#musing: Worry Comes with the Job (Pony)

[nieithryn]

Tag Dump: Clones <3

...so many clones.

[harper-emory-writes]

The heart strings (chapter 1 )

Pairing: Aragorn x original female character (devon) 

Words: 2270

Summary: to be summarised later 

Warnings: violence, smut in later chapters, trigger warnings of abuse and flashbacks 

DON’T LIKE IT , DON’T READ IT!

authors notes: @my-marvel-musings​ my lazy arse has done it their have it i will regret it later but ah welll, i will go die in my hole of embrassement whilst leaving this in here 

Devon POV 

Devon’s hair was a light dusty brown blonde in colour as she wiped down the wooden surfaces of the tables in the prancing pony. The warm light of the roaring fire extruded heat as she watched all the locals come and go. There was far near the back of the tavern. The cloak that covered him only showed a pipe that was being smoked. Her eyes shifted onto him a few times as she carried on her cleaning of the tavern.

The locals were quieter than expected, she noticed as the Bree people were staring at the darkened cloaked figure. The groups of people’s whispers to whom she served drinks earlier that evening were all speaking in hushed voices. “That’s one of those ranger folk. I hear they’re dangerous.” The time slowly ticked past as the locals dissipated out of the tavern. The playing of music made its way out of the pub. She looked out at the bards playing in the rain. A drizzle had just started as she said goodbye to the last customers. 

The cloaked man was still at the back of the tavern. She kept an eye on him but did not think that unless he needed help, she was much for worrying on customers if they had a room in the tavern she was only here as a job to be a barkeep. Her mind drifted as she went to get her cloak, to cover her outfit as she walked home. Her dark coloured trousers were tight but gave her a slight show off to her curves. She never felt part of the family. 

Her sisters were tall and thin, whereas she was shorter than both her mother and sisters. She was always more of an ugly duckling. Her family life was not simple, nor was it going to be easy. Her boots were dragging from the mud that the track she took most days, the path was quiet, the rain was getting heavy as Devon wrapped her cloak around her body tighter as she curled into the tree line heavier. Her mind was flashing back to her childhood. 

“Hahahaha, come on, ugly, you will never catch me,” Ferne shouted as devon tripped back over in the mud. Her checkered dress made it hard to run in as she was barefoot, her shoes were stolen away from her by her sisters. Devon never liked dresses as a young girl. Her sisters often teased her about the dislike them. Her skin was covered in mud as her brown eyes squinted at two shapes in front of her. Their voices high pitched as they shrieked at her. “Haha, devon is chubby, and she can’t get up.” Ferne and Cecilia started running again as devon picked her self up off the floor. “I will get you one day,” she whispered as her eyes fluttered close. 

Devon looked up at the sky as she kept going down the track. Her hazel eyes brimmed with tears from the memory as she tucked her cloak over herself, wiping at her eyes before carrying on with her journey. Her body was slightly cold as her body got farther away from the Bree. Her eyes fluttered shut as she kept moving. Her clothing soaked through from the rain, her body started to shiver, the mud being too slippery for her footing to hold any longer.

The woods were more sheltered as devon slipped between the trees. Her hair was matted from her cloak being soaked as she walked amongst the large pine trees. The forest soon fell from her as she lay on the forest floor. Her legs curling up into a foetal position on the forest floor.

Aragorn pov 

The sound of brego’s hooves squelching in the mud as he pulled on the bay horse. The large pine trees over his head did give him little shelter as the rain lashed against his cloak. The female he followed quietly, staying behind her quite a bit of the way as he whispered in elvish to brego. Quiet mutterings as the footfall stopped. The woods opened up into a slight clearing as he dismounted, looping the reins over bregos head as he walked into the woods. 

The roots were slippery as he picked his way over them. His eyes settling on a body from the looks of it in the centre. The rain was getting heavier as he tied his beloved steed to a tree before creeping closer to the body. It was a female, her skin deathly pale from the cold as her clothes were soaked through to her skin. 

His first reaction was to pick her up, but he was not entirely sure how without startling the lady. His clothes were slightly wet as he picked the female up, unknown where she was from or going as he watched the woods. The leaf canopy swayed as he gripped at the unknown stranger, his face watching hers, seeing her relaxed features as he mutters to himself. “Nin mel.”

His eyes wandered over the strangers' facial features as he quietly walked brego following him as he grabbed the reins that he attached to a tree earlier. The body was still slightly breathing, letting him know that she was alive but only barely before hypothermia would get her. 

His eyes wandered over the features of her face. Her nose was slightly wonky, and her lips were large and easily kissable as he kept walking; the slow, steady pace made it easy to carry as he just watched his footing. The woods soon opened up to a clearing, the fire recently burned down, and his sleeping gear easily locatable as he placed her on a thick blanket just to give her some warmth as he placed another blanket on the top of her, usually did not have two blankets. Still, there was supposed to be a cold snap in the air as he watched the storm clouds clear on the horizon, as he made up a small fire of wood which he had rummaged around for earlier whilst setting up camp. 

The fire burned nicely as it provided a heat source for him, and this complete stranger he found in the woods. It was noticeable that she was either going home to the woods as he placed the mouthpiece for his pipe into his lips. His eyes watching as she slept, hoping the warmth of the fire would get her so much less pale than she looked when he found her. 

The rain started again as the smoke cloud from his pipe, his eyes continually watching the female as the rain poured down in the woodland clearing he had set as a camp. The fire kept up as the rain dampened it down slightly. 

Devon pov 

Her eyelashes fluttered open, the rain sheeting down as she propped herself up on her elbows, feeling dazed from only just waking up, her body marginally warmer as she watched the fire burn on the wet ground. Her body was somewhat warmer as she sat up, her hazel eyes scanning the silhouettes of a horse and a man—complete strangers as she watched him from a reasonably good vantage point. 

Her hair was messy as she tugged her fingers through her hair, the dirt cloaking her ends as it splayed over her back. The blanket on the ground damp as devon soon got up, her footsteps trying to sneakily move past as she looked for an exact opening in the trees for her escape. 

Devon’s clothes were still slightly wet as she got up onto her two legs, her body somewhat wobbly as she started walking towards a clear opening in the trees. A voice soon caught her attention as it spoke to her in a gruff tone. “What do you think you're doing leaving when you could have died, and there is no saying you still can’t die from the storm.” Her head soon turned around as she snarkily replied, “well, unlike some others, I still have to go home and get jobs done.” A light chuckle came out from the stranger’s voice. “If it is on my watch, I would not let you go home at all.” Devon looked straight at him, her voice not breaking at all as she monotony of her voice dropping slightly as she kept her eye on him. “Hmmmmm, and what does this mean you will do to me, stranger?” a deep chuckle came out of him as he got up from the tree stump that he was previously sat on before he spoke again, this time his tone rougher as his footsteps took steps towards her. “Anything I would do to keep you.” her voice hardened on the surface yet again as she toyed slightly with the cloaked stranger. “I challenge you to a game of riddles then, hope your brain is enough to match your brawn.” her face contorted into one that was not easily readable. She waited for his reply patience was never her strong point. As she was waiting for a reply from the stranger, her mind drifted back again. 

The smell of blood was noticeable as the house was a pigsty. The leftovers from last nights chaos were every time that devons mother and sisters decided to have a party. Devon's hair was loosely tied in a bun as she sighed at the mess. Devon was an okay child by any means; her outfit was ripped and not cared for as she heard the shrill voice of her mother. “Wretch, why is this not clean yet.” devon winced as her upper arm was still sore from the fall she had just yesterday. Her lack of healing knowledge tried to heal it the best she could as the blood dried on her skin. It was the same as it usually was. She was the unwanted child, her sister and parents ruled her choices, and maybe one day it would break her to do the worse, but that was not the day. 

Her stomach was open that night, the night where she did not know if she would live to see her day. 

Devon's eyes were glossed over slightly; her hand went down to the large wound, which had only just healed up 2 weeks ago. Her ears heard the strangers reply as he spoke back to her. “Deal, but you look like you have seen a ghost.” devons eyebrows knitted together as she said again. “I have seen nothing, but what do I expect for a stranger to know.” his voice was a calming influence slightly as he spoke again. “You go first, then little one.” devon stood, her eyes still knitted tightly together as she told her tine of voice unwavering as she challenged him. “At night, they come without being fetched. By day they are lost without being stolen. What are they?” he stayed quiet for a bit before answering her. “The stars” devon scowled slightly as she looked at him to give her a riddle. “It lies behind rocks and rills, and under mountains and hills. It cannot be seen or felt, nor even heard or smelt. What is it?” devon quirked her eyebrow before speaking again, this time slightly cocky as she opened her mouth. “The dark.” her face smiled somewhat as she watched the stranger. 

Aragorn POV 

The female made him curious, he wanted to steal her. The game of riddles was a curiosity he had been normal, but she was covering something up. He would soon find out that the girl challenging him underneath, she was obviously not a damsel in distress but his curiosity was telling him that she was being hurt in a certain way. He asked the girl. “Now little one what would you do if the wolf knew he could keep you forever.” the scoff that came out her mouth before he walked forward, his strides predatory as she stepped back. “I would run.” his chuckle that came out of his mouth was gruff almost rough and brooding as he spoke again. “Then I must catch you my little one.” he was soon wrong when she made a break for it, his legs much more able to catch up as he loped through the trees like a wolf was when their prey was fleeing. Her hair easy enough to follow as the predator and prey game soon would be stopped as the girl tripped over a tree root. He was one to take advantage as he watched her before pinning her so she could not get up. 

His body was above hers as she squirmed and wriggled around on the dirt. Her mouth hurling insults at him. “You bastard all I need to do is get home.” he soon chuckled as he watched her looking at him in disdain. His voice spoke again. “And you did not think I would not chase you down little one.” he was greeted with her fist hitting him in his chest. His eyes watching hers as he moved his face closer, his voice quiet and soothing as he watched her. “I am not here to hurt you please just let me help.” the female had a spirit like that of a wild horse not wanting to be tamed. “Just leave me alone please.” her eyes were glassy the tears in them not shed as he lowered his lips to kiss her, the woodland birds were singing their song as he lifted his lips off her. “Now why did we need to fight and why do you have to get home Dilthen er ?” 

[the-cult-of-russo]

Push and Pull (Part 15)

Pairing: Matt Murdock x OC

Warnings: cursing, smut

---------

It was bright and early when Daphne woke up the next morning. She had things to do and no time to waste. The sun was shining through her window, the weather finally starting to get warmer. She put on some leggings with a tank top and then her zip up hoodie over it. She groaned at her hair in the mirror as she dragged her brush through the unruly locks. So many times she considered cutting it so it wasn't so much work, but she knew she'd regret it. Instead, she settled on tossing it up into a high pony and ignoring it. Her trusty backpack was slung around her shoulder and she hopped around as she put her vans on before leaving the apartment. 

She squinted slightly at the light once she got out of the building but it didn't deter her. First stop. Coffee. One large latte to go later, she was on her way to see Brett to find out what news he might have. She tossed her now empty cup in the trash can beside the station before she jogged up the steps and inside. She never checked in with the desk, she was a ghost when she was here. That's how it worked. It wasn't such a secret anymore than she was on Brett's payroll which left her to come and go as she pleased, but officially, she was never there. When she walked into the office area, Brett was sitting at his desk just like the day before. He looked like he hadn't even gone home.

"You look like shit," she mused teasingly, putting down the other coffee she'd gotten for him. His eyes lit up at the sight of it and he gave her a tired smile. 

"You're an angel," he muttered with a long pull from his drink as she sat down. The coffee at the precinct was the worst and never really did its job. 

"Any news yet?" She tried to hide the impatience in her voice but she wasn't sure she succeeded.

"Actually, we do have something. Not quite sure the full details yet though," he murmured. She looked at him expectantly.

"The people we rescued, their fingertips were burnt right off just like the last time. We can't identify most of 'em until they're fully coherent. But they're doing alright. I just can't believe the Chinese were at it again right under our goddamn noses," he fumed, taking another slurp of his coffee.

"I'm not surprised. They probably picked it back up when the heat turned off them again," she sighed. She hoped that once the victims were in a better state they'd be able to get names from them. Some of them might have family that were looking for them.

"Anything from the device?" She asked hopefully

"Yeah, actually. The Chinese requested the meet. They were pretty vague about a lot of shit but they kept saying something about the Italians having a weapon and they wanted to use it. Seemed to be brokering a deal about it. I got no idea what the hell this weapon is, but the Chinese really fucking want it and the Italians already have it. And that makes me nervous as shit," he frowned. 

It made her nervous too. What did the Italians have that the Chinese couldn't get for themselves? And why did they want it? 

"Well that's unsettling," she huffed with a shake of her head.

"Tell me about it. Good news though, that device you planted must be well hidden. It’s still live and active," he flashed her a grin and she smiled herself as she gave herself a mental pat on the back.

"Do you think it'll be useful?" She inquired.

"No telling yet. I mean mostly it'll be the kitchen staff but it might pick up something. Any other meets we might not be aware of or anyone saying something. Even something small can lead to something big, right?" He smirked, practically quoting her. It made her chuckle. 

"At least that's something. If we can figure out what weapon the Italians have we can figure out how bad this all is," she said softly. It made her nervous and she had a feeling things would get messy soon in Hell's Kitchen. 

"Here's hoping. There ain't much for you to do with the case right now but I'll let you know when we get any more information. It's just a waiting game now," he replied.

"Ah, my favourite," she smirked sarcastically, causing him to snort. She wasn't known for having patience. She liked answers and she liked them immediately. But in this case, playing the long game would be the only option to getting to the bottom of it all.

She bid her goodbyes to him not long after that before making her way back out into the sunshine. Now it was her next pit stop. A short cab ride later and she was at a very fancy luxurious home. It was more like a mansion and was three stories high. It looked like it was right out of a movie with one of those grand entrances and a water feature out front. She was well out of place as dressed down as she was but she knocked on the door anyway. She wasn't even surprised when a butler answered the door.

"Can I help you, miss?" The older man asked softly. His black and white uniform was crisp and clean and it put her own rumpled clothes to shame.

"I'm here to see Mrs Grimes. I'm Daphne Weaver," she replied awkwardly. 

"One moment please," he shut the door and she quirked her brow at how formal all this was. This better pay well. Suddenly the door opened again and he smiled at her.

"This way please. She's been hoping you'd come," he seemed a little friendlier now. Maybe it was because his boss wanted her here so he wasn't all suspicious of what she wanted. Either way, she followed him inside. He led her up the huge ass staircase, the kind that split off at the middle. Everything looked like it cost a million dollars, from the art to all the rare looking things in cabinets. She didn't even feel worthy enough to touch the banister so she kept her hands in her hoodie pocket. 

The carpet was lush and a deep purple colour and she found her eyes wandering the hallway they walked down. How many rooms does someone need? No wonder she had staff, upkeep on this place would be a ball ache. They reached a room far down the left and he knocked on the heavy looking mahogany door.

"Enter," a female voice rang out. It was slightly accented but she couldn't place it. Jeeves opened the door and gestured for her to go inside. She glanced around the room curiously as she walked in. It was a living area with a grand fire. Heavy bookcases lined the walls of the room and were filled with what looked to be antique books that Daphne found herself wanting to look at. There was a giant fur rug in front of the fireplace with velvet looking sofas set in front of it. 

That's where Mrs Grimes was sitting, looking perfectly in place for where she was. She was wearing a long black dress, heels bigger than anything Daphne could ever walk in. Her greying blonde hair was neatly coiffed and pinned up and she was dripping in diamonds. Jesus. 

"Pleasure to meet you Ms Weaver, please sit," she smiled warmly at her, gesturing to the other sofa. Daphne was half worried her vans would dirty the goddamn carpet as she padded over and plonked down. Despite it being completely over the top and not really her taste, she did appreciate however how clean and neat everything was kept. A place like this could easily fall into being cluttered and dusty but it was pristine. She supposed the staff were to thank for that. Mrs Grimes' nails were so long she doubted she could do much cleaning herself. Daphne wasn't sure how she didn't accidentally gauge her own eyes out.

"Would you like something to drink?" She asked politely. Jeeves was still hovering near the door no doubt waiting for his command. She was tempted to say yes to see what kind of beverages the other side drank, but she didn't want to stay long.

"Uh… no thank you. I'm fine," she replied with an awkward smile.

"Very well. Hammond, leave us," she dismissed the man at the door. He gave a dramatic nod before he left and shut the door behind him. She idly wondered if he ever wanted to punch his bosses when they commanded him to do things like that. She'd never be able to hold a job like that down.

"I'm glad you came, I was worried you wouldn't," the older woman started, elegantly crossing one leg over the other.

"A job's a job," Daphne snorted lightly, her hands still stuffed in her pockets lest she touch something and ruin it. Mrs Grimes gave her a tense smile, looking like it was difficult to be polite. Maybe she wasn't used to the lower class being in her home. 

"Indeed it is. Will you take the case?" She asked hopefully. 

"Yeah, I'll be able to do it. As I tell all my clients, I don't give out time frames. I never know how long it'll take me to find what I need or what roadblocks might come up. I don't appreciate impatience and it doesn't make me work any faster," she said firmly. Establishing boundaries was the first thing she liked to do. It was important. Especially with the wealthy ones as in her experience they tended to be the impatient ones with their self importance.

"Very well. I accept your terms. And please, whatever you find, do tell me," she implored. Daphne nodded, she always did no matter how shitty the information she'd gained was. Mrs Grimes stood, walking somehow with grace and ease in those monster heels as she walked over to a cupboard near the wall. She opened a drawer and came back with some paper.

"Me and my husband used to be very much in love. And I'm afraid now that I'm older he's decided to find other companions. Call me paranoid but I'm sure you understand when to look into a gut feeling," she mused as she walked back over and sat down. Daphne nodded again. Her gut was rarely wrong and it was telling her that Mrs Grimes was right.

"I want confirmation. I want to know who with and how deep it runs. If it's just physical or something more. I want to prepare myself should he try to divorce me and take what I have. I need proof," she stated seriously. Daphne's eyes subconsciously swept across the room and all the fancy things in it.

"I know what you're thinking. And I was the one with money, not him. He makes a decent amount with his job but I was born with money. This house was passed through my family for generations. Everything in it I bought. But over the years I've had my eyes opened to how greedy my husband can be. I cannot trust if we separate that he won't try to take everything from me," she sounded bitter and Daphne wasn't surprised. They definitely sounded like they had issues and once trust was gone in a relationship, everything else had no foundation to stand on. It wouldn't last. She commended the woman for thinking ahead to make sure she was protected if it came down to it. This kind of bullshit was why relationships were too much work.

"I'll find out what I can. I'll be honest, some of my methods aren't quite… legal. But it gets the job done," Daphne muttered. Things like breaking and entering were definitely illegal and then there was hacking if she ever needed to do it, which in this case might prove useful.

"Good," Mrs Grimes smirked at her. She found herself smirking back at her. The rich typically didn't care too much about how she got the information, just that she got it. Mrs Grimes reached down to her Gucci purse, setting it on her lap and she grabbed something out of it. It was her wallet and Daphne was curious what her offer would be. She hadn't spoken to her about price points yet and when it came to her wealthier clients she made a point of waiting to see what their offer would be first. Usually she’d haggle a little just because she could. They'd have the money and they wanted the information. 

She watched with a keen eye as Mrs Grimes took a chunk of money out and handed it to her. A quick count told her it was $1000 and it took effort for her eyes to not bulge out as she kept a cool calm facade.

"That's the deposit. You'll get the rest when the work is complete. Another $1000. I may give you more depending on just how much you find out," she drawled. So she wouldn't need to haggle then, this price was insane and way more than what the job would entail, but like fuck she would tell her that. She also appreciated the incentive. She liked a challenge, something to work towards. The more she found out then the more she'd get paid. 

"Sounds good to me. I'll get started in the next few days," she replied, keeping her calm demeanour and not acting like she was thinking of what she would spend her money on once she got it all. She carefully stuffed it in her backpack before zipping it back up. She almost jumped when the older woman dinged a bell beside the table and it took all of her willpower not to roll her eyes as the butler walked in.

"Yes, Mrs Grimes?" He enquired politely. 

"Please see Ms Weaver out. Have one of our drivers drop her off to wherever she needs to go," she commanded softly. Part of her wanted to protest but the other wanted to pretend she lived the fancy life, even if just for a moment. 

They both stood and Mrs Grimes took her hand in one of those fancy people hand shakes that were flimsy and light. 

"It was a pleasure, Ms Weaver. I hope to hear from you soon," she smiled. 

"Likewise," she replied, not really knowing what to say. No matter how many well off clients she saw she always felt weird and out of place interacting with them.  She followed Jeeves out the hall and down the large stairs case. He stopped when he got by the front door and picked up a phone that was attached to the wall. She stood there looking around as the man spoke in hushed tones down the receiver before hanging up and then opening the grand front door. 

"Have a lovely day, Ms Weaver," he bowed politely.

"Uh… you too," she murmured as she stepped outside. 

The door shut with a clang behind her and she was suddenly on her own outside. It didn't last long though as a large black car pulled up right at the entryway.

"Ms Weaver?" A man called out after rolling the window down. She nodded and walked over. She was getting sick of being called that name. The man hopped out, jogging over to the back of the car and opening the door for her. This really was fancy service. She gave him an uncomfortable smile, not used to this level of service from anyone. It felt wrong almost. But she slipped inside and settled in the ridiculously comfy car seats. 

"Where to, Miss?" The man asked once he was situated behind the wheel again. 

"Um… Fogwell's gym please," she murmured in response. He punched in something on the phone he was using with the GPS and then he took off. There was a reason she was dressed the way she was after all. She didn't want to think of Matt being a weird asshole the day before. As much as part of her considered not going, she really needed to train and she knew he would be there. She was too stubborn to let Matt's weird PMSing get in the way of her learning to defend herself properly. 

The drive was uncomfortably silent and she clutched her backpack on her knees. She wondered what it was like to live this life full time. She was a bitch but she didn't feel right with commanding people to do shit, even if she was paying them. It just felt off to her. Before long, the car pulled up in front of the gym. She almost felt like she should pay him or something, totally not used to this kind of exchange. As she unbuckled her seat belt, the man got out and ran around to her door. He opened it and she slipped out, swinging her bag over her shoulder. She noticed the apprehensive look on his face as he looked at the rundown gym.

"Are you sure, Miss?" He asked quietly, like he was asking her to blink twice if she needed help. She almost snorted but gave him a polite smile. She guessed his boss wasn't used to being around places like this. She appreciated his sentiments all the same though.

"I'm sure," she said softly. He nodded, still looking unhappy about it but there was nothing he could do. With a nod, he was back in the car and taking off by the time she walked through the door.

She was quiet and heard loud grunting and the hits of a punching bag. As she came into view, she saw Matt beating the holy hell out of the bag. His fists were flying, grunts and pants leaving his lips with the flurry of punches. The graceful savagery was what always intrigued her about him. But then typically he'd open his mouth and ruin it. He hadn't seemed to notice her yet once again which honestly was perturbing since anyone could come in here and sneak up on him like that. She walked over to the bench, setting her backpack down with a thud. The grunts and punches stopped instantly and the only sound that echoed in the gym was Matts heavy breathing.

"Didn't think you'd show," he said carelessly. 

"I wasn't sure either honestly. But I need to train, even if I do have to put up with your bitch ass," she muttered as she started wrapping her hands. He scoffed as he came over, grabbing his water bottle and drinking a large pull from it. He tossed the bottle down again as he made his way to the ring.

"Alright, come on then," he demanded. 

"What? I don't get to warm up first?" She asked skeptically with a raised brow. He snorted coldly and shook his head.

"You wanna know how to defend yourself for real, there is no warming up. When you're out there in a situation like this, you don't get that luxury," he retorted. She rolled her eyes but honestly couldn't argue with sound logic.

Instead, she bit her tongue as she put on the gloves and climbed inside of the ring. Matt cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders as they squared off with one another. 

