved every fucking minute of it. ‘Cause you’d moved out, an’ you had classes an’ finals an’ a whole fucking graduate dorm an’ it felt like I hadn’t seen you in weeks, weeks, after four years of livin’ in each other’s back pockets an’ I missed you so fucking much. You weren’t even twenty minutes away but it felt like you were gone⁠, all’a the time—”

Jack’s rambling, he knows he’s rambling, and he’s not sure if he’s even making any sense. But Davey makes no move to interrupt him, listening with that quiet intensity of his, eyes wide and warm.

“⁠—and I’d spent all of fall looking forward to the end of your semester because then I’d have you for a whole month. A whole month, where things could be like they were, like they were s’pposed to be. I’d get to make ya coffee in the morning and hear ya singin’ in the shower and see ya reading on the couch when I got home from work. I was so excited, but I hadn’t realized yet, you know? I didn’t know.”

He pauses for a breath, heart fluttering a little in his chest, then continues.

“But then, that evening at your parents… you never sleep the night before you have a big test, always stay up too late studying and worrying, and sure enough, you were passed out before Jeopardy even came on, absolutely exhausted. I hadta carry ya upstairs later⁠; your Ma had made up your old room for us so I just tucked you in, then slipped into bed beside you. I didn’t think anythin’ of it ‘cause we always share and you didn’t even wake up, just kept on sleepin’. But then, the next morning…”

Jack raises a hand and drags his thumb gently over the ridge of Davey’s forehead.

“You always get a little wrinkle right here, when you ain’t been sleepin’ enough,” he murmurs, rubbing away an imaginary crease between Davey’s brows. “Tension, I guess. It’s how I can always tell that you ain’t been taking care of yourself. But that next morning, I woke up and you’d sort of curled around me in your sleep, half on top of me. My whole fucking arm was numb ‘cause of how you were lying on it but I didn’t dare move ‘cause you looked so comfortable. No wrinkle, no crease, no frown… and I just kept lookin’ atcha an’ lookin’ atcha…”

His hand slides down, cupping around the side of Davey’s face. Jack looks him right in the eyes and says, “And suddenly I thought to myself, ‘Holy shit, I am apocalyptically in love with this man.’”

There’s the tiniest sound of an inhaled breath, Davey’s throat working beneath his palm.

“‘Cause I hadn’t known, ya know? But once I did—once I realized⁠—then I knew. I figured out right then and there that all I wanted was you, that all I’d ever wanted was you, and the boys, and all of us together for as long as I could keep ya. That I’d wanted you since ya brought me that hat and scarf ‘cause you wanted me to be warm, an’ the phone card ‘cause you wanted us to be able to talk, an’ the sketchbook ‘cause you wanted me to have something just for having, and it hurt so bad because it was too late, you’d already moved out, you were pullin’ away, an’ I had a whole month of fucking torture because I had you right where I wanted you but I didn’t actually have you⁠—”

Davey leans that barest bit closer and kisses him, long and slow.

“You’ve always had me,” he promises. “Jackie, you’ve always⁠—”

“But I didn’t know,” Jack says. “And you didn’t know that you had me. But really, the whole time we could’ve been⁠—”

“We were idiots,” Davey agrees, pressing his forehead to Jack’s. “But what else is new?”

“I love you,” Jack says, reaching out to lace their fingers together. “I love you so much, Davey. You don’t even realize how much I love you.”

“Sure I do,” Davey says, his voice a little wet, giving Jack’s hand a squeeze. “It’s about as much as I love you. Now stop it before you make me cry.”

“Love of my life,” Jack says. “‘M so lucky to have you.”

“Jack.”

Jack smiles, lifting their clasped hands up to his mouth and pressing a kiss to Davey’s knuckles.

“Happy Hanukkah, Dave.”

“Merry Christmas, Jackie.”

00000

Tags: @yahfancyclamwiththepurlinside, @corbinthecowboy

#newsies #javid #jack kelly #davey jacobs #*the writing desk #*editor's note #*final cut #the domestic au #listen: i decided that more romance could only be a good thing #so here you go #its so sweet it could rot your teeth out #but im not sorry #happy holidays yall #<3<3<3

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shaekingshitup · 4 years

Text

MIRACLES HAPPEN

DAY ONE: TANGERINE

A/N: Y’ALL! I WAS DUPED! @teakturn puts out a 25 Days of Christmas every year and my dumbass said I would do it too. But I decided to add a little diversity to the culture and we’re doing a Chrismukkah adventure this year on this blog! This is picking up after this request that I got earlier this year. None of this shit is proofread because I am literally just writing by the seat of my pants so read at your own discretion. I will probably end up rewriting this entire mini series in the future. But enjoy it now. If you wanna be tagged, lmk! Also, I know that in In Sight I said there was a cure for COVID. Swap that out for a vaccine y’all. Viruses can’t be cured.

Word Count: 2300

DAY ONE: TANGERINE

December 18, 2022

“Baby you ready?!” Tre called into the house as reached into the basket on his way to the garage. He came up empty handed for the keys to his Lexus. Opening the door to the garage, he saw Sol sitting in the passenger seat of the running car.

Tre walked over to his baby as Sol smirked at him.

“You late again,” she said.

“I’m never late,” Tre said opening the door and climbing in, “You just early as always,” he shot back as he put the car in reverse. Sol playfully rolled her eyes. After two years of being together, this was always their running joke. The first time they’d met, she’d been pacing back and forth awaiting his arrival. Even after finding their own groove, she still found herself being the one waiting for him- but, he always made it worth it so it was hard for her to complain.

Tre pulled out of the driveway and clicked the remote to shut the door. Out of instinct, his hand went to Sol’s thigh when he put it in drive. “Did you grab my yarmulke?” Tre asked as he threw her a glance.

“Please don’t insult me. This ain’t my first feast Nemo.” the indignant manner which she spoke had her and Tre struggling to keep in their bouts of laughter. “Yes, baby. They’re in the backseat.”

“Good. Good. What’s the other name for them again?” Tre asked as he merged onto the nearly empty highway. A five a.m call time could be a blessing and a curse.

“Kippah” is the Hebrew word for the male cap and “kippot” is the Hebrew word for the female cap.” Sol answered on autopilot as she mused on their situation. She was still taken aback that they’d been contacted by Black Juice to begin with. She’d been following them ever since they’d done that feature with Drake talking about how his own Jewish faith influenced his career path. Although she wasn’t as active in her Jewish faith as she’d wished she’d been in recent years it was still a huge victory to be acknowledged by the leading Black Jewish media network. Okay so maybe they were the only Black Jewish media network. But that definitely meant they were in the lead! She wasn’t stupid to think that this kind of opportunity would have come without Trevante in her life. But, she wasn’t gonna knock it either.

This 8 Days of Miracles was the perfect task she needed as she figured out what the next step was for her career. Now that she’d finally finished her academic portion of her career she wasn’t sure how to proceed. So throwing herself into this project and hosting both her family and Tre’s for the holidays was the best distraction she could ask for. This time always gave her hope and made her realize that any kind of bullshit she’d put up with wasn’t in vain. It was her annual reset. New Year’s be damned. It also made her feel closer to her father and there wasn’t anyone in this world she’d loved more. At least that’s what she’d thought. She felt pressure on her thigh from the number one contender for her heart as Tre gave her a slight squeeze.

“What’s on ya mind Sunshine?” Sol looked down at his hand and couldn’t help but cheese. She still beamed every time he called her by that nickname.

“I was thinking about my dad and how proud he’d be to see me reppin his faith,” Sol said absentmindedly touching her necklace. Tre listened attentively as he grazed his thumb against her thigh in a gentle motion. “ I mean, I don’t know if he could have known that all of the years he instilled in us the value of miracles when we were children we’d still be celebrating Hanukkah after he was gone.”

“I’m sure he didn’t know.” Tre started out slowly. He honestly wasn’t even sure if she’d finished her thoughts, “But, he probably hoped you would.” The phone rang as they turned off the street and into the lot. “STEPH 👷🏿‍♀️💪🏿” flashed across the Caller ID on his dashboard. Tre clicked the answer button on his steering wheel as Sol handed him his badge to show to Nico, the Security Attendant.

“We’re at Security Steph,” Tre answered as he nodded at Nico.

“Okay good. I just wanted to make sure we were starting the day off on time.” Tre and Sol shared a glance.

“Woman don’t start with me. Call time is 5 and it’s 4:39. We don’t play that late shit over here and you know it.

“Well, I also grabbed your favorite donuts from Craft Services so no one else would steal them and I wanted to know how long I had to hoard them for your ungrateful self. I can put them back if you’d like sir,”

“Steph. You can ignore Tre.” Sol chimed in. “We appreciate you and will be walking in the door in exactly 2 minutes. Tre is parking as we speak. We’ll see you soon.”

“Tre, you lucky you have her. Keep her if you want to keep the best managent in town. Bye y’all!!” Steph sang as she hung up. Sol let out a cackle because Steph refused to be referred as anything other than a managent as Tre stood there dumbfounded at how he was being left out to dry. But he knew better than to go against two black women before he’d even finished his morning coffee. He just hopped out the whip and opened Sol’s door so she could do the same.

Once they’d gotten their morsels of food, gone through hair and makeup and snapped a few photos for Black Juice and their own social media accounts, they were back on the road headed deeper into LA. They had a cameraman in the backseat filming their every move, one car guided them to their location and another followed them as they maneuvered through the cars that were poppin up for their morning commutes. Sol was on her IG live and answering any questions that popped up about where they were headed and her Hanukkah festivities. She watched as the number quickly jumped from 5,000 viewers to 13,000 and counting. She wasn’t sure what this many people were doing up at this hour but she wasn’t complaining. Tre’s mama was of course one of them. He was a mama’s boy through and through and she was always there to support him at any opportunity she could. Sol made sure to greet her specifically. Tre bopped his head to some Jill Scott- being careful not to let his yarmulke fall. Sol sipped some hot cocoa from her thermos and sang off key with him. As soon as they turned on a residential street, she felt awash in a new warmth that the hot chocolate couldn’t touch. She shook Tre’s arm enthusiastically.

“It’s time!!” she beamed, “Are you ready?!” Tre chuckled at her immediate change in attitude. The car in front was already parked and the camera crew was out on the sidewalk.

“Yes Sol. I’m ready to spread some holiday cheer. Let’s go make somebody’s day he said. Before Tre could even put the car in park, she was reaching for the handle”

“AHT AHT AHT” Tre barked out loud causing the cameraman man in the backseat to jump,“ Tre was already exiting the driver’s side and pointed his finger at her as he crossed in front of the car “Don’t even try it.” Sol rolled her eyes and pouted as she waited the few seconds for him to open her door.

“Thanks Tre,” she stuck out her tongue. She was like a kid in a candy store and was ready to full out sprint to the front door. The IG live comments were flying.

Okay Daddy Tre! I need a mans to talk to me like that. 🥵🥵

Did this man just bark at her? 🐶

Loook so long as he handles this backdoor he can open any other door that he pleases sis!

Y’all females is wylin as usual.

Sol glanced at them. “Imma need y’all to stay out of grown folks’ business and just enjoy this holiday work we are puttin in okay” She handed her phone to another crew member and grabbed Tre’s hand to drag him to the front door.

She pushed the button for the doorbell but no sound rang out. Tre gave three succinct raps on the door and heard someone rushing down the stairs. The door was flung open by a woman in black slacks and a blinding blue polo emblazoned with a nametag that ironically labeled this young woman as “Tangerine”. She couldn’t be more than 25 years old and the toddler saddled on her hip only added to her youthful appearance.

“Hi Tangerine,” Tre began, “My name’s Trevante and this is Sol,” he gestured to Sol at his side.

“Hi?” Tangerine answered confused at this couple and the cameras that followed them.

“We’re here today with Black Juice, a local Black organization that highlights the experience of the Black Jewish community and we’re doing 8 Days of Miracles,”

“Okay..” Tangerine said not sounding any less confused. “ I’m not Jewish.” Sol took over as she could tell that Tre’s efforts weren’t getting them anywhere.

