#nora | ❛ i will not set fire to myself to keep you warm. ❜ ( wanted connection. )

[wu-sisyphus-gang]

9 Days of Lancaster Training

It was eerie, camping in the town square. By their very nature search and rescue operations don’t try and hide at all, can’t, even. It set my teeth on edge, but it was necessary.

“We’ll be training a little too, but we’ll try and keep it down.” I let Ren know. He was scrapping some dinner together and some other meals. We'd found perishables that the bandits hadn’t bothered to take and would literally rot if we didn’t eat them.

Ruby had wondered if that made us better than the bandits but together the three of us convinced her otherwise.

From, “you can’t give it to anyone.”

To, “you can’t save it for later.”

And fervently, “all this in all these empty houses will be rat food if we don’t eat it now.”

She gave in but didn’t eat much.

She was stressed, they all were. Especially considering how far we just got set back in terms of our travel time. Money really wasn’t an issue. Huntsmen could make a living anywhere and with communication down…

With communication down the law of the land in most places was whatever the guy with the most fighting power said it was. Who were you going to call and how were you going to call them and what would they do by the time they finally arrived to do something, if they ever came at all?

Huntsmen will have even fewer problems making money anywhere. Perhaps too few.

I set another log on the campfire. There was a flare of sparks and the fire snapped a few times at me. I stared at them like the patterns they made would reveal something to me but there was nothing at all.

Nora was already turned away from the dim light in her sleeping bag. Ren being emotional had evidently exhausted her beyond her energy.

Ruby had found a clearing she liked as we’d set up camp and I followed her there now from the campsite. I hadn’t bothered to take my armor off at any point. I needed to get used to it and I’d do it by wearing it sixteen hours a day, more, probably.

“You’ll probably need a whole new fighting style, I mean, have you ever practiced with a broadsword?” She chatted as we walked.

“I haven’t but a sword is a sword.” What’s so hard to understand about swish-swish-stab? A lot, to be honest. “I’ll be able to figure it out.”

“I know some of my uncle’s moves.” Ruby continued. “Would they help?”

“I’m bad enough that they literally couldn’t make me worse.”

She looked like she wanted to hit me for that but couldn’t because she was about to hit me anyway.

I stared at her from the side, watching her pink lips move out of the corner of my eyes. She reached up while she was talking and brushed her short red and black hair over her ear with one hand.

She was building up contained excitement like a diesel engine getting warmed up and I had to smile. Once she started talking it released like a wave and I found myself nodding and listening along as she carried on the better part of three conversations at once.

 “A lot of his moves are horizontal, it’s hard to swing a sword that big upwards. The ground gets in the way. His most powerful attacks are usually ones that come downwards, though, using gravity. His weapon is different, you know?” I did, I was confident she’d told me, at least. I’d hear it again, though. "It’s a broadsword with a similar scale to yours but also turns into a scythe, and, unlike yours, it has a gun too.” She looked at me to make sure I was listening. I was entranced with her lecture.

"It’s actually a lot more complicated than yours but you’ve always been simple," she continued.

I agreed so, I nodded.

“I don’t mean simple like that. I mean simple like- well, you know.”

I did, so I nodded.

“But every person is like that, everybody is unique.”

“-what?”

 “Weapon!” She corrected herself a tad-little loud. “Every weapon is like that.” She glanced at me.

She dared me to call her out.

I couldn’t possibly.

“I really don’t know much about fight with shields, though, I’m sorry I won’t be more help. But like I said, swing downwards instead of upwards and it’ll help.”

I grimaced. If I swung the broadsword down, I’d need to lift it up again. It seemed obvious but the thing was heavy now. I’d need to do it as little as possible to conserve energy.

I watched her spin away from me into the clearing.

It took me a second to realize she was waiting for me and I stepped opposite her and drew the broadsword from my back.

Ruby’s scythe extended and she reversed her grip on it, holding the weapon behind her back. I didn’t think for one second it was an opening. I couldn’t cross the distance between us before she would move.

Still, I knew if she were willing to spend ammunition on a sparring match, then I would be the one forced to approach. In the spirit of that I charged at her anyway.

I committed to an attack with Crocea Mors, swinging from my shoulder down at her. She danced out of the way, her footwork was tight and fast. She was able to stay just out of my range, dipping in to slice across my breastplate with her scythe before I could bring my weapon around again.

It was enough to buffet it and I was encouraged further to back up when she rolled the scythe around her body in an upwards diagonal arc.

It wasn’t where I wanted to be, backing up was so much worse than side stepping. On the back-foot your opponent could charge and stand and fight you.

Pyrrha had hammered that into me none-too gently. Sometimes she used her shield as the hammer.

Sometimes she hadn’t.

Ruby stepped with me, staying inside where I would feel comfortable with the sword.

I lashed out with my foot in a clumsy kick, balancing the sword’s weight with my own mass and all my armor on just one leg with little practice. The kick flat out missed and Ruby had the good grace not to laugh. She did catch the leg I was left standing on with her scythe and yank me off my feet.

I felt myself whirl through the air and land flat on my back.

“Sorry Jaune.” She smiled down at me sheepishly. I couldn't be mad at that.

I got to my feet shaking my head. “I’ll get over it. I’m not afraid of looking like an idiot.” I leveled the broadsword at her. “I still have plenty of aura for you to beat out of me.”

She took that as a sign to continue and this time she rushed me.

I sidestepped lashing out with Crocea Mors into the space I had just occupied. It collided with Crescent Rose’s barrel with a heavy metallic clank. The weight was enough to stop Ruby’s momentum and she squealed adorably as she strained against it and the noise she made was enough to distract me a little.

She retreated spinning the crescent behind her, before she reversed again, rotating once more towards me in whirlwind of red and steel.

“How are you not getting dizzy?” I implored.

She giggled at me for that like I was just being just so extra silly when I truly did want answers. It sometimes felt like I could barely stand up without my head spinning and here she was like a top.

I raised Crocea Mors and blocked the blade of Ruby’s scythe with a grunt. I turned my wrists to block her next attack when she came around the other side.

I like to say my efforts impeded her but really she just hit me three times anyway.

Her blade swept across my stomach, glancing off my armor. I threw out Crocea Mors to try and gain some space, but she simply stepped back then back in and hit me hard in the side of the head with the back of Crescent Rose.

I stumbled back but she was all over me sweeping her blade towards me and chipping away at my aura. I grunted lowering Crocea Mors to defend once again. I blocked then thrust my blade out and swung it upward, Ruby easily dodged the thrust but wasn’t ready for me to continue my assault. I rushed forward. She jumped, elegantly dodging the attack with her semblance and a flare of red petals.

She flowed to my right like water before she zipped to the left with vanishing speed and seemed to hit me from behind as her scythe extended to a nearly impossible range. She threw me off balance. Her scythe was a spinning blade of death that sunk deep into my aura, shredding away chunks of it. I stepped back like I was going to retreat but I whipped the blade out and I clipped her side.

She rolled with the attack to the ground to avoid me chasing her, but I had stopped.

The sword made a meaty noise when it hit her, it was the first time I’d hit anybody or anything with it and I immediately regretted how hard I had swung it and that its first target was Ruby besides.

We were just training, and it wasn’t like she was out here swinging to hurt me. I winced slightly. She looked a little winded. Her hand dropped down a little. I shouldn’t just be throwing out haymakers at her.

Duh, Jaune, what a way to say thank you.

Her body shimmered with soft red light as she recovered, getting to her feet. I let her rise unassailed; in a real fight I’d be all over her; I wasn’t above hitting someone while they were down, after all, the world had no problems doing it to me, but this was just training.

“Are you alright?" I asked, my eyes roved her body, looking for any sign of injury. Her hand rose from where I had hit her, and she nodded.

I was sure Ruby could go toe to toe with nearly anyone, I’d seen her fight Yang and Pyrrha. But my sword weighed as much as either of them did, soaking wet in full gear. And unlike a potential Yang based weapon, Crocea Mors had all of that force condensed into a tight blade.

Ruby’s own weapon was spindly in comparison and for a moment I wasn’t totally sure that I wouldn’t crack her barrel in half if I came down really hard on it.

“I’m fine. That hurt, though, you’ve gotten stronger.”

“It's the new sword, it’s heavier,” I dismissed. “It’s easy to hit things hard with a giant sheet of metal.”

“Well, I’m sure that's true, too.”

I continued to look her over. I was thinking about her hit and run fighting style.

That old big kicker-why?

Why did she bother retreating when she was so strong? It wasn’t just a fighting style preference. I was beginning to suspect that she needed to. She needed to dodge rather than block and she couldn’t afford to tank hits like I could.

She wasn’t weak - it was impossible to think that, really. It was honestly weird to think about her as fragile, too, even with the evidence right in my face.

“How am I doing so far,” I managed between pants.

I decided I would give her a moment to catch her breath, if she needed it. It looked like I had knocked the wind out of her, even through her Aura.

“You need to move more, you stand too still.” It was familiar advice, and it brought me back to rooftop training sessions with another redhead. I changed tracks, not wanting to think about Pyrrha right now.

Thinking about Pyrrha only made me want to train. I wanted to train and fight until I was strong enough to kill Cinder.

It was fucking bullshit that Cinder got to walk around while I didn’t even get to bury Pyrrha. I shook my head, thoughts of revenge clearing. I had a long way to go until I could hold a candle to the woman who killed my partner.

Besides I was training now, I couldn’t be more training than I currently was.

“Well it’s hard to keep up with you in terms of movement,” I deflected but made it clear I agreed. Standing rooted like a tree would only serve to cost me precious aura. Plus, now I had two sources telling me to get my ass in gear and move around the battlefield. Not that I’d ever ignored Pyrrha’s advice but sometimes lessons took a while to stick.

We started again.

I slashed two wide arcs at Ruby, and she ducked under one and deflected the other. The large sword wasn’t cutting it for me right now, but the point was to train with the new form. My movements were telegraphed with the broadsword, much more so than with the bastard sword and the shield would also allow me to defend myself from her wild slashes better, but the point of training right now was to learn how to use the new length to my advantage. It was not necessarily to use the best weapon for the situation.

She hit me twice with Crescent Rose before I felt the blade swing around me. She traded places with it, swinging me and herself in a sort of orbit connected by her weapon. She brought me around in a wide arc before she used a tree to halt her moment and mine. I could only watch as Ruby effectively pulled the blade towards her and through my aura.

It clotheslined me hard into the ground and made a loud gonging noise as it her blade dinged off my freshly polished armor. I lay there on the ground with my chest flashed with soft golden light as my aura flickered. Ruby seemed to realize that I’d had enough and stepped back, folding her scythe behind her back as she did.

I tried to rub my chest through my armor for a moment before managing to puzzle together that it wasn’t helping. Even through the protection granted by my soul and armor it was enough to sting.

I sat up and just tried to focus on breathing.

Ruby sat down next to me. Plopping down in her skirt with practiced ease.

“Was it really okay to re-forge Pyrrha’s weapons like that?” Ruby asked. “I know I sort of talked you into this. I didn’t mean to make you do something you might regret.”

I understood the sentiment immediately, but this felt right.

“Her sword was in pieces and it would only have served as a reminder that she wasn’t actually invincible,” I began. It wasn’t like I hadn’t thought about it. “And I’m sure that she would be fine with me using her shield to defend myself, too. And you know there’s going to be something satisfying about killing Cinder with a weapon reinforced with the one she broke.” I chuckled lightly at the morose thought.

“Well, I guess it’s okay, then?” She struggled to find something to say after that. “I’m sure you’re right.”

We sat quietly together in the forest lit by moonlight. It wasn’t a full moon, like the night before, but still plenty bright.

“Jaune…” She trailed off.

“Yeah?” I answered anyway, ignoring her hesitation.

“About Pyrrha…” She pressed on.

“What about her?” I could talk about her, with Ruby of all people, at least. I didn’t particularly want to, but I would.

“Did you and her ever…”

“No, we didn’t. I didn’t know until it was too late.”

“Oh.”

I realized my fingers were brushing my lips. The rough material of my gauntlets was nothing like Pyrrha’s lips and my fingers tasted like sweat and grime.

So soft.

I remembered the way she’d kissed me before she left. It had been desperate but with a certain finality. She’d known she was sending her valedictions to me at the time.

I’d known too.

“She was a really good friend...”

“The best.” I agreed readily. I wasn’t sure where she was going with this.

“Would you have?” She grimaced looking pained. “Sorry.”

“I don’t know. Alright? I really have no idea. I don’t get to know.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry.” Ruby slipped into silence and I watched her fight herself again for a long minute. “But she wouldn’t want you fighting Cinder.”

“Well of course not.” Hell, the last thing she’d done was push me into a locker and not give me the choice of dying with her. Which I wasn’t bitter about at all. “But that doesn’t change how I feel. So, I’m still going to.”

“But…” She trailed. Her concern was like a fire, it flickered out towards me but there was nothing for it to catch onto. I was already burnt down inside.

“Hey look.” I pulled my sword over to where we sat. “You wanted to see how the mechanism works, right?” Anything for a change in subject, literally anything. It was weak but Ruby seemed to understand.

She just nodded and listened while I went over the weapon with her. I could tell that she remembered how the mechanism worked part of the way through his explanation, she’d helped design it, after all. She just needed the refresher, but that was it.

I explained all of it anyway.

[apocalyqse]

tag dump !

nora  |   ❛  featuring.  ❜   (  blank.  )

nora  |   ❛  thread001.  ❜   (  blank.  )

nora  |   ❛  timestamp.  ❜   (  blank.  )

nora  |   ❛  event.  ❜   (  blah.  )

[dcbutinamrev]

historical lams prompt

"did you get enough love, my little dove? why do you cry?"

I used Nora again in this one from Duty and Inclination. Requests always open!

***

Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens sits at the table alone, a lone candle lit and the flame flickering slightly. He sighs exhaustedly, his honey blonde hair fallen loose from its ponytail, a few strands of blonde hair dangling in front of of his eyes as he stares at his sketch of his beautiful Alexander Hamilton before him. He rests his cheek against his palm, his elbow on the table as his index finger traces over the rough lines of Hamilton's frame. He smiles softly, the corners of his lips quriking upward when his bright, sky blue eyes land on Hamilton's smile in the drawing. He appears to be laughing at something, probably a joke Meade had told them.

Laurens frowns suddenly as his mind drifts off, remembering the happy times they had together in Valley Forge, when it was just them and them only. When Hamilton was just his and only his, no Miss Schuyler between them. Laurens clenches his jaw as he grips the paper, remembering Hamilton's letter of news of his marriage to Miss Eliza Schuyler. His chest squeezing with jealousy and anger.

Why? Why Alex? Laurens thinks. Of course, Hamilton did have to marry an eligible lady at some point. Laurens knows their relationship cannot last forever as much as he wishes he could. He knows men like him and Hamilton could not marry, could not have children and raise a proper family. Laurens sighs as he eases his tense grip on the paper, massaging his forehead as he reaches for his glass of wine. He grabs it and takes an unhealthy swing of it before slamming the glass back down.

He huffs out a breath as he folds his forearms on top of each other, glancing at Hamilton's letter of when he first confessed his love for him and the drawing before him. Laurens groans as he squeezes his eyes, flopping his foreheaad on his forearms. Hamilton's words from his letter with the news of his marriage rings in his head:

"I give up my liberty to Miss Schuyler."

Laurens lifts his head up and glances down at his drawing of Hamilton again. He clenches his jaw, narrowing his eyes and lets out a low growl. Laurens grips the top of the page and hesitates for a few moments. Then, he rips it.

Laurens grabs the ripped pieces of paper and the letter, blowing out the candle before heading towards the fireplace in the living room in his father's house in Philidelphia where he's staying as he's paroled from being a prisoner of war. Laurens sits on his knees, watching the fire Nora had turned on earlier flickering back and forth in front of him, the orange flames creating a light shadow on Laurens's face, causing the side of his face to seem like a light orange or red.

Laurens glances down at the letter, reading Hamilton's words over and over again, trying to make sense of it, trying to understand. But his mind can't. His mind churns and whirls around as he reads the letter, tears brimming in his eyes.

My dear Laurens,

Cold in my professions, warm in my friendships, I wish my dear Laurens it my be in my power by actions whether than words to convince you that I love you.

Laurens heart stops as he reads that first sentence. He scoffs, rolling his eyes as he mutters, "Do you?" He swallows as he continues.

I shall only tell you that till you bade us Adieu. I hardly knew the value you taught my heart to set upon you. Indeed my friend, it was not well done. You know the opinion I entertain of mankind, and how much it is my desire to preserve myself free from particular attachments and to keep my happiness on the caprice of others.

Laurens grits his teeth as he clenches the egdes of the letter, his hands shaking as he blinks his eyes rapidly, trying to control his breathing and to keep his emotions at bay. He swallows hard, his throat burning as he does so, therefore making it difficult for him to breath for a moment before continuing.

But as you have done it, and as we are so generally indulgent to those we love, I shall not scruple to pardon the fraud which you have committed, on condition that for my sake, if not for your own, you will always continue to merit the partiality which you have so artfully instilled into me.

Laurens presses his lips together as his vision blurs. He presses his lips together and swallows as he lets out a shaky breath. He blinks his eyes as he reads the letter again, his heart pounding agiasnt his chest as he inches closer towards the roaring fire before him. He glances up at the fire before glancing back down at the letter and then back up at the fire again.

He hesitates.

And if Hamilton were here, he'd find that strange and shocking. John Laurens was never one to hesitate.

Laurens closes his eyes gently and breathes in sharply before tossing the letter into the fire.

Laurens opens his eyes only to let out a choked sob. He swallows the lump of tears down his throat and stifles the sob with the back of his hand. His vision blurs as he shakily starts to stand, watching the paper crumble in the fire, the tan colored page turning black. Laurens starts to back away, eyes wide and his face pales as he reaches the stairs. He grips the handrail and slumps against it, his knees buckling.

"Mr. Laurens?" a female voice chirps from the entranceway from the kitchen.

Laurens looks up sharply when he hears heels clicking against the wooden floors. He sees a woman with warm chocolate brown skin, wavy curled dark brown hair pulled back into a low bun, and dark hazel brown eyes twinkling as she gazes up at Laurens worriedly. Laurens breathes out a breath of relief when he finds Nora rushing towards him, lifting up her golden dress as to not trip over herself. Nora frowns when she reaches Laurens, resting a hand gently on his arm.

"Mr. Laurens, sir, are you alright?" Nora asks breathlessly.

Laurens stares at her blankly, exhuastedly. Nora frowns as she tilts her head, waving her hand in front of Laurens's wide open eyes to see if that will work. He doesn't blink. Nora shakes Laurens slightly.

