#ok…so they could’ve probably dealt with their meeting a bit better

[iwozlegit]

Earthspark Megatron: Optimus, how humane is it really to keep my former Decepticons imprisoned and caged like savage beasts? We…I…am better than this…this is not the right way to handle this…

Earthspark Megatron after seeing Starscream with Hashtag: holdmybeer

[lyranova]

Children of the Future:

Chapter 10: Finding Maelie

Hi guys! Sorry i haven’t been active here lately, I’m hoping that’ll change soon and i’ll be able to post more for you guys this weekend 🥰! Here’s chapter 10 and I hope you all enjoy! Also if I forgot to tag anyone please let me know!

Taglist: @eme-eleff @crazyclownthanos @jovialnoise @talpup @simpingforthisonedeer @melissa-novachrono @thoughtfullyrainynightmare @bowandcurtsey (i couldn’t remember if you wanted to be tagged or not Aine 😅) @ckjwnnbc

Word Count: 3,216

Warnings: None

———

“ Where was the last place you saw your sister?” Gauche asked as he, Grey, Yami, and Aloys stood outside of the Castle. They had all agreed to help him look for his sister and, of course, it had to be now that he wanted to look for her. The dark haired boy frowned in thought as he tried to remember.

“ Back home. Right as we entered the Time Gate, she was right next to me, but when I woke up she was gone.” He muttered the last part softly as he looked away. Grey walked over and placed a gentle hand onto his shoulder and smiled reassuringly.

“ It’s ok, we’ll find her I promise!” She told the boy confidently, Gauche tilted his head slightly, Grey was much more confident and comfortable around Aloy’s then anyone else. Maybe because he was a little timid like her? Or was it because he was her, no, their son?

“ Ok, that gives us almost nothing to go on.” Gauche said with a sigh and the boy glared icily at him.

“ ‘Almost nothing’ is better than completely nothing, y'know.” He grumbled, Yami quickly cut between the two before Gauche could retort.

“ Look, if you two are gonna squabble and bicker I’m going to send you both home. Together. Where you have no option but to speak and spend time together, understand?” Yami threatened, the two nodded but continued to glare at each other. He turned to Aloys.

“ Where did you wake up?” He asked, the boy looked around for a moment.

“ Somewhere deep in the woods. I came through the east side of the Capitol so I’m assuming the East Woods.” He said with a shrug, he wasn’t the best at directions so he easily could have been mistaken, but it was his best guess at the moment.

“ Alright then, let’s start there.” Yami said as he stepped onto his broom. Gauche and Grey did the same and Aloys sat behind Grey on her broom. The four quickly took off into the air and headed towards the East Woods.

“ Captain,” Gauche called as he flew up next to him. “ You know it’s a long shot we’re going to find anything there right? Even if we happen to find the exact spot where the kid woke up.” Gauche pointed out, Yami looked over at him and nodded.

“ I know, but it’s the only lead we’ve got.” Yami countered. Gauche looked away, he knew the Captain was right, even though he didn’t want to admit it. He fell back a few feet and flew a little behind him. Yami shook his head and let a small sigh escape his lips.

So much for getting back home early.

——-

Charlotte looked around the house with a confused frown; where was everyone? She seemed to be the only Captain to have arrived so far, and the kids were nowhere to be seen. She looked down the halls before placing a hand on her hip, where could they be? She looked up as she saw a flash of pink outside the kitchen window. She tilted her head before walking out the side door and heading to what one would consider a backyard. She quickly dodged as a spell went flying past her head.

“ Be careful Josslyn you could’ve gotten someone killed if you don’t learn to watch where you’re aiming!” Hikari shouted, Charlotte frowned as she approached the two girls, were they training?

“ Geez, tone it down Hikari, it’s not like anyone got hurt. Oh hi Captain Suke-, I mean, Captain Roselei.” Josslyn said as she suddenly noticed the blonde Captain approaching them, Hikari turned around and smiled at her ‘mother’.

“ Josslyn, Hikari,” Charlotte nodded at the two before standing in front of them with her arms crossed.” What are you two doing?”

“ Training.” They answered in unison, both girls looked at each other before laughing a bit, they did have the tendency to answer at the same time. Charlotte smiled softly before nodding.

“ I saw, you’re both pretty good. But,” she turned to Josslyn. “ Hikari’s right, you have to make sure your spells are perfectly aimed and well timef, otherwise an innocent might get caught in the crossfire.” Charlotte lightly reprimanded the pink haired girl, who looked away and muttered under her breath before walking away.

“ I’m gonna train on my own for a while.” She threw over her shoulder to the mother and daughter, Hikari went to open her mouth but Josslyn cut her off. “ I’ll be right over there so you can see me, I promise I won’t run off.” She added, Hikari closed her mouth and nodded before turning to Charlotte.

“ Where are the boys?” The blonde asked, Hikari looked around for a moment before her eyes landed on them.

“ They’re over there, by the looks of it Alistar is teaching Ace about what kind of plant that is.” She chuckled and Charlotte laughed a bit as well.

“ He really loves plants doesn’t he?” She asked, she had only known him for less then a day but considering he told her about what all plants the spices in the kitchen had come from and their origins, that was the little information she was able to gather from the white haired boy. Hikari nodded.

“ He does, it’s one of his many quirks. But he doesn’t go on and on about plants all the time, only when he sees one that he feels like telling you a bit about.” She chuckled again, Charlotte tilted her head a bit.

“ He seems like a very nice young man.” She tried to sound casual, but she was digging for information on the two, but only just a little. She quickly shook her head, ‘What are you doing Charlotte?! Their love life isn’t any of your business! You’re starting to sound like one of your girls!’ She scolded herself but she saw the dark haired girl nod in agreement.

“ He is. He’s probably one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, but there’s a little more to him than just that. He’s smart, brave, kind of quiet, and despite all the challenges life has dealt him, he always tries to smile.” She told Charlotte fondly before shrugging a bit. “ He has the second biggest fanclub in the Golden Dawn, right behind his dad, and I tried to get him to go out on a date with a couple of girls from his fan club. But he wouldn’t do it.” She added with a small sigh and shake of her head, Charlotte looked from Hikari to Alistar curiously.

“ Is there someone who has his heart already?” Hikari frowned in thought for a moment before shaking her head.

“ I don’t think so, I’m his best friend, so I would think he would tell me if there’s someone he likes already.” Hikari said, he would tell her right? I mean, after all they’ve been through and all the things they knew about each other, he was bound to tell her if he had a crush on someone? Right? Hikari shook her head quickly before changing the subject.

“ Why aren’t you and my dad together already?” She watched her ‘mother’s’ face turn a bright shade of read and she began to stammer nervously, apparently she wasn’t expecting the question.

“ B-Because,” Charlotte looked away. “ Because I’m not strong enough yet, Yami deserve’s to have a strong capable woman by his side. One that can protect him just like he protects everyone, one that can stand on her own and be his equal in every way. I’m not there yet I’m afraid. But,” she smiled softly before looking at her ‘daughter’. “ I think I’ll get there eventually, it’s just going to take some time and, as Yami put’s it, I’ll need to surpass my limits.”

Hikari smiled, she was proof her mother was right that she would eventually get there. But there was also worry in her smile. She was worried about how her, and her friends, appearance here would affect the timeline. Would her parents still get together like how they did originally? Or would she somehow influence it? She didn’t know, and that made her nervous.

———

Gauche couldn’t help but wonder why him, why did he have to get stuck with Aloys?! The boy seemed to be closer to Grey so why didn’t the Captain send him with her? He couldn’t help but glare as the Captain divided the four of them up when they had arrived at the East Woods, if he didn’t put Grey and Aloys together because they had the same magic type then why didn’t he send Grey to go looking for the girl with Gauche? There was only one logical answer:

He was being punished for earlier, he had to be.

But now that the two were alone he could actually look at the boy. He seemed to be 16, his hair was a dark brown-ish blue shade, he had a similar body type to Gauche but shorter, if Aloy’s was anything like him he’d probably hit his growth spurt soon, he also seemed to be much more quiet now then he was earlier. From what he had seen back at the Castle, Aloys seemed to be nearly identical to Gauche, but now that he had settled down, he seemed to be more like Grey.

“ Stop staring at me old man, you’re making me nervous.” Aloys muttered as he glanced at his ‘father’, Gauche rolled his eyes and looked away.

“ Stop calling me an old man! I’m only 4 years older than you!” Gauche argued, Aloys smirked.

“ Still older.” Gauche growled.

“ The Captain should’ve sent you with Grey, she’s better at dealing with you.” He told Aloys, who nodded.

“ I wish he would have too, that way I wouldn’t have to deal with you old man.” Gauche quickly whipped around to glare at his ‘son’.

“ Momma’s boy!” Aloys turned to look at his ‘dad’.

“ Sister lover!”

“ What did you just-?” Gauche growled dangerously low when Aloys suddenly gasped and took off running past him. “ Hey kid, wait!” He quickly followed after him.

“ This was it!” Aloys shouted as he stood in a small circle of trees, he looked around wildly. “ This is where I woke up! Maelie! Maelie are you here?” He shouted as he walked into the center of the circle. Gauche pulled out the communication device and quickly gave Yami their coordinates.

———

“ You’re sure this was it?” Yami asked as he looked around, they were almost dead center in the East Woods, why had he been dropped here of all places? Hell, how did the kid not get lost in these woods? He watched as the umber haired boy continued to look around the area.

“ Yeah I’m sure, because I thought it was strange that all these trees were in a circle. It’s kind of ominous.” Aloys said with a shrug, suddenly a flock of birds came flying out one of the tree’s and Grey let out a shriek before hiding behind Gauche, who sighed and shook his head.

“ It’s just bird's Grey, and will you please stop clinging to my shirt?” He asked, honestly he didn’t actually mind her clinging to him, but he wasn’t about to let anyone know that. Grey only seemed to cling tighter to his shirt.

“ I-I’m sorry Gauche, b-but this place is just so t-terrifying!” Grey stammered, her eyes shut tightly and her face as red as a tomato. She wanted to go home. This place was much too scary and she didn’t like it at all, but she was somewhat comforted by Gauche’s presence. He always seemed to make her feel safer, even braver at times. Aloys tilted his head slightly as he watched his ‘parents’ but he didn’t comment.

“ It doesn’t look like anyone else was dropped here except you,” Yami said as he crouched down at the ground. “ are you sure you two walked through this ‘time gate’ together?” Aloys snorted.

“ Of course I am, I was holding her hand the entire time.” He explained, the other three frowned, if he was holding her hand, then how did they get seperated? Yami looked at the sky for a moment; it was beginning to get dark, they either had to find the girl quickly or call it a day.

“ It’s getting dark,” Gauche said as he also looked at the sky. “ we’ll have to call it a day for now and search again tomorrow.” Aloys began to quickly shake his head at his ‘father’s’ words.

“ No, No way! We have to find her! She’s only 9 years old, in a new and unfamiliar place! She could be hungry and scared or someone could grab her and take off with her!” Aloys shouted.

“ Yeah, she could be all those things. But she could also be anywhere in this city, or even anywhere in this country! How are you going to be able to find and look for your sister if you can’t see where you’re going because it’s too dark?!” Gauche shouted back, Aloys clenched his teeth and looked away; he knew Gauche was right, they wouldn’t be able to see much of anything in the dark, but she was his little sister, he had to find her. He promised.

“ W-What if it was Marie?” Grey asked softly as she opened her eyes and looked up at the brown haired man, he turned a small shade of pink and looked away. “ If it were her that were missing, wouldn’t you keep searching all the way until morning and beyond if you had to?” She heard him make a small noise in the back of his throat, he knew she was right, if Marie were missing there would be no stopping him until he found her.

Gauche looked at Aloys and saw a familiar, determined look. One he had on his face many times, especially when it came to something, or someone, important to him. He sighed and scratched the back of his head.

“ Fine, we’ll keep looking for the girl. But if we don’t find her by morning then we’ll stop and regroup. Got it?” He asked Aloys, who smiled and nodded in agreement. Gauche looked at Yami. “ Captain, if you need to, you can head back. We can handle this.”

Yami stared at Gauche and Grey for a moment before a smirk made its way across his face. He walked past them and towards where his broom was leaning on a tree.

“ Alright, if you need me you still have the communication device I gave you. So use it if you’re in trouble.” Yami instructed before he stepped onto his broom and lifted himself into the air and flew off into the direction of the shared house.

Though, he had a feeling they wouldn’t need to call for help.

———

Yami landed outside the house with a soft ‘thud’, it was already dark out, a small piece of him hoped that they found the girl and were on their way back. But considering she could be anywhere made him doubt they would be able to find her in one day. He opened the door and, just like this morning, everyone was seated around the dining table getting ready to eat.

“ Oh, welcome back Captain Sukehiro!” Alistar greeted warmly and with a cheerful smile, Yami nodded at the white haired boy before walking towards the other. Hikari turned to face her ‘father’ and she also smiled, Yami blinked a bit, he almost forgot her smile was the exact same as Charlotte’s. He gave her a small smile before he sat next to her.

“ Rough day?” Hikari asked before putting a piece of food into her mouth, Yami looked around the table and noticed everyone was either eating or had just finished and were cleaning up the kitchen. He shrugged.

“ Not too bad I guess. I had to inform everyone about being on the lookout for other kids, and lo and behold, I was called to Julius’s office again for another kid.” He muttered as he poured himself a small glass of wine and took a sip.

“ Zora already told us that,” Charlotte said as she walked in from the kitchen. “ Who was it this time?”

“ Grey and Gauche, their son Aloys attacked the Magic Knights guarding the Castle and of course Julius had to step in. He’s a chip off the old block when he’s pissed.” Yami said with a small smirk, it was amusing that when the boy was angry he acted just like Gauche, but otherwise he was more like Grey. He silently wondered if their daughter was the same way, or if she was the opposite? Hikari quickly put down her fork and looked at him.

“ Aloys is here? Is Maelie here too?” She asked as she turned in her seat, Yami let out a small sigh before shaking his head.

“ She’s lost apparently, Gauche, Grey, and Aloys are still out searching for her.” Yami explained before she suddenly got up and headed straight for the door, with Alistar right behind her. “ Where are you going?”

“ To help them look for her! I can’t believe you left them out there to search on their own!” She said angrily, her father was never this way, he never abandoned someone who needed help!

“ Now wait a minute-.” Charlotte started but was cut off.

“ No I won’t! Why did you leave them to look for her on their own, why didn’t you stay and help them?!” She asked Yami, he stood up and looked at her.

“ Because I trust them.” He answered simply. “ I know they’ll find her and they won’t stop until they do, I gave them a communication device in case they needed me. But I don’t think they’ll need to use it.” Hikari glared at him before turning around and grabbed the door knob.

“ Trusting them isn’t a good enough reason.” She muttered before pulling the door open and being greeted with a purple shirt, one she recognized.

“ Gauche?”

As the dark haired girl’s gaze traveled higher she noticed Gauche was carrying a small girl in his arms, one with dark blue-ish brown hair and wearing a blue and white dress.

He was holding Maelie.

“ See? I told you.” Yami smirked, even from a distance he could see Hikari’s cheeks tinted with pink. Alistar chuckled slightly before patting her on the shoulder.

“ It’s ok, everyones wrong sometimes.” He tried to comfort, but in a teasing way since it was very rare for Hikari to be wrong. She quickly muttered something under her breath as she moved to allow the Adlai family inside. Grey closed the door softly behind them before following after Gauche and Aloys.

“ Where can we put her?” He asked the Captain’s, Yami jerked his thumb to the left.

“ There’s a room where the girls are staying, she can sleep in there for now.” He said with a shrug, Josslyn sighed and stood up from the table.

“ C’mon I’ll show you.” The pink haired girl quickly led them down the hall, Aloys turned around to face everyone.

“ We’ll explain later.” He laughed, he seemed to be much more relaxed and at ease now that they had found his little sister. He turned back around and followed the others down the hall.

———

Sorry the ending isn’t the best, I couldn’t think of how to end it 😅. I might have a small scene where they find maelie in the next chapter but i’m not sure yet 😅. Anyway thanks for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

[ask-the-riders]

Forging A Bond

Welp,, I wrote this a little while ago, but thanks to my ADD, I kept getting distracted and forgetting to do anything with it ^^"

In summary, Retribution had caught the attention of a stranger, who in turn had decided to follow him for a bit. He tries to ignore them, but inevitably, they wind up making their presence known and introducing themselves, completely catching him by surprise

Retribution let out a soft breath, keeping his gaze forward as he walked. He'd been able to sense the feelings of a second person for a while now. Although he found it odd, he detected no malicious intent, so he attempted to ignore them. Dried, dead leaves crunched under his boots as he kept walking, fighting the urge to glance back over his shoulder. Reaching his destination, he lowered himself onto one knee, delicately placing a small bouquet of flowers in front of a headstone. The rider remained silent, part of his cloak fluttering in the breeze as he reached out to gingerly trace his fingers over the name on the stone. Remembering the human who was buried there, he frowned, furrowing his brow bones and murmuring, "If only I could've been there for you in your final moments..." 

He could sense the approaching soul behind him, already aware that it belonged to the person who'd followed him here. Not even remotely surprised as they called out to him, "Well, it looks like someone beat me here." At the unfamiliar voice, he arched a brow bone, "I'm afraid so. What business do you have here?" They hummed, drawing nearer, "I'm merely paying my respects to the fallen children here. And you?" Retribution stood, straightening his clothes, "I'm also paying my respects... I lost a dear friend quite a while ago, so I'm visiting her grave, specifically." The stranger gave off a pulse of sympathy and made a sound in understanding, "Ah. I'm sorry for your loss... I can't imagine the way you must feel." 

Ret watched curiously as a figure passed by him, moving to the next row of graves. Despite the long coat they wore and the hood hiding their face, he immediately noticed the simple, yet elegant gown they were wearing, along with bones as white as fresh snow. With their back to him, he watched them curiously, silent for a moment before speaking again, "So... Any particular reason why you followed me here?" The stranger momentarily tensed up, "...I should've known that you would've caught on. You are a version of Nightmare, so it's in your nature to be incredibly observant." Retribution stiffened at hearing his old name, his brow bones furrowing, "Ok, who are you, and why were you following me?" The figure let out a deep sigh, pushing their hood back off of their head to reveal a simple crown that sat atop their skull. Turning to face Retribution, they proceeded to unbutton their coat, pulling part of it aside to reveal a family crest stitched into the fabric over their chest. 

The rider's sockets widened as he recognized it, and blatantly ignoring his scowl, the figure before him gave a small curtsey, her violet and grey eye lights meeting his cyan ones, "I apologize for the delayed introduction. I am Nyx, daughter of Nightmare, and the current queen of the kingdom of Regoria." Retribution stared at her for a moment in silence as he tried to process the situation; His original counterpart was a father, huh?... Would that mean that, in a way, he was a father, too? As if Nyx could tell what he was thinking, she hummed, "Yes, it's true. The 'walking tar pit,' as some call him, has children. There's myself, and I have a brother, as well." 