"Let's go," he smirked devilishly. He lunged at her but she moved just in time, twirling around as they practically traded places. They started trading blows, although his were very clearly intended not to hurt her, and she was pleased she got some good jabs in. She didn't slow down or stop this time when he deflected or managed a light shot to her side. She just came back twice as hard. She was proud of herself. Her heart was thumping away from the adrenaline and the exertion of the sparring after a while and she leaned against the ropes as they both caught their breath.

"You did good. You're getting better," he sounded reluctant to give her the praise and she rolled her eyes a little at him.

"I want you to teach me how to get out of the hold from last time," she said firmly. His head turned to her then, his hazel eyes not quite landing directly at her as he narrowed them.

"Daphne, I don't think-" he started, only to be promptly cut off.

"It's fine. I need to learn and I'll get over it. I think I'll be fine this time," she urged. She meant it too. She still had lingering effects of her attack but she was feeling a little better recently. And after her and Matt's partially regrettable night together, she hadn't had a nightmare for the first night since it happened. She knew the sex had helped. Whenever she needed to feel better and clear her head, she would have sex. It's why her sister was so worried it would become a crux for her. Her sex with Matt had done wonders for her stress and anxiety over the whole thing so she felt like now was the perfect time to try to learn it. 

He was quiet for a moment before heaving a heavy sigh. He yanked his gloves off and tossed them out of the ring and she followed suit before he changed his mind. Climbing to the floor, she lay on her back and bent her knees just like the last time. As he knelt down between her legs, it was hard not to think of the night they shared together and how similar it was. 

"Ready?" He asked reluctantly. She gave him a firm nod he couldn't see but could sense and he brought his hands to her throat. Once again, he applied very little pressure but she lay perfectly still. Her heart wasn't hammering like crazy, she wasn't seeing Keiran hovering over her. She was fine. Matt stayed still as he did his head tilt thing and it took her a moment to realise he was listening to her heartbeat to check if she was okay or not. It was kind of creepy but she let it go. 

He talked her through the steps of how to get out of that kind of hold. One at a time he'd tell her what to do and correct her if she got it wrong as they did a slow mo version one part at a time to ensure she knew each step. It was more complicated than the last one but after a few step by step tries she thought she had a good idea on what to do. Now it was time to get out of it for real. 

"3, 2 ,1," he counted, preparing her somewhat so she didn't lose her shit like last time. This time he applied some pressure around her throat but it was still practically nothing. She felt his weight bearing down on her and she grabbed his right forearm with her left and then used her right hand to grip his left shoulder in a cross grip. Using her left foot, she pushed off his hip, pivoting her pelvis to the right so he was no longer directly above her. She hooked her right leg high up on his back, right under his armpit and she kept a firm grip on him as her left leg moved to wrap around his shoulder too, locking it onto her other. She grabbed his wrist, the one that was in her grip that was now at her mercy on her chest. She knew if she thrust her pelvis upwards sharply she would break his arm at his elbow. 

It had happened so fast but she caught herself before completing the maneuver and felt pleased with herself. She let go of his arm and rolled them over so he was now under her. They were both panting and she laughed lightly, feeling good she actually did it. She was a little sweaty and she looked down at where he lay under her. His brow had a slight sheen to his and his hair was doing that thing where it went every which way. His eyes were wandering as he caught his breath with a grin. She wasn't the only one enjoying their session it seemed. 

She felt his hands glide up her thighs that were around him and she'd be a liar if she said it didn't make her tingle. His unseeing eyes were burning into her, pupils blown wide. She went to move off him but he held her in place, only now she was hovering right in front of his face. One of his hands rested on the base of her neck and he pulled her down a little. She stayed still though and resisted as her lips were a breath away from his.

"We're not on the same page, remember?" She teased him, enjoying seeing him this worked up. She squeaked when her back hit the mat when he rolled them over quickly. She hadn't expected it. 

"I'm over it," he smirked devilishly at her before his lips collided with hers. 

She should have really stopped to think about it. To assess the validity of his words. But sex with Matt was something else and it made her feel amazing. All her stress and worries melted away last time. And although she knew going down that rabbit hole wasn't good with her past of sometimes becoming dependant on sex for her own mental well being, she couldn't really help herself. She blamed Matt for being insufferable and ridiculously attractive. The kiss was rough and demanding and she gave into him, moaning as he pushed himself against her through the thin fabric of their pants. He knelt up, tugging at his vest and lifting it over his head. Something dawned on her then.

"We're gonna do this here? What if someone walks in?" She snorted amused. She wasn’t one to shy away from sex in weird places but she didn't want some old dude walking in and getting a free show. He tossed his vest on the floor as he chuckled, jumping to his feet and climbing out the ring. She sat up, watching him curiously as he went and locked the door from the inside. She couldn't take her eyes off him as he prowled back to her though. The predatory grace he held, the way his sculpted body moved. In her needy and horny haze she found herself impatient for him to return and she felt like he was taking his time to tease her if his smirk was anything to go by. She pulled her shirt off and then her bra, tossing them in a heap beside them as Matt toed off his shoes. 

He knelt back down then, his hands curling her ankles and yanking them lightly. Her back hit the mat with a light thud and she looked up at him shocked before laughing. With a wicked grin, he pulled her leggings and panties off together but painfully slow and her desire was increasing with every second he made her wait for it. She wouldn't beg though. She sat back up, tugging at his shorts and he bent down, kissing her roughly as she yanked them down with his boxers. She fisted him tightly and he moaned into her mouth, causing her to smirk into the kiss. Letting go, she pulled the shorts and boxers all the way off him before pushing him onto his back. 

It was his turn to look mildly shocked and she climbed on top of him, her slick heat trapping his cock against his belly. His eyes were darting around her face and she leant forward, catching his lower lip with her teeth. He let out a long groan, arching up at her as she tugged it before letting it go with a pop. She sat up, pushing up on her knees before she gripped him and lined herself up. Without a word she sank down onto him and the pair moaned in relief. It was instant for her, that feeling of him filling her up like that. Knowing her release would come soon. She rested her hands on his firm chest for leverage as she started moving her hips. His hands felt like they were all over her body at once. Not soft or sweet, but firm and demanding and he took in every detail of her body. 

The gym was filled with moans and gasps as she rode him hard, her anger at his behaviour and the thrill of fighting with him fuelling her pleasure. She almost found it ironic that they were fucking in a boxing ring with how often they fought. He pulled her down roughly, lips smashing against hers as he ravaged her mouth. She felt that euphoric feeling getting closer, her whole body tingling in anticipation. She got faster and harder, chasing the release she was after like her life depended on it. 

"Don't stop," Matt groaned against her lips, one hand gripping the back of her neck while the other was on her ass, fingers digging into her flesh. She had no plan on stopping though. Not when she was this close. She kept up the pace and then she moaned loudly, her body tensing lightly as she clamped down around him. 

He let out the hottest fucking noise she’d ever heard a human make and it only heightened her own pleasure as she rode the waves of her orgasm. He was clinging onto her tightly, rutting up into her as he panted and then groaned, spilling himself inside of her. He relaxed instantly. Hands falling to his sides. She sat there on top of him as she tried to catch her breath. Her cheeks were flushed and her hair had started falling out of her ponytail. She was thoroughly fucked and in the best way. That beautiful feeling was coursing through her veins as she let the hormones and endorphins flow though her. 

She climbed off him carefully before standing up and stretching.

"I'm gonna hit the shower," she hummed sounding blissful as she scooped up her clothes. She walked completely naked to the showers and got herself cleaned up and presentable. She didn't regret it, it was amazing and she felt good now. And from the sounds he made, he enjoyed himself too. She just hoped he meant it when he said they were on the same page. 

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

Matt stood in his own shower in the men’s changing rooms as he let the cold water pelt him. His brain was a fried mess and he leaned against the cool tiles as he tried to just think clearly. He wasn't sure why he'd done it again, not after last time. He couldn’t really say what had bothered him about the fact she left last time. He'd gotten out of the shower and went to his room and she was just gone. No words, no note, nothing. He knew it had been purely physical, they could barely tolerate each other. He wasn't stupid enough to think too deeply into it. Yet it left him feeling strangely hollow when she’d just left him like that.

And then when he had turned up to work, Foggy had been acting weird. After some pressure he'd told Matt about his conversation with Daphne. Matt was pretty sure he hadn't gotten the whole story from him but the gist of her saying it was just sex was clear. And he'd told Foggy she was right. It was a one time thing because of all their pent up anger and the adrenaline from the night they'd had. He told his best friend to stop thinking about it. Yet he hadn't been able to do the same. He'd ended up texting her using Foggy's phone to see if she would be home and then he went to see her. No rhyme or reason or idea why he was going there. All he knew was that it bothered him.

It wasn't like he’d never had casual sex before, although he couldn't say it happened much the last few years. And his inability to understand why he was feeling the way he was led to them fighting again. Because she was right. But he hadn't been able to let it go. So when he left, he told himself it wouldn't happen again. She was trouble and being around her wore him out. It wasn't worth it. So how did he end up here again? Oh that's right, apparently he'd turned into a horny teenager again. A bit of sparring, feeling her body against his and sensing how happy she was in the ring really fucked his hormones over. And now here he was again. Only this time it was his own fault. She’d actually turned him down and he'd been the one to push. He couldn't say he regretted it either. It was the best damn sex he’d ever had and it left him feeling more chilled out than he felt in a long time. He'd keep his mouth shut this time and not act like a teenage girl about it. He dug himself into this hole and now he had to climb his own way out. 

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

Daphne towel dried her hair as much as she could and it left it wavy. She scooped it up in a messy bun on top of her head, a few stands framing her face. The euphoric feeling she got after sex was easing but she still felt calm and settled. It was nice, she didn't get to experience it that much anymore. She really didn't want to have to face Matt, not knowing if he'd throw a tantrum like last time. She didn't want him to read into it again or act all weird about it. It really killed the vibe and ruined her good mood. She'd tried to stop it from happening, not wanting to deal with that again, but she hadn't been able to help herself when he'd wanted her so clearly. There was something addictive about it. But now she felt dread settle into her bones as she thought about how he would react. 

She took her sweet time getting dried and dressed simply to buy herself some time. But eventually she was done and she had to leave the changing room. As she walked out into the main part of the gym, Matt was sitting on the bench tying his laces. 

"Ready?" He asked softly. No awkward questions, no anger in his voice. Maybe he was on the same page now after all. She felt relief sweep through her, allowing her to enjoy the calmness that she'd been left with after their time together. 

"Yeah," she replied, grabbing her backpack and putting it over her shoulder. 

Matt grabbed his cane where it was leaning against the wall. He was now wearing a hoodie too and he grabbed his glasses out of the pocket as he slid them onto his face. She wondered if he ever got sick of having to act blind. He was blind but not like the average blind person. He didn't really need the stick and she'd seen him 'bumping' into things like he hadn't known they were there before. When they stepped out into the sunshine, she winced and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Jesus christ! I think I've joined the blind club," she grumbled, rubbing her poor eyes. The sun just burnt the shit out of her retinas. He let out a surprised laugh, the door shutting behind them.

"Here," he grinned. She cracked a wary eye open, seeing him holding out his glasses to her, but she didn't take them.

"It's not like I need them,” he teased. It helped. She felt a little better. She slid them onto her face and her eyeballs thanked her immediately. They started walking down the street together and she glanced into a window as they walked by, looking at her reflection. She snorted at herself. Her hair, despite being recently washed and put up, was a wavy mess. Her cheeks were still rosy pink and the glasses looked weird on her face.

"They suit you," he mused playfully. She shoved him lightly, causing him to laugh when an older woman gasped at her actions.

"Assaulting a blind man in public? It's like you want to get arrested," he smirked.

"Yeah well, Foggy will be my lawyer so I'll be good," she quipped back with a grin. Now they were on the same page they seemed to be amicable after venting their frustration on each other. 

"You really think my best friend would take your side over mine?" He asked, faking being hurt as he held his hand over his heart. She stopped walking and he did the same as she looked at him.

"I hate to say it but I think he prefers me now. Not that I can blame him. You are a bit of an asshole," she grinned mischievously. He gaped at her before his hand darted out and went to grab the glasses. She squeaked, holding them in place as he tried to steal them from her face.

"You don't deserve my glasses," he snorted.

"Come on! I need my eyes, I'm not like you!" She whined pitifully. 

"And what's this?! My two favourite people, getting along nicely? Is the world ending?" A dramatic voice sounded from next to them. Both she and Matt stilled completely in a comical way before they took a step away from each other. Both of them looked caught out as they looked at a very smug Foggy.

"This is great! Better than great! I love this," he beamed like a kid on Christmas. Daphne groaned and glared at him from the glasses still perched on her face.

"Foggy, I swear! You want us to not kill each other when we're in the same room? Don't make a big deal about it when it happens," she huffed. 

"It is a big deal. You're both laughing and smiling together. This is huge. It's like a rare solar event or something," he defended. 

She resisted the urge to throttle him as Matt rubbed his temples. 

"Foggy," Matt warned lightly.

"Okay! I get it, I'm making it weird. This whole thing is new to you both and I'm just making it awkward," he soothed, holding his hands up in surrender.

"There is no 'thing'. We can't just actually have a moment where we get on with each other before you start trying to marry us off again?" She whined. 

"Marry us off? What?" Matt asked quickly, his head whipping to his friend. She snorted as Foggy's cheeks went a little pink and he shot her a glare 

"Oh, he didn't tell you he's the captain of ship Maphne?" She laughed loudly. She didn't care if Matt knew. It was ridiculous to her and she was getting payback on Foggy for being a little shit. 

"Maphne? Do I even wanna know?" Matt asked exasperated. Foggy shot her another look before standing up straighter.

"You know what, Daph, mock me all you want but this is the hill I'm choosing to die on," he pointed at her. Matt still stood there unsure of what they were even talking about. She opened her mouth for another retort that would no doubt embarrass Foggy further and also maybe make Matt uncomfortable which was a bonus, but Foggy beat her to it. 

"Anyway! I'm glad I caught you two, I have great news!" He beamed excitedly. She quirked her brows perplexed as he led them to a table outside of the cafe nearby. The three of them sat around it, Matt and Daphne watching their friend expectantly. 

"I finally asked Karen on a date!" He practically squealed. A splitting grin graced Daphne's face, unable not to be happy for him. During their many talks, he'd spoken about his feelings for the blonde and Daphne had always told him to go for it. 

"Aw, Foggy! You're growing up, I'm so proud!" She cooed, reaching over and pinching his cheek. He was so happy he just let her.

"That's awesome, man. I'm happy for you," Matt smiled sincerely.

"I know, it's great right? I just finally bit the bullet. I just decided I need to stop being such a baby about it," he explained. He had a weird look on his face though, the same one that usually told her something going on.

"What is it?" Both she and Matt asked at the same time, him clearly picking up on Foggy's weirdness in his own way.

Foggy raised a brow at them both being in sync and she made a point to not even look at Matt so Foggy wouldn't go off on his Maphne tirade again.

"Well… I just… I panicked, okay? I set it all up and she knew I wanted to ask her something. But then I'm like, what if she says no? I mean it's just gonna be me and Karen. Alone. On a date," he uttered looking like a deer in the headlights.

"That's kinda the point, Foggy," Matt teased.

"I know it is. And I couldn't back out because she was just watching me, waiting for what I wanted to ask. I honestly felt like I was about to have a heart attack and I may have asked her on a date but told her it was a double date with you guys," he blurted, barely taking a breath as he did. 

Daphne blinked at him for a moment as her brain tried to digest his words.

"You did what?" Matt asked incredulously. Foggy made a pitiful noise and she took Matt’s glasses off and set them in the middle of the table, giving Foggy a look.

"A double date? Implying that me and Matt are actually also going to be on a date. Do you see the flaw in that plan?" She asked slowly, like she was talking to a child about why playing with matches was bad. 

"I know! Like I said, I panicked and that's just the first thing that came out of my mouth!" Foggy defended with a sigh.

"And Karen actually bought that?" Matt scoffed, gesturing with his hand to him and then Daphne.

"You're kidding right? She's all aboard this ship, she was actually excited about it," Foggy smirked. She kicked him under the table and he groaned. Matt's jaw ticked as he glared in his best friend's direction. 

"This isn't a joke, Fogg. All the shit you give me for keeping my secret from her and you're just lying right to her face about this?" Matt frowned. 

"That's completely different. Your secret is dangerous. This one isn't. For all she knows it's your first date too and after that it just didn't work out. Besides, it's not like you're not getting it on with each other, would it really be that hard to just pretend to be on one date?" He pleaded, looking from her to Matt.

"Yes," they both answered again.

"Please? I really need this. If I tell her you're not going she might cancel too. You two are like a buffer, help set the scene and put her at ease. I really like her, guys. I don't want to mess things up," he begged. 

"Foggy-" Matt started sternly, only to be cut off by Daphne. 

"Fine. But you're paying for dinner," she relented. 

Foggy smiled the widest grin she'd ever seen on a human and Matt turned to glare at her.

"You've got to be kidding me," he scoffed incredulously.

"What? Didn't you hear him? He's our friend, Matt. Let's just do this for him. Besides, free dinner," she shrugged. Matt looked pissed and honestly it was a reward she hadn't expected. She'd almost forgotten how nice it felt to push his buttons. 

"This is ridiculous. You really think she's not gonna notice we can't stand each other once she's sat at a table with us for a while?" Matt glowered. He had a point but they could just try to be civil for Foggy's sake.

"You know what, Matt, I really hate to play this card but you left me no choice. You lied to me for the longest time and now I have to keep your secret. I already have to start a potential relationship with lies for you. Can't you just do this one thing for me? I never ask you for anything," Foggy muttered with a frown. 

A sly grin spread on her face at how underhand it was of Foggy. She almost felt like a proud parent as she watched a million emotions pass over Matt's face before defeat was all that was left.

"Fine. But don't say I didn't want you when this all blows up in your face. And you're paying for my dinner too," he huffed. Foggy looked more than pleased with himself. 

"Thank you! You guys are awesome. I'll even pay for your drinks if you actually try and act like you like each other and not make it awkward," he shot them both a toothy grin. 

"Hey, let me drink as much as I want and I'll make it really look like we're on a date," she smirked devilishly, a wiggle of her eyebrows and Foggy burst out laughing.

"Jesus christ," Matt muttered quietly with a shake of his head. 

"Deal," Foggy nodded firmly, "tonight at 8. It's the Mexican place near the firm," he instructed before he stood.

"Alright. I'm heading out, you coming with, Matt?" He asked, shooting his annoyed friend a look.

"Yeah. You go on, I'll catch up in a sec," he bit out. Foggy gave her a look and a smirk before he started walking away. 

"Really?" Matt glared at her, swiping his glasses from the table and shoving them onto his face. 

"What? Free food and as much booze as we want? Plus doing your best friend a solid? I know you're an asshole, Matt, but I thought you weren't that much of an asshole," she quipped dryly. He clamped his mouth shut, jaw tense as he pursed his lips.

"Fine," he stood up abruptly, gripping his cane before holding it in front of him. 

"You're doing this for Foggy. Don't fuck it up for him just because you've got a stick up your ass," she huffed as she stood up too. 

He shot her what she presumed was a dirty look behind his glasses before he started walking away, his cane swinging in front of him. His irritation about the situation only made her want to do it more. It was his own fault really for acting like such a bitch about the whole thing. He was asking for her to make it worse for him. She started walking home as a plan formed in her mind. She'd get nice food and decent booze and she'd get to piss Matt off in a setting he had to behave in. She was actually looking forward to it. 

As soon as she got home, she called their firm, knowing Karen would be the one to answer.

"Nelson and Murdock, Karen speaking," came the voice down the phone. Daphne trapped the phone to her ear with her shoulder as she tugged off her hoodie and tossed it in the laundry basket.

"Hey Karen, it's Daphne," she said casually. 

"Oh! Hi!" She sounded genuinely happy to speak to her and she wondered why she'd never bothered to speak to Karen more since she was so close to Foggy and Matt.

"I know this is weird, we haven't really spoken much. But I wanted to ask a favour since we're going on a double date," she said carefully, flopping onto her sofa.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Don't tell the guys, it's kind of weird for me. It's just… this is mine and Matt's first date too and it's been so long. I was wondering if you'd help me get ready for the date? I wanna look really good. I mean I know he can't really see, but he just somehow knows these things, right?" She grinned, cringing at how hard she was going at this. She felt a tiny bit bad at lying to her but she ignored it. 

"Of course! I'd… I'd really love that. I'm nervous too and it'd be good to just have some girl time," Karen said softly. 

"Thank you, I really appreciate this. We could go to the restaurant together when we're done," Daphne smiled pleased with herself. After exchanging cell numbers and goodbyes, Daphne sat back on the couch with a smirk. She wanted to turn heads. Not only just to irritate Matt, using her knowledge of him finding her physically attractive against him, but it had been a while since she went out. Usually she did so with a goal in mind, to have sex. And she would turn heads, a lot of them. Tonight was different but it didn't mean her ego wouldn't enjoy being looked at. It certainly would be interesting. 

[mmvalentine]

Circus of Dreams, pt 4 | Feysand

Night Circus AU. Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

In the end, no one came that first day. Rhys was not altogether surprised, it wasn't the first time it had happened and it certainly would not be the last.

Despite the lack of crowds, the day was not all bad. Sure, he had spent most of the day pacing his tent alone, but the minutes dancing with Feyre... well he wasn't sure when the last time he'd had that much fun was.

So, at the end of the day, when their official closing time hit and he was free to go back to his caravan, he was in a good mood and whistled as he walked.

Every night, dinner was served in the largest tent. It was an unkempt, sloppy affair, when performers were ravenous and no one was standing on ceremony. Rhys had rolled up his shirt sleeves joined the long table once he had picked up his serving of stew, and those he sat near nodded their acknowledgement without pausing their meal.

A couple of minutes later, he saw Mor enter the tent with Feyre. The ballgown was gone now, but it looked like Mor had not let her change into her faded old dress. Instead, she had Feyre in simple but elegant black wool skirt, and a soft white shirt tucked into it. They spotted Rhys and headed right to him.

"Evening ladies," he said. "Hello Rhysand, move over," Mor said, wriggling down next to him.

Feyre sat more gingerly opposite them, and Rhys' eyes sparkled at him. "It's a little rough in here," he said. "My apologies." "No," Feyre said, "I'm just surprised at how... different it is in here from out there." Rhys nodded. "We put on a beautiful show," he said, "but at night we're just a big messy family. Relaxing when you're off makes it easier to be fully engaged when you're on." Feyre smiled. "It's nice, actually. Dinners at home mostly consisted of shivering and trying to make soup out of bones." "Well then, dig in," Rhys said, and Feyre, not needing further invitation, did so.

Rhys went to sleep that night full and comfortable. But hours later, he woke to the sound of screams and the smell of smoke.

He burst out of his caravan, scanning the area, and soon found the source of the panic. Mor and Feyre's caravan was on fire, heavy benches propped up against the two doors in the side. Dark figures ran off into the night.

"You're not welcome here!" one of them shouted as he ran. Cassian took off after them, but Rhys dove toward the doors. He became aware of Amren beside him, and reached Feyre's door at the same time as Amren shoved aside the bench and yanked open Mor's. They hauled the girls out, coughing and spluttering, and dragged them away from the smoking wagon before letting them rest on the grass. A few of the others had run for buckets of water to douse the flames.

"What in the fuck was that?" Amren snapped. She was looking around furiously, propping Mor up while she searched for answers. Rhys didn't say anything, just sat grimly with Feyre as she continued coughing and checked her over for injuries. Someone ran up with water for them, and to report that the fire was now out.

Soon after, Cassian walked back into the camp, and in each of his hands was the collar of a young man. They dangled in his grip, resentment written over their faces.

"I found these," Cassian growled, addressing Amren. "And two cans of kerosene to boot." She stood, and looked them both over with disgust. "Just what in the hell do you think you're playing at?" she hissed at them. "People could have died." "Not our people," replied one sullenly. He spat at her feet.

Like lighting, Amren reached out and slapped the boy across the fight. "No," she snarled. "My people." She looked at Cassian.

"Say Cassian. Didn't we pass a big, cold looking river on the way in?" "Yes ma'am, I believe we did," was his reply. "Fantastic. Please toss these miserable excuses for men in said river, and let them know if I catch them around here again I will personally break all of their legs." "Yes ma'am." Cassian nodded, and strode off.