"Mr. Laurens?" Nora says panickly. She rests the back of her hand on his forehead, feeling for a fever. She frowns when she feels his forehead a normal, warm temperature. "I shall call a doctor."

Laurens grips her elbow before she runs off. Nora gasps as she whips her head over her shoulder.

"No," Laurens mumbles, his expression still vacant and distant. His voice barely above whisper. "I need no doctor. I'm not ill."

"Then..." Nora asks as she begins to relax and walks up to him. "Then what is amiss?"

Laurens doesn't say anything at first, ticking his eyes down at hers and then back towards the fireplace as he says, "He's married..."

"Oh," Nora says. "Then shouldn't you be proud for your friend? Or happy at least?"

"You don't understand," Laurens mumbles. "He left me. Just like him."

It takes Nora a moment to figure out what he means but when it clicks, her eyes widen slightly and a small smile quirks up. "You loved him? Your friend?"

Laurens hesitates and finally nods.

"I did," Laurens mutters, staring down at the space between his feet now. "I loved him first."

"I know how you feel," Nora says soothingly, resting a comforting hand on his bicep.

Laurens glacnes at her sharply, raising an eyebrow. Nora presses her lips together as her cheeks darken into a blush.

"Women can also become close just as men," Nora says.

Laurens frowns, furrowing his brows as he tries to ponder what she means. His eyes widen, however, when he learns of it. He nods in understanding, puffing out a quiet "Oh".

Nora nods. "Come on. Let's get you to bed. You need rest." A pause. "What was his name?"

Laurens swallows as he turns to her as she helps him climb the stairs. "What?"

"Your friend?" Nora prompts, raising an eyebrow. "What was his name?"

Laurens sighs. "Alexander."

Nora nods. "Alexander. Beautiful name."

Laurens nods in agreement. "Agreed."

"What was he like?" Nora asks as they reach halfway up the stairs. "Alexander?"

Laurens sighs dreamily, his eyes looking distant as he remembers his Alexander.

"He was...extrodinary," Laurens whispers. "He was...one of a kind. He's...unlike anyone I have ever met. He's sweet, charming, brave, clever, a little cocky and witty. Beautiful." Laurens smiles now as Hamilton appears in his head, suddenly bringing light into the darkness of the house. "Just...oh...so beautiful. Kind. He’s...one of the most kindness person I’ve ever met."

Nora smiles as Laurens describes Hamilton. The two continue marching up the stairs. Laurens doesn’t know how long it’s been since they began, when he hears a soft knock on the door.

Laurens freezes suddenly, gripping his hand on the handrail, his eyes widening as he glances down at Nora. Nora ticks her eyes up at the same time Laurnes glances down at her.

“You go on up,” Nora insists. “I’ll get it.”

Laurens swallows nervously, glancing at the door when he hears the knock again but nods and obeys. He quickly rushes up the stairs and stands by the top, watching Nora walk swiftly to the door and swinging it open.

Nora freezes when she sees who she must thinks is Alexander Hamilton before her. Her eyes widen as he smiles charmingly down at her, tipping his head as a hello. Nora swallows as she glances up at Laurens who stares down at Hamilton in shock and fear.

“This is the uh…Laurens residence…” Nora says. “May I help you?”

“Yes,” Hamilton says, taking off his tricorn hat and tucking it under his arm, revealing his stunning fiery red hair. The hair Laurens misses so much. Laurens feels his heart lurching as he watches the scene below. “I am Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Hamilton, current aide-de-camp to General Washington of the Continental Army. I am here upon my leave to visit Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens. I have been worried sick about his capture ever since and I heard he was paroled and is residing here.”

Nora blinks as she stares at Hamilton, his powerful words echoing in her head. She swallows nervously as she glances up towards Laurens before back down at Hamilton. Hamilton raises an eyebrow, placing his hat upon his head.

Nora licks her lips. “Yes. Right this way, sir.”

Hamilton nods and steps inside and follows Nora up the stairs. Hamilton stops short when he reaches the fourth step and his smile widens when he sees Laurens standing at the top of the stairs.

“I’ll leave you two a moment of privacy,” Nora says quickly before rushing off.

Hamilton waits until Nora disappears around the corner to climb up the stairs, gripping the handrail as he takes his hat off with the other and tucks it under his arm. Hamilton puffs out a breath once he reaches the top and inclines his head to meet Laurens’s eyes. Laurens clenches his jaw, his throat working as he crosses his arms over his chest. Hamilton slows his pace, frowning with confusion. 

“Jack...” Hamilton breathes, his charming smile returning. He climbs the remaining steps once more. “My beautiful Jack...” 

Laurens winces. “Don’t call me that.” 

Hamilton freezes, eyes widening pathetically. “What...what do you mean, John?” 

“I mean, Hamilton,” Laurens snaps through clenched teeth. “Don’t. Call me. That.” A pause. “You’ve lost that previlidge.” 

Hamilton sighs as he now stands directly in front of Laurens, chest to chest. Hamilton swallows as he meets Laurens’s intimidating stare. 

“This is about Betsey, isn’t it?” Hamilton says. Nothing. Hamilton sighs. “John, marrying Betsey doesn’t change my love for you. I love you, John. You know that. I love you so much. But I also love her. I love her as much as I love you. Why can’t you understand this?”

Laurens doesn’t respond. He just stares at him for a breath before storming up towards his bedroom. His back facing Hamilton, he blinks his eyes rapidly, trying to keep his emotions at bay. He can’t break down, not in front of Hamilton. 

“Jack!” Hamilton cries, panic written over his face as he chases Laurens throughout the second floor.

“John! John!” Hamilton wails, tripping over himself as he whizzes around the corner, the tails of his coat flapping behind him, his feet thumping down the hallway floors. Laurens races a few inches ahead of him. “John, please! Let me explain--” 

“Explain what?!” Laurens gasps, suddenly skidding to a stop as he whirls around on his heels to face Hamilton fully. His sky-blue eyes are wild, wide, his face flushed, his honey-blonde hair loose from its ponytail and disheveled, unshed tears shine in his eyes, dark circles appearing underneath his wide eyes. Hamilton freezes as he wonders when the last time Laurens had slept. “Explain what, Alexander?! Huh? Explain what?! There’s nothing that needs to be explained! Just...Just...” 

“John...” Hamilton says, his voice steady as he slowly walks up towards Laurens cautiously with both hands up. “Please...calm...calm down, my love.” 

“Calm down?!” Laurens shrieks. He laughs darkly. “You hear that?! He’s telling me to calm the bloody hell down! Ha ha! Good luck with that, Hammy!” 

Hamilton swallows as he keeps his features cool and collected, never taking his eyes off of Laurens. 

“John,” Hamilton says. “Please. I know you’re upset, and you have every right to be. But my darling, my Laurens, please...just let me explain.” 

Laurens considers this, frowning crossly as he crosses his arms over his chest once more. He decides to let Hamilton do so. Hamilton breathes out a sighs out a sigh of relief. 

“I love you,” Hamilton starts as he slowly inches his way towards Laurens. Laurens doesn’t inch back from him. “I love you more than my heart’s desire. You knew I had to marry eventually but this...this doesn’t change us. I love Betsey, yes. I love her so much. But I also love you. You both are the most important things in my life and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.” 

Laurens sniffs. “If you loved me, you wouldn’t have left me.” 

Hamilton shakes his head. “It was you who left me! You and your obsession about this black regiment you’re so obsessed about creating! You and your will, your recklessness in battle. Do you not think for a second about those you love? Those who are waiting for you at home?”

Laurens glances at him at this. He presses his lips together as he thinks about the times he and Hamilto had been seperated due to the war, thinks about the time in Brandywine, the time in German town, the time he left Hamilton for Charleston instead. He thinks about how much he needs Hamilton right now, how much Hamilton needs him. He thinks about the many times Laurens had left Hamilton with the pen back in their headquarters while Laurens on the field with the sword. He thinks about how terrified Hamilton must have been, how anxious he must have felt each day Laurens was off. Laurens clenches his jaw and swallows.

“Don’t be selifsh, John.” Hamilton hisses. 

“I’m not selfish!” Laurens barks. “I loved you first! Don’t you understand?! I loved you, Alexander! I loved you first!” 

“Yes, but that does not mean you own me, John!” Hamilton argues. 

“I didn’t say--” 

“Yes, yes you did!” Hamilton hisses. “What happened to you, Jack? Do you hear yourself? Do you even see yourself?! I mean look at you now! You’re starting to act like your father rather than a proper soldier!” 

Hamilton doesn’t know what happened. Next thing he knows, Hamilton is pinned agaisnt the wall with Laurens grabbing both of his lapels and shoving him up against the wall. Hamilton gasps sharply, shocked. Hamilton stares dwon at Laurens with his wide eyes, his face pale. 

“Don’t you ever compare me to that man, do you understand me?” Laurens hisses. “I am nothing like him.” 

Hamilton swallows and doesn’t move. Laurens comes back to his senses as he slowly realizes what he’s doing. He stares up into Hamilton’s fearful violet-blue eyes and releases him instantly. Laurens lets out a shaky breath, turning around so his back is facing Hamilton. Laurens slides his hand down his face, his skin dragging along with it. Laurens stifles a choked sob and sniffs, trying to control his breathing and pounding heart. 

Hamilton stays slumped on the ground for a few moments, before finally pushing himself up and walking towards him. Laurens glances down as he watches Hamilton walk around him until he’s face to face with his lover. Hamilton smiles gently as he cradles his hand against Laurens’s cheek, wiping the hot tears with the pad of his thumb. Hamilton steps closer until their chests are flushed against each other’s. Hamilton leans up, inclining his head as he slowly stands on his toes and kisses Laurens firmly on the lips. 

Laurens hisses sharply, his eyes snapping wide open as he stares down at Hamilton with shock, his arms hovered over him. Laurens grunts as Hamilton presses his lips harder, rougher. Laurens groans as he’s slammed into the bedroom door. He hisses as his head makes impact with the wood and grimaces. Hamilton growls as he moves his lips down Laurens’s neck and back up towards his jaw, 

“Alex...” Laurens gasps, gripping Hamilton’s shoulders for stability. 

“It has been too long,” Hamilton growls as he pulls back from the kiss. He fumbles for the doorknob behind Laurens and shoves him inside, using the heel of his boot to kick the door close. 

“Alex!” Laurens giggles, his voice muffled against Hamilton’s lips. 

Hamilton bares his teeth as he unties Laurens’s neck cloth and cravat, tossing them to the side. He lets his hand trail down Laurens’s bare neck as he presses wet kisses to the side of his neck. Hamilton grins when he hears Laurens breathes out hotly, his body shuddering agaisnt Hamilton’s touch. 

“Oh, Alex...” Laurens gasps. 

Laurens squeals suddenly as Hamilton pushes Laurens onto the bed, crawling on top of him as he quickly unties his own cravat and neck cloth and cravat and tosses it to the side. Laurens pushes himself up agaisnt the pillows with his elbows as he watches Hamilton with a devilish grin on his face shrug off his dark blue Continental coat and uniform. Hamilton huffs as he fumbles to unbutton Laurens’s waistcoat. It’s then Hamilton realizes Laurens wears civilian clothing. It’s the first time he’s seen Laurens in something other than military attire. 

Laurens chuckles darkly, almost breathelessly as he arches his back slightly so Hamilton could toss his upper clothes off to the side. Hamilton huffs as he stares down at what Hamilton thinks must be an angel. Laurens blinks as he waits for the next move. He shivers as Hamilton traces Laurens’s jawline before gripping it firmly. Laurens laughs as he watches Hamilton’s hand slide down his muscular chest and then back up. Hamilton hums as he situates himself into a more comfortable postion and grips Laurens’s shoulders. 

Hamilton leans down and captures Laurens’s lips. His hips moves against Laurens with each kiss Hamilton gives him. Hamilton slides his hands down Laurens’s musuclar biceps teasingly as he kisses Laurens hard until he’s forced to lay on the pillow, rather than sit up. Laurens groans agsainst Hamilton’s lips as he slides his hands up to cup Hamilton’s freckled cheeks. Hamilton pulls back slowly for a breath of air, resting his forehead agaisnt Laurens’s, their eyes closed as they both grin giddily, the tips of their noses nudging against the other. 

“Did you get enough love, my little dove?” Hamilton whispers agaisnt Laurens’s cheek. Laurens sniffs in response as he tries to relax. “Why do you cry?” 

“I missed you,” Laurens confesses as he opens his eyes to meet Hamilton’s. He smiles softly as Hamilton leans down for another kiss. He tucks a loose curl behind Hamilton’s ear. “And now you’re here...bringing a light into this house.” 

Hamilton sighs as he leans agaisnt Laurens’s touch, pressing a kiss to the inside of his palm, before flopping down next to him. Hamillton rests his elbow into the pillow, his jaw on his palm as he combs back a few strands of honey colored hair out of those rich blue eyes. 

“I missed you too, Jack,” Hamilton whispers as he presses a kiss to Laurens’s brow. “More than anything.” 

Laurens looks up, locking his eyes wiht Hamilton’s and resting his chin on Hamilton’s chest. 

“I love you,” Laurens confesses, making Hamilton’s heart lurch. 

Hamilton smiles as he engulfs Laurens, pulling him closer towards him, resting his cheek against his head. 

“I love you too, my darling,” Hamilton says, pressing another kiss to Laurens’s brow before resting his cheek upon Laurens’s head again, closing his eyes. 

Both of you. 

[rosesgonerogue]

How to be a Dad 101

Chapter Four - Villain AU

Jasonette July Day Five

Masterlist

“Marinette, Alya is here!” Sabine called up the stairs.

“Thanks Maman, I’ll see you later!” Marinette called back, launching herself down. Sure enough, her best friend was waiting for her at the bakery’s front door. “Nino isn’t with you?”

“He’s helping Chris get all of the kids settled, the sucker,” Alya said, though Marinette couldn’t tell which Lahiffe boy was being called the sucker.

“Are we sure that Chris can handle all the kids at once?” Marinette asked, admittedly nervous.

“No,” Alya said matter-of-factly. “But Nora is going to drop in on then to make sure everything is okay.”

“But are you sure? I just feel bad, you know Jules has been biting. Maybe I should—”

“If you were going to finish that sentence with ‘stay with the kids,’ I will strangle you, Marinette. I love you girl, but it has been three months since I’ve gone somewhere and not taken a diaper bag with me, and I know it’s been way longer than that for you. Give me tonight.”

“Okay, okay, I get it, Alya,” Marinette said, holding up her hands. “I will leave things in Chris’s questionable hands.”

Alya softened a bit. “Look, I get it. Next time we’ll try to plan for a day when Manon is available, she’s really good with the kids.

“Deal. So have we heard if everyone is going to make it tonight?”

“Almost everyone. Adrien and Kagami might be a little late? Rose has a fundraiser she has to be at tonight, but other than that I think we’re a go.”

“Wow, it’s been a long time since we’ve all been together like this,” Marinette said. “It’ll almost feel like old times.”

“It sounds like Max is finally letting us meet his wife. I think Kim has a running bet on whether or not she’s a robot.”

“Kim is still on that? He’s probably just jealous that Max beat him to getting married even though he hasn’t known Camille very long.”

“Hold up girl, you know Max’s wife’s name?” Alya demanded. “Spill.”

“It was nothing much, I only know her because I made her wedding dress,” Marinette said, pausing at the sidewalk corner. “Do we go left or right?”

“Right. But how did you not tell me this?” Alya demanded.

“Even though we’re school friends, I still have to maintain a certain level of professionality. I can’t go tell Paris’s most promising reporter about one of the world’s most promising computer programmers personal life. Besides, Max really wanted to surprise everyone,” Marinette said, smirking. “The dress was one of my finest creations yet.”

“Fine, I suppose I can’t compromise one of the world’s most promising young designers,” Alya huffed. “But she has good taste? This gets more mysterious by the moment.”

“So who picked the place this time? I know we’re trusting Chris with the kids, but you know how Kim gets when we go to his bar, and I don’t know if I trust Chris to watch them all night because we got a little tipsy or something.”

“Well, it is at Kim’s bar, but don’t worry, he’ll be too distracted by Max, so we won’t even be tempted by all of the free alcohol. Besides, you always seem like such a pro at resisting temptation.”

Getting to Kim’s bar didn’t take long, even on foot. Once there, a good portion of their high school class yelled greetings from the back of the bar.

“Alya, Marinette! Good to see you, but where’s Nino?” Kim asked, opening the door for them.

“He’s helping Chris get the kids situated, he’ll be here soon,” Alya said, hugging the muscular man. “Is Max here yet? I hear we get to meet the wife.”

“Yeah, she’s way out of his league,” Kim said, jabbing a thumb towards the corner of the bar.

As much as Marinette had complained, she couldn’t help but smile upon coming into the bar. Kim had fallen into the role of bartender easily, amusing his patrons with tales of akumas and the Miraculous team – although tales of King Monkey were definitely the most popular. It was a clean, warm space, decorated with murals and framed newspaper clippings about any akuma incidents involving their class.

“You must’ve been desperate if Chris is babysitting,” Adrien said, sidling up next to her. “Manon was busy?”

“She had a study group,” Marinette said, bumping his shoulder with hers. While she considered Alya her best friend, Adrien still was, and always would be her partner, the black cat to her ladybug. He knew her mind in ways that no one else ever could. “You caught me. So what do you think of Max’s wife? I think she’s absolutely adorable.”

“Marinette, you knew about Max’s wedding?” someone yelled, positively betrayed.

“I think it’s time for s to join the others, but for the record I completely agree with you.” Adrien offered her an arm to escort her to the rest of the group. “By the way, Kagami says hello.”

“How is pregnancy treating your lovely wife?”

“Oh, the normal. The cravings, the irrational anger, average pregnancy-type things. The last time I mentioned you she nearly skewered me with a fire poker and told me that if I spoke about any other woman that way she would kill me where I stood. After that she cried for a few minutes because she missed you.”

“It sounds like I need to pay her a visit,” Marinette said brightly.

“So we’re just ignoring the part where my life was in danger, typical. I should have known that you would side with her,” Adrien pouted.

“You can complain to me when you’ve been pregnant,” Marinette said, patting his cheek.

“I’d like to think I’m a fairly decent husband, so I would say I’m allowed to be a little offended by threats of homicide.”

“No, that’s just pregnancy,” Nino said, his version of a grand entrance. “The more violent they are means you’re taking good care of them.”

By this point they’d gotten to the larger group, and Max’s wife, Camille, a sweet, auburn-haired woman, brightened. “Marinette, it’s lovely to see you again!”

“Wait, you really did know about this too, Marinette?!” Kim demanded.

“Client confidentiality, Kim,” Marinette said with a wicked smile. “Rose can’t make it, so everyone is officially here, Camille.”

