#on the other hand it's a very exciting sounding opportunity! so like! hopefully it still sounds cool when we talk tomorrow!

[galaxseacreature]

job interview tomorrow?!?!!!

[tartagilicious]

8:17pm / kiss me until my lips fall off, kiss me until i start to rot

heyyyyy guys :hehe: thank GOD i still have access to this blog because i've been back in my genshin player days for the past month or so, and i FINALLY WANNA WRITE FOR IT AGAIN IM CRYIUNG!!!!!!!!!! missed all of u sm, hopefully this will be more of a regular occurance now :') going back to my beloved seasons series, also with the last installment, capitano + winter !!

the strongest has never been an easy title to shoulder, both in times of need or peace, sanctifying a never ending cycle of authority that he had been entertaining for centuries. the captain. a newer adornment to his identity, but a significant one nonetheless. once an icon to a legion of soldiers, his place with the archon of ice beckoned a need to keep himself trained, as frigid as the nation he had learned to call home.

and truly, it was with a sword gripped in his gloved hands that he felt most at home -- strong despite the rot that had woven its way into his skin like a disease, whole despite all that he has lost in his centuries of life.

however, it was in your presence alone that he felt most meek.

everything about you seemed to strike him, digging into the innermost dips of flesh in the cavern he called his chest, searching for a heart that had long been subdued. you weren't gentle in your search, oh no -- you never were.

capitano bled for you. although, for once, it was not in a warrior's sense. your smaller hands never struck him, your words never aimed for his weakest points. never once did you aim to worsen the wound you were so often responsible for tearing open. how could you, when you were unaware of its existence?

he bled for you in grumbled words of affection. during those quiet nights it was too cold for you to stand it, when it was simply out of the question to be anywhere but within his broad embrace. he bled for you when you yearned for your homeland, in a way that he had never ceased to mirror, even in his wearier states.

and perhaps most of all, he bled for you when his helmet was discarded.

having grown used to the piece of metal that aided him in shielding the abyssal rot of his features, he was entirely unprepared for the magnitude of emotion that overran him when it came time to expose himself to you for the first time.

but you had never been one to shy away from life's rougher aspects.

your breath escapes your mouth in small white clouds, puffs of air to display your exertion as you walk along the edge of the zapolyarny palace's frosted edges. the grand building melts into the landscape of ice and snow much like its hotter counterpart, the pale mosiac of bricks embodying the chill of its inhabitants.

at the very least, there is one within its depths that you can count on to return the warmth to your worn body. the cloak your lover had gifted you long ago shields you from the rougher elements of snezhnaya's winter at face value. but it's the excitement festering in your chest that keeps you warm enough to find your way through the snowy night. it's the adoration in your heart that lights up the space around you as you step into the harbinger's abode, leading you home.

yet, it's his arm that slings around your waist when you step quietly into the house, the other half of your warm embrace, simply manifesting in a larger form. an appreciative smile is beckoned to your lips as you stretch within the confines of his large arm, your own cloak dropping to the floor as he wills it.

"...you are late." are the words that finally escape from him in a mumbled fashion, voice smothered by the heated skin of your neck. capitano leans over you like a creature out of myth, taking the opportune moment of your hand resting on his back to bury his nose in your hair.

no helmet.

a pleased sound is drawn from the back of your throat as you lean into him, head tilting to follow the path of his lips before you're returning, "...the snowfall is heavy this time of year."

a large hand trails down to your frostbitten own, the action of his fingers intertwining with yours mimicking a blanket of warmth. despite his state of otherworldly decay, you've found that your lover can run quite warm.

spurred on by his own heart, you're sure.

he speaks softly into your hair, tugging you until you're against his chest, no longer your own half -- but now part of a whole. "...you must dress accordingly. your fingers are freezing."

"they will warm up quickly." you promise under your breath, head tilting up to take in his face. no longer is there a quiet sting between you, like the contact of your gaze pains him. all that has been left behind is a dull, and ever-present warmth. "you will warm them up quickly." you add almost cheekily, seemingly proud of your own response.

a rough hum of acceptance replaces a verbal response as he simply pulls you closer, his arms falling to your torso. a once strained action has long become comfortable, and you relish in the familiarity of it as you sink into the harbinger's embrace.

despite his strength, capitano has found that being weak is not terribly bad, either.

[sanjoongie]

Sex and Embers and Frost

A ~Cotton Tails and Simmering Fires~ Series

ღAuthor's Note: this is an idea that was cooked up between @starlitmark and me. I was very excited to breath life into the opening of this world with these alt/emo/goth/punk hybrid dragon boyos. Hopefully you love them just as much as mia and i do😭

ღPairing: Dragon hybrid! Hwa x Bunny Hybrid! reader (f) x Dragon hybrid! San ღGenre: smut with no plot ღAu: hybrid au, strangers to lovers ღWord Count: 3,921 ღWarnings: oral (f receiving), temperature play, hair pulling, biting, hints to predator/prey play, breast play, squirting, cum eating, size kink, penetrative sex without barrier, double penetration, anal sex (f receiving), dacryphilia, hints towards mxm, degradation kink, creampie, overstimulation, mfm orgasm(s) ღRated: 18+ MDNI ღSummary: when your bunny friends drag you to an Gothic club and didn't tell you, so you dressed up in your typical preppy fit, not expecting to catch the eyes of two hybrid dragons ღMasterlist ღNext Chapter ღDedication: @mejuii & @downtoamagicalland, @flurrys-creativity​ &@songmingisthighs thank you for all beta-ing.

When they first meet~

Your blue eyes scanned the beauty that was the club that your friends had dragged you to. The Gothic arches were gorgeous  and the cross-eyed gargoyles added to the aesthetic but… you picked at your skirt and winced. You were dressed in your typical pink and white, that offset your white ears and blue eyes, being a bunny hybrid, but it was making you stick out like a sore thumb in this goth club.

Unfortunately, because you had taken the time to observe your surroundings, you had wound up separated from your friends. This gave the perfect opportunity, however, for two very interested dragon hybrids to, for lack of a better term, to pounce on you.

A hand descended on your shoulder and you jumped in the air in surprise. You had been so hyper focused on the architecture that your sense of your surroundings had been dulled and you had been caught unaware. 

A low, male chuckle sounded from behind you. “You look a little lost there, Hops. This isn’t your typical crowd is it?”

Your eyes widened at the man who had turned you around. His jelly-pink lips had a ring piercing, and it was safe to say, that wasn’t the only thing that stood out about the man. There were scales along his hairline, near his temple and scattered along his cheekbones, that were a shiny, deep purple. And his eyes were silver and slit like a lizard--your brain screamed to you that he was a dragon hybrid and most certainly a predator animal.

You shook your head and attempted to stand a little straighter. "I'm actually here with my fluffle--"

"Fluffle," he echoed you, "Cute."

You teetered on your heels uncertainly. "I think I'll--"

"Oh, you're not leaving us, are you, Hops?" Another man came to lean over the first dragon hybrid’s shoulder, hand hooked on the other’s broad shoulder. His long hair was tied up halfway, with strands framing his face and the lower half still left hanging. His scaling was black but iridescent and his slitted eyes were an electric blue. “I just got here.”

The purple hybrid’s chin set stubbornly at the black hybrid joining. “I got this, Seonghwa,” He said flatly.

Seonghwa put the hand that was on the purple hybrid’s shoulder on his head and ruffled his hair. “What’s wrong, San? Don’t feel like sharing tonight?”

Your eyes darted from one man to the other, trying to keep an eye on the predators in front of you. Your heart was beating out of your chest. But when your tongue came out to nervously lick your lips, both dragon hybrids narrowed their eyes on the motion. Your tongue froze at the corner of your mouth, an instinct to remain still when such a moment occurred.

San went back to frowning, “Hwa!”

Seonghwa smirked confidently. “Why don’t we leave it up to her, hmm?” Seonghwa circumvented San and was now standing in front of you. His size was underlined by the fact that he had to tip your chin to get you to make eye contact with him. You could feel your ears going flat. “How about it, Hops? Let’s go back to our lair and you can decide who you prefer the most.”

You were trembling and your stomach was curling and before your better judgment could kick in--you slowly nodded your head. “Please,” You whimpered.

Both dragon hybrids smirked and you shuddered in Seonghwa’s grasp. “Perfect,” He said happily, “Let’s go.”

Your mind was a whirl and the traveling between the club to their apartment was inconsequential compared to the position you were in right now.  Your tiny body was sat between San’s legs. He was currently peppering kisses from the slope of your shoulder up your neck and back again. He had discovered it was an erogenous area for you and wouldn’t leave it alone once he did. His ringed hands were holding your thighs apart, firmly so, because Seonghwa was kneeling between both your legs. 

“Stop squirming, Hops,” San growled, “Or I’m going to fuck you before Seonghwa can prep you fully.”

Seonghwa made eye contact with San from below, “That’s hot.”

“Shut up, Hwa,” San snapped with no real heat behind it.

“Be a good bunny for me, hmm?” Seonghwa said while his eyes were on your core where your panties still covered it, “I want all your cute noises. Don’t deny me them, okay?”

You were nodding. You had no idea what Seonghwa had in store for you but you did know that you loved the way San’s hands felt holding your thighs apart and those plush lips on your skin. 

Seonghwa’s hands almost held your leg reverently as his eyes rolled up to meet yours and his lips touched your skin. One minute he was leaving hot, open-mouthed kisses along the sensitive skin there and the next you watched a curl of mist leave his mouth. You frowned, because you could have sworn it was similar to a breath you would exhale in the dead of winter and then you were distracted by a flash of silver--was that a ball from a tongue piercing? You squealed as cold metal touched your skin.

San's fingers dug into your thighs, holding you even wider. "Something wrong, little bunny?" The next time his lips touched your neck, his lip ring felt abnormally warm, almost hot and you yelped.

"Wh-what's going on?" You couldn't help but stutter.

"We're dragons," San said simply, "You're okay with a little magic in your foreplay, right?"

"Yes," You said in a tiny voice that was completely full of anticipation for what this night would give you.

Seonghwa's tongue is out in full force, as he uses one long lick to go from the inside of your knee to your hip bone. The cold gives you goosebumps, but much to your embarrassment, it also made your tail begin to twitch, waiting for that coldness to meet your throbbing, hot mess of a cunt.

San chuckled lowly in your ear. "Hops, your tail is twitching. Is he making you feel that good?" You whimpered in response, your tail only moving more frequently. San moaned into your ear, gripping your earlobe between his teeth before letting go. "He hasn't even kissed your tiny pussy yet. You're such an easy bun, huh Hops?"

Seonghwa's shoulders quake in silent laughter but still he moved his head to hover over your mound. Those slitted eyes narrowed to near slivers, the electric blue iris being more prominent and terrifying you. That was the same look a predator gives its prey before striking the final blow. Your heart beat out of your chest again but you also felt some wetness leak further onto your underwear. Your body didn't know what it wanted: flight or fuck.

The cold ball of Seonghwa's tongue piercing played with your clit through your underwear and your back bowed in response. Your hands descended onto Seonghwa's head and one of your hands became a fist to grab Seonghwa's ponytail. You yanked on it hard, almost as if you wanted to pull his tongue away from you. In contrast, your body rolled into his licks. You could feel the cold breath of Seonghwa's coming to life between your thighs and you shivered at the threat. 

San bit into your shoulder and you could feel his sharp canines making indents into the soft skin there. "You're driving me wild, Hops. You smell so fucking good, like a damn sugar cookie."

"D-don't eat me," You pleaded from the animal side of your brain, only aware that a dragon hybrid had put his meat-ripping teeth into you.

Seonghwa's dry chuckles could be heard from in between your legs, no longer silent this time. "The irony," he said with a crooked smile on his face before he pushed aside your panties so he could have full access to your dripping cunt. "Wonder if she tastes like a sugar cookie too?"

You yelped and gasped at the same time because simultaneously as Seonghwa thrusted his long tongue inside of your hole, San let his lip ring turn momentarily burning hot. "Careful, Hops, or I might find that more appealing than our current activities."

"S-san," You mumbled his name, even though your eyes were on Seonghwa with his eyes closed, tongue fucking your cunt.

"This is what I'm talking about," San growled. "You stutter my name like that and I'm going to want to play Chase the Bunny."

His tongue swiped at your skin and finally let go of your legs. Seonghwa's leather jacket fell to the crook of his elbows as he braced your legs open instead. He took on your weight like it was nothing. San's previous occupied hands began to massage your breasts through your tight shirt. "Been wanting to play with these nipples all night."

Seonghwa's tongue had begun to curl inside of you, reaching a spot that was dangerous. Your eyebrows furrowed. "No wait, don't--I'll--"

Your body began to shake and you cried out as you squirted all over Seonghwa's face. It was pure good luck that Seonghwa already had his eyes closed but that didn't stop him from opening his mouth, accepting your wetness.

San's hand became slack against your breasts as his mouth dropped and he laughed in disbelief. "Did you just make her squirt?"

Your body was like a ragdoll against San's body when Seonghwa finally opened his eyes. He wiped his face with his hand, looking quite pleased with himself. "Fuck, Hops, that was hot."

You are whining in embarrassment but you still can't move. "I'm sorry."

San's light laughter peppered the air. "She's sorry, Hwa."

Seonghwa stood up, tweaking the end of your ear. "Don't be embarrassed, little bun, you just gave me the highest honor."

San unceremoniously shoved your body off him and you collapsed into Seonghwa's arms. San quickly began to unbutton his pants, the chains that connected from belt loop to back pocket twinkling merrily. "I'm so fucking hard, I thought I was going to come in my pants with her fucking tail playing with me."

Seonghwa raised an eyebrow at San. "New kink unlocked?"

San mockingly sneered at Seonghwa, showing another peek of his sharp canines. "Shut up."

Your skirt was already high up on your hips and your panties pulled out of the way but that wasn't enough for San. He easily ripped your underwear from your body with an impatient snarl. "This tiny puss is mine."

The air is filled with the smell of sex and faintly of embers and frost.  "Right, Hops?" San asked.

You looked up to Seonghwa, who shrugged. "Don't look at me. Unless you're saying your cunt belongs to me already. Then I won before San even got to prove himself. Kinda sad, don't you think?"

You gulped and swallowed but there was no moisture there. Your voice sounded tiny even to yourself but you somehow managed to say, "My tiny puss is yours… Sannie."

"Well, that's it, I'm fucked," San announced. 

With that, San pushed into your pussy, firmly and without pause until he was fully seated inside you. He was panting behind you. "Bet I'm so fucking huge inside of you, the way your cunt is clenching me, Jesus, you're tight." San slithered a hand from your hip to your stomach and pressed down, causing you to moan. "Fuck, I can feel my dick imprint, jesus, Hops."

Seonghwa petted your hair and ears. "You are a tiny thing. We could spit roast you right now and you would have no issues, would you?"

"B-both of you?" You squeaked. "At the same time?"

Seonghwa tipped his head to the side. "You can do it, right? You're a sweet little bunny that would give her all to us, right? A sweet little slutty bun who would take everything she got given, even if it drove her to tears. You'd cry big fat tears to be stuffed by both of us, wouldn't you, Hops?"

"You're not talking about my mouth anymore, are you?" You whimpered in realization.

Seonghwa smiled so sweetly even though he was thinking the filthiest thoughts. "Such a smart girl, Hops."

He tipped your head and rewarded you with a deep kiss, his lips still wet from when you had squirted all over his face. His lips and tongue took over your senses until it was all you could focus on. You didn't realize you were whimpering into his mouth until he started to chuckle and released you. "Forgot San was inside of you, didn't you."

You gasped. "S-san, I--"

San simply chuckled evilly behind you. You did not get to see the dirty look San sent Seonghwa. San had not, not truely, realized what he was getting into, letting Seonghwa challenge him. "I'm going to fuck you so good, that's the only name that's going to be falling from your lips."

"Unless," Seonghwa stared down San, "Hops agrees to being double stuffed."

"You can get her cute little mouth, I get this!" San snarled as he pulled back and then thrusted harshly into you. Your breath caught in the back of your throat at the pressure. 

Seonghwa's gentle hands pulled at your sensitive ear, pinching the bottom and making you yelp. His other hand quickly chucked your chin and his thumb slipped against your bottom lip. "And as lovely as that would be," Seonghwa agreed, on the surface at least, "I think that Hops would be better equipped to take us both at the same time. Then she can truly decide who she will choose at the end of the night."

San mercilessly pounded into you, making you grab fistfuls of Seonghwa’s sleeveless shirt, your tongue swirling around Seonghwa’s thumb that was still in your mouth. "This tiny bunny pussy is mine," San snarled.

Your head bobbed, humming in agreement. Seonghwa, however, was unsatisfied with the current predicament. "San," he growled.

San let out a loud, frustrated noise but halted the slapping of skin on skin. You breathed heavily and whined at the loss of the pleasure between your legs. San patted your hip, in an attempt to reassure you. "Don't worry, Hops, I'll fill you up, we just have to do a quick position change."

Seonghwa raised his eyebrows. "Let me slip inside of her. I bet she's so fucking wet, her slickness alone could prep her for me to fuck her puckered hole."

"Am I your fucking fluffer?" San snarled, "Should I put my mouth around you instead and make sure you're ready for her?"

A shiver traveled from the soles of your feet, throughout your body, making your tail flutter and your ears flip-flop. A slow, sure smile pulled at Seonghwa's lips. "Oh, does our bunny like the idea of my cock slipping between San’s plush lips?"

You could feel your face heating up. "You're both really hot."

"Oh, Hops," San sighed, "Fine. Slip inside of her. You won't have a hard time, she's probably loose now from taking my thick cock. Just hurry up!"

San pulled out of you and Seonghwa turned you to face San. He smoothed an appreciative hand down your spine and then pushed inside of you. "Oh fuck this bunny pussy!" Seonghwa exclaimed.

San chucked your chin and guided your head to his pelvis. You licked your lips at the sight of more scaling along San's hips and what amounted to a true treasure trail from his belly button to his cock. "Pretty," You couldn't help but coo, reaching out to trace the purple scales.

"Am I pretty to you, Hops?" San said in a low, soft voice. "Wanna touch? Wanna lick? Go on. I'll give you a tip. The skin along our scales is very sensitive."

You held San’s twitching cock out of the way so that your rough tongue could glide along the soft scales and skin. San watched with hooded eyes and his muscles jerked as it made its way along the treasure trail, to meet at the base of his cock. Just as you were about to lick your way up San’s shaft when Seonghwa grabbed a handful of your tail, making you yelp and cry out. "Okay, I take back my teasing from before. Her tail twitching against your cock is hot."

"Are you done yet?" San growled, once again no longer being the center of your world.

"My dick is drenching, Hops," Seonghwa observed as he pulled out of you. "Gonna fuck you full of dragon cock, huh? You ready to be double stuffed? You better give us those big fat tears you promised."

"I'm ready," you said in a shaky voice.

San held you in a reverse of the position you three had started in. His hands were under your knees as he sunk into you, face to face, and feet off the ground. He bit into his lower lip, tongue playing with his lip ring as he bottomed out again. Then Seonghwa approached from behind, nails digging into your hip bones as he pushed into your other hole. You were whimpering and moaning the entire time, taking both of their thick, long cocks. Once they were both bottomed out inside of you, you tossed your head back to rest against Seonghwa's shoulder.

"How do you feel, Hops?" Seonghwa asked.

"I'm so full," You whined.

"You like it though," San teased, a smirk playing with his lips, "I can feel you clenching down on me so hard. I'm surprised you didn't come from both of us entering you. You're such an easy lay."

"M-move?" You managed to ask, one ear flicking backward to listen to Seonghwa, while the other focused on San.

They did so without further ado, and you could only let out pitiful cries as they fucked you in both holes. You swore you were going to burst but also the pleasure was immeasurable, coursing along every damn nerve you possessed. When one pulled out, the other one pushed in, and it was a never-ending roller-coaster of rapture between your legs. The only thing your animal brain could focus on was the smell of strawberry jam coming from behind you and a sea breeze from behind you. Were those Seonghwa and San’s personal scents? They smelled heavenly.

"Poor Hops," San laughed, "You look so fucked out right now? Is your tiny little brain full of white noise right now? Getting fucked so good by a couple a dragon dicks, huh? I can barely understand how a tiny puss and ass like yours is taking us but I guess that just speaks volumes on how greedy you are for us. Taking us so fucking well, aren’t you Hops?”

That’s when the tears began. They welled up in your eyes and then started to slowly run down your cheek and dripped from your jaw to your bosom, only to make a trail down the valley of your breasts. You just felt a lot of things. You felt safe, you felt adored, you felt full and you felt sexy. It was just a lot and so the tears came easily. Your bottom lip trembled and you pouted as you said, “I’m taking you so well.”

“Aw, Hops, you look so fucking cute, crying for us,” San cooed mockingly.

“I can’t believe how well she’s taking my cock in her ass,” Seonghwa said in reverence again, “Damn, Hops, you really were built to be a little toy for a couple of dragon hybrids, huh?”

You can barely reply between the alternate thrusting, unsure if you’re getting better pleasure from the thick cock in your pussy or the long cock in your ass. “So. Fucking. Good.”

“Oh shit, I’m gonna come,” San cried out, his thrusts starting to become erratic but somehow hitting deeper inside of you. 

“M-me t-t-too,” You whimpered, feeling the curl in your stomach ready to snap.

“Gonna take all of me, Hops? Gonne let me fill you up with dragon cum, right? I bet you get a little bump from all the fucking cum I’m going to unload on you, oh fuck--!” San thrusted deep inside of you, holding himself there and grunted as his cock shot his load into you. He throbbed and twitched and continued to unload and even when he pulled his heavy cock out of you, there was still more shooting out. 

You would have been fascinated yourself if not for the fact that you were twitching and whining and convulsing from your own orgasm. Your pussy wouldn’t stop fluttering around him and it was like echoes of your pleasure continued to radiate from your lower half. It was both pleasing and exhausting and you were pretty sure you had never come harder in your entire life than in that moment. However, you still had another hole and dick to worry about.

“Now for the real show to start,” Seonghaa said, tucking his tongue between his lips.

“Are you kidding me?” San said with disbelief. “Like you could out do that performance.” He promptly dropped his head to your shoulder to relax.

You started to whimper, feeling a bit overstimulated. You shook your head desperately, your ears softly hitting your cheeks. “No. It’s too much. Too much!”

“Oh, come on, Hops,” Seonghwa grunted, “You can come for us again, can’t you? Gonna fill this ass with my cum. You want to be filled with both of us right? Come for me again, sweet bun.”

“Hhhhnnnnn,” You started to cry out as you felt another climax burst over you, this from Seonghwa fucking you up the ass.

You started to cry again, the pleasure being above and beyond everything you had experienced. With San out of you now, you had no choice but to focus on how your ass was taking every thrust of Seonghwa’s, pushing into it like you couldn't get enough of his cock. 

“See, I knew you could do it, Hops. You’re such a sweet little slutty bunny, just for us, right?”

“Just for you,” You repeated tiredly.

Seonghwa let out a desperate cry himself, fucking your ass as his climax tore through him. He unloaded into you too, and you whimpered at how fucking dirty this entire endeavor was. But it felt so fucking good, you didn’t have any regrets.

