#not to shit on strict recons

[anarcho-sgathach]

I take a sort of “rule of cool” approach to my pagan faith. I use archaeology and history as my baseline, and I freely incorporate elements from folklore and superstition to fill in the gaps. However, I think there’a an argument to be made that if we want Gaelic paganism to thrive as a living religion, we have to allow innovation and reinterpretation. Do we have any proof of Ogham being used for divination? Nothing concrete. Is it cool and do I still do it tho? Fuck yeah.

As long as you’re honest about what’s historically attested, what is speculative, and what is newly created, I don’t see why old and new can’t coexist. They do in my faith anyway.

Fuck that neo Druid and Celtic shaman shit tho. Get that shit right tf outta here.

[lazyjellyfishcreation]

SPN time travel au lets go

Supernatural time travel au where the world ends.

Chuck wrote a failsafe into the universe when he realized that Sam and Dean were getting too competent for their won good, so when Jack kills Chuck, the failsafe triggers and whipes everything out.

The only ones left standing are Jack, whom is the new god and therefore a little more powerfull then the rest, and Sam, because of a spell Rowena put on him. Before they both die, Jack tells Sam that they can still safe everyone by going back in time. If Sam can rally hell behind him, and Jack rally's heavens angels, they can together kill chuck. If Jack can transport them to before Chuck made the failsafe, they can make this right.

And thus, Sam dies, and then wakes up roughly 19 years in the past, on the day he's supposed to leave for collage. And he does. He recons that he only has a few weeks at most to rally all of hell behind him and he cannot do that with a 22 year old Dean hanging on his shoulder, trying to protect him. (not to mentions his shitty father whom is also there and holy shit Sam hasn't thought about him for a while, but his day just got from bad to worse)

Anyhow, he wakes up in cold sweat, trows up into the toilet, and tries his very hardest not to get weepy when he sees is 22 brother for the first time again. He's so young. He's practically a baby. His eyes are full of light and he hasn't seen hell yet. Hell, he doesn't even know hell exists yet. He's still innocent and the worst thing he's ever faced is Azazel. Sam would do anything to keep him that way.

So, he leaves. he tells dad about collage, they fight. Sam has to surpress his urge to punch is father out because holy shit the man is being childish, but he manages to get away after his father punches his instead. Dean comes between them and Sam almost laughs. He had forgotten that his father punches like a bitch. He's been tortured by the devil, he died like, 8 times. that was nothing.

he doesn't go to Stanford. Or well, he does, but only to see Jess. She doesn't see him, of course. Azazel told him she was doomed to die the second she laid eyes on him, and he will not let that slide. She's so young, so innocent. Still a child by all accounts. Sam almost feels like a creep. He was almost 40 by now, even though he doesn't look it. He still loves her, he always will, but he can't love her like he used to anymore.

He leaves campus without ever checking in. He was never there to begin with.

After finding and more or less recruiting the rest of the special children, It's surprisingly easy to take over hell.

Hell is a mess.

Crowly is sort of in charge, but not really, Hell has become a lawless land in Chucks relative absence. And well, by manipulating Azazel, and killing a few demons that are not with the program, he quickly establishes himself as king, with the rest of the special children as his generals. At once, they march onto heaven. He gives strict orders to only go for Chuck. Leave the angels be, Only kill god.

And they do. With the angels, demons, Jack and Sam working together, Chuck dies, and Jack takes over.

Sam himself starts revamping hell for it previous purpose: punishing the wicked. Not only that, but punishing them with severity to their crime. Sure, theft is a sin, but you shouldn't get tortured for forever just because you took a TV that wasn't yours, you feel me?

At this point, Azazel realizes that his was a bad idea, Sam is now ultimate ruler of hell and nothing is going as planned. First and formost, he has absoulutely refused to even go near the idea of becoming the vessel for lucifer, and secondly, he's powerfull enough to actually be king of hell without him. there have been several uprisings, but sam has squashed them all down with little effort.

it's starting to become concerning.

before he can do anything about it tho, sam straight up murders him. No drama, no fanciness, Sam just striaght up stabs him in the back "That's for ruining my life you sicko" and he's dead. He doesn't deserve better.

The demons that disagree with sam start to flee at that point. trying to usurp him isn't working, but if they regroup in the mortal world, sam would be too busy ruling hell to come after them.

But no, Sam makes a deal with Crowley, Crowley becomes his official regent and rules with Sam's rules in Sam's absence, and in exchange, Sam gets Crowley's soul, just to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid like take the power for himself or something.

So now that hell is fixed (he did that in like, roughly one earth year, so 12 hell years) he can go above ground, to kill the demons that are escaping to earth and thus terrorizing human mortals.

he quickly makes a name for himself in the hunter ranks. None of them understand how this 19 year old kid is able to kill this many demons in this little time, yet every time someone has a demon problem, it's Sam who shows up, and straight up kills them, which is notoriously difficult.

Some even claim that the demons seem to fear the youngest Winchester. One or two are spreading stories that a demon called Sam 'your majesty' but nobody believes that. And that's without speaking about the other people that seem to occasionally hover around, clearly his friends, but they seem to listen to him, like he is their leader.

All in all, the hunters aren't sure what to make of him.

And then the bunkers start showing up. Safehouses all accross the country, where hunters can relax, restock and heal from injuries. It's crazy. Nobody knows where the bunkers come from, but they seem old.

Meanwhile, John and Dean have no idea what is going on. John is being his antisocial self and none of the hunters have any rush to tell the volatile man that they all think his youngest son (his pride and joy that left them) has gone completely sideways and is now terrifying. They are straight up minding their business and just avoiding them like usual.

Bobby knows. Sam explained it to him, well part of it anyway. About hell, and god and the devil. Bobby didn't take his word for it at first, but when Sam showed him hell, it all became a lot more believable. He begs Bobby not to tell his brother and father. That this is his fight and he doesn't want his brother in this mess. Bobby promises.

I will write a part two with a reunion at some point, if you want me to tag you in it, reply to it!

[mzminola]

Gotta admit I'm a bit confused by the idea of Jason & Cass meeting "while they were in the League of Assassins" because...when was that?

Cass ran away at age eight, and before that David Cain kept her extremely isolated. Yeah, some other LoA members met her, but it was always under Cain's strict supervision. No one was just wandering on over, and he wasn't bringing her to the group bases. Just his personal ones. Jason is a few months younger than her; he'd still be with Catherine for that entire period. Jason is still about five years out from becoming Robin.

If it's post-resurrection...Jason may or may not have still been considered a LoA member during Under the Red Hood, which took place during Cass's Bludhaven era, so I don't know if them meeting in that time counts or not? I guess it's possible they stumbled into each other before Cass left Gotham while Jason was doing recon, but if they did, it was a non-event.

Cass left Bludhaven to confirm if Lady Shiva was her birth mom or not near the end of that era, coming home to find Bludhaven bombed (therefore right after the climax of UtRD). She did tangle with the LoA on that trip, but Jason was very much in Gotham, and you can't really say Cass was in the LoA then.

So I guess that leaves...the fuzzy period between all of that, and whenever Brothers in Blood takes place? I'm iffy in the timeline, but that's post One Year Later, right? And that timeskip is presumably when Cass underwent the shit that resulted in the Evil Cass arc? I'm really fuzzy on the timeline here. Or I guess any other time Jason dropped off the map before/during the Evil Cass arc, if Brothers is too soon?

Once Cass gets herself back she very firmly cannot be called in any way "in the League of Assassins" anymore, so the premise doesn't work any time after that.

[streetkid-named-desire]

Idk what to do about the fifth corpo war sequel. It's on hold/abandoned. It's just such an undertaking but so is daughter of oaths, though maybe not because that's basically just a road trip and thus I can plan it pretty linear. But the fifth corpo war shit....there's so many players like it can't all be from one character's POV and just all the moving parts. It's exhausting.

Here's the chapter by chapter outline.

Chapter 1

Wedding (cannibalize from chapter 2 and 3)

- Final prep, blockades

- Dinner with Arnie and Greta

- 24 hours without seeing each other

- Wedding day

- Bea shot in the leg

Chapter 2

- (cannibalize from chapter 1old) V gets a call from Ros asking if he ever spoke with the press re Blackwall

- Dum Dum runs up against Militech, Maelstrom not giving in to the blockades

- Honey calls Bea, wants to hire her as security not a dancer for the weekend: Militech and Arasaka corpos and PMCs, get into a fight

- Arasaka corpos coming out of Wakako's pachinko parlor

- Kenji interviewed on TV, intel leaked around military doll chip rumors

Chapter 3

- Ros steps down amid Blackwall leak. Vice Pres announces intent to negotiate as districts are carved out and locked down

- Violent scuffles confirmed to be between Arasaka and Militech

- Arasaka and Militech announce intent to cooperate with NUS, confirm doll chip rumor. Arasaka expresses hope NUS will effectively mediate this patent dispute, despite concerns over impartiality due to prior history with Militech

- Explain districts locked and carved out simply for logistics due to manufacturing facilities and distribution centers (actually to grow PMC and turn as many people as possible into soldiers to take down one or the other by force and stand tall as THE military megacorp)

Chapter 4

- (cannibalize from chapter 3 and 4 old) Curfew instituted

- V convinces Bea to let him install a cyberdeck

- Trip to roundabout

- Fight on NCART

- Bea losing edge, cautious, scared, V takes the lead (reach back to PTSD)

- Militech Androids sent to kidnap Bea

Chapter 5

- Bea wants them to leave the city but V says no. "Where is that hard Arasaka-trained solo?"

- Bea wakes up and tries to be that. Go to Viktor to install deck.

- V meets with Padre to discuss plan for maintaining control of the Glen and Heywood

Chapter 6

- Mayor Peralez assassinated, puppet placed in power

- Negotiations fail, bombing of other districts

- Honey needs help from Bea, troops are getting more violent. Tyger Claws working with Arasaka. District is equally strict but maintains more freedom to curate image

- Bea breaks up more fights, can't convince Miranda to shut down. Bea, Honey and other girls go to Honey's, start of resistance

Chapter 7

- NUSA draft: Bea and V get letters, spec ops and netrunner

- Respective training and op facilities. Bea's flashbacks to Arasaka training, slips into old mask like a warm bed

- Writer letters and holocalls

- Training for Bea gets frustrating because of skill

- V and Rat brothers in arms

- Padre and Dum Dum maintain independence at great cost

- Honey and Mox take back Jig Jig, contingent of Tyger Claws negotiated with Arasaka to maintain safe haven

Chapter 8

- Bea's first missions recon Arasaka: manufacturing plants, training camps. Sees groups of soldiers and civs recognizes their moves as her own

- V heads up special taskforce to infil Arasaka due to his experience with Mikoshi, chip, etc. Facilitated by KY, protected by NUSA

- Brief time off: passion, fear, anxiety. V back to her old self, hurts V when he tries to get her to open up, to talk to him like they're husband and wife and not just two mercs on the same gig again

Chapter 9

- NUSA learns chips were built on Bea's data. Kidnap her for questioning by FIA. Tries to use V's affiliation, burned him when Ros resigned. Gives in and answers their questions. Returned to spec ops camp

- Resistance open and lead by Honey. Jig-Jig maintains neutral safe zone, start with other Mox affiliated areas and entertainment zones, uses need for cooling off as leverage, all centers of resistance and power

- V starts spreading resistance propaganda on the net

- Mitch calls Bea, they have their own version of the chip finished

Chapter 10

- V gets caught spreading propaganda. Forced to become a dweller and goes radio silent.

- Bea deserts the NUSA. Heads to Badlands to help Nomads. Can't reach V. Compartmentalizes her feelings and worry to focus

Chapter 11

- Rat teams up with Honey full time to pick up where V left off with net prop. Hacking dataterms and billboards all over with iconography and messages of resistance

- Underground movement between districts, Honey meeting with Dum Dum, Padre and Wakako, discussing forces, plans, movements. Padre and Wakako just want safety, Dum Dum and Honey want takeover

- KY captured, interrogated, executed. What happened with the Relic, punishment for Frederick and Militech

Chapter 12

- Rat tells Bea where V is (he also deserted after V got caught)

- Finds and rescues him, tells him she loves him for first time since wedding

- Dweller camp horrifying. Nomads get all dwellers out in miraculously violent uniting resistance move

- Learn true motives of NUSA: Ros commissioned Militech years ago for chip prototype

- Nomad camp becomes base of resistance ops. Dum Dum stays in the city with Honey, Padre out with Nomads

Chapter 13

- Honey and Dum Dum: Running ops, recruitment, Rogue contacts Honey to offer up her logistics connects

- Bea tasked with getting message to other gang leader and fixers, convincing them to join the resistance

Chapter 14

- Honey and Dum Dum split up NC and lead resistances, taking back districts one by one. Getting chips out of civ heads, killing or running out PMC soldiers

- War of attrition: civs only soldiers because of chip, useless without it. lose more forces than gain. Resistance has to retreat, fall back to underground

- Retaliation by bombing

Chapter 15

- Bea captured by Arasaka on her way back

- Supersoldiers worse than imagined, modifying and tweaking data from Bea

- Helpless and hopeless, again recognizing how they move like her but with more brutality, recognizes demons she kept hidden, feels a hint of jealousy

- Convince her to work with them

Chapter 16

- V struggled with wanting to mount rescue mission vs greater good

- With Resistance handicapped, Arasaka kicking Militech and NUSA's ass, destroying them in their own districts

- Arasaka takes Bea's bait, fools them into thinking she is working with them while hatching escape plan

Chapter 17

- Bea makes explosive escape out of NID. Maelstrom help fight and get her back to HQ

- Reunited and re-energized

- Rat and V release a virus on Militech and NUSA

Chapter 18

- Arasaka obliterates Militech and NUSA into surrendering

- Arasaka swarms on resistance HQ

- V recognizing their fighting style

- "Picked up some netrunning tricks from you" Hands V a shard for a program, "when i say go hit the big red button". Makes soldiers start to strip and dance against their will making it easy to kill them

- Corps retreating (militarily, not commercially lmao)

Chapter 19

- NC back in usual peaceful chaos. Bea and V spend time at the nomad camp. Bonding moments, talking about their histories, Bea unwinds and opens up more than she ever has before, terrifying but freeing

Chapter 20

- Back at the Glen, Bea gets call from Arnie. Been in touch with other Meraris and Gershons. Separated after they heard the COhens were slaughtered and thought Bea was also gone.

- Couldn't ask V to leave his home, not after they just saved it. But she needs to reunite the clan.

- No hesitation, repeat what she said at Hanukkah "I am home when I'm with you"

- Daughter of oaths sequel

[coleyo]

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

SUMMARY;

New friends are found, faces are reconized, but not all good things last forever... It never does.

"and what's wrong with splinter..?" April spoke, her voice bouncing off of the walls. Angelo listened from the other side of the door as she and Leo spoke, "-Hes.. sick, growing weaker. I don't think he's gonna make it.." Angelo's eyes widened, they'd tense up, only to let their body relax.. ever since that incident with draxum, everyone knew what he's done.

It was his fault anyways.

Splinter wouldn't speak to his youngest, and would ignore him for hours. A fair exchange of words was rare between the two. Angelo felt useless. He couldn't save his father, and now he was about to lose the other. Tears swelled in her eyes, she would clear them in a heartbeat. No, she couldn't feel emotional for splinter!.. but.. Splinter still loved him, right?

Definitely.

...Then again.

   Angelo picked his head up and Inhaled sharply, "-How much time do you think he has left?" April pleaded, silence lingered between the two, a devastating kind. "I don't know, April.. very little." Commander O'Neil let out a sigh and continued to discuss with the other.. Angelo then heard footsteps approached the door, causing the smallest to scatter.

The door flung open, April followed the red eared slider on the way out. Angelo saw this as an opportunity to sneak into the room where they kept splinter, the clinic. A low, beeping noise came from the machine that checked his vitals thoroughly.

He snuck inside, looking down at master splinters cold, almost lifeless body.

At first, it hurt to see..

But then..

Mikey furrowed his brows.

How DARE his own father make him feel this way. He had a right to be upset, he had a right to feel anger, every single right. Tears of gold streamed down Angelo's eyes once more, until, a low ringing noise came from the machine.. Angelo looked over, the line was Completely flat .

Splinter wasn't breathing..

Splinter was dead.

A gasp escaped Angelo's mouth, they would back away from the lifeless corpse, breathing heavily. The ornate shook his head, shutting his eyes.

'He made you feel like shit you can't be upset..'

The boy thought.. the door Suddenly opened.

"...Angelo?"

"Angelo."

______________________________

"SENSEI ANGELO!"

Mikey shouted, stunning the man. Angelo glared at Mikey, before turning towards him. They were currently sitting at a table in the dark corner of the main room. "..Oh? Mikey, where were you." Angelo asked with a strict tone of voice.. "..with..m- mondo, yeah! Anyways, look!" Mikey hopped off of his seat and backed away so that Angelo could take a look at his fancy skirt. ".. it looks.. fine. It's.. silk?" Angelo paused. "-..yeah! what's the matter with it?" "..Nothing, Mikey. It just reminds me of.. ya' know what, nevermind. You look great kid'." "-Thank you sensei!" Mikey wrapped his arms around the man, holding him tightly. Angelo, to Mikey's surprise, hugged him back.

They were noticably getting somewhere.

Mikey spotted others glaring at the duo from across the room, he'd look back at them and let out a huff, his expression seeming to be slightly Disturbed. "..Sensei.. why do the others dislike you?"

Sensei Angelo's eyes widened, he'd pull away from Mikey. ".. You -- you don't need to know." "-I won't be mad, I just want to know so I can help you!" "-Help me?" "-Yeah!" Mikey sat next to his sensei with a contagious smile. "-I want to see you happy, and you're so-- grumpy. I mean, down that frown upside down, am I right? You can't stay mad forever!" Mikey laughs, Angelo returned his smile..

