#she was just robbed of the chance to ever get to express it

[eliotquillon]

just noticed that in wayward there is a very defined shift between ollivan thinking of cassia as just cassia, then as his sister, then as his little sister SPECIFICALLY and it makes me so fucking unwell in ways i cannot describe. the way he can't find a way to articulate to sybella that even though it's partly cassia's fault that the guysman was activated he's still 100% willing to take all the blame because she's his LITTLE SISTER and it's his job to protect her and he just wants her to finally have the chance to be free to choose her own path in life now that he's inadvertantly made her aware of the fact that her entire existence is basically one huge gilded cage. he makes me sick he literally makes me sick hannah mathewson you will be paying for your crimes

[shewolfofvilnius]

It's fascinating how even though you don't always hear about \ anyone other than Astarion, every origin companion in BG3 has an endgame/epilogue state that is either outright bad for them or at the very least "not as good as they deserve".

Obvious there have been books and 100,000 pages of fic and discourse written about Ascended Astarion. In the moments when he almost acts like his old self, even then it's merely humoring you with a whim.

Mother Superior DJ Shadowheart flat out admits to severe empathy for what Viconia went through, and has fully closed herself off from any sense of attachment or feeling other than Nocturne and Tav. Her continued need to find carve-outs and exceptions and loopholes parallels Viconia's own eventual disagreements with Shar. And as we know, Shar will eventually betray or abandon her if Shadowheart doesn't betray her first. It's the story of every devout Sharran we meet.

Gale, the God is a smug arrogant hubris-ridden asshole that's even mean to Tara in the epilogue. Nearly every single sentiment he expressed about why he wanted the Crown and to ascend is immediately inverted. Of course he's not going to interfere. He's a figure of aspiration. Once he received power himself he immediately forgot and forsook everyone and everything about why he wanted it in the first place. A romanced God Gale is SLIGHTLY more grounded but that's mostly just because you ground him. And if you ascend with him, that ends that.

Lae'zel's return to Vlaakith results in her ascension, which leads to her missing the party and being very dead. The things that Lae'zel claimed to value will never truly be as long as Vlaakith rules, and her not escaping and falling back into her people's death cult robs her of the ability to create a new Gith, a better Gith.

Karlach is dead, or almost as bad, a Mind Flayer. And while most of her initial personality remains, by six months in she's already grown emotionally distant and her personality is clearly and evidently being slowly overridden by the brains of the dying she consumes. She's forsaken the embrace of death for the guise of eternal continuation in her. And even surrounded by the ten people who should mean the most in the world to her, all she mostly thinks about is others' perceptions of her (ala the Emperor) and the fact that she's hungry. Mind Flayer Karlach even notes that she used to think becoming a Mind Flayer would be the worst thing ever, but now she likes it. Shades of the Emperor x1000 and a clear sign that the Karlach we know and love is rapidly becoming a memory.

and then there's Grand Duke Wyll. On the surface, it appears the happiest of the "bad" endings, but pay attention. Note how he discusses wheeling and dealing and making agreements with patriars. (How well has contracts and deals worked out for you in the past?) Oh, and in certain conditions including romance, Wyll will offer you the chance to become a Grand Duke as well - with the others being his father (Ravengard #3) and Florrick (Wyll/Ulder's longest lasting family friend). That's not a government of the people for the people. When the power is tied up by a husband, spouse, his father, and their most trusted advisor, that's the makings of a monarchy or oligarchy. Of the type of patriar power-claim to last for generations, something Wyll himself once mocked. Oh, and if you adopt a child, then you get into the worst part of it all: Wyll's been busy running a city, and oh hey, instead of y'all bringing YOUR FOUR MONTH OLD DAUGHTER with you, hey, she'll be cool being watched by the Ilmater temple for a night right? Sorry, Wyll, were you saying something a few months ago about distant parenting? Yikes.

[bodybaggage]

Shadows in Gotham

---

Gotham’s twilight sky was a patchwork of purples and reds, a fading canvas that gave way to the inky blackness of night. The city was alive with the usual sounds of distant sirens, honking horns, and the underlying hum of danger that never quite left its streets. For Danny Fenton, now in his early twenties, Gotham was supposed to be a fresh start—a place to lay low and raise his unconventional family.

His daughter, Danielle, Ellie, as she preferred—skipped ahead on the cracked sidewalk, her energy boundless despite the long day. She looked about ten years old, though she was technically more of a clone than a traditional daughter. She had Danny’s black hair but with an unruly curl to it, and her bright blue eyes sparkled with a mischievous light. Beside Danny, holding his hand, was a boy who looked no older than eight. His hair was tousled, and his expression was a strange mix of innocence and the haunting wisdom of someone far older. This was Dan, Danny’s de-aged evil future self, a living, breathing reminder of what could go wrong if they weren’t careful.

The trio moved through the narrow streets, Danny’s senses on high alert as they made their way back to the modest apartment they now called home. He had retired from the life of a ghostly vigilante, focusing instead on keeping his small family safe and hidden from the relentless pursuit of the Guys in White (GIW). To the world, they were just another struggling family in Gotham. But beneath the surface, their existence was anything but ordinary.

“Can we get pizza tonight?” Ellie asked, her voice full of hope as she glanced back at Danny.

“Pizza sounds good,” Danny replied with a smile. “But it’s Gotham, so let’s hope the delivery guy makes it to our place in one piece.”

Ellie giggled, and even Dan let out a rare smile, though it was fleeting. The moment of normalcy was interrupted by the sound of a scuffle up ahead. Danny’s instincts kicked in as he pulled his kids closer, eyes narrowing at the scene unfolding just around the corner.

A man, clearly desperate, was trying to rob a woman at gunpoint. The woman’s purse dangled from his shaky hand, and fear was etched across her face. Danny knew he should keep moving, that getting involved could blow their cover, but he couldn’t just walk away.

“Stay here,” Danny whispered to Ellie and Dan, his voice firm.

Before he could intervene, a shadowy figure dropped from the rooftops, landing silently behind the mugger. The man didn’t stand a chance as a blur of red and black moved with lethal precision. Within seconds, the mugger was disarmed and unconscious on the pavement.

Red Hood stood over the man, his stance relaxed but ready, as if this was just another routine night in Gotham. He turned to the woman, who quickly grabbed her purse and bolted, muttering her thanks. It was only then that Red Hood noticed Danny and the kids standing just a few feet away, watching the scene unfold.

Danny tensed as the vigilante’s eyes—hidden behind that crimson helmet—seemed to study them. He instinctively placed a hand on each of his kids’ shoulders, ready to flee if things went south.

“You alright?” Red Hood asked, his voice rough but not unkind. He seemed to soften at the sight of the kids, his posture relaxing ever so slightly.

“Yeah, we’re fine,” Danny replied, his tone cautious. “Just heading home.”

Red Hood’s gaze flicked between Danny and the children, and Danny could almost feel the wheels turning behind that mask. This was Gotham, after all, a city full of dark secrets. A young man, barely an adult, with two small kids in tow—it wasn’t hard to jump to conclusions.

“You live around here?” Red Hood pressed, the curiosity in his voice making Danny’s stomach tighten.

“Not far,” Danny answered, hoping to end the conversation quickly. “Just trying to keep my family safe.”

Red Hood nodded slowly, as if weighing his next words. “Gotham’s not exactly the best place to raise kids, especially if you’re... alone.”

Danny’s jaw clenched, recognizing the underlying question. “We manage.”

Before Red Hood could probe further, Ellie stepped forward, her usual boldness taking over. “He’s the best dad ever! And we don’t need any help, mister.”

Red Hood chuckled softly, the sound almost disarming. “I’m sure he is, kid. But just in case, you should know there are people around here who can help... if you ever need it.”

Danny forced a tight smile, grateful for Ellie’s fierce loyalty but wary of the attention they’d attracted. “Thanks, but we’re good.”

Red Hood seemed to accept this, though the suspicion in his stance didn’t entirely fade. “Take care of yourself,” he said finally, before turning and vanishing into the shadows as quickly as he’d appeared.

Danny let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. The encounter had been brief, but he knew it wouldn’t be the last. The Bat Family had eyes everywhere, and their curiosity was piqued.

“Let’s get home,” Danny murmured, guiding Ellie and Dan down the street with renewed urgency.

They reached their apartment without further incident, the familiar creak of the stairs a welcome sound. Once inside, Danny locked the door and sagged against it, the weight of their precarious situation pressing down on him.

Ellie flopped onto the worn couch, her earlier bravado replaced with concern. “Are we in trouble, Dad?”

Danny ruffled her hair affectionately. “No, Ellie. We’re just... being careful. That’s all.”

Dan sat quietly at the kitchen table, his eyes distant as he processed the night’s events. “He was one of the Bats, wasn’t he?”

Danny nodded, joining Dan at the table. “Yeah, Red Hood. He’s... complicated. But we should be alright if we keep a low profile.”

The night passed uneventfully, but the encounter with Red Hood lingered in Danny’s mind. He knew that living in Gotham meant constant vigilance, but the thought of the Bat Family watching them added a new layer of stress.

---

Meanwhile, across town, the Bat Family gathered in the Batcave, the massive space filled with the glow of computer screens and the quiet hum of machinery.

“Interesting case tonight,” Red Hood—Jason Todd—began as he removed his helmet, revealing the slightly tousled dark hair underneath. “Ran into a guy with two kids. They seemed... out of place.”

“Out of place in Gotham?” Dick Grayson, quipped from where he was perched on the edge of the Batcomputer’s console. “That’s pretty much everyone.”

Jason shot him a look. “Not like that. The guy was young, barely in his twenties. The kids were ten and eight, maybe. And something about them just... felt off.”

Bruce Wayne, Batman, looked up from the screen, his expression unreadable. “Off how?”

Jason hesitated, searching for the right words. “I don’t know. There’s something he’s not saying. And those kids—they’re attached to him, but it’s like they’re all trying to stay under the radar.”

Damian Wayne, the current Robin, scoffed. “Plenty of people try to stay out of sight in this city. It’s not our problem unless they break the law.”

“Yeah, but...” Jason trailed off, running a hand through his hair. “There’s a chance that guy’s a victim. The way the girl talked about him, it was like she was protecting him.”

Bruce’s eyes narrowed. “Do you think the children are in danger?”

Jason frowned, shaking his head. “Not from him. I think they’re all running from something.”

Silence settled over the Batcave as they considered the implications. Bruce stood, his presence commanding as ever. “Keep an eye on them. Gotham has a way of uncovering secrets, and we can’t afford to overlook anything.”

---

Back at the apartment, Danny lay awake, staring at the ceiling. The shadows played tricks in the dim light, reminding him of the life he left behind. He had taken on more than just the role of a father—he had become a protector, a shield against the darkness that sought to consume them.

But Gotham was relentless, and he knew their time in the shadows was running out.

---

🧌

[sleepy-steve]

@steddieangstyaugust 01/08 // second chance

wc: 2.7k // rating: M // cw: mild language, references to sexual content // tags: angst with a hopeful ending, miscommunication, eddie makes some questionable (bad) decisions, post-s4 but vecna died, protective robin buckley

divider credits @steddiecameraroll-graphics

“Woah, hey, no. Absolutely not.”

Eddie is being shoved in the chest by someone before he can even register the sharp anger in their voice.

“Wait, wait, Rob, just—”

“No!” Robin smacks him on the chest after successfully pushing him back out the door of Family Video. “You do not get to see him.”

“Robin, please—”

The bell jingles as the door swings shut, and Robin is still pushing him off the curb and into the parking lot. “No, Eddie. You’ve hurt him enough, I’m not letting you do it again.”

There’s a fire in her eyes that lets Eddie know she’s more than serious, and willing to do a lot more than just shove him out the door. He holds his hands up and steps back in surrender, no doubt looking as pathetic as he feels. “Okay, okay, okay, I’m not coming in! I just…”

“Just what?” Robin crosses her arms across her chest, looking at Eddie like he’s the scum of the earth. Maybe he is. He feels like it.

Eddie sighs and anxiously pulls at his hair. His stomach rolls with nerves. “I just wanna talk to him.”

Robin scoffs and looks off to the side, understandably skeptical of his intentions.

“I know! I know, I fucked up!”

“You—” Robin cuts herself off, her sharp gaze returning to him. He flinches at the anger in it. “Do you? Do you actually know?”

“I…” Eddie had only assumed, by the way his last conversation with Steve had ended, the way all his calls had been avoided, minus the one where Robin had answered and swiftly delivered the message to never contact her best friend ever again. He had only assumed it was bad bad. “I… didn’t know.” He finishes weakly.

“And the fact that he told you—”

“I was scared!” Eddie cuts her off. “Can you blame me?”

“Yeah, I can, actually.” Robin’s tone is harsh. Eddie knows he deserves it. “After everything you’ve been through with him, after everything you know, and to just run off like that?”

Her words sting, and Eddie can’t help but hang his head in shame. “I know, Robin. But I was wrong!”

Robin scoffs again, eyes narrowed. “And it only took you, what, a week to figure that out?”

“No! No. I regretted it as soon as I left, but I…” Eddie exhales heavily. “I still—I was still scared.” The venom in Robin’s expression doesn’t change. “Please, Rob, I wanna be with him. He’s gotta give me another chance.”

“Okay, let’s get a couple of things straight.” Robin raises a finger. “One, Steve doesn’t have to do anything.” She raises another. “Two, if, and that’s a big if, he decides to give you another chance, you better be for real, Munson. I will kill you myself if you hurt him again.”

“I am! Rob, I swear, I wouldn’t’ve come back if I wasn’t. I…” Eddie hesitates for a second. Pulls on his hair again. His heart pounds wildly in his chest. “I love him, Robin.”

Robin assesses him, eyes narrowed, trying to see if he’s serious. Eddie tries to hold her gaze, hoping she sees his sincerity. Whether she sees that, or the bags under his eyes from not having slept at all the past week, or the fact that he’s begging with everything he has in him, she seems to accept it.

“Fine. But you will not do this during work. At least let him finish his shift in peace before you come and blow everything up.” Robin turns swiftly and starts walking back to the shop, not waiting to hear anything more from him.

Eddie fumbles for his cigarettes and lighter, fingers trembling as he walks back to his van. That could've gone better, he thinks. Could've gone worse too. Taking a couple deep drags, smoke filtering out with the shudder of his breath, he wills his heart to settle down. He had time to kill now. If he had to wait until the end of Steve’s shift, he would wait.

“I love you, Eddie.”

Steve’s soft voice came from above where Eddie was resting on Steve’s chest. It made him freeze, hand idly playing with Steve’s chest hair stilled. It sounded like Steve said… but no. That couldn’t be right. This… thing, this friendship, Eddie guessed he would call it, that he and Steve had been doing since all the end-of-the-world stuff, had definitely turned into something different. Yes, Eddie had very recently had Steve’s cock in his mouth. But they were still just friends, right?

The first couple of months were average enough, as far as trauma bonding friendships went. Just being there for each other, working through nightmares and panic attacks and pain flare ups. But as they healed and moved on, Eddie found himself and Steve hanging out just for the sake of hanging out.

And then there was the flirting. Eddie started it, he knows he did. A little call back to the “big boy” comment from the RV. He’d watched as Steve’s cheeks flushed a faint pink at the pet name, and found himself wanting to see it more and more. To his surprise, Steve started flirting back, catching Eddie off guard and having him hide behind his hair, cheeky smile peeking through the curls. It just seemed to be a… thing they did. It was normal to flirt with your friends.

It culminated in a night where, after sharing a joint and drinking some beers, Steve leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to Eddie’s lips. Sweet, slow, romantic. Eddie reciprocated with heat and desire. Steve had laughed into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Eddie’s waist and pulling him into his lap. They ended the night asleep in Steve’s bed, wrapped up in each other, exhausted after the bliss of touching and tasting each other. Eddie left the morning after with a shy wave from Steve. It happened again and again, the taste of Steve’s skin, the warmth of his hands on Eddie’s waist, the feeling of his chest hair between Eddie’s fingers, finding pleasure in each other’s touch, all becoming familiar.

Eddie thought he knew what this was. He thought they were just messing around, just having fun. The idea of being with Steve, in any capacity beyond this, was so laughable to Eddie, he refused to even think about it. There were moments where Eddie almost thought Steve liked him as more than a friend, but he quickly shoved them down. Pushed them deep into the recesses of his mind where he wouldn’t have to think about it. He knew Steve was just an affectionate guy. And it would never happen, so why even think about it? Eddie would just enjoy what they had. It was enough. He told himself over and over. It was enough.

But then Steve said…

“Wh-what?” Eddie managed to stutter, still frozen in shock.

Steve’s hand trailed down Eddie’s spine. “I know that it’s early, and you don’t—you don’t have to say it back. But I don’t wanna waste time. Almost lost you once. I wanna be with you, Eddie. I love you.”