“We’re here because your friend Kira sent in a letter telling us about how great of a mother you are. She said that you’ve been working two jobs here to support you and your daughter.” At this, Sol smiled at the baby, “She told us that the second job you have is for daycare expenses alone. We wanted to come out here today and let you know that we see what you do and how hard you go to make sure you give your daughter the best. So, we wanted to help you out and give you this. “ Tre gave her the envelope he had in his hand. It read “Day 1: Tangerine”

Tangerine took the envelope as Tre explained. “We’ve paid for your daughter’s child care for the next two years so you can give yourself a break.” She opened the envelope to see the receipt from Tiny Tots Kindercare and didn’t even know what to do.

“I don’t know what to say.” She paused for a moment as what this truly meant registered in her mind. “I can quit this job and actually spend more time with my baby and focus on my candles.”

“Your candles?” Sol asked.

“Yeah. I make candles by hand. I took a few classes and have played with a few scents. Some friends have asked me to make them some and I’ve been waitin to be a little more secure with my money before I start at it.” she answered exhaling deeply.

“Do you have any candles right now?” Tre asked peeking a little further in her apartment. Sol slapped his arm.

“Could you be any nosier?” she chastised with love.

“Yeah I have some. Do you mind holding Layla?” she asked but she practically threw the child into Sol’s arms as she ran to grab her stash of candles. Sol put on her sweetest voice and spoke to Layla about how old she was and if she liked her friends at daycare. When her mom came back Sol could see the sheer joy that she had when showing off her handiwork.

Tangerine went through all six of her candles and their various scents with them and by the end Tre had bought each one. She was floored and couldn’t do anything but cry at the way her morning was turning around. It wasn’t even 7:30 and she’d already gotten 2 years of childcare, a reason to quit her grocery store job and someone who actually wanted to buy her candles.

Before they left, Tre made her promise to hit him up when her site and IG were live so he could get more candles and share it with all of his friends. Sol returned Layla to her mother saying her goodbyes and grabbed Tre’s hand to head back to car. She leaned on his shoulder and he could see the contentment in her eyes. Sol almost forgot her phone before a crewmember handed it back.

She came back to the IG Live trying not to get too emotional. “Look at that y’all! Day one of Hanukkah is off to a start and we’ve already proved that miracles happen! Y’all better stay tuned in over the next week so you can see who we pop in on next. You never know if it could be you! Thanks to Black Juice for giving us this opportunity to turn someone’s ordinary day into something smile about. Y’all betta check them out so you can see the full footage of what we’ve got goin on! Bye y’all!

“Bye y’all!” Tre called out. They answered a few more questions with Black Juice, said their goodbyes and climbed back into their car.

“Can we go back to bed now?” Tre asked as he pulled back onto the main road and his hand founds Sol’s thigh again. Sol laughed.

“I mean if that’s what you prefer we can. I had some other things in mind.” she suggested.

Tre raised his eyebrow. “I swear you see one baby and you always go 0 to 100”

“Look, I just believe in practicing all aspects of having a child! Even the making part.”

Tre threw his head back laughing. “I’m wit it babygirl”

DING!

“That’s me” Sol said. She looked at her phone screen. A text from “Mama Rhodes” popped up. She’d sent some Pinterest looking bible verse again.

This was the third one this week. It dampened her mood immediately and caused her to groan. The text read:

Seeing you with that little girl made me so happy for the good Christian grandbabies that you and Tre will be blessing me with in the future. I thank Jesus for the miracle of you and my baby everyday XO.

“Tre, I got another one from your mom. When are you gonna talk to her?”

Tre sighed. “I promise. I’ll talk to her soon and it will definitely be before your Chrismukkah Extravaganza. Don’t sweat it baby.”

Sol did her best not to think about how pushy his mother was being about this raising Christan grandbabies nonsense ever since they announced they’d be partnering with Black Juice. All she could do is trust Tre and do what she was best at: wait.

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

@ghostfacekill-monger @thadelightfulone

#trevante rhodes #trevante rhodes fanfiction #trevante rhodes x oc #shaekingspeaks #25 days of christmas challenge #25 days of christmas #im going to bed now #chrismukkah #hanukkah #I WILL DO SETH COHEN PROUD #okay bye

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jemelle · 4 years

Text

reflections {ncis}

rating: g

pairing: n/a, ziva david & abby sciuto

summary: 'Family. That’s what they are, aren’t they?' (or: Ziva & Abby celebrate Hanukkah)

a/n: set season 3 aka 2005. written for day 10 of the holiday special organized by @blakes-dictionxry, though i did stretch the prompt (when do i not?) i’m not Jewish, so if i’ve misrepresented something, please let me know! thank you for reading and chag chanukah sameach!

my masterlist

you can also read this story on ao3 here!

“There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." – Edith Wharton

Ziva is supposed to be on vacation. Right now, she should be at a nice hotel outside of Annapolis, taking a bubble bath and reading the kind of magazines that Tony would never let her live down. It’s the day after Christmas, after all. Judging from the way some people in this country act, if anyone should be able to convince people to hold off on committing crimes for a few days, it’s the Christian God. Yet somehow, she’s still at work.

The phone call had come at eight in the morning, jolting Ziva out of a rare lie-in. She had reached for the receiver in the darkness, cursing loudly in Hebrew as her hand banged into the lamp on the side table.

“What is it?” she had groused without bothering to check the caller ID, voice still heavy from sleep. There was only one person who would dare disturb her this early, and she already had a good idea of what Gibbs was going to say.

“We got a case,” was the response, much as she had expected. Ziva had sighed, hanging up and running a hand through her unkempt hair. She really did not get paid enough for this.

In the end, it had turned out to be a simple case. One hard look at the brother and he had confessed, a jealous rage taken too far. No red herrings, no international crime syndicates. A waste of their investigative skills, if she’s being honest.

The case itself had finished around four in the afternoon, but then there was the paperwork, and it was entirely possible Ziva had been putting off last week’s work as well. By the time she’s finished all of that, it’s too late to drive to her (non-refundable, she feels the need to add) reservation if she wants to arrive at a reasonable hour.

She’s getting ready to leave, promising herself that she can still salvage what’s left of this day, when McGee tells her that she’s needed urgently in Abby’s lab. As far as Ziva can remember, she hasn’t asked Abby for anything recently, so she approaches the lab carefully, half-expecting to find a sobbing Abby on the floor. Why Tony and Tim expect her to be able to deal with emotions, she’ll never understand. She may be a woman, but Ziva thinks she’s proven time and time again that emotional connection is not her forte.

The lights are dimmed when Ziva rounds the corner into Abby’s lab, but Abby herself is nowhere to be seen. Instead, Ziva sees a neatly set table with two place settings and, strangely, a hanukkiah.

Tonight is the second night of Hanukkah. Ziva knows that– she had packed her own hanukkiah in her suitcase, intending to light it and pray when she reached her hotel room. But, to the best of Ziva’s knowledge, Abby isn’t Jewish.

Ziva raps lightly on the door to the lab, watching as Abby emerges from a shadowed back corner of the room. She sure can hide, Ziva will give her that.

“What is this?” Ziva asks, gesturing at the spread in front of her.

“Happy Hanukkah!” Abby says, as if that answers the question. She steps further out of the shadows and Ziva can see that she’s holding a frying pan.

“Thank you.” Ziva is confused, to put it mildly. While she appreciates the sentiment, she's still no closer to understanding the rationale behind Abby’s actions.

“Well, I thought… you don’t really have any family in D.C, so I researched what to do!” Abby approaches the table, depositing what Ziva can now see are latkes on the plates. Leaving the pan on the nearest lab surface, she flicks on the lights, displaying blue and white garlands hung around the room. “I even got you a present!”

“Oh, Abby.” She really is touched, especially given the rocky start their relationship had gotten off to. This is a gesture she might expect from Jenny (well, at least the dinner portion. She doesn’t think Jenny has ever been one for tinsel), but Abby doing this is a true testament to her giant heart.

“But?” Abby prompts, and Ziva forgot that while Abby is kind, she is first and foremost always willing to speak her mind.

Ziva feigns innocence, the best she knows how to. “But what?”

Abby pouts. “There’s a but, I can tell.”

No one is immune to the Abby pout. Ziva relents, sitting down in one of the chairs and motioning for Abby to join her.

“It is just that Hanukkah is not very big in Israel.”

If Ziva were home right now, she would probably be helping to light Rivka’s family menorah, saying her blessings, and (Ziva’s personal favorite) having latkes and sufganiyot. When she was eight, Ziva had eaten so many sufganiyot that she’d sworn off them forever. Naturally, her family had never let her live that down. They had been a family once, before Eli had left and Tali had died and Ari had become someone she no longer recognized.

“It’s not?” Abby’s voice pulls Ziva out of her memories.

“No. It is a big deal in America because Christmas is such a big deal. Children see all their friends getting presents and they want them too. In Israel, Hanukkah is about family.” Sure, there are parties and festivals, but none of this extravagant gift-giving she has seen in America. Ziva has nothing against adapting traditions, but the American celebrations hold nothing of value to her.

Abby’s face falls, and Ziva mentally kicks herself. “It is lovely, though,” she says, reaching past Abby to dim the lights again. There. Without the garlands in sight, it reminds her much more of the Hanukkahs she remembers.

“I know I wasn’t always… the nicest to you,” Abby says, and Ziva laughs, because that is the understatement of the century. “But… I really like you, Ziva David, and even if I didn’t, you’re part of our family now.”

Family. That’s what they are, aren’t they? Though they are her team by definition, the word team can’t possibly encompass all they meant to her.

Gibbs is the only one who knows her secret and the only one she would have trusted with it. Tony and McGee are always by her side, ready to insult or defend her at a moment’s notice. Ducky is an ever-friendly ear and Jimmy a kind presence. Ziva includes Jenny in her count as well, though she isn’t sure Jenny would have included herself; she is always watching out for them, playing the games none of the rest of them want. And here is Abby, so different from Ziva in almost every regard, trying to make her feel at home.

If she were more sentimental, Ziva would call it a miracle. She had lost her first family a long time ago, even if Eli and Rivka are still alive. That a group of people are willing to accept her, to give her a second chance, makes her heart swell and her eyes water in an utterly un-Ziva fashion.

A tear must escape her eye, because before she knows it Abby is handing her a tissue. Ziva takes it, only slightly mortified, dabbing at her eyes until they’re dry.

“I am okay,” she says in response to Abby’s unasked question.

Wordlessly, Abby pulls a square box out of her pocket and slides it across the table. It’s wrapped in patterned paper, sparkling white stars against a midnight blue sky. Ziva slides a careful finger under the seam of the paper, trying not to rip it.

Inside is a plain white mug. Ziva picks it up with two hands, spinning it around to reveal a simple Z printed on it.

“Thank you, Abby,” she says sincerely, before chuckling. “Now Tony will not be able to pretend he accidentally forgot which coffee mug is his.”

Abby’s smile drops, and she looks as though she might cry. She opens and closes her mouth a few times, but no sound escapes. Ziva waits patiently, because getting information out of Abby when she’s not ready to speak is like trying to get an internationally wanted criminal to talk.

When she finally speaks, Ziva has to strain to hear her. “I’m sorry… it’s just that the way you said that reminded me of Kate. I miss her.”

“Kate sounds like a wonderful person,” Ziva says. When she had first joined, that might have been a lie. She had quickly gotten sick of hearing how amazing Kate had been, of trying to measure up to a ghost. Now, Ziva knows that she can’t try to be anyone but who she is, and she only wishes she could have met the woman who apparently was more than a match for Tony.

“She was,” Abby responds, and now she’s the one who’s crying.

Ziva leans across the table, letting Abby hold her hands while she sobs. After a little while, Abby lets go, wiping her eyes with another tissue pulled from the depths of her lab coat. Absent-mindedly, Ziva picks up the matchbox lying by the hanukkiah, turning it over in her hands.

“Do you know the story of Hanukkah?” she asks. Abby shakes her head, eyes still watery. Ziva smiles, letting her head fill with memories of Hanukkahs past, she and Tali and Ari all clamoring to be the one to tell the story.

