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softboywriting · 4 years ago

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Meet The Parents | Billy Russo

Summary: You introduce Billy to your parents and it doesn’t go as well as you hope. [Billy Russo x F!Reader] [Assistant!Reader Trope] [Alternate Timeline - Castle family not mentioned/never happened] [Fluff] [Problematic Parents/Divorced] [Parents Fighting] [Language] [Flirting] [Flashback/Nightmare]

Word Count: 3.8k

A/N: This is a follow up to my first fic Little Moments but can be read separately as a stand alone story. I may be doing several in a series with these two.

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The office is quiet, and has been for the whole day. Billy has been out at a client meeting since you got in. Anvil is becoming quite popular in the private military market, having taken on three new contracts in the last two weeks. You're proud of Billy, he works hard to win over his clients and offer top of the line service. As the primary contact for all contracts and placements, you've gotten busy too. More business means more expenses, and more employees to keep track of. You don't mind, it keeps you active and engaged. There is nothing more you hate than just sitting around staring at the wall or watching cat videos for the billionth time.

"Hey sweetheart."

You glance up from your work and see Billy closing the office door behind him. He's dressed up, black and grey patterned silk shirt, expensive black suit, the tailored jacket over his arm. He looks positively delicious if you do say so. Those shirts are the best thing you ever convinced him to wear.

"Hey yourself. How'd the meeting go?"

"Shitty." He sneers and tosses his jacket on his office chair. He begins unbuttoning the sleeves of his shirt to roll them up to his elbows. "The guy brought his daughter."

"Okay? What does she have to do with anything?"

Billy raises his eyebrows in an 'are you shitting me' expression. "His daughter is a model. Not naturally talented mind you, paid for by her daddy. Clearly he thought havin' her there would sway me into acceptin' the number he offered for the contract you wrote up. Like he's doing me a favor."

You stand and walk around the desk, eyes going up and down his chest. "You didn't do anything did you?"

"What kinda man do you think I am?" Billy walks you back against your desk, pinning you in with his hands on the top behind you. He drops his head to yours and stares at you with those dark endless eyes. "You think I'd fuck around?"

"I know you won't, you're too gone for me." You run your hands up his back and he arches against you. "Did she try?"

"She tried. Even sat on my lap."

"In front of her dad?"

"Mmmhmm." Billy drops his face to your neck and mouths at your skin. "I don't mind a little show and tell but even I got boundaries. Parental peepshows are off limits."

You laugh softly and he brings one hand against your lower back up to pull you against him. "Take it easy. You know the rules. No relationship stuff while I'm on the clock."

He groans, pulling his head back to look at you. "I need to touch you though. I don't want her lingering on me."

"I know." You step out of his hold and he lets his hand drag across your back as you escape his grasp. "Just another hour okay? I've gotta wrap a few things up."

Billy pulls his tie loose and unbuttons the top of his shirt. "Why did I ever make these rules?" He sinks down in his chair and spreads his legs, lolling his head against the back. He really is such a tempting little tease. How could you resist a man like that? Truth be told it's hard.

You take a seat behind your desk and focus your eyes on the invoices on screen. "You made them because you want Anvil to remain professional and not a playground."

"Bullshit."

"Your bullshit."

Billy bites his lip and gives you that look. The one that says he isn't to be messed with, that he's gonna get what he wants no matter what. And oh it's so tempting to get up and go sit on his lap in that chair. It's always been a fantasy of yours. One you haven't gotten to full fill due to his rules. He's really only cockblocking himself.

"C'mere."

"No, Billy."

"C'mon, be bad. Break my rules."

"No! You're such a jerk!" You laugh and he chuckles playfully. "We have dinner with my parents after this anyway. I'm not breaking your rules and getting all messy before we go see my parents. You hear? Parents."

"Always such a good girl."

"You like it."

"Damn right I do." He pushes up out of his chair and crosses the office to cradle your head and press a chaste kiss to your temple. "I'm gonna go home and get ready. Anything you want me to lay out for you? I think you've got a few things at the apartment."

