#rick on the hear me out cake

[fleshccurtain]

the last post i did got 63 wowei!!!! ty mmy little critters ^_^

have sprout + toodles (BRUSH cr: @t0il3t + mmy hlovely husband <33💕)

and my hear me out cake / jj

[mayaheronthorn]

Camp Half blood doing the "hear me out cake", Nico pulling out Percy and Annabeth screaming "THAT'S MY BOYFRIEND"

[cravingrickgrimes]

CHAPTER TWO | ❝IN THE DIM LIGHT❞

rick!grimes x male!reader (smut) top!rick x bottom!reader

multi chapters / not finished word count: 1672

updates daily!!

summary: After the unexpected and downright shameful events that transpired the day before, you wake up the next day and find out you were paired with Rick Grimes again. But this time, it’s on a supply run.

<- CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER THREE -> ‎

CHAPTER TWO:

Today was day six of your time at the prison and the second day of job assignments. You hoped—no, prayed. It was as eventful as yesterdays. You tried, so hard, to feel shame for what you did last night but it never came. All you did was sit and wait to be told what you were doing for the day. Your call was answered quicker than expected. The older man banged on your cell to get your attention.

“You’re on supply runs.”

“With?” You asked gingerly.

“Grimes.” Your heart sunk. A supply run?! With the man you came thinking about not even twelve hours ago? Maybe the day could be as eventful as the last after all.

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“Must be luck.” A half smile slid onto Rick’s face when he saw you. Jesus christ. He was leaning against the car, this time however, his shirt was half buttoned to his body. You could see his chest hair so clearly it hurt you. “You good darlin’?”

“Yeah,” You breathed, harder than you would have liked. “let’s get this over with, shall we?” You shot back your own rendition of his grin. He smiled again. Was something funny? He swung the car door open and you couldn’t help but wonder where he got such a nice car in the apocalypse.

“Get in.” He growled and smiled at the same time.

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“Where exactly are we headed?” You asked from the passengers seat, it had been an hour since the two of you had gotten in the car and Rick didn’t say anything about how long we would be here. You studied his side profile from the passengers seat. The heavy sun from the day before had done him some good and gave him a warm tan. Stubble had appeared on his sharp jawline that hadn’t been there before.

Fuck.

He slowed the car down until we were at a stop on the middle of the road. “Can I be honest?” He turned to you and you finally noticed how piercing his azure eyes were. “I have no idea.”

“You didn’t get any instructions?” He shook his head and a loose curl feel softly on his face. “So what’s the plan then?”

“Drive into the middle of nowhere.”

“Why?”

“To be alone with you.” Your heart sank, again. At this point, you didn’t know how low your heart could go before it fell out of your chest. He had to have meant it some other way. It couldn’t be. No. But the way he was looking now…it was…captivating, mesmerising.

“Stop doing that.” You could almost hear the plea in your own voice.

“Doing what darlin’?”

“That! What you just did!”

“So…” He cleared his throat, but it sounded too much like a growl for your liking. You thought about how he sounded when he finished. Just because you didn’t like it didn’t mean you didn’t fantasise about it. “What you’re telling me is, you don’t want to be alone with me?” A pause. “Even after yesterday?”

Yesterday?! What happened yesterday? Even you couldn’t fool yourself into not knowing how he felt almost grinding against you. You and Rick both knew what had happened yesterday. “That was just an awkward situation?”

“An awkward situation that we were both hard for.” He corrected; the icing on the cake being his gorgeous grin. You flushed. He noticed that. Well, you noticed it too—but it was completely humiliating.

He noticed that you were red too.

“Shh. It’s okay, we’re both men. It’s what happens when we’re…” You took that as your turn to help him out.

“Horny.”

“Horny.” He repeated. “Well? You never answered me darlin’. Do you want to be alone with me, or not?”

This would probably be the most bold thing you ever did. But if last night taught you anything, it was that you really, really, did want to be alone with him. So, you reached over to his lap, where his thick thighs lay spread over the leather seat. You palmed in between his legs and felt it immediately. You felt for his size almost unconsciously.

“Does…” He held his hands up near his ears and looked down. “this answer your question?” You coyly asked.

“It certainly does.”

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It took you only a few seconds, and Rick pulling his seat back, to get under the drivers seat and on your knees. It took another few seconds for the sound of Ricks belt unbuckling to catch in your ears. It was the most glorious sound. It dropped to his ankles; where you were. Then, his underwear. What sat in between his legs was much, much better than what you had thought up last night. It was fully hard now and laying on his abs. You picked it up with your right hand and it felt hot. Not warm. Hot.

You were right about one thing, he had a foreskin. His cock was seven inches and thick. You heard a chuckle from above. “Well, darlin’? Don’t tell me you’re scared?”

“I won’t be the one scared soon enough.” You retorted and brought your lips to his balls. They had hairs but they must have been trimmed because you could barely notice, you were too focused on the way his balls reacted to your mouth. Or more accurately, how Rick Grimes reacted to having your mouth on his huge balls.

“Holy shit—fuck!” You took his right ball first, circling your tongue around its shape as if to encourage semen to leave it and shoot out of his dick. When his right ball left your mouth it made a pop that only seemed to help Rick Grimes’ pleasure. You licked the space in between his balls and then started on the right.

You were so caught up in making Rick feel good you almost bit down on his ballsack just from euphoria alone.

Safe to say the man you had in your mouth was intoxicating, and you were an addict. Your mouth was so used to him already that you knew his right was larger than his left.

“Enough playing with me baby. Please.” Hearing those words leave him was more than enough persuasion. You would marry him if there were anyone left to marry the both of you—let alone any place to get married.

You started at the base of his cock. Your eyes locked with his sweet deep blue ones and you moaned louder than ever before. You were definitely making up for all the moans you had to stifle from the past day.

Every inch of him your tongue tasted was better than the last. The only way you could describe it was he smelt like…a man. He smelt so authentically manly you couldn’t take it much longer. Your tongue was at the halfway mark up his cock; Rick was getting…harder? How could that even be possible? Were you really doing all this to him? It only served to make you harder.

You reached his head and peeled back his foreskin delicately. It revealed a pink tip that was completely covered in pre-cum. “When did this happen?” You questioned from under him.

“The moment I saw you, darlin’.” You couldn’t tell if his words were true or he just wanted to give you motivation to give a better blowjob. Either way you were pleased. “Take me now, baby. I know you’ve wanted to feel me in your throat.”

You hated how right he was. You hated that you wanted exactly that. You decided to not give a sarcastic response and just gag on his cock like you’ve been thinking about since yesterday. You slowly enveloped your soft lips around his cock. You knew your way around a man. You knew the head was their weakness.

Well, it certainly was Rick’s weakness. He threw his head back the moment you sucked on his tip and only his tip. His hard stomach shivered and he threw both hands behind his head. You were still pleasing his tip but you stared intently at his large biceps. How had you not noticed them before? Now that you had, you knew you were going to be obsessed with them for the rest of your life.

Ricks mouth lay open and his brows furrowed at the feeling of being sucked deeper than a moment ago. Had he really never felt this before? Or were you just better than anyone else he’d ever had? The deeper you went, the more noise the man made. He groaned and swore under his breath. He whimpered and let out noises that sounded like cries.

You managed to take all seven inches, you took him so deep that your nose was buried in his small bed of curly brown pubes.

Just like his hair.

You were too busy deep throating Ricks large member that you hadn’t even seen his hand falling from behind his head, where he had previously had it, to your hair. He snaked his hand through your hair and gripped lightly. It was light enough for you to enjoy the feeling, and somehow, you knew Rick knew that.

“Would you drink my cum? Would you do that for me darlin’?” He didn’t seem to expect an answer and you weren’t going to give him one anyway. You both knew that you would do that and more.

His hips bucked and that was the only indication you were given before he released his seed right into your mouth. As you were deep throating him. It was the best feeling in the world, and you knew it. You stayed there until he let out his final moan and the cum stopped spilling from his dick.

He released his hand from its resting place in your hair and, subsequently, his cock from your mouth. You didn’t even realise his sperm was still in your mouth waiting to be swallowed until you saw Rick’s cock covered in his own semen.

He stared darkly at you as you took his seed down your throat.

[pretty-red-garnet]

The Alexandrian

Daryl Dixon x fem! Reader • Alexandria • Fluff

     Daryl looks around the gated community. It's strange, the houses— mansions, really— that lined the streets looked right out of a catalog or one of those home renovation shows. It was clean and if he couldn't still hear the quiet groaning from some stray walkers, he'd think he was transported back in time.

     Rick was cautiously looking at their guide, Aaron, and the leader Deanna. She wanted to interview them. Daryl almost turned and left right there, but then he saw Carl holding Lil' Asskicker, and his feet were planted where he stood.

     After they were all interviewed and had given up their weapons, they were given two houses to use. Daryl scoffed at the sight. No way would he get used to this. No way.

     As his group began to filter in the house, he gave one last glance around. There was a house not far that was smaller than the rest. It was nice, but looked out of place in the community. He didn't give it too much thought before heading inside.

     Everyone was smiling, still nervous and careful, but the hot running water had lifted some spirits. Daryl didn't care much. He instead headed back out to sit on the porch. Everyone was staying in the larger house, so he would take watch. The whole place gave him an uneasy feeling. He felt like the people were giving him odd looks. He didn't belong, and everyone knew it.

     It was late at night when Daryl was still outside. The house was too stuffy, he couldn't sleep. Not here. He was fiddling with his crossbow, absentmindedly cleaning it with a rag. It was more to keep his hands busy than anything, he could barely see in the dim glow of the porch light.

     He heard a door slam and his eyes shot up. It was from that little house not far. A woman was standing on the porch. She was a little ways away, but Daryl could just barely see that she looked tense. Her head was down so he couldn't see her face, but her hand was rubbing at her temple. When she sat down on the front step, her leg bounced anxiously.

     He bit his lip in worry. What did she have to be so anxious about? Maybe this place wasn't safe, maybe they were hiding something. Daryl vaguely knew that the thoughts were slightly paranoid, but he was on edge and hasn't slept in days.

     As if she felt eyes on her, her eyes flitted up to find his. Daryl shot his eyes away and instead began to fiddle with his bow again. He hears a door close again and when he chanced a glance back at the woman, she was gone.

Daryl looked at the house. It was large and filled to the brim with both people from Alexandria and his family. He bit his lip in thought. His family seemed adamant in trying to fit in, to try and make it work, but he wasn't so sure. He couldn't fit in here, he wouldn't.

Daryl wasn't a stranger to the sideways looks he got from the people here. The looks of disgust when he brought home animals on a string ready to be cleaned. Or when he was caked in blood and dirt from being outside the walls.

This party Deanna had thrown was something that was supposed to stay in the old world. Not when there are dead people walking around. He saw Rick holding Judith and chatting away with some of the locals through the window. He shoved his hands in his pockets and finally turned away. He couldn't do it.

"Hey!" Daryl looks towards the sound and saw Aaron standing at his front steps.

"Thought you were goin' to that party over there," Daryl says, gesturing loosely in the direction of Deanna's house.

"Oh no, I was never going. Especially with Eric's leg being how it is." Daryl looks at him with furrowed brows.

"Why the hell you tell me to go then?" Daryl says, his tone a little sharp.

"I said to try. You did," Aaron explains with a friendly smile. "Why don't you come in and have dinner with us? We're having spaghetti."

Aaron waves at something behind him and Daryl turns to look. It's that woman he saw the other night. She waves back but looks slightly confused at Daryl's presence. Now that he's closer, he can take in how pretty she is. She looks a little shy, but her eyes sparkle even in the dim lighting. Daryl looks away and back at Aaron, thinking for just a second before taking his invitation.

"So, who is that girl?" Daryl asks during dinner. He couldn't help it. He hasn't seen much of her around the community. He'd be lying is he said he wasn't the least bit interested.

"Oh, that's Y/N," Aaron says. "We brought her in a few weeks ago. She's still... adjusting." Daryl hums in response.

"Just haven't seen her around s'all." Daryl shrugs and slurps another mouthful of spaghetti. Aaron wasn't lying when he said it was good.

"She isn't very social," Eric says. "She's nice enough though. She just keeps to herself."

"We just try to give her space. She contributes to the community a lot, especially with her garden," Aaron finishes. "If you ever need some fresh produce, she's your girl."

It's the next day and Daryl is crouched by some bike parts. Aaron had offered him a position to go out scouting if he can put a bike together with parts he had. Getting out of these confining walls sounded great, so here he was, in Aaron's garage putting a bike together.

He heard footsteps and looked up, seeing Y/N standing outside by the open garage. She gave Daryl a peculiar look, glancing at him in the garage and at the front door. Finally, she walks over to him a little awkwardly.

"Hey, is uhh, Aaron or Eric home?" She asks, quietly. She's holding a little basket with what seems to be some tomatoes.

"Nah, they're at the infirmary." A worried look colored her face so Daryl rushed to explain. "Just checkin' up on Eric's ankle s'all. They're fine."

"Oh, ok, good," she says. Her voice is quiet still, soft spoken. "I just wanted to drop this off." She holds up the basket.

"You could leave it here, I'll make sure to give it to 'em." She nods and lays the basket down near the front of the garage. She gives him a little smile and Daryl's heart thumps. God, she's really pretty.

"Thanks." And with that, she's gone.

Daryl doesn't see her much after that quick interaction. Sometimes, when he can't sleep and he's outside, he sees her sit on her steps like she's lost in thought. Other times, she leaves before the suns come up, going beyond the walls with a gun on one hip and a buck knife on the other. Even bringing back some fresh meat once in a while. Daryl would be lying through his teeth if he said he wasn't curious about her.

She's quiet and reserved. Sometimes he'll spot an Alexandrian going to her house to ask for a fresh tomato or berries. Unlike other residents, shes doesn't chat up a storm. She does what needs to be done and that's it.

Daryl will sit out on the porch some nights and wonder who she is. Aaron said he just found you a few weeks ago, but no other explanation. Where was she before? Had she had a group, or was she alone all this time? The woman could definitely handle herself if she came and went as often as she did.

