#pinned post just in case people plan on leaving this place behind but want to stay in touch elsewhere

[lae-zels]

🎮 steam: lae'zels chew toy ☕ ko-fi: okayolek 🔵 okayolek.bsky.social 💻 discord: okayolek

[aemondloverr]

𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙄𝙄𝙄 𝙏𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚𝙧…? 🤔

Masterlist <3 Taglist

❆ • ❆ • ❆ • ❆

“Could you brush my hair...? Style it perhaps, the Northern way?”

You want to dress the traditional style of their people if you want them to have a reason to favor you.

Sara grins and nods quickly, already reaching for the brush on the nearby table.

"Of course, Princess. I'd be honored to style your hair. Just have a seat, and I'll have you looking Northern in no time!”

You take a seat on the chair in front of the vanity, and Sara moves behind you. She gently runs the brush through your hair, as she gathers sections, braiding and twisting it in a traditional Northern style.

Sara hums gently as she works, her fingers moving with practiced ease as she styles your hair. Every now and then, she glances up to study her work in the mirror, making sure the braids and knots are in their rightful places.

"You have very lovely hair, Princess. It's a pleasure to style it."

“Thank you it looks lovely Sara.”

She finishes the last braid and gives it a final twist, securing it in place with a small pin. She steps back, a satisfied smile on her face as she admires her work. She glances at your reflection in the mirror, her eyes sparkling with pride and satisfaction.

"There. All done, Princess. You look like a proper Northerner now!"

You stand from, pleased with the finished product, smiling ear to ear.

Sara takes a step back, her eyes sweeping over you from head to toe, taking in your now-styled hair and laced corset.

"Absolutely gorgeous," she murmurs, her tone filled with approval and appreciation.

She can't help but smile back at your radiant expression, feeling very satisfied with her contribution to your appearance. However, a knowing sparkle in her eye betrays the fact that she's just dying to ask...

"May I ask who it is you're getting all dolled up for, Princess?"

Of course she’s caught on.

“Dolled up? Why this is quite casual, is it not?” You get up, crossing the room to put on the pelts to large, given to you by Cregan the previous night.

Sara giggles and rolls her eyes, unable to hide her knowing smile. She follows you across the room as you move to don the pelts, her eyebrow raised in slight suspicion.

"Oh, of course. I can definitely see how getting your hair braided and fussing over a corset can be 'quite casual,' How silly of me Princess!”

“Oh quiet about him. I’d just like to be presentable, in case townspeople see me…”

It’s quite an obvious lie

Sara is clearly not convinced by your flimsy excuse, but decides to tease you a bit more anyway.

"And does this have anything to do with the fact that Cregan is waiting outside, looking oh so impatient to see you?"

Right on the money

“No…A Princess should look the part at all times, is all…”

"Of course, Princess...”

“Id planned this outfit before I came North. So yes it’s pure coincidence.”

No royal ever packs their own bags so clearly, another lie.

She looks you up and down one more time, taking in the complete picture of you in your Northern-style hair, corset, and pelts.

"Well, I'll admit, Princess, you look absolutely stunning. I don't think Cregan will be able to keep his eyes off you." She winks playfully, laughing at the heat creeping onto your cheeks.

“Sara Shh!! He’s right outside the door!!”

❆ • ❆ • ❆ • ❆

A/N: last post before I disappear for a bit 😔 wanted to leave you guys with a teaser instead of just the 2nd chapter. I know it's not much but it's what I could do with the time I had!

And yes. The spice is coming. In chapter 5 or so. I promise. Patience.

Part 3

@beebeechaos @iv-vee @aemondwhoresworld @6ternalsun @obscure-beauty @cregansfourthwife @msmarvelknight @littlebirdgot @kingdomzeldaquest @squidscottjeans @jellybeanstacey0519 @r-3dlips @fakem0net @shiggynuggiez @deemee3 @melsunshine @lipgloss05 @cherryheairt @lovevouuu @darlingcharling-blog

[karatekels]

Disorderly Conduct - Chapter 2

Sorry this is late, everyone (though technically, me being aaaaall the way on the West Coast means this is still posted on Day 4!) - I've got some unfortunate family stuff that's possibly going to impede my ability to write. But we will soldier on!

Previous Parts:

Part 1

TW: (This chapter) Police corruption, violence

---

Chapter 2 - Reconnaissance:

---

You grimace as you experiment with your movements; you hated the feeling of wearing a wire taped to your skin. Fortunately, you’ve elected to wear baggy clothes, different from the prim, proper, more form-fitting clothing that people were used to seeing you in, so at least you weren’t restricted by your movements and could (hopefully) adjust the hidden camera and microphone as needed. The platinum blonde wig may be overkill, but you aren’t willing to risk being recognized prematurely.

You were going to figure out what that arrogant, dismissive son-of-a-bitch was up to, before the bastard got himself killed.

You pull up your hood, completing your disguise, and get into your rental car. It was the first of your scheduled days off, and after they ran out you had booked off a week’s vacation, just to be safe. You know that Cash is jumpy and paranoid these days, and you don’t know how long it’ll take for you to find out what he’s up to; you have to move slowly, and you can’t risk spooking him.

You aren’t taking any chances.

You’ve been feeling this strange sense of guilt-ridden giddiness since you started plotting how to do this, going behind the Chief’s back – behind anyone in a position of authority’s back, you think – for the first time in your life.

Ideally, you’d just catch Cash in the act or planning on doing something stupid and then nagging him until he agreed to get his shit together. The recording devices strapped to your body, peeking out from a couple of the button-holes in your shirt, they were just a contingency plan. You weren’t past snitching if it kept the jack-ass alive.

The first several days are simple reconnaissance.

In other words, you sat in the rental car with its tinted windows, your binoculars, and a stash of food, waiting for Cash’s silver pick-up to drive by, leaving the busier part of the city for the backroads. You’d follow him with your binoculars until you couldn’t see the truck anymore, then relocate to that area, slowly inching your way closer to… wherever it was that he was spending all of his time.

On the fourth day, you watch the truck turn down an isolated driveway, waiting awhile until it seemed safe to slowly drive past, looking at the dilapidated building over your shoulder. You make note of the address on the faded mailbox, heading home the long way, doubling back to make sure you weren’t followed.

You take the rental car to the strip mall across the street from the precinct, waiting until you see Cash show up for his night shift. Once he does, you call a cab, getting it to drop you off just down the road from where Cash had been holed up – you couldn’t very well leave a car nearby.

Creeping along the treeline, you don’t see or hear any sign of life in the old house and decide to cautiously approach. Doing a quick perimeter check, you predictably don’t find any points of entry that are accessible.

You’ll have to break in. Fortunately, you were prepared for this sort of thing. Sliding a spare bobby pin out from under your wig, you pick the lock to the front door quickly, slipping inside and re-locking the door behind you.

You’re limiting yourself to using a flashlight rather than risking switching any of the lights on; you didn’t know if Cash had anyone watching the premises, and even though the windows were almost completely boarded up, you didn’t want to risk any light seeping through and alerting somebody to your presence on the property.

The place is a wreck, somehow managing to be both destitute and slovenly. Still, you do your best to case the joint, looking for any sign of what he might be up to, but the place yields no information whatsoever. It’s a simple, one storey rancher, comprised of a kitchen, a small sitting room, a bathroom, a bedroom and a storage room.

What the hell could Cash possibly be doing, spending all his free time in this dump? It certainly wasn’t renovations.

As if on cue, you hear tires on gravel outside, the glow of headlights casting shadows through the wooden planks covering the windows. Peeking out, you recognize Cash’s truck.

Oh, fuck.

Trying not to panic, you dive through the French doors into the storage room, figuring it was the one he was least likely to use, trying to blend in with the random furniture and other assorted crap tossed in here. The doors had been closed when you’d arrived, and you shut them now, grateful for the barrier between you.

The front door opens, and a hazy light comes on in the kitchen. You hear the clinking of bottles being put in the fridge, but Cash is otherwise quiet. He had always moved quietly, despite being such a large person.

Keeping one eye looking through the boarded up doors, you quickly check the time on your flip phone. It wasn’t even two in the morning; his shift shouldn’t have ended until four. What the hell was he doing here?

His own cell goes off, and he answers it before the second ring ends. You press the buttons on your microphone and camera to start recording, just in case; you hope the former doesn’t pick up the thudding of your heart.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I just got to the house. Thanks for the cover. Good thing there are so many B&Es these days – plenty of opportunities to disappear for a few hours for investigation.”

Cash chuckles at something the caller says, and his long shadow comes into view before he himself does. The sight of his handsome profile, even partly obscured by the wooden planks, sets your heart off. You know that he will be very, very angry if he finds you here, and you didn’t even know what he was up to yet.

“I’m telling you, the place is deserted; not another house for at least a mile in either direction. When I came by earlier today there was one car that drove past. In three hours! It’s the perfect place for the drop.”

You’re fairly certain that it had been your car that he’d seen, and that piece of news makes you feel justified in all of your over-the-top decisions. The rental car, the disguise… you have no doubt Cash would have recognized your car had it driven past, and you’re relieved you took the precautions you had.

“The guy said he’d drop it off in the next 48 hours; I’ll get a call when he’s got a time nailed down. I’ve got the stuff here to weigh and repackage, and then Ray’ll take it to his connection to get it distributed. Once we cut the guy in, we should be making out with 20 grand each, easy. And no one will know about the swap; it’s not like anyone’s testing the drugs once they make it into evidence.”

Well, that sounded an awful lot like he was dealing drugs, however indirectly. And it sounded like more than one other officer was in on it.

“Well, let me know if you hear anything while you’re on duty. Bye.”

There’s a bitter taste of disappointment and anger in your mouth. Cash, a dirty cop? Before his suspension, you would have found the idea completely unfathomable. Now he was stealing drugs from evidence to sell on the street?

You’re almost upset that you’re here, recording this. You’d have to turn him in now – it was your job.

You had been way off in your suspicions about what Cash had been up to; he hadn’t been planning to redeem himself for whatever the hell he’d done last year, but was instead doubling down.

Had he been lying to you the whole time you’d known him? Had you ever actually known him? Or was this just a result of the suspension? Had it messed him up so badly that all sense of duty had abandoned him?

You’re not sure you want the answer.

What you do want is to get the hell out of here, pronto. You’d thought that Cash would be mad if he caught you when you thought he was up to something self-sacrificing, and shudder to think of what he might do if he found you here now.

The idea makes you shudder so hard, in fact, that you jostle one of the knick-knacks off of the shelf you’re crouched against, and it shatters when it hits the floor.

You fight the urge to close your eyes and go to your “happy place”.

There’s a prolonged silence, and then Cash comes around the corner again, this time wearing a ski mask that conceals his face. Well, except for his eyes. His eyes are darting about as he takes in the darkness, a hand on the holster at his hip.

You don’t have your firearm with you; you hadn’t imagined it would be necessary for your well-intentioned intervention.

Before the suspension, Cash had never scared you, despite his size and his ability to go from goofy to intimidating at the drop of a hat. It had come in handy in interrogations, but you’d never had it directed at you.

Since returning from his suspension, his goofy demeanour had disappeared, and you mostly saw him silently brooding around the precinct, but even then you’d still felt confident that he was on your side.

Looking at him now though, as he approaches the doors that you’re hiding behind, you are seeing him for what he is: a terrifying, unpredictable giant of a man, armed (and very capable with a weapon, you knew), and with quite a skewed moral compass, if his prior conversation had been anything to go by.

He opens the doors suddenly, as if to catch you by surprise, and you don’t move.

You don’t even blink.

You watch as his piercing blue eyes scan the room, thankfully leaving the light off – that meant you had a sliver of hope that you wouldn’t be spotted.

But you have no doubt that he’ll be thorough in the search, and you know you’ll have to take any chance you can, the moment you see an opening.

He bends to examine the broken teacup on the ground, and you make your move.

Adrenaline surging through you, you run towards him, bringing your knee up to his nose. Having taken him by surprise, you make contact, and he drops to his knees to clutch at his face with a pained scream, giving you the opportunity to hurtle past him and make for the door.

You only have to get down the hall, to the kitchen. You don’t know what you’ll do once you make it outside, but you’ll cross that bridge when you come to it.

Unfortunately, you never do.

A large hand closes around your ankle as you move to run away, pulling you back in one sharp motion that has you falling down flat, twinging your wrists as you hit the ground hard. You try to kick back with your free leg with a yell, but he’s suddenly on top of you, using his weight to pin you down. The air is knocked right out of you, and you can’t speak.

“Cash,” you choke out, trying to push out any remaining breath in you to help you say his name, but nothing comes out. “Cash!” you huff out desperately, but he doesn’t hear you.

“You picked the wrong house to break into, sweetheart,” he growls, a hand shoving your head down onto the hardwood roughly. He grips your hood, and the hair beneath it, intent on pulling your head back and slamming it back down again, but as he tugs something feels off to him, and he freezes.

The gentle way that he pulls your hood down off your head stands in stark contrast to the rest of the situation, and as he tangles his hand in the cheap strands of fake blonde hair, pulling the wig off of your head, he lets out a sharp intake of breath.

Were the situation completely different, you might find yourself flattered by how quickly he recognizes you just from the back of your head alone. As it stands, you’re just hoping that maybe, by some miracle, he decides that the fact that it’s you means something to him.

Lifting his weight off of you slightly, he rolls you over as you gasp, your body’s sole focus on getting its much-needed oxygen. You stare deeply into his eyes, the only part of him not concealed by the mask, and you lose track of how many emotions you see flit across his face through those icy blue orbs as he stares down at you: anger, guilt, confusion, regret, sadness… He seems to settle on anger, glaring at your teary, red face like it offended him somehow.

“Fuck.”

That’s the only thing he says, the word coming out as a hiss, before you feel a gloved hand come up to your neck, finding the pressure point there just as you’d both been trained to do, and you quickly feel yourself start to lose consciousness.

‘Fuck’ is right, you think to yourself as your world fades to black.

---

Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

[gale-gentlepenguin]

ML Fic: Soulmate Survey Part 35

(Master post)

(Insert excuse on why it took so long) (Insert comedic joke on why I didn't update sooner) (plea of trying better) (Heartfelt compliment on why all of you are awesome and patient)

Okay so now that we got that out of the way. But in all seriousness. Thanks for your patience and I hope you enjoy.

If you do enjoy the fic, please Comment and reblog. Reblogs are like Gold on Tumblr and being a writer and posting to Tumblr is difficult. So every little bit helps.

Alright so now lets get to it.

_____________________________________________________________

The nurse heard the commotion going on in the halls. She knew that shortly after Chloé left, things outside the office became… restless. She turned off all the lights and locked the door to the nurse’s office. She did her best to stay quiet and not draw attention to the room. She knew those akuma were out there and she needed to focus on stabilizing her patient.

“I hope that Chloé managed to get that message out.” The nurse whispered to herself.

The woman felt weird pinning her hopes of escaping this place on a spoiled teenager, but at this point, beggars can’t be choosers.

She heard someone approach the door. The nurse felt her blood turn to ice. She refused to move a single inch. She hoped and prayed that the person would go away. She could hear the screams of students outside. She knew the akuma, whoever they were, were out there, and they were taking anyone they could find. Right now, all she could do was pray they don’t check.

“Please… for all that is good… let them leave.” She prayed under her breath.

After what felt like an eternity, she heard the sound of footsteps away from the door and everything returned to eerie silence.

She felt her essence sigh in relief.

She got up from the ground and went to go attend to the unconscious woman in the cot.

“Its strange for someone so young to be so exhausted… but then again, when I get into the line of work I am hoping for, it is likely I will be seeing a lot of cases like this.” Angela joked, trying to keep herself in good spirits. “Society is such a mess.”

Angela checked Nathalie’s pulse. It was present, but it felt off. It was weaker than she was expecting from someone of her age. Perhaps she has a much more serious medical condition. Angela would probably recommend that this woman see a professional when this is all said and done. Though for now, she was stable and calm, which was a very good sign.

The nurse considered that maybe she wasn’t getting an accurate reading, was something off with the assistant’s breathing? She would need to check. The nurse grabbed a stethoscope and moved closer, getting ready to check again.

“Ow!” She yelped as she felt something grab her arm. Nathalie had awaken and she had a firm grip on the woman's wrist.

“What are you doing!?” The surprised assistant exclaimed

“You're awake!? Oh, thank goodness.”

“Awake?”

“Yes, you passed out at a most stressful time. Right now, I recommend we keep our voices down.” The nurse hushed.

‘S***’

Nathalie mentally cursed to herself. She knew it had to be Masquerade. Her little episode resulted in her being far too late to get in and out without issue. She was planning on getting Adrien out of here before things went south.

She got up from the cot she had been laying in.

“Hold on a second.” Angela called out. “You need to stay and rest. I am glad you are conscious. But that sudden fainting spell could be indicative of…”

Nathalie did not have time for this. She gave an ice-cold glare at the nurse.

“If you intend on making me stay here, you will need to do so by force!”

The nurse felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. This woman’s eyes clearly showed intent on fighting. Angela was not a fighter, she helped people, not hurt them.

“You are my patient, and there is a lot of danger outside. You are in no condition to go out there.”

Nathalie had to respect the woman’s guts for standing up to her, despite the nurse’s knees shaking as she maintained eye contact.

“Okay, so how will we deal with the akuma breaking in then.”

“What!”

Angela turned her back to Nathalie, who took full advantage, giving the school nurse a fierce chop to the neck. Causing the nurse to drop like a sack of potatoes.

“Rest up.”

Nathalie put the nurse in the cot that she had previously been resting in.

“Seems I don’t have time to be subtle. Duusu.”

The blue Kwami popped out.

“Nathalie! Do you want to play?”

“Yes Duusu, the game is find Adrien and get out of here.”

“Horray!”

“Duusu! Spread my feathers!”

_____________________________________________________________

“Get down!” Ladybug dived into Chat noir, helping them both avoid the pause symbols and deadly bubbles headed their way. The akuma on both sides of them managed to avoid the incoming attacks they had sent towards the heroes.

“Thanks LB.” Chat noir thanked. “While you are the second person I want to be dancing with. We can't keep dodging forever. Even if their moves are predictable. Maybe those masks are the key to stopping them."

“Hardly a dance, its ettiquette for the boy to lead if it is. And I don't think so. Those masks appear to be unbreakable and impossible to remove” Ladybug said as she pulled her partner quickly back up, both noticing the akuma were ready for more.

“We still haven’t tried cataclysm.” Chat noir comments as he runs and jumps over a trashcan to avoid getting nailed by Bubbler’s attack bubbles.

“Right, but that would leave you exposed. Call it a hunch, but we will need to save it for later.” Ladybug responds as she jumps away and opens a door to block several pause symbols. "Besides, do you want to be mask-less at this Akuma calamity?"

“I was going to say it was more like a Masquerade ball. And no I would not."

Ladybug rolled her eyes at the lame joke, but still had a bit of a smile. Lightening the mood.

"Silly kitty"

"But seriously, we need a plan. If we can’t free them, what can we do?”

Ladybug focused for a moment. She noticed the way they were attacking, it was predictable and slow. Normally the akuma change up their attacks, or at least seem more aware of what the heroes are doing. The akuma were acting a lot more like controlled puppets. Much like when she had to deal with Puppeteer. Seems this akuma had some drawbacks that could be exploited. This was where Ladybug realized there was a way to deal with them.

“We disarm them. Break Bubbler’s wand and I will terminate Lady Wifi’s phone plan. Their reflexes are way more sluggish than usual. My bet is that having so many servants is starting to have a drain on the effectiveness of her forces. We just need to act quick.”

“Alright, sounds good to me.”

“On my mark we charge.”

Ladybug kept an eye on both akuma, after they sent a flurry of attack, they would usually have to take a moment to recharge. Bubbler would need to dip his wand back into his bubble pack and Lady wifi would have her hand cramp after sending 10 swipe symbols and would need to pull her hand back.

“Now!”

Chat noir and Ladybug both pounced at the two akuma, moving fast enough that their foes couldn’t retaliate as the heroes swiped the weapons from their respective wielders.

“Sorry to burst your bubble.” Chat noir joked as he snapped the bubble wand.

“And you’ve reached your data limit for the month.” Ladybug chimed in as she crushed Lady Wifi’s phone.

Both akuma began swinging their fists at the heroes, trying to turn the fight into a bare-knuckle brawl. But Ladybug’s assessment was correct, their attacks were too predictable. Ladybug caught Lady Wifi’s fist and flipped her over her shoulder to the ground.

Chat noir ducked under bubbler’s punch and slipped behind him. The cat used his staff to swipe at the feet of the forward moving akuma and knocked him mask first onto the floor.

“Alright, their disarmed. Now what?”

“Move him over here.”

Chat noir picks up the akuma by his bubble pack and throws him over to ladybug like a curling stone.Ladybug uses her yo-yo to tie the two dazed akuma back to back.

“Let’s put them somewhere where they won’t cause any trouble.”

_____________________________________________________________

“Next!” Masquerade called out in annoyance.

She had gotten her akuma servants to capture as many teachers and students as possible. She had the element of surprise and with the amount of akuma she had at her disposal, it was easy to capture several. Though she figured none would escape and cause panic, Timebreaker was guarding the parameter and kept her informed of any people she ‘Tagged’. Horrificator finished sealing all of the exits so no one would be able to come in or out.

She figured there was a good chance for adding more akuma to her rank. The problem was, most of the akuma sucked. She ended up developing a system for them. If they turned out to have no useful ability, she would humiliate them, have reflekta turn her into replicas of herself and then have Princess Frangrance spray the rejects to turn into obedient servants, this way she had something useful out of them. Make them get snacks or whatever. There were multiple uses for mind-controlled students and teachers. So far, she didn’t find a single one worthy of her time.

“I SAID NEXT!” Masquerade shouted louder.

Masquerade sized up the black-haired girl that one of the Reflekta duplicates had pushed forward. She recognized the shy smile from television. She was one of the weather girls on the KIDZ+ network. That was a contest Lila would have KILLED to have been a part of. She mentally told herself she would have won if she had entered.

“Your Mirelle aren’t you?”

“Y-Yes, please don’t hurt me.” She pleaded.

Masquerade rolled her eyes.

“Let’s, see what the deepest parts of your mind hold.”

“Stop!’

Masquerade stopped to turn to the person that shouted.

“Well, well, well, seems we have both weather girls that go to this school.” Masquerade commented. “What a coincidence.”

Masquerade’s eyes went to the honey blonde weather girl. The akuma had to respect the fierce glare the girl was giving her.

“Aurore don’t.” Mirelle tried to plea.

“Fragrance, shut her up.”

The perfume akuma moved from the wall and sprayed the shy weather girl.”

“No!”

Masquerade felt her bracelet glow, indicating that there was an akuma victim present.”

“So, stormy weather, does this rain on your parade?”

“Don’t call me that!” Aurore spat with disgust.

“That loss still bothers you. How the city voted and you were blown out of the water.”

“I know your trying to get under my skin, it won’t work.” Aurore said. “I’ve dealt with Chloé, and she is way meaner.”

Masquerade kept her smile.

“You’re right, that wouldn’t bother me. The comments by everyone else questioning why you are there would. All of those people wondering what the point of that vote was. So now you have to constantly push harder and harder to prove you deserve to be there with Mirelle. It has become your obsession; the way people perceive you. You need to be the perfect weather girl, with the good looks and the good grades. You can’t let anyone begin to doubt your ability.”

Aurore felt her heart shatter at the comment. It was like this akuma had reached into her chest and pulled her heart out. She could see her biggest fear.

“Shut up! I am good enough! You can’t tell me otherwise.”

Masquerade felt a twinge of annoyance, but a sinister idea came into her head. She touched the perfume bottle charm, her colors shifted to match the color scheme of the Perfume akuma.

“Mirelle, tell her what she needs to here.”

The controlled weather girl felt something intrude in her mind, for a brief second, she winced, before turning into a creepy smile.

“Mirelle?”

Aurore felt her skin crawl as she turned to see her coworker and friend staring at her, a creepy smile on her face.

“You aren’t good enough. You were never good enough. You tried so hard to be charming and cute, but the network thinks your redundant. They were going to get rid of you as soon as they could. I hear they are aiming for the end of the month.” She sing-songed.

Aurore dropped to her knees. Her confidence shattered. She broke down, tears streamed down her face. She covered her hands to cry. To hear her say those awful things, was it true? Was she gone? Was all her work for nothing?

Mirelle’s creepy forced smile stayed, but from the corner of her eye, a single tear began streaming down her cheek. Unbeknown to Aurore, Masquerade was using the controlled teen like a ventriloquist dummy.

“Excellent work.”

Masquerade shifted back to her original colors and grabbed a mask from her dress before she flung it right at the depressed weather girl. She took joy in watching it clamp onto her face like an alien face-hugger. There was a brief moment of struggle, but Aurore was no more. Stormy weather had taken her place. Masquerade laughed as a new charm appeared on her bracelet.

“Finally, some better servants. And these powers are no joke.”

Stormy weather raised her umbrella at Masquerade.

“Oh? Are you trying to resist?”

The akuma’s arm was shaking, but then dropped. Her body becoming inactive, like a toy robot with its batteries removed.

“And there goes the last of your resistance. Now go out and find Ladybug and Chat noir. Lady Wifi and Bubbler haven’t returned.”

Stormy weather nodded and headed out of the classroom.

Masquerade noticed the cowering captured students and took a moment to appreciate the power she wielded. Sure, she would have preferred to have been loved by the school, but being feared is a close second.

Her joy was cut short when something pinged into her mind.

Requirements met for new akuma. Confirm merge?

‘Merge?’

Masquerade tried to figure out what that meant. What was merging.

‘The components for the akuma Oblivio are now available, would you like to merge the two akuma to make new akuma?’

“Oblivio? I don’t remember an akuma by that name?” Masquerade said to herself. “Well, if two people are needed to make it and it is making something new, it must be good. Confirm!”

A new charm appears on her bracelet, one in the shape of a question mark.

"Creating Lady Wifi, Bubbler, Oblivio fusion.'

“I wonder what this will bring.”

_____________________________________________________________

Hawkmoth got felt a sudden shift in the mood of his akuma.

"So Lila found a way to merge akuma with multiple different forms into one. And now she is able to create a completely new akuma. Perhaps Ladybug and Chat noir have finally met there match."

The butterfly villain rubbed his hands smugly as he continued observing. Though part of him wondered if Nathalie was able to secure Adrien safely.