Amren pinched the bride of her nose. "Is everyone alright?" she asked. Mor and Feyre just nodded.

"Oh, Mor," Feyre said suddenly. "Your beautiful fabrics."

But Mor just smiled ruefully at her.

"They're just fabrics," she said. "We'll go in tomorrow and see what's left."

"Right," Amren said. "Morrigan, you can come sleep in my caravan. Feyre, go with Rhysand." She addressed the rest of the camp. "Everyone else go back to sleep. We'll leave first thing in the morning."

And with that, she left them. Mor hugged Feyre tightly, and checked again to see if she was okay. When she had ascertained that she was, she followed after Amren. And the rest of the crowd drifted off back to their caravans too.

"Come on," Rhys said gently, and took Feyre's arm under the elbow to help her up. She leaned on him as they walked, shivering slightly at the shock of what had happened.

Back in Rhys' caravan, Rhys had to help Feyre through the cramped space. He would have lit a candle, but after her ordeal, he thought it might be insensitive. So he guided her through the dark, and led her to the bed. Feyre sat down, then suddenly looked up at him with alarm in her eyes.

"Don't worry," he said. "You have the bed, I'll sleep on the floor."

Feyre looked like she was about to protest, but Rhys whipped out a spare blanket and got down before she could say anything. So, Feyre slid in between his sheets, and the thought of it made him shiver a little. He pushed the thought to the side, and closed his eyes.

A moment later, Feyre's voiced reached out though the dark.

"Rhys?" "Yes Feyre?" "They're not... coming back, are they?"

Rhys sat up. "Oh, darling. No, I shouldn't think so. Amren will have Cassian keep watch all night." "Okay," was all she said. "I'm so sorry that happened to you. What a start to your circus career." Feyre was quiet for a moment. "Thanks for pulling me out," she said. "Of course. I'm just glad we got to you quickly."

There was silence again, and Rhys had just started to drop off to sleep, when Feyre spoke again. "Rhys?" "Yes Feyre?" A pause. "I'm so sorry, I feel so deeply foolish. But I just wanted to check that you were still there." Rhys frowned into the dark. "It's not foolish. You were nearly burned alive in your caravan, I wouldn't sleep well either." "I started to drift off, then for some reason I panicked that you weren't there." "Okay. Would... would you like me to hold your hand?" Another pause. "I think that might help."

Rhys shifted closer to the bed, and tapped the frame so that she would know where his hand was. Immediately, he felt her small grip clutching him. He realised that this was the first time he was touching her without gloves, and the warmth of her skin was lovely.

"Mmm," she murmured. "That does help." Feyre yawned. "Rhys?" "Yes Feyre?" he whispered. "Thank you," she said. And shortly after that, she was asleep.

The next day, Rhys woke with a dead arm, but didn't mind. They left early, everyone a little bleary eyed, but with the scorched caravan still scenting the air with the stale smoke, no one complained as they packed up quickly and headed out of town.

Over in the next village, they set up and asked around for a carpenter to come have a look at the burnt wagon. Mor spent some time sifting through the wreckage, pulling out things that were salvageable. Unfortunately, since the boys had done such a thorough job of dousing the wood in kerosene, even though the fire hadn't burned very long the caravan was now unliveable.

They performed to a modest audience that night, and ate in relative quiet, everyone still a bit unsettled after the attack the previous night. Feyre left early, and when Rhys got back to his caravan, he found her sitting on the front step.

He gave her a gentle smile.

"Hello, Feyre darling," he said. "I... still don't have any place to live," she said by way of greeting. "Yes you do," he said. "You can live here."

Feyre turned and looked at his caravan. "It doesn't seem... very proper," she said slowly. "Well, neither does running away with the circus, and you've done that already." "I suppose that's true," Feyre mused. "If you're uncomfortable, I'm sure we can make other arrangements. Most people live with a partner or friend already, but they can always make room." Feyre shook her head. "I wouldn't want to put anyone out like that. I'm happy to stay if you are happy to have me." She paused. "Or, maybe I should just go home." "Nonsense," Rhys said quickly. "You haven't even seen half the things that need your attention. There's a massive clockwork pony that you would just love."

And so she stayed.

****

OH LOOK I COULDN'T MANAGE 2 DAYS OFF BECAUSE THE TRAFFIC STOPPED AND MY DOPAMINE SUPPLY GOT CUT OFF AND NOW I'M PANIC POSTING why am i like this you guys

TAGLIST: @ghostlyrose2 @highladysith @stardelia @feysand-babies @tillyrubes10 @ratabrasileira

[love-bokumono-fics]

Trope Tuesday - AU's!

I don't know about you, but a always enjoy a fun AU, particularly when they take something we know and love and put such a creative twist on it. An AU can be anything from a minor divergence from canon, to a complete shift in time and location and character dynamics.

Today we'll look at some of the AU's that the fandom had created!

One Missed Call - by durotos; Completed, 1/1, <1k; Retail AU

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M

Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town

Relationship: Claire the Farmer/Cliff; Characters: Claire the Farmer, Cliff

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Retail, Alternate Universe, Awkward Flirting, two shy people attempting to have a phone conversation, Fluff, Budding Love, yes I still use a flip phone

Summary: Claire is roused from her sleep when her phone alerts her that she has a missed call. She snaps awake when she sees who it is from. Sappy, happy fluff. Modern AU, Retail AU.

Side Effects - by Measured; Completed, 1/1, 13k; Soulmate AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M

Fandom: Trio of Towns

Relationship: Farmer/Ford; Characters: Ford, Female Farmer, Ensemble

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending

Summary: When Ford meets her, the world becomes brighter. Literally.

Island of Sanctuary - Mai_Blade; WIP, 1/?, <1k; Zombie Apocalypse AU

Rating: Not Rated; Archive Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death; Category: F/M

Fandom: Island of Happiness

Relationships: Reader & Other(s), Other Relationship Tags to Be Added; Characters: Reader, Other Character Tags to Be Added

Additional Tags: Reader-Insert, POV Multiple, Multiple Pairings, Angst and Tragedy, Blood and Gore, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Don't copy to another site, mentions of bullying, referenced suicidal feelings

Summary: An island is a piece of land surrounded by water, a thing separate from the mainland. Fate brought you to an abandoned one, and you've helped bring it back to life. When the dead walk the earth, the island you call home becomes a defensible place, a refuge. A sanctuary. But. Even here, death comes.

Seedlings & Hammers - by MOcarina; WIP, 1/1, 2k; Modern, Urban AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Categories: F/M, Gen

Fandoms: Harvest Moon 64

Relationship: Claire the Farmer/Rick; Characters: Rick, Claire, Ann the Innkeeper | Ran, Gray

Additional Tags: the makerspace au no one asked for, Urban Farming, Meet-Cute, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Community Garden, non-profit, Eventual Romance

Summary: Claire is an enterprising newcomer to Flowerbud City working for a non-profit and meets a man with an inventive streak who can help her get her new initiative off the ground white trying to figure out his own dreams. A makerspace/community garden AU in the HM:64 world.

Tear You Apart - by indoorsy; Completed, 1/1, 7k; Soulmate AU

Rating: Mature; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: F/M

Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town

Relationships: Claire the Farmer/Brandon, Elli/Doctor Trent | Torre, Claire the Farmer/Doctor Trent | Torre; Characters: Claire, Brandon, Doctor | Trent, Elli | Elly

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, So much angst, Drama, Romance, Hurt/Comfort, Unrequited Love (Kind of), Some Supernatural Elements, Sex Pollen, Dubious Consent, Mutually Dubious Consent, Cheating, But not on purpose, Non-Explicit Sex, Suicide Attempt, yes his name is still Doctor

Summary: Claire had grown up believing in the prospect of soulmates as something incredibly joyous. It sounded just like a fairytale – like the ones her grandpa would tell her about the goddess in the pond – except, somehow, this one was true. A first touch that would ignite your skin, fill you with dizzying euphoria, and magnetize you to one another – it sounded like a divine blessing. But now Claire knew it was a curse. - Your soulmate isn't always the one you are meant to love, but that doesn't mean it won't hurt like hell.

Excuse me, do you want 10 thousand dollars? - by kurikku; Completed, 1/1, 7k; Fake Dating AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: F/M

Fandom: Trio of Towns

Relationship: Holly | Nanami/Wayne; Characters: Ford, Daryl | Darius, Hector, Stephanie, Carrie, Brad, Lynn

Additional Tags: Fake/Pretend Relationship, Alternate Universe

Summary: Wayne was offered an absurd deal of $10,000 if he was to pretend to be Holly's girlfriend for a week. Sounds easy and harmless, right?

In Good Taste - by Nenalata; WIP, 1/?, 4k, Chef AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M

Fandoms: Animal Parade, Trio of Towns

Relationships: Holly/Chase, Kasey/Luna; Characters: Chase | Chihaya, Holly | Nanami, Maya | Mai, Hayden | Harper, Kasey | Yuuki, Luna | Ruumi, Julius | Juri, Candace | Kotomi, Angie

Additional Tags: AU, Restaurants, Chef AU, Alcohol, Rivals to Lovers, what else do you expect with Chase, Crossover, Teenage Rebellion, coming a decade too late I suppose, Cooking, Just a Lot of Food and Fluff, Not-Great Parental Relationships, People Interrupt Holly A Lot, Romance

Summary: “Top show, Holly! Even pro chefs have a tough time with legend class. You could have probably been successful as a full-time chef. Actually, it’s kind of a shame you didn’t become one.” "It's not so simple or easy a job that anyone could take it up on a whim and hope to succeed. What do you know of cooking? Running a kitchen? Have you any idea how to manage a business?" Holly has dreams of soufflé and meuniere, not Silkies and manure. The trio of towns is no place for her. She has bigger fish to fry on Castanet Island.

Chemistry for Beginners - by Lady_Malvence; WIP, 46/?, 72k; College AU

Rating: Explicit; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: F/M

Fandoms: Story of Seasons (2014)

Relationship: Klaus/Minori | Annie; Characters: Marian, Iris, Other Harvest Moon characters, Giorgio

Additional Tags: Romance, Fluff, Alternate Universe - Romantic Comedy, Explicit Sexual Content

Summary: Reagan (Annie/Minori) was making her way to her new chemistry class when she found herself hopelessly lost. Frustrated and not looking where she was going she literally ran into the man that will change her life. A/U

Harvest Moonshine - by Nenalata; WIP, 4/10, 11k; Bootlegger AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M

Fandoms: Grand Bazaar

Relationship: Amir/Anita; Characters: Amir, Gretel | Anita | Marl, Felix, Antoinette | Enju, Original Antagonist Character(s)

Additional Tags: Alcohol, bootleggers AU, Tax evasion, mild violence, Mild Language, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Political Intrigue, Renounced-ier Future, Implied Sexytimes Easy to Ignore if That's Not Your Thing, Painstaking Descriptions of Banking, Slight Canon Divergence, Blackmail, It's Still a Romance Though Don't Worry

Summary: In the eyes of Zephyr Town, Anita is a hardworking farmer who is doing remarkably well in the bazaar. To those in the know, Anita is who you see when you're thirsty and need a good strong drink from her less-than-legal liquor side business.

What You Want - by your_blackheart; Completed, 1/1, <1k; High School AU

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: Multi

Fandoms: Story of Seasons, Harvest Moon DS Cute, Tree of Tranquility, Animal Parade, Grand Bazaar

Relationships: Angelo/Pony | Jill, Angelo/Klaus the Perfumer; Characters: Pony | Aya | Jill, Angela the Farmer | Akari, Klaus the Perfumer, Angelo | Agi

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - High School, Self-Harm, Underage Smoking, Pining, Unrequited Crush, Platonic Female/Female Relationships, Platonic Relationships

Summary: Crushes are an absolute nightmare, but it only makes things worse when your crush has a thing for one of your teachers. Jill silently muses over what she wants as she awaits the period bell. It's a good thing there's someone around to smack her out of her daydreaming.

[storyofsparklingstars]

What once was, will be again

Ok y’all. This is @lovecolibri‘s fault. This is my first fanfic ever. I hope y’all like it. Smut will follow, this is just the first part. I think I’m going to throw up now. How do people do THIS?!

It had been months since Alex broke up with Forrest. He’d never actually let himself fall in love so the break up wasn’t particularly painful on his side. He knew Forrest felt differently about how things went down, and yeah, it did make him an asshole but at this point, Alex just didn’t care. He knew that he and Michael were meant to be together and had been dancing around starting their relationship again. They met up several times a week for dinner or to just hang out at Michael’s airstream. It was fun and enjoyable, both men single and enjoying the flirting. Unfortunately, between Alex’s job, Mr. fucking Jones and dealing with the aftermath of his dad’s death,  it had been several weeks since he’d been able to spend any length of time with Michael.

Michael and Maria’s relationship hadn’t fared any better. He’d heard about their break up from Kyle and he’d heard it from Max. That relationship was really one he hadn’t seen coming.

Initially meeting up for drinks every now and then to discuss Liz and commiserate about losing the love of such an amazing woman to dinners at the Crashdown and then movies at each other’s homes. Max and Kyle sorta dated their way into dating. But both men seem happy and Alex knows without a doubt that if Liz ever showed any interest, their duo would become a trio.

Alex absolutely did not want to be where he was, but he owed Mimi for being a refuge from his father and felt a responsibility to keep her in the style at which she’d become accustomed to in Sunset Acres. Actually, he mused to himself, The Wild Pony probably ranked right up there with Iraq and he’d lost his leg over there.

Maria hoped that offering free Wi-Fi and the ability to connect remotely to the jukebox would entice customers to stay and drink longer. She was desperate to increase her revenue at the bar. Her mom’s nursing home was not cheap. Alex only agreed to set it up and customize the security on the condition that he didn’t see her and didn’t have to talk to her. He still wasn’t over the nauseating threesome she’d contrived. Anytime the Pod Squad had to meet to deal with Mr. Jones, he kept far away from her and still had yet to speak to her willingly. That was one bridge burned to the fucking ground. He’d just as soon as never have to voluntarily be around her again. Alex still couldn’t believe she’d orchestrated the entire situation just to force Michael to choose between them, knowing how he’d felt about Michael, knowing that he loved Michael just as fiercely and desperately as he’d had since he was seventeen. As he now knew he always would. His love for Michael was branded on his very DNA.

The corner booth he was set up at was far away from the bar as he could get. It was covered in water bottles and napkins. One of the bartenders kept bringing him one every hour on the hour. Probably instructed by Maria to keep him happy while he worked. He just wanted to finish and get the hell out of there. So focused on his task, he didn’t notice someone standing by his booth until they cleared their throat. He glanced up and saw Michael standing there, twisting his hat around in his hands.

“Have a seat, Michael, I need to finish one more thing.” Alex invited. He was glad to see Michael, he’d missed being with him. 

Michael slid into the booth and dropped his hat on the table. He waited patiently for what felt like forever and Alex still had barely looked at him. He started fidgeting and jiggling his leg, tapping on the table, unable to sit still for any longer.

“Michael. Be. Still.” Alex commanded. He felt Michael freeze on the other side of the table and slowly raised his eyes from his laptop. He’d been so focused on trying to finish and get out of there as soon as possible he hadn’t really looked at Michael.

Their eyes slowly met, Michael’s wide and slightly stunned, Alex’s considering. Michael smirked, “I didn’t think we did that anymore.”

Despite the sudden flush of arousal on Michael’s face, he looked terrible. The dark circles under his eyes concerned Alex. Michael could usually fall asleep anywhere, at the drop of a hat but now it looked like the man hadn’t gotten a good nights sleep in weeks.

“Why haven’t you been sleeping?” Alex asked Michael softly.

Michael picked up one of the napkins littering the table and began shredding it. He focused on his hands, barely meeting Alex’s eyes. “I’ve been having nightmares,” he finally admitted. “Ever since the night of the carnival, I close my eyes and all I can see is Master Sergeant Dickhead pointing a gun at you. I almost lost you not too long ago and I guess that night is bringing up some memories. I can’t stop thinking about what if Gregory hadn’t done what he did. What if your dad had shot you, right in front of me. It’s all I can see, it’s all I can think about.” Everything tumbles out of Michael’s mouth and his body sags like he doesn’t have the energy to even sit up straight anymore.

Alex can relate. He still has nightmares from his time in Iraq and the trauma of losing his leg. Medication helps, but it only goes so far.

“Do you want to come home with me?” Alex asks Michael. “Same rules as before. I promise I’ll take care of you.” Alex knows what he’s offering. He hopes Michael will say yes. Realizing he needs this just as much as Michael does.

Relief floods Michaels eyes as he chokes out, “Yes, please.”

Alex can see the neediness in every inch of Michael's body and he can’t wait to get his hands on him. Bury his nose in the back of Michael’s hair and breathe in the smell of rain, to hear the whimper in Michael’s voice as he begs for release.

Alex starts packing up his laptop as Michael begins clearing the table of shredded napkins and water bottles, seeming just as desperate to get out of there as Alex was.

“What are you doing here? I thought I told you, I don’t want you here.” Alex had been so caught up in the thought of Michael on his knees he’d failed to notice HER approaching the table.

“And I thought I told you, I didn’t want to talk to you or even see you while I was here, so it looks like we both aren’t getting what we wanted,” Alex retorts, not even sparing her a glance. He doesn’t fail to notice Michael shrinking in on himself, trying to make himself smaller.

“Michael, go outside to my SUV, I’ll meet you out there in just a moment.” Alex quietly instructs Michael.

He can see the thanks on Michael’s face as he grabs his hat and skirts around Maria, not giving her a second glance.

Maria seems infuriated at being ignored, even though she hadn’t wanted Michael in the bar in the first place. She reaches out to grab Michael as he tries to slip past her.

“Don’t touch him!” Comes the snarled demand from Alex.

Michael is frozen, not wanting Maria anywhere near him but also not wanting to be the cause of a scene.

Alex finishes gathering up his laptop and shoves it into his messenger bag before standing. “You don’t have the right to touch him anymore. He’s mine. He’s always been mine. He will always be mine. You had your chance but even then you knew there was no way you’d ever be able to love him the way I always will. The way we will always love each other. Don’t call me again unless it’s an emergency with Mimi.” Alex gently puts his hand on Michaels back before guiding him to the door. “Oh, and don’t worry, he wasn’t here to see you in the first place.”

Maria stands there stunned at the vehemence in Alex’s voice, wondering once again why she’d ever thought Michael Guerin was worth blowing up her friendship with Alex. She knew she’d never get that back.

[lambourngb]

This Hard Choice

Fic prompt: “I don’t want you to go.” set before THIS HARD LIFE and THIS HARD JOURNEY - an AU after the shed, set sometime after the moment in 2x05. Alex doesn’t join the Air Force. I’m writing these each day- so thankfully I didn’t have to work today because this “ficlet” is 3,600 words. This is finished on Ao3 here.

****

The careful crunch of loose gravel and abrasive echo of a skateboard stopping on the rough pavement let Michael know that his attempt to avoid Alex had failed. 

Parking down by Spring River, not far from where the concrete shelter of the Atkinson Ave overpass sported some of the late Rosa Ortecho’s graffiti murals, would have been an excellent place to hide from everyone in his life but Alex. It was insane to think that in such a short time, Michael had basically shared all of his favorite spots with him, from the private desert escape on a cut back gravel road not far from the crash site to the places in town when Michael couldn’t spare the fuel to drive far, like Loveless Park or the back acres of wrecked and salvaged cars at Sander’s Auto.

He would care more about his failure in evading Alex if he wasn’t so currently high.

Old man Sanders had let him crash on the couch last night with Rusty, his dog, and then left him the next morning with scrambled eggs and a small paying job of cleaning out the machinery tools used for alignment repairs. “Gotta use that MEK shit on it, it smells awful, so it’s a perfect job for you, kid, only need the one hand to clean the threads,” Sanders had instructed nodding to his bandaged hand as he handed over a pair of twenty dollar bills with a metal canister of solvent.

The money put gas in the truck and the leftover solvent was carefully hoarded for an experiment. Even with Michael’s careful handling of his make-shift cast while he worked on the task, he still finished having jarred the break one too many times.

Blue, cloudless sky stretched above him, keeping him warm and comfortable with a rare full stomach of breakfast. It was the perfect time, with his hand pulsing in unceasing agony, to test his theories about the effects other solvents had on his body outside of pain killing effects of acetone. There wasn’t much to lose, he reasoned darkly as he drank two quick swallows of MEK and laid back on his sleeping bag waiting for the effects to kick in, for better or worse.

Acetone reduced pain to a soft buzz in the background, like a gnat circling on the edges of his periphery. This solvent made him feel like the gnat, flying wildly through the negative space. 

Negative space, he mused with his eyes closed. That fit with close-tailored accuracy to his future prospects.

“Guerin, hey, Guerin!”

Right. Alex was here. Alex had found him. He was trying to avoid Alex for some reason. He couldn’t remember why at the moment as he opened his eyes to Alex’s handsome worried face. Christ, he was beautiful. Those eyebrows were bridged together though, closing the distance. Michael wanted to be that in the moment. A bridge, not a chasm. Not the negative space.

A warm, soft hand caressed Michael’s face, bringing his fluttering attention back to Alex’s. Sometime in between his thoughts, Alex had clambered up into the truck bed to sit next to him. The hint of amusement in his dark eyes won out over concern, “Are you just really high right now?”

“Yeah, super high,” Michael breathed, smiling broadly before moving to make room for Alex next to him.

Alex pursed his lips together, taking in a deep inhale of the surrounding air, “I don’t smell pot-”

“Not pot, something better.”

The concern and alarm was back as Alex started to pull away from Michael’s clumsy hold and look around the truck bed. “Like what, like, meth or OXY?”

“‘S fine, don’t worry, ‘kay?” Michael wrinkled his nose at the movements, and patted the space on his chest with his right hand. “Come lay back down, okay?”

“No, not okay, you need to tell me what you took so if you start to O.D. I can tell the hospital how to treat you-” 

The talk of a hospital cut through the fog. Michael pushed himself up with his good hand, before reaching to still Alex’s searching through the discarded blankets around him. Thankfully the discarded canister of MEK was in the cab of the truck with the contents of his pharmacy robbery, the box of nail polish remover and clean bandages. “No hospitals ever, okay? I’m fine, I promise. It was just… um, OXY like you said.” 

Staring in Michael’s eyes, Alex paused, still concerned and wary. “How much did you take?”

“Like two pills, and um, it wasn’t even off label, okay?” Michael raised his left hand, the dirty ragged cast punctuating the need. Like it had every time before, the reminder of that night in the shed sent a wave of shame and regret over Alex’s face. An effective subject killer, but it still pained Michael to use it. “Before you ask, I got the pills from Isobel. Her mom had dental surgery so they were left over. I didn’t rob the pharmacy for drugs.”

“I know.”

“You know?” While the rock-solid belief was nice, that wasn’t a part of his experience. 

Dropping his gaze down to Michael’s sloppy cast, Alex shrugged. “I overheard Jim Valenti telling my dad about the robbery, no drugs or money were stolen. Just beauty supplies and first aid stuff. It’s getting dismissed as kid type vandalism, not evidence of a drug cartel in Roswell.”

“That’s good.” Finally, news that brought relief to Michael, instead of increasing the heavy weight of dread in his chest. He started to lay back down on his sleeping bag and this time Alex followed, removing his keys and wallet from his jean pockets. Resting his face against Michael’s chest, his warm breath cutting easily through the thin cotton t-shirt, the argument was now forgotten between them as they took comfort in the closeness.

The high from the MEK was slowly fading, tiptoeing from his veins like a thief in the night. The echoing ache of his hand started up, the footfalls of sensation, getting closer and louder as the afternoon wore on until it was time for another bottle of acetone to chase it away. At least he knew the other solvent wouldn’t kill him, whatever that was worth.

“I looked it up, Roswell has a free clinic on Main if it’s about money-”

Not this fight again. It was his least favorite one, after the scholarship to UNM. Michael kept his voice soft, even though a surge of impatience tightened his throat.  “Alex, I can’t, okay? I can’t go to the free clinic because people are going to ask questions.”