"Hey, pookie," Carol's voice distracts Daryl from his smoke break. He'd been at Aaron's house nearly all day, and was finally done now that the sun was setting. He hums. "Could you go to Y/N's and grab some green beans? I didn't get enough earlier for my casserole."

Daryl looks at her and scoffs. Carol had slipped into the housewife role since coming to Alexandria, and it makes Daryl annoyed to no end. Mostly because she does it so well, baking cookies and playing Betty Crocker in flowy blouses. Makes him sick.

He hums and nods once, stamping out his cigarette and making his way to your house. He was nervous, he doesn't know you and just rocking up and asking for something felt off. He knows everyone does it, but still.

He knocks once he gets the nerve and wait. After a while and no answer, he feels awkward. Maybe she isn't even here. He's just about to turn and leave before the door opens.

"Hey, Carol just needs some more—" He stops short when he finally looks at the girl. The door is only open a crack, and her face is slightly concealed by shadow, but he can still see faint red marks around her eyes. Her fingers on the door are jittery and she shifts her weight from side to side. "You alright?"

"What did you need?" She doesn't answer his question. Her voice is rough, like she's been crying a while. Gone is the silky softness Daryl had heard the other day. It send a foreign feeling to his chest.

"Just... some green beans but—"

"Ok, give me a second." She turns and leaves, leaving the door open just a little. Daryl feels unbelievably awkward. The poor girl was just crying and now she has to fetch a stranger fucking green beans. She comes back a moment later with a basket of beans.

"Is that enough?" She asks, her face still tear stained but slightly redder, like she had scrubbed at it.

"Yeah, yeah... thanks," Daryl said. He grabbed the basket slowly. "You sure you're alright? I could go get Aaron or somethin'..." Daryl thinks they're close, he's seen her talk a little with him before.

"No, no. He doesn't..." she stops talking and looks anywhere but to Daryl. He waits patiently for her to continue. "I shouldn't bother him."

"You two are friends ain't ya? Sure he won't mind."

"I would," she says quietly, her voice still teary sounding, and she sniffles now and then. "Is that all?"

Daryl nods, still looking a little worried at her. But it isn't his business, so he doesn't stop her when she closes the door. He walks away from her house after casting one last look.

Daryl brings Carol the green beans and she looks at him a little thoughtfully. She tilts her head at him.

"Penny for your thoughts?" She asks, kindly. He shrugs and gives a noncommittal hum.

"She was cryin'..." he finally admits. He felt bad for saying it, he definitely wouldn't want anyone to walk in on him having a moment and tell, but it's Carol. He couldn't not tell her.

"Who?" Carol asks.

"Y/N. Wouldn't say what was wrong though." He shrugs, but still looks a little lost in thought.

"Huh," Carol says. "Maybe you should check on her later then." Daryl furrows his brows at her and gives her a look. "What?"

"I don't know her."

"Well, it'd be good for you to talk to new people. And from what I've seen, she doesn't seem to have many friends either. It'd be nice of you." Daryl thinks for a second before giving Carol another sideways look.

"You sayin' I don't have friends? The hell are you then?" Carol scoffs and laughs at him at the same time. Tilting her head at him.

"We're family. It would be good for you to talk to others. Branch out." She lays a hand on the man's shoulder.

Daryl couldn't stop thinking of the crying girl and what Carol said. He ended up not going to see her again, but he did sit up on his porch casting looks at her house that night. He couldn't get her teary eyes out of his head. That pure sadness in her face. It gave him a pressure in his chest he wasn't fond of.

Eventually he hears Y/N's door snap closes like it always does, and she plants herself down on the steps. She had a mug of something cradled in her hands. It must be hot because Daryl can see steam wafting from it.

He bites his thumb in thought. Maybe he should go over, just make sure she was alright. Like Carol said, you didn't have many friends from what Daryl could tell. She spend most time tending to her garden or outside the walls. The closest he's seen her with anyone was Aaron, and from her reaction earlier, she probably hadn't gone to talk to him.

Finally, Daryl follows the pull in his chest and walks over to her. She spots him right away, and those pretty sparkly eyes of hers nearly make him stop halfway. She looks confused and wary.

"Hey," Daryl starts. She nods, one sharp jut down of her chin. She's still giving him that look, like she's waiting for him to pounce or something. "Just wanted to make sure you're alright... seemed pretty upset earlier."

"I'm ok," she says. She looks down like she's embarrassed. "Sorry you had to see that."

"Nothin' to be sorry 'bout." She gives him a little half smile and it sends a flutter to his stomach. "Well, I best be goin'... just wanted to make sure you were alright."

Daryl backtracks. Maybe she just didn't want to be bothered. He shoves his hands in his pants pockets and turns around only halfway before her voice stop him.

"You could stay," she says. Daryl is surprised, and from her expression when he turns around, so is she. "Unless you don't want to... it is pretty late." She rushes out, tapping anxiously at her mug.

"Nah, I'll stay for a bit." Daryl, despite wanted to turn tail and run, stays. His interest in the mysterious woman outweighs his disbelief that a girl so pretty would want anything to do with him.

He takes a seat next to her on the stoop. They both sit in a awkward silence for a minute. Both just looking out towards the sky.

"You want some tea?" Y/N asks lowly, finally breaking the silence.

"You don't have to—"

"I don't mind." Y/N stands up quickly and goes to fetch the tea. She might just be shyer than Daryl, she seemed to want to run away more than he did. But if Daryl was honest, he found it pretty cute, even endearing.

She comes back a few short minutes later with a second steaming mug. She gives it to him with that same small, kind smile. Daryl could feel his neck flush. He accepts with a mumbled thanks.

"So uh," Daryl starts. "How long you've been here? In Alexandria." She takes a sip of tea and makes a so-so gesture with her hand.

"Maybe a month? Little more. Hard to keep track of time now..." She taps her mug still, must be a nervous tick. Daryl hums and nods an agreement. "I was the last person Aaron and Eric brought in before you guys. Feels nice not to be the newbie anymore." She has a little teasing smile on her face, but her head is still down low and her hair partially covers her face.

"Yeah, I'm not likin' being the newbie much," Daryl says with a scoff.

"Everyone looks at you funny... like they don't trust you, because they know of the things you must've done to survive on your own..." Y/N says. She looks down, lost in her head. Almost like she realizes she's been talking, she glances at Daryl and blushes.

"That why you were cryin' before? Cause of the things you've done?" Daryl regrets having spoken, because she looks close to tears again. Good going Daryl, Jesus Christ. He screws his eyes shut for just a quick second, chastising himself in his head. "Sorry, you don—"

"Yes," she says quickly, finally looking up to meet Daryl's gave. For the first time, he can really see just how beautiful and intense her eyes are. He can see every little speck of color. He feels his cheeks burn under her gaze.

"And the things you've done, are they why you sit outside every night? Don't sleep?" She asks him, not breaking eye contact. He nods, slowly, and Daryl sees something he was positive he'd never see in an Alexandrian's eyes.

Understanding.

Those nightly chats continue nearly every night. Even while they were planning how to get the walkers out of the quarry, no matter what time either of them had gotten up that morning. Even after the wolves terrorize the community, and a huge herd surround the tall walls, they still talk almost every night.

Even Daryl's family knew. Carol and Rick teased him about his nightly outings relentlessly. Especially when you'd go over to drop off their produce, it seemed they knew the quiet woman mostly did it to see Daryl.

Daryl and Y/N didn't see much of each other during the day unless it was dropping off produce. Daryl was always out, hunting, going on runs. Y/N mostly helped around inside, tending to her little garden and now helping Maggie with the large one she was planning in the center of the community.

But on rare occasions like today, Daryl and Y/N were both able to get away and head outside the walls. They were both excellent hunters, so Daryl escaped from the walls with her as often as possible. Which was never enough now that he couldn't get out to look for new people, as Rick had ordered.

"Oh, Daryl!" She called out. Daryl was slightly ahead, but turned back to her at her call.

"What?" She pointed excitedly at a little shrub. Daryl looked curiously from her to the bush. "What about it?"

"It's a huckleberry bush. I can dig it up and plant it back home." Home. It sounded strange to Daryl. The last place he considered home he'd lost in a fiery blaze, but he supposed that is what Alexandria is. Home.

Y/N sank to her knees and dug at the dirt a little before giving a satisfied look towards Daryl.

"It's really small, and not in season yet, but the roots look good. Won't be too long before the berries start popping up." Daryl kneeled next to her and helped her to dig it up. She smiled excitedly at him, and Daryl shyly smiled back. Her smile still made his heart jump, even after seeing it so many times. Y/N isn't so shy with him anymore, even if she's still reserved when it comes to other people.

After fighting with the shrub, they eventually yank it out. Daryl smiled to himself seeing the girl so pleased.

"We should get back soon. I should plant it soon as possible, wouldn't want the roots to dry up," Y/N explains. Daryl nods and suddenly becomes nervous.

"Yeah uh... could I show you somethin' first?" He asks. He's biting his thumb now, and Y/N gives him a skeptical look.

"Yeah, what?" She asks.

"Surprise." She looks at him crooked but nods. "Come on."

Daryl leads her back to his bike. She puts the bush carefully in the saddle bag and they both hop on. The first time they rode together, Daryl had been so nervous he'd almost crashed. Now, riding alone made him miss the warm contact.

It's embarrassing how much he had gotten attached to Y/N. Most days he couldn't wait for night fall so he could finally head to her porch and drink that funky tasting tea, just because it made her happy. If Daryl was honest, he'd do just about anything to make her happy and smiling.

Daryl was never in love before. Of course he's loved people, certainly loved his brother and his family, but he's been never in love. But if Daryl could guess, he's pretty sure it felt like this.

A sharp flick to his ear sent him back to present. He cast a look behind him to the culprit, who was grinning. He forced a dramatic frown at her, but that smile and giggle made his lungs just about stop working.

"Don't go so fast! My bush is rocking around in there," she yelled over the rumble of the bike, patting the saddlebag to emphasize her point.

"Yeah, yeah, you and your damn plants!" He teased, eliciting another giggle and a poke to his side. "Thought we had to be fast to get home so you could plant it?"

"Won't be anything to plant if it's all torn apart by the time we get there!"

Finally, Daryl pulled the bike to a stop. Y/N looked around before looking back at him. She tilted her head and smirked.

"More woods, consider me impressed, Daryl." He shoves her arm lightly and his face flushes.

"Stop."

Daryl leads her further into the woods before suddenly stepping in front of her. She looks confused and he can't help but think her furrowed brows and scrunched nose is adorable.

"Close your eyes." She gives him a scrutinizing look but obliges with a dramatic sigh.

"Better be good, Daryl."

He leads her carefully through the forest. One hand on her arm and another on the small of her back, he leads her slowly over large rocks and overturned logs with care. Daryl gets more nervous the closer they get to their destination. Maybe it was a stupid idea, or she wouldn't like it. Maybe he'd dragged her out here and she wants to go home.

"Alright," Daryl says finally. "Open your eyes."

Y/N opens her eyes slowly, blinking a little at the sudden brightness after having her eyes closed so long. After a second, he smiles brightly, eye flitting around.

It was a clearing in the woods, shaded by surrounding trees and covered in flowers. Large bushes of different colored flowers bordered the clearing, with small patches of wild flowers covering the ground in the center. He'd found it on a solo hunt not long ago, and planned to take her since.

Y/N was surprisingly quiet. Ever since they'd starting talking, she'd opened up to him completely. She hasn't been this quiet since that first time they met, and it made Daryl unbearably anxious.

"So..?" Daryl asks, biting his thumb and looking between the woman and his shoes. He digs his boot in the dirt, scuffing the ground, anxiously awaiting her reply.

"It's..." she starts. Finally, after an agonizing few seconds, she looks at him. She walks up to him and gently takes his thumb from his mouth. He feels heat course through his face but he holds her gaze steadily, and lets her pull away his hand. "It's beautiful."

She turns from him and wanders deeper into the clearing. Daryl follows, almost in a daze. She's never looked so beautiful, smiling and almost giddy with joy, stroking different flowers as she walks past. Daryl is sure his heart is going to give out.

Finally, she lays down right in the center. She laughs and reaches a hand towards Daryl. He steps forward apprehensively, but after catching another look at her jovial face, he hurries to lay next to her.

They lay shoulder to shoulder for a while. Just basking in the light that's filtering through the trees. Y/N absentmindedly plays with a flower between her fingers with her eyes closed.

"I love it," she says lowly, cracking her eyes open to look at Daryl beside her. He smiles.

"Ain't nothin'..." She whacks his hand laying beside her halfheartedly.

"It's not." She leaves her hand right next to his, the contact sending electric shocks up his entire arm. Tentatively, Y/N begins to fold her fingers in his. Daryl looks over to find that she's still looking at him deeply, with that intense gaze Daryl is sure he'll never get used to. He intertwines their fingers, both still staring at each other with flushed cheeks and soft smiles.

     Daryl is sure who started what, but soon enough, their lips are touching. It's like a magnetic force, and Daryl can't resist. He touches her cheek softly, and he can feel her smile against him.

     Daryl can't get enough, he doesn't ever want to. They push up against each other until they're completely melted together, touching from head to toe. She languidly pushes her fingers through his hair, smiling harder against his lips when he makes a pleased hum.

     After some time, Y/N pulls away. She gives him a brilliant smile that makes him push one more kiss to her lips before he is ready to stop. She curls into his chest when he lays down again fully, and he gently runs his calloused fingers through her soft hair. She lefts out a comforted sigh.

“I don’t…” Daryl starts then pauses, breaking the silence. Y/N looks up from his chest, her fingers curled up in his shirt under his vest. “I don’t know… how to do this.”

“That’s ok,” she says with that soft, kind smile. She brushes hair away from his face and her closes his eyes for a second, relishing in the feeling. “We’ll figure it out together.”

They lay next to one another for a long while, even after the sun begins to set. Sharing caring and soft caresses and touches. Sometimes giving the other little shy smiles. It’s getting dark now, but the two still don’t want to part.

“Guess we should get home…” Daryl says reluctantly, his voice low and even grittier sounding than normal.

“Yeah, we should,” she replies, sinking further in his arms. Daryl smiles to himself and plants a shy kiss to her head. She lets out another content hum.