Eddie’s mind sluggishly takes in what he’s hearing. When it finally catches up, he sits up so swiftly, Steve jerks back on reflex. Eddie sees the soft concern in Steve’s eyes, and suddenly his heart is pounding in his ears and he feels like he can’t breathe. Steve reaches out, back of his hand about to caress Eddie’s jaw.

“No! No, no, no, no, no.” Eddie jumps up, very aware of his own nudity.

“Woah, woah, hey,” Steve sits up, hands out like he’s placating a wild animal. “It’s okay, it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not!” Eddie can feel himself panicking, but can’t seem to stop it. “You just said you love me?” He can’t help the incredulity in his tone, the very idea so insane to him.

Steve’s confusion seeps into his voice. “I… I do?”

“No, you don’t,” Eddie argues instantly.

“What are you…? Eddie, what is this?” Steve’s eyes are widened with hurt, head shaking slightly. Eddie can see that he wants to reach out, but is holding back.

Frantically looking for his clothes, Eddie’s hands shake. “You—you’re just confused.” He finds his pants and yanks them on, not looking at Steve. “You don’t love me, you’re just… this is just…” Eddie trails off, looking for his shirt.

“Eddie, Eddie, look at me,” Steve pleads, fear starting to lace into the concern. “This is real, I do love you.”

Eddie refuses to look at him as he quickly pulls on his shirt, searching for his boots. “No, no, you don’t. I can’t Steve, I can’t…”

“Can’t what?” Steve finally stands up, trying to catch his eye.

Exhaling heavily, Eddie squeezes his eyes shut, before looking up at Steve and seeing the pain in his. “I can’t let myself believe that.”

Steve takes a step back, looking as though Eddie had pushed him. He sees the shutdown happen, the way Steve is suddenly closed off, pulling away, grief barely concealed as he averts his gaze. Unable to stand the expression on Steve’s face anymore, Eddie grabs his boots and runs out the door. He keeps running until he gets to his van, throwing himself inside and slamming on the accelerator, not daring to look back.

He doesn’t ease up until he’s halfway back to the trailer park and feeling like his chest might explode with the quick, panicked breaths he’s taking. Eddie pulls the van off to the side of the road and hits the brakes, body jolting with the force of the stop. The conversation with Steve replays in his mind on a loop. He forces himself to take a deep breath but the look on Steve’s face in his mind’s eye makes him choke on it. Eddie finally calms down enough to stare blankly through the windshield, and he asks himself what the hell he just did.

Sitting in the driver’s seat of his van, Eddie’s hands tap on the steering wheel, jittery with anxiety. The clouds grow dark overhead. Steve’s shift ends in a couple of hours, but Eddie didn’t want to leave in case he left early. He couldn’t help but feel guilty about cornering Steve at work, but he wouldn’t take his calls, and he was sure that if Steve didn’t intend to hear him out, Buckley would have come to tell him by now.

With half an hour left of Steve’s shift, Eddie opens the door to his van and swings his legs out, his last cigarette in hand. Keeping his eyes trained on the door, he waits for the last few customers to file out. He sees Buckley flip the door sign to ‘Closed’, catch his eye, roll hers, and disappear back into the store. Eddie’s heart was in his throat, waiting to see if Steve would appear, or if Buckley would come out to tell him to piss off for good.

After several agonising minutes, the door swings open slowly and Steve steps out. Eddie had never seen him look so… wary. So closed off. Not since they’d been friends. Steve catches his gaze, and Eddie watches the hurt flash briefly in his eyes before being quickly hidden. Buried deep down somewhere Eddie wouldn’t be able to see it. An impassive mask taking its place.

“Hey…” Eddie starts softly. “Can we talk?”

Steve only raises his brows and gestures vaguely between them. Eddie figures it’s as much approval as he was going to get. He tosses the butt of his cigarette to the ground, stepping on it as he hops down from the van seat, shutting the door behind him. He takes a few slow steps towards Steve, who still only regards him with caution. Eddie rubs his hands down his jeans, trying to still the trembling. Tries to swallow around the lump in his throat. Finally, he decides to sit on the curb a few steps away from Steve. He looks out and takes in the grey sky. Weirdly fitting. After a few moments, Steve sighs and sits down, leaving a bit of space between them.

Eddie, hunched over his knees, turns his head to look over at him. Steve looks straight ahead, but Eddie could see the darkness under his eyes, the overall flatness of his expression. It made Eddie ache to realise he caused it. He couldn’t decide if it was better or worse that Steve wouldn’t look at him.

“I’m… so sorry, Steve.”

Steve scoffs, still not looking at him. Still unreadable.

“I mean it, Steve, really.” Eddie continues to stare, hoping (and scared) that Steve might turn his head. “I just—I panicked. I didn’t think you’d ever—”

“I get it,” Steve cuts him off sharply. “You thought we were just messing around. It’s fine. I don’t, y’know, need to hear your reasoning. For why you don’t feel the same way.”

“No! That’s not it at all.” Eddie tries to keep his voice calm, but the wobble gives him away. “I mean, yeah, I did think we were just messing around but I… I thought the idea of you wanting more than that was, y’know… crazy.” His hands continue to shake as he gestures vaguely.

Steve finally turns to him, only to give him a look that was equal parts hurt, confused, and honestly quite harsh. “What? Because King Steve could never be capable of love?”

“No, Steve, of course you’re capable of love, I’ve seen it, I’ve felt it.” It takes everything in Eddie not to reach out and take Steve’s hands in his. “I just. I didn’t think you’d ever love me.”

The silence sits heavy between them for several long moments.

Steve closes his eyes, his tone is measured. “I told you I loved you—”

“I know, and I didn’t believe you.”

“And you ran away.” Steve continues as though Eddie hasn’t spoken, looking back to him. “You told me I was confused.” The hurt returns with full force in Steve’s eyes, the slight green in them shining with it. “You said you couldn’t let yourself believe it. That I could love you.”

“I’m sorry, Steve.” Eddie’s voice cracks. “I’m so, so sorry. For all of it. I hurt you, and I wish I could take it all back. I was just… scared. Terrified. To believe it. I thought I was protecting myself. That if I let myself believe you, it would hurt too much when the rug was pulled out from under me. But I was wrong. So wrong. Nothing hurts more than knowing I hurt you, and I know you wouldn’t say it if you didn’t mean it, and…”

Steve just waits, tears shining in his eyes but not spilling over. It breaks Eddie’s heart all over again to see how much pain he’s caused. He meets Steve’s gaze with as much bravery as he can muster.

“And… I love you, Steve. I do, I love you so much. I don’t wanna be without you.”

Steve closes his eyes at Eddie’s words, turning away from him, brow furrowed. Tears trail down his cheek and settle at his jawline. “I don’t… think I can trust you.” Steve’s words are slow and thick. Measured.

Eddie feels the knife twist in his heart. He takes a deep, shuddering breath before he continues. “I… I get it. I do. But I’m asking—begging you to give me another chance. Please, Steve. I’ll spend every single day proving it to you, until you can trust me again.”

Steve peeks over at him, wary. “Every single day?”

“For the rest of my life, if that’s what it takes,” Eddie promises. “I swear it. I love you, Steve.”

Eddie holds his breath, throat tight, and blinks away his own tears. Expression unreadable, Steve looks at him for a long moment, carefully considering Eddie’s words. Tentatively, Eddie reaches out towards Steve’s hand, leaving enough distance for him to decide. Steve slowly takes his hand and grips it tightly. He lets their joined hands hang between them, before finally whispering, “Okay.”

[sp0o0kylights]

Indie horror filmmaker Eddie Munson, high off his first big (underground but notable) success, knows the movers and shakers of the film world have their eyes on him. 

They're just waiting to see if he was a one hit wonder before they open all the doors he's been trying to kick down. 

His next upcoming film is his chance, his shot at finally making it. Of being like Rob Zombie and the other creators he looks up to that masterfully blended metal and horror. 

This is his golden ticket. 

The project starts off smooth. His last success has greased the wheels, and things fall into place faster than ever before. 

He's got the best idea for this insane haunted house story, a true "mazes in mazes" type of deal with a queer twist. A real look at how a place can haunt a person just as easily as a ghost can.

 Everything's going swimmingly--until one of his leads drops out the day they're due to start shooting.

No call no show's, and later, Eddie will find out the guy got a last second call back to be a contestant on one of those Love Island bullshit romance gigs (and laugh his ass off when the main love interest takes one look at Billy Hargrove and goes on a five minute rant about ugly mullets on national television) but right now? 

He's fucked. 

He's called in every favor he has for this film. Maxed out every credit card he owns, tapped every contact, got on his hands and knees and begged his rising star journalist best bud to help him market it. (Which Nancy agreed too, for way less cash than she should have.) 

 Eddie can't get anyone on the phone, much less find a replacement actor and the amazing place they rented, that is so dark and wonderfully eerie, is booked out the rest of the year as an AirBnB. 

If he doesn't film now, he loses it all.

Cue the other lead, unknown theater actor Steve Harrington, watching his hair pulling, tire kicking, 'cursing and hopping while holding a toe' mental breakdown and asks why Eddie himself doesn't act in it. 

"Just go full Kevin Smith man. Act and direct." He says, with an easy grin. 

Jeff, Eddie's tried and true videographer, trades glances with Gareth and Grant (Eddie's long used special effects and makeup team, who double for about twelve other jobs because they're also his best friends and they're all in this together, make or break.)

"We don't really have a lot of other options." Gareth hedges. "You're already using me and Grant as background characters." 

Eddie, hands fluttering around his face as though trying to wave away this entire situation, squeezes his eyes shut and lets out a pained hiss. 

"Fine, fine!" He announces with the air of a man running towards a fire. "Fuck it, this is our one shot and so help me I will be shooting it!"��

Steve politely hides a laugh with a cough. 

"Chuckle all you want big boy, I'm going to tragically romance you so hard people will forget both of our characters actually live." Eddie snarls.

Steve, the handsome bastard, just winks.  "Looking forward to it." 

Eddie blushes, but hides it with a surge of frantic energy, conveyed by lots of yelling and moving and getting the ball rolling. 

Two days later, Steve would give the performance of a lifetime down on his knees, covered in a literal pound of fake gore, booty shorts and nothing else as he sobbed about how a lover could become a home. His hands clawed at Eddie's jeans before resting a tear stained face on a slim leg as he bent his body towards Eddie like it hurt to be away from him. 

Eddie would later receive equal praise in his own acting during the scene, with the world and every reporter in it asking how he conveyed an otherworldly panic so beautifully throughout Steve's performance. What was he thinking, to evoke those expressions on his face? 

The way his own pale hand, unmarred by blood and acting as a metaphor for the plot, would come to stroke Steve's cheeks.

Eventually he'd come up with a smooth polished answer that cheekily pleased his audience, but nothing would ever come close to the truth. 

("Eddie I've known you since grade school." Jeff said that night, a scant few hours after they'd wrapped. "You can act man, but not like that." 

Eddie made a wild "shut up" gesture, looking frantically over his shoulder before admitting; "You saw how close his face was to the prince of darkness!? I was seconds away from popping a boner next to his lips, in front of the 4K camera!” 

Eddie bounced into Jeff’s face so he could hiss: “He fucking had his chin on my thigh, Jeff, and I am only a man. A mere mortal!" 

"So we're gonna unpack all of that later." Jeff said finally, when he'd managed to get his mouth working and Eddie back out of his personal space. "But dude, we've talked about you calling your dick the prince of darkness." 

Eddie flipped him off.) 

One year later and critics named Corroded the best horror film of the year, praising the camera work, practical effects, and how there wasn't a soul alive who was surprised to hear Eddie and Steve were dating after their explosive on screen chemistry.

No one ever quite understood the prince of darkness jokes or why Steve mentioning it made Eddie blush, but that was a secret to find out later. 

Today on WIP’s I have no intention of writing, indie horror movie AU!

[robinsno1lesbian]

Can u do a Robin smut where she like teaches the reader how to eat pussy? Like she has the reader go down on her and gives her tips to help make her cum

warnings: SMUT!! oral sex (robin receiving), inexperienced reader, first time, pet names (baby, good girl), dirty talk, praise kink, hair pulling, established relationship. (1.1k)

a/n: thank you guys sm for all the requests!! your feedback obviously means a lot + reading your suggestions is definitely a great inspo so, if you have any ideas yourself, keep it up! <3

you’ve never gone down on anyone before her. you had pictured it, in the safety of your own room, had envisioned the taste of her slick against your tongue, the way she’d squirm and moan for you.

but you’d never gotten the chance to, well, practice. and while your lack of experience had never been something that necessarily bothered you, it gets to you now: the fact that you don’t exactly know how to please her, no matter how badly you want to

now that you’re face to face (face to cunt?) with her, you have no clue what to actually do.

robin has her thighs spread on your bedsheets, revealing all of her to you with a soft smile on her lips. she lets you take in the sight patiently and watches with a bemused, blissed out expression.

“like what you see?” she rasps with a gentle nod of her chin.

“mhm” you hum absentmindedly, your gaze still fixated on her. your fingertips gently trace her outer lips and you watch her way she opens up in amazement. robin is pretty, endlessly pretty, with freckles that really do reach everywhere on her skin. she’s wet with arousal, pink and wanting, framed by curls just a shade darker than her dirty blonde hair.

she chuckles, two of her own fingers coming down to rest between her legs, forming a V-shape and spreading herself open for you to see.

“fuck” you mutter underneath your breath. robin is breathtaking, all of her is. you can see her clit from where you’re laying on your stomach. it’s throbbing for you.

“i don’t-“ you finally admit, eyes darting upwards to meet hers. “i don’t really like…know what i’m doing, i guess”

“oh baby” robin whispers, her free hand cupping your cheek so her thumb is running over your bottom lip. “that’s okay. it’s okay. i’ll show you”

“you’ll-“ you tilt your head as you repeat the words. “show me?”

“yeah” she promises assuringly, the pad of her finger still tracing patterns over your skin. “don’t worry. i’ll guide you and tell you what to do yeah? i promise it’ll feel really good”

“okay” you finally agree, eyes darting back to the task at hand. “okay”

“good girl” robin whispers, a little smile flashing over her features.

the first thing you notice when you put your mouth on her is the way robin sounds. her raspy voice gets high-pitched and carries more of those familiar cracks in it. her fingers tighten in your hair and she mutters a quiet “fuck y/n” under her breath.

and then, then you notice the way she tastes. it’s unlike anything you’ve ever had before, her wetness slick against your broad tongue. your eyes roll back in your head involuntarily at the mere taste as you lick through her folds and feel the way she parts for you.

curious and with her voice whispering words of encouragement, you drag your tongue all the way through her, up to her pulsing clit, where you swirl around it in clockwise circles.

“oh my god, baby” robin groans, lifting her head to look down at you. “you’re a fucking natural, y/n, fuck”

spurred on by the constant praise (that sends pleasure right to your core) you flick your tongue against the bud of nerves. robin’s legs tremble around your head as she tries to hold them open for you, her ankles crossing over your back to cage you in.

“you have to- ah- suck it” she explains, her eyes heavy lidded and hazy with want. “suck it baby, wrap your lips around it and- oh! oh, yeah just like that”

you hum around her clit, sending vibrations through robin’s entire body that have the woman above you shivering.

there’s nothing but robin. the taste of her, the scent of her, the feeling of her hands as they grab you by the hair and pull you just a little closer.

“is that good for you?” you gasp, lifting your head from her pussy to catch your breath. the lower half of your face is smeared with her wetness and your spit,

“so fucking good” robin praises, her hand loosening its grip ever so slightly. “gonna make me cum like that? with that pretty mouth of yours?”

you nod, eagerly diving back in. your mouth wraps around her again, sucking like she instructed you to. you’re craving her praise, craving her taste and the way she moans above you.

“oh, right there!” robin gasps, back arching against your mouth. “holy fucking shit baby”

you’re eating her out with determination now, eager for robin to reach her height and release over your mouth. her breathing grows ragged, her hips grinding against you impatiently. robin’s moans are enough to encourage you further, her praise like music to your ears.

cries of “a little to the left” and “you’re doing such a good job for me baby, such a good girl eating my pussy like that” and “oh! right there! right there” are the only things echoing through your room for the next few minutes, only accompanied by the sound of your tongue lapping up her arousal and your own, occasional moans.

you could stay there forever. she could suffocate you with her pussy and you would die for it happily.

eventually, robin’s thighs close around your head, practically crushing it between them.

“y/n” she rasps, browns drawn together in concentration and pleasure. “baby i’m- oh my god your mouth, fuck. i’m so- i’m close”

you double your efforts, eating her out like your life depends on it. you feel it before robin seems to sense it herself -the way she throbs.

and then she cries out.