"The blue dress. I picked it up from the cleaners last week with a few suits. It should be in your closet."

"The one I bought you a while back for the client dinner?"

"Yeah."

"Isn't that a little revealing for a parents dinner?"

You raise your eyebrows and he narrows his eyes.

"You're a monster." He presses his lips to your ear. "If you keep teasing me I'll have to put you in your place."

"I guess I'm a glutton for punishment."

"Oh sweetheart, you have no idea what you're askin' for." Billy kisses your cheek and steps away. "Playin' with fire will get you burned."

You smile innocently. "See you later."

"You're terrible." He goes to the door and stops, looking back once more. "But I love you."

"Love you too Billy."

"Ugh," he groans, slapping a hand over his chest. "Say it again."

"Love you?" You giggle and he acts even more dramatic, pretending to swoon against the door. "What are you doing?"

"Being you."

"Wh- you son of a bitch! Get out!" You throw your squishy stress ball at him and he cackles as he runs from the office. What a child.

_____________________

"Oh, this is your boyfriend?" Your mother asks in actual surprise. As if you weren't meant to have a man that looks like Billy Russo. Truth be told you had never dated anyone half as attractive, not to you anyways. "He's so...well dressed."

Billy takes your mom's hand and kisses it politely. "We're all well dressed here ma'am. You look lovely too."

"Thank you." She flushes and giggles.

Billy gives a warm smile and tugs you closer. His hand on your back is radiating heat, its comforting. He knows you're tense. This dinner will be a strain on your nerves and he had been warned how difficult your parents can be.

"Your father should be here soon. I told him not to be late." Mom says huffily, eyeing the doors to the restaurant. You've met up with her outside and you're currently waiting for your dad to arrive. Your parents have been split for ten years and it's been hard, but not as hard as it would have been if they had divorced when you were still a young child. Well, you like to think that anyways. They waited, held on to their shit until you were graduated and old enough to understand that some people don't remain in love.

Billy leans in and presses his lips to your ear. "Are your parents going to fight? This place is very nice, I don't want to cause a scene."

"It'll be fine. They can hold it together for a few hours. I hope. Just don't mention their personal lives. It's a sore spot for mom. Dad isn't single anymore."

"Gotcha."

"Sorry I'm late." You turn and see your dad walking towards you. "Some asshole parked his Rolls Royce just on the line and I hardly squeezed into the only spot open beside it."

Mom scoffs and rolls her eyes. She bites her tongue but you know what she would say. Some comments about his truck being too damn big and a gas guzzler.

Dad puts his hand out for Billy. "You must be the lucky guy!"

Billy takes it and smiles a beautiful, toothy, shit eating grin. "Billy Russo, the asshole who parked his Rolls Royce a bit close to the line."

The way Dad's face turns pale and then red with embarrassment makes the whole evening worthwhile up until then. "That's yours?"

"One hundred percent. Bought and paid for."

"That's a beautiful piece of machinery. Expensive."

Billy leans his head on yours. "I only go for the best."

"Well you know I-"

"Oh shut up already, let's go inside." Mom says and grabs your dad's arm. "Always babbling on about shit when we've got things to do."

"Y'know what-" the conversation fades as your parents head into the restaurant. You're glad. It is bound to be petty anyways. Always was with them. Bickering children they should be called.

"Relax." Billy says in your ear, hand traveling up and down your side. "I can win over your parents for one night."

"You could charm anyone into anything and I've seen as much. You're a silver tongued sn-"

Billy catches your jaw in a light hold and presses a kiss to your lips. Your hand slides up into his hair and he grins into the kiss. "Easy now. We've not even gotten seated yet."

"Your fault."

"Usually is."

____________________

You stare at yourself in the reflection of the bathroom mirror. Dinner wasn't going so great and you had barely made it through an appetizer and drinks.

Your parents couldn't stop arguing, Billy was trying his best to charm them but apparently they're uncharmable, and you were left to play referee for your parents against each other or them against you and Billy.

