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kelphero47 · 7 years ago

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The Marvelous Adventures of Echo Zane - Chapter 6

Happy Halloween, my fantastic readers. Hope you enjoy this spooky chapter of TMAoEZ.

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"The boy crept slowly down the hall, thinking he was completely alone-" A voice began in the dark before being cut off by a second.

"Boring..." A smacking followed this drawled statement.

"Shhh!" A third person ordered as the second voice winced.

"Suddenly a bright light appeared from behind him. He turned around to find no one there apart from his sister's doll." The first voice continued giving a long pause.

"How is that even scary?" The second voice came back to interrupt again.

"Covered in blood." The first voice finished doing an exaggerated spooky sounding voice causing two voices to giggle while a third just sighed in disappointment. Before any of them could speak again a light came on behind them illuminating the four kids. They all screamed in fear scrambling to grab onto each other as the light was dropped on the floor. "Hide me, I'm too young to die!"

"Are you okay, friends?" A fifth voice came from near the light source before it moved again to reveal Echo stood in a doorway holding a plate of food and a flashlight. The four kids looked at each other before detangling themselves, "You seem distressed... Are the scary stories going well?" Echo asked curiously as he sat down in the group placing the plate of snacks in the middle of the circle they'd created.

"You could say that." Nelson replied nervously, "Thanks for inviting us over by the way, it's a cool way to celebrate having my casts off."

"Yeah, your room is awesome." Sam smiled as he stuffed a cookie in his mouth.

"It used to be a storage room..." Echo explained as he looked around at the boxes still inhabiting the wall of the room. "However, my brother promised he'd help me buy some decorations for it soon, like a new ceiling lamp."

"That's why it's so dark in here."

"I tried replacing the lightbulb by myself but accidently fell off the ceiling." Echo still remembered Zane scolding him for trying to do it himself and then comforting him when his leg had to be repaired, it still kind of hurt. The group fell into a comfortable silence after that, everyone enjoying the snacks Echo had supplied, that was until they began hearing weird noises coming from outside the door. All five of them sat completely still as a strange dragging sound came from right next to the room and listened as it moved down the hall slowly getting quieter as it went. "What the heck was that?!" Sam whisper yelled as he tried to hide under a blanket.

"Perhaps it was one of the Ninja." Nelson offered hesitantly, clearing not believing that himself.

"Perhaps... We should go and see what it is." Echo stood up slowly as his friends moved to stop him, "If it is something dangerous, it is my job to deal with it. That is what I was I made for." He looked determinedly back at his friends before sliding the door open a crack to stick his head out. The four kids looked between themselves again then at Echo's back, they joined him at the door much to Echo's joy as he slipped quietly into the hallway.

The group tiptoed down the hall in the direction they heard the noise travel. They looked around a corner together to find nothing there, "What do you think it was?" Cam asked quietly as moved from their position to continued searching.

"A ghost?" Tree supplied questioningly as he glanced around, expecting something to happen.

"I hope not, I'm allergic to ghost." Sam hid behind his sister, still underneath his blanket.

"No you're not." Cam sighed at her brother as the group fell into silence again, tiptoeing down the hall.

**Elsewhere on the Bounty**

The Ninja were having their own form of sleepover in the game room where they were spending the night video gaming. Cole, Zane, Nya and Lloyd were playing this round with Kai and Jay trying to be distracting. Despite the distraction Nya ended up winning making her the unbeaten champion of the evening. Lloyd overdramatically flopped onto her shoulder, "Teach me your ways."

"No way!" She laughed as she threw him off making him land on the floor with a bang. "If I did that I wouldn't win anymore."

"That's the point." Lloyd pouted making the other ninja laugh. The green ninja sat up again looking thoughtful, "Wonder how the kids are doing..."

"Echo seemed really excited to have company over." Kai chuckled, "I mean he was as excited as I've ever seen him."

"Maybe I should check on them." Zane went to stand up until his sensors picked up a faint noise coming from the halls. He gestured for the others to stop talking making the noise clearer to him, it sounded like something was being dragged along the floor. The other ninja seemed to have noticed the sound as well as they cast questioning gazes towards the door. The room fell into a tense silence as the noise was accompanied by something akin to growling.