“oh my god” she rasps. “baby i’m gonna cum! you’re gonna make me cum!”

robin’s eyes meet yours then, in that very moment you push her over the edge with one final, harsh flick of your tongue against her clit before you suck it past your lips.

her legs clamp down around your head and her entire body goes rigid when she reaches her height. her hand reaches for yours. you’re not even sure if she notices any of it but you gladly take it, squeeze it in your own to anchor her as she cums.

you knew robin was pretty, obviously. the prettiest girl you had ever seen, precisely. but this, her face contorted in pleasure, her body heaving, naked and in bliss, might be your new favorite sight to see.

she’s still trembling when you lean back, a string of saliva connecting her pussy to your mouth. she looks down at you hazily, her lips curling up in a proud smile.

“oh y/n” she chuckles breathlessly, craning her neck to see you. “and you were worried you wouldn’t be good at this? god…”

you wipe your chin with the back of your hand right before she pulls you in.

“come here” robin laughs and you kiss the smile right from her mouth. “time to make up, yeah?”

[wokeupinmars]

Stacked Against You

Summary: You confront Spider-Man about his true identity, manila envelope style (literally).

masterlist

Goosebumps rise all over your body as the cold wind from the now-open window brushes past your exposed skin. You don’t need to look up, you know exactly who it is. “Sorry I’m late, some idiot tried to rob the pizza place on 13th Street.” The sound of his voice was deeper than normal, something he did when came to visit you like this.

“Romeo’s? They have some of the best pizza I’ve ever had. Are you hurt?” You can hear his footsteps approaching you, causing you to glance up at him. “Nope,” he pops the ‘p’ as he speaks. He sits beside you on the bed, “Tonight was really calm aside from the robbery attempt towards the end, I helped an old lady carry her groceries home, and she gave me one of those strawberry hard candies.” 

“The ones with the filling, because those are so good.” You can see him nod his masked head out of the corner of your eye. “How was your day?” 

You fall back onto the bed, “It was fine, I’ve been going back and forth about doing something.” He mirrors your actions and falls back too, “What’s got you so lost in your thoughts?” You sit upright, taking a deep breath before exhaling the word ‘you’. 

“What?” The eyes of his mask furrowed, further expressing his confusion. “You’re Peter Parker.” 

The eyes of his mask widened, “Wh-What?” You repeat yourself, “You’re Peter Parker.”

“No! Why would you even think that? Who even is that?” His voice was laced with panic as he sat up. You move off the bed and towards your desk, opening the drawer. Your back is turned to him when you say, “I’m glad you asked,” turning around with a manila envelope in hand, his name-his real name written in thick black marker. 

You start by pulling out old pages of a newspaper containing photos of Spider-Man, “Peter Parker is a close friend of mine, but more importantly, he’s a part-time photographer at the Daily Bugle. In fact, he’s their best photographer, because he’s the only person that manages to capture you on camera well,” 

“Oh, so you think I’m some photographer? I can assure you I’m not,” he crosses his arms over his chest. 

“I don’t think, I know. The angle these photos are taken can only be taken by one person, you. No normal person can take these. Do you honestly expect me to believe these weren’t taken with a self-timer? This one is literally a close-up of you scaling the side of a building,” you shove the pictures in his face. 

“And don’t even get me started on the videos of you fighting or all the times I’ve patched you up and Peter just so happened to have a bruise or scar in those exact spots?” you interrogated. 

“That’s just a coincidence,” he’s trying to reason with you. 

“No, Pete. Once is a chance, twice is a coincidence, and three or more times is a pattern. Then your voice-”

“What about my voice?” 

“You always try to make it deeper but it never holds, it always falters. You always end up actually sounding like yourself, always!” 

“I have no idea what yo-” 

You step closer to him, shaking your head, “No, none of that. There’s no use denying it…the evidence is stacked against you, Tiger.” 

Peter’s glad his mask is still on to hide his flustered face at the nickname. He lets out a nervous laugh and takes a deep breath before grabbing the back of his mask and pulling it up, revealing a bashful smile and fluffy hair. 

You can’t help but grin at him, “I knew it!” 

“You’re not mad?” 

“Mad at you for being a superhero? Absolutely not. Worried? Definitely. I mean, Pete, you are the only person I know who runs toward danger. I’ve always worried about you and your safety, even before I knew, back when you were just Peter.”  

He lets out a sigh of relief, “Really? I know this is a lot to take in, I don’t want you to think I didn’t trust you enough to tell you.” 

You stand between his legs and place your hands on his shoulders, “I know you trust me. You wouldn’t come to me when you get hurt if you didn’t.” 

One of his hands rests on the back of your thigh, and the other plays with the edge of your shirt. “Can I ask what really tipped you off?” 

You smile down at him before opening your mouth, “There were a few things I kept a close eye on like you running off in the direction a siren was coming from. The places you had bruises and scars, as you, would match up with the videos of where Spider-Man got hit in your latest fight or an area I helped you ice or stitch up. And then your moles, you have a million of them, it’s not hard to miss when I’m cleaning your bloodied chest. You’re also in skin-tight spandex, I recognized your frame.” 

“You know for being just a friend, you sure do pay a lot of attention to me, honey.” There’s a smugness to his voice. 

Your cheeks heat up at his words, focusing your gaze on the wall behind him, “I’m just an observant person.”

“Uh-uh, that might be true but that’s not just the case now is it?” His gloved hand slips under your shirt, thumb drawing circles against your skin. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

Peter’s smirk grows, “I think you do, baby. I think you-” his voice falls into a whisper “- I think you love me.” You turn your head to meet his eyes and exclaim “What!” 

“You love me, you’re in love with me.” His confidence is beyond visible. 

“I am? That’s quite the accusation, I’d ask to see your evidence but I’m almost certain you don’t have any.” You were trying to hold your own but it felt like he could see right through you. 

“Well I don’t exactly have the same kind of proof as you but I know I’m right.”  You give him a skeptical look, “Oh, do tell.” 

He starts running the hand he has on the back of your thigh up and down. “You do that,” he says. 

“What do you mean?” There’s a wicked look on his face, “Your heart starts racing when I touch you.” It was true, your heart was pounding against your ribs, but there was no way he could know that…right?

It’s as if he could read your mind because he continues speaking, “When I got bit, I didn’t just become super strong, my sense heightened. Including my hearing, especially my hearing. And right now, and every other time I touch you, your heart races.” 

You didn’t know the full extent of his powers, you knew he had super strength and a sixth sense but you felt dumb not even considering the fact he could have super hearing. “So the time you held my hand-”

“When we were crossing the street and your heart skipped a beat and you held your breath for like twenty seconds, yeah I heard that.”

“Oh, my god.” Your cheeks were now burning. 

“You also always have your hands on me, not that I mind, I really like it.” You open your mouth to contest his statement but he cuts you off before you have the opportunity, “Before you deny it, I would like to point out you’ve been stroking my cheek this entire time.” You were, hadn’t even realized you were doing it, you begin to pull your hand away from his face when he leans into your touch. 

He pulls you closer, causing you to straddle his lap. “I love you. I know you love me too, you can lie to my face but your heart will give you up every time.” You bury your face in the crook of his neck, he loves you, and hearing him say that makes you melt. 

“I love you, I have for a while now,” you whisper against his neck. “I know you have, honey,” he presses a kiss to your cheek. 

“Do you really listen to my heartbeat?” You asked, you had to know, the idea made your heart swell, and you wanted it to be real. “Of course, I do. It’s my favorite sound, I love hearing that I have the same effect on you that you have on me.” 

“Oh, Peter, you’re truly something else.… gimme me a kiss, please?” You close your eyes and pucker your lips waiting for his lips to meet yours. A warm feeling takes over when you feel his lips press into you. The kiss starts off delicate, the both of you were so giddy that you’re grinning against each other. The giddiness doesn’t go away but minimizes when your eagerness takes over, turning the kiss from sweet and gentle to heated and a bit sloppy with Peter’s tongue slipping into your mouth when you let out a small gasp after he gives your ass a squeeze. Your fingers work their way through his hair, tugging at it slightly, smiling when he groans into your moan. 

He pulls away and rests his forehead against yours, “You’ll be the death of me, honey.” 

[thesecretwriter]

a tied up situation - miguel o’hara

pairing: miguel o’hara x spider!female reader

warnings: angst – past ‘relationship’ between miguel and reader, fluff – soft!miguel moments ,smut – minors dni. this is probably the smuttiest thing i have ever written, penetrative seggs, mentions of biting (nonsexual), size kink, unprotected seggs, creampie. 

summary: in which y/n, a spider variant, holds miguel o’hara captive because he wants to take her back to HQ for the ‘crimes’ she has committed. However, the history the two share cause things to head in another direction. 

word count: 1.9k

a/n: so, this is my new mans and i had to share my thoughts about him with the world. enjoy :) 

minors/ageless blogs dni. 

masterlists  

Miguel felt himself gaining consciousness.

The room he was in was dimly lit, which he was thankful for. His hands were bound with chains, not wanting to give his talons a chance to help him break free.

"Should I be concerned that you just have chains lying around?" he asked, his voice deep and showing a tone of annoyance.

“With the way you have been hunting me down, do I really have a choice?” you ask him rhetorically, to which he rolls his eyes, trying to keep his cool despite the situation.

"Sorry to break it to you, but I have to hunt you down when you commit crimes,” He asked curiously, trying to gain some leverage in the situation.

“My crimes are nothing compared to what you should be focusing on,” you retort back. He would only see your deeds as crimes, not stopping to really evaluate the situation.

You stand in front of him. You knew in your mind that he had more than enough strength to break free. However, thanks to your own venomous spider bite, he would be helpless.

Miguel scoffed, he had witnessed you robbing banks and disappearing with heaps of money.

“You are the only spider being I know that has committed crimes. I watched you for months doing away with money and yet you’re keeping me hostage in what seems to be your apartment,” his heightened senses allowed him to hear the bustling noise from outside and the daily activities of your neighbours.

“Even though I have had my fair share of encounters with you, it baffles me that you haven’t figured out why I’m stealing all this money,” you say with bitterness in your tone.

He had to look up at you when talking, but you had crouched down to his level, settling your hands on his thighs. To you it was an innocent touch, but to Miguel it was anything but that.

You see, you and Miguel have a history with each other. You had once been part of Spider Society, helping Miguel on missions and fighting crime. However, when the canon events started taking place and you had to see the people you were friends with go through pain without doing anything. You left.

The pain of not having you in HQ had affected Miguel, more so since the two of you often pined after one another.

Miguel's façade quickly crumbled, and he breaths a deep sigh.

“Are you okay?” you ask, genuinely concerned.

Miguel chuckled darkly as he shook his head, trying to remain in control of the situation despite the growing desire he felt towards you.

"You underestimate me. These chains won't hold me forever, but when I break free, the only thing I'll do with you is take you back to HQ, where you won’t be leaving for a long time,” he smirked as you furrowed your brows.

In that moment, you didn’t like the way he looked at you. Yes, robbing banks is a crime, but he needed to know why you were doing it.

“I don't think giving money to the poor is a crime. Sure, the money isn't mine, but it rightfully belonged to the people that need it the most. Are you going to label me a criminal for doing what I think is right?”

Miguel's expression hardened as he glared at you, his alpha male persona taking over.

"I don't care what delusional thoughts you have. You and your vigilante ways are a danger to the community, and I'll do my part in stopping you. Whether it's taking you to HQ or making sure you never get the chance to do it again,"

Anger ran through your veins. You stood up from your crouched position and put your hands on his shoulders, feeling him tense beneath your hands. You glared at him, but quickly took notice of the way his eyes moved between your lips and back to your eyes.

Miguel let out a growl of frustration, trying to hold back his growing sexual desire towards you.

"Stop with the games. What do you want from me?" He asked, his voice rising in anger.

You turn away from him and face the computer screen on the computer in front of the two of you. It takes a moment for you to put it on and open the folder that breaks your heart.

I want you to see that the so called 'crimes' that I do is for the benefit of the poor. I give it to those who need it. I give it to the people who are left to fend for themselves on the street. Innocent children forced to grow up and take on responsibilities that they shouldn't see for years to come. So, yes, I will believe about my so called 'delusional thoughts' but at least I know there are children who are being fed and kept safe,”

Miguel couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt as he listened to you. For a moment, he thought about the families who might be benefiting from your deeds. He looked at the several images of hungry children begging on streets and those taking up jobs just to make enough for food.

“The banks that I rob are the ones owned by big time entrepreneurs that use it as a front for money laundering. I don’t target just any bank. These takes months of planning sometimes,” you explain to him. A part of you hopes that he will see the justification behind what you are doing.

The shared history between the two of you is the same reason you go to untie the chains from his hands. It’s the look in his eyes that let you know he will understand you.

He got up from the couch and towered over you. He rubbed his wrists and watched you intently. He could still feel you venom in his veins, but due to him having his own – it didn’t affect him as bad as you thought. The bite mark you left however, made him feel some kind of way.

He turned to leave but hesitated for a moment before looking back at you.

He doesn't see the frown on your face from the way he so easily thought of you as a criminal. You truly believed he was different.

"I hope you find it in your heart to one day know what I did was for the right of the children," You look to him with intensity and move your gaze away from him.

He hated knowing you felt such emotions because of him. Being tied up in the Spider Society left him with little free time, and the craving of wanting you back at his side was growing more and more in the moment.

Miguel couldn't help but feel a stirring as he watched you. He could feel his body betraying his principles as he walked towards you, his eyes locking onto yours.

"I won't justify your actions, but I can't deny the emotions I feel towards you," He muttered as he brought your body close to his and eventually pressed his lips to yours, pulling you close to him.

He couldn't help but indulge in his physical desires towards you, his hands roaming your body as he deepened the kiss.

You let your hands hold onto his shoulders and lean in more to the kiss

Miguel's hands moved to your back, pulling you in even closer, his tongue intertwining with yours as the passion between you two ignited. He could feel his desire growing stronger with each passing moment, and he knew he had to have you.

He broke the kiss, his breathing heavy as he looked at you with dark, lustful eyes. "I need you. Now," He growled before pressing his lips back onto yours, his hands moving to your clothes, hastily pulling them off.

You moan against his lip as you both struggle to take off each other’s clothes. His hands make quick work of ridding you from your clothes He pulled you against him, straddling his lap in the same couch he was tied against a mere few seconds ago.

Miguel groaned as you straddled his lap, feeling his erection grow harder under you. He moved his hands to your hips, his fingers digging into your flesh as he pulled you in closer.

"You're so beautiful," he murmured against your lips, his hands sliding up your back to unclasp your bra. He kissed down your neck, leaving a trail of hot kisses as he moved lower, his mouth finding your breasts and he took one of your nipples into his mouth, sucking and biting lightly.

He could feel his desire growing into an all-consuming ache as he continued to pleasure you, his hands moving to your panties, tearing them off without a second thought.

You scowl at him as he smirks at you. "You know I’ll get you a new pair," He took his cock and ran it against your slit. Coating himself in your arousal before putting his tip at your entrance and letting you sink down on him. You both moaned at the feeling.

Miguel groaned as you sank down onto him, feeling the tightness of your pussy grip him tightly. He leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling as he savored the feeling of you around him.

"You feel so good," he muttered, his hands moving to your hips as he began to move you up and down on his cock. He started out slow and deep, enjoying the feel of you before picking up the pace, his hips thrusting up to meet yours, creating a rhythm that soon turned into a heated pace.

He leaned forward, capturing your lips in a deep kiss as he continued to fuck you hard, his hot breath mingling with yours as he gave into the desire, he felt towards you.

Miguel's grip on your hips tightened as he thrust harder into you, feeling the hot pleasure coursing through his veins. He knew that his grip was starting to leave bruises on your skin, but he couldn't stop himself from holding onto you tightly.

As he felt his orgasm building, he dug his claws into your skin, as he let out a growl of pleasure.

"You're mine," he muttered between thrusts, his voice rough with desire. With having him pull you against his chest, you couldn't help but moan at the thought of how his big arms are wrapped around you, handling you like a ragdoll. 

Your hips rocked against his and your quickened breathing and increase in heart rate let Miguel know you were close.

He began to relentlessly thrust into you, chasing his high and yours. With a few faster paced thrusts, he erupted inside you, filling you up with his hot, thick cum. His name left your lips as your orgasm washed over you.

Miguel groaned in pleasure, still lost in the pleasure of his orgasm. He continued to move his hips, riding out the last waves of pleasure as he pulled you close to him.

"Mine," he muttered, his voice husky with desire. "I never knew it could be like this."

He stroked your back gently, holding you close to him as he savored the afterglow of your heated exchange.

[shaunamilfman]

Cowboy Like Me

Summary: You've seen a lot of things in the six months you've worked at Tj Maxx. A lot. What you've never seen is the so-called 'Tj bandit' that your boss insists has walked off with hundreds of dollars of merchandise. You've got a vested interest in keeping the bandit free, given that they provide the perfect scapegoat for your own crimes.

OR

You can't say that you've ever spent a lot of time thinking about the elusive Lottie Matthews, but after a chance meeting in the parking lot of a Tj Maxx she just wont leave your mind.

A/N: another long fic im afraid. enjoy!