But the original question still floated in your mind: who would you choose after this?

"I chose you both," You said with a hoarse voice, sounding barely alive.

"Sorry, Hops, I can't hear you with my cum leaking out of your tiny hole, you wanna repeat that?" San muttered, his head still against your shoulder, words muffled but still just as mean.

"I choose you both!" You shout with a rough voice. "I can't pick. I want you both."

You bounce against Seonghwa's chest as he laughed behind you. "Bet you didn't see that coming, huh, San?"

"I hate you, Seonghwa," San grumbled. He raised his head and kissed your quaking nose. "Fine, Hops. You get to have the both of us."

"Just like that?" You wondered.

"Well, hardly," Seonghwa corrected you. "Your body is ours now. Don't you know how dragons are with treasure? We're greedy sonsabitches. Once you're a part of our hoard, you never leave."

"What he means is, your sweet little body is ours now, Hops. To do with what we want, when we want. And you know the best part?" San leaned forward to push aside your hair so he could directly speak into your flickering ear. "There's more of us."

This time it's Seonghwa's turn to finally narrow his eyes at San. "Really, you're going to bring the rest of them into this?"

San shrugged. "You started it."

"I'll end it, you hatchling," Seonghwa threatened.

San stuck his tongue out childishly at Seonghwa and you giggled when the purple hybrid called the black dragon Grandpa.

ღNext Chapter

Tagging: @hijirikaww @toxicccred @starillusion13 @flurrys-creativity @stardragongalaxy @a-soft-hornytiny

[heavyhitterheaux]

Meet Me At The Altar

AN: for those that don't know angst is my specialty so be prepared 🤭🤭🤭

Synopsis: Your dream wedding to the love of you life is quickly approaching and you couldn't be happier. Little did you know, Joe hasn't been completely honest with you and you get a lot more than you bargained for when it finally gets revealed

Pairing; Joe Burrow x Reader

Joe Burrow Masterlist

Please Do Not Repost My Content Anywhere

You twirled around to show your mom, older sister, and best friend your wedding dress as final alterations would be made to make sure that it fit you perfectly. You were due to become Mrs. Joseph Lee Burrow in about another month or so and the closer you got to the wedding date, the more that reality was setting in. You had planned out your wedding with your big sister Marlene ever since you were eight years old while she was ten but swore up and down that she would never get married. 

She claimed that boys were too much trouble and maybe she was right.

She had been married before.

And divorced before.

Twice by the age of twenty five.

But you always had hope, and sure enough your dreams came true when you had met Joe and he had swept you off your feet. No one could compare to him and you had even confessed to Marlene that you knew for a fact that he was going to propose to you.

Within three weeks of you telling her that, he did while on a trip for the two of you to the Bahamas.

The engagement would only last a total of eight months with the two of you wanting to walk down the aisle as soon as possible.

You looked over at all three of them to see them handing the box of kleenex to each other as tears brushed the corner of their eyes as they peered up at you.

“So, what do we think?” You asked them as your best friend and maid of honor Camille simply let out a sob.

“Umm, okay, so obviously Camille likes it. Just… girl…. Get yourself together. We have a month to go still. Now mom, Mar?”

“You look absolutely stunning and his jaw will hit the floor once he sees you.” Your mom said as she came over to you and grabbed your hand. She was proud that she raised two daughters who were successful and only wanted the best for the two of you.

“Gorgeous as ever, baby sister. He’s going to really love it. I’m so happy for you. Hopefully this is your first and last marriage. The last thing you want is to be like me and mess up not only once, but twice.”

“Mar, you simply learned a lesson from it. It’s not the fact that you messed up. You truly thought that the both of them were your forever, but it’s their loss anyway. I know how amazing my big sister is even if they don’t.” You said while smiling at her as she came to squeeze your other hand that wasn’t occupied by your mom.

“All they have to do is take in the back a little more and it’ll be a perfect fit.”

You had turned the key into your front door and was met with hearing the sound of the television from the living room. You figured that was where Joe was and you followed the sound to find him knocked out with your puppy Jonah that was a gift for you from Valentine’s Day earlier this year laying at his feet. You took the opportunity to hop into his lap while kissing his cheek. He woke up startled, but immediately relaxed as he saw that it was you and wrapped his arms around you.

“Mmm, when’d you get back, baby?”

“Just now, but you were too busy sleeping to hear me come in.”

“Did everything go okay with your fitting?” Joe asked as he was now massaging small circles along your back and kissed your forehead.

“Yes, and I’m so excited for you to see it. She has to take the back in a little bit at the top and it should be fine.”

“And it’s loose enough so….?”

“I’m not even showing yet so when we want to let everyone know we can, but for now it can stay between us.”

“But we have another month to go.”

“I promise that the design of the dress will make it very hard to tell if anyone is in there.” You said as Joe placed his left hand on your somewhat flat stomach before smiling at you.

“Can’t believe we’re going to be parents too. I couldn’t see myself doing this with anyone else.”

“Me either. Ever since that first date, I couldn't get away from you since.”

“Well, damn. You make it sound like I’m sort of a stalker.” Joe said and you simply laughed.

“You were very persistent I should say.”

“And being persistent led to me finding my wife.”

“And also led to you getting me pregnant.”

“Well it’s not like you exactly said no and you weren’t complaining when I had your legs on my shoulders.”

“Touche, Burrow.” 

“Calling it like I see it, baby.”

As the wedding date got closer, you noticed how Joe seemed like he was distancing himself from you. You just assumed it was because he had a lot going on and wanted to get finished before the two of you walked down the aisle so that all of his focus would be on you and the little life growing inside you. 

But maybe you were overreacting. 

Then again, he would be waking up early and coming home later more frequently. He would always tell you the night before if that would be the case for the following day, however, he hadn’t been doing that either which left you confused.

You knew your fiance inside and out and knew that there was something off about him so you took it upon yourself to send him a text around 3 pm asking him what time you would expect him back home. 

You- Joeyyyyy

He replied about seven minutes later.

Future Hubby- Yes, baby? You okay?

You- I’m fine, when should I expect you? I’m making food for us

Future Hubby- I’ll try to be back around 8 but no promises

You- I’ll expect you at 8 because your future wife hasn’t seen you all day and I miss you so make it happen

Future Hubby- Yes ma’am. You know you’re my priority. I’ll be there as soon as I can

You- Can’t wait 

“Is that her again?” Marlene asked Joe as the two of them were tangled up in her white bedsheets with her laying her head on his chest.

“Yeah, it is. I promised her that I would be back by eight so I need to leave soon.”

“When are you going to leave her? You said that we would be together and you keep putting it off.”

“First of all Mar, I’m cheating on my soon to be wife with her older sister. It’s a little more complicated than that. And when the hell did I ever say that? I never planned on leaving her for you. Let’s be real.”

“How so? And you have said it..”

“Do you not care about your little sister’s feelings at all?” Joe questioned her and she immediately rolled her eyes.

“Well, do you? I see that you’re here in my bed and not at home with her so what does that tell you exactly?”

All Joe did was sigh.

“She’s pregnant Marlene. I’m not about to do that to her.”

“Just pay child support, she’ll be okay. And besides, I’ve been meaning to tell you something.”

“What?”

“I’m pregnant too.”

Joe realized that he had only one month to go before he walked down the aisle to you, he wanted to spend as much time as he could with Marlene. The two of them had been sneaking behind your back for a while and as much as Joe was trying to cut it off, he didn’t have enough strength in him to do it. Something about her kept him wanting more and pulled him back in every single time.

The first encounter happened when she came over to the house, still distraught about her latest divorce being finalized. The two of them had been legally separated and Marlene wanted to see if they would be able to work things out, but it didn’t go like she wanted it to. She was looking for you, but Joe, seeing her so upset, invited her to come in and said that if he could help her in any way to tell him.

He helped her alright.

Making her cum over and over again in the bed that you two shared.

And you had no idea. 

But why would you suspect anything?

She was your older sister, your ride or die, one of your best friends that you trusted with your life so why did she feel the need to go behind your back like this?

Truth be told, she didn’t know why.

You were her baby sister and she would murder anyone who caused or brought any harm towards you, yet she was the main one doing it.

When she thought about it, keeping it a secret from you was the best thing that they could possibly do, but secrets eventually get revealed and she knew that she wasn’t ready to face you. There was no excuse in the world that she could give to you that would make you forgive her and she knew that.

Joe was everything to you and oftentimes you would confide in her about him and about your relationship.

She had never seen you so happy and even though she was happy for you, she couldn’t help but to feel jealous also.

She had already been married and divorced twice.

When was it going to be her turn to feel an ounce of happiness?

Joe was silent for a few minutes while trying to get his thoughts together.

“When did you find out?” Joe asked as he hung his head in disbelief. He could hide a lot of things from you, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to hide an entire human.

“About two weeks ago.”

“How far along are you and are you keeping it?”

Marlene got a confused look on her face and couldn’t believe that he had just asked her that.

“Are you serious? Of course I’m keeping it. And I’m about a month and some change in.”

“And we’re going to explain this to your sister how? Especially if they look like me! And that means you’ll be due before her. Fuck!”

“So I’ll actually get to have your first born and not her. I thought that you would be a little more excited than this.”

“Move so I can get dressed.”

Joe was now sitting across from you eating his dinner in silence and you couldn’t take it anymore. He had been quiet since he had gotten back home, only barely kissing you on the cheek and nothing else. You could tell that something was bothering him and you were going to try your hardest to get it out of him.

“Babe?” You said, but was met with silence.

“Baby?”

Silence.

“Joe?”

Silence.

“Joey?”

Silence.

“JOSEPH!”

“HUH?! What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong is that I’ve been calling you for the last two minutes and all you’re doing over there is staring into space. Baby, what is wrong with you? You’ve been off for these last couple of weeks.”

“I’m sorry, I just…. I’m tired, that's all. Wedding planning is a lot but I wanted to make sure that everything was the way that you wanted.”

“But it’s your wedding too, not just mine.”

“I know, but you know I’ll always do anything that I can to see you smile. I just love you a whole lot and I don’t want you to ever forget that.”

“Why would I ever forget that? And I love you too, more than anything.”

“We never know what tomorrow might bring and you know I’m always going to tell you how much I love you every chance that I get.”

“Are you sure that there’s nothing else bothering you?” You asked, looking across the table at him concerned.

“No, I promise.”

“Okay, well I promised to call Mar before I went to sleep so I’m about to go and do that while you finish.”

“I got it, baby. Just go ahead, I’ll be right behind you.”

“Okay.” You got up from the table while putting your plate and glass in the sink before going over to Joe and leaning down to kiss him. He eagerly kissed you back and it almost seemed as if it was desperate.

Like you were going to disappear into thin air once he broke away from you.

“I love you and I’ll never get tired of saying that, you mean everything to me and I can’t wait to marry you.” You said while smiling at him and running a hand through his hair.

“I love you too and you know that no one else compares to you. Can’t wait to change your last name.”

All you did was smile in return before leaving the kitchen and making your way to your shared bedroom as Joe was trying to come to terms with the mess that he had now made. How could he go into your marriage with this hanging over his head? It was only a matter of time before Marlene said something and he felt as if he had to do it first.

But knowing this, you probably wouldn’t forgive him so the wedding would be off the table. But he knew that you were the one for him and that he didn’t want to marry anyone else. No one else compared to you and he was beside himself thinking about how he had been hurting you these last few months going behind your back with someone who is that close to you. 

He didn’t know what to do and he obviously couldn’t tell anyone about it, so he had to come to a decision by himself.

And time was running out.

It was now two days before the wedding and Camille was trying to whisk you out the door since you would be staying with her until it was time to say ‘I do��. But you were too busy lip locking with Joe.

“Girl, will you come on?! You can have all the kisses you want from your man in two days because I promise you that he’s not going anywhere. JOSEPH! UNHAND HER NOW!”

“Camille, you have always been such a hater.” Joe responded before kissing the side of your mouth and finally letting you go.

“And I’ll be that because you are cutting into our quality girl time.”

All you did was laugh as Joe rolled his eyes.

“I guess I can let you go then. Less than 48 hours until we’re married.”

“I know and it just seems so surreal.”

“Can’t wait for you to meet me at the altar.” Joe whispered to you before placing a kiss on your forehead.

“And I’ll be the one in white.”

“Off-white, baby. Ain’t nothing virgin about your ass.”

“CAMILLE!”

“What? What did I say?”

Camille was now treating you to lunch at one of your favorite restaurants and she could tell that something was off and that you were deep in thought.

“I’ve known you since we were ten and I know you like the back of my hand. Spill it.”

“I…. Joe has been distant this past month and I don’t understand why.”

“Joe? Distant? Are we talking about the same person because? The one who was just all over you literally sucking your face off? That Joe?”

“Yeah, it’s weird. I kept asking him about it and all he said was that he was tired from all the things that we had to do for the wedding but it was weird. I could tell that he was hiding something because then he said something along the lines of for me to never forget how much he loves me and he’s always going to show that he does.”

“Hmm cold feet, you think?”

“No, that’s not it. But something is definitely off with him.”

“You’re probably thinking into this too much, babe. That man loves you and absolutely worships the ground that you walk on. Anytime you walk into a room, I swear his face lights up. He probably has wedding jitters. Everything is going to be fine.”

“You’re probably right, I just don’t want to lose him.”

“And you’re not going to. If he ever hurts you, you know me and Marlene will kick his ass. Now let’s go and get you married.”

“You look absolutely amazing.” You hear your mother say from behind you as she caught your eye in the mirror.

“Thank you, mom. Can’t wait for the rest of our lives together.” You said as you felt the tears coming on, but immediately heard Camille screech.

“NO! DO NOT CRY YET! YOU CAN ONLY CRY WHEN YOU SEE JOE! DO NOT MESS UP MY WORK WITH YOUR EMOTIONS! HOLD IN TOGETHER FOR ANOTHER TWO MINUTES.”

“Damn, who are you? The crying police?”

“I will stab you with my makeup brush, but I don’t think that your husband will appreciate that, but don’t push me Y/N!”

“Just for that I’m crying right when the music starts.”

“Make sure you don’t ugly cry. That won’t be cute for the wedding photos.”

Next thing you knew, it was time to walk down the aisle to your forever love.

With your arm locked with your fathers, you heard the wedding march and slowly began to make your ways towards Joe. When he looked up and saw you, his jaw immediately hit the floor. Once you finally reached him, your dad placed a kiss on your cheek before placing your hand in Joe’s who then brought it up to his lips to place a light kiss on it. 

Even now with him standing in front of you, you could tell that something was off. You figured that it would have gone away by now, but something was wrong and today was going to be the day that you got it out of him and wouldn’t be taking no for an answer. The last thing that you wanted was for your marriage to start out with the two of you keeping secrets from each other. 

But little did you know that he was about to tell you and that he was going to do it when you least expected it. 

When it was time to say his vows, Joe looked at you and saw how you were looking up at him with so much admiration and he knew. He knew at that moment that he had to come clean and would deal with the consequences later. 

As the preacher looked towards Joe for him to say ‘I do.’ he said something else instead.

“I… I can’t say that until I tell you something.”

Your cheeks started to get hot and your heart rate had increased. You looked up at him in a state of panic and rightfully so.

But then you heard Marlene’s voice behind you. 

“He’s been sleeping with me for the last four months and got me pregnant.”

Taglist:

@hoodharlow

@nattinatalia

@wickedfun9

@keiva1000

@dandelionwrites8

[anothertimdrakestan]

Ahh I am soo excited 🙏

I am dying for a fic with Jason and Y/N at the gala. Just him being protective and a gentleman. My inspiration is your Damien Wayne at the gala with Y/N.

Feel free to delete this ask, I am just soo excited for the opportunity 🙌

Undying Philanthropy - Jason Todd x Reader

Staring at yourself in the mirror, you couldn't help but admire the floor-length crimson ballgown you'd chosen for the upcoming gala. The velvet dress was the definition of elegant, with a subtle V-shape that drew the perfect amount of attention to your eyes. Excited to rub shoulders with some of the wealthiest, most influential faces in the city, you were hoping to find a real story to bring back to the Gotham Gazette. There was only one, very dangerous and very influential person in the way.

"Oh you sure as hell are not going, and definitely not if you're gonna look that good." Jason's voice echoed through your apartment as you rolled your eyes.

"I swear I locked my door." you grumbled, not looking up at the towering hero who was yet to take his eyes off you. He snorted "you're smart enough to know a lock has never once stopped me babe." You didn't give him the courtesy of a reply, hoping if you ignored him he'd go police some other reporter.

The minute you grabbed your purse he spoke up again, his voice deeper, far more assertive: "I said, you aren't going." You locked eyes with him and crossed your arms, "and why is that? Did I suddenly become your property all of a sudden?" you gave him a glare, but he just returned one.

"It's gonna be dangerous, you're insane if you think I'm letting you get hurt."

"Sounds like a story, I'm there." you retorted. Jason groaned, "why am I so obsessed with you," while he stalked into the bathroom you'd just come out of. In a few seconds he burst out, eyes scanning the room for you, his shoulders relaxing when he realized you were still there. He was wearing a black dress shirt with a crimson overcoat, suspiciously matching the exact colour of your dress.

"Nice jacket." you grinned, he just gave you a wink.

"Always gotta have a plan B when I'm dealing with your stubborn ass. And, you have no idea how many weapons I can store in this jacket" which only made you more nervous for the events to come.

You entered through the back door, waving a media pass to garner entry into the ballroom. Exquisitely dressed strangers were mulling through the event, exchanging pleasantries to each other and signing their names on various philanthropic programs, a promise of funding from Gotham's most successful. You were planning on finding one of these blossoming non-profits and following it's story. Hoping that if you wrote a strong article, the Wayne Foundation would most likely double whatever revenue was produced at this event, it was a quite likely occurrence seeing as you already had plans for chinese takeout and mario kart with the Wayne Enterprises CEO tomorrow night. Something about knowing powerful people...

Speaking of, your table assignment was surrounded by wealth, having Jason as a sort of body guard to protect you from wandering eyes and desires that littered the ballroom. And it was a job he took seriously. While you hopefully perused the various community programs Jason kept a hand glued to your side, shooting daggers at anyone who took more than a glance in your direction. He tried to be active though, nodding in bitter agreement when you pointed out a brilliant program to refurbish and donate old computers to underprivileged students or melted at the sight of foster puppies brought by the Gotham Shelter, his eyes never lingered too long in one place, in a state of alert on your behalf. You tried to get him to let loose, but he was firm that as long as you were safe and having a good time, he was as well.

Sitting down at your table you happily began chatting with the other guests, explaining your aspirations and dully noting each of their professions and passions. Jason joined in, pointing out your various publications, lacking complete subtlety in the way he adored you. Now, his hand was draped loosely across your thighs, thumb mindlessly swiping up and down as a way to curb his boredom. As speakers presented he grew obviously impatient, frequently leaning over to press overly wet kisses to your neck. You gave him scolding looks, but that only made his hands more explorative below the table, and as you squirmed out of his handsy embrace with a giggle, you were approached by Marcus Swan, a well known billionaire with a penchant for young girls. Jason stiffened at his presence, while you simply exchange a soft smile, which apparently was all the invite the elderly man had desired.

"You look exquisite Ms. Y/N." the man croacked.

Jason coughed, "L/N. Ms. L/N to you." you pressed your leg to his, hoping it would made him back down.

"Professional are we? Well, I was hoping I could actually catch a moment alone. You know, my businesses have been in the black this year, and I'd love to hear what foundations you've chosen to write about, I do so value your opinion, Ms. Y/N." Mr. Swan extended a hand, and Jason stiffened as you took it.

"I'll be like a minute Jay, you have my location, always." you pecked his cheek and let Mr. Swan lead you away, the last time you humored him with a drink he donated $250,000 to the Women & Children's Shelter, and you'd already warned Jason you might see him again at this event.

The bar was in a quieter room, and you noticed two guards lock the door behind you as Mr. Swan led you to the bar. Your stomach was doing uneasy flips as you ordered a glass of red wine, repeatedly telling yourself Jason was just a few meters away.

"Now that we've got a little more quiet, I must be honest Ms. Y/N" Mr. Swan said, swirling his whiskey glass before taking a long gulp.

"Swan Tech has been... less successful, than I would be pleased to admit. But, after tonight, I am hopeful I'll have come into a substantial amount of wealth." your eyes shot to the door, gauging the head start you'd need to run to Jason.

"Please don't consider going back into that room, until my business is finished. I do not lie when I say I do enjoy your company. I suppose I see you as this beacon of hope, I could't let your light be put out like the rest of the snakes in that ballroom." the billionaire said casually, throwing back the rest of his drink. "If nothing else, I've given you the story of the year! I do so hope you'll include a bit of a memoir on me and my philanthropic tendencies. To the bitter end I suppose!" he mused, reaching behind the now empty bar, the bartending having clearly ran as far from the venue as possible, to grab the rest of the whiskey bottle to pour himself another few fingers.

Your voice was shaking, "what are you doing to them?"

"Nothing they don't deserve," he yawned.

"My boyfriend is in there!" you burst out of your chair, realizing the one person on earth you couldn't lose was trapped.

"I was going to invite him, but he was awfully rude, so I let my pettiness get the better of me. We can't all be saints I suppose." the man chuckled as you began striding towards the double doors.

Before you could get too close, the doors burst open, seemingly kicked in by,

The Red Hood.

"Thank god" you crumpled to the ground in front of the familiar frame.

"Get behind me," the masked hero commanded, before striding towards Swan who took one last gulp.

"I suspected you bratty heroes would intervene, but I didn't do this for myself, I did it as revenge! And now, I'll take my much deserved exit!" Mr. Swan laughed maniacally before swallowing a pill you knew would be his demise.

"Jokes on you, I got here before anyone could be hurt. Some mastermind." The Red Hood called back, Swan's eyes widening in realization just before they glazed over.

"You are literally never coming to one of these again." the hero muttered as he stalked past you, to which you couldn't help but agree. You followed the Red Hood back into the ballroom, where the guests looked dazed and confused, but wholly alive.

As you made your way back to your original table, Jason was seated as if he hadn't moved at all, "there you are! We are getting out of here, you won't believe what some psycho tried to do!" Jason said, really hamming up his worry as he whisked you out of the gala.

Back in your apartment you'd both changed, sharing a pint of icecream as Jason explained to you the poisonous gas Swan had set up to ruin Gotham's elite, leaving him and his family as the sole benefactors to billions of dollars. Jason also let slip that Tim had tipped him off on the villain's plans last week.

"Why even let me go?" you shook your head, but Jay replied, "you really think I could've stopped you? Also, if I just agreed to go, you'd never let your guard down enough for me to slip away and find the machinery Swan had set up. Though, I can't deny I have to respect the guy, if I went crazy you'd be the one girl I'd save too." he winked at you.

"What on earth would I do without you Jason Todd."

"Exactly what you're doing with me, make the world a better place, even if it costs you your life. I'm just here to may sure you never have to pay the price of your empathy with your life." he paused, chuckling to himself before saying "I just pay it with a gun" which had you rolling your eyes at his morbid joke, but still wholly thankful for his undying protection and love. Truly the best body guard you could have asked for.