When they finally remove themselves from each other, they give each other shy smiles and glances. Y/N floats around the area one last time, picking a bundle of flowers before following Daryl to his bike.

Daryl watches her, how careful she is to the plants and how she walks around almost majestically. He thinks about how it was just a couple months ago she found her way into his life. She had called Alexandria home, and Daryl agreed, but now, just watching her meander through the clearing, he thinks that maybe home isn’t a place but a person.

When she gets to his bike, she opens up the little saddlebag to place her bundle of multicolored flowers. She suddenly frowns and looks over at Daryl.

“What?” He asks, nervously taking in her expression. She shakes her head and looks down, concern fretting her pretty features. Did she regret what just happened? Was she just now processing and she realized she didn’t want Daryl this way? She looks back up to meet Daryl’s eyes, still with that frown. Daryl wrings his hands.

“My damn bush is dead.”

[whateverisbeautiful]

♥️ Ranking Richonne

#13: I Love You (S8E14)

Ahhhh probably one of the most anticipated exchanges between Rick and Michonne, and of course, it was sensational. This scene powerfully reiterated that these soulmates truly mean the world to each other. And after seasons of communicating those special three words through every look, touch, kiss, and conversation, we finally got to hear Rick and Michonne directly say what's always been true - they love each other 🥰 Wholly, Deeply, and Forever...

This ily moment, adorably spoiled by our lovely captains 😋, is so tender and heartfelt while also being so natural and clear that these two have been verbally expressing I Love You’s for a while. 

(Side note: I know there’s often debate on Rick’s hottest season lookswise, and really you could make a great case for any season, but lemme just place my vote here for season 8 right quick. 😊 Something about Season 8 Rick was extra fine. I feel bad cuz he was in pain all season, which I truly hate to see...but Rick was looking real right even while everything was going wrong ijs. even tho I think Rick Grimes' TOWL era is about to take the cake 🤭)

Something I so love about Rick and Michonne's relationship is that whenever they go through hardship they ultimately step closer rather than apart. They always eventually close the distance, which was evident in this lovely 'I love you' scene.

And I feel grateful that after experiencing such a devastating loss of their son, Carl, (why, TWD, why? 😭) and having to go on their journeys of grief, Rick and Michonne find their way back to each other truly in this moment. It doesn’t always go that way when a couple loses a kid as we’ve seen from other characters in this very series. But for Rick and Michonne, what they have is so unbreakable that, even in the hardest storm, their love still shines through, rises above, guides, and centers them.

So reflecting on Richonne's I Love You scene will forever have me like...

There’s also a beautiful and heart-rending honorable mention scene in this ep where Rick wipes Michonne's tears and Michonne opens up with Rick (and even makes reference to her son Andre 😭) while trying to help him heal at Hilltop instead of running out and about to get away from his grief.

But Rick still has a bit of savage Rick to get out of his system, so he and Morgan go hunt down some saviors first.

(Side note: while we're talking season 8, this 100th ep kiss in the season 8 premiere also deserves a big honorable mention because...🥵🔥🔥)

When Rick returns to Hilltop after wildin out with Morgan, he’s finally gained clarity on what he needs to start focusing on and who he needs to be healing with. Which leads to him saying those three very special words to the very special woman in his life. 🤗

So the scene starts with Rick returning to his room in a clean fresh tee, showing a clean fresh start to me. (Also Rick + a white tee has been a great combo since season 1, y'all) And he finally knows it’s time to let his wife and son guide him and read Carl's letter.

Michonne enters sorta hesitant I think because when Rick and Morgan returned they def looked like they had dabbled in the dark side out in those woods, and so she might be wondering what headspace Rick's in after whatever he just did.

But the thing about magnets is they always find their way back to each other and so Rick's not grown more distant but rather more aware of how he needs to navigate this season with her.

She finds him holding the letter, and Rick first says, "Thank you." Again, I love that Rick always thanks Michonne. Like as early as when they were strangers in s3, Rick has always vocally expressed gratitude for Michonne. And, in this moment, he knows how much Michonne has been his rock during this unbearable time as well as still fighting for their son Carl and his wishes, and so Rick thanks her for it. Her presence in his life is invaluable and he knows it.

Also, I adore the shared breath they both take when he says this. #TheyAreOne. And Michonne's so relieved that Rick has arrived at this point in his grieving journey.

Then Rick says he’s sorry which is also great cuz he knows going out and handling all this alone is not how magnets do. And Michonne is so understanding when she says, "You don't have to be."

It's just more proof that she is the exact kind of loving presence Rick needs in his life because she’s so good at both accountability and empathy. (Also in 4.09, Rick tells Carl sorry, and Carl also responds with, "You don't have to be." 😭)

And then Rick, knowing how blessed he is to have Michonne love him and stand with him through it all, turns to her and so tenderly says, "I love you." Beautiful x10. 🥹✨

I love how melodic it's said. 🥰 It’s this lovely quiet moment and Rick says it truly like it is a reassuring reminder of something he has expressed to her often and feels deeply.

I love that he turns to really look her in the eyes and has this little nod and subtlest smile when he says 'I love you.' And you just know he genuinely means this. It’s so great, and I could replay it 1000 times idc. 

And Michonne really does complete the perfection when she so movingly says, "I love you too." 🥹✨

Again, you can feel how much she means this. The emotion on Rick's face, when he hears his wife say she loves him too shows that he also can feel how much they both mean this, especially as a small tear can be seen. They are everything to each other. 🥲

(Side note: One of the many reasons why I was so elated to hear Rick call Michonne his wife in that TOWL trailer (which I'm still there btw - haven't left since I first heard it 😋) is because we who love their love story of course already knew he views her as his wife (since 2016) and that he'd refer to her as that in the spinoff series, but by saying it in the trailer it showed that this isn't some big reveal they have to wait to say in the new show. Michonne has been his wife for the longest. Rick has viewed her as his wife for seasons. Their marriage is not a new TOWL development, it is an element of TWD. And scenes like this ily scene in season 8 make that crystal clear. (also I cannot wait to hear Rick call Michonne his "wife" even more and to hopefully hear Michonne call Rick her husband 😊)

I adore that we had so many moments of Rick and Michonne communicating 'I love you' to each other in different ways leading up to this point, and then this scene gifted us with the actual direct ILY exchange between them, and of course it was perfect and proof that...

I really feel confident this wasn't intended to be R&M's first time ever saying "I love you" directly either. In this scene, both of them seemed to communicate it in a way that said this is something they've said before and often. (like it feels like they don't show Michonne's facial expression upon hearing Rick say 'I love you' because this isn't a first. She's heard that man tell her this several times before 😋)

I like to think that why these season 8 'I love you's carry so much weight right here and now is because it might be the first time they've said it to each other post-losing Carl. 😭

How heartwarming is it to know that even in a sea of pain, Rick and Michonne still want each other to know that while their whole world has been changed, the one thing that hasn't changed is their love for each other. 🥹

Their love story is just heavenly. To go from staring at each other through a prison fence and thinking they’d patch her up and then she’d be gone to now declaring their love. Perfection. 🙌🏾

And ILY’s do not seem like a phrase either Rick or Michonne take lightly or would just say to anybody. For them to express this and fall in love with someone, the connection was going to have to be deep and special. And what they found with each other is the deepest love so of course they can tell each other these 3 words with ease.

And because Richonne is the gift that keeps on giving the scene doesn’t stop there. Michonne then approaches Rick and lovingly takes his face in her hands as they share a sweet kiss. 🥹

And only Richonne can make their movement after the kiss feel as passionate and intimate as the kiss itself. Cuz after finally connecting like they’ve been longing to do, Rick and Michonne stay in the moment, looking deep into each other's eyes before leaning their heads against each other with that blessed mirror giving us all the angles. 😍

I love that mirror, y'all. 😋 I'm deeming that mirror and the set designer who placed it there some Richonners cuz, baby, they knew what we needed to see...

The way Rick and Michonne touch each other is always electric, and I love that they seriously feel like one as she rests her hand on his heart and he gently moves his hand up her side. These actors are so gifted at not wasting a single moment or action because they communicate Richonne's love in every second of a scene.

(and when richonne inevitably does that signature forehead touch in TOWL, after years apart...y'all I just might ascend to the heavens right then and there 😇)

It’s also sweet the way Michonne looks at Rick before leaving for him to have this time alone to connect with his son and read the letter.

Having the scene end with Rick reading his son's letter in a whole mirror as opposed to the shattered mirror he saw himself in earlier in the ep, is lovely. And it speaks to the power of Richonne that Rick could arrive at this point, ready to slowly but surely start healing. 

“I love you” really is communicated in every Richonne scene. And while season 8 was a weak one overall, one thing it did well was illustrate the stunning strength of Rick and Michonne’s exquisite and powerful love.

And I love knowing that, thanks to TOWL, we're sure to have some more Richonne "I Love You" moments in store. #GiftThatKeepsOnGivingAndGiving 😌

[artsavi]

god. uh. myhouse.wad, huh? I have, frankly, way too many thoughts about this entire mod. Please bear with me as I try to ramble my way through them, I ended up going off under the read more.

I’m going to be honest, this game felt like an extended, emotional fetch quest for me until this point. Don’t get me wrong, I knew that all the items had emotional and memorial impact, but...this one got to me. This moment hit me like a fucking truck.

For those of you who don’t play Dungeon and Dragons, sessions get long. On average they can run anywhere between 4-6 hours, but I myself have played longer, with the longest taking the cake at almost a half day, or roughly 11 hours. A lot can happen in a session, and most of it is just...joking around. The phrase “roll for intercourse” is a reference to an age-old running gag of players trying to seduce an NPC for whatever reason. It’s funny. It happens so often it’s a meme.

But finding it here...it really hit me. This isn’t just a reference to a well-known meme. Tom and Steve sat down and played D&D together, spending multiple hours in a day to play sessions, likely with other players but always with each other. And this phrase? It stuck out, it’s a moment that stuck with Steve for one reason or another, and my only guess is to say it’s because it‘d become an inside joke. And...you can’t help but wonder what it was. If Steve had been DMing, or if he’d been the one trying to seduce the NPC much to Tom’s chagrin, or...what.

And that at the core is the devastating part of myhouse.wad. The more I sit and think about it, the more I think about it, the more I realize this map is chock full of inside jokes, and we as players will never understand them. Because it’s not meant for us. These are things we’ll never have context for because one of the people involved is gone now. And the more I think about it, the more the realization hit that this entire map is not a game and really, truly is a memorial.

Do you remember when we played with Legos together? Do you remember when we played video games? Drinking milkshakes in the basement, sharing a pop? Our inside jokes? Roll for intercourse. Pumpkin Rick. Shrek chasing after you. Do you remember when we got married? I do. The house does. The house loves you. I love you. I miss you.

This map reads like a conversation, someone reaching out to someone else. You can’t help but wonder who is reaching out to who, though.

You know, I was talking to some friends on Discord about this map, and one of them brought up something interesting that I agree with. myhouse.wad draws clear inspiration from House of Leaves, but there’s a distinct difference between them. They both have heavy themes of grief and closure, but where House of Leaves is mysterious because of the layers and layers of unreliable narrators, myhouse.wad is mysterious because of you’re only ever hearing one side of the conversation. House of Leaves makes me feel like I’m intruding on something that no human should ever know. myhouse.wad makes me feel like I’m hearing part of a conversation through a wall.

Either way, there is one thing that both works share: This is not for you. It never was.

You know, I kind of wonder what their D&D campaign was about, if this moment was enough to stick out as an inside joke. I wonder what their sessions were like. I hope they had fun.

[d1xonss]

Desert Rose

Chapter 57 ~ Found

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Rose

✧ Era : Season 4

✧ Word Count : 6.2k

In this chapter ~ When Terminus ends up being a giant pipe dream, the group must find a way out before they end up dead just like every other survivor the community had captured. Though what none of them expected, was to be reunited with the ones they thought they lost long ago.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ THIRD PERSON POV *~*~*~*~*~*~*

The sun was just beginning to rise when Carl finally fell asleep in Michonne's arms in the backseat of the car. They all went through something horrifyingly traumatic last night, but Carl was the one who took it the hardest, the same terrifying feeling continuing to loom over him and making it impossible for him to relax. Rick on the other hand felt numb to the world as he thought about what he had done, though he didn't regret it one bit, replaying it a few times in his head as he spaced off. None of them had uttered a word to each other since it all went down, as if trying to cope with the events they'd have to live with for the rest of their lives.

Rick was sitting down on the concrete, leaning against the car door, his stare fixed onto the trees in front of him as the dried blood was still caked on his face. Daryl eyed the man cautiously, taking out a bottle of water from his bag along with his black bandana, sitting down next to him to offer it over. The man was snapped out of his thoughts the moment he felt his presence, though he shook his head quickly once he realized what Daryl was implying.

"We should save it to drink." Rick protested tiredly.

Daryl only extended it further, "Ya can't see yerself...he can." he spoke quietly, gesturing to the backseat where Carl lied.

Rick nodded hesitantly, taking the rag to slowly clean up his face as he rubbed it gently over his cheeks. "I didn't know what they were." Daryl muttered shamefully.

Rick's gaze panned over to him as he shook his head, "It isn't on you." he attempted to reassure, though he had a feeling his words wouldn't be enough to ease the other man's mind. "How'd you wind up with them?"

"I was with Beth; we got out together. I was with her for a while..." he trailed off, thinking back to the people that somehow got her, taking off in the other direction and leaving him behind in their dust.

"Is she dead?"

Daryl shook his head, "She's just gone."

Rick didn't want to pry, only nodding again as he watched him continue, "After that, that's when they found me. I knew they weren't good people...that they were lookin for a couple others...but I just went along with them to see if..." he trailed off again.

Rick swallowed, lubricating his dry throat as he just knew what he was going to ask next, "What happened to her, man?" he mumbled quietly.

He wanted to know. He wanted to know so badly. But at the same time, he dreaded the answer that he would reluctantly receive. It was clear to him after what he could already see...she was gone. Daryl just wanted to hear him say it. He needed to hear the whole story.

"She-" Rick started, cutting himself off slightly as his voice broke, "She tracked down Carl and I right after it happened, somehow found Michonne just a day after that. And eventually we ran into some trouble, killed a man that was trying to kill us. After that we all took off...hoping to just leave all that behind..." he trailed off momentarily.