You yawn silently into your arm, desperately trying to hide the motion. You've been sitting in a meeting with your boss for the last half hour and you honestly can't remember anything past the first five minutes of it. You sneak a glance at the rest of your coworkers and are relieved to find them in a similar state of disarray. 

He'd stuck you in yet another meeting about the so-called 'Tj bandit', a name he believed to be absolute artistic genius; A name that the rest of you made fun of behind his back, and sometimes to his face. He never seemed to catch on, or maybe he just didn't care. You certainly didn't. 

You held the Tj bandit at a higher level of importance than your coworkers do, but you were readily willing to accept an easy scapegoat for your own crimes. The main benefit that drew you to this job was for the discount: the five finger discount, to be exact. 

Sure, you could get a job somewhere else, but most of your paycheck would have ended up being spent here anyways. You weren't particularly concerned with catching the Tj bandit, you were rather grateful for how easy they made it for you to rob the place with basically no repercussions. 

You weren't sure why your boss decided that all of these thefts were attributed to one super thief, but he never struck you as a particularly intelligent man. Maybe he had his reasons, maybe he didn't. You didn't get paid enough to care in all honesty. 

… 

You pull the cart behind you lazily, monotonously pulling items off it to stock on the racks. Once you'd been here long enough stocking things in the right areas became a matter of muscle memory more than anything else. You glance up at the sound of plastic hangers scraping against each other, hoping someone wasn't going to ask you to check in the back. 

You look at Lottie Matthews curiously, wondering what she of all people would be doing shopping at a Tj Maxx. She's holding a pretty pink blouse up to the light for inspection and startles nervously when she sees you watching her. You give her your very best customer service smile and she gives you a quick uncomfortable smile in response. 

You get back to stocking and finally finish the cart, and with that your four hour shift; Coincidentally, a shift just long enough that your boss wasn't required to give you a lunch break. Go figure. You head back to the break room to grab your stuff and discreetly pop the security tags off your brand new jacket, tossing the tags in the box with the rest of them. 

You fold the jacket over your arm as you walk out, all of your coworkers none the wiser. You wave at your boss before stepping out, using the door to hide your smug grin. You hum along quietly to a song that's been stuck in your head, twirling your car keys around your finger. 

You look around as you reach your car and watch in awe as the Lottie Matthews, sole heir of the richest family in Wiskayok, untucks her shirt from her skirt to pull out an eight dollar blouse that she's clearly stolen. 

You drop your car keys in shock, unable to believe what you've just witnessed. She glances over with a guilty expression, eyes going wide when they land on your Tj Maxx lanyard. You awkwardly wave your fingers in her direction and she takes it as a sign to walk towards you. You practically dive in your car and nearly jump the curve in your haste to get the hell out of there. 

What. The. Fuck. You think. 

… 

You hide your wide eyed look into your locker, desperately trying to seem nonchalant. You finally manage to school your face into something sufficiently neutral as you sneak another glance over your shoulder. Yep, Lottie's still there. Still leaning against her locker and just staring at you from across the hall. 

You've caught her doing it a lot lately ever since you caught her stealing from your job. She keeps trying to talk to you the second that you're alone, so you've started following Nat around like she's the second coming of Jesus to avoid her. You wouldn't mind talking to her if you knew why she wanted to talk to you. 

Was she going to beg you to keep it to yourself? Was she going to threaten you into silence? Not knowing was the worst part of all of it. Normally you'd just leave a note in her locker to tell her that you really didn't give a shit, but you knew if you took a single step towards her locker she'd be on you just like that. 

Prior to the 'incident', as you've been referring to it in your head, you couldn't honestly say whether Lottie Matthews even knew who you were. She's always been one of those really pretty girls who were popular without ever really trying, despite you never really seeing her talk to anyone else. You'd been to a few of her parties, there wasn't really anything else to do in this town on a Saturday night, but you can't say that you've ever really thought of her much before the incident either. 

"What are you doing?" You hear an amused sounding voice behind you ask. You jump and curse quietly as you smack your head on your locker. 

"God damn it, Natty." You complain, whirling around and rubbing your head painfully with your hand. 

"Oh, no." She draws out dramatically. "You really didn't have any brain cells to spare." She holds her hand over her mouth in feigned horror. 

"Didn't really have any brain cells to spare." You mimic in a high pitched mocking tone, slamming your locker shut and walking off down the hall. "Bitch," You mutter quietly. Nat laughs as she speeds up to catch up with you. She throws her arm over your shoulder and playfully pulls you against her. 

"Don't be like that, Y/N." She says with a grin. You roll your eyes, and sigh loudly. "What's Lottie staring at you for, anyways?" She asks. You laugh softly and turn to face her excitedly. 

"Between you and me?" You ask. 

She rolls her eyes fondly. "Always." She promises, shifting uncomfortably at the attention. 

"Okay." You say, clapping your hands together. "So the other day I saw Lottie at work right?" 

"Lottie Matthews shops at Tj Maxx?" Nat interrupts incredulously. 

"That's not even the best part," You lean in and murmur in her ear. "I caught her shoplifting on the way out." Nat's eyes widen in shock, her lips forming a crooked grin. 

"You caught Lottie Matthews shoplifting?" She asks. You nod wildly. "Have some competition, do we?" You shush her, glancing around to see if anyone is listening. 

"Make fun of my shoplifting all you want but we both know who got you that jacket you're wearing." You tease. She shrugs, conceding the point. 

"Is that what she's been following you about? Guess she'll get a chance at practice later." She says. Your eyes narrow in confusion and you shoot her a questioning look. Her grin falls and she fidgets a bit, looking uncharacteristically unsure. "Said you'd drive me home, remember?" 

"I'll just find ano-" She starts. You place a hand on her arm, interrupting her. 

"Just forgot." You promise. 

She grins. "Suppose you'll see me later, then. And your new best friend Lottie." She teases as she separates from you to head into her own class. You shake your head exasperatedly as you do the same. 

As you watch them practice you can’t help but wonder. If this is the state championship soccer team, what the fuck do the rest of them look like? It was undeniably a shitshow. As Lottie trips over her feet for the third time since practice began Jackie runs up to her on the verge of yelling to help her back up. They have a long and tense conversation as the rest of the girls stand awkwardly around the field. Tai herself looks like she’s on the verge of walking over there and giving Lottie another talking to as well. You and Nat make eye contact as she gives you a confused and exasperated look as she keeps glancing back and forth between you and Lottie. You shrug your shoulders in confusion. 

Sure, Lottie had been fucking up in practice all afternoon because she couldn’t take her eyes off of you, but you really weren’t sure how that was your fault. Maybe she’d tripped for the third time right after you had taken your jacket off, but surely it was just a coincidence. You eye her long legs thoughtfully: maybe she’s just clumsy? It was definitely a lot of leg to have to keep track of. They certainly distracted you often enough, why should Lottie be any different. You nod slowly, deciding that must be why. You look back up from your homework as the whistle blows again,  signifying that practice has resumed. 

You see Jackie Taylor staring at you curiously, eyes narrowed slightly. You wave awkwardly and go searching through your bag for your calculator. You think you might wait for Nat in your car next time, this seems to be more trouble than it’s worth. 

… 

You’re leaning against your locker a few days later talking to Nat when Jackie approaches you. “Hey,” She says brightly, extending her hand for you to shake. You eye it wearily before slowly extending your own to meet it. “I was just wondering how you knew Lottie? You know, since you kept distracting her at practice?” She says pointedly. You shrug helplessly, tinged with a bit of exasperation. Why is everyone assuming you’re the Lottie whisperer?

"Well, listen here El capitan. Captain my captain," You start. 

"I'm not your captain." Jackie interrupts. 

"Captain not my captain," You continue to Nats crooked grin and muffled laughter. "I would promise not to, but I really don't know what her deal even is. Scout's honor."

Jackie eyes you suspiciously. "You weren't a girl scout." She concludes. You hold your hands out placatingly and nod in agreement.

"Mm, no. I wanted to go camping but apparently only the boy scouts did cool shit." You acknowledge. "I went to that first meeting though so it definitely counts." Jackie sighs in exasperation and shares a commiserating look with Shauna as if to say 'you see what I'm dealing with?', and the two of them walk off together. 

"Oh my god," You loudly whisper to Nat in feigned excitement. "I can't believe that the Jackie Taylor just talked to me! I'm never gonna wash this hand again!" You hear a quick snort of laughter from Jackie's ever present shadow, that quickly gets muffled at the offended look Jackie sends her. 

Jackie turns and gives you an assessing look. You grin playfully at her and shoot her a quick wink. She rolls her eyes but you can see the quirk of her lips as she turns back around to talk to Shauna. As you turn back to Nat you can see Lottie Matthews watching you from her locker just out of the corner of your eye. 

She's been doing that a lot lately, and it was really starting to make you paranoid. You had no idea how someone so fucking tall could sneak around the school like that. Maybe, You thought. It was easy when no one was looking for you. 

You felt an undeniable pang of sadness at the thought and turn fully to her to force eye contact. Her eyes widen slightly at the move and she has an unsure and hesitant look on her face, but still she doesn't back down as she meets you head on. She starts to blush the longer you stare lazily at her, the corner of your lip quirked up in a wry grin. 

You nod in acceptance of Lottie's win as Nat finally tugs you away to your car. You watch as Lottie's expression slowly turns smug, her lips forming a smirk as you walk off. Fuck, has she been this hot the whole time? You wonder. 

… 

You wave unenthusiastically at your boss as you walk out of work, zipping your jacket up higher as a rush of cold air greets you. You rub your hands together for warmth on the walk over to your car. You search through your pockets with numb fingers to find your keys when you hear the sound of someone clearing their throat. You startle at the action, glancing up in panic. Right in front of you is Lottie Matthews leaning against the door of your car. Seems like she finally got tired of you avoiding her then.

"Returning to the scene of the crime, huh?" You joke. Lottie continues to stare at you, looking utterly unimpressed. "Tough crowd." You mutter. This, of all things, is what finally makes her laugh. You grin brightly at her, happy to have finally broken the facade. You hold your keys up pointedly. “Talk if you want,” You promise, “But can it be with the heater?” She hums in agreement and pushes herself off the driver side door and rounds the car to the passenger seat quicker than you’d previously thought possible for her.

You shut the door hard behind you, turning the key and starting the heater as quickly as you can. You can hear the sound of the passenger side handle catching as Lottie sends you a betrayed look. You snicker quietly as you lean over and pop the door for her. “Handles busted.” You explain.

“Oh.” She says softly as she slides into her seat. You watch with amusement as she shifts uncomfortably in the seat trying to find somewhere to put her legs. Nat was typically the one riding in your passenger seat, so it was clearly too far forward for her. She finally gives up and starts feeling under the seat for the lever, quickly pushing the seat back. She looks oddly proud of herself as she finally manages to get comfortable in your car, finally turning to look at you. “Hey,” She says.

“Look. I’m not going to sic the police on you if this is what this is about, Lottie.” You say. “I really don’t get paid enough to care, promise.” She tilts her head to the side in an imitation of confusion.

“The police?” She asks, as if bewildered. Your eyebrows furrow slightly in confusion. 

“Y’know? Because of the shoplifting?” You say slowly. She looks over at you, extremely confused.

“What shoplifting?” She asks. You scoff. Is this how she’s going to play it?

“That shirt you stole? The one you stuffed down your shirt?” You ask.

“Oh, no I paid for that.” She says with a giggle. She leans forward and murmurs conspiratorially, “Just didn’t have anywhere else to keep it. You know how it is.” She shrugs, as if it really is that obvious. You watch her in utter disbelief, mind running a mile a minute as you try to figure out her angle. Surely no one could be this stupid? She had to be pretending, you knew that much. On the other hand, you knew that had you not seen the expression on her face when she caught you watching her you would have fallen for her stupid rich girl act hook, line, and sinker. 

The longer you stare at her in silence the more unsure she seems to get. She watches you in wide eyed confusion, expression making her seem much younger than she is. She’s really good at it, but you knew her type; In fact, you were her type. You’d learned that playing dumb helps you get away with things so much easier than just flat out lying. It must be easy when you looked like she did. You think, eyes glancing over her again. She had such a natural innocent look, soft wavy hair and big brown eyes. 

You’ve never considered Lottie Matthews to be particularly manipulative, but the proof was obvious in the pout that graced her face. You were in awe as you watched a master at work. Lottie was more intelligent than you’d given her credit for, probably more intelligent than most people gave her credit for. You gave her an approving nod. “Sure.” You say, “If that’s what you want.”

She nods slowly, seemingly unsure if this is really a victory or not. “If you're not here for that, then what are you doing here?” You ask.

She grins shyly at you as she nervously fidgets with the ends of her hair. “Needed a ride home.” She lies, “Knew you worked here after the other day.” You scoff but pull your car out of the parking lot regardless to take her home. The two of you talk for the twenty minute drive back, and you find yourself more enamored with her than you’ve ever been with anyone else before. She extracts a promise from you in your driveway to hang out again, and you easily agree. You wonder if she’d set out in that parking lot to get you under her thumb like that, but you remember back to her soccer practice and think you might just have that effect on each other.

… 

“You have to say that, Natty.” You accuse, pointing a fry in Nat’s direction. Nat scoffs in offense while Lottie looks on with an amused look on her face.

“What’s that supposed to mean, L/N?” Nat asks expectantly, feigning an angry look. You can’t help but smile. She looks like an angry racoon.

“Just that,” You start, then stare down at your empty hand in realization. You give her a look of disbelief. “Did you seriously just eat my fry?” You ask. She gives you a strange look and shakes her head, making you roll your eyes. She makes a show of looking for the fry before shrugging. The corners of her lips are noticeably twitching. You turn to Lottie to complain when you notice her pinching the fry between two fingers as she eats it.

“Traitor,” You whisper in absolute shock, making her burst out laughing. This seems to finally break Nat’s cool girl facade as well as she laughs so hard she’s tearing up. You fake a betrayed expression as you look back and forth between them, sending Lottie into hysterics. You don’t have to fake your slightly confused look, not quite sure what was funny. She clutches onto your arm as she laughs and you have to stop yourself from tensing in shock. She’d never touched you before but you could totally be cool about it. No big deal, really. Friends touch each other all the time.

You exhale loudly as you turn back to your fries, figuring you’d just let them get it out of their systems. As they start to calm down Lottie reaches down to grab another fry off of your tray, you watch her hand with narrowed eyes but ultimately let her take some. Nat gives you a curious look for a long moment, before reaching forward to grab a fry of her own. You swat her hand away in offense. She scoffs, rolling her eyes as she looks accusingly between the two of you.

“Some bullshit,” She mutters, crossing her arms back over her chest. 

“Anyways,” You say, giving her a long look. “You have to say that because you’re my best friend.”

“Oh, come on Y/N. You know I would have told you it was shit if I thought that.” Nat argues. Which, you will admit, is an incredibly good point. Nat had hurt your feelings more than once with her sometimes brutal honesty, but it was a quality that you greatly admired about her all the same.

“She’s right, Y/N. I thought it was really good.” Lottie adds. You nod slowly, deep in thought. You’d been mulling over your college applications for weeks now, continually fine tuning your essay. You were glad to have Lottie to complain about it with, as none of your other friends really showed all that much interest in it. You knew Nat wasn’t all that interested in college and was mostly just waiting to see how Nationals went recruiting wise. 

“Think I should send it in, then?” You ask.

“They’d be stupid not to take you.” Nat says teasingly, “Can’t have a nerd school without the nerds.” You sigh, sharing an amused look with Lottie. She squeezes your hand gently as she laces your fingers together. You just try not to blush.

…

You exhale loudly, leaning your hair against the top of the wheel with your fingers tapping anxiously against your thighs. You and Lottie had been hanging out a lot in the last couple weeks, more than you and Nat ever had despite still considering her your best friend. When you brought that up to Nat, unsure if you were upsetting her or not, she just started laughing hysterically till she finally managed to tell you it was “so cool with her” through uncontrollable fits of laughter; You still weren't sure what that was about, to be totally honest. Still, in all that time you hadn't been brave enough to accept Lottie's multiple offers to sleep over at her house. That was, of course, until now. 

You check through your bag one more time to make sure you packed everything, knowing full well that it was just an excuse to put it off for a moment longer. Gathering all of your courage you finally get out of the car, throwing your bag over one shoulder haphazardly. You lock the car and look up the drive only to find Lottie Matthews leaning against the doorway staring down at you looking charmed. You give her a lazy wave as you begin the trek up her driveway. You were sure it had probably served as a runway at one point, or at least it should've. 

“You sure took a while,” She says playfully with just a hint of a smile at your expense. You shrug in response, she'd caught you red handed on that one. She gently grabs your hand and pulls you upstairs after her. You'd been to Lottie's house a few times before, but you couldn't help from being in awe from the sheer size of it as you followed behind her. 

She gestures vaguely to the floor of her room and says, “You can just leave it anywhere.” You hesitate in the doorway as you shift on the balls of your feet awkwardly. 

“Oh? Are we both going to be sleeping in your bed?” You ask unsurely. 