~

I hope you enjoyed! Thank you for the prompt <3

[whumperstorm]

Suppressing Fire - Part 4

Content: Vampire whumper, defiant whumpee, mind control, death threats, loneliness, angst

This one is twice as long as the others lol

First/Previous/Next

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

For the first two years, things remain generally the same. The hostility and abuse intertwined with the mundane of everyday life. For Kane, it's all leading up to something. Something big. And as it approaches, closer and closer, he begins to worry he's not ready. His human isn't ready. She's calmed down a bit compared to when he first got her, but she's still defiant. He still disciplines her with frequency. This is bad.

After hemming and hawing over what to do, he enters the human quarters. Before even feeding, he brings attention to the matter at hand.

"I'm laying my cards on the table. I need something from you."

-----

Keegan has gotten far too comfortable with her imprisonment over the past two years. She knows she has, but there's not much she can do about it. There's a few small opportunities over time where she thinks she might be able to escape, but then she remembers how miserable those two months of recovery with her ribs were, and she lets it go. Too risky. She needs something big.

So she copes. She fights back when she's feeling brave, then nurses the bruises she's given for the trouble. She takes out her anger on the poor abused punching bag and tries not to think about the outside world. Stay in the present. Survive each day and keep your head clear. It'll be worth it.

Still, she can't help but perk up when Kane makes a change to their usual schedule. He needs something and he's not just demanding it? She's curious now.

"Yeah?" She asks.

“There’s this… family reunion next week. Well, not just my family. It’s for all of the important families. Mine’s the most important, of course.” His face lights up with condescending pride for a moment before falling back into nerves. “We’re going, and I need you to behave. What's it going to take?"

That's a lot to take in. A family reunion for a bunch of rich vampires?

On one hand, Keegan is almost excited at the thought, even though she'd only be going as an accessory. She's always wanted to go to a fancy party. On the other hand, she hasn't been out of the house since the doctor visit, and just that short time was terrifying.

"What... exactly would I be doing at this event?"

"Oh, not much. Everyone brings their humans as a sign of status. So this- this is the first time I'll be going." Kane wrings his hands anxiously. "All the others will be under persuasion, obviously. All you'll need to do is follow me around, largely silently, and follow orders if given. It will be very easy."

Honestly, it doesn't sound too bad to Keegan. It'd be the first time a vampire hunter has ever observed vampire high society and (hopefully) lived to tell about it. But, it's clear Kane is anxious as hell about this, and willing to offer her something in return. She's not about to miss this chance. She bites her lip, thinking. 

What does she want? She'd really like her stove back, microwave meals got old a long time ago, and she misses cooking. Or maybe some time outside? She's been breathing stale air for years. But no, there's something else. Something she needs, and this might be her only chance. 

She straightens up, crosses her arms, and looks Kane dead in the eye. "Let me call my sister, and you've got a deal."

"Deal," Kane agrees instantly. "You may make one phone call, supervised, if you behave. That means you will act like a proper human in public. You will not stray. You will obey my orders. You will not speak unless spoken to. You will address me as Master or sir. You will show no signs of defiance or misbehavior. Are we clear?"

Keegan's heart leaps. He's actually agreeing to it? She grimaces at all the ways she has to submit to him, but it's basically meaningless in exchange for that phone call. 

"Yes!" She says immediately. Maybe too excitedly, she doesn't want him getting used to this easy compliance, but she can't help it.

"Good." Kane tries to reign in his own excitement, maintain his dignity. His human behaving herself should be the standard, not something to get out of sorts about.

He has to be serious.

“Just know,” he adds, “that if you defy me publicly, I’ll kill you on the spot. I’ll have to, of course, for my reputation.”

"Of course."

The threat gives Keegan pause, not because she plans on being defiant, but because she's not very good at it. She tends to fuck up even when she doesn't mean to.

‘Just focus on the prize, Keegan.’

"Perfect." This might actually work. Kane might actually be presentable. "Now, your neck. I'm hungry."

---

The week passes in a blur. Kane has the human pick out a nice, classy dress from a catalog- he's never had an eye for women's fashion, and he supposes that at least one advantage of having a human with a mind of her own is she can make that decision for him.

On the night of the reunion, he's an utter nervous wreck. He chooses to drive, not wanting to mess his clothes up running and considering it more comfortable for both himself and the human.

"This has to go perfectly," he mutters, half to himself, half to the human in the passenger seat. "No funny business."

"I got it." Keegan insists for what feels like the millionth time. 

She's got no idea what's making Kane so nervous, he's cagey about anything relating to his family. It’s making her nervous about what's in store. But, it's a reunion. A party. Whatever has got him rattled is probably some sort of petty drama. Keegan shouldn't panic. She'll follow directions, stay out of the way, and hope for the best. And, hey, the dress is nice.

They arrive just slightly early, exactly as planned. As they enter the decadent ballroom, Kane scans for his parents, but neither seems to have arrived yet. There are lots of other vampires here, though he knows many are still to come. He recognizes several members of his family and of other noble families, but no one he's close to. Each vampire has a perfectly hypnotized human beside them, and it only makes him more self-conscious.

Worse, he gets looks and whispers. He tries to fight the blush that he knows is creeping up his face as he looks around for anyone at all who he knows well enough to chat with.

Unfortunately, just as he's contemplating going to speak with his older sister, Eloise, despite her quite low opinion of him, a far less-palatable sibling approaches him first.

“Kane! What a surprise, I wouldn’t have expected to see you here in a million years!” Anton greets with his human in tow. He grins widely from ear to ear, fangs on display.

-----

Keegan can practically smell the old money of this place. Everyone here has an aura of importance and snobbery, only worsened by their predatory, vampiric eyes. All her fellow humans are dressed up like she is, but unlike her, have all been lost to persuasion. They couldn't have chosen their outfit from a catalog like she did. They're dressed up by their masters like dolls. Trophies.

 Objects.

‘Why do they even bother?’ She thinks. ‘We're all just 'food' after all.’

It's awful. Keegan can't watch for long and looks down at her feet, shuffling after her own 'master'. She's so very grateful to have her mind intact, and since they can't feel for themselves, she'll endure their suffering for them. They deserve to be remembered and mourned.

A new voice breaks Keegan out of her thoughts. Kane's older brother, apparently. Keegan's hackles raise immediately when he starts talking. This guy is no good, it's written all over his face. Another very punch-able one, in her opinion. Maybe it runs in the family. Kane though, seems just as uncomfortable as she is and she hopes he'll cut this conversation short.

-----

“Hello, Anton.” Kane says through gritted teeth. “Yes, as you can see, I have a human now. No reason for me not to be here anymore, is there?”

“Yeah, I heard! Only took you a century!” Anton laughs. “I gotta admit, you’ve done well for once in your life, baby brother.” He claps Kane on the back, laughing again.

Kane is not pleased. “Well, no one gives a shit what you think.” 

“Oh, don’t be like that, it was a compliment! You’re so sensitive. I mean it! Wrangling a human when you can’t use persuasion at all, it’s very impressive stuff! In fact, the result might be even better. This one’s been hypnotized so much that she hardly reacts even when uninfluenced.” He waved a hand in front of his own human’s face to no response.

 Anton turns his gaze directly onto Keegan, eyeing her discomfort hungrily. “See, just like that. I like to see the emotion in their eyes. It’s so boring otherwise.” He leans in close enough for Keegan to smell his shitty cologne. “Having a good time, little lady?”

Keegan's hand twitches at her side, just barely keeping still. He is way too close. She leans as far away as she thinks she can get away with, face full of disgust. What the fuck. If this creep is related to Kane, what is the rest of his family like?? She hopes he can see the murderous intent in her eyes, in lieu of being able to act on them. ‘I'm not afraid of you, leech.’ 

She might be a little afraid.

Anton loses a bit of interest at her non-response, but the idea has sparked something as he turns back to Kane. “Maybe I’ll try training my next one without persuasion. I mean, it can’t be that hard if you could do it, right?”

Kane rolls his eyes, nudging his human away from Anton. “Thank you so much for that, Anton. Goodbye.”

“Aw, stop, stop, I’m half-kidding. Seriously, great pick. She smells delicious. I’ve just got to have a little taste. You don’t mind, do you?”

Anton takes a step straight toward Keegan and reaches for her neck. 

Keegan's heart spikes with fear. She does not want this man touching her. Her hand itches for a stake she hasn't touched in years. Anton is clearly the bully type, and in this case she's the toy he's trying to steal from his victim. He could break her like a twig just to get at Kane. Luckily, Kane steps in and keeps him away, grabbing his wrist and continuing the conversation like her life didn't just flash before her eyes.

“I do mind, actually. If your human’s blood is of such lower quality than mine, I’m sure you can find a suitable replacement on your own, since you’re just so capable.”

Anton rips his hand from Kane’s grasp, the smile never leaving his face. “Of course, makes perfect sense that you’re so possessive of your very first human! Oh, I remember those days. Well, good luck, I can’t wait to see what Mother and Father think.” He smirks before sauntering off.

“Can you believe that guy?” Kane grumbles with a huff.

Keegan relaxes significantly when Anton leaves. "He was... something." Keegan says quietly. Oh, she has opinions alright but doesn't dare speak them outloud, even if Kane might actually share them. She glances around the room, seeing other vampires sharing their humans. It makes her feel ill. "Sir, are... others going to feed from me tonight?" Kane didn't let his brother, but it's clear they aren't friends. No one mentioned she was going to be a party snack.

"No. No one I would say yes to would be tactless enough to ask in the first place." It's an easy answer, one he doesn't have to even consider. The idea of Mother or Father asking to feed from his human is laughable.

Keegan sighs in relief. "OK. Thanks." She's sure it's not for her sake, but still. She's glad for it.

-----

After the encounter with Anton, Kane is too intimidated to try approaching his other older siblings who he's even less close with. He eyes the entrance as people come in, sticking anxiously to the wall, when he finally sees someone he knows well. Unfortunately.

Bellamy comes waltzing in, a human at his side, arm linked with his- and like Kane's own, obviously unpersuaded. “What is he doing here?” he mutters to himself, alarmed.

The entrance garners more gossipy whispers than his own, and that's when he realizes this could be good. “Wait. Wait, this is great, actually. He could take the heat off me.”

That is, until Bellamy locks eyes with him for the first time in decades, and Kane realizes he's screwed. He tries to take off, beckoning his human to follow behind him, but Bellamy catches up easily.

“Kane, my dear, it has simply been too long!” His voice is sing-songy and light.

“Fuck off, I can’t be seen with you! Why are you even here?” Kane hisses.

The woman at Bellamy's side looks to be in her thirties, and perfectly content to be here, despite full awareness of the situation. She waves at Keegan with a warm smile.

Keegan is happy to hide at the edges of the party. Avoiding any more conversation would make the night easier to get through. But of course it doesn't last long, when a vampire and his lucid human make a beeline towards them.

The human lady waves at her. Keegan stares dumbfounded for a moment before sending a small one back. She has so many questions. God does it feel good to look into another human's eyes. She looks kind. Too kind to be in this hellhole.

Bellamy looks genuinely hurt by Kane’s words, his eyebrows knotting together briefly before he regains his composure. “Oh, politics. Some people are hard to get a hold of, and this made for a fantastic opportunity. Though I was unaware you’d number among them tonight! Shall we meet in private, darling? We absolutely must catch up.”

Kane taps his foot, agitated. “Fine, just get away from me before people start thinking we’re together.”

The man winks. “Follow me in five.”

He and the woman disappear down one of the connecting hallways.

Having no one else to gossip to, Kane turns to Keegan. “That guy? He had his entire life handed to him on a golden platter. Cast away everything by refusing to take a human when he came of age. No one who’s anyone would be caught dead associating with him anymore. He was the eldest son in the most important family next to mine and now he’s an even bigger laughing stock than me! Ugh, of course he won’t even use persuasion on the human that he now apparently has. Has to fucking flaunt it. Can’t believe he’s showing his face here.”

Keegan can't tell if he's actually expecting an answer from her. She opens and closes her mouth a few times before settling on, "She didn't seem like she needed it, sir." What's so special about this vampire that his human is perfectly content by his side? Keegan envies her.

"Well, lucky fucking him." Kane responds.

-----

After a short while has passed, Kane follows down the same path the other pair had taken minutes ago. He weaves through corridors before they arrive at the storage room he and Bellamy would always hide out in when they were boys, boxes piled high around the two waiting for them.

As soon as they enter, Bellamy moves toward Kane with arms outstretched, obviously going in for a hug. Kane holds out a hand to stop him. “Cut that shit out. Why am I here?”

“Well, it’s been so long!” Bellamy exclaims. “It’s been, what, eighty-five years? Do you have a telephone, my dear? Marvelous things, humans do simply come up with the most amazing inventions. We should exchange numbers, keep in better touch!”

“Did you somehow forget what happened the last time we spoke?” Kane eyes the woman. “Why do you have a human? Finally come to your senses?”

“Oh of course, where are my manners?” He turned to Keegan. “My name is Bellamy Verta,” He gives a little bow, “and this beautiful young lady is Caroline.” He gestures to his companion with an extravagant flourish.

“It’s nice to meet you both.” she says.

“And who might you be, young lady?” Bellamy asks Keegan.

In stark contrast to the last vampire they spoke to, this ‘Bellamy’ almost immediately puts Keegan at ease. First of all, he calls his human by her name, Caroline. Keegan has never heard her name come out of Kane's mouth. Second, he's speaking directly to her. Not at her, or ignoring her completely.

 "Keegan." She responds. Then with a quick glance at Kane, reluctantly adds, "...Sir."

"It's lovely to meet you, Keegan." Bellamy reaches out and shakes her hand, his grip soft and warm in mannerism, even if his hands themselves are a bit cold. "I do hope you're not finding this party completely dreadful."

Bellamy turns back to Kane. “As for your question, Caroline and I have a mutually beneficial relationship. She is no prisoner of mine, and is free to come and go as she pleases. She was kind enough to accompany me to this event, given the stringent requirements for entry. Thank you once again for this, darling.”

“It’s no trouble at all.” Caroline smiles.

Caroline is free? She's free, and she chose to be here. Surrounded by murderous vampires and their dead-eyed humans. Suddenly, Keegan decides she hates her. She's been forced into this hell against her will and here's another woman having a perfectly good time with the first vampire Keegan has ever seen that doesn't want to use persuasion. Why does she get to have it easy? She can't quite mask her disbelieving glare.

Well, maybe Bellamy could help? If... if this reunion goes smoothly at least. He and Kane have history, though they clearly didn't part on good terms. She wants to speak to him more but Kane is right there. His threat hangs over her head. Don't speak unless spoken to. So she stands there silently simmering in frustration.

It's obvious Keegan wants to speak. “Do whatever you want, there’s no one here I need to impress," Kane instructs.

“Perhaps you and Caroline can have a chat?" Bellamy suggests. "Dear Kane and I do have so much to catch up on, some of which are rather private matters.” He motions Kane to follow him to the other side of the room.

“Whatever.” Kane gives an exasperated sigh and walks along with him.

Caroline looks after Kane wryly. "Oh, he seems charming," she says, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"Very." Keegan mutters.

She doesn't want to be a complete dick to this stranger, but she has to ask. As soon as the two vampires are conversing, she hisses, "How can you stand it? Being around all... This. Being around him. He's one of them!" Sure he's polite, but he's still a vampire. What if it's all for show?

Caroline smiles at her, pity in her eyes. "Bellamy is the kindest person I've ever met, human or vampire. In fact, in my experience, humans have been the more dreadful bunch." She gestures back toward the ballroom. "Most vampires aren't like this, you know. The stuck-up noble types. They're just regular people. Most haven't even interacted with a human in their lives, let alone hurt one."

That somehow makes Keegan feel worse. She really got the short end of the stick, then. ‘Don't fucking pity me when you won the vampire lottery’ She thinks sourly.

"I don't care!" She growls. "They're predators. They've ruined my life." She turns and kicks a nearby box hard enough that her foot stings. "Why do you get to be free?" She whispers.

The smile disappears. "I'm sorry, hun. But... Kane ruined your life. Bellamy wouldn't hurt a fly. Literally. When there's a bug in the house, I've gotta be the one to take care of it 'cause he's afraid of creepy-crawlies. Vampires aren't a monolith as much as humans aren't. Bellamy saved my life." Though sometimes, she finds herself falling into the trap of thinking of all of humanity as unsalvageable.

"I'm sorry things have turned out so horribly for you. I hope it gets better," she says sincerely.

Keegan wants to shout, to scream. Maybe this would be easier if she was chained up in a basement somewhere, so freedom wouldn't be standing just out of reach and mocking her. But Caroline is being so patient and kind. She has nothing to do with Keegan's suffering.

She deflates. "I'm sorry. I just- Seeing you here, happy..." she gestures vaguely. "It's a lot." Her lip wobbles. "You're the first human I've spoken to in over two years." The first person really, other than Kane.

"You're the first human I've spoken to in over a decade," Caroline admits. She steps forward, her heart aching for Keegan. "You look like you could use a hug. You want one?"

Keegan starts to cry. "...Please." She hasn't felt a kind touch in just as long. Only pain and harsh manhandling. "I wanna go home..." she mumbles, barely audible. It's pathetic, but she's so lonely, and Caroline is someone who will actually listen.

Caroline wraps her up in a warm embrace. "I'm sorry," she says softly. "I know everything's awful right now. Just hang in there. You never know where life will take you. Take it one day at a time."

Keegan cries into Caroline's shoulder, tightly gripping the fabric of her shirt. It feels good to be held. She doesn't want it to end.

"I'm t-trying." She sobs. "Thank you."

Caroline keeps holding her, as long as she needs, gently rubbing her back. She figures Keegan needs this.

-----

“I can’t believe, after everything you’ve been through, that you would just… subjugate someone like this! Look at her, she has bruises on her arm!” Bellamy gestures pointedly at Keegan. "It's awful!"

Caroline lets go of Keegan, turning to watch the argument. She places herself protectively between Keegan and Kane.

“She wouldn't have bruises if she fucking behaved!” Kane retorts. “I don’t know why you suddenly insist on acting like I’m lesser than the rest of my family when you were always the one to tell me I wasn’t. I’m a De Sang, this is what we do.”

“I didn’t mean–” Bellamy pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, “Why is it that the thing you want to live up to is their cruelty?”

“It’s not cruelty, it’s the way the world works! You’re the one who’s a freak.” Kane spits. “You just don’t want me to be happy! Now that I have a human, I can finally get the respect I deserve!”

Bellamy scoffs. “Oh, is that it? Are you happy now, Kane? I can see that sucking up to those pricks has made you so much less of a bitter, miserable person. You’re just the absolute picture of happiness!”

“I need. A minute.” Kane takes a deep breath and glares at Keegan. “Stay. Here.” He storms out of the storage room, slamming the door behind him.

Keegan holds her breath when Kane turns to her with fury in his eyes and flinches when he slams the door.

“I apologize.” Bellamy says, “That got out of hand. I do hope I’ve caused no undue trouble for you, Keegan.”

"It's ok. He, uh, only hurts me when he's mad at me specifically." She says, subconsciously rubbing the bruises Bellamy pointed out. "Which is often, unfortunately. You two used to be friends?" She can't imagine someone as polite as Bellamy wanting to be around Kane.

Bellamy looks to her apologetically, like he's embarrassed of ever having been Kane's friend. "When we were boys. I haven't spoken to him in eighty-five years. He's always been prone to bouts of anger, but not so explosive as he is now. Or perhaps, he simply never had the opportunity."

Keegan sighs. "He just didn't have a human to kick around yet. Thank you for at least trying to talk him out. I've never met a vampire like you before." She feels a bit guilty for calling him a 'predator' just moments ago, but hopefully he was too preoccupied to have heard it.

"I'm sorry my kind has left such a horrible impression on you," Bellamy says sadly.

Caroline nudges him. "Bel, isn't there anything we can...?"

Bellamy shakes his head. "I'm afraid not." Attempting to steal a human from this event would go poorly for all involved, he's sure.

Keegan wants to cry again. "If you could- I know it's a long shot and probably isn't worth it- but if you could keep trying?" God this is pathetic. "Keep trying to convince him?"

"Of course, dear. Of course I can," Bellamy promises.

It's not hard to anticipate Kane’s return, his stomping audible from a mile away.

“My mother’s here. We’re going back out.” he announces, grabbing Keegan’s bruised forearm.

“Kane, wait." Bellamy's voice is firm. He chooses his words carefully in an attempt to appeal to Kane's values. "Please. I know things got out of hand tonight, but none of that is Keegan's fault. She's only a human. Surely, violence against someone so much weaker than yourself is beneath you. You're better than this."

Kane hesitates. "W-whatever. We're going," he says, but his grip on Keegan relaxes just a bit.

Bellamy looks over to Keegan. “It truly was lovely to meet you, dear. I do wish you the best.”

'Just a human- so much weaker'. There's that awful talking-down-to again, but it works at least a little. She and her arm are grateful to Bellamy for trying.

"Likewise. You too Caroline." Keegan responds. Kane is pulling her back out before she can say much else, but she mouths a sincere "Thank you" as they turn the corner.

Caroline waves at her, sadness in her eyes. 

-----

Kane leads her back out to the main room. In the few minutes they’ve been gone, the room has filled out with occupants. Kane lets go of Keegan, trusting her to follow him on her own. He walks up to an older vampire woman, dressed to the nines. “Hello, Mother!” Kane says, a huge smile plastered on his face. 

“Oh! Kane, Anton was just telling me you were here!” Kane’s mother exclaims. 

“I have a human!” he boasts, gesturing to Keegan. 

“That’s very nice.” She nods, not even glancing at Keegan. “Finally catching up! Say, your one hundredth is soon, isn’t it? Maybe we could do something for it!” 

“It was two years ago, actually!” Kane’s smile falters for a fraction of a second before returning to its chipper state. 

“Oh, well, there’s always two hundred!” she says breezily. 

“Yeah!” Kane agrees, glancing around a bit. “U-um, do you know when Father…?” 

Kane’s mother smiles. “He was right behind me, should be here any second. Listen, I really would like to stay and chat, but there are so many people I need to speak with tonight.” 

His smile really does fall then. “Oh, but I thought-” 

She puts a hand near his shoulder, making the motion of a comforting gesture without actually touching him.  “You’re doing good. Keep it up.” 

Kane beams. “I will!” he nearly shouts as his mother walks away. “That went amazing! That went so well!” Kane enthuses as soon as she's out of earshot.

Did it? That was hard for Keegan to watch. If this is how they treat him, no wonder Kane doesn't talk about his family. She's glad to be ignored by Kane's mother, she wishes he'd stop showing her off like a trophy and drawing attention to her. ‘I'm not an object.’ She reminds herself once again.

Suddenly, all chit-chat dissipates as a new vampire enters.

He doesn’t look much different than any other vampire, aside from obviously being the oldest. He appears in his seventies, though he is likely hundreds, if not over a thousand years in age. But… there is something wrong about him, something any aware human will be able to feel. An energy permeates the room, a deep, human instinct screaming RUN, YOU ARE IN DANGER, YOU NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW. This man, above all, is a predator made to hunt things like Keegan.