Daryl hung onto every word he was saying, leaning against the roughness of the rusty car as he watched Rick's face contort with emotion and pain.

"The next few days, she was on edge, all she wanted was to find you. She didn't eat, hardly slept, she barely even talked. That's all she ever wanted since the beginning; was to find you again." Rick assured, watching Daryl nod whilst chewing on his bottom lip anxiously.

"But then one night when we were trying to sleep...a herd was passing by us and she somehow got separated from us. We heard her yelling...before it just went quiet."

At that moment, tears were threatening to spill down Daryl's face, silently turning away from Rick so he wouldn't see. But Rick knew.

He could hear his breathing change and the small sniffles that echoed around the now quiet air, it only made Rick feel more guilty than before. Kicking himself for not being able to protect her, now having to break the gut wrenching news to her husband that clearly loved her more than anything else in this world.

A moment of silence passed as he tried to gather what else he wanted to say, but for a while the words just wouldn't come out. He couldn't protect her. And it killed him.

"Carl thinks she's still alive," Rick finally spoke after a few moments, "But that night was the last time we saw her."

Daryl slowly nodded his head to show that he understood, but his mind was elsewhere. He felt like his heart was shattering in the most painful way he could imagine. He always knew that there was a possibility that she could be gone, but he never wanted to linger on the thought in case it wasn't true.

Though now hearing it out loud, hearing it come out of Rick's mouth, it just made it more real. It hit him like a ton of bricks, so hard that it could've knocked him on his ass at how he would truly never see her again. He would never hear her infectious laugh, or be able to feel her embrace. It was all just slowly tearing him apart.

He held his face in his hands as he processed everything, feeling Rick hesitantly place a hand on his shoulder as he too thought about the impact of her loss. Rose had managed to worm her way into his heart, he had grown to love her dearly. And now she was suddenly gone forever. It was all too hard to comprehend for the both of them, but yet they were going through it together.

"I'm so sorry." Rick finally spoke.

Daryl shook his head and looked up at him, "It ain't on you...I just..." he trailed off, not being able to find the right words.

But Rick understood what he was trying to say, "Yeah...yeah, I know."

"Carl thinks she's alive?" Daryl asked quietly.

The man nodded, "Yeah. We could hardly see anything because of the herd...which is why I think he's holding onto that hope."

"She's tough." Daryl said.

"She is...but..."

Daryl shook his head, "She's tough." he repeated.

Rick watched Daryl's face carefully, already knowing that if he would ever come face to face like this again with him, telling him only what he knew, he would be in denial. It was expected, losing someone you love so greatly, you don't want to accept it at first, which is why he only stayed quiet. He didn't want to push the wrong buttons and make it any worse for him.

But suddenly, he stood to his feet and pulled himself together quickly, "I need ta go see."

Rick's eyes widened as he jumped up to his feet as well, shaking his head, "What? No...she's...she's gone, man."

"Nah, m' goin back. Need to make sure." he replied, turning to retrieve his crossbow from the ground as he strapped it across his shoulders.

"Daryl, listen," Rick said to grab his attention, "There were hundreds of them...there's no guarantee that you'll find anything."

The man only huffed and started to walk off, "I gotta try."

But Rick didn't let him go, pulling him back by his shoulder to try and talk him out of whatever he planned. Even if he did find something that remained, it would only break him further, and Rick had no desire to watch his friend go through all that.

The two argued back and forth for longer than necessary, noting how stubborn Daryl was and the determination he carried. But eventually he caved, silently knowing that Rick was right. It was the heat of the moment, and if he was being honest with himself, he didn't know if he could handle seeing any part of her torn up and destroyed. It was hard enough hearing the words that she was gone, he didn't know what he would do if he actually saw it for himself.

So, the man reluctantly stayed with the only family he had left.

After that, they didn't speak again. They all needed time to process another loss, and try not to focus on the blood coating the road where the dead bodies of Joe's men once were.

The next few hours passed by impossibly slow before they eventually gathered everything up to start making their way to Terminus, the community being just a few miles away now. There was still a certain tension that lingered in the air between them, each seeming to have a lot on their minds. It was a natural reaction to feel nervous about this new and uncharted territory, but they could only hold out hope that it would be good for them. For all of them.

Although they all collectively knew that Daryl would surely never be the same again after the news he just received. At one point Carl tried to reassure him that he was certain she made it, perhaps even catching up to them this very moment, but all Daryl could do was nod back in appreciation. He knew they were trying to be helpful, offering a shoulder to lean on, but that wasn't what he wanted or needed.

The one thing he needed, was the one thing he could never get back.

Once the four finally made it to the sanctuary, they approached with caution, hiding a few of their supplies and weapons just in case things went south. They stuck close as they made their way through the back, wanting to see this place for what it really was considering they were walking in blindly. Not knowing if these people could be trusted; if this place could truly be as safe as they claimed.

When the small group was far enough inside, they faintly heard a woman's voice echoing through the space, beginning to follow the sound through the varies of structures. They walked slowly towards an adjacent door where the repeated phrase was coming from, carefully making their way closer inside. Daryl came around the corner first to see a woman talking into a microphone, reading from a piece of paper over and over again with some kind of headset covering her ears.

"Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive, survive." the woman said.

Rick slowly moved past Daryl as they stuck their heads through the doorway, moving closer in towards the room, eventually calling out to her to grab her attention. Her attention was then pulled from her script as she heard them enter, her eyes then panning back over towards a few people who were working in the back. Clearly looking for the person in charge.

"Well, I bet Albert is on perimeter watch." one of the men spoke as he came around to stand into view, clear annoyance on his tone. "You here to rob us?" he asked bluntly.

"No..." Rick said, "We wanted to see you before you saw us."

The man nodded, "Makes sense. Usually we do this where the tracks meet, but..." he then cleared his throat, "Welcome to Terminus, I'm Gareth. Looks like you've been on the road for a good bit."

"We have...I'm Rick, that's Carl, Daryl, and Michonne." Rick introduced them one by one down the line.

Gareth waved awkwardly with a thin lipped smile, sensing the obvious tension, "You're nervous I get it, we were all the same way. We came here for sanctuary...that what you're here for?"

"Yes." Rick nodded.

"Good, you found it" Gareth responded and then turned to another man nearby and called him over, "This isn't as pretty as the front, we got nothing to hide but the welcome wagon is a whole lot nicer. Alex here will take you and ask you a few questions...but first, we need to see everyone's weapons."

They all collectively tensed up a little at that. They didn't trust these people, but then again, these people probably didn't trust them.

"If you could just lay them down in front of you." Gareth continued.

The group obviously hesitated, glancing at each other for some silent conformation, before complying and moved to do as they asked. They all removed every hidden item they had on them and laid them down in front of their feet, watching as Alex came over to thoroughly pat everyone down.

He started with Daryl as he moved his hands sloppily around his arms and down his waist, "I would hate to see the other guy." he joked, referring to his beaten face.

"You would." Rick chimed in.

Alex then moved on to Carl, "Did they deserve it?" he asked.

"Yes." Carl said with no hesitation.

Once the man was done patting each of them down, Gareth spoke again, "Just so you know, we aren't those kinds of people, but we aren't stupid either. And you shouldn't be stupid enough to try anything stupid. As long as everyone's clear on that, we shouldn't have any problems. Just solutions."

The four studied him and took in his words very carefully as they were handed back their weapons from the ground by Alex. Except Daryl, who instead picked up his crossbow before the man could even brush his fingertips against his prized possession.

Alex then nodded awkwardly towards the door on the other end of the room, leading the group outside to have them check out more of their little community and answer any questioned they threw at him.

This place seemed safe, and the people were nice enough, but there was this gut feeling they all had that something wasn't quite right about it. Something that every single one of them felt from the moment they stepped foot in here, yet none of them mentioned it to one another. Assuming that they were only being paranoid.

They walked up to a woman who was preparing some food and Alex asked her to make each of them a plate as he continued to talk about the place, informing them of the history. Rick's eyes absentmindedly scanned around the community as the man chatted away, but he stopped suddenly when he noticed a few things that caught his attention. An orange backpack that once belonged to Glenn, a poncho that Daryl used to wear during the winter, and Maggie's armor from the prison.

He immediately was on high alert and knew something was wrong, his gaze snapping back to Alex who had a silver chain coming out of his pants pocket; Hershel's pocket watch.

They all thought they came here to get away from the danger, but it turns out, they walked right into it.

Rose continued to follow the familiar boot prints until she came across a random car parked on the side of the road, noticing the blood splatters all over the concrete. Her eyes widened at what remained of the obvious disaster, but the sight of a trail that cut through the grass caused her to let out a small breath. He clearly ran into some trouble, but he was still alive.

The tracks were only getting fresher which meant she was growing closer, hardly being able to wait to see him again after so long. She grew so excited she almost couldn't contain it, like a damn kid on Christmas morning, practically skipping as she made her way through the trees. It amazed her how much her spirits were lifted, but she also blamed it on the fact that she thought he was dead about twenty different times in the past week.

It didn't take her long to notice that she was heading in the direction of Terminus, and the thought of seeing the others just made her legs move even faster. Hell, maybe the small group somehow found Daryl throughout everything if she was lucky enough. Finding all of them again in one go.

Though the small amount of hopefulness she felt diminished in nearly seconds as she neared the community, smelling the smoke and seeing hundreds of walkers being drawn to the large flame that was illuminated. Screams and automatic gunfire could be heard amongst the madness, a giant black cloud rising above Terminus. Panic quickly grew within her as she hoped her family was okay despite the sights she was seeing. She had made it too far for it to just suddenly end like this.

Rose then began to pick up her pace all while trying to avoid the lingering monsters around her, though most of them seemed to be more interested in the fire coming from the place nearby rather than her running figure. However, when a few did catch sight of her, she had to take them out quickly before a chain reaction started as more of them seemed to notice her presence. Firing arrows left and right to the group that seemed to follow her, drawing more attention away from the giant flame as she continued to dodge their grasp.

Too many seemed to be on her tail now, not having enough weapons to continue to fight all of them off at once. She didn't know what to do, where to run, or which way to turn when she was slowly getting surrounded and cut off from the burning community where she desperately needed to be. Where she needed to go in order to help her people.

But somehow, she caught sight of what would be her saving grace out of the corner of her eye. She didn't need to think twice, making a beeline over to it quickly as she ducked through the branches in the forest, successfully escaping from the walker's cold, dead hands.

Inside the small cabin, Tyreese fought with the man who tried to hurt Judith as he punched him over and over again. It was bad enough that Carol left without any indication of when she was coming back, but it was even worse when he had to stay with the man he didn't know and didn't trust. Though when he tried to hurt the baby, that was his final straw, easily knocking the man out cold.

However, the built-up rage he felt caused him not to stop once he had started, hitting him repeatedly until his face was black and blue, coated with blood. It was like he was taking all his anger out on this one stranger over everything that had happened to him over the past few days, one shitty thing happening after another. It was a rollercoaster of emotions to say the least.

He gritted his teeth together as he laid another punch on the man, but his movements stopped completely the moment he heard a small gasp come from just behind his frame. He froze for only a second, before his head whipped around to look over his shoulder to see the person that dared to walk in here.

It took him a few moments to process the person standing in the doorway, but the minute he realized who it was, he shook his head in utter disbelief. How could it have even been real?

"Ty?" Rose breathed.

When he finally registered her voice, he quickly stood and walked over to her in a total of three steps before wrapping his arms around her in a bear hug. She gasped in surprise, though recovered within only a moment as she wrapped her arms around his neck, laughing lightly in relief as she felt her legs dangle as he lifted her a bit off the ground.

It had been too long since she'd seen him last, having no idea how the hell he ended up here, but she wasn't about to question it. Another one of her friends was alive and safe, and that's all that mattered to her.

"You're okay." he breathed, still not letting her go as he allowed her to stand on her own two feet.

She laughed softly again, "I'm okay. I can't believe it's really you...you're here."

He then pulled back to place his hands on her shoulders, nodding with a small smile on his face. But that smile soon faded when he noticed the large gashes on her skin.

"Jesus, what happened?" he whispered, his brows furrowed in concern.

She scoffed with a shake of her head, purposefully answering vaguely, "Some assholes."

He nodded his head in understanding, seeing the look on her face the moment he brought it up, content with keeping his mouth closed about it as long as she was okay.

But Rose had about a million questions, how he had ended up here, if he was alone all this time, but her voice suddenly got caught in her throat. Her head slowly turned to just behind his shoulder, hearing the familiar coos coming from a baby and she could've sworn her heart dropped down to the pit of her stomach.

She slowly moved past Tyreese to see a box sitting on the wooden floor, her pace slowly quickening to make sure it wasn't just her imagination. Her eyes hesitantly peeked over the edge, glistening with tears almost instantly the second she saw Judith laying inside.

"Judith," she breathed as she moved forward quickly, taking the girl in her arms as she held her close to her chest. "Rick- Rick thought she was dead." she said, turning back to Tyreese.

"I took care of her the whole time." he reassured.

She shook her head, "Oh my God, you're an angel."

He smiled bashfully at her compliment, waving her off as Judith began to pull away slightly to look up at the person who now held her close. To Rose's surprise, it looked like the little girl recognized her, giggling a bit to herself as she placed one of her small chubby hands on Rose's cheek.

The woman smiled as a few tears slipped from her eyes, taking her hand and kissing it a few times as she looked into her big brown eyes, "Hi sweetie." she whispered.

Judith giggled again as Rose pulled her back towards her chest as she held onto her tightly, "Who did you get out with?" she asked Tyreese.

He just looked down at the ground and sighed before he began to explain everything. From escaping with the kids, to Carol saving them, and what happened with Lizzy and Mika. Tyreese told her everything.

"We heard this guy talking about some girl with a sword, and a kid with a cowboy hat. And we just knew it was Michonne and Carl. So, Carol went in there to get them out, told me to stay put." he finished, the two sitting across from each other now on the ground.