“Oh, perfect,” she said, clapping her hands. “Max and I have an announcement to make!”

“Don’t tell me you’re already having a kid!” Alix groaned. “All of you are making it even more sucky to be single right now.”

“We came to invite you to our wedding,” Max said, pushing up his glasses.

“Excuse me, what?” Chloe asked.

“What we did before was just a little ceremony in England for Camille’s parents. Did you guys really think I could get married without all of you?”

There were a few beats of silence before chaos erupted. Kim had Max in a headlock while at least three of the girls were asking Camille about wedding plans. Nearby Alix was still sulking about being single.

When everyone settled down, Mylene said, “We’re getting old, aren’t we?”

“I’m going to die alone,” Alix lamented.

“We’re still in our twenties,” Marinette reminded her. “We’ve got time.”

“But if you’re still single how do any of the rest of us stand a chance?” she demanded.

“Oh yeah. Sometimes I forget that Marinette is still single because of the whole…” he waved his hand, indicating things he couldn’t put words to, “… situation.”

“Exactly!” Alix spat. “She’s perfect, she makes a perfect mother, and she’s handling everything better alone than any of us can with a significant other! I’m doomed!”

“But Marinette is still looking, just like you, Alix,” Mylene pointed out. “She just did things a little out of order.”

“And I’m not perfect, I promise you,” Marinette said with the weariness that could only be a product of parenthood.

“Is Jules still in a biting phase?” Sabrina asked.

“Unfortunately yes,” Alya said with that same weariness.

“Since we’re on the topic, what was the baby daddy even like?” Kim asked. “We haven’t heard much about him, and from what little I’ve heard, I can’t help but picture him as one of those old cartoon villains twirling his mustache and preying on young girls.”

“Villain works. Although I would have called him a lying, scheming—” Adrien cut off, glancing at the young parents he was situated between, Marinette in particular was known for body-checking people if they used any sort of questionable language regardless of if there was a child present, “-scheming meanie pants,” he finished lamely.

“It’s okay, Adrien, this is a safe zone,” Alya said, patting his shoulder. “You can tell them that Jason is a bastard.”

Nathaniel inhaled sharply, choking on his drink. “Wow… I just… What would you say about him, Marinette?”

“I wouldn’t call him that,” Marinette said, ignoring Alya and Adrien’s protests. “Really, I had no misconceptions about the way things were. We never gave each other our numbers, or even our last names. Something bigger than both of us brought us together, and I don’t regret it. If I’m lucky, maybe it will bring us together once more.”

The class fell silent until Alix groaned once more, burying her head in her arms. “I’M GOING TO DIE ALONE!”

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Note: 

I thought this chapter would barely meet the word limit I’ve set for myself, but that was not a problem. If you want to be tagged, or if I forgot to tag you, just leave a comment below. Also just leave a comment below regardless, I’ve been helping my family move all week and I need something to keep me sane. In all reality, though, I write like this mainly to improve my skills as well as get feedback on them, so I appreciate any comment you send my way. 

This story is also really different from what I normally write. Despite the premise, it’s WAY more slice of life than I’ve ever done long-term like this, so I especially want to hear your reactions on this! 

[thorne93]

The Softest Fire (Part 3)

Prompt: Rosaline Vaughan had it all: fame, money, power, glory, a high status job. Until, one day, she woke up, and realized something was missing from her life.

Word Count: 2091

Warnings: dealing with animals(??), language

Notes: First Fantastic Beast fic! I could NOT have done this at all without @arrow-guy​​​. They have created a counterpart to this fic, writing it from Nora Vaughan’s perspective (Rosaline’s cousin/adopted sister). Fic aesthetic done by @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo​​​.

1921, that’s when I began my journey with Newt. Now it was 1925 and Newt had declared that he would be traveling alone for a year. Together, we’d amassed far too many creatures to keep safely together in the suitcase. They needed proper room to run and proper room for me to treat them. That’s when we expounded on his basement, creating small worlds, environments for the creatures to inhabit, at least until they were ready to be freed. 

Newt said he would take Frank to Arizona during one leg of his trip, making me ecstatic. I would be heartbroken, and miss him dearly, but ultimately, he deserved to be free and happy in the wild.

While he would be gone, it would be up to me to care and feed for the animals. Being that it was a full time job, Newt stated I would be allowed to stay at his flat, in case anything went wrong, I would be right there to tend to them. 

Before he shipped out though, we had four amazing years together. Oftentimes, I’d be at his home already tending to the creatures in the basement, feeding, washing, healing. He would be working upstairs, working on the book, or out at the library gathering information, or up at Diagon Alley purchasing books or things for travel. If I knew he was on his way home, I’d run up and make a quick meal or snack for him. Something he never asked for, in fact, he had no clue what it was the first time… 

“Rosaline!” he called downstairs.

“Yes?”

“Did you make something to eat?” he questioned, confused.

I jogged up the stairs, wearing trousers, of all things. I still felt foreign in these darn things but, Newt had insisted I wear something more proper to chase down critters in the wild. “What? Oh, yes, I did. Not for me though, for you,” I explained, gesturing to his small table. “Is that alright? It should still be warm,” I noted, rushing towards the plate and removing the aluminum foil. 

“No, no that’s fine. I just… didn’t know. This is… great. Thank you, I haven’t eaten all day.” He sat down, pulling up to the table and tucking a napkin in his collar. “Well, wait, what about you? Have you eaten?”

I waved him off. “No, no, but I’m fine.”

“What? Nonsense. It’s eight o’clock at night, and you haven’t eaten. Come, sit with me,” he encouraged, pushing a chair out next to him. 

“No that’s your dinner. That’s fine. I’ll be okay. Thank you though. I’ll go take care of the firedrake.” 

“Rosaline, don’t make me pull rank,” he slightly teased. “Please, some company would be nice.” 

I smiled gently at his kind request and finally acquiesced and sat beside him, grabbing a fork. “Alright, but only because you begged, remember that,” I joked. 

That night was a rather good indicator of how our nights went. I made him a small dinner or snack if he was out late, and he’d return to happily feast on it. Sometimes I joined him, sometimes I went home to my own flat, other times, he did the same. I would arrive in the morning and he already had coffee waiting for me on the table, made just the way I like. 

Life for us felt right this way. Taking care of each other, and the creatures. I hardly ever really missed the Ministry. On rough days with a wild animal, or days that we ran into trouble from other wizards, I longed to be back at my simple job, for a split second, but ultimately, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. 

Nora and Theseus popped in and out on the regular. Nora would come down and help me with feeding if I had a little too much on my plate or needed to take a second to tend to Newt’s dinner. Theseus and I sometimes shared a cup of tea, waiting for his brother to return home. In this time, I got to know him well, much better than at the Ministry. 

Learning how different the two brothers were was highly amusing to me. Newt was so much like Nora. Always up for adventure, never one to let anyone tell them what to do, never afraid to back down from a fight. They’ve always been brave, incredibly knowledgeable, always on a new book each week. Nora and Newt were both eclectic, going against the grain.

Theseus and myself seemed to share an interest in politics, current events, studying magic to its fullest extent, following rules, playing by the rulebook. Both of us calm, soft spoken, traditional. 

Today marked the day that Newt would set off for his voyage. One year, around the globe, without me. I was sad that I wouldn’t get to help him in his adventures, but we both knew and agreed I really needed to hold the fort down here. Nora promised to stop by at least twice a week to make sure the Kelpie we rescued hadn’t drowned me. Not that he would, he was a gentle giant, but anything could happen with these beasts. 

He was all packed and ready to go.

“Okay and you know the augurey has a wound on its head--”

“Yes,” I assured as Newt was backing towards the door with his suitcase. 

“And the thestral needs to be cleaned.”

I nodded. “Yes, I know. Every Friday.” 

“Yes and--”

“Newt!” I stopped him, soft pleading in my voice. “I can handle this, alright? I’ve spent the last few years with you, day in and day out with these animals. I think I know my way around. Everything will be fine, I promise.” 

He made an apologetic face and bobbed his head. “Yes, you’re right. I’m sorry I just--”

I nodded, quietly responding, “I know. It’s fine.”

A small smile came onto his face. 

“You better go before you miss the boat…”

“Right… Well… I’ll be off then…” 

The two of us stood there awkwardly for a moment. Newt went for a handshake, but I leaned in for a hug. Then we switched, pulling his hand back to go for a hug but I suddenly shot my hand out. The two of us were blushing messes by now. Typically, we only waved to each other at the end of a day or bid each other good night. But this was different… He would be gone for a year and I had no idea what dangers or issues he may face. He was a brilliant wizard of course, but it was in my nature to protect and lead. 

“Hug?” I questioned finally, wanting to be past this.

“Yes,” he agreed, laughing before we finally embraced properly for a few seconds. 

“Alright, better catch your boat now…” 

“Right… I’ll write you.”

“Yes, of course.” I nodded and he was finally out the door, on his way, taking with him my usual warmth and happiness. I heaved a sigh and turned around to head down to the basement for the morning feedings.

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

“He’s been gone five months, Nora,” I complained as I sat down one of the bowls on the table. She’d dropped by for lunch and I had been feeling pretty down lately and as soon as I saw her, for some odd reason, the floodgates that were my mouth opened. 

“Yes? Well he is on a year long journey, Rosaline, you know this.”

“I know, I know. But I haven’t heard from him in three weeks either,” I fretted before checking the gravy and then adding it to the table. 

“He might not have time. He is busy. He’s working. He may also be writing you when he gets the chance. Maybe mail is slow.”

I shot her a stern glance at her excuses. “Never this slow. Is he okay?” 

“Yes, of course, it’s Newt. He’s perfectly capable. Why are you so distressed?” she questioned, peering up at me before taking a sip of her tea. 

I sat across from her, now that lunch was fully prepared. “I--I don’t know. I just… Ever since he’s been gone I’ve been a ball of nerves, worrying. That’s just not like me…” 

"When did this worrying start?"

"The moment he left," I said, pulling my brows together.

"And how do you feel when he writes you?"

"Um, elated I suppose. I'm beyond happy to know he's okay and that he's doing what he loves and getting to gather more information for his book.... Why would I be anything but happy and excited?"

"Had you been working for, say... I don't know, Theseus. Would you have the same reaction? Would you still be just as excited to get his letters ?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "No, no... No... Theseus is fine and all but he and I aren't close like Newt and I are."

She let a chuckle escape her lips. "Sounds to me as if you've caught a love bug, sweetheart."

I gasped, shocked. "Newt? Newton Scamander? No... Haha.... No. That's ridiculous. He's my boss, Nora!"

"You've spent practically every day of your life over the past five years with him, watching him treat those animals like his children. He's gentle and kind. I can't blame you for falling for him."

"Nora, this is preposterous. You and I both know men have never, ever been on my list of things to concern myself with. Why, out of all people, would I be falling for Newt Scamander?"

"Just because it's never been at the top of your list of concerns doesn't mean you weren't falling for him. You find what you want or need most when you're not looking, Rosaline."

"You're a sap."

"And you're oblivious."

"Nora, please. Can you honestly see me loving him? You were his assistant before I was, does that mean you're in love with him?" I accused, pointing at her.

"Can't say it does. Mind you, he's nearly eight years younger than me, and I never spent as much time with him as you did." She raised her eyebrows at me. "And if I'm remembering correctly, you had a soft spot for him while you were in school."

I screwed my mouth to the side, becoming defensive. "That was merely a reaction to the injustice that occurred with Leta Lestrange. If it were anyone else I would've done the same thing. He was an excellent student and classmate. He never caused any issues. He's sweet....”"

She leaned forward, a mischievous look on her face. "He's sweet, and...?"

"And what?" I snapped playfully, getting up to refill her tea and do anything to avoid addressing this.

"You're arse over tits for him, dear cousin. No shame in it!"

I nearly dropped the teapot I was holding at her words. "Eleanore Vaughan!" I gasped.

She cackled, throwing her head back. "Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. You know your secret is safe with me."

"You think just because I miss my boss and I eagerly await his return, and I can't help but think of him all the time, and yes he may possess all the qualities of a husband, if I ever desired one, and he's funny and kind and talented -- " I stopped and glared at her.

Grinning and wiggling her eyebrows at me, she leaned back in her seat. "Need I say more?"

"Okay... Then what do I do with this information?" I questioned uneasily sitting down. "I've never... you know... "

"If you want to tell him, do it. If you don't, I'll support you either way."

I stared at her, my mouth open. "That's it? That's your grand advice? Where is your gusto when I need it?"

"You think I have any kind of experience here that I can apply? My longest relationship has been with the kneazle that wandered into my shop one day and didn't leave."

I couldn’t help but burst out laughing. "Yes but... how do I even go about this? I can't just blurt out my feelings, can I? Isn't that a little... faux pas?"

"How would you normally bring up something important with him?"

"Approach him in between tending to the animals. Just... say 'Newt, I need to discuss something with you'."

"Then do that. If it doesn't work out, then wait till the time feels right and tell him."

"You make it sound easy," I muttered.

"But I never said it would be."

I sighed. "I suppose I have news then, when he returns home."

She grinned. "Perhaps you do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[razorblade180]

Duality

“I.... am not okay. Haven’t been since I was six, but even then, I was a pretty weak child. I’m quick to tears, quick to give up, and to give in. No matter how talented people may say I am it still feels like I’m coming up short. Short, another thing that gets to me. I might as well be the runt of everything; the weakest link in any chain. Just a bit a of tension before pop, severed and left falling to the floor with whoever was unfortunate to still be attached with me. At least they can still connect to something while I’ll be left broken. Maybe... that wouldn’t be the worst? I could save everyone the trouble of being latched to me if I just- no, wait, shit.... Can’t think like that. Dr. P went over this with you. Focus on the good and good will focus on you. But what is so good about being me? Well, a lot actually when I think about it. My folks love me unconditionally. My best friend adores me; even strangers adore me. Some of them would say that their even proud of me. Though I can’t imagine why. Does simply being their daughter earn my that praise or is it genuine? They all do so much more; my brother does his absolute most. It’s frustrating. Why can’t I do that? Why can’t I stand by him? Be the one in front of him for a change!? Is that so much to ask; to just feel like I’m pulling my weight with my own two hands for once in my life? Why isn’t he the runt? The one that got- that’s horrible of me. Disgusting of me; I don’t mean that at all. I’d never wish for such a thing, yet....I crossed my mind? I wouldn’t think that. He’s my big brother, I love him. He’s always there, always.... Why the hell is he always there? Why is everyone always there!? Don’t they know I can do things on my own? Is their faith that tiny? Agh, what am I saying; they do it out of love. It’s always been love. But it doesn’t make it feel any better! It never did. All it does is prove how weak I really am. Huh, this was supposed to be a list of good things....”

“I need a stage. Any stage really. A place where I decide who gets to join me or stand on the sidelines. Either way, the focus is on me. They all came to see me and make them happy. No sweat. Metaphorically anyways. I’ll make sure my performance heats up their excitement every time. Spotlights? On me. Their eyes? On me. My voice? It’s still mine. They simply get the chance to revel in it. Here, nothing else matters but me. I call the shots. I rule like queen. Powerful and radiant. It’s tiring work. Scary at times, but I love that thrill. Out there, no one can touch me; she can’t touch me. My only wish...is to take all this power, then step off the stage. Maybe then the dark thoughts can go away. I wouldn’t be afraid of what is yet to come. Everyday I can feel it. I’m running out of time. Will they notice? The ones closet will, I hope. The others might not even blink an eye. I sure wouldn’t. Still, I won’t go quietly. They might not notice me. Not who I really am anyways, but they’ll notice the absence of what I gave them. My gift to the world they cherish so dearly. Petty I know, but who are they to complain? If they miss it so much then they’ll seek me out right? Sounds nice, a stranger reaching for me. Funny, I preach about independence but fantasy seeing them all chase after me. I guess....I actually don’t know what I want from people. All I know is I wanna shine all the time. On and off the stage.”

Announcer:Ladies and Gentlemen, Summer Schnee!!’

Curtains rise and spotlights beam down on her as she walks across the stage. The cheering roar of a full stadium of fans hits her ears all at once; she loves it. Her gaze is directed towards an aerial camera which is no doubt getting dynamic shots of the long and beautiful black dress she wore that sparked red flakes like a kindling campfire.

“Hello everyone!” The girl said proudly as she greeted her audience with an award winning smile. She could hear the plethora of greetings she was getting back one after another. Summer took the microphone off the stand and started pacing left and right playfully as she looked at all the excitement.

Summer:Well well well, quite the turnout. Feels like I’m performing at a halftime show. Everyone feeling good this winter break?

The crowd screams happily; completely invigorated.

Summer:That’s good, me too. Been training with my brother for obvious reasons. He’s in the theater box with the rest of my family by the way. Can we get a camera on them?

One of the stadium monitors flip to the inside of the theater box to show the Schnee family and friends all dressed up. From Ruby all the way to Veronica; they were all there waving.

Summer:Most of them are responsible for setting this up since I’ve been a bit preoccupied. I’m thankful. Unfortunately....I still have forgotten to do something very important before the show. *smirking*

Scattered murmurs came from the crowd. As well as a few puzzled looks from her family.

Penny:What’s she doing?

Weiss:I have no clue.

Oscar:Owning it.

Jaune:Being extra like her mom.

Weiss:What’s that mean!?

Summer:You see, I sorta of couldn’t find the time to do my favorite vocal exercises; the most important one I usually do by myself. However.... since all of you look so excited to be here. I can make an exception.

Summer snaps her fingers and all the lights shut off. Everyone goes silent; wondering what was happening only added to the anticipation. They didn’t have to wait long before the sound of a piano filled the air; accompanied by an angelic voice that sung on key with it like if it was the opera. Weiss’s eyes went as wide as dinner plates when a single spot light came back on. Summer was sitting on top of the edge of a piano while someone played it. She looked calm; radiant.

Summer:Mirrior, tell me something? Tell me who’s the loneliest of all~

Weiss:W...when did she...?

More spotlights turn on to reveal the rest of the orchestra as they start to play.

Summer: Mirror, tell me something? Tell me who's the loneliest of all? Mirror, what's inside of me? Tell me can a heart be turned to stone~

Her voice held the note with a force and power. As the piano started it’s solo. No one could speak; they didn’t even seem to breathe. Summer’s voice didn’t try to intimate her mother’s in terms of pitch. She knew it would be foolish. Yet it more than made up for it with how much soul and air she could put into each not. Something even Weiss struggled with. Summer was however, she was about to show everyone exactly how she rose to stardom.

She hopped off the piano and made her way to the front of the stage with the microphone at her side. The average person would think she’s facing the entire crowd. No, she’s looking right where she knows her mom is sitting. The crowd doesn’t matter. Right now, it’s a family affair. Summer slowly inhales as the piano solo starts to end. Her left hand raises to her chest and extends her right one out with the mic. Almost as if she’s reaching for Weiss to grab it. Then....she turns it off.