The human beside him looks dead, far beyond the entranced looks of everyone else. There is zero spark of life behind his eyes, yet he continues standing and breathing, moving along with the vampire like a puppet, clearly somehow alive.

Kane puts a hand to the center of Keegan's back and begins leading her in a beeline directly for the man.

"Father!” Kane calls, all excitement and nerves.

-----

If Death has a physical form, Keegan is sure she has just found it. This is Kane's father. This monster. The blood drains from her face and her entire body trembles. She's been scared before, sure. She grew up in a toxic, violent household and now kills vampires for a living. Fear has kept her alive. But she's only felt true, primal terror of this kind twice in her life. Once, when her mother's throat was torn out in front of her, and now here. At this moment, despite all logic, Keegan is sure with every bone in her body that she is not going to survive the night.

Kane pushes her forward as if to the gallows.

Kane’s father glances briefly at Keegan before turning his eyes on Kane.

The man sighs, shooting Kane a glare. “What is it?” His voice is deep and cold.

“I-I got a human…” he claims timidly, his confidence draining at the icy reception.

Kane’s father does not ignore Keegan as his wife had. Instead, he turned his gaze directly onto her, piercing red eyes almost digging under Keegan's skin. The man brings a hand to Keegan's chin and tilts her head to the side to expose her feeding scars, his skin devoid of warmth.

“Sloppy work,” he comments.

The only reason Keegan does not rip her head away from him is because she knows it would only bring about her demise that much faster. She doesn't blink, staring straight into his eyes. She feels like a child curled up in bed, watching the closet door through the darkness of the room. The moment she blinks the monster will get her. Her skin burns under his touch despite the cold of his hand. ‘Please, I don't want to die. Not like this.’

Kane rushes to defend himself. “I wasn’t, um, that good at feeding at first, but I figured it out! For the past year and a half, I’ve-” 

Kane’s father puts a hand up to stop him, and Kane’s mouth snaps shut instantly. His other hand is still on the underside of Keegan's chin, so close to her throat. “It can’t be helped. Passable.” The man finally lets go of her, and walks away without another word. 

Kane’s eyes are wide. “Passable…” he repeats to himself in awe, clutching his hands to his chest. 

The rest of the night goes without incident, Kane seeming in high spirits. Anton does give Keegan a few glances as it goes on, but at one point he shrugs, as if to say ‘not worth it’. Kane attempts small-talk with a few other people throughout the night, who all largely disregard him. He spends a lot of time wallflowering by himself. Occasionally he starts chatting with Keegan, then realizes he shouldn't be doing that and stops, embarrassed. After a few hours, people start to leave. Kane only exits once his parents do. As they get back in the car, he grins at Keegan. "That went fantastically. You can make your phone call as soon as we get home. Well done."

Keegan doesn't match Kane's good mood. She takes a while to recover from the interaction with his father. She's shaky, and doesn't want him out of her line of sight. He seems fully uninterested in them which helps, but being trapped in the same building with such a threat is rough on her nerves. She stubbornly holds on to her poker face, keeping all her fear in her clenched fists.

Eventually she's able to relax, especially when Kane dares to talk to her a bit. At least he isn't a threat to her at the moment. It's all worth it in the end too, as he keeps his end of the deal. She lived through the night and she's going to get to speak to her sister for the first time in years! It's so exciting, and also a whole new kind of terrifying after so long without contact.

-----

When they return home, Kane removes his tie. "Go on," he says, nodding at the rotary phone sitting on a small table in the corner of the living room. "You've earned it."

He sits on the couch and picks up a book from the mug table.

‘I shouldn't have to earn it.’ Keegan thinks. She can't find it in herself to be mad though. Not right now.

“Ok!” She practically runs to the phone and begins to dial. She feels sick to her stomach with nerves. She doesn't even know what she's going to say. 'I love you. I'm alive. Are you safe??' Those are at the top of the list. But truly she just wants to hear Lohitha’s voice. It's been so, so long.

The phone rings for a while. Each one builds dread in Keegan's stomach. But it is quite early in the morning. It'll just take a minute for her to answer. Right? Keegan bites her lip. ‘C'mon, pick up. please.’

Finally, the line connects and Keegan hears shuffling of fabric and a quiet yawn. "Lohitha?!" She cries desperately. "It's me, Keegan!"

There's a beat of silence. Then a deep, male voice answers. "Who?"

Keegan's heart stops. "Wh- I'm... I'm Keegan Khatri. I'm looking for Lohitha Khatri? Who are y-"

The man interrupts her, tired irritation in his voice. "You got the wrong number." CLICK

The line goes dead. Keegan gasps. No. no no no. She knows that was the right number. She's had it memorized since the moment they moved to that address. But... It's an apartment. She didn't even THINK about that. Lohi wouldn't be living there alone, of course she'd move. Keegan was so caught up in speaking to her she wasted her chance like an idiot! Her eyes flood with tears and she slowly turns towards Kane. He said one phone call. One.

Kane can quietly hear the other line with his supernatural hearing, even from halfway across the room.

He looks up from his book. "I'm no conman, human. I'm a man of my word. One successful phone call." He looks back down and flips the page.

Of course. Kane's at least practical. She lets out a sigh of relief. Keegan is so anxious that she isn't thinking straight.

“Thank you…”

She's not sure how to contact Lohitha now. She could be anywhere. But there's one person who would possibly know. Her hunting partner.

She dials. Only two rings this time before an answer.

"Vivian speaking."

Keegan sighs in relief and smiles. "Hey, partner."

"Keegan??"

"Yeah Vee, it's me. I'm alive. Surprise?"

"What?? The fuck? Where have you been? We thought you were-"

"I was taken. Still am, but... he let me call."

"Oh my God. Ok. Where are you? I will get a group together and come after you I swear-"

"No- Vivian no." Keegan glances at Kane. "That's not- I'm ok. Mostly. I'm not calling for a rescue," ‘as much as I wish I could.’ "I need to know. Lohitha, is she OK? Tell me she's ok."

"Oh- yes! Keegan she's fine! She's been living with me. She's just fine."

Just like that, a massive weight is lifted off Keegan's shoulders. She finally knows. After all this time. Her little sister is safe. Tears of relief pour down her face. "-Thank you, Vee. Thank you so much." She cries. "Please, can you go get her? I need to talk to her. Please."

"Oh… I’m… Keegan she's not home right now. I'm so sorry-"

"What??" No. No. This can't be happening. She was so close!

"She's on a school trip. She won't be home for a few days! Is there any possible way you can call again?"

"No, this.... this is my only one." Keegan says in defeat. After all that... She can't even hear her sister's voice. Her heart is shattering. "Just... Tell her I love her? And I'm so, so sorry. I'm trying to come back to her."

"Of course. I swear I will. She loves you too. She misses you so much."

Keegan sobs. She can't take this anymore. "T-thank you. Please... please k-keep her safe."

"I won't let anything happen to her. You have my word." Quietly Vivian adds, "is there no way you can tell me where-"

"No. He's listening. I just needed... closure." It sounds so final. But she hopes the wording will appease Kane. 

-----

Kane does not like the sound of ‘I'm trying to come back to her.’ If his human escaped, he would be the laughing-stock of the century. No one's human ever escapes. No one else's human has the capacity to even want to.

This is why he doesn't allow phone calls. It puts the wrong ideas in his human's head, makes her think she serves a purpose outside being his. The human on the other line keeps trying to plan a rescue, too. This is not good.

"None of this 'trying to go back' business," he reminds her, not looking up from his book.

Hot anger rushes through Keegan. She whips around, face still streaked with tears. "Excuse me for trying to comfort my kid sister who has lost the only family she has left!" She spits, then immediately flinches from her mistake. Fuck, she didn't mean to talk back, this is the worst time-

Kane gives her a deadpan look. "You're lucky I'm in a very good mood, human. Final warning. Behave." He waves for her to continue her call.

She's on thin ice here. She's definitely lucky. She turns back towards the wall with the phone.

"It's not an option, Vivian. But I'm surviving."

"I cannot sit back knowing you're trapped there." Vivian insists. Keegan can tell she's trying to get her to slip her a hint. But Keegan was never the clever one. There's nothing she can say that would not end badly for her or any humans that tried to rescue her. No hidden clue she can pass on.

"You're an incredible friend, Vivian." Keegan says instead. "The best partner. And I love you too. Tell the squad I say hey. Kick my dad in the balls if he tries coming around. Sober or not."

"Keegan you are not about to end this call. I will kill you myself-"

She has to end it. Vivian will never let it go and Keegan can't handle much more. "Lohitha has always wanted a dog, by the way. Goodbye Vivian."

"Don't you fucking dare-"

Click. Keegan places the phone back on the wall, hanging up. She stares unmoving in the silence that follows.

-----

Kane is honestly torn. He does feel for the human: he knows what it's like to be separated from the love of his family. He honestly considers giving her a second chance to call her sister.

But no, he has to stay firm. He is a person, the human is not. It's very clear that if the human talks to her sister, she's just going to be that more determined to get back to her. And he still remembers the horrible pain of boiling water from two years ago. A clean break is best.

"You can go back to your room now," he suggests in the awkward silence.

His human doesn't speak, doesn't look at him. She just shuffles back to her room, staring at her feet. Kane, quite honestly, forgets about the human's troubles soon after she leaves the room. He heads upstairs to his own room, giddy with excitement about the relatively-positive reception from his parents.

The moment the door is shut behind her, Keegan slides down the wall and cries. She doesn't care if Kane hears. She doesn't care about much at all anymore. Her heart has just split in two.

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

Sorry :(

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@jumpywhumpywriter @writereleaserepeat

[miimo96]

Thoughts on V3NOM

This 1 feels very Rushed to say the least, like aside from all the cool backstory with Knull and the Symbiotes, this 1 feels the most Weaker Story wise, like Don't get me wrong it's a GOOD movie, but in my opinion, it could've been WAYY better.

Like there are so many things that I feel could've been expanded upon more if given more time, like the fact that Eddie doesn't even feel like a character anymore, instead now being a Plot device that is just meant to get “Venom” from point A to point B, to the fact that shit that feels like it's gonna go somewhere DOESN'T, to even the fact that Knull, THE MAIN VILLAIN OF THE MOVIE, doesn't even FEEL like a looming threat, which is really BAFFLING in my opinion; I haven't read King in Black o I don't  really know that much about him but if you tell  me that he's supposed to be the BE All END All type of Villain, than I expect to see it, like this is supposed to be the GOD of Symbiotes yet the “Scariest” thing this guy's done, is just sit in a chair Menacinly and send minions the entire movie. (I guess bro took a page out thanos's book on how to NOT be Menacing) like I wanna see what exactly makes him So terrifying to begin with. 

Another thing that bothered me is how WASTED everything feels, like this is supposed to be the FINAL Movie, yet things don't feel fulfilled or resolved, so many questions are lingering still, Eddie's relationship with Anne hasn't gotten better, in fact she feels like an Afterthought at this point, and characters and Plot points that feel like their going to have a Major impact, DON'T. Oh and does even get me STARTED on how the Symbiotes were handled in this movie, like here I was, ready to get excited to see Lasher, Toxin, and  the other Symbiotes make their Debut and hopefully kick some ass, and they all get Effing WASHED like yesterday's laundry, LIKE WHAT THE ACTUAL F%*K Sony!? Also how you gonna give us effing Agony before SCREAM, the better female and better looking Symbiote in my opinion.

And another thing, im sorry but am I the only 1 that seems to remember that the Symbiotes have the ability to make clothes, like there's a scene in the Trailer where Eddie's wearing a Black tux and i originally thought that this was their way of showing that the Symbiote made him clothes, which isn't really seen that much,other than a few cartoons incorporating it along the Insomniac Spiderman games, and I thought this would be the PERFECT opportunity for that, but No, instead it was just cuz venom knocked a dude out and Jacked him of his clothes, which IS funny but C'MON!

1 thing I absolutely Loved tho about this movie was how they Humanized The Symbiotes, like they actually feel like peaceful creatures who are just trying to look for a New home, and people tend to forget about that, like aside from OG Venom and Carnage the Symbiotes aren't really all that Evil, they're just misunderstood and I'm really glad Sony chose to focus on that, So ya earn a Gold star there Sony, however, I just wish they had more time to flesh out the Symbiotes because aside from venom, they LITERALLY almost all feel and act the same, Maybe if they had more personality I'd like them more but so far, they literally either all SOUND the same, or ACT the same, and that's kinda sucky considering each Symbiote in the comics Has their own personality, like Venom is a goofball who only really is Evil because of his Hatred towards Spiderman, other than that he's just a chocolate loving monster who loves surf the Web and Apparently Sing Strangers in Night, Meanwhile Carnage on ther hand is a PSYCHOPATHIC killer, who ENJOYS what he does, he enjoys KILLING just because he can, and it really shows if ya read Absolute Carnage; I didn't really enjoy how they handled Carnage in Venom 2 mainly because I'm So used to Carnage acting a certain way and because I mainly know Carnage through the original spider man Ps1 game and through the Original Spider man 90s animated show, but it was better than nothing I guess. ^^; (Still, I just WISH he didn't SOUND like that, because I'm sorry that's NOT Carnage)

The last 2 movies felt more like HOMAGES to whatever came before, mainly 90s stuff from Lethal Protector, to Maximum Carnage, all the way to the Life foundation, they all just really felt like something you'd probably see back then in the early to mid 2000s, just some fun movies to watch with Simple direction, and Ok Storytelling, you MAY not get it, but you'd STILL enjoy it, THIS ONE however, felt more like it was trying to be more modern, and trying to setup too many things as possible, while also leaving you kinda *Disappointed* to say?  I don't know it just felt like it was missing something and I don't really like that because while the last 2 movies felt complete and actually did resolve things, this 1 just felt more like that 1 spongebob scene in the lost episode, where patchy just looks at the Tv and says “That's it?” It feels like uh like a Hollow shell compared to the last ones. That isn't to say it's a BAD movie, it's just not a FULFILLING one, it feels like there's more left, especially with that Shadowy figure we kept seeing talk to general Strickland the entire movie, and we might Never see what that more left was, considering this is the LAST movie. If I had to Rank these films,  it would be in the most Bland and usual way possible,  with Venom 1 being in 1st place, Venom 2 being in 2nd place, Venom3 being in 3rd place, all movies are GOOD, it's just that this 1 feels the most Weaker compared to the others; But anyway that's just what I think, what about You, did you enjoy Venom the Last dance, or were you Disappointed ?

[moonbeamunson]

𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩 𝔱𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔟𝔩𝔢𝔰 | 𝔞 𝔯𝔦𝔠𝔨 𝔤𝔯𝔦𝔪𝔢𝔰 𝔬𝔫𝔢-𝔰𝔥𝔬𝔱

✰ summary: (18+) you assist rick in a discussion with carl, which brings up feelings of his own.

✰ wc: 6.7k

✰ warnings: angst, comfort, mutual pining, jealousy, smut (heavy on the oral fixation bc rick is a munch hdhdhd)

—

—

As a teacher, helping kids comes to you with ease. Their trust does too. It means so much to you that the children of Alexandria feel comfortable enough to ask you for guidance, Carl being no exception.

After you wrap up your lesson, the kids disperse to enjoy the rest of their day. Carl takes the opportunity to walk over to you, his stomach in knots.

You furrow your brows, giving him a concerned look. “Hey, bud. Everything OK?” He looks at you, unsure of how to explain his dilemma.

“Yeah, um … I kind of like this girl and I think she likes me back, but I still have feelings for someone else,” he looks down briefly pausing “That … someone else probably doesn’t see me that way, but, I just have to know. On top of that … they’re best friends,” he explains nervously.

You know the feeling of liking someone only to be unsure of the other’s feelings. The potential of losing a friend, or at the very least having them see you differently, is terrifying.

‘It’s funny, really. Even as the world crumbles, our seemingly small problems feel so … colossal,’ you consider.

Carl looks up at you, expectantly. “Well, no matter what you choose to do, you still have so much love around you. I know either of those girls would be happy to hear how you feel. Being honest is scary, but you’ll feel better.”

He nods, taking in your suggestion. “Thanks, I’ll think about it.”

You give him a soft smile, secretly wishing you could take your own advice.

—

—

Later that day, you find Rick. His back is turned to you, measuring some support beams for the wall. You can’t help but admire his form, his muscles straining against the arms of his button-down. You wipe the thoughts away, ‘now is really not the time.’

“Hey, Rick,” you call out. He stops what he’s doing at turns to you, his blue eyes meeting yours. He smiles softly, running his hand through his hair. You imagine your hand doing the same, grasping the curls draping his neck.

“Hey, how was today’s lesson?” He asks, one hand moving to his hip.

“It was good! We’re starting the creative writing unit and I can’t be more excited,” you say with a smile.

“Glad to hear it. Carl giving you any trouble?” His eyes crinkle, a playful smile emerging. You chuckle, shaking your head.

“You know the answer to that,” you start. “He did tell me about some … girl trouble he’s having,” you explain.

He tilts his head, an amused smile adorning his strong features.

“He’s got feelings for two different people, but he wants to be with the girl he liked first. I … think it might be Sophia,” you say with a chuckle. They have been inseparable ever since she was found at Hershel’s farm, to no surprise to anyone.

Ricks's hand grasps his chin, stroking his light stubble. “I’ll talk to him,” he says, smiling softly.

“I can … help if you want?” I ask hopefully.

“That’d be helpful, you’re good with him,” he says with a nod that you reciprocate.

As you start to turn away, he speaks up. “Wanna join us for dinner tonight?” He says, his eyes searching yours as you turn around. “Sounds good,” you say, trying to hide your eagerness.

With a soft smile you head off in the direction of your house, just a few doors down from Rick’s.

—

You change out of your clothes, searching for something a little more put together. ‘It has been a while since I wore a dress,’ you think to yourself. You can’t help but laugh.

‘Why am I taking this so seriously? This dinner is about Carl. His asking me to dinner has nothing to do with my hidden feelings for him … ones that aren't reciprocated.’

You still remember the first time you saw him in the prison, stepping off the bus from Woodbury. He made sure to make you feel comfortable, taking a liking to you from the start. Only as a friend, you’re sure.

You finish up, slipping on your shoes before leaving the house. You walk the path to Rick’s, your nerves make the trip feel miles long.

You finally reach his door and as you lift your hand to knock, Carl bursts through the door. Tears are streaming down his face and you try to reach out to him, but he brushes you away. You turn to watch him barreling down the stairs, his fists clenched in anger. You rush into the house to find Rick in the kitchen, looking out the door in worry. He looks at you, eyebrows furrowed.

“Carl just ran out crying, I have no idea what happened,” you explain. He walks towards you, placing his hand on the small of your back. It’s a simple gesture, but it affects you nonetheless.

He guides you outside, closing the door behind the both of you. You rush to the gazebo to find Carl with his knees against his chest, his face stained with tears. Your heart wrenches at the sight. It’s so hard to see family in pain.

“Hey … what happened?” You question softly. You look towards Rick as he sits beside his son.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he says curtly, turning his face away from the both of you.

“Carl-” Rick starts before Carl cuts him off.

“It doesn’t matter, Enid doesn’t see me the way I see her. There’s no way she won't talk to Sophia about it. I’m so embarrassed,” he says, dropping his face between his knees. It’s not often you see Carl broken down like this, especially about a girl. The poor kid tries to be so strong for everyone else.

“Well, what if Sophia is relieved? What if she likes you back and just didn’t want to get in between you two?” You offer.

“You don’t know that,” he says, his voice laced with disappointment.

“I know it hurts … to like someone so much. To not know how they feel.” It takes everything to avert your eyes from Rick, not wanting to give any idea as to who you’re actually talking about.

“But … I don’t think you have anything to be worried about. All of us see how close you two are, so it doesn’t hurt to try and tell her your feelings. I’m sure she respects you enough to not take your vulnerability for granted. Sophia is a good kid, same as you,” you explain with a soft smile, trying your best to comfort him.

He wipes the rogue tears from his cheeks, finally lowering his guard.

“She’s right, I see how close you are,” Rick starts. Our eyes meet before he continues. “Maybe you should try to open up to her. Things will be alright regardless of what happens,” he says, his hand moving to his shoulder to give a reassuring squeeze. Carl nods.

You spot Sophie behind them, walking with her mom.

“Now’s your chance,” you say, flicking your head towards the girl. Carl turns around and lets out a huff. “I’m gonna talk to her,” he says before standing up. “Atta boy,” you say, ruffling his hair. “Hey!” He says shooting you a dirty look. You can’t help but chuckle as he runs off adjusting his hair, trying to catch up to Sophia.

You move to sit on the bench, shaking your head. “Kids,” you breathe. Rick chuckles beside you, his head propped up on his hand. “You are good with him,” he says genuinely, a gentle look in his eyes.

You blush, his gaze bubbling up your nerves. “I try,” you reply.

“I’m glad he trusts you, I don’t think he ever would’ve told me that on his own.”

You smile, looking down at your feet. He moves his arm down, placing his hand over yours. “Really, thank you,” he lowers his voice, displaying the seriousness of his gratitude. You start to hear your heart in your ears, the simple touch sending you into an internal frenzy.

You smile at him, unable to form a reply. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you, but you look great. I’m so used to seeing you in your working clothes I .. forget,” he admits with a soft chuckle, the last word escaping just above a whisper.

The way he’s looking at you makes you feel so observed that you resort to humor.

“I clean up nice, huh?” You say smugly.

He looks down, smiling to himself. “Sorry, I-I didn’t mean it like that.”

You giggle, his attempt to explain himself is adorable. Little does he know, his compliment gives you an exhilarating rush.

“I’m just messin’ with you,” you say shaking your head to which he does the same. He tries to display annoyance, but his badly masked smile gives him away.

You’re interrupted by Carl and Sophia walking up to you, hand in hand. You shoot him a bright smile, his father smirking knowingly. Carl gives you a look, silently warning you to not make a big deal of it. You decide to cut him a break, saving it for later.

“Dinner’s ready,” Rick says as he stands up. “C’mon, lovebirds,” you say with a chuckle, earning an eye roll from the boy.

—

As you finish up the meal, Carl and Sophia ask to be excused. The second Rick obliges, they bolt outside. You’re so happy to see Carl carefree again, knowing how much Sophia's reciprocation of feelings would uplift him.

“They’re adorable,” you say, looking at the man across from you. He nods in agreement.

“What about you?” He asks suddenly. “Who’s this person that might not like you back?” He sends a sly grin your way, his arms crossed while he leans back in his chair.

‘Oh, if he only knew,’ you think to yourself.

“Um … not important,” you say, looking down at your now empty plate.

He shakes his head. “Maybe you should take your own advice.”

“Maybe.” You reply quietly, still not meeting his eyes. His demeanor changes, sensing the hurt behind your response. He moves his hand over yours. “I understand … how you’re feeling.”

He pauses.

“I’m sure it’ll turn out how it did with Carl. You’ve got nothing to worry about,” he replies, his tone gentle. His throat bobs slowly as his eyes bore into yours.

‘If only she knew,’ he thinks.

You nod, not sure of what to say. The irony of the conversation overwhelms you. You release your hand from under his to stand and gather the dishes. He pauses, taken back by your sudden relinquishment of contact. As gets up to help, you stop him.