_____________________________________________________________

“Okay, these should work.” Chat noir exclaimed as he opened two empty lockers.

Ladybug removed her yo-yo that had tied the two akuma together and shoved the two of them inside each locker before slamming it shut.

“We need something to lock them in for a while.” Ladybug exclaimed as she held the doors closed. The akuma started trying to break free. Moving in any way they could to bust out.

Chat noir looked around, looking for something to shove in front of the lockers.

“Ugh, there is nothing to barricade them with!” Chat noir exclaims.

“Just seal the doors.”

“Right!”

Chat noir put his hand on the lockers where the doors would open, he focused all his strength into his hands and crunched doors by the lock, making it impossible to open in the conventional way.

“That should hold it.” Chat noir exclaimed with relief.

Ladybug slid down the door as resistance finally ceased.

“I think they realized they can’t escape.” Chat noir eased.

Ladybug got up from the floor. They give each other a fist bump on their success.

“Well thankfully that deals with two troublesome akuma. Now we need to get to Lila before we get overrun with them.”

The two heroes quickly leave the locker room.

"By the way, you mentioned earlier I was the second person you wanted to be dancing with. Who is the first?"

Chat noir felt a faint blush on his cheeks.

"How about we talk dances later." Chat noir dodged the question.

Both heroes hurrying down the hall to try and get to Masquerade.

But after they left, the lockers they had left the akumas in started to shake wildly…

_____________________________________________________________

“Heads up!” Viperion exclaimed as he pulled Ryuuko out of the Akuma’s range. The vanishing miracular was a far more difficult opponent then both reptilian heroes were expecting. The akuma vanishes just before Ryuuko could retaliate.

“Every time we lose sight of her, she vanishes and I can’t get a clean hit!” Ryuuko grumbles.

Viperion looks around frantically.

“Yes, but I do believe we have some interesting intel. The akuma seems unable to use both her powers at the same time. She needs to turn visible in order to try and attack us with those Tonfa of hers” The snake hero explains

Ryuuko backs up, looking around to see if she can notice anything that could help her locate the sneaky servant.

“And whatever its other power is seems to involve using those Tonfa. Call it a hunch but we can’t let her use it on us.” Ryuuko discussed her instinctual feeling.

“Guard my back, she can’t sneak up on us if our backs are covered.” Viperion instructs. “Her strategy is very straight forward. We just need to wait for an opening”

“Got it.” Ryuuko says just as she notices something from the corner of her eye. “There you are.”

Ryuuko makes a charge at what appeared to be a wall, but her sword contacted Miracular’s tonfa. Forcing her visible again.

Viperion took noticed of the poor stance that Miracular had while blocking Ryuuko. He wasn’t an expert but even he could see that an unexpected hit would knock her off her feet.

He threw his lyre right at the akuma’s knees and made contact, the force causing her to buckle and Ryuuko disarmed the akuma by parrying her tonfa.

Viperion caught the weapons and broke them over his knee.

“Well that takes care of her weapons.”

Ryuuko noticed the akuma tried to get away but she dove tackled her before she could turn visable.

“Nice work. But what are we going to do to stop her from getting in the way?” Viperion inquired.

Ryuuko band the akuma's face repeatedly against the floor in order to break the mask. Sadly there was not even a scratch on it.

"Well this mask is durable. Might need to lock her somewhere."

The snake hero thought for a moment. he remembered back to a previous akuma attack. Chat noir had put him in a locker to be safe. He still remembered the playful wink the cat gave.

"Any ideas Viper piper?" Ryuuko inquired as she maintained her hold on the akuma.

"Huh? Oh right. Why not take to the locker room and throw her into a locker. She isn't super strong so we could easily just toss her in and lock it. Also, what is with the nickname?"

"I heard that giving people nicknames helps endear people to you."

"Okay, well you can keep trying, but I don't play pipes. What other ones do you have."

"... That was the only one I had... Ill try and come up with more as we go."

"Looking forward to it ... Dra-girl"

Ryuuko paused to look at him as she stood up with the akuma.

"Yea... It felt wrong as soon as I said it. Lets just go."

_____________________________________________________________

Chloé had given most of the akuma she encountered the slip. Not from expert hiding of fighting skill, she simply walked passed them. A normal individual would realize how amazing it was that as long as you don’t freak out, the akuma basically don’t notice. But to Chloé, it felt insulting. Did the akuma seriously believe she was not worth chasing?

“Un-be-lievable.” Chloé huffed. “Most of these akuma would have been chasing me like crazy by now.”

She grumbled to herself as she made it to the front entrance, which she realized had been slimed on.

“EWW, they got that nasty slime monster on their side.”

The mayor’s daughter felt a mix of disgust and annoyance. With this door sealed, she would need to get to one of the other exits, on the other side of the school.

“This would be a really good time for Ladybug to show up and let me be Queen bee.” Chloé stated aloud.

But the area she was in was practically empty.

“Figures.” Chloé sighed. “Why do these gross rejects always have to make things so annoying!”

Unfortunately for her, her complaints did attract some attention from a group of Reflekta copies roaming the halls.

“We order you to come with us!” The three reflektas sang in unison. Chloé didn’t know or care if the original was among them.

“How about no.” Chloé scoffed. She pushed one of them down and walked past them. The other two rushed to her to capture her. But Chloé easily knocked both of the reflektas down easy. The servants were not use to walking in heels. They may be controlled, but Chloé can tell when an amateur walking in gaudy heels from a mile away.

“You 3 need to learn how to walk and a lesson on fashion before you can even THINK of taking me hostage.” Chloé flipped her hair and smugly continued walking, as the three reflektas tried to get up.

Hidden from view, hiding in what appeared to be an abandoned janitor’s cleaning cart, an old man popped his head out slightly.

“Ladybug does need all the help she could get right now…But would she be the right choice?”

_____________________________________________________________ (End of Part 36.)

What other akuma will be joining Masquerade's ranks?

Will Ladybug and Chat noir be able to face the old and new threats?

Will Mayura cause more problems or solve em?

Also, what do you think this new akuma fusion will look like?

I would love to see your takes.

[spiderling-space]

This idea is inspired by @zozobegone ‘s this post 

Setting: Grim goes platonic yandere mode when he realizes MC is going to go back to their world

It is written from Grimm's perspective

Italics indicate thoughts

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱

The Great Grimm

Warning: Unhealthy dependency and friendship

"Henchperson, give me those candies!" Grimm ordered (Y/N) after trying so many times to reach the top shelf.

"Aw, you couldn't reach yourself?" (Y/N) had seen Grimm jumping and trying to climb to take the candies. They didn't do anything but watch him fail for the last 10 minutes, they couldn't help themselves as he was being so cute. "What's the magic word?"

After grumbling a little, Grimm spoke coercively, "Please..."

"That's a good boy!" They patted him on the head before grabbing the candies and giving them to him. 

He started devouring them the moment he got his hand on the candies. He thanked them quickly before focusing entirely on his food. They were just so delicious, he couldn't resist it!

"Honestly Grimm, what will you do once I'm gone?" They sighed as they took a seat in the kitchen.

The words didn't register for Grimm at first. "Eh?" He stopped eating for a moment and looked at them. "What nonsense are you babbling about?"

"Hmm? Oh! Well, you know, it's been months and lots of progress have been done. Crowley finding a way for me to return home is right around the corner." They spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"That birdman doesn't do anything but whine and pin all the tasks on us."

"I convinced him to do the actual work and he made a progress on finding a way for me to go home." (Y/N) stood up, walking toward him and kneeling to his height. "I'll give you a secret, I haven't told anyone this." They gulped before smiling, "Crowley found the way for me to go back. We just need ingredients and get some tests done then I'll be able to go back. I haven't told others about it yet because I wanted to have something concrete but since you are like my second family, I wanted you to know first."

Huh, he thought.

Grimm continued eating, ignoring what (Y/N) had said who got up and left the kitchen after sharing their secret. At that moment, it didn't bug him at all since he thought they were joking.

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱

It didn't even pass a week that (Y/N) started to tell the others that they would be leaving soon and ask their help to get the ingredients and spend their last days together. Meanwhile, Grimm became more and more irritable as the days passed by.

Grimm didn't have a family nor a friend. When he opened his eyes to the world, he was in a back alley by just himself. He fended for himself and decided to become the greatest magician when he heard people talking about Night Raven Collage. He didn't have anyone who supported his dream nor he needed one. He would accomplish it on his own and show everyone how great he was. Of course, things didn't go as planned and he got thrown off the moment he revealed his true self at the entrance ceremony and was even threatened to get eaten. What's worse was that when he returned to NRC, showing the persistence of an NRC student, he was about to be thrown again. That would be the case if it weren't for (Y/N) sticking up for him. He wasn't a sentimental monster and he hated to be called cat by (Y/N) despite his catly activities as they called it. However, deep down he knew it was because of (Y/N) that he became a student in the NRC, getting one step closer to achieving his dream. Heck, he and (Y/N) were considered one student together.

It wasn't just (Y/N) creating him an opportunity that made him care about them, it was everything. They studied together; they slept on the same bed, shared meals and snacks, played games, did homework, complained about the school and students together. Not to mention, how much he enjoyed getting petted, belly rubbed and washed by them. They had each other when no one was around and always stood against overblot student together. In Grimm's eyes, they were an inseparable and astonishing duo; even a family he never had, not that he would say it out loud.

Maybe that was why he was miffed by everything that was going on... What would happen to me if (Y/N) were to go back? Become alone again? Get kicked out of NRC? Have no friends and family? No, that's not going to happen!

As the days passed, the attention he got from (Y/N) diminished gradually, came to a point that he only saw them in classes and when they got back. They were out with another person every day, not sparing enough time for the Great Grimm. 

How dare they, he thought while heatedly huffing and puffing on the couch.

Grimm dearly missed the old times when (Y/N) wasn't obsessed with going back. He didn't even receive enough petting last few days nor they studied together. His mind wandered to their time spent together when he noticed something. (Y/N) would leave everything behind regardless of how important it was when he got into serious trouble or got hurt. They would sweep in to save his neck. It just clicked at that moment. 

He would get into trouble or injured to get their attention on him. However, then the other minions would gather around them too and their attention would be divided. It was not something he wanted. An idea struck in his head after a few minutes of thinking. As expected out of the Great Grimm, it was a brilliant plan.

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱

"Oh my goodness, Grimm! What happened to your paw-paw?!" (Y/N) rushed to his side, kneeling and examining his paw.

Grimm grumbled acting as if he didn't want to tell them. "Nothing, Great Grimm is fine!"

"Don't be ridiculous! It looks broken!" The worry on (Y/N)'s face was gratifying since he got their attention back.

"Ask your best friends," He answered with faux melancholy, withdrawing his paw near his chest and turning back as if he would leave.

"What does that supposed to mean?" They asked, confussion evident on their face just like Grimm wanted.

"Azul tricked them into doing his work and asked them to collect all the feathers on the roof. Ace and Deuce took me with them then we got into a fight and I fell off the roof." He lowered his head for extra effect.

"And they didn't even take you to the infirmary?!" He managed to get them riled up.

"It was my fault th-"

"That's not an excuse! For fuck's sake! C'mon, we are going to the infirmary." (Y/N) wrapped their arms around Grimm and lifted him en route to the hospital wing.

"Hey (Y/N)! Do you -"

"I can't believe what you two did!"

"What we did?" Deuce mumbled, fearing their wrath.

"Don't talk to me for some time and at least take responsibility and apologize!" (Y/N) stormed off before Ace could finish his sentence. Both Ace and Deuce look perplexed as (Y/N) marched away. Grimm was looking at them over (Y/N)'s shoulder, taking in their puzzled looks and flashing a grin as (Y/N) walked away.

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱

For the next two weeks, Grimm continues with his plan.

"I swallowed a lot of soapy water." Grimm said as he was rubbing his belly, it genuinely hurt. Swallowing soapy water was more awful than hurting his paw.

"Azul! You promised to not do this and shame on you Jade, Floyd!"

3 more down, plenty to go...

"Leona, have you seen Grimm? He is way smaller than you! How couldn't you realize what your claws would do on Grimm?"

"Ruggie, Grimm got food poisoning because of you! You could have just stolen his food instead of replacing them with expired ones."

"Jack, I've never expected this from you. I'm very disappointed."

"What? What are you talking about?" Jack asked hastily but it fell on deaf ears as (Y/N) didn't even listen to him, grabbing Grimm and leaving them standing.

Woo hoo! My plan is working fantastically! 

"He could have died Kalim if it were higher!"

"Jamil, I thought you would stop making people poison taste. Grimm has been puking all day long because of you!"

Grimm grinned wickedly as he was once again carried by (Y/N).

Wait until I'm done with all of you! HAHA, You cannot defeat me!

Grimm was thinking of new original ways to distance (Y/N) from the rest of Heartslabyul, Pomefiore, Ignihyde and Diasomnia. The last one would be the hardest as he had a powerful competitor who also sought (Y/N)'s attention but it didn't matter, Grim would be the only one!

That was what he thought until Birdman came bearing the news...

"(Y/N)! Good news! All the tests we did on the mirror worked! You can go back now!"

Everything stopped right there and then. 

Grimm was so focused on getting (Y/N)'s affection and attention that he forgot about the tests they were doing on the mirror.

Now I am too late...

"My goodness! Thank you! I missed my home so much! I'll start saying my goodbyes!" (Y/N) spoke rapidly, they truly were happy to hear the news.

Happy to leave me all alone!

"No worries, they all gather around the magic mirror, waiting for you." Birdman informed, "Are you coming now?"

"Yes!" (Y/N) said before turning to him, taking him in arms and carrying him outside.

That is not how it was supposed to go...

As they were walking outside before leaving the Ramshackle perimeter, Grimm jumped on the ground.

"What's wrong?" (Y/N) stopped to ask.

"What's wrong?!" Grimm couldn't contain it anymore. everything was too much.

"(Y/N), do you need a moment to say goodbye to the dorm?" Birdman questioned, getting closer to where they were standing.

"Uhm... yes... I mean I spent months here so I should say goodbye to it. You can go, we will catch up in a moment."

With that Birdman walked away, leaving (Y/N) and Grimm alone.

"Is there something you wanted to talk about?" They asked idiotically. 

Are they too dumb to understand?

As Grimm was about to tell them what was on his mind, unfiltered, he felt a power within himself. A power that wanted to surge out of him and he let it since he had nothing to lose anymore.

"You will leave me all alone!"

"But you already knew that, Grimm. This place isn't my home and if I took you with me, you would be discovered and people would do experiments on you." Their voice was so soft as they tried to reason with him but none of them mattered.

"We are one student together, you can't leave until I graduate!" The power inside of him grew even more.

"Well, Crowley said he-"

"We fought the monsters together. We are a team, you called me your son!" He could feel that power getting closer

"I-" He wasn't going to let them speak anymore!

"So you see me as a family but you abandon me!" He felt the power leak outside and he didn't even care about it.

"GRIMM!" (Y/N) yelled, taking a few steps back. "I, I, I changed my mind, we will be together!"

"You want me to have no one again!" Grim screamed, not even noticing how his voice changed. "AAAAAHHH!"

Everything went black for a moment and the second he reopened his eyes, everything was different. He was no longer looking up to (Y/N); he now was looking down on them. They were so tiny.

"YOU CANNOT LEAVE!" Grimm screeched when he saw (Y/N) backing and running away. He jumped, landing right in front of them who fell on the ground from the shock and still trying to crawl away.

"G-Gr-Gr-Grim, i-i-it's me! We are friends, remember? I know you wouldn't hurt me because we are family, innit?"

"It is too late for everything but you are right. We are family..." Grimm said, his voice echoing, giving it more menacing feelings. 

Grimm was no longer waiting for (Y/N) to understand that they couldn't leave him. He had no intention of waiting anymore. He leaned towards them slowly, biting their clothing and lifting them.

It was always (Y/N) who carried Grimm around relentlessly now it was Grimm's turn. Once he was sure that they wouldn't fall, he took off, running away from the Ramshackle, leaving NRC behind.

[filmmies-writing]

Past, Present & Future

pairing : ex!avengers reader x Zemo

word count : 1.3k

warning : mention of death

summary : you used to visit Zemo at the prison after the event of civil war but then he cut you off because he started to have feelings for you. Now that Bucky’s going to break him out, he needs your help babysitting this bad guy.

a/n : hello guyssssss <3 It's been quite a while since I posted my debut one shot. I really do appreciate every like, reblog and comment from my previous work (for anyone who hasn't checked it out yet, here you go!)THANK YOU🥺 At first I was thinking of making a short fanfiction, 3 parts was the first thought that came to my mind but I really enjoy writing this so maybe it’ll be more than 3 parts I suppose. You can also leave your ideas for the next part in the comment or what you think of this chapter, I’d really love to read them :) And fyi, your likes, reblogs and comments are what keep me going so pls 🥺🥺😂😂 Sorry if there’s any mistakes, English is not my first language. Also I’ll pin my masterlist on this blog as soon as I finish making it :))))) 

|

“And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be

Right in front of me

Talk some sense to me” 

(I Found - Amber Run)                                     

“Do you still visit him?” Bucky asked through the phone, his voice steady and calm, like he already made a decision in his mind.

“After I’d blipped back I might have been there once or twice, but the last time was last year I guess” you said and you shrugged your shoulders as you walked around your apartment trying to find a chocolate you just bought but forgot where you put it at.

Yes, you’ve visited this criminal several times and some of your teammates know it. After you were informed about why he started all of his demeanors, about his motivation, as a person who doesn’t have any family left and witnessed everything that happened at the battle of Sokovia with your own eyes, you strongly have sympathy for him. 

You see him as a man who let his emotions and anger take over his intelligent-self and just tried to do what he thought was right, what he thought it’ll make him feel better after he achieved it. And now that he succeeded his plan, deep down he still feels pretty empty. You can tell just  from looking at him in the eyes, even there’s a thick glass between. And you bet he had taken some steps back to see his work and spent some time with himself, thinking. And you know he could see it too. Nothing changed, his family is still gone. Only thing new to him is that he now has to spend years after years rotting in German prison, which allows him to have more time to think about his family and his past actions. He was about to go insane.

But thank god you went to visit him.

You started to visit him for the very first time after six months of the airport battle. Bringing him some books considering how boring he would feel behind bars. But you were quite confused when you saw that his cell is more superior than the others. Even though it may seem dark and lifeless like the other cells, his cell is a lot bigger compared to others. He also has privileges to read all the up-to-date newspapers and books given from the guards that he seems to  be paying extra for.

In the beginning, it was him who always started a conversation by questioning you. According to his genius mind’s calculation, he never expected any Avengers to visit him and especially to be this nice to him after what he had done, what he had caused. And clearly he was wrong, so he needed to know why you’re doing all of this since he thought he can never be wrong. Maybe you want to take revenge at him? Or could it be that you’re just really nice? 

“Why being so nice to me?” he asked directly, wanting to see your reaction to his action.

“I just feel bad for what happened to you” you didn’t lie but kept looking down to the ground to avoid his gaze on you. You’ve heard about his reputation, how good he is at manipulating and you didn’t want to be his another victim.

It took only a few more times of visiting him for you to realize that you unexpectedly bonded with your friends’ greatest enemy and surprisingly enjoy spending your time with him, he would always tell you stories from his many journeys, but still not the private ones. He never wanted to share any of his family’s memories with anyone and he intended to keep it that way.

After getting to know him a lot more than you should, you soon realized that he’s a Baron after all, a royalty, which answered your curiosity perfectly about why he can still access so many privileges even behind the bars. 

In return, you shared with him how you feel to be an Avengers, pressures and expectations you had received during that time. A hard decision you made that still haunts you in your sleep every night. 

You two sometimes share your opinion on books you bring to him. You went back to the prison countless times with a handful of snacks, sweets and books. That’s why he thinks you’re too nice, too good for him. 

Although he’s in prison, he still manages to spoil you with many presents that have been sent to your door time after time on  special days such as your birthday and Christmas. 

For Helmut, at first, these acts were only to return your kindness. At least that’s what he convinced himself since he doesn’t want to admit that he started to have feelings for you. He keeps telling himself he’ll never love again, but you make it hard for him.

And for you, no one has ever cared about you as much as he did. But still, you persuaded yourself he’s just a friend, a good friend. 

But when it came to the point that Zemo cannot lie to himself anymore, he decided to face the truth and deal with it in a very definitive way. He cut you off. Completely.

He added your name to the list of people he prohibited to visit him. You were heartbroken when you first found out but maybe it’s for the best that things didn’t go any further than this, you cajoled yourself. In the first few months, it was hard for you not to think of him, but now that it has been almost a year, you’re finally doing fine.

To clarify his action, his mind keeps telling him that after what he had done to you, he doesn’t deserve you. You deserve to be happy, to live your life with someone that’s not stuck in a prison like him. Someone as good as you. Not a state-criminal like him. Another reason for him would be because he doesn’t want anyone to replace his wife. Even after so many years she has passed away, she still holds a very special place in his heart and he would never want any memories with someone else to replace those precious memories he has left of her.

“And do you think it’s gonna be fine if he’s out of the prison?” Your eyes automatically blinked, starting to feel terrified by what Bucky just asked you.

“I... I... I don’t know, I can’t reassure you anything, I mean I believe that he’ll be useful to your case but he can be very manipulative so you must be careful when he’s out” You said what you could think of at that moment. You can never think straight when it comes to the Baron.

Bucky replied with silence for a moment but not too long until he continued the conversation and said “Wanna do your old friends a favor?” 

You know he wants you with them in case things go wrong with Zemo since you seem to be the one who knows him best compared to them. Also in Bucky and Sam’s aspect, your fighting and investigating skills would be really helpful to the team. And who knows what the new cap is about? So it’s clearly better to have you included in this little team.

“Sure..” To be honest, you’re quite afraid to face the Baron again but you can never say no to your friends and plus you want to do something in return for them since they always taking a good care of you, they’re like older brothers to you and you couldn’t let they go out there on their own knowing that you can help them.

“See you at the prison tomorrow then, I believe you know your way there already” Bucky replied before hanging up.

This is going to be a hell of a journey!

[parvulous-writings]

Not on My Watch // Jesse McCree x F!Reader

Request:   Howdy! Perhaps another Mccree fic? 👀 Mccree and fem S/o decides to have a chill leisure and some dude catcalled s/o and Mccree witnessed it? what do he do? 😳🤠 (loved the previous fic you did for me im still reading it til this day!!)

Requested by: @fragolaaaaaaa​

Summary: McCree takes you out, and you get cat-called.

Warnings: catcalling, alcohol, explicit language.

Words: 1.2K

Notes:  Howdy! I had quite a bit of fun with this one! I’m happy to hear you’re still reading my other fic for you! Makes me smile! My requests are currently open! My pinned post (found here) contains both a list of characters I write for, and a masterlist!

Not my gif

It was one of McCree’s rare days off, and he had insisted on taking you out for the evening to one of his old local haunts, an old bar in the middle of Deadlock Grange. The entire town may have had some less than savoury memories, but he was hoping that spending some time there with you would clear those away or at least push them to the side.  All he wanted was to share a drink with you on a day off, hear you laugh and see you smile at something stupid he’s said. That was his plan- share drinks with you (preferably something involving whisky for himself), maybe get a little less sober and have some real quality time together, away from the buzz of the Overwatch complex. 

That was his plan. Initially, things had gone really well- you were now a couple of drinks in, and absolutely loving your time together. You personally couldn’t see why Deadlock Grange was so bad, even after all the tales you had been told. Jesse had gone to get the third round for the pair of you, more than happy to be paying for all of these drinks.  Whilst he was gone, someone else saddled up on the stool behind you. You didn’t think anything of it at first, anyone in the facility had right to sit at the bar, rather than at at table. It was when he started speaking to you that the problems started to arise. 

“Well, hey there, doll,” He greeted, leaning closer to you- so close that you could smell the alcohol on his breath; practically taste it as you turned to give him a distasteful look, to try and show him you were not in any way interested. However, he seemed to take this as the exact opposite of what you had intended. He shuffled so that he sat on the edge of his seat, his face mere inches from your own.  “Haven’t seen you round here before... You new?”  “Not exactly, could you please-”  “Show you around? Sure thing... I’d love to...” He gave you a lopsided grin, brushing some of his greasy, auburn locks from his forehead, clearly trying to make himself appear more attractive. It didn’t work very well at all.  “No, that’s not what I was going to say.” You reply, giving him another disgusted look. He seemed to pout a little bit at your words, but you did not cave in to those green faux puppy eyes.  “Shame...” He half laments. “I could’ve shown you my place.. Real special, I think you’d like it. ‘Specially the bedroom.” He gave you a sly wink that made your skin crawl. 

You move to turn away from him again, but he puts his hand on your shoulder and pulls you back. “Oh come on, now, doll.” He coos. “Don’t be that way, I was being so nice to you, weren’t I?” He pauses, quirking his brow. “Or did you want something more?” He started to grin- but not the kind of grin you would have wanted to see on someone’s face. This one was sick, and twisted, and outright vile. He used his hand on your shoulder to slowly but surely pull you closer to him, till you were practically sitting on his lap. His arms were like the coils of a constrictor as they slowly wrapped themselves around you, holding you in place and preventing your plan of escape. 

You heard someone clearing their throat near McCree’s seat- sure enough, it was the gunslinger himself. “’Scuse me, sir.” The needless honourific was drenched in Southern venom, a poison you hadn’t heard him use often at all. This kind of tone was used for people like Reyes or O’Deorain- people who had wronged him substantially, and caused his blood to boil even to this day.  The man turned his eyes to Jesse, giving an unsavoury look in his direction. “Can I help you?” He quipped back, and though your eyes were fixed on McCree, you could hear the snarl on your aggressor’s face.  “Yeah, actually.” Jesse put the tray of drinks- two pints and some shots- on the surface of the bar. They landed with a clank, and it was surprising that they didn’t topple over or break with the force of the landing. “That’s my girl,” He gestured to you as he spoke. The man just scoffed.  “Yeah I don’t think that she is.” He replied with a roll of his eyes. This just infuriated Jesse; you didn’t think you’d ever seen such fire flash behind those earthy irises of his. 

His hands started to ball into fists by his sides as he tried desperately to keep his nerve. “I suggest that you step away from ‘er, right now.” He warned, his tone dark and dangerous. You could just tell he was seconds from snapping, and you’d never even seen him this angry before.  “And what if I don’t, huh? What’re you gonna do?” The man challenged, “I could give you a new one of those, real easy.” He gestured to McCree’s metal arm. “You can’t do shit, cowboy.” The man slowly got to his feet, flicking the brim of Jesse’s hat as he finished his sentence. 