“Well,” Ziva says, striking a match against the box and using the match to light the shammash, the tallest candle in the hanukkiah. She removes the candle from its holder, using it to light the first and second candles, before returning it to its place, Abby watching her raptly the entire time. “Although I could begin in many, many places, our story really starts with a temple in the city of Jerusalem...”

tags: @robins-gf, @chmpgneprblms

#ncis #ncis fanfiction #ziva david #abby sciuto #evas holiday special #ziva x abby #shippy if you squint #*mine #*fic

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justsomewritingsandshit · 4 years

Text

The Struggles of a Male Veela - (Part 6 - What A Revelation!)

Louis Weasley x Soulmate!OC

Length: 3926 words

Warnings: soulmate!au, altered ages of next gen, female OC, Hunter Parrish as Louis, mostly about Selene, jEaLoUsY

Part 6 of this series | Masterlist | Part 5

Three weeks after her awkward date with Mari Singh, Selene felt the first sign.

The young woman was mid-conversation with her friends, whilst they all sat at the Slytherin breakfast table. Well, it was less of a conversation and much more like an unnecessarily heated debate. Today’s (debate) topic was the correct pronunciation of the word ‘gala’. Ben Boot, a well-travelled young man, had informed his three closest companions that he’d recently discovered that many Americans pronounced the word as ‘gay-la’, rather than ‘gah-la’. Which was entirely wrong in Selene’s opinion.

Emery took a dramatic breath before she bravely announced that she too pronounced the word as ‘gay-la’. “It sounds right that way!” At her friends sneers, she defended herself, “Well it does to me!”

“Disgusting.”

“Absolutely.”

Emmaline pressed her fist over her eyes, looking away from her sister, “You think you know someone!”

Their friendly razzing of Emery went on for a bit. Eventually though, it faded out as the students needed to finish their breakfasts before they went on to their morning classes.

Glancing across the Great Hall, Emmaline commented, “It looks like lover-boy’s fan-club is getting bigger, huh?” She sent a rather sneaky glance towards Selene, who was chewing on her toast, as she spoke.

“Huh? What club?”

Ben mimed to Selene that she had crumbs clinging to the side of her lip, “Oh, you know! Your boy-toy’s little fans. Oh, no, no, on your left side.”

Successfully ridding herself of the clinging crumbs, Selene’s eyebrows drew into a furrow, “What are you lot on about?”

Emery sniggered, “You’re little Gryffindor, Sel.”

“Huh? You mean Louis?”

“Oh,” Emmaline teased, “So she does know who we’re talking about!”

Selene was a little stunned by their teasing remarks. A part of her understood why her friends must have assumed there to be a romance forming between the two. After all, Selene was not the type of person to immediately latch onto a new friend, especially in the way she had with Louis. Did she become casual acquaintances with people? Yes. Did Selene seek them out, then spend hours talking and laughing with those new acquaintances? No. Like most people, the young girl could be considered a creature of habit. Not seeing much need to branch out, Selene tended to stick with her tried-and-tested friend group. To add a new person into the role of friend meant something to her, growth. But, to her overly hopeful friends all of whom wanted only the absolute best for their friend; this friendship looked more like a potentially blossoming relationship.

And that was the wrong assumption…

“Okay,” She took a sip of her water, before she turned to look at them, “First of all; Louis and I are friends. He is not my ‘lover-boy’.” She ignored Ben’s ‘but you want him to be’. “Second of all, yes I’ve heard about his fan club. They’re… uh, they are…” Selene struggled to find a kind but straight-forward word for ‘a little bit scary, but mainly weird’.

“Creepy? Yes.” Emery answered, blasé. “Like, I would be the first among us to admit that Weasley is super fit.” An uncomfortable ripple raced through Selene’s gut. Briefly, the girl wondered if her monthlies (as her mothers’ called it) were making an appearance earlier than usual this month. “However, I agree that this whole club thing is very weird.”

Ben nodded, “Yeah! I mean, Louis is cute. And yes! I think we all would let him slap our arse, should he so choose to!” Emmaline and Emery both nodded at his words, and Emery even lifted her glass of pumpkin juice in toast. “But, lovey, dearie, sweet love-child-of-mine, just put the school out of its misery, and claim that Adonis as your own!”

Inwardly, her stomach rolled again at his first statement, stopping suddenly once speaking had trailed to a finish. Outwardly, however, Selene cheekily rolled her eyes as if she was amused by Ben’s exasperation on the subject. “Whatever.” She dismissed it all nonchalantly, before standing up from the bench. “Let’s get going, I want to stop by the hospital wing before class. My stomach’s not feeling right today.”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Emmaline swiftly rushed her friend out of the Great Hall, the Slytherin girl’s worry-wort nature taking the reins.

There is an old muggle saying, once could be a coincidence but twice suggests a pattern.

The uncomfortable turn of her stomach – the one that had made Selene previously think that she wanted to be sick, or that she had cramps early that month – appeared again. And the sensation appeared as suddenly as it had before…

And, with the holidays approaching, it felt like everyone was getting progressively more excited for the end of term. The entire castle had begun its descent into excitement for the upcoming holidays.

Like in muggle shopping villages and districts, Hogwarts began the festivities almost as soon as the calendar switched from November to December. The corridors were decked out with red and green coloured wreaths and garlands. The house elves worked diligently, silently completing their work in a single night.

Tiny first years had started to gather together with older students. A portion of them prepared gifts and played games for Hanukkah. The students who celebrated Solstice and Yule were already marching across the school’s lawns for items they wanted to use in their altars – this particular group was an interesting mix of muggle-born ideologies of wicca and witches, as well as the magical version of wizardry. Those who celebrated Christmas were doing their best to stock up on papers for wrapping, they were ordering rolls of it by owl ready for their last few Hogsmeade trips before the 25th. Even the professors were getting into the spirit – Professor Longbottom had his singing tulips (which were a rare find of his from a trek across the Scandies in his late twenties) hum seasonal songs whilst he taught.

And as the term wound down, most of the students were gearing up to take the train back down to London. There were a few who were eager to be left (relatively) alone in the quiet castle. Selene happened to be undecided on the subject, tossing up whether she should stay or to go home and celebrate Yule with her busy mothers’.

The Slytherin was mulling it over when she was heading back to the common room. She only had one class left for term, but the textbook she needed was in her dorm. For a moment, she thought about sneakily using the accio charm, but knew it was banned for a good reason – flying objects can be hazardous when not charmed to fly above people after all. She weighed the pros and cons; she’d have more things to do in the castle, more people to talk to, her parents would probably have to work on Yule… Eventually, she decided to stay at Hogwarts for the holiday. When she got to her dorm, she would owl her mothers to let them know.

She turned the corner that lead to the grand staircase, thinking about asking if Ben was going to hang around the castle too this year. Selene had seen that the girls had already packed their trunk to leave, so she didn’t feel a particular need to ask them the same.

Unfortunately, Selene’s next turn into the adjacent corridor had led her to be the sole witness as an older girl (from the year above) slid her claws over the forearm of a familiar-looking blonde boy.

That stomach turn happened again.

Selene swiftly turned around, deciding to walk to the common room the long way. Also, she had suddenly decided to return to her home for the holidays.

Yule celebrations came and went early in her home.

Selene’s mothers were very apologetic when they told Selene that they’d have to work on the day of Yule. Still, the three of them had held a smaller, more intimate celebration a few days before.

The earlier celebration left the young girl to aimlessly wander around her own home on the actual day of Yule. She was bored out of her mind. It was approaching the late morning and Selene had already cracked onto her holiday homework – all part-the-way-done, apart from a Runes essay, which required a lengthy reading of a textbook that she had left behind whilst franticly packing.

The Slytherin had decided she should finally owl the school, to see if they could let her off on the Runes essay, or at the least send over her the textbook. She had made her way up to family attic, where her great-great-grandparents had set up a make-shift aviary for their business owls years ago. Apparently, back then they had run a small mail-order potions business. It was a Morgenstern family rumour that they sold an illegal werewolf suppressant potion, before wolfsbane had even been invented.

Selene’s owl hooted softly to the girl, making its presence known. It sat on rigidly on its perch, a pile of letters and small boxes on a tall table to its immediate left. Selene pet the owl carefully, slipping the bird two treats. Then, she arranged some more water and feed for it before she gathered up all her mail.

“Thank you, Soot!”

The first few letters were Christmas cards from her various muggleborn friends, some including cute non-moving photographs of their families. One had a Father Christmas who was drawn to be surfing on a beach, from her friend whose family spent the holidays in Australia. Another was a sexy version of the red-clad man, the words asking if she’d been ‘naughty’ that year – that one was from Naomi Gardner, who had written in thanks for setting her up with Mari.

Ben had done what he usually did and had written her a lengthy letter. He opened it with a greeting, as well as some well wishes to Selene and her mothers. Then Ben informed her that he had decided to stay at Hogwarts that year (which was usual for Ben, as he kind of hated his extended family, who had a tradition of gathering together this time of year), and that he loved the gift that she’d left for him under the Slytherin common room tree. At that point in the letter, the boy demanded that Selene open the gift he had included. It was a gorgeous goblin-made quilt set in her favourite shade of mauve.

Ben went on in his letter to detail the latest gossip going around the castle, ‘It turns out that wench in the year above, you know the one! The absolute wench Julie McNamara, that swish! She was seen trying to flirt with your mother-missing boy before term ended! I cannot believe the gall of the wench! Everybody knows that he only has eyes for you, I swear!’

Last year, Ben had been gifted with a spelled pen. It automatically censored his cursing. It had been a joke-gift from Emery but ended up being his favourite writing utensil to date. As such, Selene had fitted it with a never-ending ink-well, and Emmaline had spelled it to be impossible to lose.

He went on; ‘Apparently, he had to have his family step in! The wench just wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. I’m telling you Selene; everyone said that it was absolutely disgusting! She had to be formally warned away by the professors too. In this day and age!’

Selene felt an unclear anger suddenly rush through her body.

She could easily see how Julie McNamara would make Louis uncomfortable. He was such a lovely guy, but he got awkward when anyone even jokingly flirted with him. In fact, the first time she ever jokingly winked at him, his face went fuchsia for three-and-a-half minutes. Poor Louis! Selene could picture in her mind how her Louis would try to uneasily shift away from her, but…

Her hand released Ben’s letter. It fluttered to the carpeted floor silently.

Oh.

“Oh,” Selene breathed, tears springing to her eyes for no reason. Her thoughts were now cleared like the sky after a storm, “I like him.” That explained so, so much. So much. “Bollocks.”

The week following her realisation, Selene was working on autopilot. She went about her days like nothing was out of the ordinary. Dinner with her mothers, doing her school reading, finishing up the assessments she’d started before… Selene did it all, without a single complaint.

That worried her mothers.

“Sweetheart?”

“Hmm?” Selene looked up from her plate to see her mother, Dorothea, looking at her in concern. “Sorry, did you ask me something?”

The woman shook her head, dark curls bouncing as she did. “No, sweetheart. We just, you know –”

“The point your mother is trying to get to,” Her other mother, Appoline, sent her wife a cheeky glance before her expression melted into a concerned one. “Are you feeling alright, Selene?” At her daughter’s furrowed brows, she went on, “Your mother and I have noticed that you seem to be a little spacey, dear.” Her tanned skin pulled taut around her pursed lips, “Are you having a disagreement with the girls?” Appoline was referring to Emmaline and Emery, as well as Ben.

“No, I…” Selene wasn’t even sure what to say. Her teenaged brain told her to lie to their faces. Letting her parents know too much about her school life, her social life, might lead to a lecture Selene did not want to sit through… Although, “I just realised that I, uh, fancy one of my friends. A lot.” The Slytherin had been stewing in the idea all week and was now desperate to at least speak the words out loud. “I, um, I didn’t realise until, like, last week.” She paused, pushing her vegetables around on her plate, avoiding their surprised eyes. “So… yeah. That’s it really.”

There was a moment of awkward, confused silence.

Clearing her throat, Dorothea spoke to her daughter sincerely. “Is this something you want to discuss with us further, sweetheart?”

Selene mulled over how to answer. Did she want to talk about this? Maybe. Until now, she didn’t realise how pent up she had begun to feel. Did Selene want to open up to her married parents about this, though? Two lesbians (well, one of her mothers is bisexual), who had been monogamously together for longer than ten years? Not really.

The teen smiled awkwardly at her parents, “Actually, I think I want to talk to the girls about it. I might send them an owl, or-” Selene stopped herself, to think on it for a moment longer, “This is probably something I want to say to them in person, though.”