He blinked in surprise; It wasn't just the one kid, it was two now? Who in their right mind would willingly sleep with his counterpart?? Twice, at that.

Ret cleared his throat, "That's... Interesting. I'll admit, I wasn't expecting to learn anything like this today. That still doesn't explain why you were following me though, your Highness." Nyx rolled her eye lights and couldn't help but smile slightly, "At ease, Retribution. I wasn't following you with the intention of causing you any problems or harm. I was curious about you and wondered what you were doing here, that's all." The rider made a face, still at a loss, "I'd like to ask how you know my name, but I feel like I should be more concerned about why you were curious about me." The princess laughed softly, "I can't blame you for being wary of me, but I'm serious. I don't mean you any harm, and I'm here of my own accord. My curiosity stems from the things I've read about you in my father's journal." 

He narrowed his eyes a bit in suspicion, "Oh, really? What kinds of things has he written about me?" Nyx shrugged her shoulders, remaining completely at ease, "It's nothing incriminating, don't worry. He seems to be logging the differences between the two of you and jotting down notes about your interactions, for the most part. I can see some of the obvious differences between you already, but I'm intrigued. I'd like to observe with my own eyes." The rider arched a brow bone, "Tell me what differences you think you see." The princess made her way over to a bench and sat down, tilting her head as she looked at him, "Well, there's the obvious lack of tentacles and goop. Your eyes are cyan by default while his are violet, and you appear ever so slightly shorter than him." 

He made a sound in acknowledgment, beginning to approach her. As he stopped in front of the bench and clasped his hands behind his back, she smiled again, amusement bleeding into her tone, "While you appear quite different from him physically, you're also very similar, at the same time." Retribution scoffed, "You must be joking. I'm nothing like him, and that's a fact." Nyx leaned back on her hands, "I'm not. The way you hold yourself and that stance you're in are quite familiar. I've seen them countless times from my father. I'm getting the impression that you're stubborn and full of denial, as well." Ret was briefly taken aback, glancing away from her. Reading him with ease, she straightened, lightly patting the seat beside her, "Come, sit with me. My schedule for today is clear and I'm available to talk as long as you want, if you'd be open to it. I know that by default, you probably don't give others your trust very easily, and I understand. I would like to learn more about you, and in turn, I believe I can provide you with answers for whatever questions are floating around in that head of yours." 

Retribution hesitated a few seconds before letting out a deep sigh, moving to sit beside her. Nyx's brow bones furrowed as she looked at him, slowly lifting a hand and beginning to reach for his face. She stopped just short of actually touching him, clearing her throat, "May I?" The rider stared at her hand, considering the options; He could either allow it, with the worst case scenario being an attack, or he could tell her no, and the worst case scenario would again, be an attack. 

He weighed the pros and cons, and with a sigh, he gave a small nod, "Go ahead." The princess offered him a tiny smile, delicately tracing her fingertips over the faint hints of cracks that framed one of his sockets. She leaned a bit closer, her eyes squinting as she took in the way the cracks had healed. They were smooth and so light that she probably wouldn't have even seen them if he wasn't so close to her. Tilting her head, her brow bones furrowed as she murmured, "You were hurt, quite some time ago... I can see the cracks, and they look like they've healed pretty well." He glanced away from her, beginning to sense the concern and sympathy she felt, "They have, and I'm glad they healed this way, honestly. It's better than them healing wrong and leaving me looking like some freakshow." 

Nyx withdrew her hands after a few more seconds had passed, watching him curiously; If he was anything like her father when it came to the way he dealt with his emotions, she'd be able to read him like a book. Right now, he was trying to maintain his proud, stubborn front, but in the way he avoided her gaze, his discomfort was as clear as day. Whether it was anxiety, him being secretive, or a lack of self esteem, she wasn't sure, but at the very least, she could tell that it had nothing to do with him being deceitful. She offered him a slight smile, breaking the formality in an effort to provide some reassurance, "Nah, I don't think you'd look like a freakshow. You might look pretty badass with some cracks and scars, actually." 

He arched a brow bone, glancing at her and clearing his throat, his tone holding a very faint hint of amusement, "I appreciate the thought. Though, I'm surprised your father lets you talk that way." Nyx couldn't help but smile slightly again, lightly nudging him with her shoulder, "Are you talking about the cursing, or the fact that I gave a compliment?" The rider hummed, "Both." She laughed softly, the sound catching Ret off guard. He watched her, blinking as he noticed the softness of her features; She definitely looked like a princess, and she spoke like one too, for the most part. As his eye lights caught sight of the bandages wrapped around her hands and the barely visible scratches and scuff marks that decorated her arms, he began to wonder if she also behaved as such.

He was pulled from his thoughts as she let out a sigh in contentment, "Compliments, I could see your reasoning for. After all, he doesn't seem like the type that'd give any form of praise, does he? The cursing, however... He's not a fan of it, but he doesn't complain unless it becomes excessive. I wonder, do you have any children that you allow to curse?" Retribution's mind briefly wandered, settling on a memory of Pestilence and Abrael playing with dirt, and he shook his head, "I have no children of my own. The closest I've got would be my nephew and my idiot friends." The princess blinked, appearing momentarily surprised, "Oh, I see. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I assumed that you must have at least one child by now." He tilted his head, "Nope. Just because your father and I share a similar origin story and are, in a sense, the same person, I'm afraid we live two completely different lives. He's got you and your brother, a league of bad guys that he's assembled, and he's still pretty focused on killing Dream, last time I checked. Meanwhile, I work in a team with other monsters, though not as their leader. I have no children, and instead of a brother, I have a sister." 

Nyx's eyes widened the smallest bit in surprise and she mirrored him, tilting her head as well, "You're not the leader of your team, you have no children, and your Dream is a girl?" Well aware of her surprise and increasing interest, he made a sound in confirmation, "That's correct. The only thing with my Dream is that she doesn't go by that name anymore. Rather than that, her name is Conquest." The princess seemed to perk up, "Oh! I think I know her, actually!" Retribution's brow bones furrowed and a look of confusion crossed his face, "How so?" She straightened her back, her posturing becoming proud, "She knows me as Lady Night, and is a follower of mine. I give her odd jobs every so often, but her primary task is to protect the children who have no one else they can count on, who makes them feel safe and loved. Between the work she does for Death and the work she does for me, she's being paid quite the pretty penny." 

The rider stared at her in disbelief, and at his expression, she did her best not to giggle. He was silent for a few seconds before speaking again, "...You're being serious right now?" She nodded, "Of course I am." Retribution let out a long, low whistle, "Well color me shocked. You're still so young, but you already rule a kingdom and have your own little following that, based on what Conquest's told me, seems like it's bordering on you being viewed as some ethereal, otherworldly being. I bet your father's proud of you for achieving so much." Nyx shrugged her shoulders, smiling slightly, "I believe he is, yes... He's just not very good at expressing it, some days. He doesn't quite understand the concept of protecting others without any form of personal gain. To him, I'd be better off at the castle, helping him plot my uncle's murder."

Ret took a moment to debate what he should say next, his brow bones knit. Deciding to wing it and hope for the best, he hummed, "Ah, I see... He and I are technically the same person, even though we're very different. I'm not sure if it would mean anything to you, but if he's having a hard time expressing how proud he is of you, then I'll do it for him." The princess's eyes widened slightly, and she remained quiet as he pressed on, "The multiverse works in the strangest of ways, so I'm honestly not sure if you'd count as my child or not. Regardless of that, I have no shame in admitting that I'm proud of you for all that you've done, and I think you're doing what's right. Your choices might not always make sense to him, but at the very least, they make sense to me." 

The princess stared at him in surprise, taking a moment to collect herself as her cheekbones flushed violet and she glanced away, "...I officially met you for the first time, not even a full hour ago, and you're already giving me some version of the 'if you were my child' speech?" Retribution's cheekbones also became flushed and he shifted awkwardly, also glancing away from her, "If that's how you'd like to look at it, I guess. Forgive me for being so straightforward, Nyx. I'm not normally like this, and I genuinely have no idea what my problem is right now." She let out a soft sigh, "It's alright. I'm not normally like this either. I think I might have a theory though, as to what the reason for this sudden, out of character attitude change is." 

He tilted his head, "What do you think it could be?" The princess lifted a hand, resting it over her sternum, "Maybe it's a bit of a leap, but it's possible that it has something to do with our souls. If yours is similar enough to my father's, then it could be attempting to forge a connection of some sort with mine." The rider made a face, considering it for a moment - she was right, it was a pretty big thing to assume - but at the same time, it also made sense, in a way. Fighting the urge to hide in his cloak, he spoke again, his voice a bit softer than it'd previously been, "I suppose that makes sense... Have you seen your father's soul before, Nyx?" She gave a slow nod, glancing up to sheepishly meet his gaze, "Yes, I have... It's been a while, but when I was a child, I used to have these awful nightmares. He'd calm me down by holding me in his arms and materializing his soul, while his tentacles kind of acted like a shield."

Retribution listened quietly and offered no complaint as she continued speaking, a small smile on her face as she recalled the instances when her father had used his soul to comfort her, "I remember it being warm, and how he sounded when he either told me a story or began to hum this one song, in an effort to calm me down... His soul's corrupted by excess negativity, and it has been for a while, but there were these thin slivers of it that weren't concealed by the goop, and the prettiest purple light would shine through. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to cast a glow across my room, and it made me feel safe, somehow." Although he was having a hard time picturing his counterpart ever being that soft with anyone, he chose not to voice his thoughts; The look on Nyx's face was peaceful and happy, and he decided that he preferred it over one that was upset and insulted.

His cheekbones dusted a slightly brighter shade of cyan and he looked away from her, allowing his soul to materialize and float just outside his chest, "Was it anything like this?" Her eye lights locked on his soul and her violet blush became a tiny bit brighter as well. Taking in the apple shaped soul before her that was only partially coated by corruption, she couldn't help but stare, marveling at it's soft purple luminescence as she breathed out, "Yes... It's nearly identical. The only difference is that yours isn't as corrupted, and therefore it shines a little brighter." He made a sound in understanding, pushing his soul back into his chest, "I see... I won't ask to see your soul because I know how personal that can be, but I'm curious. Is yours at all similar to mine and his?" 

She shrugged her shoulders, refusing to look at him as her own soul began to materialize. Ret watched as it took on a similar shape, but arched a brow bone in confusion as it became a vibrant orange, small yellow speckles dotted across its surface. Before he had the chance to ask about the color, she spoke, "...It's weird, I know. I'm a monster, but I have human soul traits. You can thank my mother for that one." The rider blinked in confusion, tilting his head, "Your mother's a human? What about that brother you mentioned?" Nyx made a face, "She was, yes... For whatever reason though, she was murdered when my brother, Kazimir, and I were still babies. Kazimir himself is also a monster, but he has a human soul trait, as well. Mine was originally just bravery, but it developed the justice trait after a while because of my line of work, and Kazimir has the integrity trait. It's possible that he could've developed a secondary one like me, but I haven't asked about it." 

He watched Nyx push her soul back into her chest and sighed, offering her a small, reassuring smile, "Well that's pretty neat. I didn't think it was weird either, by the way. It wasn't what I was expecting, but there's nothing wrong with the way it is. If you ask me, I think it suits you." Nyx nearly gaped at him and he rolled his eye lights in amusement; Never in a million years did he think that this was what he'd be doing today. He didn't know that his counterpart had children, and he would've never guessed that he'd get to meet either of them, much less have such an oddly pleasant conversation. He didn't think he'd ever allow anyone other than Famine and Conquest to see his soul, and while he did realize the risks that came with doing such a thing, he didn't feel that Nyx was a threat. 

Nyx, despite being his miscreant counterpart's daughter, felt familiar, somehow. It was like he'd met her somewhere before, and even stranger yet, it felt like it would be safe to trust her. There was an odd warmth in his chest that he had mixed feelings about, and he was struggling to fully grasp what it meant. On one hand, it reminded him of the warmth he felt when he was with his partner, but on the other, it also reminded him of the warmth he felt when he spent time with his nephew, as well. He'd literally met Nyx maybe an hour or so ago, but his soul seemed to be making an attempt to form a bond with hers already, and he bit back a scoff at how ridiculous this entire situation was becoming. 

It was strange and downright unnatural, but he didn't feel the need to complain very much. Nyx looked completely content, and as long as she wasn't attacking him, then he supposed that was what mattered most.

[americankimchi]

ok and I GET the concept of attachments leading to vulnerability and therefore weakness but to impose that on a CHILD who so desperately needs a family, someone he could bond with, its honestly tragic. and since qui gon isnt there to do it anymore it falls on obi wan, whos basically a kid himself, whos dealt with rejection his whole life, and how can you expect him to provide anything, much less mentor a padawan?? idk i just have so many FEELINGS abt this and can’t put it into proper words lol

okay you know what i think that’s on qui gon because why!!! would you make the decision to rip a child away from his home like that so quickly!!! i get that they were making a movie and thus needed to speed things along for pacing reasons but COME ONNNNN

i feel like if it wasn’t restricted for movie reasons it would have gone down very differently. difference being: hey, maybe we don’t rip anakin away from his mom and leave not only his mom still in slavery but also punt a tiny child directly into a warzone.

hear me out

so assuming qui gon decides not to take anakin with him (at that moment in time because anakin is still going to be heading to the order just in a more meticulous fashion) right after meeting the skywalkers on tattooine, he still needs to get off planet. so he does the whole race thing yadda yadda he gets the engine and they take off

so here’s where it diverges: anakin stays on tattooine and never goes to naboo.

(bro this got so long i had to put it under a cut omfg)

but cindy!! you might say, leaving anakin on tattoine??? stuck in slavery??? how could you!!!

YES, but this is a temporary thing, just stay with me for a second

padme disagrees but relents because qui gon says he’ll come back for the boy when he’s not, you know, neck deep in the middle of tense wartime negotiations that could trigger a full scale onslaught at any moment. that’s no place to bring a small child into no matter how powerful in the force he is.

qui gon heads back to the council, gives his report, and then mentions anakin. mentions his fuckin. midichlorian count. which is still so ridiculous to me oh my god the midichlorian is the powerhouse of the force i GUESS

anyways

the council still disapproves, but qui gon makes the case that even if they don’t believe him about the chosen one thing it’s still dangerous to leave such a powerful force user out there untrained and vulnerable to the stresses and traumas of slavery. what if he turns to the dark side??? he’ll have ample reasons to if he’s stuck there, and the amount of destruction he could unleash by being untrained and powerful is unspeakable!! qui gon, being the master diplomat he is, even if he is constantly butting heads with the council, could probably convince them of the importance of at least meeting the child. hell, it’s not as if they haven’t broken people free from slavery before it’s honestly jedi basic training at this point

so the council agrees on the condition that qui gon is not allowed to personally mentor the boy because as it stands now he’s too close to the situation, too eager which honestly??? might have been a good chunk of the reason why the council was so against it in the first place. qui gon pushed for it too hard and for no real solid reason. and for fuck’s sake qui gon your padawan is right there

obi wan, awkwardly shuffling on his feet like..... yeah i’m here too master

SPEAKING OF OBI WAN

imagine how gutting it must be to hear that your master wants to get rid of you for the newer, younger model. like at this point obi wan is so used to this shit. abandonment? by qui gon??? it’s more likely than you think,

and obi wan’s ALLL ready to be like “yeah okay. i’ll just. go over here then i guess. fuck me for thinking that you respected me as a person or anything lmao right”

and qui gon’s just “ah fuck. i can’t believe i’ve done this”

anyways hand waves qui gon explaining his reasoning to obi wan and saying that he just wants to ensure that the boy gets the training he needs and obi wan understanding but asking if he really thinks he’s ready to be a knight genuinely or if he’s just saying that to get him out of the way and wow that thought actually hurt a bit lol!!! no problem though qui gon whatever you want haha i’ll just... be in pain. over here. ((:

and qui gon being like, “honestly obi wan the only reason you’re not actually knighted is because i cherish your companionship and i don’t want to let you go” because ANAKIN ISN’T THE ONLY ONE WITH ATTACHMENT ISSUES CASE IN POINT: MY MANS JINN

let’s be honest obi wan could’ve been knighted ages ago. the only reason he hasn’t been is because the master dictates when that step should be taken and qui gon wasn’t ready to let his surrogate son go.

anyways RECONCILIATION WHOO kicks that insecurity off of obi wan’s already weary shoulders because that gnarly bit of tension could’ve been avoided so easily with just a simple conversation!! wow!!! communication can do wondrous things who! would! have! known!!!!!

anyways

they get to naboo. how do they beat the trade federation without anakin? the force works in mysterious ways alright it happens they win boom.

now, onto qui gon. in this au qui gon lives because of that healthy bit of communication up there that went down. see that conversation? where they affirm how important they (qui gon and obi wan) are to each other? and how that bond was repaired and confirmed between their leaving coruscant and fighting maul on naboo and thus their harmonious fighting wasn’t impaired by that underlying resentment and betrayal and tension??? TELLING YOUR KIDS THAT YOU LOVE AND RESPECT THEM CAN DO AMAZING THINGS WITH YOUR ABILITY TO COORDINATE WITH THEM IN THE FIELD IMAGINE THAT

coughs

so they fight maul and maul gets turned into maul 1 and maul 2 and qui gon almost gets got but is saved just in time by his padawan who is!! right there with him!!! because qui gon WAITS 5 SECONDS FOR HIM TO CATCH UP so they can F I G H T  T O G E T H E R. qui gon has a permanent limp and an ache in his spine that never really goes away but he’s ALIVE TO SEE THE NEXT SUNRISE BABEY

celebrations happen. and the most important bit of all here: palpatine never meets anakin on naboo.

why would he? anakin’s not fuckin there mate!!! maul wouldn’t even know anything about anakin because qui gon never bothered to take him with them to coruscant and maul was chasing the delegation from naboo, not going hunting for babies in the tatooinian sands

/kicks the palpatine was anakin’s experimental force daddy theory to the curb because. i don’t like it that’s why. suck it dickpatine.

ANAKIN NEVER MEETS PALPATINE!! ripples in the fucking pond babey

qui gon and obi wan ask a boon of padme, that boon being “hey can you give us truly disgusting amounts of money so we can go free those delightful people we had to leave behind on tatooine due to the fact that we were on a time crunch and also ripping people away from a familiar environment without a stable plan of action to provide them a better quality of life is actually called, as the professionals say, a dick move.”

and padme’s like “um fuck yeah here’s some cash let me know how this goes and give anakin and shmi my love”

SO OFF THEY GO TO TATOOINE TO FREE THE SKYWALKERS. shmi tags along to the temple because why wouldn’t she. she wants to see where her son is going to be going. she also pesters qui gon and obi wan constantly about the order and its philosophies and etc. etc. and subsequently gets a crash course in jedi doctrine that anakin also gets to sit in on and you know, educate himself on.

