#oh speaking of the wheelchair please forgive me. it looks bad i tried and i failed again

[wszczebrzyszynie]

i dont remember who but someone asked me if Jellie and owl Grian hunt together and the answer is no. They would however compete for the prey

[diavolosthots]

DARK DECEPTION CHAPTER 19

READ CHAPTER 18 HERE

Warnings: flashbacks to the previous chapter, mentions of injury and death

Pairing(s): Lucifer x reader, michael, the brothers, Barbatos

Loud… everything was so loud. There was shuffling and the clinging of metal. There were too many people, too many voices both which he recognized and which he didn’t. His eyes couldn’t open and everything hurt, he wasn't going to lie, but his pride also didn’t allow him to actually groan out in pain, or, at least not very loudly. People were touching him, he could feel them. They worked on his wings and for a moment, he was so out of it, he about attacked someone for touching him in the first place, but then he remembered. He remembered nearly everything. The pain, the breaking of Diavolo’s wings right beneath him and then the head in his hands. He remembered the pure rage that filled him, and he remembered Satan. He’s still not sure how the fourth born did this, binding them back together. Lucifer hadn’t felt that kind of anger, that kind of power, since the celestial war, and he never thought he would feel it again, either. “Satan….” His eyes slowly opened as worry settled into his mind, and he had to blink a few times in order to focus on the picture in front of him. 

A soft hand, a gentle touch, cupped his cheek and Lucifer leaned into it. It felt familiar and comforting; it felt like you. He turned his head a bit, groaning when the pain rushed through him and right now, he wasn’t trying to hide it. “(Y/N)....” his mouth felt dry, his throat and voice hoarse. It felt as if there were sand stuck in his throat and talking hurt more than anything, well, almost. Tears were streaming down your face and he could tell that you had been crying for longer than you would ever willingly admit to him. One of his hands was held firmly by yours, the other one still cupping his cheek. “Lucifer…” it was a sob, a noise of relief, and if he wasn’t so bandaged up right now, you could throw yourself at him. “I was so worried….” You were. After Lucifer left, you begged Michael to let you run after him, or at least that he ran after him, but the angel locked you in that room. You had no idea what was going on and paced the space until your feet hurt. It felt like eternity to you until Michael finally returned and decided to bring you down, “it’s not pretty…” and it wasn’t.

You remember seeing the bodies. You didn’t know what happened, at all. Some demons were still fighting with each other, others were on the ground. You found Beelzebub first, who was all scratched up and beaten, but still standing which you deemed as good. Belphegor was with him too so at least you knew those two were fine. “Where is he?” But neither of them had an answer. You found Asmo with Mammon and Levi and you almost screamed when you saw the very open, very gaping, very bloody wound in Levi’s abdomen, barely held together by Mammon and Asmo. Mammon’s leg was broken, very clearly so, but nothing he wouldn’t survive. And for some reason Asmo, although exhausted, still looked good. Levi worried you though and you doubted he was even conscious anymore, “get…. Get him to the house… clean the wound…. Asmo, please…” but you didn’t know if they ever made it, not at that point at least. And then Satan… his golden hair stood out and you ran over there as quickly as you can. He was face down and right beside him was Lucifer, holding onto his hand. Neither of them reacted to you and you freaked out, screaming for Michael who you hoped was still there. 

And that’s how you ended up here. Michael had carried Lucifer to the house, ordering some angels down to help the rest of the brothers. For a very long time, Michael worked on Lucifer’s wings, barely speaking to you or anyone for that matter, and if he said anything at all, it was mumbled, almost as if he was embarrassed, or ashamed. Beelzebub stayed the whole time and Belphegor and Asmodeus made their own little nests in Lucifer’s room, watching over the eldest as the five of you hoped for the best. “I was so worried…. You didn’t wake up….” Lucifer could hear your pain and it pained him more than any physical pain he felt at the moment. “I… I made a promise…. I didn’t intend on breaking it…” he forced a soft grin, although it truly did nothing but hurt him; it was worth it. You laughed softly, letting yourself fall onto him as you hugged him tightly. Pain shot through him and he groaned loudly, carefully lifting his hands to place them on your back and he wished he could hold you tighter. 

“I’m sorry… Darling…” you shook your head, quickly pulling back to look at him. “No I am… I’m sorry for not fighting… I’m sorry for going with him…” A hand was placed on your shoulder and you quickly turned your head, seeing Michael look down at you, “it’s not your fault little one.” the angel looked at you for another moment before looking at Lucifer, “you have a lot to clean up, Lucifer, but my task here is done. You should heal just fine, as should everyone else. Don’t forget your promise to me…. But I will take my leave now.” You looked confused at Lucifer and then back at Michael, “promise?” but the angel only smiled, stroking gently through your hair, “don’t worry, child. It’s nothing bad. Take care of him, hm?” And then, in the blink of an eye, Michael was gone. Lucifer smiled softly, still, although the confusion was written everywhere on your face, “don’t worry….” “What did you promise him?!” You were freaking out. A promise? Made by Lucifer? To Michael? This can’t be good. Lucifer’s hand reached out slowly to grasp yours again as he swallowed thickly, “I promised… to mend our relationship… to try again…” and he hated making that promise, but for you he would do anything, including putting his pride aside and forgiving Michael. 

The words rung in your ears and you know you understood them, but you couldn’t believe them. Fresh tears spilled over as you nodded at him, looking at Beel and Belphegor on the other end of the room, and then at Asmo who took it upon himself to give you some tissues, “thank you….” Lucifer nodded, closing his eyes again, “my brothers… they’re okay…?” Asmo laughed softly behind you and nodded eagerly, “yeah… Michael brought some of his cute friends with him… they stitched everyone up.” Belphegor walked up on the other side of the bed and held up his bandaged arm, “they were pretty nice…. Levi is making it, too, and Satan just needed some rest. He slept almost as long as you.” Lucifer turned his head toward Belphegor, raising an eyebrow, “how long was I sleeping, as you put it?” “About a week.” It was Beelzebub who spoke. Lucifer’s eyes went wide and he almost immediately went to sit up, groaning loudly when his wings hurt him and he felt the pressure of your hand pushing him back down, “oh no…. You’re not going anywhere! Your wings are taking forever to heal. You had a few broken ribs too and it’ll take a while, even with Michael’s help.” 

God, he hated this. He feels useless right now. “The house is still standing…. Seems like you three didn’t do too bad.” Belphegor rolled his eyes, walking over to the door, “there he is. Lucifer is back everyone, we can leave now.” It made you laugh, genuinely, and it’s nice to see that nothing can truly ever keep Lucifer away. When Belphegor opens the door, though, he gets interrupted by Satan pushing Mammon, who’s sitting in a wheelchair, in through the door, and Levi kind of wobbling after them, “Lucifer! I knew you would make it!” You smiled at the rest of them and then looked back at Lucifer, who seems like his usual self, “is this a family meeting now? I’m glad to see you all alive. “ Especially Levi. For a while, he didn’t think the third born would make it, but his eyes actually ended up falling on Satan, “what was that?” The blond smiled smugly at him before shrugging, “it was more of a theory than anything until I tried it… but I figured since I was made from your anger, maybe you needed that anger in order to win… I didn’t think it would work so well, though.” 

“Are ya kiddin’ me?! Ya knocked the whole Devildom out!” Mammon wasn’t even exaggerating. The wave that pushed through everyone was immense and none of them ever felt anything like that. “It was amazing!” You were confused, looking between Mammon, Satan, and then back at Lucifer, who only shook his head. “No worries…. It just helped us win…” He sighed softly, closing his eyes again and holding your hand tightly, “I still need rest but… do whatever you six want for a while.. Just make sure the house is still standing for when I can walk again.” “well… actually..” Levi started and the way his tone sounded, it didn’t make Lucifer too happy so he opened his eyes again and glared at the third born, “Leviathan I swear…” but the otaku shook his head, “there’s something you need to know….” not another war, please. Please don’t let it be another war. Leviathan stepped aside, letting Barbatos enter the room. The servant was smiling as always, his hands folded behind his back. 

“Glad to see you alive and well, My Lord.” 

[imagine-nation20]

Mutants, and Magic, and Stones, Oh My

Summary: After the fighting stops, and everyone returns to the mansion to get back to their semi-normal lives, they meet an unexpected guest.

Requested: No? But also yes, by an anon

Request:Wild card! write whatever you hell you want to read! (or don't, if you don't feel like it)

Pairing: Sean Cassidy X Reader (Sort of. Its hinted at)

A/N: I’ve had this idea in my head for a very long time, but I haven’t seen to First Class movie since… like it came out? So excuse my weird lack of information. This was just a fun idea that I felt like writing, and thank you to the anon for giving me the means to do so! Also, reader is hinted more towards being female, so sorry.

~~~

Stephen Strange stared at you from across his desk. “I’m not angry,” He started.

You groaned in response, “Please don’t do that, ‘I’m not angry, I’m just disappointed’ speech, okay? I get it, I screwed up-”

“By almost destroying the New York Sanctum,” He grumbled back.

“But I didn’t,” You insisted, crossing your arms in a huff.

“(Y/N),” He tilted his head, hands clasping in front of him on the desk. “You’re a smart kid, but I took you on as my personal apprentice under the assumption that you would set an example.”

You threw your hands up, “I have, Doctor Strange,” you insisted, “I’m the best in the entire sanctum, maybe even every sanctum! I never lose a sparring match, I practise every spell given to me until I’ve perfected it, and yet, I make one little mistake, and suddenly I’m a disappointment?”

“I never said-”

“What do I have to do to prove to you I’m taking this seriously?” You asked, eyes wide in an earnest plea.

Stephen pinched the bridge of his nose, and you could have sworn you saw three new grey hairs sprout from his head. He was silent, staring down at his hands, which were now rested flat on his desk. His eyes trailed to you. 

He had taken you in as his apprentice on a whim. A car crash, which should have been fatal, instead left you paralyzed from the waist down. He had come to you in the hospital, clad in strange robes and a bright red cape, talking of magic and giving you back you ability to walk. You had thought he was crazy, if not for the demonstration he gave in the middle of your scramble to call a nurse or doctor.

You had accepted without any further fight. If you could get your freedom back, you would take it. So, you studied. Harder than any other apprentice. You weren’t going to take this miracle opportunity for granted. If Stephen told you to jump from a cliff, you would, with the faith that he knew what he was doing, and it would better your training.

So when he pulled the Eye of Agamotto from his neck, you tried not to let your jaw drop to the floor.

“There are disturbances, I can feel it through the eye,” He mumbled. “Something, or someone, is messing with the timeline.”

“And?”

He took a deep breath, sliding the eye across the desk to you, “And I want you to go back and fix it.”

“You-” You stuttered. “You want me to use the eye to go back and stop someone from messing up the past?”

“Yes,” He shrugged. “I would do it, but I have to look after the Sanctum, make sure we can recover from this recent setback,’ He leveled you with a look.

“Are you sure you want me to do it?” You asked, reaching out hesitantly.

“Weren’t you the one just grovelling for forgiveness?” He quirked a brow.

With that, you snatched up the eye, pulling it over your head and letting hang from your neck. The old, brassy metal and glowing green of the amulet contrasted with the white and grey of your robes.

“Take the staff with you,” Was his last fleeting comment, waving you from the room. “When you are ready, come find me in the training arena.”

You walked away, moving to prepare. Your robes, you switched out for more moveable, mission-like clothes. Black pants, tucked tight into brown, wrapped boot. Next came the long sleeved, brown undershirt, which had arm guards wrapped over top, then a darker, short sleeve top. A cloth, which looked like a long strip of bright red material with a hole dead center for her head. You slipped it over, each part hanging down past your knees. A thick, black belt held it all together, with a paler, brown cloth wrapped over top to hide a dagger sheath.

It was a lot of layers, and took you awhile to get on. The final touches consisted of the eye, which was tucked under the red cloth, and the brown straps to hold your staff. At your waist hung a small spellbook.

Stephen was meditating when you showed up.

“Good, you grabbed the book,” He never opened his eyes. “You will need it, seeing as you wont have access to the Sanctums where you are going.”

“Which was going to be my first question,” You said. “Where am I going?”

“1962, New York,” He said. “What do you know about mutants?”

~~~

“Come on, Alex,” Sean smirked.

The blonde shook his head, “I am not helping you push Hank off the roof as payback,” Alex pushed the redhead away.

“But he deserves a taste of his own medicine,” Sean was adamant that this was fair play, despite the slight flaw to his plan.

“Hank doesn’t have the ability to fly, Cassidy,” Alex stood from his spot on the couch, moving towards the exit to the sitting room.

“So? I couldn’t fly when he pushed me,” Sean snarked.

They walked through the almost empty halls of the mansion. Despite Charles’ claims that they would soon have students wandering the halls, it was still quiet even weeks after the incident on the beach. Charles hadn’t quite recovered yet, and those who still remained in the mansion were hesitant in thinking he ever really would.

From down the hallway, Hank turned the corner, Charles beside him in his wheelchair. Sean was about to open his mouth to snark at the tall brunette in a lab coat, when a commotion outside hit his ears. A glance out the window from the four pairs of eyes left them all speechless.

In the gravel of the driveway, to the right of the fountain, was carved out by a large crater. It looked like a meteor had hit, despite no previous signs, and no fire. From within the crater, a green glow spread out.

The four glanced at each other.

“Uh, Professor…” Alex whispered.

“I don’t know,” Was Charles' answer to the unasked question. “Let us find out, shall we?”

Outside, there was no scent of smoke or fire. Instead, a metallic tang on electricity hung in the air, the tingle setting everyone’s arm hairs on end. The light from within the crater faded.

A hand appeared, grasped onto the ledge of the crater. Their palms were caked in dirt, but the back of their hand was surprisingly clean.

From within the crater, you grunted, cursing out Stephen in whatever language came to mind--even the more ancient ones. With great effort, and the use of already sore muscles, you pulled yourself from the hole your impact into the year made.

Upon rising from with depths, you locked eyes witha group of very shocked men. You must’ve looked crazy, with your old-looking robes and metal-tippedstaff. The glowing green necklace probably didn’t help.

“Hi,” You said awkwardly, “One of you wouldn’t happen to be Charles Xavier, would you?”

One of the older members of the group, who was in a metallic wheelchair, raised a hesitant hand. You smiled, sighing.

“Great, that makes my job way easier,” You joked. “I’ll be quick, but I’m from the future, someone from my time is trying to change this past, and I’m here to stop it.”

The redhead, standing stock still in the front, choked out an odd noise. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, as he collapsed.

“...oops,” You shrugged.

When Sean Cassidy came too, he could’ve sworn he had died and gone to heaven. You hovered over him, a pale yellow light emitting from the sigils you created over him. You smiled, hesitant and almost guilty.

“Sorry about all that,” You said. “Didn’t realize how shocking it would be if I just unloaded all of that.”

You were in one of the many sitting rooms, Sean sprawled out on the ugly, floral print couch. His head hurt, but the pain was quickly subsiding with every pulse of light from the sigils.

“What…” He trailed off.

You followed his eyes, seeing the confusion, “Oh, I guess I explain to the others, but not to you. I’m a… magician, of sorts. These are healing spells, I hoped they would help.”

“Magic,” Sean whispered, eyes wide.

You nodded.

“Are you a mutant?” He asked.

With a laugh, you shook your head, “No, I was human, up until about a year ago,” You explained.

The symbols disappeared, a smile stretching onto your face, you mumbled an ‘all better’, before helping him sit up.

“I feel bad that I made you pass out though,” You said.

“It’s fine,” Sean smiled. “At least I have a good nurse.”

Alex came strolling in at that moment, the calm mood rupturing with his loud steps. His blonde hair, which had previously been combed and well kept, was now sticking up in odd places.

“Professor wants to speak with you,” Alex said to you.

You nodded, shooting one last smile to Sean, before getting up to leave. As you rounded the corner out of the room, Sean spoke up.

“Am I hallucinating?” He asked his friend.

Alex chuckled, patting him on the back harshly, “No,” He sent him a sly look. “You really did pass out in front of the pretty girl from the future.”

“God dammit.”

[choices-love-affair]

Pedestal ch.3

It had been a week since Donahues. A week since they seemed to finally repair some bridges. A week since things between them started to feel… normal again. A week since Ethan had decided to finally do something about the way he felt towards Lorelei before somebody else did. Namely, Bryce. Though Ethan would never admit to the insane amount of jealousy he felt for the younger man, his actions often spoke louder than anything he could ever say.

“So, Donahues tonight? Two-for-one, you know you wanna!” Ethan overheard Bryce’s suggestive ulterior motives dripping in his tone, he subtly shook his head and sighed under his breath, pretending to read through some patient files while leaning against the nurses station, his back to the pair, his ears still pricked up in an attempt to hear her reply.

“Maybe” she offered. She didn’t sound too convinced or even interested for that matter, Ethan smiled before attempting to hide it with his hand, feigning interest in his work.

“Dr Lahela, don’t you have better things to be doing than distracting my resident” Ethan spoke suddenly, startling the pair.

“Sorry, Doc. Ramsey.” Bryce held his hands up apologetically while walking backwards away from Lorelei “see you there?”

“Maybe” she replied again, shrugging her shoulders and waving at him, Bryce returning the gesture with a wink and hair flick before turning and around and making his way to the elevators.

Lorelei joined Ethan at the nurses station, leaning over his notes, their arms rubbing as she reached for a file in her own collection tray, a small smirk creeping up on her face “your resident?” she asked.

“you know what I mean.” He replied, voice monotonal.

“Mmmm…no… no I don’t think I do” she giggled, turning her back to lean on the station, resting on her elbows, facing Ethan “explain it to me like I’m five” she teased.

Ethan removed his glasses and looked up at her, unable to hide his own smirk at her teasing expression, before clearing his throat “two-for one tonight with Bryce hey? Well, don’t get too inebriated please, we have that new case arriving first thing tomorrow. Last thing you want is to leave a bad first impression” He replied, the jealousy saturated in his voice made her giggle, Ethan glanced up at her, face coloured with humoured irritation.

“Ethan” Lorelei mocked him before she looked around to make sure they were alone “you’re doing that thing again” she continued, voice changing to one full of empathy.

“Doing what? I’m not doing anything.” He recoiled, also looking around the area

“Your jealousy is the single most adorable thing I’ve ever bared witness to” she teased, nudging his arm playfully “look, if you want me to go with you so badly then just ask” she shrugged as though it was no big deal “I respect that you’re trying to protect us and the team and our jobs but… we can still do things, can’t we? Do things as colleagues, friends even? We are friends, aren’t we?!” her brows furrowed as she searched his face for reassurance.

“Of course, we’re friends!” he replied “you’re one of my very few, actually” he continued, a little embarrassed at his admission “look, I’ll be honest. I don’t want JUST friends with you, Lorelei Stannaway, and you know that. We just have to be careful… aaand I can’t believe I am having this conversation here, of all places” he looked around bewildered “this is how it starts” he shook his head laughing, glancing back up her, head cocked to the side

“I know, I know! I understand what you’re trying to say, truly, I do. But if there’s any chance of something more I’m willing to make it work, if you are…” she gazed back at him with eyes full of hope, so infectious it made his whole body flush with heat.

“What are you doing to me…” he shook his head, laughing breathlessly

“…ask me out” she whispered, barely audible.

“Okay… okay.” He reasoned with himself out loud “may…maybe I will” he glanced at her nervously. The silence was deafening, continuing for what felt a millennia.

“You know, for a man as prestigious, confident and handsome as yourself, you’re acting very much like a rusty bucket right about now?”

Ethan balked at her remark “Christ, Lorelei!” She held her hands up, silently apologising, the faintest of smirks on her face as she continued to watch him apprehensively, waiting for his next move.