When Zane turned to look at his brothers and sister he saw Jay hiding behind Nya while Lloyd was clutching Kai's arm. Cole caught the white ninja's gaze as he also stood up slowly, conscious of making a sound. The two of them inched towards the door together with Cole taking a defensive stance as the android gripped the side of the door. "PIXAL, can you get a reading on whatever is making that noise?"

'It appears humanoid, yet breathing patterns and movement suggest something slower. Only known comparison in my database would be the fictional creature called a 'zombie'." PIXAL informed as Zane slid open the door to an empty hallway.

"A zombie?"

'Yes, a reanimated human who craves the tastes of human flesh in many of its depictions.'

"Did you just say zombie?" Cole interrupted their discussion as the other ninja joined them in the doorway. Zane nodded making Jay tensed up from behind Nya, the lightning ninja looked ready to faint at any given moment. "There's always the chance it could be something else... Right?" Nya tried encouragingly, before another loud growl from somewhere in the ship. The ninja looked unsure of what to do as they focused their attention on the pitch-black hallway in front of them.

"What about the kids?" Lloyd voiced his concern as he shook like a leaf from behind the red ninja, "What if the zombie got them?"

"Not on my watch." Zane spoke determinedly, "Activate night vision." With that the ice ninja's view of the hall changed from black to tinted green.

"You see anything?" Kai asked.

"Other than the hallway... No." Zane answered, "Let's go." With that he began quietly moving down the hall leaving the others to stand and look at each other. Cole, Kai and Nya moved to go after him with Lloyd being led by the fire ninja. Jay looked uncertain for a moment until he heard the growling again and ended up clinging to Nya like before. "Can I just say I how much I hate this plan." He whisper yelled making Cole scoff.

"What plan?"

**Back with the kids**

"Do you guys hear that?" Nelson stopped the group in their tracks causing an eerie silence to fall upon the hallway. The shuffling noise had returned from earlier and was now accompanied by groaning that echoed lowly through the hall. Both sounds were somehow getting progressively louder as whatever was making them seemed to be drawing nearer. Echo instinctively turned to the room next to them, "Quick hide in here."

He slid the door open and closed it behind them as they entered the Bounty's kitchen. It had plenty of hiding places. The group scattered to hide in various cupboards, high and low, while Echo climbed the wall to press his back to the ceiling. He turned off his flashlight just in time for whatever was making the sounds to begin rattling the door.

Everyone in the room tensed as said door was painstakingly dragged open allowing a shadowed figure to enter the room. It took deliberate yet slow steps into the room as something trailed behind it. It seemed to be observing the room for a moment as it turned a half circle before moving towards the cupboards resting high on the wall above the counter, where Tree had decided to hide. It reached out a hand to open it giving a loud growl like noise which made Tree flinch inside the cupboard.

Without much thought Echo removed himself from the wall to land on the creature. Feeling whatever it was crumple under his weight made him wince, it felt organic. It gave a loud groan as it went it pick itself up, somehow managing to throw Echo off. It then moved for the android catching the other by surprise. Allowing the thing to turn the tables and have Echo pinned to the ground. "Get off me!"

**With the Ninja**

They had reached Echo's room and were looking inside to find the kids missing. "What if the zombie got them?" Jay questioned hastily as the group searched for anything that could tell them where the kids had gone.

"We would have heard something if that were the case." Zane theorised aloud, "As even if one of them were being attacked the others would have tried calling for help."

"Then, where are they?" Cole asked stealing a cookie from the plate set on the floor. "These are so good."

"Thank you, and to answer your question... They are most likely still somewhere on the Bounty."

"Let's go find them then, and whatever's making that noise." Kai stood guard in the hall creating light with the fire in his hand.

"We should-" Lloyd began before a loud bang sound came from the other side of the ship. The Ninja glanced at each other then all headed down the hall to where they heard the noise come from. They could hear the obvious sounds of a scuffle until a clear yell rang out as well, "Get off me!"