Lottie turns to face you, tilting her head to the side in an expression of confusion. “Where else would we sleep, Y/N?” She asks innocently, but she can't hide the way her lips twitch slightly at the edges. You sigh. Not this again. 

“I'm just surprised you'd give up room in your bed.” You say, giving her a quick glance up and down. “Seems like there's already a shortage of it.” She gasps dramatically in offense as she sits down on the edge of her bed. 

“You'd come to my house just to make fun of me?” She asks. 

“Why else would I come here?” You ask, dropping your bag haphazardly on the ground. “Oh!” You say suddenly, as if deep in thought. “I remember now. You agreed to watch Texas Chainsaw Massacre with me.”

Lottie forces a smile as she lies through her teeth. “Yep. Looking forward to it.” You snicker at just how unenthusiastic she sounded. You knew she hated horror movies with a burning passion, mostly because she was such a scaredy-cat. Still, she'd agreed to watch it as your price of entry and you were planning to milk it for all it was worth. 

It's not everyday that an excuse to have such a pretty girl climbing all over you falls into your lap like that, after all. 

Lottie lets out a horrified gasp as she tries to climb even further into your lap. She gave up on watching and buried her head in your neck about 10 minutes ago, but it seems that even the sound effects are getting to her. You chuckle softly as you rub soothing circles into her back. “Don't laugh at me.” She whines, pulling her head away to visibly pout at you. 

She’d started the movie full of unearned confidence given that nothing particularly scary happened in the beginning. She’d actually turned to you and said, “I don’t think this is really all that scary, Y/N.” You tried valiantly to muffle your laughter, knowing it would come back to bite her later on.

You're about to respond when the sound of a chainsaw revving fills the air and Lottie makes a squeaking noise as she dives for cover again. This time you can't stop yourself from bursting out laughing, and even Lottie giggles a bit at it. “You're such a wimp.” You accuse teasingly. Lottie makes a sputtering noise but doesn't try to deny it. You look down fondly at the top of Lottie’s head at the sight of her hair getting messier by the moment as she keeps pressing herself further into your shoulder

You finally decide to have mercy on her and reach for the remote to turn it off. She peeks out of your shoulder with a faint blush on her face, trying to appear unaffected. “I was watching that.” She complains, without any actual force. You snicker and gesture vaguely to the cabinet full of VHS tapes.

“Go pick a movie you actually want to watch.” You say. “I’ve had my fun.” Her grin splits her face as she jumps up to the cabinet. You stand up gingerly and go and rewind the tape while she’s sorting through her movies. You smile softly as you can hear the faint sounds of her humming as she does so. After a long moment she turns and holds her movie out proudly. You give it a cursory glance, sure that you already know what it is. You sigh.

“Breakfast club, again?” You ask listlessly. Lottie, of course, picked The Breakfast Club for at least half of all of her movie picks. She gives you a smug look as she hands it over. You have a feeling that she’s chosen it this time in an act of revenge.

“Y/N?” Lottie asks softly. You try not to visibly react to it as you're much too comfortable laying with your head on her shoulder feigning sleep. “Y/N.” She draws out. “I know you’re awake.” You stubbornly keep your breathing even as you try not to react. She laughs softly and blows a stream of air into your face making you crinkle your nose in annoyance. 

“Got you!” She says smugly, pulling on your arm a little. You’re still pretending to be asleep so she ends up pulling you a lot further than she meant to, sending you sprawling across her lap. That’s what finally gets you scrambling to your feet. You clear your throat awkwardly and Lottie avoids your eyes as her face burns red. 

“Guess we should get to sleep, huh?” You ask. Lottie nods quickly and leads you up to her bathroom. You sit awkwardly on her bed after brushing your teeth, unsure of the logistics of sharing Lottie’s bed. She walks out of the bathroom and rolls her eyes at the sight of you. She lies down gracefully next to you and tugs at your shirt to get you to lie down. You decide just to let her maneuver you as you lay down, not that it would have stopped her anyways. She pulls your back up against her chest and wraps her arm around your waist. 

“This okay?” She asks quietly into your ear. You blush at the feeling.

“Yeah.” You stutter out. She makes a contented sound and pulls you closer against her. This is going to be a long night. You think idly as you close your eyes.

…

You’re in the middle of what looks to be a long and draining shift when you see her heading into the changing rooms. You wave at Lottie with a big grin on your face and she waves back. You make sure to fold shirts extra slowly so you can still be there when she’s finished trying on clothes. You're more than ready to abandon the pretense of working when you hear the lock click open, but you can’t help but notice how shifty she seems. You watch her for a long moment, trying to see what seems off when it clicks suddenly: the clothes are gone with not even a hanger to show for them.

Your face falls slightly at the realization and you look around to see if anyone else saw it. The cameras had been busted for months, your boss far too cheap to replace them, so you weren’t all that worried about being caught that way. No, you were far more upset that she wouldn’t be able to stick around. You look back at her to see her sitting there staring at you with a slightly curious look on her face. You get the feeling that she’s testing you, but you’re not sure what for. You nod slowly at her and shrug as you get back to folding shirts. You don’t look back up from them even as you hear slow and hesitant footsteps move past you and out the door.

“Hey,” Lottie says, fidgeting from foot to foot behind you. You hum in acknowledgement, sparing her a quick smile as you don’t take your eyes away from the book in your hand. English started in ten minutes and you still hadn’t finished the reading. She sighs in exasperation and reaches forward to gently pluck the book from your hand. She flips the book over to see the title before smiling at you. “Little last minute, huh?” She asks. You reach your hand out for it but she moves it further away.

“Daisy runs a guy over, it's a metaphor for the American dream. You’ll do fine.” She says. You give her a wry smile.

“Is there something you’d rather talk about, Lottie?” You ask sarcastically.

“About last night,” She starts.

“You mean, when you blatantly stole something right in front of me?” You interrupt.

She makes a shushing sound as she glances around anxiously. You snicker. “Like anyone would believe that Lottie Matthews is stealing from Tj Maxx.” You tease in a loud whisper. “You’d just bat your eyelashes at them anyways.”

She smiles prettily, tilting her head to the side in an expression of confusion. “Are you saying you’re immune?” She asks softly. You shake your head.

“What are you going to do about it, then?” She asks, a little more serious. You shrug.

“Nothing? I guess. I don’t really care, Lottie.” You say. You glance around quickly before admitting, “I stole this jacket too. I’m not one to judge.” Lottie gasps dramatically, leaning back to scrutinize the jacket.

“Didn’t realize I was friends with a criminal.” She says playfully, fingers tugging at the lapels of your jacket. “You’re such a bad influence.”

You scoff. “You were robbing Tj Maxx blind long before me, Ms. Tj Bandit.” You accuse.

She actually laughs at this leaning forward to pull you in a hug. She pulls back a moment later, hands resting on your shoulders. “Tj Bandit?” She asks curiously. You blush slightly.

“Oh, it’s just something that my boss calls you.” You say. Her face lights up.

“I have a criminal alias?” She asks, tapping her fingers on your shoulders excitedly as she bounces slightly on the balls of her feet. Her excitement is contagious and you can’t help but smile in response. You're close enough to Lottie’s face to see the intense way her eyes follow the curve of your lips. She starts to lean forward just as the first bell goes off. You laugh nervously as you finally snatch your book back.

“Don’t let it go to your head.” You warn, trying to break the tension.

“Too late.” She says, pulling you into another quick hug. “I’ll see you at my party later, right?” You just smile in response before heading down the hallway.

…

“Oh, really?” Shauna asks distractedly, head turned to the side to look at Jackie who's being animatedly talked to by Mari in the distance. Talked to being the keyword as she looks bored out of her mind, not that Shauna seems to notice. You and Nat share an amused look as you both try to muffle your laughter. Neither of you have spoken in the last five minutes as you've been waiting to see how long Shauna would keep responding before she realized she was talking to herself. 

“That's crazy.” Shauna agrees aimlessly. This is what finally sets you and Nat off in peels of laughter. Shauna jumps slightly in shock as she looks back at the two of you. She fakes a chuckle, not really sure what was funny but this only makes the two of you laugh harder as you lean against each other for balance. She looks between the two of you a little unsurely as she smiles awkwardly. 

You're about to reassure her when you feel arms wrap around your stomach from behind. “Hey,” Lottie says quietly in your ear. 

She rests her head on your shoulder. “What's so funny?” She asks the group. Shauna herself looks interested in the answer as well. 

“Shauna just made the funniest joke.” Nat says, shooting you a smug grin. “Tell her, Shipman.” Shauna's eyes go wide as she sputters slightly trying to think of a joke. With her big brown eyes gone wide in panic she truly looks like a deer in the headlights. Just as she's seemed to settle on something to say she's saved by Jackie calling her over. She shrugs as if inconvenienced but hurries back to Jackie's side to escape the conversation. 

Lottie makes a confused noise against your ear. “Was it something I said?” She asks cluelessly. She pouts as you and Nat share a look and shake your heads. She lets go of you to take a few steps back and you turn to face her. “We're gonna play spin the bottle.” She says. 

“Spin the bottle?” You ask in disbelief. “What are we, 12?” Lottie shrugs, but doesn't look all that put off about it. 

“It was Jackie's idea.” She admits. 

“I bet it was.” Nat says wryly. You turn to look over at Jackie to see her fussing over a faintly blushing Shauna as she corrals her over to a group of people gathering around a bottle. You and Nat share another look as you both silently agree to leave, but Lottie grabs you both by the arm. 

“Please?” She asks, pouting down at Nat. You watch the way Nat softens and gives in almost immediately. Nat turns to glare at you as you quickly hide your shit-eating grin. You don't even bother to look over at Lottie as you make your way over to the group. 

You plop down gracelessly next to Tai who looks just about as happy to be there as you do. You weren't super familiar with Nat's teammates, but she drags you around enough that you know them by name. You watch curiously as she shoots an annoyed look at a pleased looking Van. Ah, you think. She's been dragged here too. 

“Okay!” Jackie says excitedly as she claps her hands together. “You know how this works so I'll go first.”

“How big of you Jackie,” Nat says sarcastically. Jackie chooses to ignore the remark as she leans forward to spin the bottle. The bottle finally comes to a stop at Laura Lee. You fight hard to resist the urge to laugh at the visibly disappointed look on her face as she leans forward to press a chaste kiss against a blushing Laura Lee. The urge becomes even stronger at the jealous look on Shauna's face. You cover your mouth with your hand as you look over at Lottie, her eyes alight with mirth. 

You watch as the next few people go until it finally gets to you. You reluctantly lean forward to spin it, watching as it slowly comes to a stop in front of Nat. Her eyes go wide as she glances between you and the bottle in disbelief. 

“Yes!” You cheer. “Pucker up Scatorccio!” She makes a noise of protest but stays still as you lean forward to kiss her. Her lips part slightly in surprise and you take the opportunity to deepen the kiss to the sound of the cheers in the background. You pull away after a long moment with a smug grin as you look at Nat. 

She's blushing to her ears and her eyes are wide with shock. “Nat?” You ask teasingly. She just shakes her head and looks down at the ground. You fall back in your spot on the floor laughing, but stop suddenly when Lottie gets up and storms off. “Lottie?” You call out, but she just waves you off as she keeps walking. 

Tai reaches forward for the bottle just as you hurry to your feet and walk after Lottie. Van boos loudly at you but you just flick her off. “Lottie?” You call out again. She doesn't answer but you can hear sniffling coming from the kitchen. 

“Lottie.” You say softly as you walk in. She's not actively crying but you can tell from her red eyes that you'd just missed it. “Hey, what's wrong?” You ask. She laughs wetly with a darkly amused grin. 

“No guesses?” She asks. You frown. 

“Is this about Nat?” You ask.

She just sighs in response. “That's not fair.” You complain in a whine. “We didn't want to play in the first place, remember?”

Lottie softens considerably as she reaches her arms out. You step forward and let her gently fold you in her arms. You rest your head against her chest and breathe in the scent of her perfume. “What’s up with you today?” You ask softly, nestling your head further into her chest. She laughs quietly at herself, rubbing gently at your back with one hand.

“Got jealous.” She admits, steadfastly returning  your eye contact as you look up at her. 

“Jealous of who?” You ask quietly, more to yourself than anything. You pause. “Jealous of Nat?”

“You say it like it's a ridiculous idea.” She says.

“But she's my best friend. My Nat.” You say simply.

“What am I, then?” Lottie asks, looking uncharacteristically unsure.

“My partner in crime.” You tease, sneaking a quick glance at her sweater. You’d know the winter collection anywhere. Lottie looks a little disappointed but nods stiffly and lets go of you. “Maybe.” You add. “Maybe I want to kiss you sometimes, too. If that's okay with you.” Lottie smiles joyfully in response, and the rapid change in her expression nearly gives you whiplash.

Lottie leans down to kiss you and you step up on your toes to meet her, reaching your arms up to wrap them around the back of her neck. You can still feel Lottie’s grin against your lips as she kisses you, her arms running down your sides to rest against your hips. She pulls you impossibly closer as you deepen the kiss with Lottie meeting you step for step. She backs you up blindly towards the counter, making you hiss in pain as it stabs into your back. With a few murmured apologies against your lips she moves her hands down the back of your thighs and helps lift you up to sit on the counter.

She gently cups your face with one hand as she quickly reconnects your lips again. You use your new position to wrap your legs around her hips, desperate to eliminate the distance between you. She gently strokes her thumb across your face as you break away to try to catch your breath. You intently watch the way her chest rises and falls in heavy breaths, eyes slowly moving up to focus on her swollen lips.

“Hi.” She says shyly with just a hint of a blush on her face. 

“Hi.” You say breathlessly as you reach a hand forward to rest on her chin, gently tilting it in the other direction. She lets you direct her curiously, her question being answered as you lean forward to press a gentle kiss against her neck. She makes a whiny noise in anticipation and you grin against her skin as you latch on to her neck after deciding she wasn’t leaving this room without a hickey or two.

“Y/N?” She asks softly later that night, just as you're on the verge of sleep. 

“Lot-tie” You murmur sleepily in response.

“I set it up earlier.” She admits quietly, a little nervous of your response. You slowly open your eyes as you give her a confused look. “Spin the bottle,” She clarifies. “I gave Jackie the idea because I wanted to kiss you.”

You don’t say anything in response and just close your eyes again. Lottie watches you in concern until she realizes that you're shaking in silent laughter. “Don’t laugh at me.” She whines, pulling you ever closer. You nestle your way back into her neck, breathing in deeply as you're surrounded by the smell of her shampoo. She sighs happily as you're finally allowed to drift off to sleep.

…

Nat gives you a deeply amused look at school on Monday as you walk in wearing the same outfit you wore to the party on Saturday, but you just wink at her as you fall into step next to Lottie. You’ve spent the entire car ride here trying to convince her to sneak off to a janitor's closet to make out, and you think you’ve almost made a breakthrough. As Lottie laces your pinkies together you can’t help the smug grin that adorns your face as she tugs you to a less occupied part of the school.

[the-eeveekins]

Prospera: my more serious thoughts on her and her character.

Like Suletta, I fully support Prospera's actions. You can't show me the Prologue where her whole life is violently taken from her and NOT expect me to root for her. She's just as much a victim of Delling’s actions and the systemic oppression of Earthians as many of the other characters in the show. I feel like a lot of people who don't empathize or sympathize with her either haven't seen the Prologue or haven't watched it since it was released nearly a year ago.

Yes, she did terrible things along the way, especially to Suletta, Eri and Miorine; but Suletta affirmed her choice of trying to help Eri over revenge (and arguably, affirmed her very existence in the process), Eri agreed with Suletta's choice, and even Miorine was willing to accept her as family if it was the decision of her fiancée. Fixing those mistakes will take time, years even, and who knows if Miorine especially will ever forgive her, but she has that time and she has that chance. I love that the show gave her a second chance at the life she was robbed of and a chance to make amends and fix her mistakes. Most shows would have killed her outright or gone with the Redemption Equals Death trope. Characters like her, especially female characters, almost never get that chance.

And, personally speaking, the scene where Suletta pulls her into the data storm is one of my favorites in the show. She gets to speak with the memories of her colleagues and Nadim, and express her guilt for deciding to focus on Eri's future at the expense of avenging them, only for Suletta and Eri to affirm her choice and tell her it's time to move forward. The mask breaks, Prospera "dies" and Elnora finally gets to hold Eri again and apologize to both of her daughters. It's one of the most cathartic moments in the show, a perfect conclusion to the Mercury family story and it brings me to tears every time.

I know not everyone is thrilled by Suletta's acceptance of her mom after everything she did to her, but I think it's highly appropriate: she loves people unconditionally more than anyone, understands Elnora did what she did from a place of love and selfishly wants to be with her whole family, mistakes and all. And again: Elnora is as much a victim in this show as anyone else. And even if Suletta accepted her mother, it's not like G-Witch forgave every awful parent of their sins: as I mentioned here, Delling may have surived, but his power to oppress is gone, he's under investigation for his crimes and by all accounts he's no longer a part of Miorine's life. We never see her forgive her father for what he did, and to be honest, I don't think she ever does. It's a hand she only extenda to Prospera because of her selfless love for Suletta.