“My dad deserves to get punished for what he did-” Alex lifted his eyes up to Michael’s from where he was tucked against Michael’s side.

“Not just about what happened. First question they ask is about ID, okay? And the address on my ID is two foster dicks ago. I can’t risk it. Attention from the authorities has never brought me anythin’ good.” Michael reached to stroke his fingertip over the renewed worried line on Alex’s face, “I know you think it should just be easy, like seeing a doctor, or going to UNM even though my scholarship only covers tuition and housing, not food, or gas, or school supplies outside of books.”

Alex frowned in response, “I’m not naive, Michael, I know all of that.”

“Yeah? Do you know how expensive it is to be homeless?” Pride nearly stopped that admission to Alex, but he was tired of fighting with the one person that seemed to care about him. “It’s ironic, but it’s true. No address, no bank account, but at least I’m finally eighteen with a high school diploma, so I can have a fighting chance at taking a cheap retail job to serve the tourists. ‘Cause right now my budget covers gas for my truck, food, and paying to use the truck stop showers out by Cowboy Ruckus twice a week, so I’m not shown the door as soon as I show up somewhere.” Michael had to shut his eyes to keep from seeing pity on Alex’s face. It wasn’t his fault that he didn’t understand the ins and outs of how well the system protected everyone who worked within it but no one that stood on the outside.

It reminded him why he was avoiding Alex today in the first place. 

Last night Alex had seen him at the Wild Pony. At Ranchero Night. While Alex was there to help Maria and her mother, the assistant manager of the bar and restaurant to host the outreach night, Michael had no other reason for showing except for the obvious one. He was hungry and the grudgingly offered program by Old Fred that Mimi Deluca spearheaded meant he was going to get a full belly of hot warm food with no questions asked.

The stories behind his favorite parking spots in downtown Roswell weren’t romantic discoveries to share with Alex, they all revolved around proximity to safety and soup kitchens. Even showing up too many times at a particular food bank carried risk, from other men who lived rough. The fights that happened between prime sleeping spots, between two people comparing their nothing with less than nothing, spun up quickly. It was ugly, dangerous and Michael’s telekinesis could only keep him safe up to a point.

“And sometimes I go places where there’s free food and no questions. Like Ranchero night.” There was no disguising how hard his heart was pounding under Alex’s ear, but Michael could concentrate on keeping his breathing steady as he waited fearfully for his response. Finally, unable to stay quiet, Michael ventured, “still want to be with me?”

Alex lifted his head, biting his lip briefly. Slowly, with a mindful eye on Michael’s cast, he shifted closer to kiss Michael’s mouth gently. “I didn’t realize how hard things were, um, I’m glad you told me. I wish it didn’t take me seeing you at the Wild Pony for you to tell me.”

“You’ve got your own shit with your dad at home. At least I know my truck is safe, you don’t have that luxury.” It was something that Michael couldn’t help but worry about every night since the shed when he wasn’t worrying about Isobel. The level of violence and the comfort that Jesse Manes had in using that against his own son, while it shouldn’t have shocked a veteran of Child and Family Services, it did. Every night Alex went home to that. 

“It hasn’t been bad since that night, but I’m dodging my dad as much as I can. He’s probably just waiting until I’m 18.”

“Waiting for what?”

It was Alex’s turn to evade as he laid soft, suckling kisses down Michael’s throat. Michael chased at Alex’s lips, threading his fingers through the fading evidence of the black hair dye warring with the summer bleaching. They traded long, deep kisses, the heat of arousal building layers over the question until it slipped from view unanswered.

*** 

Michael walked confidently down the halls of the Roswell Travellodge toward the back stairs. The key to trespassing was to act as naturally as possible and hope he didn’t run into someone who knew him. Using the free ice machine in the various motels around town to stock up his small cooler was just one of the many life hacks he picked up since striking out on his own at sixteen.

His face was still throbbing from the lucky hit that jackass got in earlier after Michael had picked up dinner at the Ministries of Light community event. Someone felt like Michael needed to pay the unofficial cover to partake in the meal, and Michael had flipped off the guy, because every year on this planet had taught him how to treat a bully. A bully always has friends, and walking back late at night with a full stomach meant he hadn’t noticed his crowd of ‘admirers’ until they had him surrounded just a block from his truck. 

Thankfully between rolling a dumpster with his telekinesis and his fast retreat, he made it to safety with only the slowly swelling eye as a souvenir.

It had been at least three days since he had last crashed at Sanders, long enough to impose again on the old man’s couch. Michael finished filling his cooler with ice, wrapping a cold chunk in a discarded t-shirt to press against his face, and drove toward the auto yard with a plan in mind. Maybe the old man needed Michael to fix something. His left hand had improved enough now to move from awkward plaster to a drug-store brace, leaving some of his fingers free for more dexterous work. 

His headlights picked up a vague flash of movement just outside the office of the auto yard. Mindful of Rusty the dog, Michael slowed his approach to a crawl until he realized the movement wasn’t the yard dog, but Alex.

Michael swung out of the truck quickly, dropping the wrapped ice on the seat. Alex being here, unannounced, could only be trouble related to Jesse. “Hey, what’s going on?”

Straightening up from his seat in front of the office, whatever Alex was going to say originally abruptly vanished as he caught sight of Michael’s face under the wavering beam of the security lights. “What the hell happened to your eye?” 

Belated he reached up to touch his face, and joked, “A fight, but you should see the other guy. Or guys. I think it was at least four on one. But I’m okay.”

The bruise must have been more impressive than Michael realized because Alex just paled in response. Agitated Alex crossed his arms in front, turning half away as he rubbed his hands bare of jewelry against his forearms. “What the hell am I doing?” he asked himself quietly. 

“Alex?” Michael stepped closer, fear dropping his stomach downward in nausea. It was a dark survivor’s thought, but it would be a shameful waste to get sick now after a good meal. “Are you okay? Is it your dad?”

“I’m turning 18 tomorrow,” Alex replied in a non sequitur quietly. 

It didn’t sound like a joyous thing to reach the age of legal adulthood for Alex. “Happy birthday?” 

“My dad- listen, it’s never really been a choice okay? I’ve known it for as long as I can remember. I mean, fuck, I have to sign on my own, he can’t do it for me, but he might as well hold the pen in my hand.”

Michael wasn’t stupid. He knew enough about Alex’s family, his brothers, that the expectation of military service was less of a question and more of an accepted fact. He also knew Alex, who Alex was, and that was not a soldier of any kind. All of his reasoned arguments against this action jumbled in Michael’s throat, until the only thing that burst forward was inane words, “but you’re gay though, you can’t enlist!”

Huffing a tired sigh, Alex smiled sadly, “there are gay people every branch of the services, Michael. They just have to hide. My dad… my dad expects this of me. To join, to hide, to be...to be a Manes Man finally.”

“You can’t, you just can’t-” he squeezed his eyes shut tightly, breathing through his nose as he fought the nausea again. “I don’t want you to go.”

“I don’t want to go either.” Alex reached for Michael’s face, keeping his touch light over the hot swelling bruise. The mark on Michael’s face seemed to deepen the grief in Alex’s eyes. “It’s never been a choice for me.”

“It can be. It can be a choice, if you just tell him no.”

“He would kill me.”

“The Air Force is just as capable of killing you too.” Michael reached up to guide Alex’s hand down to press against his chest, letting the wild beat of his pulse thrum against Alex’s palm. This boy, this kind and beautiful boy, brought the spark of life to all of the lost and deliberately discarded opportunities in Michael’s life. The thought of Alex being shuffled off to that same, colorless existence that he was stuck in after lighting Rosa Ortecho’s car on fire, threatened to break something in him. “Cutting yourself off from who you are, it changes you, and it’s not a good change. Please don’t do this to yourself.” 

Instead of responding, Alex looked back at the dark office of Sanders Auto behind them. “I don’t have to be home tonight, Sarge is letting me have one last night of freedom, so is it okay if I stay with you?”

“It’s an ancient couch I share with the dog,” Michael warned, licking his dry lips in response. At Alex’s nod, he led Alex over by the hand to the customer keys drop box and mailbox. After a moment he fished the key out from the hideaway safe and unlocked the office door. 

One last night together as innocent kids before the hard choices had to be made.

***

The next day, Michael ignored his schedule, the scratched out decisions that kept him functioning and moving with one foot in front of the other. Instead of partaking the truck stop shower or heading for laundry day the Evanes, as Ann and Bob always did a late brunch at their club, he instead decided to join Max for his thrice weekly coffee stalking of Arturo Ortecho. 

The scent of Alex was still all over him after he slept soundly on top of Michael, the only way to share that narrow couch. Rusty the dog had to settle with wedging his way between their legs and the less said of the amused look on old man Sanders face when he discovered them that morning, the better. 

Alex’s probably finished signing his life away at this point, Michael reminded himself.

“Jeez, he looks like such a tool,” Max commented, breaking into the cycle of Alex-related thoughts abruptly. Michael turned to look out the window of the Crashdown to see Kyle Valenti beaming and gesticulating excitedly in front of a new red Camaro. Both his parents, in uniform already for work, were watching their son proudly, arm in arm. “I don’t know how the Valentis raised a jerk like Kyle.”

Nice parents, nice car, nice life ahead of him for school as rumor had it that Kyle was headed to Michigan, and it was clear from Michael’s eyes the guy had no appreciation of the privileged ease of his life. All of that love and support in his life, only for Kyle Valenti to use it to bully people. Bully Alex. 

Anger was never far behind these days for Michael, his ever-present cellmate as he served his time for Isobel’s crimes. It swelled inside him, as the sun sparkled off the hubcaps and dazzled the eyes of onlookers from that deep cherry red car. Red like Rosa’s lipstick. Red like Liz’s prom dress. Red like the blood after the hammer dropped.

“Yeah, Jim Valenti deserves better.” That was Alex’s voice. 

Michael jerked his head away from the window to find Alex standing next to their booth. He had to be dreaming. Alex was supposed to be at a recruiter’s office, losing his freedom and all evidence of his personality right now, probably getting the remnants of that emo black hair dye job buzzed off at the barber. 

Except he wasn’t. Alex’s hair was still long and shaggy, brown sun-lightened locks spilling over his warm dark eyes. His earring and septum plug were back in, along with his jewelry. A lot of jewelry actually. Like maybe all of the jewelry Alex owned. Resting at his feet was a heavy duffle bag, the seams straining under the force of clothing packed inside. 

“Alex.” 

Shyly, Alex looked over at Max back to him, “Michael. It’s good to see you guys hanging out together again.”

“Alex.” Stupidly Michael kept staring at Alex, as if he was going to disappear if he blinked. “You’re here. You’re- you’re actually here, you didn’t-?”

Max creased his forehead, watching Michael completely unravel before him. “I kinda feel like I’m missing something here?”

“Alex Manes,” Alex held out his hand to Max jokingly, a small smile on his lips. He took a deep, audible breath and continued more seriously, “the disowned son of Master Sergeant Manes, currently homeless, and um, also Michael’s boyfriend.”

“Disowned?” 

“I had a choice, joining the Air Force or getting kicked out of the family. And um, so I’m going to be crashing on Maria’s couch for a while, just until I can save up-” Alex’s explanation was abruptly silenced as Michael launched himself from the booth toward him. His bag hit the ground as Alex wrapped both arms around Michael tightly. 

The patrons of the café faded into the background as Michael pressed his suddenly wet eyes into Alex’s neck. “Oh, thank god, you didn’t go.”

“I never wanted to go, okay?” Slowly Alex drew away a few inches, keeping his gaze on Michael’s face. His eyes narrowed at the bruise still blackening Michael’s eye, “and the choice wasn’t hard, when I realized it was you I was choosing. You gotta pick me too, okay? No more fights or robbing drug stores, I can deal with a lot, I know this won’t be easy being together but I can’t deal with violence. You gotta try, Michael.”

“Yes, yes, deal.” Aware of Max’s growing distrustful gaze, Michael ignored it. That could be their next fight with his brother after the subject of Isobel had been worn out, whether being close to someone human constituted a threat to their safety. Right now, the hard choice between their secret and Alex, didn’t have to be made yet. 

[seasonal-shifts-au-fanartfunart]

Goodbye Winter

Summery: Fall!Virgil goes to talk to Winter

Warnings: sleeplessness/overworking, it’s just overall kinda melancholy & bittersweet, idk pretty much the typical stakes for this au overall >w< Tell me if anything else needs to be added.

Words: idk. over 700ish. (Its not super long at all)

Anyway, here. Have a fic. :)

-

Virgil pulled on his hoodie and glanced over at the only other season in their home. He sighed, leaning back against the doorway to his room. Logan’s back was to him, a sprawling collection of papers surrounding him where he sat on the floor. An occasional mumble accompanied the frequent scratches on the various papers and calendars.

“Take a nap sometime soon,” he said, ruffling Logan’s already disheveled hair. 

Wispy blond strands falling into his eyes, he glanced up from the papers. The crease in his brow softened, just a moment, “Yes, yes… I’ll endeavor to do so-” He worried his lip and added, “Just- after I work out this...”

Virgil gave a lopsided smile, and turned towards the doorway with a two-finger salute. “See you later, alright?”

Logan nodded, the crease in his brow was back. He adjusted his glasses, shaking his head. He let out a soft huff. “You don’t have to say that every time one of us goes out,” he said, trailing off as his eyes returned to his schedules and plans. 

“Yeah, I kinda do,” Virgil muttered to himself as he shut the doorway. He glanced up at the sky, sighing into the chill air. He weaved his way through patches of oranges, reds, and golds. Fingertips brushing old branches, the wind shaking out old leaves in his wake. He mused the possibility of a thunderstorm for the night, although, it might just happen on its own accord, considering his mood. 

He sighed, pausing in front of the lake, a spindly layer of ice webbed across it. Virgil leaned back into the air, staring up at the grey clouds hanging overhead. “You’d think you’d be close by, given how cold it is already.”

Frost crept around him, almost gentle and curious. Icy cold fingers braced against a tree. 

One sure would think.

Virgil kicked at some of the leaves on the forest floor, hands in his pockets… He swapped his cloak for a hoodie, Patton noted dully. That must’ve taken some courage. Virgil had had that cloak for ages. Patton wavered against the tree he’d hidden behind, watching Virgil, looking over the familiar terrain. 

“Logan’s not… handling it too well. Despite what he says. I, kinda offered to take over, at least for a little, but he’s stubborn as always. Maybe he thinks I’ll worry myself into an ice age. Maybe he’d be right. Heh. You know I’ve never been the best at keeping myself in check.”

Virgil slumped against a tree, “Roman’s not much better. Actually- I think he’s hiding something…” An ominous rumble curled through the sky, “Or I’m just overthinking. I mean, he hasn’t changed much, just complains even more about Logan doing his job wrong.” Virgil laughed a little, “If that’s possible.”

Patton shifted and hit his head against the tree he’d been against, listening to Virgil ramble. 

“Isn’t this the part where you try and get me to see the bright side or tell a silly joke or something? Frick, what’s that term I heard- somebody called it something and I- Dad joke- somebody called ‘em a dad joke. I think you’d like that. ‘M not sure if it’ll stick, I think it’s kinda silly… but then again, so are the jokes.” 

Patton smiled, soured with melancholy. Yeah, he liked that. He missed this. Meeting up in the crossover between their seasons, talking about everything and nothing. He missed Virgil’s rumbling voice, and the shuffle of leaves underfoot. 

Distant thunder rolled overhead. Patton glanced up and frowned. Virgil sighed. “Well I guess that’s been decided for me.”  

“I- I’m trying, Pat. I’m trying.” Virgil leaned forward, glaring out at the ice, “Maybe if I stay out longer, Logan’ll rest more. I- I don’t know what I can do for Ro. Logan’s gotta see him more often anyway so maybe he’ll figure something out... Yeah.” 

Patton nodded to himself, avoiding thinking about how if he’d just come back- No, no they had each other. They’ll be fine. They had to be.

Virgil had gone silent. Patton was half sure Virgil would call him out, demand he reveal himself. Patton wasn’t sure he knew how he’d react if he did. The air was still. Stiff.

“And I’m talking to the air,” Virgil huffed eventually, quiet. “Cause you don’t stop by here anymore…. I-”

Virgil tapped the tree beside him briefly, he whispered something under his breath. He was gone with the rustle of leaves and a rumble of a storm overhead.

Patton covered his mouth and twisted his eyes shut. 

“I’m so sorry. I’m so so so sorry.”

That night, a spattering of hail crashed onto the streets while the wail of wind and boom of thunder crashed together in a thunderstorm. The following rain lasted nearly a week.

A dreary downpour that had little hope of breaking.

-

The sky wasn’t clear by any means, but it was bright. The air was brisk. Clouds fluffy and light.

“And the seasons, they go ‘round and round- and the painted ponies go up and down-” A voice sung softly, crystalline clear.

Virgil glanced around, turning to find the singer wandering toward the frozen lake.

“We’re captive on a carousel of time- we can’t return we can only look behind- from where we came- And go round and round and round in a circle game-”

“Well that’s depressing,” Virgil huffed, albeit a smirk had found its way onto his lips.

Patton gasped, “It is not! It’s a story about growing up and looking back. Reminds kids to take their time to grow up, since time doesn’t slow down.”

“See, case in point. Depressing.”

Patton shrugged, scrambling over the fallen log to sit and oversee the view. “Well I think it’s cute.”

“Why do you keep coming back here?” Virgil asked, taking his place next to Patton- next to the human.

Patton smiled, “Too see you, silly. Plus- it’s pretty. I like this spot. There’s.... memories here.”

The air seemed to sharpen, just a bit. “Like what?”

“Oh, I hung around here lots as a teenager! There was this one time when I thought it’d be a good idea to try and kinda- half skate on the ice- I didn’t really have skates, but the ice was slippery so it was kinda like skating- I almost fell in actually-” Patton waved his arms around, gesturing , “I know that was a dumb idea. But it was fun!”

Virgil leaned on his elbows, shaking his head, “If I was there-”

“I’m almost certain I would’ve been able to rope you into it,” Patton said a smile plastered onto his face.

A giggle fluttered through the wind, rustling the sparse leaves hanging onto the trees. Virgil nodded, resigned. “Probably.”

Patton sighed, smiling to himself, “I don’t know- It’s- kinda been an Always Spot, you know? I feel like I’ve known this place forever. And it’s just where I like to be, especially during the Fall, when it’s getting cold and the leaves turn pretty colors- and Now I just so happen to also like to check to see if you stopped by, too.”

Virgil nodded, tugging on the edges of his hoodie, “That’s- that’s nice Pat.”

“It would be easier if you actually, ya know, told me when you were in town.”

The rolling in of clouds had been slow, gentle. Smell of fallen leaves surrounded them. “I mean- I have my ways of saying so.”

“Mm, somebody should get a phone.”

“I’m actually not sure if that would even work where I live.”

“It’d work in town at least!”

Virgil shook his head, “We’ll see.”

Silence was comfortable. The air was a soft sort of chilly. Patton’s breath fogged into the air when he gasped. He crinkled his nose with a little smile and glanced up at the sky. “Well hello, Winter.”

Virgil took in a sharp breath, eyes wide as he glanced over at Patton. A snowflake fluttered down onto his nose. He glanced up at the sky himself. “Oh. Yeah.”

Patton rubbed his fingers together, warming them up. Snowflakes nestled into his blond curls like they belonged there, seeming reluctant to let him go. Which- Virgil could understand.

“Yeah... Hello, Winter. Definitely nice to see you again,” Virgil said to the air, because "Winter” doesn’t stop by here anymore.

[allie1804-fan]

Connecticut (Chapter 1)

1 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  

Chapter 1

“Is everything OK for you Mr Reeves”

 “Yes, it’s all fine, I’m fine thank you. I’m just going to get some shut eye thanks. I’ll push the button if I need anything”

 The air hostess smiled and walked away and Keanu leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. The “Secret Lives of Pippa Lee” script lay on his tray table but he felt too weary to pick it up. A two week promotional tour for Street Kings, involving some serious globe-trotting, had just come to and end and he was on his way now to Stamford, Connecticut to join the crew for his next film. He was excited to work with such a great bunch of actors but anxious that his jet lag and general fatigue from the tour would hinder his performance. Still, he’d had some great reviews for Street Kings and that had buoyed his confidence. Oh yes, he always said that what the crits thought didn’t matter and he was his own worst critic too, but he had to admit that this recent acclaim for his performance was truly gratifying. He felt he could stand tall and proud in front of Rebecca, Robyn and Alan, like he’d really earned his stripes.

He fell into a restless sleep on the 2 hour flight only stirring as the countryside around Stamford came into view. Everything was a verdant green, May’s fecundity bursting forth and Keanu relished the fact that they would be filming on location so there would be opportunities to spend time outdoors and explore a new place. He didn’t feel quite so weary now, the memories of the repetitive interviews with the press (“so how was it reprising your role as a cop?”, “Do you really think you’re cut out to play the bad guy”) fading. Time now for some more intelligent conversations, with people who knew what they were talking about when it came to art and acting.

 Once in the airport, Keanu was met by a young rep named Tom from the film company. He was jittery and clearly rather overawed to meet a star of Keanu’s calibre.  Keanu tried to put him at ease as they made their way to the baggage zone, asking questions about him to give him something easy to talk about rather than worrying about what he should and shouldn’t ask. Keanu saw his bag come into view and stepped forward to grab it.

 “Let me take that” Tom offered but Keanu would have none of it even when Tom protested that he’d been told to do everything he could for him.

 “Look, you’ll make me feel like a sissy girl if I let you carry my bag Tom so you can achieve their requests by letting me have my way OK? He smiled to reassure Tom that he wasn’t mad.

 “OK, OK” Tom muttered, slightly embarrassed but realising there was no way Keanu was going to play the role of pampered star.

 “As they headed down the interstate, Keanu asked Tom about how things were set up for the shoot, where everyone was staying, what the town was like and so on. The journey wasn’t long and they were soon pulling up at the Marriott where all the actors and the director were staying. Keanu assured Tom he could handle checking in himself and  breathed a sigh of relief to be nearer the point when he could just kick back alone in his room for a while before meeting with Rebecca Miler, the writer and director for dinner.

 There was only one receptionist on as he approached and she was dealing with an enquiry from a woman in gym gear. Keanu didn’t mind the wait since he got to feast his eyes on the woman’s tight ass which was covered snugly by a pair of grey shorts. She had her blonde hair up in a girlish, perky pony tail, her slender neck revealed as she tilted her head on one side whilst signing some papers. He felt his balls contract as he watched and shook his head to try and dispel his lustful thoughts. The woman turned to leave having finished her dealings and at that point, Keanu let his bag fall to the ground with a loud clatter

 “Grace ………….oh my god!”

 “Keanu! Hi! Wow long time no see eh?”

 Keanu could feel the flush creeping up his face as he remembered what he’d been thinking just moments before when he didn’t know who it was. He moved quickly and gave Grace a bear hug and a kiss on the cheek which gave his face time to resume its normal colour.

 “Wow! Wow! how amazing to see you, hey are you on this movie?’ he asked excitedly.

 “Yeah, yeah, that’s right. I haven’t been on a location shoot in so long and I thought it was about time I did. I was so glad when I saw you had signed on. She beamed.  Keanu beamed.

 “Gosh, what has it been , like 15  years since I saw you. And I don’t think I’ve heard a peep out of you for like 10!”  Keanu exclaimed.

 “Yeah, I know, I’m sorry about that, just life and stuff getting in the way, you know!”

 Now it was Grace’s turn to flush. She felt guilty for not keeping in touch. Maybe he’d understand if they got a chance to talk some time on the shoot.

 “Listen, I’ve just got here this minute as you can see and I’m having dinner with Ms Miller  at 7 but maybe we could meet later for a drink. I’d love to hear what you’ve been up to and just catch up.”

 “Yeah, yeah sure that would be just lovely – shall I meet you in the bar around 9?”

 “Yeah that should be fine – see you later”

 Grace walked to the lift and Keanu returned his attention to the receptionist to deal with checking in.