Rose sat there with the baby on her lap, absolutely dumbfounded. It was a lot to take in and she felt terrible to hear what happened with the kids, but she was even more shocked to hear that Ty now knew about what Carol did. He was such a good man for forgiving her and trying to move on, that alone took so much for a person to do.

Her eyes then slowly panned over to the unconscious man in the corner, scoffing to herself, "So, Terminus is a bunch of bullshit?" she asked bitterly.

"I guess so," Ty said sadly, "Best thing to do now is wait for Carol to come back with the rest of them."

She slowly nodded her head, not fully knowing if she was capable to just sit here, unknown to the extent of what was happening to them. The thought was nearly killing her.

"Hey..." Tyreese called out softly, "Have you...had a chance to clean those?" he asked hesitantly, gesturing to the deep cuts that were still prominent on her flesh.

"Oh...no, I haven't. All I had was some water, so..." she trailed off.

He wordlessly dug in his bag and grabbed a bottle of rubbing alcohol, offering to clean it for her. She agreed silently with a nod and adjusted the baby in her grasp, seeming to not want to let her go anytime soon.

"So...what happened to you?" he asked. She flinched a little when the alcohol burned her slightly, "Sorry," he whispered.

Rose just took a breath and began spilling everything like he just did with her only moments ago. She told them about her finding the others, the men that came into the house they were hauled up in, and finally the herd of walkers that got them all separated from each other.

She found herself purposefully not mentioning the cuts on her face, or the men that left them there, among other things. It was still too soon for her to talk about, the thought alone sending a chill up her spine. The last thing she wanted as to completely break down in front of the man, because her screams and cries that she let out right after it happened, were utterly horrifying.

"Then I tracked Daryl up until this point, and well...here I am."

The man now sat next to her as he took a moment to let all the new information sink in, "Take your time." she said jokingly.

He chuckled softly before his face scrunched in confusion, "But what about..." he trailed off.

She just shook her head and that caused him to back down once again. He didn't want to push her to talk about it because clearly, she went through something traumatic. She tried to forget the pain that those two strangers caused her, not wanting to give them anymore power now that they were dead. But she couldn't forget the terror, the handprints still somehow embedded in her flesh. She thought that she felt disgusting with walker guts and blood caked onto every inch of her frame, but that was nothing compared to this.

She cleared her throat as she fished for something to change the subject quickly, "So, what do we do about that asshole?" she gestured over to the man still laying almost lifeless on the ground.

Tyreese sighed as he slowly stood to his full height, "I'll tie him up."

"Why don't you just kill him?" she questioned.

He stopped in his tracks upon hearing that, slowly turning back towards her to see just how serious she was about the idea, no hint of sarcasm behind her words. "You must've been through a lot." he stated sadly.

Rose shrugged, "Yeah, I guess..." she muttered quietly, "But what if he unties himself and can track. There's a chance he could follow us, and I don't know if I want to take that risk."

"...I don't know if I can do it." Ty said hesitantly.

"You don't have to." she assured.

He had an inner debate with himself before giving in and nodding his head, realizing that she did have a good point. She passed Judith off to him and took out one of her knives so she could take him out quietly, standing over him for a moment before quickly stabbing him in the side of the head. Ty didn't know how to feel as he watched her kill a man with almost no remorse at all, but in the back of his mind he knew that it was the right thing to do. 

Both of their heads then snapped to the door when they heard some people faintly talking from outside. Ty immediately went over to peek through of the windows, leaving Rose waiting for his reaction as she gripped her knife tighter. But once she saw the giant grin break out onto his face, she instantly relaxed. He looked over at her and nodded his head in confirmation that it was in fact the others, quickly moving to grab his things to go out and greet them.

Rose scurried back to grab her things as well though she couldn't seem to move fast enough, carelessly throwing everything over her shoulders. By the time she was done Ty was already out of the house, and she took a moment for herself to breathe, her hand hovering over the doorknob.

She had to admit; she was nervous. This whole week had been building up to this exact moment and although she couldn't wait to see everyone who made it out, she needed to ease her nerves before just waltzing out there. She felt as though she could throw up.

Tyreese was not one to hesitate however, wanting Rick and Carl to see that Judith was in fact alive. As the group approached further, the two could hardly believe their eyes when they saw the baby in Tyreese's arms, safe. They didn't need to think twice as they both broke out into a sprint and rushed towards the man to take her from his grasp, holding onto her tightly. Rick cradled the back of her head, placing a kiss on her cheek as tears slipped from their eyes in pure relief and gratefulness.

Ty looked to see Sasha making her way over to him, sobbing as they instantly hugged each other. The rest of the group watched from a distance as the families reunited with one another with small smiles on their faces. Heartwarming would be an understatement, feeling like they were on cloud nine seeing just how many of them had found each other again.

Though when Tyreese finally broke away from his sister, he looked back towards the door, confused seeing as it was still shut.

"I have a surprise." he suddenly announced, grabbing everyone else's attention.

As if on cue, Rose slowly opened the door and looked to the group in front of her with wide eyes. She stopped mid step when she saw just how many of them actually made it here, along with a few people further in the distance that she didn't quite recognize. But she barely had time to even linger on the thought.

Once everyone heard the door creak open for a second time, their heads all whipped in the direction of the sound, a series of gasps heard amongst them.

Rose scanned the sea of people until her eyes met with those bright blue eyes she loved so dearly. Once he saw her, his mouth parted as he physically felt the need to pinch himself to make sure it wasn't just a sick dream, or his mind playing tricks on him. But it wasn't. She was alive.

Without a second thought, the two ran to each other in a sprint, carelessly discarding their weapons and bags along the way. The moment they were close enough, they collided with each other and almost instantly broke into sobs. With their arms still wrapped securely around each other, they both fell to their knees, clinging to each other like they were each other's lifeline. But in a way, they were.

Daryl felt alive again. As soon as it registered that she was really here and safe in his arms, it was like he wasn't drowning anymore, her being his first breath of fresh air. The air that he so desperately needed all those days he was killing himself searching endlessly for her, feeling like an utter failure.

He had never felt so happy, so relieved, so absolutely floored to see her again. His heart was hammering in his chest as he tried to control his emotions, but at this point, he didn't care. He just let everything out. He had the thing that he needed the most in this world. And right now, that's all he could bring himself to care about.

Rose on the other hand was an utter mess, not being able to stop the tears from flowing as she hung onto him for dear life, gripping his shirt to only bring him closer. She had never felt more at peace then she did right now. He was okay. And he found her just like he promised he would. Her whole world was back within her reach again, and for that she was forever grateful.

Daryl finally pulled away, his hands coming up to gently hold her cheeks, his eyes scanning over her beautiful face he had missed so much. "Am I dreamin?" he whispered.

She laughed tiredly as he couldn't seem to wipe the small smile off his face, "No," she shook her head, "I'm here love, I'm here." she whispered.

He swallowed thickly to try and rid the lump in his throat as he nodded, bringing her in to place a lingering kiss on her forehead before hugging her close again. The group tried not to watch such an intimate moment between the two, but they couldn't help but glance their way. Though every time they did so, their smiles only grew, emotions running high at the sight of seeing the couple together again.

Rose managed to then open her eyes to peer over Daryl's shoulder, seeing the rest of the group still standing around tearfully. She gently pulled away from him momentarily, smiling in reassurance before standing up to her feet to make her way over to see the others.

Without even fully realizing, she made a beeline for Glenn and Maggie who were standing right next to each other. Glenn didn't hesitate to jog the rest of the way over to see her, tenderness filling his features as he wrapped his arms around her tightly. She could hear him whispering in disbelief that she was okay, causing her to hold onto him tighter as if it would make it feel more real. Confirming she was really here.

Maggie then came up behind Glenn and gently pulled him back by his shoulder so she could tackle Rose in a hug. She laughed lightly at her fast actions, but Maggie was an absolute mess, crying onto Rose's shoulder. The two women held onto each other tightly, whispering to each other how much they missed one another as they laughed deliriously.

Rose then made her way down the line, greeting the rest one by one as she hugged them emotionally, never wanting to part from any of them again. Though this all felt like a dream, she couldn't have been happier as she relished in the comfort of her people.

Though when she finally turned back around to move over to Rick and Carl, both of them broke down at the sight of her. They pulled her into a group hug, hearing Carl say over and over again that he never stopped believing that she was alive, never doubting it for one second. Rick however was nothing but apologetic as he couldn't push away the guilt for leaving her behind. Though Rose shut that down just as quickly as it started. She didn't think for one minute that he should feel responsible for that when they all thought she was dead, nor could she bring herself to care. Not when this was the happiest she had felt in what felt like forever.

Once she finally parted from them, Daryl couldn't help himself as he ventured back over to wrap his arms around her again, burying his face in the side of her neck. He half expected her to fade away when he clung to her once more, but she didn't. Instead he felt her squeeze him tight before gently pulling back to take his face in her hands.

"I'm real. You found me." she whispered.

He wanted to shake his head at her words, amazed that she could still read his mind the way she could. But he nodded slowly in acceptance and kissed her forehead once more, trying to pull himself together in front of all these people.

The group then collectively turned back towards the direction of Terminus in unison it seemed like, seeing and hearing the destruction that was caused. They didn't know who was left alive, but they almost couldn't bring themselves to care as the war seemed to be over.

"We need to go." Rick announced.

"But where?" Daryl asked.

Rose shook her head, "Who cares?" she asked genuinely, "As long as it's somewhere far the fuck away from here."

Glenn nodded in agreement as he jerked his head towards the long dirt path ahead of him, "Took the words right out of my mouth." he muttered.

Everyone quickly followed his lead after that, wanting to put some distance between them the horrid place that would surely haunt them for the weeks to come. Eventually the group made their way back towards the train tracks that seemed to lead them all to the same place, walking in the opposite direction of the sanctuary...or what was left of it.

Rick trailed behind the others, keeping a watchful eye out to their surroundings for any other danger before something quickly caught his eye. A sign that was all too familiar, the map of Terminus that continued to lead people in a horrible direction.

"Rose!" he called out.

She turned to look over her shoulder, past all the other people as she parted from her husband to backtrack toward the man, "Yeah?"

"You still have that spray paint?"

She nodded her head, removing her bag from her shoulders as she began to dig around to feel for the familiar object. Once she had it in her grasp, she handed it to him, watching as he began to scribble wildly onto the big sign. Her eyes looked over his shoulder when he was done with his message, frowning at the writing.

NO SANCTUARY

The rest of the words were easily scribbled out by the red paint, making sure to coat it thoroughly to send a message to any other survivors who passed. Rose couldn't help but look towards him in worry, "What the hell happened in there?" she asked softly.

Rick looked back at her, noticing the fresh gashes on her face and frowned to himself, "We'll talk." he confirmed.

~ Thanks for reading! (Season 4 is officially done! Woooo)

Taglist - @justareader95 @hayley1998 @ryoujoking @sipsthecoffee @winterassassin1804 @marsmallow433 @catlalice @writingstreetspirit @silentlysuffering98

[dvrylgal]

⋆༺𓆩 kehetu: chapter eleven 𓆪༻⋆

synopsis: while you're paying your respects, you and daryl have an awkward interaction... but quickly pull it together once randall escapes.

cw: canon typical violence, gore, profanity, mature themes, cannibalism (zombies), zombies (obviously), racism (Merle), reader is black, reader is from jersey, reader is a mechanic, reader was raised native (ish), reader's a bit of an atheist

Sitting down on top of Dale's grave, you placed an empty beer bottle at its head, swallowing the lump in your throat as you tucked a Cherokee Rose inside.

"S'crazy, right?" you chuckled, dryly, looking down at your lap. "All that talk of death 'n' killin'... an' the one guy that wanted no part in it ended up gettin' killed himself."

You scoffed, brows furrowing.

"How the hell does that make any sense?"

Tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, you shook your head, swiping a hand over your mouth.

With it being around noon, it was almost time for the others to take the young man—Randall, you had finally learned—away from the camp.

In honor of Dale's memory, Rick decided that the boy shouldn't be killed, and settled on driving him far, far away. 

But you couldn't care less about that now.

All you could care about was Dale, and how horribly you'd talked to him before his death.

"Imma be honest... I don't know what the hell m'doin'," you started up again, solemnly. "I don't know where you are... I don't even know if you can hear me."

You sniffled, quickly swiping at your nose.

 "I never believed in that heaven so for all I know, I could be talkin' to a patch of dirt."

 Once again, you chuckled, heart hanging in your chest.

"But I... I really hope m'not... 'cause despite all this bullshit, you deserve to be happy... and whether I believe it or not, I hope you are."

Glancing down at your neck, you carefully picked up the cross resting atop your chest, gently twisting it between your fingertips.

These last few weeks had forced your to really reckon with the faith—or lack thereof—you thought you had.

You believed that the Catholic church was stupid, that it was full of hypocrites and liars and profiteers.

Yet, when it really mattered, you couldn't stop yourself from saying a Hail Mary, from clutching your cross with an iron grip.

Was it comfort?

How could you find comfort in something you didn't believe in?

Did you truly not believe it?

What would change if you did?

These questions hadn't stopped swirling around your head since last night, and you found that the more you asked, the less was answered.

"(y/n)," Daryl called, snapping you out of your stupor.

You nearly jumped out your skin, drawing your knife and whipping around with wide eyes only to find his familiar face standing before you, crossbow slung over his shoulder.

"Oh, shit," you exhaled, allowing your shoulders to sink as you quickly lowered your weapon. "Sorry... I didn't hear ya."

"S'all right," he assured, shifting his weight on his hips. "I, uh... I wanted to letchu know we're 'bout to take the lil' shit."

'Crap, Randall...'

"Shit, I completely forgot," you stood up, dusting your hands off on your pants. "You guys need any help?"

"Nah, T-Dog's grabbin' 'im. We just gotta toss 'im in the trunk 'n' go," he shook his head.

"Well... I'll still see you off," you assured.

Moving to his side, the both of you started back toward the cars, an awkward silence settling in the air as the two of your refused to look at each other.

Things between you both were already rocky given what happened at the stables and in the chicken coop, but to add last night's rather intimate display was just the icing on the cake.

Looking back on it, you had no idea what possessed you to cling to him like a goddamn koala, nor did he know why he held onto you so damn tight.

It was such unknown territory for you both, neither of you even knew where to begin.