It was then that McCree snapped. He grabbed the collar of the man’s shirt and yanked him away from you- with such a force that it caused Jesse’s victim to yelp, and not quietly either. It caused close tables to stop their conversation, as McCree started to drag the man who tried to woo his girl, his sugarcube outside. It was something he simply could not accept, something that could not go unpunished. Once he had gotten the man onto the dusty road outside the bar, he tossed him to the ground face first.  “You stay the fuck away from her!” He growled, kicking the man back down when he tried to get up. The man’s auburn hair stuck to his face and got in his eyes as he groaned.  “I didn’t even do anything!” He protested weakly.  “You tried, and that’s what I’m angry about. You leave her the fuck alone, or you’ll be gettin’ more than some bruises, I promise ya that!” He vowed, and even this stranger seemed to get the memo. Finally. 

With that final threat, Jesse returned to you- taking off his hat and placing it on the bar as he sat beside you. “Sorry about that, sugarcube....” He apologised, seeming genuinely remorseful that he had left you alone, even for a moment. “And for losin’ my cool...” He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he spoke. You placed a hand on his, showing him some affection to comfort him.  “It’s fine Jesse... I liked it, really.” You chuckled, brushing some of his deep brown locks from his brow. “It shows you care... And it was pretty damn sexy.”  McCree looked at you for a moment, slightly baffled, before he began to smile, reaching for one of the drinks still on the tray. “Well, if that’s the case... I’m mighty relieved I could be of assistance to ya...” He took a small sip of his drink, before he felt your warm lips against the stubble on his cheek.  “You know, cowboy, I meant it when I said that was sexy...” You whisper to him. He seems to get your hint, and starts to chuckle.  “Finish your drink off, pumpkin.” He tells you, “Then maybe I’ll give you a lil’ something’.” He winked at you- and his wink was one you genuinely adored; it sent shivers down your spine and made butterflies flutter in your stomach.  “Alright, cowboy...” You smirk, picking up your drink, starting to sip at it. It will be a fun night indeed.. 

[blingismything]

This originally was longer but the second half is just pure sin so I split it into two. If people like this, I might post the second half???

Slip of the Tongue

Raya wouldn’t say she was going soft on Namaari whenever they sparred, but every hit packed less of a punch than the week before. Bruises get fainter and her knuckles are no longer sore the next day from repeated blows.

Their weapons often neglected in favour of hand-to-hand combat despite them both preferring the former option. If you ask Raya, she’ll tell you it is because they need to improve their skills in hand-to-hand in case they lose their weapons in an actual fight.

But when she’s alone in her room, she’ll stand on her balcony and think about how she could feel Namaari’s breath on her neck as she blocks a punch or how her eyes so naturally fall to the Fang Princess’ lips when she’s panting from exhaustion.

She’s addicted to the feeling of being so close to Namaari she can see the beads of sweat trickle down her neck antagonisingly slow until it dissipates below her shirt, making Raya ache to be able to follow it all the way.

She won’t say the words that bounce around her heart, not even to herself. Raya knows she needs to get a grip and pull herself together, they’ve worked so hard on becoming friends. She cannot ruin it now by wanting more. Besides, If Namaari has noticed her lingering stares and hesistant blows, she hasn’t said anything. She can totally be close to Namaari without wanting to leave bite marks instead of bruises (that’s what she tells herself anyway)

 

“Focus dep la, it’s no fun beating you if you aren’t trying.”

 

Namaari’s almost impatient tone fills the training room as Raya shakes herself out of her head.

They circle each other like prey, neither one landing more than a few punches and kicks. Namaari grabs Raya’s leg mid-kick and throws her a few steps backwards, Raya crashing her fist into Namaari’s jaw on the way, bringing them both down to the floor. Namaari almost pauses when she realises she’s on top of Raya, their bodies completely flush with only her arms lifting her head up. Raya can feel her heartbeat banging against her chest, entirely sure Namaari can feel it too. Her entire skin burns at the close contact until she cannot take being so close anymore, rolling to the side pushing Namaari off as they both climb to their feet.

“Can’t pin me down that easily, Princess Undercut”

Raya has to focus, she can’t let herself get that close again. Her will power to not kiss the Fang Warrior almost faltered, she cannot ruin it now. They throw punches once more but Raya is beginning to pant, too focused on blocking any attack to give out her own. Unfortunately, Namaari notices. Conscious that they have less than an hour before they’re expected elsewhere, she works out a plan unable to help the smug grin forming. She aims a punch at Raya’s hip, preparing to launch as she watches the smaller girl bend her body down to block the lower punch. She walked right into the trap.

Before the Heart Princess even had time to realise what she’d done, Namaari moves her hand upwards and grabs Raya’s neck, putting pressure slightly on either side with her fingers . She forces Raya’s head up to face her, shock evident in her eyes as she looks up at Namaari.

 

“Looks like I win, Dep la”

 

Namaari says in a whisper, her breath brushing against Raya’s ear as she pushes her into the wall less than a foot behind them and pins her there by the hips with her own. She’s too busy waiting for the Heart Princess to make a snarky comment or attempt an escape, she doesn’t notice the way Raya’s eyes flutter shut or how her head tilts ever so slightly back. The snarky comment never came. In fact, what she did instead took Namaari completely by surprise…

 

Raya moaned.

 

Namaari dropped her hand in shock, moving back to look at the girl in front of her. Raya’s lips were parted slightly and her lower lip was between her teeth. Had she heard what she thought she had? Her thoughts answered however as less than a second later Raya’s brain seemingly caught up with what happened as her eyes snapped open and her hand slapped against her mouth. Their eyes were locked together, mirroring each others shock. Raya had moaned. Because of her.

Namaari couldn’t use her voice. She wanted so desperately to say something, anything, hell even ask her to do it again but when she finally managed to open her mouth, Raya beat her to it.

 

“I am so sorry Namaari I - fuck”

 

Before Namaari could respond, the girl had already ran out the room, leaving her frozen in place, wondering what just happened, and why she so desperately wanted to hear it again.

[spenciegoob]

Who Needs Luck?

A/N: hi! I solely wrote this because of my 3 recent visits to NY (no, I sadly did not meet mgg)... plus i’ve been going there my whole life.. this is becoming the longest authors note, but as i’m writing I just want to say the people who work at food trucks in nyc are the nicest people ever, ask them about their day (AND TIP OMG PLS)

Summary: Reader invites Spencer to go to New York City with her where he finally sees the beauty right in front of him.

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

Category: Fluff!

Content Warnings: reader can’t drive very well (I apologize if this is a callout post), slight road rage, language

Masterlist

Word Count: 2.4K

____

I never considered myself a lucky man. Life had proven time and time again that no matter how many four leaf clovers I set out to search for, how many pennies on the ground faced heads up I stumbled across, luck was never on my side. I’ve learned to live with it, accepted my fate as the world’s smartest punching bag long before I was even in college.

But then I met her, and as cheesy as it sounds, I didn’t need luck that morning.

The second I woke up, the universe seemed to have it out for me specifically. I swung my legs over my bed, and in my half asleep daze stepped on my glasses, successfully breaking them. Unable to see on my short trip to the bathroom, I stubbed my toe… twice. Once I finally finished my morning routine more methodically, I walked out of my apartment only to bump into a stranger, sending the coffee she was holding all the both of us.

I had tried to apologize so many times, cutting my words short when they didn’t feel right. I had gotten through a series of “I’m, uh, oh, I, you,” before her smile interrupted my thought process, leaving me awestruck instead.

“That’s okay, but you owe me a coffee now.” She giggled, actually giggled, even with the scorching liquid causing her shirt to stick to her body. “Maybe… together?”

I didn’t hesitate to agree, taking her up on the offer that weekend and never looking back. Even when a loud crash, followed by a quiet, harsh ‘shit’ woke me up in a startle, there was no regret. Maybe just a little concern for my girlfriend who now that my eyes have adjusted to the darkness, can be seen holding her knee on the floor of our bedroom.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to wake you,” she whispered out, grabbing onto the dresser to stand straight again. Once she was on her feet, she came over to sit on the edge of our bed, immediately running her fingers through my hair. If I wasn’t so worried about her knee, I probably would’ve fell asleep again.

“Are you okay?” She giggled at my scratchy morning voice before nodding her head. It’s then I realized how the sun hasn’t even begun to rise, the room still pitchblack. “What are you doing up?”

“Getting ready to go to the city, sleepyhead,” she said as if it was the most obvious answer, but truthfully, it left me with more questions.

“At... 5 am?” I sat up, glancing at the alarm clock three times just to make sure I was reading it right. She may have always been a little strange, but usually at a reasonable hour.

At this, she stood up to continue getting ready for the very early morning. Now I notice why she fell, the piles of clothes leading to the closet had to have at least half of her outfits compiled together.

“Well, yeah. I want to get there before noon.” Even in my perplexed state, I rose from the bed and carefully tiptoed around haphazardly thrown clothes to reach her.

While wrapping my arms around her waist still hidden under my t-shirt, I questioned. “It’s right outside? You have 7 hours.”

She turned to look at me funny as if I wasn’t the one digging through clothes and waking up before dawn to walk literally 5 minutes to my desired location. My eyebrows must have subconsciously furrowed at one point, because she brought her hand up to stroke her thumb on my forehead. Immediately, I felt the tension melt, no longer caring to correct my confusion. She still did it anyway.

“Not DC, silly. New York!” I wish it were untrue, but my heart dropped at her words. She was leaving, going to a city I wasn’t familiar with beyond reading about, solving cases, and memorizing subway maps. Is this how she feels every time I board that jet?

“W-what? You’re just going to New York City?” I inwardly cringed at how desperate and sad I sounded, but I really didn’t want her to leave.

“Mhm,” she mumbled, turning back around to return digging in her closet.

“For how long?” Please change your mind. Please change your mind. Please change you-

Realizing that I was fully awake, she let out a boisterous laugh, allowing the way it bounced off our four little walls to return back to us. It was a sound most treasured. “I was hoping to get back around 9.”

“What?” I leaned back to look at her like she was absolutely preposterous. I mean, she was!

“Roadtrip!”

That’s how I found myself in the passenger seat of her car, no coffee in my hand because I wasn’t allowed until I have “a real cup of coffee.” Whatever the hell that means better happen soon, because as much as I loved watching the way she concentrates on the road in front of her, my eyes were starting to droop.

“It’s going to be another 4 hours. You can sleep, my love.” How she knew me so well, I will never be able to figure out, but I was out before we even made it across state borders.

That however, didn’t last very long. My girlfriend may be short and sweet, but behind the wheel? That’s a different story. The horn to her car is a very familiar sound when I’m jolted awake by a sudden stop.

“Really, asshole? Go!” She yelled, slamming her hand against the top of the steering wheel before looking over at me. “Hey, I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to wake you yet. I forgot how awful drivers are here.”

“Where is here exactly?” I questioned, sitting up from my slouched position to find cars practically on top of each other on a road not wide enough for two lanes.

“New Jersey. We’re 10 minutes away.” Wow, I didn’t realize I slept for that long, and I have to admit I’m a little surprised I wasn’t woken up sooner.

“How are we 10 minutes away? It’s at least another 30 to get to the tunnel.” Looking at our surroundings didn’t help me determine our exact location. To the left of us, there were dozens of graffiti murals on the side of what I assumed was another elevated highway. To the right, sidestreets with local businesses ranging from auto repair shops to fast food joints to gyms.

“Nuh uh, stop analyzing mister. You’ll know when we get there.” She waved a finger in my directions, putting a pin in my scrutinization. I pouted right back, successfully playing along to the theme of her scolding me like a 5 year old.

“I don’t like surprises you know.” It was the truth, but her contagious laughter that filled the car made me slightly less disinclined to stop asking questions.

“Oh I know, but trust me, you’ll like this one.” She went to go reach over to grab my hand from where it was resting in my lap, but stopped short and retracted in favor of slamming the horn. “Oh, come on!”

***

“So you drove to a train station... in New Jersey?” I asked while she was… attempting to park the car.

“Well, yeah. I’ve been taking this route since I was a little girl.” Once she finally figured out how to evenly space a two door convertible in a very spacious parking spot, she unbuckled her seatbelt, and was quick to grab her bag from the backseat. “Well, come on mister, we’re going to miss the train.”

To be quite honest, I have never been so lost in my life. I could probably pinpoint our exact location on a map if I wanted to, granted I was given any sort of information, but part of me didn’t want to. Scratch that, all of me didn’t want to, because my entire life has been planned out in front of me before, but right now, I get to be spontaneous with the most beautiful girl on the planet.

“Don’t let go of my hand,” she told me, lacing our fingers together and pulling me forward. “Don’t stop to look around, you will get pushed.”

We made it inside, and if I thought the DC transit system was bustling with people constantly, this place was so much worse. There were hallways left and right, all packed with people in a rush. It seems everybody had some place to be and zero time to get there.

“Upstairs.” We walked up two flights before reaching a platform, buying our tickets and making it just in time for a train to arrive. “I know they come every 8 minutes, but thank god we made this one,” she said as she sat down.

The cart we were in wasn’t too crowded, and once I finally found a map on the wall across from us, I saw that it was a direct ride to the World Trade Center.

“You said you took this train when you were little?”

“Yeah, I went to the city a lot as a kid. This was the easiest, and the cheapest way there.” A small smile played at her lips, obviously the product of some childhood memory. “I used to hop it.”

“Of course you did,” I laughed back with her, thinking about how an innocent looking child would be the first person to get away with sneaking onto the train.

***

“I said it before, I will say it again. Do not let go of my hand.” This time it was more stern, and if I were being honest, I would say that it got me the slightest bit nervous. She must have noticed, she always does, because she continued. “Don’t worry, it just gets congested and I don’t want to lose you.”

She was right about that, it indeed was very congested, but that was okay because she was holding my hand, and I would follow her just about anywhere if it meant she kept looking over her shoulder and smiling when she saw me. Once we made it across the way, and in front of heavy looking glass doors, she turned to me and started walking backwards.

“You okay? This is definitely not off to a great start.” She was wrong, it was off to a perfect start.

“Yeah, I’m okay, but you might want to watch where you’re going,” I said before her back hit the door.

“Please I can get here with my eyes closed.” And then we were outside, and all 5 of my senses were hit immediately. The sun was shining down on us, and before I could complain about not bringing my sunglasses, she handed them to me. My heart fluttered at the innocent act, taking the sunglasses with such gratitude even though she had already moved on to retrieve hers. “Do you smell that?” She asked.

“There are a lot of answers to that question,” I told her, not knowing if she was talking about the smell of the construction happening at the corner, the permanent garbage smell or something entirely different.

“The hotdogs, silly. Come on, there’s nothing like ‘em.” This time, I laced our fingers together, not because I was scared of losing her, I was, but I just really wanted to be closer to her. She didn’t mind, in fact, she let out a content hum and leaned her head on my arm as we walked to the stand.

“Can I get four hotdogs with sauerkraut and two grape sodas,” she asked the vendor, who politely nodded before moving on to prepare our food.

“You’re going to have a heart attack by 35,” I said as I nudged her with my shoulder. She gave me a small push back before answering.

“Is that a doctor’s diagnosis?” She asked as she took our now ready food into her hands, after paying the man before I even had time to blink. I just grabbed the two cans of soda and followed her where she was making a beeline for a park bench. “Watch out for skaters.”

“Yes, it is indeed a doctor's diagnosis.” I unwrapped one of the hotdogs before taking a bite. I closed my eyes and let out a content hum. “It may be a little worth it.”

“Exactly.” We sat there quietly, enjoying the warm weather and sounds of wheels against pavement. At one point, she rested her head against my shoulder, and I am convinced wherever she went would be Heaven.

***

“Are your eyes closed?” We found ourselves with both our hands interlocked, my eyes closed while she walked backwards. I gave an ‘mhm’ before she continued. “We’re here, just keep them closed, and…” her words trailed off. “Okay open.”

I opened my eyes to her holding her arms out in the middle of the largest bookstore I’ve ever seen. “Surprise!” My eyes were bouncing everywhere. It wasn’t too crowded, the large stairwell across the store catching my eye first. There were bookshelves tens of feet high, all loaded with different genres and authors. To the right of us, tiny knick knacks and pins and socks. It was beautiful.

“Wow,” I whispered out, still stuck in my place admiring our surroundings. She was beaming up at me, a hint of pride at her successfulness to drag me 6 hours away to the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.

“The Strand has always been my favorite place in the city. Come on, let’s go explore.” She grabbed my hands again, pulling me deeper into the store towards a shelf labeled adult fiction.

***

Six books, three pairs of socks and a postcard later, we were back on the busy streets of New York, aimlessly walking and admiring the tall buildings and different attractions. Well she was, I was admiring the way she was looking around like it was her first time here. Maybe I should have been paying more attention to our surroundings, but no amount of skyscrapers or fountains could possibly ever match up to her level of beauty. 

“Have I ever told you how much I love you?” I asked randomly, startling her into jumping a tiny bit before giggling. She stopped us, turning to face me fully before reaching up to grab my face in her hands.

“Once or twice.” The kiss we shared on the New York streets were no different than the ones before, but this time, it felt like a silent promise. A passing between two lovers that no matter where we are, our love is the most beautiful thing there is. “I love you too, dork.”

___

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[shelby-love]

JAY HALSTEAD

Cold Coffee

Requested: yes

Prompts: none

Warning(s): none

Author's note: I had a hard time figuring out what exactly you wanted me to write about. I'm pretty sure I changed the ask a lot because I didn't understand it. Sorry!

~

You pursed your lips with hands on your hips and glared at the man in front of you. Or behind you; at least that's where he was before you had turned to him.

"Do you mind?" You asked coldly. "I can practically feel you breathing down on my ear. There's plenty of space, man, you don't need to be cooped up behind me."

The young man behind you looked all but surprised at your words. He glanced at you with doe green eyes that were hidden beneath a fringe of dark hair he had been running his hand through for the last 2 minutes.

You pretended not to recognize him and instead chose this moment to talk to him for the very first time. 

Or warn him, so to speak.

You took note of his clothes while at it. They were wrinkled in all the wrong places, almost as if he didn't have time to iron them this morning. 

Like he was late for something.

You shook your head and turned back around, instinctively taking a step away from him. The coffee shop was cloistered, so many tables and so little room, but that was part of its charm. You lacked clothing and weren't dressed for the occasion that was winter, so you stood there in the line, hoping to store enough of the shop's warmth before you run out and make a dash for your boyfriend's car.

"Y/N have you gone mad?" A sweet voice interjected, breaking apart your dazed thoughts with its bubbly tone. Your face reddened from the attention and warmth that had merged to torture you. "It's 17 °F outside, and you're walking around all dolled up like it's spring!"

You giggled and proceeded to order two coffees like you had first planned to do. 

Your favorite bartender raised both eyebrows at you, urging you to speak while both of you wait for your coffee. "First of all, I'm not dolled up."

He shook his head and smirked, ready to make your words die right on your tongue. "Girl… That white t-shirt, which by the way, I know it's not yours, screams I had it so good last night that I didn't even bother with my clothes because I know I look better without them. And that's hot by the way."

The wink he gave you was the cherry on top, and you stifled your laughter with the back of your cold palm in embarrassment.

"What the hell is going on?" A gruff voice spoke up. "Can we order or are you too busy gossiping with her?"

The voices that were background music in the cozy shop died within an instant. 

Your friend narrowed his eyes. "Sir, in case you failed to notice, there are two of us working at the bar and you, along with Miss Y/N are the only one waiting in line."

You cringed and looked at displayed cupcakes beneath you in hopes of the tension washing over you and disappearing right after. You didn't really want any feelings of someone's anger to linger on your mind at only 7 in the morning.

"Brittany could you take this man's order for me? I'm busy with Y/N's."

A petite blonde stepped out of the shadows she wasn't even in and looked at the grumpy man with a dashing smile.    

"I better go," you whispered after a moment and reached for the two coffees, laying out the exact amount of money on the counter. "Before things get crazy."

The bartender gave you an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry about him, I don't even know who he is. He just started stopping by. Anyway, say hi to Jay for me."

For a moment you debated on whether you should tell Jay about this man. Him coincidentally showing up at exact places where you were in the last few weeks left a bitter taste in your mouth. But then again, you might be making this all up to yourself.

You are dating a senior detective after all. The inner voice in your head was starting to get too loud.

"Will do," You said quietly, turning around on your heels and slipping out of the coffee shop and into the cold Chicago air.

Goosebumps immediately took residence on your skin because the sleeves of white t-shirt you had only covered the upper parts of your arms.

The car was hard to spot amongst the early crowd. The body of people that formed around you was making it more difficult to find Jay. Sighing, you clenched your teeth and moved forward until a hand grasped your shoulder, and you turned around.

"You…" You gasped in surprise because you had no thought invade your mind that the young man might have followed you out. 

"It's cold out here," He offers, the grin on his face never subsided. "Let's get you somewhere warm."

You shook your head, baffled beyond belief. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

He stood in front of you, his face forming into an angry scowl for the first time. The grin vanished and his whole demeanor changed – almost as if you had just flipped the switch that held his façade together. His rough hand grabbed your free wrist, and you yelped in surprise, holding the bag that contained your coffee securely. 

"Let me go!" You fought, doing your best to ignore the ominous look in his eyes.

This is going to leave bruises for sure, you thought while gazing at your captured wrist. Maybe if you screamed, he would get off you, but you didn't want to cause a commotion. Plus, you wanted him there for when Jay came back to fetch you.

Fear settled in your chest, but it disappeared as quick as it came when Jay's voice hung in the air. 

His words were blurry to your ears. Amid the moment, you only got a one good look at your boyfriend’s face before he placed himself in front of the young man, shielding you from harm's way.

Your wrist was free, but bruised and sore.

"What the hell man! Get off me!" The green-eyed man exclaimed, pushing at Jay with his hands. You hadn’t even realized what Jay was doing.

"Oh, yeah?" Jay mused; his face grew colder within a second of saying that. "What'd you do to her?"

Jay turned around to you at that moment, his blue eyes skimming you over for any injuries. His eyes widened at your wrist.

"Nothing, man. I-I didn't even touch that bitch!" 

The simple word aggravated the detective and Jay lunged at him; although not in a matter that would get his hands beaten up.

Your boyfriend of 2 years moved his jacket and showed your attacker his badge, and before the man could do anything, he had his hands twisted behind his back. "What are you doing?!"

"Arresting you for assault," Jay informed before lowering his voice. "But if I had it my way; I'd beat you to a pulp for what you did to my girlfriend. Now, sit the hell down."

Trembling with apologies, the man sat on the pavement, hands cuffed, and pride crushed. 

You watched the scene in front of you with a red face. Not because of the crowd that surrounded you as you stood by the side, but because of the cold Chicago air.

This was supposed to be a quick trip.

Grab and go.

"You okay?" Jay asked after hanging up the phone, presumably having just finished calling a fellow officer to arrest this man for real.

"Y-yeah," You whispered. "Just cold…"

You allowed Jay to wrap his warm jacket around you and inhaled his cologne after the warmth overtook. 

"I shouldn't have let you alone."

You rolled your eyes at the protectiveness and leaned into him, head falling on his shoulder as he led you to the car. "I called Sergeant Platt. She sent someone to pick him up. They’re two minutes out."

You nodded, "Good because I'm freaked out."

"Do you know him?" Jay asked with furrowed brows.

"I never thought much of it," You sighed. "He kept showing up at work, and now at the coffee shop, but I always thought he was new at work and all… I mean, all of us get coffee here."

Jay listened carefully. "This is serious."

"I know," You agreed. "Our coffee got cold. It can't get worse than that."

Jay outright laughed at your words.

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MASTERLIST

[ac3id]

Thankyou so much for sending in a request🌸💕you cuties get what you ask for :)

tw: noncon/ dubcon, captivity, a lil bit of violence?? , bakugou and shoto are aged up obv

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DABI

🌸 he’s obviously a sadist like- look at him you just know.

🌸he’s has probably been with women who like it rough in the past so he is not like hesitant to show that wild side to his partner. i think he puts everything on the table- slapping, kicking, spanking and even spitting in his s/o’s mouth. he also enjoys degrading his s/o. humiliating them, making them cry. yup all of it. this guy is hardcore.

🌸but, all those carnal feelings kind of get buried when he meets you. you’re a pretty little thing. you must be protected. always so cheerful, always rwady to help others, and oh so innocent. dabi practically cringes whenever he sees someone else talking to you.

🌸don’t you know that they don’t really care about you? they just want your attention so they can corrupt your angelic soul? Why are you still talking to them?

🌸he gets pissed off from all the useless people trying to come between the two of you so, he locks you up. he’s the only on you can talk to now, he’s the only you will see from the start of the day till the end. until the kids come in, obviously.  

🌸he’s finally happy. he has you for himself now. he protect you, love you. he can be your friend, your lover. he feels complete.

🌸you on the other hand.....

🌸you cry, scream at him. call him a monster, ask him to kill himself and never show you his again. dabi never loses his cool. he looks at you with silent rage in his beautiful cerulean blue eyes and the next thing you know he’s dragging you into his room, cuffing your hands to the bed posts and leaving you there the entire day. nothing to eat or drink, you have to sit in complete silence while you starve. 

🌸dabi promises himself he would never hurt you, physically that is. it’s the entire reason why he had brought you back home with him, to protect you, silly.

🌸it starts of as a mistake, he never meant to hurt you. you had just pissed him to an extent he lost all his cool.when he realizes what he’s done, he’s ready to cut off his arms for you. guilt takes over his being. he feels like he was a child again, and his favorite toy had broken, he couldn’t live without that toy.

🌸that would have been the case but, when he realizes you like it. oh boy, rip darling. you’re moaning, he’s confused for a second but after he realizes that it turns you on he’s going to ask you to beg which you gleefully do. you beg him to hurt you, tie you up, use you however he pleases. 

🌸dabi is on cloud nine, he’s so proud of you. 

🌸you’re never going to hear an end to it. he likes teasing you about it, something as innocent and petite like you gets off to being used ? well, dabi is going to make sure all your needs are satisfied. he’s your husband after all. 

🌸expect him to start using toys on you. punishments become so much more fun for him after he learns about your little secret. now instead of tying you up and leaving you alone for days, he can beat your ass black and blue and deny you release only you for you to cuddle with him while he dotes on you.