Without hesitation, Summer begans her part again; and let’s out the famous angelic cry the song is known for. Every ear is reached perfectly as Summer evenly expels every last ounce of air from her lungs out on time. Her chest feels like fire and she’s tearing up. Not from pain though, but from absolute pride. Her mother might be hard to see from this distance but she already knows that Weiss is feeling the exact same thing. The strings start to kick in as the music becomes dynamic. Summer doesn’t miss the beat. Raises her voice along with it as the note climbs before the second half. She flips back on the microphone; never breaking eye contact from Weiss.

Summer: Mirror, mirror, what's behind you?Save me from the things I've seen!

I can keep it from the world; why won't you let me hide from me?

Mirror, mirror, tell me something? Who's the loneliest of, Aaaaaaallllll~

She holds it as the tempo increases faster and faster with the strings building up. Before all instruments stop abruptly as her note trails off; their spotlights vanishing with them and leaving her alone. The crowd is speechless as they look upon her. Not a hair out of place. It barely looks like she needs to catch her as she stare back. Her face glistening with a little sweat. The hard part was over. Her voice returning to the calm an pure way she started with. Summer closed her eyes.

Summer:I'm the loneliest of, all~

She could feel less heat on her. The spotlight had slowly turned off as she finished ilthe beloved song. Summer didn’t need to see the crowds reaction. The slow building of cheers and clapping was enough. Still, she opened her eyes while finally taking an actual breather. What she saw was something rare indeed. Summer had gotten a standing ovation. Even from her family; Veronica herself looked amazed. They all clapped. All except for Weiss. She was too busy crying tears of joy and trying to keep herself together by hugging Jaune. That alone was worth it.

Penny:Sensational!!!!

Nora:Damn...

Ruby:Woah....

Ren:That’s a warm up?

Winter:*sniffling* I’m not gonna cry.

Whitley:Yes you are.

Qrow:Cry? What are you talking about? It’s just smoky in here. *winks*

Winter:*crying* Exactly!

Jaune:Sweetie we are still on the monitor by the way.

Weiss:I don’t care!? Let the world see me proud of my girl! Gods I need a tissue. She was so good! So...so everything and more! I had no idea she practiced that song. Let alone made it her own!

Nicholas:I don’t know how. Those high notes aren’t exactly you know, quiet? I heard her practice once though. Summer does a good job keeping secrets.

Yang:Looks like talent runs deep in the family. What do you think Vee?

Veronica:Doesn’t matter what I think.

Valerie:Just admit that you are amazed?

Veronica:I thought that was clear from my clapping?

Blake:That’s all you’re getting out of her.

The crowd still cheered which was fine by Summer. Someone backstage was kind enough to give her some water as musicians left the stage and came back with the standard instruments for Summer’s typical style of music. One put a guitar around her as she finally perked up.

Summer:Phew! Thank you, thank you all so much. I gotta say, probably my best vocal exercise but that’s just me. Now....who’s ready for something with a bit more energy!?

The crowd doesn’t even get a chance to respond before Summer starts going all in on the guitar. It’s not like she didn’t already know what their answer. That’s what happens when you know your loyal subjects after all. In this moment, she truly controlled everything. It won’t last forever. So she’ll make the most of it. Summer will reign the way she wants with no restraint.

“That’s right. See me in my element; my finest hours. Cling to them. Who knows how many day I have left, before my reign comes to an end. My only wish? That the throne remains empty. Gods help them all otherwise.”

[stupidoafofspades]

It’s been a while since it was just the two of us, hasn’t it?

Fandom: Ikemen Vampire Pairing: Le Comte de Saint-Germain x Evelyn ( @xathia-89​‘s OC) Words: 2572 Warnings: NSFW, Daddy kink Notes: I wrote this fic for @xathia-89​ as part of a Christmas exchange we did. It contains a bunch of OC’s we RP with on the daily and their backstory. Check out Xathia’s fics for more on them ^-^

“You are going, raring, and that’s that,” my husband Erik said sternly as he softly bounced Élise in his arms. We were enjoying some family time in the heavily decorated parlor of the mansion when he suddenly told me that he is going to babysit our two newborn daughters for the weekend. It would allow for my soon-to-be-other-husband Le Comte de Saint-Germain and me to get away from the mansion for a bit. 

“It’ll be good for you to get some rest, ma chérie,” Comte said from one of the sitting chairs next to the Christmas tree. I walked over to him and grabbed Alexa from his arms when she started to fuss, sitting down in a chair next to him. I pulled up my maternity top, letting Alexa latch on. 

“What if the girls need me? If something goes wrong? Fuck knows if we can come back in time...” I protested. To be completely honest, I didn’t know why I was putting up a fight. A night away from the mansion sounded really good and on top of that, I knew the two men wouldn’t have any of it. But I couldn’t possibly leave my daughters behind just like that, right? With everything I’ve been through and setting up the shelter, I was determined to be the best parent I could be. Now if only someone could please tell me how to do that, that’d be great. I had to admit that Erik was terrific with the girls though. He had spent a lot of time around his sister’s children and honestly, it kind of scares me how natural it comes to him. So I knew full well that they would be just fine with him for one night. 

“I prepared a small cabin in the woods outside of Paris just for you. It’s not too far away from the mansion, and it has a stone with an Ansuz rune just like the one here.” The familiar voice of a certain red-haired trickster sounded through the room as he entered the parlor with his fiancée and personal baker Nora as he pointed towards the runestone on top of the fireplace. “So you can always call me in emergencies.” 

“And we’ll be spending a lot of time baking Christmas goodies for all the residents this weekend, so Erik isn’t alone to babysit the girls,” Nora explained smiling brightly, placing one of her cakes on the table. 

“Consider it an early Christmas present from us all. Now, be a good girl and go pack your bag,” Erik ordered, walking up to me and hooking a finger under my chin to force my gaze to meet his. When I looked him in the eye, I knew it was no use trying to argue any longer. I looked down at Alexa, who had fallen asleep while feeding and I sighed. 

“Your daddies can be so persistent,” I complained to her as I got up, fixed my shirt and walked over to tuck the sleeping babe into Erik’s arms. “I’ll be right back then,” I announced before stomping off to our room, grabbing a slice of Nora’s cake for the road. 

“You better make sure my children are alive when I get back, you damn Viking,” I grumbled when I got back to the parlor, dropping my overnight bag on top of Comte’s.

“Yeah yeah. Go on now, mommy, daddy, a carriage is waiting outside,” Erik teased as he kissed both Comte and me goodbye. Comte grabbed our bags and strode out of the parlor, his cloak fluttering behind him. I kissed little Alexa and Elise goodbye, promising them I would be back soon, and took off after Comte. Before we could get far, I heard footsteps running after us in the corridor. I turned around only to find a snickering Logi. 

“Fess up, trickster. What did you do?” I snarled, knowing he was up to no good. 

“I just wanted to let you know that there’s no electricity in the cabin,” Logi said plainly, winking and shrugging before he turned around and walked back to the parlor. 

The carriage ride took a while, and the sun was already setting when we arrived at the small cabin Logi had crafted. I think I spent about 90% of that time on cursing Logi and his trickster ways. 

“Not to worry, chérie. I brought a basket full of food and drinks, and I’m sure there will be candles and wood to start a fire. Or I’m sure we can find other ways to keep warm,” Comte said as we walked up to the cabin. Once we had sat our bags down, I went outside to lean over the fence around the deck. Comte stood next to me, his arm on my back. We enjoyed a tender silence together as we looked out, the nature calm and peaceful before us. 

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve been somewhere this quiet. I feel like there’s always someone talking in the mansion,” Comte murmured. I looked over to inspect his expression. He sounded happier than he looked. 

“Yeah. Especially with the girls around. Can you believe it? We’re parents now!” I beamed, leaning into his side.  

“It’s surreal, but I wouldn’t want to take this journey with anyone else,” he said, smiling. He pressed a kiss on my green hair, before turning around to go back inside. “It’s getting cold and dark. I’ll lay unpack the food, open a bottle of wine and find the candles.” 

“Food, wine and candles: you are spoiling me more than usual, Daddy,” I teased, knowing that he loves it when I call him that. My grin almost reached my ears when I walked back inside right after him. 

“You know it’s dangerous to call me that,” he warned. “And you know Logi said to be careful.” 

“I know, I know,” I whined, flopping down on the small sofa in the front room of the cabin. “But it’s been weeks since I gave birth and I really want a cock in my pussy or ass.” 

“Really now.” He chuckled. “We haven’t even eaten yet.” He came over with a platter of cheeses and meats in one hand and an opened bottle of expensive red wine and two glasses in the other. He filled both our glasses and handed one to me. 

“You really know how to treat a woman like she’s the most special girl in the whole world,” I said, complimenting him. I couldn’t help but feel spoiled as we got to spend all this time alone together: enjoying each other’s company, eating delicious food and drinking good wine. 

“Santé, ma chérie,” he said, smiling and holding out his glass, waiting for me to finish the toast. We sipped our wine in quiet. I tried to focus and enjoy the taste of it, but I just couldn’t stop thinking about the handsome pureblood next of me and the things I wanted him to do to me. When I looked over, I found two gleaming golden pools staring back at me. “Is it good?” he asked, a smirk teasing around his delicious lips. He knew how I could wind myself up, how him just being there could make me go crazy for him. I rubbed my thighs together as I turned to face him. 

“I think it would taste better coming from your mouth, Daddy,” I said in a sultry tone, my voice dropping at the end. 

“I warned you it’s dangerous to call me that,” he muttered as he took a sip without swallowing the wine and leaned over. He cupped the back of my neck and pressed his lips on mine, pushing the red liquid into my mouth. I eagerly drank it before kissing him back, our tongues intertwining. I shifted in my seat to be able to reach him better but immediately regretted doing so as a twinge of pain surged through my body, reminding me how it hasn’t been long since I’ve given birth to twins. I sighed defeatedly, realising it would take a while before things were back to normal. Comte smiled down at me reassuringly. 

“Let’s be extra careful, okay?” he suggested, his voice gentle. “I love you, Evelyn.”

“I love you too,” I replied, my heart suddenly overflowing with love for the man in front of me. He smiled, moving his hands to be around my shoulder and under my knees so he could carry me to the bedroom. He lay me down gently before taking off his overcoat and crawling next to me. He reached out and cradled my cheek in his warm hand, gently stroking it with his thumb. I peered into his eyes, admiring his handsome face as I brushed the iconic strand of hair behind his ear. His hand then slid down from my cheek, his long, elegant fingers carding through my hair as he cradled the back of my head. 

“I don’t think I could find a more beautiful woman even if I searched the world over,” he muttered, and I melted in his arms. It was strange, I usually have the tendency to act bratty, and I at least have something to say. But at this moment I found myself lost for words. I reached out and started to unbutton his shirt, intent on showing him how I feel with actions instead of telling him with words. We quickly undressed each other, kissing and caressing every part of each other’s body. Comte climbed on top of me and pinned both my hands above my head with only one of his.

“Be a good girl for Daddy and let me do all the work, yeah?” He looked me straight in the eyes with his golden ones as he murmured his command. I could only respond with a fervent nod as I rubbed my thighs together, feeling my clit throb with need. He ran his free hand over my entire body and landed at my waiting nub, his teasing finger drawing circles around it. My body instantly responded as my breath hitched, and a lewd moan escaped my mouth. 

His finger spread around my essence, lubing my folds generously to make sure I wouldn’t hurt. He lined up his cock with my entrance and pushed it inside very carefully as his fingers finally found my nub. Our moans sounded through the room in harmony as he slowly filled me up. I only felt a tiny sting of pain before my body adjusted to his familiar size.

“You okay?” he asked sweetly, his movements still very careful and loving. 

“Perfectly fine,” I answered, the words no more than a breathy whisper. He gently smiled as he began a slow pace, his eyes never leaving mine. I was hyper-aware of everything I felt inside, the outside world quickly fading away until all that was left was me and him and our tender lovemaking. We had done this before - many times - but there was something about today that was different. I felt so close to him; not only in the physical sense. 

He bucked his hips faster, quickening his pace. Quiet moans turned into loud gasps and grunts, the sound of wet skin slapping against wet skin filling the room. I felt the coil deep inside tighten as he kept hitting that one spot over and over again. His fingers kept rubbing down on my nub, sending even more waves of pleasure surging through my whole body. I angled my hips for more stimulation, chasing my release. 

Comte pulled his forehead into mine, and we locked eyes once more. A moan ripped through my throat as my walls tightened around him, warning him that I was close. His head dove down, and I yelped loudly as his fangs pierced through the skin of my neck, triggering my orgasm instantly. I bit him in his shoulder in return, drinking his blood greedily while I bucked my hips against him to ride out my orgasm. He groaned my name against my neck as I felt his cock throb inside of me. He shuddered a few times, lazily thrusting into me even afterwards before pulling us into a more comfortable position under the blankets.

“It’s been a while since it was just the two of us, hasn’t it?” I murmured as I was coming down from that sweet high after an orgasm and a bite. Comte flopped down next to me and pulled me closer, big spooning me. I closed my eyes and savoured his warmth as it enveloped me. 

“Yeah. The last time must have been before you and Erik announced you wanted to be exclusive.” He sighed. “That was the second time I felt a massive twinge in my heart.” 

“The second time?” 

“Yeah, the first time was when I heard you exchanging vows with Erik and saw him sliding a ring onto your finger in Florence. But that is nothing but a distant memory now,” he reminisced, “I’m so happy things worked out the way they did.”

“Me too. I don’t think I’ve been this happy and at peace in… well, ever.” I admitted. It indeed took a while for us to figure out an arrangement that worked for all of us. I married Erik in Florence to get out of a forced marriage to Leonardo, arranged by the Da Vinci family. Not that it had changed anything; Both Erik and I had our own thing going and didn’t want to be tied down to one person or place. I remember telling Arthur that “like hell if I’m suddenly going celibate for the unknown amounts of time Erik will be gone”. This worked until things between Erik and me got tense after I fell pregnant with Comte’s children. We ended up trying to be exclusive for a while, but that didn’t last long. Then Comte proposed to me and I accepted. We agreed that I would be married to both men and they expressed not have interest in a physical relationship with each other. But things started to blossom between the two purebloods during our many sexual escapades. 

“Remember how baffled you were when Erik and I proposed to each other, in the kitchen of the mansion?” Comte asked and chuckled.  

“Oh god,” I exclaimed, turning around in his arms with a big grin on my face as I thought back on the memory, “I was so focused on getting my cake and then you two started kissing right in front of my face. I didn’t believe my eyes. Didn’t I throw a cup at Logi?” I remembered the trickster just having walked in as Comte and Erik were kissing. He joined me in my disbelief of the whole situation and announced that he would be resigning as the resident maid and doctor of the so-called ‘haunted mansion’. As for me, it felt like my dream had come true right in front of my eyes. 

“You sure did,” he murmured. 

“Hmm, I can’t wait to marry you both. Let’s start planning the wedding when we get back to the mansion, okay?” 

“Excellent plan. Now sleep, chérie, it’s past your bedtime,” he joked. 

“Yes, Daddy,” I replied with a chuckle. I rested my head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat, feeling grateful for this getaway but also excited to get back to Erik and the girls. I sighed happily and fell into a deep, deep sleep.

[sassycassie-s-series]

All My Fault 34

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC, BatFam - Damian Wayne/Batman

Rating: PG-11/T- (for violence)

Notes: (Masterlist) At some point I don’t think I’ll be able to link all the chapters because Tumblr hates me. Anyway, I’m rising from the void because quarantine. Enjoy!

Tag List (Open): @batboys-and-other-messes @welovegroot @probsjosh  @spooder-moon​ @lostredrobin @haylo4ever @na-n-na @rachelmorganroth  @reclusive-chicken-nugget​

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17, Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27, Ch 28, Ch 29, Ch 30, Ch 31, Ch 32, Ch 33

^^^^^

I sat on the stairs in the foyer, idly browsing my social media feeds like it was the morning paper—my Cloudburst account was always hopping—and waiting for Bruce to come home. Jon’s Superboy account was logged into finally and he was responding to every Tweet I’d made as Cloudburst, apologizing for not getting on and seeing earlier. Remarking it was nice to see me again after so long. I was smiling at his definite overuse of excited emojis but he was a sweet kid.

The front door opened.

Bruce and Alfred both came in.

I jumped up immediately. “Hi!” I greeted.

“Morning Nora,” Bruce said, sounding like he hadn’t had any coffee yet.

“Good morning, Miss McCloud,” Alfred agreed as I rushed across the foyer to hug them both.

“Morning,” I replied. I dropped onto my heels after tilting up onto my tiptoes to hug Bruce since he was so tall. “How was Metropolis?”

Bruce shrugged. “Hm. Boring,” he said.

I nodded. “I see. Y’know, I'm surprised Clark didn’t come keep an eye on us while you were gone,” I joked.

“Who says he didn’t?” Bruce mumbled, heading straight for the kitchen.

Well, crap. Hopefully Clark didn’t see anything between me and Damian if he did keep an eye on us and report it to Bruce before I could say anything.

“Huh. Fair point,” I relented. “Hey, listen, Bruce? Can we talk?”

“Those words are never followed by good news,” Bruce said, looking grumpy, as he found the half-emptied coffee pot and a mug.

I rolled my eyes. “No. ‘We need to talk’ is never followed by good news. I asked if we can talk and I was careful to phrase it that way,” I retorted. Bruce eyed me irritably over the top of his mug as he took a long drink.

“Okay. Talk,” he said after he swallowed.

I shook my hair out of my face and pushed some of it behind my ear. “Welp, long story short I don’t want to go back to the past, anymore,” I said.

Bruce coughed on his next gulp. “What?” he asked.

I was half-tempted to pull a cranky teenager and say, “You heard me!” but I didn’t. Instead I just shrugged. “I don’t want to go back to the past anymore. I know we still need to close the Time Bombs case and reopen the timeways but once they’re opened I still wanna stay here,” I said. Bruce lowered his eyebrows.

“Why?”

“There are a couple reasons,” I said, trying my best to maintain my cool as my ears grew warm. I covered them with my hair as subtly as I could. Messing with my hair was a quirk of mine so I doubted Bruce would even notice. “One of them is… I think my disappearance is, like, a fixed point in the timeline. Kinda like how in every timeline where Jason meets you as Batman, he ends up dying. Like if I went back to that Time Bomb attack eight years ago, I’d go missing some other way. Maybe then I’d never return.”

“And the other reasons?”