But maybe an apology was a good place to start...

"Look, about last night—"

"You were grievin'," he quickly finished for you, glancing down at the ground. "I didn't take it t'heart."

At his response, you clammed up slightly, a heavy feeling sinking in your chest.

For some reason... that wasn't the answer you wanted.

Even still, you swallowed it back, squaring out your shoulders before turning to look ahead.

"Good."

But at your response, he fell, too, a momentary flicker of hope quickly snuffed out.

Because, in actuality, he had taken it to heart... he had taken it completely to heart.

The man had never been sought out for comfort for anything before, andto see that he was the first body you went for, the very first person you clung to, with Glenn and Lori right there.

It did something to him... made him realize a truly horrifying fact.

He loved it.

"Y'all!" T-Dog shouted, running over as you two approached the trucks. "He's missin'! He's not there!"

Eyes wide, both you and Daryl turned to each other, you drawing your knife and him taking his crossbow off his shoulder before you both broke into a sprint for the barn.

"Fuck you mean he's not there?!"

"What's wrong?"

"Randall's missing."

"Missing?! How?!"

"How long's he been gone?"

"What's goin' on?"

"It's hard to say."

"The cuffs are still hooked," Rick sighed as he exited the shed, joining the crowd outside. "He must've slipped 'em."

"Is that possible?" Carol asked.

"It is if you got nothing to lose," Andrea answered as she came out from behind him.

"The door was locked from the outside. Why the hell would he close up before escapin'?" you asked, brows furrowed as you crossed your arms over your chest.

"Cover his tracks?" Rick suggested.

You shook your head, "Boy didn't look smart enough for that."

"RICK!" 

Quickly, you all snapped your heads to the woods, only to find Shane emerging from the trees, nose dripping with blood.

'The hell?'

"What happened?!" Lori asked, worried.

"Rick, he's armed! He's got my gun!"

"Are you okay?!" Carl asked, scared.

"M'fine. Little bastard just snuck up on me. He clocked me in the face."

"All right, Hershel, T-Dog, Glenn, get everybody back in the house!" Rick barked, quickly. "(y/n), Daryl, come with us."

Without hesitation, Daryl loaded a bolt in the chamber, and you snatched up your bow and quiver from the side of the shed.

"T, m'gonna need that gun," Shane held out his hand.

"Just let him go," Carol shook her head. "That was the plan, wasn't it, to just let him go?"

"The plan was to cut him loose far away from here, not on our front step with a gun," Rick denied, sharply, before turning to start toward the woods, the rest of you following suit.

"Don't go out there. Y'all know what can happen!"

"Get everybody back in the house! Lock all the doors and stay put!"

Breaking into the trees, the four of you looked like a death squad bent on destruction, the cock of Rick's gun punctuating his orders to the others.

Your expressions were stony, the weepy girl paying her respects long gone as you sheathed your hunting knife in your thigh holster.

It was time to get down to business and do what should've been done from the start.

'Sorry, Dale...'

"I saw him head up through the trees that way before I blacked out," Shane stated as he led you all to the eastern side of the woods. "M'not sure how long."

"He couldn't have gotten far," Rick added. "He's hobbled, exhausted."

"Armed," you reminded.

"So are we."

Quickly, he turned to Daryl, moving to stand by his side.

"Can you track 'im?"

"I don't see nothin'."

"Hey, look, there ain't no use in trackin' 'im, okay?" Shane huffed, a little more pushy than necessary. "He went that way. We jus' need to pair up. We spread out, we jus' chase 'im down. Thas' it."

"Kid weighs a buck-twenty five soakin' wet," Daryl scoffed, turning to face him. "You tryna tell us he got the jump on ya?"

"I say a rock pretty much evens those odds, wouldn't you?"

"All right, knock it off," Rick shut down, before returning to Daryl. "You an' (y/n) start headin' up the right flank. Me an' Shane'll take the left. Remember... Randall's not the only threat out there. Keep an eye out for each other."

"Likewise," your brows furrowed, eyes sharply sizing up Shane as he stared at Rick with an odd look.

You could feel it in your gut that something was horribly wrong.

But even still, you pressed on, following Daryl in the opposite direction.

If only you knew how right you were...

"This is pointless," Daryl grumbled, holding out his hand. "You got a light?"

Nodding, you tugged your flashlight out your satchel, plopping it in his palm.

Originally, you both had tried using the moonlight to search for tracks, but with such limited visibility, it was just as bad as walking around in the dark.

"You don't find none of this suspicious?" you asked, genuinely, as you surveyed the trees. "Big manly-man Shane taken out by a scrawny kid wit' a bum leg?"

"'Course it's suspicious," he scoffed, keeping his eyes on the ground. "But Rick ain't stupid. If he got us out here, then he got us out for a reason."

"You really believe that?"

"I do."

"Well, then," you sighed, stepping over a large log. "Looks like we're just back t'square one."

"If you're gonna do a thing, ya might as well do it right," he shrugged, still pressing forward. "Now you gonna keep complainin', princess? Or you gonna help me track?"

"Fuck you," you fired back, fighting off the burn of your cheeks at the nickname.

 Picking up the pace, you moved in step next to him, continuing your surveillance of the flora.

"There's two sets of tracks here. Shane must've followed 'im a lot longer than he said," Daryl noticed, brows furrowing. "An' there's more. Looks like they were walkin' in tandem."

You nodded in agreement, carefully taking the flashlight out of his hand before pointing it at a nearby chunk of bark.

"There's fresh blood on this tree," you reported, squinting your eyes. "Wit' the amount, can't have been more than two or three hours ago."

"Yeah, there was a little dust up right here," Daryl agreed, walking a few more steps ahead as he examined the scuff marks in the dirt.

"Think somethin' went down?" you asked.

"Know somethin' went down," he nodded.

You shook your head, that ominous feeling returning as you looked around the dark landscape.

"Daryl, I don't like this... shit's gettin' weird."

"C'mon, don't start pissin' yerself now. All those damn huntin' trips you always talkin' about."

"Huntin' trips... Not mystery solvin'. M'not not Scooby-fuckin'-Doo."

"Looks like they had a lil' trouble," he continued, biting back a smile at your funny remark as he picked up Randall's blindfold.

Just then, something rustled not too far away and the two of you jolted, quickly ducking behind two nearby trees.

'Fuckin' Christ...'

Quieting your breathing, you peeked out from behind, taking notice of a walker shuffling around not too far away.

'Looks like jus' one... manageable...'

Daryl let out a soft whistle, and you turned to him, catching the flashlight as he tossed it to you, understanding the memo pretty quickly based off the look in his eyes.

Holding your positions, the two of you lied in wait, allowing the walker to draw closer before you struck.

Silently, you drew your knife, prepping yourself as its footsteps became louder and louder.

Until finally, it was close enough, and you flashed the light on it for Daryl to take the shot, grimacing at its loud snarl.

Just as he pulled the trigger, it shoved you to the ground, forcing the arrow to hit its arm rather than its head.

With a roar of anger, it moved to attack Daryl, grabbing at the crossbow before taking them both to the ground.

'Shit!'

Quickly, you scrambled to your feet, running over and looping your arms under the walker's armpits, pulling him away enough for Daryl to kick him in the face.

The force knocked you both back, landing the walker on top of you, but you didn't miss a beat and flipped the both of you over before stabbing your knife right through its forehead.

Panting, you stood up, Daryl doing the same as he shined the light on its face, you both finally realizing that it was Randall.

"Oh, shit," you caught your breath, resting your hand on your hip.

"Nice," Daryl commended, a small smile rising to his lips as he gave you a pat on the shoulder.

Your brows flattened, and you leveled him with a deadpanned look before stepping on the walker's face, pinning it down as you ripped your knife out its head.

"Looks like he broke his neck," you remarked, rolling him over with your foot before crouching down, cutting up his shirt to get a look at his back.

"He's got no bites," Daryl noticed, lifting up his pant legs to see nothing.

"None you can see," you scoffed, leaning over to check his neck.

"Nah, m'tellin' ya. He died from this."

Meeting his gaze, you shook your head, unable to believe it.

"How's that possible?"

[inklessletter]

"A good heart calls another," Eddie mumbles, but no one hears it.

And he is there, physically, but he must have time travelled or something because his mind is a decade back.

Eddie is eleven, and he's scared, his bruises are fading and he has been two weeks in Hawkins with Wayne already. He doesn't trust Wayne yet, but he is starting to. Wayne hasn't forced him to go to school right away, he is letting Eddie heal and breathe before he has to face his new routine.

Wayne has bought a pull-out couch and had left the only room in the trailer for Eddie. Out of the little things he says, Wayne explicitly tells him that he wants Eddie to have his space there. Eddie knows right away that he wants to make that tin of a house a home for him.

And Eddie is scared of that, because that would be the first time.

Eddie is grateful that Wayne is not a man of many words because those first few days he doesn't really know how to feel, or what to say. But Wayne choses his words carefully, Eddie thinks.

And he is there, eleven years old, bruises fading, midnight on the clock, lying on the grass patch behind the trailer, looking at the sky, and he remembers to be counting stars. Counting things calms him. And he must have been thinking out loud because he's amazed that the more stars he counts in the sky, the more appears into sight.

He knows Wayne is nearby, sitting in his old chair, smoking, but doesn't expect him to speak.

"My ma used to tell me that stars are like good hearts. Once you start counting stars more appears, because the stars call each other. Just like good hearts. A good hearts calls another."

Eddie lets that sink in, and for the first time in forever, he feels safe in a strange land.

He remembers those words when he starts making friends at school and founding Hellfire and Corroded Coffin.

He remembers those words when he's hiding at Rick's boat house and a bunch of people that he didn't expect comes through the door just to help him.

He remembers that when he is embracing death under a foreign starless sky, alone and sad, because he would have loved to see the stars one last time.

But that was six months ago.

He remembers Wayne's words now that he's in Steve's backyard, and there is a bunch of people looking at him, smiling, some still wearing funny paper hats, some holding a birthday cake with his name on it, some holding presents for him.

He is turning 21 today, and this is for him. Just for him.

And he feels like a star.

[articulately-composed]

I don't know how many people here are aware of the "hear me out cake" trend on tiktok, but my god these people would not last a day on tumblr.

These cakes are filled with pictures of the most normal men in the world. Most of them aren't even animated men! I've seen like 3 cakes with dwight from the office. one cake had gordon ramsey and bill nye the science guy. What do you mean bill nye is a hear me out????

And even when you do get cartoon animals, it's like... bluey's dad, simba, characters from zootopia, the most basic-ass furrry bait. And you have the other people in the room freaking out whenever anyone puts anyone on the cake, even if it's the most milquetoast actor.

One person did put pickle rick though. That's definitely a hear me out, I don't understand that girl in the least.

[snippitysnoop]

I was thinking about what Pokémon type would the portal characters be of they were Pokémon and came up with a few so I'd thought I'd share

Spoiler warning!!!!

GLaDOS would be steel/psychic, steel because she's a robot, and psychic because she's great at mind games and manipulation, and perhaps she'd be a legendary

Chell would be fighting, with maybe electric or flying as secondary. Electric because she operates the portal gun(not very creative I know😭) or flying because she's constantly flying out of portals or falling down

Wheatley's ass would be normal type. Steel/normal, imagine being a cool robot, but still, too normal for a different, cooler secondary type

Space core, like GLaDOS would be steel/psychic or steel/rock, psychic in the deoxys, gothitelle and other space themed mons way, or rock for moon rocks and asteroids n stuff

Rick is steel/ice, ice because he creates this "ice cold adventurer" persona but I bet he wouldn't be able to handle an insult/burn, and steel/ice would be double weak to fire

Fact was difficult but I decided on steel/poison, one because poison is purple/pink so the colours match, and two, his facts are wrong, almost as if they were corrupted or poisoned, to be wrong

Morality core would be steel/ghost, because GLaDOS ignores her conscience, it's as if her morality was a ghost to her

Emotion core is steel/fire, because emotions are very volatile like fire(and because of a personal headcanon the emotion core has a vendetta against Rick and they bicker a lot, see Rick being a steel/ice type)

Curiosity core gives me big steel/electric energy(pun intended) because she's constantly moving around when you pick her up in portal 1 and talks really fast

And to finish the cores, intelligence core would be steel/fairy, because knowledge and intelligence is a common trope in fantasy assigned to fae, and what's more magical then baking cakes?

Cave Johnson would be electric/dragon, electric because he's an inventor and everything, and dragon because aperture science is literally in a cave, specifically salt mines, and salt used to be worth gold back in "ye olden days", so he's like a dragon with his hoard(all of Aperture and its inventions)

Caroline is psychic/bug, psychic as foreshadowing her becoming GLaDOS, and bug as it seems she's often disregarded and forgotten(she only has one appearance in game and that's a portrait) but a lot of people still adore her

And finally, Doug Rattman would be normal/ground type, normal I was inspired by Smeargle(the Pokémon who paints) and ground for how he hid in the walls of aperture like a rat or mole, and moles live underground

Thanks for hearing me out, and maybe I'll draw them as mons if I get the inspiration to do so

[sophios-draws]

lego dimensions portal dialogue!!

i compiled some of the silly ones (see end for notes)

GLaDOS

I always thought it would be wonderful to have a deep, emotional connection to someone… until I met YOU. (to chell) (gayass line #1)

Well, well, well, look who’s back. You must love science almost as much as me. (to chell) (gayass line #2)

Oh well, if it isn't the grand return of King Moron and his Mute Princess. (to chell and wheatley)

Well done. It seems you have mastered the graceful and noble art of ‘bouncing’. (to chell re: repulsion gel)

Very good. With the accelerative power of Propulsion Gel at your disposal, you need only worry about your wits being slow. (to chell re: propulsion gel)

What’s wrong? You look tired. Would you like a break or a nap? Maybe I could get an associate to rub your feet for you if I’m not boring you too much. (to batman et al.)

Did I mention I had a cake made JUST for YOU? Unfortunately none of the typical ingredients were available, so it consists mostly of sawdust and leftover propulsion gel. If anything, I think that just gives it even more of a personal touch. (to chell)

Wheatley

Oh dear. Someone booted up on the wrong side of the BIOS this morning, if I’m not mistaken. (to chell re: glados)

Ugh. Uh, I must have forgotten to, to carry the zero… And ummm… Let me try again, let me try again. I don’t suppose you know what, what’s Pi? Is it three something? (to batman et al.)