“we want you to know that being a jedi is a choice. being a jedi is a religion unto itself.” they say

“but it’s a set of philosophies that are meant to at its core help others live happy and free lives?” anakin (and shmi) ask

“that’s a very very very large generalization but i guess for the purposes of this conversation that could be seen as true. from a certain point of view,” they respond. qui gon then lets obi wan loose on his musings about the code because the code is simple, and complex in its simplicity, and how the beliefs of the jedi should be taken very seriously because it reflects their connection to the force and by extension the world around them etc. etc.

anakin makes it to the temple. anakin knows (at least a little) what it means to be a jedi. it’s not all light sabers and noble battles and fighting the good fight. it’s about sacrifice and humility and nobility and above all kindness and empathy and loving all things, great and small, and not letting your personal hatreds cloud your judgement even if it takes all your strength to do so

and most importantly to anakin: no attachments.

and that’s what anakin struggles with the most. that never changes. but this time shmi is there to explain it to him, and coming from shmi, the most important person in the world, makes it stick

“it doesn’t mean you love me less,” shmi explains. “it just means you don’t love everyone else less because you love me. it means not loving me to the exclusion of all else. it means love, but for everyone. for everything.”

and then the two jedi reaffirm that it’s a choice. it’s always about choice. you can’t be a jedi without choosing to be one, it’s not something that can be forced. either you believe in the lifestyle, or you don’t. simple as that.

“can i leave if i want to” anakin asks.

“yes. of course you can, any time.” qui gon responds.

“not sure why you would want to though, being a jedi is kind of super cool” obi wan adds, with a wink.

but anakin isn’t a jedi yet. he’s not even an initiate. he doesn’t want to leave his mom, not until he knows she’s safe. he wants to be a jedi he burns with the need to be a jedi, but he’s not sure if he can be a jedi. not the way that was explained to him anyways. but that’s okay because he has the time to decide!!! there are no sith lords breathing down his neck!!! he has two (2) in the flesh examples of what jedi can do, what jedi are, what they can accomplish in the world!!! most of all he has his mother there, supporting him either way!!!

maybe he does go into the order. maybe he does ultimately choose that life for himself. maybe he does manage to untangle himself from the snarls of attachment and apply himself wholeheartedly to the ways of the jedi. he might even succeed this time since palpatine has no fucking CLUE anakin’s even there!!! he’s not nine years old and freshly braided and attached at the hip to a mourning brand new knight, he’s nine years old and trying to figure out how the fuck you levitate off the ground with your legs crossed under you while his crechemates balance things onto his nose!!!

and you know what!! maybe he chooses to leave the order because it’s not for him, but this time he’s got enough stability in his life, in the way that he manages and examines his feelings, that he’s not a threat to himself and those he loves. maybe he becomes a mechanic and lives a nice, simple life with his aging mother and becomes penpals with a pretty girl from naboo. WHO KNOWWWSSS

and that’s important for anakin: knowing that it’s always a choice always his choice and that he never has to have anyone tell him who he can and cannot be because he is his own master now he has full autonomy and the jedi cannot and will not take that away from him

this got so long oh my god i just have so many THOUGHTS

qui gon taking anakin like that in tpm was such a rushed decision my man can you CHILL AND THINK

anyways,,,,, that’s all thank u for coming with me on this journey,,,,,,,

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

Non-Sequential [Ch. 20]

Pairing: Pre-Serum Steve Rogers/Steve Rogers x Reader

One night, Steve Rogers met a beautiful dame named Y/N. He hadn’t intended on letting her get away. But fate had other ideas. Y/N appeared and disappeared in his life so hauntingly that Steve started to wonder if she was an angel meant to watch over him.

Word Count: 2,600

Chapter 19

Y/N was in Steve’s suite, sitting at the breakfast nook with her knees hugging her chest.

She was wearing one of Steve’s hoodies and sweatpants, both adorably baggy on her body. They smelled like him, a comfort she had missed. She was surprised he had even brought them on the run like this.

Steve was watching her carefully, but patiently. His chin was resting in his hand. But his eyes were what she was staring at. They looked so sad and concerned. It was starting to make her feel guilty.

Y/N couldn’t take it anymore. “Steve, I’m fine.”

He watched her another few seconds before sighing, “Y/N, we both know you’re not fine.”

She couldn’t meet his gaze now.

“I’ve tried to be as patient as I can. The last thing I want to do is push you,” Steve said gently. “But you just had an anxiety attack. Those men shouldn’t have grabbed you like that. But I know it was more than just being touched that set you off.”

Y/N’s bottom lip started to tremble at what he was hinting at.

Steve shifted in his chair. She could tell he wanted to touch her, comfort her, but he didn’t want to set her off again. So, he kept his hands to himself.

“Y/N, Bucky may have – he told me what happened…to you.”

Her eyes shot to his.

She’d be having a very tense conversation with Bucky Barnes very soon.

“And?” Y/N asked through clenched teeth.

Steve rubbed his face. “I just want to help you.”

“Well, there’s nothing you can do, Steve!” She snapped back.

His face twisted in hurt and leaned back in his chair. But he told himself not to take it personally. Bucky said she wasn't talking to anyone. It wasn’t just him.

Then, out of nowhere, Y/N’s trembling bottom lift was joined by silent tears. She quickly wiped them away, as if there was any chance Steve couldn’t blatantly see that she was now crying.

But Steve couldn’t keep his distance any longer. He shot up from his side of the table and crouched in front of her. He took a risk, clutching her face softly and wiping her tears away with his thumbs.

“I’m so sick of feeling weak,” Y/N sobbed. “I flinch anytime someone steps within five feet of me too quickly. I barely sleep. And every time I travel…I’m terrified that I’m going to end up there again.” She took in a shaky inhale, like she couldn’t breathe properly. “I just feel like I’m powerless. Nothing is in my control.”

Y/N didn’t even know how it happened, but somehow Steve had picked her up like she weighed nothing and was now cradling her in his lap, on his bed.

“I’m sorry, Y/N. I’m so, so sorry,” Steve breathed into her hair.

And he just let her cry.

His grip on her never loosened. He knew there was nothing for him to do but just make sure she felt him there, that she didn’t have to do this alone.

Eventually, she pulled away and wiped away her tears before he got the chance.

“They broke me, Steve.” She finally admitted to both him and herself.

He looked at her with sheer agony.

“You want to fix us. But I don’t think there’s any fixing me,” Y/N confessed as she sniffed roughly and wiped away more tears.

Steve just let her words settle for a moment. When it came to Y/N and her feelings, he wasn’t one to speak before thinking.

“I realize, right now, it feels like things are never going to get better,” he finally spoke. Then he took in a deep breath. “But I know that they will.”

Except Y/N was already shaking her head, disagreeing with him. ��Why are you so sure about it?” But her eyes were pleading, hoping that he had a true answer.

Steve took inhaled and brushed the wet pieces of hair, drowned by her tears, and moved them behind her ears and away from her face.

“You forget that you’re not the only person who’s seen the future…”

Y/N narrowed her gaze in confusion.

“I’ve seen the future version of you – the you that you haven’t become yet.” He gave her a sad smile and lightly gripped her chin. “So, I know you get through this… because I’ve seen it for myself.”

It was the best line of reasoning he could ever give her. He completely took away her ability to doubt herself or her recovery. Y/N knew she couldn’t fight the future that was already set in stone. And she’d learned that lesson over and over again the hard way.

“You’re stronger than you let yourself believe, Y/N.” Then he grasped her face, making sure she looked into his eyes and saw the truth and earnestness within them.

“Do you hear me? You’re not broken. You never have been and you never will be.”

He didn’t break his gaze until she nodded.

Y/N sighed, like her body was finally getting rid of all her self-doubt and self-hatred. Then she buried her face into Steve’s neck and held onto him tightly.

When the silence had become a comforting blanket over them, Y/N cleared her throat but didn’t move to look into Steve’s eyes.

“I should tell you what happened,” she muttered.

Steve’s whole body tensed at the concept.

“Y/N, you don’t have to.”

But she was already shaking her head. “No, I want – no, I need to. I can’t keep it all locked in my head anymore.”

So, Steve just nodded and listened.

Y/N told him everything. Well…everything she could remember. There were so many moments missing, times where Hydra had tortured her to unconsciousness or the pain was so unbearable that her mind brought her to another place.

Steve didn’t say a word through any of it, which was a challenge he hadn’t been prepared for. He had to control his emotions; showing his anger now was not going to do Y/N any good.

So, he just made sure he was listening to it all – not just the words, but the hidden emotion in her eyes or how her hands started shaking at certain parts. There was more that her body was trying to tell him.

Sharing it all clearly exhausted Y/N. Steve held onto her to some degree through his listening. Eventually, she had passed out wrapped in his arms.

Steve couldn’t seem to do the same. His mind was going over Y/N’s story again and again and again.

He had come to terms with the fact that he couldn’t always be there to protect Y/N. The time traveling made sure of that. But this was not something he was prepared to handle.

Yes, Bucky had told him his side of the story. But Y/N had the details and perspective that made Steve truly feeling sick.

There was a knock on the door. Steve hissed and cursed in his head, not wanting to wake Y/N up. But if there was someone at his door, it was important.

Steve managed to slowly and carefully move Y/N off his chest and made sure to tuck her back in under the covers. Then he tiptoed to the door. For how large he was, Steve was frighteningly graceful and stealthy.

He opened the door to find T’Challa with both Okoye and Ayo flanking him a step behind.

“Captain Rogers, I came as soon as I heard what had occurred,” his eyes were distressed and genuine.

But Steve was already holding up his hands, trying to stop him from continuing his apology.

“Please, T’Challa, there is no need to apologize. We’re foreigners here. They had every right to question our presence.”

“You are not foreigners. You are guests of the royal family. And I cannot tolerate such behavior. I was told Y/N…” The King stopped, not sure what to call Y/N’s panic attack without sounding patronizing or rude.

“She’s fine. She’s sleeping now,” Steve assured him.

“Know that the men are being dealt with and I can promise no one will treat you in such a manner again, for as long as you remain in Wakanda.”

Steve gripped his shoulder and nodded. “Thank you, T’Challa.” Then his head bowed slightly in shame. “Are the men OK? I’m sorry. I probably could’ve handled that a bit better.”

T’Challa couldn’t help but smirk. “They will live, but their egos are most certainly bruised. You have nothing to apologize for. You were simply protecting her.”

Steve nodded.

“Goodnight, Captain Rogers.”

He nodded again before closing the door quietly. 

Steve went back into his bedroom. But when he turned, his heart plummeted. His bed was no longer filled with his sleeping and exhausted girlfriend.

He knew when he lifted the covers, he’d find his sweatshirt and sweatpants that she had been wearing, left behind as she once again traveled through time.

Steve sighed shakily and rubbed his face with his hand.

—————————————

Bucky found Steve hours later in what Wakanda called their gym. But the majority of the machines were so ahead of their time and innovative that it didn’t look like any gym Steve and Bucky were familiar with.

However, Steve managed to find a bag to punch, like always.

“She’ll be fine,” Bucky called out loud enough for Steve to hear over his punches.

He stopped and looked over his shoulder to glare at him.

“What makes you so sure?” Steve almost growled.

Bucky walked over and stood behind the punching bag, holding it, and then nodded toward Steve, telling him to keep going.

He did as he was told, not pulling his punches.

“Because that was the only time I ever saw her,” Bucky told him.

Steve halted at his words. “What?”

“I’ve been searching through this broken mind of mine, making sure I wasn’t missing a memory. But I know that there wasn’t ever another time when she was there.”

“How can you be so sure?” Steve challenged.

The question made Bucky hang his head in shame. “Because I always remember her.” Then he cleared his throat awkwardly. “She was one of the only memories from my Winter Soldier days that gives me warmth instead of nightmares.”

Steve’s anger had disappeared now.

“What are you doin’ here, Buck?”

“I didn’t think you should be alone.”

“What do you think I usually do when she’s gone?”

Bucky shrugged, “I don’t know. Sit around, feelin’ sorry for yourself?”

Steve raised an eyebrow and glared at him.

“Wanna spar?” Bucky asked then, ignoring his glare.

Steve eyed the space where a limb should be. “You’re down an arm.”

Bucky smirked. “So, you’re in luck then. It’ll be closer to a fair fight.”

Steve knew that Bucky was trying to distract him. But quite honestly, it worked. Sparring took Steve’s mind a little bit away from worrying about Y/N. Plus, it got some serious aggression out of his system.

Ever since Y/N told him everything that Hydra had done to her, Steve was hoping someone would pick a fight with him. What he really wanted to do was go on the hunt and kill anyone or anything that was or had been Hydra. But that hadn’t been an option.

Steve was bent over, hands on his knees now and trying to catch his breath.

Bucky was right: there wasn’t a disadvantage just because he didn’t have his left arm. “You OK there, old man?” Bucky asked as he pat Steve on the back. “You’re just as old as I am, punk.”

Bucky snickered. “Yeah, but I’ve been in and out of cryo longer than you’ve been unfrozen. So, I’m probably younger than you.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “Whatever makes you feel better.” He managed to stand up straight again and finally catch his breath. “I’m gonna call it a night and hit the showers.”

Bucky nodded in agreement.

“Hey,” Steve called after him. Bucky waited. “Thanks…for this.”

————————————- By the time Steve got out of the shower, the palace had significantly quieted. Most had gone to bed and the halls were no longer filled with echoing footsteps.

When he heard another knock on his door, he hoped it wasn’t Shuri taking her turn to come and apologize for the incident.

Steve looked down and swore under his breath for only having a towel wrapped around his waist. He didn’t want to keep them waiting and hurried to the door anways.

When he opened it, Y/N was waiting on the other side with an expression that Steve couldn’t immediately read.

“Y/N, thank god you–”

But his relief was cut short by Y/N slamming her lips onto his. She shoved him backward enough and slammed his door shut again without breaking the kiss.

They hadn’t slept together in forever. It felt like their relationship had been going in every direction but the right one. Intimacy felt like a far and foreign thing.

Until now.

Steve wasn’t complaining about Y/N’s sudden hunger, but he wanted to make sure he wasn’t misreading any of it.

He pulled away, just enough to look into her dilated eyes.

“Y/N, what’s going on?”

She smirked at his concern. “You really wanna talk right now, Rogers?” Then her fingers found their way to the towel barely holding onto his waist.

Steve caught her wrist before she could pull it off. “I just want to make sure you’re OK.”

“I’m fine – promise. I just want you.” Then she kissed him quickly. This time, it was short and sweet. “Is that OK?” Her question was sincere.  

He nodded, suddenly becoming shy.

“OK.” Y/N agreed before gripping the towel and removing the one thing that was stopping Steve from being completely naked.

——

Steve rubbed Y/N’s shoulder. Her cheek was resting on his bare chest and her arm covering his abs.

There were candles lit around the room. When it was clear neither of them had any intention of sleeping anytime soon, Steve flitted around the room with a match. Actual lights felt like they would ruin the intimate bubble they were living in.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Y/N asked, amusement clear in her tone.

Steve both loved and hated that she could almost always hear his racing thoughts.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he lied.

Y/N sat up then, losing the coverage of naked bodies being press against one another.

“Steven Grant Rogers, you’ve never been one to keep your thoughts to yourself.”

He smiled at her accusation.

“Come on. Tell me.” Y/N begged as she scattered kissed across his muscular chest and then his shoulder and then the side of his neck.

“OK. OK.” He finally gave in.

“Have you ever slept with me… in a different time?”

Y/N tilted her head and finally pull the sheet up to her chest to find some modesty. “What do you mean?”

Steve blushed. Was he really about to ask this? “I mean, I know we never slept together when you visited me in the past. But what about future me?”

Then the room was filled with giggles.

Steve playfully glared her.

When Y/N finally got a hold of herself, she straddled Steve and leaned down to kiss him softly. “Don’t ask questions you don’t actually want to know the answers to, Steve.”

And for a moment, everything seemed to be back to normal. They were together. They were happy. Y/N seemed better, even if it were just for a bit.

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

Chapter 21

[greekgeek21]

Percy Jackson & The Avengers: Convergence - team-up time!!

Ok, so I'm a little off schedule, but who cares? Honestly, I've been getting a lot of good reviews/comments and I'm so grateful!!

My amazing beta reader, nightskywithrainbows, is so patient and I would not be able to do this without you. So, give them some love!

Anyway, I hope you like this! Stay safe and happy reading!

- your author

Ω ♆ Ω

"Wise Girl? Are you here?" Percy asked as he walked into his cabin.

He had just gotten back, and the first thing he did was ask where Annabeth was. Apparently, she had got into the Poseidon Cabin after their IM and hadn't come out since. It was sweet, really, but if she ever caught him saying that, he would be beheaded in an instant, so he kept it to himself.

He was not expecting what he saw when he walked into his home-away-from-home. Annabeth was asleep on top of his covers, a book laying beside her. The lights were still on, too. It looked like she had tried to stay awake for him, but it was reasonable for her to fall asleep. He HAD gotten back at 2 AM.

To anyone else, she would have looked peaceful, but he knew his girlfriend, and he saw that she was having a nightmare. Unlike him, who thrashed around and screamed, Annabeth was dead silent during her dreams. It had scared him more times than one. The only indication was her frown, the slight sheen of sweat, and the rare barely-there whimper.

He raced to her side, lying down next to her and pulling her into his side, "Shhh...you're okay. We're okay. We got out. We're safe now."

The Tartarus nightmares had gotten better, but they still had them every so often. They had learned to deal with them properly in a way that worked. They had even tried therapy once, but that was a disaster waiting to happen anyways. Annabeth and him don't talk about their feelings very well. Still, it was worrying to watch your loved ones suffer with nothing to offer for comfort other than your support.

Percy continued to whisper sweet nothings and reassurances in Annabeth's ear before her breathing eventually evened out and she slowly started to blink her eyes open. She seemed confused about his appearance for a second before she realized that he had come in while she was sleeping.

"Seaweed Brain? When did you get here?" She tried to sit up, but Percy held her tight, so she relaxed into him.

"Not long ago. But don't avoid the question. You know we need to talk about it. What happened this time?" he asked.

Annabeth sighed and answered, "It was the same one. You were controlling the poison 'down there' and I saw your eyes. They were a sickly green, Percy. Not anything like your usual sea green. They were almost grey, and they were glowing. I was terrified. This time, I couldn't stop you. I had to watch as y-you killed her."

By then, tears had started to escape her tight control over them. If it were anyone else, Annabeth would never have let them hear her sound so weak, let alone see her crying. She was the strong leader of Camp Half-blood, and that came with the responsibility to keep a confident front.

However, every leader needs time to release the stress. Her alone time with Percy was that time. He had been through almost everything with her, and she trusted him to the end of the universe. HE was HER rock just as much as SHE was HIS.

"I would never do that. You have to know that. It wasn't real. We're home, and we're together. We made it, Wise Girl," Percy reassured, kissing her on the head.

"Yeah, I know. They just get so real sometimes," Annabeth curled into his side.