“Uh no, don't even think about it,” you say with a smile, trying to ease the believed one-sided tension. “You made the food, I’ll clean up,” you order. Your finger is pointed in his direction, not wanting to hear another word about it. He lifts his arms in defense, chuckling to himself.

As you finish up, Rick walks into the room holding Judith. You can't help but melt at the interaction, seeing the pure love Rick has for his children.

The mention of his one-sided attraction gnaws at you. ‘Who could that possibly be?’ your heart clenches wondering.

“So,” you start as you dry off your hands. “Don’t think I forgot you understanding unrequited feelings … who in their right mind turned down Richard Grimes?” You say, using humor once again. You try to keep your composure as your insides twist awaiting his answer.

He dips his head, attempting to hide a blush you don’t fail to notice. He doesn’t reply.

“Oh, c’mon, you know I won’t judge you,” you gently speak. He sets Judith into her playpen, placing a kiss on her head before facing you.

“First of all … I hate when you call me that,” he starts.

One edge of your mouth curls up, knowing full well that’s the case.

“But, it’s not that. It’s just … complicated. After I lost Lori, I was so fucked up. This … person … helped me out of it. I couldn’t help but feel tenderness towards her. I felt so guilty that I was betraying Lori, regardless of what happened with Shane,” he explains hesitantly, head turned away in thought.

You stare intently at his side profile, ignoring your heart's pull. You noticed how torn up he was after she passed. You tried to break through to him and ease his distress, but it seems someone beat you to it.

He continues as you try to push down the jealousy you have no right to feel.

“After I had time to heal, I met Jessie. I knew that lettin that person in on my feelings could ruin our friendship, so I distracted myself. I worked so hard to fully let go of her, it almost worked for a while. Then, I lost Jessie too,” he explains. He still hasn’t met your eyes, clearly embarrassed.

“After all this time, those feelings haven’t gone anywhere. I don’t want her to see me differently, but it’s killin’ me … holding it in.”

You wrack your brain to think of anyone close to him. ‘Who has him this unsure?’ It’s not a long list, seeing as most of your group has already found their person. It’s odd for you to think of Rick Grimes being … hesitant, after everything your group has been through.

You place your hand on his bicep, trying to be a good friend and comfort him.

“Maybe you should take my advice too, I’m sure she’ll appreciate hearing your truth,” you say softly squeezing his arm. You search his face, wanting to be a genuine friend, a safe space. You keep pushing away the jealous thoughts the best you can. ‘I can’t be selfish when he’s hurting,’ you think.

His eyes lift from the floor to your hand, gazing for a moment before finally meeting your eyes. Seeing him like this, so vulnerable and uncertain, makes you angry at this person playing with his heart. He deserves so much better, and you could give it to him.

“Whoever it is, I’m sure she can’t resist,” You continue, playfully pinching his arm. You pause for a moment, moving to cross your arms. “If she doesn’t … she must be dumb,” you add quietly.

He leans over the counter, his veiny hands gripping the edge as his head drops. Your eyes soften, seeing the torn man before you. You only hope your push gives him the courage to go after who he really wants.

He opens his mouth to speak but falters.

“What is it?” You ask after a beat. The silence hangs for what feels like years before he finally breaks it.

“You shouldn't talk so low of … of yourself,” he finally says quietly. He looks back at you for a moment before looking down at his hands.

It takes you a moment to piece together the meaning of his words. Your brain seems to short-circuit which leaves you unable to form a single thought. Your mouth is parted slightly, hands nervously wringing at your dress.

“I-I’m sorry, please just forget I said that,” he pleads and removes his iron grip from the counter. He pinches the bridge of his nose as his weight shifts between the snip-toe boots you adore.

You grasp his wrist softly, pulling back his arm to force him out of a spiral. You can feel every thump of your heart nearly shifting your ribcage.

Your head rushes with every time you’ve caught him staring, every touch and meaningful response. All the force it took from you to dismiss because you never wanted to get your hopes up.

“I … don’t want to,” you speak softly. His eyes lift from your hand still holding his wrist to meet yours.

“What about that guy? The one you have feelings for? It’s hypocritical … but I can’t handle being some kind of rebound. Not with you. Tell hi-”

His words are cut off by your lips crashing into his. One hand is bunching the bottom of his shirt while the other moves into his hair. It’s something you wished for only this morning.

He takes a moment to catch up, frozen against your lips. A moment passes and it clicks. He realizes that this is really happening.

‘All that time wishing it was her hands moving through my hair.

Her body pressed against mine in the dark.

Her full lips on mine.’

He takes not a second past his realization to move his lips against yours, gentle and longing.

‘Finally, the feeling you’ve been grasping for.

A fine thread that always seemed to slip past your fingers.’

He snakes his arm around your waist, pulling you against his strong chest. His fingers curl into the fabric of your dress, holding on for dear life.

Your hand moves down to the nape of his neck, slightly gripping the curls there. You hum into the kiss, relishing in the feeling of your bodies, flush. Both in distance and blush.

His hand flattens and glides down your back to meet the end of your hips, squeezing greedily. You press yourself harder against his front, wanting to be as close as possible.

Your eyelids flutter open as he slowly breaks the kiss, eyes dark and mouth partitioning. You’re both breathless as you take each other in.

“You don’t know … how much I’ve needed this.” He voices from a low growl.

“How about you show me?” you tease, still catching your breath.

He grabs the baby monitor from the counter that watches over Judith’s playpen, slipping it into his back pocket in case she wakes.

He meets your eyes and smirks before bending over to hook his large hands behind the apex of your thigh, your skin tingling under his touch. He effortlessly lifts you in the air, earning a squeal from you.

He folds you over his shoulder, your dress falling up to expose your ass. He notices the lace underwear against your soft curves. You can feel the vibration from his chuckle on your torso, and it’s clear he’s enjoying this.

“You’re comin’ with me,” he says before ascending the stairs.

“I hope I am … coming with you,” you say laughing, the blood rushing to your face even more severely than it was before.

He moves his hand from your thigh to smack your ass, and a sneaky smile finds his lips as he reaches the second floor. “You’d better watch it,” he threatens in a low register.

Your breath hitches at the change in tone, still not processing the fact that Rick is carrying you to his room. His strong hands support your back before he drops you, your frame bouncing into the bed. You giggle at the sight of him towering over you.

He reaches for the monitor and puts it on the nightstand before turning back to you. You absentmindedly bite your fingernail as you watch him, excited to feel his body on yours. He takes off your shoes tenderly, followed by his boots. His hungry eyes trail over your body as your arms slowly rise above your head. He uses two fingers to separate your thighs, crawling between them all while flashing you the most handsome smile.

Your cheeks heat as his weight presses against your core, his arms bent on either side of your face. “You look so good for me,” he says, his voice dripping with desire. Your hand moves to his face, moving your thumb to glide against his swollen bottom lip. “You’re as handsome as ever,” you coo while your legs wrap around him. His eyes soften before leaning in, your body melting under his soft lips.

Your arms meet behind his back, nails grazing lightly over it as his tongue finds yours, your touch producing a needy groan from his lips. The sound pools wetness between your thighs, seeping through your underwear. The heat from his throbbing groin only makes it worse.

You lift the back of his shirt as his open lips move to your jaw, his tongue dragging a line from under your ear to your chin. You moan as he places sloppy kisses down your neck. His hips jerk in response, a gasp falling from your lips. Your hands slip under his shirt to feel his toned back, the muscles moving under your fingers as he supports most of his weight above you.

“I need this off,” you moan, nearly begging.

He pauses the trail of kisses he’s working on to lean back, allowing you access to the buttons of his brown shirt. You swiftly release each button, his eyes focus on your determined face. He smiles down at you as you nearly rip the shirt over his shoulders, the fabric falling to the floor. You lightly scratch his skin, drinking in the image before you.

‘It’s a lot different when he’s actually here, in front of me,’ you realize as you reflect on your many, many, fantasies of him bearing himself to you.

“Please, take this off of me,” you plead. You have to make it even after all.

“My pleasure,” he gruffs before hiking your dress up your thighs, squeezing the sensitive spot that meets your pelvis. You lean your head back into the pillow, his hands feel like fire against you. He leans down a places a kiss in the same spot, and you can’t help but moan.

“I haven’t even done anything yet, sweetheart,” he teases.

You roll your eyes as he continues peeling the dress from you. He kisses your stomach as it reaches just below your bra. You sit up and lift your arms as he leaves you in just your underwear, the dress falling somewhere on the floor.

His knees press into the mattress as his hands move to his belt. “Let me,” you interrupt with a smirk, something he reflects on you.

“Yes ma’am,” he replies as you scooch closer to him. You smile to yourself as your hands find the cold hardware of his belt. You swiftly remove it, slipping the leather through the loops with quickness. You place your hand on his chest, pushing him back. He chuckles as he meets the mattress, his hand tracing down your arm to leave goosebumps in its wake.

His face relaxes as you start touching him. You look up at him through your eyelashes before unbuttoning his jeans. “Is this okay?” You ask. He nods feverishly, his mouth parted.

“I’m gonna need to hear it,’ You demand. “Y-Yes, this is exactly what I want,” he assures. The dominance in his voice has switched to desperation, signaling that he’s putty in your hands. “That’s it, baby,” you whisper with a sly smile.

As you unzip his pants, your eyes never leave his. He pants as you graze your finger over his straining bulge. You lean down to kiss the wet spot you marked him with, causing him to let out a desperate whimper. The sound makes your clit throb, wanting to hear it again and again.

You drag the denim below his hips and down his legs, wanting both of you in as little clothing as possible. You swipe your thumb over the wet spot on his underwear, his cock twitching at the contact, before bringing the precum to your tongue. He whimpers with even more desperation at the sight of you tasting him.

You give him a sweet smile before hooking your fingers under the waistband of his boxers before checking in again. “Still OK?” You question. “Please, baby, I need you,” he says through a breathy moan.

You reach behind you to undo your bra, and the straps drop. You slowly peel it off, your breasts now exposed. You grab his wrists and place his rough hands over each one, they’re large enough to cover them. You throw your head back as your hands grip his calves for support. He earns a deep moan from you while the pads of his thumb lightly graze your aching nipples, so needy for his touch.

You groan as you lean forward to slide his boxers off, his length springing from under the waistband. You smile at him, squirming as you imagine him inside you. You decide it can wait as you spit on your hand to meet it with the base of his cock. He shudders as you grasp him, his stomach rising and falling unevenly.

“Fuck,” he breathes ragged, eyes fluttering closed.

You hold his chin to look at you before you lower your mouth to place kisses on his stomach. You start to pump your hand, spreading the slickness. His eyes are hooded with lust as he takes you in, your plump ass in the air as your kisses now litter his thighs.

One hand moves to his hair as the other caresses your arm. You place a kiss on the base of him, his length twitching beneath your lips. Your tongue drags to his tip, where you leave another kiss. A line of spit falls from your mouth, coating him.

A strangled moan leaves him as you finally take him in your mouth, sucking in your cheeks as your tongue flicks over his head. His breathing quickens and both of his hands slam into the bed to grip the sheets.

“Goddamn,” he says, his eyes squeezing shut. You drop to take him all, his head pressing against the back of your throat. He throws his head back in response, wincing at the sheer crudeness of it all. You start to bob your head, still pulling in your cheeks.

He moves his hands to grip your shoulders, pulling himself out of your mouth and pushing you to lay back down. He reclaims his place above you. “I can’t take it, I need to taste you,” he growls. “Rick, please … just do whatever you want,” you whine, beyond ready to relieve the heat between your legs. “That’s it, baby,” he repeats your words back to you, his drawl as smooth as honey.

He uses the back of his hand to spread your legs open, and his eyes lower to your center. You stare at him as he takes you in. “Jesus, baby … all this for me?” He questions, the inflection of his voice sending chills down your spine. You blush, your hand covering your face. He moves it away and places it on the crease of your thigh.

“Nah, I need to see you,” he demands.

His lips start to leave wet kisses on the inside of your legs. His facial hair adds depth to the feeling, and you want nothing less than to coat his face. His mouth moves to the sensitive spots on the edge of your labia, making your hips twitch.

“Mmm … fuck,” you whimper.

He raises an eyebrow at you before he kisses the bundle of nerves, your underwear creating the most excruciating barrier. You squirm at the sight, hands moving to his curls.

He reaches his arms under your ass, taking the lace with him as he slides them down your thighs. As soon as they leave your frame, he’s right back between your thighs. He licks your thighs, leaving love bites where no one can see, wanting to make this go on as long as possible.

He locks eyes with you before his tongue softly wets your labia.

He kisses your center, closing his eyes. You see stars as his tongue drags inside your folds, lapping up the wetness he created. He spreads his tongue as he presses against your clit, moving it in circles. His facial hair tickling your thighs further numbs your brain.

“Rick!” You exclaim, his skilled tongue now flicking against you. He keeps the same pace while he grips your legs to drape them over his shoulders. His tongue suddenly stops, moving to your entrance. He groans as his tongue slips inside your hot cunt, his hips pressing against the sheets. He stretches his tongue as far as possible, putting pressure on the top as he slides in and out. You feel the heat rise in your stomach, no denying that you’re nearly over the edge already.

“I’m about to … about to …”

He nods against you, his eyes displaying what could only mean that he’s not stopping. You fully let go, your head thrown back as your core snaps. The orgasm he ushered floods your body, and your muscles tighten and tremble. “Fuck, Rick,” you moan. He still doesn’t stop his tongue, aiming to make it so you have to pull his mouth from you.

As much as you cherish the feeling of his tongue, every nerve in your body is screaming with sweet overwhelm. You use both hands to rake into his hair, pulling his head up. His face glistens with your desire, hair disheveled.

He swipes his hand down his face, gathering the excessive wetness. His face slacks as he sucks some off of his thumb. He leans forward and nods. “Open,” he commands, which you comply with immediately.

His fingers slip past your lips and you taste yourself as you suck, once again flooded with desire. You gaze down at his cock, beads of precum leak from him. He removes his fingers and the weight of his length resting on your thigh is entirely too distracting.

“That was just … beyond,” you gush.

He chuckles, his dimples creating warmth in your chest. “For me, too, I can’t believe I kept myself from that,” he scoffs. You giggle at his desire for you, still beside yourself.

“Baby?” You ask. “Hmm?” He hums, voice still laced with sex. He raises his eyebrows, awaiting your response.

“I need you to fuck me,” you state, still desperate for his cock to fill you. He grins, baffled by the things he can experience with you. The person that he loves with every fiber of his being.

He grabs a pillow from beside your head. “Lift your hips, baby,” he says, his hand resting against your hip bone. You lift yourself before he slides the pillow under your lower half. He knows the angle can only make it better for you, and the thoughtfulness makes you blush.

Rick lines his body up with yours, and his member presses against your clit as he kisses you. Your hands grasp his sides as he tilts your face, wanting to slide his tongue against yours. It starts slow, your fingers creeping against his skin, but soon his movements become restless.

His hips curve to slide against your center which erupts a moan into his mouth. He meets it with a deep groan, causing your hips to do the same. His arm slides behind your waist, pulling you in to be as close as possible. Your hot skin sears against his while he moves to your neck. His warm mouth feels sublime against your sensitive skin.

“Baby … please,” you beg, your wetness dousing his twitching member.

He leans against your angled thighs to shift his weight, his arm still tightened around you as he grasps himself. He lines himself up with your entrance before inching his head to your clit. “Fuck … Rick,” you utter. Your breath is short as he looks at you with a knowing smile.

“You’re so adorable when you’re needy,” he teases. You can’t even choke out a response, frantic to feel him inside you.

He moves the tip in circles around you as he presses his lips against yours. You open your mouth to find his tongue, desperate whimpers egging him on. He drops his length to support his body as his calloused hand leaves your back. He uses it to grasp the crook of your knee, folding your leg against itself.

Your eyes snap open to meet his before he presses against your entrance. “You ready?” He questions with a smile. You nod quickly, but he shakes his head.

“I need to hear it,” he growls. Your words to him are biting you in the ass now. “Yes, I’m beyond ready just … plea-” you start to say, cut off by his head moving past your soaking cunt.

You moan softly as he eases in, his thick cock stretching your slick walls. His breath shudders at the feeling of you finally wrapped around his strained length.

His hand finds one of your hardened nipples, squeezing slightly. His pace inside you is slow and torturous while his other hand grips your knee. Being so spread open for him is like nothing else. He lets you adjust to him before the tip of his cock meets your cervix, making you groan. “Oh, fuck …” He moans, his voice dropping.

“You feel so good,” you moan.

“You’re mine,” he responds, his accent makes the dark tone drip. He slides himself out of you before crashing back into your heat. “Rick!” You scream out from the surprise. A very good surprise.

Your eyes shut and his hand moves from your breast to your chin, tilting your head down to look at him again. He wants to feel completely connected to you. Your eyes stay closed as you moan louder, his pace increasing.

“Look at me,” he demands as he folds your straightened leg to match the other. You do as you’re told, his lustful eyes and flushed face make your stomach flutter. He moves his weight to his knees, and the lewd sound of his hips slapping against you and his delicious rhythm tears a fire in your womb. Both of his hands press into your legs, the pressure caving into your torso only adding to your pleasure.

‘He fucking knows what he's doing,’ you think as his cock slides against the spot that builds heat in your core. Your nails dig into his bicep, and it takes every ounce of self-control that you have not to mark him. “Right there, baby,” you plead as sweat gathers on his hairline. His curls tremble as he pounds into you, the force makes your chest bounce for him.

Your moans get louder as his brutal thrusts leave you a puddle beneath him. “That’s it, sweetheart,” he praises through strained breaths. His heart pounds against his chest as he keeps up his pace, completely lost in your warm tightness.

He groans as you pull his arms towards you, freeing your legs to wrap around him. He leans on his elbow while his hand tangles into your hair. His free hand moves to your clit, rubbing circles. Your fingers graze his stubbled jaw before you pull him to your lips, wanting to feel the vibration of his growls that he can’t help but produce.

“I’m so close,” you warn as you slide yourself over him, matching his pace. “Let go, darlin',” he drawls as his hand meets your neck, applying soft pressure to the sides.

That’s all you need to release your tension, a crude moan slipping past your lips. You see flashes behind your eyelids, absorbing the fact that the man you’ve loved for so long is giving you the most explosive orgasm you have ever experienced.

Your walls tighten around him, almost making him lose it right then and there. He holds off so he can drink up the sight of your writhing beneath him. He grins at your frenzied movements as his head slams against your end.

“Inside … please,” you beg as you start to come down, wanting to feel his warmth coat your throbbing pussy. The words are strained as your thighs convulse, the erotic energy coursing through your veins.

A deep moan escapes him as he pumps into you, his thrusts now sloppy and out of control. His head dips to the crook of your neck, biting where it meets your shoulder as he gives his orgasm over to you. You can feel his cock twitching and throbbing as his seed spills inside, ragged breaths fanning over the skin wet from his mouth.

Your hand grips his curls as you make his lips meet yours. His body relaxes into you, his length still pressed against your walls. You break the kiss to stare at his chiseled features, his strong nose being your favorite. His eyes close as you run the tip of your finger over his eyebrow, basking in his glow.

“I’ve needed that for a long time,” you admit blushing.

“I’ve needed you for a long time,” he says softly. You smile before wrapping your arms around his neck, pulling him into your chest. The side of his face is pressed against your breast as you cockwarm him, your fingers tracing circles on his sweat-beaded back.

“Me too … I still can't believe you’re inside me right now,” you respond with a teasing smile. He twitches inside you as he smirks, looking up at you through his eyelashes. “I’m not goin’ anywhere,” he whispers as his head returns to your chest.

Your eyes flutter closed, the feeling of being so completely connected with him is beaming warmth through you. The love you feel for him is beyond measure, with all of the years admiring his courage and resiliency. All the years wishing to be by his side, to take on some of his struggles as his partner.

You’ve seen all sides of him through every hard decision and moral dilemma the group has faced. You’ve witnessed his unbridled fury. You’ve also seen his softness.

Like when things get tense and he finds your eyes first, just to make sure you’re OK. How he takes your input seriously because his faith in you never falters. He knows you’re more than capable, but he fiercely protects you regardless.

You do know his softness, but what you just shared is on another level. The bond you formed as friends, even while pining, only made it easier to give yourself over to him. You would do anything to keep him out of harm's way, to ease his worry. Anything to be his.

He’s glad he finally found the courage to say something. The gentle touches and soft glances didn’t convey what he wanted them to, and making the move toward you made him feel like crumbling under the anxiety.

He doesn’t feel the need to hold back any longer, ready to be yours and you to be his. He admires everything about you, the core of who you are. You would do anything to protect your family, the same as him. Your interactions with his kin only deepened his feelings. Your intelligence and quick thinking inspire him, and your character urges him to do what’s right for everyone.

He slowly starts to pull himself out of you, causing you to pout. He shakes his head, leaning in towards your ear. “Trust me … there's more where that came from,” he speaks. You wiggle your eyebrows as he backs up to look at you, a smile reaching his crinkled eyes. “I don’t doubt that … sir,” you wink as your voice lowers.

He smiles before he tightens his arms around you, leaving love bites everywhere he can. He sucks in the skin stretched between your breasts and your breath hitches. You pretend to push him away, loving the playful energy between you. He meets your lips with a hum, his arms still tightly pressing into your sides. He flips you around to be on top of him. Your hands drop to his chest, hair draping over the sides of your face.

“You’re gorgeous,” he coos while his eyes look from top to bottom. “You’re a beautiful, beautiful man,” you say matching his tone. Just then, the baby monitor echoes Jude’s cries from downstairs. His hands are on your biceps as he flips you back to the bed.

“Let me see what she needs and we can pick up where we left off,” he says before climbing off of you to stand up. He leans over to kiss you, lingering for a moment. You brush your fingers across his lips tenderly after he pulls away. “I'm not going anywhere,” you repeat his words from earlier. He shakes his head with a cheeky grin and leaves to find his clothes.

You can’t help but giggle at how cute his ass is, so you give it a quick slap as he bends down for his shirt. He furrows his brows as he stands back up, trying so hard to hide his grin. “I’ll get you back for that,” he grumbles, his smile no longer in hiding.

As soon as he leaves the room, you throw your hands over your face to muffle your tiny scream. The thoughts racing of what just happened make you giddy as you move your face into the pillows.

It finally happened.

❁♡❁

a/n: not me blushing at my own shit … anywayyy … I had so much writing this so lmk if you want me to make this a mini-series!! i haven’t written anything for rick before so i hope i did him justice :,) this isn’t edited, sorry for any mistakes lol.

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Chapter 3 - Shot Through The Heart

One lovely early morning, Katrina put her coat on and went to meet up with Jim from IT; Funny enough, the two became such good friends that they incorporated this morning coffee and park stroll activity into their routine. Since her best friend and flatmate, Lea, got a boyfriend, she began spending more time with him and their common group of friends. Due to many schedule differences, Katrina could never really find the time to join in their fun - Nor did she feel too welcomed anyway. Regardless, the flat was so... Dark and quiet, in spite of the many fairy lights or the constantly playing music. No matter how homely she made her home, it still felt cold and empty... Lonesome. That was the right word - It was lonesome. She felt lonely.