“Look” he turned to face her, glancing over his shoulder again, making sure they were alone “I know things haven’t always been easy for us, and the past year leading up to where we are now has been tumultuous at best, and I know that I have hurt you more times than I count” he captured her face with his eyes, entrancing her with his pure authenticity “for that, I will never forgive myself. I know this won’t be how you want it, how you imagined it, you know we can’t be public. But if you’re willing to be patient with us, I’ll do everything in my power to make it work. I would still really like to do this as traditionally as we can… if you’ll have me that is?” Lorelei watching on with bated breath, trying to hide the fact her heart was now in her throat. All she could do was nod.

“are you doing anything tonight?” he finally asked, his voice smooth and warm, his face the kindest and sincerest she had ever since baby Ethan was born.

Once again, she was speechless, all she could do was shake her head in response.

“Okay…” he chuckled as he noticed he would not be receiving a spoken response “would you like to come to Donahues for two-for-one tonight?” he asked again, searching her eyes for the answer he truly wanted, praying she says yes. It was just enough time for Lorelei to gather her thoughts and land back on earth, her response filled with her usual quick wit and cheeky self. She grinned, biting her bottom lip as she pushed herself off the nurses station, taking one more fleeting look down the hallway before planting a small kiss on the side of his mouth “I’ll see you there at 8, Dr Ramsey” she spoke seductively, before running her hand over his arm as she bounced away out of sight.

                                          ***

Lorelei finished at Edenbrook at 6pm and was home in her shower by 6.23pm – she was not wasting time. Sienna was in her bedroom sorting their clothes into yes and no piles, the same with shoes.

“Sienna, you can’t tell ANYONE” Lorelei insisted as she tried on different outfits that Sienna had chosen.

“Oh my god!!! Do not insult me, I have never said ANYTHING!” she emphasised on the word with a strong head nod “you don’t have to worry about a thing okay, I’m just so glad you told me!” she squealed as Lorelei tried on another outfit “that’s it!” cried Sienna

“this?”

“Yep that! Okay, those shoes! Come on, we have to be there before he is, give us the advantage!”

“Sienna, it’s just drinks”

“Uh-huh… for now” Sienna teased, wiggling her eyebrows and nudging Lorelei playfully. Lorelei shook her head and rolled her eyes as she picked out her diamond earrings she received for her 21st birthday from the jewellery box, applied a quick layer of makeup and slipped on her simple black heels that went with her washed out blue denim jeans and tight black sequined shirt that clung to body and finished on her midriff.

“You look… omg so goooood!” Sienna squealed again “he is not going to be able to resist”

“Well he has to! Nobody can know, remember?” she paused “…Sienna, I don’t even know how this is going to work, I’m so nervous I could spew” Lorelei sighed with exasperation as she sat on the edge of her bed. Sienna sat next to her and grabbed her hand “You’ll figure it out. If you both want it enough, you will” she said as she squeezed her hand softly “Now come on! Let’s go!”

                                             ***

“White or blue, Jenner?” Ethan asked his dog genuinely as he held up two shirts to choose from as she lounged lazily on his bed “good choice” he continued, removing the crisp white button up shirt from its hanger and pulling it on, leaving the top two buttons undone and rolling up the sleeves, attempting to achieve a more casual look. He finished doing up his shoes before standing and checking himself in the mirror

“What do you reckon?” he asked, looking at Jenner through the mirror, when obviously no response came, he nodded his head once “be good” he ruffled her ears as he grabbed his wallet and waltzed out the door with his heart in his throat.

                                               ***

Lorelei and Sienna arrived at Donahues first, the rest of their friends planning on meeting them there once they finally got off work. They were busily trying to distract themselves when the front door to the bar suddenly opened, Lorelei lurched, heart pounding as she watched expectantly … as Elijah, Bryce and Jackie poured in, still in their work clothes and looking beat.

“How do you both look so damn hot when our shifts finished at the same time?!” retorted Jackie, slumping into the both, laying her head in Sienna’s lap. Bryce gestured lazily for Lorelei to move over as he shimmied into the booth with a loud huff.

“Who have you dressed up for anyway, Lorelei?” asked Elijah, before his wheelchair shunted backwards suddenly, emitting a yelp of shock from him as he threw a daggered stare at Sienna “I mean, whatever, you look like your usual self then…” he shrugged.

Before she could open her mouth to reply, she was cut off by her phone ringing with her mums designated tone. She hurriedly pushed Bryce out of the booth so she could take the call outside. “Mum?” she spoke, sliding out of the booth as she mouthed ‘I’ll be back’ to her friends, making her way out the front door and into the cool Boston night.

As Lorelei paced the concrete out the front of the bar, speaking to her mum, she saw Ethan’s car pull into the driveway and park in the carpark. Getting out and locking the doors, he made his way to the front of the bar when he stopped suddenly in his tracks when he noticed Lorelei standing there. A huge infectious smile erupted over his face that spread right up to his eyes. He drunk her in amorously, tracing his eyes over every curve that her clothes clung to, stopping briefly as he reached the drooped v line of her top, before his eyes flicked back to her face, his smile never faltering.

“Mum, I’ve got to go, alright. I’ll ummm, I’ll call you tomorrow yeah? Yeah, I’m fine, nope all good Mum, yep, yep okay, yep. Bye” she spoke until she was breathless, desperate to end the phonecall as Ethan slowly approached her.

“Fancy seeing you here” she chirped, drinking in his strong frame that was emphasised by the crisp white shirt he was wearing.

“yeah… I’m actually going on a date, maybe you know her?” he replied cheekily, quickly closing the space between them, looping an arm around her waist and placing a small, soft kiss on her lips “you look absolutely stunning” he whispered as he pulled back to look at her again before stepping away all together just as quickly due the sound of the door to the bar opening, as three people that they didn’t know stumbled out, laughing and walking away down the footpath.

Ethan let out a relieved sigh as turned back to Lorelei “This is going to be harder than I imagined” he grimaced

“And who are you, to ever turn down a challenge?” she retorted cheekily. He rolled his eyes at her and laughed as he shook his head.

“We could always just go back to mine instead?” he mused the idea, watching her face intently.

“And what about our date, I want to be wined and dined by the Great Ethan Ramsey! Dammit, I deserve it” she huffed jokingly, placing her hands on her hips and pouting at him.

Ethan chuckled at the sight “you deserve it?” he quipped, taking in the scene unfolding in front of him “Well… I happen to have wine, and a comfy couch, TV even! We could watch a movie, chat over a few drinks and order some food in… I know Jenner would be happy to see you again” he said as he subtly pressed the button that unlocked his car, the lights flashing in response. The action caused Lorelei to throw her head back and laugh “smooth…” she quipped at him, smiling as she walked to the passenger side to get in “you just want to get me alone again, don’t you?” she teased as she opened the door.

“I am the perfect gentleman; I’ll have you know” he replied as he moved to the driver’s side.

She gestured to her side of the car, at the open door and the fact he wasn’t there opening it for her, “we’ll see…” she purred, quirking her eyebrow at him insinuatingly.

“Get in the car” he laughed breathlessly, shaking his head as he climbed into his seat.

Taglist: @ethandaddyramsey @trappedinfandoms

[xmemeanonx]

Tough love

The second part of my yandere Luther Hargreeves fic which was based from @yanderepeterparker s (❤️) headcanons for said character.

The story will be told from your POV and Luther's POV.

Tw. emotional abuse, kidnaping, past talk of physical abuse, disabilities, past noncon talk, Luther's basically no help

Darker than the last one DO NOT READ IF THE WARNINGS OFFEND YOU

Enjoy! :)

= = =

The squeaking of the wheelchair on the hardwood floor became a normal sound to the both of you. Though it made each of you feel very different emotions.

To him its a symbol of his love towards you, a mark of every generous thing he has done for you. The vague reminder of the noise puts a smile on his face.

To you, a constant reminder of the type of monster he truly is. He calls it love, you call it bullshit. This isn't love. Love is selfless and understanding, his love is selfish and one sided.

But he doesn't see it that way. Never did, never will. Stubborn bastard.

= = =

“What would you like for breakfast, dear?” He chirps. He’s facing the counter but you can tell he's smiling.

You cringe on the inside. “Can I make my own breakfast, Luther?” you say quietly, picking at wood on the table.

He turns to you silently, frowning. “It's not Luther, dear.”

He tries so hard to be a normal “couple.” From pet names to breakfast in bed, he tries everything that normal couples would do. But it all feels so empty, so forced. Even his love for you feels fake. Sometimes you wonder if he even truly loves you, or if it's just something to take his mind off of how much he hates himself. You want to confront him on it someday, but for now it's easier to just play along.

“(Y/N)? dear?” he says expectantly. You look up at him.

“Sorry. . . . . honey. I was just thinking”

His smiles, eyes softening. “Its okay, dear. What were you thinking of?” he says expectantly

Your stomach turns, “oh. . .” you gulp, look up at his smiling face, fake smile on yours. You sit up in your wheelchair.

“I-I was just thinking about how. . . . happy I am with you.” The words felt disgusting on your tongue. Heavy and tough to say.

“Oh, that's great dear.” He grabs your hand, holding it gently. “Im happy with you too.”

Its silent. You clear your throat, turning away. He takes the sign.

“So uh. . . breakfast?” he asks.

You nod.

“. . . . eggs?”

You nod again.

= = =

“Honey?”

“Yes, dear?”

“Can. . . . can I go outside? Please?”

He stops pushing you, next to a window. He looks out to the backyard. “Sure, we can go outside. It looks like a nice day out, kinda grey though.”

You sit up, turning to look at him. “No. . . Can I just go out by myself. . . . honey?”

Brows furrowed, he frowns, “no, dear.”

“Why not?!”

He scowls down at you. You forgot how quickly his moods changed, almost like he was waiting for you to “mess up.”

“Because I said so.” You almost scoff at this. Did he really think you actually cared about him, or hell, even his opinions? Fucking idiot.

You put your head down, sighing.

You felt your emotions build up, yet you swallowed them down. You know they will come out as bullets one day. Wanting to pierce his skin, directly into his heart. Hopefully killing him, lord knows he deserves it, especially after everything he did to you, but that’s just wishful thinking.

“(Y/N)” he growls, gripping your shoulder. “Talk to me.”

You shake your head.

He grips you harder, “(Y/N). . . . .”

You put your head down lower, tearing up. Picking at the skin around your nails, you get the same feeling you got when he crippled you. He’s going to do something bad to you very soon, you felt it, but really. . . . . what did you really have to lose?

Your life? His lost.

“(Y/N), say something!” You sob. That shuts him up. Good, he talks too much. Now it’s you turn to speak.

You turn, eyes leaking hot tears, smiling dryly at him. “Why?”

“Wha-“

“Why do you want me to talk, Luther?” It's becoming too much for you to handle

He squints, “(Y/N) I’m not playing your games.”

Way too much.

“Is it because you can’t handle the silence? Because you know that, then you’ll be alone with your thoughts? Maybe then you’d actually think about what your doing, instead of keeping, crippling, assaulting and abusing someone who barely even knows you.”

He punches the wall beside the both of you. You suck in a breath, looking between it and him. Ohhhhhh shit, you messed up.

This happens quite often actually, surprising or not. You mess up and he get pissed. He's going to get angry now and you're going to pay the price of his “mistakes.”

Mistakes. That's what he calls them. As if your legs were a mistake. He says they'll heal but you don't really care, he would just do it again if you tried to run. And you will try again.

But that's how it normally goes, you “misbehave,” he loses his shit, he takes it out on you, then cries and begs for forgiveness. You give him what he wants, fearing for your life, but recently you're getting really desperate.

“. . . . . I'm sorry. “ you say quietly. He can tell your lying.

“Were going to bed.”

You may have no respect for him but at least you`re not stupid.

“Okay, honey.”

= = =

After helping you get ready for bed, with surprisingly very few words exchanged, Luther's body ached for a shower. He felt tiredness like he never felt it before when he had to deal with your childness. If he told his younger self that this was what love was like, he would have never even bothered. But he's changed so much hasn't he?

He'd never enjoyed showers, even as a child to now, with his grotesque body. He remembers his mother telling him that they were good for him, especially after training. She said it was a great way to get clean and to calm down.

He still thinks about her now, Pogo too. But what had to be done to keep you safe was done. Every risk, chance, or possibility of you being taken away from him, he'd take care of. Even if it means removing his own family from the equation or taking away your dignity.

Yes, it hurts him to see you cry, but what are his other options? He's never been good with words.

= = =

Lying on his bed, waiting for him, had to be the longest 20 minutes of your life. Picking the skin around your nails, silently listening to the shower water falling on a human body would normally be a calming thing for you, but nothing about this is calming is it?

You knew what was going to happen but that didn't help the feeling of dread coursing through you.

You weren't a virgin when he first did those things to you, but it didn't make it any less painful. You pissed him off real bad, but you didn’t run or try to fight, you just yelled, you spoke out, and that was enough for him to force himself on you.

You remember lying there, wishing you were dead. You told him to stop, you told him no, screamed it even. But he didn’t care, in fact, he made it even more painful. All for his amusement, his pleasure.

It was when he just left after he finished, not caring for your comfort, you realised how much of a monster he truly was.

Now your scared he’s going to do it again.

= = =

“You do this to yourself, you know?”

“. . . . . “

“I’m only doing this because I love you.”

“. . . . . “

“I love you so much.”

“. . . . . “

“(Y/N)?”

“. . . . . “

“Please”

“. . . . . .”

“Please (Y/N), please just say it back.”

“. . . . . “

“I know you wouldn’t mean it bu-“

Oh, so he does know. Even with him spooning you now, he knows just how much you hate him. Honestly you’re surprised. Considering how much he plays into his little fake domestic life with you, he knows just how much you hate him. You can’t tell if you feel bad or if it makes you hate him even more. But for once, why not play a bit too?

“I love you too, honey.” You say, petting his hand in fake comfort. It’s hard to say, but in a way, you hope it would comfort the pitiful, love-hungry beast behind you.

“O-oh. . . That’s. . . . n-nice to hear.”

“I’m glad, honey.” You feel his tears on the back of your shirt, they make your shirt damp and uncomfortable.

It’s silent. A comfortable silence surprisingly. But then he asks you a question that surprises you. Something you’ve thought about for so long, yet sounds so awful coming from the person it’s directed at.

“(Y/N), do you hate me?”

Yes. oh my god, YES! Oh how much you wanted to tell him that! Yet, you chose not to, especially after what he did to you legs. Broken, yes. But they will heal. At least that’s what he says. But you don’t really trust him do you?

You wanted to tell him the truth, for your sake, not his, never his. Although you try and think of you options and their possible outcomes.

If you say no, you continue to lie. Possibly fueling the already smoldering fire inside of him, feeding his ego yet, at the same time, his insincerities.

Yes on the other hand could burn the whole forest down. It would either burn you or him to death. And honestly, at this point you can’t decide which is the better possibility. You, finally being brought the sweet relief of death, or him, being left to care for a person who he knows hates him while he constantly yearns for their, although fake, love. It almost seems like the better choice is the one where both of you get burnt.

You know which one is the better answer, you even say it what a smirk on your lips.

“Yes. Yes I do Luther.” Your words pierced him right into his heart.

Closing your eyes, listening to his soft sobs behind you, you felt something you haven’t felt in a long time. . . . .

Satisfied.

Because now, he knows the meaning of tough love.

= = =

Hoooooo! That got intense! I’m so sorry if this offended anyone, but I did put a warning at the top. Also Happy New Years, y’all! Hope y’all have a great 2020! Love you! I have a lot more ideas for Luther and the umbrella academy so I might write more. But please request more in general, requests are always open for the umbrella academy!

[sometimesiwriteangst]

The Prince And The Pet - 31

Ta da! In which Logan apologises and Deceit makes improvements.

TW: Mentions of past torture, uh, Remus is unintentionally ableist at one point...yeah, think that’s it!

AO3 Link

Roman was a bit surprised to see Deceit curled up amongst blankets watching tv at five in the morning. It wasn’t exactly abnormal, at least in this household, but the side looked so content that he could almost forget that this was the same side that’d been tortured for months.

Almost.

“So...what you watching?” he asks, walking over and making Deceit jump slightly.

Deceit frowns slightly, hesitating before pointing to the tv as if to say “take a look yourself”. Which, based on Roman’s knowledge of Deceit was highly probable. But then, to his surprise, Deceit softly speaks.

“The Jungle Book.”

Roman looks at the screen again and perks up at the familiar Disney film.

“You never told me you like Disney!! Move over, I’m watching this too – why The Jungle Book?”

Deceit scowls for a moment, then chuckles slightly, smiling as he rearranges himself.

“Big snake.”

“Ah that explains it.”

Logan isn’t sure how to take the news that he tried to take over the mindscape, and that he encouraged and helped Virgil to torture Deceit. Or that he’d apparently done something similar with the many fragments in Thomas’ mind before.

“That doesn’t sound like something I’d do,” he protests to Patton, “it’s just not logical.”

Patton just shrugs though, undeterred by what he thinks is a perfectly good explanation as to why this can’t be real.

“You were pretty convinced. Maybe even logic can be faulty.”

“...Get out.”

“You look like a penguin. Waddle waddle!”

Deceit hisses, before wincing slightly, as if the fear of punishment had caught up with his action. Roman just groans, turning to his brother.

“If you’re going to be unhelpful, please go away. Dee doesn’t need to be insulted.”

Remus himself looks insulted at this, arguing that being compared to a penguin was a good thing. That penguins were excellent and elegant creatures that simply walked funny. But even he could see Deceit looked close to tears, and finds himself backing off quickly.

Once Remus leaves, Deceit glances at Roman, as if waiting for him to say or do something. And he probably should, just to make sure Deceit is okay.

“Sorry about him. He’s not a jerk, he’s just stupid,” he tells him bluntly, helping Deceit drop back into his wheelchair. “But uh, you already know that...”

Deceit breathes deeply, and just as Roman begins to think he’s going to panic, smiles.

“...you too. ...Easter.”

Roman frowns, and then gasps with mock offence.

“It was not my fault that the eggs were real!”

“You summoned...them!”

Roman groans, because of course Deceit would remember the details of the Easter Egg Incident.

“Well, next Easter you can bring the eggs,” he says lightly, gently nudging Deceit with his elbow.

“...next Easter...”

Roman nods, and continues talking, whilst Deceit smiles slightly, warmth building up inside.

Right. Next Easter.

Remus hums, walking down the long corridors of Thomas’ mind. He hadn’t meant to upset Deceit, it was just bad luck that the most impulsive side was there. (Him. Him was the – wait, no, it’s he, right? Logan would be mad…)

Remus pauses in his tracks. Right...Logan. The Logan he knew would be cross about his lack of correct grammar. But he didn’t know Logan as well as he liked, clearly. He sighs slightly. It was going to take a long time to recover from that. For all of them.

He changes direction, remembering what Patton had said about Logan being awake. Awake? Alert? Whatever the correct term was after someone had been reset. Maybe he could visit, see if the reset had worked.

If it had, Remus had to admit it brought up the concern of...what was going to happen? They couldn’t just forgive and forget. And Deceit deserved a say in what happened next. The reset solved one problem, but what were they meant to do next?

Remus finally approaches Logan’s door, and considers all the things he’d rather do than check on the side who hurt his best friend. Breaking his own legs. Removing his tongue. Getting his tongue removed by Patton...nah, that was just unrealistic, even by his standards.

Sticking a spoon into his eye – didn’t Deceit once say there was a scientist who did that? ...well that was probably a lie. A shame, really.

He opens the door, not bothering to knock, and immediately ducks as a book is thrown at him.

“Oh...it’s you, Remus. Sorry, I thought you were Patton.”

“...Patton deserves a book thrown at him?” Remus questions, tilting his head in confusion as he sits down on Logan’s bed, “your bed is really uncomfy, Specs.”