“Okay.” Appoline nodded in understanding, before she tactfully changed their dinner conversation, “So, I was listening to this Korean band yesterday.”

She brought it up with her friends when they were all corralled in the safety of the common room. Selene waited until it was late, as there would be less people around to hear them discuss something so personal. Slipping it into the already flowing conversation, “I realised I fancy Louis.”

All speaking stopped. Ben, who had been using his personal copy of ‘Hogwarts; A History – Volume 24’ to prove a point, loudly snapped it shut. Emery had paused mid-chew, and there was a gummy serpent still hanging from the corner of her parted lips. Emmaline, who was sat next to Selene, stared at her friend in complete shock.

Selene shuffled nervously in her seat, “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

“Girl, what do you mean–?”

“’Just realised’?” Emery finished her sisters thought, the gummy falling into her lap.

Selene sighed, the sound tinged with embarrassment, “Well… When you lads were making fun of me, saying that ‘of course I liked him’.” The three nodded, knowing the instances she was talking of, “I, uh,” She let out a breath chuckle, “Well, I didn’t know. I thought I only liked Louis as a mate, you know; a friend.” Her head tilted, “I mean, I’ve always been attracted to him,” Her head tilted the other way, “I just did not know that I, uh, you know… fancied him. Like proper fancy, you know?”

Ben’s mouth was agape.

“No. I don’t know.” Emmaline disagreed. “How did you not know?” To Selene’s friends, it was so clear – her feelings had been so transparent to them, so see-through. “You were undressing him with your eyes, for Merlin’s sake!”

“I was not!” Selene argued indignantly.

“Oh, you were too!” Ben argued back. “The two of you are always looking at each other, starry eyed. Frankly, it’s a little sickening. And not in a good way!” He flung his book behind him, leaning closer to Selene. “We told you, as well!”

Emery nodded, “We did!” She viciously bit the head of her now-retrieved gummy serpent, “And,” She paused to quickly chew, “You basically go on study-dates, nearly every bloody day.” Emmaline nodded in agreement with her sister. “Babes, when you said you were going out with Mari, on Halloween, we were so confused!”

Ben sighed, “Ah, that’s right! Ugh, we were convinced that you had been courting Weasley before that.”

Selene scoffed, “Courting him? I barely know him!”

In wizarding society, courting was serious. It was like a person screaming their personal commitment to another in a court of law. There was no way to go even one day without another wizard finding out about the commitment. Firstly, because every child was taught about the process in their first year of education at whatever school they attend. Secondly, every couple entering into courtship had to be witnessed by three other witches or wizards, as a testament to how serious the process is (and also because three is a deeply important number to magic-users). Young witches and wizards could date to their hearts content, but courting meant a true declaration of intent – the intent being marriage or a binding, of course. There had been times where dating had led into courting. And they were also rarely broken, due to the gravity of the whole process.

There would have been no way for Louis to be in a courtship with Selene – her heart ached in joy, at the thought of being in anything with the blonde Gryffindor – without any other person knowing.

Emmaline scoffed back, mocking Selene, “’Barely know him’?” She smacked Selene’s shoulder, “You spend everyday in each other’s presence, you should know everything about each other by now!”

“Well, not everything!”

Emery butt in, “You definitely know enough!”

“What are his sister’s names again?”, Ben challenged her.

“Victoire and Dominique,” Selene answered automatically, before rolling her eyes, “That’s a basic thing to know about another person!”

Emmaline nodded, “Alright then, what are his cousins’ called?” Selene looked away from her, not wanting to see the smug look on her face, “You know them, don’t you?”

“Wow!”

“It’s not private information!” Selene argued with them, “We do go to school with half of them!”

Ben gave her a disbelieving look, “I bet you couldn’t name the collective five cousins that we,” He pointed to himself, then the twins, “Have had at this school.”

“Daisy, Marcus, Kipper, Damien,” Selene struggled with the last one, “I, I want to say Humphrey…”

“Oh, honey…”

One moment she was completely oblivious to these feelings she had, and was living her life perfectly normally, the next moment she’s almost paralyzed – with what she wasn’t completely comfortable in calling fear… but it was an emotion closely related.

Also, there were questions clogging her thoughts now… Should she tell Louis of her feelings for him? Should she leave it be? Most importantly, how is she to act around Louis now?

Her mind shouted many ways not to act – and the dozens of reasons why she shouldn’t act in those ways. But how could she maintain their previous easy camaraderie? That camaraderie, and their ability to instinctively know what the other is thinking, was so comforting before. A small pit of dread pooled in her stomach, at the thought of losing that friendship with Louis.

When this dilemma was brought up to the girls (which again, included Ben), they told her to act as she had before – mainly because they knew she liked him even then, so there shouldn’t be too much acting involved for her.

“So, how were the holidays for you?” Louis had joined Selene at their study table, as usual. He quickly slung his bag off his shoulder, before plopping down onto the wooden chair. “Anything exciting happen?” The Gryffindor leaned over the table to whisper conspiratorially, “Any fights?”

Selene’s pulse spiked at his proximity, but she quickly composed herself to the best of her resting-bitch-faced ability. Once she was normal again, she realised that the question made no sense to her, “Like a physical fight?”

Louis choked trying to hold in his raucous laughter at her question. Although, he was not as successful as he might have had hoped for. Even though the blonde covered his mouth, hushed chortles managed to escape. Louis’s eyes even watered. After a moment, he forced himself to take deep breaths, to compose himself. “Sorry. I forgot you’re an only child.” Selene’s confused look did not fade, “You know, there’s just a certain level of craziness that having siblings brings. Plus, the high tension of the holidays... With my family, there’s more than enough sparks flung about to start a fire.” Louis paused as he remembered, “In fact, two years ago; there was an actual fire.”

Selene’s eyes widened, “No!”

“Yes.” Louis leaned forward again, excitement and humour plain on his sweet face as he remembered the absurdity of the situation, “So the twins-”

Purposely, the Slytherin guessed one name wrong, “Rosie and Fred, right?”

Louis beamed, oblivious to her purposeful mix-up. He was just overjoyed that his mate was putting in effort in remembering his extensive family members. “Roxanne and Fred,” The blonde softly corrected. “Well, they decide one afternoon, that my grandpa Weasley’s Christmas tree was not festive enough.”

The dark-haired girl tilted her head, “Is that your grandfather who is obsessed with muggles?”

“Yes!” Louis did not think he could be grinning more – surely, his face might split in half if he even tried. “So, every year he brings out this ancient fake Christmas tree – it was a gift from my Aunt Hermione’s parents, probably about twenty years ago.” He paused, to duck his head when the librarian glared their way, with her penetrating, evil eyes. Louis waited until she turned back around before he went on, “The twins knew that most trees had lights on them, but grandpa Weasley didn’t… They managed to convince him that he should use candles.”

Selene’s eyes sprung into wide-eyed shock, “They didn’t!” At Louis confirming nod she pressed, “At least he charmed them, right?” The blonde’s face turned mischievous. “No! He forgot?” Her gasps had been quiet enough, but they always had an audience when they were together.

Two first year Hufflepuffs (who had twenty-four textbooks piled between their arms) got to watch firsthand as Selene dissolved into a fit of laughter. It began with a loud snort, which left Selene trying to cover her face. To no avail it seemed, as her giggles were audible all the way from where the first years were lollygagging. One of the Hufflepuffs decided that they way Louis was gazing at her – his eye lit up at her enjoyment, not daring to look away for even one moment – had to be what true love was.

TAGGED:

@iamwarrenspeace, @itsnolongerteen, @stilesloverdaily, @immortalmurphy, @fandomsandotherstuff, @mcheung0314, @aw-hawkeye, @glimmering-darling-dolly, @thenodmonster, @realgreglestrade, @seninjakitey, @theshortegg, @gqlqxies, @footballiskillingme, @romance-geek

#louis weasley #LouisWeasley #louis weasley imagine #louis weasley x oc #louisweasleyimagine #next generation #nextgen!#next generation harry potter #next gen harry potter #harry potter series #harry potter imagine #the struggles of a male veela #the struggles of a male veela series #Harry Potter

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ghostspideys-moved · 4 years

Text

We’ll Have Tomorrow

Chapter Seven

A/N: We’re getting into those good Christmas and Hanukkah vibes.

Word Count: 2.6k

Pairing: Steve Harrington x OC, Jonathan x Nancy x OC (eventually)

Summary: Christmas is right around the corner, and that means it’s time for the Christmas party Steve’s parents decided to throw. Hopefully they can avoid noisy adults.

Christmas was less than five days away now. Nearly three days away to be precise. Which meant River was now stuck going to a Christmas party with Steve. She wasn't much of a party person, but, if she remembered correctly, it was mostly going to be adults. Probably friends or colleagues of his parents.

Steve had been the one to open the door and let her in. Of course her first thought was about how huge his house was. She'd known his parents had a good amount of money, but she'd never been in a house this big before.

He must have noticed her awestruck expression as she glanced at all the art hanging in the walls, because he laughed.

River snapped out of her reverie and followed him up to his room. Even from here, she could hear the faint him of socializing downstairs, but it was barely noticeable. Besides, she had a bigger concern right now.

Steve's room was hideous.

"Not to, like, insult you or anything, but what the fuck?" The wallpaper was a strange plaid pattern almost, and the curtains matched almost perfectly. It was horrible, and she was having a hard time focusing on anything but that.

"What?" Steve asked, still not catching on.

Rive snorted. "Steve, please never become an interior decorator," she pleaded.

Steve rolled his eyes and fell back on his bed. "Shut up. This is the one thing in this house I have control over."

"Then it's even worse than I thought." She laughed and took off her jacket, setting it on his desk chair.

Admittedly, it felt a little awkward being in his room, especially given the fact that just a few days ago, she still hated him. Maybe hate was a strong word, but she hadn't liked him at all, that was for sure.

Steve probably sensed her apprehension and scooted over. "Don't worry, Matthews. I won't bite," he joked.

River rolled her eyes and hesitated before sitting next to him. She wasn’t really sure what it was, but being in his room felt weird. Because of her dad’s rules, she’d barely even interacted with a guy outside of school, so this was a first. It wasn’t bad or anything, she just didn’t really know what people did in this sort of situation.

Luckily, Steve was a lot less awkward than she was, because he seemed to have a better idea of what to do than she did.

“How about we play a game?” he asked.

Of course, River was instantly curious as to where this was going. “Uh, sure.”

He sat up a little, a huge grin on his face. By now, she’d become accustomed to feeling worried when he had that look on his face.

“Okay, we’re going to play 20 questions, which is exactly what it sounds like. I’ll ask you a question, and you have to answer truthfully. Then you ask me something, and we keep going until we hit 20 of them each,” Steve explained.

“And any question goes?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

River thought it sounded innocent enough. She nodded and let him start off with a simple question.

“What’s your favorite color?”

“Purple,” she said without hesitation. She thought for a second before asking, “Favorite movie?”

“Star Wars.”

“Which one?’

Admittedly, he hadn’t known there was more than one, but rather than owning up to that, he said, “Nope. That’s two questions, missy.”

River laughed and rolled her eyes as she let him ask his next question.

“What’s your middle name?”

“Which one?”

“Hm. American one.”

“Gwendolyn.”

Steve was secretly hoping it’d be something a lot more embarrassing from what she could tell.

River leaned back on her palms, chewing her lip as she thought. “Okay, what’s your biggest fear?” she asked.

Steve laughed and gave her a shocked look. “Already asking the deep questions, I see.” He paused as he seemed to be seriously considering the question. “I’ve always been pretty scared of scarecrows since I was a kid,” he admitted.

It wasn’t the answer she was expecting, but maybe that was what made it all the funnier to her. “Scarecrows?”

“Yeah. I mean, not really anymore, but they creeped me the fuck out as a kid.”

River snorted and shook her head. “Well then that doesn’t count,” she said. “What’s your biggest fear now?”

“Woah, who says it doesn’t count?”

“I do, Harrington. Now answer the question.”

Steve sighed and thought again, this time really wracking his brain for a more truthful answer. Not that he’d been lying, but he felt like that wasn’t the full truth.

“Well, if you want me to get deep or something, I guess I’m afraid that I’ll end up alone,” he said.