   Suddenly mondo and Casey caught Michealangelos attention, the mutant gleamed with happiness. "-Look, the others are here! Are you coming?" "-Yeah.. in a second." "suit yourself!" Mikey sprung from his seat and approached the two. "-Mondo, Casey! Where were you guys?" "-Where were you? You were gone for like- ever!" Mondo spoke. Mikey laughed nervously. "-Nowhere... Case' can I ask you a question?" "-Yeah, sure!" "..Why do the people here hate sensei Angelo, I mean-- he seems nice." 'Jr would look around for a bit before kneeling down to Mikey's level,

"..I really shouldn't be telling you this, but.." the boy paused.. "-Hes... Made mistakes.. master Leonardo told me that years ago, he had an outburst with his powers... Hurting people.. killing three. It wasn't his fault!"

"Hurting people!?" Said the gecko, "-..killing..people?" Mikey repeats, glaring at him from the other side of the room. All they could see was an innocent soul, one that wouldn't dare hurt a fly. "That's not true, is it? He'd never!" "-At the time his mystic abilities were unstable! One tantrum or strong emotion could've set him off, and it's probably why he hates forming bonds now.. he doesn't want to loose someone and then have another.. tantrum."  Mikey fell silent, he shouldn't have asked. "..I'm.. I'm going to help him get better." "-Good!" Mondo spoke, "-he needs help." He'd place a hand on his hip. "-Lets talk about this elsewhere, huh!" Casey began to lead the two down a hall.. the boys began to discuss about Angelo, ways to help him, mondo even chimed in once in a while.. they suddenly heard a snarl in the distance, a few cans and buckets falling over. Three large shadows stunned them, leaving them frozen. "-..Hello? Who's there?" Casey called, firstly approching danger. "Case'.." Mikey placed a hand on his shoulder.

   Without warning, one of those kraang dogs jumped out from the corner with two gargoyles on it's shoulder. April's equipment held in it's mouth, it would let out a cry, thrashing it's tail back and forth. "-Dude! That's the one!" Mondo shook mikey, "it kept stalking me!"

"Stalking you?" The gargoyle on the left spoke, catching the others attention. "-IT TALKS, KILL IT!" "kill us!?" The other chimed. Casey gripped the weapon, raising it slightly. "-Woah, woah! Calm down!" The gargoyle shrieked, making an attempt to calm the three down, "STOP SPEAKING! ITS FREAKY!" Mondo screamed, "-You're a lizard --" "-GECKO!" "same thing--" the kraang dog suddenly snarled, pouncing at Casey. The gargoyles flapped their wings out of shock, watching what would happen next.

Casey shrieked, but the creature was suddenly stopped. A bright yellow flash of light was formed, and in the blink of an eye, there was sensei Angelo, he stood imfront of the three. The kraang dog yelped as it was grabbed by the throat. It kicked and squirmed, bitting at Angelo.

"-HEY!" The gargoyle shouted, catching Angelo's attention. Angelo dropped the creature upon reconization. "Huginn? Muninn?" Angelo raised his voice a bit. "E-eh-- Mikey!" Huginn said with a cheerful tone, "What a pleasant surprise!" Muninn chimed in with a smile, the two gargoyles flew around Angelo, gracefully. "-Its been forever since we've seen ya' Mikey!" "..I.. go by Angelo now but.. yeah! It's definitely been a while, I haven't seen you two since-" "-..Since draxum died, yes.." huginn sighed.  "you know those things?" Casey asked, mondo and Mikey were also curious. "..yes. they were my father's friends. After he passed I'm not quite sure where they went." "-Woah!" Muninn exclaimed, pointing at Mikey. "-You had a baby!" "-What? No, it's-- its a long story! For now..; we're getting rid of..that." Angelo looked down at the kraang dog, huginn and muninn grew defensive. "-Woah, woah, woah! You might not want to hurt this one!" "-Really? And why's that?" "-Its mayhem!" Muninn replied, "-Just-- different, they were turned into one of those things after they were captured, that's just armor covering their wounds.." huginn added.. "..Mayhem?" Said the ornate turtle, "-Mayhem?" The three boys repeated. "this is too much to comprehend.." mondo utters, Sensei Angelo would glare at him, and then back at the gargoyles.

  "...Lets get this all situated at my dojo." "-Sweet!" Huginn shouted, grabbing muninn by the wrist and flying over to him. Casey, Mikey, and Mondo watched as muninn and huginn landed on Angelo's shoulders "..so is he not gonna explain to us what those things are? OR about what's happening?" "'Guess not." Mondo held his hand in his pockets.

   A low snarl came from behind the trio, startling them. The kraang dog, now refered to as Mayhem walked past, following the others. The three looked at one another, shrugged, and followed them..

This day just got whole lot interesting..

[aceyanaheim]

Watching a kid sneak around parents in a movie/show/anything really is to me what I imagine its like for sports fans to watch the sports players do badly.

[bay-did-nothing-wrong]

Tell All (Donatello x Reader)

Synopsis: Don and the Reader had been hiding their relationship from his family but they decide its finally time to come clean.

Genre: Fluff mostly, some crack, literally one sex pun

Word count: 1946

Soft.

So soft.

Wasn't his skin supposed to be rougher all together? How were his lips so soft and smooth then? Just another mystery.

Your mouths split with a tiny wet sound, but neither of you was in a rush to go anywhere.

But you should have been.

"Dinner's ready!" came Mikey's energetic shout from somewhere withing the lair. Probably the kitchen.

A soft longing sigh left your lips, and you felt a warm current of air hit your face - Don felt the same.

"We should go." you state, convincing yourself as much as him.

"Do we have to?" he whined breathlessly.

Yes, yes, you did. And he knew that. You both did. Otherwise his brothers and his very observant father will notice you're acting suspicious. They'll probably figure out he wasn't just helping you study for that AP Statistics exam. That is, if they hadn't already.

Your hands slid down his shoulders in an attempt to separate you two but instead they fell onto the top of his plastron, thumbs running softly over the last uncovered skin there, where you knew he was sensitive.

"Hmmm..." it came out as a low growl and it surrounded you on all sides. "You're not helping."

"Am I ever?"

"DONNIE! (Y/N)! DINNER!" at least Mikey stuck to the strict "No entering during study-sessions" rules. That's good to know that he can be intimidated into compliance. Or blackmailed... Point is, it worked.

Donnie's head falls in defeat, forehead leaning on yours for support.

So glad he took those goggles off. You can see more of him this way.

He sighed again, defeated - he was too smart to not figure out that at some point your behavior will raise suspicion. His head lifted back, and turned to the door.

"Coming!"

And your cheeky ass giggled at that.

"Oh, Donnie." you teased, "I haven't even started."

"Pfft. " chuckle, and a snort.

He really did like your dirty puns.

The man took your hand into his cool giant one, somehow providing comfort like no other, as he pulled you to the lab entrance. But once at the door you had to split. It's part of the arrangement.

His family shouldn't know about you.

You two decided at the early stage of your budding romance that keeping the whole thing on the down-low for a while was the smartest choice. It would prevent his brother's jealousy, it won't incite any fights, it won't change their relationship with you and you'll get to feel things out at your own pace - no pressure or prying eyes.

Just you.

But there was a list of downsides too. For one, neither of you was a great actor, Don was even shit at lying, so you'd had to take extra steps to remain as friendly-looking as possible. Then there was the trying-to-set-you-up-with-Vern thing that April was doing and every time the topic came up you could act regular-disgusted but not in-a-happy-relationship disgusted, and so would your favourite turtle. And then there was the hiding, coveting each other in the lab or in small stolen moments in the lair, and the lying about going topside to do recon or install something somewhere, the covering up - no, of course Donnie wasn't with you at your place, he must have gone somewhere else.

You were quite honestly sick of it. You were ready to tell his brothers. You were ready to tell the world.

"We should tell them." his voice was once again low, quiet as if to preserve the last few moments of the secret to yourselves.

Once again you were entirely in sync despite being vastly different.

He was a genius, you, decidedly, weren't.

He was really into sports, you weren't.

He was a 6'8 ninja turtle raised underground by a rat dad, and you obviously were not.

And yet somehow, you clicked.

"I agree."

At that point you knew that your approval would kick into gear the most destructive process in Donnie's mind - overthinking.

Your hand immediately darted out and grabbed one of his pulling it up to your lips and kissing the knuckles in reassurance.

"We'll figure it out."

But still, you had to split. Even if you did plan to tell them, there would be a time and a place for that.

"What took you so long? The lasagna got cold." Mikey was positively outraged - as much as he could be - by your lack of interest in his usually excellent cooking.

"Sorry, Mikey." you butted in, trying to save the day, "There's just something about Inferential Statistical Analysis that I can't wrap my head around." Bullshit, you knew exactly what it was and how it worked - it's part of the basics but he didn't need to know that.

"Still smells great though!" Don sounds cheerful enough even though you'd just agreed to break the fragile peace in your relationship just a minute prior. He was getting really good at the lying part. Too bad it won't be needed for much longer.

Dinner was as uneventful as it can be around five mutant ninjas. Master Splinter asked about your day, you told him about the nearing finals season and he offered some comforting words after which the conversation bounced around the rest of the family in a natural progression.

Once you were full, and once all of Mikey's delicious food had been virtually inhaled by the four giant men around you, you got up to get the dishes to the kitchen and help clean up. It was only fair, after all.

Apparently it was Ralph's turn to wash dishes and there was no wiggling out of that because Splinter said so. Well, at least you can dry them.

And dry them you did, meanwhile casual conversation about whatever kept flowing and you figured you won't be able to go back to the lab and do some more 'Statistics'.

You were just drying and putting away the last plate when a thiqq arm stretched over your head to reach a cupboard you couldn't even get to in your dreams.

Your head whipped back, eyes landing straight on some hard looking chest plates under a pair of suspenders. And then you looked up and saw Donatello, the cheeky shit, with a pop tart in his mouth and a shit-eating grin around it.

"Oops, sorry, (Y/N), didn't see you there."

Oh, I'll give you Oops, didn't see me, my ass. You'll see.

He was being unusually open about his closeness to you and that was less then an hour after you'd decided to come clean.

He was ready then.

"I was planning on checking out the meatpacking District tomorrow." Leo was going on about that idea he had to check out some building or another, Mikey was wiping down the table, and Raph was finishing up the dishes, and for once Don was just there chilling.

His treat was gone, meaning he ate it all, he seemed relaxed, his shoulders loose and shell leaning on the wall.

No time like the present.

"You guys, I'm gonna head out. I've got work tomorrow and after that I've got a study group to attend so, I should head to bed."

"You need us to walk you home?" Leo asked more out of courtesy, he knew you lived close and would usually decline.

"No, no, that's okay." you replied, looking for your bag and jacket where you'd left them near the kitchen table.

"Aaaw, you're leaving already? Well, at least you ate." Mikey quickly swept you into a hug goodbye and turned back to sorting his ingredients in the cupboards.

"Thanks to you, Mikey Steward." to which he giggled in response.

"See you tomorrow, shorty." Raph waved as he turned to get a beer from the fridge.

"Stay safe out there, okay?" Leo always the guardian, warned you for the hundredth time, again just out of courtesy.

And then you walked to where Don was leaning on the wall, took his chin in your hand and pulled him down.

Oh, shit, am I actually gonna do this!?

Your lips met, your heart pounded, the room became super hot and that wasn't just because of the brilliant piece of man-candy in your hands. You could feel their eyes but then again that was the whole point.

A loud dramatic intake of air was heard, a drop of something metallic and then silence.

Your face pulled away from him, eyes opening slightly to look at him, as your weight fell back onto your heels from standing on your tiptoes. His face had that same dazed, satisfied-yet-hungry look that he usually had whenever you'd had to break apart.

He tasted so sweet, you just had to lick your lips at the memory.

"I'll see you tomorrow." you whispered, that was all you could force out in that moment.

"See you tomorrow." his voice was as soft as yours even though his brothers could probably hear.

You fully pulled away from your man, now certain that there'd be no secrets between you and the ninja clan.

You were not an actor, you quickly got embarrassed with your performance, however brilliant it may have been, and speedily scammed to pick up your belongings and jogged outta there.

You turned one last time, because something in you said you should and what you saw was truly a sight.

All three of Don's bothers with their mouths hanging open and Splinter peeking out of the door to the dojo with his eyes like saucers and then there's Donnie - the image of peace, hands in his pockets, a soft smile on his lips, now shiny from your lip gloss, and looking you straight in the eye as you retreated.

"Bye." you shout to no one in particular and scramble for the exit.

-_-_-_-_-

Phone - charging

Alarm - set

Pajamas - on

What's missing then?

Ding!

Your phone notified you that someone was requesting your attention and you were more than happy to find out it was your man.

'Hey, Laika' Oh lord it so got you giggling like a schoolgirl when he called you that.

'Hey, Tyson' and then he told you that he loved to be compared with the biggest name in astrophysics today.

'How did it go?' you felt super bad for bailing on him but at the same time there was this relief that came with the cat being out of the bag.

'Surprisingly well. No one was mad that we kept it a secret.' well, that's good. You won't have to jeopardize your relationship with the boys. 'Dad still wants to talk to you tho'

Ah, well, that's to be expected. Even though Donnie is an adult, the were still a very tightly knit family unit so, you supposed that something like that would be a pretty big deal.

'That's fine, I'd do whatever'

'I wish I could kiss you rn'

It honestly shocked you how chill about it he was. Probably because he wasn't being grilled for information anymore, neither of you would have to lie anymore, and because he could now tell Vern to fuck right off, with no worry about how it would look.

You were so looking forward to being solely and entirely his.

'Tomorrow we start anew'

He had a point, things would change. But hopefully not between you.

'Can't wait to meet you for the first time again lol' you didn't know if you were being funny or just cheesy but it felt right.

Despite your smile, your eyes started drooping, your breaths slowing and you felt the exhaustion of the day slowly hug you like a blanket.

'Goodnight'

'Goodnight, (Y/N)'

[cipheress-to-k-pop]

Tension

Pairing: Danny Rand x Reader

Warnings: Mentions of injuries

Word Count: 4.5K

Summary: What happens when Iron Fist takes an interest in an undercover agent? (I’m so bad at summaries and Titles please forgive me)

A/N: This has been sitting incompleted in my drafts for like months and I finally got the energy and ideas to finish it. I feel accomplished.

It made sense that you and Danny never crossed paths. You were just a S.H.I.E.L.D agent and he was part of the superhero program. Even though you were similar in age, you didn’t attend the same school and you had no skills in common so you never saw each other during training.

You were born into being a S.H.I.E.L.D agent, growing up on the Helicarrier and training your entire life to be an undercover agent. You spent your days with different names and different personas, gathering intel and you were more skilled using weapons and gadgets than actual hand-to-hand combat, while he was parading around the city in a spandex suit.

You, of course, had heard of him but only by the name Iron Fist, and you had never seen him in person.

And it would have remained that way if you hadn’t gotten shot on your last mission. Even though it missed anything vital and the surgery had been a success, you were still told not to do anything that might agitate it for the next 3 months.

So, that was how you got transferred from the undercover agent assignments to team strategist department.

“But I don’t want to be in strategies!” You complained, stubbornly following Fury around the Helicarrier as he desperately tried to get away from you.

“Strategies is for boring people! Like Coulson!” You shouted ignoring Coulson’s offended ‘Hey!’, practically throwing a tantrum in the middle of the training room.

“And more importantly, you gave my assignment to that bitch, Lia?! I’ve been gathering contacts for that mission for around a year and you want me to just hand it over to that lazy piece of shit who would rub it in my face even if she never did anything for the mission?!”

That finally made Fury turn around to face you and you sighed in relief, hoping he would at least listen to you.

“Agent Coulson, make sure that every time (Y/N) swears, 50 bucks is cut down from this month’s pay check.”

You threw him a foul glare.

“You will be transferred to strategies in a week—”

“But I don’t want to—”

“Under the superhero programme—”

“Those pyjama freaks—?!”

“End. Of. Discussion.”

You glared at him so coldly, it could have frozen hell over. Your nails were digging painfully into the palm of your hand but you barely felt it through your anger.

You practically growled, pulling out a 50-dollar bill from your pocket and slamming it onto Coulson’s desk.

“MOTHER F—”

***

The first time you met a member of the team wasn’t one that you had expected. It was a month and a half into your recovery and you had written numerous mission reports on behalf of them and reset the programming of their training bots after each practice session but you still hadn’t met any of them.

The time you were taking to recover was driving you crazy. It made you feel weak. 2 months ago, you were in Barcelona, undercover as an underaged bartender for a mafia gang and now you were going to physiotherapy every week.

Since you were young and Fury didn’t want to take the change of you permanently injuring yourself, he was being very strict about what you could do, he basically confined you to a desk job for the next 2 months.

It was driving you mad.

So, one day when everyone was asleep, you snuck into the training area to practice shooting which you were sure had gone a little rusty since the accident. Nothing a little practice couldn’t help.

You picked up your favourite gun, smiling at the familiarity in your hand, loading it and clicking the safety off before pointing at the target and shooting.

The next thing you felt was excruciating pain. So painful that you were on the floor, pressing your forehead against the cold metal, wondering why this was happening to you.

The rebound of the gun had been too powerful for your arm to take. You felt your injury pull suddenly and you couldn’t think of anything other than the blinding pain as you cried on the floor. Feeling utterly helpless.

“Hello?”

You started, teary eyes getting wide at the sight of a blonde by the door. You had to wipe your eyes for your vision to focus, grunting in pain as you raised your arms again.

You recognized Iron Fist. You had been seeing footage of him and his team members for the last few weeks and writing mission reports about him but seeing him in person was a different feeling.

You hid your face, pulling your knees to your chest, hoping he would leave.

“I heard a gunshot.”

“Yeah,” Your voice cracked embarrassingly, “That was me.” 

“Everything alright?” He came closer to you, standing a foot away from you and you shook your head no.

In all honesty, you wanted to get off the floor and go back to bed, but your arm burned so painfully you were scared to move it again.

“Here, let me help.”

You froze, but still let him raise his hand towards you. You saw his palm light up before he pressed it to your shoulder and you whimpered, shuffling away from him but he continued to apply a gentle pressure.

Soon you felt the pain get better, it slowly reduced to a dull buzz.