“…it’s memory foam.” Logan says it as if the words mean anything to Remus, or as if it changes anything. “Patton was telling me nonsense. Even for him, it was nonsense.”

“Did he tell you that tomato sauce was sold in the 1800s as medicine? Because that’s true! And it’s why you lot need to stop mocking my deodorant eating habits. One day it’ll be commonplace food.”

To his credit, Logan waits for Remus to finish talking before continuing.

“No. And your habit is bad for your digestive system. No, Patton claims I helped Virgil torture Deceit with the aim of taking over the mindscape.”

Right. Amnesia. The main goal of resetting. But he remembered names, so his memory couldn’t have been reset too far back…

Remus just had to break the news gently.

“It’s true! Snake’s currently in a wheelchair because of you two!”

Fuck.

Logan stares at him for a moment, and then shakes his head.

“...That’s not true.”

“Of course it is!” Remus blurts out, and then curses under his breath. Whenever he knew he should pause and think about his words was exactly when he started just saying things.

“I wouldn’t-”

“Well, you did.” Fuck, who knew, maybe this would turn out to be a good thing. “You tortured him, helped Virgil hurt him, and hey my brother got hurt too, and we think you and Virgil are responsible for the disappearance of the others!”

He sees Logan wince, sees the man shrink back.

“I wouldn’t – Virgil wouldn’t-”

“Well you did.”

There’s silence, and Remus swears he can hear the gears turning in Logan’s head.

“...Please leave me alone.”

Remus wants to yell at him that he shouldn’t get to dictate what others do after what he did. But he doesn’t, instead reluctantly leaves, slamming the door behind him.

Leaving Logan alone.

Deceit enjoys stretching out with his snake curled up on his stomach. It feels comfortable, and reassuring. Better than Patton’s weighted blanket, at least. Possibly because a blanket didn’t have a heart beat that pulsed just enough for Deceit to be able to feel it.

He watches Roman leave to help Patton make tea, and closes his eyes to listen to the sound of Remus running about somewhere in the mindscape, followed by a crash and the sound of laughter.

He couldn’t deny how on edge the noise made him feel, how much he tensed up, but he also couldn’t deny how happy he felt to be around his friends, who so clearly cared. Even Thomas, who made sure to visit earlier that day and check on him. Who promised to listen to him a little more next time.

It made him feel like he had a chance.

“Deceit?”

The voice of logic makes him feel otherwise.

“Deceit.”

He can’t move, both from the snake and the panic, instead opening his eyes and staring shakily ahead at Logan. Logan, pale and thin and potentially unstable. A different Logan than the one who hurt him, but Logan nonetheless.

“Deceit, I...”

His mind screams at him to make a sound. Call for help.

“...I’m sorry.”

Everything grinds to a halt.

“I’m sorry. I...I can tell I messed up. I don’t understand why I would do all of this. Clearly my logic was...temporarily flawed...and I’m sorry. I’ll do better.”

And then Logan is gone, and Deceit can breathe again.

Logan apologised.

Why would he do that?

He’s tricking you! He wants you to be a pet again!

Again? We never stopped.

Liar!

“Dee?” Roman looks back in the room, “you okay? Thought I heard something.”

Deceit’s snake hisses as the side breathes deeply.

And then he smiles slightly.

“...okay. I’m...okay...”

That feels true.

Remus hears the voices late that night.

He had heard them before – so had Roman, although his brother would never admit it. The voices of the fragments that they, as the creativitwins had helped create. The voices had stopped after their apparent demise, but tonight he could hear them.

“Put your leg back on.”

“Breathe. Logic is gone.”

“It’s okay now.”

Remus hesitates, but he had already faced Logan today, a bunch of half dead fragments couldn’t be that bad…

...right?

[eleventhdoctorsangel]

Roman Godfrey x reader x Ivar Lothbrok Request for @walkxthexmoon

I have been friends with Roman and Ivar since pre-school and since then we became the three musketeers. It was hard to see a time when we weren’t together. When we got to high school we made sure that we all had every class together. But since starting collage I really wanted to make some more friends that wasn’t Roman and Ivar. Not that I wanted to replace them because I don’t. I just need more friends. 

I was heading to the library to meet with Maddie so that we can study for an upcoming test. Right before I was about to walk in to the library I saw that Roman and Ivar were right by the door. Great I’m about to get an ear full from the two of them because I haven’t been spending all my free time with them like I use too. “Hello boys.” I said as I made my way up to them. “Would you look at that Roman she does remember that we exist.” Ivar said. “Well I’m so sorry that I been worrying about my grades enough and not hanging out with you two.” I said. “Well not to busy enough to be hanging out with whatever her name is.” Roman said. “Her name is Maddie. We have a few classes together. Why is the matter with you two?” I said. “You’re our friend.” Ivar said. “So? Am I not aloud to have other friends that are not you two?” I asked. Neither of them said a thing. “I can’t believe you two right now. When did you two become so possessive of me.” I said. “Well if you want us to leave you alone than fine. Come Ivar lets go.” Roman said as he started to walk away. Ivar gave me one more look before he pushed himself away in his wheelchair. I could feel the tears as they started to well up in my eyes. I walked into the library to go find Maddie. I found her at a table close to the back. As I walked over she gave me a worried look. “Y/n are you ok?” Maddie asked as I sat down at the table. “I think I made Roman and Ivar mad at me.” I said wiping my eyes. “Y/n you need to have other friends besides Roman and Ivar they need to see that.” Maddie said. “I know.” I said as my voice started to break. “You need to live your life. A life where they don’t rule over you.” Maddie said. I nodded. “I also think that they need to live their lives too.” Maddie said. “But they would try to find a way to hurt me.” I said. “If they try just let them. Right now they are just angry with themselves.” Maddie said. “Maybe your right Maddie.” I said. “Where would you be without me. Oh right probably let Roman and Ivar run your life.” Maddie said. I let out a small laugh. “Come one we should probably start studying.” I said making Maddie nod. 

It has been a month since my fight with Roman and Ivar neither of them have spoken a word to me. I know that their angry with me. Those two are probably trying to find a way to back at me and to hurt me. I just wish that they will talk to me again. I really miss them. I know I shouldn’t but they are my bestfriends. They know me better than anyone else. I been texting and calling them but they haven’t answered a single time. I just want my best friends back. I decided to call Sigurd in hopes that he would they me where they were. He said that they were at some bar that wasn’t far from campus. I got in my car and drove to the bar to finally confront them. But when I walked in the sight that I was meet with I could felt my heart breaking into million of pieces. Roman had his arm wrapped around a girl in a tiny skin tight dress. Ivar had a girl sitting in lap. I could feel the tears as they started to run down my face. I quickly ran out of the bar not knowing that Roman and Ivar saw me both following me out. I was about to get in my car when I heard Roman’s voice. “Y/n stop.” Roman said. “Why.” I said. “We just wanna talk.” Ivar said. “Funny coming from the two of you. I’ve been trying to talk to you two for the last month. You’ve ignored me.” I said as I turn to the two. They had a hurt look on their face to see me cry. Both of them said nothing. “Were you two trying to hurt me?” I said. “It’s.....It’s just.” Roman said. “Just what Roman. Is this because I wanted to have some other friends beside you two.” I said. Both of them said nothing. “You know what you two don’t talk to me.” I said as I opened my car door. “Y/n stop.” Ivar said. “No please just leave me alone ok. Whatever you two wanted to accomplish you did it.”  I said getting in my car turning it on and drove away crying.

“Great look what your plan did Ivar.” Roman said. “Me? You agreed to go along with my plan.” Ivar said. “If I knew that your plan was going to make y/n hate us and never wanted to talk to us again I never would have agreed.” Roman said. “She forget all of about this by morning.” Ivar said. “I’m not so sure about that this time Ivar. She looked heartbroken.” Roman said. “No your wrong like always Roman she be talking to us tomorrow you watch.” Ivar said. “I hope you’re right Ivar.” Roman said as the two of them went back into the bar. Two months has passed and Y/n has spoken a word to either Roman and Ivar. To say that they were worried was an understatement. This has been the longest the three have gone without speaking a work to each other. No matter how many times that either of them tried to get ahold of her she ignores them. Finally the two decided to ask Maddie if she could help them. They were meeting her at a coffee shop. They were just waiting on her to show up. Finally she showed up. “Why did you two want to see me?” Maddie asked as she sat down at the table. “We need your help to get y/n to talk to us again.” Ivar said. “Why should I help you two. You really broke her heart. You two did that why? Just because she wanted to have some friends other than the two of you.” Maddie said. “Do at least know how’s she is?” Roman asked. “How do you think she is? She lost her two best friends.” Maddie said. “Will you help us?” Ivar asked. “Fine. But I’m not doing this for the two of you.” Maddie said. “Thank you.” Roman said. Maddie nodded and the three made a plan to get y/n to talk to Roman and Ivar again.

“Come on get up.” Maddie said as she pulled back my blankets. “Why?” I asked pulling the blankets back over me. “Because you need to get up. You can’t spend all of your time in bed.” Maddie said again pulling my blankets off of me. “Yes I can.” I said. “You upset at those two idiots I get that but you need to learn not to let them run your life.” Maddie said. “Fine. I’ll get up.” I said sitting up. “Go take a shower than get dress. We’re going to get lunch.” Maddie said. I nodded getting up and went to go take a shower and change my clothes. “There you are. Now don’t you feel better?” Maddie said. “I guess.” I said. “Now come on let’s go get some lunch.” Maddie said as she hooked her arm with mine. We walked arm in arm into the restaurant. I felt my heart stop when I saw that both Roman and Ivar were here too. “Come Maddie let’s find another place to eat.” I said as I started to make my way out. “Oh no you don’t. You need to talk to them.” Maddie said stopping me from leaving. “Did they talk to you?” I asked. “They feel bad. Please just sit down and talk to them.” Maddie said. “Ok fine.” I said. I walked over to the tale where Roman and Ivar were sitting at. “Did you two have to bring Maddie into this?” I asked. “You wouldn’t talk to us. What were we suppose to do?” Ivar asked. “Well maybe you shouldn’t have been so possessive over me.” I said. “Ok maybe we were a little too possessive over you.” Roman said. “A little?” I asked. “Ok we were over possessive over you.” Ivar said. “So do you forgive us?” Roman asked. “Will you two freak out if I try to make other friends?” I asked. “No.” The both of them said. “Then yes I forgive you.” I said. “We’ve missed you.” Roman said. “I’ve missed you both too.” I said smiling as the four of us ate lunch together. 

Requested by @walkxthexmoon​. I hope you like it love. 

[bandrbear]

To Protect the Ones You Love - Chapter 2

The next day Akko wakes slowly. Every time she wakes she feels much better than she had before. Although feeling weak still she sits up and yawns, stretching her arms up over her head. She grumbled sleepily and looked around with half lidded eyes until a new addition to her room catches her eye. She yelps and covers her mouth.

Diana stirs in her wheelchair. She stretches while yawning. She looks around and sees Akko with her hands over her mouth, staring at her with wide eyes. “Good morning Akko” Diana says softly while blushing faintly as Akko stares at her.

Akko opens and closes her mouth like a fish out of water. She manages to pull herself together and puff out her cheeks before whispering, “Diana, the wheelchair.” Her eyes fall to the mediocre thing. It wasn’t much more than some faux leather wrapped around a metal rolling chair.

 Diana smiles softly and looks away from Akko. Her look is wistful as she quietly replies, “Yeah, about that.” Diana sighs and raises her hand to brush a strand of perfect blonde hair behind her ear. “It is an unfortunate side effect of my injuries.”

Akko’s face falls and tears start to form in the corner of her eyes. “Di-ana.” She chokes out, her lip wobbling as she holds back the sobs. “I-I’m so sorry.” Her voice cracks and silent sobs slip from her lips. Akko brings her hands to her face to hide her crushed expression. ‘I couldn’t save her. How could I let this happen?’ Akko asks herself. She only looks up when she feels a warm hand on her shoulder. Her red and puffy eyes look up to see a concerned Diana. 

“Akko? I… I didn’t mean to make you cry. That was a terrible joke. I just have to roll around in this infernal thing for a few days until I’m more fully healed.” Diana scolds herself for making such a foolish joke. ‘Honestly who would think that a joke about being disabled would be funny?’ As Diana cringes at herself and tries to console Akko, she feels Akko’ slender arms wrap around her neck and pull her into a bone crushing hug.

 “You’re awful Diana.” Akko says half seriously into the crook of Diana’s neck. Akko sniffles as she calms down and hides her embarrassed face in the warm and safe crook. Akko finds Diana’s scent to be intoxicating and very calming.

Diana returns the tight hug and turns her head to smoosh her nose against Akko’s ear. “I really am sorry for that Akko. Please forgive me for being so foolish.” Diana asks softly, fully ready to beg Akko for her forgiveness. Diana also takes a second to enjoy the sweet smell of her savior and extremely valued friend.

Akko releases only one arm to wipe her nose and make one final sniffle. She quickly returns her face to her new safe place and whispers softly with her hoarse voice. “Of course Diana. I could never stay mad at you. Just make real jokes next time.”

Diana blushes as Akko returns to her neck for comfort. Not that Diana really minded, it did feel really nice and made her stomach do somersaults. “Of course Akko. I guess I need some pointers from you. “She awkwardly starts to rub Akko’s back from her seated position. “By the nine, this girl will be the end of me.’ While Diana has her internal monologue, Akko tucks her face in further against Diana’s collar. Diana freezes as she feels Akko’s breath ghosting across her chest, she doesn’t dare move.

Akko and Diana’s little cuddle session gets interrupted by a loud, “Yo Akko! Where you at?” from the other side of the curtains. Both Akko and Diana pull away from each other and settle into their respective spots before Amanda, Lotte, Sucy, Constanze, and Jasminka pull open the curtain and file into the small space. “There you are, we’ve been waiting for you to wake up. I wish I could take a week long nap.” Amanda says with a half-smile and her hands upon her head. “And nice to see the princess up and about as well.”

 Diana groans and places her face in her hands as Amanda jokes. Akko blushes and pouts at Amanda. “Heyyyyyy. It's not like I chose to pass out for that longggg.” Akko complains while looking between all her friends.

 Sucy snickers behind Amanda while Amanda laughs wholeheartedly. “No need to lie in front of Diana. We all know you enjoyed dreaming about her for a week uninterrupted.” Amanda smirks as Sucy falls into a chair snickering wildly. Lotte covers her mouth to muffle the small laugh she let escape her lips.

 Akko’s cheeks burn super red. She puffs out her cheeks to retort but decides that it would be better to stay quiet and just take the teasing. She glances over at Diana and sees her in a similar state, bright red and hiding her face. Akko takes a second to admire how freaking adorable Diana looked in her hospital gown, with her lovely blonde hair surrounding her perfect face. ‘Oh look she's looking at me...WHY IS SHE LOOKING AT ME?’ Akko screams internally right before she realized she had been caught staring, by everyone. ‘Oh by the nine, throw me out the window now.’ Akko begs internally. She finally looks away and hears giggles from all the girls except Diana who was blushing even more intensely now that she had caught Akko staring at her like that.

“Guysssss. Leave me aloneeeee!” Akko begs unsuccessfully as her friends only laugh at her request.

 “But why Akko? It’s too much fun making you and Diana blush so much. You two are so cute as the tomato couple.” Amanda teases, loving her ability to make them die internally. “Besides neither of you really seem to mind being teased. Isn’t that right Diana?”

Diana glares up at Amanda. Her cheeks stay nice and red as she responds. “I would prefer it if you would stop teasing Akko and I about such silly things.” Diana tries to be as stern as possible to make Amanda stop, but to no avail.

Amanda just laughs some more and mimics Diana’s accent “Amanda stop making a fool of us. Can’t you see we are madly in love?” This causes Diana to huff loudly and start rolling her chair out of the room.

 “I’ll see you later Akko.” Diana mumbles right before running over Amanda’s foot with the wheel. Amanda yelps and hops around on one foot while the other is nursed in her hand.

 “Bye Diana,” Akko waves from her bed and scowls at Amanda. “That is exactly what you deserved,” Akko crosses her arms and scowls at Amanda. With Diana now gone Akko’s cheeks start to return to her normal pale cheeks.

Amanda looks up at Akko disappointed. “You like it when your girlfriend hurts me?” She asks while pouting, her lower lip jutted out. 

Akko scowls and yells, “YOU KNOW WE AREN’T DATING!” Before covering her mouth and blushing once more.

 “Well doesn’t mean you don’t want it to happen” Amanda retorts with a knowing look. All of their friends nod in agreement and shrug at Akko.

“W-what. I-I don’t think about Diana like that.” Akko says meekly while shrinking back into her bed.

“No need to lie to us Akko” Amanda shrugs and turns to find a place to sit. “After all you blew up half the school just to save her.”

 Akko’s eyes grow huge. “I did WHAT?!”

Amanda and the other friends flinch. “Jeez, I was only kind of kidding. You only took on a demon or something solo and then cried when you thought you hurt Diana. It's not hard to put two and two together.”

 Akko puffs out her reddening cheeks once more. “I-” she starts before deflating. “Just drop it okay?” she asks quietly before laying back in her bed and staring at the ceiling. “Anyways, what have you guys been up to for the last week?”

Lotte speaks up and pushes her glasses all the way back on her nose. “Well classes were cancelled. So good news you aren’t behind, bad news is you are stuck in a hospital bed during it and there is a demon on the loose, probably very angry with you.” Lotte smiles nervously as her quick explanation takes a bit of a dark turn.

Amanda speaks up again, this time not to tease Akko relentlessly. “We’ve been preparing for a second attack. The teachers have been keeping guard and teaching upperclassmen, including us, some offensive magic and a little better defensive magic. Not that we could stop one of the Demon’s attacks like you did, you little bad ass.” Amanda leans over the bed with her fist out for a shy and blushing Akko to bump back.

Constanze holds up Stanbot who beeps and starts to speak for Constanze. “We have made lots of progress on our fighting bot! It is close to being done! As well as making big blasters to weaken the shield!” Constanze lowers Stanbot and gives a thumbs up which Akko returns.

“Well I’m glad to hear that you guys are ready. But are you sure it’ll be coming back?” Akko really didn’t want to see that thing again. Not after what it did to Diana. And she wasn’t sure if she would be able to attack with that much force again. Akko still didn’t really know where all that power came from.

“In any case we are prepared. Although I would feel better if you would get your ass out of bed and be ready to help us, you know similar to how you blew the demon up?” Amanda says stretching her arms over head and leaning back in her chair.

 Akko laughs shyly. “So, um, I can’t say I know how I did it or if I’d be able to do it again.” She says sheepishly. Akko looks down at her clasped hands in her lap and sighs. “I honestly barely remember what even happened. Professor Chariot filled me in which helped, but I really don’t know what took over and let me do what I did.” Akko deflates with sadness. “I’m sorry guys.” she whispers, mostly to herself.

 Sucy rolls her one visible eye and sighs. “Oh Akko you dunce. Why are you apologizing? You clearly have some potential unlike before so stop moping around and figure out how you of all people managed to blow up a demon and send it running, while ALL of Luna Nova’s staff tried their hardest and did nothing.” Everyone stares at Sucy after that but nod in agreement, for the most part anyways.

 Akko offers a small smile. “Th-thanks Sucy.” She whispers.

Sucy rolls her eye again and nods. “Sure whatever. Now get better you dunce.” Sucy stands and walks out of the room.

The rest of her friends give her some well wishes and a little bit more teasing before walking out to give Akko some space and rest. “See you tomorrow Akko!” Lotte calls before disappearing through the curtain.