"I know. It's late, though. Do you want to stay up talking or do you want to try to sleep again?" he asked, tucking them under the sheets.

Annabeth closed her eyes, wrapping Percy's arm around her tighter as she said, "Let's go to bed. I'm sure I'll be fine now that you're here."

Percy smiled his goofy smile, "Okay, Wise Girl. I love you."

"I love you, too, dork."

He chuckled, and Annabeth fell asleep in contentment to the sound of his heart beating. As long as that was happening, she would be fine.

Ω ♆ Ω

The next few weeks went by as smoothly as a demigod's life could. Percy never received any communication attempts from SHIELD, so he let himself fall back into his schedule. Him and Annabeth went to stay with Sally while also staying at camp on and off. There were no major problems for him to deal with, and he was soaking up every bit of it.

Of course, he should have never said anything. That was an invitation to the Fates.

He was driving with Annabeth when he learned about it. A news broadcaster came over the radio and was retelling an active event happening in Los Angeles.

"There has been another suicide bombing in downtown LA. There appears to be GREEN FIRE coming from the explosion. Officials are attempting to get the flames under control, but their tactics seem to be failing thus far. This is another in a string of connected bombings around the US. So far, there are no suspects, but we are told there has been progress made in the investigation. What is the purpose of these attacks and who..."

Annabeth turned the volume down. She turned to Percy with a grave expression. Green fire could only mean one thing: the divine were involved. The mortals had somehow gotten into contact with Greek fire, and they were using it for terrible acts of violence. And of course nobody could put the fire out, it was impossible unless dealt with by someone who knew what they were dealing with. Like Leo, for example.

"Percy, at the Brooklyn Bridge, was the fire green?" Annabeth asked cautiously, already dreading the answer.

"I can't remember. I was too focused on making sure the bridge didn't collapse that I didn't bother to check what the explosion looked like. Oh gods, what if I could've done something if I had seen it earlier? What if I could have stopped this bombing in LA? This is all my fault!" he exclaimed.

Annabeth laced her fingers with his, "Perce, you did more than anyone could've asked. You saved so many people that day. This is not your fault, okay?"

He still looked disbelieving, but he reluctantly nodded. He didn't have time to debate his guilt with Annabeth, he had somewhere to be. Percy wasn't exactly sure where that location was, but he was needed somewhere, and so was Annabeth.

"SHIELD's on this case already. I need to get in contact with them, and then we need to meet with them. I'm not letting anyone else get hurt," he told Annabeth, driving towards Camp Half-Blood.

The gears were turning in Annabeth;s head, and he knew the exact moment she figured out what his plan was. Surprisingly, she didn't argue. She just nodded and grabbed her phone from her backpack, flipping it open and turning it on. She only used it in emergencies, and this felt like an emergency.

She called one of the few numbers she had on there: Camp Half-blood's. Camp had only one phone in the Big House, and it was scarcely used. It was an old landline, too, in hopes that it attracted less monsters. Nowadays, it was impossible to not attract them, with technology all around them.

It rang for a long time, almost to the point that she was just going to give up, but right as she was going to press the 'end call' button, Jason's voice came over the phone, "Hello? Who is this?"

Annabeth let out a sigh of relief, "It's Annabeth. I'm with Percy. We need you to gather the Seven quickly. We'll be there soon."

"What? Annabeth, what's going on? Why do you sound so worried?" Jason asked.

Annabeth's patience was waning, "Jason! This is important! Secret of the gods important! Prepare for a fight and wait for us to get to camp. We'll explain there."

Jason sighed, clearly wanting more information than that, "Alright. See you soon."

"Bye," Annabeth hung up the phone as soon as possible.

They had probably already been on for too long, but it was worth a shot. And besides, none of the monsters would dare come near them once they realized who was on the call. That's what she was counting on, anyway.

She looked up at Percy and instantly noticed the tension all throughout his body. He still believed it was his fault, obviously. There wasn't much she could do about that. It was his fatal flaw!

"We're going to figure this out," she consoled.

"Yeah," Percy whispered as he pulled over at the bottom of the hill leading up to Camp.

They were both out of the car and running already, so it didn't take them long to reach Peleus and Thalia's tree. He didn't even pay them a thought as they ran through the border and towards the Big House, where they could see a group of armored demigods congregated on the porch.

As they ran closer, they saw it was the Seven on the porch, talking with Chiron. They were all in their basic armor: a chestplate, greaves, vambraces, and helmets resting under their arms. Piper had her dagger hanging on a belt, Jason had his gladius, Frank had his bow and arrows slung over back, and Hazel was carrying her imperial gold spatha. Leo was, of course, wearing his toolbelt. They all were in various states of confusion and agitation from being left in the dark about whatever they were dealing with, and they all seemed relieved when Annabeth and Percy came running up.

Before either of them could get a word out, Piper spoke, "Let me guess: this has something to do with Percy and the bombings, and now we need to go clean up his mess."

"Words hurt, Pipes," Percy sarcastically held a hand over his heart.

She rolled her eyes, "You'll survive."

Annabeth smiled in the direction of her friend. She had really started to become comfortable as a demigod in the past year. Plus, she had picked up on some of Annabeth's habits. Like picking on Percy, for example.

"What's this about Annabeth?" Jason asked, stopping the playful mood in its tracks.

Annabeth exchanged a look with her boyfriend before responding, "Piper was right. This is about the bombings. They're using Greek fire. But it's still mortals doing it. That means somebody from out world is supplying the mortals with our weapons, and that is a recipe for disaster. We need to stop it before it gets too out of hand."

"Why us, though?" Hazel asked.

"We're the Heroes of Olympus, and we're the best to represent our kind in the fight. Plus, I trust you guys the most. In case it is a mole in the camps, we need to keep this between us," Annabeth answered.

The mood got even more serious at the realization of where her thoughts were headed. Somebody still inside the camp could be taking the fire to the mortals, and they didn't know who it was yet.

But then Piper noticed something in Annabeth's wording, "What do you mean 'represent our kind?' Who are we meeting?"

Percy answered her this time, "SHIELD. They're already working on this, and I have a deal with their director to help with stuff from our world. We only need to figure out how to contact them."

"I've got that covered!" Annabeth interrupted, "I have a plan."

"Of course you do," Jason said, "What is it?"

"We're going to Stark Towers, and we're going to meet with Tony Stark. He's Iron Man, and he no doubt works with SHIELD, so we'll use him to get to them. It's not my best plan, but it's the best we got," she answered.

"It's better than what I was going to do," Percy remarked.

Annabeth didn't even want to ask what his plan was going to be. That was a road she did not want to go down.

"When do you leave?" Chiron asked, finally speaking for the first time.

"Percy and I will get ready and then we'll head out right after. We need to get a handle on this ASAP," Annabeth answered, already heading towards the armor shed.

Percy ran down to meet her there, and they got dressed in the same gear as the others before heading towards their separate cabins. As a precaution, all campers had been required to make an emergency quest backpack in case they had to leave quickly. They had the demigod essentials like toothbrushes and paste, deodorant, a couple spare changes of clothes, nectar and ambrosia, and a prism with some drachmas for IMing.

Percy and Annabeth both grabbed their kits, along with a few other personal items that they suspected would be needed for this specific quest, if you could even call it that. They still had to meet with Rachel, but she was staying with her dad in New York. That would have to wait for later.

They were geared-up and ready in less than twenty minutes, and then they were standing on the edge of Half-blood hill with the others, saying goodbye to Chiron.

"Be careful. I have a feeling the path you are about to take will lead you through hard times," Chiron warned.

"We'll be fine, Chiron. It's nothing we can't handle," Annabeth assured.

He gave a tight smile in return. His reaction to their quest was disconcerting, but the demigods didn't have time to ponder on it. They had to get to Stark Towers as soon as possible.

So, they gave one last wave and started towards the Delphi Strawberries van Argus had pulled up. He would be driving them to the tower, but they would be on their own from there. There wasn't any reason to be worried, though. They had traveled across the world on a floating boat; this would be a piece of cake.

The drive there was tense and silence-filled. Or it was until Leo ruined it.

"So I get to meet Tony Stark?" he asked, an excited grin forming on his face.

Piper groaned, realizing what was bound to happen. She had met Mr. Stark at a gala her father had dragged her to before. He was a self-centered jerk who had too much money to know what to do with it. Plus, his ego was the size of a planet. Leo and Tony Stark together in one room was going to be crazy.

"Don't do anything nuts, Leo. We need him to trust us, and it's hard enough doing that without telling him what we are," Percy said.

Leo gasped, "I am hurt that you would ever think I would do such a thing! Uncle Leo just wanted to chat about some design flaws in his suit! And maybe some possible ideas that all that money could help put into action..."

Annabeth gave him her death glare, and he sank away, "You are forbidden from speaking until I say so."

He hurriedly nodded his head. She was scary!

Percy smirked at his girlfriend, knowing that she was fully aware of the effect she had on the poor demigod. Of course, Percy was whipped, too, but it was still amusing to see Annabeth go all 'powerful daughter of Athena' on people that weren't him.

"We're almost there, guys," Piper said, pointing up ahead, where they could see the tall outline of Stark Towers.

Annabeth had to admit, the architecture was impressive, even if she would've gone less futuristic. But the sustainable energy system was remarkable.

She snapped herself out of her daze. She was not there to admire the architecture, she was there to do her job: saving the mortals. And with the amount of stupid stuff they did, they would never get a vacation.

"So what's so important about this Stark guy?" Hazel asked, finally giving in to her curiosity.

"Oh! I always forget you aren't all caught up on modern pop culture," Piper exclaimed, "Tony Stark is a rich, playboy, engineer who doubles as an Avenger. The Avengers saved the world from aliens when we were saving it from itself. He's Iron Man, which is basically just a suit he invented."

"Sounds like someone Leo would like," Hazel remarked.

Percy laughed as Argus pulled over, "Exactly."

The demigods all climbed out, standing in a line before the entrance. It seemed they were all waiting for one of them to make the first move, but nobody wanted to be that person. Of course, Annabeth wasn't one to back down from anything, so she stepped forward and pushed the glass doors open, striding through with confidence only a daughter of Athena could command.

The rest of the group trailed behind, tensed for anything. They were literally surrounded on all sides by technology, and it was unnerving for them all. Well, for almost all of them. Leo was practically vibrating with energy and excitement. He was about to meet his idol AND get the chance to explore all of the toys there.

"Remember: professional," Annabeth warned one last time before turning to address the front desk lady.

"Yes, mom," Piper whispered to Leo, who muffled a snicker in response.

Percy just prayed that this all went well. He wanted this whole ordeal to be over quickly. He didn't want to be brought into another situation where he had to use his powers. They were still too unreliable, even after a year. The bridge incident was hopefully a one-time thing.

"Hello. We're here to meet Tony Stark," Annabeth said.

They knew the Mist was covering their weapons and armor, especially with Hazel there. People wanted to see some regular teenagers, so that's what they were seeing. Not seven, well-trained demigods in full armor, prepared for battle.

The receptionist looked her up and down, "Do you have an appointment?"

Annabeth tried for a smile, but it turned into more of a grimace, "No, but it's important. I'm sure Mr. Stark would understand once we talk to him."

Sometimes being young can come in handy, but a lot of the time, it sucks.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Stark only accepts scheduled meetings. If you want to make one of those, you can contact his secretary. But for now, I would ask that you please leave," the woman responded.

Annabeth glared, and was about to start yelling, but Percy stepped up and placed a calming hand on her shoulder before he spoke, "Actually, this is urgent. And I'm sure that if you called Mr. Stark, he would send us up, considering that we're friends from work, and I'm not talking about his day job."

He said everything so calmly, that you would have thought he was having a civil conversation if not for his icy words.

"Fine," the woman ripped the phone up and dialled a number, "Yes, there are seven teenagers here to see Mr. Stark. They say it's urgent. And that it's about his OTHER work."

She nodded a few times before hanging up, "Mr. Stark will see you now."

Ω ♆ Ω

45 minutes earlier...

Fury was not having a good day. First, an idiot dressed-up as a spider ruins his morning, and then another bombing happens in LA, and finally, he has to deal with the Avengers now. He had been hoping to deal with this case without them, but he was pushed into the decision when he got a message from the terrorists responsible for the bombs. They threatened to bomb things much more important than the Brooklyn Bridge, and that they had the means to do worse.

None of his regular agents could figure it out, so he had to bring in the big guns. Besides, the heroes had had much too long of a break already.

That's how he found himself in another blacked-out SUV, on his way to Stark Towers after calling a meeting of the Avengers there. He had no way of contacting Thor, so it was just Stark, Rogers, Widow, Banner, and Barton. He had another person in mind, but Fury didn't want to call him in just yet. It was still a new alliance after all.

When he got there, he went straight up the elevator to the penthouse. From there, he went to the meeting room and found everyone but Stark already there, which was no surprise. Without a word, he strode up to the head of the table and slipped the flash drive into the slot, automatically turning on the holo-projector in the center of the table. The flash drive had all of the details of the case, along with whatever notes his agents had made.

He opened up the photo gallery, flicking to each bombing site, "The Brooklyn Bridge, Portland, LA, Long Island, San Francisco. What do all of these have in common?"

Just as Steve was about to answer, Tony burst in the door, taking a seat without an apology, as per usual.

Steve cleared his throat before continuing, "They all had a bombing happen recently."

"That's right. And it's gotten out of hand. Your job is to stop them," Fury cut right to the point, "Everything you'll need is in this folder. I want this done discreetly. That means no flashy spectacles, Stark."

Tony mock-gasped, "I would never!"

Banner shifted nervously, "Will the 'other guy' be needed for this?"

"Possibly, but as a last resort. You'll be needed for tracking more than anything," Fury answered.

Bruce nodded his head, seemingly finding comfort in that.

One look at Clint and Natasha, and you could see that they had gone into SHIELD agent mode. They were both studying the file information with rapt attention. They, at least, Fury could count on.

"This needs to be done as quickly as possible, got it?" he ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Tony sarcastically saluted.

Fury held back a growl. If anyone could make him lose his composure, it would be Tony Stark.

"I expect results the next time I see you," he said, turning to walk out of the room, but he was interrupted by J.A.R.V.I.S.

"Sir, there is a group of teenagers asking to see you. They say it is urgent," the AI said.

Tony sighed, "J.A.R.V.I.S., I thought I programmed you better than this. I don't want to see them."

"But sir, I am told it has something to do with your Avengers work. They are very adamant," J.A.R.V.I.S. pressed.

"Pull up the camera feeds," Tony ordered.

For some reason, Fury felt compelled to see who had wanted to see Stark, and he understood why as soon as he saw the footage. There, with six other teens, was Percy Jackson.

Before Tony could turn them down again, Fury said, "Let them up. Now."

"Right away, Director," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied, listening to his SHIELD reprogramming.

Tony threw his hands up in defeat and grumbled "Whatever. It's not like I own the building."

"Direct them here, J.A.R.V.I.S.," Fury ordered, going back to his previous position at the head of the table.

Steve sat up in confusion, "What are you doing, Fury?"

The man in question ignored him.

Before any more objections could be made, the Seven were standing before the Avengers, everyone confused.

Percy was the one who broke the silence, "Well, this makes our job a whole lot easier."

Ω ♆ Ω

Don't forget to like, comment, follow me, and reblog! Stay safe and happy reading!

- your author

other chapters :)

[solar-bean]

A Talk With The Prime Himself

(Reader insert-ish)

I stood by in the entrance of the warehouse, one foot outside the ajar door and my shoulder resting on the other. I heard the calm rhythm of the rain against the forest floor and trees. With each subtle gust of wind, a spray of mist cooled my face. Closing my eyes, I let out a sigh of content. Nothing could ruin this peaceful moment.

" Is there something troubling you?"

Ok you'd think a giant, metal robot breaking the silence would, but his deep, gentle voice did the exact opposite.

I turned slightly and made eye contact with Optimus over my shoulder. It wasn't too hard to find his glowing, blue optics in the dark.

" No. Why do you ask?"

He came a step closer. How he managed to do so with little sound, or sneak up on me to begin with, baffled me.

" You are normally in stasis at this hour. The others, including Ratchet, are deep in slumber if I might add."

I grinned. Of course he checked on everyone before heading to bed. If he ever slept that is. He was always the first one up and usually the last one, besides Ratchet, who was still up working on a datapad late in the night. He never showed any signs of fatigue so maybe he did rest every now and then. That or he was just good at hiding it.

" I just wanted to see the rain is all."

" I see...do you mind if I join you?"

I shrugged.

" Not at all."

We stood and watched the rain with the door fully open. I thought back on the first time Optimus had seen rain. We were on the open road when all of a sudden he'd panicked at the first drop on his windshield. Speeding to the nearest shelter, with the rest of the Autobots in tow, I found myself cluttered under a rock formation with them.

I'd barely gotten the chance to ask what was the matter in the mist of it, so I did once they'd seemed to calm down. Ratchet didn't hesitate to scold me on not mentioning earth's toxic rain. Which of course rose many questions. Optimus took the liberty of answering them, still clutching me to his chassis, as the others stared fearfully at the downpour.

I kindly asked him to put me down, then proceeded to step into the rain despite their protests. Once they all saw that I was indeed not burning alive, one by one they came out of the shelter. We'd probably spent a half an hour playing in the rain. By which I mean Ratchet watched as the others, especially Bumblebee, ran around and jumped in mud puddles. Optimus, however, kept his head titled to the clouds, optics shut. I'd never seen him more at peace.

It was one of my fondest memories of them. Optimus had even kept the cab's heater on so that I wouldn't get sick. Although I could've dealt without paying for all of them to got to the car wash.

After what couldn't have been more than six minutes, the rain came to a slow stop.

" Huh......I thought it would last longer." I whispered.

" I did as well."

Oh right, I keep forgetting how sharp their hearing is. It really doesn't help for those who think out loud a lot.

" Well," I stretched out my back with a groan. " Guess I should head to bed." I began to walk towards my room before pausing to see if he was heading to his. He was still looking out the door.

" Are you staying up?"

He blinked as if coming out of deep thought.

" I was contemplating on watching the stars. The sky seems to be clearing faster than I expected."

" Oh, well don't stay up too late. Can't have our fearless leader falling asleep during his own speech."

His shoulders shook as he let out a small chuckle. It was a sound I rarely heard, which probably added to why it was one of my favorites.

" You have my word. I hope you have a pleasant stasis."

" You too. Goodnight." I only made it ten steps before turning back around. " Actually I have an idea."

----

Optimus strolled through the forest, his peds creating a soft smush sound on the rain-drenched grass, while I sat on his shoulder. I don't when the habit started, but whenever given the chance I'd find myself situated on his shoulder. Sometimes, I did so to chat with him, others was just to have a comfortable place to read or on occasion nap.

Optimus didn't seem to mind at all. He was normally the one to put me up there if I couldn't reach. No one seemed to question our ritual either. A few perplexed glances at first, but that was it. It felt nice though, having the privilege of being this close to him, his presence calming me. The view was nice as well.