“H-How did you do that?” You asked, turning to him with wide eyes and he chuckled, seeing the childish wonderment. You clearly had never seen him in person before even if he had seen you.

Danny noticed you the day he had joined S.H.I.E.L.D. You were returning from yet another mission and the soft blue dress you were wearing among armoured soldiers was hard to miss when he passed the debriefing room. Immediately, he stopped to peer inside.

The contrast between the soft summer dress and your cold, professional expressions sent a shiver down his spine. You looked so untouchable. However, he noticed the blush on your face when the agents complimented you and felt his heart flutter.

He had seen your road to recovery, he noticed you falling asleep at your desk every day, constantly doing work because you had nothing else to do and he wondered if it would be weird if he asked you to lunch sometime. For your sake, of course.

Looking at you curled up on the ground, he had wished he had done it sooner.

“You shouldn’t strain yourself before you’re ready.” He muttered, feeling tongue tied next to the girl he had been infatuated with from a distance.

You could only nod. This whole-time people had been telling you the same thing and you always retorted with confidence, saying that you were as good as ready to get back on the field. Never in your wildest dreams would you have thought they were right.

“I’m Iron Fist.”

“(Y/N).”

“I know.” His answer came a little too fast and had you raising a brow. Danny wished he adorned a mask to cover the whole of his face like Spiderman when he felt his cheeks becoming warm, “You write our mission reports. I’m not creepy, I swear.”

You chuckled airily, turning back to the gun that was left on the ground and you pulled it back into your hand before clicking the safety back on before chucking it across the room.

“Thanks for helping me.” 

“I’m glad I was there to help.”

***

After your first meeting, you found him approaching you more often after training. At first it was just ‘hello’s and ‘goodbyes. Then he began asking about your day and you gave him mundane responses before you were forced to ask him how his day was.

Then he started coming early before his training with a cup of tea for you, though it was sometimes juice, sometimes hot cocoa.

Then he started staying late after training and you would give him a bottle of water and complain about him being sweaty.

It was an unlikely friendship but nonetheless, you got closer as the days passed by and once you did, it didn’t take long for you to meet the rest of the team. They kept you company and you grew fond of the rest of them; however, it wasn’t the same way that you felt with Iron Fist.

Your crush on Iron Fist snuck up on you when you were least expecting it but once you realized it you couldn’t stop yourself from falling hard and deep. Still, you continued to hang out with him, pushing down the butterflies whenever he smiled and stopping yourself from grinning too wide whenever you were around him.

You tried to keep your relationship platonic, not wanting to get caught up in it because it was unprofessional. You didn’t even know his identity and you didn’t want to find out. You were afraid that once he revealed that part of his life to you there was no going back on your love for him.

So, you stayed friends, good friends.

***

“So, it all blew up in her face? Huh, I should say I’m surprised but I’m really not.” You said, sighing when Fury handed you the mission file that you had been working on for a year before handing it off to another agent.

“You get to relieve her of her duties and start working again. Effective as of next week.”

You were grinning now. The doctor had given you the all clear a month ago and you had been waiting for a mission to be handed off to you but it had been a quiet month, with no need for undercover or even recon missions.

To get back the mission that you lost when you got shot seemed like the best one to start off again, and you thought your day couldn’t get any better but it seemed like you were having an incredibly good day.

As soon as you exited the room, there stood Iron Fist in all his glory and your excitement got better of you. You bolted right into his arms, catching him off guard with a hug.

“Woah, did something happen?” He asked curiously but still wrapped his arms around you to return the hug. You pulled away, flashing him the mission file in your hand and grinned brightly.

“I finally got cleared for a mission!”

“Congratulations!”

“Thank you! I’m so excited! I have to go and prepare right away!”

“Wha—Right now?” He asked and you nodded frantically, “I’m off in about a week, lots to prepare before that.”

“Well, how long is it going to take?”

“Not sure, oooh, maybe I’ll get relocated someplace cool like Dubai or India or something.”

He didn’t seem to share your enthusiasm but just chuckled in a dejected sort of manner before nodding his head, “Maybe.”

***

“Partner? Fury, I don’t do partners. I am a single lady and would like to stay that way.”

He just sighed, used to your temper tantrums. Though he was honestly wishing he had a mute button on you. You were like the daughter he never wanted. Usually, he maintained a professional relationship with all the other agents but you were like the gem of the department.

Being one of the youngest and most capable of the agents was a reason for many of the older ones to fawn over you. I mean let’s be honest, a baby who can kick ass was adorable!

That always made you more outrageous than the other agents, letting yourself have the temper tantrums and choosing not to be a stiff, boring agent. You knew just how to push Fury to get what you wanted.

“The mission is to go to a socialite party and while you have the skills, you don’t have the contact.”

“That hasn’t stopped me before—”

“We need someone that has the last name to get you in. Besides, after last time, another agent looking after you wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”

Your face fell and Fury knew he made a mistake in choosing his words. Your lip quivered slightly and he heard an agent tut disapprovingly at him and mentally sighed.

“That wasn’t my fault...” You said softly, your voice seemed thick and he knew one wrong move could possibly break the floodgate. He sighed, wrapping an arm around your shoulder, “I know that. But we just want you to be safe. Just in case something goes wrong again, so this time somebody can have your back.”

You nodded sadly, lips in a small pout and eyebrows furrowed. Somewhere in the background he heard another agent whispering to another that Fury was trying to make you cry and felt his eye twitch.

“No one blames you for what happened.”

You nodded wordlessly again, still frowning.

“Tell you what, because it’s your first mission back, you get a higher budget for it.” That was it. Your face brightened like the sun and you giggled childishly, sending him a mischievous smirk as you thanked him.

You disappeared before he could even scold you and Fury then heard the rest of the agents burst into laughter about how you managed to play him.

Again.

***

“Daniel Rand.” You mumbled, looking over the case file. Apparently, he would be your partner for today but it was odd that you never heard of him before. It took you a very short time going through the S.H.I.E.L.D. database to find his name.

‘Daniel Rand, a.k.a. Iron Fist.’

‘WHAT?!’

Daniel Rand? The blond aristocrat that looked like he was picked out of your wildest dreams. With a face that could break hearts and make knees weak, was the confidant and friend that you had been crushing on for weeks now?

Wow, he definitely had a face to match.

Without realizing, you had been staring at his picture for about 5 minutes, fawning over his sharp jaw and deep green eyes with a ridiculous love-sick smile on your face, with your heart fluttering in your chest.

‘God, please, like me.’ You said in your head. So far you had sort of a flirtationship going on with Iron Fist but you wondered if it was the same for Danny. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would intentionally lead you on, but now that you were seeing his face, you realized just how little you knew about him.

He probably had a life of his own and you took up only a sliver of it. Being an agent, you didn’t leave the Helicarrier very often, and you certainly didn’t have too many very friends. You never really realized how much you were missing until you got shot.

Iron Fist, well Daniel, filled the void you felt during your time off but it was also very possible that he didn’t feel the same way, that you were just someone he spent time with to get over his boredom.

Maybe tonight would be the time to change that.

The mission was supposed to take place today, so you woke up bright and early to finish up some things. Go over case files, do a weapon check and pick out your outfit. You were supposed to wear something that would catch people’s attention. And in the back of your head, you also wanted to blow Daniel’s mind right out of his skull.

Red seemed like it would make a statement. So would a bodycon, or maybe a long dress with a high slit. You wanted to go all out for your first mission in months. Maybe even get a few jaw drops.

Finally deciding on an outfit, you quickly texted Daniel.

‘Wear (F/C).’

***

“This guy is coming right?” You asked, bored. You had been ready for about 15 minutes now, looking like you were dripping diamonds and lounging comfortably in Fury’s seat, with your legs thrown over the armrest.

“He’ll be here any minute now.” Said Coulson, checking his phone.

You rolled your eyes, “Why do I feel like this is one of those movie moments where the girl comes down the stairs and the guy is just staring at her with a jaw drop. Or like when the bride walks down the aisle and the groom bursts into tears.”

You sighed, checking your watch again. 20 minutes.

“For someone making me wait this long, he better be so good looking that it makes me cry.”

“Well, I hope I don’t disappoint.”

The new voice certainly turned a few heads and there stood Daniel Rand. The pictures online really did him no justice. Sure, you didn’t cry, but your eyes definitely didn’t feel worthy to be looking something so pretty in the eye.

Before you could help it, a ‘wow’ slipped past your lips and he blushed, having heard you. Wow, he was cute inside and out. Unfortunately, Coulson had to come in where he wasn’t wanted and suggested a quick briefing which you had to agree to.

In the middle of the briefing, Coulson handed you a ring box and you raised a brow, “I’m a little young for you, don’t you think?”

He let out an irritated sigh but you noticed the tips of his ears turn red from embarrassment, “You’re posing as his fiancé. You need an engagement ring to match.”

“Shouldn’t he be getting on his knee then?” You joked, gaping at the size of the diamond for a second before slipping it on, completely missing the way Danny got redder at your teasing, “Wow, it suits me so well one would think I was made to be a socialite’s fiancé.”

Danny didn’t say anything and you brushed it off, putting him off as the shy but cute bookworm who would come through in a difficult situation. As soon as the thought came to mind, you facepalmed. All it took was one good looking guy to mess up your work habits.

“Well, come on honey, we have a party to get to.” You called out teasingly and handed him the keys to the car before strutting to the garages.

Coulson clapped him on the back with a small smirk on his face, “Good luck, honey.”

***

It didn’t take much effort to meet your contact in the party and you quickly left Danny’s side to discreetly to get any information he could pass to you. You quietly chatted with the contact.

Behind you, you vaguely heard a bunch of girls flock around him, giggling shrilly and trying to flirt with him. You resisted rolling your eyes. You had on an engagement ring but Danny’s finger was still bare and even though he might have announced being taken to them, apparently it was necessary for a ring to show his commitment. Something told you that even if he got it tattooed on his forehead, people would still try to flirt with him.

He just had one of those faces. Those faces that made people lose all reason. I mean, you’re slightly annoyed at the girls that have no moral and are shamelessly throwing themselves at him. But really, can you blame them?

Danny was gorgeous. He looked like a Greek Adonis that was sent down from the heavens to grace your eyes. Honestly, you couldn’t take your eyes off him while the two of you were driving down to the party.

Seeing them get handsy was more irritating than It usually would be. As annoying as it was to see these women through all their morals out the window and try and get a taken man to reciprocate their advances, it was more annoying to see them gawk over the guy you were crushing on.

A part of you wanted to just leave him in the car and not have anybody look at him.

But to keep your crush a secret, you maintained your distance from him, talking to the contact in a mixture of different languages so no one would be able to understand. Once you were done, you opted for getting a drink until you saw the pleading look on his face and almost felt bad.

So, you sauntered over to him, cutting right through the throng of girls, disgusted to see that some of them had wedding rings on, right to Danny’s side, snaking an arm around his waist and placing your hand underneath on his chest, giving him a sweet smile.

The shiny engagement ring on your finger caught their attention and they frowned, reminded that they were allowed to look, but not to touch.

“I hope you didn’t miss me too much.” You said, syrupy sweet and loud enough for the girls to hear before turning to them with a charming smile, “I hope my fiancé wasn’t too short with you girls today, he’s very stressed lately, with the wedding planning and all.”

Their faces fell further when you leaned into him and they could all recognize the possessive glint in your eyes. A look that said, I saw you trying to get your hands on something that was mine, you vultures.

The left you two quickly after that, resorting to go gossip in some corner. You wondered if they were snivelling about you but then realized that you shouldn’t be too cocky.

Instead, you turned your unamused gaze to your ‘fiancé’, pulling away from him with a frown.

“I’m assuming that you haven’t come here to flirt with someone else’s wife.”

“I wasn’t flirting though...” He replied innocently and you pursed your lips, resisting the urge to scowl at him. Instead, you just sighed and turned away from him, keeping an eye on the rest of the guests.

If what you were told is true, then someone is going to attempt an assassination on your contact and it was your job to protect him. However, you were distracted once more when he placed a hand on your waist.

You meant to turn around and ask him what he was doing but his grip was strong and he then pressed his lips to your ear. You froze, neck getting uncomfortably hot.

“At the entrance to the foyer.” He mumbled, looking into the mirror that was facing the entrance. Sure, enough you saw it too, the glint that came from the shadows. Someone was there.

The two of you still managed to stay inconspicuous, pretending like you were a couple in love. You turned to him with a smirk, hand going to your thigh where a gun was holstered.

“What do you say about getting out of here?”

With a hand around your waist, he led you to the other end of the room. Just as you expected, a waiter came up to you, trying to guide you elsewhere and you realized that both exits were covered. Grinning up at him, you asked him where the restroom was, giggling in a way that suggested something and he showed you up to the staircase to a hallway. 

Some of the older couples gave you knowing smiles while some of them passed disgusted glances as you made your way to the bathroom that for some reason had a couch in it. Damn, rich people.

You pulled up a schematic of the house, along with security cameras and looked figured out that each one of the exits were covered. Quickly making a plan with Danny, the two of you were about to exit again when you stopped him

You reached up and raked your fingers through his hair, dishevelling it a little before messing up his collar and slightly untucking his shirt. Taking a step back to admire your handiwork, you stopped for a second.

Something was missing.

It quickly occurred to you and you used your thumb to ruin your lipstick a little before smearing it at the base of his neck, “That should be convincing enough. Don’t you think?”

You didn’t give him a moment to answer, not that he even could, with you so close that he could smell your perfume and the scent made him feel dizzy. You pulled away to mess up your own hair and dress.

“How do I look?”

“Dishevelled.”

“Excellent.”

***

“Mission successful, assassination attempt was unsuccessful, contact is safe and being placed into witness protection, assassinators are in custody for questioning. Report 291220. Agent 290803. Phase Beta successful.” You reported into the com set.

Danny was quiet beside you, choosing to pay attention to the road while you deactivated your gadgets for the night. A quick glance from the corner of your eyes made your heart speed up just a little. He was doing that thing where he drove with just one arm.

“You know...” You started, clicking the safety on your gun, avoiding his eyes, “We don’t have to go back to HQ right now? We can get some dinner or something? In the mood for a veggie burger?”

“Is this meant to be platonic?”

“It’s meant to be a date.” You commented. His jaw tightened slightly and you raised a brow at him, did you really make him so uncomfortable?

“I thought you were in a relationship.”

“What?”

“Iron Fist. You like him, don’t you?”

An amused chuckle left you. Of course. He didn’t know you were aware of his secret. Resisting the urge to laugh at him, you shot him a smirk, leaning against your arm.

“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

Danny’s hands tightened around the steering wheel, knuckles turning white. He didn’t look at you, instead staring at the road with a steely gaze and for a second you wondered if you shouldn’t have pushed him.

“It’s a little hypocritical of you to nag me for not being loyal in a fake engagement and then going behind Iron Fist’s back, don’t you think?”

His voice was tight and he was gritting his teeth as he talked to you. You sighed, not wanting to upset him, “Not when you’re the same person.”

He jerked.

“Woah! Drive straight dude!”

“You knew?”

You snorted, “Pretty much, yeah. And since when are we in a relationship? I don’t remember you ever asking me out?”

His cheeks coloured, embarrassed and he looked away from your gaze, “I was planning to.”

“You’re lucky you’re cute.”

You continued in a comfortable silence while he drove. You weren’t really paying attention to where he was driving, choosing to look at him with a small smile. He really was beautiful. Judging by his red ears, he was well aware of your staring.

Eventually, he pulled into a parking space and you were mildly surprised to see he had driven you to a McDonalds. You grinned at him and he returned the smile, getting out of the car to open your door before taking your hand.

“You owe me a date.”

You sent him a soft smile, curling your finger underneath his chin before pulling him in for a gentle kiss. He returned it immediately, slightly pushing you onto the car door and gripping your hips. You pulled away, giggling when you realized some of your lipstick was now staining his.

Chuckling, you leaned up until your lips were brushing against his ear, “Hey genius, you still haven’t asked me out yet.”

Forever Taglist: @simonsbluee

USM Taglist: @imcarolinashannon

[olivarryprompts]

Fanfic Friday #11

Welcome to Fanfic Friday! Each Friday I post a new here and on A03. Enjoy x

Read and save it on A03 here https://archiveofourown.org/works/33567529

{fancy suits from dad}

Ships: Peter Stark & Tony Stark, Pepper Pots/Tony Stark

Warnings: swearing, just fluff otherwise :)

Wc: 2,319

Here’s the thing, Peter Parker grew up in Stark Tower, which eventually became Avengers Tower of course. So whilst his whole class was buzzing about their field trip, all he could think was, “shit, shit shit.” His dad was going to embarrass the hell out of him. His Aunts and Uncles were going to endlessly tease him.

So, no Peter was not looking forward to the field trip. Not in the slightest. He still wanted to go, though. He knew that the rumors of his internship being fake were started by Flash, the annoying teen. He also knew that Flash had not once said his real name, preferring the name Penis Parker. It didn’t bother him as much as it used to. Also since highschool began, Flash had calmed down with his bullying. Well, maybe Flash hadn’t calmed down and high school was just bigger and he had thicker skin. And a new support system with plenty of people to go to.

Peter had been adopted by the Starks when he was a mere ten years old. At first, he was terrible at receiving any gifts or even too much attention. Slowly but surely, he got more and more used to it. Now, he wouldn’t not know what to do if any of that was taken away. Plus, he really did find a liking for expensive suits, however shallow. He looked good in them, and his father always insisted on buying him more and more. Tony would always find an excuse to spoil the kid a little more, however much Pepper tried to stop him.

“Peter, please see me after class regarding an urgent matter.”

Brough out of his thoughts, Peter swiftly nodded his head.

He looked at the board to see the words from before still written on them, “Field Trip to Stark Industries!” It might as well have said, “Dig Peter Stark’s Grave!”

“So, let’s get started with today’s lesson, graphing imaginary numbers on the complex plane!” He’d done this one a while back with his father. Something about not only learning applicable science and engineering. Peter tapped his glass, and the episode of Arrow he’d been watching on the car ride over began playing. He’d be ever grateful for his father’s gift of EDITH to him. Pepper had tried to ban him from wearing them to school, but hastily gave up when Peter pulled the spiderman danger card.