 Ten minutes later he was in the lift riding up to his room still shaking his head in mild disbelief at seeing Grace here. They had met on the set of “Speed” which seemed like an absolute lifetime ago. She was a make up artist and her task on set was to ensure Keanu was consistently oil and grease splattered between takes.  Her side job, and the reason they had got on so well, was to help him learn his part for “Hamlet” which he had done on set during the many breaks there were whilst setting up the buses for stunts. She had asked him one day what on earth it was he was reciting as he strode around the freeway loudly proclaiming the lines. There was often so much time to kill for everyone not involved with the stunt set up that she’d offered to help him with his practice and so a friendship began. They’d had a mildly flirty relationship but Grace was married so it was a kind of safe flirtation. She was only 23 compared to Keanu’s 29 at the time and he’d marvelled at how happy and comfortable she’d seemed in her relationship with Jim. She was already talking about starting a family and was not the least bit phased by the idea despite her youth. He was curious to find out what had happened in her life sine then – he guessed she probably knew the high (and low) lights of his life in the intervening period – hell didn’t everyone?

 The only word to describe Grace’s mood between seeing Keanu and meeting him again at 9, was “antsy”. She scolded herself

 “You knew he was in the movie, so surely you should have prepared yourself and you should have known he’d wonder why you lost touch” The truth was, she’d been avoiding confronting what it would be like to see him again. The strong attraction she’d felt at the time had been all but extinguished by her love and commitment for Jim. Now Jim wasn’t here and “boom” the attraction she felt but repressed hit her right between the eyes and then took a collision course straight down to her groin. My he’d aged well! And the crows’ feet around his eyes only enhanced rather than diminished his gorgeousness. Of course she knew all that from watching his career over the years. Since meeting him on “Speed”, she’d made a point of seeing all his subsequent movies, marvelling at how he’d developed his craft over the years. So she knew exactly how he looked these days but somehow seeing him in the flesh, being genuinely rather than vicariously on the receiving end of his mega- watt smile as he’d greeted her was a whole other matter. Grace took a shower and ordered room service for her evening meal and mused while she ate over all the things she’s need to fill him in on. Some of it would be hard for her to talk about and she had no doubt hard for him to hear but she was still glad that they had second chance to enjoy their friendship. Nine o’clock couldn’t come soon enough.

[nenuials]

Thank you for your answer! Do you have any appearance preferences for each of those characters from the previous ask? Hair colour, clothing style, skin tone, etc? Everyone has their own personal imagining of characters' looks, so I'd like to be able to get into your imagination a bit more! :D

Oh, oooh I most certainly do! Buckle up!

For Halbarad, my fancast for him is S3 Guy of Gisborne from BBC Robin Hood. He is described in the books as having sea-gray eyes, dark hair and a grave voice. I have commissioned artists in the past to depict this rendition of him here and here and I believe they’ve done a most splendid job! I envision him wearing the star brooch all the dunedain have, but the depiction of it I like best is this one. He is also second in command of all the dunedain, so I think he would wear the circlet present in the first art I shared, one thin line of silver with a single shining seven pointed star. Aragorn is his chieftain, his best friend, his lord and king. I imagine the bond the two must share is truly special. I also like to think he was very close to Arwen, as Arwen was the one to task him with carrying the standard she sew in secret for Aragorn, and delivering it to him and also Aragorn’s future wife. I mused on their bond in this edit I made, also the entire gallery of this artist does an incredible job in emulating my feelings on the bond the three must have shared, but this piece in particular is amazing. For clothing, I do like the clothing Guy has in Robin Hood and I could see Halbarad wearing something like that, but LOTRO does a wonderful job. His Grey Company uniform is the most beautiful out of all of them, although the normal ranger outfit doesn’t look too bad. There’s just so many scenes I could envision him in, him leading the Grey Company, mounted on a gray steed, with Elladan and Elrohir by his side. Him doing his duty by the side of the other rangers, garbed in the greens and browns of the rangers. Him in the Prancing Pony one quiet evening, listening to the tales of the other patrons, hiding a smile under his long hood. Him in Sarn Ford, looking with a worried brow over a map and planning a skirmish. Him coming to Evendim and admiring the beauty of lake Nenuial and so on. God, I could talk about Halbarad so much.

For Mithrellas, my fancast for her is Helena Mattson as Salindra in Legend of the Seeker. Mithrellas is one character that’s just so special to me, since to my knowledge she is the only elf who married a mortal without asking for the favor of the Valar and whose children were not granted the choice of whether to become mortal or stay an elf. She literally just did what she wanted, damned be the consequences. She paid for it, in the fact that her husband and children grew old and died, while she stayed unchanged, which prompted her to leave her family and never look back, so that’s why all I want is to see her happy by the side of her family while she still has the time.

I don’t have very much to say about Elendil apart from the fact that my fancast for him is Brynden Tully from Game of Thrones. LOTRO does a beautiful job at depicting Annuminas. And since he was the first king, I like thinking about him reining in there for what time he had.

For Luthien, my fancast for her is Fan Bingbing in White Witch of Lunar Kingdom, and I’ve made some edits here, here and here, also this edit is fantastic to give you an idea of what I picture. For Thuringwethil my fancast for her is Akasha from the vampire chronicles. Some excellent edits are here and here. I like Beren x Luthien, it’s what the tale is about after all, but sometimes you just need some wlw in your life you know? All the angst, all the enemies to lovers, the potential this ship has!!! I’d probably love a scene with them just being gals, you know gals being pals, chilling together. 

[memory-bees]

Get It

Warning: Bittersweet angst and references to violence (non-explicit)

Word Count: 751

A/N: Requested by Anon, and requests are still open!!! So request things!!!!

Johnny was tired and aching in every way imaginable. His body ached, for obvious reasons. He was tired mentally and emotionally, killing a seventeen-year-old boy could do that to a person, and he hadn't gotten a good nights rest in who knows how long. He had thought he could make it through school, he had thought that maybe killing someone would be enough to get people to leave him alone. And, it was, but he'd much rather get his ass kicked than have to deal with the alternative.

The alternative? Pity. He hated all the pity everyone had for him. His classmates walked on eggshells around him, some out of fear he knew though, but the rest of them didn't want to break his already cracking exterior. And he was just so damn sick of it. He didn't need their pity, he hadn't needed it before, so why did he need it now?

So, he had finally to follow in his parents footsteps and drop out. He could hopefully get a job at the DX with Sodapop and Steve. That'd be fun, he thought. He'd see Soda everyday they both worked, Steve'd be there after school got out, it'd be great. He had already told Dally, who wasn't impressed but also understood. He told Darry, who's eyes got foggy and a little wet but he nodded anyway. He told Two-Bit, Soda, and Steve, who had pretty much all had the same do what you want attitude. Steve had tried to convince him otherwise, but something he had said must've reminded him of a faraway memory and he just nodded solemnly.

He just didn't know how to tell Ponyboy.

Dally had offered to tell him for him, but Johnny had refused. That's the cowards way out and he wasn't a coward. Never had been. He might've been quiet but everybody knew that Johnny Cade wasn't afraid of a fight. He just didn't like them when they were unnecessary.

Ponyboy had changed, too. He saw it, the kid couldn't hide anything from him. He wrote more, drew pictures of a familiar looking church and horse, but he was okay. As okay as he could be, Johnny guessed. But he remembered how heartbroken Pony was when Soda had dropped out, and that's what had Johnny worrying.

Johnny had pulled him aside one night. The gang were all watching some John Wayne movie which had everyone, except for Darry of course, enraptured. Johnny knew this was the perfect time seeing as no one would interrupt and Pony'd have time to let the news sink in since it was the weekend. Ponyboy looked at him funny but still followed him into the kitchen nonetheless. Johnny looked up at Pony. He had shot up like a weed in the past few months, Johnny always slouched. It hurt to stand up straight.

After a few seconds of silence Johnny decided to just tell him. Quick and easy, like a bandaid. "I'm dropping out of school." He blurted, staring at his scuffed and stained converse.

Pony made a choked, surprised sound in the back of his throat. Johnny glanced up to see him swallowing and looking up like he was saying a pleading prayer. And maybe he was, based on what had come out of his mouth next.

"Please don't, Johnny."

His voice had also started to change, Johnny mused. Deeper, had a scratch to it. Kind of reminded him of Mr. Curtis. He had been noticing more and more likeness between Pony and Mr. Curtis. Same eye shape, all the Curtis men had a straight nose that curved down at the tip. Pony and Mr. Curtis both got their growth spurts at the same time, at least that's what Darry had said.

Suddenly reminding himself he had to respond, Johnny just mumbled, "I'm sorry, Pone. But I'm gonna do it. I can't handle it no more, and Soda said he was gon' try and get me a job at the DX..."

Pony swallowed again and nodded. He put his hand on his shoulder and said, "I get it, Johnny." He then walked back out to the living room to resume watching the movie with the gang.

Johnny smiled to himself and hummed. That was another thing Pony and Mr. Curtis had in common. They could just understand. And truly, that was all he had ever wanted in a friend, he realized as he walked back out to join the gang.

Sometimes he just needed someone to get it.

[shadowphoenixrider]

Firestarter

(Technically a continuation of this little fic I wrote, this fic is actually a mashed together RP me and @den-of-tigers did together, featuring my OC Katla having her Grand Trial versus Den’s excellent Nanu - seriously I can’t take credit for 98% of Nanu here, it’s all her!

We merged anime and game rules together for this and did dice rolls for certain outcomes. The dice apparently had a sense of drama. Hope you enjoy!)

"Aww shit." Katla cursed. There it was, in black and white - the latest boat to Melemele Island had set sail ten minutes ago, and the next wasn't for an hour. "I knew I should have just beaned my ass down here instead of getting breakfast."

The trainer huffed softly to herself, folding her arms. She had been hoping to go and explore Poni Island for more Pokemon, but the endorsements of the three previous island’s Kahunas were needed, and Ula’Ula’s was missing. And was staying missing.

Turned out that the Kahuna had been the police officer who let her into Po Town in the first place, like she had been suspecting. If he'd not mentioned his status, Katla assumed it was for a very good reason, and she would leave him alone. That is, if she could get a boat back to Melemele...

"Well, I guess I can chill in the gardens for a while." She mused to herself. "Find a quiet spot and do some meditation. It'll pass the time, at least." She turned away from the postings and began to walk back into the city, her mind turning inward as she strode quickly through the streets.

"Hey, missy - thinking of heading back to Melemele?”

It took a minute for her to realize someone was speaking to her, and when she did, Katla froze, one foot swinging uselessly above the ground for a second. That voice!

The young woman shifted her weight, pivoting on her heel to face the police officer now formally known as Nanu, Kahuna of Ula’Ula. He seemed slightly less intimidating in the bright light of day, leaning against a malasada shop wall with one in his hand, but so did a lone Wishiwashi.

“I was,” she said evenly. “Kahuna.”

“Ah, so you caught on.” Nanu commented. “I figured you would eventually - usually Acerola pulls some stunt, hides my kendama and won’t give it back until I cave. She thinks it's just a toy... then again, she's a kid.” His crimson eyes came to rest on her, a glint within them. “You're not."

Katla wasn’t exactly sure to make of this turn of personality, but she wasn’t going to look a Mudsdale in the mouth.

“I...had an inkling, what with your Z crystal and ring and all,” she gestured. “But it was Acerola who confirmed it for me.”

“Hmm. So, we come to the million-pokédollar question, missy,” one of Nanu’s thick eyebrows arched upwards. “You think you're ready for my Grand Trial?"

Katla chewed her lip. Her gut churned warily, and it hadn’t led her astray yet. However...

“I don’t think you’d be asking me if you didn’t think I was at least passable.” She replied, choosing her words with care. “I dare say I can give it a fair shot.” It’s either that or sit in Malie’s gardens for an hour.

“You’re not wrong on either of those counts.” Nanu replied, after having taken a sizeable bite of his malasada, chewing and swallowing.

"Lots of responsibilities being Ula'ula's Kahuna and its head security officer, besides. I'm sure you can understand why I'd appreciate a nap or being left the hell alone now and then," he added. Another bite of malasada, then another, and it was gone.

"Maybe I'm a little too lazy sometimes. Depends on who you ask," Nanu chuckled, shrugging one shoulder. "Regardless, you did a damn fine job in Po Town, and those kids are thrilled to have their stolen Pokemon back.”

Katla smiled weakly, lifting a shoulder.

“Ah, heh, I’m glad. Least I could do for them.”

“In my Trial, it's one of your Pokemon against three of mine, in turn. If you're not serious about it, don't waste my time." Those dark red eyes were indeed serious, his gruff tone equally so.

The trainer’s eyebrow arched.

“That’s...different.” She commented, feeling a part of her balk at it. We're not gonna get through this are you nuts? And yet...Katla's eyes traced over the Kahuna, sizing him up. What's the worst that could happen? We lose? Big woop. At least Kukui's not gonna bother you with an excuse like that.

"I like a bit of a change," she said, a smile pulling at the corner of her lips. "I accept, on the condition I get a chance to choose my Pokemon, and we find a better place for a scrap away from an audience."

Nanu snorted, crumpling the empty bag between both hands and tossing it into a nearby trash receptacle.

"Of course you get to choose which Pokemon you use, what did you think I was gonna do?  Make you juggle the balls and use the first one dropped? Although..." He looked to be thinking that suggestion over intensely, then laughed under his breath. "As for a better place to do things, I think I know one."  A 'follow-me' gesture with one hand, and the Kahuna began to walk off, shoving both hands in his pockets.

Katla rolled her eyes, falling into step with the older man.

"Yeah, the reason I said that, Kahuna, is because I have more than six. And if you're gonna make me run a gauntlet like that, I'm damn well gonna pick my best shot," she said. "You can watch me pick 'em out if you want, but all that it will do is make me fall down in your estimations. I'm not hiding Rayquaza up my sleeve or anything." She arched her eyebrow. "Not like I was exactly prepared for you to come to me."

"I might have the knack for showing up when it's least expected." He flashed her a grin.

"Yeah, I noticed that." Katla replied dryly.

After a brief stop off at the Pokemon Centre, trainer and Kahuna reached their destination in Route 11 without much small talk. It was an area of plenty of space, hard ground and no tall grass to worry about. Nodding in satisfaction, the Kahuna reached to his back pocket and pulled out his Rotom-phone, glancing over to Katla as she strolled over to her side of the ‘arena’.

"One of your Pokemon, versus three of mine. You ready?" 

"Yup. We keep going until one of us has no usable Pokemon remaining." She lifted up the hem of her hoodie, reaching to her belt to undo the straps that attached her colourful assortment of Pokeballs to it. "And to make sure I won't even have a sliver of temptation..." She took the first Pokeball out, and walked several paces away to set the others down. She knew that they could come to her if called, but Katla didn't want them too close, just in case. Just stay in there, please. 

She returned to her original position, single ball in hand, feeling almost naked without the comforting weight of the rest of her team around her waist. She pressed the button, the Pokeball swelling to fill her hand. "Ready when you are, Kahuna." As ready as I'll ever be.

He nodded, content with her response.

"Rotom, gonna need you on live recording mode," he said, at which the phone Pokemon buzzed to life, neon-blue eyes glowing brightly.

"Affirmative, Nanu!  Switching to live recording mode... begin recording, now!" 

A quick, short clearing of his throat, and Nanu addressed the 'audience', speaking at a slightly louder volume than usual. 

"This is Officer Nanu, Kahuna of Ula'ula Island.  Today, just off of route 11 - on the outskirts of Malie City, I'll be officiating and conducting a Grand Trial. My challenger is Trainer Katla, from the Galar region." His Rotom zoomed over to the young woman.  "Say hello, Trainer Katla!"

Oh shit. Katla had reckoned that he would be recording as soon as she saw the phone appear, but this? She was as tense as a broom handle when the Rotom swept over to her, and it took every ounce of effort to try and not look like she was supremely uncomfortable.

"Hi." She managed, flatly. Suddenly she felt an overwhelming urge to go back and pick the rest of her team up again, if only so she didn't feel so terribly exposed, but managed to hold her ground.

"Best of luck to you, Katla!" the Rotom chirped in electronic positivity, before returning to its owner, the trainer almost breathed a sigh of relief. Calm down, it’s just you and him, she tried to remind herself.

"Tapu Bulu - with your approval, let this Grand Trial begin!" Nanu exclaimed, crossing both wrists overhead and looking to the sky. Seconds later, a loud, echoing gong sounded - the bronze bell of Ula'ula's deity, raising goosebumps across Katla’s skin and making the scars under her hoodie sleeves prickle slightly. Lowering his arms and fixing his gaze on her - those crimson eyes had a different shine to them now - the Kahuna reached behind with one hand, suddenly moving forward into a full-bodied throw of his first Pokeball.

"Sableye! Let's go!"

Katla took a steeling breath, trying to pull herself back into her previous mindset when the Kahuna's first Pokemon came tumbling out. Her eyebrow arched at the sight of the Darkness Pokemon. Ohh, you sneaky bastard. Force trainers to run a gauntlet, then trip them up at the starting line with a Pokemon with only one weakness. Clever. Looks like I got lucky with my choice.

She raised her own Pokeball up to her forehead, closing her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, they were brighter.

"Alright, little one, let's go! Rimbombee, I choose you!" She slung the ball down, and it bounced open to release the diminutive Bee Fly Pokemon.

Nanu raised his own eyebrow, then shook his head and chuckled.

"A Ribombee? Really? What a shame, figured you might have something a little more... tomboyish up the sleeves of that hoodie," he called out, motioning to Sableye. As if the Darkness Pokemon had eyes in the back of its head, it spread clawed fingers and hissed in obvious agreement with the Kahuna.

Katla shrugged, nonplussed. Trying to get under my skin, are you? Alright.

"My apologies, Kahuna, but I have it on good authority that I have far too many Gyarados for my own good.” She replied. “That and the rest of my more 'tomboyish' Pokemon are in another PokeCentre."

The older man was equally as unbothered that his barb had glanced off.

"Hmm. Doesn't matter though. Can't sting like a bee if you're swatted like a fly - Sableye! Shadow Sneak!"

Sableye hissed again, a streak of darkness extending from its feet all the way to where Ribombee hovered. The Bee Fly’s placid smile turned into a determined frown, but despite the little bug’s attempts to get away from it, an amorphous shape materialized from behind her, the Darkness Pokemon suddenly re-taking its physical form and slashing with wicked, shadowy claws. Katla winced at the blow, recovering quickly.

"Hmph. Gotta admit, slightly disappointed in you, Kahuna.” She commented. “Surely you of all people know not to judge by appearances alone." Especially against a Pokemon your type is doubly weak to. She blinked, suddenly all business. "Rimbombee, Dazzling Gleam!"

The Bee Fly thrilled loudly, the scales of its wings glowing brighter, and brighter, and then brighter still, Sableye snarling loudly and both Kahuna and trainer having to avert their gaze. Nanu’s Rotom moved quickly to capture all the action, providing commentary in lieu of a referee.

"Ribombee's Dazzling Gleam is super effective - Sableye takes some serious damage!" the Plasma Pokemon exclaimed excitedly, and a determined half-grin grew across Katla’s lips. Alright, now we’re talking.

The Kahuna shoved both hands into his pockets.

"Shake it off, Sableye - you're not down for the count yet. Give that bug a Shadow Claw!"

Katla’s grin vanished, discarding the expression with ease.

“Ri! Get out of there and banish this darkness with another Dazzling Gleam!”

The Darkness Pokemon let go a high-pitched shriek and lunged for Ribombee again, and whilst the little bug was fast, she wasn’t fast enough, the ghostly claws connecting with her slim legs as she tried to dance out of the way. Katla grimaced in solidarity, hoping that it was quick enough to escape the Kahuna’s notice.

Facing down the Sableye, Ribombee repeated the same trick again, the brightness coming faster and perhaps more intensely, if you could stand to look at it in the first place.

"Another Dazzling Gleam! It's super effective!” Rotom announced as Sableye hissed loudly, before slowly crumpling to the ground, the light in its jewel eyes dimming. “Sableye has fainted and can no longer battle! That's one victory, two to go!"

The trainer allowed the grin to move over her lips for a moment as Ribombee fluttered back to her. Good start.

Nanu frowned, recalling the Darkness Pokemon with a surge of red energy.

"Turning into a one-trick Mudbray, are we? Let's keep things interesting at the very least," he sighed.

“Depends what your next Pokemon is, Kahuna.” Katla replied, shoving her hands in her hoodie pockets.

If her snark was rankling him, the Kahuna wasn’t showing it, and reached back to pull a fresh ball from his belt, tossing and catching it a few times in his hand.

"All right, Krookodile... you're up!"

As soon as the Intimidation Pokemon emerged, the massive red-and-black bipedal reptilian raised both clawed hands, then tossed its head back with a threatening roar, its innate ability quickly becoming apparent.

The Galar woman’s eyes widened, a genuine smile moving across her face.

"Oh yeah, now we're talking!" She bounced on her heels, thinking fondly of her previous Krookodile partner. He'd taken her far, almost to the very top- She shook her head quickly. Stop that! Focus.

Ribombee fluttered back nervously, unable to resist the other Pokemon's ability. Katla, on the other hand, was not fazed. Nice ability. Shame that it's utterly wasted, she noted, trying not to smirk. "Alright Ribombee, let's bore the Kahuna with something else - use Pollen Puff!"

The Bee Fly shook her head, much the same way her trainer had, and then the rest of its body. Yellow flakes of pollen poured off its wings and body, the Pokemon collecting it all up into a neat little package in its tiny hands. It looked at Krookodile with its normal cute little smile...and then threw the pollen as hard as it could.

Krookodile snapped and snarled in aggravation at the yellow cloud, whipping its head back and forth, both arms flailing as Rotom noted the super effective attack. Nanu waved away the pollen that had headed his way, his expression either grimly determined or rather annoyed.

“Hmph. That little bug of yours can't take much more, I'll bet...” A sudden malevolent smile. “Krookodile! It's Crunch time!" the Kahuna shouted, and the Intimidation Pokemon suddenly surged forward with a speed and agility that was surprising for such a large reptile.

"Ri!" Katla cried out, unable to help herself.

The Ribombee did its valiant best, but already battered by Sableye, it wasn't quick enough to avoid the powerful jaws clamping down around its abdomen with a terrifying sound, the Bug Pokemon crying out in pain.

Kat clenched her fists and teeth together, a snarl curling her lips that she couldn’t suppress.

"Ri!” She yelled. “Another Pollen Puff! Go straight for the eyes!"

The little bee squirmed its way free onto Krookodile's nose, gathering up another collection of pollen from its body, all nicety gone from its face. The bug suddenly hurled itself straight at the Intimidation Pokemon's eyes, only to arc away at the last second, dumping its collection there instead, Krookodile hissing loudly. Ribombee flew back to her trainer, much less gracefully than when they’d begun the bout.

Nanu's crimson eyes flashed, his teeth bared in a grin.

"What's the matter, missy? Can't stand to see your Pokemon take a hit?” He taunted. “You’re too soft - you’ll never complete the Island Challenge if you don’t toughen up!”

Katla knew he was barbing her on purpose, but this one managed to strike home, her nostrils flaring and eyes flashing with pure fury. How the fuck did you think I made it this far, then?! She snarled internally, his nails starting to dig into the palms of her hands.

The older man balled one hand into a fist, extending the other sharply towards the Pokemon.

"Krookodile, there's blood in the water... go for the kill with another--" 

The sudden reverberation of a sonorous bronze bell interrupted the Kahuna, and startled Katla out of her red haze, both of them looking up.

Ula’ula’s deity loomed about fifty feet overhead, the unmistakable smell of loamy earth and undergrowth filling the air, sobering the Galar trainer in seconds. She’d heard of the Tapu (how could she have not), but to see one in the flesh was deeply humbling, all her anger and rage draining out of her in a rush. Dimly, she could hear her other Pokeballs rustle behind her, as if they sensed what was taking place.

“--eh?  Tapu Bulu? What're you...?” Nanu asked, the confusion in his voice as clear as what Katla felt.