 Akko sighs and adjusts her pillows so she can lay back and relax. She had a lot to think about. The demon, her health, Diana, probably other things, Diana, school, and what do you know, Diana again. Akko groans loudly and covers her face with her hands and starts to rub her eyes. ‘Why does this have to feel so difficult? Like why do I have to be so interested in that stupid perfect face and her stupidly perfect hair, and...UGH!’ Akko sighs and drops her hands into her lap. ‘I guess I should tell her before we get obliterated by a Demon.’ Subconsciously Akko squeezes her hands into fists at the thought of Diana getting hurt by the demon. As Akko falls down a rabbit hole of emotions surrounding Diana and keeping her safe, Akko misses the increasing amount of beeps coming from her heart rate monitor. Suddenly the Shiny Rod appears in her lap with a fancy little shower of sparkles. Akko’s eyes widen as she looks down at it. ‘Did I just summon it again? By thinking of...Oh geez.’ Akko’s inner monologue gets interrupted by Nurse Ophelia walking in quickly with a concerned look on her face.

“What in the world is happening in here?” She asks while looking Akko up and down for any obvious problems, all the while her monitor beeps louder. Akko looks at the nurse with big nervous eyes.

“W-what do you mean?” she asks innocently while holding the Shiny Rod tightly to her chest.

 “Are you trying to perform magic right now? Didn’t I tell you, you need to rest and refrain from magic while you get better?!” The nurse asks while glaring at Akko.

Akko gulps and shakes her head. “N-No of course not. This just appeared in my lap I swear.” The nurse doesn’t seem to buy it but calms down a little.

 “You better put that away and keep yourself calm, otherwise you will be stuck here longer. Understood?” The nurse asks, her eyes softened a little as she looks at Akko staring back like a deer in headlights. Akko nods dumbly and places the Shiny Rod on the bedside table and pulls her hands back into her lap obediently. The nurse nods and watches as the monitor reflects Akko’s calming down. “Good. Now behave. Lunch is soon.” The nurse walks out briskly to leave Akko sitting there petrified.

 Akko falls back once more into her pillows and shivers. She pulls her blankets up to her chin and snuggles into the warmth. Her mind wanders back to Diana and everything Akko liked about her before slowly drifting off to sleep.

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

 Diana was glad to leave the stuffed room that was Akko’s infirmary room. She was not glad to be away from the energetic brunette, but she was glad to be away from Amanda. ‘Nine, that girl is insufferable.’ Diana shakes her head as she rolled her chair out of the infirmary and into the halls. She was glad to be finally discharged. It had been quite annoying to be stuck in that bed for five days, well stuck conscious and unable to sleep for five days. When she had heard Akko was unconscious and unresponsive, Diana had nearly had a heart attack. She could not imagine her life without the brunette in it. She had admittedly cried herself to sleep a few times, when she was actually able to fall asleep.

Diana brushes her hair behind her ears as she rolls through the mostly empty halls towards her dorm. She wiggles her toes in her socks and sighs. She really wanted out of the chair. She hadn’t been confined to it for more than twenty four hours, but she already found it insufferable. She turns a corner to roll down an empty corridor. She takes this quiet moment to think about how glad she was that Akko was okay, and that she needed to remember why this demon wanted to harm her and her friends. She found it really hard to remember the hours leading up to her supposed fight with the demon before she was rendered unconscious and held hostage.

Diana shakes her head once more and fixed her hair, tucking the strands she just knocked loose back behind her ears. She decides that she needed to take a nap and think about the last week.

Diana finally makes it to her dorm and opens the door. After struggling to get in the empty room by herself she rolls around the bookshelf and slides up next to her bed. She pulls herself out of the chair and pushes with her legs until she can crawl under her covers and snuggled into the warmth there. She tries to think about the last week but finds her mind drifting constantly to a few events, all of which orbit around Akko. She thinks about what she heard about Akko’s heroics and how she felt special. That thought quickly gets trashed upon by her brain. ‘Akko would have done that for any of her friends. Channel immense power from nowhere, summon the Shiny Rod, and blow up a demon. Any of her friends.’ Diana felt sad at this thought, selfish even, wanting herself to be special in Akko’s eyes. The same way she found Akko special, determined, full of energy, really pretty and cute…’

Diana’s eyes flash open and she blushes furiously. She looks around to make sure no one was around to hear her thoughts about her...friend? She groans and rubs her face with her hands, before running her fingers up her forehead to massage her scalp. ‘I guess I might have feeling for Akko. Real feelings for her, ones making me want her to be more than my friend.’ Diana closes her eyes and manages to relax. ‘And what is wrong with liking her? She deserves to be liked this way. She IS pretty, she IS adorable and cute, and she IS precious to me.’ Diana smiles faintly as she comes to her conclusion, she does like Akko and that is okay. She just probably will never do anything about these feelings. Diana slowly drifts off to sleep with her mind on Akko, particularly her smile and bobbing half pony.

When Diana wakes in the morning she feels much more refreshed. She sits up, yawns, and stretches. She shivers slightly and wraps her arms around herself and realizes she was still in her infirmary gown. She rubs her eyes and slides out of her bed and goes about changing. She takes her time on her unsteady legs before making her way to her stupid wheelchair. She settles into it and rolls herself in the living room. Hannah and Barbara are brewing tea and sitting on the couch. They look up and beam as they see Diana wheeling out of her room.

“Morning Diana! Good to see you back!” They exclaim in unison. Diana smiles at her best friends and roommates.

 “Good morning girls. Glad to be back.” Diana rolls up to the opposite side of the coffee table and locks the wheels. “Please tell me you brewed enough for me too?” Diana asks hopefully, craving some tea to warm her core. She rubs her hands together and looks at the steaming pot.

 “Of course!” Hannah says casting a retrieval spell to bring a third cup to the table for them.

The tea finishes and Barbara pours everyone a cup. Diana picks up her cup and holds it with two hands, gingerly bringing it close to her lips. She smells it and sighs contently as just the smell relaxes her. All three girls go about blowing on the cups until they cool to a drinkable level and sip their tea. Hannah and Barbara start to do each other’s hair for the day while Diana leans back in her chair and watches with a slight smile on her lips while she watches.

“Could you two bring me breakfast in the infirmary? I was asked to check-in this morning and I do not wish to miss breakfast.” Diana looks to her roommates who smile and nod back.

 “Of course Diana.” Barbara says, “It’ll be our pleasure.” Finishes Hannah. They both finish up and stand. “Would you like help?” Barbara asks Diana while motioning to her chair. Diana shakes her head.

 “No need, but thank you. I kind of like rolling around. I will see you girls in a bit then. Thank you for your help.” Diana rolls herself backwards and then starts heading for the door. Her roommates open it and hold it wide enough for Diana to easily maneuver out and head towards the infirmary. Hannah and Barbara wave as they head to collect breakfast. Diana wheels herself along the hallways, waving to the few girls wandering about who say hello. Eventually she makes it to her destination and manages to open the door and back into the room. She hears chatter coming from Akko’s little room right before the nurse comes out with a huff and eye roll. The nurse stops and smiles at Diana.

 “Oh Miss Cavendish. I am glad you could make it back this morning. Right this way and we can get you out of here.” The nurse guides Diana into another small room for her checkup. The nurse checks her blood pressure, focus, and other cognitive abilities before having Diana stand and work on some physical exercises.

 “Very good Miss Cavendish. You are recovering well. I’d say you only have to stay in that chair for another day or two before you can walk around normally, as well with enough energy to support yourself.” The nurse puts her hands on her hips and nods, content with everything. “You are now excused.”

Diana nods and smiles before settling back down and rolling from the small room. She stops and looks over at Akko’s room. The nurse leaves to tend to other things, leaving Diana alone. Diana decides to roll over to Akko’s room and slip in. “Akko?” Diana asks softly as she enters.

 Akko perks up in her bed and beams at Diana. “Oh hey Diana, what are you doing here?” she asks, trying to conceal her excitement at seeing Diana.

 Diana smiles and rolls on over to Akko’s side. “I came by for my check up, a-and to see you.” A faint blush dusts Diana’s cheeks as she adds that last bit on impulse. Akko blushes as well and laughs shyly.

 “How sweet of you. I do appreciate the company. It gets a little lonely here all by myself.” Akko smiles and looks at Diana’s chair. “So how much longer are you stuck in that thing?” Akko thinks back to the previous day and Diana’s poor joke. She shakes her head to the thought, only coming out of her head when Diana responds.

 “Hopefully tomorrow. Nurse Ophelia said I was making good progress but my legs need a little more time to recover and gain enough strength for sustained use.” Diana looks down at her legs and wiggles them in the chair before looking up at Akko with a small smile. “But they do work still. Watch.” Diana slowly raises herself and stands next to Akko. Akko watches with a bright smile and look up at Diana towering over her. Before Akko can say anything Diana leans over and kisses Akko’s cheek. “That is for saving me Akko. I hope it is a worthy reward for your heroics.” Diana falls back into her seat with a faint blush. ‘I can’t believe I did that. By the nine, that was risky.’ Diana holds her breath and waits for Akko’s response.

 Meanwhile, Akko dies on the inside. Her cheeks explode with a deep red blush and her eyes glaze over. ‘Oh my, oh my, oh my, Diana kissed my cheek. She was like an inch from my lips. And her lips! They were so soft. Only if she would have kissed my lips. AHHHHHHHH!’

 Diana looks on concerned as Akko sits there with a dopey smile plastered to her lips whilst staring off into space. “A-Akko?” Diana asks while waving her hand in front of Akko. When nothing happens Diana reaches up and gently boops Akko’s nose. Akko finally stirs, wiggling her nose and blinking rapidly. Diana pulls back and covers her mouth to stifle a giggle. ‘Just like a puppy.’ Diana thinks.

 Akko looks over at Diana with her rosy cheeks and shyly replies with, “Sorry about that, you, um, surprised me.” Akko smiles and looks to her hands in her lap. She was very excited about this reward. “And yes I liked that reward” She giggles softly and covers her face with her hands. Before she can say anything else Hannah and Barbara barge into the room with a tray of food for them both.

“Nurse Ophelia made us bring this for you too Akko.” Hannah says while placing it in Akko’s lap while Barbara places a tray in Diana’s lap. “Your welcome.” They utter together while looking at the two blushing girls confusedly. “Did we walk in something? Do you both need some private time?” Both girls ask, narrowing their eyes and looking to both of the other girls who avoid making eye contact.

“Nope I don’t think so. We were just talking. And thank you for breakfast girls” Diana says, looking up at them both from the corner of her eyes.

 Akko also looks up and gives a shy smile, hoping they don’t notice her pink cheeks. “Yeah thank you for breakfast.” Akko says softly. She shares a quick glance with Diana, which makes her insides swell with joy. “I can’t believe she kissed me.” Akko’s eyes widen and nearly pop out her head. Her hands fly to her mouth to try and take back the words that were supposed to stay in her mouth, but instead she pulled a classic Akko and said them out loud, in front of Diana, and Hannah and Barbara. Akko looks on in horror as Diana’s face becomes beet red and her roommate stare at her wide eyed and shocked. “IT WAS ONLY ON THE CHEEK AS A REWARD FOR SAVING HER!” Akko blurts out to try and fix things. She really doesn’t help a whole lot, causing Diana to groan and bury her face in her hands. Both Hannah and Barbara look on and slowly start to back out of the room.

“I think we should leave you two alone for a bit.” They say awkwardly, backing away and feeling for the exit while looking between the horribly blushing girls. As they leave they look to each other and stifle a giggle, “See. Told you they were into each other.” Hannah says to Barbara who is resisting a loud squeal. “Yes you were! It’s so cute and ROMANTIC!” Hannah shushes her as they leave the infirmary. That doesn’t stop Barbara from continuing as the door starts to close. “I can’t believe she WAS sneaking wistful looks at Akko during class…”

 Akko and Diana listen in horror as the curtain walls of the room muffle absolutely nothing that Hannah and Barbara say to each other. Akko looks to Diana wide eyed. “Wait. You like me too?”

[stayextrafrosty]

It Could have Been Worse?

Request: Crew member x Patrick? She manages to slice her wrist open accidentally while fixing a stage light. Other crew members are trying to get the bleeding under control. Patrick happens to pass by. He sees the state of her wrist and goes into protective BF mode. The reader winds up needing stitches, but the medical area is clear on the other side of the venue, the doors have opened so there's crowds about. Reader & Patrick & a security guard take a walk. Patrick comforts her while she's stitched up.

Words: 2611

Warning: references to self-injury. Could trigger

Read on AO3 // Masterlist

Author Note: I’m slowly going through requests. I know I’ve been neglecting them. Please forgive me. I’ve been very focused on Mob boss AU.

-

“Hey watch it!” A guy from the crew yelled at the group of newbies not paying attention. I rolled my eyes at them as they scurried out of the way. I pushed my own cart with a speaker strapped on it.

“Hey, don’t judge them. We were like that once, too,” my friend Cam reminded me. I sighed.

“Yea, I know. And I’m so sorry to anyone who had to put up with me at that time.” He laughed and continued pushing his cart across the stage.

This was a huge show for the band. A larger stage than normal. Apparently, the city built this giant theater for music acts but how many people did they think were going to be on stage at any one time? It was especially big for four guys that didn’t even reach six feet. It didn’t matter how much of the stage their energy took up.

I followed Cam and we shifted speakers so they matched the other side. More yelling came from behind me but I didn’t pay much attention to it. Nothing sounded like it was breaking so it was a good day.

“Rosario! You’re needed backstage,” one of the managers called to me. Cam pouted at me.

“It’s not fair that you get to skip out on work just cause you’re dating one of them.” I laughed and shoved him playfully.

“It’s not my fault,” I said as I walked toward the back.

It wasn’t. You don’t control who you fall for. I wasn’t any different than other girls really. I had a thing for the lead singer of my favorite band. I just happened to work stage crew for them. A lucky break on my part. Even luckier that he liked me back.

I looked around for Patrick but all I saw were my coworkers. Some I knew the names of and some I didn’t. I wandered farther back and out of the stage area completely. He usually makes himself known by now.

I felt someone grab my hips gently and squeeze. I yelped in surprise. It tickled and he knew it, that ass. I spun and shoved Patrick back lightly.

“You know I hate it when you do that!” His tried to wipe the grin off his face but failed miserably. And I could never stay mad at him when he smiled like that.

“I’m sorry, babe, but it’s cute that you insist on not being ticklish,” he said, still chuckling. I rolled my eyes and wrapped my arms around him in a hug. He pressed a kiss to my cheek and butterflies fluttered in my chest. I’ll never get over him.

“So, what did you need to talk to me about,” I asked. He shrugged.

“I just wanted to see you. No real reason.” He looked embarrassed, a blush covering his cheeks.

“You know I actually work for you right,” I joked. He rolled his eyes and grabbed my hand, pulling me down the hall.

“I’ve told you multiple times that you didn’t have to work anymore.” I sighed. He was so idealistic. While that was one of the reasons I liked him, it bordered on naïve sometimes. He didn’t do anything halfway. He was in it for the long-hall. So was I but maybe I just wasn’t as optimistic.

“Well if something bad happens, I’d like to make sure I still have a job.” His smile faltered slightly. But he shook his head and squeezed my hand.

“I understand but I swear, nothing bad will come between us. I’m here.” I couldn’t stop my grin and rested my head on his shoulder briefly.

We had made it to the other side of the stage. There were more people filling in and out of the doors, trying to get ready before the doors opened in less than an hour. A crash came from the stage area. I jumped and hurried to see what had happened, Patrick right behind me.

When I got out to the main stage area, I saw a light shattered on the ground. One of the new kids looked freaked and I could only assume he was the one who dropped it. I sighed and turned to Patrick.

“Go back to the guys. I’ve gotta get back to my job.” He sighed and nodded. I pressed a kiss to his cheek and hurried toward the kid. A light was a big deal to lose this close to showtime but it happened. I don’t think he’ll lose his job but I had to make sure no one was hurt first.

“Hey, is everyone ok?” I walked up to him and gave him a quick glance over. No visible injuries. The people surrounding the mess all confirmed they were fine. “Someone get a broom and dust pan. We have to make sure this is all clean before the guys come on stage.” We didn’t need one of them getting hurt.

“I’m so sorry! It was just heavier than I thought and I tried to readjust my grip and it—” I raised my hand to stop his rambling.

“It’s ok. Things like this happen but you have to be careful. If something is too heavy, ask for help. That’s why there’s so many people here. Someone could have been hurt.” He nodded but I could still see his shoulders shaking.

A few people rushed over with some brooms. I scolded a couple trying to pick up glass with their bare hands. This was one of those ‘lack of common-sense days’ I guessed. I sighed and adjusted the light so it would be easier to pick up.

“Hey, someone roll a cart over here and help me pick this up,” I called. Cam rushed over. Bless his heart for listening to me. I rolled up my sleeves and grabbed the broken side carefully.

“Alright, on three. One, two,” he counted. We lifted on three and walked it slowly over to the cart. Didn’t need any more glass falling off. It went fine until we needed to put it down again.

Cam set it down faster than I did and my grip on the light slipped. Out of instinct, I tried to grab it again. I missed and part of the light dragged down my arm. It still landed on the cart but more glass spilled off it. I jerked back as the pain shot through my body.

“Shit!” I looked down at it as the red blood spilled out. I couldn’t tell how deep it was. There was a lot of blood but that didn’t mean anything.

“Oh crap, Y/N are you ok?” Cam rushed around the cart and tried to look at my arm. His face paled and he turned away from me. He had always been squeamish around this stuff. I don’t blame him. I was desensitized to it in my high school years when I went through a particularly rough part of my life. I’ve moved past it but this was bringing back some not so pleasant memories.

“I’m fine,” I paused, “Ok not fine. I’m going to the infirmary before the masses are let in.” Cam turned toward me and nodded, but still didn’t look at me.

“Ok, do you want me to send for Patrick or something?” I shook my head.

“No! He doesn’t need to be worrying about me. I’ll be alright.” I hurried past Cam, backstage, looking for the director or medic. I didn’t particularly feel like trailing blood through the venue to get to the infirmary.

“Y/N! What happened?” I turned toward the voice of the director in relief.

“Oh, there was a bit of an accident and I got hurt trying to fix it.” He let of a laugh of surprise. Probably because I didn’t seem worried about the bleeding at all.

“You mean this isn’t the accident? Here, sit down. I know where some bandages are. Then we can wheal you over to the infirmary.” I nodded and sat on the bench along the wall. He disappeared for a moment before he was back and opening a first aid kit. “I called the medic, and she should be here any moment.”

“Ok. Thanks.” He wiped some blood away but it was replaced quickly. I flinched at the stinging of disinfectant. He shook his head as he gave up and began wrapping my arm.

“You’re going to need stitches.” He pressed down on my arm but the blood just soaked through the bandage.

“Y/N? What’s going on?” I tried not to jump at Patrick’s voice. What was he doing here? Shouldn’t he be with the guys, getting ready for showtime?

I looked over at him and his face was more pale than normal. His eyes were locked on my bleeding arm. I had mentioned my past difficulties to him but never had a full conversation about it. But I knew what he was thinking just by the look of pain scrunching up his face.

“Trick,” I started, but the director cut me off.

“Patrick, you need to go get ready for showtime. I have this handled here. It’s nothing to worry about.” I wasn’t entirely sure the director knew about our relationship, not that we had been super public about it. It’s generally frowned upon to date your boss (technically speaking).

“Are you crazy? I’m not going anywhere. She clearly needs medical attention and I want to be here for her.”

The doctor rushed up to us, giving a brief greeting to Patrick and the director. She all but shoved the him out of the way and unwrapped my arm to assess the damage. Patrick moved to sit next to me. He pressed a kiss to my head and rubbed my back. The hurt was evident in his face.

“You could have talked to me. I’m here for you.” I felt bad. He was so worried, but there was no reason to be.

“So, what actually happened? You can tell me as we move you to the infirmary. We need to stitch this up.” I moved over to the wheelchair without much complaint. Now was not the time to be stubborn. Patrick began to follow us but was stopped by the director.