'That was Echo.' PIXAL informed Zane as he picked up speed to outrun the others as they turned the corner. The kitchen door was open allowing Zane full view as view two figures on the floor, the one being pinned obviously being his brother. He grabbed the one on top by the shoulder then pulled them none too gently off of Echo. The groan that followed made the ice ninja stop in his tracks...

He knew that voice.

Zane looked at the figure he had just pulled over as they went to sit up, seeming dazed. It was Sensei Wu. The light was finally switched on by Kai allowing everyone to fully view the scene in front of them and for the kids to come out of their hiding places. Everyone was completely silent, allowing a click to be heard as Sam snapped a picture of the scene in front of him.

**The Next Day**

"See you soon!" Echo called from beside the Bounty's railing as his friends left with their respective parents. After the mess last night no one had really slept, which Echo hadn't minded all that much, meaning that everyone was kind of exhausted this morning. Lloyd had nearly fell asleep in his cereal that morning, which allowed him a free pass from early training for the day, while the other ninja were kind of having a contest to see who was going to fall asleep first. Personally, Echo thought Kai was going to win, no offense to his brother but the fire ninja had an unhealthy history of staying up for days on end from what he'd been told.

Sensei Wu had been forgiving despite last night's mishaps. Turns out he had a habit of sleep walking and was in the kitchen to get a snack, which meant they'd have to start padlocking the fridge at night. Zane had apologised profusely when he realised he had accidently attacked his teacher, even go so far as to offer to do more chores to make up for it.

No one wanted to admit to thinking that there was actually a monster on the Bounty but everyone kind of knew what the others were thinking. It was kind of silly really. The only monsters they'd have to worry about were the ones the Ninja fought on a regular, which still wasn't a comforting thought. Especially since the group seemed to be a magnet for trouble.

#ninjago #echo zane #zane julien #oc #ninjago cole #ninjago kai #jay walker #ninjago nya

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artificialqueens · 8 years ago

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Coming Home Chapter 1 (Shalaska) - Jem

Hi friends, it’s Jem and I have finally got this Parent!Shalaska Child!Violet started for you. In this AU, Sharon and Alaska are girlfriends who decide to foster a teenage Violet. Let me know what you think, I’m open to suggestions for characters and plot. (Jinkx will be in this later fyi if you’re wondering why I tagged her)

Tw: mild homophobia

Chapter 1

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Alaska asked her girlfriend, shuffling the stack of pamphlets on their kitchen counter.

There were other options. They could adopt, or one of them could have carried a baby, but Sharon was sure she wanted to do it this way.

“Think about us when we were young, and how much we could have used someone who loved and cared about us. I know I wouldn’t have acted out so much.” It’s unspoken but Alaska knows Sharon means there wouldn’t have been the drugs, the alcohol, the meaningless sex; a pattern they both fell into after the world tried to tell them they weren’t good enough.

“And what if we can’t help them?” Alaska asked genuinely.

“We do our best, and that’s all we can do. That’s all any parent can do.”

Alaska was quiet for a moment, thinking. Sharon had a point there. The responsibility was scary, especially knowing that this child might not come from a nice past, but it was a responsibility every parent had to take on. She tapped her long nails against the granite, creating a gentle rhythm, and looked down to the stack of papers once again.

Make a difference in a child’s life

That was the text written on the front of one of the pamphlets, surrounded by a children’s crayon drawing of a child and two parents.

“Tell me you don’t feel connected to these kids. Tell me that you don’t want to try to give one of them a life full of love, a life they deserve.” Sharon tried to convince her girlfriend, placing a hand on hers to stop the anxious nail tapping.

Alaska turned to meet Sharon’s eyes again, finally still. “You’re right.”

“Of course I’m right, I’m always right.” Sharon’s face broke into a smile, and she turned toward Alaska to grab her face and kiss her.

——-

There were months of preparation beforehand. Social workers came to check out the apartment, making sure it was safe and fit for a child. Sharon and Alaska had reorganized the guest bedroom, which used to be Alaska’s art studio. Instead, they moved her things into a small rented space next door that was perfect for her practice.

And then there was the paperwork, pages and pages of it. Financial checks, criminal record checks, and an assessment of their relationship and past. It was all worth it though. The social workers, as a final step in the process, interviewed Sharon and Alaska at their home.