🌸he wonders how he got so lucky.

🌸You were doing the dishes, Dabi had forced you to them. The reason was, "while I am out working for us. you should take care of this place, hmm?" or simply put, he wanted you to play the housewife for his perfect family fantasy.  

Perfect family, you scoffed internally. At this point, you knew better than to disobey him. Disobeying him just resulted in you being locked in a dark room for days on end while he went about his day doing god knows what.  You feel him stalk behind you as he hugs you from the back. His body pressed to your back allows you to feel his inhumane warmth. A normal person should never be this hot. 

He tilts his head so it levels with your neck, the water from the taps still running as you stay frozen while he pampers your neck with kisses. His hands are tightly wrapped around your waist making it impossible for you to escape his sinful intentions. 

You sigh as he trails kisses to your jaw. Quietly accepting defeat. Next, you feel his hands creeping south. You feel his hand cup your womanhood his middle finger pressing onto your covered hole. 

“You know, y/n, I think we’ve been getting along. You don’t even cry when I kiss you anymore.”

 You turn off the tap as Dabi continues the assault. He slips his hands under your pants and you let out a whimper. “Dabi, no please, I’m not ready”��

Dabi stops his actions. He completely detaches himself from you and takes a step back. You turn around and face him, he is looking down on the floor his hair scanning his eyes. The aura of the room quickly turns from mundane to something worse and you stay quiet. You already know you've pissed him off. You want to mutter out apologies but you know better, speaking now would mean punishment worse than what he has already planned in his head. 

“y/n,” his hand comes in contact with your neck. He squeezes around it, you frown as you find it harder to breathe. Your hands wrapping around dabi’s trying to get him free you but he doesn’t budge. 

He looks at you, his eyes filled with rage. Glaring down at you, he scoffs, “I was being nice with you! but you don’t understand do you?” his free hand slips under your shirt grabbing your chest. He gropes your tits, pinching and pulling your nipples until they harden. Despite the twisted scenario you feel yourself getting wet, you could not believe it but you were enjoying this, you felt disgusted. 

It was getting harder to breathe as dabi’s grip never loosened. His hands now traveled towards your cunt which grew wetter every second.

 He slipped his hands under your pants and a sicking grin took over his features, his staples looked like they could have popped right out. The animalistic glare only drove you further towards insanity.

“So, my sweet, little, baby likes getting choked? Who could have thought?” he remarked sarcastically, “you got something to say, baby?” his voice was sickeningly sweet. If you could have, you would have punched his face whipping that smirk but you couldn’t and Dabi did not fail to notice how riled up he had gotten. If you wanted more you had to beg.

Your dignity had left you the moment he had chained you to his bed and making you into his obedient little housewife. There wasn’t much to lose so, you begged.

“Phle-” you started and Dabi’s hand left your neck. You huffed in air and he pulled your hair arching your neck to face him. Your neck hurt and so did your head but the pain regretfully pleasurable. 

“Please, Dabi,” you say in a whisper 

“Please what?” he growls. You swallow your last shreds of pride.

“Please hurt me.” 

You know you’re fucked when he looks down at you like he’s a hunter who finally caught his prey. His tongue peeking from his mouth as he licks his lips. “Whatever you say, princess.” 

The entire night goes by as he continuously abuses your hole, spanking, slapping, and even spitting on you. Dabi makes sure you feel sub-human the entire time. Calling you names, making fun of your insecurities and he doesn’t feel bad making you cry. He couldn’t, the way your cunt squeezed his cock deeper inside he had forgotten about all his promises. 

And you couldn’t deny it either. You kept begging him to use you even though you felt sick, the pleasure was far greater.  

SHINDO YO

🌸 like dabi, i also imagine him being a sadist like its just his vibes. he loves breaking down his s/o into a whiny little mess only for him to put them back up together. 

🌸when meets you, that desire only grows stronger. whenever he’s out with you on dates (what he likes to call them) he can’t help but imagine your how your lips would feel like on his cock while you suck on your ice cream bar. you probably don’t even know what you’re doing. 

🌸the more time he spends with you, the more it grows on him. the carnal desire to pin you down and defile your innocent, helpless self. 

🌸he wants you all to himself, he asks you if you trust him and, come on, you obviously do, he’s the pro-hero grand after all! how could you not? that’s how he lures you in. he invites you into his home- it’s you and him, you don’t think much of it even though your friends warn you. you trust Shindo, he’s a great friend!

🌸your mistake. next thing you know is that: you’re in his basement all tied up. 

🌸unlike dabi, shindo discovers about your masochistic side much earlier. he does have any personal issues with hurting you. if you’re being a brat he’ll not hesitate discipline you and bring you to your place.  

🌸the worst part is when he has you bent over his legs, your ass sticking out in the air and his heavy hand comes down to smack it with brutal force: you like it.

🌸you enjoying this catches shindo off guard. he didn’t expect that you enjoyed this of course, he never lets it go. your punishments are always something sexual, he riles you but doesn’t let you cum. you have to beg him to let you cum and he degrades you while you chase your high.

🌸he definitely uses his quirk on you, overstimulating you until you pass out. he probably does not like using toys, his hands could do better but he doesn’t shoving dildos up your holes as punishment so, expect him to buy expensive dildos just for you.

🌸as rewards, shindo asks you what you want. you better tell him otherwise he’ll edge you hours and then leave you hanging.  

Shindo has you bent over his lap, your ass facing him and your hands tied in front of you. Your panties pulled down to your ankles. He rubs your ass as you sniffle, "This is your punishment, Y/N, take it like a good girl, okay?" you cry louder. This was humiliating, you didn't want this. Tears stream down your eyes as you beg him. "Shindo, please, let me go. I- I won't tell anyone."

Shindo clicks his tongue, "There you go. You're started with that bullshit again, huh? Don't you understand? This is where you're safe. Safe from the world here with me."

"No, I am not!"  you yell as you squirm around hips lap. "Y/N," Shindo's voice darkens and you quiet down, "Good. Now don't move around too much and we'll be done quickly."

Shindo lifts his hand high and brings it down to your bottom. Your ass jiggles as Shindo's hand comes in contact with it. A smearing hot pain flows trough your backside and you let out an involuntary moan, you feel yourself getting aroused by this situation as your pussy starts tingling. Shindo freezes, he looks down you and you quiver.

"What's this?" He asks as he rubs your ass, "Did I hear a moan? Of pleasure?" he taunts as he sets down another and you moan harder. "You like this baby?" another slap, embarrassing sounds won't stop leaving your mouth as he continues spanking your ass.

He stops after your skin turns a dark shade of red all the while your pussy drools. Shindo brings his hand down to your pussy and spreads your lips, his finger runs from your clit and plunges into the hole.

"A little pain slut. Didn't expect you out of everyone to be into this."

he pushes his finger inside, knuckles deep, and you out. He keeps thrusting his finger inside you adding a second, his thumb lands on your clit and you feel vibrations spread throughout you- he's using his quirk. You cry out feeling the fire in your belly build-up- you were so close. Moans fall from your mouth and Shindo eagerly drinks them up, "I- I am so close!" you cry out, and just when you thought you'd find your release, Shindo stops. You sigh as you feel yourself clench around nothing, you turn your head back and catch Shindo sucking on his two fingers- which were inside you seconds ago. You blush at the perverted scene. Shindo looks down at you, "What was that dear, Y/N? You did not tell me that you liked it rough?" he asks smirking but you only turn your face away from him. You feel another smack on your back and you squeal. He squeezes your ass, kneading the flesh.

"Tell me what you want and I'll give it to you."  

SHOTO TODOROKI 

🌸He finds it really cute that his beloved,sweet Y/N was longing to be dominated and to be abused,he wasn't the one to deny what the love of his life wanted

🌸knows how to inflict the right amount of pain,admires the way your tears glides a and dampens your cheeks

🌸loves it when you call out is name absoluTELY LOVES LOVES LOVES it when you moan out his name when he burns his name into your skin

🌸Unlike dabi,shoto is a slightly softer yandere,this boi is W H I P P E D,his feelings are so intense for you,he would go through any lengths to be the perfect husband for you

🌸His feelings growing more out of hand when you both started dating,

🌸 he'd learn about your masochistic tendencies,when he's break into visit your house one night after your date. theres nothing wrong with checking up on your beloved

🌸he expected you to be dozing off on your bed.what he didn't expect was you to whine out his name

He bit back a moan at the sight of your naked back facing him"ah fuck,shouto~"your head throwing back a string of dirt words spilling out of your mouth at the erotic scene displaying on the screen of the laptop screen, a woman tied up,being sexually tortured

Your fingers knuckle deep inside you,your breath becoming irregular fantasizing about him.unbeknownst to the monochrome eyes fixated on your fingers moving in and out of you

You almost don't hear your door creaking open in the midst of your haze,and within seconds you were abruptly interrupted from your session as you find yourself pinned under shoto todoroki

You don't even get the chance to react before he pulls you into a hot kiss filled with animalistic desire and lust,you moan as he bites your bottom lip,your tongue darting out over his. He grabs your ankles and opens your legs for him

He grips your wrist and holds them above your head swiftly restraining your hands swiftly together with his belt,his tongue slides into your mouth again as he brings his hand around your neck and pushes you down so that your flat against your bed.his clothed dick grinding against you

He brings his hand onto your neck,squeezing cutting air as his nails digging into the soft flesh

Your eyes darkening with lust as you gaze at him above you

Your nipples hardening at the sudden drop in the temperature of the room

"is this what you want?"grunting in your ear pinching the hardened bud between his fingers,your mouth dropping open as you nod,writhing uncontrollably underneath him

"use your words,beloved"

You swallow dryly,a chocked sob escaping your mouth,finding it hard to speak "sh- shouto please,please fuck me,I want you so badd"

Using his strength to hold your hips down, You tremble as he lines himself up your entrance,he pushes himself in,knocking the air out of your lungs as he fills you up to the hilt walls clenching around his girth

"god,Y/N, you're so fucking tight"

Ruthlessly moving in and out of you making your eyes roll to the back of your head, bucking your hips to meet his thrusts

your wrap legs around his hips, bringing him closer to you

His hand reaches between your thighs and rubbing his fingers over your clit at a rapid pace making you clench tighter around him

He thrusts faster and harder grabbing your throat once again, you mewled  feeling yourself go closer

You came with your toes curled cum dripping onto the sheets beneath you

BAKUGOU KATSUKI 

🌸bakugou is a violent man. yelling at people to “die”, casting explosion anytime he feels like it might come as an surprise but he doesn’t like hurting his s/.o. He does not want to hurt his s/o- he wants to protect them.

🌸he finds you very innocent, treats you like a porcelain doll, always so careful. he is horrible with showing affections- thinking he might hurt you by mistake.

🌸but, when he finds out about his darling being a masochist, he couldn’t stop but get curious. he doesn’t the appeal, he’s always a little hesitant about hurting his darling but he kinda thinks its hot. he’s into it. if sweet little y/n wants it- he’s going to give it to her.

Panic settles down on you as katsuki forces himself between your legs. You shut your eyes, tears falling to your cheeks as pushes himself into you,  "Oi shitty woman, what the fuck is wrong with you!?" your breath hitches at his words. "Why the fuck are you crying? It shouldn't hurt too much. We've done this before!"  

"Katsuki, I don't want to do this!" you cry out and Bakugou growls, "What do you mean?" His large hands come down to your thigh landing a hot smack as he had activated his quirk. Feeling the burning hot pain melting into your body you moan and tighten around him. He stops thrusting into you, his cock still buried till the hilt he looks down at your tear-stained face, his eyes wide in astonishment. He brings down his hand, activating his quirk letting it fall against your in swift fall. You squeak again. He does it again and again and you clench around him every time.

"Are you seriously fucking turned on right now?!" he asks chuckling darkly. His surprised expression subsiding into a cocky grin. His large hands start groping your breasts, taking them in his mouth and biting on it, bruising the skin and drawing blood

"You like it when I hurt you don't you? Filthy woman," he growls at you. You nod desperately, finally giving in.

"Say it." You open your eyes to meet his furious red ones, "Yes, I like being hurt." you whimper and Bakugou laughs wickedly. Watching your pupils dilate and darken with lust as he traces your cheekbones softly before bringing it down harshly, slapping you across your face. You feel the tinge of another slap, your face growing hotter with the increasing severity of each slap.

The sound resonating across the room, he slaps your face a few more times, leaving imprints of his palm heated by his quirk. Hooking a finger under your chin and running his hand over your mouth, pulling at the bottom lip, his brain almost short circuits at the sound of your moans, shamelessly getting off the pain. Forcing his fingers between your lips, prying your jaw open, spitting inside your mouth

His dick twitched at the sight of you drinking it up.

"Fuck, such a kinky little bitch"

He pulls out of you, his thick cock standing tall and proud, the shaft glistening and glowing with precum and your slick glistening under the dim lighting of the room, he takes his cock in his hand and guides it to your mouth. 

"What are you waiting for? Suck me off!" he growls. A chocked moan leaves his lips at the feeling of your tongue on the angry red head, tongue tracing the prominent veins on the underside of his shaft.

Grabbing the back of your head, tangling his fingers into your hair and shoving his dick further down your throat. Causing you to gag and tense around him, feeling every texture against your tongue and the roof of your mouth and the back of your throat.  Loss of air making tears well up in your eyes, blurring your vision. His rips rocking faster, his balls slapping against your chin. His eyes devouring the sight of your mouth filled with his dick, mixture of drool and tears dribbling down your lips. Teeth gritting as he reaches his climax, his cum shooting in thick, hot ropes on your face. Bakugou smears the cum all over your face and breasts, smirking while he looks down, "Fuck, look at you-" he beginnings. You take in deep breaths, exhaling from your mouth you whisper "Katsuki, please.." the burning in your south becomes unbearable but he doesn't do a thing. Annoyed, you snake your hands down towards your drooling cunt but Bakugou slaps your hand away.

"You don't get to cum yet." He barks. His hands touch your cheek and you flinch thinking he'll slap you again but he caresses it gently.

"You're in for a long night, baby." 

[shreddedparchment]

A Wife for Thor Pt.14

The Garden Hallway

01/02/2021

Pairing: King!Thor x Reader          Word Count: 5,974

Warnings: language, smut, smutty smut smut, talk of pregnancy, jealousy, spoiled lobster, alcoholic Brunnhilde, babies

A/N: First post of the new year! This was a fun one to write with lots of little tidbits that were enjoyable. Writing doubts aside, I hope you all enjoy this one! Sorry it took so long to get to you, but holidays, ya know? xoxo

“She’s beautiful, Thora. Just gorgeous.” You bounce the infant in your arms and she coos and goos.

Spittle runs down along the edge of her lips and Thora, the most gorgeous woman you have ever seen in your life, leans forward to gently dab away at the clear liquid.

Her very long ice blonde hair falls forward, half braided, the other half loose. She tosses it back then sighs and rips it back feeling frustrated.

“You could cut your hair, if it’s bothering you.” Ice blue eyes meet yours, slight shock at your observational skills painting her pale cheeks pink.

“Oh, no. I’m too fond of it, Your Majesty. I’ll grow used to it again. Having a little one to care for does make it a bit tedious to handle. But ‘tis no worry. I will just have to braid it more tightly and perhaps wear it atop my head to keep it tame.”

She’s all politeness, this Agardian beauty. The Goddess of it, if you’re honest, though you know that’s not true. To you, every Asgardian woman is the Goddess of beauty. They’re all so stunning in their own unique ways.

The same could be said for the women of your own species, but these Asgardians seem to glow.

“Well, if you ever change your mind, it’s really very normal for women of Earth to have very short hair in some cases. Especially when work or busy lives get in the way of maintaining it. I’m not sure how often women in the old Asgard used to-”

“It was not uncommon, though ‘twasn’t very common either. Most of us keep our hair long. I’m not sure my husband would love me as much if I did cut it.” She confesses, and you see a fleeting worry pass through her exquisite face and you can’t imagine how a woman this beautiful can doubt the hold she has on her husband when you’re only mortal and constantly worry about Thor’s love for you.

“Armod is a lucky man. I’m sure he knows that you’re more than your hair. But if it’s that important to you, I can try to find ways of keeping it out of your way? Some new hairstyles maybe?” You smile at her, hoping to offer comfort.

She relaxes, the little bundle in your arms wiggling just a bit as you lean forward to place your hand over hers.

“She really is so beautiful,” you say, hoping to redirect her attention to her perfect little girl.

Luta has deep olive skin, her hair the same stunning raven as Armod.

Thora’s entire being shifts. She gleams at her daughter, the clear apple of her eye.

“It won’t be long before you and His Majesty are blessed with a baby of your own. An heir to the throne? The celebration will be monumental.” She wiggles her eyebrows at you and you smile shyly, remembering almost every night since your honeymoon has been spent pinned either underneath Thor, or to the wall, or on the dresser, or his desk, or the tub, or even the floor in an attempt to get that heir to finally come.

Both of you want a baby so badly.

“We’ve been trying for almost two months,” You confess, a sadness in your voice incapable of hiding.

“Armod and I tried for nearly a year,” Thora nods, her own happiness sidelined to make way for understanding. “I believe that sometimes it just takes a while. My sister was able to conceive so quickly I began to think there was something wrong with me.”

She gives you a reassuring smile, almost like she can read your very thoughts.

“But it happened. It took time. It will happen for you as well, Your Majesty. We are all looking forward to an heir, but even if it takes a while, you’re still our Queen.” She assures you and her words do make you feel better.

Maybe you and Thor have just been trying too hard?

Oof, but there’s no way you can give up those touches.

“I guess I’ll just have to relax and take it one day at a time. Thank you for your encouragement. I’m seriously really jealous of you. She’s so lovely.” You offer her over, and Thora takes her eagerly.

The baby, Luta, whines a little but then settles as she’s held to her mother’s breast.

“She’s a peach, isn’t she?” Thora gloats, and she’s absolutely beaming.

The front door opens and there’s a startled pause by the tall dark Armod, long pitch braids swishing as he comes to a stop.

“Your Majesty?” The shock is clear, but he quickly bows and you get up, waving away his formality.

“No, please.” You smile, throwing out your hand for him to shake, “It’s so nice to see you, face to face and not from the backseat of a car.”

Armod laughs, taking hold of your hand gently and he quickly kisses the back of it.

The respect of the gesture is flattering.

“I was not expecting to see you here today, though I’m not going to lie, it’s an honor.”

“I promised I’d come,” you remind him. “I’m sorry it took so long. I’ve been so busy with the planning of the park and meeting with the Ambassadors to see what they want from us, and it’s just been so busy day after day.”

“Your Majesty,” Thora stands, shaking her head. “You have no obligation to explain yourself to us. We are at your service.”

You smile at her, reaching over to caress Luta’s little head then Thora’s shoulder, “I think it’s the other way around, but I’m grateful for your generosity.”

They both seem happy with you and as lovely as they are, you can’t spend all day here in their comfy little home.

Armod is paid really well and that’s reflected more in their belongings as opposed to the size of their house.

Very neat and high quality furniture and gadgets display their wealth though compared to the one you inherited and the one you married into, it’s just a fraction.

Armod and Thora's wealth lies in their love and family.

As they stand there, the ache in your chest begins to get unbearable so, you quickly tell them goodbye and you walk back up to the palace.

Armod's home is situated within the grounds of your New Asgardian dwelling. Smallish cottages that line the inner stone and vibranium wall are filled with staff who living close by makes it easier to work here.

If they lived outside of the palace walls, you'd have needed Armod's services to visit his own house. Luckily, in this way, you can visit some of your people without the need for fanfare.

You like not having to dress up.

As you slip into the garden and move for the large heavy door that Thor had shown you through two months prior to propose to you out here, you smile at the sight of the only person who hates it when you don't wear a dress, or at the very least a skirt.

This isn't of course because he wants to have you he all wrapped up in tight dresses and uncomfortable, but rather it makes certain activities just a little more difficult in rushed moments.

Thor's smile widens as he spots you, shutting the door behind you before you put your hands behind your back.

"There you are, I've been looking for you," Thor says.

He looks so good in dark jeans and a slightly loose tan t-shirt. The round neck gives just the slightest peek at his trapezius and you force yourself to keep your eyes on his beautiful face instead of the way his biceps strain against his sleeves.

Fuck he looks good.

"Looks like you've found me. What did you need?"

"Where were you?" He wonders, putting his own hands behind his back to copy your stance.

"Is it curiosity, suspicion, or control making you ask?"

"Interest. And because I missed you and if I have an hour free again, I'd like to spend it with you."

Damn him.

"Well, shoot," you scoff.

He quirks his head inquisitively and you smile wide at the sight of your puppy. How can he be so damn hot and cute at the same time?

"That was the perfect response. But, an hour?" Quick glance down at your watch reveals it's too early for lunch. "I thought we were meeting for lunch at eleven?"

Thor’s smile falters and he nods slowly, looking at your collarbone instead of your eyes.

"About that…"

"Oh, shit. What?"

"I'm leaving in about twenty minutes," Thor confesses, bringing his hands back to his front to fidget.

"Twenty minutes? But you said an hour!"

"And I spent forty minutes looking for you, cherub. That leaves me with twenty."

He closes the distance between you, tracing the length of your arms to your wrists and then pulls your hands out from behind your back.

"And leaving? Where are you going?"

The pout that overtakes you feels inevitable. You can't even attempt to hide it.

"The Warriors Three have reported in. Sif says that they are ready for inspection so I must go and see each outpost's condition before I can deem them proper watch towers to guard against the threat that Loki has foreseen.

"Heimdall says he is in agreement. Whatever it is that is coming, it's hiding itself from his sight which should be impossible. I must go, love. I'm sorry."

He really does sound and look apologetic too.

"And...I won't be home until possibly very late. Nearly morning I think," he tells you, voice low.

For two long moments the two of you stand there, minds whirring until they both reach the same realization.

It's Thor that voices it first and he nearly kills you with how much you want to swoon, "You know, this will be the first night since we've been engaged that I won't be sleeping beside you."

Your pout only grows more pronounced.

"Will you be lonely without me?"

All of the insecurities he's felt since marrying suddenly come pouring out of him in that one singular question and you can suddenly see all of the fear and strife he has been dealing with since he chose to marry you.

Like you, he's been wondering whether you're happy in your new married life. He's been worried about you in your role as Queen but worried for you, not whether you can do the job as you have been fretting.

You sigh, a heavy release of your own tension, "Oh, Thor…"

Hooking your hand behind his neck you pull him down until you can kiss him.

His response is ready, eager. Hands funding your hips as he pushes you back until you're shoved into the small space between one pillar and the wall it supports.

You're both very aware of the loss of activity this night will also bring, but maybe a rest is due.

Pulling back, you place your hands on his chest and give him a little push. He stops his kissing, licking his lips as he leans back to fix you with his star-eyed gaze.

"Maybe this is a good thing? We've been trying so hard to get pregnant for two months and my last test was negative. Maybe what we need is a break?"

Thor blinks, considering your words but then he shakes his head.

"Is that the only reason you've been laying with me night after night? To be with child?"

He almost sounds hurt by the idea and you hurry to reassure him.

"No! Of course not, Thor. I...being with you intimately is one of the best things about my adult life that I never knew I wanted or needed. It feel so good to be with you. Sometimes I can't believe that you want me.

"You're this perfect God, desired by millions. Billions even. And I'm-"

"Let me stop you there, cherub. If you are ever in any doubt as to how you affect me-mind, body, and soul-" He reaches down between your bodies, unbuttons his jeans and lowers his zipper.

"Thor!" You gasp quietly, peeking around at both ends of the long secluded hallway.

"No one will see us," he whispers, seductive and deep.

He's right though. Especially here where the pillar meets the wall, a tight corner where he's got you trapped. Right where you want to be.

He takes your hand and pushes his pants down a bit until he's exposed, erect, and throbbing.

As you wrap your fingers around him, he purrs and after another lick of his lips, he flies into a frenzy that you match with your own fervor.

It has to happen fast and before you know it he's inside, thrusting up into you as he holds your right leg up around his waist.

Neither of you have any words, only heavy breathing. A gasp. A grunt. Mewling moans that rise from your throat which he quickly silences with a finger pressed gently to your lips.

"Shh, my cherub," he urges.

Even if no one ever comes down here. The sound of the Queen making these noises would surely draw someone's attention.

"I'm coming…" you whimper, hands vices around the fabric of his shirt.

Thor groans again then mashes his lips against your own, thrusting faster and smoother. Like silk on skin he fills you up and as you grip his cock, twitching around him, he empties into you.

He coats you with his heat, caressing the curves of your body as he continues to kiss you with slow and deliberate passion.

"We aren't missing a day," he declares.

As the two of you recover, a voice from the far end of the hall interrupts.

"Thor, we must go if you're to be back by morning."

For a moment your heart leaps into your throat. Loki’s voice is knowing. He clearly gets what you two were doing.

You peek over Thor’s shoulder but don't see Loki anywhere. He's got the sense to give you two your privacy and stay out of sight.

"I'll be right there," Thor says, leaning in to kiss your lips slow. "Don't worry, he's discreet."

Thor helps you get dressed again, blocking your body from sight even though he knows no one is looking.

When you're both decent again, he takes your arm in his and leads you out into the main hall where Loki stands by the large doors pacing.

As he spots the two of you, he gives no indication that he heard or saw any of what happened down in the garden hallway.

"You two look...refreshed," Loki says pointedly.

"Brother, do not tease Her Majesty the Queen. She's already fretting."

Thor adjusts his arm to wrap around your shoulder and gives you a quick squeeze as you glare at Loki.

"Of course, you're right. I'm sorry, Y/N."

Loki gives you quick polite bow, then a mischievous smile curls his lips and you can see the trickster God peek through.

“I am a most avid supporter of my monarchs doing what they can to provide the kingdom with an heir, and if there is any way that I can help, I would be happy to lend my assistance.”

“Watch it, Loki,” Thor warns, only half heartedly but with the punch of genuine jealousy.

You haven’t really questioned lately whether you’re Thor’s because you are. No doubt in your mind. He has you wrapped around his finger. Hearing him assert that claim, the one on your heart and body--it drives shivers up your spine and you suddenly want him back home from his trip already.

“I only meant that I am glad to make excuses if you two wish to escape for a few hours a day,” Loki clarifies. “What did you think I meant?”

He’s teasing Thor, you can see it. That playful jabbing is routine and you’ve seen him do it before but you were never the tool for his poking at Thor.