And that brings us to one of my major issues surrounding Prospera: the difference in how certain parts of the fandom treat Prospera and Delling. The greatest trick Delling ever played was being a little nicer to his daughter before falling into a coma for half the show. Suddenly so many people forgot all he'd done and were willing to forgive his past actions and offer him up for redemption, all while condemning Prospera to death for her actions and claiming she was unredeemable.

It just reeks of the usual fandom sexism with it's double standards towards male and female characters. I just found the idea that Delling was redeemable but Prospera wasn't to be wrong, and find it especially frustrating the way people still tend to focus on Prospera's wrongs while ignoring Delling's.

Still, I think she's an amazing character, one of my favorites of all time. I'm so glad the show stuck the landing on her ending, not only giving her a chance to attone for her mistakes, but also giving her back the peaceful family life cruelly taken from her in the past. Mending her relationship with Suletta, Eri and Miorine will not be easy, it will take time and care and effort, but I believe someday those bonds will be repaired and they will truly become a family with mutual love for each other.

[average-kitty]

The Angel’s Demon💋

“That’s not how it is-“ Jenna began before you cut her off “A Angel, fond of a Demon, ain’t that the story of the century?” You snorted

Warnings: a little forbidden love/I want to punch you square in the face?

Word Count: 1.4k

A/N: I honestly enjoyed writing this one a lot, it was nice to get into detail about the sillies and their cool little features. Anyways, enjoy loves!

———————————————————————

Jenna wasn’t the nicest thing from Heaven as far as you could tell, you loved to mess with the lives of mortals when given the chance and it was honestly quite funny to you. But of course some “higher power” had to interfere with your fun and always cut it short, and that higher power was Jenna. She 100% despised you and would rather do anything else than have to even see you, but of course- you wouldn’t allow that. You constantly pestered her just to get on her nerves and god were you good at it.

“How come you always seem to go after the human’s who already have it bad?” Jenna questioned, her nose scrunched in disgust as you walked down a dark alley having possessed yet another human for the 3rd time this week (you accidentally killed the other 2, though you only say it was a accident so Jenna wouldn’t get extra angry at you again-) “Because why would I let someone like you save their life and turn them into a valuable soul?” You questioned back as you looked over to her as you continued walking.

Jenna had more of a Ghostly look to her, sure she had Wings but she didn’t have those stupid robs all the older and more powerful Angels wore, she looked like a plain girl who was just a little glowy around the edges. You continued walking down the alley as she followed suit, hovering close by. “The only reason I’m here is to make sure you’re not causing anymore problems for me to clean up after later on, just to be clear.” Jenna suddenly squeaked, as you looked over to her, suspicion in your eyes. “Sure….” You giggle as you gave a sly smirk to her, leaning over to her a bit “or- you just can’t get enough of me….” You cooed out, giggling at her flustered expression, you knew just how to get under her skin like that.

“That’s not how it is-“ Jenna began before you cut her off “A Angel, fond of a Demon, ain’t that the story of the century?” You snorted as Jenna was fuming, glaring at you before huffing in frustration and turning away from your teasing eyes “Whatever…“ You gave a pleased chuckle before overlooking the specimen you had chosen today before groaning, You had really bruised and beaten this body up… You suddenly part from the human, a soft mist that was apparently your very soul in some context slowly spewing from their lips as you then took your original form again, leaving the unconscious body on the floor. You turn to look at the person before bending down a bit and leaning closer, then you tap their forehead.

“What on earth are you doing?” Jenna cocked an eyebrow before her feet slowly met the ground as she tilted towards the unconscious person as you continued to rest your finger on their head, you look over to Jenna as your hunched over a bit- holding your legs close to your chest as your barb tipped tail flicked about “Making sure they’re not dead?-“ Jenna frowns a bit as her nose then scrunches again as she sighs and backs away as you stood back up, looking over to her with a cocky smile. “Are you still gonna Watch over me and make sure I don’t cause any more messes? Or are you just gonna leave me all alone?” You gave a small pout as your tail swayed side to side, curling as you spoke, catching Jenna’s attention for a moment before she looked back to your eyes and opens her mouth to speak- though the words seem to get caught in her throat before she closes her mouth again glancing away.

For the first time in what felt like- ever you actually felt like you had gotten to her this time, she knew that she was only supposed to come down and spectate when it was necessary but you and her both knew very well anytime you were hiding amongst any humans for any reason she would find out and play and game of cat and mouse with you, more or less. Her wings twitched about nervously as she pulled them closer to her body as she continued to ignore answering your question, you finally sigh softly and shrug it away with a small smile before you began to walk off to some secluded area so you could get yourself back to the nether world. You as you walked you felt Jenna’s presence erring close by, causing you glance over your shoulder to look at her.

You were only a few steps ahead as she followed behind, she was trying to make it seem nonchalant but you knew better than to poke fun at her for following you- anytime you’ve done that you’ve ended up being by yourself again after a few minutes, so you just let her. The silence continued for a few moments as you both walked through the desolate streets of whatever town you had ended up in this time, you and Jenna both looked human enough to just walk around and just be labeled as a cosplayer of the sorts. Luckily though, it was in the late of the night and not a soul was out or awake at this time, so you had nothing to worry about today. Jenna had made her way to your side so you both comfortably walked side by side, neither of you wanted to be the one who made a bit of small talk so it was just a gentle silence. After a few minutes you finally found a spot that seemed to work for hopping back into the “underworld” that wouldn’t release little hell rats or other creatures that would get you in trouble.

As you drew your little summoning circle Jenna watched close by, she was pouting a bit as she watched you, you honestly weren’t sure why she as so frustrated with you leaving this time but it was pretty entertaining for you. You finished up the circle as you looked back to her, noticing how clean and pearly white her feathered wings looked, you were honestly pretty fascinated by it before you shook your head clear and walked up to her with a smirk. “What are you pouting about now? Not getting a good bye kiss or something?” You teased as Jenna’s face flushed heavily “NO!-“ She snapped back as her wings ruffled and puffed up defensively, you snickered under your breath as you crossed your arms at her. You both stared at each other for a few moments before you leaned down to her eye level and gave a cocky grin “you sure….?~” you giggle as Jenna’s cheeks were burning red at this point, her wings staying in their defensive state, your tail flicking back and forth in a bit of pride. “Just go back to where you came from already….” She growled softly as you nodded your head “Yes ma’am…” you smile softly before turning away and pressing the summoning circle you had drawn with your foot before looking back to her “can you come here for a second?” Jenna hesitated before walking up to you, her wings finally falling down from their perked up position from earlier. 

You leaned down to her level again, pausing for a second before smiling and ruffling her hair “your the only angel I tolerate you know?” You chuckle softly as Jenna swatted at your hand messing with her hair “yeah yeah whatever- now go before I get into trouble…” she rolled her eyes at you as you shrugged and turned back to the open summoning circle and hopped in, the small portal closing shortly after. Leaving Jenna by herself- She sighed in a mix of things, frustration, anger, but also sad and lonely. Angels aren’t meant to love Demons, they were enemies, it was a well known fact, even humans wrote about it… she felt so lost, her heart told her one thing but the way of God’s  laws would have made anything possible- not possible.

Jenna’s wings delicately wrapped around her body as she sighed, she missed your snarky responses and snappy attitude, it was admirable to see that from you. I mean a Demon being that way is natural but something about you made it seem so much more interesting… she tightened her wings around her slightly, a gentle sigh escaping her as she began to wish of seeing you. She knows it’s not what’s meant to happen or even should but- 

Everytime she sees you she starts wishing it was your arms hugging her instead of her own wings.

part 2

[rewrittenwrongs]

Whumptober day 7: Only For Emergencies

Read on Ao3 (registered users only) | day 6 | day 8 coming soon | Whumptober masterpost

TW: grave robbing I think, uhh contemplation of what a rotting corpse might look like

My first time writing Billy Batson, of course it had to be in whumptober.

“Tonight’s the night.”

Tim froze, then turned his head to look at him. He set down his book. “Tonight?”

“Tonight.”

Tim grinned, relieved. “Good. It’s all been arranged?”

Billy tilted his hand in a ‘so so’ gesture. “Everything is arranged on their end. There’s just a few loose ends we need to tie up.”

“Like what?” Tim put his book on his nightstand and crossed his legs, leaning against the bed’s headrest.

Billy sat on the foot of the bed and mirrored him. “Well, first of all, you have to be the one to actually do it.”

Tim’s expression didn’t change, but he went very carefully still. He blinked slowly. “What?”

“You have to go—“

“I thought you would be the one to do it? Since you’re the one she owes the favour to?”

“It’s kinda complicated, actually.” Billy tilted back his head and tried to remember the explanation he’d been given. “I have to stay on this side, because digging through six feet of dirt and a layer of wood is more physically taxing than it sounds. I’ll have to use Hercules’ and Atlas’ gifts to do it. But I also need to do the part down there; Persephone and Hecate can only conclude the deal if I seal it in person, which makes this pretty difficult. But I think Solomon came up with a solution: I’ll lend you Achilles.”

Tim’s jaw dropped. “What?”

“Apparently in the past, especially times of war, champions could share their powers or lend their sponsors to allies. I can give you Achilles’ Courage for a day which will make you my representative, basically, giving you the power to do the difficult part.”

Tim nodded with a look of wonder. “I’m… going to the Underworld.”

“Yup.”

“Tonight.”

“Yup.”

“To talk to Persephone… and bring Robin back to life.”

“Yup.” Billy was still sad he couldn’t bring back his parents. But Persephone only owed the Champion of Magic one favour, and neither of his parents ended up in the Greek afterlife, so it couldn’t be done anyhow.

Tim put his head in his hands. “Cool. Okay. Why is my part the difficult part? Shouldn’t I just be signing paperwork or something?”

“Uh, the paperwork’s already handled.” Billy winced. “…Have you ever heard of Orpheus?”

Tim lifted his head and stared at him. “Billy.”

“That’s why I’m lending you Courage, that should make it way easier to not look back.”

“Billy.”

“Listen, it was either that or not bring him back at all. The Underworld is ninety-percent rules!”

“Hmph. What will you be doing, aside from defacing a grave?”

“I think this is classified as grave robbing,” Billy corrected. He drew a bottle out of his hoodie pocket, a swirling purple and gold potion with a leather encasing, faintly glowing a colour no one could quite place. “I need to pour this down Jason’s throat. Hecate made it as part of the favour, it will undo all the decomposition and injuries.”

Tim winced. “Right.” Rotting was one of the problems they decided to ignore for now, when they were first hatching this crazy idea of theirs. “How does the spirit reenter the body?”

“Persephone told me it will just happen,” Billy said, shrugging. “Once the body is healed and the spirit is close enough, the spirit will disappear and the person will wake up.”

“Just like that, huh?” Tim nodded thoughtfully. “How long do I need to stop myself from looking back?”

“Until you both reach the surface. I’d wait an extra minute or two before looking back, to be safe.”

“Where will I emerge on the surface?”

“At the edge of the graveyard, it should be.”

Tim exhaled slowly. “Okay. Alright. And if it doesn’t work? If I look back?”

Billy’s face went serious—moreso than before. “That won’t happen. We only get one chance at this.”

“And we’re doing it tonight, you said?”

“We set off at sunset.”

-

“Okay, I’m dressed for cold weather just like you said.” Tim adjusted the hood of his red parka. “I’m wearing the amulet, so ghosts won’t notice me, and the mask so Jason won’t recognise me. I have Achilles. And it’s almost sunset.”

Tim turned his gaze to the horizon, where gold and pink was slowly bleeding into the pale cerulean of the sky.

“Do I have a time limit?” Tim checked.

Billy shrugged. “Sunrise. Don’t necessarily take your time, but you don’t need to rush. Just focus on not looking back, no matter what.”

Tim nodded again, rocking in place with a mix of anxiety and excitement. He pulled the bandana covering his face higher up his nose.

Billy nudged him encouragingly. “Listen to Achilles, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“All you have to do is keep walking.”

Tim nodded again and adjusted his wool gloves. “How long until Hermes picks me up?”

Billy squinted at the setting sun. “I think… three.”

“Minutes?”

“Two.”

“Oh, shit.”

“One.”

The last second passed, then another, and then someone was floating above the ground in front of them. Hermes: wearing a yellow and white cloak with tasseled edges, loose clothes that draped across him like robes, simple gold bracers, and a gold helmet covering his eyes; with a red plume and white wings sprouting from either side. A leather satchel hung from his shoulder and many pouches were strung across his waist. He was bare-chested and barefoot, with little white wings sprouting from his ankles. He held his caduceus in one hand and waved with the other.

“I believe it’s the one in red I’m here to pick up?” he asked. His voice was smooth and melodious, accented.

Billy nodded. The look Tim sent him was both ecstatic and worried. They only made eye contact for a second before Hermes said, “Alright, away we go, then,” and they both were a blur in the air. Billy didn’t bother trying to track them with his eyes.

Instead, he steeled himself, double checked the enchantment he placed on himself was still active, and headed towards Wayne property. The Wayne and Drake estates weren’t divided by fences or walls, there was no visible line defining the two properties, just legal documents and some cameras. There was a large lake that spanned across both properties; most of it belonged to the Wayne’s. Tim and Billy had been waiting at their family’s portion of it, and now Billy used the shoreline as a landmark.

It was five minutes before he caught the blinking, tiny red light of a camera. Billy had cast a spell an hour ago that would make him undetectable to all forms of digital surveillance, for the next twelve hours. Still, it was odd staring straight at it when he was actively breaking the law.

“We’ve made it across the property line,” Billy announced. No one but the gods in his head could hear him, but it was comforting speaking aloud. “Tim said the graveyard is to the east, on a hill ‘round the back of the manor…” Tim had said it could be seen from the lake. Seeing how thick the trees were, Billy wasn’t so sure anymore, but he was still at least fifteen minutes away.

It grew dark quickly. Billy wasn’t scared of the dark, but it was a little different being in a forest. The chorus of frogs and mosquitoes and grasshoppers was unnervingly unfamiliar. The stars winked from between leaves like malevolent eyes. The branches stretched towards him like skeletal hands. He walked into a spiderweb after a few minutes and spent the rest of the journey intermittently brushing at his face and hair, in that way you only do when paranoid there’s a spider on you. At one point he heard the squeal of some rodent being turned into a meal.

Solomon counted how long he walked for. When he reached fifteen minutes Billy stopped and looked around. He could tell the trees were thinner, but it was too dark to make out any family graveyards.

He squinted at the beat-up copper compass Tim lent him. It was too dark to read it, of course, so Billy put a tree between himself and where he thought the graveyard was, and turned on his flashlight. He really hoped there weren’t any cameras pointed at him—he knew he was invisible to them, but he wasn’t sure the light would be. He read the compass quickly and reoriented himself—the hill should be just over there. He turned off the flashlight.

The walk up the hill was perhaps the most nerve-racking part of the trip. It was hitting him, with startling morbidity, that he was about to deface the grave of a kid only a few years older than Tim and him. He was literally here to dig up a body. To bring him back to life, sure, but he was still dead right now. He had been for, what, six months now? He would be rotten and decomposing, still sporting the injuries that killed him, now also the aftermath of an AUTOPSY.

Speaking of which. Hecate said most morticians put all the organs inside a plastic bag before burial. Which meant he would have to check for any plastic inside Jason’s chest, then remove it, and PUT HIS ROTTING ORGANS BACK INSIDE HIS BODY.

Billy had to stop walking for a moment to fight off the urge to throw up. He was suddenly very glad Tim insisted they wear gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints. He might’ve appreciated some nose-clips, too. Oh gods.

While he was hunched over the ground fighting furiously with his gag reflex, he became aware of a quiet noise. A sort of distressed sound, rough and gaspy, faint as if far-off.

Billy took several deep breaths and continued his journey. He reached the fence closing off the cemetery, at which point he stopped in his tracks again, because he could hear someone talking. Oh. The noise was them sobbing.

At first he thought it was two someones, because of the tone of the dialog he overheard, but then he remembered where he was. And then he recognised the voice.

Dick Grayson.

Dick Grayson was sobbing over his dead little brother’s grave and talking to him, asking questions and pleading with him to come back, to crack one last joke, give one last hug.

It very abruptly hit Billy on the head that Nightwing had been in space when his brother died. And when the funeral was held. And he only got back barely three months ago.

Shit.

-

Billy, obviously, left the pair of them alone. He marched back to the treeline not just because he didn’t want Dick to find him, but also because holy-shit-he’s-sobbing-over-his-brother’s-grave-and-trying-to-speak-to-his-ghost. That was too personal for Billy to even THINK about listening in.

He still heard more than he wanted.