“And you would be taking care of the child together?” The social worker asked them. She was a woman in her forties who seemed quite kind. They were all sat around the living room coffee table, and Sharon and Alaska were trying not to be nervous.

“Yes.” Sharon answered, squeezing Alaska’s hand reassuringly. The blonde gave her a gentle smile in return.

“It’s so sweet to see best friends fostering together. It can be a daunting task to do alone.” The woman looked down to write something down on her clipboard.

Sharon was shocked for a moment. She began to shake, and she looked like she might yell at the lady. Alaska whispered to her to stay calm.

“We’re partners, actually.” Alaska said sweetly as Sharon fumed beside her. They’d filled out the paperwork stating as much.

“Oh.” The woman stated bluntly. “I apologize.” She scratched out whatever she had previously recorded.

Sharon and Alaska were going to be ok leaving it at that, but the woman opened her mouth to speak again.

“I’m going to need to ask you some more questions then.” She began. “Can you tell me how long you’ve been together?

“It’s in our file.” Sharon said with disbelief. She was going to continue but Alaska stopped her.

“Three years.” She answered the woman, shooting Sharon a pointed look that said ‘be nice’.

“And what is the nature of your relationship?” The woman scribbled on her clipboard.

“The nature of our relationship? We have been dating for three years, and we were friends long before that.” Sharon was getting riled up. “Everything is in our file, how long we’ve been together, the stability of our relationship… It’s all been cleared already.”

“And you have been,” the woman coughed. “Sexually intimate in the time you’ve been together?”

Sharon looked ready to snap.

“I feel like that’s a personal question.” Alaska said firmly, frowning.

“I’m just concerned about the influence this relationship might have on the child.” The woman tried to explain herself.

“The influence this relationship will have on the child will be the love, and kindness, and support that we share with each other. Our living situation has been assessed and cleared, as have our finances. Unfortunately for you blatant homophobia isn’t a legal reason to deny us when we have been cleared by your office on all fronts, and yes, that includes our relationship.” Alaska explained to her, ready to defend their right to be not only foster parents, but to raise children at all.

“I wasn’t trying to overstep.” The woman defended herself, but it was obvious they’d knocked her down a notch.

“Of course not.” Sharon said coldly, staying calm. She was proud of Alaska for speaking up. She was usually so collected that it was rare to see her snap back.

“I’ll need to you sign here.” The worker slid a sheet of paper towards them, which they signed quickly, and she stood up to leave. “I’ll be in touch.”

——–

It was another week before they got the file on the child they would be taking in. The amount of time they would need to care for the kid was undetermined, but it was expected to be at least a year.

The forms described him as Jason Dardo; he was 15 years of age and had been in the system for 6 years. His father had been out the picture for 12 years and his mother was an addict who’d been sent to prison. From there, he’d passed through several homes but had been removed from each one either because he was unfit for the family or because they’d mistreated him. He was in need of a stable family without other children who could support him while he finished high school.

“A teenager Sharon? What do we know about teenagers?” Alaska immediately felt the anxiety rise in her chest as she read about the boy’s age.

“We knew this was a possibility, that we might get a child of any age.” Sharon reminded her girlfriend from her spot on the couch next to her.

“Of course I knew that, I just thought-

"You just thought what?” Sharon challenged.

“I’m scared Sharon.” Alaska admitted. “I don’t want to mess this up.” It was unspoken that she didn’t want to mess the kid up like their own parents had done to them. A teenager brought years of ingrained trauma and angst that they might not be able to fix. It wasn’t like she’d love or support him any less than an infant; she was just fucking terrified.

“Me too, baby. But I know we can do this.” Sharon wrapped an arm around Alaska’s bony shoulders, squeezing her into her side.

“Our teens were our hardest years.” Alaska said quietly. She wasn’t trying to be difficult. She could just remember the isolation, the acting out, the mental illness that had hit them both like a truck in their youth. And it had been partially because of their own fucking parents.

“And what better reason to give someone in a similar situation to ours a loving family?” Sharon asked. “We’re not like our parents, Alaska. We’re not. We’re going to love this kid.”