“You can go back to the dressing room. Don’t need you causing a fuss while we rush her to the other side of the venue.” Patrick clenched his fists. The director was right. It would make things difficult.

“Fine. I’ll go get a body guard. I’ll meet you there,” he called to me. I rolled my eyes but couldn’t keep the small smile off my face. He was really the sweetest.

“I was trying to clean up a broken light and I dropped it when moving it out of the way,” I told the doctor. She told me to keep pressure on the cut and hurried through the halls, avoiding as many people as she could. It wasn’t too bad, but the doors had just opened. It would be full in no time.

I would have loved to see the look on her face that was making people moved out of the way so quickly. Then again, maybe it was the bloody arm that did it. I was starting to feel dizzy. I hope I didn’t need to go to the emergency room. While the insurance I got through the job was pretty good, medical bills still sucked.

It probably didn’t take as long as it seemed to get to the infirmary but I couldn’t be sure at this point. The doctor helped me onto the table and began talking to me.

“Alright I need you to just talk. Are you lightheaded?” I nodded but apparently that wasn’t good enough. “I already know you’re lightheaded but I need you to talk. About anything. No passing out until I’m done.”

“Yea. I’m a bit dizzy. But I don’t know what to talk about.” She slowly unwrapped my arm as another nurse came in, pushing a cart with supplies on it.

“Tell me about your relationship. That guy is from the band right, he seemed worried.” She never looked away from my arm. The bleeding seemed to have stopped mostly.

“Yea. The lead singer and he’s great. I can’t help but be happy that he’s worried about me. But I think he has the wrong idea about what happened. I gotta clear it up. I used to have a problem and well I think he thinks I did this to myself,” I rambled. Her hands froze but only for a second.

“Well that explains why you’re so calm,” I heard her mumble.

There was some yelling from outside and I looked toward the door. It swung open and Patrick stumbled in as one of their big guards kept people away from the door. He closed it quickly and took a deep breath. I held back a giggle. He hurried over to me and grabbed my hand.

“Is she ok?” The doctor raised an eyebrow at him.

“Well no. I’m going to stitch her up. She’s dizzy so I’m going to have her rest here for the remainder of the night.” Patrick nodded and squeezed my hand.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t trustworthy enough to talk to. From now on, I’ll do better,” he said gently. I shook my head.

“Patrick. I dropped a light.”

“What?”

“The light that broke earlier. I dropped it when moving it. The broken glass and metal cut me. I haven’t relapsed in years. But thank you for worrying.” He stared at me blankly for a moment. Then relief rushed across his face along with a light blush.

“Well I’m glad you, uh, that it was an accident.” I smiled at him and flinched at the doctor pushing against the wound.

“Alright I’m going to give you a shot then stitch you up.” I nodded as she pushed the needle into my arm. I looked away from her and met Patrick’s gaze. He smiled and squeezed my hand. I didn’t have any fear of needles but I didn’t want to watch it happen.

Patrick talked quietly to me as I lost feeling in my arm. Apparently, the guys were playing some game in the back room. Nothing he was particularly interested in. I told him he could go back but he refused to leave my side until he knew I was ok.

“Don’t hurt your voice for me. You should be on vocal rest. You’re crazy.” He looked away from me and blushed lightly as a grin settled on his face.

“Only crazy about you,” he said. I heard the doctor chuckle quietly. I had felt her lift my arm but nothing else. I felt my cheeks getting warm. Why’d he have to say that in front of someone else?

“Dork,” I said. I wanted to shove him but that was hard when both arms were trapped.

“Alright, I’m done. I’ll wrap it then you can just lay down. Feel free to sleep.” The doctor began wrapping my arm. Patrick checked his watch and sighed.

“Hey babe, I’m sorry but I gotta go. Don’t need the guys mad at me.” I rolled my eyes and pulled on his hand gently.

“I told you that you could leave.” The doctor looked between us and then turned away. I felt bad about making this awkward for her. I’m sure she had seen worse.

Patrick leaned in and pressed his lips against mine. He was so gentle and I couldn’t get enough. He was all mine. I just had to share a little bit of him with the world. But he cared about me and I could claim that much.

[chuffyfan87]

Unexpected Consequences. Part B.

Duffy's face immediately brightened. "I'd like that."

Charlie walked over to the nurse's station and chatted to the staff there for a few moments. He then returned carrying a couple of extra baby blankets. "They say we're OK to get him out. Just need to keep him wrapped up nice and warm."

"Can you get him out for me please?" She asked.

"Are you sure? The nurse said she could come over in a few minutes if we needed a hand."

"I'm sure, I want you to do it." She insisted.

Charlie opened the incubator and quickly wrapped the little boy up in the extra blankets, taking special care not to disturb any of the monitoring leads. The baby's eyes flickered open at the movement but he didn't cry. "Hey little fella, you've woken up just at the right time. I've brought along someone special with me this time." He lifted the child up and held him close as he turned towards Duffy. "Time to have a cuddle with your mummy." He told the little boy as he gently settled him into Duffy's waiting arms. He watched as a single tear ran down her cheek. Feeling like he was intruding, Charlie spoke again as he stood back up. "I'll step outside and let you two spend some time together."

"No! Don't go. I want you to stay." She smiled as he pulled up a chair next to her. "You came here earlier." It wasn't a question.

Charlie looked away. "I... Um... I know I should have waited. I'm sorry. I should have let you see him first but... I... Er... I needed to see with my own eyes that he was OK."

Any annoyance she may have felt melted instantly at his words. She smiled indulgently and nudged him gently with her shoulder. She then looked down and addressed her son. "You'll get used to that sweetheart, he's forever checking up on me too."

"It's only because I care, Duffy. You don't make it very easy though." He grumbled.

Duffy flicked her eyes to look back up at Charlie. "I know you do." She whispered. "No I guess I don't, do I? You're persistent though, I'll give you that!" She chuckled. The baby began to squirm and fuss. She struggled to shift positions in an attempt to comfort him as, despite her protests to the contrary, she was still very sore and moving too much hurt considerably.

Seeing her struggle, Charlie reached over and gently stroked the child's cheek, making soft soothing noises as he did so. The little boy continued to cry for a few moments before settling. "He's got quite a set of lungs on him for such a tiny boy!" Charlie remarked.

"He does." She agreed quietly, unable to meet his gaze.

"Duffy... What is it?" He questioned, a sense of confusion and suspicion filling his thoughts.

"Nothing." She mumbled, turning her attention back to her son.

"I was expecting him to be small but he's even tinier than I thought he would be." Charlie commented, attempting to sound casual.

"Charlie please... Can you just drop it? I feel bad enough already about how small he is without you rubbing it in!"

"I'm sorry. It just came as a bit of a shock to me that's all." He attempted to push away his suspicions. "So does this handsome chap have a name yet?"

Duffy smiled. "Paul."

"That's a nice choice." He replied, attempting to cover his surprise at the name.

She saw straight through him however. "Charlie..."

Before either had chance to continue a doctor came over to them. "Ah, you must be this young man's mum and dad..." Charlie went to correct the doctor but he carried on speaking. "You'll be pleased to know that he's doing really well. The problem with 32 weekers is that it can go either way, you can never be quite sure at first. But his lungs are coping well and his temperature is beginning to stablise. That'll improve further as he starts to gain weight. To that end I'd like to start trying to give him some milk later this morning. We'll start with tube feeding until he's a little bit bigger and then we can progress him from there. I'll leave you to discuss how you want to procede as to breastfeeding or formula feeding and I'll be back later to chat further."

As the doctor walked off Charlie turned to Duffy, his face showing the shock that had built as the doctor had spoken to them. "Thirty two weeks?!" He whispered harshly, his mind lurching as he did the maths. "Oh my god! Duffy!"

"I can explain..." Her voice trembled as she looked down at Paul who had fallen asleep in her arms.

"The truth Duffy!"

She looked around agitated. "Not here Charlie, please!" She begged.

"You can't avoid this forever."

"Can we go somewhere else to talk?"

Charlie sighed. "Why don't we leave Paul in peace to sleep and we go back to your room to talk?"

Duffy nodded mutely. She kissed Paul lightly on the forehead and gestured to Charlie to take him and place him back in the incubator. She refused to meet Charlie's eye as she handed her son over.

As he took hold of the baby Charlie felt a wave of conflicting emotions wash over him. He placed the boy down in the incubator and simply stared at him for several seconds before reaching out and gently stroking Paul's cheek. Charlie swallowed back the lump in his throat and turned to Duffy. "Right..." He cleared his throat. "Let's get you back to your room."

Once again the journey was conducted in complete silence but this time the atmosphere between them was far more tense and awkward. Neither could look at the other as they both contemplated the magnitude of the conversation that awaited them back in her room.

Once they arrived in her room Charlie closed the door behind them and stood near the foot of her bed as she awkwardly moved from the wheelchair to sit on top of the sheets. He began to pace, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, occasionally glancing over at her but not saying a word, just the odd sigh.

"Please let me explain. I didn't want to burden you with the same guilt that I have to carry..." She began, her voice filled with the tears that threatened to fall at any moment. "Its my fault Andrew is dead."

"What? I don't understand. It wasn't your fault, you didn't push him down those stairs!" Charlie replied, struggling to understand where she was going with this.

"He was only working in the department to try and salvage our marriage. It was falling apart but we tried to hold it together for the sake of the boys. He was trying but me, well, I did what I always did when he and I were having problems, I ran away to you."

"That night..."

She nodded. "And after that, well, we had to stay together. Even though he knew what I'd done, what we'd done. Why do you think he was so keen that I..?" Her voice choked, she couldn't say the words.

"You said he didn't want the baby."

"We both knew it was the final blow. That I had to choose - my marriage or the baby. But I couldn't risk... Not when... I'd never forgive myself. Then later on when I knew for sure, everyone found out before I had chance to think."

"Why didn't you say anything at the time? I would have been there for you."

"You were in Canada when I found out. I planned to say something when you came back home but then you told me about Baz wanting a divorce. I couldn't tell you then, you were stressed enough already. I feared you'd get sick again, I couldn't risk that. Then when you fought to get custody of Louis, if Baz had found out about us she would have crucified you with it, stopped you from ever seeing Louis again. I couldn't be responsible for that!"

"That wasn't your responsibility to take on Duffy."

"I needed to protect you from being drawn into the problems I'd created..."

"We'd created, Duffy, we! Stop trying to take all this on your shoulders alone. You're not by yourself in this! I want to be there for you, I just wish you'd let me."

"I had my reasons Charlie. I was trying to protect you. To protect the boys."

"To protect yourself you mean! All this time you were lying to me. I could see that Andrew wasn't stepping up as he should. Now I understand why." He rubbed his hands over his face. "I... I just can't... I need time to get my head straight. I'll see you later."

Without waiting for her to reply he turned and walked out the room. He wandered in a haze for several minutes, eventually finding himself stood outside the a+e department entrance. He sighed and lent back against the wall, his mind racing. He was a dad again! Though the suspicion had been there for some time, facing the reality of it was something quite different.

"Oh am I pleased to see you mate!" Josh exclaimed.

"Huh?" Charlie turned and saw his friend suddenly by his side. He'd not even heard him approaching. "What the bloody hell happened to your face?" He asked, seeing the cut on Josh's forehead.

[miru-p]

So, finally I could finish an IH writing! Well, technically a few little writings ♡ ! In this AU Caesar is alive, plus he could to reunite with Rafaella, and they, Suzi, and Joseph are OT4, although these little things are more CaeElla centric because of reasons ♡. I just needed this for heal my soul, I love them so much ♡♡ Writings under the cut! I hope you like them! 💕

  Venice, March 1939.

Weeks earlier, Rafaella met a man called Messina when she traveled to Genoa with her daughter. The man was there to find Caesar’s family for telling them the bad news and, even if he couldn’t find his siblings, at least he could find Rafaella. When Messina knew the story about her, he immediately thought that he would protect her, after all he felt like he owed his dead student at least that. Then, Rafaella thought about going to another place of the country. She just didn’t see herself capable of living in the land where her beloved Caesar was born.  

Once in Venice, while Messina went to look for a place to stay, Rafaella and Mina waited at the train station. Rafaella got bored of waiting relatively soon, and tried to find Messina, although the luggage was too heavy for her since she was also carrying her baby.

“Do you need any help?” Someone asked to her. That was… English, right? Rafaella thought. When she turned around, she found a giant man with spiky hair and big and lively teal eyes.

“Don’t worry, I’m okay.” She said. The man didn’t believe her at all, so he carried her luggage.

“I think it’s difficult carrying a baby and this thing at the same time.” He smiled. Rafaella smiled back. Actually it was better this way; her back was killing her.

She told him that she was waiting for a friend who was looking for somewhere to stay because they just arrived there, so the tall man told her about a really nice hostel nearby and leaded her. In the way, they found Messina indeed, who was really shocked.

“JoJo? What a surprise!” He said to the tall man. “We didn’t see each other since you messed up your own funeral, right?”

“Wait, do you know each other?” Rafaella asked. She was perplexed. Also, what was that ‘messing his own funeral’ thing supposed to mean?

“Haha, yes. This is Joseph Joestar, JoJo. He was also a Hamon student, like Caesar was.” Messina introduced him to her. “They were really good friends.”

“Well, I hope we still are…” Then Joseph panicked. “Oh my God! I forgot! I only told Lis- mother and uncle Speedwagon! I’m so sorry, Messina!”

Both Messina and Rafaella were confused looking at the noisy man. “I don’t understand what are you talking about, JoJo.”

“Caesar is alive!” Joseph said to him. “He survived. Barely, though. When I woke up after fighting Kars I found out. Suzi looked after both of us. But” He paused. “even if I recovered relatively soon… He’s still in comma.”

Rafaella was in shock. Was he saying the truth? She hoped so; if not that was really a bad taste joke. She could feel tears falling down her cheeks. Messina, after knowing that, explained to Joseph who Rafaella and Mina were.

“…I…” She managed to say, almost whispering. “I… want to see him… please…I beg you…”

Joseph stared at her. “Okay… I mean, of course, but please, don’t cry like that.”

Joseph leaded them to a hospital nearby. There was also Suzi Q; she greeted Messina warmly. “Who is this lady?”

“It seems that the womanizer had actually a girlfriend, and even a baby!” Joseph explained to her. “Do you believe this? And he was still flirting with some chicks when I met him in Rome!” Messina nudged him. Suzi nodded to that action. If she was actually Caesar’s girlfriend, she didn’t need to hear that about him, precisely now.

However, Rafaella wasn’t listening to them. Since she heard about Caesar being alive, her mind was totally blank. While Messina held Mina, Rafaella entered in the hospital room. There he was. She could see a lot of cables. He had bandages all over his body. He looked so badly injured. Rafaella fell on her knees.

“Hey, are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?” Suzi asked her, worried.

“…I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry…” Rafaella cried. “I’m so sorry I didn’t believe you… I was so selfish…” Suzi hugged gently her.

  Months had passed since Rafaella arrived to Venice. Since then, she was being looking after Caesar with Joseph and Suzi Q. The latter usually being the one who told the other two to rest from time to time; they were getting paler, with huge dark circles under their eyes. Suzi was worried. At least, from time to time, she and Joseph travelled to New York to visit Joseph’s grandma, so in this way he could take a rest.

One day, in the month of September, Caesar finally opened his eyes. In that moment, Joseph and Rafaella didn’t notice, they were too tired, but then, the Italian moved his hand and both cried due to the happiness. Joseph went immediately to find a doctor, and Rafaella went to tell Suzi about the news. Finally, good news. When the doctor went to the room, he examined him carefully. Caesar had some difficulties to speak properly; his lungs were a bit weak after all that time. Also, due to the severity of his injuries, he still couldn’t walk by himself for a few months, although the doctor asked for a wheelchair for him to use in the next week. Right now he needed rest.

When the doctor left the room, Caesar asked Joseph, as properly as he could, about the Pillar Men. Joseph, then, explained him what happened after he and Lisa Lisa went after him and Messina, and how they ended up winning, although Kars might be alive, in some part of the space. At first, Caesar couldn’t believe it. Joseph just sent the ultimate being flying into space. Typical JoJo, though. Finally, someone knocked the door, and Suzi and Rafaella entered the room.

“I hope we didn’t disturb your lively chat, guys.” Suzi Q said with a smile. “I’m happy you’re finally awake Caesar! You really worried us, silly!”

He laughed, although the laugh hurt a bit his throat and ended up coughing. “I’m so sorry about-” He couldn’t finish his sentence, when he finally spotted the other person who was with Suzi. He recognized her immediately. And Rafaella noticed the change in his behavior.

“I… I guess you didn’t expect me at all… right?” She said, without looking at him.

“To be honest… It’s a surprise…” He replied. “I though you would be… well, in Florence.”

“Things happened…” Rafaella smiled. “And now I’m here.”

“You look… good.”

“I’m sorry I can’t say the same…” Caesar laughed at her reply. She was as blunt as always.

“Wow, Caesar, you bastard, I can’t believe you! You had a hot girlfriend hidden somewhere and you still flirted with that girl! And kissed another one- a Hamon kiss technically… But still!”

“JoJo!” Suzi lectured him. Caesar wanted to punch him so badly. Unfortunately he was still too weak.

“Well, we kind of broke up… So he was free to flirt as much as he wanted.” Rafaella said. Caesar looked at her. He was surprised because he didn’t sense any sarcasm or jealousy; she was actually feeling what she was saying.

When the visit hours ended, Joseph, Suzi, and Rafaella leaded home, since they were staying in the same hostel.

“You two broke up? How? I mean… the baby” Joseph asked.

“Caesar doesn’t know about Mina. I found out about my pregnancy after we already broke up.”

“Oh, so that’s why you didn’t bring her here” Joseph said. “But that’s so bad; he deserved to know about his daughter.”

“I know. But now isn’t the proper moment. He just… woke up. He doesn’t need any more worries besides his own health at the moment.”

“You have a point there” Joseph nodded. “But I still can’t understand how Caesar could break up with you. I mean, you’re way prettier than those chicks he was with in Rome back then.”

“Yeah, yeah, I noticed you find me attractive, Joestar. That’s why you can look up at my eyes when you talk with me, ah?”

Suzi laughed, and Joseph blushed a bit. “You two sure are made for each other, you’re both a pain in the ass!”

  Recovery wasn’t smoothly for Caesar. His injuries were so severe, and all the months he spent on bed didn’t help. He wanted to move by himself as soon as possible so, when finally the doctor gave him the okay for starting the rehabilitation he was more than happy; he couldn’t stand any more time in that lame wheelchair. But rehabilitation was hard. Somedays he even though about give up; it seemed that all his effort was for nothing, he still couldn’t even stand with a crutch. But no, he couldn’t give up. That wasn’t like him at all. Suzi and Rafaella always tried to cheer him up when they saw some anguish in his eyes, and Joseph tried to help him, after all he was strong enough to hold him and even carry him if needed, although that was not to the Italian’s liking precisely. Also, the visits of Lisa Lisa and Speedwagon didn’t cheer him up at all; he didn’t like looking that weak in front of them.

As soon as he could finally stood up with a crutch and actually walk by himself with it he was pleased.

“Look at you, Caesar! You can actually walk like nothing has passed, I’m so happy for you!” Suzi said, blissful.

“Yeah, if it weren’t for the crutch and the scars it could look like you’re perfectly fine- well, and the hospital clothes, of course.” Joseph laughed.

“You think you’re very funny, right, JoJo?” Caesar sighed. “By the way, where is Rafaella?”

“Ohh- Ella said she needed to go for something, but she would be back right away.” He replied.

‘Ella’? Since when these two were this close to use nicknames?, Caesar though. A few minutes later, Rafaella appeared, with Mina on her arms.