“Alright, class dismissed. Please remember to do this homework pages 11-18 on this unit’s homework handout.”

Peter, forgetting his teacher's previous request, was very glad to be on his way home. He was one foot out of the door when the teacher called his name. Now, his day had gone pretty well up to that point. Bucky made pancakes for breakfast, which were delicious. There was wayyy less traffic on the way to school. He’d aced an essay and a couple of quizzes, and then he even participated in PE effectively. But alas, all good things had to come to an end.

“Mr. Parker? The discussion.”

“Right,” Peter thought, joining the teacher at his desk.

“Peter, you are truly a great kid. I know you’ve been through a lot recently and in your life, but it is no excuse to make up an internship. We both know that it is not real. Now, acknowledging that you have a bright future, the administration and I have come forward with an offer. If you agree to write an apology, expressing that you understand what you did was wrong and immoral, you will both be allowed to come on the trip and no punishment will be given to you. If you choose to not take this opportunity, you will be banned from the trip and will be chastised.

Peter just stood there, not really comprehending. Apparently Flash’s little rumors were a lot bigger than he anticipated.

“I-i-I’m not lying,” was all he could manage. He had filed all the right paperwork and proved his internship.

“I’m sorry to hear that you will not come forward with the truth. You have up until the day before the trip to hand in the letter if you change your mind. Goodbye Peter.”

Peter just let his legs take him out of the classroom, then out of the school, and then to the road, a couple blocks away, where his dad picks him up from.

“Hello mini-me.”

“Hey,” Peter said, jumping into the passenger seat.

“‘Hi Dad, thanks so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to pick me up each and every day. Sick new car by the way! I’d love to drive it sometime!”

Peter just rolled his eyes with a smile, “Car looks great dad. McLarren’s are superior yet.”

“Ungrateful, so so ungrateful. What’s got you in a mood then?”

“Nothin,” Peter said, pulling out his phone.

“Oh come on, tell me. Tell me or I’ll call Ted.”

“Ned, Dad. We’ve been friends for like three years.”

“Not the point.”

“Just something at school.”

“Wow how very descriptive. You know I’m trying to do the whole feelings thing here, and you should appreciate that coming from my emotionally stunted self.”

“You’re so dramatic. Basically we’re having a field trip to your tower, and I’m not allowed to go because the teacher doesn’t think I really have an “internship.” Which, to be fair I don’t but that’s on you and not me.”

“Nah na na. I offered you an internship, and you said I’d be bored.”

“It would be. Doing a project for your company under strict supervision of some person would be sucky. I mean I can do anything I want from the lab you built me.”

“I know, but remember technically you are my intern. Remember we did that whole personal intern bullshit for the school.”

“Oh right. Is that why you keep harassing me about submitting all my completed projects.”

“No, that’s all your mother. Something about not wanting a lawsuit over a fake internship.”

“Make sense. She tends to be a lot smarter than you.”

“Ah, I feel so attacked. The abuse I suffer.”

“You’re terrible.”

“I am internally crying, kid. Sobbing.”

“Shut up,” we laughed.

“Who’s home?”

“You saw Buck and Sam this morning. Nat and Steve came back from their mission this afternoon. Thor and Loki are back for dinner tonight.. Strange might be coming round, not sure though. Cliff and the family aren’t back for at least a couple weeks. Oh and Bruce is wholed up in his lab as usual.”

“Shit. Everyone staying till the end of the week.”

“Yeah, oh the field trip. You’re screwed. You should have not told me.”

“Ughhhhh!!!”

“I love your life Petey.”

Peter walked into the kitchen and saw Steve reading a newspaper.

“Uncle Steve! Your back!” he smiled, dropping his bag off near the sofa. Steve got up to give the smaller boy a hug.

“Yep. Mission completed.”

“Nice. Can you tell me about it?”

“Yeah, it was nothing too interesting. We just needed some more intel into a terrorist organization stationed in the US. Most of the mission was recon. The next steps are being taken in a couple weeks.”

“Good to know there’s an active terrorist organization out there,” Peter said lightly.

Steve just smiled, not quite understanding the modern humor.

“Where is everyone else?” he said, realizing the living room was not in it’s normal chaotic state that he’d come to love. The chaos was his favorite reminder that he had so many people. He liked having lots of people, even after all this time.

“Nat and Buck are training, they invited you to join if you want. Bruce is in his lab, and dont worry he slept and ate last night. Not sure about the rest.”

“Right, thanks. I think I’m going to go train.”

Before he knew it, it was Friday morning, and his school was coming to his home. He was going to try very hard to ignore them. To do so, he asked his mum to let him sit in on some meetings. He had an easy in to the R&D and mechanical side of the company via the other interns. He was actually planning on hanging out with some of the “other” interns later that day. They were always happy to let Pete in on their projects and let him give them a hand. But he was always interested in getting more detail about the business side of the company, and he liked to get a window into it. Pepper was always happy to show her son the ropes. I mean he was heir to the company after all, even if he didn’t know yet.

He asked his mum to only schedule meetings after 12 as he requested a sleep in. Pepper was always happy when Peter slept as he was a little too much like his father. So, he woke bright and early at 11:00 o’clock.

After a scroll through his phone and a quick shower, he was ready to pull on his far too expensive Brunellio’s custom suit. It was one of his favorites. His father had got it custom made when he was in Italy, and told him he simply could not resist getting one for the kid. Pepper just smiled.

He had a large breakfast (enhanced metabolism) and headed towards the 34th floor where his first meeting was located. He’d been shadowing his mum for almost a year now whenever it was convenient, so he had the rointine down. He was almost sure he could take over a few of her meetings.

“Hi honey,” Pepper said, giving the boy a quick kiss on the cheek on the way to her own chair beside him. Peter blushed before resuming his professional posture and facial expression.

“Good morning everyone, as you can see Peter will be joining us today. I want to talk about some of the services we provide for our employees and their feedback. I’m aware we have a large portion to talk about so Kendra please take it away on that front.”

The first meeting went smoothly as planned. It was a discussion on the progress of the internal services, aka the IT department. Peter hadn’t learned much about their IT department, so it was good to listen in to. Pre these meetings, he, of course, does research into the background stuff, so he’s not completely lost. Pepper’s assistant usually provides him with a packet of info about the Stark Industries side of things. He is also given a list of key words and concepts he might want to make sure he understands. The research is fun for him, it makes him feel all professional.

Usually he spoke during the meetings, asking a couple questions and suggesting some ideas, but for this one he just learned and took in. The next meeting, however, was very much so his field. He’d spoken a lot with advertising, becoming very interested in the data analysis behind it. He even took a stats class so he could keep up. In that one he asked questions Pepper was on the verge of asking twice. He also contributed to the analysis of data once. Pepper usually liked him to participate as it was good for him, but he always felt bad suggesting stuff to the senior adults. He usually spoke to his mum or dad about projects for the company, preferring that.

They hung back in the room of the second meeting.

“Good job in this one Pete. Took two questions right off my tongue.”

“Thanks ma,” he said, always appreciating some approval.

“That’s all I’ve got for you today, kid. Rest of the stuff is, ya know.”

“Course. Thanks for these two. It was good to learn about internal affairs a bit more. Have a gap of knowledge there.”

“Yeah. Was that the first time meeting our CIT?”

“I believe so.”

“Well, next time we have a broader IA meeting, I’ll pull you outta school,” Pepper suggested.

“Really? That’d be epic.”

“Course, hun. Jarvis, sort that out please.”

“Of course Mrs. Potts.”

“Thanks J,” Peter yelled.

“Anytime mini-boss. No need to disturb the entire floor.”

“Are AI supposed to be so snarky?”

“Dad programmed it, what else would it be?”

“Valid point.”

“Right, got to run. See you later.”

“Bye, love you mum!”

“Love you too, Pete.”

“Jarvis, could you send me the tour plan for the visiting tour today?”

“Absolutely, sir. They’re on your phone now.”

“Thanks J.”

Looking at the plans Peter smiled. He had successfully avoided them the entire day. It said they were supposed to head back to school at 2:30, and it was about to be three. Smile on his face, he trotted down to the lobby to grab a coffee before going to meet Loki at the arcade. Don’t judge them, it was their thing. Taking the private lift down, and then walking straight to the coffee stand and ordering.

“Mr. Parker!” he heard the angry voice of his teacher, “How dare you show up here aft-”

Shit. shit. Shit.

“Edith, call dad, and tell him it’s urgent in the lobby.”

“Of course Peter.”

“Peter, are you listening to me! You are going to face extreme consequences for this.”

“Your coffee,” the man said, not realizing it was Peter, level ten personal of the tower, that was being yelled at.

“Thanks.”

“How dare you get coffee! In this building! Security!”

Tony arrived spotting his son instantly.

“Kid this best be impor- I see.”

“Hey Mr. Stark,” Peter said weakly.

“Mr. Harrington is it? Please stop harassing my intern.”

“H-he, he is y-your intern?”

“Yes. My favorite. Please exit the building and never question him again. You will be hearing from me.”

Let’s just say, Monday was an interesting day. At least Flash backed off, he was definitely an intern at SI, and no one embarrassed him on the trip.

[raith-way]

Fandom: DCEU / Suicide Squad

Fic: Memento Vivere

Pairing: Revina Revnic/Rick Flag

Kiss Prompt 10: …desperately

Requested By: @asirensrage

Tagging: @jinxsflame @hughstheforcelou @uno-reverse-reversed @hiddenqveendom @ocfairygodmother @jewelswrites-ish

The Mission Comes First

Rev had learned, what felt like a lifetime ago now, to fear the words routine mission. Any time a mission became routine, she knew to keep on guard because some kind of shit was going to hit life’s proverbial fan. Despite knowing that, she had let herself relax. Because the mission had been a simple one. Her and Harley had been the only ones deployed, into a dark nightclub filled with music that she could feel vibrating in her soul and bodies sliding against each other with wild abandon. It made her crave the quiet, but she got a kick out of watching Harley mingle and enjoy time outside of her cage. As far as the mission went, they were just doing a little recon. (Rev’s first specialty.) Watch, listen, learn, report. It was the kind of mission that she could do with her mind completely disconnected. Instincts picking up the important bits while her thoughts strayed.

Harley danced, Rev observed, and Rick talked into her ear the whole time. Strict orders that kept her eyes sharp and whispered words that made her thighs tense. For a little while, it was the best mission ever. Harley was distracting the crowd with what looked like an impromptu dance battle, giving Rev a clear view of their target and his dealings, and Rick was dripping filth over their private comm about all the things they were going to do as soon as this mission was over. Her body had started to move along with the masses as she imagined a completely different body pressed against hers, and that was when it happened. When the routine mission flipped, ass-up, and she had frozen inside the club as she heard strange voices over the comm.

Focusing on the mission had been torture after that, because the comm had gone silent. The private channel and the public one. She gave Rick five minutes, she trusted him enough to take care of himself, but she could only control herself for five minutes. Once time was up, she started jumping with the crowd just a little out of beat. She caught Harley’s eyes, and she knew the woman could understand her because she clapped her hands in the air and pulled attention to herself. Rev used the window of opportunity to slip out of the club unnoticed, and she could hear the heavy door clang behind her as she strained to see around her. Rick’s command center for the night was nearby, and that was where she went. Started at a leisurely walk and then slowly built into a jog, until she was nearly running. The nightclub had been in one warehouse, and Rick was set up at a different warehouse far enough away to not be noticeable. Too fucking far away, in her opinion.

The first body was a bit of a shock. Neck twisted at an odd angle, sprawled across the ground, but she didn’t slow her run and just jumped over the body instead of stopping to inspect. The second body was less of a shock, face and chest shining wet and red in the darkness, and she jumped over the body and upped her speed. By the time she reached the warehouse she was looking for, she had vaulted over two other very obviously dead bodies and was breathing heavy from the panic rather than the fast pace. The next shock came from the bright light inside the warehouse, and she skidded to a stop in front of the rolled-up door. Just outside of the falling light. The thick leather heels of her boots caused some noise, enough to get some attention, and Rick’s eyes snapped up to hers.

“The fuck’re you doin’ here, Revnic?” Using her surname wasn’t a good sign, but she didn’t care about which of her names that he was using because she could clearly see blood. He was sitting behind a table, just a plain white fold-up table, and leaned back in his chair. The coat he was wearing to ward off the chill was gaping open, showing the dark shirt underneath, and she could clearly see rips in the material. Rips from blades. On the floor under him, she could see grouped drops of blood. (Not puddles of blood. He wasn’t bleeding that much.)

“Strange voices, dark comm, what the fuck?” No one had ever accused her of not getting to the point, and she completely ignored Rick’s I’m-the-team-leader-show-some-respect glare.

“I was doing a perimeter check, and I got stabbed,” he answered as he sat up straighter. He visibly winced as he slumped forwards in his chair, like she wouldn’t worry if he hid the damage behind the table, and she reached up to pull at her hair. Her stupidly dyed hair that had been dyed for this stupid mission, where Rick had been stabbed while not even being involved in the mission part of the mission.

“What? Why’d you get stabbed?” she rushed out. If they’d been found out, someone would have come after her or Harley. Why go after Rick? Better yet, how’d they get the jump on Rick?

“Not like I stopped to interrogate them. I was a little busy with being stabbed,” he mumbled and rubbed absently at his jaw. Had one of them clocked him? He quit rubbing at his face and pressed his fingers against his temple as he looked right at her. “I got a little distracted.”

“Are you telling me that you can’t handle phone sex and not getting stabbed at the same time?” She finally marched forward, out of the darkness and into the harsh light of the warehouse Rick had claimed, and she bit down on her grin as Rick instinctively sat up straight in his chair.

“It wasn’t phone sex,” he complained. As soon as she was close enough, she grabbed at his shoulder and pushed him back in the chair.

“Comm sex sounds stupid.” She was talking while pulling up the dark tee that he was wearing, and she swiped her hand across the blood that had streaked down his torso. She heard him hiss through his teeth, but she could see now that the wounds themselves weren’t so bad. Two lucky strikes, enough to break the skin and make a mess, but he probably wouldn’t even need stitches. Just a big band-aid slapped on for a day or two.

“Mission ain’t over, Revnic,” he told her as she swung her leg over his lap. Her shirt was dark enough that it wouldn’t show bloodstains, and it wasn’t like she’d care if she did walk back into the club with blood all over her shirt.

“Just checking on my team leader.” She kept one hand pressed against his stomach, high up on the left with already drying blood sticking to her skin, as she leaned forward and knocked her chin against his. “Next time you need to take a break to kill some interlopers, you keep me on.”

“That get you off, Rev?” The words were said against her lips, warm breath against her skin and the taste of the mints that he favored slipping down her tongue, and her free hand locked around his neck with enough force to leave bruises in the shapes of her fingertips along his hairline.

“Knowing you’re alive gets me off.” She whispered the words into him, so that he could taste the truth of what she’d said, and she thought of his voice cutting off. Of not being able to hear him. Of not knowing if he was alive or not.

Before she could have another thought, of Rick dying or him killing four men while she danced with strangers, they crashed together. She bit at his lips until he cursed against her teeth and gripped her hips hard enough to ache, and she lost herself in him. They pushed and pulled at each other, desperate to leave marks that belonged to them, and she ducked down to feel the thundering pulse in his throat pushing against her tongue. Sealed her lips around the thin skin and sucked, nipped with her teeth and pulled, to leave a mark over the place that proved he was alive. She could feel fresh blood against her hands as her fingers curled against his skin, like she could pull him apart and bury herself inside his chest cavity right next to his beating heart, and she could feel her hair being pulled as she was ripped away from his skin so that his lips could devour hers. Her mouth felt hot and sensitive, bruises were blooming across her hips and thighs, and it wasn’t enough.

When Rick pulled away, she actually whined. A high-pitched sound slipped from her throat as her hips rocked forwards, and Rick sat up straight to hold her steady against him. One hand curled around the back of her thigh, fingers pressing in, and the tight grip he had on her hair allowed him to hold her back. Even if she did lose a few strands of hair while trying to taste the jumping muscle in his jaw. Her eyes opened to look at him, to see how his usual stern expression hardened into something that echoed the hunger in her, and she tipped her head back to bare her throat as she let out another quiet sound of need.

“We have a guest,” Rick said slowly. He was looking directly at her, looking at the way her tongue swiped across her bottom lip as she chased the taste of him, and she forced herself to focus. Behind her, she could hear heavy leather shifting against concrete.

“Don’t stop on my account, boss. I’m gettin’ quite the show,” Harley told them cheerfully. Mission, right. If Harley was here, that meant that the mission was over. (Could also mean that Harley had gotten worried and decided to check on them, or it could mean that she had gotten impatient and just killed the target. Rev was okay with all the options.)

“Love ya, Harls, but… no,” Rev said and looked over her shoulder. When she bowed her spine to look over her shoulder without dislodging Rick’s hand from her hair, her hips rolled forward and Rick’s fingers slipped to grip at her inner thigh. From her bent angle, she could see Harley pouting and kicking at the ground.

“Always ruinin’ the fun,” Harley sighed. Rick echoed the sigh, so perfectly that Rev almost laughed, but she was saved from getting that lecture as Rick suddenly gripped her hips and lifted her from his lap.

“Harley, report,” he snapped out. Harley straightened, standing at perfect attention, and even her salute was right on point. Once Rick was standing, Rev dropped to sit in his chair and waited for the debrief to be over. In the meantime, she had some plans to make.

[ironwoodprotectionsquad]

I’m sorry if this is a long ask but, I was thinking about how Whitley’s inspiration is Artemis Fowl apparently, which kinda makes sense, I guess. And that got me thinking of other characters named Artemis - which led me to thinking about the cat in the manga Sailor V. Like, they both have white as their main color, they’re both strategic, they technically have the name “Artemis” in common, in the meta sense. And then I thought,

“What if Whitley loves shoujos?”