It didn't matter that Sherlock and John were just below her, or that she met James every morning, and interracted at work with Molly and Greg; At the end of the day, there was no one waiting her home, except for her old baby girl, Fifi. She was old, growing tired, startled, almost blind and deaf. Bless her heart.

The only bit of excitement she's had was in the unfortunate case of the block being bombed, as Lestrade informed - Thankfully, not hard enough that it destroyed her own flat, but bad enough that Sherlock's windows shattered to hell. Poor Mrs. Hudson!

Regardless - A lovely morning like many others, a sweet coffee in her hand, and great company by her side, strolling through a gorgeous park - A lovely day indeed. 

"I'm curious, Jim... How has your life shifted since you started working in this place. Since you got caught up with the whole mess with Molly, myself, Sherlock... Poor hacker boy must have no free time of peace and quiet." the bluenette chuckled at him, taking a sip from the hot drink.  "It's certainly entertaining, that's true. I'm glad I got to meet you, though. I don't really have friends... I guess I'm too much of an introvert. This feels like a breath of fresh air." he gave a timid smile, making her nod in understanding, an ever-lasting smile on her face. "It's fun hearing such exciting stories told from different people. It's like making a puzzle, putting together evidence and painting the whole picture yourself. It only made me want to meet your friend, Sherlock, even more. He sounds like a brilliant detective, like you read in Agatha Christie's novels!"

"Oh, you like them too, don't you! Why, I thought the exact same thing - Yes, handling cases together feels like a more dangerous Christie novel indeed!" the lady sparkled with glee hearing that. "Although - I can't say meeting Sherlock would be a... Spectacular experience. You see - He can be... Quirky." she tried to speak politely; He was never rude to her like he was with Anderson or others, but with how unpredictable he could be, she was quite afraid of introducing them together. She didn't want Sherlock's insensitive nature to hurt her friend. "And I wouldn't call him very emotionally intelligent... He can be... A little rude; He doesn't have a filter when he speaks, and he's very blunt."

"How scary!" Jim's eyes widened. "I wouldn't want to make a bad first impression - You and Molly both are friends with him, I wouldn't want to..." he cleared his throat. "Anyway, that doesn't matter; Molly said he comes by the office very rarely anyway. With how cooped up I am in the IT department cubicle, I don't think I'll have the pleasure anyway. Maybe for the better."

"Well, don't worry - If the opportunity arises, I'll try to keep the ocean smooth! Hopefully, Molly would be there too - It would help a lot, I think." she smiled brightly, patting his back reassuringly. "How's the game going?"

"I managed to get around with the game beta testing prototype. I have the stick with me... If you want to try it out and give me your feedback. It's supposed to be kind of like... A domino effect. You have to solve a puzzle that will get you to another, and so on. It's like a chain reaction." he explained, making the lady grin at him brightly, quickly snatching the USB stick and putting it in her purse. "As soon as I get home, I'll try it out without a doubt! I'm so excited to see what you've created. Thanks for trusting me enough with your game, Jim. You're the best." she winked at him playfully, as he feigned bashfulness. She hasn't had such a fun friendship for ages.

"Now, now - We wouldn't want to make Sherlock jealous, would we?" he winked back before they both started laughing.

"Sherlock, jealous? Ha! I have heard them all! The only thing Sherlock would ever be jealous about would be someone potentially smarter than him - And his brother. Though, he's very childish about his sibling rivalry petty feud." they giggled like two school kids. "The moment Sherlock Holmes shows jealousy is the moment the world implodes!" she threw her hands in the air with a theatrical exclaim, as if she was a incurring Divine Retribution.

"You are so dramatic!" he laughed back at her. "So I've been called, dear friend!" she displayed mock pride, like a super model winning Miss Universe. Her moment of glory quickly vanished once her phone started beeping, and she received a most confusing picture. "Forgive me, I have to call the very man." he gestured for her to go ahead and do her thing. "Hello? Sherlock? Can you please tell me why, exactly, did you send me a picture of the basement of Mrs. Hudson's spare apartment? It looks rather ominous, you know?" she found herself saying. "Hold on - Are you on a case? Is this from Moriarty?"   "I knew it - I KNEW IT! It just HAD to be that place!" Sherlock exclaimed as if he'd just discovered God himself. "You're a life saver as always, bless your soul!" even through the phone, it seemed as though he was gleaming with excitement.

"Sherlock, please, tell me what's this all about - If it is Moriarty, you know it concerns me and my safety - Especially after what happened with that bomb." Katrina whined, pleading him to speak to her already. "Is there going to be another bomb? Is this picture some kind of clue? A treasure hunt kind of game?"

"I suspect someone started a most amusing game, and I am more than eager to play it." the detective seemed more than enthusiast; Katrina didn't know, however, that the IT specialist next to her was sporting a shady look on his face; He was elated to see her intuition at work, before his very eyes. "I'll go there now and call you once I've found something. We'll see from there." "Alright, fine... I'll be at the lab. I'll be waiting..." she muttered, not happy with the vague response. "Oh, and, Sherlock? Please - Please, be safe. I don't want anything happening to you."

She heard a small exhale from the other end of the line; Amused, yet somewhat grateful. "See you soon." it sounded like a promise of reunion - A promise that he'll return safe and sound, just like a husband at war, returning home after many hard years. "James - Forgive me, my mind's in a million places. Do you mind if we return to the office? I think I want to start up on today's work." she stopped in her tracks, looking visibly worried, with her head in the clouds.

"Are you alright? Did anything happen to Sherlock?" she shook her head, reassuring her friend that everything was just fine.

"Yes, don't worry - If Sherlock says he will be fine, he will be." she nodded her head, as if to convince herself. "Are we still up for Karaoke tonight? It's 80s-90s rock ballads night - Our favourite."

"Certainly! I wouldn't miss it for anything!" Jim's smile made her heart feel a little lighter ; Together, they bought another coffee and returned to the office. Molly was there when they returned - Seeing them together, smiling at each other and vibing seemed to make her smile tremble a little. Her mind was too cloudy, and tainted by doubt.

During the time Katrina was doing her work, Sherlock discovered a most peculiar pair of old shoes - And more, he received a call from the pink phone they received in a lovely Bohemian envelope - A pink phone resembling perfectly that of Jennifer from the Study of Pink case. The phone was read by a victim having a bomb strapped to her body, reading the words written by Moriarty for Sherlock - A puzzle he had to solve in twelve hours, if he wanted to save the poor woman.

Thus, Sherlock and John rushed to the hospital where Katrina and Molly were working, and he burst into the lab, startling them both. "I'm bust. Let's keep unnecessary pleasantries to a minimum - Help me out or keep quiet." the detective started investigating every little inch of that old pair of trainers. "John, brief Katrina on the case. The basics. Make it quick."

"Well, uh... Sherlock got this picture that led us to Mrs. Hudson's basement, as you know, and we found this shoes. There's a woman strapped with a bomb and we have to save her by solving the puzzle in less than twelve hours." John briefed her quickly. "And, uh... I guess that's as far as I know."

"Alright. How can I help?" the bluenette asked with sharp keen.

"Help me find the origins of the mud and pollen on the trainers." at once, without another word spoken between the two, both Sherlock and Katrina sat down in front of their microscopes and computers, searching for information on the mud sample.

"I-, uh... I'll go get some coffee!" Molly chuckled awkwardly, rushing out of there; She didn't quite like not getting any kind of attention - She felt completely invisible. Her heart sank, seeing Sherlock confide in her friend, after only meeting her a few days or weeks prior, whilst he'd known her for years now, and all he does is take her for granted... It was so unfair! Still, she couldn't... She couldn't think ill of either of them. She cared dearly for them both... And she was dating Jim! He was a lovely man... Although he was nothing like Sherlock, to whom both her mind and heart were lingering on.

It was quiet for a few good minutes, with only the technology making soft noises that went deaf on their ears - John - Poor John was feeling uncomfortable and on edge. "So, who d’you suppose it was?" John asked, receiving no answer. "The woman on the phone – The crying woman. The hostage."

"Does it have any relevance to the case?" Katrina found herself asking, her mellow voice not bothering Sherlock's thinking in the least. 

"For God’s sake, I wasn’t thinking about leads or anything like that!" John seemed almost surprised at the lack of sympathy expressed even by the lady herself. "Don't you care what happens to her? Who she is, why she was picked and all that?"

"We are here to solve the case - Solving the case is equal to saving her, from what I've understood." the blue haired lady replied impassively. "Wait, so, you don't care what happens to her? Who she is, why she was picked and all that?" the doctor almost freaked out at her passiveness.

"If her identity didn't play a part into her being taken hostage, then knowing who she is won't help us save her." the lady replied - In a way, the detective was rather grateful for her bothering to answer of all John's stupid and mundane questions - After all, it was saving him precious time and thinking resources. She had Godly patience - He could never. "Are- Are they trying to trace it, trace the call?" John continued to worry after a few brief seconds of silence.

"I don't they they are bothering with that." the lady replied again. "It's Moriarty we're talking about - He's far too meticulous to leave any unwanted trace behind him. The only way to save our hostage is to solve his puzzle within the time limit." Thankfully, the veteran's flurry of questions was stopped by Sherlock's phone ringing; He was receiving text messages, based on the notification ring.Sherlock ordered his friend, who may or may not have looked around the room, confused as to the whereabouts of the phone. "His jacket." Katrina replied instantly, not even shifting her sight from the microscope. "His... His what...?" John blinked in confusion is disbelief at the ridiculous request. Sighing, knowing it would take far too long for John to budge and actually aimlessly dig into the inside pocket of his flatmate's jacket, Katrina stepped behind the very man, her hand carefully reaching around him, pickpocketing the phone with her nimble fingers, before handing it to John. She had to admit, the short action almost felt like a hug - She quite liked it. Unbeknownst to her, Sherlock's muscles stiffened a little at the close contact - He wasn't used to being touched by other people, he was the one to initiate the touching, and only if necessary. He had his boundaries, like any other person -- He had to admit, though, this one he didn't mind at all.

"Who's it?" Sherlock finally spoke.

"May I...?" was she asking for his permission to access his phone? What a darling!

"Yes, yes -- Just tell me if it's relevant." not bothering to shift his attention from his search, he waited impatiently for an answer.

"Oh! It's a text from your brother! Can I say hi?" Sherlock rolled his eyes - That was so childish. Still, he just waved his hand dismissively - Do what you want, basically. "It's about some missile plans, and a man called Andrew West. How should I reply?"

"Just whatever - I'm not bothering with him and his stupid case. If he wants the case solved, he should get a better diet plan and do some legwork for once." the petty rivalry was being unearthed once again - It made the girl giggle, he was adorable when he behaved like a brat. "He can say he's losing weight all he wants - I know the truth. Those muffins have sugar, not stevia. He's put a pound and a half since the last time I saw him - No, a pound and three quarters actually." she lived for this sibling drama.

"Alright, I'll tell him you're busier with better cases!" he didn't reply. 'Hello, Mycroft! I am sorry to say, Sherlock asked me to inform you he is not interested in the case you presented him with. Currently, he is busy with given by Moriarty - A puzzle he has to solve within the time limit, to save a hostage from exploding. Have a lovely day, and good luck with the case! ~ Katrina.' it was the first time she's signed herself by her real name - Her official name. It was weird, making the jump from her nickname, to her original one, but sooner or later, she'd have to. She loved her name, and she loved being called Kat. She missed it, from the people back home... Alas, she had no one else left.

"You wrote too much. Delete the sent text. I don't want to see a polite message addressed to him, sent from my phone. You are far too civil for your own good. Nice people get killed first." Sherlock sneered under his breath, kicking her chair to the side and grabbing her by the white coat sleeve, pulling her down. "Back to important matters - We are busy saving a woman. The problems of the Government don't concern us."

He was disturbed once again, hardly 2 minutes later; This time, Molly returned. It seemed, even in a lab, he had no freedom to think! Where is this world going to?! "Any luck?" Molly's overly sweet smile seemed to go unnoticed by Sherlock, or at least that's what he wanted her to think. The computer beeped, announcing the end of the search. "Oh, yes!" Sherlock smirked in victory, looking more into the microscope. As Molly approached the trio, another door was opened, and unexpectedly, the very man, the Notorious Hacker James the IT Guy, entered the room. "Oh, sorry, I didn't..." Jim awkwardly gave them a half-smile, raising his hand as a sort of introverted greeting, making his way towards them.

"The Notorious James the IT guy joined the party! A round of applause!" Sherlock turned his head to look at the blue haired woman; His eyes narrowed as he frowned. Why was she so excited that this slob of a man was entering the room - In fact, why did she even know this guy? There was no way a coquettish lady like herself would spend time around a guy who doesn't take care of his appearance at all - Except for the overwhelming amount of product he puts into his hair, and the awfully plucked eyebrows... And what is with that hunched posture?  "Jim! Hi!" Molly grinned, urging him to come closer to her, so she could introduce him to the group. Holmes had already made his impression of this guy - He disliked him greatly. Molly? Yes, she was desperate. But Raven? No. No way. She can do far better. "Jim, this is Sherlock Holmes. This is my forensics colleague and friend, Raven... And, uh... Sorry." Molly pointed towards each of them in turn, only to forget John's name. Actually, Kat doubts Molly ever personally met John anyway. "The esteemed John Watson, the doctor of the group. Everyone needs a healer in their group." the gamer girl joked around, trying to ease him up a little. "True, not everyone can be a Necromancer these days." he pointed out, making the bluenette look away and snort in amusement. "Spot on, correct. Wonder what your class would be, Hackerman. A rogue, perhaps?" the girl jabbed at him, which made Sherlock quickly scan her, Molly and Jim from head to toe, before turning back to his research. He didn't like this one bit. Unconsciously, his foot hooked under the wheel of her chair, pulling her a little closer to his side. "So you’re Sherlock Holmes. Molly and Raven talk about you all the time - Only praise, of course." Sherlock wasn't impressed by all this buttering up. "You on one of your cases?" he walks closer to Sherlock, forcing John to step out of his way. "Jim works in I.T. upstairs. That’s how we met. Office romance." the two of them shared a look, giggling like two highschool sweethearts.

"You two are so cute! James talks so sweetly about you every time we meet up!" Katrina started playfully spinning on her chair; Sherlock couldn't help but frown - What was so special about this socially inapt simpleton? "Gay." Sherlock muttered, not taking his eyes from the microscope. What a hoax. "Sorry, what?" Molly's smile faltered just as easily, which only made Sherlock realise that he might have made things a little more awkward than he'd like. "Nothing... Um, hey." the detective smiled fakely at the IT man, before turning back to his work. "Hey." Jim almost seemed like an awkward fangirl as he knocked over one of the metal dishes, then scrambled to pick it up and put it back on the table, apologising profusely, as all people present tried to hide their second-hand embarrassment. "Well, I’d better be off. Raven, karaoke tonight, 8 o'clock?"

"Just as we planned!" she chirped cutely, showing a peace sign. "Call me when you're done with the beta-testing, please." James asked her, only to smile as she nodded in agreement. "Mind if I make a few tweaks, if I find bugs and stuff?" she lean back on her chair, looking at him with a playful expression. "Oh, yeah, of course, go ahead. It'd be nice to see someone better than me and how I can improve." he smiled softly, as she winked at him. "Not everyone can hack into the Swiss Bank and go on holidays." Sherlock's interest was piqued - This innocent little princess who couldn't even hurt a fly... She did what?! "Molly - You comin'?"

"Yeah -- Uh, go ahead, I'll come back in a minute!" Jim smiled awkwardly, nodding at the group. "It was nice to meet you." he told them all - Only John replied, after a long and uncomfortable silence.

"Have a lovely date, you two!" Kat waved him goodbye. As soon as the door closed, Molly's face dropped immediately.   "What d’you mean, gay? We’re together." Molly's voice quivered, frowning at Sherlock, not understanding his reasoning. She was already on the edge with how friendly her boyfriend and her only friend were with each other - And now, this? The man who is never wrong, her ultimate crush of all things - He claims her boyfriend is interested in men and their relationship is just a facade?! "And domestic bliss must suit you, Molly. You’ve put on three pounds since I last saw you." Sherlock pointed out, which made Kat turn her head, giving him a shocked look. "Sherlock! Don't be so rude!" she cried, like a mother scolding her child. "Two and a half." Molly tried to defend herself, which only fed into his need to always be right. "Nuh, three." the detective shot back, which made John sigh at his lack of sympathy or... Social etiquette. "He’s not gay. Why d’you have to spoil...? He’s not....!" Molly tried to defend her boyfriend, but it seemed mostly like she was trying to defend herself. "With that level of personal grooming?" Sherlock snorted in mock amusement. "Because he puts a bit of product in his hair? I put product in my hair." John seemed to be in disbelief at his reasoning. "You wash your hair. There’s a difference. No-no – tinted eyelashes; clear signs of taurine cream around the frown lines; those tired clubber’s eyes. Then there’s his underwear, visible above the waistline – Very visible; very particular brand. That, plus the extremely suggestive fact that he just left his number under this dish here... And I’d say you’d better break it off now and save yourself the pain." Sherlock reached out to take the card with James's number from under the metal dish, showing it to Molly, who stared at it, crestfallen and in tears, turning around and running from the room. "Sherlock.... That was mean!" he turned to look at the girl next to him - The disappointment in her eyes startled him; Was it not an act of caring, telling someone to be careful?    "Just saving her time. Isn’t that kinder?" Sherlock frowned at his two comrades, not understanding what he did wrong. "Kinder? No, no, Sherlock. That wasn’t kind." John rolled his eyes, clearly frustrated.

"You... You have a very... Particularly blunt honesty about you. Yes, your message was helpful, but the delivery... It was the delivery that hurt. That, and the fact that, if your claim comes true - Which, Molly knows, will definitely come true - It means that she's once again single and very much alone." the two shared a few seconds of eye contact, as if they were speaking telepathically. "Nobody likes being alone, Sherlock. Sometimes ignorance is bliss."

"I like being alone." he defended himself.

"No... You don't." he frowned, confused at her implication - What would she know anyway? "You like being alone when you want to be left alone. Otherwise, without any bit of social interaction and mental stimulation... You go crazy. You can't live without it - Without attention, without challenges, without cases - And incidentally - Without people." the look on his face was almost defiant, as if he didn't want to hear the truth coming from someone else; As if he didn't want his mystery and secrets to be discovered. "Rent isn't the only reason you were looking for a flatmate, Sherlock."

"... You would know, wouldn't you?" his tone was low, as if to provoke her back, to rebound that awful implication, a simple fact that he saw as close to a personal attack as it could get. Surprisingly, however, she nodded, a genuine response. She wasn't hiding, she wasn't changing the subject, or lying, or bouncing the conversation his way. No, she was perfectly truthful. That was a scary trait in a human - Sometimes, this honesty scared Sherlock to the core, seeing someone being so helplessly vulnerable with him, without having anything to lose; Vulnerable and genuine, without it being a weakness to exploit - It was her strength, her shield. Her smarts, intuition and wit weren't her only assets - Her personality, also, was special in this world. "Good to know." he cleared his throat, looking away from her and leaning back on his chair - Instead, he focused on John, pushing the trainers his way. "Now, John, go on. You know what I do, off you go." Sherlock gave John one of the trainers on the table, but he refused to touch it. "No. I'm not gonna stand here so you can humiliate me while I try and disseminate..." John tried to say, only for the other one to shake his head. "It's very useful to me. An outside eye, a second opinion." he tried to urge him, but John frowned. "Why don't you have Raven analyse it? Why do you always have to humiliate me?" John put his hands on his hips, glaring at Sherlock. "Will that make you feel any better? Fine!" he glared at his flatmate - The last thing he wanted to do was to look at the bluenette again, when he just turned away from her. Damn it, John. "Fine. Raven, give it a try. Doesn't matter that you know close to nothing about this case." Sherlock rolled his eyes, turning around with one the trainers, putting it in her hands.

"Uhm...? They're... Very worn out sports shoes. There's a smudged name written here, so they belonged to a child with... Remarkably big feet." she frowned a little, placing a shoe next to her foot - This child's shoe was significantly bigger than her own. "Anyway, it looks like a boy's favourite pair of shoes. They seem worn but repaired to some degree." she continued, looking at them from different angles. "Our sample matched Sussex and London... But if the kid liked these shoes so much, why would they be left behind like that? He wouldn't let them get this muddy, right?"

The detective peered his piercing blue eyes deep into her own; There was little to reproach her for. How annoying. "Very well. You missed about... Half of the information." he extended his hand towards her, so he could show off. "Yes, the owner loved these; Scrubbed them clean, whitened where they got discoloured; Changed the laces three... No, four times - Even so, there are traces of his flaky skin where his fingers  have come into contact with them so he suffered from eczema." he turned the shoe with the soles up. "The shoes are well-worn more so on the inner side, which means the owner had weak arches. British-made, 20 years old."

"How did you know?" the girl asked, seeing the man access his phone.

"They're original." he showed her the screen. "Limited edition, two blue stripes, 1989."

"I wasn't even in the country 20 years ago. I was celebrating the fall of communism." the girl chuckled lightly.

"Wait, but there's still mud on them. They look new." John's correct observation came to light.

"Someone's kept them that way." the detective stated mysteriously. "Quite a bit of mud caked on the soles... Based on the analysis, the kid wore these trainers, came to London from Sussex 20 years ago, and left them behind."

"If Moriarty gave us these shoes - Does that mean the kid died here, in London? 20 years ago?" Sherlock remained silent for a few seconds, before he's had his eureka.

"Yes, he loved these shoes, he'd never leave them filthy, or throw them away... Which means he had to. A child with big feet gets... Oh..." Sherlock's eyes widened in realisation, saying out a name that was completely foreign to both Katrina and John. "Carl Powers."

"Who is Carl Powers...?" Katrina leaned forward a bit, intrigued by his reaction, just like a child eager for the story-telling to continue. "Did you know this kid? Was he one of your cases?" At once, Sherlock picked both John and Katrina up, hurrying them outside of the hospital, to catch a cabbie back home. "It's where I began. 1989, a young kid – champion swimmer – came up from Brighton for a school sports tournament; drowned in the pool. Tragic accident. You wouldn’t remember it. Why should you? And Raven was in her country." Sherlock explained briefly. "But you remember." John pointed out the obvious. "So what was odd about it? What caught your attention?" "Yes, I was only a kid back then, I read it in the papers - I tried to tell the police something was wrong, but nobody listened." he still seemed frustrated by the case. "The boy, Carl Powers, had some kind of fit in the water, but by the time they got him out it was too late. But there was something wrong; something I couldn’t get out of my head." the detective continued, absorbed in his own thoughts. "What?" John asked, intrigued by the story of Sherlock's first case. "His shoes. They weren’t there. I made a fuss; I tried to get the police interested, but nobody seemed to think it was important. He’d left all the rest of his clothes in his locker, but there was no sign of his shoes... Until now." Sherlock smirked, happy to finally be able to solve his first ever case.