We soon arrived at a cliff in one of the clearings. It overlooked the rest of the expansive forest, trees seeming to go on for ages. However, our view was turned upwards.

The stars were brighter than I'd ever seen them. Growing up in the city truly deprived me of such a sight. If only I knew every constellation.

" Are you enjoying the view?" I asked him. He was now sitting on the edge, peds dangling. His posture inclined backwards enough so that I wouldn't slip off of him.

" Immensely." he replied, optics not leaving the sky.

We sat there for several moments in a peaceful silence, besides the occasional cricket. Then I remembered something that I'd been wondering for a while.

" Do you.....like it here on earth?"

" Yes. Why do you ask?"

I looked to the ground.

" It's just that...I can't imagine needing to leave my planet then settling on another and starting over. It just seems so...terrifying."

He hummed in thought. His audiual fins twitching slightly and quite adorably.

" It was a challenge, settling here, but I've come to admire this planet dearly."

I smiled, but it soon turned back into a frown.

" I wish that this war didn't happen."

He turned to me sharply, as if concerned.

" Are you sure that you're alright? First you stay up later than usual and now this."

" I'm fine I just," I groaned and sunk my head into my hands. " I just keep thinking about how better your lives would have been if you weren't at war. I know that my time with you has barely been a fraction compared to long it's been going on, but even to me it's becoming tiresome. You've all gone through so much and you deserve to be happy yet...."

" Yet?" he pressed on.

I sighed.

" Yet everytime I think about the war not happening, I get sad. Your conflict with the Cons is the only reason why you came to earth. So if it never happened then...."

" ...Then we never would have met you." he continued.

" Exactly," I let out a quiet, sorrowful laugh. " Isn't that selfish? Me getting all mopey over you being happy without me."

I could feel my eyes sting with oncoming tears. Come on! Now is not the time to cry. Not in front of Optimus of all people.

" I don't think it's selfish at all."

I was taken aback and made eye contact with him again.

" Really?"

" Of course, in fact, you're one of the most selfless beings I have ever had the honor of meeting. If anything, I'm the one who has been selfish."

" What?! Optimus I think you of all people are incapable of being selfish."

He gave me a small smile. It held a bit of guilt to it.

" You have done everything in your power to help us even though you are merely a bystander in this war. You have put your life on the line countless times for our sake and I have not repaid you in any way. I haven't even been able to protect you properly." his field radiated with regret. I'm still surprised that I can feel it. Not as strongly as a cybertronian would, but there was still a faint feeling when were close. Since that was often, I've learned to distinguish each emotion. Regret, however, was rare, especially directed towards me.

" I won't deny that there have been close calls," I felt a chill go up my spine at the memory of Megatron grabbing me, much harsher than any of the Bots. I had been sure that I'd die then and there in his cold, tight grasp. " But you have repaid me. Countless times actually."

His audial fins perked up.

" I have?"

" Of course you have. Do have any clue how in a funk I was before you guys arrived. I was lonely too but I guess thats on me for living in the woods. But when you showed up, it's like everything was new. By showing you my world I realized just how much I love it. Some people not so much, but the goods ones for sure. Then I was able to further my knowledge, learn about an alien race, make new friends AND fight killer robots,"

I caught my breath which soon turned to short giggle.

" Opty, I'd say you paid me in full before you even owed me. " I still can't believe he lets me call him that.

For a while he just stared at me fondly and I did the same.

" When all of this is over. When everything is safe here on earth....I'm going to take you to Cybertron."

My head whipped to face him although he was still looking at the sky, determination in his optics.

" Really...?" I muttered in disbelief. " You'd...you'd do that? You'd take me there?"

He turned to me and nodded.

" If it's to repay me then you don't need to. It would be too much of a hassle and what would the others think of you bringing an organic? As a Prime no less!"

He stared at me intently before raising his servo and cluthing me gently. It's what he normally did when I was distressed.

" I'm not taking you to my home because I feel that I need to. I'm taking you because I want to. I want you to experience my world as I've experienced yours. And ....to be completely honest...I...."

I gingerly touched his digit to urge him on.

" I don't think I'm quite ready to part ways with you either....For this to be over..."

We both didn't need to ponder on what this was. We never did and probably never will. Whatever it was it was certainly mutual. The Bots knew too. Probably even the Cons.

" I don't think I ever will..." I leaned my head against his faceplate and he nudged back, optics closing in content.

" I can't promise that you'll be accepted. I can't promise that it'll be all that you hoped. And I can't promise that I'll survive to be able to take you....but I promise that I'll try...with all my spark." he whispered with his optics still shut.

I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I let a few fall.

" You have to promise one more thing. And not as a Prime or even an Autobot. Just as you and only you."

" And what would that be?"

"....that you'll never forget me, no matter what happens."

He chuckled. Almost sadly as if realizing what I meant. That even if he did survive my lifespan would dwarf his. It was inevitable.

" How could I promise such a thing? Primus himself couldn't stop me from forgetting you."

And he didn't.

He never did.

[apriorisea]

BTS Imagine: When He’s Sick - Jungkook

You walk in the front door and see Jungkook lying face down on the floor; he’s in a collapsed push-up position and is facing the wall, his brows knit together in frustration. 

    The corner of your mouth quirks up slightly. “Hey babyboy. Whatcha doing?”     “Nothing.” The word leaves his mouth with so much frustration that the smile leaves your face quickly.      Slipping off your shoes, you crouch next to him, frowning slightly. “Are you...” You reach out and press the back of your hand against his forehead. “You’re sick.”     “No, I---”     “Jungkook,” you cut across him disapprovingly. “You said last night you weren’t feeling very good, remember?”     “It was just a long day, I’m fine.”     “Your forehead is on fire, you’re extra clammy, and I can hear you wheezing when you breathe.” You look at him again. “If you’re sick, you should be resting, not trying to work out. Especially,” you glance at your watch, “Since you have work in 30 minutes.”     He gets up to his knees. “I’m fine.” He smiles at you, even though you can see how miserable he is underneath. “How were your cousins?”     “Good.” You absently brush the hair out of his face and yawn. You’d gone over to your cousin’s house last night to help watch their young kids while the parents dealt with their newborn. “Their new little girl is just adorable, she’s so precious, but I didn’t get a lot of sleep.”     Getting to his feet, he reaches down and helps you up. “I’m sorry, darling. You better go get some rest.” He leans in and kisses your cheek.     You smile, but can’t help feeling how hot his face is against yours. “I think you probably should, too---”     “Nope, I’m fine.” He loops his arm around your waist and starts pulling you towards your shared room. “I’ll tuck you in and then get ready for work.”     You let him guide you down to the bed and sit down unhappily. “Can you at least take a little bit of medicine before you go?” You grab his hand and look up at him. “Please?”     He squeezes your fingers. “Okay. But I’m really fine.”     You bite back your disagreement, instead snuggling under the covers while he disappears into the bathroom to get ready. You can already feel your eyes closing when you think I should probably send the others a heads-up. Just then, the bathroom door swings open and he steps out, all ready to go except for the still-miserable aura surrounding him.      “Baby,” you try one more time, “Are you sure you don’t want to stay home today? Rest up a little more?”     He just smiles and leans down to stroke your cheek gently. “Get some sleep, okay? I’ll check on you at lunch.” He presses his lips to your forehead for a long time, and you feel your eyelids flutter shut at the familiar touch. He smiles. “Love you.”     “Love you,” you mumble, and he is out the door before you can say another word. With the feel of his kiss still on your skin, you drift into an exhausted sleep.     It’s just after noon when you hear the front door slam shut. You sit straight up in bed, your heart pounding. Grabbing your phone, you stay absolutely still until you hear a cough. You slip out of bed, smoothing one hand through your hair, and hurry down the hall, going faster when you hear the sound of cupboards being opened and shut with great force. You stumble into the kitchen to see Jungkook, the hood of his black sweatshirt pulled up around his face, open the fridge angrily.      “Hey,” you say, your voice still hoarse with sleep. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”     He turns to look at you, and though some of his rough attitude fades, he still sets the orange juice on the counter so hard you can hear the contents slosh. “I got sent home,” he says, grabbing a glass from the cupboard.     You study him quietly as he pours the juice into the glass: his nose is red, there’s a faint sheen of sweat all over his face, and his voice sounded painful. While he’s turned away from you, you glance at your phone, skimming through the messages quickly (Jin: Did JK look this bad when he left this morning? Jimin: I think Kookie is tired... Namjoon: sending Jungkook home, he’s not happy. Good luck.) You take a small breath. “Sent home?”     “Yeah. They say I’m too sick to be at rehearsal, but I was doing fine.” The end of his sentence was cut off by a coughing fit that took so much from him he had to lean against the counter to stay upright.      You quickly cross to him and grab the glass, pushing it into his hand. “Here,” you say, rubbing his back. When he recovers, you press your hand against his forehead. You click your tongue disapprovingly. “You are burning up. Did you ever take that medicine like I asked you?”     He doesn’t meet your gaze, which you know means No. “It’s really not that bad,” he says hoarsely. “I could’ve stayed. But you look tired still,” he changes the subject quickly, setting the juice down and looking into your face. “Did you get some sleep?”    “Yes.” You’re trying to decide how to make him listen.     “Here, let me get you some juice,” he offers helpfully, reaching one hand back to the cupboard to grab a second glass. “Did you even have breakfast?”     You push out of his embrace, moving to the medicine cabinet and grabbing a few bottles. “No. But I think---”     “Let me make you something,” he offers quickly. “Waffles? Eggs?” He doesn’t wither under your hard gaze. “Just some toast, or a bagel, then?” When you still don’t move, he pouts, some of his facade crumbling away, and says your name in a pleading tone. “I still have so much energy, and I can’t do anything else right now, can I please do something for you?”    Exhaling softly, you move towards him with the pill bottles extended. “You can toast me a bagel---on one condition.”     He nods eagerly and looks between the bottles. “Of course. Which one?”     “Both,” you answer, raising your eyebrow in a sort of challenge.      Giving you a little smirk, he leans down to kiss your cheek, then tries to hide how dizzy that simple motion made him. “Anything you want,” he promises.      “Great.” You tip the correct dosage out onto the counter next to his juice. “I’m going to go wash-up really quick, ok? After you make the bagel, you park your butt on that couch and rest, promise?”     He doesn’t answer, instead proffering his cheek for a kiss.      Rolling your eyes, you kiss him, then point at the pills, “Take them now. While I’m watching.” He scoffs, but does as he’s told, washing the medicine down with an extra gulp of juice. “Good. I’ll be right back.”      Unbeknownst to you, while you’re in the bathroom, he makes your bagel, then proceeds to wipe off the counters, sweep the floor, and is started on dishes when the edges of his vision go black. You return to the kitchen and find him slumped in a chair at the table. “Jungkook?” You put your hand on his shoulder and look around at the halfway-cleaned kitchen. Gently pulling back his hood, you ask, “Are you okay?”    He’s incredibly pale, drenched in sweat, and his breathing is labored. “I’m---”    “Don’t you dare say fine,” you snap, putting your arm around him to help him sit up a little. You move away from him for a second to shut off the tap, then grab a water bottle from the fridge. “We’re getting you to bed right now.” He has the good sense not to argue. You walk him down the hall and right up to the closet door. “Get in something more comfortable,” you instruct, before leaving him to change. You start some water for tea, wet a cloth with cool water, and put the heating pad in the microwave. You impatiently wait for it to be done, sending a text to the other members (Thanks a lot, guys!).  The five minutes it takes to heat up feel like eternity, but when you finally take everything back down to the room, you find him changed into his favorite pair of sweats, lying back against the pillows, the blankets haphazardly pulled over him.      “Heyyy.” He looks up at you blearily. “There’s the most beautiful girl in the whole world!”     His reaction takes you aback. You blink. “What?”     “I love you, sweetie-cakes,” he says, a lazy grin on his face. “I love you soooo much, you’re so hot.”     You feel a laugh bubble in the back of your throat---the drugs must have kicked into overdrive. If he hadn’t just scared you to death with the near-collapse, it would be way funnier. As it was, you smile big and move towards him. “Well thanks, babyboy. How are you feeling?”     “Fi---” he catches himself. “I mean....I’m--I’m okay, I think...Everything just feels....fuzzzyy...”     You have him sit forward and wrap the heating pad around his neck, then push his shoulder back and drape the cool-cloth over his forehead. “That’s okay.” You fix a strand of his hair. “That means you should get some sleep.”     “Okay, snuggle-buns.” He raises one eyebrow. “Are you going to snuggle me?”    You cover your laugh with a cough. “Are you going to rest if I do?” you ask seriously. He nods eagerly, but you give him a look. “Do you remember just a few minutes ago, when I asked you to take it easy, and you didn’t, and you ended up almost passing out?” The nod turns sheepish.      “I’m so sorry lovey-face,” he says contritely, reaching clumsily for your hand. “I really am.”     Lovey-face. You file the newest cutesy nickname away to bring up later; once he was back to himself, he would die of embarrassment to know he’d behaved like this.  “You need to listen to me from now on, right?”     He’s holding on tight to the edge of your sweatshirt. “Do you forgive me?”    You sigh and lean down to kiss his forehead gently. “I’m just worried about you, babyboy. You’re pretty sick right now, you know.”    He nods pitifully. “I don’t feel very good, gorgeous babydoll. Will you snuggle me?”     The laugh slips through this time, but he’s too out of it to notice. “Yes, Jungkook. Let me just turn out the lights so it’s not so bright in your eyes, okay?”     “Ah, yes, my super-hot girlfriend is so smart, too,” he says. His fingers reach for you after you step away. “Wait...come back...”     You take a second in the bathroom, out of his sight, to laugh, pressing your hand over you mouth and doubling over. If I were meaner, I would be filming this.... You pull yourself back together and go back to him.      “Oh my goodness, baaaabee,” he says when he sees you, “you are SO beautiful. So perfect. I lo--”     You swoop in and kiss him softly, briefly, just to stop him. “All right you,” you say, climbing into bed next to him and turning on the TV. “I’m here now, so you have to rest. That’s what you promised.”     He cuddles against you immediately, wrapping one arm over your waist and squeezing you tight. “I know,” he sighs happily. He sloppily kisses your cheek. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you, cutie. Thank you for taking such good care of me...”     “I love you, Jungkook,” you say softly, running your fingers through his hair. “Get some good rest now, okay?”     “Mmmhmmm.” His eyes are already shut.      You flip through the channels, and by the time you’ve found an old movie to watch, he’s passed out, his arm still slung over you. He sleeps for hours, still as a rock, and when he finally wakes up, you can tell the drugs have worn off and he’s feeling a little better.      “Hi babyboy,” you say quietly, and he snuggles his face against your side. “Or should I say---snuggle-buns??”

[florianwirtz]

I’m a Mess - Marco Reus

The Expectation Series

#2 I’m a Mess

Warnings: Strong language, mentions of depression

He don't love me, he don't love me, but that's OK

'Cause I love me, yeah, I love me

Yeah, I love me, yeah, I love myself anyway

The moment you saw Marco's picture with his girlfriend on Instagram, attached with a corny caption, you felt a pang in your chest. Currently, they were on holiday and Sometimes you were truly convinced that you were over him but on some days this ugly feeling of unrequited love returned again and it felt like you never moved on from him. It was always an up and down ride with your feelings for him.

Meeting Marco back then was a blessing and curse at the same time. On the one hand, you found a friend for life, because even though he was a famous and liked footballer, he still remained down-to-earth and treated everyone the same. He was there for you whenever you felt down which happened quite often due to you suffering under depression.

But on the other hand, you also considered yourself as unlucky because it felt so damn cliché to fall in love with someone who was already taken and never showed any sign of overstepping the friendship line to you.

And sometimes you were genuinely happy for Marco and his girlfriend because it was clearly visible how much in love they were. You also had met her a few times and at every meeting, she never had given you the vibe of disliking you which made it impossible to hate her because everything about her was genuine. On some days, it automatically gave you the feeling that your romantic feelings for him stopped because you remembered how lucky both of them were that they found each other, but then you woke up the next day and realized that you never got over him.

Today was one of these days. Just with the addition of the photo which made you feel even worse because it proved once again that she made him happier than you ever could. Sometimes you wish she wasn’t nice because it would make it possible to hate her. And you would have a reason to dislike her. Instead, you always felt like a monster for being in love with him.

You were a true mess today.

Not only were you apathetically lying the whole day in your bed, unmotivated to do anything, but you also managed to drown a whole bottle of champagne right after you saw their snapchat story of them acting cute. And of course they looked like the perfect couple and she always looked stunning anyway whether she was representing the newest bikini mode or just casually wearing her boyfriend’s bright yellow jersey. Unintentionally, she always reminded you of your insecurities, she was a model so she naturally looked better than the average person, but then you were reminded of the fact that one of the reasons why Marco fell in love with her instead of you were probably the difference in appearance.

When your therapists recommended you to distract yourself by doing something you enjoy when you felt like crap, they probably didn’t mean to get drunk.

You really appreciated your therapists even though it hadn’t been always the case. You had used to believe that they were only trying to make you believe in empty phrases until they made you say that everything’s gonna be alright. But surprisingly, they were willing to listen and giving advice to you without having in mind that you’re supposed to feel better of what they say. When you talked to them, it felt like they were really trying to find a solution to a problem and not them being a therapist treating their patient.

Sometimes it felt good to have a person to talk to who wasn’t biased. Because family and friends always want the best for you which you really appreciated but whenever you talk to them about your problems, you could never be sure if they really want to help you or just want to make you feel better about yourself.

The alcohol in your veins made you loosen up a bit, suddenly you felt alive again. You could even laugh a bit about yourself, about the way you looked with your scruffy hair and puffy cheeks right now, combined with your pajamas or about the fact that you were crushing on someone for months who didn’t return your feelings. Because sometimes you truly loved yourself despite your insecurities. And making fun of yourself was the way you dealt with it. Unfortunately, it also made you do stupid things. Because right now, you were calling Marco on facetime and your brain couldn’t really process that you might regret this when you were sober again.

Luckily, he didn’t pick up, but your drunk self, of course, was disappointed. Because now you thought about all the things he might do with his girlfriend right now, the thought of them amusing together made you sad and jealous.

It also made you feel like a horrible human being, both were wonderful persons who deserved each other, so why couldn’t you just move on and be happy for them?

Currently, you were crying again, not clear if it was about the unrequited love or the mess of a person you were. At one moment you were laughing or suddenly on another, you were crying again, there was no in between.

At one time, your phone ringed and you saw Marco’s name appearing on your screen. You couldn’t believe that he actually made the effort to call you back when he could’ve just texted you. Once again, he showed how much he really cares about the people in his surroundings.

You were torn between accepting the call or just letting it ring. Because you were certainly not in the condition to say something intelligent right now. But at the last moment, you accepted it, you had nothing to lose anyway.

“Hi.” You simply greeted him and giggled quietly. You were still fully under the influence of alcohol.

“Y/N? I saw that you called so I called back to ask why.” He answered back with a certain undertone.