Like, think about it. An alternate universe where a classmate lends him their manga for a week or something. Or he stumbles across one on his Scroll. Or he accidentally catches an episode on TV one late night? I don’t know, just something happens and he’s instantly hooked. His crops? Watered. His skin? Clear. His grades? Higher than ever. And all because he’s seeing this walking disaster named Minako Aino, a bigger disaster named Usagi Tsukino, and everyone like them go on adventures and learn the Power of Friendship with sparkly suits and animal sidekicks and it’s great.

But it’s his dark little secret. Not because of some “ha ha ha, what boys like watching shoujos, his poor masculinity LOL” nonsense like c’mon, we’ve beaten that trope to death, let’s move on from that. But he’s seen how his dad had treated his sisters when they went to Huntsman Academies and he wants to avoid that fate.

Maybe he wants to be a Huntsman like his sisters but can’t because of what his father would say (he can practically hear Jacques go “How could you possibly read/watch all this glittery drivel when you could be brushing up on Keynesian economics???) Maybe he doesn’t want to be a Huntsman, but he lives out that fantasy in these happy color-coded superheroines. (Both scenarios could be used to make his “Huntsmen are all barbarians” line to Weiss even more tragic, because he’s just parroting his dad, or there’s some part of him which clearly doesn’t think that’s true, and he can’t even be honest with himself and what he thinks because of how scared he is of losing his dad’s approval.)

And in the event where he’s still alive after Salem stops being a threat (maybe Ironwood is alive and his story arc isn’t hideously butchered, and the rest of his family isn’t borderline ignoring him), whoever is the responsible adult (that isn’t his dad) could see the shoujos he’s been hoarding and ask “What’s that?” and he’s too terrified to talk about how he loves them…

…and on his next birthday he is blessed with a whole stack of manga and a family-plan Netflix-equivalent account. All the shoujo he wants. We’re talking good, mediocre, bad, really bad, slice of life, horror, decons, recons, shounen-esque, seinen-esque, josei-esque, the sky’s the limit. And he’s just sobbing from happiness because they don’t think he’s stupid for liking it and it’s just a good day for him in general.

So, uh, long roundabout way of saying that I think that Whitley would accidentally be obsessed with shoujos because of Codename: Sailor V. What do you think?

Hey anon! Never apologize for long asks I enjoy them! I should apologize to you for taking so long to get to this guy, my weekend has been a little crazy and got a little behind on asks here but please always keep sending them in I will get to them just these past few days where unexpectedly busy for whatever reason lolz.

Anyways into the meat of the ask, I actually don't really know what shoujos is and uh well I never watched really any anime's. My dad when I was a kid was like super strict on what I was and was not allowed to watch and as I got older and could decide more for myself what I wanted to consume time suddenly was an enemy and it takes a shit ton of willpower to keep up with the shows I already have already started.

Uh not that you care about that anon hehe.

But regardless I do love the idea of Whitley loving something he knows his father would hate if he found out and scoff and belittle him for wasting his time on such frivolous activities and in a kinder AU where James lives and he finds out about it he just gives Whitley something tied to whatever it is he loves because James knows he deserves to be able to freely enjoy whatever it is that he wants to enjoy without fear and he will do everything in his power to help Whitley make up for the time he wasn't allowed to enjoy these things.

Also yes just give me a Whitley who is just so desperate for love and affection that his mother and sisters refuse to give him that he does whatever he needs to to make his father happy even if some small part of him knows it's wrong and his father is bad but he is so desperate for love and affection he doesn't care because for some reason he just wasn't good enough for anyone else to get that love so he'll chase after it even if this love is conditional, even if it isn't really love, even if he slowly has to kill his soul to get it.

Uh whoops sorry that got a little emotional but yes I do enjoy the idea of him loving something his father doesn't approve of even if I can't particularly speak to what you where thinking.

[boop-le-snoot]

PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 37

💖 first time reader click here 💖

Five more chapters to go, guys. This is coming to an end 😭 I enjoyed writing it so, so much! In this chapter we have fluff. Literally only fluff and snark, because my babies have suffered enough. And the remainder is gonna be the same. Because fuck pain.

Coulson was mad. Outwardly, of course, he seemed as level-headed as ever, handing out orders and signing papers out left and right, but coming to sit within five feet of him seemed like the worst mistake I had recently made. His phone was ringing practically non-stop and he answered every call, sometimes speaking in different languages I didn't understand, sometimes in rapid-fire English that sounded like Morse code to me.

I'd never been sent to the principal's office but I imagine that's how it feels like. Finally, his shoulders sagged and the breath he took in left his lungs slowly, deflating his body into a tense ball of quiet fury.

"You and mister Brock ruined months worth of investigation and undercover work," The agent finally spoke. "But I can't even be mad at you properly. We've apprehended the main culprit, detained all of his followers except select few that Dr. Xavier took upon himself to handle," His words shocked me; not at all the scolding I was expecting. A deeper part of me was even afraid I'd be taken away and buried under so much red tape not even Tony's seemingly endless money and influence could have gotten me out. "I... Really don't know what more to say." Coulson folded his hands atop the desk, looking over me with a blank look.

"A thank you would be nice," I let my mouth run before the words even really registered in my brain, the cursed thing.

The agent chortled, "Perhaps, we really do owe you a solid one," Before standing up and walking over to the coffee machine in the far corner of his office. "Coffee?" He motioned to a pile of empty cups next to it. I nodded and he set to work. "The guys should be back in two hours, tops," He remarked off-handedly, watching me out of the corner of his eye. There was no way he had missed how my body relaxed into the uncomfortable office chair at the news. "Nobody is hurt except Rogers but I think he'd find how to hurt himself even on recon duty." The man laughed, bringing over two cups of dark, delicious, steamiy hot bean juice. Nhghhgg.

"Steve is a dumbass," I agreed amicably, blowing over the rim of the cup. The stone of coffee on it's own seemed to wake up my previously anxious, half-empty half-racing brain. The past twelve hours were full of urgency, the team being called in for assistance in mere minutes after my and Venom's return to the tower.

They barely had time to wipe their tears and shelf their worries before the suit-up call came, haste hugs and kisses being traded on their way to the quinjet. Coulson showed up not much later after that, a quinjet of his own and a stack of papers for Eddie to fill out, stern instructions for me to follow him and stay glued to his side at all times. I didn't need to ask: it was obvious there was a rat in SHIELD, again. Thankfully, the rat was discovered before they could come and try to increase their odds by doing something to me; I'd hid out in Coulson's office, crashing down into a strange, most likely Venom-induced sleep as footsteps raced past the door.

I'd woken up anxious and disoriented, the owner of the office pacing along the furthest wall and pointedly whispering into his cellphone. The rest was history.

"Your father called," The agent remarked, watching my reaction carefully. "Said to call him back whenever you can."

I was drained, beyond wrung out, and not just from my latest stunt as a parasitic symbiotic alien's host. The past couple of months were a nightmare, an anxiety-riddled, paranoia-spiced mess of a shit show. I was very much looking forward to breathing freely and enjoying my science without hiding my WIPs, enjoying my relationship (s) without fear of being abducted and sending my men into a panicked, destructive spiral.

My voice remained even as I carefully contemplated and spoke my next words. "He can go fuck himself. Him and that harpy of a woman," I sighed: disappointed in my parents, but not surprised. "I'm freshly out of fucks to give. I'm done."

Coulson, if he even was surprised, didn't show it. His expression remained neutral and supportive. "I understand you. There's enough basis for us to aid you in creating a new identity for you, if you'd like," He pushed a stack of papers towards me.

I chewed on my lip in contemplation. It would be handy, sure, I could be rid of the curse that became of my family name and my parents couldn't legally do anything at all to me; on the other side there was my name plastered on several inventions and projects I'd done over the years. In all my years, I was taught that my name is to be my business card.

The decision was obvious. "No, thank you," I looked at him, hoping to convey the sincerity. "I think I will be okay."

He smiled and went back to his paperwork, all but verbally dismissing me. As soon as I finished my coffee and washed the mug, the couch called to me once again and I curled up under the fleece blanket Coulson had thrown over me while I slept, alternating my attention between sneaking glances at his concentrated form and my cellphone and the few meager games it had. There was no signal and no wi-fi access on the Helicarrier. Security reasons, blah blah blah...

A knock sounded out, startling me out of my sluggish thoughts; one of Coulson's hands crawled down to one of the drawers on his right side where I assumed he had hidden a gun. "Come in," He called out, shooting me a pointed look. I sat up, alert.

"M'here to pick up - uh - a Baby," A tired but amused, familiar voice called out. Clint stepped into the room, still wearing his dirty and bloody uniform, and, as my eyes briefly scanned him, the archer appeared to be unhurt save for a few bruises here and there. His eyes landed on me immediately, visibly relieved.

"Waa," I deadpanned indignantly, raising my hands like a toddler would do when they wanted to be picked up. The only thing Clint was missing was a courier's ball cap.

"I assume the mission went smoothly?" Coulson asked, a soft grin and even softer eyes landing on our interaction.

Clint nodded affirmative, walking over and picking me up with ease, disregarding my shierk completely and stopping only when I poked him in the ear - closest appendage to me - in retaliation. His eyes were laughing and his tone was flat. "Caw caw, motherfucker," He announced to me flatly, waving goodbye to Coulson.

We passed more than a dozen agents giving us the biggest side-eye as I dangled over his shoulder, ass up in the air, fiddling with the numerous straps of his gear as Clint power-walked us to the Avengers quinjet. I'd even stuck out my tongue to some dude pointing a finger at us.

My family was already loaded into the vehicle, all in various stages of dirty, bloody and undressed. Coulson's words were true - only Steve sported a wide bandage over his shoulder, neck and head - one look at Bucky and I just knew the Captain would be regretting his stupidity in a few hours time. Even Stephen was there, looking unhurt but very annoyed and tired, as he hovered a few feet off the ground with Cloaky majestically swaying behind him.

"And what the fuck was that little performance for?" I asked once Clint deposited me in the very front row, between a dozing Bruce and a tinkering Tony.

"I had strict instructions from the Hulk," The archer grinned, pushing a few buttons on the dashboard of the vehicle. In seconds, we took off home.

"Oh, hi," Bruce must've heard his green counterpart being mentioned; his eyes cracked open just as I smiled at the scientist and reached over to brush his curly mop of hair out of his face. "M'yes, Hulk is demanding you do not set foot on the ground these days," Bruce was sleepy and warm, so soft when he kissed my hand, I felt my heart swell.

"Gonna spoil me rotten, you lot," I snorted, keeping the happy smile and the warm feeling as Stephen came back from the Astral world, opening his eyes and giving me a grin of his own.

"That's my job," Tony mumbled, still very occupied with a part of his suit. I turned around expecting a kiss; I had to stifle an ugly snort upon discovering one of the parts of his Iron Man suit got damaged and stuck, making a part of the chestplate render one of his arms temporarily immobile. Tony looked like a frustrated toddler building Legos.

"Someone get me a screwdriver and some pliers," I gently pried away the calloused fingers away from the jagged piece of metal, kissing Tony's cheek in the moments until Natasha handed me the required instruments. Tony was free, grimacing in discomfort as he stretched and rotated his arm, in little under ten minutes. "What happened to the nanosuit?" I asked, not remembering the last time I'd seen Tony in one of his older, clunkier creations.

"They had some sort of technopath mutant," He grumbled - I had discovered the source of his ire. "Turns out, Bruce snuck in my special anti-mutant suit I'd made ages ago. Nanosuit got destroyed in seconds and Hulk had to carry me back to the quinjet for a change of equipment," Despite his sour mood, Tony was visibly more relaxed than since the day I confessed I'd been drugged. "Brucie-bear, this is exactly why it remained a prototype."

"It's better to get stuck in a suit than to be a meat pancake on the sidewalk," Used to Tony's tantrums, Bruce merely blinked and continued eating the chocolate that he procured only God knew where.

I locked eyes with Stephen, both of us shaking our heads in almost identical, semi-fond semi-annoyed way. Ah, sweet sweet normalcy.

There were towers of pizza boxes as we arrived in the tower; a couple of agents got all but yeeted out by Tony, with little to no thank you as they had been the ones that arranged the food for us - still, I understood Tony's dislike of the super-secret organisation and merely paid the two for the pizza, politely waving goodbye as they side-eyed Tony with disdain.

Then, I had to tow both Clint and Thor as they attempted to begin eating, still wearing muddy bloody clothes - of course, I did not possess the physical strength required to handle two adult men, so I merely began a small lecture on parasites (Stephen gleefully joined in) and both of them scattered towards the showers like two spooked little first-graders.

I also used the brief moment of stagnation to hug Loki; these days he didn't freeze in surprise but rather warmly hugged me back, whispering something cheeky to me as I buried my face in his chest. Stephen was the one to cough extra-loudly to attempt to separate us - it was, once again, unanimously decided to have a family dinner and a cuddle pile straight after. Food coma had never sounded nicer.

"So, what'd Coulson say to you?" Clint asked curiously as we all settled in, freshly showered and those who needed it, re-bandaged. I was warm and toasty between Tony and Stephen, wearing the former's gym shorts and the latter's hoodie, Bruce's t-shirt underneath it. The scientist himself was drooling onto Tony's shoulder, somwhere between sleep and awareness, glasses askew.

"He basically thanked me and offered me a new identity," I shrugged, polishing off the last of my smoothie and handing the second bottle over to Loki. As usual, no food was wasted and I always had someone to finish my leftovers, especially since Bucky tended to think I could eat as much as him and kept trying to overfeed me like a foie gras goose.

"Congrats, you've been adopted," Natasha snorted from her place between Clint and Steve. Only the red of her hair was visible behind the man-bulk and the blankets.

"Uh," My response was, as always, deeply informative and astute.

"He likes to take in strays," Clint full-belly laughed. "Me at first, then Natasha. He's got a soft spot for Tony and Bucky but he won't admit it."

My eyebrows rose. "That's... That's my job?" I remembered the whole Venom/Eddie situation, our rogue wizard. Coulson was aiming for my place- the audacity! "He can't just do that!"

"And you can?" Stephen's finger booped my nose, making me huff and cuddle up to Tony, turning my butt towards the sorcerer to show him exactly what I thought about his observations. He only laughed harder. "Sounds like someone's a little jealous."

"Okay, boomer," I rolled my eyes. Stephen Strange, a supreme troll is what he is.

"But that's why you love me," He continued as others around us groaned and snorted, too used to us teasing each other about our age difference and my old man kink. Whatever, I got to bang my hot old men anyways.

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub ​ @mostly-marvel-musings  @vozit ​ @littlegasps ​ @pilloclock ​ @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads ​ @hermione-grangers-wife ​ @individualistfem ​ @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @cutenessloading @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie @mikariell95 @gladiosamicitias @warrior1-19 @toomanyrobins @i-cant-hangout-im-drumming

[astralshipper]

I made a couple clone OC squads so. here is one of them hfjdjfjfj u are by no means obligated to read all this it’s just here bc im probably gonna talk abt them!!! I apologize in advance for the edits, Rex sweetie I’m so sorry but you’re the easiest clone to find good screen caps of-

Purgatory Squadron of the 135th Battalion

LEADER: Hook, ARC Trooper

Strict and dead set on doing things his way on the battlefield. A complete and total idiot loser off the battlefield. Kind and caring to his brothers and generally a nice guy. Loves playing pranks when they’re not in a battle. Is able to talk himself out of any situation, “hook, line, and sinker,” which is where he got his name. It’s the only reason he hasn’t been ejected from the GAR after the bullshit he does, e.g. attaching kitty paw imprints on the boots of the 212th battalion so when they ran into battle the footprints looked like a bunch of kitty cats gonna kick ass

SNIPER: Enigma

Quiet, calm, and collected. Knowledgeable about the whole damn universe, somehow. If there’s a strange trivia fact, he knows about it. Wins trivia night at 79’s all the time, to the point where some clones have stopped playing when they see he’s there. Strong and intelligent, but much prefers following orders as opposed to giving them. Trusts his brothers with everything he has, and often works with Double to get them into the med bay or to Colonel Novak when they’re hurt or sick.

PILOT: Drop

Complete absolute big dumb idiot man. Happy, excited, but has no brain cells whatsoever. Terrible influence on Crash, who follows what his ori’vode say despite Drop being the dumbest motherfucker in the galaxy. Often makes a bad joke to his brothers while they’re walking down the corridors to their barracks and tries to high five a random clone walking past in the other direction to celebrate. Announces every landing by saying, “prepare for drop, fellas!” The squad thought this was hilarious and made it his name.

STRATEGIC ANALYST: Brix

Can be A Bit Of An Ass. Snappy and generally annoyed with everything and everyone. Just wants some peace and quiet, and WILL tell your ass off if you ruin that for him. Here’s a secret: he’s really a total softie!!!! Genuinely loves his brothers, and is also very very VERY focused on making sure the squad saves as many lives as possible. Overworks himself to the bone. Has terrible anxiety when it comes to the idea of him NOT knowing a piece of information that’s important for a mission. Can’t imagine being the reason his brothers are ever in danger, and has had bad experiences with losing innocent lives in the past. Works closely with Enigma to stay updated on everything he can possibly know, just in case he needs some minute piece of knowledge three years down the road.

FIGHTER: Double

The mom of the group. Keeps his brothers in line and makes sure they’re taking care of themselves. Is in charge of rations and duty scheduling on missions, but his work in the latter is always checked over by Hook. Regularly complains that he’s the only one that actually does anything off the battlefield, he’s fucking looking at YOU, HOOK, for fuck’s sake you’re an ARC Trooper, why does Double have to do all this? And another thing, why does no one know where to put their dirty laundry? Your used set of blacks should NOT be on the ground, why does he keep finding them on the ground? And sweet LORD they do NOT GO ON THE HOLOTABLE WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE ARE YOU FUCKING A N I M A L S OR SOME SHIT WHO DOES HE LIVE WITH THESE BARRACKS ARE FILTHY HES GONNA GO FUCKING MENTAL-

STEALTH/RECON: Crash

Youngest of the squad. Just wants everyone to be happy. Always smiling, always happy to give hugs. Super upbeat and happy, very supportive, and just happy to be included! Tries to be the one to protect all his older brothers, but ultimately they’re all just feral fucking guard dogs over Crash. The squad are all allowed to make fun of Crash. No one else is allowed to make fun of Crash. Trusts his ori’vode implicitly and will do what they say even if he has a feeling it might get him in trouble. He is Miles Morales watching Peter Parker with starry eyes, that’s his personality. Very much enjoys curling up with someone while he sleeps, so the squad either takes turns cuddling up with him or it’s just a squad cuddle pile depending on if everyone needs some love or not.