The Guardian deity shifted, fixing its stare on the young woman, making the twisted skin on her arms crawl uncomfortably before it dropped something. Krookodile, having been ready for his owner's next command, took several steps back as something small and yellow fell to the ground near Ribombee. She fluttered back for a second, before she recognised the Sitrus berry that had settled beside her - not waiting for a command from anyone, not even her trainer, she quickly landed next to it, greedily devouring it.

It only took a couple of seconds first for the berry to disappear into the diminutive bug’s mouth and then to take effect, but the Bee Fly's colour seemed to brighten, becoming more vibrant and her 'fur' fluffing back up. When she took off once more, her wing-beats were strong and fast, and she gave an excited cry - she was ready for more.

Katla’s heart soared to see her companion rejuvenated, and she looked back up at Tapu Bulu hovering above them, still watching her. She thumped her chest with her fist, bowing her head.

"Thank you, Tapu," she said reverently. "I am honoured by your kindness."

"Buuuuuluu!" the Guardian deity responded, sounding another ring of its bell before taking its leave. 

"What a rare and amazing interruption by the deity of Ula'ula Island itself! The Tapu's favour has been shown, what will happen now?" Rotom inquired, and for a brief moment Nanu shot the Plasma Pokemon a withering glare.

The Tapu's favour? Katla thought, her eyebrow arching slightly. Surely not. Island Trials are performances to please the guardians - I guess I'm just putting up a good enough fight that it wants to see me go a little further. She was under no illusions as to what would be next after Krookodile - every Kahuna had followed the same pattern, even if Nanu had thrown her a curve ball with his.

"Ri?" The bug Pokemon chirped, reminding her trainer that she was waiting for instruction. Katla shook her head quickly.

"Oh. Well, uh, lemme think - Pollen Puff!"

Where exactly Ribombee was getting its pollen now was anyone's guess, but it still managed to gather up enough into its hands for a payload. This time the Bee Fly hesitated, flitting to and fro before lobbing the projectile into Krookodile's side without warning.

Nanu smirked, putting both hands on his hips.

"As a Kahuna I'll be the last one to question a Tapu's decision,” he said, as the red-and-black Intimidation Pokemon cleared the pollen off itself. “As for this keep-away tactic you're utilizing... two can play at that game, and some of us play dirty. Krookodile! Mud Slap!"

With a snarling growl, Krookodile lashed its thick tail in an overhead arc, sending a large, wet ball of mud in Ribombee's direction.

"Ri, get out of there!"

Too late, as the clump of mud struck the bug Pokemon square on, sending her reeling and obscuring her vision.

"Son of a-!" Katla bit out reflexively, just managing to stop the curse from fully passing her lips - no no no we can't lose accuracy, not now! "Come on, Ri, shake it off!"

The Bee Fly scrubbed at its face and body as her trainer fought for a solution. Shit, he's matted down her Pollen and dampened her Gleam. Her brows furrowed. But she still has one other move.

"Bold of you to assume I wouldn't have a back-up plan!” She yelled. “Ribombee, use Absorb!"

The bug Pokemon shook off the last of the mud, before making an almost malevolent humming sound, raising its hands. Two red beams shot from it, connecting with Krookodile, sapping its energy, the Intimidation Pokemon weakening as Ribombee strengthened, almost rendering the prior attack null and void.

"Ribombee's Absorb is super effective!” Rotom announced loudly as Krookodile slumped to the ground. “ Krookodile has fainted, and can no longer battle!  Another victory for Trainer Katla, one more to go!" It almost caused some feedback with its excitement.

The young Galar woman lifted her chin defiantly, eyes flashing like flames were igniting within them.

"You want to dance, Kahuna?” She asked. “Then let's dance."

Nanu let go a dramatic sigh as he reclaimed the fainted red reptile.

"Sorry, I can't dance - two left feet," he retorted, lowering his head for a moment and pulling the final ball from his belt. Katla’s confident demeanour cooled then. Alright, here come the big guns. She took a steeling breath, trying to calm herself down to think a bit more clearly. Damn this guy, he's getting to me like no-one’s business!

"I'm getting tired... time to put this Trial to bed. Persian! Let's go!"

Nanu’s Persian was much larger than the trainer had anticipated, almost on a par with the Totem Pokemon she’d faced. The huge Classy Cat Pokemon swished her tail slowly back and forth, fixing a narrowed gaze onto Katla and Ribombee.

The trainer uttered a low, appreciative whistle.

"Big, beautiful and deadly." She commented, her eyes taking in the feline admiringly, until her eyes reached the teal coloured stone in the Persian's forehead. The same type as in her own, much smaller Alolan Persian. The Alolan Persian who knew- Katla's eyes widened, unable to hide the sudden dawning realization that spread across her face. Oh no. Oh, NO!

It was a similar realization that the Ula’Ula Kahuna had already made, and he and his Persian had taken a similar stance - predatory, hungry for the winning blow. A curious sort of density had grown in the air, ominous and crushing, and both Katla and Ribombee sensed it, the trainer’s cockiness all but fleeing and her heart beginning a quick rhythm in her chest.

The feeling was sickeningly familiar, and she reached down self-consciously to touch her Pokemon for comfort. Her heart leapt into her throat when she was reminded that they were lying a foot away from her, inaccessible, and she had to swallow down the sudden rising panic. It's okay, we're on Alola. Solid earth. Bright sky. No sea. Breathe. Breathe. The Bee Fly glanced back at her trainer briefly, looking worried for her.

"The kid gloves are coming off... we're going straight for the throat," Nanu said, staring Katla down from across the 'battlefield', a bone-chilling edge creeping into that rough voice - if he noticed her internal conflict, there was no evidence of it. "Your passion is admirable, although you have no sense of respect for your elders... you're burning the candle at both ends, and I'm going to snuff it."

Nanu raised a hand. "Persian... POWER GEM!"

Persian let go a high-pitched cry, raising her head as the gem flashed warningly, releasing a sizeable blue bolt of energy in Ribombee's direction.

"Ri! Get out of there, now!" Katla yelled.

She tried, bless the little bug's wings, but a hit was a hit, and it was a super effective one, Ribombee wailing loudly. The trainer cringed as if she'd been dealt the blow instead, teeth clenched tight together. The Bee Fly was still upright, but for how long? Katla decided to risk it, digging into her pocket.

"Ri! Catch!" She tossed a Sitrus berry out to her Pokemon, who gladly devoured it, regaining some energy. Katla chewed her lip, feeling her Z ring weigh heavy on her arm. If he hits her like that twice more, she's a goner. Her brows furrowed. But I do still have one card up my sleeve, if luck actually smiles upon me this time...

"Trying to buy yourself some time?  I'll allow it," Nanu remarked, that predatory gleam still in his crimson eyes. Both hands on his hips, he looked to his Persian.  "Some trainers and Pokemon would sacrifice themselves for the other.  Admirable as that is... it's useless.  Letting emotions control your actions on the battlefield?  Ridiculous!" He added, shrugging one shoulder.  "You take chances, regardless of the outcome, and you play the cards you're dealt - even if that means losing, and starting all over again."

His comments flared Katla’s rage again, despite it all, her jaws clicking from the force behind her clenched teeth. How dare you! You have no idea what I’ve been through! If it wasn’t for my Pokemon, my bones would be scattered across the ocean floor!

She pulled a breath in, closing her eyes and forcing her fists to uncurl - she was both annoyed and ashamed that he was exploiting her weaknesses with such contemptible ease. Katla should have just accepted that she was staring down the barrel of defeat - she’d been out-manoeuvred and out-played, and she should just go through the motions, let the Kahuna have his victory.

And yet...a part of her didn’t want to give the smug bastard the satisfaction. If he wanted his victory, he was going to have to beat it out them.

Persian didn't move a muscle, waiting for her next command from the Kahuna.  Her whiskers twitched eagerly, forehead gem shining in the afternoon sunlight. 

"Persian - another Power Gem!" 

Another raspy cry, another blue bolt of energy streaking across the distance, this one striking considerably harder. Katla didn't cry out for her Pokemon that time, not that Ribombee really needed a reminder to dodge the bolt of awful heading her way. And she looked like she was going to do it, until the Persian turned to track the Bee Fly's movements, blasting the Pokemon onto the ground. Katla's foot jerked as she restrained the urge to run to her friend's aid.

"No! Ri!" She cried, fighting back the sudden burning in her eyes. No no no not now, not now!

"Ri...bombee." The little bug was as stubborn as its owner, pushing itself up and taking flight again, but looking very worse for wear, barely able to hover steadily.

"Alright 'Bee!" Katla smiled weakly, taking a breath and swallowing back the tightness that had started to form in her throat. "Guess I am gonna be taking a chance then. Ribombee! Stun Spore!"

Ribombee's wings whirred, kicking up a cloud of orange spores around them, before with one large wing-beat, she blew them over to the Persian, who hissed as they were blown about her, her tail lashing angrily.

A hit, yes! Katla's lips twitched into a grin as she saw the spores hit home, just about managing to stop herself from fist-pumping. Of course, now they've got to work.

Nanu's sharp black eyebrows furrowed, but if he was concerned, his poker face didn't slip one iota.

"I was almost hoping I wouldn't have to use this," he says, one hand reaching up to grab hold of the Darkinium-Z crystal around his neck. “But you have been quite the nuisance.” A sharp tug, and the leather thong snapped easily, slipping to the ground. That sensation of dread doubled in its intensity, the young trainer’s stomach plummeting into the bottom of her feet. "I didn't get where I am by not taking chances..." Nanu added, snapping the stone into the slot of his Z-ring.

Katla swallowed hard. Oh, fuck.

Ula'ula's Kahuna did a short series of arm movements, before leaning forward at the hips... pausing for a moment, then straightening up and raising both arms in a fearful display, the activated Z-Ring shining brilliantly.

"Now... allow yourself to be enveloped by the Darkness... haaaaaaaah!” Nanu hissed, a swell of purplish energy arcing from his form to Persian's. The feline Pokemon echoed that hiss from her trainer, infused with energy. Katla's hair stood on end, scars itching up her arms, her heart beating so hard she was afraid Nanu could hear it.

"Use... Black Hole Eclipse!" Nanu commanded, before turning his back to Katla and her Ribombee. Persian raised her head, the purple energy flaring brightly around her that seemed to suck the light from around them, plunging them from afternoon to almost night.

"Arceus, Ri, please hold on." Katla spoke, the little bug shrinking back, sharing her trainer's fear. The trainer braced herself, closing her eyes and hoping at least whatever happened was brutally quick.

Suddenly, a strangled yowl of surprise split the air, startling everyone and making Katla’s eyes pop back open.

Persian was still in the position she’d assumed earlier, head and tail high, her body twitched and spasming as she tried to move, the tell-tale yellow flickers flashing over her. She uttered another, almost piteous yowl as she tried to struggle through her condition, but her attempts were futile. She was paralyzed.

As quickly as the shadows drew in, they drew away again, the surroundings brightening up and the dark energy extinguishing like a candle in the breeze.

Nanu was silent, his jaw and fists clenched in utter disbelief. Katla was equally dumbfounded.

"That...That worked?" She breathed. "That worked! Holy shit! Holy-"

She didn't know what suddenly seized her - adrenaline, a bout of madness, maybe something else, but the Galar trainer burst out laughing. Enough that she bent double, hands on her knees, thick curly hair obscuring her face as she tried to get a hold of herself. Even Ribombee turned to look at her, and would have raised an eyebrow had she possessed one.

But she did manage to reign herself back in, laughter fading. Then slowly she rose back up to standing, lifting her head to meet the Kahuna’s gaze. Only this time, she was the one wearing the dark, feral grin.

“My turn.”

She slipped her hand into her pocket, pulling out a Z crystal of her own - light-ish green, almost khaki in colour, the symbol of a beetle visible within.

"How fortuitous of you to sow the seeds of your own downfall, Kahuna.” Katla spoke, turning the crystal over in her fingers. “Guzma might like to hoard his Z crystals away from use, but unfortunately for you, I'm not Guzma." She placed it into her Z ring, goosebumps erupting up her body as it activated. "I'm far worse!"

Katla closed her eyes for a moment, basking for a moment in the power that poured into her body - she'd felt power similar to this before, and she welcomed it like a friend. The energy swirled around Ribombee as well, and even as battered she was, she seemed to get a new lease of life. Katla began her moves, at first mimicking Nanu's, before she dragged her arms up and around like she was a zombie, followed through with a wave motion with her right hand, like a Sharpedo breaching the water's surface.

When Katla spoke again, her voice thrummed like the roar of a swarm’s thousands of wings. "Ribombee, let's rock the Kahuna's world! Savage Spin-Out!"

Surging with power, Ribombee released thick threads of silk from her hands, attaching to Persian and quickly encasing the cat Pokemon entirely within a fibrous cocoon in quick, deft motions. Taking hold of the sole trailing strand, the Bug Pokemon shot up into the air, carrying the cocoon with it, before she began to swing it around its entire body. Once, twice...

On the third swing, Ribombee uttered a loud cry and hurled the cocoon down as hard as possible. In a burst of Z Power induced speed, the Bee Fly shot down after its payload, striking the cocoon just as it impacted the ground, shattering the earth underneath with a load roar.

As the dust cleared, Katla surveyed the damage, her bravado fading as she saw Ribombee fluttering away from the limp cocoon she’d left lying in a shallow crater. That...might have been a bit excessive, she thought to herself, her gazing lifting up to her opponent.

"Katla and Ribombee's Savage Spin-Out has secured a victory!  Trainer Katla has won the Grand Trial!" Rotom called out, only to be shut down mid-hover by Nanu's sharp command, dropping to the ground as a regular phone. The Kahuna watched Persian's unmoving form for a few moments, his expression soon shifting from patient to concerned.

“Persian! Get yourself free, now!” He called, dread starting to sink into the bottom of Katla’s stomach as the seconds ticked by. No movement. “Persian!”

The Kahuna moved faster than the Galar trainer had thought him capable of, and immediately her first thought was to aid him, hand dropping to her belt to remind her that she’d discarded her other Pokemon. She looked back.

“Incine-” She began to call, the name halting in her chest as Katla glanced back to see Nanu had freed his Persian, and was cradling her close, head bowed over her. Guilt - thick, cloying and cold - poured over her shoulders, and it brought shame in its wake. It had all been an act, words specifically to get under her skin, and she’d not only brought them all hook, line and sinker, she’d let her anger get the better of her.

Ribombee fluttered close, looking up at her with concern. She glanced away from the scene, rubbing her hand over the Bee Fly’s head.

“Thank you, Ri.” She whispered. “You did so well, I’m so proud of you. Time to rest now.” She pressed a kiss to the top of her Pokemon’s head, before she returned the bug to her Pokeball. Katla kept her gaze averted, going instead to pick up her remaining Pokemon from where she left him, ignoring the few that quivered at her touch.

“Well congratulations, Katla.” Nanu’s voice sounded out behind her. “You passed my Grand Trial. You’re clear to go to Poni Island.” When she didn’t reply or turn around, he made a short chuffing sound that could have been a laugh. “Hey, it’s fine,” he said, his voice gentler than she’d ever heard it before. “Persian will be fine. She’s gone through Z moves like that before.”

The young woman looked over her shoulder to see him approaching, and despite his usual apathetic expression, he seemed sincere.

“You’re sure? It...seemed a little excessive.” Katla sighed, unable to hold his gaze. “I’m sorry, Kahuna. My temper got the better of me.”

“Certainly did.” And in a second, the gentle veneer was gone. “Excessive is all what Z moves are, I’m sure you’ve noticed by now. You were very lucky - Black Hole Eclipse is as frightening as it sounds. Speaking of which,” Nanu took the Z crystal from his Z ring, holding it out to her. “A Darkinium Z, for your victory.”

Katla blinked.

“Oh, thank you!” She turned it over in her fingers, glimpsing the strange symbol deep inside its dark confines, like the outstretched cloak of, well, darkness. “Considering I was shitting myself at the mere thought of it, I’m gonna take your word on it.”

“That’d be a first.” Nanu commented wryly. “Now pay attention, I’m only going to do this once.”

The movements of the Dark Z move were a lot less scary when done in the light of day, and especially with the Kahuna’s deadpan face, even as he loomed over her in the final pose. “Got it?”

Katla didn’t reply, deciding instead to mimic him. She hunched over, swinging her hands down to the ground with her fingers curled into claws, before she straightened up again, throwing her hands forward and arching her body up as best as she could for a diminutive woman.

“That about right?” She asked. Nanu’s red eyes looked over her, one of his thick eyebrows arching up slightly.

“Not bad for a first go,” he said, pausing for a second. It was difficult to see what he was thinking, but he was certainly mulling something over. “You’re not in any hurry to go back to Melemele, are you?”

“Well, I was only heading back there because I thought I couldn’t get further in the Trials, so I guess not.” Katla said, tilting her head. “Why?”

“Meet me at High Roller Sushi tonight, just after sundown.” Nanu replied, stepping away from her. “My treat.”

Katla just blinked at him, his words taking a moment to parse in her head.

“Oh, okay, yeah!” Heat rose into her face in embarrassment. “Yeah, sure, I’ll be there.”

“Good. Don’t keep me waiting.” Were his last parting words to her, the Kahuna raising a hand before he trudged away, leaving the trainer alone with her thoughts and many more questions.

Katla ran a hand through her thick curly hair, uttering a long sigh through her nose.

Well, alright then.

[mandysxmuses]

✘ for all your muses (Keeper and non)

“Honestly, I have the greatest fear of losing my power to something as simple as guilt. … Why am I talking about my weaknesses in front of grey creatures? They love weaknesses.”

“I dunno, I’m freaked out by lots of stuff. I get frightened real easy now, and I hate it, ‘cause – ‘cause most people aren’t really scared of lightning and thunder and stuff, but it can shake me up for a bit now. I haven’t really told anybody but Pony about it, ‘cause being so scared of that kinda thing ain’t tough… or tuff. It’s just noise…”

“I mean, I’m disturbed by those Socs. And not just the way they dress, haha – uh – that was a joke, but, uh … what they’ve been doing lately isn’t. Beating the tar out of Johnny? Nearly cuttin’ Pony’s throat like a stuck pig? And you better believe if someone like Pony or Johnny died, they’d get blamed for jumping those guys when they weren’t hurting anybody or just walking home. … ‘Nough of that stuff, though.”

“I’m quite disturbed by existential horror; I suppose everyone is, though. The fact it’s called horror should indicate it’s disturbing.”

“Okay, this is gonna sound way stupid, but… I have a huge fear of dogs? I don’t know why. We’ve never even owned a dog, not even a small one, and… I don’t remember being bitten by one at any point… but seeing them, especially the big ones – dogs really freak me out.”

“Hmmm… I suppose… that hag scares me. Well – she did – until she died. Some of her ideas were absolutely ridiculous, and she had quite the following. … But others were quite … use-ful.”

“Uhh… I guess… I know it’s super obvious. But losing people I love really scares me? I’ve already experienced loss multiple times, and… that’s the thing about it. It’s an unavoidable fear, because … you know it’s going to happen again. You know, if you love someone, that they’re going to die or leave at some point. And if they don’t, you’re going to. It just – it’s … so …”

“I’m scared of… of- of not being… enough for my Mama. … I already know I’m never gonna be enough for anyone else. … But - But Mama loves me. She just wants to make sure I’m okay, even if – even if I am okay and she doesn’t know it, and … sometimes when I’m sure I’m doing something right… sorry. Sorry, sorry… it’s just – I’m starting to think I’ll never be enough for her either…”

“Something that disturbs me? I do the disturbing. … Ummm – I guess, you could say, for reasons that have NOTHING to do with ANYTHING, I don’t like rocks.”

“Ohh gosh. Uh. I hate to say it – because I also think the ability is SUPER cool! But – Seth’s mouth does this reeeeeeeeally disturbing thing where it like, opens up like a snake? … Which is cool on a snake. But when you see it on a demon that’s as big as Seth, it starts looking a lot freakier.”

Damien clears his throat. “I’m disturbed that I haven’t lit something on fire today. And that people don’t allow me to set things on fire sometimes, what the fuck?! The school’s too strict about that.”

“… I think it should go without saying that if I were to find a girl in my condition that went through what I did, I would NOT have put her through anything that was supposed to ‘help’ at the asylum. What happened there was disturbing. I might be mad – but I’m not wrong to find the conditions and supposed ‘treatments’ there abominable, am I?!”

“I’m disturbed by just how many children out there need homes. It hurts, knowing I can’t help them all, but I suppose one mansion can’t be filled with millions of children …”

“Have you ever seen a fetus?” Alex said bluntly. “The drawings of those things look creepy.”

“The fact that the Sanctus guy my daddy worked for had such a big following. Drinkin’ the kool-aid for Sparda, I guess you could say – but not all of those people that got involved were willing, either. Good ol’ bug-brains – uh, sorry, Nero told me he looked like a bug and I believe it – he, uh, experimented on random people and how demonic stuff affected ‘em. Some of the details are in the Order docs. He doesn’t explicitly say he did it, but he drops some information and th-then you start to think: ‘how did he know that’?”

Ruby sighs softly. “I guess I’m frightened by … mmmh… static. I don’t like the sound of static. Listening to it for more than ten seconds really starts to unnerve me …”

Frank examines his knife uncomfortably. “… It’s rude to talk about it like this, but … let’s just say there’s … something out there … that really doesn’t like it when I don’t deal with smartasses fast enough.”

“…” Claudette looks anxiously about. “Isn’t this whole place disturbing? You … don’t expect me to pick just one thing about it, do you?”

Dwight sighs. “Back before all this, I was never accepted by anyone. And now that I have to make a stand or die – I’m just worried I’m going to fail them even further. Now their lives are at stake if I’m not enough.”

“That malfested curse can come for anyone. That’s really frightening – but I am strong.”

“… I don’t want to tell you people. I’ve heard dreadful things about you people. … Don’t do anything with Moti unless it’s going to make him happy.”

“What disturbs me is that you woke me up from a perfectly good nap for this.”

Giles narrows his eyes. “What’s reeeeally freaky is that foxes can look like naked human women, apparently. …!! I KNOW HOW FUCKIN’ INSANE THAT SOUNDED, HOLD UP–”

AND NOW FOR THE KEEPERS OOF SORRY

“… Me. … Mostly me, I, uh, I kinda suck. … And I know how to fix it, too, but I don’t, because I have it good. … Which is another reason I kinda suck.”

“Sometimes, people are gonna hate you JUST because you exist. No other reason. You just exist, and do nothing to – to i-inconvenience anyone, but then they hate you just because you’re there. You’re born. You breathe. And you’re nobody.”

“… Sometimes, people don’t care that you exist. … People that used to be your friends. … And you get to watch them have fun and interact, while you get the pleasure of announcing what they’re doing while you sit in isolation. The best part’s when they tell you to leave your post constantly, and happily remind you – and this is verbatim – that your ‘job’ you keep doing to keep yourself going doesn’t even matter. … Peasants, all of them, peasants, I don’t care. I don’t care. I DON’T CARE.”

“Nothing really gets to me now? At least, I don’t feel much at all when others get hurt. I don’t care that people don’t like me. I guess, uh, being as weak as them would scare me? But who gives a shit, really? I’m not. And if I was, I still wouldn’t feel bad.”

“I… exist… to die. … Isn’t that disturbing? … Renee’s the only one who seems to notice if I’m around … and … I’m just gonna keep dying for people, over and over and over.”

“Literally EVERYTHING about the Void frightens me. Even though I have the same powers Jemand has, I’ve tried things to fix it, and I – I can’t. I just can’t. I can’t change the boys, I’ve tried, I can’t, and – and the game is so fucked up, and so in their favor. What can the Keepers do?”

Verheiler’s ears flatten. “Todlich… and… knives. I refuse to have any metal cutlery in my cabin now.”

“I literally turn into a giant, bloodthirsty, uncontrollable and invincible beast and night and EAT PEOPLE.”

“… I get the feeling most of us are just going to describe our purposes for this; so I’ll put it bluntly: the Void disturbs me.”

“Sometimes I see somethin’ under th’ water. And it… it ain’t lookin’ pretty.”

“I’m scared of losing Silber.”

“Noooo way, Schnell! I’m scared of losing YOU!”

“YOOOO!”