It is a whole mess and you want to just leave, just walk out say fuck everything and go to Billy's apartment and go to bed. You haven't even had a chance to tease Billy like you were planning, hell, you've barely gotten a word in that wasn't defending him or fielding your parents insults they continuously hurdled over the table at one another.

The door rattles on your left and you clear your throat. "Occupied!" You shout and it stops.

It's a single use bathroom, not a multi-stall type set up. So the person outside would just have to wait until you were done having your crisis. Maybe not so fair to them but you'll be damned if you won't let yourself have a moment.

The handle turns and you back into the sink as the door opens. To your surprise it is Billy, not some worker with a key. "What the-"

"Your parents are insufferable. How the hell did you grow up with them? I mean I was in a group home and a few of the adults weren't great but holy shit they weren't my parents."

"I'm sorry."

Billy closes the door and shakes his head, taking your hands in his. "Don't be sorry for their actions. Never apologize for anyone but yourself."

"I knew this would happen. I just thought that maybe...I don't know...maybe they'd be different. Maybe they'd be proud of me, of you, so they would get along for two fucking hours."

"Sweetheart, you're nearly thirty, you're still seeking your parents approval?"

You laugh joylessly and bite the inside of your cheek. "You don't understand. You can't understand."

Billy brings your forehead to his lips and he rubs your back. He's always so affectionate with you, careful to hold and to love you like a man who never received it himself so he wants to make sure those he loves receives it tenfold.

"I understand seeking approval, but there is nothing you need approval for. You're an adult with a good job, a place to stay, an outstanding boyfriend with his own company. I'd say you're doin' alright honey."

You let out an actual little laugh, and he does too, bumping his nose against yours. "You're so full of yourself."

"You like that?" He bumps again, eyes on yours. "I said it to get you to giggle."

"You know it's a little true."

His lips meet yours in a warm tender kiss. "Confidence is sexy."

"It is."

"I could tell your parents there's a work emergency." He slides his hands over your ass and pulls you flush against him. "A real pain in the ass employee is causin' trouble."

You smile into his lips and he smiles back. "Oh yeah?"

"Mmhmm."

He chuckles softly and cradles your head to his chest. "You can't choose how your family acts. Remember that. It's up to you to decide how you act, and if you want to deal with them."

"I know."

"Do you?" He runs a hand over your hair, tangling his fingers in the strands briefly.. "I know it's different for you, I can distance myself easier since I didn't grow up with proper parents. Maybe I'm cold, or indifferent but-"

"Stop." You dig your fingers into his side and he falls quiet. "Don't compare your childhood to mine. It's not fair. I don't want you to begin resenting me because-"

Billy gives you a look that is all warning and it silences you instantly. "I would never resent you for having parents and growing up like a normal kid should. I ended up in a shit situation and that is no one's fault but my own mother's. She is the only person I will ever resent." He softens, leaning in and kissing your nose. "Do you wanna ditch or go try to make something of this dinner?"

You swallow harshly and look at the door. Ditching would be easy, but the repercussions would be insufferable. Your mom would never stop calling about it, your dad would hold it over your head forever. It would be more of a disaster to leave than it would be to stay. No matter how valid the reason.

"We'll stay. I can try and redirect the conversation."

"That's my girl." He pats your cheek. "Proud of you."

"T-thanks."

Billy takes your hand and interlocks your fingers with his. "I'll take care of it. I can get them to shut up."

"If you can get a word in."

"I have my ways. Don't worry."

You cut him a look as you exit the bathroom and head for the table. "What are you-"

"Don't worry." He presses against your ear and guides you down to sit at the table.

Your parents are still bickering.

"Hey!" Billy says firmly with his hands on the table, not a yell, but enough to get his point across and the attention of your parents but not many others.

"Yes?" Mom asks surprisingly quietly.

Billy smiles and it's all venom, beautiful venom. You know this look, these eyes, that deadly grin. He isn't fucking around and the way he can express that so physically subtly astounds you. "The arguing is going to stop. The petty comments are going to stop. We're going to sit here and have conversations like adults, or you can leave and your daughter and I will have a nice dinner."