Seriously, where do you learn that stuff? What is it? Textbooks? Is it, um, online courses? Um, I mean, do you have to go to some kind of y’know, retreat, where you wear robes and things? And there’s some chap with long hair and a guitar? (to chell)

You want to say, “I TOLD you, Wheatley. I SAID you were too hard on those poor little mutant boxes, whose only ever crime was trying to make their daddy proud. And now they’ve run away from home, each of ‘em hiding GLaD-knows-where, scared and alone in some dark, dingy corner of the lab.” (to chell re: frankenturrets) ("glad" instead of "god"... checks out)

Keep it up! Although no mad rush, ‘cause I’m actually working on an apology speech… which I think is… is… quite beautiful. (to chell re: frankenturrets)

Ah! You all came back! I never thought I’d be so happy to see your little improvised-robotic faces! But I am, I am! And… what I want to say is… *throat clearing* if you don’t want to step on buttons, then DON’T step on buttons! Alright? Don’t step on a single one! Not even if an orphanage is burning down and the only way to activate the sprinkler system is to step on a button, don’t do it! Don’t… Well, you probably SHOULD do it in that case, but other than that, you know, do what you wanna do. You’re strong, independent mutant boxes! Think for yourselves, be yourselves! (to frankenturrets)

Cave Johnson

Caroline… I think I’ll have extra cheese on my ‘four cheese burrito’ today… throw in a side of coleslaw too. Oh wait, is this thing on?

Caroline, hold my calls. I need to go see a man about a mule. What was that? Alright. Good. Mule. Gonna go see him in the bathroom. Back in ten. (??? sir what is this about ???)

You might have noticed some safety warnings on the walls. Just ignore ‘em. I keep telling the Bean Counters danger’s just a natural part of science, but boy they don’t want to hear it. Like telling a paradox to a robot – makes their heads explode.

Now, the lab boys were adamant that I do not give you any hints on these tests. To be honest, they think I’m spoiling the results just by talking to you. Hizenstein Uncertainty Principles and so forth. I’ll give ‘em something more practical to be uncertain about. Their next paycheck. Anyway, overruled. If you think I’m affecting your decisions in any way, don’t be afraid to speak up. I’m not made of glass. That reminds me: Caroline, do we have a wing made out of glass yet? Let’s get on that, Caroline. (we know what became of that...)

Rick

And luckily for you, Rick the Adventure Sphere – just call me Rick – is here to show you how it’s done! You best get your ointment ready, sweetie, because with this assault course right here, you are going to FEEL THE BURN! (to chell) (no amount of context can save this line)

i watched playthroughs of the lego portal content and its pretty neat. there are three chunks of portal content: the starter pack aperture science level, the portal 2 level pack, and the portal 2 adventure world. downloadable voicelines are only available for the first of those three, afaik. the lines i included here are a mix of all three, transcribed directly from the youtube playthroughs. there are a lot of really good lines that i didnt include so if people are interested ill post more

[richonnesbitch]

Here's chapter 2 of my bridge wedding fanfic! I wrote this like two months ago and then got distracted with personal stuff so I haven't finished chapter 3 yet. I hope you all like this one! I'll upload chapter 3 as soon as I'm able :)

"Thank you all for meeting me here today. As you all know, the bridge is nearly finished. We discussed this before but I don't believe we went into detail. There was some talk of a party to celebrate. Would everyone still be up for that?"

"Rick, that's a great plan. Kingdom will most certainly do their part to help.", Ezekiel responded. Carol smiled and nodded in agreement.

Rick looked to Jesus. "Sure, Rick. That'll be good for all of us."

"Oh, great. I'm glad to hear that. Michonne and I.... we're gonna get married on the bridge. I was hoping maybe it could be not only a celebration for the bridge but a reception, too."

The room lit up as he dropped the news.

"Congratulations, Rick Grimes!" Ezekiel extended his hand out to Rick, shaking it firmly.

"Congratulations, Rick.", Carol replied genuinely. She flashbacked to their recent conversations where Rick seemed more than interested in her and Ezekiel engagement.

"Congrats, Rick." Jesus grabbed his shoulder and gave it an affirming squeeze. "We can definitely do that."

"Definitely.", Ezekiel concurred. Carol nodded.

"Thank you all. I really appreciate this. Alexandria will handle food and decorations. But I was wondering... Ezekiel, Carol... would Kingdom mind handling desserts."

Carol stared at him. "What kind of desserts did you have in mind?"

"Well, a cake for me and Michonne. Red velvet with cream cheese frosting is her favorite. That ones a must. For the rest it doesn't really matter as much... maybe some brownies, cookies, maybe some pies, cinnamon rolls.... you know, that kinda stuff. Jesus, maybe Hilltop can bring some wine or booze for the adults to enjoy. People may get a little inebriated, but we'll make sure to have plenty of people on guard who aren't drinking. Alexandria will bring the main food."

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

"Baby, I'm home!", Rick hollered out for Michonne. No response. "Michonne?! I'm home. Michonne?!"

He could hear a muffled yell coming from upstairs. As he walked up, he realized it was coming from the bathroom. He opened to door to find Michonne undressing as the bath water ran.

In her black bra and panties, she approached Rick to greet him with a soft kiss. "Hi. How did it go?"

Rick unhooked her bra, tossing it to the side somewhere. "It went great. Everybody's on the same page."

"Good." She removed her panties and began to unbutton Rick's shirt. He kicked off his boots as she undid his pants and blue boxers. "You and your boxers."

"What's wrong with my boxers?", he joked back.

She giggled. "Nothing. Nothing."

A smirk grew on his face. "Something apparently..."

"Nothing. It's just you only ever wear one color."

"Yeah, so what?"

"Nothing! I think it's cute you're so set in your ways." Michonne placed another kiss on his lips before leading him to the tub. He got in first so she could lean back against his chest.

This bathtub was extremely small. Probably too small for the two of them. They didn't care.

"Anyway. I think things are coming along nicely."

"Yeah?", Michonne turned off the water. "How's it all gonna work?"

"Well we can start things at 6. The bridge opening first. There's a banner being made for us in charge to cut. Hilltop has a Polaroid camera we can use to capture the moment. I'll figure out someone to take pictures. Then's our wedding. Gabriel will say some things, we do our vows- oh speaking of vows. I don't wanna brag buuuuut...." He dramatically blew air out of his mouth. "It's gonna blow you away. You've got some competition. I know you use to take creative writing in college and all but... what I got. It's poetry."

"You finished your vows already?"

"No but I got a good start. In between breaks at the bridge I would write. What about you?"

"I haven't started mine yet."

"You what?", he sounded slightly offended.

"Well I kind of have an idea... of what I want it to be. It's just all in my head right now, you know?", she attempted to comfort him.

He paused for a moment. "Well... anyway. After the wedding we do the party. I thought we'd do homemade pizzas for food. Everybody likes pizza right?"

"I sure do."

"Okay, pizzas it is then. We can do five different flavors, give the people a little variety to choose from. Hilltop is bringing liquor. I'll have plenty of people on guard, don't worry about that. Kingdom is bringing desserts. We'll have a feast. We'll have music. Everybody is gonna have a good time."

Michonne chuckled, reaching back with one hand to cup Rick's face. "I love you so much."

"I love you so much."

"You know... you don't have to throw a big wedding to prove that. I'd be okay with just you, me, Judith, and Gabriel on that bridge."

"You don't want a big wedding?"

"No, I'm not saying that." She scooted around to fully face him. "I just mean... a destination wedding at the end of the world is something I never could have imagined. I feel lucky enough just getting to marry you."

Rick smiled. "No, if anyone's lucky it's me. I'll never understand how I got so lucky."

She looked at him amusededly and grabbed their soap, lathering him down generously. "Wait, what the hell are we suppose to wear?"

"Oh I got that covered, too. I spoke around to some of the woman and they're all gonna get together with their best dresses for you to choose from. Tomorrow at noon in the church."

"Woooow. Look at you.", she teased. "You really know what you're doing."

He laughed. "I'm just working with what I got."

"What about you, what will you wear? Got some sort of secret suit?"

Rick laughed again. "No. I've got a nice light blue button down. And some slacks. The theme is light blue."

"There's a theme?!"

"Well yeah. There's gotta be a theme."

Michonne grinned.

Rick took notice. "What is it? What's that smile?"

"I'm just... happy."

Rick's heart began to swell. That's all he ever wanted for her, to be happy and safe. It was all coming true for him. "Come here." He pulled her in for what was suppose to be a peck on the lips. Before he could stop himself he had her out of the tub and in his arms heading straight for the bed.

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

"Rick, can I speak to you for a minute?"

Rick let out a sigh. He was much too busy lighting the obscene amount of candles all over the place. "Yeah... Eugene. What do you need?"

"It's about the music."

Rick paused to give Eugene a death stare. "I thought you told me you could handle it." He didn't mean to be short with him, but they had a very limited time frame and he was stressing to get things done on time.

"I can. I am. I will. But... I need to know what it is that you want to be played. I am not not a mind reader."

"Eugene, I don't know... just play easy-to-listen to stuff. Ask Rosita or someone."

"Are you doing a first dance?"

"Yes, definitely."

"Well don't you at least want to pick your first dance song?"

Rick set the lighter down. "Yeah."

"Follow me."

He followed as Eugene led him to the large table a few feet away from the bridge with a cd player and speakers on it. "So I took the liberty of finding a few albums for you to choose from."

"Okay"

"We've got the soundtrack album to Grease, a Kelly Clarkson album called All I Ever Wanted, one called Best of the Beach Boys, another call-"

"Eugene, I have to get back to decorating. Let me see." He grabbed the Grease CD off the table, turning it over to see the track list. A slight smile grew onto his face. "Number 3. That's our first dance." He handed the album to Eugene, quickly walking back to the bridge.

"Rick, it's time!" Rosita yelled out to him, stopping him in his tracks.

"Already?!" He looked at his watch. There was never enough time these days. "Shit." He knew he was probably sweating through his shirt at this point. Whether it was from the heat or from anxiety, he couldn't be sure.

[queen-of-deans-booty]

The Things They Carried: Part One

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~1.8k

Warnings: canon angst and violence, extra angst

Summary: Cole is back in Dean's life, not to kill him but to ask for his help. A worm is making its way through people and eventually through Cole, giving you the perfect opportunity to get the chaos you're craving.

Season Ten Masterlist

Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Supernatural. All credit goes to their respective owners. I love seeing any and all comments <3

x

The room you've been trapped in is a bit lighter instead of being pitch-black darkness. There is enough light shining in to see that this room doesn't have any windows. How is the light getting in?

"Hello? Anyone there? Someone please help me," you yell.

In a fit of frustration, you send a ball of blue magic at the wall and it bounces off several before exploding at your feet. You turn and see a door with a small window on it that wasn't there a second ago. You've stared at this wall for several days and there hasn't been a door there. Now there is. Where the hell are you? What is going on? You walk over to the door and peer through the window. The window is small enough that you can't see much but then someone walks by and your heart soars in happiness.

"Dean! Dean! I'm in here! Hey!" You bang on the door to get his attention but all he does is walk back and forth in front of the door like he's on patrol. "Dean, please help me. I want to go home!" You keep banging on the door in hopes it'll get him to come over. "Please! Dean!"

Dean winces in pain and presses his fingers to his temples. His headaches are getting worse and if he thinks hard enough, he can hear you begging and crying out for him. No, he must be imagining things. He wants to imagine you near him. Your voice isn't real. It's all in his head. Through the pain of his headache, he gets dressed for the day and heads to the library where Sam is. The Bunker door opens and he pops his head into the war room to see you come down the metal stairs in last night's clothes.

"Where have you been all night?"

"You're not my mother. I don't have to tell you everything I do," you scoff.

"Hey, come check this out. I think I got something," Sam says from the library.

"A case? What case?"

"I thought you weren't interested in hunting anymore?" Dean asks as you two walk into the library.

"Well, I've got nothing better to do at the moment. Plus, I'm not interested in saving people. Hunting is a different story. I'll be in the car."

"You didn't hear what the case was about."

"I don't care," you say as you walk out of the library.

Sam shakes his head and hands over a tablet with an article about a soldier who has died.

"The vic was trained in Krav Maga and jiu-jitsu, and she still ended up with her organs drained, and the marrow was sucked completely out of the bones."

"Cannibalism? Are you thinking it's a rugaru?"

"Or a God, maybe."

"Give me ten and I'll meet you by the car."

After the long drive to North Carolina, you walk into the Fayetteville police station and are greeted by a group of police officers enjoying pieces of cake. The bell on top of the door rings and they all look at you. One of them sets his cake down and breaks apart from the group to greet you.

"Agents, l gather?"

Uh, was it the suits, or do we give off some sort of a Fed stench?" Dean asks.

"It's the suits," the sheriff stutters. "What can l do for you folks?"

"We are here investigating the death of Private Jackie Prescott."

"Sorry to waste your time, agents, but you wasted a trip. We wrapped that one up hours ago. We know the man who did it--Rick Willis."

"What makes you so sure it was him?"

The sheriff grabs the murder file and flips through the pages.

"His fingerprints were all over the storage room out on the base where he did it. He even left his dog tags by the body."

"Is he in custody?"

"No, the bastard drank a boatload of gasoline and then lit himself on fire. Helluva way to go, if I'm honest. He left behind a wife and baby. He's the third suicide we've seen in six months. Would you like some cake?"

"Yeah," Dean immediately says.

Sam stops him from grabbing it and Dean pouts slightly.

"No, uh, you know what? Uh, we're okay," Sam stutters.

"No, it's really good. My partner made it."

"It looks great, but we're alright. We do have one more question. Were there any bite marks found on the body?"

"No. The vic was killed with a Bowie."

"Thanks for your time."

You three leave and you let your hair down in soft waves. It hurts when you have your hair in a ponytail.

"Well, that's a waste of our time. I say we head to the beach," you grin.