Somehow, that threw her off even more than the last answer. River didn’t really think he got insecure about those things, but she supposed it happened to the best of people.

“Dude, you’re Steve Harrington. Do you know how many girls I’ve seen swooning over you over the years?” She’d never really understood it, but at least it was the truth. Even now, when he was a lot better than just last year, she still didn’t quite know what the big fuss was.

Steve scoffed and propped himself on his elbow, turning to face her. “Things have changed for me since last year. I’m not nearly as popular as I used to be.”

She never really understood why that was so important. “So what?”

Seeing the incredulous look on his face was enough to make her laugh, which only made him roll his eyes. “What do you mean ‘so what?’ My life has been in shambles since.”

“Not really. You have friends, Harrington.” “Yeah, a bunch of twelve-year olds.”

River sighed and shook her head. Not quite what she meant, but that was her point. “Yeah, but you like them,” she said. “If you didn’t I don’t think you would have really risked your life to save them.”

“Or maybe I’m just that good,” Steve insisted.

“Harrington, you literally almost died to save Dustin.” And her, but that wasn’t her point, so she didn’t add that in. “I may not know you too well, but I think that’s about as close to a declaration of friendship as it comes for you.”

Steve ran his fingers through his hair, thinking over what she said. River could tell he knew she was right, but whether he admitted that was a whole other question.

“Alright, if we’re getting deep all of a sudden, I get to pry into your head a little.”

She thought that certainly seemed fair enough. Though she wasn’t sure how truthful she’d be depending on where this next question went.

He sat up now, a much more serious look on his face. “You’re like that girl...El? So, then you had to be trapped in the lab for some time, right?”

There weren’t many ways to avoid answering this one. On the one hand, she could probably lie or downplay the whole thing, but she doubted he’d buy that. If she’d learned anything, it was that Steve wasn’t stupid by any means. He wasn’t always the brightest at times, sure, but he wasn’t dumb at all, and he would never buy it if she tried to be anything but truthful.

“Well, yeah.” River shrugged and flopped back on the bed, refusing to meet his gaze just yet. “I mean, ever since I was ten. And then my brother and I...we escaped about three years after that.”

Steve seemed surprised to hear that. He nodded and gestured for her to go on.

“Um, I’m pretty sure the only reason we didn’t get caught was because my dad was trying his hardest to keep us from the scientists,” she added. “I think after not finding us for so long, they gave up searching.” That’s what she’d always assumed anyways. “That was like five years ago, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t just give up.” He nodded, still absorbing all of the information. River was just grateful he hadn’t pushed her for more. She was surprised she’d even shared that much. Then again, he’d already seen the number on her arm when she’d showed them. And he was probably just as trustworthy as the rest of the kids.

“Can I see it again?” he asked suddenly. “Your arm?”

River hesitated for a moment before pulling up her sleeve and showing him once more.

“Holy shit.” Of course, Steve had already seen it before, but that didn’t mean it didn’t still shock him. After all, he was still wrapping his head around everything Dustin told him about El.

River nodded and pulled her sleeve back down after a moment. Before he could even think to ask anything else, his mom called them down for dinner.

Dinner went surprisingly well. Of course, Steve and River mostly just talked to each other, not wanting to have to interact with a bunch of nosy adults. In fact, any time an adult talked to them, they seemed to think she was his girlfriend, which she thought was absurd. Of course, Steve shut that thought down quickly, not wanting her to be uncomfortable. After all, he’d really just invited her over as a friend, not wanting to be alone.

The rest of the night, they stuck to his room, avoiding the loud group of people downstairs.

At some point, Steve even started playing some Christmas music. And at first, she wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not, but he was singing so badly. But eventually, they sat back on his bed, relaxing and simply enjoying each other’s company. That was when she heard him singing quietly to himself, and it sounded beyond amazing.

River didn't want to say anything in case he stopped, so she was silent as she listened to him sing. Faintly, she could hear everyone downstairs, and the radio on Steve’s desk was playing quietly by now. Something about it all was soothing. This was probably the most calm she’d been in a long time, and she was trying to enjoy every second of it.

Once it was getting late, Steve drove her home so Hopper wouldn’t get worried. The flurries of snowflakes blew in the harsh breeze, making it nearly impossible to see. Maybe not the best time to be driving, but they’d certainly been in worse situations.

Conversation was light through the whole drive, but still enjoyable. By the time they rolled into the driveway, they were both silent until Steve turned to her.

“I know we had to deal with nosy adults, but I hope you had fun,” he said.

River smiled brightly and nodded. It hadn’t been so bad, really. And, in all honesty, she’d had more fun than she’d had in a long time. Maybe ever.

“Yeah, I definitely did,” she responded. “Then again, I have some pretty low standards.”

Steve laughed, looking forward again as the porch light turned on, meaning Hopper was definitely up. And more than likely, he was waiting for her to come in.

River paused for a moment, her mind racing as she considered asking him something. “Christmas is coming up. Obviously.” Only five days and it would finally be here. “You don’t really like being home, so I was wondering if you wanted to spend the day with us.”

Before he could respond and possibly shoot her down, she backtracked, fumbling over her words for a moment. “I mean, I know El would get a kick out of that. She loves you so far, and I think Hopper wouldn’t say it, but he likes you, too.”

Steve laughed at how awkward she was being. She wasn’t trying to be weird about it, but the last thing she wanted was for him to think this was her flirting or something of that sort. Really, she just wanted him to have a decent Christmas, and if that meant escaping his parents, she was glad to offer an alternative.

“Yeah, I think I’ll take you up on that.” He grinned. For some reason, one she didn’t fully understand, it made her sigh in relief, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

“Good. I’ll, uh, tell Hop to expect you,” she said. “Goodnight, Harrington.”

He waved and said goodbye as she got out of the car and trekked up to the porch, quickly getting herself out of the cold.

Inside, River pulled off her boots and set them by the door so she wouldn’t track snow inside. She’d done that many times before, mostly because she forgot simple things like that every now and then.

As expected, Hopper was up, sitting in his chair while the TV played quietly, a beer in his hand. From what she could tell, Hawthorne and El must already be asleep, or at the very least in their rooms.

As soon as Hopper noticed she was home, he turned as she was walking over to join him. He let her settle on the couch before asking her anything.

“How’d your date with Harrington go?” he questioned, taking another swig of his beer.

River rolled her eyes and glanced at the TV. “It was not a date, for starters.” He only seemed to laugh at her insistence. “And second of all, it went pretty well, actually.”

“Glad to hear it,” he said. “I sure hope he didn’t think it was a date.”

She groaned, partially embarrassed by this line of questioning. “No, not as far as I could tell. You know, I can just be friends with him, right?”

“I’m not saying you can’t, but I am saying I know how boys are.”

The whole night, she hadn’t really picked up on anything like that from Steve. He really just seemed relieved to have some actual company, which she could totally understand.

“Steve’s changed a lot, and it continues to surprise me,” River admitted. “And trust me, if he hadn’t I don’t think I would have agreed to go. So I don’t really think anything you’re thinking of was on his mind. And I should know.”

Maybe she was still learning, but she could control her powers well enough to hear anything Steve might have been thinking. Of course, there was a certain line of privacy she never wanted to cross, so she wouldn’t have pried.

“Yeah, I know, kiddo. He’s not as bad as I expected, either.” She could tell he really meant it, and she had to agree. Steve was oddly full of surprises, and she had a feeling he wasn’t going to stop surprising her any time soon.

River stayed in the living room for a while. She tried to relax, either of them really saying much. It was a comfortable silence, though. Neither of them needed to say much right now, so they didn’t.

Eventually, she was growing tired, and her eyelids were growing heavy.

Hopper pulled himself out of the chair and turned the Tv off. He ruffled her hair, a slight smile on his face. “Get some sleep, kid.”

River nodded and slowly got up, stretching her arms and legs, before dragging herself to bed. Sometimes, it was hard for her to fall asleep, but this was not one of those times. Over the last few weeks, she often found herself lying awake late at night, unable to do anything but think.

Her life was much better than it had been not long ago, but it was hard for her to really accept that. She was afraid she’d let her guard down, and the illusion of security would break. All of this might suddenly vanish, like a beautiful dream that she would never remember if she woke up. It might slip away from her forever.

Thankfully, she felt a lot less worried this time, and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out like a light. She couldn’t even remember having a nightmare, which was the first time she could think of that happening in a long time.

Taglist: @bravest-at-heart @musicalytrashpanda @queenofthehairharrington

#steve harrington #dustin henderson #will byers #joyce byers #jonathan byers #nancy wheeler #mike wheeler #jane hopper #jim hopper #lucas sinclair #max mayfield #stranger things #stranger things 2 #stranger things 3 #steve harrington fanfiction #steve harrington headcanon #steve harrington x oc #steve harrington fanfic

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theclaravoyant · 5 years

Text

an addition to the family (david x patrick, schitt’s creek)

AN ~ I don't know exactly how this happened, but I have 2000 words of David x Patrick pro-pet adoption holiday season fluff with a healthy sider of David & Stevie friendship and 'delightfully half-half' Xtn/Jewish David, and I couldn't help but share it. Enjoy! and support your local pet shelters this holidays.

Rated T just in case. fluff. contains mentions of both Christmas and Hanukkah

Read on AO3 (~2100 words)

an addition to the family

After a snooty dachshund rejected his advances, David turned back to his stand and tried his best not to pull a face as he straightened a row of collars. He’d never really got dogs. There just seemed to be something about them he couldn’t vibe with; not even the neat, posh ones. But he could respect that other people liked them – and he certainly appreciated those who aspired to give their pets the best. His pleasure at the very popular reception of their hand-made organic dog treats was very much genuine… even if he wasn’t too keen on giving out the samples himself.

Patrick, on the other hand, was living up to his reputation with the local youths; kneeling in muddy snow at the adoption drive, helping kids get up the courage to pat his charges, which were on the larger side of the doggy spectrum. For some unknown reason that David could only boil down to the mysteries of love, it warmed his heart to notice that Patrick’s smile somehow resembled that of the gambolling Retriever-cross he was currently introducing to the nearest family as Buddy.

“Thinking about an addition to the family?” interrupted a familiar voice. Stevie, raising an eyebrow, over the cup of tea she had brought him.

David scoffed, and took the tea. “Ugh. No.”

“Come on,” Stevie cajoled. “I think it would be cute.”

“I think it would be… messy. And loud. And…”

And something shaggy and black and white, maybe a Husky or a Border Collie, was lying on its back while Patrick laughed and rubbed its belly. It pawed the air in delight.

David cleared his throat.

“Besides,” he finished. “We don’t have room for it in the apartment.”

“It doesn’t have to be a dog, you know,” Stevie pointed out. “Me, I’m thinking about getting a lizard. Or maybe a ferret. Like old Felix here.”

She swung her arm around, revealing a mouse-brown ferret with a white bandit mark across its eyes, wrapped around her arm quite contentedly. David yelped.

“Oh, God! Why??” Eye twitching, he reined himself in. They had customers to think of after all – not that most of them didn’t already know of his lack of affinity for animals by now. Most of them found it funnier than he cared for, to be honest. Still, he pulled out of the dive. “Why- why- why is Felix, um, here?”

“Because I wanted to try out these little hats,” Stevie said, plucking a tiny green-and-red elf hat from the table and arranging it on Felix’s head. He sat up, attentive, almost appearing to clap his hands. If he didn’t have such a rat-like face, it almost would have been cute. And dare he say it, David had an idea to make it even cuter.

“… We also have matching scarves.”

Resigned to his fate, and to sacrificing himself for the art, David picked a green one from the selection and pressed the stud so that it sit comfortably around the ferret’s neck. Felix wrapped a tiny hand around his finger in return.

“Aww,” Stevie said. “He likes you.”

“That’s nice,” David replied, withdrawing his finger with a half-hearted glare. He had intended to be sarcastic but actually, it did feel kind of nice - there was a reason after all, he supposed, that humans had domesticated animals for the last few thousand odd years. Why people then proceeded to abandon the little monsters in droves, he would never understand.

(Maybe he would have, not so long ago. But he tried not to think too hard about that.)