“I… I can’t ask you to forgive me…” Rafaella murmured. “The reason why I’m not in Florence anymore is this little lady. She’s Mina, our daughter.”

Rafaella left Mina on Caesar bed. The little child stared at Caesar, and so did him. “I didn’t know how to tell you… and also I didn’t want to worry you… or bother you… you were working so hard with your rehabilitation, after all…” Rafaella explained. “I’m sorry you lost a year of your own daughter… It’s my fault.”

Caesar didn’t say anything. Mina continued staring at him; then she crawled until she finally sat on his lap. Mina took his cheeks with both of her little hands and babbled something in baby language. Caesar then, started to laugh. He just couldn’t stop. Rafaella, Joseph, and Suzi looked at him. It felt like forever since they heard him laugh like that. Caesar hugged Mina.

“You’re very cute little angel.” Caesar laughed. “I… I can’t believe I have a daughter… it’s actually… kind of a shock.” Rafaella looked down. “But I’m very happy. Really.”  Caesar took Rafaella hand, and kissed it. She blushed and finally let the tear she was holding for long fall over her cheek.

“I… I already told you… Don’t kiss my hand like that… you disgusting Casanova…”

  A month ago, Joseph and Suzi Q decided to move to New York permanently, since Joseph’s family was there. Caesar wanted to stay in Italy; now he had a family to take care of. Rafaella, who, like Suzi, knew that the blond felt more than friendship for Joseph even if he denied it, asked him why not going to America with their friends.  After all, they didn’t have anything left in Italy: Caesar didn’t have any more family, and Rafaella… well, her family didn’t want her to exit anymore. So, at the end, the four of them and little Mina moved to New York.

Since that day, Suzi was, not only like a little sister for Rafaella, but also a confident for her. So, when she needed some advice about how to act with the blond, she usually asked Suzi. One day, Rafaella was worried because she felt like Caesar was getting sick of her. Suzi, at first didn’t believe her, but then realized that she was actually serious. Suzi told her that she should just ask Caesar, instead of assuming things, especially because she thought that Caesar loved Rafaella so much and he couldn’t be getting sick of her at all.

This is actually easier to say that to do. Rafaella thought. How am I supposed to ask him that?!

When Caesar got home, Rafaella served him dinner, and after both had dinner and Rafaella fed Mina and put her to bed, she tried to ask him directly, as Suzi advised her.

“Caesar, can I ask you something?” Caesar nodded, so Rafaella continued. “Are you sick of me?” She could hear an imaginary Suzi in her mind saying wow not that bluntly, dear.  

Caesar stared at her, perplexed. “What are you talking about?”

“You’re kind of distant lately…”

“Me? Distant?” He scratched his head. “Seriously I don’t get what you are trying to say.”

“You’re even locking the door of your room…”

Caesar face changed completely. Rafaella could feel guilt and sadness in his expression. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea, maybe she wouldn’t ask that, maybe…

“It’s not your fault,” He said.

“Then? Why don’t you want to tell me?”

“Please, don’t start like this, assuming things of your own, like that last time-“ Caesar looked around for avoiding her gaze; he didn’t want to say that, but he truly didn’t want to start a fight either. Especially knowing how it could end; with both of them hurt. “I just… I don’t want to hurt you.” Rafaella stared at him. “I have… nightmares… About losing my father… about losing Mark… about Suzi being hurt because of those beings… about…” He gulped. “About that las fight…”

Rafaella caressed his hand softly, and he continued. “I know you hear me so you want to comfort me and calm me, and you went to my bed to hug me and… I appreciate your intentions, really, but I don’t want to hurt you.”

Rafaella tried to hold back her tears. “And… you just couldn’t tell me this…?”

“What would be your answer if I told you this?”

“Don’t be a moron and let me do what I want…”

Caesar snorted. “Exactly. You’re so stubborn so I thought I had to make the move. But I didn’t expect you to take it so seriously.

“You know me well for some things but not for others, uh?” Rafaella chuckled. “But, seriously, I don’t mind. I… I want to be with you. Besides, if you’re hurting I can’t look away.” Rafaella blushed. “I love you, so I want to comfort you, you idiot.”

Caesar kissed her in the forehead. “Okay, I’ll let you in, then.”

“Don’t worry, if you move so much I’d just kick you out of the bed, and solved!” Rafaella laughed.

“Sometimes your ‘love’ is a bit violent, dear…”

   Joseph laughed like he would explode, and Caesar was starting to get angry at him. Suzi trying to tell her husband to stop but he couldn’t.

“I’m sorry, but this is too funny,” Joseph continued laughing. “I can’t believe Caesar-chan proposed to Ella, and she rejected him.”

Suzi nudged him. Caesar sighed. It was true after all.

Joseph and Suzi got married a few months ago, and had a little baby: Holly, making her the seventh member of their big family. Joseph joked about how Caesar and Rafaella should do the same as them, after all, for outsiders’ eyes, Joseph and Suzi are together as well as Caesar and Rafaella. Caesar didn’t think about it much, until he finally decided to ask her. But she turned him down with a smile. Somehow, Caesar understood her feelings just by looking at her conflicted expression

“What is all this noise for?” Rafaella, who had just entered the room, asked.

Joseph totally went quiet and said that nothing happened. It was totally obvious that they were talking about that. But well.

That night, Rafaella went to sleep after putting the children to bed as always. Caesar was still awake because next day he had a free day in work, so he wanted to relax reading in bed a bit.

“How’s everything?”

“Well, Billie didn’t want to go to sleep but I tell her that Mina and Holly had to, so she has to protect them in their sleep as the big sister she is.” Rafaella smiled. “So she accepted to go to bed at the end.”

“I see.” Caesar snorted.

“This is still… kind of weird, if you ask me.” Rafaella said while getting into bed with him.

“What? Living all together you mean?”

“Yes… I mean, a few time ago I only have myself and Mina.” She replied. “But now we have you, Suzi, Joseph, and little Billie and Holly.”

“A really big family, right?” Caesar smiled.

“Yes,” Rafaella paused. “I guess you could finally achieve your life dream, uh?”

“Yeah, I think so.” Caesar put the glasses and his book down. “I’m very happy to be honest. Very happy.”

Rafaella, then, held his hand. Caesar stared at her. “I just… need time…” She murmured. “Last time the word marriage was in my life… my entire world collapsed, everything went to hell…”

Caesar kissed her cheek. “I know. I don’t mind waiting. After all, you waited for me back then, right?”

“Thank you, Caesar.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “Then, if Joseph makes fun of you for not getting married right away… just punch him in the face.”

Caesar laughed. “Okay, I take note of that.”

[francescabuccino]

Still broken, but together

Hi guys! This is what I would love to see before Amelia’s surgery. I hope you will like it!

They were still there after what seemed like a lifetime: Meredith rubbing Amelia’s shoulder, spooning her, and Amelia and Owen sharing deep glances full of love and fear.

Owen was scared, reeling from the horrible news he just received. It couldn’t be true. His Amelia, his wife couldn’t be sick. He was the one thinking something was wrong with her, but he didn’t mean physically. He just found his sister again and now he could lose the most important person in his life. They weren’t in the best moment of their marriage, but he still couldn’t loose her: he needed her even if  only to argue, even only to hear her yelling at him. For the first time in months, their eyes really met each other and he could see how much she tried to hide the fear she had, too. She acted like the fierce and fearless woman she is, but he knows her and he could see how much she was scared. The only thing he was sure of at the moment was that he would not leave her side, he would be with her for how much time she would need and he would prove his love to her every minute of every day. 

“You should go check on your sister…”

“I was there all day. She can be alone for now. I’m not going anywhere.”

He said, hardening the grip on her hand.

Amelia’s mouth showed a little smile. It was so good to have him there. She knew that their problems were not at all solved, but it’s like they were freezing. She didn’t know how much she needed him by her side until he was. She felt so loved. In the last week she tried to do this alone, making plans, calling Koracick, but she was wrong.

“Did you tell her?” Meredith asked Owen.

“Nope. She was sleeping when Amelia paged me.”

“Ok. I’ll go tell her, she will be worried if you’re not be there when she wakes up.”

Owen nodded, but not for a moment did his eyes leave Amelia’s that were slowly closing. She was so tired, she hadn’t slept for more than a few hours a day since she found out, but now that all was settled and she had the man she loved right there, she could relax and sleep. Owen moved into the spot Meredith left and put one arm around her waist pulling her closer. The other hand went in her hair out of habit, tracing little paths between locks.

“Try to sleep for a bit, I’ll be here the whole time.” Owen whispered to her, trying to make her relax even more. Amelia just nodded and closed her eyes.

In the mean time, Meredith entered Megan’s room.

“Hey… How are you?”

“Ready for your check up… and to go home.”

“You are not still ready to go home and you are a doctor, you know that. Don’t push too hard,” said Meredith, exposing Megan’s surgery site ad beginning to lightly push on it.

“Owen keeps saying the same thing. You’re right…. I know you are, but I miss my child so much. It’s like every day a piece of my heart is ripped from my chest.”

“I know. I felt the same after way my injuries. Only a mom can understand. Don’t blame Owen for keeping you safe.”

“Speaking of him… where the hell is he He is here everyday, all the time, and now I can’t find him. I tried to page him, but he didn’t answer.”

“He’s with Amelia.”

“Again? Why can’t my brother understand his marriage is over?” Megan said, rolling her eyes.

“Nothing is so simple, Megan.”

“It is! She keeps rejecting him and I can see every time how much he is hurt. I can’t stand watching him keep doing it to himself! And now she will yell at him again and he will come back here like nothing happened, but with that sadness in his eyes, I don’t want to see that again and if… ”

“She is sick!” Meredith didn’t mean to said it in that way, but it was the only way to shut her up.

“She is what?”

“She is sick. She has a 10 cm tumor in her frontal lobe and she began her pre op exams today. She told us a few hours ago. That’s why Owen is with her. She needs him now.”

“Oh my god… take me to her room. Now.”

Meredith asked for a wheelchair.

Owen and Amelia were in the same position. She was peacefully asleep in her husband arms, but he still couldn’t stop staring at her like she was about to disappear at any moment. Until then he tried to be strong for her, she didn’t need to see how much he was falling apart inside, but now that she was asleep, he finally let fall the tears he was containing in his eyes.

Just then, he heard someone knocking at the door and Meredith and Megan entering. He dried his face before turning his head trying not to move too much.

“Shhhhh… she just fell asleep. It took her a while. Don’t make any noise.”

Amelia stirred a little and buried her face in Owen’s chest, her hands gripping tightly on his shirt, but she didn’t wake up.

“I just wanted to check on you. On you both. Owen, did you eat something?”

“My wife has a brain tumor. Eating is really not my first thing on my mind right now.” Owen said with a little bit of anger in his voice.

“Are you angry at me?” Megan asked.

“Just get out… she needs to rest.”

Owen was angry, but not with Megan. He was angry with his life that didn’t seems to give him an happy moment, he was mad at that tumor because Amelia didn’t deserve it, he was angry at himself because he couldn’t find the way to help her open up, even if he tried. He was too busy chatting with his sister about his horrible marriage instead of really trying to make it work.

Megan just stared at him.

“I’ll came back in the morning,” she said, nodding at Meredith silently asking her to go outside.

That night Owen didn’t close an eye, he was there, still, with Amelia in his arms, checking on her with every passing moment, soothing her during her bad dreams. The morning came too soon for him and the light shined from the windows on Amelia’s pale face. She became more beautiful every time he stared at her, no matter how sick she was.

Today was the day. The day of the surgery. She choose her surgeon so he should be good, but Owen couldn’t help but be scared like hell.

Just a little after the sun rose, Amelia’s eyes fluttered open and her eyes met Owen’s.

“You’re still here.”

“I am and I’m not going anywhere. Do you need something?”

“Nope. I have all I need right here.” She said smiling. He missed her dimples so much. “But I need you to be okay today, so, please, go get a coffee, eat something, take a shower, I don’t know… take care of yourself. I’ll be fine alone for an hour.”

The reality was that she needed a moment for herself, she needed a moment for prepping herself for the surgery and she didn’t want to do that with Owen near her.

“Okay. I’ll come back as soon as possible. I’ll just go to the coffee cart.” He said kissing her temple and getting out of the bed.

“Thank you.”

She followed Owen with her eyes until he was out and saw Meredith outside. Amelia asked her to come in.

“Hey… how are you? Did you sleep well?”

“So, so. I need a favor from you.”

“Anything.”

“Can you bring me the shaving machine? I want to shave my head myself. I don’t want some resident to shave more than needed.”

“Okay. That’s simple. I’ll be right back.”

In a few minutes, Meredith was back with Maggie and Amelia was facing the mirror in her bathroom looking at her pale face. She wasn’t more sick than last week, but she seemed it. Her face was pale, her hair a mess, her eyes were rounded by dark circles…knowing about her sickness made her sick more than her tumor and she knew it would be even worse in a bit with a strip of hair shaved on the side of her head. She stood there, still, for almost half an hour, just looking at the “Amelia” she was now. Meredith and Maggie, behind her, were getting more worried by the minute.

“Amelia… do you want us to do that for you?”

“Nope. Don’t worry.”

She took the machine and began, saving some hair in order to hide the part after the surgery. If she made it.

When she was done, she looked in the mirror again. She couldn’t contain herself anymore. Her face changed and she let out all the pain, the fear, the anger she was hiding since a week ago. Tears were running on her cheeks and her legs weren’t able to keep her up anymore. She slid onto the floor, followed immediately by her sisters. They immediately were by her side, arms around her.

“Amelia you will be out of this soon.” Meredith said, “you will get through this.”

“You’ll be fine. You have to be fine.”

In that exact moment, Owen went to Megan’s room.

“Hi…”

“Hi!”

“I come here for apologize. I was rude last night… I’m sorry, but I was with you talking about how much Amelia was horrible to me and she was already facing this. I was kissing Teddy and I was too busy to really understand what she was going through. I’ll never forgive myself for that.”

“Owen… it’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known, but now you have all the answers you need. Now you have to be with her…”

“Yes, but I don’t HAVE to be with her, I NEED to be with her.”

“Then go! I’ll be just fine…”

Owen entered Amelia’s room, but she was nowhere. He heard sobbing coming from the bathroom and Opening the door, he found the three sisters on the floor. Amelia was still trying to catch her breath and her eyes met Owen’s once again that day.

“Can you leave us?” Owen said.

Meredith and Maggie left them alone. Owen kneeled and picked Amelia up wedding style. He brought her to the bed and once again he laid with her, stroking her hair.

“Just breath, take a deep breath for me… that’s good. Good, just another one.”

Amelia’s arms were around Owen, her face buried in Owen’s neck. Soon her breath became normal again and his heartbeat calmed her.

“Owen… I don’t want to die.”

Those words were like 1000 knives in his heart. Looking at the love of his life breaking down was like someone was ripping his heart from his chest. Silent tears were running from his eyes too.

“You will not die. I will not let you die.” He turned his face so he could look at her. “Hey… listen to me. You will not die. We will live our life together and this story will be just something we will remember when we’re be old, playing cards with our old friends.” A little smile formed on her lips. Just the thought of an entire life with that man could make her smile even with a tumor in her brain.

“I shaved my hair.” She said looking away trying not to look at him in the eyes.

“I saw.” He took her chin and move it up, so he could look at her again.  “And you are beautiful.”

“I really hope you are kidding because I’ll be very worried for your beautiful eyes if you don’t. Are you sure you don’t have a tumor too on your optic nerve?”

They chucked at her dark humor.

“Do you know what my biggest fear is?”

Owen shook his head.

“I know that when I wake up, I will love you like now and even more… but will you like the me I will be without the tumor? You fell in love with the me with the tumor. What if I’m different?”

“Amelia, you know you will still be you and that I will still love you. No matter what happens to you. You will always be the woman I fell in love with, the woman who brought me sparkling water that magic night, the woman I married… nothing could change that.”

In that exact moment, the door opened and Tom Koracick made his way in the room, followed by Deluca.

“Sorry for interrupting, but I need to check you before the surgery and this will be simpler if the patient is the only one on the bad.”

Amelia rolled her eyes.

“This is Owen, my husband.”

“Oh… what a pleasure.” He said uninterested. “So, has anything changed from last night? Headache? You know the drill.”

“Nope. Always like ever.”

“Good. So the nurses will be here with Deluca in an hour to take you to the OR. Then the dance will began.”

“The dance? Really?”

“Yep. I have all the lives you will save after this in my hands and yours too… don’t mess with me. And I’m….”

“Yes, yes…. you are the best. We will see in  the OR. Get out.” The doctors went out. “And you,” she said, looking at Owen. “Can you hold me again, please?”

“Your wish is my command,” he said. He slid behind her with his legs on her side so she could lean on his chest. She felt like she was the most spoiled woman in the world. 

They stayed like that until it was time to go and Owen walked behind her when she was taken to the OR, holding her hand.

“Dr. Hunt, you can’t come in the OR. This is the farthest you can follow us.” Deluca said.

“I know. Just, give us a minute.”

Deluca nodded.

“Hey…” Amelia was gripping Owen’s hand with so much strength that her knuckles were white. “I will wait for you on the other side. I’ll be there when you wake up.”

“Owen… I need to say something.” She took a deep breath before talking. “I don’t want you to be mad at me if I do not survive this. I need us to be good before going inside.”

“We are good, Amelia. We really are.”

“No, we are not, because I ran away again and I don’t know if it was because of the tumor or not, but my fear was true. I was scared Owen, scared that our children would be sick and die like my first child. That’s why I said that I didn’t want a baby.”

Owen tried to settle what he just heard. It wasn’t an easy thing to hear, but he had no time to right now. He had to do what Amelia needed. They would have a lot of time for discussing this, after.

“I know you were scared, but that doesn’t matter right now because I love you and we will make this work when you come out of that surgery completely fine.”

“If…”

“It’s not an if, Amelia. It’s a when!”

“I love you, too, Owen.”

Then he leaned on the gurney and kissed her. They didn’t kiss since she went away and it was like returning, finally at home for both of them. That kiss was full of love and hope more than all the words they could share.

They were broken, but maybe this tumor put the pieces together.

Send me your thoughts… This is the same thing you want to watch?

[fakesurprise]

Bends in the Road

3.

I cross the road as Wilbur waves us toward the house and stands at the end of the ramp as though studying the home for a shot. Noah follows me in silence; I leave him to the silence. I knock on the front door once. Twice. After the fourth knock, it’s opened by a man in jeans and a golf shirt. He’s in his early sixties, with a faux military-cut to his hair, sharp eyes and an impatient glare. He wears the clothing uncomfortably; that jumps out. Some people just seem to belong in suits and ties.

“Who are you and why are you here?” he barks.

“We’re students from Rivercomb doing a movie. We’d like to use shots of your house for exterior bits?”

“Oh. You’re not –.” He pauses. Looks past me. “Doing a horror movie with this kid?”

“No,” I say, not looking back at Noah. “He’s the cameraman. Wilbur is the director,” I add.

“Jesus Christ. Well, you tell him he’s not coming up my stairs or on this ramp. I’m not having it broken because someone ate too many big macs.”

The word are flat, without hate, delivered like facts.

“I don’t care what you do about the exterior of this house, but you’re not taking pictures of the ramp, you’re not mentioning me and if you do I am suing you so hard you won’t believe it.”

“Okay.” I turn and walk back toward Wilbur. No thank you, no asking of the man’s name. Noah slips aside to let me pass, follows me down the ramp after.

“So?” Wilbur says.

“Any luck with the ghost?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “It barely existed. I know her name, and that it was hard for her to get to the Grey Lands and back here. No idea why. I would like to know about the funny look you had on your face coming back down the ramp though.”