“I’ll wait out front,” Loki takes his leave, shutting the large doors to the front hall with ease.

Without a word, Thor pulls you into his arms. He embraces you tightly, sighing heavily and you shut your eyes at the feel of his body wrapped around yours.

You can’t remember ever feeling so happy. So, safe? There’s something in the way it feels to have his large arms around you, a weight pressed to you but not down on you.

He’s not suffocating you or oppressing you. He’s supporting you, ducking down a little to get a better hold of you. He presses his nose against your hair and breathes in deeply.

It could just be a sigh, but if he’s anything like you, he might be trying to memorize your scent.

As your own nose is pressed into the crook of his neck, you let his own wash over you.

His unique smell brings to mind a dark cloudy sky, a field of soft overgrown grass swaying in an endless cool wind. The scent of freshly sodden earth. It’s rain and nature, with the briefest sting of ozone as the sky lights up with his immeasurably powerful lightning.

All of that runs in him and you can’t believe that you’re lucky enough to be here holding him close.

“I will be as quick as I can be,” he says, deep tone settling in your chest.

“I wish you were back already.”

You can hear him laugh, just a small huff of air before he kisses the side of your head.

“You will be so busy with the park and then so exhausted you will pass out before you even have time to miss me.”

“I miss you already, doof,” you sigh.

“Will you promise me something?” he asks, pushing you back to meet your eyes.

“Anything,” you promise.

“Will you stay in the palace for me? I-I know that you were supposed to go down to the park to walk the new pathways and tree markers but I would feel much better about leaving you if I know that you’ll be here, safe.”

“You said there was nothing about this threat to worry about?”

Suddenly, a fear begins to grow in your belly. It twists it in knots and makes you nervous. Like if your marriage and all of this confidence you’ve found in yourself as Queen of New Asgard has been snuffed out, you feel like the nobody who sat in her room writing stories of lives you would never live.

“There isn’t, cherub. Not that we can tell. But we don’t understand it. With Stark and Banner having had delays in coming to install their extra measures of security, I was hoping that this inspection could wait until they had finished whatever business it was that drew them to Wakanda, but Steve says he is not sure how long they will be there.

“And until they can come, I--I cannot stand the thought of something happening to you, that’s all.”

Thor hooks his hand behind your neck, caressing your cheek as he ducks his head and gives you a reassuring smile.

Inside you’re at war with yourself. On the one hand, if he’s this scared, this threat is more serious than any of them are making this out to be.

On the other hand, Thor is so convincing in his words. You can clearly see the worry he has for you, for your safety. The tight hand on your hip tells you that he does indeed have some fear, but his gaze tells you that his favor is for his peace of mind.

So, you nod.

“Yes,” you give in. “I’ll stay here. I can work on the plans from my room and I have a lot of studying to do about the Valkyrie anyway.”

“Thank you,” Thor physically relaxes, his shoulders falling as a teeny bit of weight comes off them. “I will be as quick as I can be and then I will be here with you again and we can resume trying for that baby.”

“Thor about that,” you begin, licking your lips and wondering if he’ll even understand where you’re coming from. “I think maybe-?”

“Thor, I’m really very sorry. Y/N, if we don’t leave now we might have to extend the inspections until the day after tomorrow. Volstagg has to leave the planet for a short visit with his kin and cannot miss his window to do so.”

Thor stands taller, disapproving of the interruption, but he knows better and he leans down to kiss you.

“Can we continue this conversation when I return?”

You kiss him back as he leans down for another and nod when he pulls away, “Of course, Thor. Go. Hurry back.”

He gives you one more kiss, this one lingering before he presses in on your lips a little harder as if it pains him to pull away, then marches out the door without another look back.

The heavy doors close with a loud clatter and you’re left in the empty hall feeling strangely out of place.

You take your time getting up to your room. The bed looks huge without Thor sitting on its edge, pulling his shoes on in the morning with a groan of complaint at having to leave you so early.

His mornings are always full of rolling back into bed to cuddle you for a few more minutes before he has to go.

This morning feels like ages ago and maybe it’s because this really is the first time the two of you have been separated since before your wedding, but you miss him so much already and it’s only been minutes.

There’s a rush of air from the balcony, so strong it pulls your attention, but the smell that entices you has you running for the open door.

Through the rippling flowing curtains you see Thor in full armor, gold and black, his right hand wrapped around his hammer.

He opens his left arm for you as you reach him, pulling you right up against his body as he meets your lips sweetly.

“Mmm,” he mumbles.

“Why are you here? You’re supposed to be gone!”

You gasp, hands pressed to his chest as your heart pounds hard.

“Just one more kiss,” he simpers. “This is truly much harder than I thought it would be.”

“It’s only a few hours,” you tease, but you’re so ecstatic that you weren’t the only one feeling that ache.

“Too many,” Thor sighs.

“Then kiss me, and go. The sooner you’re gone the sooner you’ll be back.”

He obeys, and kisses you only less sweetly and with the passion to leave you wanting more.

He leaves you in a second rush of air leaving the smell of coming rain in his wake.

“Well, that was dramatic.” A voice interrupts from within your room. “You’d think he was going off to war.”

Moving inside, you find Hilde strewn across the chaise at the end of your bed, crystal bottle sloshing with brown liquid in her hand.

“Give us a break, it’s been nearly two and a half months since we’ve been separated.”

“Two and a half months is but a split second in time for us,” Hilde explains.

Her words give you pause and then the ache in your heart is hard to keep from spilling onto your face.

Hilde notices and quickly sits back up, “Your Majesty, I didn’t meant-”

“It’s alright. Really. It’s okay.”

With a quick smile at her you move to sit at your desk and put your feeble mortality out of your mind.

It’s not something you like to think on, and you’ve been good at forgetting about not only the significant age difference between you and Thor but also how fast you’ll age in your marriage and Thor will pretty much look the same as he does now.

Pulling over the large binder with the park plans, you reach for your phone to dial up Edgar, New Asgard’s senior construction manager and explain to him that you won’t be making your appointment for that afternoon.

“Good morning, Edgar. Yes, I’m doing well, thanks. I just wanted to give you a heads up that I won’t be able to walk the park today. Yeah. Thor has gone with Loki to attend to some things and won’t be back until early in the morning and I’ve had to take over a few things here in the palace. I’m so sorry, I hope you can forgive me.”

Edgar is all politeness and eagerness to please you and Thor. Like the rest of his people, they look up to the God of Thunder and for some reason, they’ve accepted you into their hearts openly.

“We should reschedule. Let me know when you can walk the grounds with me and I’ll-” You stop and listen to him assure you that he’s available at your convenience. “I appreciate that. I’ll give you a call tomorrow and we can set something up for later this week. Thank you, Edgar. Okay, bye.”

“It’s really not necessary to call him and tell him all that, you know? Just tell him you want to reschedule and he’ll do what you want.”

“I know, but that feels weird to do. I can’t just order him around. What if he had something special to do later in the week and me moving the appointment affects that?”

You throw open the binder and the map of the planned park. Already you and Edgar have marked it all up with red scribbles where things would need to be changed. You’d wanted a man made lake in the center, but you’ll have to settle for a small pond in one of the corners until more land can be leveled for a lake.

Several of the trees you’d wanted are not available so you’ve had to get new ones there too.

Every bit of this park has been selected by you from the type of grass, the stones in the pathways, to the wildflowers planted in the flower beds.

The responsibility of giving your people a space that they can love and appreciate stresses you out from time to time though you’ve pretty much accepted the weight of your crown.

Without another word, you go to work and Hilde, who you assume is here to be your personal bodyguard while Thor is out, gets up and presses a small button hidden underneath a small steel panel the size of Thor’s large palm.

She moves back over to the small breakfast table where you and Thor enjoy your first meal of the day in private, and sits back to wait patiently. Her bottle with drink has been abandoned on the chaise, now empty.

As your mind begins to focus on your work, you register Hilde telling Estrid to send for food and drinks.

“And make sure they bring her Majesty’s favorite snacks so that she can eat while she works. I’m sure she’s been neglecting her meals all day,” Hilde knows.

Time passes without you realizing and you do appreciate the small munchies that are brought and placed on the edge of the desk.

You eat without thinking and soon the plate is empty, wrappers littering the top right corner of your workspace as well as the floor below.

“Shit, what time is it?” You crane your neck around to look for Hilde and find the room empty.

Pulling your phone close you click the screen on to see that it’s just before dinner and Hilde is probably waiting for you down in the dining room.

You don’t bother changing much of your clothes. You slip out of your jeans and shirt and quickly pull a simple cotton dress on.

It’s customary to dress up for dinner a bit but without Thor here, you put in minimal effort and the burnt orange cotton dress is relaxed enough to let you breathe but nice looking enough to be presentable.

You’re tying the sash around your waist to heighten your curves as you make your way down the two floors to the dining room and fixing the wrists of your long loose cinched sleeves when you reach the hallway and look up only to gasp as Hilde stops right in front of you looking frazzled.

“Hey, what-?”

“I need you to know that he didn’t know about this. If he did, he would have warned you-us. I also don’t think he thought he’d be out when they came.”

She’s so stressed that you reach out to grab hold of her arms and smile through your confusion.

“Hilde, what are you talking about? Who’s here?”

You receive your answer only too quickly, “Is that you, Cherub? Queen of New Asgard?”

The snark is brief but familiar and you don’t need further explanation to know who you’ll see behind Hilde.

She steps aside to reveal Tony Stark, moving towards you a few steps until he’s standing right in front of you.

He bows.

“Oh, shit, please don’t do that,” you gasp, embarrassed.

Tony smirks, “Gotta follow the rules, Your Majesty.”

“Please, Tony. Just my name is fine,” you plead. “Really, I can’t bear anything else.”

“Queen’s orders?” he teases.

You genuinely chuckle, rolling your eyes before finally noticing his extended hand. Taking it, he lifts it to his lips to give you a quick polite kiss, then gently drops it.

“Thor wasn’t expecting you for another few weeks. Wasn’t there a mission? It was going to take a while?”

“My fault,” Bruce’s voice interjects.

Tony steps aside and you smile as your eyes find Bruce. He walks towards you both with his head slightly ducked, his hands held together at his front as he moves towards you nervously, wringing them.

“I kind of Hulked out and might have single handedly taken out the guys patrolling the building we were trying to get into. And then broke in through a wall and started a fire. And then sat on the mainframe of their computer system and lost us all the data we were trying to steal in the first place which cut our mission short by a few weeks.”

Bruce extends his hand and you take it, all too happy to see him again.

You’re halfway to a laugh at the chaos he seems to have caused when you notice a small head of swaying hair behind him. As your chuckle is caught in your throat, you freeze mid handshake, heart stuttering as those pretty brown eyes that have plagued a few of your nightmares meet yours.

“Jane…” you quietly gasp.

“Remember what I said?” Hilde asks, moving to stand by you.

“Oh, um…” Tony points at Jane as Bruce releases your hand and moves aside to give you full view of the pretty brunette dressed in a semi-formal pantsuit complete with thick jacket to combat the Norwegian temperatures that press in on the warmth of any home after the sun sets.

Jane is quick to give you a much better curtsy than she did the first time and then hesitantly offers you her hand, “Hello again, Your Majesty.”

“Jane has something to show Thor and well, you. Where is he, by the way?” Tony asks, giving the hallway a complete turn to see if he can spot Thor hiding behind some chair or doorway.

“Just, my name, please,” you tell Jane, giving her your hand and fighting the urge to run and shove your face into a pillow to scream in order to focus on the stronger urge of finding out why your husband’s ex-lover came all the way to your home to see him. “Thor’s out. He and Loki have gone to meet with Fandral, Volstagg, Hogun, and Sif to see how far along the outposts are.

“Does your visit have to do with the threat?” You turn back to Jane and slowly take your hand back.

“I’d really like to talk about it with both of you, if you don’t mind?” Jane explains.

“Listen,” Hilde begins, but you shake your head just a teeny bit and she stops and shuts her mouth.

“Okay, that’s fine. He won’t be back until tomorrow morning at the earliest, so join us for dinner?” With a gesture at the doors to your right, Estrid throws them open and inside is waiting a modest but still lavish feast compared to most dinners in common households. There are three main courses to choose from as well as plenty of sides to give the most picky eater options.

Even though there is plenty of food, they’re simple foods. Roast chicken, sandwiches, salad, soup, bread, rice, potatoes, and other vegetables. Lots of it, but plainly prepared.

Hilde had known you wouldn’t even really be tasting your food with Thor gone and now, you doubt you can find your appetite again to consume anything.

“Nice spread,” Tony admires, but he holds out his elbow for you and you take it.

He escorts you to your usual seat by Thor’s at the end, then pulls it out for you and as the others take to standing behind their own seats--Hilde across from you and the others wherever they’d like--they wait until you take yours before they even attempt to pull their own out.

As several younger looking men and women move in with pitches of ale and wine and water, you catch Estrid’s gaze as she whispers instructions to a much younger looking girl with very curly dark hair.

The young girl rushes off when Estrid sees you need her and gives her a small push and a quick word.

“Yes, Your Majesty?” Estrid asks, stopping beside you and silencing the others as they had begun to dig in and chatter pleasantly.

“Have three rooms made up for our guests? Make sure they want for nothing while they’re here, alright? The best rooms for Thor’s close friends.”

“Yeah, I’ll take the suite,” Tony teases, and Estrid looks flustered for a moment before she realizes that he’s joking and then with a kind and surprised smile, she gives you a curtsy and then rushes off to do as she’s been asked.

“I’m sorry if the food isn’t more…” You can’t find the word to convey what you want to say, so you leave the sentence hanging there. “If I’d known you were coming, I’d have had Cook prepare you something nicer.”

“Oh, this is wonderful,” Bruce assures you, lifting his fork laden with broccoli and chicken.

He nods and smiles, then shoves the forkful into his mouth.

“Yeah, this is good,” Tony nods, using your name which gives you a strange sense of acceptance.

It’s casual, the way he says it. It’s like he really has welcomed you into his circle after your visit with them during your honeymoon.

“We can’t all have lobster every night. Bruce is allergic.”

“What?” Bruce asks, slightly stunned. “Me? I’m not…”

“Aren’t you?” Tony asks.

“No,” Bruce shakes his head, flabbergasted.

“How come you didn’t want to eat those Lobsters on Fourth of July then?” Tony demands, dropping his hand so that his fork clinks against the side of his plate.

He’s starting to look upset.

“You bought the box off some guy standing at the mouth of the alley where we were catching arms smugglers!”

“What’s your point?” Tony demands.

As their banter flows, you keep a pleasant and appropriately amused smile trained on the pair of them but you have one eye fixed on Jane and carefully you take a few hurried looks at her. Admiring the way her hair falls softly against her shoulders and the way she eats with poise and why the hell did she have to come in person?

Hasn’t she ever heard of fucking e-mail?!

[what-is-love-babey-dont-hurt-me]

The Haunting of Thomas Sanders 

> Part 1 < Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Summary: Nico was beginning to think his new boyfriend was haunted by ghosts. He never planned to bring it up until the ghosts themselves came to him asking for help.

[AO3]

CW: food mention, alcohol mention, past breakup

Notes: Based off this text post I made. 

.

Nico had come to the mall for inspiration.

Anything to get out of his office would help him at this point, really. The meetings he had to go to were stifling any new ideas and the nosey, pompous co-workers were worse. The writer did not know what he was looking for, but what else brought people to malls? Maybe a new outfit would uncover confidence , maybe indulging in greasy food would be that final click he seemed to lack, maybe people-watching would offer the right story. Nico's bets were not on the last one.

The mall was not as busy as it once had been. When he was still a teen it was a lively place bustling with a constant traffic of people. Walking through shops offered hours of new stimulation and the hallways were towering, intricate skylights the crowning jewel. As time went on Nico got older and things changed. Online shopping is easier than anything and a fair few of the shops were closed down for good.

Nevertheless it was his favorite place to write if he had to choose. The buzz of energy helped him focus on work. Nico found peculiar security in being an irrelevant face in a crowd of hundreds, and knowing that each person had a life he could never even imagine opened floodgates of inspiration. The 'What if's?' and 'Why's?" he asked himself when people-watching could get the ball rolling.

Now there were less faces, less stories. Nico did not appreciate the way this shift reflected in his work. The difference was noticeable, and he struggled more with deadlines, but he worked with what he had.

He learned to pay attention to individuals more. However, currently what he had was waiting for his food, because at this point he might have more luck finding inspiration in eating then in others. There had only been a toddler throwing a tantrum, a teen scrolling on their phone, and a man who sat down across from him at the food court-

Oh hello, inspiration.

If Nico was staring, the only reason he got away with it was his laptop blocking his line of sight. He saw all he needed out of the corner of his eye. The floral shirt was extremely flattering, and if he wasn't mistaken he could see the outline of muscles. That brown hair looked fluffy, and what he would give to run his fingers through it while- Okay, Nico, you might be gay but that thought isn't for a stranger .

He could not even see his eye color. And the man in the floral shirt was eating, interrupting his meal would be rude. Maybe there was a way to make this still work? As his waitress got to his table and dropped off his food, he subtly turned his pinned-covered backpack in the direction of the stranger. If Mr. Handsome did not answer his silent plea then he would move on.

He tossed a fry into his mouth instead of letting himself think.

Maybe he had got his hopes up when the guy came in his direction, only to walk up to a Karrot King line. When the writer saw the man in the floral shirt inspect the plant, he wondered if he liked botany. Finally the same useless hope happened again when they made admittedly awkward eye contact for a few seconds. So he has brown eyes. The guy turned away rather fast so Nico dropped it. Maybe showing a pride pin made the guy uncomfortable and it was to good to be true.

Only when he heard a CRASH and saw somebody fall into a garbage can, did he finally get an idea about what to write. That was a metaphor he could spin into a story. Certainly it was not at all because he felt trashy for a missed opportunity. Nor was it due to that cute guy having disappeared, leaving his food uneaten.

Wait . You can still make this work, Flores.

He scarfed down the rest of his food and discarded the trash. Nico's fast pace to get to the table with the food turned a few heads, but he ignored it. Greasy bag in hand, he browsed the crowd for that familiar pattern. Every person wearing a floral shirt was either an older lady or a child. Nico swayed on the balls of his feet as he contemplated what to do next, but then he saw him coming out of the restroom.

Bingo!

None of what happened after went as planned. Serves him right for letting his overactive imagination create unrealistic expectations.

He should have known trying to do small talk with strangers would only backfire. After Nico had called out after him to return the food, he had tried to ask what made him leave in a rush to forget his food. Then the guy asked what was wrong with him and Nico dropped it. He gave the stranger his well-wishers and left afterwards. He would honestly rather head back to work then be here right now.  

No matter if he was admittedly cute, Nico Flores probably would have been mad at the man if he did not look like he was on the verge of a public anxiety attack. He was probably starving, too, if he had forgotten his lunch.

The man in the floral shirt hesitated behind him, running after Nico.

When they actually sat down to talk together, the man in the floral shirt - Mr. Sanders, Thomas - was quite charming. And funny. And intelligent. Oh, when he had called Thomas an inspiration earlier he had meant it. He just met a singer and an actor, is there a more perfect match to a writer and poet?

Leave it to his imagination to think of a man he just met reciting the poems and lovingly singing songs he writes.

The two had talked for over two hours without noticing. They had bounced ideas off of each other and Nico made an impressive amount of progress. He felt so giddy with just this one interaction! Nico was sad that they had to leave; Thomas seemed just as reluctant to part.

"Well you didn't get to eat much today at lunch right?"

Thomas fiddled with his fingers, "Yeah…"

Nico did not let himself second guess himself , he offered, "Then let me buy you dinner tonight!"

As a breath caught in Thomas' throat, Nico was self conscious that he might have said something wrong, but the heavy blush across the other man's face was not of offence or horror at all. Thomas was smiling at him again.

Finding ways to make Thomas go speechless was going to be his new favorite pastime… if Thomas would give him a chance, he decided. Just that alone lit a fire inside him, and later when he finished with writing for work, he would write some more. All he would be writing about would be this, a collection of poems to free these butterflies in his stomach. Thomas seemed to look around for approval from anybody else and nodded quickly

"I'd love to go with you, Nico! Maybe we can uh- get to know each other better?" Oh man, it was flattering to have somebody so cute get so nervous at him of all people.  

"Only if I could get to know the digits on your phone number better," he confirmed with a playful grin. It might have been cheesy, certainly. But he was also the person who told Thomas that they would not waste this opportunity. Pretending he was not corny now would be a lie.

Thomas taking his cliché advances in stride only made him more hopeful.

.

.

They both later met at a local bar and grill close to the beach. A salty sea breeze tousled his hair and the palm leaves. The hour was close to sunset, too hot for the mosquitoes to bug them but not too hot for the two of them to eat outside.

"I'm looking for a table for two? RSVP'd under the name 'Flores'?" He asked. The waitress nodded, sat him down with a menu. Thomas was not there, and a part of him wonders if he is getting stood up. Nico, not particularly interested in looking at food yet, fiddled with his laptop. He sighed because even If that was the case, Nico would try to make the most of the night.

The waitress brought Thomas to the table a few minutes later. The writer's heart soared before worry took root. Thomas was wearing that same expression from earlier that day on his face. He anxiously explained. "I'm so, so sorry for being late. And i totally get if you don't want me here and would prefer to just call this all off. I didn't mean to show up late, but then as I was about to leave my apartment I- my keys just-"

Nico grabbed one of Thomas' hands and smiled reassuringly. "Hey, I'm not angry you got here late."

Thomas really did look cute flustered, but he did not let go of the hand. Instead he ran his thumbs along his knuckles. "I'm happy you're here with me. Wanna order a drink and maybe share an appetizer with me?"

They both chatted about foods they disliked while waiting. Thomas hated carrots with a passion as it turned out, and he made a mental note to tease him about going to a Karrot King. Nico in turn talked about his dislike for most seafood and mushrooms because of the slimy texture. The waitress came and both agreed on a sampler platter to share.

"Mimosas at sunset?" He inquired.

Thomas smiled nervously. "I usually save them for brunches, with friends. All the other options I like are too much if I want to drive home tonight."

Nico nodded, understanding.

Just like in the food court, Talking with Thomas made time go past without him even noticing. They tried out food together, talked about music, and that led Nico into telling a story about a Highschool band. Thomas was red in the face and giggling uncontrollably by the time they paid for the check and had to leave.

They left the building together when Thomas stopped him. "There's a park around the corner. We can feed the ducks some leftovers."

If Nico noticed that Thomas was not ready to say bye just yet, he did not say it. The last of the sun was behind the horizon by the time they went through a breadstick. Watching Thomas interact with the ducks gave him the idea that this man loved animals. They were cute, he would admit, but nature found other ways to ruin his mood.

Nico laughed at himself, pulling his arms closer into his body. "I almost wish I dressed up a bit more. I didn't expect the mosquitoes to be this bad."

"I know it's warm out, but I can lend you a jacket?"

Nico did a double take at what Thomas was holding up. It was black with plaid sleeves, already oversized so it wouldn't have a problem fitting Nico. It honestly looked very comfortable, and it would keep him from being bit, but comfort wasn't what he was caught up on.

"Being warm beats being eaten alive."

When the fuck did Thomas have an extra jacket on him? Did he really not notice it?

He hesitated, and then asked a whole entirety different question. "Are you sure I can take this? I won't be able to return it to you tonight."

Thomas insisted, "Please, I don't mind- I don't need it. And you can keep it for tonight, or until we see each other again?"

Nico put the jacket on and it was soft. And it smelled like the cologne Thomas was wearing. Oh this was nice. "When will that be, Thomas?"

Thomas let his eyes linger on Nico in his jacket. "Saturday I'm free, I think. We could have brunch together, even."

He smiled. "Saturday sounds wonderful."

.

.

When they first had met, being infatuated was easy. It came to the pair more natural than breathing.

Nico originally did not know if his relationship with Thomas Sanders would go anywhere. But the first meeting had been so promising. And then they had a brunch date at Thomas' place, then a second and a third. Maybe… maybe Nico was moving too fast. Things kept going well nonetheless.

Four, five, six, seven. They kept on hanging out. Going out. They wanted to see more and more of each other. Quickly they were amassing a horde of good memories together. During nights away, they loved to text and call each other. They never put a label on what they did, which was starting to bother him. It felt more intimate than friendship. Were these dates?

According to his family, yes. They had noticed his change in mood and lack of free time quickly and demanded explanation. He kept it vague, but got advice anyways. Mama Flores said it was ridiculous that he had not brought Thomas by to meet the famila. Hid Papa was more doubtful. Even though it has been years since Nico's last major failed relationship, his father was still worried.

Papa Flores was a proud man, so it left a bad taste in his mouth when he requested Nico to take more time before giving his heart away. He had to oblige. Nico was over it, he healed, but some of his family was not. Nico's ex was like a second son to Papa, and everybody was hurt by him.

Call him cliché, but Thomas was different.

Even when Nico was past the stage of infatuation, Thomas took his breath away.

Could you be infatuated by somebody you have not actually kissed yet? It felt like it. Sure, when they had met at that food court, he had his breath taken away, and that feeling intensified when they saw each other more. He knew infatuation could feel like love, but these feelings passed the test of time and matured into something deeper. With more meaning. He did not like just the idea of Thomas and what their future might look like, he liked Thomas for his presence and as a person.

Suddenly his worries that they were moving too fast turned into frustrations they were moving too slow. They were more intimate than regular friends, but they never got far enough to be considered partners. It was frustrating to figure out. Nico was ready for a relationship, he was certain. The three months he spent getting to know Thomas were blissful, and calling their dates only "hangouts" had begun to feel forced.

So they talked about it.

Thomas said he was also ready but his actions seemed more… hesitant. He mentioned somebody from his past, who he moved on from but never could forget. Nico wanted to ask, to find out what happened to his heart for him to be so afraid. He knew what it felt like to have scars that still hurt, he wanted to be there for Thomas as he healed.

But that was not the time for the conversation. Not when Nico was nearly on Thomas' lap and his arms hung around his neck. Not when Thomas met his eyes and Nico stared at them for too long. It could have been him trying to figure out what emotions they held, maybe Thomas' eyes were that beautiful. His friend -- boyfriend? -- got so anxious and trapped in his head easily, but Thomas seemed in control of his more scary thoughts in that moment. It brought a smile to his face, unnoticed between the way they were slowly moving closer.