“You could’ve just texted me, why did you make the effort to call me back?”

“Uh, you know every time you call it’s important. Because mostly you only do it because you feel bad and I wanted to make sure that you’re fine. I was worried about you.” Subtly, Marco cleared his throat and you bid on your lips with a sense of guilt.

It never stroke you, but now that he mentioned it, you realized that whenever your depression hit you hard, he was the first choice of person you wanted to talk to. Because most of the time he understood how you felt and knew how to make you feel better. And the fact that he noticed it and was prepared to console you even on his holidays made you realized how much he cared. And it was another reason why you fell for him.

“Are you still here?” Marco interrupted your silence and you fastly responded, so he didn’t hang up.

“I’m sorry, I’m drunk. I shouldn’t have called you, especially when you’re enjoying your holidays.” You mumbled guilty and almost hung up, but Marco’s quick response prevented it.

“No please tell me what’s going on. I heard you sniffing and something must have happened when you’re drunk alone.” He insisted once again.

“I don’t deserve you.” You suddenly blurted out and regretted it in the exact same moment. But it was too late to take it back.

“What do you mean?” Now he sounded confused and you had no idea what to reply.

Maybe you should confess what was on your heart for the whole time. You were aware that it would change everything between you and him, but one day it was going to happen anyway. And right now was the perfect timing, you were drunk so expressing your feelings was easier and your cryptic message was the perfect introduction for it. That you might regret it when you were sobered up, 

“Can you facetime me? I have to say something into your face.” You took a deep breath, tensely waiting for an answer.

“Oh... uh, it’s kind of suboptimal.” He muttered slowly. “Because... I’m currently not wearing anything.”

"Oh gosh.. I’m sorry. Don’t say anything. I understand.” You babbled nervously and felt the tears coming. 

"Don’t hang up, yeah? We can still talk, I’m still here by phone.”

Now the tears were silently falling down your cheek. How could he still be so nice to you?! He wanted to help you even though you were wasting his time and ruining his holidays with your problems.

“Listen... I might regret this when tomorrow comes, but I hope you know that you’re my best friend and I’m so grateful to have you. You are always there when I need you even though I’m such a complicated and needy person. You still take all the time of the world and I’m so thankful that I was able to meet such a great person like you.” Under tears, you confessed your gratefulness.

Surprised by your words, he hesitated shortly, unsure what to say. Then he began to answer, calmy and collected.

“But that’s what friends are for. I know that you are a strong person and battle with all this shit for your whole life and please remember that you are never bothering me! I know that it’s a daily struggle and on some days you simply need the support of another person.”

You chuckled quietly. “See, that’s why people love you. You are always kind and modest, no matter what. It’s certainly not an implicitness to have someone like you. Sometimes I wonder why you’re still friends with such a horrible person like me.”

“You’re not a horrible person! I don’t believe that. You’re lovely, funny and kind which is everything I wish for a friend. I never want someone else as a best friend than you.” Your last sentence made him even more confused and he completely ignored your other compliments towards him.

Even though he couldn’t see it, you shook your head with a quiet laugh. “Always seeing the good sides of someone, your strength, and weakness at the same time. Would you still be my friend if you knew what I’m thinking the whole time?”

“You’re weird right now. I don’t even understand what you’re babbling the whole time. Maybe you should sober up for a while and then we should talk again.” He concluded.

“Yeah haha... maybe you’re right.” You lied to him. Although you were drunk, you knew exactly what you were talking about.

“Alright. I’m calling you later, I promise. But I’m certain of one thing. I’ll never leave you even though you’re afraid of it. I love you, no matter what. Don’t forget that.”

“Thank you.” You smiled though he meant his last words differently than you wished.

“I love you too - so much it hurts.”

But right at that moment when you spoke out what you were hiding the whole time, you already hurt the beeping tone which signaled that he hung up.

Bitterly you smiled under your falling tears. In some kind of way, it was fine. He was happier than ever and you would never forgive yourself if you ever changed that. Maybe when you sobered up, you will forget about everything that happened and you could start your day by loving yourself again.

[chierafied]

Prompt: Peony

For Inuvember 2017.

Day 22 - Family. (A dysfunctional family’s still a family..)

1,7 k words.

Thanks for the prompt Anon. This is… probably not what you expected.. ^^; But I hope you like it anyway!

Ailment

Any time now, Kagomeprayed fervently in her mind, shuffling her feet. Any time now sweet sweet ground just rise up and swallow me whole.Please.

The daiyoukai towered before her, cold fury in his eyes.

She’d rather face him in a battle than have this conversation withhim.

He might carve her into bloody little pieces, but at least thatwould spare her from the misery and humiliation of this situation.

“I left my ward here, because I judged Kaede’s tutelage to be the bestfit for Rin. Yet, she remains my ward – even if no one here thought it prudent toinform me that she has taken ill.”

Kagome squirmed, and wished Kaede was here. The old miko wouldhave dealt with this mess without batting an eye.

“Ummm.” Kagome swallowed. “I’m sorry no one’s told you, but I’mpretty sure she didn’t want you to know. I mean, Rin isn’t ill, not really.”

Sesshoumaru’s eyes flashed, and Kagome took an involuntary stepbackwards.

“Do not lie to me, miko,” he said, his voice low and arctic. Andthough each word was carefully enunciated, she could hear the growl simmeringjust beneath the surface.

“I’m not,” Kagome replied, coming perilously close to a squeak.

“She is in grave pain,” Sesshoumaru ground out. “She can barelyrise from her futon, and you dare to tell me she is not ill!”

“She’s not!” Kagome winced at his murderous glare. “She’s in pain,yes, but not because of an illness.”

Sesshoumaru flexed his claws around the hilt of his sword, and slantedher a cold, imperious stare.

“Explain.”

Kagome closed her eyes and waited – but the ground didn’t swallowher despite all her pleas.

She blew out a breath.

“Rin is…” Kagome faltered, tried again. “Rin’s having women’s problems.”

Kagome could feel the heat on her cheeks, knew they would beburning with embarrassment now.

She figured the worst was over, and was immediately proven wrong:Sesshoumaru’s face remained as carefully blank as it had been before.

“I do not understand.”

Kagome hid her face in her hands, rubbed her forehead – and gaveup.

“I don’t know how things work for female youkai, ok? But withhuman women, once you become old enough to bear children, there’s this monthlycycle and basically you will bleed up to a week–”

“I am aware of this issue with human females,” Sesshoumaru cut in,impatient.

Kagome blinked. “You are?”

“This Sesshoumaru can smell the blood.”

Well, wasn’t that just disconcerting.

“Okay. Of course you can.” Flustered, Kagome squared her shouldersand soldiered on. “Anyway, yeah, there is the blood, but some women also havestuff like muscle aches, cramps, pain… Unfortunately, Rin seems to be one ofthem.” Kagome paused, tried for a soothing tone of voice. “So you see, like Isaid, she’s not ill. She’s just having her period. It’s perfectly natural.”

Sesshoumaru scowled, angling his head to catch a faint, pained moan.

“There is nothing natural about that,” he said, pointing anaccusing finger towards the hut where Rin was resting.

Kagome shrugged. She could try to argue, but since this wasSesshoumaru, she’d have better luck butting her head against a concrete wall.It just wasn’t worth the headache.

The anger was back in Sesshoumaru’s eyes as he pinned her downwith his stare.

“Help her.”

Kagome bit her lip. “I would if I could. Honest.”

The look Sesshoumaru sent her could’ve chilled her to the bone.“There must be something you can do forher. To ease the pain. You are a miko after all, are you not?”

“Well…” Kagome frowned, racked her brain. “I think Rin mentionedKaede’s given her some medicine before. But we don’t have the ingredients tomake that now, and I don’t know where to get any.”

Sesshoumaru jaw clenched. “What ingredients?”

“Peonies. The root of white peony.”

Sesshoumaru’s spine stiffened and he grew very still.

Kagome felt a touch of concern – his face didn’t betray much, andyet he looked faintly ill.

“Are you all right?”

“Peonies,” he replied, from behind gritted teeth. “You need whitepeonies to help Rin?”

Kagome raised her eyebrow. She’d just told him that, hadn’t she?Why was he so wound up over pretty flowers?

“Yes.”

He huffed in displeasure, and turned to walk away.

“Are you coming, miko?”

“Huh? What? Where?”

Sesshoumaru glowered at her over his shoulder. “To get whitepeonies for Rin.”

“You have white peonies?”

“I know where to find some.”

His tone was coldly dismissive; a clear sign that the conversationwas over.

Kagome wasn’t sure if she should be relieved she hadn’t died fromembarrassment after all, or worried about the darker, brooding turnSesshoumaru’s mood seemed to have taken.

She shook her head, and hurried after him.

Once more, Kagome grabbed onto the white pelt trailing afterSesshoumaru’s steps, as he launched himself into the air with little warning.Kagome squeezed her eyes shut, buried her face in the soft fur and hoped not toplunge into her death.

She stumbled as her feet touched something solid, but keptsqueezing her lifeline in a white-knuckled grip.

Until a cool voice spoke.

“You can let go now, miko.”

Kagome opened her eyes, let the fur slide through her fingers –and gaped.

They were standing before a stone staircase, leading up the sideof a castle. A castle in the sky.

Sesshoumaru started up the steps, and Kagome followed him, turningher head, trying to peek from behind his back, drinking in everything.

He stopped, and she hesitated a moment before she circled aroundto stand next to Sesshoumaru, hoping he wouldn’t take offence to suchfamiliarity.

And Kagome stared some more, because they’d come to a landing, andbefore them stood what could only be called a throne. 

In that throne, lounged afemale youkai dressed in rich kimono, over which she wore a fur-lined uchikake, and whose facial markings,silver-white hair, and sharp golden eyes looked disturbingly familiar.

“Back again, Sesshoumaru?” the demoness drawled, propping her chinagainst a hand tipped in pointed red nails. “And with another human female, Isee. Are you planning to follow in your father’s footsteps after all, despiteall your past declarations to the contrary?”

Kagome felt a terrible urge to step back behind Sesshoumaru’sback, when tension and animosity spiked in the air. As if the oppressing youki hanging heavy in the air wasn’tbad enough…

Sesshoumaru’s lip curled in a sneer. “Do not be absurd, mother.”

Kagome tried not to gawk – she really tried.

But holy crap, this wasSesshoumaru’s mother?!

The demoness arched one imperious eyebrow.

Sesshoumaru spared Kagome a glance. “She is one of the caretakersof Rin.”

“Oh yes, the little human girl you were so unnaturally fond of.”

The dismissive wave of the demoness’ hand had the first sparks ofirritation stirring in Kagome’s chest. But she managed to hold her tongue incheck.

“So,” Sesshoumaru’s mother drawled, “for what do I owe thisvisit?”

“Rin is unwell.”

The demoness snorted. “Am I supposed to care about that?”

Kagome’s hands balled into fists. Beside him, Sesshoumaru growled.

“We merely wish to visit your garden, mother,” he said, strugglingto keep his temper in check. “There is a plant there that will ease her pain.”

The demoness heaved a sigh. “You really disappoint me,Sesshoumaru. It is not wise to grow so attached to humans. Even if you fetchthis plant for her, she will die soon.”

The words rushed out before Kagome could bite them back. “A shortlife does not make it a meaningless one. And it’s never a weakness to care.”

The full weight of the demoness’ golden stare shifted onto Kagome.

“You are young, even for a human, and I have lived considerablylonger than you have, girl. I know these things.”

Kagome lifted her chin. “You’d really think so, wouldn’t you? Withall your experience, you should knowbetter. And still you sound so ignorant.”

The demoness snarled, and her youkipulsed, pushing against Kagome like adreadful gust of wind.

Kagome glared at her, and let her reiki rise. It swelled in one swift mad rush, like a tidal wave,and wound around Kagome; a cold shield of purity.

Surprise flashed briefly on Sesshoumaru’s mother’s face, then hereyes narrowed.

“Not just a human,” she said on a quiet tone dripping withexasperation, “but a miko. Thecompany you keep these days, Sesshoumaru, it does make me wonder.”

“Yes,” Kagome snapped, before Sesshoumaru could reply. “I’m amiko. So don’t try me. Now, Sesshoumaru and I are going to visit your garden,grab the plant we need, and get out of your hair. Any objections?”

The demoness leaned back in her seat, her face a blank maskreminiscent of Sesshoumaru’s. But for a fleeting second, emotion flashed in hereyes.

Was that…? No, Kagome couldn’t have seen right. There was no waythat a lowly human – worse, a miko – snapping at her would amuse Sesshoumaru’s mother.

“If you insist,” she said, sounding bored now. “Be quick.”

Kagome started walking, before she realised she had no clue wherethe gardens actually were, and had to stop and wait for Sesshoumaru to take thelead. 

They walked in silence; found the garden in question – a lovely oasis ofgreenery and blooming trees and flowerbeds. Kagome collected a couple of thewhite peonies, making sure to get their roots, while Sesshoumaru waited.

Then, after a curt warning, they were up in the air and on theirway back to Edo.

Kagome was only glad they had not gone back around the castleexterior where they would have had to meet with Sesshoumaru’s mother one lasttime.

She was even gladder, when her feet touched the ground on theoutskirts of Edo.

She let go of his pelt, then walked around to face him. “I don’twanna be rude or anything, but your mom is a real piece of work.”

“Hnn. There is a reason why this Sesshoumaru rarely visits her.”

“Can’t blame you.”

“You have enough for the medicine?”

“Sure. I’ve never prepared it, but I should have the instructionssomewhere. I’ve been writing Kaede’s remedies down for just these kinds ofoccasions.”

Sesshoumaru nodded stiffly, then met her eyes. “Thank you. Forhelping Rin.”

Now that was something Kagome had never thought she’d hear fromhis lips.

She flashed him a smile. “No problem. I’ll get right on it.”

It had been a rollercoaster of a day, she reflected as she hurriedtowards Kaede’s hut. But in the end, it had turned out all right.

[nemalionnicole]

Scenario 2: Byun Baekhyun’s

[07:00 Baekhyun calls and forces you to go karaoke-ing with him.]

               Ring ring ring ring…

               Your phone has been ringing nonstop for a while now it could actually pass off for an alarm clock. You’ve been ignoring it for a while as well in hopes that the caller will get the message and stop. It’s still 7AM for crying out loud! What person in their right mind is awake at this ungodly hour during a weekend? You were looking forward to this day because you can finally sleep in. You even pulled an all-nighter rewatching Goblin the other night. But this call was making it impossible to catch up on sleep. You burrow your head in your pillow to block out the noise and will yourself to dreamland again but whoever was calling was relentless. The call would end and not a moment later, your phone will be ringing again.

               “OH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!” you screamed and grabbed your phone from the bedside table, pressed the answer button, and in a not so cheery mood dealt with the person on the other line, “Yes, hello??? WHO IS THIS?”

               Ack. Your throat felt like sandpaper. You heard a muffled laugh from the other line, the person clearly amused with your strained morning voice. You suddenly remembered that you were screaming and bawling at your laptop screen last night during the rooftop scene when Euntak pulled the sword from Kim Shin. Hence, the male-teen-in-his-puberty voice. The early morning coldness wasn’t making your voice sound any better and so was this person.

              “Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you… Good morning, birthday girl!”

              “Oh god. Baekhyun! WHY?”

              “Hey, don’t take that tone with me. Just because it’s your birthday doesn’t mean I’ll spare you your honorifics lesson. It’s Baekhyun oppa. Im older than you!”

              “But I never call you tha---“

              “Anyway, what do you think about karaoke with me right now?”

              “Im sorry, what?”

              “Good? Good. Ok! See you in a bit.”

                “NO, BAEK WAIT! NOT GOOD! NOT GOOD!”

               Beep beep beep beep… You stared at the words “call ended” flashing on your screen. Did Baekhyun just call you at 7AM, basically ordered you to go to karaoke with him, then ended the call? Because your brain was running at 1 Mbps and an event that happened as fast as that was all too much to understand this early in the morning. You kept staring at your phone like it was going to give you a redo of whatever happened until the display on the screen turned black completely. The sudden sound of a car horn broke you out of your trance and you offered a silent prayer that it didn’t come from who you thought it did. You peered through your window and sadly, it was not your day today.

               It’s not like you didn’t want to spend your birthday with Baek, there’s nothing you would want more than that. There are just some factors that should be considered for you to be in that happy place. Like the time not being 7AM, you getting your planned 10 hours of sleep, your throat not dry like the dessert, and your body not weighing like bricks.

               Honk honk honk honk… Ugh. You internally groaned. Alright! You’re up. You typed a quick message to Baek, telling him to wait a bit so you can get ready. You kicked the sheets off you and begrudgingly trudged to the bathroom to take a shower. You chose to wear some lazy jeans and a loose shirt. You did a final check of your outfit on the mirror and once you thought that you were already presentable, you grabbed your bag and went out to meet him.

               The moment Baek saw your approaching figure, he was out of the car in a flash and pushing you to the passenger seat. Once you were seated, he buckled your seat belt while showing that boxy smile of his then closed the door. You turned your attention ahead but then you heard tapping on your side of the window, and Baek was still there, waving at you like a kid when you looked at him. That gave you a good laugh. You waved back at him and mouthed, “Let’s go,” so you can finally go to the karaoke he woke you up this early in the morning for. He can do the most absurd things at the most questionable times, drag you into it against your will, and he’ll still be able to make you laugh even when you didn’t even feel like smiling. Baekhyun was amazing like that.

               After an hour of driving, you finally arrived at your destination. This was the karaoke place he started going to frequently this year. He always mentions it to you but you’ve never actually had the time to check the place out. You can see why he liked it so much though. The place was big and flashy even in daylight. It would probably be blinding at night when all the neon lights are turned on. You heard him getting out of the car and you did the same. You were just following after him as he got you guys settled with a room and some food.

               You can see that he really went here a lot. He already knew his way around the halls, the staff didn’t even have to accompany you guys to his usual karaoke room. Baek didn’t waste time the moment you guys were settled in. He started reserving song after song and only stopped when the maximum number of songs on queue was reached. He grabbed the mic and sang his first song choice, a ballad. You always knew he had an amazing voice and that ballads make him sound even more amazing. The air-conditioned room and Baek singing a slow song was making you sleepy. His voice just had that natural calming feeling to it. It was not helping that most of the songs he reserved were slow songs too. Great! You thought to yourself. At this rate you’ll be out asleep before the food even comes.

               “Oh no! I forgot something in the car. Can you wait here for a while? I won’t take long, I promise,” he said and rushed out of the room. Just as he did, the staff came with the food he ordered. It was clearly not for a two-person serving. He ordered too much but who were you to complain? Free food is free food! You thanked the staff and started munching on the finger foods. You’ll wait for Baek to come back so you two can eat the main meal together.

               You were listening to the minus one of the current song playing while eating the cheese sticks when the lights suddenly went out. What the heck? You reached for the service phone and was about to call for assistance when the door suddenly opened and Baek came inside holding a birthday cake and singing ‘happy birthday’ to you. He halted before you and made you hold the cake. “Make a wish!” he said, and so, you closed your eyes to do so and blew the candles.