“I don’t want to go back and screw up this future now because messing with time scares me and I don’t know what would happen to you guys,” I continued. Bruce started taking another drink. I waited till he swallowed to continue. “And, lastly, there’s no two ways about it: I’ve fallen in love with Damian and I don’t want to leave him.” I rushed out the last part so it ended up sounding more like, “I’vefallenlovewiDamiananIdonwannaleaveim.”

Bruce had to just stare at me for several long moments while he figured out and processed what I said. During the silent moments I felt my heart rate rising and my hands start sweating nervously.

Once he understood what I said, the staring continued. But this time with raised eyebrows as he figured out what to say.

Finally, he seemed to gather his thoughts. “You’ve… fallen in love… with Damian,” he said.

“Yes,” I said plainly. I kept my sass out of my tone because I didn’t want to provoke him into a parental freak-out and/or a Batdad lecture.

“What?!” he demanded. “When did this happen?”

“Relatively recently,” I answered. “While you were gone.”

“Nora, don’t you think you’re jumping into that lake a little too fast?” he asked.

“B, there’s been attraction between he and I since I got here,” I said. “We just kept staring and sharing these moments of profound closeness and then fighting the feeling that we wanted to be together and I just… I can’t do it anymore.”

“Does he know?”

“I should hope so. The kiss was mutual,” I said, purposely leaving out everything else that happened between his son and me. Ease him into it.

“Oh so you kissed,” he stated.

“Mmhmm,” I said.

There was a pause.

“Are you mad?” I asked finally.

Bruce regarded me for another moment while I twisted a piece of my hair nervously around my fingers. He took a deep breath, set his coffee down, and sighed. “No,” he decided on. “I'm not angry.”

I wondered if I was supposed to ask what he was feeling about the idea of me and Damian dating. Or if he was feeling anything. I wondered if I even wanted to know.

Ultimately, I decided not to say anything. If Bruce wanted to say more, he would.

He took another long drink of his coffee—finishing his mug before pouring himself another one. I picked at the scabs on my knuckles while leaning against the kitchen counter and waiting for him to say something else—to express his approval or disapproval. I licked my lower lip and chewed on it with a crease between my eyebrows.

“Nora, relax,” Bruce said after a moment.

“I…” I said before just trailing off and trying to smooth out my face.

When that didn’t work, Bruce just sighed. “I'm going to go have a word with my son,” he said, taking his coffee with him.

I caught his elbow. “Don’t yell at him, please. We both… we both want this.”

Bruce just set his free hand on the top of my head. “I'm not going to yell, princess,” he said affectionately.

“Promise?” I pressed.

Bruce ruffled my hair. “I promise,” he said before leaving.

I peeled a scab off my knuckles completely—making it bleed again—and headed for the Batcave.

^^^^^

“Madam, we know it worked,” a man at the table said. “Access to the time-stream has been completely locked down. No one can travel through time except at the normal rate. What more is there to fear?”

The shadowy figure at the head of the table sighed. “Two of the missing from the initial attacks eight years ago returned after the secondary attacks now. Nora McCloud and that vigilante. Stormy or whatever her name is. The short one with the blue accents that isn’t Nightwing. There is no guarantee that the others who went missing aren’t also going to return. The Flash. Impulse. Kid Flash. If the speedsters were to come back, time travel would open up again, meaning the changes we made could be undone.”

“So what do we do?” a councilor asked.

“We capture the vigilante. See what she knows. If she’s found out why we went back to the past, we wipe her memory or take her out.”

“And the McCloud girl? She was the daughter of—”

“We can’t touch her,” the woman at the head of the table snapped. “She is practically the Princess of Gotham. We get close to her and Brucie Wayne will find a way to tear us apart. Besides, she doesn’t know anything about the purpose behind the attacks. If she did, the press would have blown that story waaay up before we could stop her. As it is, they’re too busy debating whether or not she’s dating her foster brother—meaning Little Miss McCloud has no idea.”

“Are you sure about that, ma’am? I just want—”

“Silence! I have spoken to her myself. She knows nothing. We don’t need the fire of that pathetic playboy Bruce Wayne burning under us. Everyone in the city knows how overprotective he is of those kids he takes in.”

“Yes ma’am. Apologies.”

“And if Princess McCloud did know something, she would have told me.” The woman leaned forward, revealing her face in the light. “She doesn’t keep secrets from the people she trusts.”

^^^^^

Damian leaned against the table I was sitting at in the Batcave. “Did he yell at you?” I asked, not looking up.

He chuckled quietly. “No. However he did inform me that he promised you he wouldn’t yell at me. Father is not often in the business of making promises—especially ones he cannot keep. Unless those promises are to his girls. Grayson was right the night you arrived here with me. Father likes his girls more than his boys. He may love us all the same but he likes his girls better.”

I snorted and rolled my eyes. “So what did he say to you?”

Damian pushed off the table to find another chair. He sat down near me and took my hand. “He told me you told him how we feel about each other that we wanted to be together. He said he didn’t know what to think or feel about it. We both know it is not his decision on whether or not we choose to pursue a relationship, but I believe his approval and acceptance would be beneficial to both of us. I, for one, would feel guilty attempting to pursue you without his acceptance and I believe you would feel similarly. Though, please correct me if I'm wrong.”

“You’re not,” I said. He rarely was wrong. “I would feel terrible trying to be with you if I knew Bruce really disapproved. He’s like a second father to me and I’ve been trying for years to make sure I make him proud and do right by everything he’s ever done for me.”

Damian sucked the backs of his front teeth. “Tt. I understand and agree.”

Someone cleared their throat nearby. I jumped with a yelp. Damian wasn’t so easily startled and turned in the direction of the noise.

Bruce stood there, barely out of the shadows, arms folded over his chest and watching us.

Dang it, I thought. OG Bats definitely hasn’t lost his stealthy touch.

“Hooowww… how long have you been standing there?” I asked awkwardly, picking at another scab on my knuckles as anxiety took over again.

“Long enough,” Bruce grunted. He pulled a chair over and sat so the three of us formed a loose scalene triangle—none of the distances between us equal. He leaned forward and braced his elbows on his knees, hands hanging in empty space between them. “Kids, you two have grown up into mature, responsible young adults. I don’t say it enough, but I am proud of you. Both of you. And… if I seem…” He scrunched his eyebrows, searching for the right words. “Hrn. Hesitant. It’s because you’re my kids. And… and I want you to be happy but…”

“Not with each other?” Damian challenged, eyes narrowing slightly.

Bruce closed his eyes and sighed, reaching one hand up and pinching the bridge of his nose—something Damian had picked up from him, by the looks of it. “That’s not what I meant, son,” he said. “It’s not that I don’t approve. It’s just—”

OOOOOWOP! OOOOOWOP! OOOOOWOP! OOOOOWOP!

A siren started blaring through the cave. “What the heck is that?” I demanded.

—

Next (coming soonish)

[cianmars]

Step Robin Series: The Heir. AO3

Robin is married to the cold hearted Queen Ruth, but is biding his time to kill her and David, who told Robin's father of his relationship with Marian, getting Marian killed.

When David becomes ill, his mother banishes him to his tower so he won't be near anyone else, Robin can't help but take pity on him and reluctantly takes charge of getting him better.

Basically Robin is Regina and David is Snow AU.

Inspired by @findingtallahassee

Robin had been intent upon hating David:

After all he had told Robin’s father that Robin was in love with Marian - so Francis had killed her in front of him, and Robin had been forced to marry Ruth.

Ruth was closed off, she had apparently had a rocky marriage with King Robert, Robin was relieved that other than official engagements, and emotionless sex, Robin didn’t spend a lot of time with her.

But neither did David.

Robin had been intent upon hating David… but he couldn’t, not fully.

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

Robin was stood in the common, he had set up targets and was stood aiming his bow and arrow at them in turn, it was early in the morning and very few people were around.

He pulled the string back, then let the arrow fly, it hit the direct centre exactly where he had aimed it.

“Can you teach me?”

Robin jumped at the small voice. He quickly recovered and looked down at David who stood fidgeting by Robin’s side, he was still in his bed clothes and he kept sniffling.

“Why are you awake? And why are you outside in your night clothes?”  

David shrugged awkwardly. “I couldn’t sleep. And I’m bored.”

“Why don’t you play with your toys before your tutor comes? Or go and find a book in the library?” Robin suggested. “Arrows aren’t toys.”

“My tutors not coming. And I’m not allowed to go to the library until I’m no longer poorly.” David was pouting now, and sniffling even more.

Robin frowned. “I’m sure if you spoke to your mother-”

“-I’m not allowed to go near mother until I’m better, she doesn’t want to get poorly. Nanny checks on me sometimes and the healer, but I have to stay by myself so people don’t become unwell…” He took a step back. “Sorry, I didn’t think about you getting sick too… I’ll go back to my bedchamber.”

Robin watched as David headed back to his tower as fast as he possibly could, coughing as he did.

Robin felt a stab in his heart.

He wanted to hate the child… but…

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

He paced back to the castle, instead of heading back to his own chambers he headed down into the bowels of the castle.

The servants immediately stopped talking when they saw the king, he smiled slightly at them to try and put them at ease, he headed to the head cook.

“King Robin, your highness, is there something I can help you with?”

“Yes, I’ve been made aware that Prince David is unwell, and I was told that you are from the same area of the kingdom as my mother, in fact you used to work at our castle, I’m sorry I didn’t know that until now.”

The cook cutsied again. “There is no need to apologise, your highness, none at all.”

“I remember, when I was a boy and was unwell, you used to make a chicken soup which always made me feel better.” He took a deep breath. “I was wondering if you could make it again, for the Prince, if you’re not already.

The cook beamed. “I would be honoured to. Prince David’s nanny has me making a clear broth for him, should I tell her that you asked me to change it?”

“I’ll tell her. Thank you, Nora.” He started to walk away then turned back to look at her. “Oh erm, could you please have it sent to my room, I’d like to keep an eye on my step son while he’s ill.” He could see that it clearly pleased her that he was taking charge of the boy, she smiled and nodded.

He headed next to the healers, there he gathered both the healer in charge of David, and an older, quieter, healer. He frowned hearing that the original healer had done little to actually help David’s illness, he asked the older healer if she knew of anything to help his illness and his lung problem, she nodded quickly and explained a little about some potions she could make using herbs to help, and that she would teach David’s previous healer them too.

The younger healer protested that it was David’s physician who had told her to give David the antiquated medicine. Robin gave her a look he had learnt from his father and she soon shut up.

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

Robin’s blood was boiling, by the time he reached David’s tower. He took the stone stairs two at a time. His own father had been terrible, much like David’s, but at least he had his mother. Queen Ruth basically had her own son locked in a tower whenever he was sick, away from her, and barely able to even talk to anyone.

It wasn’t right.

He flung the door open with a little too much gusto, David hadn’t been near it (luckily) but he still scrambled back, dropping the wooden horse and cart he had been playing with.

“I’msorryI’msorry.” David skidded to the corner of the room bringing his arms up to protect his head.

Robin stopped and crouched a little from David. “Whoa, what are you sorry for?” The boy didn’t answer so he was forced to think, then it dawned on him. “You think you’re in trouble because you went outside while you’re sick?”

“Because I went near you. You’re”

His voice was so small and heartbreaking that Robin forgot (at least momentarily) that he had vowed to get his revenge on David for getting Marian killed. “ David, I’m not angry.” He sighed. “You’re a child, and you’re sick; that means you get to stay close to those who love you, or at least those who know you should be cared for.”

David lowered his arms, tilted his head to the side, but stayed quiet.

Robin sighed again. “I’m only doing this because you’ll be too sick to remember it properly.” He picked the boy up into his arms, he noticed a slightly worn teddy bear on the boys bed and passed it to David.

“Where are we going?” David was beyond confused as Robin left the room and started to carry him across the castle, and up the stairs of a tower he had never stepped foot inside.

Robin didn’t say anything as he carried him through the door at the top of the tower, to his own room, it was warm as the servants had lit the fire for him ready for him after going for a shoot.

He placed David onto the bed and pulled the blankets up around him. He tucked him in and took a seat beside him on the bed.

David looked around the room, it was bigger than his own but had the same large four poster bed. The curtains on the bed had deep green velvet curtains, compared to his own red ones, though both had the same gold piping. In fact there was a lot of green around the room, including a forest mural which wrapped around the room. When he finally looked back at Robin he was tucking yet another blanket around him. “This is your room?”

“It is. It’s warmer than yours, and as soon as you’re feeling better you’re going back to your room.”

“Okay.” David agreed quickly, and mostly just to make sure Robin wasn’t going to kick him out immediately.

Robin remembered the times he would crawl into his mother's bed when he was sick, he had always sworn to himself he would be as kind and caring as her, he had assumed he was going to be able to do so with his own kids with Marian. Now the only way he would be able to with his own biological children was if he produced an heir with Queen Ruth, like everyone was urging them to, it was expected of them.

It was why his bastard of a father was more than happy to stoke the fire of his hatred of David. He hated that he knew he was being played but couldn’t change it.

He stood up quickly.

David knew that Robin must have realised his mistake in bringing David here. “I’m sorry I- I knew I shouldn’t have come here, I’m really really sorry Robin. You’ll get sick, I’m not allowed to get anyone important sick, I’m not allowed near you, mother will be furious.”

Robin felt his blood boil again. “I’m going to kill-”

“- I’m sorry! ”

“No! No, not you David.” Robin moved quickly to stop the boy from scrambling out of the bed, he already looked like he could be knocked over with a feather. “Lay back down now, you’re not going anywhere. You’re not to blame for being unwell, that idiot of a swordsman had you practicing sword movements in a storm. I’m not mad at you I’m mad at-...” he stopped himself knowing he shouldn’t say what he really wanted to. “You’re staying here until I say so. I wasn’t moving to do anything, I was simply going to bathe and change clothes, I was outside practicing for a long while before you came to join me outside.”  

Robin started to walk to his bathing room where he knew a hot cath would be waiting for him. He stopped and looked back at the small boy shivering in the massive bed. “You’re meant to be looked after. You’re going to be from now on.”

“...Robin?”

“Yes?”

David hesitated, he shouldn’t say it but his fever made the control impossible. “I wish you were my real dad.”

Robin’s eyes widened and he became frozen. What could he say to that? He finally managed to move again. “Get some sleep David.”

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

He stayed in his bath for longer than normal, he was hoping that David would be asleep when he went back through to his bedroom, but the boy was stubbornly avoiding his fevered dreams.

Robin walked over to his desk and picked up a battered old book.

He took a seat on the bed next to David again. He opened the book and started to read to David, it was a book of legends his maternal grandfather had gifted him one Yuletide.

He paused only when he felt a sudden pressure against his side, he looked down and saw David was curled into his side, nearly asleep, Robin refrained from pushing him away, instead he continued to read until the boy was finally asleep.

With the fire burning high, the rain lashing against the windows, and David sleeping soundly cuddled against his side, it was no surprise that Robin was soon quietly snoring too.

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

The next night Robin paced his floor as two physicians stood in his room arguing over what to give David.

“Enough!” He shouted, finally, he was happy enough to take his frustrations on the men squabbling as David burnt up. “Enough arguing, I am sick of it. This isn’t about your own problems with each other, this is about the Prince, the heir of this kingdom - so know, if you don’t cure him, I will have you hung, drawn, and quartered for regicide.”

Both of the older men sunk into themselves like chastised children at Robin’s growled threats.

“Alistair, what do you propose?”

“The traditional treatment is to flay a fat cat, clean it and draw out the guts. We take the grease of a hedgehog and the fat of a bear, ad resins, and fenugreek, and sage, and the gum of honeysuckle and virgin wax: We stuff a cat as we would a goose, roast it all, then anoint the young Prince with the grease.” He held his nose high in the air as he spoke, barely managing to hide the sneer in his voice at being questioned. “The ancient physicians suggested a drink of owl blood with wine, which we will try if the grease does not cure him. Then it is up to the almighty fates.”

Robin’s frown deepened as he took a seat beside the bed, he ran his hair through David’s curls automatically, it was wet with sweat as the shivering boy burned up. “And you Constantine?”

“A potion of lungwort and belladonna has been very effective for illnesses of the lungs. For the cough I can mix horehound with diapenidion it will be like a sweet treat for the young Prince and will help his cough. I have had a lot of success with this treatment, your Highness.”

Robin thanked his lucky stars and absolutely any and every god that at least Constatine had a treatment which was more likely to work, and that he was familiar with. “Constantine we will start with your treatment. Alistair you are more than welcome to pray to the fates, you are dismissed. Constatine please visit the healers and tell them that you will be taking over David’s treatment. Please inform the Queen that I approved it too, and begin as soon as possible.”

He waited for the physicans to bow to him and leave his room before pulling David into his arms, he picked up an icy cold rag from a bowl on the bedside table and pressed it to David’s forehead, the boy whimpered in his sleep and tried to turn his head. “It’s okay, son, I’m sorry but this will help. It’s going to be okay Davey.”

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

Robin spent the next three weeks barely sleeping and worrying constantly about David. The improvement was slow but he improved more than he would have with the other more ‘traditional’ physician’s idea.

“You need to eat all of your soup, David.”

“But I’m bored.” David pouted.

“I don’t care, now, eat the soup. You’ll be going back to your old dining experience tomorrow: Your mother and I are going on a tour of the kingdom for a week.”

David’s face fell. “Oh… I forgot about that.”

Robin felt bad, yet again.

He had been cooped up inside with David the entire three weeks, he was happy to be able to leave even if it was with Ruth, at least he could make a difference in the villages and towns they would be visiting. He forgot it meant David would be left with tutors, and the members of court which Robin had seen happily socialising with with his own father. Luckily Ruth’s ladies in waiting and David’s nanny were nice and would look after him, but Robin had a feeling David would feel lonely suddenly going back to being as alone as he had always been.

“When I get back, if you have behaved, I’ll talk to your mother about bringing you along next time we leave. And maybe I will you how to fire arrows when I return.” He couldn’t help but smile as David buzzed with excitement. “Now, finish your soup and you can come with me to the kitchens to get a cake. You need to stretch those legs again if you ever want to become a knight.”

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

The morning of Robin and Ruth’s departure the king headed out of his tower to go and talk to the chef Nora about making David something to cheer him up that night.

He had been happy to have his entire bed to himself that week, even if he found himself missing David a little, though the prince seemed to be following him around as much as possible particularly when Robin didn’t want him around.

“It looks like you’ve taken to fatherhood like a duck to water.”

Robin’s blood turned cold. He turned to look to the voice Prince Francis was leisurely leaning against a pillar next to the door leading to his tower. He hid his fear and put on a look as stony as the pillar his father was leaning against. “As you did.”

Francis let out a bark of genuine laughter. He took a step towards his son. “I thought you would be getting rid of the little prince, after that incident with the scullery maid at our estate, yet I hear you’re the one to thank for him being alive still.”