Still, cautious and vulnerable, eager and loving, Thomas had let Nico kiss him. Finally getting to show Thomas just how much he wanted to cherish him was amazing. And receiving that same passion in return was intoxicating.

Getting an answer never felt so good.

Nico's more-than-friendly feelings were not the only thing that was starting to add up in regards to Thomas either. There were strange happenings, though were so minuscule he had nothing tangible to go off of.

Thomas might be really good at sneaking things past Nico's eyes, common sense would say. Intuition told himself not to doubt what he saw. Thomas did not have that spare jacket on their first date originally. It literally had to of appeared from thin air. And when Thomas invited him for brunch, he noticed that two of the mimosas Thomas had prepared with brunch had vanished. Sometimes he experiences ghost touches when staying the night. The hands were gentle and comforting, calluses on the fingertips just like Thomas, but when he opened his eyes nobody was there.

That was the most noticeable of things. Though he could list off a dozen smaller happenings. He had no proof for them, as they could be explained, but Nico listened to his gut here.

And Nico has no idea what he would want to do with this information anyways. Thomas seemed to have some supernatural force that followed him around. What a fantastic conclusion to jump to! It would be weird to bring up, especially after Thomas had denied anything when Nico subtly brought it up. And the ghosts - for lack of better term - did nothing to harm Thomas.

The information that Thomas was haunted by ghosts was, for all intents and purposes, useless.

(Except it was not. It was fantastic material to write from. When he first called Thomas inspiration, his first impression never proved to be wrong.)

(And if Nico had started a personal project dedicated to a story based on it, nobody needed to know,)

The difference between Nico's feelings for Thomas and his feelings about his ghosts is that one actually got addressed.

He would be content to let Thomas have that secret to himself.

NEXT PART >>

[lsvdw-blog]

Not a Minute More: Part 2

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x f!MC

Word Count: 1.8k

Warnings; Rating: Mentions of a cyberattack, Angst; Teen+

Premise: MC's perspective on the day that rocks Ethan to his core and threatens to change his life.

Author’s Note: I was going to wait to post this, but I'm loving the flood of content we're getting rn, so I thought I'd hop on too. I cried writing this... I'm so sorry 😭. Part 1 here. I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading 💖

~ Monday, 8:20am ~

"Good morning, Mike!" Serena greets the security guard right inside the door.

"Hey! How are ya? How's that Dr. Ramsey?"

"We're both doing well, thanks! How about you and the family?" She asks as she puts her phone in a cubby and unplugs the Wi-Fi enabler from her laptop.

"It was the wife and I's anniversary this weekend! We went to Martha's vineyard and saw the most beautiful proposal! You and Dr. R gonna get going on that soon? Aly has been talking about going to y'alls wedding since she met ya!" Mike gives a playful wink.

"Oh, congratulations! That's wonderful and send Aly my best wishes. But you'll have to talk to E on that one," she laughs before opening the door to a stairwell that leads to a classified area.

After keying in her pin, the door clicks open. She grabs a static protection lab coat, walks through the entrance, and is met with a plethora of state-of-the-art equipment. Floor-to-ceiling grey switch panels, curved monitors as far as the eye can see, and countless probes, clips, and wires.

She walks over to a few familiar faces. “Good morning! How’s it going?”

“Nice of you to finally join us! Dr. Ramsey keep you this morning?” Isla, one of the engineers, jests.

“I saw your check-in on the monitor — you walked in two minutes before me!”

“Those diagnostic skills at work, I see,” Isla retorts and they both laugh.

Isla had become a fast and faithful friend since Serena joined the project. They bonded quickly over both being minorities in the world of science and supported each other in every work facet. They had lunch together everyday and gradually, their work bond grew into a personal friendship as well. They’ve become so close that Isla now also regularly spends time with the original Edenbrook gang.

“Alright, enough chit chat. Let’s get this show on the road.”

The team nods and responds, “Yes, Doctor.”

~ 12:00pm ~

Serena exits the classified area with some colleagues and they all make their way to retrieve their phones.

"No new patients. Stuck in meetings and doing paperwork. I miss you and wish you were here."

She immediately breaks out into a large grin after reading Ethan's text and hits the dial button.

"Hey, ready for lunch?" Carmen, one of the lead scientists, asks.

Serena nods and moves her phone slightly away from her ear. "Be there in a minute. You guys go ahead."

She waits for a few more rings. He’s probably busy, I’ll call again later. She hangs up and makes her way to the cafeteria.

~ 12:40pm ~

"We did all the necessary prep work this morning to begin testing after lunch. Everything is looking good. We can begin running our tests since everyone is here. Are we all ready to begin?"

"Yes."

The system engineers are sitting at connected computer stations, inputting the required credentials to start. The rest of the team is standing behind them, waiting and nervously watching the screens. After a couple minutes of tense silence with nothing but the clack clack clack of keyboard keys, Vincenzo, one of the lead engineers, speaks up.

"This is weird… we're having some trouble accessing the necessary data. Did someone put up a firewall?"

Everybody looks around at each other, shaking their heads and muttering "no."

"Isla, are you seeing this? Can you get through?"

Isla continues to type, not saying anything. After a few more seconds, she turns to look at Vincenzo with a concerned expression. "I don't recognize some of the items in our system."

Just as she finishes her sentence, everyone's attention is pulled abruptly to a wall monitor on the right as it starts showing nonsensical images and patterns. Two seconds later, an alarm goes off and a red warning light begins flashing within the building. Everyone's eyes go wide as realization dawns on them: they've been compromised and shelter-in-place has been activated.

~ 12:55pm ~

Everyone begins to evacuate the classified lab area, grabbing their phones on the way out, and peering through the one-way windows. They can occasionally hear Mike speaking rapidly into the phone with a 911 dispatcher, when he's not being drowned out by shouts from colleagues.

On the descent to the bunker, the tension is palpable. Individuals clutch onto each other, others try frantically to reach loved ones, and some are in complete disbelief and shock. As they all descend the five flights of the winding staircase to the basement, windows are no longer available, but the ceiling bulbs keep flickering on and off. Each time it happens, everyone stops in their tracks, ducks down on instinct, and picks up the pace when the lights come back on.

~ 1:15pm ~

The entrance to the Harvard labs bunker is protected by a vault door that has a counter system. When the system is in place, the door can be opened once for people to get in. Once it's been closed, it can only be opened when there's one person on either side working together — it's futile with only one person. The only other way it can be opened is by shutting down the counter system from the outside, with the correct override pin, which only a handful of the most trusted team members know.*

As the vault door comes into sight, the wheel on the outside is turned, and the door opens with a whoosh. People slowly start filing in and head towards the back. However, not everyone can stay in the safety of the bunker. In case of an emergency, the project they’re working on must be erased, to protect it from falling into the wrong hands. Certain people have been assigned particular instructions to delete specific portions.

Serena is one of them.

She's walking next to Isla and their arms are looped together. As Isla enters the bunker, Serena lets go of her arm, stopping at the threshold. Isla whips her head around.

"What are you doing?! Get in here!" She reaches for Serena’s arm.

Serena shakes her head. "I'm the only one currently here who knows the medical codes."

Isla's eyes are frantic in realization. "I'll go back with you! I'll be your lookout! You're not going alone!"

"You'll be safe here. This is my responsibility."

Serena reaches behind her neck and unclasps her gold necklace for the first time in 7 years. She grabs Isla's hand and places the jewelry into her palm, closing Isla's fingers around it.

Serena stares at their clasped hands. "In case anything happens," they both flinch at another flickering of lights. "Promise me that you'll get this to E."

Their eyes are locked now, having a silent battle: Isla begging her to stay and Serena finding the strength not to.

"Isla, promise me. Please." Serena squeezes Isla’s hand that much tighter.

Isla realizes that there's no use in fighting Serena. Risking her life to delete the project is part of the job. They all made a commitment and if the roles were reversed, Isla would be the one fighting to go back.

Isla slowly nods. "I promise, Serena. I promise. But do your best to keep yourself safe. Try and stay near the corners, away from any large equipment that could have aftershock effects, and—"

Serena shakes her slightly. "I know, Isla. We did take the same training," she smiles, trying to make a joke to lighten the mood, but Isla just stares gravely at her.

A booming sound rattles the building and Serena knows it's time to go. She gives Isla a quick hug, before pushing her backwards into the bunker. Before Isla has regained her footing, Serena has closed the bunker door with a resounding thud.

~ 1:30pm ~

On the way back to the classified area, Serena takes out her phone. Ethan hasn't returned her earlier call. Her heart is pounding and with trembling hands, she hits the call button on Ethan's contact card for the second time in less than two hours. After a few rings, his voice comes through.

"You've reached Dr. Ethan Ramsey. I apologize for missing your call. Leave a message and I'll get back to you."

Just as she’s about to start speaking, the lights go down for good. "Hey E," she tries her best to keep her voice from shaking. She puts the call on speaker, places the phone out in front of her, and turns the flashlight on. "I don't know when this will hit the news, but we're currently under cyberattack. I don't know from who or what, but they’ve already gotten into our mainframe and power supply. Everyone has sheltered-in-place and is awaiting further instructions." She takes a deep breath as she inches down a corridor.

"Everyone except me, Vincenzo, and Carmen. We’re the only three here right now trained to completely delete the project in the event something like this happened. I'm walking back to the lab as I speak."

Serena rounds a corner and the lab comes into view. Thinking about what she has to say next, silent tears stream down her face.

"Ethan, sweetheart, I need you to know that the last eight months by your side have been the absolute best eight months of my entire life. You are the light of my existence and mean everything to me." She lets out a deep breath. "I wish I could hear your voice right now… I'm really scared. But I made a commitment, so I need to go back in and finish the job. If something happens, know that you are unequivocally the love of my life and the one for me. I know we haven't talked about it yet, but know that I want to spend forever with you as your wife and have you be the father of my children." She sniffs and continues, "you would be a fantastic husband and dad."

She comes to a stop in front of the keypad located right outside the lab and swallows past the lump in her throat. "But if the universe has other plans for me, I'll be waiting for you and I can't wait to spend forever with you in the next life. This isn't how I wanted to tell you, but until next time, whenever that is, I love you so much, Ethan Jonah Ramsey, more than words could ever properly convey."