[mihidecet]

Sbi&Co d&d AU: Fundy & Niki

AKA: Tibi's MCYT WritingTober, day 23!

SURPRISE!! As for @spout1nk and @awebo 's lovely requests, here is the chapter where we get to meet Fundy and Niki!!

This is also, once again, a fill for @the-only-gamer-gost 's list of prompts!! I got myself another free day aahahah

I do hope you'll like it! And as always, make sure you check out @whatimevendoinhere 's stunning drawings!!! They made art of Fundy and it is so good yall.

It starts like this: the whole gang is looking for a new job to tackle, with Techno, Tommy and Tubbo looking at the town's mission board and Wilbur and Phil needling the town's guard for more high profile tasks.

Half an hour later, a bored and disappointed trio meet up with a radiant Wilbur and an impressed Phil.

They have a job and the pay is five times higher than normal.

Apparently some dumbass has been running around the county, scamming nobles with fake artifacts and cursed precious objects. The nobles are mad, they want their coins back and the scammer in jail - or possibly worse -, and they are willing to pay an embarrassingly high amount of coin for it to be done quickly and quietly. Quietly being the highest requirement.

And that is how the SleepyBois start tracking this infamous scammer down.

First, they find all of the victims.

That alone takes them a while, because nobles are tricky to navigate and scorned nobles are even worse - and somehow these scammed nobles all seem to be not that good people, if the way they treat the adventurers trying to help them is any indication.

Still, one may assume that spending a lot of platinum coins on things that turn out to be fake and haunted might make you a bit … confrontational.

Also, they're going to make a lot of coins out of this job, so it's not like they're going to say anything.

Then, they buy a new, spotless map of the region with about a quarter of their collective coins - “Philza Greenwood we should have accepted the one from the kind old lady.” “You know that was cursed, we’re not doing this again.” - and start writing down every location hit.

It’s not that hard, once they put Tubbo to work, to find a handful of possible towns their target is going to hit.

It's honestly impressive how quickly he's able to narrow their options down, sending Techno and Wilbur out for recon missions to specific locations, guiding the whole team in a weirdly familiar way; straightforward and decisive like Techno, gentle and responsible like Phil, switching between the two attitudes as easy as he breathes.

Wilbur's only seen him like this when he works on his creations before, and it's amazing how quickly he gets over the initial sheepishness and steps into his role.

Everything is good and wonderful and he fits perfectly into the team, and this is just another proof of it.

The only bad thing about the whole situation is how bloody smug Tommy is, since it had been his idea to let Tubbo handle the planning - the kid can gloat, Wilbur's got to give him that, even if he is right in doing that.

Ever since the two childhood best friends had reunited, Tommy has been … more. Not in a bad way - no matter how much Techno jokingly groans about it -, but it's evident how much there was something weighing on the kid's mind before this.

But right now it's not really the best time to think about this.

A couple of nights ago, Tubbo had narrowed the list of possible new noble families that were going to be hit down to a single name. An old timey, very strict and reclusive family, now mainly composed of two grandparents and an impressive array of disowned young adventurers, and workers of all types. Reasons for disowning were many and varied and all a bit ridiculous.

Apparently having a bad temper and even worse record of mistreating everyone around you was the common denominator for all the people being targeted, alongside having an extremely absurd amount of coin.

Phil knows, he's seen it in Wilbur's eyes the moment Tubbo told everyone his deductions, that the tiefling would be more than happy with just letting the scammer go with a slap on the wrist. Everyone is slowly leaning towards that, Phil himself is too, but he's not really going to mention that yet, especially as they're all gearing up to stalk the scammer back to their hideout.

Especially since they can't really let this chance go: the fact that Tubbo was able to narrow their options down to a single family means that if this isn't it, they'll have to start from scratch.

When they leave the tavern, packed light and ready for the expected stealth, it's a couple of hours before dawn.

Everyone is thankfully able to see in the dark - even Tubbo, who is a human like Tommy, since he used his knowledge of glass-making and arcane enchantments to forge himself some night vision goggles - and they move quickly in the shadows, their silhouettes hidden even more due to one of Phil's spells.

This is also the first time Tubbo's bees aren't making any sound - apparently their buzzing is purely aesthetic.

Reaching the family's manor is not hard nor it takes longer than expected, which is quite unusual considering their experiences. Once they reach their destination, they hide near the entrance then Techno vanishes - probably gone inside the main gates to see if their target has already arrived.

About fifteen excruciating minutes later, Techno reappears, one hand already on Tommy's mouth to prevent him from yelping in surprise and reveal their position. The fact that he is perfectly correct in his assumption doesn't prevent him from receiving a swift kick to the shin.

"He's inside. Seems human, dressed like a scammer would be dressed. Or a very extravagant seller. Showing off a floating statue." Techno relies the information as he rubs the now sore spot on his leg, side eyeing a very offended Tommy while Tubbo is red faced almost to the point of tears as he desperately tries not to burst out laughing.

"Good job." Phil confirms, trying very hard to stay focused on the task - this all is extremely useful information, both in case of a possible fight breaking out and because in all the time they've been searching for the scammer, they've had nothing but mixed information from their targets.

One time it's a sweet looking cleric, another time they're a buff half orc, then it's a tiefling with a missing horn- every time something new, but the only constants have been the extravagant clothing choices and them being a magic user.

Wilbur punches the air with gusto, conveying silently what everyone is more or less feeling, and then they resign themselves to some uncertain amount of time of patiently and quietly waiting.

Phil has a spell to hide them again ready for whenever they hear somebody getting close.

Techno takes the time to meditate.

Wilbur is tapping a finger against his leg with his eyes closed, so he's probably writing a song in his mind.

Tubbo is taking notes on his notebook, planning another upgrade for his crossbow.

Tommy is about to vibrate out of his skin.

Everything according to plan.

Then, finally, Phil hears footsteps approaching the gates.

He casts his spell, shadows elongating from the trees they are hiding in, wrapping around them, covering them, fake greenery taking form in front of them- and everyone is instantly on edge.

"Are you sure you don't want a totem? They're good luck! They'll protect you against evil spirits - those old crooks must be beacons for them!" A quick paced voice reached their ears, and Techno's dagger is already out.

A much quieter voice answers - only Phil manages to catch the irritated negative answer, but everyone hears the gates being slammed shut.

There's more footsteps, then their target enters most of their views.

The man - probably? - takes some steps, back straight and shoulders moving with a light chuckle - when his eyes stray towards them.

He blinks once, twice, then his eyes switch colour.

He stops in his tracks.

Raises a hand and gives a quick wave.

"Uhm … cya!" And then he disappears, vanishing into thin air.

Techno curses loudly next to Tommy.

"Wilbur-"

The tiefling stands up and his eyes turn pure black as he raises a hand towards the place where he disappeared, muttering a quick song under his breath before calling out:

"Tubbo!"

A bolt from the kid's crossbow flies in the direction Wilbur's pointing at a split second later.

It flies, but doesn't strike true, barely grazing the scammer's jacket as the man moves out of its way. Right into Techno's thrown dagger which hits him right in the side.

There's a loud, weirdly pitched "shit!" coming from the empty air in the space in front of them, then nothing but the sound of someone fleeing as silently as they can.

Instead of following suit, like one would expect, the rest of the group turns towards Techno, who's holding his dagger - now back into his hand - and mouthing a prayer against the stained blade.

There's a light humm coming from nowhere and everywhere that echoes in Techno's mind for a moment, then he opens his eyes.

"So, do you have him?" Tommy asks, feeling the urge to pursue their target itching under his skin.

"Yup, I've got him. Nice job with the crossbow, Tubbo." Techno answers, shooting a small smile to his short companion, who shakes his weapon proudly.

"It's quite easy to shoot in order to make people move a certain direction, you know, once you know what to do!"

Tracking down the scammer is quite easy now that Techno has cast his tracking spell on him.

They wait for a moment, reconvene, make sure they have everything they need and then they start moving.

They don't have to walk much, as Techno lets them know that their target has stopped moving and they're getting closer extremely quickly.

In the end, it's a small, cute looking wooden house that they reach. It seems small and well kept, with clean windows and bright flowers on the outside. It's a bit hidden amongst a thicker part of the forest, but it gets enough light to be comfortably illuminated.

Wilbur figures the scammer ran and hid here, in hope of either having them lose his tracks or to maybe use a civilian as human shield.

Phil gestures towards the house, to which Techno answers with a decisive nod, so the elf approaches the door and knocks.

"Hello?" A feminine, accented voice answers from behind the door.

"Hi, I'm very sorry to disturb you, we're a group of adventurers looking for a runaway criminal, have you perhaps seen anyone suspicious running around?" There's a beat of silence, then a long, drawn out humm.

"I'm very sorry but I don't think I can help you with that? I was busy baking inside, I haven't seen anyone." The voice answers back, seemingly sheepish and apologetic.

Wilbur takes a step forward, shooting a glance towards a suspicious looking Techno.

"Our apologies, but would you mind letting us rest inside your abode for a little while? We've been out all night looking for clues, and we will pay you for your kindness."

After a slightly longer than expected pause, the sound of keys jingling reachea the team's ears.

"Oh, yes, of course. It's a bit small here, but- We can make it fit."

Phil knows enough Celestial to recognise the accent in the woman's voice; seeing her almost aethereal being open the door cements in Phil's mind the fact that yes, the person in front of him is of Celstial descent - that, and the dusting of silver and golden freckles across her face.

"Oh my, there- there's a lot of you."

Phil gives a sheepish smile, an apology ready on his lips - she is hiding their target, for some reason, but that doesn't mean he's going to be rude about it - but Tommy is already striding towards the entrance.

"We'll be good and squeeze together, promise!" He exclaims, quickly hitting Wilbur in the side with his elbow as he passes him.

The tiefling shoots him a murderous glare, which instantly disappears and turns into a kind smile the instant he realises that the aasimar woman is looking at him questioningly.

"Are you all part of the same group?" She asks as they shuffle in. The house is slightly bigger than expected, with everything looking both very clean and very lived in - books left open on a table, a chair that hasn't been set back, a blanket thrown on an armchair instead of being folded properly. It's homely.

There are a couple of colourful looking birds flying around the place, and they instantly flock to Phil the moment he enters the kitchen - following the woman's instructions. To be fair, there are plenty animals hanging out in the whole house: he's sure he heard a squirrel running in the corridor, and there were a couple of tortoises in the living room.

And then, on the window sill next to the kitchen table there is a fox, sleeping curled up under the sun. Techno, on edge from the tracking and the oncoming social interactions, really envies the tranquil animal.

"Is there anything you need? Something to drink, maybe? I was making some bread, so-" the woman starts, taking out a still smoking loaf. Everyone but Phil is instantly glowing: how often are you offered freshly baked bread? And mostly for free? That really is something special, that must be surely cherished.

And yet, Phil is not looking at the woman - who is still yet to introduce herself - but at the fox. Still sleeping peacefully, after they'd opened a single eye at the sound of strangers entering the room.

"That is very kind of you, miss …?" Wilbur asks, eyes constantly switching between the offered food and the stranger's face.

"Oh, you can call me Niki."

Phil moves closer to the fox with a small smile, one bird still perched on his shoulder, and extends a hand slowly, hoping not to startle the animal.

The fox blinks slowly at the fingers floating right in front of their eyes, then huffs and moves their head so that Phil can start giving them little scratches, tail swishing lazily - all this, while the rest of the team does a round of introductions.

"Niki, your fox is adorable." Phil comments after a moment, while the others are eagerly helping out Niki in finding a knife to cut slices of bread with and honey, which apparently she makes herself.

"Ah yeah, thank you. His name is Fungi." She answers with a small smile, making Phil chuckle. The fox's tail keeps swishing from side to side, probably to convey his appreciation of the continuous pets he's receiving, but one of his front legs seems to not be making any movement. A quick, focused, look confirms his suspicions.

"Oh dear, he seems hurt. Let me heal him for you." Phil comments, worry colouring his tone, as he focuses his intent into the palm of his hand, lightly resting on the injured limb.

As his magic knits back muscle and tissue and blod cells, Phil watches intently as the stab wound shrinks and then disappears. Then, he picks the fox up, cradling him in his arms as Niki gets closer, a look of deep worry on her face - one of the first true emotions she's shown since they got there, Phil notices, which only serves to confirm his suspicions.

"Oh, thank you so much, I'm so very glad, he just keeps getting into messes!"

There's a moment of pause, then Phil starts scratching the fox's chin - his tail starts wagging noticeably quicker.

"Did you know foxes are known for their cunning, but they're actually pretty dumb?" Phil starts, prompting everyone to turn towards him in shock and deep confusion.

Phil merely chuckles.

"You agree, right, little guy? I can see it in your eyes, there's nothing going on in that little brain of yours, right?" He teases, cooing at the little animal before- in a mix of slightly disturbing deformations and a blink-and-you-miss-it transformation - the fox in his arms suddenly enlarges, his limbs elongating and face rounding out.

Now, this would have probably come as a big surprise to akl but instead it looks quite funny because the moment the small fox becomes a human sized man with for ears, all the instantly added weight crashes into Phil and sends them crashing down to the ground.

But since they've all gotten used to a skinchanger moving from their human form to their animal one, one way or another, all that remains is the hilarouns scene of a laughing out loud Phil sprawled on the ground with their red faced, extremely irritated target kneeling on top of him.

"Fuck you, man! That was so mean!"

For a moment everyone is just staring at each other, trying to understand what has happened, until when Techno speaks up.

"Well I guess we found our scammer."

[dindooku]

after a mission goes wrong, you find yourself somewhere you could never imagine.

how will you cope with your new situation?

how do you know who you can trust?

word count: 4,614

rating: E (swearing)

This was no routine operation.

You’d trained for stressful situations like this for the last ten years, enduring more pain, sacrifice and penance then the human body is able to cope with.

But you’re no normal human; you’re a soldier. You’re the Officer Commander of the 118th SAS Special Operations unit, which for this mission was specifically tasked to investigate and neutralise an unidentified object which had landed in enemy territory.

 The mission debrief had been one you’d never forget. You were given very little intel, purposefully. Being it was an unidentified object meant utmost secrecy, despite you being the OC who would be leading the mission to retrieve it. You knew better than to ask questions, and you could only place your full trust in your superiors. So, you were given the only information you needed to know:

* Co-ordinates

* Enemy confines

* General landscape

 This was usual information, nothing you’d not seen before. The debrief was tense, to say the least, but it wasn’t anything you couldn’t handle or hadn’t done before. You were surrounded by a circle of officials, some you recognised, some you didn’t. Your orders were clear.

 “You will leave the base at 18:00 hours to arrive with the 118th at enemy coordinates at approx 04:00 hours. Ensure no civvy is within the target range and that your officers supply daypacks and equipment for Recce. Your mission is to infiltrate enemy confines, secure the UO and then hold guard until we can get a securing unit in.”

 You had looked at your commanding officer with determination. This was an odd mission, yes, but that didn’t mean you were scared. If anything, the abnormality of an unidentified object being the objective of this mission was intriguing, and you were excited to do a recon mission which didn’t involve the usual sieges of palaces or governments with your soldiers, your brothers.

 When you’d first joined the army you always thought that you’d never be excited or ever looking forward to pain or bloodshed. You joined seeking help and routine, just to be anywhere from home. But after spending 10 gruelling years facing oppressors and sick, twisted maniacs with too much power for their own good, you now lapped at the opportunity to right their wrongs and help those caught in the crossfire. Sure, you’d done terrible, terrible things and witnessed tragedies that the human mind couldn’t even begin to fathom if it wanted to, but knowing that you were doing something to help, whether it be violent or not, was what drove you to keep going.

 It was already 16:00 and the sun was begging to set, leaving only 2 hours to prep your boys before heading out on your mission. You’d received the intel and thanked your commanding officer in haste, wanting to let your brothers in on the exciting new challenge that waited ahead. But, before you could leave, you were called back to attention.

 “Commander, one more piece of intel. This is most important, and we cannot emphasise this enough.”

 This piqued your interest, so you stood back to attention and nodded for them to continue.

 “The UO must not be disturbed. As you’ve seen from the Holo-Map, the data projections have shown incredible readings of energy. It’s not come back as radioactive, or anything on the electromagnetic spectrum either which could, or could not be harmful’—” the commanding officer emphasised those last words, as if he’s implying a hidden meaning, or hiding something that they don’t want you to know, “—therefore you’re under strict orders not to touch the UO. You must hold off and contain the drop zone until we can get the specialists from MI5 in. Under no circumstances does anyone touch the UO without specific authorisation. Do I make myself clear?” They finished with stern words, their gaze burning into you. All soldiers were used to strict commanders and the generic intimidating gaze of superior officers, but as a woman in the SAS field, you’ve built-up an indestructible backbone to threatening power plays. You had to, it was one of the first, and one of the hardest lessons in your training. You’re surrounded by men who thought that because of their physical strength this gave them an advantage, but you soon proved yourself over them with your quick thinking and relentlessness. You were brutal, but that's what was required to be successful in such environments. You seemed to have done something right because now you’re the Commanding Officer of the 118th, leading a 6 man battalion, all of which looked to you for orders.

 You nodded again, but you maintained the intense eye contact, not even breaking a sweat. “Yes, Sir. If that is all, I will debrief the men now and we will prepare to leave for 18:00, Sir.”

 The commanding officer nodded a dismissal before turning round to discuss further intel with the other officials in the room; so you took your leave at their dismissal.

 __________

 You couldn’t have been more wrong.