"Wh-" Dad starts but doesn't get any further.

"I am not goin' to repeat myself." Billy stands up straight and raises his eyebrows, daring your parents to say another word. The tension is thick, you can hardly breathe. Never did you think you'd have to witness Billy being like this with your parents of all people.

You grab a roll from the basket at the center of the table and pick at it. "How's work been, Dad?"

Dad clears his throat. "Good, busy. People always need an electrician for something. I did a school the other day, new classroom."

Billy sits beside you and lays his hand on your leg, thumb stroking your skin gently. He leans in and whispers "I told you don't worry." He turns his attention back to your parents. "So you're an electrician? Contractor?"

"Yeah, I work for Mundun Electric. Union job, pays well."

"And you?" Billy looks to your mom.

"I'm a medical receptionist. Clarke Center Hospital."

Billy smiles. "That's incredible. You're both hardworking people it seems, I see where she gets her work ethic. She's incredible, the best I've hired for Anvil."

You chew your lip and look down, flushed. "You're just being nice."

"I'm serious." He holds your hand up and kisses your knuckles. "I admire your dedication and the hard work you've put into making Anvil a success. Without you, I don't know where I'd be. Probably buried in paperwork."

"So you work for Billy? That's how you met?" Mom asks and you nod.

Dad raises his eyebrows.

"Dad, don't start."

Billy cuts a glare at your dad. "Don't start what?"

"Nothing." Dad says nonchalantly, eyes going to somewhere else in the room. "I just think inter-workplace relationships are never a good idea."

You squeeze Billy's hand and he just smiles oh so sweetly. "Dad, it's fine. Billy and I are both professionals. If things don't work out we'll make it work for the sake of the company."

"He'll fire you and you'll be looking for a job yet again." Mom pipes up, rolling her eyes. "See, things like this are why you can't hold a career."

"Mom!"

"Alright." Billy says firmly. "We're done here. Ma'am, sir, with all due respect you can both go fuck yourselves."

"Excuse me!?" Dad bellows and your mom looks flustered at the use of language. "You have no right-!"

"Actually I do." Billy stands and guides you to stand with him. "I'm going to love and care about your daughter the way she should be. You two are self absorbed monsters who should have never had a child, let alone forced the one you had to live through a loveless marriage. The fact that you cannot manage to sit here and have dinner with her and myself, which mind you has left quite a first impression, is sad and disappointing."

You grab his hand and you're shaking. You don't even know what to say. It's like Billy is telling them everything you've wanted to for your whole life.

"C'mon sweetheart." He puts his arm around you and guides you out of the restaurant. You know there are people staring but it's fine. It's over now.

"I'm s-"

"Uh uh." Billy puts his finger to your lips. "No apologies. Here." He shrugs his suit jacket off and puts it around your shoulders.

"Thanks."

"You wanna get out of here before your parents come out. Go get some burgers or something?"

You can't help the little smile that tugs at the corner of your mouth. "Pete's Diner?"

"Anywhere you like." He takes your hand and walks you toward the parking area. "Fuck this fancy bullshit anyway. I never understood the food they serve."

"Me neither. A hamburger and fries with a big ole pickle is good enough for me."

Billy opens the passenger door for you. "You're a girl after my heart y'know that?"

"I think I already have it."

He leans in and kisses your forehead. "That's for damn sure."

_____________________

Midnight you wake up crying. A nightmare, a reoccurring one as it would be. Though it is more of a twisted memory than a nightmare in actuality.

You are always around seven or eight years old, it's nighttime, you've been in bed for an hour and still not asleep. Downstairs your parents are awake, their disembodied voices float through the old floors. Their voices grow louder, shouting, screaming at each other. A glass shatters and you crawl under the bed. Footsteps come closer in the hall, heavy and slow.

The dream shifts. You're not a child but an adult. Under the bed is smaller now, the footsteps grow louder. The door opens and you scream when your foot is grabbed and you wake up crying.