Instead, he focused on doing the best he could for the store. He peddled the dog treats, and cat treats, little booties and hats, collars, toys; everything. He encouraged people to take photos, tag them on Instagram, buy gifts for friends, and of course donate to the shelter. A handful of times, Patrick offered to cover, but since that meant David helping out at the shelter drive as his replacement, David declined. Besides, they were doing well, but it wasn’t like things were flying off the shelf. He got plenty of downtime.

Plenty of downtime to think.

Plenty of downtime to think about the apartment, the budget, the hints that Patrick had been dropping. The shop in Prague, whose resident cat Luna had once got him to buy what remained to this day his favourite mug. Maybe it wouldn’t be all bad.

(Maybe he was already vision-boarding outdoor sun-boxes and cat runs and reading about something called ‘cat mint’. But he wasn’t going to tell Stevie about that.)

Still, by the time the day’s festivities were winding up, David was in a much more pensive state of mind. He packed up their remaining supplies (there weren’t many; as always, he’d planned well) and wandered over to the shelter’s pens to wait for Patrick. Ted was there, explaining some flea drops to Twyla while Alexis made kissy faces at her friend’s new ginger cat. That, David told himself, is what caused him to wander over to the feline side of the selection.

Most of the pens had been cleared out by this point, and most of what were left were the older cats, the scarred ones, the ugly breeds or sickly-looking ones. David frowned; it was, he supposed, to be expected, but somehow if anything, that made it even more sad. His eyes caught the bright yellow ones of a black cat at the end of the aisle. There were a few of those left, too. This one had a scar on his shoulder, a bit of knotted fur where it was healing, but otherwise he was quite a handsome devil. Even if his gaze was a little too insightful for comfort, it kept David’s attention so thoroughly he didn’t in the slightest notice Ted sneak up.

“Hey, bud. How’s things?”

“Uh, good,” David replied, stammering to keep from jumping near out of his skin. He straightened up from his cat-examination angle, and found that a question seemed poised on his lips.

“I see you’ve meet Maccabee,” Ted pointed out, and bent over himself to greet the cat and pull him out for a cuddle, before turning his attention back to David. “He’s been in rescue for a year this Christmas. It’s sad, really; black cats are already least rescued because of some superstition, and with his scar and FIV on top of that –“

“What’s FIV?”

“It’s… like HIV. For cats.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.” Ted took a deep breath, and sighed it out. “He’s asymptomatic at the moment, but it still means he can’t live with other cats, or go outside where might run into them and get himself into trouble. It’s kinda limiting. Which sucks, ‘cause he’s a sweet little guy now that he’s had his testosterone – you know, permanently lowered - and some people won’t even pet him once they find out.”

Try as he might, Ted couldn’t hold back a little smile at David, who had already offered a knuckle for Maccabee to sniff and couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the little man. It took a solid few seconds for David to notice that Ted had stopped talking, and what he was doing, at which point he dropped his hand and cleared his throat.

“That’s, um. That’s a bummer.”

“It is. Especially because, you know, people can’t get it from cats.”

“Like, not at all? Are you sure?”

Somehow, David’s hand had found Maccabee again, and was scratching absently at the back of his neck. He watched for Ted’s answers closely, apparently unaware of what his fingers were doing.

“Not even if he bit your whole hand off,” Ted swore. “Certainly not if he… I don’t know. Sat in the same room or maybe, rubbed past some clothes…”

Something deep inside David was thinking, as Patrick jogged up the aisle to greet them. He saw who Ted was holding, and pouted.

“Mac’s still here, huh?”

“Yeah,” Ted sighs.

“And David- David, is here?” Patrick didn’t mean to sound so surprised, let alone hopeful, but he had been dropping an awful lot of hints that he was interested in getting a pet. He’d just assumed David hadn’t been picking up on them, or had misinterpreted them as the idea to come here. Either way, it seemed he had a foot in the door, if he trod lightly.

“Can I hold him?” Patrick asked Ted.

“Sure,” Ted agreed, passing him over. “I’ve gotta start crating the others anyway. Just bring him down the front when you’re done.”

As Ted walked away, David frowned.

“I thought you said you were allergic to cats?” he wondered.

“They make meds for that, David,” Patrick assured him, and cooed at Maccabee, letting the cat rub his face into his hand and paw at his shoulder.

“Okay.” David nodded and, more conscious of what he was doing this time, resumed scratching Maccabee between the shoulder blades and around the back of the neck. It seemed his mind had been made up for him – especially as he started to feel the tiny sputtering rumbles of a hesitant purr beneath the coarse black coat.

“Hey, Patrick?” David began again.

“Yes, David.”

“Did you know that Maccabee is the name of the group of Jewish warriors who took back the temple from Antiochus and lit the oil that started Hanukkah?”

Patrick blinked in surprise. “I kinda assumed it was something biblical but no, I didn’t know that.”

“So you didn’t set me up to meet this cat a week out from Hanukkah?”

“No.”

“And you didn’t name him Maccabee?”

“David. I met him this morning.”

“So you haven’t been conspiring for me to get you a furry four-legged friend these last few months.”

“Well…“

“And you didn’t bring Stevie, Ted, and/or Alexis in on this little gambit.”

“I wouldn’t say I brought them in. But yes. I think it would be nice to have a pet! I always had a dog growing up and Rachel had a cat – I miss being around them. And these little guys, they need a home. Mac needs a home, David.”

He lifted Maccabee’s face beside his own, glowing yellow eyes and pleading blue making a point together. Now that David thought about it, maybe they should add some kippot to their holiday hat collection.

“Come on,” Patrick continued. “You said it yourself, it’s basically fate – it’s divine intervention-“

“It’s a fundraiser set up for the sole purpose of helping the shelter adopt out animals,” David corrected. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”

But the thought of putting Maccabee back in that sad little cage at this point and walking away was almost too much to bear. The thought of him sitting on the shop counter by Patrick as he worked the books, or batting him away from the menorah and the tinsel, or waking up to him on the end of their little bed – now that, David thought, suddenly felt like it had always been part of this little world he’d envisioned for himself.

And judging by the look on Patrick’s face, Patrick was envisioning something very much the same.

David took a deep breath, pretending to be much more laboured about the decision than he now was; he had a reputation to maintain, after all.

“You promise to clean up his poop?”

“I promise,” Patrick vowed.

“And you promise the allergy thing won’t bug you?”

“Literally got antihistamines in my bag.”

“Then I think we should do it,” David announced. “I think we should bring Maccabee home.”

“Really?” Patrick’s eyes lit up, and he held Maccabee a little tighter to stop from shifting him too much in his excitement. “Great!”

He bounded back up the front of the shelter stands, David following behind with the patient long-suffering smile for once. Ted was waiting at the back of his truck, one last crate awaiting, register and kitty (pun, as always, intended) long since packed away. His smile told David and Patrick he already knew exactly what had transpired, and he handed the spare crate and a manila folder over to David.

“That’s his welcome package – medical records, FIV info, council registration, stuff like that. Take a look, and if you have any questions, you know where to find me.”

“How much-“

Ted shrugged and waved them off.

“All sorted,” he said. “Happy Hanukk-cat, David. Merry Catmas.”

“Thanks,” “Thank you,” David and Patrick replied – and then Patrick added for good measure –

“And a Happy Meow Year.”

They could hear Alexis groan from the front seat of the truck. Ted laughed and joined her, calling as he went –

“Happy Meow Year to you too!”

#david x patrick #david rose x patrick brewer #schitt's creek #schitt's creek fic #scfic #clara's fic tag #christmas #hanukkah

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thechildoflightning · 5 years

Text

Ch5- Remembrance (December)

Title: Calendrical Consequences [Masterpost]

Fandom: Sanders Sides

Pairings: eventual LAMP, background Logicality

~~~

Chapter Title: Remembrance (December)- Chapter 5

Summary: The holiday season is here. Along with its arrival, Virgil gains some... other news.

Warnings: Cult Involvement, Kidnapping and Murder Mention, PTSD, Flashbacks, Panic Attacks, Mentions of Nightmares

[ao3 link]