“You aren’t allowed to go up the ramp, or on the front steps. In case you break them. He thinks we’re using Noah to film a horror movie but, on the plus side, we can take photos of the exterior of the home. So long as they don’t include the wheelchair ramp and if we do that or mention his name, he’s suing us.”

“We’re going to be sued if we film a wheelchair ramp.” Wilbur rubs the bridge of his nose. “I’m starting to wonder about this town. If the Outsider active around here has infected them somehow, or if it even needs to.”

“It’s not that bad,” Noah offers softly. We both look over. “They probably all have guns here, and no one has tried to kill us yet?”

“Yet,” I repeat.

“The woman who saw my talent was terrified. The man who opened the door to his home was waiting for someone, angry and scared at the same time.” Noah shrugs. “There might be weirdness going on here that’s just a small town of twenty people?”

“That is about the size of a classroom. And they are pretty weird.” No one has come out of the largest house yet, so I nod to the oldest house in Oscar’s Bend. “Now to door number three. It can’t be any worse than the last two.”

“Do the two of you want to tempt fate?” Wilbur demands. I think he’s joking, but I’m not certain.

The other side of the road is like a different town. Both homes are neater, despite one being a frankenhome affair. There are no fences in Oscars Bend but there are empty lots between the homes that used to have houses. Past the frankenhome is the one local store that, from here, looks to be in decent shape as well. There are tracks in Rivercomb, even if our town hasn’t seen a train in years, and even now you can divide the town up by them in certain ways.

That you can do the same for a town with four homes in it is almost depressing. I lead the way to the oldest house in the town: like the newest, it’s a single-storey affair but the lawn is freshly mowed even if it’s almost past the season where you neat to. The window sills and front porch need painting, but someone has chipped off old pain in preparation for that and the smell of baking comes out between the cracks in the front door.

There is no welcome mat, but I imagine that’s only because it’s in the wash.

I knock. An older woman calls out, “It’s open, dear,” presumably expecting someone local. I knock again and it’s a good twenty seconds before the door is opened by a grandmotherly woman. Late seventies at least, her hair as white as her apron.

“Oh,” she says.”I thought it would be one of the McTavishes! I’m Edith Truman. My husband Gerry is getting various supples in Appleford today, if you wished to speak with him?”

“I’m not sure? I’m Anya. This is Noah and Wilbur. We’re from Rivercomb and hoping to do a short video using the town as a backdrop?”

“Well, Peter McTavish can help with anything YouTube, though Scott and Mark are involved as well. It takes them forever to get their videos out as I understand it but I’ve never watched them. Can’t be bothered with all that internet nonsense myself. Hmm.” Edith peers at Noah and Wilbur without batting an eye. “Well, I have some scones I was going to take next door, but you’re welcome to come inside and have them if you like?”

I look back at the others. Noah nods. Wilbur – who is a good cook but not about to turn down food others makes – hesitates a moment before nodding as well. “If it’s not an imposition?”

“Of course not. We don’t get many visitors here. The last ones were looking for bigfoot or some such, naturally. I do have family in Rivercomb of course,” she adds as she props the door open and heads down a hallway. “And there are lots of houses there as well one could film, but I suppose Oscars Bend is exotic for the area.”

The hallway is wide, lacking even a dresser in it, leading to a spacious kitchen. Everything in it is old but well cared for, rustic without being antique. Edith offers tea, pouring some into cups and brings over homemade biscuits that had been cooling on the counter. “Well,” she says once we’re eating them. “I admit to being quite nosey about my town. I have no desire to be unduly rude about it, but even as your cameraman I’m sure this boy would not be coming to a small town like this on his own?” she asks, nodding to Noah.

“Maybe they dared me,” Noah says softly.

“I imagine you can’t be too picky about who is friends with you, but one must have some standards.”

Noah just stares in shock, saying nothing.

“Have you ever made friends with someone out of guilt?” Wilbur asks into the silence.

Edith barely hesitates. “There was this one black girl when I was younger. I imagine you would understand.”

“I can’t say I do,” Wilbur says after a pregnant pause.  Sometimes Wilbur can be so calm it’s almost scary. “What I can say is that you seemed nice mere minutes ago. I’d like to know if that was a lie before making any further replies.”

Edith sips her tea carefully. “I told you I have relatives in Rivercomb. I have heard stories from my niece about a boy looking like Noah does. I scarcely imagine there are two. The stories suggest that problems follow you. You’ll forgive me if that makes me worried and, frankly, willing to see if I could anger you into departing.”

“Oh.” I finish my tea slowly, consider the cup. “Noah. Catch.”

I throw it toward the ceiling. The cup stops a foot from old wood to gently float down to the table, landing beside Edith. “We have talents.” I say calmly. “They help us deal with things other people can’t. I didn’t think we’d achieved the level of fame to be noticed. Frankly, we have no desire to do that. We know something weird is going down here. We want to stop it from getting weirder. Please.”

Edith Truman picks up the tea cup gently, sets it back down. “And these talents, they have costs?”

“Not in the way you mean, no. Everything has costs, if one has to think in those terms.” I shrug.

“I’ve had some of my talents for a long time,” Wilbur says. “I didn’t always know what they were, or what I could do. but I’ve had them regardless of anything else.” He moves his chair back from the table, rests his hands on his belly. “How much I weigh doesn’t affect than. How Noah looks has nothing to do with his. The same is true for Anya: our talents aren’t some kind of compensation, nor a curse. It might help other people to think that, but that doesn’t make it true.”

“I see. It does, however, make it harder for you to not be noticed. You will have to forgive me for thinking that trouble might follow you rather than you finding it.”

Four months ago, I would have said: ‘We will?’ without thinking. I’m getting better at balancing where my talent ends and I begin. Not so much where I end, and the part of me that isn’t human begins. But I’m working on that. “Our problem in not being from here is that we can’t tell if people are being influenced by something Other or not yet. Knowing the players would help.”

“I’d like to think I’m still me, but I’ve never tried to drive anyone away from Oscars Bend so cruelly before,” Edith admits. “I’ve never said a single rude word to Paul McTavish. I should not have tried to hurt you with them, Noah.”

“Oh!” Noah takes refuge in drinking more of his tea.

“We haven’t met the McTavishes yet. We met someone with unique style choices – and they were definitely freaking out a little over Noah’s talent.”

“Jennifer Smith is – well, she’s been in town for four years, our newest arrival. I know far less about Jennifer than I’d like to know a neighbour, but one must respect privacy. I’ve been told she had a business that ebay ruined it somehow, so Jennifer moved here.”

“And the man who insisted he’s sue us if we took video of a wheelchair ramp?”

“I’m amazed Bob didn’t think you were a trap,” Edith murmurs.

“A trap.”

“His son Alvin is confined to a wheelchair, and has – very limited responses. He can do very little on his own.”

“Okay? And random strangers knocking on the front door is a trap because –?” I press.

Edith Truman pours herself more tea. “I should not tell you this, but I doubt you will leave town without learning some things. Alvin Plint does not go to school.”

“Homeschooling isn’t a crime,” Noah says, almost sharply His birth parents might have been human monsters, but they at least made sure he was relatively educated.

“Alvin isn’t home schooled. Bob is aware of the limitations of his son. Perhaps too aware. Alvin cannot walk, talk, sit up or feed himself. His father has no desire for Alvin to burden the school system or society. That a child is a burden to a parent is a fact; that his son should not burden others is another.”

“A fact,” I repeat.

“Their are social workers who have disagreed with Bob. I believe it is one reason they moved on Oscars Bend but I am not privy to any others.”

“The hallway.” Wilbur looks back to the front door. “It is wide enough for a wheelchair.”

“Alvin and Bob visit every so often. I think you misunderstand: Bob looks after his son, makes sure he is taken care of and healthy. The rest is between him and God, I think.”

I take a breath, let it out. We don’t know the whole story here. We never will. “You will have to forgive me,” I say, dropping Edith’s words back at her, “if I cannot refrain from judgement.”

“Of course, dear, We often judge. We seldom realize that we are only called upon to witness.” She stands. “The McTavishes make up over half of own town: if you seek answers to why you came here, I imagine they know it.”

[gaysparklepires]

5. Duty

“Are you okay, Jake? Charlie said you were having a hard time… Isn’t it getting any better?”

His warm hand curled around mine. “S’not so bad,” he said, but he wouldn’t meet my eyes.

He walked slowly back to the driftwood bench, staring at the rainbow-colored pebbles, and pulling me along at his side. I sat back down on our tree, but he sat on the wet, rocky ground rather than next to me. I wondered if it was so that he could hide his face more easily. He kept my hand.

I started babbling to fill the silence. “It’s been so long since I was here. I’ve probably missed a ton of things. How are Sam and Emil? And Embry? Did Quil--?”

I broke off mid-sentence, remembering that Jacob’s friend Quil had been a sensitive subject.

“Ah, Quil,” Jacob sighed.

So then it must have happened—Quil must have joined the pack.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled.

To my surprise, Jacob snorted. “Don’t say that to him.”

“What do you mean?”

“Quil’s not looking for pity. Just the opposite—he’s jazzed. Totally thrilled.”

This made no sense to me. All the other wolves had been so depressed at the idea of their friend sharing their fate. “Huh?”

Jacob tilted his head back to look at me. He smiled and rolled his eyes.

“Quil thinks it’s the coolest thing that’s ever happened to him. Part of it is finally knowing what’s going on. And he’s excited to have his friends back—to be part of the ‘in crowd.’” Jacob snorted again. “Shouldn’t be surprised, I guess. It’s so Quil.”

“He likes it?”

“Honestly… most of them do,” Jacob admitted slowly. “There are definitely good sides to this—the speed, the freedom, the strength… the sense of—of family… Sam and I are the only ones who ever felt really bitter. And Sam got past that a long time ago. So I’m the crybaby now.” Jacob laughed at himself.

“You’re not a crybaby, Jake.” I paused. There were so many things I wanted to know. “Why are you and Sam different? What happened to Sam anyway? What’s his problem?” The questions tumbled out without room to answer them, and Jacob laughed again.

“That’s a long story.”

“I told you a long story. Besides, I’m not in any hurry to get back,” I said, and then I grimaced as I thought of the trouble I was in.

He looked up at me swiftly, hearing the double edge in my words. “Will he be mad at you?”

“Yes,” I admitted. “He really hates it when I do things he considers… risky.”

“Like hanging out with werewolves.”

“Yeah.”

Jacob shrugged. “So don’t go back. I’ll sleep on the couch.”

“That’s a great idea,” I grumbled. “Because then he would come looking for me.”

Jacob stiffened, and then smiled bleakly. “Would he?”

“If he was afraid I was hurt or something—probably.”

“My idea’s sounding better all the time.”

“Please, Jake. That really bugs me.”

“What does?”

“That you two are so ready to kill each other!” I complained. “It makes me crazy. Why can’t you both just be civilized?”

“Is he ready to kill me?” Jacob asked with a grim smile.

“Not like you seem to be!” I snapped. “At least he can be a grown-up about this. He knows that hurting you would hurt me—and so he never would. You don’t seem to care about that at all!”

“Yeah, right,” Jacob muttered. “I’m sure he’s quite the pacifist.”

“Ugh!” I ripped my hand out of his and pushed his head away. Then I pulled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms tightly around them.

I glared out toward the horizon.

Jacob was quiet for a few minutes. Finally, he got up off the ground and sat beside me, putting his arm around my shoulders.

“Sorry,” he said quietly. “I’ll try to behave myself.”

I didn’t answer.

“I really do care, Beau.” His thumb rubbed my shoulder. “I care about your feelings a lot. I’m really sorry.”

I sighed, but didn’t say anything.

“Do you still want to hear about Sam?” he offered.

I shrugged.

“Like I said, it’s a long story. And very… strange. And sad. There’s so many things about this new life I haven’t had time to tell you the half of it. And this thing with Sam—well, I don’t know if I’ll even be able to explain it right.”

His words pricked my curiosity in spite of my frustration.

“I’m listening,” I finally said.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the side of his face pull up in a smile.

“Sam had it so much harder than the rest of us. Because he was the first, and he was alone, and he didn’t have anyone to tell him what was happening. Sam’s grandfather died before he was born, and his father has never been around. There was no one there to recognize the signs. The first time it happened—the first time he phased—he thought he’d gone insane. It took him two weeks to calm down enough to change back.

“This was before you came to Forks, so you wouldn’t remember. Sam’s mother and Liam Clearwater had the forest rangers searching for him, the police. People thought there had been an accident or something…”

“Liam?” I asked, surprised. Liam was Harry’s oldest son. Hearing his name sent an automatic surge of pity through me. Harry Clearwater, Charlie’s life-long friend, had died of a heart attack this past spring.

His voice changed, became heavier. “Yeah. Liam and Sam were best friends in high school. Inseparable. They were always together…” he paused and glanced at me. “Everyone always just thought they were just close friends… but…” He trailed off, looking at me.

“Sam and Liam… were… they…�� I couldn’t find the words, but I felt how wide my eyes were.

“Yeah, it was a big secret. They didn’t tell anyone, just kept it between themselves. They weren’t dating or anything, but they just had this connection and, well, anyway, Liam was frantic when Sam disappeared.”

“But Sam and Emily—“

“I’ll get to that—it’s part of the story,” he said. He inhaled slowly, and then exhaled in a gust.

I supposed it was silly for me to imagine that Sam had never loved anyone before Emily. Most people fall in and out of love many times in their lives. It was just that I’d seen Sam with Emily, and I couldn’t imagine him with someone else. The way he looked at her… well, it reminded me of a look I’d seen sometimes in Edward’s eyes—when he was looking at me.

“Sam came back,” Jacob said. “But he wouldn’t talk to anyone about where he’d been. Rumors flew—that he was up to no good, mostly. And then Sam happened to run into Quil’s grandfather one afternoon when Old Quil Ateara came to visit Mrs. Uley. Sam shook his hand. Old Quil just about had a stroke.” Jacob paused to laugh.

“Why?”

Jacob put his hand on my cheek and pulled my face around to look at him—he was leaning toward me, his face just a few inches away. His palm burned my skin, like he had a fever.

“Oh, right,” I breathed. It was strange, having my face so close to his with his hand hot against my skin. “Sam was running a temperature.”

Jacob laughed again. “Sam’s hand felt like he’d left it sitting on a hot stovetop.”

He was so close, I could feel his warm breath. I realized we were leaning in closer to each other, so I reached up casually, to take his hand away and free my face, but my fingers wound through his without consciously meaning to. He smiled and leaned back, I sat there blinking.

“So Mr. Ateara went straight to the other elders,” Jacob went on. “They were the only ones left who still knew, who remembered. Mr. Ateara, Billy, and Harry had actually seen their grandfathers make the change. When Old Quil told them, they met with Sam secretly and explained.

“It was easier when he understood—when he wasn’t alone anymore. They knew he wouldn’t be the only one affected by the Cullens’ return”—He pronounced the name with unconscious bitterness—“but no one else was old enough So Sam waited for the rest of us to join him…”

“The Cullens had no idea,” I said in a whisper. “They didn’t think that werewolves still existed here. They didn’t know that coming here would change you.”

“It doesn’t change the fact that it did.”

“Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

“You never could, so don’t worry about it.” He snorted. “I wish I could be as forgiving as you are, though.”

“Oh come on, Jacob, grow up.” I rolled my eyes.

“I wish I could,” he murmured quietly.

I stared at him, trying to make sense of his response. “What?”

Jacob chuckled. “One of those many strange things I mentioned.”

“You… can’t… grow up?” I said blankly. “You’re what? Not… aging? Is that a joke?”

“Nope.” He popped his lips on the P.

I felt blood flood my face. I tried to speak, but only bursts of frustrated air came out.

“Beau? What did I say?”

I was on my feet again, my hands ran through my hair in disbelief.

“You. Are. Not. Aging.” I repeated in angry shock.

Jacob tugged my arm gently, trying to make me sit. “None of us are. What’s wrong?”

“God, I’m going to be some old man surrounded by perpetual teenagers aren’t I? I’m not going to be able to have any of you stick around—I’m not going to be creepy old Swan with all his beautiful teenage friends, now am I? Oh god, how is this fair?” I felt myself deflate as the image of me, white-haired, sitting in a wheelchair, while Edward, still seventeen and beautiful, spoon-fed me my dinner before wheeling me down to La Push to visit Jacob, still just as young and beautiful, flashed through my head.

“Take it easy, Beau.”

“But, Jake, I’m literally surrounded by immortals. How do you think that makes me feel?”

“It’s not as bad as you seem to think it is. Sit down and I’ll explain.”

“I’ll stand.”

He rolled his eyes. “Okay. Whatever you want. But listen, I will get older… someday.”

“Explain.”

He patted the tree. I glowered for a second, but then sat; my anger had burned out as suddenly as it had flared and I’d calmed down enough to realize I was being stupid.

“When we get enough control to quit…,” Jacob said. “When we stop phasing for a solid length of time, we age again. It’s not easy.” He shook his head, abruptly doubtful. “It’s gonna take a really long time to learn that kind of restraint, I think. Even Sam’s not there yet. ‘Course it doesn’t help that there’s a huge coven of vampires right down the road. We can’t even think about quitting when the tribe needs protectors. But you shouldn’t get all bent out of shape about it, anyway, because I’m already older than you, physically at least.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Look at me, babe. Do I look seventeen?”

I glanced up and down his tall, muscular frame, trying to be unbiased. “Not exactly, I guess.”

“Not at all. Because we reach full growth inside of a few months when the werewolf gene gets triggered. It’s one hell of a growth spurt.” He made a face. “Physically, I’m probably twenty-five or something. So there’s no need for you to freak out about being too old for me for at least another seven years.”

Twenty-five or something. The idea messed with my head. But I remembered that growth spurt—I remembered watching him shoot up and fill out right before my eyes. I remembered how he would look different from one day to the next… I shook my head, feeling dizzy.

“So, did you want to hear about Sam, or did you want to freak out at me more for things that are out of my control?”

I took a deep breath. “Sorry. That was stupid of me. Age is a touchy subject, I guess.”

Jacob’s eyes tightened, and he looked as if he were trying to decide how to word something.

Since I didn’t want to talk about the truly touchy stuff—our escape plans, contingencies, or treaties that might be broken by said contingencies, I prompted him. “So once Sam understood what was going on, one he had Billy and Harry and Mr. Ateara, you said it wasn’t so hard anymore. And, like you also said, there are the cool parts…” I hesitated briefly. “Why does Sam hate them so much? Why does he wish I would hate them?”

Jacob sighed. “This is the sad part.”

“Okay, I’m ready.”

“Okay,” he sighed again, “So, you’re right. Sam knew what was going on, and everything was almost okay. In most ways, his life was back to, well, not normal. But better.” Then Jacob’s expression tightened, like something painful was coming. “Sam couldn’t tell Liam. We aren’t supposed to tell anyone who doesn’t have to know. And it wasn’t really safe for him to be around Liam—but he cheated, just like I did with you. Liam was furious that Sam wouldn’t just tell him what was going on—where he’d been, where he went at night, why he was always so exhausted—it started to drive a wedge between them, even if they did love each other.”

“Did Liam find out? Is that what happened?”

He shook his head. “No, that wasn’t the problem. Liam’s cousin, Emily Young, came down from the Makah reservation to visit him one weekend.”

I gasped. “Emily is Liam’s cousin?”

“Second cousins. They’re close, though. They were like brother and sister when they were kids.”

“That’s… horrible. How could Sam…?” I trailed off, shaking my head.

“Don’t judge him just yet.” Jacob sighed. “Sam was the leader of the pack. The chief, I guess.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” I asked, confused.

“Being the leader… means you have a duty. A duty to the pack, to the tribe. It’s a responsibility to be strong, to be a leader, and to ensure the future of the pack.”

Something clicked in the back of my mind. “Sam couldn’t stay with Liam.” I guessed.