               “Baek?” you asked the empty space in front of you because your eyes opened to an area where he should’ve been. “Hey, where are you?” you questioned as you looked left and right. You heard a hum to the tune of Beautiful by Crush from behind you and you turned to see him standing behind you. He was smiling and he kept humming the intro of the song, which by the way, was the current song playing on the karaoke at the moment. He did the Goblin thing! The blowing of the flame and Kim Shin appearing behind Euntak right after!  You looked at him with disbelief and laughed really loud at his antics. He was doing a great job making you laugh on a really early Saturday morning. If he keeps doing this, bombarding you with calls earlier was becoming worth the trouble somehow.

               “Happy birthday! Im sorry about the calls earlier,” he scratched his neck like a shy teenage boy, “I was up early because I was a bit of excited to celebrate your birthday here with you and I couldn’t wait till this afternoon.”

               “Awe, thanks Baek. Sorry for yelling at the phone earlier too,” you laughed, “I was just really sleepy. But seriously, thanks for doing all this. Im happy you woke me up for this,” you genuinely smiled and that was more than enough to lift his sagging shoulders from the bother he thought he gave you. He was smiling brightly and it was just like a scene from a kdrama. You even had the background music to your moment!

               You put the cake on the table and took your seat while Baek grabbed the mic and started singing his reserved songs again. This half of the songs reserved were osts and his voice just made everything sound heavenly to your ears. You couldn’t even stop the smile forming on your face while you watched him singing in front of you. He would look back and smile at you from time to time, grab some finger food every now and then, and continue singing. He took the seat beside you when he got tired and you two started eating your breakfast.

               You started the day like that. At a karaoke room with him doing a private concert for you, taking your song requests, and singing like an angel effortlessly every time. He’s making you happy just by standing there. To think you could’ve missed this if you pushed through to ignore his calls earlier. And as the day went on, you found yourself taking back all that you said. Nothing could’ve been better than spending your birthday with Baek at 7AM, it was ok that you didn’t get your 10 hours of sleep, it was ok even if your body felt like it was carrying a boulder, and surprisingly, it was ok even if your throat hurts. There was no doubt anymore, today was your day after all.

[jynsongxvii-blog]

❝ Rolling eyes at the  f l o w e r ❞

A/N: This is the super late challenge #2. This turned out to be very long which made it hard to simply sit down and write quickly. Who would have thought graduating would have me busy even after tests? Probably everyone, but me. Oh well, here it is. Thanks to Alex for being patient (I’m still super sorry about posting late tho!!) and for rping @domschreave. This turned out better than I thought, so I hope it’s not awful. What I consider to be a pretty edit can be found at the end of the fic❤ [interesting fact I learned. It’s dominoes not dominos, rip]

Geoffrey walked up to Dom's door and knocked. The prince quickly opened and was a bit confused to see the old butler. “Hello?” The man did the bow that was practically second nature after years of working at the palace. “Highness, a Selected asked me to give you this.” He handed him an envelope and a small box. “She also mentioned you might want to open the letter first.” “Ok, thanks.” The prince opened the letter and began reading. Hello there, So you say you like puzzles, this is a simple one, just for you. Maybe not even worthy of considering a puzzle since I'm sure you'll say it's way too simple for your intellect, but either way, let's see how much of an impression I've made. I send this in hopes of arranging our meet up. It seems I'll need your help for our date to happen... and we might need to leave the palace. Details of where we'll go will remain a secret until tomorrow. If you agree to that, then I'll see you in the afternoon. Since I have no means of transport for the city you must tell me where we'll meet to leave. Write it on the back of this paper (hopefully, that's not too much work for your princely hands). However, for this to happen, you must first figure out who I am and add my name alongside the place you choose for the beginning of our encounter. Your hint is inside the box. Have a good day, Highness. Dominic quickly opened the box and found the domino tile a smirking girl had placed inside hours earlier. Rolling his eyes, he addressed the butler again. “It’s Jyn, isn't it?” Geoffrey cleared his throat uncomfortably, asking himself how the young Miss had convinced him to actually help her out with the current task. Sure, she could’ve ordered him to do it even if he refused, but she’d opted for pleading with puppy eyes and he couldn’t say no. “I'm afraid the lady who sent the letter asked me not answer that, Highness. She was, however, expecting you to roll your eyes, and said to mention "extra points for me" if you did so.” “Fine. I'll go find her myself.” Dominic didn’t seem interested in waiting and walked off to Jyn’s room without giving the butler any other response.

I flipped through endless pages of dress sketches, noticing Peggy was a lot better than she thought she was.

It was a real shame she had to hide behind her sisters to show her talent, too young to be given important chores around the palace such as dressmaking. The design for my ballroom dress had come from Eliza, but apparently, Peggy had dealt with details and most of the actual confection of the dress. I owed the final product to her and I wouldn’t have known if it weren't for Eliza leaving the sketchbook for me to see without her little sister’s permission.

I knew she was a little ashamed of taking it without her knowing, but she’d told me she just couldn’t take credit for what Peggy did any longer. Eliza explained Peggy helped her all the time, being such a good seamstress her older sister couldn’t bear leaving her out of it.  Because of that, instead of doing all the dresses herself she sometimes let Peggy work on them while she did her sister’s work. Being only fifteen Peggy wasn’t allowed to work on anything that would affect any nobles, politicians, royals or Selected. It was just a rule for everyone. She was given simpler responsibilities that could be fixed if necessary without causing major issues.

To me, It didn’t matter if she was young or not, just if she was competent. I’d seen great kids working at a young age in my town. In different jobs and chores, there was always a few standing out. Considering the work I’d seen, Peggy deserved a chance to shine and maybe I could give her that. I could give her permission to make my dresses alongside Eliza with all the creative liberty she wanted. I wouldn’t complain no matter the result, so there was no way to get in trouble for her this way.

Banging on my door stopped my thoughts and I looked over my shoulder slightly confused at all the fuzz. Closing Peggy’s sketchbook and picking up the sandwich Angelica had left for me a while ago, I stood up.

“No need to throw the door down, Geoffrey..” I grinned, opening said door. My amusement disappeared a second later as I froze with the sandwich raised halfway to my mouth, blinking at my visitor. “Oh..” Standing in front of me was a prince, not a butler, so I lowered the food, my other hand still gripping the doorknob tightly. What is he doing here? “Hi?”

“You're the one who sent me the domino, right?” Dom held the letter and the box I’d handed to Geoffrey a while earlier in his hands.

“Uh…” It took me another moment of blinking to snap out of my daze. He was supposed to send his answer back with Geoffrey, but it seemed he didn’t follow the instructions. Impatient are you now, Dominoes? This wasn’t the plan, but I could rearrange it. “You're not really good with rules, are you?”

“Sorry... I just thought I'd come tell you it wasn't that hard to figure out it was you... did you still want to wait until later to go or should we go now since I'm a ‘rule breaker’?”

“I didn't say the puzzle would be hard..” Actually, it was really simple, “but at least now I know I stand out one way or another, which was the whole point of the ‘puzzle.’” I grinned and took the letter from him. “You are rather impatient though.”

Heading back into my room, I finally took a bite from my sandwich. Dom didn’t come in. “Was that a yes, you want to go now, or a no, let's wait until later?”

Swallowing the bread I smirked at him looking over my shoulder. “Well, I did leave the door open Dominoes, now didn't I?” I walked in my closet to search for the outfit I’d picked out for tomorrow. “Just give me a moment to change into something nicer.”

He finally walked in and shut the door behind him. “So it's a yes.”

“Mhmm.” I grabbed the red jeans and white blouse in a hanger. “Geoffrey can't tell me now since you're such a rebel, but did I get extra points?”

Dom rolled eyes his eyes as I stepped back in the room. That added ten more points to my score. “Yeah, you did.” 

Twenty points total then.

“Perfect.” I might be getting a better grasp at you, Dom. “Now stay there, I'll go change.”

“Hey, Jyn, you've got a rat infestation in here.”

“RATS? WHERE?” I flung my bathroom door open, holding a towel over my chest since I’d been in the middle of changing my shirt. Dom had gotten comfortable on the bed, lying on it entirely. I noticed Cassian staring at him from my desk. “Oh, you mean him. You people need to educate yourself on animals.”

Cassian hissed at him and got off the desk to chew on his shoe. So...maybe he doesn’t like Dom like he likes Evan.

“Whatever. Looks like a rat.”

I glared at him on Cassian’s behalf. “It's not the same... and you seem pretty comfy.”

“Nice bed you got here.” He said with a shrug and I blew a strand of hair out of my face.

“I guess it's technically yours anyway... Let me put on my blouse, I'll be out there in a sec.”

“I'll be here.”

A minute or so later I was walking over to the bed, throwing myself on it and landing next to him. Staring at the ceiling I finally asked, “So what are our means of transport then?”

“Either motorcycle or a fancy car. Your choice.”

Lots of girls wanted to see the famous motorcycle he had, even myself. The thing was probably as popular as the Prince himself, but that’s why I wondered if going for it on the first date would be a good idea. Maybe mixing things up would be refreshing and it wasn’t like I’d been on many vehicles before either. “Fancy car, huh? That sounds interesting…” But then again, maybe he favored the motorcycle over everything else. “What do you prefer? Maybe you want to know where we're going before choosing?”

“Sure. Where are we going?”

“Have you ever heard of the Golden abandoned theater?” I’d done a little research on the abandoned theaters in Angeles and Golden wasn’t too old. Just a decade. It was probably the only one that would still have old stuff lying around in a decent enough state.

“Uhh... I think so?”

“Well... I was hoping we could go there and take a look. I've always wished to see a theater, but an abandoned one? It sounds more fun and means fewer people. Also, zero cameras and an empty stage filled with old things.” I looked over at him with my back still to the bed, offering a smile. “What do you say? Just some good old exploring really.”

He seemed to like the idea. “Let's do it.”

“Great, so fancy car or the edgy motorcycle?”

“You pick.”

“Hmm, why me?”

“You're the lady. And it's your date.”

“You're the driver, but I guess that's a fair point...” I thought about it for a second, not sure of what would be best.

For the sake of trying something different, the car sounded like a better idea, and either way, I would probably prefer to have some sort of control over our personal space for now. I still didn’t know much about him, and even though I didn’t trust the facade he tried to give the media, I wasn’t taking any chances. “We're already doing something kind of weird so we might as well do something different for the ride too. Let's go in the car. We might have to park a few blocks away to go unnoticed, but a little walk never hurt anyone.”

“Alright. Let's have a little fun with it. What do you say I drive my dad's, Lamborghini?” He grinned. I raised an eyebrow with amusement. He was being edgy again.

“Are we allowed?”

“Not technically, but he barely drives the thing. He won't notice.”

I sat up with a laugh. “We're already sneaking into a theater, might as well take your dad's car.”

“Awesome.”

He hadn’t mentioned where we were going, but I’d done enough scouting around the palace to know he was heading for the garage.

“So, on a scale of 1 to 10, how mad would his Majesty be if he found out we took the Lamborghini?” I wondered, but Dom avoided the question.

“He wouldn't blame you at all.”

“I'm not worried about that... not that much at least. I'm just curious about how much it would bother Mr. “I-own-ten-cars” to see one of them missing.” I grinned at my own joke. It was no secret how much the King loved having sport cars and was proud of the amount he owned. ((KACHOW))

“He won't notice. I promise.”

“Alright, how good are you at driving this stuff?”

“Oh, I'm practically a pro driver. Definitely don't have to worry about that.”

“How old were you when you started driving?”

“Mmm... 14? I think?”

“Huh. Well, I technically know how to drive, but I really don't have that much experience…” Mostly because buying a car would be a waste of money for me and my dad. I only learned in the case of some really weird emergency. “Was it your decision to learn that early on?”

“Yeah, I wanted to learn as early as possible. And technically I wasn't supposed to learn until I was 16, but some of the guards taught me earlier than that.”

The guards. “What else did the guards teach you?”

“Just about everything practical. How to ride a bike, how to shave, how to fight... lots of stuff.”

“They must have really liked you then.” I smiled at the thought of them teaching a smaller Dom all of those little things, then as a joke, I quickly traced a finger over his jawline and added, “And shave what exactly Dominoes?” He could maybe grow some peach fuzz, but a beard sounded like a big stretch.

“Shave everything you don't see.” He winked. “They taught me well.”

I wrinkled my nose in disgust before rolling my eyes. Oh please, no. “Did the guards also teach you how to flirt? Because they could use a few pointers on that.” I smirked, unimpressed.

“Nope. My flirting is all natural.” He sounded proud and I hated to burst his bubble, but not all girls would fall for that.

“Hmm, you could use a few pointers, but it's not that bad.”

I was about to nominee myself for the Selected with best skills to make Dom roll his eyes when he replied with: “Just because you don't appreciate it doesn't mean it hasn't worked on other girls here. Maybe you're just the one with a weird taste.”

Laughing with a scoff, I suggested, “Or maybe you're realizing your flirting doesn't work with everyone.” Also, maybe I just have class, you know? Ironic coming from a Five.

“It only doesn't work with disagreeable people.” He stated. I almost laughed again.

“Is that so? Define disagreeable.”

“Not willing to try new things.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. First of all because disagreeable meant unpleasant, but second of all, because he clearly didn’t know what he was talking about. “Let's see... I flew on a plane for the first time in my life. I left my province, and my only family member, for the first time in my life. I'm going to pick up swimming soon. I'm actually having an argument with a royal right now, and....oh yes, I'm about to go on a date in an abandoned theater, in a city I barely know, with a guy I'm still getting to know, on his father's stolen Lamborghini...which just happens to be a car I've never been in before.” I smirked satisfied with my reply. “That's only the past few weeks and I can list more.”

“Seems like you should be up for opening yourself up to my flirting then, huh?”

“Ah, but flirting is a game for two Dominoes. You play your move…” I smiled coyly, leaning closer to him to whisper the last part, “and I play mine. You can't always know what the outcome will be, but you have to stay sharp.” He eyed me warily, but I pulled back before he could give any response, running down the hallway and yelling over my shoulder, “Race you to the garage!” I noticed him roll his eyes before looking back ahead. Forty points for me.

“You're so on.” I could hear his footsteps speeding up as he tried to catch up and soon enough he was next to me.

“Oh no, you don't!” I tried to get the advantage again, but he pulled ahead and kept running.

“Nice try, slowpoke.”

I laughed, watching his back as he ran. He had a funny way of swaying his arms as he sprinted and even though I picked up my pace he beat me to the garage with a “Hah!” I didn’t really mind, he could win, I was fine with just having the rush of a run and something to loosen up a bit.

I came really close to catching up to him, however, and bumped into him, staggering a bit. He only grinned back at me. That winner look of his. “Well, do I get a prize for winning?”

I smirked, catching my breath as I looked at the cars. “Of course, you get a date with the prettiest girl in this room.”

He gave me a sideways glance. “You're the only girl in this room.”

“You catch on quick now don't you?”

Dom rolled his eyes yet again. “Whatever.” Then he grabbed the keys that were hanging on the wall next to us and walked over to the car. I followed, looking at the other cars with curiosity. You couldn’t see cars like these where I lived. “So is your dad obsessed with cars for some particular reason?”

“Nope. He just thinks it's a way to show off his wealth. And power.”

Power, of course. Because a King needs cars to prove that he’s wealthy. Never mind having a castle. That proves basically nothing. “Is that not obvious by being a King?”

“I don't try to understand him.” He shrugged.

“So.. you and your dad don't get along that well.” The idea probably struck me more since back home it was just me and my dad. Not getting along with him sounded like the biggest nightmare possible.

“Not really.”

“That doesn't bother you.” I tried to make it sound more like a fact than a question. He shouldn’t feel forced to answer if he didn’t want to. Some topics could be uncomfortable to get into with new people. I always struggled to talk about my mom even though I made it sound like it was nothing. I wasn’t sure what Dominic was like in this case.

“He's never made an effort to get along with me, so I'm... over it I guess.” That was his only statement.

“Well…” I offered him a genuine smile. “The guards didn't do too bad then.”

“Yeah, they did.” We reached the car and he got in. “So ready to go?”

I could only stare at the car for a moment as the door opened like some sort of wing, hovering next to me. Dom showed his impatience again, yelling at me to get in, but I only poked my head in to try figuring why the door opened like that.

“Is there a problem?” He asked.

“Uh.. no, it's just very... fancy looking.” I got inside as he chuckled.

“It's ‘luxury’.”

Laughing a little as I got comfy on the seat, I put my seat belt on. “It feels like it'll cost me an arm if I break something.”

“Probably.”

“Always so encouraging, Dominoes.” I rolled my eyes. “All my worries are gone now.”

“Glad to hear it. Well, you ready to go?”

Nodding, I waited for him to start the ignition. “Let's hear her.”

He started up the car with a smile. Nothing flirty or mischievous, just a simple smile... Maybe even cute. Not too bad. “This is gonna be fun.”

I hope so.

We did end up parking a few blocks away from the building to avoid bystanders getting too curious, walking the rest of the way to the theater in silence. It was as huge as I expected it to be. Old, but decent enough. The old sign reading "Golden Theater" still holding some of its flare.

Trying to remember my research about the place, I led Dom to the back entrance that was supposed to be close to the dressing rooms. “Technically we're not supposed to be here, so make sure no one is watching,” I said, taking out my set of lockpicks, choosing one of the torsion wrenches and my snake rake.

“You know how to pick a lock?” He asked as I started working.

A grin spread across my face at his slight surprise. I’d learned to do it from Mr. Scott, an old locksmith that lived near our house. He decided to teach me when I was twelve, after my dad’s fifteenth time locking us out for rushing around before a gig. I didn't blame him though. The place he regularly played at had closed abruptly, so he started taking as many one time performances as possible to compensate. Maybe I would leave that story for later though.

“You'd be surprised by what I know,” I teased, looking over my shoulder. “Are you impressed?”

He grinned back, “I'm wondering what else you can do with those... nimble fingers.” Raised eyebrows and a suggestive smirk were added for better effect and I tried not laugh before playfully rolling my eyes and looking back at the lock.

“Wouldn't you like to know... but you'll have to do better than that to get me blushing, Dom.” I’d prefer you calling my brain nimble over my fingers.

“Oh, I'm just getting started.”

“Well, good luck,” I smirked as the lock gave in. The distinctive click signaling me to open the door. I gestured at him to get in. “Theater for two?”

“Amazing..” I whispered, staring at the seats from the stage in awe. It wasn’t hard to admire the big space even through the decay. Dom walked up next to me as I smiled.

“Yeah, it's pretty cool.”

A small laugh escaped me. “Is that all you have to say? Think of all the nights this was filled with people, all the performances that happened on this very stage.” All those people to impress, to share their passion with, it was a dream that I sometimes doubted would be able to come true for me. Sometimes I wasn’t even sure if it was what was best for me either... but it was a dream nonetheless. To have other people enjoy my singing. If falling in love didn’t work out I still had that ahead of me. Difficult challenges would await me no matter what path was taken, but I was ready to meet them head on.