"What's wrong?" Billy asks, sitting up in bed abruptly and turning on the light, hand instinctively going for the nightstand where you know a weapon is stored.

You had stayed the night, both of you decided it was best to stay together while you decompress from your tragic meet the parents dinner. Didn't matter in the end though. The nightmare still came.

"Just a bad dream. I'm going to get some water." You push back the blankets and plant your feet on the cold floor. It's a nice shock to the system, reminding you this is reality.

Billy's arm snakes around your waist. "Care to share with the class?"

"It's nothing. Just a nonsense dream about old crap."

"Your parents?"

"Yeah. Um, just a dream." You yawn and pat his hand on top of your stomach. "I need water."

"Grab me a bottle?"

"Sure."

You end up in the kitchen, looking out at the New York skyline. His place is so beautiful. It's luxurious, and you can't get used to it. You lean on the island and sip a bottle of cold water from the fridge. You don't think you belong here.

Then the dream comes creeping back in. Rationally you know that dream is never going to become a reality. Not with Billy around.

"Hey."

You look back to see Billy walking in with his sleep pants low on his hips. He scrubs a hand over his face before meeting you at the island.

"Sorry, I just got caught up in the view."

"It s'okay." His arms wrap around you and he presses his face to your neck. "I love you." He whispers softly into your skin.

"Are you alright?"

"Mmm."

You thread a hand into his hair and scratch at his scalp. It elicits a hum that's nearly a purr against your back. "Do you ever feel like you don't deserve this? Like everyday you can't comprehend that you're loved."

"I didn't think I could fall in love before I met you, yeah. I'm familiar."

"Oh."

"Wasn't expecting that?" He chuckles, flexing his fingers against your tummy.

You shake your head and he kisses along your jaw. "Billy, stop," you giggle as his short beard tickles your skin.

"No way." He starts walking you back away from the island counter and toward the bedroom. "I've got a disease and if I don't kiss you all the time I'll definitely succumb to it."

The two of you tumble onto the bed and he straddles your hips, mouthing at your neck and chest relentlessly.

"It's three in the morning. We need to go back to sleep."

Billy hums and settles on top of you, nose in your hair. "Sleep is for the weak."

"Then I'm weak." You trail a hand up his back, fingers flitting over his shoulder blade. His skin is so soft, so warm. "Thank you by the way."

"For what?"

"Being here when I had a nightmare."

"Of course." Billy pets your hair, stroking it down against the pillow. "I've suffered my share of them alone. I'm glad you were here so you weren't."

"Me too."

"Go to sleep." He kisses your cheek and rolls off to the side. His arm curls around you and pulls you close. "Love you."

"Love you too."

_____________________

*****Note: none of my works should be posted anywhere outside of my linked accounts. I do not give permission to repost with or without credit to my accounts. Please notify me of any reposted works.*****

Header image by delicate-venus

Thank you so much for reading, please reblog to support content creators. -A

#billy russo #the punisher series #the punisher #the punisher netflix #billy russo x reader #ben barnes characters #the punisher fic #billy russo fic #billy russo fanfic

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intercoursefluids · 4 years ago

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The Impromptu Sleepover Part 1

“Alright! The adults are asleep what do you guys want to do?”

Alya being Alya, decided to take over the sleepover to celebrate Marinette’s friends finally realizing (or in most cases finally speaking up) about Lila’s lies.

“Swordfight!”

“Movie Marathon!”

“Let’s play truth or dare!”

Different ideas all resound from the girls currently huddled in Marinette’s room, all the boys trying to pretend they didn’t exist.

Only nine people were there, Adrien had wanted to come to the sleepover, but his dad wouldn’t let him.

These 10 were the only ones from her class to come back to her and apologize once they realized who the real victim was.

Marinette almost couldn’t believe her eyes when Alix, Alya, Kagami, Chloe, Nino, Kim, Max, Nathaniel, and Marc came up to her asking for her back.