Robin clenched his fist hearing his father mention Marian, he hadn’t even bothered to remember her name, if David hadn’t told…. If he hadn’t told Francis Marian would still be alive, and he and Marian would be together. He felt hatred for David swell up for a second, then it faded, to just twenty percent, he hadn’t known Francis, he had been manipulated, but Robin still wished he hadn’t told.

“Of course. The kingdom will go into panic if he dies and we’re left with no heir and no spare, which I’m also working on. Once we do, and they’ve reached the age where they’d be safe from infant death, then, and only then, will the prince have an accident. I will be seen as being close to him and will avoid any suspicion. Then the Queen, in her grief, will also sadly depart.”

Francis slapped him on the back and let out another bark of laughter. “I’m proud of you, Robin.”

Robin felt his skin crawl. He wanted to vomit.

“Now, let us go dine with the Queen, I am to depart to a kingdom across the realm at the same time you leave and I was promised a breakfast with the two of you.”

“I was never informed of this.”

“Maybe I wished to leave it as a surprise for my only son.” He led Robin towards the hall with his hand on his son’s neck, keeping him firmly in his control.

[harmonious-arkos-sloth]

Arkos Week Day One-Pyrrha Lives: Shot Through the Heart...

"You're too late!" Cinder snarked as she witnessed Jaune arrive on the rooftop, glowing with projected aura. Her hand tensed as she pulled back the string of her bow, ready to loose the arrow that would snuff out the life of Pyrrha Nikos.

Pyrrha's eyes widened in panic, more afraid that Jaune was in danger than she had been staring her own would be murderer in the face.

"Jaune! You have to leave! Run aw-"

But the next thing she knew, Jaune was there, the warm glow of his semblance nearly blinding the two women as he seemingly teleported in front of Pyrrha. He was standing in the basic stance she had drilled into him shield raised to protect them both like a knight of old.

Though she could only see his back, his stance was tall and his muscles tense. "You give villains a bad name!" Jaune declared, bracing himself against the impact of Cinder's arrow as it strike's his shield.

The villainess smirked mockingly, even as she struggled against the brightness of Jaune's aura, "Soon my arrows will drip rubies! You’re only delaying the inevitable, foolish boy!"

"Isn't that what heroes are supposed to do?" Jaune stated, doing his best to keep his feet after that blow, giving his all to protect his partner.

"Jaune, she's going to kill you! You can't keep that level of aura projection up forever!" The tears were evident in her tone, even though Jaune couldn't turn around to see them.

"It's too late to apologize, it's too late. I wouldn't do it anyway. You're my partner, and I am here until the end. We protect each other! Arkos, remember?"

This just made Pyrrha want to cry even harder as she tried to will her body to move. Unfortunately, her injuries and lack of aura were now putting her in a position she had rarely found herself: Helpless.

The feeling was only compounded when Cinder, finally having enough of this nonsense, decided to make use of the monstrous Grimm behind her that was simply laying there menacingly, having Grimm babies. "This is the end, you fools! My dragon is like a lion, and you're gonna hear him Roar!" Cinder declared, gesturing to the pair.

The dragon did indeed roar, but Jaune stood firm, his shield somehow absorbing the heat of the flames as the dragon's deadly projectile attack parted around him. The flames flickered and sparkled around the teens, lighting the night like ten thousand fireflies. Cinder, however, was not idle.

Once she saw that the dragon's flames were not lighting them up like a firework, she decided to flank them, managing to get behind the pair while they were distracted. The pair is completely caught off guard when Cinder rushes them, all their attention on the dragon.

Jaune whirls around to find the mysterious woman hoding a short sword made of some kind of sharp, gleaming material to his partner's throat. Pyrrha is using what little strength her exhausted body can spare to keep the blade from slicing her throat. Jaune ignored the dragon, which had gone back to casually spawning lesser Grimm to destroy Beacon, and decided to simply charge Cinder in a desperate attempt to save his partner.

Cinder merely smirked cruelly before slashing her throat. Or so she tried.

She was interrupted by a flurry of rose petals. "Jaune! Pyrrha! Are you okay?" Ruby had finally arrived, and just in time.

Everyone turned to face her as she brandished Crescent Rose at Cinder, confused and shocked at what was going on. Wasn't Cinder their friend? The femme fatale glared menacingly at this latest interruption, "Any more guests I should be expecting to our little get together, boy?"

"What can I say? I've got friends in low places." Jaune replied, trying to mask his fear at Pyrrha's near death with bravado.

Cinder flared her own aura, launching a fire ball with her off hand to distract Jaune, while her other continued to try to slash Pyrrha's throat. That tactic was abandoned as a bullet from Ruby's rifle impacted the knife, dissolving it in a flash of orange sparks. However Cinder was still determined to kill Pyrrha and claim the remaining Maiden powers for her own.

She brought her hands up and began to choke Pyrrha, as she prepared to snap her neck. "NOOOOO!" Ruby and Jaune cried.

Jaune's aura flared desperately, racing forward in an effort to shield his partner, while Ruby was engulfed in a strange silver light...

 Pyrrha blinked slowly as she came to. Jaune was crouched over her, hands on her heel and his aura enveloping her foot. "Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?" she asked in her delirium.

"I don't think so, Pyr." Jaune assured her, doing his best to wipe his tears onto his shirt without moving his hands.

"Are you okay, Jaune? What are you doing? What happened? Where are Ruby and the woman that attacked us?"

"Well that's the good news. I'm not sure what happened after everything started glowing, since I just woke up myself. All I know for sure is that the dragon is frozen, and that woman escaped. Ruby's uncle found us, and helped me carry you and Ruby to the safe zone set up on the outskirts of Vale since you were both unconscious. I was trying desperately to recharge your aura with mine when I accidentally discovered my semblance. I think. My aura was boosting yours."

Now that he mentioned it, Pyrrha did feel much better than she had in what felt like days now. Was Jaune's semblance some sort of healing multiplier? That would be immensely useful. "What is the plan now? We have to stop that woman! There's no telling what she'll do if left unchecked!"

"We will, Pyrrha. I promise! No way is Team JNPR gonna let the woman that tried to destroy Vale get away with it! You, Ren, and Nora have been asleep for a couple of days now. Once we're all back up to full strength we're going after her. Ruby's uncle gave us a lead. Ozpin said something about meeting with the headmaster of Sanctum Academy."

"What about Team RWBY? Will they be joining us?"

"I...don't think that's going to be possible for a while. RWBY's scattered at the moment."

Pyrrha was horrified and heartbroken at the news. Her friends... Poor Yang...

"The good news is though, that Penny is okay!"

The redhead's heart nearly lept into her throat. How could that be? "What? But I...I k-"

Jaune saw the guilt she was carrying. He could see the want to blame herself in her eyes, and quashed it hard. "No, you didn't, Pyrrha. Penny is a robot. An android that can project aura. Her mind and soul are real, but her body isn't. Before her body was destroyed, she vacated it, and ended up in a spare somewhere in Atlas. General Ironwood is sending her with us to Mistral to meet the headmaster."

Pyrrha could hardly believe it. She wasn't a murderer? She was going home. And most importantly, she was not dead.

"Try moving your foot now, Pyrrha. Next we'll have you stand, see if the leg can support you."

The redhead did as her partner asked, moving on auto-pilot. She was startled when she was able to move the foot as though she had never taken an arrow through her achilles tendon.

Jaune smiled brightly at her. "Good. I'm glad that's on the mend. Try to stand."

She did so, leaning cautiously on Jaune for help. Her leg felt weak, and she was unsteady on her legs like a toddler learning to walk. Her muscles were stiff from fatigue and inactivity, but the leg did support her. Jaune gave her a proud, excited smile.

"Get some rest, Pyrrha. I'll go see if I can find us some rations from the temporary mess hall."

"Jaune, wait..."

The blonde turned back to her expectantly. "Stay with me. Please. Until I fall asleep."

"Okay, Pyr." The two partners shared a quiet moment together amidst the chaos surrounding them. They did their best to push away all the turmoil, and stress of the last few days, checking their emotional baggage for the moment and taking comfort in each other.

They were alive.

They were whole.

END

[dansphlevels]

But Love Is Overrated Anyways (pt. 13)

Summary: Dan is an angry mutant with the ability to control the cold. He shares a tent with a man Phil, who has powers over fire but refuses to use it for evil. Dan has no such moral qualms.

Length: Chaptered Fic (ch 13 = 1.5k words)

Theme: Superpowers, Mutants, Dark, Dystopian

Read on AO3 / But Love Is Overrated Anyways Masterpost / All My Fics

Chapter 13: But Mandy Might Not

  "Don’t blame yourself," Jordan advised.

  They sat outside of the tent, not sure what else to do. Phil was inside with Dan, and it was still too hot to get close to him.

  Mandy undid her bun and collected her pecan brown hair together, putting it back in its bun with shaking hands. Her energy was becoming more and more strained from supporting the force field around Dan, and her entire body ached.

  "It’s not you’re fault," Jordan repeated when Mandy didn’t respond. "You’re doing everything you can to help. This was going to happen no matter what, I promise you."

  "I don’t blame myself," Mandy said finally. The words came out harsher than she’d intended. "It’s fine. I know what you mean."

  "It’s perfectly natural-"

  "I already told you, I don’t blame myself. If I blamed myself for things like this then I would’ve have made it on my own."

  They were quiet for a few moments. "What’s your story?" Jordan asked, not making eye contact.

  "I need to focus."

  "Okay. Sorry." Jordan scratched at her fingernails, trying to shorten them a little more. "I get not wanting to talk about things. I don’t talk about my powers."

  "Oh yeah? And why not?"

  "Too much drama behind them. Not everyone has cool powers like those two." She sent a quick nod towards the tent.

  Mandy bit her lip. She could feel a small pressure against part of the energy shield; Phil was probably touching it. The shield absorbed his warmth and kept it from hitting Dan, which meant that she absorbed his warmth. "He has fire powers, doesn’t he?"

  "It’s none of your business."

  "I’ve never met someone with fire powers."

  "You’ve met other mutants?"

  Mandy winced, and she could feel the force field shudder too. "It’s none of your business. I’m sorry, but I really have to focus if I want to keep the field up. And I’m not going to be able to continue it for much longer. Tell Phil to stop mourning already and come up with a plan."

  "I’m not mourning," Phil corrected them from inside the tent. "And I’m also not eavesdropping," he added quickly. "I just tuned in when I heard my name."

  Mandy rolled her eyes. "Do you have a plan then?"

  "Yes. I’m just trying to think up a better one."

——

  Mandy leaned against the tent and closed her eyes. There was no way she could fall asleep, not with the intense exertion of keeping the force field up. But slowly, she found that she was able to think of other things and let her mind wander without having to completely focus on the effort.

  Her mind drifted, as it always did, to her friends. She pictured a tall boy with dark skin and darker hair. In his hands, he held a bluebird, which sat and chirped right at home. She pictured a smiling girl with stark red lips, stirring up a mug of hot chocolate without having to touch it. She pictured the stacks upon stacks of cans, the horses that didn’t like most of them and definitely didn’t like carrying the sacks or the riders.

  She reminisced, going through the memories like she was going through an old photo album. The highlight reel; the Good Parts(TM); the photogenic moments; the memories worth reliving.

  She stayed like that for a long time, long enough for Jordan to bring her a few more snacks and two bottles of water. Long enough for the constant pain to become so dull she almost forgot about it, and in a state of panic almost tore the tent open to make sure the force field hadn’t died. Inside, it was a sauna. Phil knelt at Dan’s side, looking surprised at the abrupt entrance, and then offered a faint smile. "You doing okay?"

  Mandy watched the boy on the ground's form, willing the force field to flicker. It did, and she was reassured of its presence. "I’m fine. Any... updates?"

  Phil gnawed on the inside of his cheek. "Just... let me know when Jordan gets back? I sent her looking for something for me."

  Mandy agreed, and went back outside of the tent, allowing herself to lean against it once more, exhaling a shaky breath.

—-

  Phil pressed the backs of his fingers against Dan’s cheek. The purple barrier rippled slightly.

  Jordan practically crashed into the tent, partially closing the flap behind her. Phil pulled his hand away from Dan’s cheek quickly, though he didn’t quite understand why.

  "I found one," she said quickly. "I think it’ll work. I... was able to sense it’s depth. Using my powers. I’ve never tried it before on anyone but humans, but what with Dan and everything... I thought it sounded right for me to try to expand my powers beyond their depths. Literally." She grinned painfully. "And I got Nora to spill about what she saw, inside Dan’s chest. It’s literally freezing over."

  Phil nodded. He’d expected as much. "Anything in particular?"

  She hesitated. "His... lungs. They’re frozen. Obviously, he was still managing to breathe, but it was becoming much more difficult. And the rest of his internal organs were beginning to get there too. She said... she said his heart was black."

  Phil inhaled sharply, looking down at the figure beneath him. Dan was laying flat. He looked so peaceful, so relaxed. You wouldn’t look at him and think that his heart was black.

  Phil lifted up Dan’s hand a few centimeters. He’d taken off his gloves before he froze over the lake, and Phil rubbed his thumb over the blackened fingers softly.

  He looked up when he realized Jordan was staring. "It’s frostbite," he explained. "He’s had it for... I don’t remember. A week? More?"

  "Doesn't frostbite cause your fingers to fall off?"

  "Yeah." He set Dan’s hand down. "We couldn’t figure out why it didn’t happen with his. It’s because of his powers, obviously. But I don’t know where his immunity to ice ends."

  "When it comes to the ice affecting him in different ways," Jordan suggested without a pause. "Like making it hard to breathe. Your powers are temperature based, right? Not element based?"

  "Mine? Yeah."

  "That’s probably how his work. He’s resistant to the immediate effects of the cold, like freezing to death or frostbite. But when it comes to secondary effects..."

  "Like his lungs freezing," Phil realized. "He has no way to melt it. And then... he can’t breath anymore." He looked down at Dan’s sleeping face.

  Jordan put her hand on Phil’s shoulder. "Hey. It’ll be fine. The good news is, that means your plan will probably work. Assuming defrosting his insides will cure him, it’ll work perfectly."

  Phil nodded. He’d been sure the only way to help Dan would be to warm him up, but it wasn’t as easy as that. There were a lot of ways to heat someone, and Phil was guessing that he’d have to heat Dan up pretty rapidly if he wanted him to survive. But it wasn’t like he could just set him on fire.

  A zipping sound was heard, and PJ poked his head in. "I hope you have a plan."

  "We do," Jordan confirmed. "Why?"

  "Mandy can’t keep her strength for much longer."

  Phil looked at Dan quickly. The force field was still intact. Dan would be fine for now.

  But Mandy might not.

Next Part ->

Request A Fic / ‘But Love Is Overrated Anyways’ Masterpost / All My Fics

[wu-sisyphus-gang]

Motion Sickness Chapter 4 Snippet

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It was after the fourth day of tracking that it finally rained to wash our tracks away. We’d known it was going to happen, too. After the first crack of thunder, Ruby let out a low whine.

“No,” she just pleaded. It would still be hours before the rain came and washed most of our tracks away.

She was tired and wet and cold. And I really wanted to get her into the tent and into her sleeping bag.

I didn’t know what to do or say. We could both see the storm coming, feel the wind pick up and the humidity increase. I could do nothing but start to look for a good place to set up a tent.

Ruby and I had done some light training, but you really didn't push yourself or work out too much when you were trying to catch up to something like this. For my sake it was time to take watch and just to top my night off I had to be especially on guard tonight.

It was unusual for me to stay focused on watch, but I had to. I could feel something. It didn't feel like a person or anyone I knew so it was probably not nothing but the equivalent.

Grimm.

I waited until it got close enough that I was sure I could destroy it without letting my senses drift from where Ruby slept.

I was sitting out waiting for the creature to stop nagging at my range and actually enter. It was just pacing around the edge of my senses and eventually I'd had enough.

I kept my body low and my limbs out, but stealth wasn't my strong suite. It jumped through the bracket at me rather than I at it.

I moved in a burst, sweeping the long blade between us to stop its approach. It pushed me back a step and my ankle caught something.

I tripped and it fell on me. My armor held out it's claws but its teeth snapped at my aura. I grunted and threw it off of me.

It was an Ursa. a different bone structure for a different part of the world but that seemed to be all the difference between those here and those in Vale.

It landed but rolled towards me quickly with a snarl but as I stood, I held my ground. I already knew how to deal with these. I swept Crocea Mors downwards over my head and cut its face diagonally and deep enough that I'd opened up large sections of its ribcage.

It fell and began to dissolve. I stepped back warily. I felt nothing.

Nothing.

Nothing.

I listened and heard no song of Grimm. The animals had gone quiet, too. Fearing a battle between two distant predators might involve them, but it was already over.

Then, distinct in the cold night distant, the zip of the tent.

I sighed.

"Jaune! Jaune, what was that." She was in thick socks that probably didn't feel good in the wet, icy, muck.

She had Crescent Rose ready though. Her biceps and triceps stood out in her shirt. She had nothing on but her simple ‘T’ and some long bottoms in the night.

I stared at her white clothes in the sleet before coming to my senses. “It was just a small Grimm. Everything’s fine.”

She breathed hard. “You're supposed to wake me up.”

You needed sleep and it was nothing I couldn't handle.

I looked her up and down. There was brisk and then there was being in PJs, in negative ten, with a wind chill, and at ninety-five percent humidity.

I walked over and dragged her into the tent. I flicked the flap open, but the inside was frigid. Just a few moments of being open had sapped whatever warmth was inside. “You can't act like this was my fault. You're supposed to wake me.”

I nodded and rubbed her hands in mine. I pulled her wet socks off too. Her feet were just chilled to the absolute bone. I was considering trying to start a fire.

“Say something!”

“Huh what? You're right. I should have woken you up. Come on get some new socks on and get warm.”

“I feel like I need a can opener with you; you’re just so it's like -ugh. Aren't you frustrated?”

“No, I am.” I assured her.

“Well why aren't you showing it?” Ruby wrapped her arms around her knees under her covers. “And your semblance too, you’re not excited at all when it activates when we train.”

“It only activates when I’m losing, doesn’t last long, and doesn’t do anything but make me glow.” I shook my head and laughed a little.

It was fitting though, if I’d had this power at Beacon I would have been just as able to help Pyrrha.

She hit me hard, enough sting. I gasped, my hand going to my chest where her hand hit my side, through some gap in all my armor she’d casually exploited to jab at just one of my ribs past a strap.

“You were thinking you were useless again. Weren’t you, Jaune?”

Fuck.

“I’m sure it does more than make you look good.”

Whiplash.

I waited.

“Well?” She wondered.

“Well to what in all of that?”

“All of it!”