It, thankfully, reinforced his believe that he and Tim were doing the right thing. Not that it was previously much of a question. Ever since Robin died Batman had been brutal. He put everyone, every single criminal no matter how petty the crime, in the ICU. There hasn’t been an Arkham breakout, or activity from the rogues still free, in months thanks to how scared they were of the dark knight. Countless people had received lifelong disabilities. Seven had been put in medically induced comas. One was declared brain dead. Two later died due to complications with their injuries.

They weren’t just bringing Jason back to reel in Batman’s darkness, though. Robin was light and hope and mischief and joy. He made children happy, made Crime Alley a safer place, had saved countless lives, and kept doing so until the end.

He didn’t deserve to die.

And Billy had the power to fix that, so why wouldn’t he?

The next step in bring Jason Todd back to life was waiting for his brother to leave his grave. Billy saw Dick’s flashlight turn on and head away after fifteen or so minutes, but he stayed hidden for another ten or so to be safe. Then he jumped the fence and shone his flashlight through his fingers until he located the right grave.

Then he got out the shovel and began to dig.

Hercules and Atlas swiftly provided their aid. They made it infinitely easier to tote piles of dirt out of the growing ditch. The ground was surprisingly tough, behaving more like clay and rocks than normal dirt, but with Hercules that wasn’t an issue. It took about an hour to finish digging, and he was left with some insanely huge piles of dirt, and a too-small coffin at the bottom of a six foot ditch. He didn’t risk moving it.

Once he was done Billy crawled back up the side of the ditch, set down his shovel, and settled in to wait.

They had come to the conclusion that Batman was absolutely paranoid enough to put sensors inside his dead son’s grave. Because they almost certainly wouldn’t be sensing for foreign personnel, but rather external forces messing with the casket, they would almost certainly go off despite the spell. They planned for Billy to wait until Tim was in sight before breaking open the lid. Then he could do a cursory check of Jason’s autopsy aftermath, remove any unwanted plastic, and pour Hecate’s potion into his mouth. It should only take a couple seconds to take effect.

After maybe ten minutes he started playing tic tac toe with Zeus and, later, Atlas. After thirty minutes he got Zeus to tell him stories, then swiftly asked him to stop because he had no concept of PG13. Then all his sponsors, all the ones present, worked together to retell him some adventures a past champion went on.

After maybe four hours of that he felt a chill in the air.

He sat up stiffly and his eyes were drawn to the graveyard’s gate. He could just barely make out the figure of a boy a bit older and taller than Billy, walking out of the woods and into the Wayne family cemetery. A shimmer in the air followed behind him, an absence of light.

Billy nodded to himself, and slid down the side of the ditch. “It’s go time.”

With that, he dug his fingers into the coffin lid, and pulled back with the strength of Hercules.

[rollinouttahere-writes]

You Know I feel like Rob Lucci snatched up Lizard in Water 7 by simply waiting for her to be alone and then taking her. Like before Robin boarded the train but after the reveal (that they were apart of CP9)

Like here's the thing she's not officially apart of the Straw hats (at the time) she's still considered to be apart of Baroque Works by proxy of her being the daughter of Crocodile. And so when Robin tries to argue for Lizard's freedom. Rob Lucci simply says "You said that the Strawhats were to be left alone. You never said anything about Crocodile's daughter. By the way until they reach Enies Lobby he only calls Lizard Crocodile's daughter after the reveal or little girl before the reveal. He doesn't refer to her as Lizard until she gets his respect when she throws her restrained self at Sandam and has to be physically dragged away from Spam face kicking and screaming demanding Spam's skull to beat him to death with his skull. Then he calls her Lizard and starts to become a platonic yandere for her and offers to pay for plastic surgery for her, so she can start fresh. Rob Lucci views Lizard as His cub that he must raise, nurture and mold into becoming the ideal assassin because as you said Lizard is cute which means that people won't see it coming

I got inspired and decided to write out the moment where Lucci officially becomes attached to her

Warning for acts of violence and a lot of blood mention. Also Spandam is here which is a warning in and of itself.

Lucci could not wait for Spandam to stop talking and dismiss them so he could leave and be doing literally anything else. Unfortunately, Spandam loved the sound of his own voice too much to ever be brief with his speeches, especially when he feels like he’s “accomplished” something. Not that he had any hand in the apprehending of the three individuals brought to Enies Lobby today.

Cutty Flam, or Franky as he called himself, had given them the most trouble, but even that was minimal. Nico Robin was easily coerced into cooperation with her newfound weakness with the Straw Hat Pirates. (Y/N), a former warlord’s daughter, had been the easiest. Not only did she not put up a fight, she boarded the train on her own once Kalifa confirmed that Nico Robin would also be there. The complete absence of fear had been intriguing. Lucci wasn’t sure if the child was truly fearless, or if she was simply intensely naive.

He’s sure that the answer will reveal itself soon enough.

While Nico Robin and Franky were actively arguing with Spandam, (Y/N) was just standing there and glowering at him. Her disdain for him was palpable as well as amusing. Understandable, too.

It appeared that Spandam had finally had enough of Robin’s protests, and decided to make it abundantly clear by punching her. The woman hit the floor hard and struggled to get back onto her feet. Lucci just rolled his eyes, he knew for a fact that the only reason Spandam was able to do this was because of the weakening effects of the sea prism stone handcuffs. If they were absent, she likely wouldn’t have even stumbled.

A flash of movement caught his eye. The once passive (Y/N) charged straight at Spandam. Since his back was to her, he didn’t get a chance to see her coming and only became aware of her when she rammed into him.

Spandam tripped over Robin and toppled onto the ground, slightly dazed. Before he could react, (Y/N) was on him. The teenager raised her foot and brought it down directly onto his face with a resounding crack. The impact most certainly broke his nose. 

She didn’t stop there, however, she kept going. (Y/N) was repeatedly stomping on his head with precise and consistent blows. These weren’t the random, desperate kicks of someone acting out of fear. No, this was nothing but concentrated fury. Her once neutral expression was contorted with rage as she cursed out the chief of CP9 with vitriol dripping from each word.

Everyone was watching this in a stunned silence. Robin had entirely stopped trying to get up and was staring at (Y/N) in horror, Franky was in a similar state. The rest of CP9 was gawking at the display, none of them had anticipated the abrupt turn in her behavior.

While this was all extremely entertaining, it did have to come to an end before Spandam did. Jabra sprung out of his chair and rushed over to the girl. His hands clamped onto her upper arms and lifted her up and away from her victim. This was not enough to deter her. (Y/N) flailed and tried her damnedest to kick Jabra, albeit unsuccessfully. 

“Quit! You’re just making this worse for yourself, kid,” Jabra tossed the teenager away from him. She rolled across the ground, but quickly got up and sprinted towards Spandam again. Jabra blocked her path, but that didn’t stop her from screaming at the crumpled form of the chief, “If you ever fucking touch Robin again I’ll fucking kill you, you piece of shit!”

Kumadori had abandoned his own chair to check on Spandam, who had now shifted onto his side and was violently coughing and hacking. Blood was gushing out of not only his broken nose but also his mouth. He spat onto the floor and one, two… Four teeth fell out. Oh wow, impressive. 

“Lucci! Keep that monster away from me!” Spandam clung onto Kumadori’s hair as he attempted to get to his feet, “I knew you were involved with your father’s business! You were probably his best assassin, you little psychopath!”

Lucci snorted at the thought. Nothing about her actions indicated that she was experienced. Though he would admit that he could see some potential. Lucci grabbed the chain that connected her handcuffs and pulled her back a few steps, she shot him a venomous glare over her shoulder, but otherwise cooperated. Her shoulders were heaving from how hard she was breathing, moreso out of anger rather than exercise if he had to guess.

Spandam had managed to get himself upright with help and was trying to wipe the blood from his face with a handkerchief. He slapped away Kumadori’s helping hand and stomped towards Lucci and (Y/N).

He leered at the girl, “You have no idea what you’ve done! In case you forgot, I’M IN CHARGE OF YOU NOW!” Flecks of blood sprayed out of his mouth and got on her face. Shockingly, she doesn’t flinch from it and keeps her face neutral. “I’m going to make whatever is left of your miserable little life absolute hell and kill you the second you’re no longer worth keeping alive!”

Lucci saw Spandam becoming increasingly aggravated from her giving him no reactions to feed off of. His scowl shifts into a smirk and he gets right in her face, “Or maybe I’ll take this out on Robin and make you watch as you’re powerless to do anything.”

There was a pause. And then she spat in his face.

A couple of the CP9 agents snickered. This was honestly the most entertaining thing they’ve been subjected to in their time under Spandam. Even Lucci felt a grin tug at his lips, this girl was proving herself to be more and more interesting by the second.

Spandam recoiled and aggressively wiped at his face, only to yelp in pain when he brushed against his broken nose like an idiot. His eyes zeroed back in on (Y/N) and he reeled his arm back, “You little bitch!”

His hand swung towards her to slap her across the face, but that’s not what happened. With an honestly impressive speed, her head snapped forward and her teeth sank into his hand. Spandam screamed and tried to shake the girl off, but she only bit down harder and snarled.

“WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, GET HER OFF ME!” The screech was so loud that it made Lucci’s ears hurt, but he obliged. An order is an order after all. 

Lucci yanked her back by the handcuffs while Kumadori was pulling on Spandam. This girl was holding onto that hand for dear life, and it took some genuine effort to separate them, but with one final tug they were pulled apart.

This was accompanied by a snapping sound and even louder screaming from Spandam who was holding the bitten hand to his chest and doubled over. Kaku could be heard muttering out a ‘good lord’, and before Lucci could investigate to see what prompted such a reaction from a trained assassin, (Y/N) spit something out onto the floor. 

A couple of quiet thuds were heard, and when he looked down, two fingers were rolling across the floor with blood spurting out of them. The pinky and ring fingers to be exact.

“I TOLD YOU TO KEEP HER AWAY FROM ME!” Never one to take accountability for his own stupid actions, Spandam was quick to direct his rage at Lucci.

“I did. But then you chose to approach her again,” it took everything Lucci had to keep from openly mocking him to his face.

“Boss, maybe we should get you some medical attention!” Kumadori was lightly pulling him towards the door, desperate to leave the situation before their moronic chief could possibly make it any worse.

Spandam was pulled out the main door and could be heard hurling obscenities from down the hall.

The room was dead silent and all of the eyes were on (Y/N). Robin and Franky were slack jawed, while the CP9 members appeared to be surprised but also mildly impressed. Not that she was paying them any mind. She was more focused on spitting out the blood in her mouth and trying to wipe off what remained using her shoulder.

Jabra strolled over and lightly nudged the disembodied fingers, “Damn, and you did all of that with your hands behind your back. I almost want to see what would happen if the cuffs came off.”

“Then do it.” She leveled him with a hard stare. Blood that wasn’t her own was smeared across the lower half of her face, “Uncuff me and see what happens.”

“No can do, kiddo. As much as everyone here might love to see that, we’ve got jobs to do.” Jabra flicked her forehead playfully and laughed when she tried to bite him, too. Lucky for him, she wasn’t quite fast enough to get him.

His eyes briefly flickered up to see Lucci’s face, and he cringed at the sight, “Hey kid, you might want to tone it down a bit.”

“Why?” Her response was snappy and sharp.

“Because I really don’t like the look on Lucci’s face right now and I’m pretty sure you’re the cause of it.”

She looked over her shoulder with an annoyed huff, but froze up once she made eye contact with the man holding her. A wide, malicious grin was plastered across his face as he leered down at the girl.

It was in that moment that Lucci knew he wanted this girl to live to see another day and not rot in prison. Letting someone with such a natural propensity for violence die now would be a horrendous waste. He knows that under the right supervision, this girl could be shaped into a damn good assassin, and he knows just the person that could train her.

[xxchaosjojoxx]

Enchanted (Penguin x reader)

A/N: I was listening to Enchanted - Taylor Swift recently and I had this idea pop up in my head. It has surely been a long time since I wrote something new so I hope you will enjoy it <3. Requests and wishes are still open :3

As you met the heart pirates the first time, you were having a chill evening in a bar. Singing some karaoke and then you heard and saw them. Laughing, drinking and joking around. As you sat down you observed a man with a penguin hat on the other side of the bar. Even so you couldn’t see his eyes, his smile ignited a spark inside you. You could feel a light blush creeping on your face. You were truly enchanted by him. Every movement, every smile of his. It was the only thing in your world right now. His friend, the red hair with the sunglasses might’ve noticed you stare. Both of them were looking at you with a smile on their face and waving towards you. You were sure you would be red like a tomato as you waved lightly back while hiding your face. To be fair, your heart was racing and you could only ask yourself if this handsome man would have a girlfriend by any chance. Soon after you smacked your face mentally. He is a pirate, he will leave in a day or two anyway. Developing a crush right now for a guy you just met from afar was stupid.

Your mind was back in reality as you saw someone was in front of you. It was the man with the penguin hat.

“Hey there. I just want to tell you, you look very pretty. I hope you have a nice evening.”

He was smiling and scratching his cheek while talking to you and you were able to get a short glance at his eyes.

After he left you alone and was about to leave the bar you jumped up and ran after him, grabbing his sleeve without even realizing what you were doing. He was slightly confused but showed you a reassuring smile. It seems like this man could only smile and you were melting away. “I--I mean...my name is y/n…” You let go of him and turned around, running as fast as you could. You could only hear his beautiful laughter while shouting his name towards you. “Nice to meet you. Penguin’s the name.”

Now two years later you were the musician of the Heart pirates. Somehow you couldn’t do anything else despite following this beautiful stranger. You were guessing your captain Law only allows you to join them, after seeing you in combat. Later that evening some other pirates were trying to rob Bepo and Ikkaku and you kicked their asses. They didn’t need any help but they were sure happy seeing someone helping out pirates just like that.

You wanted to confess your feelings towards Penguin so many times, but your fear was holding you back. What if he doesn’t like you like you do? Even so, Ikkaku knew and assured you to just go with it. You could only manage to express your feelings due to music and decided to write a song.

You showed it to Ikkaku and she was tearing up after reading the lyrics. “Y/n, this is sooo beautiful. If he doesn’t accept your feelings, screw him and take me instead.”

Ikkaku was hugging you tightly and you returned it.

Since you joined them you were kinda shy towards Penguin, but soon enough you would open up to him. Both of you were always joking, chatting or just rambling about random things. Playing pranks on Shachi or Bepo was your favorite activity with him. That’s when you hear his beautiful laughter every time. Seeing him is your reason to smile the whole day. Meeting him and spending time with Penguin felt magical. It was the first time you ever felt that way. Seeing someone and being overwhelmed just like this.

As you and the rest of the crew were eating lunch you saw a little note. Penguin and you were always passing notes every now and then. You took it and read the words. ‘Wanna hit the bar with us tonight?’ You grinned and looked up to him. He was looking at you with such a loving expression you couldn’t help but feel a ticklish feeling inside your stomach. You nodded while passing him another note. ‘Sure thing’

You were at the bar with Ikkau, Shachi and Penguin, having a lot of fun and some drinks.

As Penguin came back with another round your fingers graced him and your fingers were practically burning and your face was heating up again. Ikkaku snuggled your side with her elbow, winking to go for it. And soon enough your shoulders met Penguin’s side, both of you looked at each other and smiled softly. But again you were too shy for your own good. Soon enough you excused yourself for a short trip towards the restroom.

When you joined your table again there was no sign of Penguin. As you sat down you looked at Ikkaku and Shachi, trying to block your view. “Is everything ok, guys? Where’s Penguin?”

You asked and you could see both of them slightly panicking.

“I have no idea.” Ikkaku said while trying to laugh it off.

Shachi was nervously laughing as well. “Who even is Penguin?”

He asked and Ikkaku punched his shoulder. You were confused and soon enough you saw him. He was at another table, talking to a beautiful woman. Laughing, scratching his neck.

You could feel a sharp pain inside you. “Is he…flirting with someone?”

Tears began to form in your eyes and Ikkaku and Shachi both tried to comfort you.

“It’s not like you think.” Slightly you shook your head. “It’s ok. He can do whatever he wants…I guess I’m tired. I’ll head back guys.” You wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. Of course he would flirt with other women. He was never interested in you anyway. But still you hoped that he would maybe feel the same way. Even a little bit.

You needed to go past him and you could hear him talking nicely and sweet with that girl. Tears began to flow silently while you were on your way towards the Polar Tang, but you allowed yourself to cry when you entered your shared room with Ikkaku, knowing you were alone right now.

The next day you refused to leave your room, eat something or talk to your crew. Ikkaku was there for you, spending you some comfort and hugging you.

It was your fault, you thought. You had two years to tell him your feelings. A slight knock on the door interrupts your thoughts.

“Are you there, y/n? You didn’t eat anything today. Are you ok? Should I call Law to check up on you?” It was Penguin and he sounded worried.

You were looking at Ikkaku and your eyes pleaded with her to help you out.