The only ones who had actually believed Lila’s lies were Alya, Max, and Nathaniel but the others still apologized for not speaking out for her.

This group apology and cry session that immediately followed ended up with them holding a sleepover to celebrate their reconnection.

One thing Marinette forgot about though. Was the fact that Chat Noir would come to hang out with her on Fridays.

Which is why, when pebbles started hitting her window. She damn near had a heart attack when everyone else noticed immediately stopping their conversations.

“Mari, Love, Darling dearest. Who, might I ask, is throwing pebbles at your window?”

Every single one of her friends look at her with shit-eating grins as Kim blinks up innocently at her like he didn't just confirm for everyone there was in fact someone outside throwing a rock at her window.

Persistently.

With a deep sigh, Marinette grabs a lightsaber and spray bottle from the back of her closet.

"Alya, I am giving you permission to film this. I am NOT, however, to post this to any social media, and no one except for those in this room are to ever see the footage unless I give explicit permission otherwise. Understand?"

Alya nods frantically pulling out her phone as she and Marinette climb up to the balcony.

"Oh, Romeo Oh Romeo. Where art tho Romeo?"

Chat Noirs sarcastic call sounds from below with a bouquet of Alstroemeria, Amaryllis, and Blue Irises.

Alya hides behind the railing, just out of Chat Noir's sight as she films the interaction.

With a deep sigh, Marinette turns to Chat with regret and sorrow written all across her face, making Chat pause.

"Princess? What's the matter-"

"I'm sorry Chat Noir. But it's over."

The stricken look on his face almost makes Marinette feel sorry for him.

Almost.

"I don't understand? Did I do something wrong?"

With another deep sigh, Marinette runs a hand over her face.

"It's over Chat."

Faking tears, Marinette ever so slowly pulls the lightsaber from behind her back turning it on making the red illuminate half her face.

"I have the high ground."

Marinette sniffles for good measure as Alya finally catches on. Turning her phone back to Chat to see him looking like he was about to cry before it finally clicks.

His face goes blank as he stares up at one of his best friends.

"I hate you so much."

Marinette cackles as he pulls out his baton, stretching up to her balcony to be face to face with her.

"I can't believe that guy calls you 'Angel'. Your halo hides your horns too well and- Ladyblogger? What are you doi- Eep!"

He cuts off abruptly as Marinette squirts him in the face with the spray bottle making him reel back with a yowl.

In his haste to get away, he knocks himself off balance starting to fall over backward until Marinette grabs his bell yanking him forward.

"Okay, that is it! I'm going home and I'm telling Ladybug you're picking on me."

Marinette wheezes, trying to get her breath back and just giving up. Climbing down her skylight to collapse in a pile of giggles.

Chat and Alya both follow her down. Alya pushing her off her bed so Kim has to catch her before she hits the floor.

"Please Alya. PLEASE, tell me you got his reaction on film."

Alya smirks showing the video currently saving to her phone.

"Of course I did. Now we have a new guest here now assuming that Chat wants to stay for the sleepover."

Chat's eyes widen, looking every part the excited kitten.

"Can I?! I've never been to a sleepover before!"

All of the girls gasp in horror, surrounding Chat as they search through drawers and Marinette's closet.

Marinette, always one step ahead, runs to chat.

"Go in the bathroom, detransform put these on, and come back out. I'm assuming your Kwami eats camembert cheese since you constantly smell like it. I swear no one here is going to find out your identity or even try if they don't want me to put them on blast with all of the dirt I have on them. Now go!"

Chat is shoved into the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind him. Doing as he is told in fear of Marinette, Chat detransforms catching Plagg as he cackles in the air.

"Oh, I like her! She'd make a great kitten, with how easy it is for her to cause chaos, just how I like it!."

Shaking his head at his cackling Kwami as he got dressed. Putting the mask Marinette made him on trying it securely around his head. Stepping out to find Marinette coming back with a LARGE tray of food and everyone else huddled around Alya's phone.

Chat can't help the startled yelp he lets out when Alix pulls him down to her, gently petting his hair as she glares at Marinette.