She ends the phone call with tear-filled eyes, stashes her phone on a nearby workbench, punches in her key, and enters the classified area one more time.

~~~~~~

*Disclaimer: I have no idea if Harvard labs has a bunker and if they do, what kind of door/system they utilize. This is all purely AU!

[knightsimp]

Recovery (2/2)

Pairing: Percival Graves x Reader

Summery: You were right; that was not Percival Graves. So, what are you going to do about it?

Genre: Angst + fluff (I think it’s a sweet ending :D)

Word Count: 2600+

Date Posted: February 14, 2021 (Happy Valentine’s Day!)

Note: None

Part One: Link

“How do you think she is doing, Teenie?” Queenie found herself asking as she and Tina made their way to (Y/N)’s apartment. 

“I’m not sure, but I regret not staying with her for a couple of days.” The girls had no idea what (Y/N) was up to; she had not turned up for work, understandably, for the last five days. Now that it was Friday, they were able to check up on her. 

The sisters looked at each other before Tina knocked on (Y/N)’s door. They chose not to apparate to avoid scaring her. 

“It’s open!” (Y/N)’s muffled voice came through the door. When they entered the apartment, they did not expect such a mess.

The kitchen was a mess, first of all. Pots and pans everywhere, and unwashed dishes piled the sink. 

“In here!” (Y/N) called from the room at the end of the corridor: the bedroom. The bedroom was not any better than the kitchen. From what can be seen by just looking through the bedroom door, (Y/N)’s bed was not made and a couple garments were dumped onto it. Miscellaneous things, such as her hairbrush and a few pieces of clothing, were piling onto her bedside table.

Tina and Queenie were not prepared to see a spew of papers near the wall which was facing the bed. Tina had not known about (Y/N)’s investigation at all, but Queenie knew and did not realize it would get this far and this bad. The small patch of papers that were pinned on the wall, which had been connected together with red string, had taken over the square-ish area and had started to crawl onto the ceiling. 

“Oh my god.” Tina mumbled, looking up at one of the moving snippets from The Daily Prophet. 

“Tina! Queenie!” (Y/N) was at the wall where this collection started. “How are you?” It looked as if (Y/N) just rolled out of bed and got to work. And that was exactly what has been happening the last several days.

“We’re doing alright, (Y/N).” Queenie hesitated for a moment. “How are you?” (Y/N) shrugged her shoulders.

“Tired mostly. I haven’t slept in a couple days, but look! I have made so much progress!” Queenie looked around and found two empty mugs which were, no doubt, once filled with coffee. Tina snapped out of her memorization of the ceiling. 

“Progress?” Tina asked, raising an eyebrow. She slowly put the pieces together. “(Y/N),” pause, “are you trying to figure out where Mr. Graves is?” (Y/N) smile dropped for a moment while she averted her gaze downward. Her enthusiastic smile became a sad one as she fiddled with the delicate gold charm that Percival had gifted to her for a birthday. 

“Well, of course.” (Y/N) looked back at them, speaking softly. “What else am I supposed to do?”

“First, you need to go take a shower.” Tina went behind (Y/N) and pushed her shoulders out of the bedroom to the nearby bathroom. “I don’t mean to be insensitive, but you really do stink. We can smell you from across the room and it is a long room.” 

“Tina’s right!” Queenie agreed, looking at them. “You need to take care of yourself, (Y/N). You are not going to make much progress when you are unconscious from a lack of sleep and proper food.” Before (Y/N) could say anything, Queenie added, “And yes, regardless of what you think, you do need a little freshening up.” With a little more arguing, (Y/N) agreed to at least take a shower. Queenie handed (Y/N) some clothes to change into before she entered her bathroom.

Tina continued to awe at (Y/N)’s investigating. She knew (Y/N) was a brilliant detective, but this was beyond what she thought. She followed it down from the ceiling to the original wall. In the middle of the wall was where everything was connecting to; a photo of (Y/N) and Percival at the Blind Pig. After being constantly reprimanded by Percival, who was really Grindelwald, when he was around, it surprised her that she did not notice the differences between him and the real Percival sooner. Percival was very intimidating and dominating, yes, but he still cared about his subordinates. Grindelwald could not care less unless it was meddling his involvement in MACUSA.

As Tina looked closer into the snippets of newspaper, she noticed how (Y/N) had been investigating all over the city. No doubt she was going to all of these locations. Once a location was visited, it seemed like (Y/N) would pin or make notes on the snippet. 

“No way.”

“Possible, but not probable”

These were only the very general notes being made. It looked like (Y/N) was also communicating with Theseus Scamander in London to make some inquiries in Europe, but nothing came of that.

Tina did not realize how long she was gawking at (Y/N)’s work until she heard the shower stop.

(Y/N) looked as if she was in deep thought when she exited the bathroom. She definitely looked, and smelled, fresher than before.

“(Y/N)?” Tina tried to call out to her. “Are you okay?”

“(Y/N), are you sure?” Queenie came around the corner, overhearing (Y/N) thoughts. “Is that a likely place?”

“What is a likely place?” (Y/N) looked up at Tina. 

“You know how while you take shower or a bath, it is easy to let your mind wander?” Tina nodded. “I think...” She trailed off, again seemingly trying to make sense of her thoughts.

“You think Mr. Graves is at MACUSA!” Queenie gasped. 

“What?” Tina exclaimed. “Explain!”

“There is nowhere else he can be, Tina!” (Y/N) was right, but also sounded like she was grasping at straws. “I have scavenged the city for signs. I even had someone in London make secret inquiries for me. And it is absolutely something Grindelwald would do. If anyone was going to look for the real Percival, they were not going to search MACUSA, a place swarming with talented aurors. And it makes it easier to get ingredients for the Polyjuice potion. No one is going to question Percival Graves if they spot him walking through the building.”

“That is actually genius.” Tina mumbled before clearing her throat. “But where would he be? Like you said, MACUSA always has aurors in the building.”

“MACUSA is big and has been running for decades! There has to be some abandoned areas that are no longer required for work.”

“We can always check.” Queenie suggested. “All three of us work in that building.”

“Though, depending on how large the search area is, we may need help from Picquery.” (Y/N) bit the inside of her cheek. Might as well.

The sun was starting to set when the three women arrived at MACUSA.

“You two stay out here.” (Y/N) told the sisters. “I can’t have you two getting in trouble, especially you, Tina; you just got your job back as an auror.”

(Y/N) stormed into President Picquery’s office. She did not mean to, but her adrenaline took over. The President was clearly in the middle of some sort of meeting. She looked peeved, to say the least.

“Miss (L/N),” she started sternly. “I am glad to see you are feeling better, that being said-”

“Madame President-”

“-I am in the middle of something-”

“I may have figured out where Percival Graves is, ma’am.” The room went silent. “The real Percival Graves.” Picquery’s expression turned from annoyed to serious. 

“Gentlemen, we can reschedule, but I must talk with Miss (L/N) this instant.” The two men in suits left and closed the door behind them, leaving (Y/N) to Seraphina’s mercy. “Miss (L/N).” She let a bit of silence go by. “I’m listening.”

“I believe Percival may be in this building.” Seraphina leaned back in her chair and sighed.

“And what is your proof?”

“The lack of any. Madame President, when I tell you that I have scoured the whole city looking for him, I mean it; that is not an exaggeration. I have been making inquiries in Europe and no one has found anything.” Seraphina continued to stare at her. “Please, at least humor me.”

“And where would he be, (Y/N), if he is in fact here?”

“That is the big question, ma’am; that is why I am here in your office.” She purposefully kept Tina and Queenie out of it to avoid any repercussions they may face if she is wrong. “In my investigation into this theory, I wondered if there are any abandoned areas here in MACUSA. A building and organization this old cannot still be using all of it’s floors.” Then, the realization seemed to hit Seraphina.  

“I can’t believe I am saying this, but you may be onto something, (L/N).” She stood up from her chair and went to the front of her desk, leaning against it. “Some of the lowest floors have not been used in a long time. At least five or six floors. No one goes down there anymore; there is no need.” She led (Y/N) to the door. “I am sending five people to each floor immediately. You and the Goldstein's gather two more aurors and start the search.” (Y/N) wanted to ask how she knew the Goldstein sisters were involved, but quickly shut her mouth. “If you’re wrong, this is a waste of a lot of manpower. People are finishing up their shifts and will be very upset to be searching a good portion of our building when they could be going home.”

“Then, let's hope that I’m not wrong.” Seraphina nodded before heading off to the main floor. Tina and Queenie came closer, seeing as the coast was clear. 

“Miss Goldstein-”

“Find two other aurors and we’ll meet you at the elevator.” Queenie glanced at both the president and (Y/N) before leaving Tina with (Y/N). 

“(Y/N)?” Tina put a hand on her shoulder to stop her for a moment. (Y/N) explained the plan as they made their way to the elevator. 

“We don’t know what or who is down here.” Tina warned, talking to everyone, but keeping her eyes on (Y/N). “Stay alert.” The five of them split up, wands in hand, but stayed close enough to see each other in case of an ambush.

The bottom floor of the building, way under sea level, had definitely been abandoned. The remaining desks down there were dusty and untouched. Whatever else they had down there was the same.

After about half-an-hour, (Y/N) was losing hope; she was hanging on to the thought of finding Percival and it was the only thing keeping her going, but her grip was slipping.

In the relatively silent bottom floor of MACUSA, they could hear the echoing of someone yelling. They can barely make it out, but the words which were projected were very clear: “we found him!”

(Y/N) heart dropped to her stomach. She almost did not believe what she heard. Tina and Queenie caught up to (Y/N) as she ran to the cage elevator, though the elevator was way above where she was, giving her ample space to look up.

“Give me a floor!” (Y/N)’s voice cracked as she yelled up the shaft, trying to get through all of the noise. She got responses for many of the aurors, but she got a general answer: three from the bottom. Percival was supposedly only two floors above where she was. Her breathing was getting a little heavy. 

She looked at the floor before apparating to it. Her team followed. 

“(L/N)!” One of the aurors on the floor called her over. “He’s over here!” (Y/N) almost tripped with how quickly she ran, following the auror. The heels of her shoes made a loud clack every time her feet pummeled onto the floor. 

Her heart was pounding, but it really started hitting hard against her ribs when she saw her first glimpses of him. Her running had come to a halt and she slid on her knees in front of him.

The poor man had been through so much. Whatever skin was showing outside of his torn dress pants and ruffled dress shirt was bruised and his face was home to a black eye. His hair and facial hair had grown way past what he would have tolerated if he was in control of it. He stank of blood, sweat, and dirt.

He was not in a cage or cell; he was, instead, shackled to a support beam by his wrists.

“Percy!” (Y/N) gasped out, holding his almost unconscious face in her shaking hands. It looked like he may have been sleeping to pass the time. “Get medical down here!” A couple of aurors nodded and left to get personal from the medical wing. “Percival, please open your eyes.” 

Slowly, with whatever energy he had, he opened his eyes. He could believe (Y/N) was sitting in front of him, holding his face so gently. The light coming in from behind her made her look oh-so angelic. 

“(Y/N)?” Her name barely passed his lips. 

“Percy! Yes, yes! It’s me!” She could not care less that she was crying; hearing his voice again, the real him, brought her to tears. She let a sob escape. “Oh Merlin, I found you! I finally found you!” In her happiness, she planted tender kisses all over his face. She did not notice when Percival mumbled something to her. 

“Make way!” The healers had arrived with a gurney, ready to take Percival up to the medical wing. (Y/N) was reluctant to let go of him, but did so. She watched as he was taken away from her. 

Queenie, from (Y/N)’s side, gave her a reassuring hug, which the crying auror returned and finally let out her whimpers. 

He was found.

This was the real Percival.

He was alive.

And he was going to be okay.

It took about a full day for Percival to become coherent. He was so void of nutrients and fluids; the man was on the brink of dying. 

What had happened was clear: once Grindelwald was found out, Percival was no longer needed and he was left down there to die. It was horrifying to think what would have happened if (Y/N) had not had that miscellaneous thought in the shower.

When he awoke, (Y/N) was right there, gently holding onto his bruised hand so as to not hurt him further.

“You’re safe now, Percival,” was the first thing she said to him. “Everything will be alright.” Once again, the light coming from behind her made her look ethereal, as if she was an angel. 

His angel.

“I said, I love you.” Percival got out. (Y/N) blinked, thinking she misheard him.

“Percy?”

“I love you, (Y/N) (L/N). I’m not going to let another day pass where I regret telling you that.” (Y/N) looked away, bashful. 

“You need to rest.”

“I mean it-”

She pressed a sweet kiss on the corner of his lips, ignoring the irritation from his beard, before sitting back in her seat. “I know you do. You are not a very flowery man.” He looked at her, a little confused. She gave him a soft chuckle, knowing what he was thinking. “I’m not going anywhere, Percival. I made that mistake once, and look at what happened. I am staying right here.”

[study-coffee-chicago]

Undercover (A Jay and Will Halstead x Halstead Sister! Imagine)

This is super long so hang in there! It’s also my first imagine I’ve posted on Tumblr, so feedback would be amazing! (Also posted on my wattpad)

Mini synopsis:  In which something horrible happens to Y/N's best friend, Emma, so Y/N goes undercover to get her justice. She's under and everything's fine...until it's not fine at all.

Huge trigger warning for sexual assault. Please do not read if this makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable! Also, please remember there are people out there to help you if you or someone you love has gone through this. Just google the sexual assault hotline and the number for your country should pop up.

Can you pick up chicken wings? No bluejays game on tonight, tho.

Below that text, your best friend, Emma, had sent you her location, which was turned on to send location indefinitely.

Back when you were both only freshmen in high school, you had come up with code words in case you needed help. This was mostly for unwanted attention from boys. Chicken wing(s) meant that you needed help ASAP. Bluejay(s) was code for Jay or cops.

"Fuck," you muttered as you tried to quickly piece together a plan. You couldn't call Jay or any cop for that matter. But, if she had sent you her location, that meant that she was definitely in trouble. You looked down at the location and could see that the red pin was moving further and further into the heart of the sketchiest part of the south side of Chicago.

Then it occurred to you: the safe in Jay's room under his bed where he told you that he kept a spare gun in case of emergencies. You ran into his room and dove under his bed, quickly pulling out the safe. You groaned as you realized he had forgotten to tell you the pin number to open it.

"Maybe Mom's birthday?" you thought aloud. You punched in the six numbers, causing a green light to turn on, and you yanked the small door of the safe open. "Dumbass," you muttered, thinking about how easy it would be for anyone in your family or anyone who was close to you, Jay, or Will to get their hands on the gun or other things like Jay's backup badge that were hidden there.

You grabbed the gun and your car keys and sprinted out of the house. "Hang on Emma," you said as you jumped in your car and pulled out your phone to see her location. The pin had been at the same location for two minutes now. Your stomach dropped, knowing this couldn't be good.

***

Jay dropped his keys in the ceramic dish on the table and headed into his room to change into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. He practically stopped breathing when he saw that the safe had been pulled out from under his bed and was open. He threw himself to the floor and looked in it. "Fuck," he muttered as he saw that the gun was gone.

He sprinted to the front of the house, only to see that your car was gone. "Ruz, I need you to ping Y/N's phone. Now," Jay said into his phone as he ran out of the house and to his truck.

Jay heard the clacking of keys on the other end of the line. "Okay, I sent you her location. What's wrong?"

Jay put his truck in drive and turned on the lights and sirens. "I think she's in trouble. She took my spare gun."

"Okay, Hailey's still here finishing up paperwork. We'll come for backup." Then the line went dead and Jay drove the fastest he ever had in his life.

***

"Are we announcing?" Hailey asked as she finished putting on her vest.

"No," Jay answered as the three began to walk closer and closer to an abandoned warehouse.

Jay tried the knob and to his surprise and everyone else's, it was unlocked. They heard crying as they walked inside and Jay pointed out directions.

Adam walked toward the sound of the crying, while Hailey and Jay worked on clearing areas behind huge shelves.

"Someone's here," Emma whispered to you as you heard a door open. You had given her your coat to wrap around her body. You knew you had to get her to a doctor, but she had told you no cops, which meant no Jay and you had no idea how to get her out safely. You had thought about calling Will, but when you tried to call him, the call only rang once and then stopped. You only had one bar, so the call didn't go through.

With shaking hands, you picked up the gun and pointed it directly at the door. "Put the gun down!" Adam yelled as he looked through the small crack in the door. From his vantage point, all he saw was a gun. He couldn't see that you were the one holding it. "Jay, I need backup over here," he whispered into his radio.

"Copy," he answered and walked down the stairs, gun drawn. "Ready?" Jay asked. Adam nodded and Jay proceeded to kick in the door.

"CPD hands where we can see 'em!" Adam yelled the moment Jay kicked the door. But then he saw who was there and he turned to Jay.

"Y/N," Jay started slowly and calmly, "put the gun down."

Slowly, you lowered the gun and placed it on the floor. Before Jay or Adam even had a chance to get a word in, Emma yelled out, "I said no cops!"

"Emma, I promise you that I didn't call them. Why would I have a gun if I called them, huh?"

That's when Adam and Jay turned to Emma, who was clearly in need of medical attention. Jay nodded to Adam. "This is 50-21 Ida," Adam spoke into his radio, "We have a girl here in need of medical attention. I need you to roll an ambo to my current location. Roll crime scene techs, too. Be advised there are three plain clothes officers on scene."

"Copy that, 50-21 Ida."

"Hey, Emma." Adam slowly moved towards Emma. "I'm Adam. I work with Y/N's brother, Jay. Can you stand up for me?"

She looked down at her body, the coat you had let her borrow barely covering her and you knew that when she stood up, it wouldn't cover all her most vulnerable place. Jay must've got the message too. "Hailey," he said into his radio, "Offender's in the wind. We've got a victim down here. If you see anything to cover her up, bring it here."

"Copy." There was a pause as shuffling could be heard on the radio. "I found a blanket. Coming down now." You heard footsteps on the ground and Adam and Jay immediately raised their guns. "Upton!" Hailey yelled as she opened the door.

The boys lowered their guns and put them back in their holsters. You heard sirens in the distance. "Hi, honey," Hailey said as she walked over to Emma. "I'm Hailey. What's your name?"

"Emma."

"Okay, Emma. We're gonna get you to a hospital. Can you wrap this around you so you can stand up?"

She nodded and stood up and took the blanket.

"Do you wanna go with her?" Jay whispered to you.

"No." You didn't want to see your best friend in a hospital bed knowing that you could have prevented this from happening if you only called Jay. "I'll call her mom, though."

"I'll do that," Hailey offered and Jay forwarded Emma's mom's number to Hailey. Hailey and Emma walked away, leaving you, Adam, and Jay.

"You mind waiting until Voight gets here?" Jay asked.

"Crime scene techs are here so I won't be alone if what you're worried about is me not having backup," Adam answered, humor in his voice.

"Thanks, man. I'm gonna take Y/N to the district to get her statement."

He dropped the magazine out of the gun and laughed. "What's so funny?" you asked.

"It's a good thing you didn't have to shoot anyone because the mag's empty."

"The what's empty?"

"The magazine. It's where the bullets go."

"Oh."

"Jeez, Jay. When you said you kept your work away from Y/N you really weren't kidding."

"Shut up," Jay joked as you followed him out of the warehouse and into his truck. He turned the heat as high as it could go, seeing as you were without a coat in the middle of a Chicago winter.

"Now, I'm not mad, I just want to know what happened," he said as he started to drive.

"How'd you find me?" you asked, knowing that you hadn't broken your promise of not calling the cops.

"I went home and saw the safe was open and the gun was gone, so I had Adam track your phone."

"Oh."

"Can you please tell me what happened?"

"You promise you won't be mad?"

"Unless you were doing something illegal, then I won't be mad. I'm assuming you had a good reason for taking my gun?"

"Emma texted me our code word for if a guy was creeping on her and she said no cops. She also sent me her location. So, I grabbed the gun and I came here."

You took a deep breath as you started to cry. "We can finish this at the district, okay?" Jay suggested.

"Yeah," you agreed.

***

You were sitting on the couch next to Jay, slowly sipping your water as he flipped open his notepad. "Take as much time as you need."

"You're talking to me like a victim, not a witness," you quipped.

"How would you know that?"

"I watch enough crime shows in my free time to know that's how cops talk to the vic."

"Okay, yeah, but you're my baby sister. Do you know how hard it was for me to walk into that room and see you holding a gun? Can you please tell me what happened?"

"Like I said, Emma sent me her location, so I went to the warehouse. When I found her, she was laying on the floor, naked, and I ran over to her. H-He raped her, Jay. I-It's all my f-fault," you stuttered, beginning to cry.

"It is not your fault. Not in a million years is this your fault."

"If I would've called you, this wouldn't have happened!"

Jay wondered why you didn't call him, and he wasn't going to ask. But, if this went to trial and you became a witness, you knew the defense would ask you. So, he knew he had to ask you, too. "Why didn't you call me?"

"She told me that she had to go to the bathroom. The guy let her, but didn't know that she had her phone on her. He said if she tried to run or call the police that he'd shoot her. She said that while he was, while he was you know, doing things to her, that he held a gun to her head. He said that if she screamed, he'd kill her."

Jay ran a hand through his hair as you continued. "I tried to call Will, I really did, but I didn't have good enough reception in the warehouse."

"We got a hit on the offender!" Kim yelled as she rounded the corner into the breakroom.

Jay stood up, but not without looking at you. "Stay here. I don't want you anywhere near this," he said as he walked out and shut the door.

"What do we got?" Jay asked, seeing all of Intelligence gathered in the bullpen.

"We think the guy is James Mason," Voight started. "Did a year in Stateville for rape. Released for good behavior three months ago."

"Good behavior my ass," Adam chirped.

"How do you know it's this guy, Sarge?" Kevin asked.

"He just so happened to walk into a neighboring bar where I know a guy. Guy said he didn't think the two were together, but then they went off somewhere, they came back, he ordered her a drink and she seemed to be comfortable around him."

"He check her ID?" Jay asked.

"I assume so," Voight answered. "Why?"

"Emma's not 21 yet, so she had to have had a fake or he used his ID to buy both drinks." Then a thought occurred to him. "You got the surveillance footage from the bar?"

"Yeah, right over here," Kim answered.

Jay looked at the footage. "Pause it." He watched as Emma walked away from the perp and rounded the corner, following a restroom sign. "That had to be the time Emma texted Y/N her location because she told her that he let her go to the bathroom and he told her that if she tried to get help, he'd shoot her because he had a gun."

"Okay, see if Mason's got a registered firearm," Voight said. "Better yet, pull up his address. Atwater, Burgess, and Ruzek get a search warrant and find it."

"Copy that, Sarge," Kevin said, grabbing his jacket.

Hailey ran up the stairs as Kevin, Kim, and Adam ran down. "Any update on the victim?" Voight asked.

"She's been through trauma, that's for sure," Hailey answered. "Lacerations on her wrists and ankles, bruising on her stomach and thighs, and vaginal tearing."

"Like she was tied up." Jay pieced it together.

"Halstead, your sister ever mention anything about having to untie her?"

"No, Sarge."

"Maybe he undid the ties himself," Hailey suggested.

"Why would he do that? Then she could just call the cops and run away." Voight asked.

"He gets off on it," Hailey answered. "He unties his victims so that they can leave, but they're too traumatized to leave. So, he knows even if he's not there, he's still controlling them."

"Sick son of a bitch," Jay said.

"Voight," he answered as he picked up his phone. "Find anything at the house?" There was a pause as someone on the other end talked. "That's good, we can use that but, we'll just have to find another way to nail him." Then he ended the call.

"What's up, Sarge?" Hailey asked.

"They didn't find anything at Mason's house, but his car was gone. They went through his financials and found out his car just got a new license plate today, which is why it wasn't updated in the database yet. But, they found the paperwork for that new license plate, so we can use that. Burgess also said that they found his calendar with bar names on each day."

"So, he goes to a bar every night and we just need to get him in the act?" Hailey suggested.

"I'll call up a rookie," Voight said as he started to walk towards his office.

"I'll do it!" you volunteered.

"Y/N! I thought I told you to stay in there!" Jay admonished.

"It's not like the walls are soundproof."

"She's got a point, Jay," Hailey agreed with you.

"You're not going in there regardless and that's final!"

"Jay, she's my best friend. I gotta help get this guy. And, if you can't get him on the rape, you can at least get him on distributing alcohol to a minor," you suggested.

Jay looked over at Hank. "Sarge, you can't be considering this!"

"She's got a good point, Jay."

"There's no way Will will agree to this, either."

"Let me call him," you suggested and walked away to talk to your other older brother.

"Hailey, there's no way she's going in there," Jay said to Hailey when they were both seated in the breakroom.

"Jay, you know Hank will put me or Burgess in as ghost in the bar so that things don't get that far. And she'll have a safe word." She paused and reached for his hand. "If it were your best friend, you'd do the same thing she's doing and you know it."

"Will said it's okay," you said as you walked into the breakroom.

"He what?" Jay jumped off the couch.

"He said it's okay on one condition: If he's in the car with you so that if I need medical attention, he can do it without having to wait on the paramedics."

"Then it's a go," Voight said as he heard that.

"It's not a go!" Jay yelled. "Sarge, she's a civilian! You can't be serious about this!"

"Jay, she's no different from a CI. We'll have Upton be her ghost and we'll all be right outside. The minute she says the safe word we'll nail his ass."

***

"Sarge, I'm not okay with this," Jay said as he walked into Voight's office, leaving the door open.

"Jay, we are not having this discussion again! She's okay with it and I'm okay with it. I'm your boss, so you listen to me."

"Do you see what she's wearing? She's asking for it!"

The bullpen went silent the second the words came out of his mouth. "A word," Hailey hissed, roughly grabbing Jay's arm and leading him into the breakroom. This time, he closed the door.

"You're lucky Y/N didn't hear you, Jay! You're a cop, you know it's never the victim's fault!"

Jay raked a hand through his hair. "I know. I messed up," he sighed. "I just, I can't let anything happen to her. She's my baby sister, Hails. I already buried both of my parents. I can't bury her, too."

"Will it make you feel better if you went in and stayed in the bar with me? I can talk to Voight," Hailey suggested.

"Actually yeah, that would make me feel a hell of a lot better."

***

"Hailey, Jay's not gonna like this but I need you to make sure he doesn't come after me until there are obvious signs of a struggle," you said. "Let him hit me a bit; I can handle it. Will's on scene and will fix me up if anything happens. But I have to get justice for Emma because right now, she can barely sleep."

She squeezed your shoulder. "Copy that."

"Vests good?" Voight asked as he entered. Everyone nodded. "Y/N, there's still time to put one on if you want it."

"He'll know something's up if he feels it. I gotta do without it."

"Alright roll--" Voight couldn't finish his sentence because Jay cut him off.

"Just give me five minutes with Y/N, Sarge. Five minutes, that's all."

"Okay, everyone load up." Voight turned to Jay. "Five minutes Halstead, and that's it."

When everyone was gone, Jay turned to you and bent down so that he was eye level with you. "You can still back out now. No one will blame you."

"I can't. I need to do this for Emma and for all the other girls this has probably happened to."

Your brother nodded and reached into his pocket. "Just don't get this mixed up with your regular lipstick, okay?" You started to ask why when he took the cap off to reveal a knife.

"Jay, Voight said no weapons."

"You didn't think I was just going to let you go in unarmed, did you? And relax, Platt gave it to me. So, if Voight figures it out, she's got my back."

"So where's the best place to, you know..." you trailed off, hoping that you wouldn't have to stab Mason, but wanting to know the best place to do it if worst comes to worst.

"I'd say thigh or his, his uh..."

"Penis," you finished.

"I was gonna say man parts, but penis works, too."

You took the lipstick from him and stuffed it in your dress. "Is it noticeable?"

"Never in a million years did I think I'd have to inspect my sister's boobs for a weapon. But, no, it's not noticeable."

"Halsteads!" Voight boomed. "We gotta go now!"

"Okay!" Jay turned back to you. "Safe word?"

"Vodka Cranberry." You and the team decided on that since it would be easy to weasel into a conversation.

"Hey, I love you." He hugged you and you swore you could hear his heart beating despite his vest. You assumed this was the most nervous he'd ever been about an undercover operation.

"I love you, too."

***

"Suspect approaching. You guys copy inside?" you heard Kevin's voice through the wire hidden in your ear.

"Yeah," you answered and you heard Hailey and Jay agree.

Hailey walked up to you, as she was posing as your friend and Jay was posing as the guy that she would flirt with so that Mason could get you alone, even though the thought of that made you sick.

"And remember, if he gets you alcohol, don't drink it," Hailey warned. "This entire investigation could go out the window."

"Not to mention she'd be grounded," you heard Jay come in through your hidden earpiece.

"Jay, if you make comments like this through your wire the entire night, we're gonna have a problem."

"Copy."

You and Hailey pretended to be talking about some people from your neighborhood when you heard Jay talking to you. "I've got eyes on him. He's headed your way."

Hailey shot a glance at Jay, and then reached for your top, pulling it down a bit more to reveal more of your boobs. "Hailey--" Jay started into his wire, but Hailey shot him a glare to make him shut up.

"What are you two ladies doing here all alone?" James Mason asked, coming up and sitting beside you.

"Oh, you know, just chatting," Hailey said, taking a sip of her drink.

"Mind if I join the conversation?" he asked, waving a bartender over.

"Actually, I've got my eye on someone over there," Hailey said as she stood up. "You're just her type," she whispered in his ear as she made her way over to Jay.

"Can I get you a beer? A shot maybe?" Mason asked you.

"No, but I'll take a pop if the offer's still on the table."

"Sure." He ordered a pop for you and a beer for himself. "So, what's your name?" he asked.

"Layla," you answered. "Yours?"

"James."

"Nice to meet you James. You from around here?"

"Chicago born and raised. You?"

"Just here visiting family," you answered.

You had finished your pop by now and James noticed. "Want another one? Maybe a Captain and Coke this time?"

"Just a Coke's fine," you replied.

"Y/N, say you have to go to the bathroom and leave your phone on the table. We gotta get him getting alcohol to you at least," Jay said.

"Actually, I have to go use the ladies room." You got up, not before turning to him. "I'm expecting that Coke when I get back." You sent a wink his way.

Along with the wire and camera you had in your dress, you had also been given a UC phone so that it could record and take a video of things in case you had to leave.

James Mason had a feeling that you were going to be uptight about leaving with him, so he figured he'd solve it his own way. "Hey, she said a captain and Coke," Mason said to the bartender.

"Last I remember she said just a Coke," the bartender replied, doing his due diligence to make sure a girl who said she didn't want alcohol didn't get it.

"She told me she wanted some before she left," he argued.

"I didn't hear that."

"She whispered it," he growled.

Reluctantly, the bartender gave in and make a captain and Coke, switching it out for her previous stand-alone Coke.

"Mason just put alcohol in Y/N's drink," Jay said into his wire. "Y/N, whatever you do, make up an excuse not to drink it, or else our investigation goes down the toilet."

You looked under the stalls in the bathroom, making sure that no one was there before answering. "Got it. I think I'm gonna make the move to leave with him after. He'll think I'm not interested if I keep holding out."

"She's not getting in a car with him!" you heard Will yell. He was currently sitting in the van with Atwater and Burgess, watching this whole scene go down in case he needed to treat any injuries. "That's not the plan!"

"Will," Kevin started, "this is part of the plan. She just didn't tell you because she knew you wouldn't agree to let her do this if she told you."

"But what if she--"

"If you're gonna keep arguing, turn off your mics!" Voight yelled.

"Sorry, Sarge," Kevin apologized.

"When she leaves with this prick, me and Adam will follow them and Jay and Hailey will follow us. And before you can argue with me Jay because I know you will, I can't have you first on scene."

"Copy that," Jay said.

You exited the bathroom and walked back up to Mason. "Hey I was thinking," you started, running your hand up his arm. This made you want to vomit, but you knew you had to do this to help Emma. "maybe we should go back to your place?"

"You don't want to finish your drink?" he asked.

"No, we can get some at your house, can't we?"

"I guess I have a few things, vodka, tequila, beer."

"Alright, let's go." You grabbed his hand and you started walking to his car. You took a deep, shaky breath as you entered the passenger side. You closed the door, hoping this wouldn't cost you your life.

"Damn Halstead," Adam said, "your sister's good."

"Shut up," both Jay and Will said at the same time. If you weren't undercover, you would've laughed at them having the same response even though they weren't together at the moment.

Jay and Hailey entered Jay's truck, then proceeded to velcro their vests on over their clothes. "Jay, Hailey, you following?" Voight asked.

"Copy that," Jay said as he started his truck and began to drive. He knew he should be off this case, but here he was, adam's apple bobbing up and down, trying to stop from breaking down. It's his little sister in that car with a rapist. His little sister who he swore to protect from the moment she was born. His little sister who saw him as more of a father than their actual one. His little sister who used to come to him in the middle of the night for help finding her teddy bear when Will stole it. His little sister who he taught to drive. His little sister, who he was terrified to lose to this monster of a man.

"You okay?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he lied.

"No, you're not." Hailey paused, not wanting to pick a fight with him. "I know you're worried about her, Jay. But, we'll protect her. None of us will let anything happen to her. I promise."

"You can't make promises you can't keep, Hailey."

Back in the van, Will was seeing everything. And he wanted to explode. He saw Y/N clench her jaw the moment his hand touched her thigh, but then quickly regain her composure for the sake of the case. He knew she was uncomfortable, and it broke him that he couldn't do anything to stop it. It was his little sister in there. His little sister who he helped with her homework. His little sister who always stole his coffee. His little sister who spam texted him at four in the morning when she knew he had to be up for a long shift during his residency to make sure he wasn't late. His little sister who he had held as she cried when Jay left for his second tour in Afganistan. His little sister, who he couldn't allow anything bad to happen to.

"Where are we going?" Y/N asked, looking around at the rundown industrial part of the city they were entering.

"I make my own beer, so I'm just gonna make a quick pitstop," he answered as they pulled in behind an empty warehouse.

"I'm not so sure--"

In one swift motion, he pulled a gun from his waistband and held it to Y/N's head. The team heard a gasp through their wires.

"What's going on in there, Kevin?" Voight asked.

"He's got a gun to her head, Sarge."

"Screw the safe word, I'm moving in!" Jay yelled, but Hailey grabbed his hand.

"Halstead stand down! She hasn't said the safe word yet, so we are not moving in. Is that clear?" No answer. "I said, is that clear?" Voight repeated.

"Clear," Jay mumbled.

"Scream and I will blow your brains outta your pretty little head," Mason growled, pushing the gun further into your temple. "Now hold out your hands."