[flipomatic]

Reason to Stay: Chapter 3

Author Note: Chapter 3, right on time.

Chapter 1

Previous Chapter

When Sayo arose the next morning, she once again contemplated leaving the town. They hadn’t exactly hired her for the most substantial of jobs, but the pay had been good. The tasks had been easy, but that also meant they hadn’t used her full range of skills.

She went to eat some breakfast, still unsure of her plan for the day. There was already one person at the bar when she arrived, a young woman with ragged blonde hair who was waving her arms around wildly.

“Now would be the perfect time for a performance!” She was almost bouncing in her seat as Sayo took a stool a few away from her. Her voice was incredibly high pitched.

“Everyone is still asleep.” The innkeeper replied flatly.

“But Misaki, there’s one person here!” The blonde gestured in Sayo’s direction. “We must entertain her!” She thrust one finger in the air.

The innkeeper, who Sayo had just learned was named Misaki, shook her head. “Kokoro, no.”

“Awww.” Kokoro pouted as Misaki walked over to Sayo. She offered her a bowl of porridge, the same kind as the day before, and asked if Sayo would be staying another night.

Well, she decided, what would be the harm? She might as well go back for another day of work. Sayo paid for her breakfast and for another night at the inn. As she ate she listened to Kokoro ramble on, something about how happy her singing made people. Sayo found her a bit annoying, but was soon ready to head out so it didn’t matter.

After making sure she had all of her equipment, Sayo walked the short distance to the castle. One of the guards she’d seen on the first day, she couldn’t quite remember her name, was guarding the gate. Did it start with an O or a T? It didn’t really matter.

Sayo entered the castle and followed the now familiar route towards Ran’s office. She was almost there, about to make the last turn, when a voice stopped her.

“Wow, you came back.” A girl Sayo had already seen in the castle twice before had popped out of a room behind her and was slouching casually. She wore simple clothes; dark brown pants and a tunic. Sayo couldn’t see a weapon on her, but that didn’t mean that she was unarmed. “Guess I lost the bet~” She said in a slow lilting tone.

“I’m sorry, I never caught your name.” Sayo ignored the notion that a bet had been placed on her continued presence; she didn’t care to worry about such things.

“I’m Moca.” The girl replied with a tilt of her head. “And you’re Sayo, correct?” She smirked in an unsettling manner.

“I am.” Sayo nodded, responding politely. “It was nice to meet you, but I must be going.” With that deliberate ending to the conversation, Sayo turned and continued her trek. She resisted the urge to look back and check if Moca had moved on.

Once Sayo reached the office she knocked and was granted admittance. Ran sat at her desk, as usual, but there were two other women in the room. Sayo had seen them the day before, walking in a group of four. They were dressed in plate armor, armed with both swords and shields tied to their hips. One had long silver hair and striking gold eyes. She narrowed her eyes and turned slowly towards Sayo as she entered, one hand meandering casually past the hilt of her sword.

The other woman had long light brown hair tied up in a pony-tail. She smiled brightly at Sayo, in stark contrast to her friend.

Sayo waited just inside the room entrance to be spoken to, unsure of how to proceed and not wanting to get in a fight.

Ran broke the silence. “Good, all three of you are here now.” She gestured for Sayo to close the door behind her and fully enter the room. Sayo did so and slowly walked towards the desk. The silver haired woman put her hand back down, but kept her gaze on Sayo. “Sayo, the job I have in mind could take a couple days. Are you still interested?”

Hadn’t Sayo just been thinking that morning about how the jobs had been kind of dull? Something that took a few days might be more interesting and demand more of her skill. She was starting to get rusty, so a more extensive task could be just what she needed. “Yes, I am.” She replied.

“Excellent. You will be teaming up with these two knights to hunt down a group of bandits. They’ve been attacking trade caravans coming to the city and it needs to stop.” Ran looked between the three of them as she spoke.

Now Sayo had a problem. “I usually work alone.” She interjected, crossing her arms with a frown. It wasn’t that she had anything against these knights, but she could hunt bandits by herself.

Ran’s lips turned down at this. “I’m grouping you with them since they need ranged support. If you won’t do it, I’ll find someone else.” She said firmly while looking directly at Sayo.

Sayo had a feeling, based solely on her interactions with Ran so far, that if she turned down this job they wouldn’t hire her here again. Even though she debated leaving just an hour before, she wasn’t prepared to cut ties with this castle over a simple matter such as this. “Fine, I’ll do it.” Sayo said, putting her arms back down by her sides in a show of compliance.

“Good.” Ran’s posture relaxed minutely. “This is Yukina and Lisa. The three of you will work together to hunt down the bandits. You will be paid upon your return.” Sayo resisted a sigh, having to work with other people was going to be troublesome. She started walking towards the door, but was stopped by the knight with tied back hair.

“I’m Lisa.” She said with a big smile as she stepped into Sayo’s path. “Nice to meet you!”

“Likewise.” Sayo said as she stepped around Lisa, opening the door. They should at least get out of Ran’s office before discussing anything. Maybe if she just walked away they wouldn’t follow her.

“Yukina and I have both been knights for about a year.” Lisa continued speaking as she followed Sayo out the door. “So we haven’t been in too many battles.” Her voice trailed off at that, and Sayo wondered if these two knights were competent enough to work on her level.

“I hope you can keep up with us.” The other knight, who must’ve been Yukina, said as she closed the door to behind them.

Sayo bristled at the comment. “I should say the same.” She said coolly, looking down and noting that Yukina was significantly shorter than her.

Yukina’s lips curved up at that, eyes glinting in the low light of the hallway.

“I think we should ask around the market.” Lisa broke the moment, getting down to business. “Since it’s trade caravans being attacked, the merchants might be able to help us pin down a location.”

“Sounds good.” Yukina responded, tearing her gaze away from Sayo’s.

That sounded like a decent start to Sayo, since without any additional information the would just be searching for tracks in the wilderness.

The trio walked out of the castle and past the guard whose name Sayo still couldn’t remember. She allowed Lisa to lead to the market, which ended up being north of the castle. When Sayo first entered the town she had passed through this market.

“Let’s split up.” Sayo suggested as they neared the busy portion. “We’ll cover more ground that way.”

“Okay.” Lisa grinned, causing Sayo to wonder if this woman was always so happy. “We’ll meet back here in half an hour.”

Yukina nodded and the three separated. Sayo took a side street and looked around at the different merchants. One selling foreign goods would be more likely to have imported them and would thus be more likely to have information on the bandits.

Using that logic, Sayo approached a merchant selling clothes in the style of multiple cities. Unfortunately, the shop owner hadn’t heard about the bandits. Sayo thanked them for their time and moved on.

She stopped and spoke to a number of merchants without much luck. Most hadn’t encountered the bandits, and if they did then their caravan had been completely lost. She was talking to one selling trinkets when another vendor interrupted.

“Hagumi saw some bandits!” The girl was running a nearby croquette stand; she must’ve overheard Sayo talking. “Not too far from town.”

Sayo moved over to her stand, taking in the sight of the girl. She had short bright orange hair and was bouncing lightly on her toes. “Where did you see them?”

“A few kilometers east of here, Hagumi saw them near the lake while picking berries.” The girl chimed. “Almost walked into their camp, it was real scary.” She seemed happy despite remembering the danger.

“How many people were there? What weapons did they have?” Sayo asked to get more information, though no matter what the answer was they would have to hunt them down regardless.

“Four or five with swords? Hagumi’s not sure.” The girl mused, one hand on her chin. “One had a bow too.” So that meant at least six people. Sayo was a little glad she hadn’t taken the job on alone.

“Thank you for your help.” She said sincerely. Sayo reached into her pocket for a couple coins. “I’ll take a croquette.” She might as well, considering how much information the girl just gave her.

“Have a great day!” The croquette seller said as she handed Sayo the food. Bounty claimed, Sayo ate her snack as she walked back towards the meeting place. She arrived a few minutes early, but the others should be there soon.

Sayo had just finished the croquette when Lisa and Yukina walked up. Somehow they were already together, despite having split up into individual groups.

“What did you find?” Sayo asked, wanting to know what they learned before offering up her information.

“There was a caravan wrecked yesterday a couple kilometers east of here.” Yukina pulled out a map and opened it, showing both Lisa and Sayo where the wreck was. “The wheels were destroyed in the attack, so they only took the goods.”

“Great job Yukina!” Lisa’s grin remained on her face. “I wasn’t able to learn anything new.” She shook her head as she spoke. “How about you Sayo?”

“One merchant saw their camp near a lake.” Sayo peered down at the map. “Which must be near that raided caravan.”

Lisa put her finger on a body of water not too far from the marked spot. “Lake Harold is right near there. I bet that’s where they are!”

“That’s where we’re going then.” Yukina rolled the map back up, depositing it in her bag. “We’ll be out of the city at least one night at that distance, so let’s make arrangements and meet at the stables in two hours.” She was looking right at Sayo, as if this statement were more for her than for Lisa.

“Alright.” Sayo agreed, and the three once again split up. Well, Sayo split off from them. She had a feeling the other two knights would remain together this time.

Whatever, she scoffed, she had a lot of prep to do and no time to be bothering with the petty relationships of knights.

Next chapter

[xwishfulxdesiresx]

Rules For This Blog:

[This is a supernatural Fandomless adult theme side blog for all the oc/canon characters I rp. As well as a made up town so supernatural beings can be safe. I have no lore about the town so you don’t have to worry about rules or anything like that. The reason I’m doing this is, because I don’t want it to clutter my blogs with the verses and other things as well. Now the rules, and more reasoning as to why this blog is the way it is.] Now here are the rules for the blog: -These icons, images, and gifs are not owned by me. They belong there there original creator/respected owners. There are some I made, and taken from official manga, but I rather not address them, due to laziness. -My fandom (FGO/Arknights) muses are in a modern verse. So know they are not the same person as they would be in there world. They are different people with different lives. -Same for my fandom Ocs (Quinn and Dimitri), and if you have come from another blog to rp with them, then know you have three verses to pick from. -Everything on this blog is not connected or canon to my other blogs. (eternal-servants-of-old, and asexual-incubus.) -The blog has city of it’s own. So know that if we rp I might think we are setting it there with out talking or plotting about it before hand.    - This blog is very OC friendly. Give me your ocs please! I want to see the ocs you wrote so hard to make. -This is a multi-muse/multi verse blog. No cheating will happen on here, and each ship is set in there own universe. - Okay it’s a adult blog for both themes and the characters ages. This blog will deal of themes of drinking, smoking, consensual sex, light bullying from some character’s bio, and one of my oc has a past abusive relationship. These will be tagged in there bios. So that way you can prepare yourselves or not read it if it’s too much for you. Don’t force yourself if you don’t want to. It’s okay to ignore a character on here. -Triggers: Okay I had to think about this and look at blogs but blood (No Gore), fangs/teeth, and monsters with eyes, werewolfs or Yoakis (These are not furries. I don’t know what to tell you.) mentions of suicide are okay on this blog. I will tag them like the eye one being body horror. so no one can see them, but if I forget to tag something please remind me in cause there is a chance I forgot to. -Ruby aka host/hostess club verse has drinking in it. And to those who don’t like drinking or alcohol know, that the ruby menu page has it where the first thing you see is alcoholic drinks. I have non alcoholic drinks as well, but if you can’t handle anything involving drinking, then this verse might not be for you. -The Blue Rose aka the Brothel verse has nsfw things in it. Now I will not go into the darker side of people who work in places like this. Its a safe verse, and if you don’t mind smut, then this verse might be for you. -The Royal Chow Chow Cafe aka the Cafe Verse has food in it. This is to those that don’t like to see food, and I will not tag food being mentioned cause sorry I think that’s dumb. I will only tag food photos never rps. So if that’s not your thing, then block me and move on. -On the topic of this blog being adult it doesn’t mean mostly sex or anything nsfw. It means adult topics, and plots. If you are not okay with that and want a pure smut blog, then sorry to say, but this blog is not for you and you can unfollow or block me if you so wish it. - I will try my best to tag things. The tags will be ’“//Abuse Mention” “//Drinking Mention” and so on. Meaning it will be under //Mention tag. - I will put my NSFW threads in keep reading.. -In the NSFW threads I will tag them as lemon for sex/smut, bdsm as bd/sm, and tag kinks as K!nk  in case no one wants to read it. - I don’t do smut with anyone. One, you can’t be underage to rp smut with me, and if you are 18 and over, then understand I ship off chemistry. One night stands are a thing here, but if I can’t work with the rp, then understand I will drop it. - if you want your muse to have a sexual relationship but do not want to write it then know I can do fate to blacks and plot with you on how our muses feel afterwords if you like. - Speaking of underage, if you have a under aged muse, and want to write smut with me, then I will block you and it will be the end of it. - I’m going to be a bit selective with smut. Sorry, I just can’t do it with strangers with a drop of a hat. So we would need to build on our muses interactions. We can even plot what kind if you are up for it. My DMs are always open. - I am open for plots whenever, but if I am late to a message, then know I will get to it between a day or a week. It depends on how my IRL is at the moment. - I don’t do the “only manuals should rp with me” thing. But if I don’t follow you then there is a change that I might not want to rp with you. It’s nothing bad really. Most of the time that it has happen was with very dark blogs. So if you don’t have that then don’t worry about it. - I don’t rp with blogs that use real life people. Like youtubers, movie stars, or tv actors. Sorry just not comfortable with it. -I also don’t rp with blogs that use kid cartoon characters or ponies. Adult cartoon characters i will be okay with and iffy with some. - Do not rp with me if you have things I don’t like: Cannibalism, forcing my muse to do things for your muse kink wise, and are a dick. Try it any of these things on my muses, and I will block you. Things I will do that I never have a single problem with. Also addressing somethings: - If you want to rp a event with my muses by discord. Then I am fine with giving you my Discord name. Just ask by mailing me a tumblr message and, I will tell you my username. - This blog is Multiship and Multiverse friendly.- This blog It’s okay with some crossovers and most canon characters. And it goes with out saying as well as ocs. Just don’t do anything crazy. Also I can not rp with fandoms I do not know. Sorry but, I lack that kind of skill. - The character I rp dose not equal me. And I don’t equal them. - You don’t have to match my length in a rp. But please don’t do short one liners over and over again. I find those dull, and will lose interest in the rp. - I didn’t come to Tumblr to find someone to date or be with romantically or sexually involved with. So if you confess to me then, I will just deny you on the spot and, that will be the end of it. About certain muses: I have two trans muses. one I do not feel ready to talk about or point out on this blog, and another one, Quinn who you can see is trans in there bio, and in all verses. Knowing this, please be respectful of these muses. You can hate them for there personality, actions, or just your muse not liking them for what ever reason, but do not be a terf. You will be blocked. Balan is someone you can not smut. BUT if you want to do a long thread of your muse going through Wonderworld, only for Balan and your muse developing feelings for each other, and the heartache of them having to say good-bye, then we can do that sad fairy tale shit! Kinks/Ideas: Yes we are finally here! Kinks and things I’m fine with. If you don’t see a kink or thing you want to rp, then there is a chance, that I don’t like it or forgot to put it on here. Also my muses have a kink list so it should make things easier on you. But if you still don’t see anything you want to be addressed, then go to my inbox to remind me or to see if I’m down or not writing it. -Kinks: bondage, tentacles, boob job, blow jobs, handjob, blindfolds, light spanking, chocking, riding, mutual masturbation, masturbation, pegging, crossdressing, toys, phone sex, humiliation, monsters (Depends), NSFW Audio, edging, lingerie, quick/long orgasm, threesomes, begging, teasing, light dirty talk, overstimulation, more then one round of sex, biting/marking, size difference, after care, and vanilla. -Kinks that get passes from me, but I will not write it a lot: Angry sex (consensual on both people), Woman with normal sizes or small male members, Guys with a lower female part. (I am not writing the slay terms you can’t make me.) - The ones above will be tagged as //not for your eyes as well as under keep reading. You do no have to like this, which is fine, but know I am doing everything I can to make everyone comfortable on this blog -Ideas: Unrequited love/onesided love, one night stands, friends with benefits, crazed love to the point of obsession (No killing or anything abusive if you please), friends who just want to help another friend out by making it a monthly or weekly thing, booty call, romantic love, and just fluffy cute couple stuff. -Kinks I will not do: Pedophelia, bestiality (furries count), anything with human waste, watersport, vore, gore, guro, eating a person, over eating or forcing someone to eat more food, non-con/dubcon, knife kink, mind break, incest, drugging people, hypnosis, cheating (Yes some people get off on this), breeding or anything with pregnancy, anything with feet, and body horror. [The list might get bigger over time. As of right now this is the things I will not do.] -You and not liking a kink: Look going to say this right now. I will NEVER force something your muse or the mun is uncomfortable with. That’s not me, but if you come to me and want to try out something, due to thinking about it, and want to see if it will be your thing. Then also know, that I’m okay with that, and if you say you are not feeling it, then I will stop everything, and give you the understanding of just experimenting with your writing. (Yup. That’s pretty much it. These rules might be updated at a later time, but for now it’s good.)

[dwsecretsanta]

Of Stars and Wolves

Of Stars and Wolves

Alright, so this is for the Doctor Who Secret Santa over on tumblr. @darklordpthalo, this is for you.

I don’t own Doctor Who or anything really. @darklordpthalo wanted a soulmate AU, a shapeshifter AU, or a kiss under the stars so the idea for this fic goes to them. I just ran with it. I hope they enjoy this.

Words: 6,625 Author: @magewriter

Shapeshifters always had soulmates. It was a universal fact. Admittedly, said soulmate was not always a shifter. Non-shifters had soulmates, but theirs were nowhere near as vitally important to their overall wellbeing as it was for shifters. Humans were seemingly perfectly happy to settle, even as obsessed as they were with soulmates. For them, it was only a matter of a completed image on their skin as a ‘soulmate’ for a normal human was not always a romantic mate. A shifter’s soulmate always was. There could be no other for them, not in that way.

That, however, was not a problem Rose Tyler ever thought she would have to worry about. Her entire family, from both parents as far back as anyone could remember, had always been shifters. It wasn’t an uncommon trait. About a third of the world’s population was of some Shapeshifter lineage. Probably more, but who was or wasn’t a shifter was not always apparent and it was considered rude to ask.

She was musing over those thoughts as she watched the man she thought might just be her soulmate. Rose had come across him nearly two months ago, but had not managed to gather the courage to approach him. Instead, she used her free time in the afternoon to watch him in the park (when he showed up, he didn’t always) and try to understand why else she might be drawn to him if he wasn’t her soulmate.

“Moping again?” Mickey said, sitting beside her on the bench Rose had taken possession of in the small park near the university. He called it ‘moping’ because otherwise he’d have to term it ‘stalking’, and that could very well end up in a fight.

“I’m not moping,” Rose protested. “And aren’t you supposed to be meeting Martha?”

“How’d you think I found you?” He pointed to the nearest tree where a Barn Own sat, glaring at Rose.

Rose waved at the owl. “Couldn’t use your own nose to find me?”

“And nearly get dragged to the pound again?” Mickey shivered in distaste. To get out of that, he’d had to transform, naked, in the tiny little cell the dog catchers had shoved him into.

“Wouldn’t happen if you wore the collar like your Gran said to.” Rose said, getting up. “Give me her clothes so she can shift back.” She snatched the bag he’d been carrying even as he protested the thought of wearing a collar.

A few moments later, both young women returned to the bench. Martha was finger combing her hair back into a pony tail.

“Next time,” she told her boyfriend, “it’s your turn to track her down. I can’t skip hours at the hospital like I can skip out of class.”

“Martha, you didn’t need to do that.” Rose told her. “It isn’t like I was lost or anything. Mickey could have just called my phone.” She held up said object. “Fully charged and everything.”

Mickey blushed. “I forgot mine at home.” He admitted. “And it’s not like you would’ve answered. You’ve been ignoring your phone for the past two weeks, always around now.”

“He has a point,” Martha agreed, perching herself on the back of the bench as she spoke. Rose might have been the gymnast, but she was the one who was part bird. Martha’s whole family could shift into avian form, including her siblings’ mates. Hers was the only owl though, just as Mickey was the only non-avian.

“Yeah, and we’re concerned.”

“Curious ya mean,” Rose corrected him with a role of her eyes.

She adored her friends. She thought they were wonderful for each other. Martha didn’t look down on them for coming from a Council Estate or their lack of higher education. She had been jealous of Rose at first, thinking that she was going to be competition for Mickey’s attention. Rose had solved that quickly, happily shoving her oldest friend into the other woman’s arms with a ‘he is house broken; just don’t leave out any tennis balls’ before she scarpered off to her mother’s for the weekend.

It did not mean that she was going to indulge their curiosity. Not when they had taken it upon themselves to try and help her find her soulmate.

“Can you blame us?” Martha questioned her. “It’s not your usual style Rose, especially when not even Jack can find out where you disappeared off to and he always knows.”

“No, Ianto always knows and just tells him,” Rose corrected, almost absently.

There was a thought. Jack was the one shifter she knew personally that had a soulmate who wasn’t also a shifter. Jack was a literal alley cat; at least he had been until falling into Ianto’s lap. Again, literally as he’d been out roaming when Jackie had scared him off the railing of Rose and Mickey’s shared apartment (another reason Martha had thought she needed to be jealous) and Ianto had caught him.

However, Jack was also her boss along with being her friend so that made it a little awkward. He would also be an even worse meddler than Mickey and Martha. Gods, he’d also be the one to mention it to her mother and then Jackie Tyler would be prowling around the park to sniff out the potential soulmate of her only child.

Rose didn’t need or want that. She wasn’t even sure why she was being so hesitant in approaching the man, other than the fact he was occasionally accompanied by several different women. She also had no desire to be so very wrong about another man ever again, the first one had been more than enough.

“Oh, hey, that’s John!” Martha stood, precariously balanced on the back of the bench now, to wave the man over.

“You mean the bloke who managed to blow up the table in your chemistry class?” Mickey asked, moving just enough so that she was balancing more on his shoulders than the bench.

“The one and only,” she replied with a grin.

Neither one of them noticed that Rose’s faced had paled a little, or that her normal smile had tightened. Then again, it would be her luck that the mystery guy she’d been eyeing for weeks now would be known to her friend.

“Who’s that with him?” Mickey asked as the man bounced over to them, leaving his female companion to trail behind him.

“Oi! Spaceman!” The very loud ginger yelled, “wait up you over-eager puppy!”

“But Donna! It’s Martha!” John answered cheerily. “Hi Martha! Who are your friends?”

Martha grinned. She had had a very brief crush on John Noble when she had first met him, before realizing that he was absolutely insane and she much preferred someone more down to Earth. His sister Donna was fun and understood just how insane and overwhelming her brother could be.

“This is my boyfriend Mickey Smith and our friend Rose Tyler. Hi Donna, what’s he dragged you into this time?”

“He thinks an absolutely enormous wolf has moved into the park. He dragged me along for a second witness.” Donna answered, hugging Martha briefly. They had met before, several times as it was Donna’s ‘job’ to sign her brother out of the infirmary. They had taken to exchanging stories about his antics, as Martha had (during her crush phase) allowed John to drag her around London and occasionally the nearby counties on ‘adventures’.

“An enormous wolf, huh?” Mickey asked, eyeing his oldest friend. The only reason Rose wouldn’t be picked up the dog catchers would be because they’d call out the wild life rescue instead. He really did not want to have to explain to Jackie that they needed to go pick Rose up from whatever sanctuary or woodland animal control dragged her to.

“Yep,” John nodded, grin still plastered to his face. “I’ve only seen it twice so far, so I wonder if it’s more nocturnal or a shifter out for a run, but still!”

Martha looked between the two. John, for all he was talking to them, was looking at Rose as if she was the only person there to speak to. Rose was being quiet, but Martha was certain her friend had just the slightest of blushes beginning to cover her cheeks.

“It is lunch hour, so maybe the shifter idea isn’t so far off.” Martha agreed. So, Rose had been wondering around the park in wolf form, had she? Interesting…as Rose typically didn’t transform within city limits unless she was inside the apartment or at The Playground.

“Lunch! Right! We were supposed to get lunch today!” John looked at his sister, just now remembering why Donna had come to drag him out of his privet lab.