"We're not leaving," Sam rolls his eyes. "No bite marks means a rugaru didn't do it. What are you thinking? A God?"

"I don't think so. The guy Molotov-cocktailed himself. That's bonkers. That's like demon-possession bonkers. We should talk to Rick's wife if she's up for it."

That's where you head next. You're waiting for them to royally screw this up. You're not interested in saving people. You're not interested in their lives. You're only interested in the chaos all this death is going to bring you. That's why you tagged along. If something tragic doesn't start soon, you're going to have to make your own.

Beth, Rick's wife, let you into her house to talk to her even though she doesn't seem in the right mind to answer questions. Sam and Dean handle all the questioning while you're off to the side looking at the many pictures she has of her and her husband. You're so glad you're not plagued by pictures of your past.

"Rick did it." You pull your eyes from the pictures and look at her. "I'm not trying to say that he didn't. I mean, he just got back from deployment and we've all seen what it can do to a soldier's mind. My Rick . . . when he's home and good . . . I have to kill the spiders, you know? Rick was a kind soul. He never took more life than he had to."

Did you notice anything strange or weird like violent mood swings? Or weird smells?" Sam asks.

"No, but Rick was so... He was thirsty."

"Thirsty for what?"

"Water. He'd spend half the day drinking from the garden hose. Then, one night, I caught him in the tub drinking the bathwater. When l told him to stop, it was like he couldn't even hear me. His skin got so dry it bled."

"Did he see a doctor?"

"I took him to the VA but he just got on a list to get on a list. Then, he stopped talking and just wasn't himself. I thought maybe it was PTSD," she cries.

You roll your eyes in annoyance. This is not the kind of tragedy you're hoping for.

"We're very sorry," Sam sighs.

"You said that Rick was recently deployed. Do you have any idea where?"

"No, that stuff is classified. They don't even let the wives in on it."

"Okay, we'll leave you alone now but if something comes up, anything at all, please give us a call."

Sam hands her his business card. You're the first one to the door, eager to get the hell out of here, but she stops you.

"There's one other thing. I ran into my friend Jemma at the supermarket. She's married to Kit Verson, a guy from Rick's team. She thinks Kit came back different this time. Kind of felt like we were dealing with the same thing."

"Thank you."

You three leave and you turn to the brothers.

"I don't remember hunting being this irritating."

"You're the one who wanted to come with us. This is part of hunting. Either shut the hell up or leave."

You glare at your husband but don't say another word about it. Jemma, once she knows you just came from Rick's house, eagerly lets you in to tell you her story. Much like before, you let the brothers handle the questioning while you're off to the side looking at pictures of her and Kit.

"Can you tell us more about Kit?" Sam asks.

"Kit's been going through some stuff for sure. It takes him a while to get back to normal, but he always does."

"What about you? How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay, for the most part. With what happened to Rick and Beth... it's been hard."

"May we speak to your husband?" Dean asks.

"He went out last night but he should be back any minute. You know, he comes back from these deployments and he needs his space."

"He's been out all night?" you ask.

"Yeah." Both brothers look at each other with knowing looks. "God. I can't even convince myself. I'm worried. This isn't like him."

"Has he been thirsty? Like 'drink out of the dog bowl' thirsty?"

"How did you know?" she gasps.

You look out the window and see Cole Trenton, the man who has been obsessed with Dean even when he was a demon. You lock eyes with Dean and gesture to him with your eyes, and he stands up quickly. You don't bother saying anything to Jemma as you leave her house, but Sam and Dean wrap up the conversation quickly. Cole is leaning against the Impala with his arms crossed.

"I recognized your wheels."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Dean asks.

"Jemma called me in. I've known Kit since we were military brats raisin' hell on the same base. He's a good man."

"No one's saying he's not."

"Oh, really, now? So, what are you three here for, Jemma's sweet tea? You want to tell me why you're really here?"

"You got a lot of nerve coming in and demanding answers," you glare and step up to him. "Watch yourself."

"Hey, stop," Dean whispers and pulls you away from Cole. "We're working a case."

"Kit's case?"

"Honestly, we're not sure just yet but it's looking like it."

"Says you."

"You really want to dial it back, hot shot," you smirk. You raise your hand and show off your powerful magic. It's only a wisp or two but it's enough to send a message. "Or you might not like what happens next."

"There's a murder-suicide in town. Your buddy Kit is in the same unit as the killer with the same whacked-out antics. Like it or not, we're not going anywhere. If you care about your friend, you'll let us handle this."

"Nah, I think I'm coming with you."

"The hell you are," you scoff.

"I got contacts. I can help. For example, a friend of mine works in military intelligence who owes me a favor."

"Would he know what Rick and Kit's mission was?" Sam asks.

"Sure, and he'd tell me all about it."

Sam and Dean look at each other before sighing.

"Fine," Dean rolls his eyes.

"No, it ain't. I'm going to make sure my friend comes home in one piece, okay? l know what you three are thinking, but we are not gonna hunt my best friend who happens to be a fucking war hero, by the way. We are gonna find him, and that's the difference."

"No, I was thinking how pretty your head would look like on a stick," you shake your head.

"Stop it. I mean it," Dean hisses in your ear.

"Listen, we're right there with you. Kit's a hero, but you have to prepare yourself. Kit might not be Kit anymore," Sam says.

Dean decides this is a good time to get some food so he takes everyone to the nearest joint that serves a good burger. Everyone gets something but you. You're not hungry for food. With Cole being here, it might raise the exact trouble you're looking for.

x

Follow my library blog @aqueenslibrary​​​​​​ where I reblog all my stories, so you can put notifications on there without the extra stuff :)

[upthehillask]

what's your hear me out cake 😭😄

GOOD ONE I did my best to find more "unusual" ones, tho the list ended up being kind of a mix. If you think some are not “hear me out” enough, I agree!!

uhhh ok let's see....

Mother Gothel from Tangled!!!! too easy tho

Fairy Godmother from Shrek easyyy

Nick and Judy from Zootopia

Space Beth from Rick and Morty😩 tho she's proper hot

Patty and Selma from The Simpsons (I'm rewatching Simpsons rn and these sisters can get it idk bro)🚬

Grenda as well as Gruncle Stan from Gravity Falls🤭 And Bill! (Wendy obviously too but that's not a hear-me-out)

Scar from The Lion King, tho tbh most Disney villains I guess since they're all queer-coded and fabulous

Lumiere from The Beauty and The Beast (as a candelabra ofc)

Luisa from Encanto easy

Madame Medusa from The Rescuers

The Sanderson Sisters from Hocus Pocus, esp Winifred

Dina from Superstoreee

Jamie Lee Curtis in anythinggg

Bean as well as Luci from Disenchantment

Shadow Weaver from She-Ra mmm

Pam from Archer

Courtney from Dead End Paranormal Park

Bob and Linda from Bob's Burgers

Jesse from Breaking Bad

Murphy from The 100

Charlie (Bella's dad) from Twilight OMG

Venom???

Plankton from Spongebob

Half of the female characters on Brawl Stars dude😭 Max, Shelly, Piper, Amber, Maisie, Janet, freakin BELLE dude.... from males, Handsome Colt and Buster

OH MY GOD HORNET FROM HOLLOW KNIGHT GAAHHH gnawingggg and also Iselda!! And The Hollow Knight (the boss) themself!!

There's a lot more but they’re generally more conventionally hot, like half the cast in Arcane or in Legend of Korra as an example, but I'm not including a lot of those in this list

[joes-sha-la-la-la-girl]

When Love and Hate Collide: Chapter 15

Series Masterlist

Warning: Reference to smut

It had been a few weeks since Y/N and Joe first slept together and things were going great. Def Leppard had restarted their tour in America and they were about halfway through the American leg before they started in Canada. 

Joe and Y/N had taken to sharing a hotel room, it was pointless booking two when one of them would always find themselves in the other’s room every night. The rest of the band teased them relentlessly, but deep down they were all happy for Joe. He had been miserable for so long and now he had found someone else, someone who could be good for him. 

The couple didn't really put a label on anything yet. They both knew that they would eventually end up in a committed relationship with each other, but Joe wasn’t ready for that yet and Y/N respected that.

One morning the pair of them lied in bed naked. Joe had his arm wrapped around Y/N as she cuddled into his side. Both of them were content with the silence that enveloped them. Joe ran his fingers up and down her spine.

“Love?” Joe spoke, breaking the peace between them, not that either of them minded.

“Mmm.” Y/N hummed in response. Joe smiled down at her sleepy expression.

“We have a ten-day break in a few days..” Joe started before trailing off. Y/N opened her eyes and looked up at him.

“Yeah..”

“Well, I was wondering if you would like to go on a proper date with me. Not that what we’ve been doing isn’t great.” Joe wiggled his eyebrows cheekily.

Y/N laughed softly. “I would love to.” 

Joe pulled her closer to him and kissed the top of her head. Smiling contently, Y/N kissed Joe’s bare chest, allowing his soft breathing to lull her back to sleep.

*

It wasn’t long after Y/N drifted off that they both had to wake up properly for the day. They had a day of travelling that day from Arkansas to Texas. It was about an eight hour drive so they had to leave early and they would all be sleeping on the bus that night. 

Everyone met downstairs for breakfast. Moving towards the dining room, Sav spoke up.

“Shame you have to spend your birthday travelling Joe.” Sav patted the man on the shoulder.

This caught Y/N’s attention. Snapping her head up, she saw Joe’s eyes go wide.

“Your what?” She questioned.

“His birthday?” Sav looked between the pair. “He did tell you right?”

“No he didn’t.” Y/N gave Joe a pointed look. Joe just let out a sigh.

“I knew we’d be travelling and wouldn’t be able to do anything so I didn’t bother to mention it.” Joe told her. It wasn’t like he didn’t like his birthday being celebrated but there wasn’t much that could be done.

“You still should have told me Joe.” Y/N spoke softly, making sure Joe knew that she wasn’t really annoyed that he hadn’t told her.

The subject changed as breakfast was served and then the group went to check out before loading back onto the tour bus.

“Reckon we should get Joe a cake or something?” Y/N asked Sav and Rick as she sat down near them. Joe was using the bathroom so he couldn’t hear her.

“I suppose so.” Rick agreed and Sav nodded telling Y/N Joe’s favourite flavour.  At the rest stop Y/N would try and find a cake that Joe would like. He was right, there wasn’t much that could be done on a bus but the least they could do was get him a cake.

*

Eventually, they came to a rest stop and the group all got off of the bus to stretch their legs. It wasn’t a long break but just enough for Y/N to find what she was looking for. Sav offered to help her find one and she took him up on the offer. Quickly they found a fairly big but still modest cake, pre-decorated and they bought it before hiding it in a bag and taking it back on the bus with them.

As they were staying on the bus that night, they would all be eating take-out for dinner. Y/N decided it would be best to do the cake after they got back to the bus. 

When they did get back, all temporarily full, Sav and Y/N shared a look before getting up to the little kitchenette, earning a curious look from Joe. They prepared the shop-bought cake on a paper plate and brought it out to Joe. The rest of the band caught on and despite them all being musicians, they sang a terrible rendition of happy birthday, making Joe laugh. 

They shared the cake out between them before they all went to bed for the night. Just as Y/N settled in, she felt a weight behind her. Turning over in the small space she had, she saw Joe’s beam. Grinning back, she moved as far back as she could to allow Joe in before moving to half lay on top of him, making them both slightly more comfortable.

“Thank you for this evening.” Joe whispered.

“I didn’t do much.” Y/N told him.

“That might be true but you didn’t have to do anything. I really appreciate it.” 

Y/N just leaned in to kiss him, Joe moaned out in surprise but he quickly melted into it.

“Can you two not shag on the bus!” Phil shouted from somewhere above them, earning giggles, yes giggles, from the rest of the band and causing the couple to pull apart.

*

They were officially on their ten-day break, which meant Joe and Y/N were going on their first date. They had previously travelled from Texas to Florida as that was where the next show was. 

Joe had decided to take Y/N somewhere nice for their first official date. Y/N didn’t have any clothes ‘date-worthy’ with her so she decided to go shopping that afternoon for one. 

It took her a while but eventually she found a nice red dress that had a short skirt and a low neckline. Nothing dramatically revealing but at the same time, Joe would definitely know what was underneath. It wasn’t something that Y/N would usually wear but she knew that night would be special.

Paying for the dress, Y/N left the shop and went back to the hotel to get ready. When she got back, she realised that Joe wasn’t in their room so went to the bathroom to start getting ready. About ten minutes before they were due to leave, Joe came back to their hotel room, dressed in a shirt and trousers. He had the top few buttons undone which left Y/N nearly drooling.

Joe looked her up and down and couldn’t believe his eyes. She looked absolutely stunning. He hadn’t realised how long he had been staring at her for.

“This okay?” She asked him as she watched his eyes travel down her body.

“Uhh.. yeah. It’s umm… perfect.” Joe struggled to find any words. “Let’s go.”

“Hang on a minute, can you just help me put on my necklace?” Y/N asked him. He nodded and walked behind her. She passed him her necklace over her shoulder and he wrapped it around her neck and fastened it. He let his fingers linger for a moment, as he moved his lips down and kissed the back of her neck, sending pleasant shivers down her spine. 

“Gorgeous.”

The pair of them walked to the door hand in hand and made their way downstairs. It was only a short walk from the hotel to the restaurant and the weather was nice so the two enjoyed a peaceful stroll. 

When they got there they were quickly seated in a private area, something Y/N assumed was due to his celebrity status, not that she minded having some alone time with Joe. 

*

Dinner went wonderfully. The pair of them spoke about their childhoods and anything else that came to mind. It was like they had known each other for years. When they finished, Joe paid the check, despite Y/N’s protests to at least go halves and they left, walking hand in hand back to the hotel. 

As they made their way back up to their room, Joe couldn’t keep his hands off of her.

“I was wondering..” Joe started breathlessly as he struggled to keep his lips off of Y/N’s neck for a moment.

“Yeah?”

“Would you like to make this a more permanent thing, y’know…?” Joe trailed off, feeling like he wasn’t asking her right. Luckily Y/N knew what he meant.

“I would love to make this official with you.”

The two stumbled through their hotel room door, lips attached and ready for a long night together.