"I have a thought - Though I don't know the details of the original case so I might be wrong." Katrina found herself speculating. "You said the boy was a champion swimmer, yet he drowned. That means something happened while he was in the water, right? He couldn't move. If he had a cramp, he could still get himself up enough to hang onto the corridor divider in the swimming pool, right?" Sherlock nodded his head as an encouragement to continue. "That meant something more happened - A cramp not to his leg or arm, but to his whole body." his eyes were beginning to widen little by little. "I am sure you've got a million theories and possible answers in your head right now, and all of them could fit - So let me narrow it down for you, with my limited knowledge and coincidental guess." she continued softly. "Clostridium botulinum - The neurotoxin. A single nanogram per kilogram can kill a person. If it was on his shoes, it touched his skin, and thanks to the eczema, got inside his capillaries, then bloodstream, reached the brain - By the time he entered the pool, his neuromuscular joints had been afflicted - His body was completely paralysed so he couldn't flail around or shout for help fast enough; That, and the fact that his thorax and diaphragm couldn't spread for the lungs to get enough air to last a little longer..." the cabbie became graveyard quiet. "Sorry, maybe that was too far-fetched."

"No, that - That was brilliant, it- It actually makes a lot of sense!" John's praise made the girl's cheeks flush a little with joy.

"I love you." in a split second, Sherlock forgot all about his previous pettiness and grabbed the girl to kiss her temple. "Can't you drive any faster? We've got a case to solve!"   As soon as they arrived home, Sherlock dragged the girl to the microscope to search for the Gram positive anaerobic bacteria. What a naughty bacillus! In the meantime, Mycroft started texting John instead - And the detective sent his sidekick away to gather information from his brother; He was all alone with his lady friend now, to search for answers in peace and quiet.

Sure enough, he did just that - Found his eureka faster than ever, now that he knew what to look for - In his shoelaces! Of course nobody would be looking for Clostridium! Quickly, he posted the answer on his blog, the Science of Deduction - It was the only way to communicate his puzzle solving with the killer, and save the hostage.

Clearly, our bomber was Moriarty, without a shadow of doubt; He was as bored as Sherlock always is. Regardless - The night ended, and once morning came, Sherlock and John rushed to Lestrade to speak about the case and the rescued hostage. They received a new message - This time, unlike previously, the phone pinged 4 times instead of 5. So they had to solve 5 puzzles in total. Only 8 hours to solve the hostage. 

Involved she might have been in the whole Moriarty ordeal, Sherlock didn't think twice about involving the girl in this case - His mind was focused, this was an easy job - Moriarty must be slipping if he thought he couldn't single-handedly solve such a laughably easy case! He was on FIRE! Oh, he was giddy, SO giddy and excited! Three more puzzles - They better be fascinating, otherwise this would be a simple walk in the park for him; A joke, if anything!

The third day came by, and thus, the third case also - The hostage was a blind old woman inside her own apartment; Sherlock had twelve hours to solve this case, once again - A funny case. Moriarty loves his new plaything - He loves to watch him dance to his own tune.

Katrina, however, was doing her job - And because of that, Sherlock himself came to consult with her. His next subject of interest - Connie Prince, a middle-aged TV show host, had died two days prior, and she had been in charge of the autopsy. To think that her death would be related to a Moriarty case - Fascinating!

"Please be quick - We don't have much time to stall. Tell me you got something." Sherlock started investigating the dead body with his own eyes, listening to the girl's autopsy report. "She died two days ago - Some guy said she cut her hand on a rusty nail --"

"Yes, so, if Tetanus bacteria enters the bloodstream, goodnight Vienna." Sherlock concluded for himself. "How long would the bacteria have been incubating inside her?"

"8 - 10 days." John found himself answering before anyone else - He was intrigued just like the others.

"I don't know if it helps, but she's got some puncture points on her forehead - I'm assuming Botox or some kind of hyaluronic acid; There's scratch marks on her arm, definitely indicative of cat claw marks." she pointed towards those aspects. "Also... I didn't find any Tetanus symptoms on her, nor did I see anything at the microscope around that area - In fact, that hand wound is clean - I think it was done post-mortem, to confuse you." Katrina stalled for a few seconds. "But if you're sure Tetanus killed her, it needed another entry point, at least a week prior." she stopped for a few seconds, looking at the body. "I think either the Botox shots or the cat's claws. Those were the only obvious entry points." though it seemed Sherlock's mind gears  were working intensely, he didn't speak a single word on the case.

"I think I've got it." the man nodded his head - Yes. Botox. He's got more important things to check on. "Thanks for the help. Job well done. Gotta go--"

"Hey!" the girl cried out after him as soon as he tried to rush out. "Are you not going to tell me anything at all? Why are you leaving me out of all these cases?" the man looked down at her - She looked upset and a sparkle of betrayal mixed with disappointment gleamed her gorgeous eyes. "Do you not trust me anymore? Or am I not useful to you? What's going on -- Sherlock, this concerns me well enough, I--"

"Stay low and don't leave the house more often than it's necessary - Not that it would save you from him - But at least a faux sense of security, I suppose." he sounded like a robot, rather than a human; Even the inflexions in his voice disappeared. "He is playing this game with me - Not with you. For now, at least. Fan of ours or not, he's getting bored faster than I am - It's only a matter of time before he's schemed up a new game for you." it was then that she realised, in spite of his cold voice and harsh tonality, Sherlock Holmes was worried about her.

"... Alright, Sherlock. If you need me, I'm just a ring away." John looked at the defeated woman - She still smiled, and her voice was mellow and sweet; He couldn't understand why Sherlock was dismissing her so quickly - She'd been such brilliant help!

"Sherlock --" John asked, trying to keep up with the detective's long strides. "Raven's right - Why are you excluding her from all this?"

"Moriarty's thrown her in front of death twice now - Let's not make it a third. Until we've ended this bomberman game, I'd rather not have to worry about playing hero." harsh, very harsh, but still, the intentions were there.

"Why don't you have your brother's people keep surveillance on her? You said he's the British Government - Surely, he could keep her safe... Right?" based on the troubled look on the detective's face, the medic realised he had already thought of that. "...Right?!" the answer was uncertain - And Sherlock would rather not risk it. Rivalry aside - Even Mycroft wasn't safe from Moriarty and his influence.

That evening, Katrine met up with James again, at the internet cafe nearby; She brought over the USB stick so they could test out the game; She told him all about the bugs and what she tweaked around - He seemed thrilled of it all; And then, he showed Sherlock's blog, and the three peculiar posts. "I've heard all about the bombings - But I can't figure out; Sherlock's posts are... I can't understand them - And John hadn't updated his own either. I was hoping... Maybe... You'd fill me up on this?"

"Oh, yes, sure!" the girl smiled chipper - At least that way to be involved. "I don't know the whole thing very well - Sherlock hardly let's me into the cases. I think he's afraid I'll become a collateral victim of out bomber." she sighed, yet her smile didn't disappear.

"That dangerous?" he gasped. "Well - It's a bombing, I guess that's nothing to joke about. It's quite scary -- And then those twelve people dead in the gas leak... I heard people talking - They said it was the bomber." he continued lightly. "Do you think... Sherlock failed the last game?"

Katrina frowned, looking at the blog - The latest post explained the killing toxin was, once again, Clostridium botulinum. "No. He got it right. And he got it just in time." she muttered to herself. "The hostage... I heard it was an old, blind woman. She must have broke Moriarty's rules. Since they only communicate by phoning on that phone... Maybe she said something." she stroked her chin, her eyes fixated on the monitor. "Why would Moriarty have the same killing method twice... Was it to confuse the investigation...? How silly." she hummed to herself. 

"Sorry?" realised how confused she was making him, she shook her head and smiled at him.

"Forgive me, I got caught up in my thoughts!" she became chipper again. "The first case about Sherlock's first case, 20 years ago. There was a swimming champion kid who drowned, and our only clue was the pair of shoes left behind. We found Clostridium botulinum on the shoelaces. It's a powerful neurotoxin, it got into his bloodstream through his eczema, and by the time he was in the pool, his muscles paralysed." Jim was looking at her in complete awe. "Second one... I know nothing about it. Sherlock didn't involve me at all in that one. As for the third one... That TV show host got regular botox injections, I suppose done at home by this guy, whoever he was - And he must have upped the dose, and she died or something."

"He must really be afraid for your safety, if he's keeping you in the dark so much." he turned his head to look at her. "Reckon he's investigating another one now?" 

Katrina sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "I think so, yes. The phone peeped 5 times during the first case, 4 times next, and then 3 times. I'd wager there's two more puzzles left - One he's working on right now, and the other... Well, what do I know. I suppose I'll never know."

 "Well - Maybe it's for the best." the girl's seraphic visage featured a most confused expression. "For you, I mean - As long as you're alive, you can continue hunting cases, right? You said it yourself - You've had enough near-death experiences. Maybe let the hero act for those who don't fear death?"

"... Not like I have much to live for anyway." the girl found herself muttering quite miserably, before flipping the subject back to the game.

Two days passed, and Katrina was preparing for a pool party. James invited her, saying some work colleagues invited him and Molly over. Might as well indulge a little - She loved swimming, yet she hadn't done it in quite a while. The location was a little off - Not quite the resort she expected - But perhaps they got free access to this inside pool, so why not profit off of it?

Hair done nicely, make up on fleek, and a lovely pink summer dress on, Katrina slowly entered the building, searching for the pool - However, the discovery froze the blood in her veins once she opened the doors, and Jim the IT guy was waiting for her most gallantly - Like a super villain, wearing an expensive suit - And threatening the hero and his sidekick. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson were there.

"H-Hello..." her voice was meek, despite how much she tried to keep herself in check; Her smile was trembling a little as she patted her dress and carefully stepped towards them. "You look good in a suit - But, uh... Not an appropriate outfit for a pool party, is it?"

"Might have missed the memo - Sorry!" the man giggled dryly. "Just kidding. We were waiting for you - And what better flower to pluck from the garden, then the gardener's favourite blue beauty? Little Disney Princess with the blue hair - Couldn't possibly find a better weakness for our hero, could we? To think he'd fall for you so quickly - Ha! Hilarious!" the villain pranced forwards, grabbing the girl's arm roughly, pulling her towards the center - In front of the two men; He embraced her tightly from behind.

"What the hell are you doing here -- Didn't I tell you to stay the hell at home?!" unexpectedly, Sherlock yelled at her - No one, not even himself, would have expected such a harsh reaction out of him, addressing her. "Who the hell goes to a school pool at midnight, for goodness' sake - Are you out of your mind?!" his loud, echoing voice made the girl's body jump in fear - Right, she was very sensitive to noises. Slipped his mind. "Raven - That... That is Moriarty." he tried again, minding his voice this time.

"W-Well, I, uh-- I... I fixed your game, James. And... I finished it. I... I thought you'd be happy to hear that." Sherlock could see the soft tremble of her body as she dug her hand in her purse, pulling out a USB stick. "72 GB stick - You can keep it. Pretty expensive."

"Right...! How lovely of you! Truly, a work of wonder!" he laughed, snatching away the stick from her hand and putting it in his pants pocket. "Sherlock, Sherlock, Sherlock." Moriarty grinned, pressing his cheek against her own; One hand was gripping her jaw, while the other was tightly around her wrist - He looked like a puppeteer holding a pretty marionette doll. "You don't get it, do you? Dear Miss Raven - Who, in fact, is Dear Miss Kitty-Kat, in case you weren't aware - You might be smart, Sherlock, but you'll never match her intuition!" Moriarty could see the way his jaw muscles twitched, the more the grip on the girl tightened, making her whimper in pain. "She knew who I was the moment she met me!" his laugh in her ear made her twitch again.

"Did you have your fun, James?" her soft voice stood out. "Did you enjoy tormenting me? Humiliating me? Playing me - Knowingly?" she continued onwards. "I let you exploit my loneliness, my weakness." Sherlock's speculation was unfortunately true - Her only weakness was, after all, her loneliness. "I won't apologise for it - I had fun with you. I enjoyed myself. I didn't care whether you were faking it or not - You never seemed to me like the 'Jim from IT' that you showed to Molly... You always seemed like 'James' to me. Witty, clever, interesting, passionate, and a bit of a geek. Very charming." she went on, unapologetic, yet somewhat resigned to her fate. "So tell me - I believe I'm entitled to know by now - What is it that you want with me?"

Moriarty wolf-whistled, continuing with a dramatical cackle. "I had so much fun hearing you tell me all about those cases - Truly, it was fascinating - And��so madly in love!" he hummed, swaying a little back and forth, as if to dance. "I just wanted to play match-maker, you see? Just like Barbie and Ken - And it worked! Am I not just the Cupid himself?" he grinned wickedly, looking straight into Sherlock's blue eyes. "No matter how much I liked to play with you, Barbie - You would always gravitate towards Ken - And the reverse was true also! Oh, the face Sherlock made when he heard you and I are close friends - That we see each other every morning!" the hand from her jaw went into her hair, twirling around a strand of her beautiful blue hair... Mimicking what she'd do unconsciously when she was speaking of the very detective. "Do you know she always does this cutesy thing when she's talking about you? A woman in love is soooo radiant, isn't she?" she pulled on that very strand of hair. "If I'd known the two of you would fall over each other like that, I'd have just courted you instead of poor, desperate Molly Hooper. Not that it would have worked, I know that much - But it would have been absolutely hilarious!" 

Sherlock couldn't stand seeing Moriarty torment Katrina like that - He just couldn't. It took so much power to keep his self-restraint up and not slip. First, John had a bomb vest, and now this. Through her whimpering and trembling, the fear and anxiety, she still continued speaking in the same serene voice, albeit a little shaky. "You still didn't answer me. What is your motive?" "Why does everything need to have a reason?" he taunted her, moving around her joints, only for her to snatch her arm back from his grasp and stumble backwards a few feet - The way she was holding herself defensive, and that look on her face resembling a terrified, wounded cat - This wasn't her first time being roughed up like that. "EVERYTHING has a reason! Why are Days and Nights alternative, and there's never two days or two nights consecutively? The rotation of the Earth! Why do streams flow the way they do? Because gravity makes them go downhill. Why do people always wake up, and then feel the need to go back to sleep, in the same 24 hour interval? Because of the circadian rhythm! Why does the heart pump? Because of the sino-atrial node! There is ALWAYS a reason for everything!" the girl refuted without backing down, which seemed to make him grin.

"Everything has a reason, yes, just like your reactions - You don't like being touched, do you? Men scare you. Loud, burly, gruff and terrifying. One hand can engulf your neck and snap it like a dove. You're so small and frail, a delicate little flower, there is no way you could fight off a man, am I right~?" he knew her fears, her past - And he knew just how to mock her.

"Since you simply confirmed what I said - Will you tell me now why you are messing with me?" with some self-control, she forced herself to straighten her spine, and try to hide how terrified she was - At least on a surface level. "Because I was BORED!" the last word was roared, and it resounded painfully through the pool; Katrina slapped her hands over her ears and half-crouched in pain. Moriarty continued in his normal, soothing voice. "Life is boring without competition or some puppets to fool around with! You know better, what is Batman without the Joker, and vice-versa? And how is being bored a relevant, rational reason?" he asked, throwing his hands into the air.

"Humans are emotional beings, thus, irrational at best, unpredictable at worst. You can come up with statistics and probabilities to figure out, yet, but you can never know for sure -- Even you are not always solely driven by ration, are you? -- Not to mention, I don't know any comics in which the Joker kills Batman; In fact, it is Batman's sidekick who ends up killing Joker. So how will killing any of us benefit you - You'll just get bored all over again, and we both know there is no one out there would could play into your nefarious fascinations like Sherlock could... Isn't that right... The Notorious James the Hackerman." the exchange between those two was putting Sherlock on edge - They were far too friendly with each other, in the worst ways - They knew too much about each other, understood too well. This was only bound to end up horribly wrong.

"And what would you have me do, exactly?" he raised his eyebrow, provoking.  "Let them go, that's what I would have you do! Sherlock AND John! Both of them. Let them live." came her bold answer, hissed through gritted teeth. "Raven, don't-" Sherlock tried to speak, only to get shushed by both herself and James. For once, he would be a liability, not aid. "But that would be BORING! I can't have that, can I? Instead, I can mess around with you, and in turn, that messes with Sherlock! I've already used John as bait, put bombs on him, and boy, that was FUN! But you? Oh ho ho ho, you could be top-star entertaining for me!" he grinned, stepping forward and pulling her back towards him, his grip on her arms painfully tight, just like an abusive ex-boyfriend trying to control you.

"Let go of me, James! You know I hate being touched - It's not gentlemanly!" she tried to wiggle away from his grasp.

"Oh, how quaint, hiding your fears and trauma behind the facade of the stereotype of a gallant and chivalrous British gentleman!" his grinned was poisonous, and his warm doe eyes were dark like an abysmal void, an infinite purgatory. "Sherlock Holmes, the charming hero saving the Damsel in Distress - You love those kind of romantic stories, don't you? It's been your fairytale dream since you were a little girl - To live a mundane life, fall in love, and whatever it is that little girls do. I made the scenario perfectly, didn't I - Little Magnolia Flower." maybe it was the nerves, or her fear, or maybe even the simple fact that she was touched and the grip was hurting her; The stress, the situation, the betrayal... Everything made her snap.

"I SAID - DON'T FUCKING TOUCH ME!" 

Time stopped for the four players - The loud echo of a strike was followed by the red handprint displayed on Jim Moriarty's left cheek, along with the murderous look on his face - But that was not all, for a fire was discharged, and suddenly, Katrina's gorgeous pink dress was actively being dyed a deep, crimson red.  She couldn't hear her two friends calling out her name, the shock was overwhelming. The strength of the bullet made her stumble backwards, and her wide, wet eyes weren't kind or joyful anymore - They were terrified and in agony, staring into his black eyes. Empty she thought - At first, at least... In spite of her petrified state of mind, and excruciating pain, she could spot one thing in that nothingness - Shock. He didn't plan for this. He didn't want this. He didn't want her dead.

"J-James... Wh-... Why...?" she coughed up violently, blood smearing down her chin, splurting everywhere; Her lady-like facade was destroyed " I will skin alive the idiot who sniped without my approval!" Moriarty voice mimicked a feral growl as he lunged forward, catching her in his arms, keeping her up like a rag doll;  "What did you do to her, you, monster?!" John shouted at the psychopath, who only chuckled, looking down and feeling the woman's strength, as he was gripping into his clothes to stand up, get more and more lax. "Me? Nothing! You saw very well, I didn't do anything to her!. But oh, the look of horror on your faces... It was SO worth it! If only I had known that's all that it took to shake the great Sherlock Holmes, I'd-" he kept on rambling, but the girl's weak voice interrupted him. "Let them go." albeit it was whispery and lacking strength, it had a certain sternness to it - She repeated it, staring into his eyes, fixed, almost like a broken record, which seemed to annoy him a great deal, as he turned twirled her around, so gracefully, as if they were dancing, until the tips of her heeled shoes reached the edge of the pool; She was halfway falling into the pool, were it not for him holding her up, hovering over the clear water. "What do you REALLY want? You love Sherlock, you'd rather have him live, don't you? You couldn't care less if John lives or dies, he isn't that important to you. You saw very well how the person most important to you started ghosting you. Lea, was it? You don't believe in the kindness of people anymore, so don't be hypocritical!" he smirked as he started fiddling with his phone. "Your sweet act is failing, Kitty-Kat. Your kindness is fake." "...I win." she chuckled mirthfully, despite the burning pain that was electrifying through her whole body. "...You... What?" Moriarty frowned, confusion painted on his face.

"I win. I made you worry. You care about me. You just called an ambulance, to make sure I live. You could have harmed, tortured, killed or you could have even used Molly as bait, but you didn't. Likewise, you could have done the same to me, but guess what? You didn't! In that psychopathic mind of yours, you actually enjoyed my presence. It may or may not have been kinda fun, in your own... Twisted... Nefarious logic." she laughed serenely, almost like a lunatic. "Admit it, James, you don't want me dead. You could have, but you didn't, so therefore, you wo-... AHHH!" she must have really angered Moriarty by calling him out, for he started pressing on her stomach, where her wound was; Her legs were giving up, as tears of agony were streaming down her face. Still, she forced a grin on her face. "No. You didn't win. You will never win, not the way you are now. Good girls NEVER win. You think you really read me? You think you know me? How ridiculously arrogant of you! You don't know nearly as much as you think you do." he hissed through his teeth, his grip on her making his knuckles go white. "I'll have to admit, it was pretty fun while it lasted. Any last words?" he asked, smiling mockingly. "Let. THEM. Live." she grasped his tie, and with her last powers, she dragged herself up close to his eyes level, which seemed to piss him off. "Playing off the martyr for these two won't impress me, Kitty-Kat. You were just a declawed cat who would have benefitted from some rabies. Alas, you became a scarf for the wicked." he smirked down at her, any hint of emotion vanishing from his eyes. "I truly hope you know how to swim, otherwise... Yellow submarine, Yellow submarine." he finished in a singing voice, and knowing this was it, she merely snorted in amusement, smirking weakly. "Sherlock does." and with that, a look of rage flashed his face as he pushed her into the pool.

Her eyes were stinging from the chlorine, her vision blurry and the lights were quickly dimming; She was engulfed in velvety ribbons of scarlet, swirling around her body; She was falling down, to the bottom of the pool, with only her mermaid blue hair embracing her. No oxygen could reach her brain, and her nerves were screeching in agony - Not even the cold of the water could properly numb away her torture.

Her last thoughts were on Sherlock playing the hero and saving her, John giving her first aid, and the ambulance arriving just in time to stabilise her condition before getting her to the hospital for surgery - But she couldn't hope. She wasn't afraid, nor was she panicking; She was growing numb, as if she was falling asleep. Darkness was taking over her vision and confusion was afflicting her consciousness. This was the beautiful death she wished for, just like Ophelia drowning in the Thames, her face gorgeous, her outfit beautiful, a smile on her face, and her tragic fate.

Perhaps Sherlock was right - The more beautiful a lady, the more tragic her life.

Before she passed out, she saw a blurry figure, and felt two strong arms embracing her; Her body didn't scream, as it did with Moriarty - She knew who this was - The one man who didn't frighten her. The one man whose embrace felt like the safest haven. The one man who valued her entirely for who she was.

Sherlock Holmes saved his Damsel in Distress from the clutches of death three times, and each time, he delivered her to safety by holding her in his arms.

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[cilil]

New Year & Resolutions

So... 2023. As with many of us, it wasn't a great year for me. Lots of stress and struggling irl, family members getting severely ill, some tragic accidents... and with some of these situations being ongoing and big scary exams coming up, 2024 isn't looking much brighter for me in that regard.

However!

I still have my stories, my blorbos and my friends - and that means you guys - to keep me company and brighten my day. I don't know what I would do without you and all of the fun things we do together and for that, I'm endlessly grateful.

In late 2022, I (re)entered the Silmarillion fandom (as in, I was never interacting before that, but I was there), and in 2023 I joined and participated in a whole bunch of events and met so many great people - many new, but also a few I remember from back in the day. It felt great to finally, after all these years, have the courage to reach out and let you know that I love your works. Let's hope for another year of creativity and community, and I'm very much looking forward to what everyone has in store...