 This was no routine operation.

 Things were quiet, eerily quiet…too quiet.

 You’d made good time with the boys, with only a slight hiccup at point break with 2 guards, but 9’s and Sleeves (your two knife specialists) took care of them with ease. What wasn’t right however was how easy it was to infiltrate. You’d had practically no resistance, and while normal people would celebrate this, you knew better. Something just wasn’t quite right.

 You made the break at 04:00 under the blanket of night. The base was small, only consisting of a few small rooms in a single building. The terrain was a thick jungle, and the humidity was stifling, but you had done enough training and excursions to be practically immune to the heat. The target was set in a clearing of the forest, completely remote and isolated from outside interference. This could’ve explained the limited armourment, but also made you question why an odd-looking temple of sorts was sat smack dead in the middle of the Amazon rainforest. It was obvious under first impressions that the building was ancient, and resembled similarities to the Mayans and Egyptians architecture, but something about the carvings and inscriptions along the walls just wasn’t anything you could recognise. Not that you could read Mayan or Egyptian, but the symbols were unique and seemed extra-terrestrial…odd.

 But now wasn’t the time to play Indiana Jones, you had a mission to do. So, you ordered your men behind you and you breached the compound.

 As soon as you entered the odd-looking temple, the energy around you shifted instantly. It wasn’t just humid with rain anymore, this was a different humid. It was suffocating but not in the physical sense, instead, it was more like a static that clouded your mind and slowed your processing. You glanced back at your soldiers, “Did you feel that?” You said, hushing a whisper into the mic of your helmet.

 “Feel what, Sir?” Screw asked back, the reply static with interference in your earpiece. You tapped the earpiece at the side of your helmet in an effort to fix the static, but it did no good. Still moving forward, you replied.

 “The energy, it feels different in here, don’t you think?”

 “Don’t start with your hocus focus shit.” Sleeves retorted.

 “Yeah, boss now isn’t the time for your ghost stories,” 9s chimed in.

 “Aight, I get it, but it just feels odd… I don’t like it, stay tight,” you commanded, bringing your M14EBR to your shoulder. You really didn’t like the feeling in here, not one bit.

 You all advanced through the temple, making quick work to check and secure each room and corridor before you found yourself in the centre. The static from before was now overbearing, but you kept to yourself, not wanting to give the boys any chance for further teasing. You wouldn’t mind normally, but this place was really giving you bad vibes.

 As you all entered the centre room, the atmosphere changed again. This time is was cold, icy. The sudden chill brought you out in goosebumps, and a harsh shiver raced through your body, but you made effort to maintain your focus and continue with the mission at hand.

 The overbearing static acted almost like a guide, playing hot or cold with every step you took. And with every step towards the centre of the room, it got louder and louder. You peered round to look at your team, only to see them looking back at you, confused at your sudden tensity. Were they not feeling this presence, this energy? How couldn’t they? There’s clearly something going on…

 “Boss… Don’t. Move.” Frankie said sternly.

 You froze. Slowly peering back round to him you looked at the others, who were all still stood at arms at the back of the room where the corridor joined. You were tense beyond belief now, and you hadn’t noticed how fast your heart was beating, the sound of your blood was now deafening as it coursed through your ears and around your body. It was as if your senses were magnified, everything felt overwhelming and suffocating; the feeling of your gloves on your skin, the sound of dust particles drifting through the air, the smell of dirt that hadn’t been disturbed for hundreds of years. You were sweating profusely now, but you still felt ice cold.

 Turning your head slowly, you faced Frankie. “What. Frankie?” Your voice trembled a little under the whisper, but you held yourself together for the moment.

 “Right in front of you, the…the reflection, it’s like a hazy mirror, can’t you see it?” He replied, his confusion twisting his face. He was looking at you like you’re crazy, in fact, they all were. 

 “What reflection—” You hissed back, turning back around to be greeted with nothing. And they told you to cut the hocus pocus? You scanned the area in front of you. There was absolutely nothing, just the rest of the empty room. So, you took another cautious step. Everyone took in a breath at the same time, holding it in. You tensed, waiting for something to happen. But nothing happened. Right, this was all over nothing.

 You turned, relaxing your shoulders, facing the boys.

 “See, nothing to worry abo—” You were cut off by the anxious shouts of your soldiers, who now had their guns pointed at you. “HEY! Hey, put the guns down, what the fuck are you doing?!” You shouted back, but they didn’t respond. You went to take a step back towards them but were blocked by some sort of force, like a wall…but there was no wall. You put your gun out to test the space in front of you but were met with a solid object. But you couldn’t see it…

 “What in the fu—” you muttered, completely at a loss for what was transpiring in front of your eyes. The boys started moving forwards, their shouts were now muffled. odd, it sounded like you were underwater, barely able to make out what they were saying. You wanted to reach out, to touch the odd, static wall in your way. Your curiosity got the better of you, and before you knew what you were doing you were taking off the glove on your right hand and slowly reaching out to the void ahead of you.

 “DON’T! DON’T TOUCH IT, HEY!—”

 “BOSS!—”

 “What the FUCK IS—”

 You couldn’t hear the shouting. You didn’t see your soldiers running towards you. All you saw was your own reflection staring back at you as you raised your hand to reach out, to touch whatever it was before you.

 Your index finger poked the wall, and you instantly recoiled, the icy lightning coursed through your body, igniting your nerves and singeing your blood. You dropped limply to the floor, and like that, you were out like a light.

 ______

 Your eyes dart open.

 You’re gasping for air, choking on it as it soared into your lungs like you’d just been pulled from water.

 You quickly take in your surroundings. You’re on the floor. It’s light out. You’re sweating, it’s hot. It smells almost… smoggy? Wait, this isn’t the temple, it was dark, we were inside… why is there a hand on my back?!

 You shoot up, twisting and grabbing the hand that had rested on your back. You’re still heaving for air. You stare at the human with wild eyes, completely frantic with confusion. This was not where you were last.

 “Hey! Ow! I’m just tryina’ help! What in the…” They trail off as they reach for your handgun, but before they can grab it you shoot up and launch yourself forwards, turning on your toes and pulling the handgun out of the holster to aim it at the perp.

 “Who are you and where am I!” You demand, your voice shaky and raspy, but the tonality is not mistaken - you’re fierce with your formalities. You don’t like getting fucked about.

 “Woah, ok, calm—” they raise their hands, crouching slightly to act as if they’re of no harm.

 “Don’t tell me to be calm. Where. Am. I” you demand, taking a step closer, still aiming the gun between their eyes, finger dancing on the trigger.

 “Hey, ok, you’re on Coruscant. Look around ya, it's ok, no one’s gonna hurt ya, you’re on the upper levels—” they took a step back, gesturing with their arms to the now growing crowd of civilians watching the scene unfolding in front of them. You take a second to peer around you, taking in the environment.

 It was bright, busy and loud, very loud. It looked almost like a local market place, but huge. The street ahead of you was never-ending, bustling with home stalls and shops - neon lights littering the area with sales of all sorts and goods you don’t recognise. Then you see the language, the same symbols and inscriptions as those on the side of the temple. You’re freaking out a bit now. Yeah, you’d done intense training and seen too much shit to care about regularities but this was a whole other level of bat shit crazy. Peering up, you couldn’t believe your eyes. Vehicles of all shapes and sizes where whizzing just above your head, going in all sorts of directions at great speed. They looked nothing like anything you’d seen before, not jets or planes or anything. Something was seriously wrong here, you’re not anywhere you’ve been before.

 You shoot your gaze back down to the crowd around you. There were beings of all shapes and sizes. Some you instantly recognised as human, but others were deformed or misshapen, odd-looking. Upon closer inspection, some had multiple limbs, green, blue, purple skin, 6 eyes. Ok, have I been drugged? You wonder as your jaw drops open with shock. This was stuff you couldn’t even imagine.

 Sensing the attention growing on you by the second, you leap into action. Peering around you take in the buildings surrounding you, and just in the distance, a tall, church-like building stands tall. Right, refuge. Safe-House possibly? You jerk back towards the human who woke you up, giving a quick nod before you dart off towards your new objective.

 Luckily you still have everything with you, your backpack, watch, guns and spare ammo if needed. You didn’t have ID but if you could find some sort of police station you’d be able to hack and search the database to call upon your credentials and send an SOS for recovery. With this in mind, you ran through the streets of ‘Coruscant’ towards to towering cathedral.

 ___

 You don’t think you’ve ever run this fast in your life. Not when you were ambushed by terrorists, not when you’d been kidnapped and you broke free from the encampment, and not even when you’d been woken in your sleep by a pack of wolves on a Russian Intel OP in the middle of Siberia. Your hallucinations hadn’t stopped, and with every turn new, crazy creatures stared at your frantic attempt to find some sort of normality.

 You finally made it to the Cathedral, but you weren’t quite prepared for how grandly spacious and lavish it was; it must’ve been a good kilometre or two wide, and roughly the same in height too. You’d never seen such a large, simple yet intimidating building. Eyeing the courtyard, hundreds of white armoured beings paroled and strode in groups, but not in assembly, casually. They looked like troops, and your suspicions were confirmed by the metal looking guns attached to their hips or swung round their backs. Some had their helmets off, others didn’t, and they seemed to be colour coded. But now wasn’t the time for exploring, you had to find a safe house and make contact with Base. Picking up the pace from where you’d stopped, you run into the Cathedral, taking two steps at a time. What stood before you was nothing you could have ever predicted, or even prepared for.

 Underneath your feet lay long, smooth slabs of a marble-like substance. The area opened up into a great hall of sorts, with pillars of stone arranged in an open rectangle, supporting the towering ceiling above you. The pillars were simplistic but still had the odd inscriptions plastered up and along with each one. The walls were of minimal design too - no grandiose trinkets or monarchs, no real display of wealth or power - it was unlike any church, cathedral or anything you’d ever seen. Crowding the courtyard in the centre were smaller beings, that looked to be children, all either playing or running around, reading or training - grappling with one another, but happily. What you did notice however was that they were all wearing the same similar robes, some different colours to others but the design the same. Was this some sort of School?

 After taking a second to absorb your surroundings, you scrub your palms over your eyes as if to test whether this was all real of not. Undoing the chinstrap and removing your helmet, you slip one strap off your army pack and attach the helmet onto the back. You don’t feel threatened here, and despite not being ordered to remove it, you have the sneaking suspicion that following orders doesn’t really matter right now.

 Then your attention is drawn to the far corner, where a young man dressed in black robes is walking, quite quickly towards you. You look briefly to his right to see another man, dressed in brown and cream robes just behind him, striding just as quickly as if trying to catch up. You go to take a step but you stop yourself to watch what unfolds in front of you.

 “Anakin, for the love of the God’s will you stop and talk to me!” The older man shouts, clearly exasperated with the younger man before him.

 “Look, Master, I felt a disturbance and I must investigate it, it could be dangerous!” The young man retorts, turning to face the older man and waving his arms in the air. They’re both clearly agitated and something is seriously bothering them.

 “I understand that Anakin, I do, I felt it too. But we can’t just go running off in the middle of Council meetings! You know better than this,—” the older man exclaims, running a hand down his face and resting on his beard, slowly stroking it as if in deep contemplation.

“Master, you must learn to trust me, either way - we must investigate this disturbance and find the source before it’s too late. You know this,” the younger counters, shaking his arms as if to show how irritated he is about having to wait.

 “Do not test my patience, Anakin. I—I do trust you Anakin, just please take a second to centre yourself before you go running into the street of—” And before he can finish his sentence the older man's gaze lands on you.

 You lock eyes. You feel an odd pick of electricity as his sapphire blues burn into your eyes, freezing you both in place, forcing your sharp intake of breath to hold painfully in your lungs. His light golden hair is tidily swept to the right, parting on the far left of his temple. It's not short hair, but it’s not long either. It sits in comfortable waves, soothing and sophisticated. His eyebrows match the colour of his hair, perfectly framing the piercing blue eyes that are boring into you. His jaw is framed in a thick but trimmed beard, accentuating his jawline, giving a heavy aura of wisdom to his frame. He’s gorgeous. Sure, you’ve had the hots for guys before and you’ve had your fair share of flings and relationships, but they were nothing substantial or of purpose, they were just tiebreakers that allowed you to fill your time and release hormones; no one had ever really caught your eye and made you double-take - you always thought you never had the capacity to love because of your profession… but there’s always a first for everything. But now really wasn’t the time for admiring men, because you soon realised that said man was now making a beeline towards you at an alarming pace.

 You jolt, realising now is the time to run. Without thinking you run back out into the courtyard. You make quick sense of the stairs, striding three at a time, taking extra care not to trip of fall. Now was not the time for mistakes. Once you reach the bottom you chance a glance back, only to instantly regret your decision as the distance between you and the two mystery men was quickly diminishing. You turn back around and reach for both your pistols this time, one on each thigh. You pull them up and aim as you stop and turn quickly, bracing yourself in a strong side stance, enabling you to bolt again if needed. Just as you pull up to aim at both men, they stop, side by side. You’re frantically breathing now, body tense. Every muscle is coiled and ready to pounce at the drop of a hat, and you will not hesitate to protect yourself.

 Just as you think you have things under control, the two mystery beings reach into their robes and pull a metal cylinder into their hands. What in the name of all that's holy are they going to do with a piece of pipe?! You chuckle to yourself - you couldn’t lie, you’d seen weirder weapons.

 “Where the fuck am I and why are you chasing me,” you hiss. You’ve just about had it with the weird alien shit and you’re not about to be played around. You want straight answers.

 The older man calmly replies, “Language. You’re on coruscant, we could ask the same abo—”

 “Did you just tell me to watch my fucking language?! How about you tell me where the fuck I am before I shoot the brains out of that pretty little mouth of yours?” you grill. How dare he tell you to watch your mouth when you’ve woken up in this weird-ass city filled with aliens and flying space cars.

 “And you tell me I have a bad mouth master—” the younger man cuts, a slight smirk lining his lips.

 “Anakin—,” the older man scolds, obviously not finding the humour in Anakin's reply. He turns his attention back to you, “Look, why don’t we just lower out weapons and—” He goes to take a step towards you but you fire a warning shot to the ground just right of the older man. He instantly stops, and both men glare back at you. This catches the attention of the soldiers in the courtyard, who are now beginning to surround the three of you.

 “Don’t fuck with me,” you hiss back, fingers flexing slightly on the triggers of each gun.

 “Master, why was there no blaster bolt?” Anakin asks, turning his head a fraction towards the older man.

 “I don’t know Anakin but now isn’t the time,—” he replies before both return their full attention back to you. You slowly start to take a step back. You need to get out of here now. “I wouldn’t bother trying to run my Dear, you won’t get far,” the older man advises.

 Oh, I can’t believe this.

 “You,—” you shake your left pistol towards the older man in a way to gather his attention, “What’s your name?”

 “Obi-Wan Kenobi”

 “Well, Obi-Wan Kenobi, one — I am not, Dear — I am a Commanding Officer of the 118th SAS, and two — for your best own interest you will let me walk away so I can find some way back to where I need to be, comprende?” You barter.

 “Master I—,” Anakin is again cut off by Obi-Wan.

 “I’m sorry but I cannot let you do that.”

 “What makes you think you can stop me?” You’re clearly angry now. The absolute cheek of this man, this imbecile in some sort of funky monk clothing telling you not to run. Is he seeing what you’re seeing, can they see the mad aliens and weird flying vehicles just above you?

 “Oh Darling, don’t test my patience” he retorts, adding a hint of sarcasm to his words. You genuinely can’t believe it. A slight chuckle escapes your lips. You’re going mad, this is it. The years of battle and trauma have finally caught up to you and now you’re seeing space monks, great. Your laughter grows louder and the other two men nervously join in, obviously confused about your reaction. You shrug your shoulders, waving your hands in the air in an exasperated manner. The other two men carry on laughing but chance a nervous glare between them in silent communication. You rub your forehead with the back of one of your hands, the cold metal of your pistol soothing your sweat-laden forehead. Your laugh drops and you fire another warning shot from the other hand, deadening your stare back at Obi-Wan. They freeze.

 “I’ve killed more for less. Let me go and I won’t add you to the list,”

 “Master, I’ve had enough of this—,” Anakin huffs, and with a flick of his wrist, you’re now suddenly disarmed. What. The. Fuck.

 “Language. Please, just put your hands out and—” did he just tell me to watch my language? I didn’t say anything, is he reading my mind? “you could say I am, yes, now please just calm down—”

 What the FUCK is going on right now?! “Calm down? Calm DOWN?! What sort of space wizard BULLSHIT is going on right now, how did you do that? How did you throw my guns? Where am I, who are you? What is going on?” You’re starting to panic now, you can feel the bile rising up from your stomach. This is all way too much for you to process. Either you’ve been knocked out cold and have an incredible concussion or you’ve drunk some really funky tea, either way — this can’t be real.

 “Anakin, I think we need to use a trance, can you—,” Obi-Wan mutters to Anakin, holstering the weird metal cylinder tube from before. Anakin does the same and goes to wave a hand but you cut him off.

 “Trance? What do you mean by trance? No, no way, you are not using some weird wizard shit on me, I’m leaving.” You haven’t got time for this. You’ve got a mission to finish, and you need to find a way back to base. Focus on your priorities. You turn to walk away, about to make haste but before you can take a step, everything goes black.

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Once Bitten, Twice Stupid prt 96

96

James could suck the exhaust pipe of the van for all Keith cared. Werewolves were huge, far bigger than the normal family dog or what most people thought. Yet with all that size came zero brain cells. Keith in a huff, not able to stop thinking of Lance and slightly murderous thanks to James loudly mocking him for his “Breeder Boyfriend”. So much for not making a fucking thing out of it, and you know, not putting Lance in extra danger. Sure. He smelt like Lance, before he’d been sprayed top to bottom with that horrible floral crap he and Shiro had used on their scent last time, but if their positions were reversed, Keith wouldn’t be attempting to humiliate him through his boyfriend. He knew it was his name that made James mad... and that he was so close to Shiro, but that wasn’t his fault. He never ever wanted the extra attention.