“She’s asleep, Pen. I’ll handle it.” Ikkaku said softly and soon enough you both heard footsteps, signaling that he left you guys alone.

You sighed deeply. “I guess I have to sing that song though.”

Ikkaku turned around. “You sure?”

You nodded. “I guess I have to move on. And that’s the only thing I can think of. This or leaving the heart pirates.”

Ikkaku groaned. “You won’t leave just because of a guy.”

You smiled softly at her. “Will you be there for me?”

She gave you a big hug. “Of course. I will be there for you anytime.”

In the evening Shachi and Ikkaku prepared everything for you. You had a karaoke night once a week and tonight was the night.

You cried so much in the last hours,you were sure, you won’t have any tears left inside.

Standing in front of the microphone, you cleared your throat. Everyone was looking at you. Some of them were smiling and eager to hear your voice, some others showed you a soft smile with a hint of worry. Everyone knew you fell hard for Penguin and they knew that he tried to make a move on another girl yesterday.

“Hey guys and welcome to our karaoke night. Law still refused to sing a song for us.” You said and everyone was booing. Law couldn’t help but smirk.

“But before the fun starts, I have another thing. I actually wrote a song and I would love to perform it for you. If it’s ok for you guys.”

You could see your crewmates beaming at you and nodding. Even Law smiled.

“Let’s go y/n-chan!” Hakugan yelled and everyone was laughing.

As the music started you were taking a deep breath. As the first words were leaving your lips you couldn’t help but look at Penguin. Soon enough everything else was black. There was just him, you and the music in the background.

You tried so hard not to get overwhelmed by your own emotions.

This night is sparkling Don't you let it go I'm wonderstruck Blushing all the way home I'll spend forever Wondering if you knew This night is flawless Don't you let it go I'm wonderstruck Dancing around all alone I'll spend forever Wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you

It was hard for you to control your voice. But you tried your best to manage it.

My thoughts will echo your name, until I see you again These are the words I held back, as I was leaving too soon I was enchanted to meet you

Penguin’s smile soon faded and you could see that he was clearly worried about you.

Please don't be in love With someone else Please don't have somebody Waiting on you

And soon enough your voice broke and the tears were streaming down your face.

You couldn’t end the song and decided to just run away again. You couldn’t be there with them, especially the man who unintentionally broke your heart. Leaving the Polar Tang was the first thought, even the worried voices of your friends and crewmates, who were shouting after you, couldn’t stop your legs from running as fast as they could.

Good for you, that you still were docking on that island. The vision before your eyes was blurry but you somehow managed to find your way towards the top of the hill. You gasped for air while sniffling and crying. The night was sparkling and you wished you could see and enjoy the view with Penguin.

You could hear footsteps and thought it was Ikkaku, running after you and being there to comfort you.

“Were you really enchanted to meet me?” You could hear Penguin's voice and wanted to increase the distance between you, but he soon grabbed your wrist. “I don’t want you to run away from me…please.”

He pleaded for you to stay and his voice sounded so sad and hurt you wanted to hug him but couldn’t do it.

Without waiting for an answer he spoke again. “I was enchanted to meet you too. But I always thought that you would never be interested in a guy like me. I wanted to move on, but when I talked to this woman, I realized that I don’t wanna be with her or with anyone else. She wasn’t you.”

You froze and it stopped you from crying. Without looking at him, you were sure that he meant every word.

“I was never in love with someone else. I never had somebody waiting on me.”

He let go of your hand and hugged you from behind. You could feel his breath on your neck.

“To be honest, I spent the last two years wondering if you knew that I was enchanted to meet you too.” It must’ve been hard for him to confess his feelings like this. You could hear him take a deep breath, while squeezing you tighter towards his chest. “How could I love someone else, if you were all I could dream of? And I just wish you knew,...I am madly and hopelessly in love with you.”

You tried to break free from his grip to turn around and look at him.

His expression was sad and you could feel a sting in your heart. You always saw him smiling, seeing him like that, broke your heart once more.

“Do you really mean it?” You asked, your voice was merely a whisper. He nodded eagerly, took your hands in his and kissed them. “I am an idiot. I made you cry. How should I accept the fact that a wonderful person like you, like someone like me?”

A soft laugh escaped your lungs. “Are you kidding me? The first time I met you, I knew in an instant that I was in love with you. You were all I could think of. I even wondered if you had a girlfriend. What you would like. And I didn’t even know your name until later.” Penguin smiled at you. “I was too shy to confess my feelings. Everything in my mind was full of you. Your name, your laugh, your smile. Every moment that I saw you. Every note that we were passing.”

A grin appeared on his face. “Would you be mad if I would kiss you right now?”

As soon as you closed your eyes, you could feel that he closed the distance between you. Soon enough you felt a pair of lips on you. They were soft and warm and you felt his pure love for you in this moment. As you broke the kiss you were looking at each other's eyes and could see that he was blushing now as well. Maybe you were right. Your meeting must’ve been fate or magic.

[ofstarsandflames]

Hello all! Thank you for joining me for my first ever RobStar week! And thank you even more so for giving my fic a chance!!!

I plan to participate every day this week, but if I am unable to for some reason I'll be sure to let you know!

Sorry for the rambling! I'll let you go ahead and jump right in!

[Heads up! A little of the dialogue in this story is courtesy of a prompt by @welcometothewoes!]

RobStar Week 2024, Day 1

Friends to Lovers 

“Well, what do you guys think?” 

The others looked ahead to the sign where Robin was pointing, displaying a variety of mixed reactions. 

Cyborg and Beast Boy had lit up at the reveal, no doubt eager to partake in a series of competitions that would supposedly prove who was superior between the two. Raven rolled her eyes, no doubt dreading the thought of being dragged into Cyborg and Beast Boy’s antics

Starfire’s reaction, strangely enough, was the most passive of the group. She looked up, reading the words displayed on the giant glowing sign.

“Jump City Beach Boardwalk?” Star tilted her head, confused more than anything else. “Please, what is the purpose of these “walking boards”? I was under the impression wood was not sentient.” 

“Boardwalk, Star.” Robin gently corrected. “It’s an amusement park near a beach where people can go to have fun.” 

“A park for amusement, you say.” Starfire noted. “Fascinating. Please, what is it you do in these kinds of parks?” 

“Lots of things Star!” Beast Boy chimed in. “There’s a bunch of themed junk food you can eat, games you can win cool prizes in, and a bunch of rides you can go on ‘til you get sick!” 

“How ‘bout a little game of friendly competition, Grass Stain?” Cyborg chimed in, a mischievous glint in his human eye. “Whoever wins the most prizes gets to plan next week’s dinner menu?”

“You're on, Gears for Brains!” Beast Boy exclaimed.

Cyborg ran through the gates first, eager for his 7-day barbecue dream to come true. Beast Boy followed suit, but not before grabbing Raven’s hand.

“C’mon, Rae! You can keep score!” 

“Joy.”

Raven’s sarcasm, whether unnoticed or ignored, did little to deter the green teen. Together, they passed through the boardwalk’s gates. 

And with that, only two remained. 

Robin gestured to the boardwalk’s entrance.

“Shall we?” 

Though Starfire was still unsure of the appeal of such a place, she decided to trust Robin’s judgment.

Standing side by side, the duo made their way through the gates. 

~~~

“Remember guys, only 5 prizes per person. We don’t want a repeat of last year…” 

Though Robin phrased it as a general statement, they all knew who it was meant for. Cyborg and Beast Boy laughed nervously, no doubt trying to hide their guilty expressions. Raven rolled her eyes and Starfire let out a small giggle. 

“Only 5, got it!” Cyborg reaffirmed. 

Now that he no longer felt guilty about last year’s prize incident, the cybernetic teen led his shapeshifting and dark-clad friends away. He shot a teasing look at their leader. 

“Let’s go leave Robby for his date~” He said this in a sing-songy tone. 

Robin glared, but he knew there was no ill intent. Cyborg laughed, all while Beast Boy grabbed Raven’s hand to excitedly show her how his favorite games and rides changed from last year. 

Soon, all three were out of sight. 

Robin let out a sigh of relief, happy to finally have some much needed alone time with his brand new girlfriend. 

Turning to check on her, Robin could tell by Starfire’s beaming grin that she was in good spirits. In fact, she’d been wearing this expression since they first left the tower. 

“Someone’s happy.” He playfully teased. 

"Oh! Sorry, it's just..." Starfire perked up, the shining, uncontrollable smile still not leaving her features. "It's been awhile since I've been this... giddy."

Robin returned the smile twice fold, though his eyebrows shot up in the air.

"Really? We come to the boardwalk every year."

"Yes, but..." Star shyly held Robin's hand, intertwining their fingers. "Never like this."

Ah, so that’s what it was.

Robin could feel his cheeks warming up. Hoping it wasn’t too noticeable, he gave their intertwined hands a gentle squeeze for reassurance. 

In a more than chivalrous mood, Robin gestured to the entrance with a little extra flair. 

“After you, m’lady.” 

Starfire giggled, returning the chivalry in kind.

“Thank you, kind sir.” 

Together, one’s hand fitting so naturally with the other’s, the couple made their way through the amusement park’s entrance. 

~~~

“Ready, you two?” Richard asked, a dramatic flair to his voice. 

“Yeah!” A little boy exclaimed loudly, hands thrown into the air with glee.

“You sure?” Kori questioned, savoring the moment.

“Super duper sure!” A little girl replied, unable to contain her excitement. 

Richard and Kori gave each other a knowing glance. At the same time, they removed the hands covering the eyes of the children they held. 

“Surprise!” They both yelled out. “Happy Birthday!” 

Jake and Mari, now an entire 7 years old, watched with wide eyes and slacked jaws at the birthday gift their parents presented them with. 

“Wow / Awesome!” Jake and Mari remarked at the same time.

Squirming out of their parent’s hold, the twins ran up to the gates of the place their parents had brought them to. Right there, in giant, bold letters, displayed the words: 

JUMP CITY BEACH BOARDWALK

Eager to begin exploring the beach and amusement park, the children ran back to their parents. Jake took hold of their father’s hand whilst Mari took hold of their mother’s. Together, all four walked hand-in-hand inside through the boardwalk’s gates.

[catsukiiee]

# IF YOU DON'T HAVE ANYTHING NICE TO SAY, THEN SHUT UP!

bookstoreowner!reader x prohero!katsuki bakugou

| Chapter 2

chapter one can be found here: !!

— readers quirk: weightless [ allows you to manipulate gravity, making both objects and humans lighter or so heavy to the point they can't be moved/move themselves. ]

— reader appearance idea: short spiky/ruffled black hair, the edges have a faded pink color from a dye attempt, stands at 5'4, lightly muscular, dark olive toned skin. [ you don't have to picture this! just for those who want to picture a character/want to use a look instead. ]

— bakugou has been aged up to his mid twenties, reader is also in the mid twenties [ don't have to use the ages i set, please just don't make it questionable while reading my work 🤨 ]

It had been a few weeks since the entire robbery incident occurred, and it seemed like things had returned to their usual state. Well, to some extent.

Ever since that Pro Hero intervened, it felt as though reminders of him were everywhere you turned. The colors red and black? Undoubtedly associated with him. Even the colors orange and green seemed to have a connection to him.

Honestly, it was starting to get on your nerves. Just the mere thought of his face brought about a slight irritation. What was so captivating about Katsuki Bakugou that he occupied your mind?

Letting out a deep sigh, you rested your chin on your hand, casually glancing around your small bookstore. The regular customers were scattered about, their noses deep in their books as usual.

"Excuse me!" You turned around to see who was trying to get your attention, and to your surprise, it was the same woman who had almost been robbed before. After everything that had transpired, you didn't anticipate her return. She always seemed so anxious and jumpy.

She handed you a small box wrapped in blue paper, adorned with a white bow. "I wanted to give this to you as a token of my gratitude for saving me," she said. "I noticed that you never eat, so I prepared a lunch for you. As long as I remain your loyal customer, I will continue bringing you lunches."

Her gesture completely caught you off guard. You never expected someone to express such appreciation for simply doing the right thing. "Oh, wow! Um, thank you!" You gave a slight bow and carefully accepted the box from her, afraid that it might break if you held it too tightly. The aroma of some kind of meat wafted from the box, causing your stomach to growl in anticipation. "And please send my thanks to that Pro Hero as well. I was quite shaken and wanted to return home as soon as possible, so I didn't have the chance to express my gratitude to anyone."

You weren't quite sure how you would go about finding a Pro Hero, but nevertheless, you agreed with a smile, addressing the woman gently. "Certainly, ma'am."

It was around ten o'clock in the evening when you were finishing up at the shop, making sure everything was in order before heading home to warm up the food you had received earlier. As you turned around, you nearly bumped into a familiar figure. The scent of spices filled the air as you took a step back, locking eyes with someone whose gaze you knew all too well.

"You really have no sense of self-preservation," he remarked, looking down at you with his hands tucked into his pockets.

What did he mean by that?

"I've been watching you for the past fifteen minutes, and you never noticed," he revealed.

Oh.

Shifting your weight from one foot to another, you continued to gaze up at him, unsure of how to respond. Why did he come back to your bookstore? And why was he silently observing you for fifteen minutes?

"You should be more alert," he commented, pausing to survey your empty store while absentmindedly scratching his stomach. "That's probably why you almost got robbed."

Did he just…?

"You," you began, taking a step forward. "You're such a disrespectful jerk." You stared him down, pressing your finger against his chest. "You're supposed to be a Pro Hero, not someone who mistreats the people they're supposed to protect."

You observed his jaw tense at your words, and one of his hands swiftly reached up to grab yours. "First of all," he started slowly. "My attitude has nothing to do with my hero work."

How severe would the consequences be if I punched a Pro Hero?

His gaze remained light, with a clear hint of amusement as he continued to hold your hand and maintain eye contact. "I just came to make sure you have your license now, and it's getting late. I'd like to walk you home."

What?

"You… You just insulted me, and now you want to walk me home?" you exclaimed, gaping at him like a fool.

"And to see if you got your license," he added smugly.

Deciding against your violent tendencies, you instead grabbed your purse and keys from the counter before storming past him. "Un- fucking-believable," you muttered quietly.

Bakugou walked easily by your side, matching your brisk pace with relaxed, long strides. "So, about your license?"

Keeping your gaze forward, you pursed your lips for a moment. "I don't have it."

Silence. That was the response to your words. You could almost feel his gaze searing into the side of your face. It made you feel hot for all the wrong reasons.

He eventually broke the silence, "Can I ask why?" He was now walking closer to you, occasionally brushing his arm against yours.

"I've been busy with my café, and fortunately, I haven't been targeted for robbery again, so there's no need to worry about me using my quirk."

This time, you took the slight risk of gazing up at his face. Bakugou was already gazing down at you, with the black mask he had been wearing now resting beneath his chin. How long had he been wearing a mask, anyway?

"I'm not concerned about that," He grumbled, his red eyes growing stern. "I would like if you got a license rather than getting arrested. I've been keeping them away."

Wait, what?

That caused you to halt in your tracks, your eyebrows furrowing. "Who do you mean by them? Are you referring to the police?"

He shrugged his shoulders in response to your question, causing your jaw to twitch. "It's a simple yes or no question, Katsuki Bakugou."

His lips contorted into a fierce scowl as he halted just inches away from you, his towering figure casting a shadow over you. "Don't call me by my name, It's the Great Explosion Murder God: Dynamight to you. "

Is he genuinely serious? I mean, seriously?

You struggled not to laugh right in his face, but unfortunately, your attempt was futile as a slight snort escaped instead. "I refuse to address you by that fuckass name, you fucking idiot."

"We aren't friends, you don't get to call me by my actual name." He stated flatly.

After briefly scratching a sudden itch at the corner of your eye, a habitual tic of yours, you paused for a moment before resuming your walk. "Alrighty, Dynamight."

Bakugou remained silent, the two of you continued walking together in silence.

You stood in front of your house door, facing away from Bakugou as you rummaged through your purse in search of your keys. The entire walk to your house had been filled with an uncomfortable silence. At this point, you weren't sure if using his real name had genuinely offended him or not.

Once your fingers finally closed around your house keys, you turned around to face him. He stood there, staring back at you with a neutral expression, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Sorry.."

His brows furrowed in confusion. It made your ears feel uncomfortably warm.

"I didn't mean to call you by your real name. I-" Your sentence was abruptly cut off by Bakugou's intense stare, causing you to fall silent.

"Enough." He grumbled. "And don't bother apologizing."

You pressed your lips together, nodding in understanding before turning your back to him once again. In silence, you unlocked your front door.

Just as you were about to step inside, you felt a sudden surge of heat right behind you, causing your entire body to tense up.

"Dy-" You began.

"Bakugou." He interjected.

You turned around, ready to question him, but he was already walking away, his expression unreadable. "Have a goodnight." And with that, he left, leaving you feeling a chill in the air.

"I didn't even get to tell him about the lady." You muttered.

sitting here like:

after writing the last part 😭