Their parents had loved them too. Hell, that’s why half the shit that went down had happened.

Alaska decided to keep her mouth shut about that and just cuddled closer into Sharon’s side.

——

“Ladies, this is Jason.” Jason’s social worker entered the office followed closely by the skinny teen. He had shoulder length black hair, piercing eyes, and a large pout.

“You know I hate being called that.” The teenager protested, obviously not shy in speaking up.

“Sorry, this is Violet.” The social worker corrected herself.

Sharon and Alaska stood up from their seats at the desk to properly greet their new foster child.

“Hi Violet, my name’s Alaska.” Alaska drawled, smiling sweetly. She held out a manicured hand for the teen to shake.

“And I’m Sharon.”

“Ja- Violet, these are your new foster parents.”

——-

Violet was quiet the majority of the ride home, but both Sharon and Alaska did their best to engage the teen in conversation.

“I hope you’re going to enjoy your time with us, Violet.” Sharon began, glancing in the rear view mirror from her spot in the passenger’s seat.

“We’re really excited to have you staying with us.” Alaska added, smiling, and it was genuine. “We’ve got a room set up for you, but you can decorate it however you’d like.”

“Yeah, once you’ve settled in, we’d be happy to take you shopping so that you can make your room feel a bit more like home. You can get some posters, pillows, Christmas lights, whatever the kids like these days.” Sharon chuckled.

“But if it’s Halloween decorations that you want, we probably don’t even have to go to the store. Sharon’s got enough of those just hanging around.”

“Hush now, dear, don’t scare Violet before we’re even home.” Sharon turned around in her spot to look at Violet. “I love all things spooky, but I’m really nice.” The teen relaxed a bit after that, becoming comfortable in the playful banter, but still remained quiet.

“"I know we already did introductions Violet, but I wanted to ask what pronouns you’d like us to use.” Sharon asked casually after a moment. “Both me and Alaska go by she/her.”

“Oh.” Violet was a bit surprised but masked it with nonchalance. “I don’t really mind whatever, but I guess she/her/hers is the best.”

“Sounds good.” Alaska said, giving Violet another big smile.

This was a big deal. Violet had never been with parents who’d bothered to ask for pronouns, let alone use her preferred name without a question. She didn’t want to get her hopes up yet though, she’d been with too many shitty families to expect this to be perfect. Sharon and Alaska seemed cool, and they were obviously open minded, but she knew to take it slow.

They arrived at the apartment about 15 minutes later and it was in a neighbourhood Violet had never visited before. Sharon carried her one small suitcase up the stairs to the 2nd floor and Alaska fumbled to find her keys once they were outside the door. Violet could see she wasn’t the only one who was nervous, both her new foster parents were a bit shaky and seemed anxious. She hoped that was a good sign.

“Here we are.” Alaska spoke as she managed to get the lock open. Sharon stepped inside to put Violet’s bag down and she flicked on the lights. The apartment was small but modern, with a full kitchen and living room that Violet could observe from the doorway.

“You can come in.” Alaska’s voice interrupted her thoughts, and once again Violet was greeted with a warm smile from the blonde woman. She stepped inside, and Sharon took her coat to hang it in the closet by the front entrance. Alaska took her on a tour of the small, but comfortable, space. There was the kitchen, the living room with a flat screen tv and a sofa, two bathrooms, and two bedrooms.

“This is your room.” Alaska said as she pushed open the door on the left of the hallway and led Violet inside. The walls of the room were a soft blue, and the floor was made out of dark wood. The decor was plain, but there was a desk, many lamps, and a twin bed with sensibly patterned sheets. There was also a walk-in closet.

“Do you like it?” Violet was startled by Sharon’s voice sneaking up from behind her.

“I do.” She answered honestly. “It’s beautiful.”

She didn’t want to jump the gun, because she knew this was still so new, but Violet felt like this might just work

#coming home #jem #alaska thunderfuck #sharon needles #violet chachki #shalaska #hurt/comfort #parent #child #tw homophobia #rpdr fanfiction #submission #lesbian au #adoption au #foster child au

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