Worried about his boyfriend’s behaviour, Coran was going to have Curtis check in and maybe stay with Lance. Keith felt like it was something else than birthday blues because he knew birthday depression far too well. He wished he could get Lance out of his mind. Being mad a James helped with that, but that anger was mostly about his comments about Lance, so his mind kept drifting back to his boyfriend as he triple checked his snipers scope. He understood why Coran told him to be extra careful before he left. Vampires had their own set of rules, not terribly considerate towards hunters in that respect. Maybe he really has become soft working here, and actually feeling appreciated for himself. Training his scope onto the recon team, things slowly dissolved to shit as shots rang out. They’d supposed to get the lay of the land and decide from there whether to engage with the werewolves and continue surveillance, the mission plan was basic about the initial components, but being discovered so soon to arriving and in the middle of the freakin’ day was not planned. The first surveillance team had like no contact with the targets. They’d pretty much hadn’t seen anything, and they’d been watching from sun up until relief. Even if it did give them the advantage, some wank stain had ruined everything with that first shot

“Open up the roofs, get us some light in there”

In other words fire a dozen shots into the steel roofing over their target buildings.

There were three target buildings in the shipyard. Keith think he’d thought about there actually be a ship yard in Platt, seeing it was Platt, but the actual words for a place where they constructed ship parts escaped him. Other than the sea of buildings, truck yards, trucks and about 20,000 shipping containers to hide between... they couldn’t shut down the docks without raising suspicion, so instead power for 15 city blocks had gone down with press releases that the problem was being worked on. The Blades didn’t fuck around. Everything outside the mission was null and void until they came back. He shouldn’t be sitting there wondering if Lance would have shot someone’s balls off if he’d been in Keith’s position, no matter if it brought a smile to his face at the thought. Taking aim, he fired at the roof of the closest building, as it was breeched by agents. There were more Blades here than he’d seen in Platt in the whole time since Kolivan waltzed in.

“Explosive device recovered... fall back. Teams X, R, M, rerouting”

Explosives were usually a Blade thing when evidence needed to disappear. Keeping the communication clipped, it failed to warn him it was discovered on a rooftop some 50metres from his position. He didn’t know he was supposed to run until the screams of an unfortunate Blade member filled his ears and huge explosion went off towards the gates of the yard. With the roof blown sky high, Keith was gathering up his rifle and running, before a second device triggered... then the third, this time taking off the side of a storage shed. If that didn’t scream “motherfucking setup”, then Keith didn’t know what did. Nearly clear of the roof, the roofing beneath his feet shifted, Keith losing his step and nearly getting himself killed as he fell off the side of the building and onto a pile of electrical reels... which really hurt. He was getting in mentally before the mocking started. Lance would have a hundred puns to annoy him with after he punched him in the dick for nearly getting hurt.

Being winded saved him as the barred windows to the left and right of the reels blew outwards, glass, concrete and metal showering over him. Had he been getting to his feet, he’d have taken the shrapnel head on, not copping parts second hand as the reels went up in flames. Lance was going to be pissed. You only went after roofs when you knew someone was hiding there or you suspected snipers... Fuck. He had to move and pull back. Something else had been blown up and the air stank from burning things that shouldn’t be burnt. Gathering up his rifle, he was half crash tackled before being pulled along towards the front gate. The mysterious figure was dressed in black, yet he instantly knew they weren’t a Blade member.

Short of the collective of hunter’s, they reached another figure dressed in all black. Hunching over to catch his breath, the first figure who’d pulled him along cackled

“Look at him. Human’s really aren’t good for anything”

Narti?! What the fuck?

“Careful. We need to fall back”

And Ezor? Or was it Zethrid? Which was the tall one again?

“But I wanna take him home”

“This place holds no leads for us. Leave him to return with the human”

Narti crossed her arms

“That’s enough, Ezor. Narti will be mad we meddled as it is”

Ohhh... not Narti... that actually kind of made him feel better... Narti was the grumpy one... Ezor wanted to have fun. He needed to remember that

“Fiiiine”

Ezor licked the pad of her gloved thumb, before reaching and rubbing at spot on his mask

“Good as new. Right. Off you run”

Keith found his voice. He couldn’t let the two of them run off when they knew something

“Wai-...”

“Don’t go getting emotional on us little Keefy. I know you want to join us, but you’re a human and we have a strict no humans allowed rule. Until next time”

With that the pair of them were off, heading back towards the chaos. Feeling every bit of his bruised body, Keith started limping over to where the hurt hunters were getting immediate medical treatment. Had Lotor sold them out? Or was he following them? What the fuck was going on? And where the fuck was Shiro? He was going to kill him very slowly if he’d gotten himself killed.

*

The clean up was worse than falling off the roof. Why the didn’t have a back up team in the sewer system Keith didn’t know, because that’s how their pray had escaped. Right down the jagged hole middle of the building... and of course the arseholes had taken everything with them. It was a mess he was glad he didn’t have to deal with. Fuck being in Kolivan or Krolia’s shoes right now. He didn’t even want to be in his own shoes. He’d traded his sniper rifle for a pair of hand guns, but there really wasn’t anything to do... because thankfully he wasn’t a werewolf with an overdeveloped sense of smell. Ezor and Zethrid weighed on his mind, he hadn’t the chance to tell anyone he’d seen them there, and Shiro was too busy first with the mission, then fussing over him.

Leaving the cleanup crew still working, Keith was still late to Lance’s birthday dinner. Shiro was late too, but that was okay because he wasn’t dating Lance. Between getting back to VOLTRON, showering, changing, and not being able to talk to Coran thanks to the fae being busy as fuck with the Blades mess, he was still late. Heading into the restaurant with Shiro, Curtis was the first to notice, out of his seat and throwing his arms around Shiro within moments of his noticing him.

Lance was sitting with Pidge in his lap, there was a smile on his lips that didn’t turn genuine until he set his eyes on Keith. The warmth in his smile and the relief in his eyes. That was everything he needed after what’d happened. Keith felt like walking bag of bruises that Lance wouldn’t be happy about. It was a shame Coran and Allura weren’t there, but Lance was and that was all he cared about.

Shooing Pidge out his lap, Pidge grumbled over being evicted. Lance reaching for him, and Keith nearly tripped over his own feet in his rush to get to his boyfriend. There had to be rules about two people sitting in the same seat, this wasn’t like Sal’s or at a pub, the place was fancy, but their table was slightly hidden by a jutting room divider. Sinking into his boyfriend’s hold, Lance slipped his arm around his waist, his lips finding Keith’s with practiced ease. Sharing three small kisses, ending as Keith hissed over his scratched lips. Now he was sitting, he wasn’t sure he had the energy to ever get up again. His boyfriend smelt so nice. A little sweet, and little muddly, but comfortingly like him.

Nuzzling into his cheek, Keith expected Pidge to carry on or tease them for being “gross”. Curtis must have filled them all in the mission going sideways. Softly, Lance asked

“Babe?”

“I’m okay...”

He was ready for bed... Cake, Lance and bed. Lance, cake, Lance, and bed sounded better. Or Lance and cake in bed...

“You sure? Curtis...”

“Yeah. A bit shell shocked and bruised but so much better for being here”

Lance kissed his cheek

“I’m not going to be happy later, am I?”

“Mmmm, maybe not, but I’m in one piece and I didn’t take direct damage. I’ll be fine, I promise you, babe”

His ears weren’t ringing and he had both eyebrows so that was a win.

“Okay. You’ve had your time to talk. Now tell us about this mission of yours”

Matt scooched his chair closer. Shiro groaned at him. With him and Curtis sitting down, the seating arrangement around the table was Lance, Miriam, Pidge, Rieva, Matt, Hunk, Shiro, Curtis, with the chair closest to Lance left open for him, though that had probably already been used by Pidge until he arrived. Curtis explained

“Vampires blew up the depot. You know the transport and manufacturing depot. Yeah, well, their going to have a hell of time explaining that away. Though I suppose with the power black out they’ll say some compound became unstable from lack of refrigeration. It makes Allura’s, Lance’s, and Keith’s previous mission pretty void for now. Werewolves have been deployed to scent track”

Mami was the first to voice her worry

“Oh my dear! Neither of you were hurt were you?”

Pidge a little less sensitive in her worries

“Dude, did you get blown up?”

Shiro shook his head, Keith content with no explaining... though it niggled at him not to mention Zethrid and Ezor. He’d talk to Coran about it. He was more tactful with handling this kind of thing, plus Keith kind of feared being scolded by Kolivan for receiving help from the “enemy”

“No. A few other members were injured. I thought we lost Keith, but he’d already drawn back”

Shit. Lance would worry

“They gave the order to. I didn’t think we’d be worrying about being blown up after nothing happening on first shift. They must have used the time from the moment they detected us to that shot firing to retreat. But we’re both okay, Mami. You don’t need to worry”

“As my son, I’m afraid I do. Do you know long it look Lance to bring home such a nice catch? I was beginning to believe I’d be dead before it happened”

Lance scolded his Mami

“Mami! You can’t say things like that”

Miriam laughing it off

“Consider it a perk of being old. They give you the good stuff when they think you’re a bit nutty. Now, we didn’t order for you two boys, and by the sound of it you both need a good meal and rest”

Matt snickered

“I doubt Keith’s going to be getting any of that”

Keith was now sure he was missing something. His anxiety started curling in his gut. This was why he hated being late. He hated feeling like he was on the outside

“Okay. No more picking on Keith. Babe, I’ll tell you later. Mami’s right. You need to eat something. I’m happy you came home safe”

“Yeah. Me too...”

Pidge finally butting in

“And now you’re being gross again. This is supposed to be a nice dinner to celebrate Lance. You’ve got witnesses”

Keith forced himself to slide from Lance’s lap to the empty chair. Ordering felt like too much effort

“Careful, gremlin. I’ve got stories of my own remember”

Pidge scowled at Lance

“I’m going to find a way to make you forget all those embarrassing stories”

Lance picked up his wine glass, mischief in his eye

“I’d like to see you try. Your mother’s potted plants came straight to mind”

“Ugh! I hate you... Matt, Lance is being mean”

“You’re the one who tried to spray paint mum’s plants so she couldn’t tell you’d killed them”

Keith sucked in his lips, trying not to bark out a laugh lest he also be accused of betraying her. He could see Pidge doing that so clearly... or trying to frame Matt for it. Grabbing her knife she faked stabbing herself in the heart, letting herself fall forward dramatically as she whispered

“I’ve been betrayed by both of you. Run, Keith, take Hunk. Be free!”

Flopped on the table, Matt poked at her

“Right. Well, I call dibs on her piece of cake”

Miraculously Pidge was revived

“Touch me piece of cake and I’ll tell Rieva how you couldn’t sleep with your light off until you were 15”

Matt was unruffled

“Seeing you already have, your piece is now forfeit”

“Noooo... Shiro, is there like a training collar for werewolves? I’m going to have to teach him to respect his little sister”

“Notice how you only refer to yourself like that when you’re trying to win me over”

“You can’t be mean! I’m a poor defenceless human”

“Defenceless my left testicle. You’re as defenceless as a barbed wire fence with the personality to match”

“If anything Lance is the “steely” one”

Lance raised an eyebrow

“If I’m so steely, why is it that my home was invaded by a cow today? Pidge, we know you better than to know you won’t go for a kick to balls if you’re cornered. Matt, stop upsetting the gremlin. She can have cake, but only before midnight”

“Why before midnight?”

The words slipped right out, their friends laughing at him... including Mami. Obviously it was some kind of pop culture reference he wasn’t getting. At least Lance was nice enough to comfort him

“Oh, babe. You’re exhausted. We’ll watch the movie when we next get a free weekend”

“Which won’t be for another two weeks”

Lance groaned, cheeks red and hunching down as he did

“Maaaaatt. Shut up”

“Why another two weeks?”

Lance spluttered, replying too fast

“Oh, you know, work and stuff. Stop teasing him before I talk to him about it”

“Fine. But on a serious note, you’re prepared right?”

“Curtis helped me out this afternoon”

“Good. Keith, make sure you take care of him”

He’d had enough of being confused

“What the fuck is going on?”

“Thanks, guys. Babe, come order with me. I’ll order for you too, Shiro, while I’m at it. You all suck”

Keith didn’t know “ordering” meant a trip to the men’s room. Lance splashing his face with water as Keith hung back towards the door. Catching his gaze in the mirror, Lance smiled at him, though it was one of those faked smiles that should be banned

“Sorry. Matt’s been like this all afternoon”

“You want to tell me what’s going on? I haven’t been able to get out my head how you looked at me when I left”

Lance ducked his head, turning off the tap, that blush was sneaking back in

“I... uh... okay. So don’t be mad, and you totally don’t have to be there if you don’t want to... I... um... I’m preheat”

What the what now?

“Preheat?”

“You know how werewolves get horny in spring but before that they’re all like super affectionate and make sure they’re well stocked and safe? Yeah, I’m that”

“You haven’t been preheat before. You kind of just go into heat”

Lance huffed. Turning, he crossed his arms and stared at his feet

“Thank you, Captain Obvious. Curtis came by earlier because you’d talked to Coran and we kind of figured it out together. I drank your blood like 3ish months ago... I’m either pregnant or preheat... and seeing we use protection... well... yeah. Matt reckons he smelt it on me. Rieva agrees. My... uh... scent’s sweeter and stronger ‘cause apparently my body is trying to tell you I need looking after and stuff. Look, I was going to tell you at the hotel, but Matt hasn’t stopped teasing me and it’s not fair you don’t know. He told the others were having a romantic week together... but I’m not forcing you to be there. I mean, we don’t know how long it will last and can you please say something because I’m kind of freaking the fuck out and embarrassed as hell about how I acted last time”

“So this is a thing?”

Smooth. Real smooth. A heat was better than a baby... but a proper heat... Hadn’t he had a long enough day as it was? Now he was being unfair to Lance

“Yep. Surprise”

And Lance sounded resigned

“I... Okay. Neither of us know much about this really and honestly I’m pretty much asleep on my feet and the only thinking happening isn’t much. But you can’t act like I don’t want to be there with you”

“And you can’t act like I didn’t freak you the fuck out last time. You went through that all for me! When do I finally get to do something for you!? It isn’t fair! I hate this body of mine. I just want to be a good boyfriend!”

Lance covered his mouth. Keith kind of felt like punching him in the dick. If Lance could tell, so could he!

“Why do you have to be like that? You can’t help it!”

“Because I’m this! This is me! What I want is to go back to you living with me and none of this other shit even happening! You’re too fucking good to me!”

“You’re the good one! I woke up this morning and realised I hadn’t even gotten a present!”

“I don’t need a present! All I want is you!”

“It’s your birthday!”

“And all I wanted was to be with you!”

“I’m here now! Again!”

“And I don’t want to leave at the end of it!”

“Then why are you yelling?!”

Keith spluttered

“I don’t know! You yelled back at me!”

“I was yelling because you were yelling! I miss living with you!”

“And I miss having you around! I miss it! I miss it and I can’t change it because I won’t put you in danger... I can’t lose you”

Both of them stared at each other, Keith moving at the same time as Lance... more or less crashing into each other than a romantic moment. Wrapping his arms around Lance, Lance held onto his jacket

“I miss you, Keith. I know I’m supposed to be the cool older one... but sometimes it hard to go home”

As hard as it was to go back to “normal” life while Lance wasn’t around

“I miss you too. You’re like... the good thing in my life I still can’t believe I have... I... confession time, Shiro helped me with your present”

“Confession time, I don’t mind. We’re working out this boyfriend thing together... I’m haunted by the memories of things I’ve written in cards”

That seemed to be a common theme. Keith wasn’t too sure about what he’d written in Lance’s card

“Shiro said the same thing this morning”

“I’m far too much on his wavelength”

“Bad taste in music. Odd taste in men. A constant need to talk thing out...”

“Don’t forget I care about you. I don’t want people caught up in this that shouldn’t be. I’m ruggedly handsome and mysterious... Um. I... care about you”

“You said that twice”

Lance sighed against him

“I really do. When Curtis said things went south my heart nearly stopped. Three months isn’t long enough... not to be around you. Not to know you...”

Lance was being too adorable and too sweet. Keith couldn’t lie to him about today

“I’m okay... Don’t tell Shiro but I fell off a roof and was saved by a pile of electrical cable spools”

“Babe!”

“And then Ezor saved me. She was there with Zethrid”

“Keith! What the hell!?”

“I don’t know why they were there, probably poking into the same things as us...”

“God. Why can’t you Blades be bloody careful!?”

“I was falling back when it happened... does that count?”

“Yes, but, babe... are you sure you’re okay? Did you hit your head? Do you know where you are?”

“I’m in some weird restaurant with some weird guy?”

“That isn’t funny!”

Lance was in tears now. He’d teased him too much. Kissing Lance’s hair, his boyfriend was still clutching him, Keith wondered if the jacket would forever retain the marks from how hard of a grip Lance had on him

“I’m fine. The suit protected me for the most part. The worst I got was a little winded and a few bruises. I’m with my boyfriend, on his birthday, which is the only place I want to be”

“I... You’re not allowed to scare me like that. You’re too important”

“I know. I only had to survive for Shiro before, now I have you... and... maybe I think I want to survive for myself”

“I should punch you in the dick”

It’d be deserved. Lance wore his heart on his sleeve and Keith really loved that about him

“Please don’t”

Lance sniffled softly, still angry despite crying

“Only because it’s you asking... You have to tell Shiro you saw them there. It could be important”

“I’m going to let Coran know”

“And Shiro”

That wasn’t a conversation he relished the thought of

“He’ll worry... How about I tell them together?”

“Fine. As long as you swear you’ll tell them”

“Only because it’s you asking. We should get back”

“I suppose so... I’m so fucking relieved you’re alright”

“I know... me too, babe. I wouldn’t miss being here with you for anything”

“You’re such a fucking sap... but... I really like you. I know it’s your job, and this preheat is making me extra emotional... but... the world is better for having you in it”

What was he supposed to say to that? It was Lance’s birthday but he felt like he was the one who’d been given the best present of his life.