“Now you remember,” Donna rolled her eyes again. She looked at her watch. “Almost too late now.”

“Chips,” Rose suggested, speaking for the first time. “There’s a chippy nearby, we could go there.”

“Great!” John nodded, attention now back on the pretty blonde he’d been seeing for several weeks now. He’d been curious about her ever since he had first seen her, but had never gotten up the courage to actually speak to her.

She had shown up just after the first time he had seen the wolf. He thought it an odd coincidence, but it wasn’t as if he could just ask. That would be rude. He knew he was rude, very rude and very not ginger (no, Donna had all the luck there), but he’d only made that mistake once. He wasn’t that oblivious to make the same mistake twice. Plus, what if he was wrong? Then it would be doubly rude.

“Great,” Rose smiled at him, relaxing a little.

Mickey rolled his eyes this time. “Come on then, Jake’s waiting for me to get back to the shop and Martha’s got to get back to class.”

“Right, and my lunch break’s nearly over. Get a move on it Spaceman.”

“Going Earth Girl,” John retorted, dodging the slap his sister aimed for the back of his head. “Sisters! Really!”

Rose giggled at their antics. “Come on then, I’ll show you the way.”

Almost as if they’d planned it, the other three watched as they clasped hands. Rose tugged, beginning to lead John towards the chippy she’d told them of.

“Ten pounds says they figure it by the weekend,” Mickey said.

Donna snorted. “You’re on, twenty on it taking at least my brother a month before he figures it out.”

Martha shook her head at them. “Two weeks,” she entered her bet. “And I’m not telling Jackie or Jack.”

“I’m not telling them!” Mickey protested. “That’s Rose’s job.”

“Think they noticed if we went elsewhere for lunch?” Donna asked them.

“Nope,” Mickey shrugged. “Babe, you wanna go to that sushi place you keep mentioning?”

“Sure, coming Donna?”

“Might as well, although I think I’ll pass on the sushi. There’s a burger place right next to it.” Donna headed off, the pair following behind her.

XXXXXX

“Um…” John looked sheepishly at his turned out pockets. “I think I left my wallet in my lab.” So much for him buying lunch…or being a gentleman and paying for Rose’s as well.

Rose had to duck her head to keep from laughing at his face. He looked so cute like that!

“I’ll buy, but next time it’s your turn.” She said, handing over the money to the cashier.

“Ok!” John agreed, smile back on his face. “So…Miss Tyler, what do you do all day besides sit in the park?”

“I work,” she commented, grinning.

“What kind of work?”

“Detective work mostly,” she admitted, “My friend Jack, he’s a PI. I help out him and his partner Ianto doing odd bits.”

“Oh, what kind of odd bits?” John took the basket of fish and chips Rose held out for him, following her to a nearby table.

“Sketches, photos, occasionally climbing into dumpsters or over fences,” or following scent trails or chasing down a culprit or a myriad of other things that her wolf form was useful for, not that she was going to tell him that the first time they spoke. “Occasionally I play Girl Friday to his James Bond, Ianto’s a bit too proper for that role although he does look good in a suit.”

John frowned…that sounded…oh! “You wouldn’t happen to mean Jack Harkness would you?”

“I do, you know him?” Rose was curious now. First Martha, now Jack?

John nodded. “We were friends growing up; he flirted a lot with both me and Donna. Had Donna going spare for a bit, leaving black cat hair everywhere and occasionally showing up naked.”

Rose snorted. “Yea, he still does that. Ianto’s got lint rollers hid all over the office, along with spare clothing. First time my Mum met him, she threated to neuter him if he didn’t learn some proper manners. She also scared him off mine and Mickey’s balcony once, landed him right in Ianto’s lap.”

“You live with Mickey?” John was a little confused. Martha had introduced the young man as her boyfriend. Why would he be living with Rose?

“Yeah, we’ve been friends forever and when he was offered an apprenticeship for mechanic at a shop here I came with him to be closer to where I worked at the time. That and he needed a roommate he could trust. Martha lives with us too, now.” Rose explained. “Our apartment is closer to the university than the one she was renting or her mum’s house.”

John nodded, relived although he wasn’t altogether certain why. It made sense, after all. That was why he and Donna had shared an apartment when they had first left Chiswick.

“So what do you do then?” Rose said, changing the subject.

“Oh, I’m a doctor!” He replied. “Not the kind of doctor Martha’s going to be, but astrophysics and astronomy and regular physics and a little bit of chemistry and biology and some other stuff.”

“Wow,” Rose wasn’t really certain how to respond to that. She didn’t even have any A-Levels, never mind a university degree. “I like the stars,” she managed to get out, “couldn’t see them very well on the estate, but that never stopped me from looking up. Drove Mum mad, sneaking up to the roof.”

John’s eyes brightened and he began to babble about his own misadventures of climbing roofs and sending his mother into hysterics. Rose took up the unspoken challenge and responded in kind until it was very clear that they had to be making things up.

“Okay, I give!” Rose finally said with a laugh. “I’ve never set anything on fire, accident or otherwise.”

“Occupational hazard with me,” John told her, basking in the sound of her laughter and enjoying the fact that he had brought it out. “I’m still banned from the kitchen, every kitchen, on campus. The only reason I’m still allowed into the labs is because I’m good with introductory chemistry classes. Teaching them, at least, and I’ve got my own lab.”

“You think you’re so impressive!” Rose said, smiling the tongue touched smile that she was well known for.

“I am so impressive I’ll have you know Rose Tyler!” John said, matching her smile with one of his own.

“Course you are,” she agreed before giggling.

John would have said something, but at that moment he caught sight of the nearest clock. “Blimy, it’s gotten late.”

Rose looked at her watch, blanching. “I was supposed to be back at work hours ago.” She looked at her phone, seeing that she had several missed calls from pretty much everyone in her small social circle.

“Ah, I could walk you back?” It wasn’t as if he had anything pressing at the lab. He was his own boss, aside from when he had classes to teach.

Rose shook her head. As nice as the thought was, it wasn’t needed.

“No, Jack’s already texted me to have fun.” Rose showed him her phone, where Jack had sent a message to that affect. “Besides, they’ve already closed up for the day. It’s date night for them.”

Jack would just grill her tomorrow about this. Rose was both dreading it and looking forward to it. If she was wrong, it would be just another heartbreak. If she were right though…it could still end in heart break. Donna might have been his sister, but what of the other women she had seen him with? Surely one of them was his girlfriend?

John nodded. “Well then Miss Tyler, what would you like to do?” He paused. Well, that was presumptuous of him, wasn’t it? “I mean, unless you want to leave? Or, uh, you’d rather not…” he was terribly bad at this.

“Let’s go Doctor,” Rose stood and took his hand, feeling brave at the moment. “I’ll walk you back to your lab.”

“Ok,” as if he was going to say no to spending more time with her!

XXXXXXXX

Once she arrived back at her apartment, Rose locked herself in her room. Throwing herself on the bed, she hugged one of the pillows to her chest. Of all the blokes in the world, she would find the oddest of the bunch.

John had kept up an ongoing commentary on their walk back to his lab. He could babble like no one she had ever met, and it had been fascinating for all that there were times what he said flew over her head. She was pretty certain he had invited her to go stargazing out in the country, something about shooting stars and how the city had terrible views for anything cosmic.

Rose was just as certain that she had said she would join him amidst her amusement at his energy. She hadn’t been out of the city in over a year. It would be nice to really have the chance to stretch her legs. The Playground and various parks throughout the city were well and good, but were honestly better suited for the more domesticated Shifters like Mickey and her mother.

That brought up an entirely different set of concerns. How would John feel when he found out? She had to tell him, obviously. There wasn’t a thing wrong with being a Shifter or not, and despite what some people would say there was absolutely nothing wrong with being part of a mixed couple.

It wasn’t as if it was some kind of secret thing. It was rude to announce it or ask outright, but there was nothing secret about it.

Rose gave a long sigh, getting up to strip so she could shift. Once in wolf form, she curled back up onto the bed. With a little bit of maneuvering, she had fully covered herself with her blanket and created a nest of pillows. Warm and comfortable, she turned her thoughts to the real reason why she was so reluctant.

Jimmy Stone.

Fifteen years old, she had been an idiot. He had been older, sure of himself, and able to convince her that they were a perfect match. His mark had never been a match for hers, but even though he was also a Shifter he had sounded so certain that it didn’t actually matter. He had made her head spin with dreams of travel and running free in different parts of the world.

As humans, he had been bigger than her. She had been convinced she was in love with him so had until the very end never thought of turning her beast side upon him. The one and only outright beating he had given her (instead of the usual sharp words and occasional slap or kick) had changed that. Jimmy was a canine shifter, but he was nothing more than a yappy mongrel compared to her Red Wolf.

It was after that incident (she hoped he still bore the scars from her claws across his face) that she had made the decision to never enter another committed relationship unless it was her soulmate. Her actual soulmate, the one who bore the mark that matched hers. Rose was never going to let another pretty face and sweet words convince her otherwise.

Now that she had potentially found him, it scared her. Humans didn’t have the same draw and ingrained loyalty to their soulmates that Shifters did. John could leave her and it wouldn’t harm him in the same way it would her.

Rose had seen it before. Her father died when she was a baby and her mother had never completely gotten over it. She had had boyfriends and lovers, but none that had ever stuck around. Other shifters might not mind a lover, but once they inevitable found their other half then they would be gone. Humans just didn’t understand, not really.

Martha’s dad, for instance, wasn’t a Shifter and had left her mother for a time. Aside from when her frustration reached a breaking point, Martha didn’t like to talk about it. Rose always knew when it was bad because those would be the days that the only one Martha wanted to be around was Mickey. There had been a whole week once where she had remained in owl form because she was tired of being in the middle of the fighting. Mickey had carried her around on his shoulder the entire time, curling up in dog form at night to sleep.

Both of a pair being Shifters didn’t always mean happiness and stability either. Again, her mother was a case in point. Rose had lost count of the number of times she had heard someone say that except for Rose, Jackie may very well have pined herself to death after Pete died. Jackie (who took the form of a Scottish Terrier) had always told Rose that losing a soulmate was one of the most difficult things one could go thru, but (and this was a very big ‘but’) it was not the end of all things. Jackie had never been one to simply give up and she had raised Rose to be the same way.

Mickey’s parents had been soulmates, but they hadn’t remained together. Mickey’s gran had taken him in, lambasting both her son and daughter-in-law for being fools. To this day Mickey didn’t speak to his father, and his mother had died when he was a teenager. Probably (as Jackie and Mickey’s gran were certain) of a broken heart, as uselessly romantic as that was (again, according to the two main adult figures in hers and Mickey’s lives).

So with all of that, Rose was apprehensive. She had not given up on finding her soulmate, just as she had never given up her dreams to travel. She was just a little more realistic about it now at nineteen then she had been at fifteen and sixteen.

Even so, she had had a good time today. Holding his hand as they walked, chatting about random topics and simply listening to him babble about whatever caught his fancy. He could talk for England, he could! Still, as long as he did it while holding her hand she was perfectly happy listening to him.

His hand had felt warm in hers. The few times he had dropped her hand in order to use both of his in his excitement over one topic of another her hand had felt cold, almost as if it would never be warm again. She had to imagine how it would feel to have his hands buried in her ruff or scratching her ears.

Rose startled, falling off the bed as it struck her. They had held hands! Skin to skin! Her mark!

Scrambling to her feet, Rose huffed in annoyance as her blanket den tightened around her. Shifting, she managed to escape with an impatient huff.

“Rose?” Martha called thru the door. They had heard her come in, but when she hadn’t said anything to them they had decided to leave it alone. With the noise now coming from the blonde’s room, however, they were concerned.

“Damn mirror!” Rose cursed. “I’m fine!”

Martha heard her muttering about where her mark was and a giggle escaped her. Hers and Mickey’s marks were on their forearms, easily seen. Rose’s, on the other hand, was in the middle of her right shoulder blade and took effort to see.

“Do you want some help?”

Mickey turned around just as Rose opened her door. He yelped and covered his eyes.

“Quite acting as if you’ve never seen me naked before,” Rose scolded at him, yanking a giggling Martha into her room.

“Still doesn’t mean I want to see it!” Mickey called back. They had learned to control their shifting together and had been closer than some siblings growing up. He waited a beat. “So? Is it any different?”

Martha came out of Rose’s room. She had a wide grin on her face.

“Verdict?” Mickey said, lacing his fingers through hers.

“Wolf paw within this spiral of dots,” Martha explained.

“Dots are new, any shape or just the spiral?” Mickey was glad his was so obvious, a wrench. He had always been good with his hands, and it had pleased him that his mark described him so well. It had gotten slightly more complicated when Martha’s quill had joined it, making it appear as if the quill were drawing the wrench.

His mate was a classy lady. He could easily imagine her dressed to the nines in some Victorian get up, writing with the owl feather quill pen in her neat cursive. Or Ravenclaw robes, which was even easier as they had all dressed up as Hogwarts students for Jack’s Halloween party the year before.

Martha shook her head. “No, but then I’ve never studied astronomy.” There was another thump from Rose’s room. “Think we’ll see her anytime tonight?”

“When her stomach reminds her that she needs to eat, or she wants coffee.” Mickey said. “Gonna call Donna?” He’d liked the ginger they’d eaten lunch with. “And does this mean I won the bet?”

XXXXXXX

“Donna! Donna you need to come see this!”

Donna groaned as she rolled over, yanking a pillow over her head to block out her brother’s voice. Maybe if she ignored him, he would give up. Not that that ever worked, but she could hope.

“Donna!” He whined. “This is important!”

“It’s always important with you Spaceman,” she said, sitting up to glare at him. “What time is it? And why are you naked in my doorway?” There were times she regretted agree to share an apartment with him.

“I’m in a towel,” he protested, tightening said towel around his waist. “I was getting out of the shower when I saw it and I –”

She cut him off. “If this is over another stupid spider I am going to hang your skinny arse from the balcony.” She told him as she got out of bed.

“One time Donna, that was one time!” He said, frowning. He dodged out of her way as she headed towards the bathroom.

“A cricket then? A mouse? I swear, if you’ve gone and ‘rescued’ the lab rats again I’m moving back to Mum’s.” Donna looked around the bathroom, not seeing anything out of place.

“I did that in secondary, and I was twelve.” He defended himself. “No, my mark Donna! Look at my mark!”

“Turn on a light then Spaceman,” she blinked in the sudden brightness. The things she did for her brother. “Well, turn around!”

John did, arching his neck as if he could bend it enough to look at his shoulder blade without the aid of a mirror or two. Donna had often teased him for the spiral of dots there with the big empty space in the center. He had always protested that they were stars in the form of a nebula if a person just knew how to look at it.

Now, the empty space was filed with a clawed paw print. It didn’t look like it was from a dog and it was much too large to be a cat. Donna frowned.

It struck her, then, that it had to be from a wolf. That was what her brother had been looking for in the park after all, and that park was a safe spot for Shifters to run around in while transformed. John probably hadn’t even realized it, but he’d been talking about the blonde girl he had seen almost as often as he’d spoken of the wolf. It was not a stretch, to Donna at least, to think they were one and the same.

“Do you see it?” John was beginning to bounce in place.

“I see it, and yes it really is there.” Donna assured him.

John blinked at her. “But I don’t…and usually I…”

Donna grinned at him. “No gloves Thursday, ran off without them when you were dragging me to the park.”

His eyes kept getting bigger as his brain put the pieces together. Damn it, but this meant that Mickey had won the bet. Donna had been certain her brother (who mostly ignored his mark and steadfastly kept himself covered in layers) would take weeks to notice the change.

“But…but Rose!” It had to be her. She had grabbed his hand and he had grabbed hers. Not just grabbed it, but they had held hands for ages Thursday.

“Unless you’ve been getting handsy with anyone else, yes Rose.” Donna told him.

John went between shaking his head and nodding it. How was he supposed to do this? Just walk up and ask her? Ask to see her mark? Didn’t that count as an innuendo in some circles? He knew it was rude, and while he was rude and not ginger (that was Donna) there were some mistakes he only made once…sometimes.

Donna rolled her eyes. “Get dressed Spaceman, we’ll go check the park and see if she’s there.” After coffee…lots and lots of coffee.

XXXXXXXXX

Rose shoved Jack off her desk, scowling at him. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not showing you. And you’ve got cat hair over my sketches.”

She quickly turned around as he shifted. “Ianto, come and get your cat before I skin him!”

Ianto sighed, finishing the tea as he ignored the antics of his boyfriend and their co-worker. Ever since Mickey had mentioned Rose’s changed mark, Jack had been poking at her to see it. It had been a week now and they were all getting sick of it.

Rose had been steadfastly avoiding the park she’d been frequenting and the man who may or may not even be there. There had been astronomy books littering her desk for that time, along with several pamphlets discussing ‘how to explain being a shifter to a non-shifter’. Those alone had Jack curious, but Rose wasn’t talking.

“Come on Rosie, I’m just curious!” Jack was trying to get her to settle down. He knew from experience that procrastinating talking to your soulmate was hard on a shifter.

“Curiosity killed the cat Jack, do you really want to risk it?” Rose was getting very irritated at him.

A case, any kind of case, would help. It would at least keep him distracted from bothering her. It might also take her mind off John, but she doubted that.

“And satisfaction brought it back,” Jack sing-songed at her. “Besides, even if it did, I have nine lives.”

“Five,” Ianto set a cup of coffee in front of Jack and Rose’s tea in front of her, “and I’m still waiting for the report from the last case.”

“That dog missed, so I have to have at least six left.” Jack teased back, a long running joke between the three of them.

“If you insist,” Ianto replied, going to fix another cup of tea.

They didn’t ask why. Ianto almost always knew when they would be getting someone in with a case. Rose took that as her cue to get some fresh supplies out to take notes with. Jack, deciding to leave it for now, returned to his desk to get out his own things.

The bell above the door chimed, alerting them all that they had a guest. Looking up, Rose squeaked before ducking back down.

“John! Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes!” Jack got up to greet his longtime friend with a hug. “And where is that spitfire of a sister of yours?”

“Donna’s on a date with Lee,” John replied, eyes zeroing in on Rose. His face reddened.

Jack looked between them, confused for a moment before it dawned on him. Rose groaned as she recognized the look that crossed his face.

“So John, what brings you by?” Jack was grinning, which should have been his first warning.

“Oh! Yes!” John jumped, turning his wide gaze to Jack. “I’ve been trying to track a wolf I saw in a park near the campus.” He absently took the tea Ianto handed him. “I was hoping you could help me.”

“Of course we can! Rose is great at tracking.”

Rose was going to kill him. She was certain of that.

John turned back to her. “Really? Um…would you…uh…could you…” he floundered, taking a gulp of tea to give his mouth something to do that wasn’t talking.

“I can meet you at the park in an hour, if that works for you?” Rose was glaring at Jack as she spoke, but he was just grinning back at her.

“Actually,” John coughed, the tea was hot! “Actually, I was thinking about going later tonight, after dark. I haven’t seen it again in the daytime and the first time I saw it was nearly midnight so I thought maybe it was nocturnal and…”

Rose began to smile as he continued to babble. It was cute, especially as he’d put down the tea and was now running his hands thru his hair. It was making it stick up and her hands itched to sooth it back down.

Maybe she wouldn’t kill Jack. She did need to speak to John anyway.

“I’ll meet you at the entrance of the park, yeah?” She got in when he took a pause for breath. “About seven?”

John nodded his head. “Yeah, yeah, that sounds like an idea Rose Tyler.”

Rose shivered. She liked how her name sounded coming from his mouth. “See you then Doctor.”

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

The sky was just beginning to darken when Rose arrived at the entrance to the park. She had her kit with her, just in case. She doubted she would need it, but if working with Jack had taught her anything it was that it was far better to be over prepared than be caught unawares.

John was already waiting for her. She stopped to watch him for a moment, her hearing catching his muttering.

“Hey Doctor, been waiting long?”

John jumped. “Rose! You’re here! I mean, obviously, where else would you be? I mean-”

Rose laughed. “I know what you mean Doctor. Shall we?” She motioned towards the open park gate.

John smiled. “I like when you call me Doctor.” He rolled the name around in his mind. “I might just start using it. Sounds like the name of an adventurer.”

“Is that what we’re doing, going on an adventure?” Rose teased him, barely registering that they had clasped hands.

“We’re looking for a wolf that may or may not be wild. I’d call that an adventure, wouldn’t you?” John asked her. Her hand felt right in his; as if it were the piece he’d been missing his entire life without knowing it.

“I would,” she bit her lip. “Doctor, I was-”

A low growling cut her off. Instinctively, Rose tried to push John behind her. That wasn’t a friendly growl.

“Rose,” John said slowly, “That’s not the wolf I’ve been looking for.”

“I know John.” Rose shifted her stance, readying herself for whatever she would need to do.

The wolf stalking them from the shadows was a deep black. It wasn’t someone she knew, and most of the canines in the area knew each other. It was considered common curtesy for a new shifter to make oneself known to the local community.

A wild wolf wouldn’t be hunting them like this one was. Rose knew what a hunting wolf looked like, what the air felt like during a hunt. This was a hunt and they were the prey.

“Maybe we should-” John started to say but Rose cut him off.

“Stay absolutely still,” she thrust her kit at him. “Don’t make any sudden movements and stay quiet.”

“Okay,” he whispered, eyes on the other wolf and not on her.

The wolf leapt for them. When it did, Rose sprang into action.

John gaped as his companion, the young woman he was fairly certain was his soulmate, turned into a large reddish-brown wolf. The very same wolf he’d been seeing around the park.

She had done it mid leap, slamming into the other wolf in a tangle of ripped clothing and scrambling paws. All he could do was stare as Rose took on the other wolf in a fight unlike any he’d ever seen. John struggled to remain frozen, wanting to help Rose but not knowing how to.

Teeth snapped, sometimes drawing yelps and growls from the one being bitten. Claws flashed, leaving streaks of blood behind when they connected. Often, they were little more than a tumble of fur.

Finally, Rose emerged victorious. She held the other (much larger, John noted absently) wolf down by the throat. The wolf whimpered, splaying out as much as it could in a display of submission. With a final growl, Rose released him. She cuffed him with a paw, bearing her fangs at him.

He scrambled away from them as fast as his legs could carry him.

Rose gave the impression of snorting in dismissal before approaching John and nudging him. Almost on reflex, he began to stroke her head.

“You know,” he finally said, “it’s highly unfair that even you have more ginger than I do.”

Rose collapsed in laughter, shifting as she did so. “T-t-th-that-that’s th-the b-best y-y-ya g-got?” She managed to say through her laughter.

“No, you’re a wolf! The wolf! And you’re naked!” He spun around.

Rose calmed down. “Yes, unless it’s very skin tight clothing doesn’t shift with you. My bag.”

“What?”

“My bag, I’ve got a spare set in it.”

“oh…oh! Right.” He turned around to hand it to her, blushing as he took her in.

Rose took the chance and turned around, baring her back to him. It was now or never, either their marks matched now or they didn’t.

By his intake of breath, they did.

“You’re my soulmate…and you’re a shifter…”

“That a bad thing?” She tried to keep it light, but then this was her fears made manifest. She didn’t know what she would do if he rejected her.

John shook his head, realized she couldn’t see him with her back turned, and spoke. “No, no it’s not.” He paused. “This is so cool! You can turn into a wolf! A really big wolf, and a ginger one, but a wolf!”

She turned, now fully dressed, to face him. He was bouncing in place, hands flexing as if he wanted to touch her.

“Yeah,” Rose had no idea what to say.

“Do you want to go stargazing with me?” John burst out.

“What?” Now she was confused.

“Stargazing…that’s what I normally do in this park. It’s not the best, but there’s a clearing where the trees block out most of the light and we can talk or not talk or whatever really-”

Rose gave in and kissed him to shut him up. “Sounds lovely,” now she was blushing as red as he was, “lead the way.”

“Right,” he took her hand. “Ready Rose Tyler?”

“Always,” she responded.

“Run.”

And they never stopped.

XXXXXXXX

The end!

Happy Holidays @darklordpthalo, hope this makes you smile!