“Yeah, I remember coming here when I was really little...before it closed down obviously.” He added at the end.

“So you saw it in all its glory... I'm guessing it looked even better.”

“I guess. I don't remember it that much, to be honest. I couldn't even tell you what show we saw.”

I smiled. “Did they have to drag little Dominoes to come?”

“Probably. I was a pretty stubborn kid.”

Walking over to forgotten props, I teased, “Was?”

The sixth eye roll happened. “Ha ha. Very funny.”

“I'm hilarious, but that's beside the point.” I grinned, reaching for a fake sword between the dusty things and raising it in his direction, “On guard?”

One more eye roll made me reach seventy points, but he grabbed another sword from the pile and took a stance after it. “Fine.”

I swung the prop at his chest, “You roll your eyes a lot, you know?”

“Do you have a problem with that?”

This time it was my turn to roll my eyes and I did so over dramatically. “No, it was just a question.”

“Didn't seem like a question. More... rhetorical.”

I tried swinging again. “Well, it only becomes rhetorical if you don't answer it.”

He blocked the swing, staring right at me. “Well, I guess it's rhetorical.” Then he set the sword down. “So what else do you want to do?”

I ignored the question, giving him a thoughtful look. “You're not really into answering questions, are you? That's not rhetorical by the way.”

“You weren't really asking questions, were you? That's not rhetorical either.”

Narrowing my eyes, I smirked and placed the sword on my shoulder. “I meant in general. You seem to...avoid it sometimes.”

“Maybe.”

Was it a felony to throw a fake sword at a Prince? I rolled my eyes for real that time and headed back stage. “Right.”

“Now what?” He followed but stopped when I went inside a dressing room without giving him an answer. I vaguely heard him mumble, “Alright then.”

Finding a closet with old costumes, I grabbed what I needed after dusting it off and came out with the two pieces of clothing over my shoulder. When I walked by next Dom I took his hand and dragged him back to the stage.

“Okay, what are we doing?”

“Well, if you're not going to talk much I'll just have my fun then.” I handed him the top half of a medieval prince costume. “Put this on.”

He looked at it in confusion. “Why?”

I could've replied, but there was no fun in that, so instead, I crossed my arms and said, “I'm making your question rhetorical.” Two can play at that game, Dom.

“That's not how "rhetorical" works.”

“I guess that makes me a rule breaker too.” I took off my blouse, not worrying since I had an undershirt anyway and began putting on the medieval dress I'd picked out for myself. “Just put it on, you won't die.”

Ten more points. Just two eye rolls away from winning 100. “Whatever.” He started changing and I focused on slipping on my dress, looking down at it once it was on and dusting the skirt a bit more with my hands. “Alright then, not as pretty, but not too bad,” I mumbled, comparing it to the masterpiece Eliza and Peggy had done for the ball. When I looked back at Dom I had to bite my lip to hold back a laugh.

“You should wear this all the time. True class.” I joked, touching the puffy sleeves.

“Yeah, definitely not.”

“What a shame, but anyway, you owe me a dance.”

“I do?”

“Well, you left before we could get a chance to dance, so I count it as a missed one.”

“Okay.”

“We have the clothes and a stage... now we just need music… I doubt my humming will suffice.”

“Who needs music to dance?”

“Lots of people usually do. Are you not one of them?” I smiled a little. “Not rhetorical.”

He pulled me closer to him, his hand on my lower back as he offered another simple smile. “No, I don't need music to dance. Do you?”

I smirked, raising an eyebrow. “That's what imagination is for.”

“Exactly.” He took my hand in his and began to sway. I stared at him silently for a moment before he spoke up again. “So..”

“You're quite an enigma, Dom.”

“I'll take that as a compliment.”

I laughed a little. “It depends. My dad always says some people are like a red light and a green light turned on at the same time. You're kind of like that.” It felt like I could go by freely and just say or do whatever I wanted, but also like I shouldn't move. Like I should be careful with all I said.

“Interesting.” He seemed to consider it for a second.

“What would you say I'm like?” I asked, too curious as always.

Dom answered quickly. “A thorny rose. Kinda prickly and annoying, but there's beauty and niceness there too.”

That made me smile, but not in the teasing, amused or coy way I'd mostly used with him. This time what he'd said just made me want to smile because of how it sounded. “That's better than flirting, just so you know.”

“What is?”

“When you're... just honest. I like it.” I looked over his shoulder to avoid his gaze. “Not that I expect you to do what I say obviously, but it's good.”

“What are you looking at?”

“Uh..” I finally focused on the spot for real. It was just the chairs. “Just the imaginary crowd.”

“Right. Are you enjoying the imaginary applause?”

I grinned. “Yes, of course. It's very gratifying. Also, in my imaginary music, you should make me spin right about now.”

“Can't argue with imaginary music.” He agreed, spinning me around as I smiled again.

We just kept swaying in silence for a while, or at least that's how it was until my old habits kicked in and I started humming to myself, focusing on my steps.

“What happened to only needing imaginary music?”

“Huh? Oh..” I cleared my throat once I realized what I'd done. “Sorry about that…”

“No, it's fine.”

“Sometimes I get distracted and that happens.” I laughed awkwardly before looking at the rest of the theater, still finding it stunning. “It's just very quiet and peaceful.”

“It is.”

“I wish I had theaters like these back home. They would be fun to explore every now and then.”

“Just explore? Wouldn't you want to actually see it open? See a show?”

I glanced at him briefly, staring back at the seats when I realized it was a serious question. He probably didn't realize I wouldn't be able to afford a place like this. That would be money better spent on other things. “You mean if it weren't abandoned? Yes, I guess I could always work as a staff member then. I would get to see performances all the time and even get glimpses backstage.”

“Yeah, that sounds pretty fun.”

“Does that mean that if you were asked to go see a performance now, your family wouldn't have to drag you there anymore?”

“Depends on the performance, and depends on who I'm with. But also, I think I'd like seeing the backstage better than the on stage. I like... knowing everything that's going on with things.”

Nodding, I softly mumbled to myself, “The more facts, the better…” I always preferred it that way. Looking back at him I added, “I like being a part of things... that way you're living the experience and making others live it with you. In the backstage, you become a part of the art, one of the brushes behind the masterpiece. You know what I mean?”

Oh, what am I doing asking him this… To my surprise, he seemed to understand.

“Yeah, exactly. Or at least... I like being in on secrets. I don't like seeing a show and not knowing how something is done, I would want to be able to look at it and say I know exactly how that works because I was a part of the show.”

I laughed. “So no cliffhangers for you?”

“No definitely not.”

“Binge-watcher?”

“I don't know, maybe.”

“Interesting...that explains why you asked me who I didn't believe to be nice back in our interview.”

“Actually I remember you saying if you survived the interviews you would give me hints on the "not so nice" girls…” He raised an eyebrow expectantly.

Good job, Jyn. “Yes, well, I also said they were first impressions. Most of them seem to be wrong for now.”

“Well, since they've changed anyway, wanna tell me what some of your first impressions were? Not even what you think of them now.”

“Curiosity killed the cat, Dom.”

“Who cares about the cat? It hasn't killed me so far.” Because she has a crush on your cousin...

“Okay, in this case, I'll be the cat.” Sorry, stealing your identity for a moment, Kat. “Your curiosity will kill me. I'd like to stay alive. I've heard it's more fun than the other option.”

Saying anything negative about others when I didn’t know if it was true was always a big no for me. Both because it wasn't my place to say and because it could bring problems.

“Whatever.”

I pursed my lips at his response. “Don't get all grumpy now... How about this: I'll give you an answer, but you have to tell me what your first impressions were too. They're the first ones so it doesn't really matter.”

“Sure. It's a deal.”

“Alright then. Sera was pretty much the only one on point. You wouldn't want to cross her, but since she's gone, we're safe from her poison fetish. Besides her, I'll have to admit the Bitch squad was unsettling. Mostly because they went to all the trouble of implying they might be a certain way. I wasn't expecting them to be horrible precisely... just prideful.” I shrugged, staring at my feet. Thinking about it was always weird, but I was happy I had been wrong. “It's a common thing in higher castes, so I kind of prepared for the worse. Not that I care what other think...it's just... you know... Being looked as inferior isn't precisely fun, so you learn to be cautious.”

“Well, I kind of had the opposite first impression. All the girls of the Bitch Squad gave me first impressions that made me want to see more of them. A lot of others were just boring.”

“It's not that surprising I guess…” The pretty, the famous, the confident, the powerful. A lot of people already knew most of them because they were in the media before the Selection even started. I was surprised I’d managed to stand out at all, even if on a smaller scale. “Hopefully I wasn't one of the boring ones though.”

“Eh, I'm not sure. I think you were somewhere in the middle.”

Well, out of 35 girls… “Not bad. Am I a little less boring now or still middle ground?”

He squinted as if considering the question. “Depends on my mood.”

Your mood? I tried not to laugh as I pointed out that sounded like a period. He scrunched up his nose like a bad smell had flooded his senses and I shrugged. “Hey, you're the one saying my boring levels depend on your mood. I might as well joke about it.”

“Well, it's true. Sometimes I find your brash sense of humor entertaining and sometimes I don't.”

“Because of the humor itself or because of your mood?”

“Both.”

“Well... what should I do then?”

“You don't have to do anything.” He assured and I approved of his answer if it meant he wasn't expecting me to change.

“I guess I'll just be the thorny rose.”

“Yep.”

“Do you mind dating a thorny rose?”

“Probably not.”

“Then I guess it's still worth a try.” I smiled. “Is our imaginary song over yet?”

“You tell me.”

“Hmm, one last spin?

“Sure.” And so he spun me around one last time.

“Thanks for taking me to an abandoned theater... I doubted you would agree to it,” I said as he parked the car in the garage again.

“I think there's very little I would've said no to for these dates.”

“Even if you didn't like the idea?”

“Yep. These dates aren't really about me or my opinions; they're about me learning more about everyone. If I don't like someone's idea for a date, that tells me that we might have differing opinions on other things too, and I should, therefore, eliminate that person.”

I stared at him for a moment. Did he expect to find someone that agreed with him on everything? “Just for having different opinions?”

Dom shrugged. “I have to narrow this thing down somehow. And some opinions are more important than others. I mean if we have different opinions on favorite color, that doesn't really matter, but if we have different opinions on how to run the country, that could pose a problem.”

“Hmm, seems like something hard to do from just one date, but I guess you have to work with what you have... Mine is gold by the way… or silver.”

“Well I don't have just one date to figure it all out, but everything plays into my decisions. And mine is red.”

“A color for the bold,” I grinned, not really surprised.  “Makes sense.” After that, I got out of the car. When he didn’t move I looked back inside and fluttered my eyes dramatically at him. “Will you be the ever so kind gentleman and take me to my room?”

He rolled his eyes at my overdramatic-ness with an, “Of course.”

I smirked, satisfied with his ninth eye roll and walked away. “Well, hurry up then.”

“Today was.... good.” I admitted, knowing we were almost to my room.

I was a little surprised by the statement myself since I hadn’t been sure I could pull off a decent date. Contrary to what Annette believed, I didn’t have that much experience on actual dates.

“Yeah, it was.”

“I wouldn't mind doing it again. Hopefully, you wouldn't either.”

“Yeah, no, that would be cool. Maybe not the exact same thing again, but you know... something similar.

I laughed, wondering if mine had been one of the date ideas he’d only agreed to so he could learn something about me. “Was the theater not a good enough idea?”

“No, it's fine. But would you really want to break into the same abandoned theater a second time?”

“Oh.. no, not anytime soon at least. I thought you meant the idea of the theater wasn't your favorite, but I get what you mean now.” When we stopped in front of my room, I added, “Maybe, if there's a next time, we can find a new place to break into.” Then after a chuckle, “Or maybe we can carry on with our plans for katvan.”

“Yes, definitely.”

I smiled, leaning to kiss his cheek quickly, expecting it to earn me the tenth eye roll, but not really caring about it. “Thanks for the ride then.”

He nodded and my smile widened in slight surprise.

There was no tenth time.

[kpopreactionstoruinyourlife]

Song Girl - Part 3 - Sungjin Fan Fiction

Song Girl Masterlist

Part 3 - Anticipation

Summary: After making friends with Jae and Brian, what happens with Ella comes over and meets Sungjin?

For a city of twenty million people, Seoul was actually quite small. Both Jae and Brian knew Sungjin, the boy Ella had seen in the cafe; they lived with him.

Sungjin was tuning and taking care of his acoustic guitar, Atom, when Jae and Brian returned from the cafe.

“Yo, yo, yo.” Jae said broadly when he came in. Sungjin waved from the couch.

“Have a good cafe visit?” He asked when Jae sat beside him.

“Yeah, we talked to a girl.” Jae said smirking at Sungjin, who sighed.

“You know we’re not supposed to date.” Sungjin sighed and Jae shrugged.

“I don’t want to date her, I think you do.” Jae said, a wicked glint in his eyes.

“I’m not the one who talked to her.” Sungjin said and Jae smiled.

“Yeah, but remember that girl you mentioned? The one you thought was cute, sitting in the cafe? Working? Cherry blossom macbook? Pink backpack? This girl had all those things. What are the odds that a girl with those things at the same cafe isn’t the same girl?” Jae said but Sungjin was distracted. His heartbeat was roaring in his ears.

He had wanted to be the one who talked to her. He should’ve been there. He could’ve been there. He could’ve sat closer to her, see the lights in her eyes and her face up close but he’d stayed at home. He was an idiot. That cautionary voice that reminded Jae they weren’t supposed to date, had vacated the premises.

“So you talked to her?” Sungjin asked. His voice sounded strangely robotic. He’d wanted to her to be his, his girl, his daydream, but now she was Jae’s; he’d gotten first dibs by talking to her first. All Sungjin had done was stare at her like a freaking stalker.

“Yeah, I learned her name. Where she’s from. Why’s she’s in the city. And I got her number.” Jae said pulling his phone out of his pocket.

Sungjin tried to swallow but he couldn’t.

“So are you going to ask her out?” Sungjin asked, but he was pretty sure he didn’t want to know the answer.

“She’s cute sure, but I think she’d be a better fit for you. She’s too smart for me, but she’s nice and funny.” Jae said with a new mischievous smile.  

Sungjin was distracted, back to cursing himself out for not going with Jae and Brian when they asked. Idiot.

“Why do you think she’s better for me?” Sungjin finally said, his mouth and tongue still dry. Both his mouth and brain feeling like they were made of cotton.

“I can read your mind.” Jae said holding his fingers to his temple. Sungjin rolled his eyes.

“So what’s her name?”

“Ella.”

Pretty. Simple. Beautiful. Sungjin thought. It fit. Ella.

“I think she’s feeling lonely like Brian and I did when we first came here.” Jae continued.

“Why?” “She’s from the US.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, so we thought about inviting her over. A few friends don’t hurt.”

“We’re still not supposed to date.”

“I don’t want to date her. I just want to help her adjust to being here. Pay it forward, like you and Brian helped me.”

“You can be a lot nicer when you don’t try to be sassy all the time.” Sungjin said and Jae gagged.

“Don’t ruin my rep with sappy stuff like that.”

So Sungjin stopped talking about it, telling himself a thousand times that Jae didn’t want to date her.

Ella. She had a name. Ella.

Jae: You don’t know that many people in Seoul, do you?

Ella: No. I don’t. I’m a loner in a collectivist country.

Jae: A what?

Ella: A country that values the group more compared to the self, while the US is an individualistic country that values the individual, the self.

Jae: right, so do you want to hang out with my group? My posse? My gang?

Ella: I doubt they’re much of a gang, but sure. I need people.

Jae: we’ll adopt you into our group. You can be our mascot.

Ella: I lack the rhythm to be a mascot or a cheerleader.

Jae: It’s easy just say “You’re brilliant, Jae oppa”

Ella: Forgive me if I’d rather not, but I’ll still come over. It’ll be nice to meet people.

Jae: Great, since none of us can cook, are you cool with take out?

Ella: I’m a college student, what do you think?

Jae: I thought you’d finished your bachelor’s?

Ella: *I’m a graduate student, what do you think?

Jae: Right. Got it.

Ella: so when would this be? Jae: Saturday at eight is our usual time for “bonding”

Ella: you have a designated group bonding time?

Jae: More like scheduled down time to do whatever but with each other.

Ella: That’s cute.

Jae: does saturday at eight work for you?

Ella: See you then.

“She’s coming over Saturday.” Jae said, making an announcement to Sungjin.

“Oh.” Sungjin said while a storm began to wage in his stomach.

“I think this would be good for you, if nothing else, it might give you material for songs.” He said and Sungjin nodded. You’d think his past relationship, with its horrible ending, was enough fodder for songs, but apparently not.

“What do you mean by this?”

“Meeting a girl, one you’re attracted to.” Jae said leaning into him with eyes glowing, full of a fire Sungjin knew would probably land him in some trouble.

Saturday.

She woke up early, and went out shopping for groceries and maybe a new outfit.

Several blocks away, he woke up a couple hours later and headed to training.

When she returned home, she put away her groceries and turned back to getting ready. She was jittery with anticipation even if she couldn’t explain why.

She selected a casual but cute, slightly flirty outfit. A pair of very faded light skinny jeans with a well-fitting white t-shirt tucked in the front of her pants, a pink cardigan and a pair of crisp white sneakers.

Sungjin, after returning from training, changed out of the sweats they usually wore and into jeans, a t-shirt and a flannel shirt. Then he made the others clean the apartment. The cluttered mess that they normally lived in would not do for a guest. Specifically a female guest. This was at seven. At seven thirty, they collectively gave up on their efforts to actually find a place for the majority of their stuff, and simply put them in the bedrooms, shutting the door and knowing it would be dealt with eventually.

Ella had left a bit early, just in case she got lost on her way to their place. Consequently, she arrived in their neighborhood fifteen minutes early. With those fifteen minutes, she found a bakery and selected a wide variety of treats for a sampler, having no idea what the boys would like.

Box of treats in hand, Ella went up to the building and called Jae, which he told her to do.

“Great you’re here! I’m coming down to get you.” Jae said and she heard a door open on the other end of the line and within a minute, his lanky frame was bursting through the door, a big smile on his face.

“Hey, so I brought some treats…” She said handing him the box.

“These are so not going to last, and is chicken ok?” He asked.

“Here I was expecting pizza.” She said following him up the stairs.

“Sungjin doesn’t like pizza so we get that half the time, tonight just happened to be chicken’s turn.” Jae explained.

“Who doesn’t like pizza?”

“Koreans, well, Sungjin. I don’t know. The others like pizza.”

“Weird.” She said.

“Hey, we’re here!” Jae called into the apartment, for reasons unknown because everyone was in the kitchen or living room, easily visible from the door.

Her eyes found Sungjin’s. The cute boy from the cafe.