“I was trying to keep up the pace and find it and be on our way to Haven.”

“So, it’s because I need to get to Haven.”

“Well that is your plan.” I laughed and turned to look at her.

“Ugh.” She murmured and looked down.

Huh?

“What is it? Is it something I said?”

She didn't look impressed by that. She crossed her arms confidently and set herself sideways. “Then what's it like? I forced you out here. To come with me to Haven and trek all the way across the world with me. Even though I had no idea how far that was.”

"Ruby I did know how far it was. And I did know that if you hadn't…"

If she hadn't what, exactly? I was trying to fight but it was hard. It was a little like Weiss had rubbed off on Ruby, in some of her best ways. I'd found that confidence and authority attractive before but when it was directed at me it was hard to fight.

What could I possibly tell her? That I needed her to tell me what to do and give my life direction?

She just told me how stressed she was. I couldn't add to that. I clicked my jaw in thought.

My teeth clacked together audibly.

She looked from my eyes to my jaw. Like I'd just bit her hard. “You shouldn't do that to yourself.”

I laughed. “That's what I mean. What would I do if I didn't have you right now? If you hadn't taken me in, I don't know where I would have gone.”

“You would have found something.”

No. My family. I stole this from them. I can't go back. And Nora and Ren they got in with like a scholarship for orphan hunters-to-be or something. They were homeless again. I think they thought I'd abandon them.

“No. So, when you asked me to come it was just-it was a no-brainer. What would I have done? What alternatives would I have had. And if I hadn't gone with you, would I have found Pyrrha’s armor, even? Would I know for sure what happened? It was like destiny. And this is too.”

“You really think so?” I watched her hands fidget through her hair, somehow plucking at the red tips even out of the corner of her eye.

“Well no, it’s more like I need to make this the timeline where I succeed, but we can. You know?”

She shook her head. “You think if we're smart and hardworking enough, it'll be enough? That's not like you.”

“Ruby this is just a setback. Even if it takes months. We have no timetable for getting to Haven. No tournament. No obvious target beyond the school and city which should be in a state of high alert.”

Supplies still got traded as far as here so we know the blackout-panic hadn't destroyed the place.

Haven was probably still there, Just waiting for her, even if it didn’t know it.

“But what about your semblance?” She pressed me. “You and me. Are we making progress there?”

“We’ll have to time figure out how to use it.” If it had a use.

“Tss” I let out as I clutched a rib. She jabbed me again.

“You and me,” she went on. “You butt.”

“Us?” I wondered stupidly.

“What are we, Jaune?” She glanced at me. “What am I to you?”

Good question.

I thought about it. It wasn't like I could just say she was my partner because that had connotations to huntsmen. If I just blurted out, she was my new partner it would hurt everyone.

Besides she had made it clear that Weiss was her best friend. Whatever that meant to her.

"You're my oldest friend for sure." I told her. I knew that much. Who was there before Pyrrha? Family didn't count. "Things are rough for me right now but it wasn't like I didn't think about you before, too.”

“That's not fair,” she whispered. “Pyrrha was…She made it clear she liked you a lot.”

Ouch. But…

“You were so nice and sweet to me when I didn't deserve it. I could always count on you for advice and it was always good. “

“I don't know…” she trailed off. She pinched her lower lip between her index and thumb. She was listening close, her eyes intense on my every word.

“Even if it wasn't what I wanted to hear. So, it sounds dumb to say something like boyfriend, but you can if you want.”

“We're a couple.” Ruby translated listening closely. “You make things so complicated.”

“The thing about that is-“

“Do you love me?”

“Uh, yeah.”

She smiled flushing, but she managed to roll her eyes and look right at me. For a moment I could hear nothing but the rain against the tent.

"Jaune I need you to better than 'uh yeah.'" she smiled adorably. It took me a second to realize she was teasing me. By the time I did so, my eyes flicked down to her lips and back up to her eyes. It was too late. Her smile roared across her face.

“You really want to kiss me, don't you? You can. You know. Maybe not all the time but you can kiss me.”

I did. I pushed her back against her thin mattress. I could feel her hip bone against my abdomen and the smooth curve of her sides. I put my hands around her back and pulled her in close to my and she let out a tiny sigh.

Her mouth opened in the slightest way and I couldn't help myself. My tongue went forward at the same time I rolled us more forward, pinning her more beneath me.

She groaned into it, smiling into the kiss as I sucked on her tongue, then lip, then pulled away.

Or tried to.

I drew back slightly but she had a tight grip on my shirt with her left hand. I hadn't even noticed. And her other hand became nestled in my hair.

She just… giggled at me, and, without so much as opening her eyes, dragged me down again.

She rolled her hips up into mine and wrapped her legs tightly around my waist. She pulled me into her and I could feel her pulse beat between her legs. I bit down on her bottom lip. And she moaned and through her thin pyjama bottoms I felt her against me. I mean I felt her core against my own. She ground herself hard against me in a bold and inexperienced fashion and I let out a moan that she devoured.

She whined a little up at me when I pulled back but she gave me a pleased sigh when I just took my shirt off. She reached out and ran a palm down my chest to my sides and kept her other hand buried in my hair and pulled me close to her.

Our teeth clicked together a little as I ran my tongue against her molars. She tried to push against my tongue with hers but I over lowered the wet muscle. She drew back with my tongue in her mouth and sucked on it gently but firmly. I throbbed in my pants at that. I imagined what it would feel like to have her mouth around a different piece of my anatomy and I groaned and grew harder at the thought. I reached a hand down to cup her little breasts through her sleeping tee. She moaned into my mouth as I did. I found her nipple and started to toy with it until it grew firm and erect through her shirt.

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[missameliasmithers]

Find Your Place: The First Night

Part 1

Read on AO3

After stopping for supplies from a kind merchant along the road, Aloy and Nil made camp in the middle of a clearing in the woods. The pink glow of sunset had already bathed the sky in a warm glow, so they gathered wood for a fire and laid out their newly acquired bedrolls. Seeing the wild look on Nil’s face when he held the canister of blaze, Aloy confiscated the bottle and set the fire herself with a drop or two. The last thing they needed was for Nil to dump the whole canteen in and burn a signal flare in unclaimed lands or worse still, scorch the entire forest to the ground.

Before they lost the last traces of light, they set out on a hunt. The forest was bountiful and teemed with plump fauna for their supper. They fell a turkey and a boar each, knowing from experience they would need smoked meat for the times ahead when hunting would be scarce. As Nil cleaned their kills, a satisfied gleam in his eye, Aloy arranged a small smoker from the scraps of an old, broken watcher. It was crude, but it would have their food ready by the time they set out the next day.

They cooked half the turkey over the fire that night, starved from travel and the remnants of the grand battle they fought earlier.

“It all feels so long ago,” Aloy said after a bite. “Like it should be years since we defeated Hades, but it’s only been a few hours ago.”

“Big moments tend to have that effect,” Nil replied through his meat. “The suspense of it all builds to a climax that makes the denouement feel insufficient. The prologue is always a calm, one that is such a stark contrast to the rising action that everything slows. You just have to learn to appreciate the tranquility of it all.”

She stared into the fire thoughtfully. “It seems like my whole life has been never ending rising action. I’ve hardly ever given myself a moment to rest. I’m not sure I know how to handle tranquility.”

“It’s easy enough,” he said. “You find something in the quiet that means something to you, and you let the stillness of the moment lull you into meditation.”

She gave him a pointed look. “Is that what you do after killing someone?”

He shrugged. “Sometimes. I actually did it a lot more when I was a kid.”

Aloy perked. Nil never offered much about his past. “Really? What did you think about?”

“My parents, mostly,” Nil said, taking another bite of his turkey leg. “Everything I did as a child was a reflection of them. I remember I was eight when I killed my first boar. My father had been training me with a bow for weeks and I wasn’t very good at it; kept hitting rocks and ruining the arrowheads. But one day my arrow struck right between the eyes of a male boar and the only thing I could think about in the ringing silence of victory was how proud my parents would be when I brought home the carcase.”

A soft smile spread across Aloy’s lips. “It sounds like you really love them.”

Something flashed in his eyes, but it was gone before she could name it.

“Yeah,” he said.

They finished eating by the time the final moments of day disappeared on the horizon. Bellies sated and muscles tired, they fed the fire, walked the perimeter one last time, and stoked the little smokehouse. Smoothing out their bedrolls, they began shedding their gear for the night.  

Their armor accumulated in a pile beside their rucksacks. Aloy removed her warrior’s circlet from her hair as Nil made to pull off his helmet.

She suddenly realized she had never pictured what Nil might like under that metal headdress of his. She supposed her mind had just assumed he had hair like many of the Carja she has seen in her travels, all tight braids or cropped cuts, anything short that didn’t catch on their helms. As he yanked the helmet off however, Aloy discovered that Nil’s hair was as unexpected as he was. It was razored at the sides and brushed back to keep stray strands from falling into his eyes. He did not tease it into thick strands as Rost had done, nor did he tie it back in Carja fashion. She did notice however, as he ran his fingers through his locks to loosen them, that there were smaller braids intermingled here and there.

She hadn’t realized she’d been staring until he met her gaze.

“Problem?” he asked.

He almost looked like another person. Smaller. More vulnerable. More human.

“I’ve never seen you without your helmet before,” she replied.

He snickered. “Did you think it was attached to me?”

“Of course not,” she said. “You just look… different.”

“Good different or bad different?”

“Just… different.”

He chuckled to himself as he unbuckled his holster, letting the conversation drop.

They settled into an amiable silence as they crawled inside their bedrolls. The ground was a rough comfort to Aloy, reminding her of previous travels and her past hunting trips with Rost. The night air was mild and calm, a slight breeze sweeping by to rustle the trees intermittently. The sky was dark but cloudless, the moon illuminating the clearing and complimenting the multitude of shining lights scattered across the heavens.

“What do you think they are?” Nil asked suddenly.

Aloy glanced at him. His arms were folded behind his head as he stared, bright eyed and transfixed at the sky. “The stars?”

“Yes.”

She returned her gaze to the night. “I’m not sure. The Nora used to say they were the freckles of All-Mother.”

His laugh rang in the silence. “That’s a lot of freckles.”

“Some people have a lot of freckles.”

“I’ve noticed.”

There was something in his voice that made it sound like was talking directly to her, but when she looked over he was still looking at the stars.

“I always thought they were the Old Ones,” he said.

“Really?” Aloy asked, surprised.

“Yes. There was just something reassuring about the idea that the slain could live on above us, watching and protecting us.”

“That’s an odd thing for you to say,” she remarked, “considering how many people you’ve killed.”

“I don’t believe every soul can live on,” he said. “Those who live tainted lives should be cast to the demons. When I see the light fade from the eyes of the wretched, I hope they fall into the deepest darkness. But those who are pure, the children, the innocent, and the people who fight for justice, I think they should be able to continue on, to see the contributions they made to the world, the people they’ve affected.”

She thought of Nakoa. She thought of Elizabet. She thought of Rost.

She sighed. “That would be nice.”

She was in Mother’s Heart, sitting around a fire with Teb. The tall flames kept them warm as they perched on logs side by side and discussed the years between their first meeting and the present. Teb held cloth in his lap and stitched the fabric as he listened to her tell stories of her childhood in the Embrace.

She was with Petra in Free Heap, hunched over a worktable and tinkering with bits of the forgewoman’s latest invention. They passed tools to each other as they worked, and took swigs out of the same water canteen. They filled the silence with sly banter and hearty laughter.

She was in the forest, bow at the ready and Talanah at her side. The sun was rising over the hill and backlit the imposing pair of Ravagers before them. She shared a look with her Hawk before pulling her string tight and loosing a barrage of fire arrows at the machines. The beasts roared and charged, and their hunt was underway.

She was in the banquet hall in Meridian, flanked by Erend and Avad as they ate supper at the impressive, imperial dinner table. Her plate was full of food from her lands and her cup with drink from Erend’s. The air was filled with their energetic chatter as they snickered and chuckled at each other with a sense of familiarity that only came from close friends bound in battle.

She was trapping with Rost.

The woods were bright as they ventured out to check their snares. Two had already come up empty, but their third held a rabbit that would feed them well enough. They walked together in that earnest companionship they had forged as foster-father and daughter. Every now and then they would stray from the path to pick off the wandering Watchers in the area, competing amongst themselves who had the better shot before moving back to the trail.

They were checking their fourth trap, talking about medicinal plants, when the darkness crept in. It seeped up from the ground and swarmed in through the air, engulfing the two of them in a black haze. The thick of it pressed into her lungs and she choked, looking franticly at Rost in panic. He was gasping for air just as she was, wrapped up in the skulking shadows that seemed to swallow them. She tried to scream, but no sound could escape past the smoke in her mouth. She reached out for Rost, but the darkness just consumed her hand. She started thrashing around, trying to loosen the grip the mist had on her, needing to get to Rost the more the life left his eyes.

“Aloy! …Aloy!”

Aloy jolted awake, a desperate gasp wrenching from her lips. Her chest heaved with each laborious breath and her mind reeled from the shock of reality. Her forehead was drenched in sweat and her hair clung to it in matted pieces. She had also somehow wiggled out of her bedroll.

“It’s okay, just breathe. You’re fine. You’re okay.”

Nil was kneeling beside her, hair tousled from sleep and shirtless in his nightclothes. He was holding her upright, bracing her back on his shoulder and grasping her upper arm with his hand gently to support her weight. The feel of his skin was a small but effective comfort, a tactile reality. Still, the dream lingered in the shadows of the forest night and Aloy found herself reaching for Nil in return.

“That must have been quite the nightmare,” he said, voice groggy. He must have just awoken. “You were flailing in your sleep. Are you alright?”

“Yes,” she said numbly between breaths. “Yes, I’m fine.”

She didn’t need to look at him to know he didn’t believe her.

“Would you like to talk about it?” he asked.

The darkness flashed back into her mind, devouring her friends, stealing the soul from Rost… She shivered despite herself. “No.”

His voice was a patient, soothing rumble in her ear. “It’s normal to be afraid of dreams, you know. They’re one of the only things in the world we cannot control.”

The laugh she barked out was short and skeptical. “That sounds odd coming from you.”

She could feel the vibrations in his chest as he chuckled. “I’m not without my own fears. There are plenty of horrors lurking in the crevices of my mind ready to assail me the moment I close my eyes.”

She tried to twist around to see his expression, but their position made the movement uncomfortable. “What could you possibly be afraid of?”

“Perhaps that is a discussion for another day,” he said. “All you need to know is that dreams are fabrications; they do not exist. Nothing can hurt you in your own mind.”

“The past can.”

“Yes, it can,” he said with a nod, his stubble brushing against her hair. “But it can also heal. You have to purge your mind of plagues, dominate what controls you. Your mind is your own and no demon has the right to dictate your thoughts. You’re a warrior, Aloy. You can slay the darkness hounding your dreams.”

She wasn’t sure if she believed his words, but the fact that he was here speaking them helped settle her racing heart. “Thank you, Nil.”

And then there was that rumbling chuckle again, like thunder after a drought. “After all you’ve done, it’s the least I could do.” He paused for a moment, assumedly looking at the horizon as he said, “Day will break within the hour. Shall we break camp and venture forward?”

Relief flooded her. After all this fuss, she wanted nothing more than to keep her idle hands busy and her frantic mind off that black smoke. She detached herself from Nil and stood, fixing her twisted clothes.

“Yes,” she said. “Let’s go find something to shoot.”

His mouth stretched into a mischievous smile. “Now we’re talking.”

They set about collecting their things; putting their armor back on, collecting the meat from the smoker, tying up their bedrolls. As they worked, she kept catching Nil yawn and felt a pang of guilt. Of course, she hadn’t meant to wake him up during the night, but he had awoken regardless and left the warmth of his sleeping sack to rouse and calm her. This too, suggesting they depart now instead of going ack to sleep, she realized was for her sake as well. He understood the need for her to do something after an unpleasant night like hers.

As he turned to her, gear slung over his back, Nil flashed her that Cheshire grin of his, and Aloy felt grateful for his presence.

Part 2 end

[traceyaudette]

Being Him

Requested by @winterladybr (Hope you like it>)

Based on the song: Why Can’t He Be You? by Nora Jones

 “He takes me to the places you and I used to go He tells me over and over that he loves me so He gives me love that I never got from you He loves me too, his love is true Why can't he be youHe never fails to call and tell me I'm on his mind And I'm lucky to have such a guy, I hear it all the time And he does all the things that you would never do He loves me too, his love is true Why can't he be youHe's not the one who dominates my mind and soul And I should love him so 'cause he loves me, I know But his kisses leave me coldHe sends me flowers, calls on the hour, just to prove his love And my friends say when he's around that I'm all he speaks of And he does all the things that you would never do He loves me too, his love is true Why can't he be youHe's not the one who dominates my mind and soul And I should love him so 'cause he loves me, I know But his kisses leave me coldHe sends me flowers, calls on the hour, just to prove his love And my friends say when he's around, I'm all he speaks of And he does all the things that you would never do He loves me too, his love is true Why can't he be you”

It was an accident, I wasn't snooping through John's things, I swear I wasn’t. I was looking for some paperwork he needed me to fax to him. He must have forgotten it was in his desk drawer.  

I sat holding the black velvet box in my hand, my heart beating fast. I'd already looked at the ring, it was gorgeous, I felt guilty as I slipped it back on the drawer. I was lucky to have such a great guy, or so I was told. I put the box back in it’s hiding place, trying to erase the memory of finding it.

Finding the papers I quickly faxed them to John, then left his apartment. Glad he was out of town for the week. I don't think I could handle seeing him right now. We'd only been together for six months, I wasn't even sure how I felt about him. Letting out several curse words my mind wandered back to a dark haired, darker eyed man. His appearance the total opposite of John’s.

One that had my heart for two years, but I don't think I really had his. John was everything he wasn't.  John was romatic, taking me out on dates, and never breaking them. Yet, John wasn’t the one on my mind right now, he was.

Pulling into the garage of my apartment, I laid my head on the steering wheel. My phone ringing, I let out a sigh. It was John, I felt guilty thinking about my past, instead of my future.

“Hello.”

“Hey beautiful! Thanks so much for faxing those papers to me.”

“No problem. “ I ran my hands through my hair.

“Everything okay?”

“I'm just tired.”

“I miss you, and I love you!”

I felt guilty because I didn't feel the same, not totally.  I missed him and loved him but as a friend. “Me too. See you when you get back.” Truth was when he kissed me, or held me, it didn’t set me on fire. I didn’t even get luke warm.

Getting out of my car, I made it up to my apartment, opening the cabinet, I pulled out the bottle of Jameson ™.   I smiled at the bottle. “Hello old friend!”