... which brings us to my new year's resolutions.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ I've started working on expanding my character pool, as some of you may have noticed in the more recent events and challenges I shared on my blog, and I want to continue doing that. Comfort is a fickle thing and I'm always worried I don't get it right, but I try to take it as an opportunity for creative growth either way.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ Related to the previous point: I want to continue using the drabble and ficlet events specifically to give gifts to friends, mutuals and followers alike, so once again: If you have brainrot or fun ship ideas or anything of this sort, let me know, hit me up, let's chat. I love hearing new ideas. And if it's ever something I don't feel like I can write or talk about at that time I'll let you know, so no worries at all.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ I want to continue being present for events, but I need to find some time for my personal projects as well, which I haven't really managed this past year. There are several ideas for bigger projects I have lying around and collecting dust (both Angbang and otherwise) and I also have old fics from back in the day that I want to rewrite and share. It won't be easy, especially with the aforementioned exams and all, but I want to at least try.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ That also includes requests I have yet to fulfill and unfinished events. My apologies to all those who have waited longer for something than they should have - I assure you, I didn't forget about it. I'm just a bit of a bumbling fool who gets too excited about her hobby and then proceeds to bury herself in too much work.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ On the other hand, I did manage to make some progress in regards to being more motivated, being more productive and taking better care of myself and I want to continue improving in that regard, be it when it comes to fandom or otherwise. I also want to say thank you to all those who supported me during difficult times - you know who you are. Thank you. I appreciate you more than you will ever know.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ As generic as it sounds, I also want to continue improving my craft, both writing and, dare I hope, art. I had several moments over the year where I felt like I improved or I learned or understood a new thing, but there's always room for more and I'm someone who enjoys learning.

I might have forgotten something so there may be edits, but that's it for now.

I wish all of you a happy new year and all the best for 2024, even if things aren't looking too bright for you either. Despite everything, I'm confident that we can get through this together, and if nothing else just know that I'm here for you, trying to share the things that make my life better and hopefully bring others a bit of joy too.

By which I mean hot angel porn -

Bye~

[floral-and-fine]

hiiiii, gurl! it s me (again). I'm diving into a new obsession and I think you're the only person on the internet who knows about the existence of this man. may i request ANOTHER set of random headcanons about Carl Stargher from The Cell? and maybe the SO is also a psychologist like Catherine that gets close to him, in his mind, by approaching the mad side of Carl, rather than the innocent one, potentially avoiding his death? thank youuuuu!!!!😭😭😭

Hey Friend! I’m so grateful that I’m not the only one who loves this guy 😭❤️ so thank you for the ask!

Also sorry it took me awhile, I wrote these headcanons a little differently, kinda going through the plot of the movie (at least what I could remember of it) hopefully they’re worth the wait 😅

Carl definitely piqued your interest before entering his mind, both from a psychological aspect and a personal level

At one point, while still in college, you had considered joining the FBI and using your education to help better understand the behavior of serial killers

But you were concerned over how much you empathized with each killer you studied. So many of them had such terrible, abusive childhoods that you couldn’t help but feel for them

So instead you focused on helping children, in hopes to prevent future serial killers

After graduating and working as a child psychologist, you were presented with an opportunity that definitely was too interesting to pass up, a project involving an experimental virtual reality treatment

When the FBI contacted you and the other doctors working on this project with a proposal of using it to acquire information about a serial killer, you felt a mix of excitement and anxiousness

As you prepared to enter his mind, you stood beside Carl, your fingers gently touching the side of his face, committing his facial features to memory

You had no idea what to expect once you entered his mind but you wanted to be able recognize him

Waking in Carl’s mind was different, it was jarring, fractured, and cold… so many different areas and facets to explore

You feel like you could spend weeks analyzing it all, digging deep into what each scene and piece of imagery meant

It was clear that he was a complicated being, proud of his ‘accomplishments’, by how each of his victims were displayed, but there was also this darkness like he knew that it was wrong/twisted

When the strong woman dropped you unceremoniously on the ground, it took you a moment to regain your bearings… the man who had been seated upon a throne, stood up

“Where did you come from?” He demanded, his voice sounded distorted and monstrous.

You froze, thumb hovering over the button on your hand, part of you wanted to scream, but the other part wanted to see where this would go

His stare was unnerving, dark eyes watching your every move, you could hear shrieking in the background, you recognized the being as Carl, or at least a part of him, a terrifying part of him

You’re not sure what compelled you, but instead of escaping, you reached out towards him, fingers brushing against his hand

There was a moment where the two of you simply watched the other, your fingers still touching his skin when suddenly without warning he moved, faster than you expected

He tried to grab your wrist

Falling back, panic finally set in, and you scrambled backwards, your hands coming together and then you woke up

Afterward, you couldn’t stop thinking about the whole experience. Sitting on your bed, in the safety of your home, staring at your television while hands rubbed the very real fabric of your comforter, you were hoping to anchor yourself in reality but every time you closed your eyes, you felt like you were back there with him

The whole experience was… fascinating… terrifying… erotic, leaving you eager to return

It was strange how after that first encounter he could sense your presence/arrival, instead of waking alone on the ground, you’d wake on a bed of dead flowers or in shallow waters or in an empty tub and Carl/king Stargher was always close by, waiting for you

With each visit the length in which you stayed became longer, you’d greet him with the same feathery light touch that soon lingered longer and longer

It left you questioning your sanity, wondering why you weren’t more afraid, wondering why you attracted to this sort of darkness

When you encountered the part of Carl that most resembled the actual man, it was the first time the two of had an actual conversation

You told him your name, which he quietly repeated to himself several times

The conversation was brief, he was curious about you, you learned about his the abuse he endured but when you started to press him for information about his latest victim he became volatile

When he changed, becoming the evil/darker version of himself, you simply gave in

You didn’t fight him as he grabbed you from behind then pushed you to the ground

When he produced the collar, you simply allowed him to put the collar on your neck, even going as far as stretching your head up and moving your hair out of the way

The hungry look he gave you, filled with desire, spurred you on

You pressed your hands against his pale chest, leaning towards him for a kiss

He immediately reciprocated

His touch was rough, desperate

You hands grazed over the rings on his back and arms, causing him to buck his hips against you

You lost yourself to the dream, your mind drowsy, you had no clue how long you had been here this time around, but you didn’t care

All you wanted was to stay with him

During your stay, your surroundings would change, but you were constantly by Carl/King Stargher’s side

Sometimes you found yourself sitting on his lap in the gold colored throne room, his hand on your lower back, your head resting on his chest, while he sat perfectly straight and still

Other times you were on the floor with him crawling over you and his hands roaming all over your body

Or you’d find yourself sitting on a lavish bed, wearing an ornate dress and mask, while he admired you

His changing appearance would make you question if they were all different separate pieces of Carl or the same evil side

Either way you cared for him all the same

His own feelings for your were a combination of ownership and worship, similar to being a prized possession

At some point the other doctors and FBI would have to intervene, because you had gone too deep, giving into your feelings and allowing yourself to believe that Carl’s world was real

All parts of Carl were here in your mind, each aware that you accepted all of him, the innocent and the evil

This was enough to keep himself from fighting you and from hurting himself

It was unfamiliar, being welcomed in by someone, in way he wanted to stay here in this beautiful and peaceful world that was your mind

His whole world/mind was warped, his father had twisted his perception of strength, right and wrong, and of women

He idolized the the perverse part of himself and stifled the innocent part

Carl never quite understood how he had both this disdain for women but also this wish to understand them, to have one care for him

Perhaps you were the answer to that wish

Having shown him the sort of empathy and compassion and protection he had wished for as a child

Unfortunately whether Carl stays in the coma or wakes up, there isn’t a possibility for a traditional happy ending

If he remains in the coma, you visit him regularly, when you enter his mind for a visit he’s always pleased to see you, but when you can’t you sit by his bed, holding his hand and talk to him

If he wakes from his coma, you do your best to support him but he’ll have to face the consequences for his actions… depending on the sentencing you visit him whenever possible… but for both of you it’s never enough. He’ll write to you, long letters, and always looks forward to your replies

He’ll miss getting to hold and touch you, but absolutely appreciates how you’ve stuck by him

Similar to the actual ending, you adopt Carl’s dog, giving him updates on how the dog is doing, showing him pictures

[starscelly]

a pleasure to ask more about the flying stars, i love hearing about it! 💚 i love the imagery of them with a long list of names they are debating for their band with only slightly mild hysteria of being up too late whether on some bighuge whiteboard or on a notes app like a baby names list before throwing their hands up, throwing a (hopefully metaphorical!) dart and introducing themselves as a different name every other night and taking audience feedback (getting a crowd of twenty something people to shout out if they prefer shooting stars or seeing stars) i think its so funny that they only realize that roope and robo go absolutely wild after they start performing 😭 five injured, microphone dead, still waiting for the crowd to pass robo back to them, divine inspiration struck for their band name at a show under an overpass and they still gotta pack their gear back up! i know you mention players as staff or assistance or a friend but are there other players involved in the scene? could be performing, could be a fan!

DEEPLY SORRY I LEFT THIS IN MY INBOX FOR SOO LONG.... forgive me. i love discussing the boys i just take forever to ruminate on my thoughts for them <3 i hope the long ass answer makes up for it omg

and oh yes at one point when theyre still figuring out the name they for Sure just start running a bit before shows "WE'RE THE [mumble unintelligible grumbling] STARS!" "hope you're excited to see the [WET COUGH] stars!" "... and with our dearest otter on the drums, WE are YOUR [loud clanging and banging from drumset] STARS!"

also hello "still waiting for the crowd to pass robo back to them" is so funny and so true. he's lost a shoe and ty is trying to drag him back to the stage but somebody has like a death grip on him and onstage otter and roope are frantically looking for something to write the name down with before they forget (miro wrote it in his notes app like the second one of them said it but he's staying quiet about it)

AND YES SO. delly harls are strictly Helping Out. delly by virtue of being otter's best friend/roommate BUT harls was like Into the punk scene!!! and really liked their sound (definitely NOTHING to do with any looks........) and befriended del who introduced him to the band etc etc so he was a fan turned roadie!

and wyatt DOES help run their merch table but he is ALSO a guitarist and singer . his stuff leans a little more like. indie rock than Heavier Punk like the flying stars play but he's a Friend of the Band (dating delly and always at his and otter's apartment because he's renting a room in Normal Dude joe pavelski's family home and is NOT bringing his boyfriend back there) and to seem more Professional they just have him perform as an opener ! because he is very good! though he honestly just ends up playing acoustic covers of popular punk/emo songs half the time the crowds are very endeared by his boyish swag.

i have ALSOOO played with the idea of him eventually Gaining Bandmates. which would probably end up being stank mav and nils! but i just havent fully decided their like. Instruments. i think one of them on keyboard would be kinda fun but grain of salt lol. i also want lian in here somewhere but i need him to get nhl time/more ahl time before i can flesh out those vibes.

AND I DONT THINK I EVER TALKED ABOUT THIS IM JUST REALIZING???? BUT MENTOR BAND!!!! disbanded mentor band but well. they all were fans of [insert tbd band name here actually maybe this is why i never talked about it] who were like. kinda on the cusp of fame? like were probably one album away from Making It before everything kinda crashed down. and it consisted of segs (vocals), klinger (guitar), esa (bass), bish (drums). their breakup was kinda messy and somewhat rooted in like. the very anti sellout culture of punk. to summarize it with like Minimal Detail (bc i would love to make a whole Thing abt it lowkey):

klinger out of nowhere is like. i have to go. there's better opportunities for me in california i know it (which was a Fucking Lie there was Drama with their manager but he didnt know how to or really want to articulate it and just wanted to get far away and his best offer was coming from california) which obviously everyone in the band IMMEDIATELY jumped on him like. what the fuck youre such a sellout we started this band as friends and youre leaving us for better opportunities?? in fucking california?? they were also all already like. on edge and stressed from the level of fame they were starting to get. so it was messy. and then him and esa had a messy breakup ofc. they're all cordial now but it lead to the immediate disbanding of the. band. because esa and tyler wanted to bring in other guitarists but bish refused to play with randos he wanted to play with his FRIENDS and it just. never worked out. so now esa tyler bish (and sometimes klinger when hes in town but . he tries to avoid being in town) spend their days working relatively normal ass jobs and going to flying stars shows and being like Don’t Be Us Don’t Go Sell Out Don’t Run From Feelings. and you know their asses are Listening to that Advice.

^ somehow that was the abbreviated version just trust me

[xfrancisxrowlandx]

@piperallegheny Since the first light of dawn Piper was kept preoccupied with tidying up her shop, mindlessly cleaning every surface and preparing the many appliances inside for another hopefully busy day tomorrow. Although she was fairly accustomed to working in your standard high-stress restaurant environment, the overwhelming tourism in Saintes during her very first week in town made each moment keeping Fennec's running pass by in a blur. She figured it was about time for her to finally take a break from the confines of the confectionary, and allow herself a little fresh air out on the still bustling streets. There was something so soothing about the chaos of community outside. Piper quietly tuned in to the mostly discernible conversations shared between the waves of masses brightly illuminated by the burning evening sky. Her eyes shined like sparklers each time she meandered her way around the town, admiring the colors and smells and of course, the people. Everything and everyone here was so different, so unique. She truly doubted the sights and sounds of Saintes would ever cease to restore that sweet childlike wonder in her heart. With wide eyes Piper felt her foot brake abruptly against something hard and rough, which sent her staggering aimlessly into a poor passerby. "Geez, I'm so sorry, I'm okay! Don't worry!" She swiftly flicked her head to the side to push away a few stray hairs as she stumbled back, taking a moment to assess the kind soul who’d caught her. "Huh. So there's nothing actually holding all those together...? Well, it's alright! I still kinda blame myself, it's not the brick's fault I'm a little clumsy today." She grinned bashfully and shook her head, casually shrugging off her embarrassment before extending a hand out to the man before her. "Thank you for saving me from- well, the ground. I'm Piper by the way! It's great to meet you!" Her voice raised with excitement at the opportunity to use this little mishap as a means to get to know someone new.

"Not technically no," he explained as he walked over and gave the brick a slight tap with his foot. "You see, when trees grow," he gestured to the tree that was growing nearby, a large willow. "The roots will occasionally push up on the bottom of the bricks and make them an uneven step." he explained. "Piper, enchanted," he said as he offered a hand. "I'm Francis," he introduced himself. Sure he could have given a fake name- or hell, even a nickname, but what was the point, people always found out in the end, and a nickname would do nothing but demean him if he was honest. He hated nicknames.

"What brings you to Saintes Piper?" he asked, curious and interested about the influx of new people. Sure he was among them, but he also liked to know what brought the others to their new hometown.

[lucygraysboy]

“haven’t we already established that i’m a rare creature?” billy laughs, glancing up from his phone to smile at lucy gray. a silent thank you for taking him by the arm and ensuring he doesn’t get ran over or something. “yeah, they did.” the whole club saw us make out on the dance floor, but he swallows the words, figuring this minor case of amnesia is a blessing. “which would explain why barb azure is so distant and wary of me. she probably thinks i’m only here to play with your heart for a few days and then go back to new york.” hopefully, barb azure will give him another chance, though, when he proves himself. “oh, please… i’ll set up my camp at the front door before sunrise. of course, i’ll be the first in line.” he might be joking about the camp part, but he’s very much serious about the rest — he won’t miss this show. his calendar might be busy, but this is his priority. lucy gray is his priority. “and don’t forget to text me your flight details, i’ll pick you up from the airport.” billy so desperately wants to go back to how they were before, but at the same time understands that the past is in the past and there’s really no going back. what he can do is focus on creating a better future. “i’m sure you will. god, lucy gray, this is a huge opportunity.” he shyly reaches for her hand, laying his own, palm up, on the empty seat between them and hoping she’ll take it. he’s so proud of her, but can also tell that she’s a little nervous. who wouldn’t be? “sounds like a good idea.” he’s always the most excited to hear her original songs, but she’s got this incredible talent — when she covers other people’s songs, she still finds a way to make them her own. it’s beautiful. “don’t think we’ll get to hear maybe it was memphis again, though?” he wonders aloud, smiling sheepishly. it feels like he’s back in high school and his belly is filled with butterflies, but there’s also a lot of guilt at the bottom of it all — what he did last night, what he did to blair… it’s left a horrible taste in his mouth. he really shouldn’t have acted so fast…

“wow, a dinosaur-kangaroo crossover. first time i’m ever seein’ it.” she giggles a little as she watches him, grabbing his arm to keep him following along. “kissin’? they walked in on us kissin’…” lucy gray repeats, sheepishly staring at the back of the drivers head rest. embarrassing herself letting that sink in and embarrassing that maude ivory caught it. “glad knowin’ my eyes are this powerful.” she manages to smile this time, despite feeling a foreign feeling of not knowing how to feel for the first time of whether she wants to be a mother one day. “yeah, make sure you’re in line first and i don’t think you’ll have trouble gettin’ in.” she’ll make a note to remind him and get the address, all the details in place. “alright, i will do then.” but what about his girlfriend? did he really break up with her this fast? this is why else– save for the other reasons– why lucy gray's strictly calling this a friend date. "i don't yet, but i sure will think of somethin' nice. for my outfit and songs to sing." smiling excitedly, she hopes the new yorkers will love her as much as people down here do. going to new york city will definitely be going out of her comfort zone when she's always been comfortable with southern folk and the atmosphere better, a little unsure and wary about the ones up north and being entirely out of her element– but guesses she'll go in with a smile and charm her way right through. "i might sing an original. actually, i think i'll sing two and then a few covers." so that way it's more tactical. gives people a chance to hear something new and something familiar. "thank you, it feels that way." kindly smiling at him, appreciating he's happy for her but definitely thinking somewhere in the back of her mind how he's moving too fast. wasn't like they weren't parted for a handful of years.

[benayoung]

(choerry's parts) with @bechaerin and @besaem

the axis merger is interesting.

honestly, nayoung doesn't really care; at least not until kim jaekyung starts talking about testing them. then she cares. nayoung always cares when a competition is on the table, especially one that sounds so...dire. maybe jaekyung is just being a bit dramatic to kick all the trainees and staff into gear so they perform at their best, or maybe it really is a sort of life or death scenario, with people potentially losing their jobs if they don't deliver.

nayoung has no plans of failing. she will not be going back home so soon after joining sr media. in some ways, her newness may prove as a hinderance; she hasn't had the same time to train and improve as many of the other trainees here likely have. on the other hand, maybe they'll go easy on her, and give her another chance if she royally fucks this up, since she's new.

then again, she's not really new, is she? she has years of training under her belt, even though it was under a far smaller and far less competent company. she should actually be better and more experienced than half of the trainees here.

even after next gen, she feels like she still has so much to prove. she'll just see this as another opportunity to do just that.

thankfully, her groupmates are perfectly nice and cooperative. they work well together and settle on a song quite quickly, the original performed by a trio as well. nayoung easily takes the lines of the member with a rap part, since neither saem or chaerin are the best at rapping, and then they each decide which part to take between the two remaining with no trouble.

she figures this is a fair and simple way to do it. she wouldn't say she's nervous when it comes time to divide parts among a group now, but after getting in a small altercation over it on next gen, then being called a poor leader for giving herself too many parts the following week, she certainly thinks more about it than she previously would have. that's not necessarily a bad thing, but she's glad that in this case, splitting it is simple. surely those in charge won't find anything to nitpick with them sticking to the same line divisions as the original song.

there will be plenty of other areas to nitpick, though, so they're quick to get to work. honestly, nothing about their chosen song is very difficult, aside from maybe capturing the right energy and making sure they're in sync. it's a little interesting, having saem performing a song that's quite girly, but he wanted to perform a girl group song, and after performing the boys on next gen with a group mostly consisting of...boys, things like this don't faze her anymore.

saem and chaerin let her naturally fall into a leadership role, as she so often does, and they listen to her feedback, which she appreciates. there's no reason for her to get frustrated with them, so she's never cruel, or at least she tries not to be. she thinks they'll do well.

she does have one concern, though: they're just doing a cover. last time she just did a cover in the context of something so important, she was criticized for the lack of creativity. she hopes that won't be the case again. hopefully the quality of their performance will carry them through.

come the day of the performance, nayoung isn't really nervous. she's a little excited to show the new staff at axis labels what she can do. she's been practicing her sweet crazy love persona all day: bubblier than usual, sweet, romantic, cute. it keeps her in the right headspace for the performance, so she can embody the dreamy, bouncy love song they'll be performing.

their music begins, and the lines are split quite evenly between them, as is center time. she thinks they're a well-balanced group, for the most part. chaerin is by far the best singer of them, and nayoung the best rapper, but none of them are bad at dancing, thank god.

nayoung's time to shine (therefore her favorite part) comes at the beginning of the second verse: her small rap part. she struts forward, and tries to mix cute with flirty when she raps:

boy i gather all my feelings of excitement toward you you made my heart race, in the center of it all is you blow kiss on my cherry lips

they finish out the song, and she can't see her teammates, but she feels like she did well enough. she hopes those in charge of judging her this time agree. in the end, all that really matters is her, especially with teammates from other companies.

[chefxrowland]

@piperallegheny Since the first light of dawn Piper was kept preoccupied with tidying up her shop, mindlessly cleaning every surface and preparing the many appliances inside for another hopefully busy day tomorrow. Although she was fairly accustomed to working in your standard high-stress restaurant environment, the overwhelming tourism in Saintes during her very first week in town made each moment keeping Fennec's running pass by in a blur. She figured it was about time for her to finally take a break from the confines of the confectionary, and allow herself a little fresh air out on the still bustling streets. There was something so soothing about the chaos of community outside. Piper quietly tuned in to the mostly discernible conversations shared between the waves of masses brightly illuminated by the burning evening sky. Her eyes shined like sparklers each time she meandered her way around the town, admiring the colors and smells and of course, the people. Everything and everyone here was so different, so unique. She truly doubted the sights and sounds of Saintes would ever cease to restore that sweet childlike wonder in her heart. With wide eyes Piper felt her foot brake abruptly against something hard and rough, which sent her staggering aimlessly into a poor passerby. "Geez, I'm so sorry, I'm okay! Don't worry!" She swiftly flicked her head to the side to push away a few stray hairs as she stumbled back, taking a moment to assess the kind soul who’d caught her. "Huh. So there's nothing actually holding all those together...? Well, it's alright! I still kinda blame myself, it's not the brick's fault I'm a little clumsy today." She grinned bashfully and shook her head, casually shrugging off her embarrassment before extending a hand out to the man before her. "Thank you for saving me from- well, the ground. I'm Piper by the way! It's great to meet you!" Her voice raised with excitement at the opportunity to use this little mishap as a means to get to know someone new.

"Not technically no," he explained as he walked over and gave the brick a slight tap with his foot. "You see, when trees grow," he gestured to the tree that was growing nearby, a large willow. "The roots will occasionally push up on the bottom of the bricks and make them an uneven step." he explained. "Piper, enchanted," he said as he offered a hand. "I'm Francis," he introduced himself. Sure he could have given a fake name- or hell, even a nickname, but what was the point, people always found out in the end, and a nickname would do nothing but demean him if he was honest. He hated nicknames.

"What brings you to Saintes piper?" he asked, curious and interested about the influx of new people. Sure he was among them, but he also liked to know what brought the others to their new hometown.