You held out your shaking hands and he put zip ties around your wrists. Tight, effectively tying them together.

Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all.

"Move." He pushed you forward and you walked through the black night and into the empty warehouse.

"Please," you pleaded as he pushed you forward still. "Please just let me go and we can pretend none of this happened."

"Too late now. I thought you wanted this." A sick smirk appeared on his face.

In your silent panicky state, you didn't see that there was a pipe on the floor and you tripped over it, scraping up your shin and barely catching yourself with your zip tied hands. You hissed as you hit the ground with a thud. "Didn't see that there, oops," Mason said sarcastically.

In the few seconds on the floor you had left, you reached into your dress and pulled out the lipstick, trying to upcap it while being discreet. Once you got the cap off, you tried to discreetly hide it in your hand, but were roughly pulled up by your hair, causing you to yelp and drop the knife.

"You stupid bitch!" he roared. "You thought you could try and get away from me!"

"No, no, I- I promise. I must've grabbed that by mistake when I grabbed my lipstick."

"Bullshit." Before you could react, you felt his fist connect with the side of your face.

You fell to the ground once more, catching yourself with your tied hands once more. But this time, it was harder, like you wrenched your wrist the wrong way. The pain stopped almost immediately though when you felt his boot-clad foot kick your back, effectively knocking the wind out of you and leaving you gasping for breath.

"I can't listen to this," Jay said, pulling out his wire.

"Jay, what are you--"

"Hailey, just tell me when she says the safe word or when we're told to move in, okay? I can't listen to him beat my sister."

Hailey sighed. "Okay, but you have to put it back in as soon as I tell you to."

"Fine," Jay huffed.

"What's her location?" Voight asked.

"As far as we know, they're still in the main space of the warehouse," Kim answered, looking at the video feed from the camera that was embedded in your dress. "They entered through the front, can you see a side or back entrance?"

"Ruzek and I got a side entrance. Upton and Halstead, I need you to go find a back entrance. And bring the snipers. Atwater and Burgess, you take the front. Stay on video for now. I'll tell you two when to exit the van and move in."

"Wire," Hailey said as she handed Jay's wire back to him. "Voight said to find a back entrace and bring the snipers."

Jay put his wire back in and they exited the truck and grabbed the snipers, in search of a back entrance.

You were roughly pushed down to the ground. He held you there. He reached for your dress and ripped it.

You felt your heart beating in your chest, but couldn't do anything except look into the eyes of your captor. You saw his blond hair wave wildly about as he breathed heavily with adrenaline and watched his lips twitch into a sick smirk. You wanted to kick him, try and fight back. But you couldn't, it was like you were frozen. You parted your lips to scream, but he covered your mouth, effectively shutting you up. It wouldn't have mattered anyway; you were frozen in your current state of shock.

"Sarge, something's wrong," Kevin said. "He pushed her to the gound, and ripped off her dress, but she didn't fight back. At all. She didn't even try to say the safe word before he covered her mouth."

"Frozen," Hank muttered to himself.

"What?" Ruzek asked.

"She's freezing!" he yelled into his radio. "There's fight and flight but there's also freeze, we gotta move in! Now!"

You stared up at James Mason. He kissed your neck roughly and then took his hand off your mouth and fiddled with the zipper of his pants.

"No," you whispered, almost inaudible, as that was as loud as your body would allow your voice to go. It took all your strength to yell, "Vodka--"

"Chicago PD!"

James Mason was ripped away from you, but you were still frozen.

You screamed as someone touched your arm. "Please, no, please," you begged.

"Y/N, Y/N come back," you heard someone say in a soft voice. "It's me, it's Jay, you're safe Short Stack, we're here."

At the mention of your nickname, a switch flipped inside you and you had control over your body again. "Jay?" You looked up.

"It's me."

"Y/N, I'm gonna cut these off you. Hold still, okay?" Burgess said and then cut the zip ties off your wrists.

"Here." Kevin quickly handed you his shirt to cover yourself up with.

"Thank you," you whispered, holding back tears.

"Can you stand up?" Jay asked a minute later.

You slowly nodded, taking his hand to help you stand up.

"We're gonna get you back to the district and let Will have a look at you, okay?"

Jay wrapped a hand protectively around your waist as he, Hailey, and you exited the building.

"Y/N!" Will yelled, running towards you. His loud voice made you flinch, which didn't go unnoticed by Hailey or Jay who shared a look.

He slightly crouched down to your height and enveloped you in one of the tightest hugs he had ever given and that you had ever received. "Ow," you squeaked as his arms wrapped around the very place Mason had kicked you.

"Sorry," he said, quickly letting go. "Pain scale, one to ten?"

"I- I don't know," you answered, the adrenaline haven't worn off yet.

"Let's get back to the district," Hailey said.

You all got into Jay's truck, with Jay and Hailey in the front, Jay driving of course, and you and Will in the back. You snuggled into Will's side, finally starting to realize how cold it was. Will started to move, but you whined. "Please don't leave me," you whispered.

"I'm not leaving you, I'm just giving you my jacket."

You nodded and Will removed his jacket and draped it over your legs. He wrapped an arm around you and pulled you closer.

"I'm sorry," you started to cry, the adrenaline finally starting to wear off.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, nothing at all," Will reassured you.

"If I would've said the safe word earlier--"

"Y/N, you were frozen. There was nothing you could do." Jay said, trying to keep his attention focused on the road. "None of this is your fault."

***

"I have an emergency overnight bag in my locker," Hailey said as soon as you entered Intelligence. "Come with me."

Slowly, you followed her into the locker room, to be met with a few beat cops. "Everybody out! Now!" Hailey commanded.

A few seconds later, it was only you and Hailey sitting in the locker room. "I was so scared," you said to Hailey, feeling a familiar lump begin to rise in your throat. "He almost- If I didn't- Hailey!" you wailed.

"Shhh, shhh, it's okay, it's okay." She paused. "Can I hug you?" she asked, knowing that the only people who touched you since the encounter were your brothers.

You nodded and she gave you a side hug and rubbed your back. When you didn't stop crying, she wrapped you in a hug and swayed back and forth. You ended up swaying along, too. You laughed.

"What's so funny?" she asked quietly.

"My mom used to do this to me when I was little. She said it was the only thing that actually calmed me down."

You stayed like that a moment longer. "I think I should change so that Will can check me out."

"I'll keep watch and make sure no one else comes in here."

When Hailey left the locker room, she was met with the Halstead brothers. Jay was crying. She'd never seen him cry before.

"The minute she yelled out Hailey, I just lost it, Will. If I would've just went in earlier, I could've stopped it. I'm supposed to protect her."

"We both are, Jay."

"Well, we both did a shitty job!"

Will reacted faster than he thought he could, catching Jay's hand before it slammed into the wall. "Y/N is right inside there. Don't do that."

Jay took a deep breath and just nodded. "Will?" The three turned when they heard a small voice.

"Hey kid," Will replied. "Let's get you patched up, okay?"

"Yeah."

"Me and Jay are gonna get some coffee," Hailey said. "Come get us if you need anything."

Will gave them a curt nod and then the two of you walked into the locker room. He unzipped his medical bag. After putting on some gloves, he walked over to the sink and got a washcloth wet. "Tell me if it's too hot, okay?"

"Okay."

He began to wipe the dried blood away from the left side of your face and then proceeded to put butterfly bandaids on both your eyebrow and cheekbone. "Follow the light with your eyes, don't turn your head."

You did as he said and followed the flashlight with your eyes. "Can you roll up your sweatpants?" he asked. "Just so I can take a look at your shin. That looked like a pretty nasty fall."

"You were watching?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Since you saw, do you- do you know why I froze?" you asked weakly, looking down at your feet. "I thought I was stronger than that."

"Hey, hey, look at me, Y/N." You looked up at your brother. "You are one of the strongest people I know, okay? I don't know anyone else who would volunteer to do what you just did. You're a hero, Y/N. A true hero."

"Then why did I freeze up?"

"Everybody reacts to anxiety-provoking or traumatizing events differently. Some people just freeze. It's nothing to be ashamed of; it's just how your nervous system was wired."

He put a bandaid on your shin and felt around the area, causing you to wince. "The good news is that nothing's broken. But, you'll probably have some bruising tomorrow." You nodded in response. "We just gotta make sure we ice it. Now, I'm gonna have to lift up your shirt to look at your back," Will warned you.

"Can we get Hailey?"

"Of course."

He stood up and began to walk towards the door, when you stopped him. "I- I don't wanna be alone." You stood up and walked to him.

He wrapped his arm back around you again. "Don't worry, I'll protect you. You're also in a building full of cops, so I think you're in one of the safest places in the city."

You and your brother entered the bullpen, to be faced with all of Intelligence knee-deep in paperwork. "Hailey, can we borrow you for a sec?" Will asked.

"'Course."

"Okay, all I need you to do is lift up the back of Y/N's shirt...well, Kevin's shirt," Will said once the three were back in the locker room.

"I'm gonna lift this up now," Hailey told you. You nodded, letting her know you were ready.

Soon enough, you felt a stethoscope on your back. "Deep breath." You did so and then repeated the action a few times while Will moved the stethoscope around. "Lung sounds are good."

"So, no hospital?" you asked hopefully.

"No hospital, just lots of ice. You can put her shirt down now."

You stifled a yawn, exhaustion finally hitting you after the night you had. "I'll go get Jay and see if Voight'll let him leave. I don't see it being a problem," Hailey said before leaving.

"Hey Sarge, think you could let Jay get out of here?" Hailey asked.

"I gave him the option of leaving as soon as he came back in here."

"Why'd they need you?" Jay butted in.

"I just needed to lift up Y/N's shirt while Will checked out her back. And, no, she doesn't have to go to the hospital. But, she's exhausted."

"Sarge?"

"Go home, Jay."

***

"Y/N, you need to eat something," Jay pleaded.

You had been home for half an hour and all you had done was take a shower. Now you were staring down Jay because eating was the last thing you wanted to do. All you wanted to do was go in your room and sob into your pillow while Will was asleep on the living room couch and Jay was asleep in the room across from yours. You were afraid that if you ate something, you'd just end up throwing it up if you cried too hard...very irrational, but that was your thought process. And, besides, you weren't hungry anyway.

"I'm not hungry," you answered, moving the ice pack around on your shin.

"Listen, I don't care what you eat. Hell, you can eat Oreos for all I care."

"We have Oreos?"

"I hid them on the top shelf so you won't eat all of them because they're your favorite," Jay answered, heading over to the cabinet and grabbing the package. He put them back on the table, pulling them open. You took three and started to eat them.

"I'm gonna go to bed now," you said a few minutes later once you had finished the Oreos.

Will exited the bathroom at that exact moment. "You sure you don't wanna have a sleepover in the living room like we used to when we were little?" Will asked, going into big brother mode once again.

"I'm sure. I just want my own bed. Goodnight."

It had been a few hours and you had finally fallen into a restless sleep. Will was currently asleep on the couch, but Jay wasn't in his room like you expected him to be. He was sitting outside your room, drinking a cup of coffee. It was enough that it would keep him awake, but if he really wanted to sleep, he'd actually be able to. Jay knew how bad nightmares could be. He also knew how to wake someone out of a nightmare without getting himself injured if they tried to punch him, so he figured it would be best if he stayed up, just in case.

He started to hear more tossing and turning coming from your oom. It wasn't the usual sounds of someone trying to get in a comfortable sleeping position...even if they did have multiple injuries to contend with. It was the sound of not having conscious control of movement.

Slowly, as to not wake you yet, Jay opened your door. As he moved closer to you, he could see that your eyes were moving back and forth beneath your eyelids, a telltale sign of REM sleep, aka a dream sleep. Or, in your case, nightmare sleep.

"Y/N," he whispered. "Y/N, wake up." Gently, he touched your shoulder, causing you to jolt awake, your breathing jagged. "Y/N, it's just me. You're at home, it was all a dream," he quickly said.

"Jay?" you asked, darting your eyes around your dark room.

"Yeah." He noticed your breathing still hadn't evened out. "Breathe with me, okay?" Then, he overexaggerated his inhales and exhales, effectively getting your breathing back to normal. "You want the lights on?"

"Please."

Jay turned on your light and the sight he was met with absolutely broke his heart. Your eyes were red and puffy from crying and you had dark circles under your eyes from exhaustion. "I'm so tired. Why can't I just sleep?" you began to cry, this time it wasn't from fear or coming down from adrenaline, it was from pure exhaustion.

Jay sat on the other side of your bed. When you moved to push yourself up, you winced, pain shooting through your right wrist. "What's wrong? Is it your back? Leg?"

"No, it's my wrist," you answered. "I must've hit it harder than I thought when I fell."

"Need me to wake up Will?" you shook your head, no, you could move it. It was just sore and putting weight on it hurt, but you knew it wasn't broken or fractured. It didn't take a medical degree for you to know that. "Okay, I'll go get you some ice and ibuprofen."

Jay left your room and you stood up and grabbed a book from your bookshelf.

He came back into your room, carrying a glass of water, ice, a bottle of pills, and to your surprise, Oreos and a jar of peanut butter. "Figured a late-night snack never hurt anyone," he said, sitting down next to you once again.

"Thought you hated Oreos and peanut butter," you said, unscrewing the lid to the PB jar.

"I do, but you like it...even though it's disgusting."

"You can thank The Parent Trap for that one."

Jay chuckled but then sighed. "Listen, Y/N, if you have nightmares, you can always talk to me about them, okay?"

"Yeah." You shrugged.

"And I'm not just saying this because I'm your brother and it's my job," he continued. "I'm saying this because I know how it is."

"What do you mean?" you asked, furrowing your eyebrows while grabbing another oreo and dipping it in peanut butter.

"Remember when I got home from overseas and I wouldn't let you stay over late?"

"Yeah, always thought that was weird. But why are you bringing this up?"

"Because," he paused, wondering if he should actually tell you. "I'd have nightmares. And, if someone tried to wake me up, sometimes I'd still think I was there and I'd throw a few punches. I didn't want you over at night because I didn't want you to wake me up because I didn't want to hurt you.

"And, I didn't mean for it to go as far as it did tonight. I wanted to move in, but I couldn't--"

"I told Hailey to leave me in."

"You what?"

"I told Hailey to let him get rough with me before moving in. I just wanted you guys to have enough evidence so that Emma didn't have to testify against him."

"Testify? Y/N, what are you talking about?"

"I know how this goes, Jay. Not enough evidence, equals no case. And, we both know how hard rape cases are to prove. It's a he said she said. I- I just, I couldn't let my best friend relive the worst night of her life."

"Y/N, once we get him into interrogation tomorrow, he could take a deal. You don't know it's gonna go to trial."

You grabbed the pills next to you and popped an ibuprofen. "I know, but I knew I had to try and protect Emma...just like you and Will always try and protect me."

"When did you get so grown up?" Jay asked, putting an arm around you.

You shrugged, you wanted to say when your dad died, but you knew Jay didn't have the best relationship with him--neither did you for that matter--so you decided not to go there.

Jay looked down at the book next to you. "Prisoner of Azkaban? Thought you read it already?"

"I've read all of them. I thought, maybe you could read it to me? Like you did when I was little?"

You forgot how old you were when it started. You had to be in bed by eight o'clock on school nights, much to your dismay because as far as you knew, both of your brothers could stay up as late as they wanted. One night, you couldn't sleep and you knew your parents would just put you back to bed, so you peeked into Will's room. He was sitting on his desk, writing in a notebook. Assuming he was doing homework and not wanting to bug him, you hugged your teddy bear to your chest and walked to Jay's room, seeing as his light was still on as well.

Upon hearing his door creak open, Jay looked up from what he was reading. "Now what are you doing up?" Jay asked with a smile. "It's past your bedtime."

"But I'm not tired, Jay Jay," you whined, climbing on his bed to sit next to him. "That's a big book," you said, referring to the chapter book he held in his hands.

"It is. But you'll be able to read them soon, too!"

"I will?" you asked, cuddling your teddy bear, who you had named Teddy, to your chest. You looked up at your big brother with wide, hopeful eyes.

"Yes, you will."

"Will you read to me?"

"But you don't know what the book is about, silly."

"Then what's it about?" you asked curiously.

"It's about a wizard named Harry who has friends, Ron and Hermoine, and they have to fight the bad guys."

"Oooooh," you said excitedly. "Read it to me, Jay Jay."

"But we have to be quiet so we don't wake up Mommy and Daddy. Because then you have to go to your room."

"Okay, shhh," you put a finger to your lips.

"That's right, shhh," he mimicked, reopening his book to the previous page he was on.

You snuggled down into the covers with Teddy and listened to Jay tell you the story of Harry Potter and this guy named Sirius. Within five pages though, you were asleep.

"Course I'll read to you," he answered, taking an Oreo.

"Mine," you joked, swatting his hand away.

"Last I checked, I bought them. And, you didn't even know we had them until earlier."

You huffed. "Fine."

And just like when you were little, you fell asleep within one chapter.

***

"I'm here to see Intelligence," Emma said as she walked up to the desk sergeant in the 21st District the next morning.

"And you are?" Trudy Platt asked, annoyance laced in her voice, after all, it was only 8:30 on a Monday morning.

"Uh, I'm Emma. I'm here to make an ID," she answered timidly.

"Oh, so you're Emma!" Emma gave Platt a confused look, how did she know who she was? "Y/N's here a lot, so I've heard a lot of good things about you. You two are thick as thieves."

"That we are," Emma answered with a small smile.

Platt picked up the phone and dialed Jay's extension. "Halstead, Emma's down here to see you."

"Copy that, be right there," he answered. Then, he turned to Hailey. "Emma's here to make an ID. Mind telling Voight to get a lineup ready?"

"Got it," Hailey answered and then Jay left the bullpen.

"Hey, Emma," he said as he jogged downstairs. Normally he'd go and hug her since she was like another little sister to him and Will because of how long she and you had been best friends, but after everything that had happened, he knew to keep his distance.

"Hey, Jay," she answered.

"Where's your mom?"

"Oh, she got called in. You know how it is for first responders," Emma shrugged. Her mom was a paramedic and was first on scene, so Jay understood how demanding it was.

"Are you sure you're okay to do this alone?" Jay asked, concerned once they were up in the bullpen. "I can always text Y/N so that she can be here with you?"

"No, thanks though."

"Hailey, lineup ready?" Jay asked.

"Yeah, Voight's in there already. I'll come with you."

Jay and Hailey led Emma into the room. "You can see them, but they can't see you," Jay told her. "Just take as long as you need; there's no rush." Emma nodded. "Ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Emma answered nervously.

Voight knocked on the glass and Kevin let the men in the lineup enter. Emma looked at them one by one, her heart beating out of her chest. When her eyes landed on number three, her breath hitched and she turned to Jay. "Number three."

"Are you sure?" He put a hand on Emma's shoulder comfortingly, just like he'd do for Y/N if she were here.

"I'm positive. I'm gonna--"

Before she could finish her sentence, Jay's black t-shirt had vomit dripping down the front. Y/N has nightmares, Emma vomits. That's how it's always been, whenever Emma got overwhelmed or nervous, she'd puke. Same for Y/N, but with nightmares.

"I'm so sorry, Jay," she apologized, feeling tears of embarrassment prick her eyes.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay," he rushed, not wanting to make her feel even the slightest bit bad. "This isn't even the worst thing I've been covered in. I've got a change of clothes in my locker, so don't worry about it."

"C'mon, Emma," Hailey said. "Let's get you some water."

***

You were brushing your teeth when your phone vibrated on the counter next to you.

I just puked on your brother. Please come down now.

"Oh my God," you laughed after spitting out your toothpaste and then leaving the bathroom.

"Well that's a nice sound," Will said as he sat at the table, sipping his morning coffee. After everything that happened last night, he didn't know if he'd ever hear his little sister laugh again because all he's heard since last night are her worried voice and quiet sobs.

"Emma just puked on Jay!"

Will almost choked on his coffee. "Did someone get a picture?"

"Probably not. Good to leave in 15?" Jay didn't want you driving alone after what happened last night, and since you didn't get a lot of sleep, you didn't blame him for that. So, Will was going to drop you off at the district before his shift at Med started. He tried to get someone to cover it, but it was the middle of flu season, so no one could.

Will nodded and half an hour later you walked into the district. "Hey Trudy," Will said, waving to the desk sergeant. "Buzz us up?"

For once, Trudy didn't give either of you a snide remark, she just unlocked the gate to the bullpen and let you up.

"Sleep at all?" Kim asked as soon as she saw you.

"Not really," you answered truthfully. "Anyone know where Emma is?"

"Last I saw she was in the breakroom with Hailey and your brother." Will looked up. "Your other brother, the one who works here," Kim specified.

"Thanks, Kim."

You entered the breakroom to see Emma sitting at the table on her phone with Jay and Hailey. "Hey, Em," you said as you sat down next to her.

"Hey," she answered.

"I gotta go," Will said.

"Thanks for bringing her. Now go save some lives," Jay said and then hugged his brother.

Emma furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "You didn't drive yourself?"

"Why don't you guys go grab yourselves coffee or something? On me," Jay said and then pulled out his wallet and handed you some money.

You knew what this was. He wanted you and Emma to have a chance to talk alone without the threat of people walking in on your conversation. "Can we take your truck? It's freezing out, Jay," you said.

"You've never driven it before," he pointed out. "And, are you sure you're awake enough to drive?"

"I'll be fine. The coffee shop is just a few blocks away."

He sighed and pulled out his keys. "Fine, but no speeding."

"Copy that, detective," you joked, causing him to roll his eyes. "You want anything? This is more than enough to get us coffee and you and Hailey something, too."

"Yeah, sure. Surprise me. Hailey likes--"

"Just black. I know. Thanks for the money."

Then, you exited the district with Emma behind you. "What was that all about? Why was he so worried about you? I mean, more worried than usual that is," Emma said once both of you were safely inside Jay's truck.

"Are you sleeping?" you asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, it's just hard to get to sleep."

"Well, if you need to talk, call me okay? I barely slept at all last night."

"What? Why?

You sighed, knowing there was no way you could get out of this conversation. And, you knew that Emma deserved the truth and she deserved to hear it from you. But, if you were going to tell this story, you knew that you shouldn't be driving while doing so.  "They needed more proof to charge the guy that raped you, Emma. So, I volunteered to go undercover."

"Y/N, you didn't."

"I did. I'm fine though."

"Is that why your makeup is so thick on one side? Did he hit you?"

"I guess I'm telling you the whole story, then." And so, before you even started driving, you told your best friend everything that happened to you.

Meanwhile, back inside, Jay and Hailey were giving James Mason hell on your behalf. "Lawyer," Mason stated calmly.

"The minute you get a lawyer in here, James, all of your help from us goes out the window, so if I were you, I'd start talking," Hailey told him, crossing her arms.

"Lawyer."

"Listen here, Mason," Jay spat. "We have you on video hitting and trying to rape that girl from last night. We have you on video trying to give alcohol to said girl who is a minor. So if I were you, I'd talk. Not that you're going to get a deal, though."

"What part do you not understand? The law or the yer?" He moved to stand up, but Jay roughly shoved him back down.

"Sit your ass back down now."

"This is police misconduct!" he yelled. "I'll sue all of you!"

"Yeah, good luck with that. It's awfully hard to sue from a prison cell. And that's where you're gonna be spending the rest of your life."

Hailey pulled out some pictures. It was Emma in the hospital after she had been raped. "You recognize her?"

"Never seen her before," he said, not even glancing at the picture.

"Look at the damn pictures!" Jay slammed his hands on the table. He wanted to break this prick's neck, but he didn't want to lose his job over this prick either.

Mason looked down at the pictures and he started to smirk. "Don't know her."

"Yeah, that look on your face says otherwise. And, the DNA we got from under her fingernails says that you were the person who did this."

"That's impossible!" He yelled, jumping out of his seat.

"And why is that?" Jay's face was so close to Mason's that Mason could almost feel the spit coming from Jay's mouth as he yelled back at him.

"Because she was tied up!"

"We never mentioned anything about her being tied up, James. And, that sounds like something only the person who did this would know," Hailey said calmly, knowing that they had him. James Mason sat back down.

"You know what they do in prison to people like you?" Jay asked rhetorically. "As soon as word gets out about your charges, one of the big tough guys in there is gonna make you his bitch. They don't like rapists in prison, Mason. They'll get you in the showers, anywhere. They'll use anything they can find, a mop, soap, anything. But, if you cooperate with us, we'll make sure that you don't have to go into general population and that what I just mentioned won't happen. So, what do you say?"

"Fine!" Mason yelled. "I did it! I raped her and I enjoyed it, too! Seeing her struggle just made it even better and seeing the fear in her eyes when I held the gun to her head and told her that if she screamed, she'd die, well that was the best part."

Jay roughly pulled him back up. "C'mon, let's go."

Emma had stopped to go the bathroom but said she'd meet you back up in the bullpen as soon as she was done. You started to walk up the stairs when you heard someone yelling, telling another person to move. It sounded like your brother.

You looked up and it was as if you had forgotten how to move. Right in front of you, stood the man who did all of those horrible things to you last night. You wanted to run away, to spit in his face, anything to get away from him, but you couldn't move. You were shocked you hadn't dropped the drink carrier you were holding, either.

"You bitch!" He yelled.

Before Jay knew it, he swung. He didn't care that there were cameras or that he was a cop. At that moment, you mattered more to him than this job. No one called you a bitch in front of your brother and got away with it.

"Jay!" Voight yelled. "Let go!"

Jay let go of Mason and roughly pushed him over to Voight. Gently, he grabbed your arm. "Y/N, can you come upstairs with me?" he asked quietly.

"What?" you had snapped out of your frozen state but hadn't registered what Jay had said.

"I asked if you can come upstairs with me?"

"Uh, yeah. Here's your coffee by the way," you handed him the caramel mocha you had picked out for him.

"This tastes more like hot chocolate than coffee," he joked.

"I promise it's got caffeine. And, I'll go ask Platt for that footage to be erased. She likes me more than you."

***

It's been a week since everything has happened and you and Emma were slowly coming to terms with the fact that what happened, happened. You still got nightmares and Emma still had trouble sleeping, so she drank coffee like it was water. Jay finally felt comfortable to leave you alone, after changing the pin to the safe, though. He knew what thoughts went through people's heads when they went through a major trauma like you and Emma. And, he didn't want to lose either of you.

Voight walked upstairs to Intelligence and he did not look happy, to say the least. "Halstead. Upton. My office," he ordered.

Both gave the other a confused look but followed their boss.

"What's up, Sarge?" Jay asked as he closed the door.

"What's up? What's up is we don't have a case!" Voight practically yelled but quieted down because he didn't want the rest of the unit to think something was wrong, not yet anyway.

"We just got a case this morning. What are you--"

Voight slammed his hands on his desk. "Not this case, dammit! Your sister's case!"

"We got a confession! What's wrong with it?" Hailey asked, watching as Jay clenched his jaw in frustration.

"He asked for a lawyer and you didn't give him one!"

"That's never stopped us before! And it's damn rich coming from you!" Jay pointed an accusing finger at his boss.

"Jay," Hailey said, placing a hand on his chest and gently pushing him back before he did something he'd later regret. "So, what happened, Sarge?"

"What happened is that we needed that confession."

"We have the DNA from under Emma's fingernails and it's a match to Mason's. And we have a positive ID from the lineup," Hailey said, wondering how the hell they needed that confession to make the case when they had two pieces of evidence against him.

"The problem is that his lawyer's arguing that the DNA under the nails was from consensual sex and the lineup is just because she saw him before! We can still make Y/N's case because we have video and audio evidence of the entire thing, but there's no case against Mason when it comes to her friend."

"So, we bring him back in, this time with his lawyer," Jay suggested.

"No. You're way too close this case, Jay," Voight told his detective.

"So what do we do?" Hailey asked.

"Emma will have to testify."

"Testify?" Jay ran a hand down his face and walked across the room and sat on the couch. "You saw what happened when she made a positive ID, Sarge. She can't go through that again. And, Y/N will have to testify too since she's a material witness. We can't put them through this. We just can't."

"How much would he get if we just press charges for Y/N's case?" Hailey asked.

"With the attempted sexual charge, assault charge, and distribution of alcohol to a minor, he'd be looking at five years. But, he'd probably be out in three."

"Shit," Jay muttered. "I gotta go. I gotta be the one to break the news to the girls." He yanked Voight's office door open and quickly grabbed his coat.

"Hailey, go with him. And don't take no for an answer because I don't trust him enough to just tell them and do nothing."

"Copy you, Sarge."

Hailey left and grabbed her jacket, running down the stairs and out of the 21st, just in time to catch Jay. "I'm coming with you. And it's not up for discussion."

You and Emma were sitting on the living room floor, each working on your respective assignments for school when the door opened, causing both of you to jump. "Jay? Hailey? What are you guys doing here?" you asked, wondering why Jay was home at only nine in the morning and why Hailey was with him.

Jay grabbed a bowl from the cupboard and set it on the table. "What's that for?" you asked.

"Come sit at the table. Me and Hailey have to tell you something. Something really important. The bowl's for Emma."

"What's going on?" Emma asked as she sat down.

"We can't make your case against Mason," Hailey said.

"What do you mean you can't make the case?" you asked.

And then they launched into why they can't make the case. "So let me get this straight," you said after they finished. "We can't make the case because you fucked up?"

"We've done it hundreds of times, Y/N. It just didn't work this time," Jay said quietly.

"But Emma's case isn't just one of those hundreds, Jay! How did you let this happen? She's not gonna testify, and you know this!" you yelled, speaking as if Emma wasn't even there. "I mean look at her!" You motioned to Emma who was hunched over the bowl in front of her, trying to keep her food down.

Emma looked up. "How long would he get for what he did to Y/N?"

"He'd do three years," Hailey answered.

"Three years? That's it? That bastard deserves life!" You knew if it were any other day, Jay would've told you to watch your language. But, it wasn't just any other day.

"I know, I know he does, Y/N," Jay agreed loudly. "We'd get Peter Stone, one of the best attorneys around and he'd prep you and Emma so well that there's no way this case could go under!"

"Wait, Y/N has to testify, too?" Emma asked.

"As a material witness, yes, she would have to testify," Hailey answered.

"No, we're not doing this," Emma said adamantly. "Maybe he'll change in prison, okay? I can't put her through this."

"Emma, I can handle it. But, if you don't want to do this, just tell me. I won't blame you at all."

Emma took a deep, shaky breath. "I can't. I'm sorry." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she jumped up and made a beeline for the bathroom.

"So, Mason does five years, out in three," Jay said, looking at his sister.

"That's it? You're just giving up?" you yelled, standing up and walking over to your brother.

"Y/N, there's nothing else we can do. I'm sorry."

"Oh don't give me that I'm sorry bullshit! You fucked this up, so you're gonna fucking fix it!"

***

"What'd she say?" Voight asked as soon as Hailey and Jay entered the district once more.

"She's not testifying," Hailey answered.

"Sarge, are you sure there's nothing else we can do? You know as well as I do that this monster doesn't deserve to take another breath as a free man."

"Listen, let me make some calls and I'll see what I can do."

Voight picked up his phone and dialed a familiar number. "Tyler, it's Hank Voight."

"Hey Hank, what can I do for you?" Tyler answered into one of the blue phones in the county jail.

"How's your son doing?"

"He doing good. I miss him though. My girl sent me some pictures of him yesterday though."

"That's good. That's really good. Mind if I see those pictures tomorrow during visiting hours?"

"It'd be a welcome visit, Hank."

***

"200k and we have a deal," Tyler said to Hank as they sat at one of the cold, metal tables in the visiting room.

"150," Voight argued, increasing the payout 50k.

Tyler sat there for a moment, thinking it over. "150k would be able to pay for his house or college. And, hey, I'm stuck here for life anyway. You got yourself a deal."

"Money'll be in a trust fund a few months after, just to be safe." The two shook on the deal and Hank left.

***

There was a knock at the door as you, Jay, and Emma were eating dinner. She had come over to your house once more to do homework and Jay picked up some food on his way home from work.

"I got it," Jay stood up and pushed his chair in.

"Sarge? What are you doing here?" Jay asked.

"Are the girls here?"

"Yeah, they both are. Come in. What's going on?"

"Hi, Y/N," Voight greeted you. "Emma, Sargent Hank Voight, we met a week ago."

"Yes, I remember you," Emma replied.

"What's up, Sarge? It's gotta be important if you came over here."

"James Mason was killed in county."

You dropped your fork. "What?" Jay asked, as stunned as both you and Emma. "When?"

"About an hour ago. I figured that you should be the first to know."

"Wow," Emma breathed out.

"I gotta go, though," Voight said.

Jay walked him to the door and followed him out onto the front steps. "Please tell me you didn't do what I think you did?" Jay asked.

"If you're asking me if I killed that man, no Jay, I didn't do that."

"Do you know who did?" Jay asked, not being able to believe that this was just a coincidence.

"Tyler," was all Voight said.

"Tyler? As in the Tyler we put away for a double homicide six months ago?"

"That's the one."

"And you had nothing to do with it? Because if IAD finds out anything against you--"

"Jay, I had nothing to do with it. Tyler must've found out the charges and killed him just like he killed the two men who raped his sister."

"You don't really expect me to believe that, do you?"

"He's gone, Jay. Those girls can sleep peacefully now. Just let it be and be there for Y/N. None of this will come back to me."

"Why didn't you tell me? I'd gladly put a bullet in that bastard's head!"

"I know you. You do everything with your heart. And that's what makes you a good cop, a good detective, and a great brother to your little sister, Jay. I know you couldn't live with yourself if you did it. Now, go back inside before your food gets cold."

Voight turned and left, leaving Jay wondering how the hell this happened. But he knew one thing: No one would find out about this. Y/N wanted justice for Emma and she got justice, even if it wasn't the right way to go about it.

Later that night, Emma fell asleep within fifteen minutes, the first time in a week and a half that she had fallen asleep that fast. Y/N slept soundly without any nightmares for the first time in a week and a half. And Jay slept in his own bed, instead of slumped against the hallway wall, waiting for the inevitable when he'd have to comfort his sister. He wouldn't admit it, but he was thankful for what Voight did for him. He always said family was everything and he was right. You were Jay's family and Jay was a member of Voight's Intelligence family. Because of this, you were a part of the Intelligence family, too. And, Voight would do anything for family...even if it meant putting 150k in a trust fund for Tyler's son so that you and Emma could both sleep through the night and move on with your lives.

A/N comment and tell me what you think!

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