XXX

Aaron frowned looking down at his phone, seeing it was (Y/N)’s number. He hadn't talked to her since she left him a eight months ago. He still regretted letting her go, he wished he had fought for her  Worry and panic set in as he answered the phone. “(Y/N), is everything okay?”

“Why can't you be him?” She sobbed into the phone. “I love you Aaron, and you could never say it to me.”

“Are you drunk?” His voice was full of concern.

“It doesn't matter, you don't care. Do you know that John calls just to check up on me and to tell me he loves me?”

“Tell me where you are, I'll come get you!”

She let out a laugh. “I’m not your responsibility anymore.” She laughs. “I’m told I’m so lucky. That he talks about how much he loves me…..but he’s not the one I want. Wht couldn’t you love me?”

Aaron pinched the bridge of his nose. “(Y/N)...”

“He sends me flowers, he's taken me places that we use to go, it kills me every time, because all I can think about is how I want to be with you.”

He heard her begin to cry, seeing Garcia walking into his office he wrote frantically.  Track (Y/N)’s phone location!

He watched Garcia back out of the room, he tried to keep her on the phone. “I'm sorry….”

“Just know that I love you Aaron, it's always been you. I can’t do this anymore. Keep on hurting him...hurting me. I’ve got to go.”

He didn't like the finality of her words, he stood up from his seat. “(Y/N)!” The call ended, he started to head out his door.

Garcia rushed in. “She's at home sir. “

XXX

I was laying on the couch, knowing she should end it with John. It wasn't fair to him, I was still in love with Aaron.  Hearing someone pounding on my door, I let out a small groan. I really wasn't on the mood to see anyone. I hoped if I ignored it, they'd go away.

“ (Y/N), open the door!” The pounding continued, getting lounder and harder.

I dragged myself off the couch, recognizing Aaron’s voice;I leaned against the door debating on if I should open it or not.

“Please, I need to see if you're all right.” His voice sounded desperate.

I opened the door slowly standing in the doorway,  looking up at him. He rushed inside, his hands cupping my face.

“Aaron, what are you doing here?” I tried to push away from him, create a space. I couldn’t be this close to him, I couldn't have him touch me. Not when I loved him, and wanted him, not when I knew he didn’t feel the same.

“I want to be him!” His lips crashed down on mine, as he pulled me close.

THE END

@hanny-bananny @small-town-wayward-daughter

[ancientcalamity]

💝

Senda 💝 and my Muse will ramble on about how they presently feel aboutyours.

Theme: Pretty on the Outside

Yato’s head turns to glance at the clock, seeing it was around one a.m., which confused him as to why someone was coming to his office around this time. He’s surprised to see the goddess enter wearing one of her usual night gowns. He moves and sets his things to the side, adjusting himself to talk to her. She looked a bit distraught and he questions her, getting silence in return before the actual question comes out. At first, he doesn’t react. She said she’d give him a time to think and answer. 

Blue eyes stared for a moment, their history up to now flickering in his mind. 

Hunted for years as if he were some sort of animal, a beast ready for the slaughter. He’d known that whole time that she wasn’t completely in her right mind, being the one to hold the weighted burden of a whole family of people being rendered to nothing. 

He had many thoughts of her. 

Pity.Anger.Respite. Disappointment.Distaste.Fear.

The usual feelings a god of calamity had towards anyone, really.

…or so he thought. 

“It’s been many things over the years. It’s not to piss you off, but I’d ended up pitying you. Not because of the loss or how you were focused on me, but because you were stuck in the same place for so long. I wouldn’t understand what that type of loss is like, so I didn’t understand.”

“…At first.”

Blue orbs looked up, the dim light of the lamp on the desk barely doing much to illuminate the whole room, the warm glow doing nothing to heat the cold stare in his eyes. 

“It took around 60 years after the fact and the rare moments of meeting you and being caught in your anger that I noticed it wasn’t some irrational and dreamlike love you had for the Ma Clan. It was real. 

But, of course, you know I couldn’t show many other emotions at that time. I was hollow most of the time and the only thing I was good at was killing. Caring about anyone other than myself and Nora did nothing for me.” The cold expression wasn’t directed towards her, but it was the only way he could talk about this freely. He had to throw out his normal feelings and turn back into who he once was. 

[ Whoa, whoa, whoa ]So you wanna play games with my head?But you make me fall apart, I wish that I was dead?I just can’t believe I fell, for such a blackened heart-You played me for a fool!! and used me from the start!!!

FUCK YOU. (fuck you), I just want to know the truth,but the words from your mouth they just cloud,All the negativity, forces me down into (silence)But still I can pray…I wanna know! I wanna know!!!

“Whether you believe it or not, I knew. I knew that you truly put it in your head that I’d taken them down to make you suffer. It didn’t bother me that much. I was used to it from anyone and I’d never had a family like that before, so what the hell should I have cared, right?”

He leans back into his chair, eyes looking dead. 

“I remember what I told you then, when we fought. I mocked you, saying you were ‘playing house’. I never realized what losing someone on that scale or even remotely similar was like.”

He doesn’t mention Sakura because…    …she was different. At least in his mind. 

If I tear you open wide, take a look insideAre you pretty?Can I get inside your mind, see what I can find?Are you pretty?So just take off that disguise, everyone knows that you’re onlyPretty on the outside

“I think it was the day you broke Yukine that all of that anger and resentment of you not moving forward came out. I lost control of my emotions and I felt something break inside me. It was feeling him die.

Like he disappeared.” Yato’s eyes were wide and a maniacal-typed grin comes across his face.

“It was a pit of darkness that did nothing but make me watch as my whole world ended right in front of my eyes.” The smile instantly drops, his expression turning cold again. “Do you know what I also realized at that moment, when you came to speak to me?” He watched as her head shook, her throat moving as she swallowed thickly. 

“You were right.”

“I did understand to an extent,” the emotion that was once lost in his eyes starts to return and he turns the chair, staring directly into her violet hues, “I understood what it was like to lose my family. It wasn’t the same amount. It wasn’t to such a drastic scale, but I understood that loss.”

He moves a hand to his face, looking through his fingers at her, eyes narrowing with a sickening expression. “…then I saw his name was there. When I called for him and the look on your face–” Eerily, he begins to chuckle, shaking his head, “-you were so mad. I felt an insatiable victory over you at that moment, but…”

Now I fucking hate you, with all of my heartJust disappear, and never will I fear for my lifeI just want to be alone,And never, no never, will I be unhappy alone,I wanna know, I wanna knowIf I tear you open wide, take a look insideAre you pretty?Can I get inside your mind, see what I can find?Are you pretty?So just take off that disguise, everyone knows that you’re onlyPretty on the outside

“I felt sick after it. I didn’t show it, but I felt sick, seeing you again in a new light plus how I felt before. All the ‘usual’ feelings I was supposed to have, all the uncaring thoughts on ‘one god to another’ disappeared. …I wanted you to stop. You HAD to stop. You were only breaking yourself… I wanted to save Hiyori, yeah, but I demanded over and over to give her back and you kept attacking–” he stops, taking a shaking breath.

“…..”

You’re so pretty on the outside

You’re so pretty on the outside

”I still mean what I said. At that point, if I had to take down people around you or even you yourself to try and save you, I would. I still would. No hesitation.”

So you wanna play games with my head?

“I would defeat you.”

But you make me fall apart, and wish that I was dead

“I’d save TWO people. I’d get my friend back and force you to see this outcome led to nothing but regret and pain. 

Can’t believe I fell for such a blackened heart

“I’d let you hate me in the process and let you take it out on me. 

You played me for a fool and just used me from the startI just wanna know the truth (but the words from your mouth)

All your negativity (you keep forcing me down)

“The only issue was you never opened your eyes. …You… I wouldn’t say broke… not yet. It was the start.”

The shame from the few days before had returned and his expression was pained, apologetic. “That happened while you were here. As much as you say it was because of others, even though my body was being controlled, it was done by my hands. I broke you. I broke that dam and everything came from it.” He looks up to the ceiling, sighing. 

“I know I’ve never hated you. Disliked? Maybe. Been annoyed with? Oh yeah. That’s for a fact. Saddened by? I know that, but…”

Into silence I can dream (into silence I can dream) Into silence I can dreamIf I tear you open wide, take a look insideAre you pretty? (pretty!)Can I get inside your mind, see what I can find?Are you pretty? (pretty!)So just take off that disguise, everyone knows that you’re onlyPretty on the outside

That fire from before was back, quickly overtaking the regret, the shame, replacing it with determination. 

“…After everything, you’ve just become stronger than before. You’ve only become greater, not only as a god and a leader, but as someone in general. You opened up. You said something, even if the outcome...” he trails off, laughing bitterly. “Hell, if I were you, I don’t think I could even think of myself in the same light like I’d hoped...”

“Ever.”

“...but even after everything, you grew. You already forgave me for something as terrible as what I’d done to you.”

Whoa, you’re so pretty on the outsideWhoa (you’re so pretty on the outside)You’re so pretty on the outside!

Yato leans on his hand, eyes looking her as he spoke, as a god to another god. 

“O fierce deity, with the dangerous beauty on the surface, you were like a cracked and broken mirror inside. Now I see the resolve that of the warrior you are, were, and what I could never hope to be. I envy you, of that change. I haven’t been capable of that myself… even after all of these years.”

“…I envy you..”

[windycityparrot]

Incoming Category 2 Hurricane & You're Chasing a Bird Under Furniture

Re-posting this on 09/01/2017 with hurricane Harvey as a stark reminder of mother nature's dark side. Parrots and Evacuation Kits are one of my favorite subjects. Nora wrote this post but my introduction is from someone who has been there - us. June 23rd 2005 Windy City Parrot burned to the ground - long story. If you have a pet bird or any pet for that matter - what’s your plan in an emergency? Floods, fires, frogs, locusts? Sure you’re on your game with the latest high-tech smoke and high water sensors in your home but let me quote from some recent headlines. 6/25/15 Boston - New England Record Snow Tracker: Boston Breaks All Time Seasonal Snow Record in 2014-2015 (What's your backup heat source?) 8/29/15 Florida - Governor: State of Emergency Still In Effect For Florida as Erika Remnants Approach 7/17/15 Illinois - Tornadoes reported in part of Illinois (Cameron, a town of about 600 people that's roughly 200 miles southwest of Chicago. No one except first responders was being allowed into the town). 9/16/15 California, United States has had: (M1.5 or greater) - Recent Earthquake Near California, United States - 24 earthquakes today (9/16/15) - 125 earthquakes in the past 7 days - 463 earthquakes in the past month - 6,307 earthquakes in the past year The largest earthquake in California, United States: - today: 4.0 in Yucaipa, California, United States - this week: 4.7 in Altamont, Oregon, United States - this year: 5.7 in Fortuna, California, United States.

I feel strongly that it’s always good to hope for the best than prepare for the worst - Nora’s got it right - please heed her cautions We dodged the bullet this week here in Central Florida. The recent Tropical Storm Erika caused storm predictions that showed one possible track where the storm became a Category Two hurricane before making landfall anywhere from Miami to Jacksonville. Our governor had declared the entire state of Florida in a state of emergency before Erika blew apart in the islands. Lives were lost while this system was only a tropical storm, so it definitely had my attention. We missed this one, but many times we haven’t been so lucky. I’ve had to evacuate a few times because I choose the beach lifestyle. It’s just one of the prices I pay for living so close to my beloved ocean. There are others, too, but I consider it worth it. I live about 80 steps from the dune crossover in Cape Canaveral. No, I’m not in one of those million dollar ocean front homes. But there are only three of those between me and the ocean, offering tons of debris to hit our modest apartment building should a big storm surge hit. I’m upstairs but in a big storm, that’s no real protection and means our roof could come off from the winds.

I’d consider staying for a Category One hurricane, but anything stronger means going at least to the mainland or further based on the storm strength and path. This building has withstood many hurricanes over the years since it was built, probably in the early 60’s during the space boom. I can’t guarantee it would last through another though and won’t risk my life on the gamble. Besides, for a major storm, evacuation becomes mandatory. Hurricane season extends from June 1 to November 30 but hurricanes, also called tropical cyclones, can form any time of year. The official season dates reflect only when weather records indicate the conditions are most likely to exist to allow formation of a tropical weather system. In the years I’ve lived here, it seems the Labor Day weekend, or just before or after is a prime time for storm development. You may not worry about hurricanes because you live miles and miles from a beach. But there isn’t a part of the country that doesn’t have some type of hazard, whether it is blizzards, mud slides, earthquakes, wild fires, tornadoes or hurricanes. Even a strong Northern Easterner can damage homes. The point is evacuation kits are critical for every home, no matter what you call yours or what your area’s hazard happens to be. Mine is a hurricane evacuation kit. I have one for me and my partner and I have one for the birds too. As Labor Day weekend peeks around the corner, I am reminded that we are entering the peak of hurricane season. This means that parrot parents should double check that they have on hand supplies to cover the needs of their parrots should a major storm develop. I checked my supplies on the 1st of June when the season arrived and I always recheck around Labor Day and update supplies. This year predictions were that this would be a strong year for the Pacific West Coast weather phenomena known as “El Nino”. Meaning “Little Boy”, this phenomena occurs when warmer currents in the Pacific Ocean affect global weather patterns, resulting in reduction of the surface water temperature in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. The Pacific coastline enjoyed some much-needed rainfall, especially considering California has experienced 4 consecutive years of drought.

Tropical systems that can develop into hurricanes are born over in the warm water of the Atlantic, often off the coast of Africa. The hotter the surface water temperature in the Atlantic and the longer the system has over open water, the more it can feed off the warm water, forming a convection that becomes a hurricane. When residents of the East Coast initially hear the forecast for hurricane season, a sigh of relief can be heard when El Nino is expected to be strong. Once the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration releases projections, residents of hurricane-prone beaches and flood zone areas could become complacent, perhaps doing only doing a check on supplies left over from last year. It can be all too easy for those who have lived along the beaches and haven’t seen what a severe hurricane can do yet. It’s important to remember that during El Nino years, the number of storms may be light but those that come through can often be extra-strong. Hurricane Andrew developed in an El Nino year. Hurricane David in 1979, the first hurricane I experienced here was also in a strong El Nino year. Fortunately it did little damage, coming in as a Category One.

The opposite of El Nino is La Nina. In these years, we watch out because hurricane development can be more likely and more storms tend to develop into hurricanes. Enough science lesson, thought. Let’s get into what happens if one actually develops and it’s headed toward us. We may not be the bull’s eye but even miles away a big hurricane can cause damage along feeder bands. I keep an emergency kit ready all the time. My birds’ kit contains one month of food supplies. When I purchase new food supplies, I rotate with ones in the emergency kit out and replace them with the freshest food so that my supplies are fresh all the time. Far too many people just place a supply of food for evacuation into their supplies and never change the supply. No matter if you feed seed or pellets, they go bad after a while, get mothy and the birds don’t get the nutrition they need from the food. As a minimum, the parrot food stock in any emergency kit should be changed out every three months.

Depending on why you might need to evacuate should dictate the amount of food you keep in your kit. While history tells me I won’t need to be away more than a day or three at the most (that one the hurricane followed me and I had to ride it out on the mainland far north of here), I remember Hurricane Andrew where there were no stores in Miami left standing to restock parrot food or anything else.

An aside here: After Andrew, Kennedy Space Center prepared a caravan of semi-trailers to carry supplies and I sent all the birds seed in various sizes I could afford to contribute. The other parrot parents I knew also joined me in sending parrot supplies so hundreds of pounds of parrot food of all types joined the people, dog and cat supplies going to help the stranded victims. But it was some time before stores reopened to provide a supply chain to parrot owners. We tried to ensure that every car then went south also carried at least one big bag of parrot food. As soon as I could, I filled my car with nothing but bird supplies and headed there myself. The destruction left me in awe. I’d never seen anything as horrible before or since. A bit off topic, but I found it interesting that Parrot Jungle, my favorite stop in Miami, didn’t lose a single one of their hundreds of parrot or non-parrot birds in the Andrew disaster. Parrots went home with people in cages and the large flock of pink flamingos was herded into the large restrooms and the exits were blocked. The property sustained damage but no lives were lost. Now, let’s get back on topic.

Gustavo Rodriguez with daughter in Parrot Jungle in 1984 In my emergency evacuation kit, I also have an extra first aid kit for the birds stashed in their evacuation kit. This first aid kit is a bit different than the one I use around the house. It also has grooming items in it in case we don’t return home or don’t have a home for a while. I make sure at this time of year that the powder or gel for quickly stopping bleeding has not become outdated. It’s replaced when it nears expiration. I have an extra clean empty plastic spray bottle available. Should we be stuck here in the heat with no power and the birds become too hot, a cooling shower can keep their body temperatures from going into the fatal zone. Since my parrots get along together, I have a single travel cage they can evacuate in. While it isn’t ideal for long term living due to its small size, if we had no home to return to, they could survive in this cage for as long as they had to until we could either get home or get somewhere that would allow us to begin to set up again. AN EMERGENCY IS NOT THE TIME TO FIND OUT YOUR BIRD IS AFRAID OF A TOWEL AND IT'S TRAVEL CARRIER. You don't want to have this conversation with your bird while F3 tornados are touching down across town Everything else my birds would need is contained in the human evacuation supplies. Water can be shared. Towels and paper products are in our supplies. If you don’t know what to put in an emergency kit for your area, you can learn from www.ready.gov all about preparing basic emergency kits. The only things I would grab on a last minute basis is whatever kinds of fresh food I happen have on hand that do not have to be refrigerated. Fruit and fresh vegetables come along for use by us and sharing with the birds. If I had a bird on medication, I’d also be sure that was included but fortunately that isn’t the case at this time. Don’t count on going to the store at the last minute to stock up. Although we have several large grocery stores and a few pet shops, the shelves are empty within hours of the announcement that we are located in the “cone” of possible landfall. Keep your supplies stocked when you do your regular shopping so you don’t end up in the fight for the last water, canned tuna or bag of bird food. Wherever you live, whatever may befall you and your birds, be prepared. It is far better to be prepared and never need to use your evacuation kit than to need to leave and have nothing ready. written by nora caterino approved by catherine tobsing mitch's addendum to your birdie evac kit dish soap - poop off - disinfectant - blanket/sheet to cover the cage - toys - hot water bottle - grooming supplies - Wire, pliers, and duct tape (in transit carrier repairs) on the carrier in a taped zip lock or bird proof steel vault your name - phone number - address - a description of your bird incl species - age - breed - sex - name of your bird - leg band or microchip ID - pet insurance policy number - your veterinarian info - feeding schedules - medical conditions - behavior problems - proof of ownership (pictures don't count. birds of the same species all look identical) - flashlight - cable ties written by mitch rezman approved by catherine tobsing your zygodactyl foot note Click to Post