Jacob’s eyes strayed to the ocean. “Sam did love Liam. But he knew he had a responsibility. The elders never forced him to do anything, but they did tell him he needed to think of the pack—of the tribe.” Jacob laughed without humor. “And, when Sam saw Emily, I mean, something changed in him. Sam reasons that it was an instinct deep inside—like a werewolf thing—that made him just know that Emily was the one…”

“Like love at first sight?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Sort of,” Jacob continued. “There are legends, that there’s something about being a werewolf where we just… connect with people—we just know. Not even the elder’s know if it’s true, but Sam believes it. He has to, I guess.”

“Do you believe it?” I asked quietly.

“I don’t know.”

I didn’t know what to say, I just watched Jacob’s face quietly.

Finally, he spoke again. “It doesn’t matter, anyway.” He shrugged indifferently. “You wanted to know what happened to Sam to make him hate the vampires for changing him, to make him hate himself. And that’s what happened. He put the tribe first. He broke Liam’s heart. He went back on every promise he’d ever made him. Every day Sam has to see the accusation in Liam’s eyes, and know that he’s right.”

He stopped talking abruptly, as if he’d said something he hadn’t meant to.

“How did Emily deal with this? If she was so close to Liam…?” Sam and Emily were utterly right together, two puzzle pieces, shaped for each other exactly. Still… How had Emily gotten past the fact that Sam had belonged to someone else? Her brother, almost.

“Emily didn’t even know about Sam and Liam. Not at first. When he told her, she was angry at Sam for breaking Liam’s heart. But she loved Sam, too. She fell for him just as bad as he did for her.” Jacob sighed. “But it just got worse. You know how she got hurt?”

“Yeah.” The story in Forks was that she was mauled by a bear, but I was in on the secret.

Werewolves are unstable, Edward had said. The people near them get hurt.

“Well, Sam was in a real bad place. Liam hated him, Emily was angry with him. He was a mess. He felt as lost and alone as he did when he first phased. He couldn’t keep control… And Emily came to talk to him, but he couldn’t keep his emotions in check…” He trailed off. “Sam was so horrified, so sickened by himself, so full of hate for what he’d done… He would have thrown himself under a bus if it would have made Emily feel better. He might have anyway, just to escape what he’d done. To her, to Liam… He was shattered…. Then, somehow, after Emily recovered she forgave him. She saw how much pain he was in. Suddenly, she was the one comforting him, and after that…”

Jacob didn’t finish his thought, and I sensed the story had gotten too personal to share.

“Poor Emily,” I whispered. “Poor Sam. Poor Liam…”

“Yeah, Liam got the worst end of the stick,” he agreed. “He puts on a brave face. He’s going to be a groomsman.”

I gazed away, toward the jagged rocks that rose from the ocean like stubby broken-off fingers on the south rim of the harbor, while I tried to make sense of it all. I could feel his eyes on my face, waiting for me to say something.

“Did it happen to you?” I finally asked, still looking away. “This love-at-first-sight thing?”

“No,” he answered briskly. “We don’t even know if it’s a real thing. Sam believes it is… but I think he has to.”

“Hmm,” I said, trying to sort through my thoughts. I didn’t know how to explain what I was feeling. Was I glad that there wasn’t some mystical, wolfy connection between the two of us? Our relationship was confusing enough as it was. I didn’t need any more of the supernatural than I already had to deal with.

He was quiet, too, and the silence dragged on.

“That’s why Sam was so against me telling you…” Jacob finally whispered.

“What?” I asked surprised.

“He couldn’t be with Liam,” Jacob explained. “It wasn’t good for the pack. It’s our duty to preserve the pack—the line—and protect the tribe.”

“Oh,” I said, for lack of anything more insightful to say.

“It took some heat off me when Jared met Kim.” Jacob rolled his eyes.

“Jared met someone?” I asked quickly, eager to steer the conversation in a different direction.

“Yeah, just some girl from school. He’d never noticed her before, but after he changed, she was the only person to go up to him and ask him if he was doing okay. He had never noticed her before, but she was so kind and she cared. So, he fell pretty hard for her. Kim was thrilled. She’d had a huge crush on him. She’d had his last name tacked on to the end of hers all over in her diary.” He laughed.

I frowned. “Did Jared tell you that? He shouldn’t have.”

Jacob bit his lip. “I guess I shouldn’t laugh. It was funny, though.”

“Some soul mate.”

He sighed. “Jared didn’t tell us anything on purpose. I already told you this part, remember?”

“Oh, yeah. You can hear each other’s thoughts, but only when you’re wolves, right?”

“Right. Just like your vampire.”

“Edward,” I corrected.

“Sure, sure. That how come I know so much about how Sam felt. It’s not like he would have told us all that if he’d had a choice. Actually, that’s something we all hate.” The bitterness was abruptly harsh in his voice. “It’s awful. No privacy, no secrets. Everything you’re ashamed of, laid out for everyone to see.” He shuddered.

“It sounds horrible,” I whispered.

“It is sometimes helpful when we need to coordinate,” he said grudgingly. “Once in a blue moon, when some bloodsucker crosses into our territory. Laurent was fun. And if the Cullen’s hadn’t gotten in our way last Saturday… ugh!” he groaned. “We could have had Victor!” His fists clenched into angry balls.

I flinched. As much as I worried about Jasper or Emmett getting hurt, it was nothing like the panic I felt at the idea of Jacob going up against Victor. Emmett and Jasper were the closest thing to indestructible I could imagine. Jacob was still warm, still comparatively human. Mortal. I thought of Jacob facing Victor, his brilliant orange hair blowing around his oddly feline face… and shuddered.

Jacob looked up at me with a curious expression. “But isn’t it like that for you all the time? Having him in your head?”

“Who? Edward? Oh, no. He’s never in my head. He only wishes.”

Jacob’s expression became confused.

“He can’t hear me,” I explained, my voice a tiny bit smug from old habit. “I’m the only one like that for him. For any vampire who can do mind stuff. We don’t know why that is.”

“Weird,” Jacob said.

“Yeah.” The smugness faded. “It probably means there’s something wrong with my brain,” I admitted.

“I already knew there was something wrong with your brain,” Jacob teased, bumping into me with his shoulder.

“Thanks.” I laughed.

The sun broke through the clouds suddenly, a surprise I hadn’t been expecting, and I had to narrow my eyes against the glare off the water. Everything changed color—the waves turned from gray to blue, the trees from dull olive to brilliant jade, and the rainbow-hued pebbles glittered like jewels.

We squinted for a moment, letting our eyes adjust. There were no sounds besides the hollow roar of the waves that echoed from every side of the sheltered harbor, the soft grinding of the stones against each other under the water’s movement, and the cry of the gulls high overhead. It was very peaceful.

Jacob settled closer to me, so that he was leaning against my arm. He was so warm. After a minute of this, I shrugged out of my rain jacket. He made a little sound of contentment in the back of his throat, and rested his check on the top of my head. I could feel the sun heat my skin—though it was note quite as warm as Jacob—and reveled in the warmth.

Absentmindedly, I twisted my right hand to the side, and watched the sunlight glitter subtly off the scar James had left there.

“What are you thinking about?” he murmured.

“The sun.”

“Mmm. It’s nice.”

“What are you thinking about?” I asked.

He chuckled to himself. “I was remembering that moronic movie you took me to. And Mike Newton puking all over everything.

I laughed, too, surprised by how important that memory had become to me over time. So much had changed that night… It was the last night Jacob and I had had before he’d learned the truth about his heritage. The last human memory. An oddly pleasant memory now.

“I miss that,” Jacob said. “The way it used to be so easy… uncomplicated. I’m glad I’ve got a good memory.” He sighed.

He felt the sudden tension in my body as his words triggered a memory of my own.

“What is it?” he asked.

“About that good memory of yours…” I pulled away from him so that I could read his face. At the moment, it was confused. “Do you mind telling me what you were doing Monday morning? You were thinking something that bothered Edward.” Bothered wasn’t quite the word for it, but I wanted an answer, so I thought it was best not to start out too severely.

Jacob’s face brightened with understanding, and a slightly guilty look crossed his face. “I was just thinking about you. Didn’t like that much, did he?”

“Me? What about me?”

Jacob laughed, though the guilty look remained. “I was remembering the way you looked that night Sam found you—I’ve seen it in his head, and it’s like I was there; that memory has always haunted Sam, you know. And then I remembered how you looked the first time you came to my place. I bet you don’t even realize what a mess you were then, Beau. It was weeks before you looked like yourself again. And I remembered how you always looked so sad, how your eyes were so empty…” Jacob winced, and then shook his head. “It’s hard for me to remember how sad you were, and it wasn’t my fault. So, when I realized he could see it too, I figured he should get a good look at what he’d done.”

I smacked his shoulder. It hurt my hand. “Jacob Black, don’t you ever do that again! Promise me you won’t.”

“No way. He deserves to see the damage he did!”

“Jake, you listen—“

“Oh, come on, babe. When am I ever going to see him again? Don’t worry about it.”

I got to my feet, and he caught my hand as I started to walk away. I tried to tug free.

“I’m leaving Jacob.”

“No, don’t go yet.” He protested, his hand tightening around mine.

“I don’t like when you’re like this, Jake.” I said, turning back to him, “It’s hard being around you.”

“Then I’ll be better,” he promised, his other hand reaching up to take mine. “I’m sorry. And… okay, I won’t do it again. Promise.”

I sighed. “Thanks, Jake.”

“Come on, we’ll go back to my house,” he said eagerly.

“Actually, I think I really do need to go. Angela Weber is expecting me, I promised I’d help her with her graduation announcements. Besides, Alice is worried, I’m sure. I don’t want to upset her too much.”

“But you just got here!”

“It feels that way,” I agreed. I glared up at the sun, somehow already directly overhead. How had the time passed so quickly?

His eyebrows pulled down over his eyes. “I don’t know when I’ll see you again,” he said in a quiet voice, and I could hear the hurt.

“I’ll come back the next time he’s away,” I promised.

“Away?” Jacob rolled his eyes. “That’s a nice way to describe what he’s doing. Disgusting parasites.”

“Jacob! What did I just tell you?” I tried to pull my hands free. He held them tightly.

“Sorry, sorry,” he said quickly, immediately repentant. He gently tugged me back towards him. “Knee-jerk reaction.”

“Listen, Jake, if I’m going to try and come back again, you’re going to have to get something straight, okay?”

He waited.

“See,” I explained. “I don’t care who’s a vampire and who’s a werewolf. That’s irrelevant. You are Jacob, and he is Edward, and I am Beau. And nothing else matters.”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “But I am a werewolf,” he said unwillingly. “And he is a vampire,” he added with revulsion.

“And I’m a Virgo!” I said, exasperated.

He raised his eyebrows, measuring my expression with curious eyes. Finally, he shrugged.

“If you can really see it that way…”

“I can. I do.”

“Okay. Just Beau and Jacob. None of those freaky Virgos here.” He smiled at me, the warm, familiar smile that I had missed so much. I felt the answering smile spread across my face.

Still sitting, he pulled me into a hug, wrapping his huge arms around my waist. I rested my head on top of his.

“I’ve really missed you, Jake,” I admitted. Running my fingers through his hair.

“Me, too,” He said, and I could hear the wide smile in his voice. “More than you know.” He gently pushed me back to look at my face. His eyes were happy and clear, free from all the angry bitterness. “Will you come back soon?”

“As soon as I can,” I promised.

And he pulled me back into another hug.

[count-demonlord-of-decadence]

The following excerpts are from Barbara Aikman's initial FBI interview.

Please forgive me, as I am to tell this story exactly as it’s maestro dictates. Many of these specific details he provided after the fact, But I can assure you, it’s all true officer. And since I value my life I shall do just such.

My name is Barbara Akiman, I’m a 28 year old woman from Fontana, California. I have a husband and two wonderful sons. I work as a webcam model during the school year and I voted for Trump. I was kidnapped during a webcam session with a suspiciously generous tipper. In hindsight that’s how they knew where I’d be, when I’d be there and alone. They wore all black combat suits and helmets. That’s all I saw for about six seconds before they gagged & hoodwinked me. I remember the hoodwink smelling of okra and fear. I was handcuffed and gently placed on the backseat of an electric car.

The car ride lasted the first eight tracks of Let It Roll; it’s an album released in 1989 by Don Johnson. From there I was placed in a helicopter with other people similarly restrained. We could hear each others moans and groans but were powerless to do anything. The helicopter ride was turbulent and lasted the entire length of Cool with You: The Platinum Collection plus the first six songs repeated. BTW, it’s the Asian edition "best of" album by Jennifer Love Hewitt, released in 2006. Again many of these details were provided for me after the fact. Again, these are the specific details he demanded I not leave out.

The helicopter took us to the M/Y Eclipse, a luxury motor yacht built by Blohm+Voss of Hamburg, Germany. I was the last one removed from the chopper. I was placed in a wheelchair, wrists and ankles restrained. The hoodwink was removed and I could see the beautiful yacht, clear blue sky and the deep blue sea before being wheeled inside. I was rushed at breakneck speed to the disco hall. A nerdy looking woman with glasses and bad acne in a filthy lab coat fitted me with a speculum and a dental gag. I was then wheeled front and center to the stage where I could witness this atrocity.

At first I was alone but over the course of the first nine tracks of C. Webb’s 2 Much Drama, a crowd of eccentrics gathered as if it were a social event. To them, it was. Drinks and hor dourves were served. A man wearing top hat, black tail coat, dark glasses, and cotton plugs in the nostrils, all in gold, took the stage and said,

“Welcome to our 4th of July party! I am you host, Demon Lord of the Black Magick Syndicate. Everybody clap your hands!” No one does, he continues, “Tonight’s event is simply an auction. We have enough victims to ensure no one will leave unsatisfied. Except maybe Nina.” This was a private joke about the tall woman with blonde extensions, wearing a dress that can only be described as, “Grandma threw up her split pea soup on an unflattering green bridesmaid dress.

“Each guest is allowed to bid on as many victims as you like up until you purchase one, then you’re out of the bidding. You’re free to use your victim however you please but it must be done here where we all can see.” This brought a cheer from the crowd eccentrics gathered about me, “And know that all corpses will be tossed overboard before we return to port. Oh, and one more thing. Bidding starts at ten thousand pounds and only bids in ten thousand pound increments will be recognized. C.O.D. of course. With that, on with the show!”

Before I continue let’s state that all of the victims were paraded out devoid of all clothing and makeup by the black clad soldiers I mentioned earlier. And the prisoners were unaware of what happened to each other.

“Marcia Lopez is an 11 year old El Salvadorian girl who was apprehended while trying to illegally enter the US.” She is sold for £1.1 million to a man that was obviously Donald Trump in a navy suit with a red tie, wearing an eagle mask. He physically overpowers the girl and rapes her, in a manner that obscures the crowd of eccentrics’ view of his genitalia. He commands her to shout compliments about him, but she doesn’t speak English which enrages him. Julio Camacho of the Sinaloa Cartel offers to translate but the Donald demands only English be spoken while he’s “making love”. After he discharged, Donald claimed he was too tired and too important to add to the pot and kill the girl himself. He claimed that’s what lackies were for. This is jeered by the crowd of eccentrics.

Viktor violently grabs the POTUS by the jaw and balls as Demon Lord graphically explains to Donald that if he doesn’t kill that girl and add to the pot; he will be the next item up for bid. He laments that he didn’t bring a gun, but Viktor lends him his Smith & Wesson Model 500. With tears in his eyes, the POTUS shoots the girl in the face. The bullet hits her on her left top incisor and does a satisfactory job of nearly decapitating the girl. He uses a serving spoon to scoop out some of the girls brains and add them to the pot. He then retires from the event while trying to pretend he isn’t crying.

“This is Dreama Beckett a 31 year old mother of four who whored her own children out to feed her prescription drug addiction. Her own children arranged for her to be here today.” She is sold to a man who is obviously former US president William Jefferson Clinton in a cheap suit from Walmart and an antiquated rabbit mask. It was repeatedly noted that he wasn’t wearing shoes or socks.

He has the woman locked in the pillory and thoroughly raped by a 54 year old homeless man from the streets of Cairo he brought as a guest. Just as the bum discharges into the woman’s womb, he cuts the trachea of the bum with the kama half of his kusarigama. He then sodomizes the dying bum and strangles Dreama with the chain portion of his kusarigama. His discharge comes with a roar so loud it would remain a topic of conversation for the remainder of the event. Her corpse seemed to be ignored by the sharks on the way down.

“Our next victim is 14 year old Olivia Huxtable of Atlanta Georgia. She came into our clutches due to corruption in the Georgia foster care system.” She is sold for £530,000 to a woman in a heliotrope pants suit and peacock masquerade mask that was obviously Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton.

She has the poor girl locked in the pillory and plays Gold Cobra, the fifth studio album by American nu metal band Limp Bizkit. She then performs acts of cunnilingus on the girl so thorough, so profound, she’s to remain the envy of all female witnesses, including myself, until the moment she expires. The girl is then raped with a strap on dildo by the former First Lady who shouts expletives and insults at the poor girl. She fucks her like she intends to kill the girl with rigorous fucking. She then insisted Mahmoud Togo and Viktor anally rape the girl, and they happily oblige. Mrs. Clinton the used an obsidian knife to slice off the poor girls breasts and add them to the pot. She then raped the girl with the knife and smeared the blood all over her face and the girls. She the made the herself a cup of coffee and made the girl watch as she drank it. Then had her tossed overboard.

“Meet 17 year old Chad Leftwich of Jackson Mississippi. He is better known as reddit, twitter and 4chan user 66WhiteApolloCreed420. His racist tweets, rants and memes are just a means of getting likes for him. He doesn’t truly feel this way in his heart.” This was jeered by the crowd of eccentrics. “Yes Chad! This is the beauty of our delights, that we pursue them with clear purpose and perpetual enthusiasm! That is why tonight all shall expose their passions and pursuits to all! No secrets between us! This allows us to overcome any and all segregations society tries to impose upon use with the yokes of religion, nationality, skin and race! If all were to follow their delights, one would soon find others who wanted to find similar delights, while moving away from those who wanted no part of such delights. Entire societies could be built upon the principle of what delights are legal here that are illegal there. And should one find the no longer wished to participate in what is happening here, they need only go there where it is illegal and never have to endure it again. And that state should welcome him with open arms because he has turned towards their way of life. But men and women never see themselves as the problem though, society is wrong for not being like them. They wish to impose their brand of order on people who never asked for it, don’t want it, and resent it for even being offered. So they start crusades and inquisitions and lynchings to rid their neighborhoods of undesirables among which they numbered only a few short months ago. And are among the first to cry foul when turnabout proves to be fair play. How boring.”

He is sold to woman in a designer heliotrope pants suit and ornate peacock masquerade mask that was obviously Melania Trump for £990,000. She has the man locked in the pillory and proceeds to shove a Billionaire couture Umbrella up the man’s ass as far as it will go before attempting to open it, like it should naturally open under these conditions. There is some speculation among the crowd if this is malice or ignorance but it’s quickly dropped. She then requests Demon Lord, Cammie, Nina & Viktor take turns dislocating a joint on Chad’s body until none remain. She defecates a thick steaming log into the man’s mouth, which Viktor helps him swallow. . She then rapes him with a strap on horse dildo made of ivory for exactly 900 seconds She the goes ass to ass with the aforementioned Zara Hogan with a rather large double dildo, screaming racial and religious epithets the entire time. Her discharge is so voluminous that she is able to salvage most of it and add it to the still simmering pot. The First Lady then chokes her victim to death the the double dildo. When he is tossed overboard, she watches him sink until she cannot see him anymore.

This is a work of satire. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination; or used in a fictitious manner to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration or ridicule. It intends to improve humanity by criticizing its follies and foibles. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.