~~~

Remembrance (December)- Chapter 5

~~~

December 6, 2019

Logan posed the question as they were walking back from a night out.

“Are we going to decorate for Christmas this year?” Logan asked.

Patton whipped to look at his boyfriend and gasped, “Of course we are.”

Logan shrugged, “Okay, I was just asking because half the apartment doesn’t celebrate it.”

“What!” Patton said in shock.

“Patton,” Logan said with a soothing tone, “You know this. Roman is Muslim and Virgil is Jewish.”

“Yes but- It’s not even about religion!”

“Pat- my man, I love you but Christmas is a religious holiday. Specifically a Christian holiday,” Roman pointed out.

“Okay yeah, but like, the idea of Christmas.”

“You mean Americanized, commercialized, Christmas?” Virgil offered.

“Yes!” Patton exclaimed in agreement using his cane as a giant pointer stick aimed at Virgil, “Exactly.”

“I mean, we can do our own celebration,” Roman offered, “I’m not really down for Christmas persay, but the idea of spreading happiness and spending time with friends and family sounds great.”

“What about a New Year’s celebration,” Logan proposed.

“I mean technically Rosh Hashanah is my New Year,” Virgil pointed out, “but I don’t care, I’m not even that religious. Roman?”

“New Year’s sounds good,” he agreed.

“Does that mean we can decorate the house for Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Years?” Patton asked, “Roman any holidays going on that we should add to the list?”

“Pat we don’t need to decorate for every holiday,” Logan pointed out.

“Of course we do,” Patton said with a gasp, “Roman?”

“My holidays are Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, and no, neither of them are during December.”

“Okay, so just the three then. The apartment is going to look so pretty!” Patton squealed.

That night Patton called the three of them to the living room, where two boxes were present. Patton’s cane, which was previously sparkle blue, also laid on the floor, now covered in a red and white candy cane pattern.

“Pat, when you said we were going to decorate, I didn’t realize you meant like, now,” Virgil commented, “Plus, I don’t think the streamers on your cane are going to last that long.”

“But December has already started! We need the house ready to go,” Patton protested. He completely ignored Virgil’s second comment. Virgil sighed but asked his next question.

“Ready for what?” Virgil asked.

“For,” Paton waved his arms around, as if that would convey whatever point he was trying to make. “The experience,” he finally settled on.

Virgil shrugged but didn’t argue.

“Okay, so I mostly have Christmas stuff with a little New Year’s. And I ran to the store to get some Hanukkah things. There wasn’t much so I thought we could make the stars or something.”

“Star of David.”

“More like the Star of Virgil. ‘Cause you’re the brightest star to me,” Patton said, pointing in Virgil’s direction. “Now, let’s get decorating!” he said with a grin.

The group spent the rest of the evening decorating. Like Patton had wanted, it certainly was an experience. Roman got successfully tangled in lights, garland, and other assorted decorations a total of seven times. Trixie was quite confused by the fake branches of holly and kept trying to play fetch. Logan had decidedly hated the texture of the plastic pine and had instead taken responsibility over the lights. Virgil just went to places as necessary, doing nothing in particular. The one thing he did make sure to do was assist Roman by getting him more tangled in the decorations and then laughing at him as he struggled to get out.

At the end, their apartment looked like the holiday spirit had thrown up on it. Meaning it did have some sort of theme, but really just looked like a complete mess.

“I love it,” Patton insisted once they stood back to admire their work.

The other three just stared at him incredulously. But you know what, if Patton was happy with it, why not?

December 11, 2019

Virgil had an innate flaw of snooping. So, when the person sitting next to him was on their phone before class, Virgil glanced at the screen. What he saw made his heart drop to the floor.

“What is that?” he asked, already expecting to get an answer he was not going to like.

“Oh, some major cult got busted or something. Really bad stuff man, kidnapping and murder and stuff,” the person told him.

“Uh, do you know what the cult was called?”

The girl hummed and looked through the page.

“Tri- something, ah here it is Triginea. Hey, your name is Virgil, right? A kid in here that was kidnapped has the same name. Not very common, huh? You know about it?”

Virgil felt his vision tunnel.

“No,” he could hear himself mutter, “No, no no.” Trixie pressed into him, and started whining loudly to get his attention. The sharp noise reminded him of what he was supposed to do, and he sat heavily onto the ground. Everyone was staring at him. God, why was everyone staring at him. He started to cry. Trixie laid on top of him, working on bringing him back.

He could see people moving closer around him. They approached with concerned faces and asked him questions. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t say anything. They got closer. Oh god they were going to grab him and take him back. Take him back and force him to obey again. Shove him in the cellar and… the crowd started to move back. Why? A dog was blocking them. A dog was blocking them? Oh, oh right, Trixie. Good girl Trixie.

The students continued to back away and the dog returned to lay on top of them. Right, come on Virgil, just be with your dog and breathe. You know how to do this. You got this.

Virgil continued to work on his breathing, finally sitting up after around fifteen minutes. He was surprised to find the room empty except for the professor.

“Virgil?” she asked as he looked around.

“Uh, yeah, hey professor.”

“Are you-” she hesitated, “How are you?”

“Fine.”

“Do you need anything?”

“Uh, no, I’m- where is everyone?” he asked.

“Oh, I had everyone leave. I read your email at the beginning of the year and you mentioned not to crowd you if this happened. Your dog got everyone to back away, but you still seemed nervous of the people. I cancelled class and told them they all could go.”

“Oh, uh, you didn’t need to cancel class,” Virgil said. He gestured Trixie off him and stood.

His professor smiled, “Trust me,” she said, “I’ve cancelled class for way less before.”

“Well, okay. Uh, I’m just going to go now then.”

“Do you want to call anyone?” she asked.

“No, no, I’m fine,” he insisted.

She went to say something and then hesitated. Virgil waited.

“Would you please email me when you get home?” she asked, “Just so I know you got back safely?”

“Uh, sure. Thanks.”

“No problem Virgil. Feel better.”

Virgil nodded, and left the room, wondering if feeling better would ever even be an option.

December 16, 2019

Five days later and he was finally working up the courage to look up the news article he had seen. Patton sat with him, playing a game on his phone, as emotional support. Virgil took a deep breath and typed in “Triginea Cult” into the search bar.

He expected as much, but was still shocked when the numerous new news reports showed up. He clicked one.

Cult… Apprehended… Being put on trial… Notable cases include… the kidnapping of Virgil Torres at age 6. Torres was rescued at age 13 after being abandoned by the cult. Can we expect him to testify in this trial?

“Holy shit,” Virgil muttered. Patton looked at him.

Virgil slid the phone to his friend who looked through it carefully. He read the article and stopped at the same section that talked about Virgil.

“How do they know this?” Patton asked with a frown.

Virgil shrugged, “I mean, it was a pretty big deal when they found me. I mean I had been missing for seven years. It was in the news and everything. I was just a lot more preoccupied with other stuff at that time.”

Patton frowned and continued to read.

“I can’t believe they did this,” Patton said. He held the phone in a tight grip and his teeth clenched together.

“I mean, it’s an interesting story, right? That’s how this works.” Virgil said with a sigh before burying his face in his arms.

“Still.”

“I just really hope this doesn’t become a huge thing like last time. We had to move.” Virgil’s voice came out muffled from where he had buried his head in his arms.

Patton looked at the younger boy in surprise, “You did?”

Virgil nodded.

“I had been home for like two months,” he explained, head popping back up, “And the story was all over the news and people kept coming to our house. It was really bad. Plus, y’know, I was doing a lot worse. And then I got sent away to help with all my,” Virgil waved a hand in the air, “Shit. And during that time my parents were still being harassed, so they moved. My mom left shortly after.”

“Wait, your mom left?”

“Yeah,” Virgil scrubbed his face with his hand, “It was too much for her, y’know?”

“No,” Patton said softly, as he took Virgil's other hand, “I don’t understand how a child could be ‘too much’ for their parents.”

Virgil sighed, “She didn’t sign up for me, y’know? Like my parents got married, had me and life was good. And then I was kidnapped and that was awful for them. But, seven years passed, right? It sucked, but they got used to the fact that I was dead. And then suddenly, I show up. And of course they love me and are happy to see me. I mean kids don’t just show up after that long unless their in a body bag. But I mean, no one signs up for their kid to be kidnapped and then later returned with a fuckton of mental issues multiple years down the line. My mom didn’t want a kid who was thirteen and woke himself up screaming every night.”

Patton shook his head, “It doesn’t matter, she should have loved you anyway. That’s a fault on her, not a fault on you.”

“Yeah, but, if I had just been an easier kid-”

“Virgil, you need to stop apologizing for your trauma. I think you should probably talk about this with your therapist.”

Virgil sniffled as tears ran down his cheeks. He hadn’t realized he had been crying. With a huff he wiped them away.

“Yeah, probably. Thanks Pat,” he muttered, and then escaped to his bedroom.

December 26, 2019

Hanukkah was surprisingly hard that year. Ever since he had been forced into a cult, religion was a touchy subject for Virgil. He could understand why people connected to it, especially after being friends with Roman, but his trauma was too deep to really enjoy his religion. The part he did like was the tradition and the connection he always felt to his dad. He tried to focus on those good parts instead of the enforced brainwashing he had undergone during his middle seven years of life, but it was harder than usual this year.

Virgil knew his father could tell. They kept the lighting of the menorah and the recitation as short as possible. Virgil knew his father wouldn't mind if he left. But Virgil wanted to enjoy this, he did. He may not completely believe in the goodness of religion after everything he had been through, but he was still Jewish. It was a part of him. A part he considered important. Why was this so hard?

“Virgil,” his dad said, firm, but soft, “We don’t have to celebrate this year if you don’t want to.”

Virgil shot his head up.

“No, no, I do,” he insisted, “I just-”

“It’s okay,” his dad said, calming his panic instantly. He always had a way of doing that. “Can I ask why it’s so hard this year? Usually Hanukkah isn’t this rough for you. Is it because you’re testifying soon?”

“No. It’s… Dad, do you read the news?”

His father frowned and shook his head.

“The case has been made public,” Virgil admitted, “And a lot of links have been made back to me. I’ve just been thinking about it a lot.”

His father sighed and nodded.

“What can I do?” he eventually asked.

Virgil shrugged.

“Want to go eat jelly donuts until we’re sick?” his dad offered.

Virgil offered him a smile and nodded. He’d get through this.

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seriestrash · 6 years

Text

12 Days of Tyrus

|| 1 || 2 ||

Summary: The cold season is upon them and Cyrus finds himself wishing for a lot this festive season, many of those wishes happen to involve TJ.

Read on ao3

Chapter Three: Operation Deck The Halls

Word Count: 3494

It’s the day after Cyrus and TJ met at the mall and once his last class for the day is over, Cyrus makes his way towards his locker and a smile creeps wider on his face when he spies TJ leaning against it.

“Hey you.” Cyrus says as he approaches.

“Hey.” TJ is also smiley in response.

“Is there something I can do for you?” Cyrus asks as he reaches around TJ to get to his lock.

TJ rolls onto his side, giving Cyrus access to the locker. With arms folded and a shoulder now pressed against the locker beside Cyrus’, TJ asks, “If I ask for your help with something do you promise not to get all Cyrus-y?”

“Using my name as a verb kinda sounds like an insult...” Cyrus’ expression drops to mild confusion mixed with a slight frown.

“It’s not.” TJ says genuinely, “But still?” TJ remains in place and looks to Cyrus as he waits for a serious answer.

“I’m happy to help you with anything.” Cyrus is sincere, “But I can’t guarantee my reaction isn’t going to be Cyrus-y because I am Cyrus and by definition everything I do is Cyrus-y.”

TJ cracks a smile at this and gives an understanding nod. Cyrus hangs his book bag over his shoulder and the two begin to walk.

“So I listened to what you said yesterday about Christmas and I’ve decided-“

“Yes?” Cyrus’ grin is toothy as he anticipates the rest of that sentence.

TJ rolls his eyes even though his smile suggests he’s somewhat amused. “I’ve decided to give Christmas a chance this year.” Cyrus’ smile is in full force at this mention and TJ rolls his eyes again at Cyrus for reacting exactly how he imagined. “For the twins.” TJ adds firmly.

“Of course, for the twins.” Cyrus nods casually although he was struggling to contain his excitement. “Anything particular you had in mind?”

“Not really.” TJ shakes his head, “That’s why I want your help.”

“You want my help?” Cyrus asks surprised, “You remember I’m Jewish, right?”

“I do but I also remember you’re Cyrus and you’ve always helped me, even when I don’t deserve it.” TJ says. “I don’t want to put you in a position that makes you uncomfortable, I don’t really know what you do when it comes to Christmas so I hope I’m not being disrespectful... I’m not asking you to write letters to Santa or anything like that, maybe just make sure I don’t Grinch out?” TJ asks sheepishly, “You understand that reference right?”

“Yes I understand.” Cyrus shakes his head at the silly question. “And I’m happy to assist.”

“Thanks.” TJ is a little mumbly.

“Since you’re embracing Christmas does this mean you’ll come to Andi’s party?” Cyrus asks hopefully.

“I don’t know.” TJ shrugs a shoulder, “I can tell Andi didn’t really want me to be there anyway.”

“But I want you there.” Cyrus says so simply like it wasn’t a big deal but it was, so much so that TJ stopped walking for a second because the kind sentiment took him by surprise.

“Then I’ll be there.” TJ says quietly once he’s back in stride with Cyrus.

Once out front of school TJ spots his mother in a parking space close by.

“I have to get going,” TJ announces, “It’s the twins birthday. Mom is taking us ice skating..” TJ doesn’t appear to be thrilled by the idea.

“Sounds dangerous,” Cyrus laughs.

“Want to come?” TJ asks.

“I would love to but I can’t.” Cyrus declines regretfully, “I fell behind with my homework during Hanukkah.”

“Kind of unfair that we get a break for Christmas but you don’t for Hanukkah.”

Cyrus shrugs lightly. “This weekend we can work on the whole embracing Christmas idea?”

“I have to look after the twins.” TJ says.

“Even better.” Cyrus beams. “Count them in too.”

On Saturday morning Cyrus gets dropped at the mall by his mother and he waits out by the big water fountain for TJ to arrive.

Cyrus is forcing heavy breaths and he watches it be visible in the cold air. His frosty exhale dissipates when his phone rings. A goofy snap of Jonah comes up as the caller I.D. and Cyrus answers with a smile almost present in his tone, “Helloooo.”

“Hey,” Jonah greets him back, “Are you busy today? Did you wanna hang out?”

“I can’t, I’m hanging with TJ.” Cyrus says apologetically.

“You’re always hanging out with TJ.” Jonah huffs.

“Do I detect a little jealousy?” Cyrus jokes with a laugh.

“Yes. You’re supposed to be my best friend.” Jonah says seriously, “I miss you.” Jonah says in a more joking manner although he meant it.

Cyrus smiles to himself. A year ago, such a statement from Jonah would have made Cyrus pass out but now he felt completely at ease.

“I promised TJ I’d help him with some Christmas stuff this weekend-“

“TJ the Grinch?” Jonah questions.

“Stop.” Cyrus scolds.

“I’m not being mean, he said so himself, he doesn’t like Christmas.” Jonah defends.

“Well he’s changed his mind.” Cyrus says. “I’m helping him embrace the holidays.”

“Who better to help than his best Jewish pal.” Jonah chuckles and Cyrus can’t help but laugh too.

“I think he’s come to the right person.” Cyrus says. “I’ve made a list of things for him,” then Cyrus’ expression curls into a proud one as he says, “And I’ve checked it twice.” Cyrus pauses for a reaction but is met with silence on the other end of the line, “Because of Santa?” Cyrus is disappointed his joke was wasted. “How is it that I’m the one who doesn’t celebrate Christmas?”

Jonah chuckles at this although it wasn’t meant to be funny. “I understood the joke I just didn’t think it was funny.” Jonah jokes.

“Rude.” Cyrus huffs.

Jonah shares another soft chuckle, “I’m going to call Gus and see if he’s free, have fun with TJ.”

Just as Cyrus ends his call with Jonah he spots TJ approaching with his twin siblings on either side of him. Katie’s sweet blonde curls are pinned back in pigtails on either side of her head with tiny little festive bows to decorate them. A red coat is wrapped around her petite frame for warmth with white stockings covering her short legs that poke out underneath. Her delicate hand locked tightly in her older brothers grip as he leads the way. Her free hand sending Cyrus an eager wave and melting his heart in the process. Cooper, the shyer twin is dressed just as savvy as his sister with a festive coloured tartan shirt poking out from underneath a knitted sweater and his hair is combed neatly to one side.

“Hello.” Cyrus greets them all with a smile.

“You two remember Cyrus?” TJ asks and both the youngsters nod.

“From the park.” Katie grins as she recalls the time Cyrus had spent the afternoon out and about with them a little while back.

“You two look very festive.” Cyrus says.

“I got the text you sent at 2am this morning.” TJ scoffs.

“I was beginning to wonder.” Cyrus folds his arms as he eyes TJ’s outfit.

“Hey.” TJ’s face curls into something of offence, “You said dress ‘Christmassy’ this sweatshirt is green.”

“Khaki doesn’t count.” Cyrus is less than impressed.

TJ sighs in response.

“It doesn’t matter, I can fix it.” Cyrus says surely. “Let Operation Deck The Halls begin.” Cyrus nods excitedly and Katie shares this with a bounce on her toes.

“We’re back to mission names like with the whole Buffy ambush thing again?” TJ pouts.

“Absolutely, we have new codenames and everything,” Cyrus is very dramatic, “Katie you are Rudolph and Cooper you’re Frosty the Snowman.”

Katie is more outwardly excited about her codename than Cooper is although he shows his approval with a sheepish smile.

“Who am I, the Grinch?” TJ folds his arms.

“Nooo.” Cyrus says childishly, “You’re Scrooge.”

“Cause that’s so much better?” TJ fake gasps.

“I’m hoping for a similar outcome to A Christmas Carol.” Cyrus says in a almost challenging way.

“What’s your codename, Cyrus?” Katie leans in with a whisper as her six year old brain was taking the mission very seriously.

“Judah the Maccabee.” Cyrus grins proudly but when he’s met with three confused Kippen’s, he frowns, “He led the Maccabean Revolt against the Selecid Empire?” Cyrus looks at TJ like ‘as if you don’t know’, “He’s like- the reason we have Hanukkah.” Cyrus simplifies it more once TJ still seemed confused.

“Okay, Judah the Maccabee,” TJ says with a smile, “What’s first?”

“I have a list.” Cyrus says pulling a piece of paper out of his coat pocket. “And I checked it twice.” Both Katie and Cooper react to Cyrus’ joke making him happier than Jonah’s light teasing. “First we have to get you something else to wear, then you three will take Santa photos and after that we will go back to my house where my mom will have preprepared cookies for us to decorated and then-” Cyrus stops after he grows nervous under TJ’s fond stare, “This is what you meant when you said Cyrus-y, isn’t it?” Cyrus wears a self aware look.

TJ’s smile just remains unwavering before he points it towards his siblings, “So you guys wanna get Santa photos?”

The twins excitedly agree and Operation Deck The Halls begins. First Cyrus drags the Kippen’s into a store where TJ is then forced to model ugly Christmas sweaters. At first the basketballer is sulky about this and acts all embarrassed but eventually he warms up to it and is goofy as he shows off the cliche jumpers for Cyrus and his siblings.

Eventually they all agree on a winner and they make their way to the picture with Santa stall where they have to wait in line for a ridiculous amount of time. Cyrus spends some of this time reflecting on the day so far, how TJ pretends to be annoyed at something but Cyrus knew he was actually enjoying himself. Cyrus also reflects on the whole concept of Santa and quietly laughs to himself as he imagined how petrified he would have been thinking a stranger would come down the chimney to eat cookies and drop off presents. Then he thinks how dramatic he would have been when he learnt Santa wasn’t real, like he had been lied to and would have made a huge deal out of it. Cyrus is thankful he skipped all that. Cyrus’ most dramatic moment from a past Hanukkah was when he burnt himself trying to light the menorah. There’s still a faint scar on his wrist.

As the group got closer to their turn for the photos, TJ would keep expressing his disinterest to take a photo and how embarrassing it was. Cyrus keeps insisting that it’s imperative to the mission that all three Kippen’s pose for the photo.

“Think of how much your mom will love the photo.” Cyrus reasons with him and when it comes to their turn, a sulky TJ stands by for the photo. The elf behind the camera calls him out for being grumpy and Cyrus stifles a chuckle. As the twins cheese for the photo and the elf counts down from 3, Cyrus pulls a goofy face that causes TJ to smile, a genuine grin that was captured on film forever.

After spending half the day at the mall, Cyrus brings the Kippen kids home with him where they go on to decorate cookies. Whist the three Kippen’s were destroying their Christmas designs, Cyrus was even messier with the personalised cookies he was trying to make for Andi, Buffy and Jonah.

When TJ’s mother Tess comes along to collect her children, the twins are exhausted but excited to show their mother everything they accomplished today. Tess briefly chats with Leslie and thanks her for letting the twins hang around for the afternoon. Before leaving, Tess invites Cyrus to come along with them tomorrow as they go shopping for a tree. Cyrus is uncertain but Leslie encourages him to accept.

After the Kippen’s leave, Leslie asks Cyrus what was troubling him. “Did you not want to go with them tomorrow?” Leslie questions.

“I don’t know.” Cyrus says honestly. “I’ve always been very proud to be Jewish. It feels a little strange being this close to Christmas. Today I was just helping TJ, hanging out really while they did the Christmassy stuff but tomorrow feels more involved.”

“Honey, going to look at trees doesn’t make you a bad Jew.” Leslie can’t help but smile a little as she wraps her wraps her arms around her son and rubs his shoulder, “This kind of thing has never bothered you before in the past with the girls?”

“I know but with Andi and Buffy it’s like I’m used to existing alongside their Christmas spirit. I don’t even really notice it. Like Andi having a Christmas party, I didn’t even think that was strange for me when I said I was excited for it.”

Leslie takes a moment and appears to be carefully trying to craft her words, “TJ was very respectful at dinner last weekend, I don't see the harm in you being the same for him as long as you’re comfortable with it.”

“I think I am comfortable and that’s why I feel guilty.” Cyrus admits.

Leslie gives him a sympathetic smile, “Plenty of people celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah. Take Jared for example, he celebrates Hanukkah but he also shares Christmas with Allison because that’s important to her. If you want to share this with TJ you shouldn’t feel guilty for that.”

The comparison to his stepbrother and his girlfriend made Cyrus nervous. “We’re just going to pick out a tree, not get married.” Cyrus forces a laugh and it comes out riddled with nerves. Leslie sports a kind smile and Cyrus knew in his heart that his mother already knew exactly how he felt for TJ but for some reason he still couldn't bring himself to speak to her about it.

“I dated a boy back in high school before your father, he was a Christian and absolutely obsessed with Christmas.” Leslie says with a funny smile as she looks back on the memory, “Weirdest holidays of my life. His house was full of creepy little Santa dolls, I felt like their eyes were following me.”

“Right?” Cyrus laughs as he thinks back to his reflection session at the photo stall earlier, “If Christmas does end up being a part of my life for one reason or another later on, I’m seriously going to have to discuss the whole Saint Nicholas thing...”

Cyrus and his mother share another laugh, suddenly he was feeling better about everything. Reconnecting with his Christmas spirit was important to TJ therefore it was important to Cyrus, it was as simple as that.

The following day Cyrus tags along with the Kippen’s as they pick out a tree. Cyrus is surprised to discover they purposely look for the ugliest one available but he quickly warms the idea of a quirky tree. He thinks how much Bex would love doing something like that.

Once the tree is picked out, Tess invites Cyrus to join them for decorating and dinner. Cyrus nervously looks to TJ before answering, their whole fight over prying into TJ’s home life was still fresh and Cyrus didn’t want to do anything that could potentially drive a wedge between them but TJ nods with a smile to show he’s okay with the idea.

Cyrus goes over to TJ’s house for the first time and he spends the evening getting to know more about TJ. As the Kippen’s decorate their rather sad looking tree, Cyrus feels more comfortable sitting back and watching. Cyrus found it nice watching how happy they all were, he notices Tess keeps stealing proud glances as she watches TJ happily help the twins decorate. Cyrus wonders how deep his distaste towards Christmas was at home before he agreed to try and embrace it again.

Then when they sat at the table for dinner, Cyrus would also admire the vibe in the room, it was evident that TJ adored his siblings but he also appeared to love and respect his mother deeply. It wasn’t even new information Cyrus was learning about TJ but somehow he felt like there was this whole new layer to him he hadn’t seen before.

After the dishes are washed up, Cyrus and TJ find a moment alone in front of the small fireplace.

“Thanks for being Cyrus-y this weekend. It was exactly what I needed.” TJ says with a smile, “I forgot how much I enjoyed Christmas when I was younger.”

“You’re welcome.” Cyrus grins too, “Thanks for letting me tag along today. I never really thought about anyone showing me Christmas the way I show them Hanukkah.. It was a new experience for me.”

“I’m sure there would have been better people to show you.” TJ says.

Cyrus shakes his head, “It was perfect. I know technically it’s not Christmassy but dinner was my favourite part.”

“It was nothing special.” TJ shrugs and Cyrus frowns that he was being so negative or more so that he actually felt that way about it all.

“I really like your family.” Cyrus smiles as he tries to shine a light on it, “Coop is so quiet I get so excited when he warms up to me and Katie makes me wish I had a little sister.”

TJ points a small smile towards his lap, “It’s a bit of a contrast to your family dinner.”

“Dinner’s not like that every night in my house.” Cyrus says.

“It’s still nice.” TJ lifts his gaze with a weak smile, “Your parents getting along like that.”

“I know I’m pretty lucky.” Cyrus’ smile is small, “And I know I say this without knowing the full story but I’d feel pretty lucky if I were you too, you have a mom that loves you and a brother and sister that adore you.”

“And a dad that thinks we’re all too much.” TJ says bitterly. “Sorry.” He quickly adds with a mumble.

“You can talk to me about it, if you want?” Cyrus studies TJ’s face to make sure he wasn't forcing him to open up if he wasn’t comfortable.

“I want to.” TJ says sheepishly, Cyrus wears a soft and comforting smile but remains quiet so TJ can continue, “It was four years ago, about a month before Christmas, the twins had just turned two and my dad had been fired from his job, he was drinking more than usual and fighting with my mom a lot. I was ten so I wasn’t oblivious the the fact that things were tense between my parents and money was tight. I wasn’t expecting much for Christmas but I still wanted to give something to my parents so I made this dumb popsicle stick picture frame at school and I put a photo of our family in it. I was so excited about the gift, I wrapped it and put it under the tree. On Christmas morning I ran downstairs because I wanted to give it to them and that’s where I found my dad passed out. He had stumbled and knocked over the tree, wrecking the whole thing, breaking my gift and the few my mom had bought for us... My mom came down and found him like that, they got in a huge fight, the biggest I had ever heard them have and then my dad left and he never came back...”

“TJ, I’m so sorry.” Cyrus’ heart aches for his friend.

TJ shrugs, “The worst part is that I spent the first couple of Christmases secretly wishing he'd come home ready to fix everything. Then about a year and a half ago I found out that my dad did clean up his act but it was for another woman and her three kids..” TJ lowers his gaze to his hands and he fidgets nervously, “So while he tucks in those kids at night, I have a brother and sister who don’t even know who he is and a lasting memory of him walking out the door after telling me ‘you’re all too much’...”

It got worse. Cyrus was as a loss for words, no wonder TJ was so frustrated about the holidays and this possibly could have spoken for some of his behavioural issues the previous year then they first met. Cyrus searches his brain frantically for something comforting to say, anything to make the sad smile on TJ’s face dissipate but all he could think to say was, “I’ve only spent half a day with your family and I couldn’t imagine ever not wanting to be apart of it.”

TJ’s smile curls into one more genuine, “I guess I am pretty lucky too.”

End Notes: I love you TJ, I’m sorry!!!

In this chapter: ✓ Christmas with the Kippen’s (day two’s prompt) ✓ Chirsmukkah (day six’s prompt) ✓ Santa Photos ( day ten’s prompt) ✓ The worst Hannukah/Christmas Ever (day eleven’s prompt)

As always any likes/ reblogs and comments are welcomed and very much appreciated!!

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#tyrus #andi mack #12 days of tyrus #tj kippen #cyrus goodman

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