"You're a monster Marinette. How could you do that to him?! Look at his face! His little baby face! He looked heartbroken!"

Marinette snorts at the playful scolding.

"Let him go, Alix. Go find your own stray."

Alix snorts as Marinette pulls a blushing Chat to her hugging him close. Marinette sits down dragging him with her as he buries his face in her hair. Too embarrassed to speak.

He doesn't have a babyface. Does he?

"Awe come on Mari, you found the cutest one the least you could do is share him!"

Everyone laughs as Kim makes a grab for Chat just for Marinette to pull him closer to her.

"Noooooo, this is MY alley cat! Go find your own!"

Chat Noir would never admit how hard he had to fight down his purr when Marinette started petting his hair.

You know. Before he lost that battle and a purr sounded loudly through his chest.

"Please stop. It's not fair and you're embarrassing me. Mariiiiii! Stooooooop."

Everyone laughs when Chat complains for Marinette to stop, even as he starts to melt into a puddle on her lap.

"One of these days I'm going to tell M'lady on you and she's gonna dangle you from the Eiffel Tower."

Now, under normal circumstances, everyone would be worried, but it's hard to be serious when one of Paris's superheroes is melted in a puddle in your friend's lap with a purr so loud it's hard to understand him.

"I'm pretty sure Ladybug would dangle YOU from the Eiffel Tower for being in a girls room this late, without letting her parents know. Even more, so that you detransformed in front of us. Still want to tell Ladybug on Marinette?"

Everyone turns to Marc, Nathaniel's adorable spouse as they radiate badassery.

Chat's purr stutters before starting up just as loudly again.

"I will no longer be telling M'lady."

Marinette snorts leaning back on her chaise as Chat adjusts himself so he's laying between her legs with his head on her stomach. Facing the rest of the class as Marinette plays with his hair.

"Are you guys dating?"

"Of course they are Cesaire. Ridiculous-!"

"Utterly ridiculous!" "Ew! No!"

Are the two different responses that cut Chloe off. The group finishing Chloe's catchphrase as Marinette and Chat Noir look at the rest of the class in disgust.

"Okay, first of all. Chat what the HELL do you mean 'ew'? Marinette is a babe, and everyone in this room has had a crush on her at least once before. How dare you say 'ew' like you would never date her you would be incredibly lucky if she even considered you."

Alya states with a finger in Chat's face.

Alix, Alya, Kagami, Chloe, Max, Kim, Nathaniel, Marc, and Nino all looking incredibly offended for Marinette even as she blushes and tries to hide her face.

"Guys, stop! And what do you mean all of you? Half of you are dating each other!"

Chat snickers at her distress, pulling out his burner phone and snapping a picture of her face.

"Okay, there may or may not be a literal 'Queen Marinette Club" or 'QMC' for short. We even have several social media accounts dedicated to giving you the credit you deserve. Before you ask this started that one time we went to Gotham and you answered all of the Riddler's riddles and yelled at Nightwing and Robin for their poor fashion choices and called Batman a furry when he tried to stop you."

Surprisingly Nathaniel is the one who answers instead of Alya as she pulls out her phone.

"We didn't even start the club! It was some people in Gotham who did. Max is the one who found out about it."

Sweet Marc, sweet sweet Marc never knowing when to stop before Marinette popped a blood vessel from blushing so hard.

"Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Cat Woman, The Riddler, the entire Batfamily (Batman included), and even some of the Waynes follow the accounts. Not to mention the other celebrities you've befriended like Mr. Stone and Ms. Nightingale."

Max reads off of his phone, seemingly proud of Marinette's followers.

"Even my mom follows you, Mari. That says something."

Chat looks up cackling as Marinette tries to suffocate herself with a pillow, Plagg rolling around on her hair as he clutches his stomach.

"Dang! Pigtails has some, what's it called? Clout! You're famous, kitten!"

Marinette whimpers from behind the pillow, her face practically radiating heat.

Chat snorts before turning back to the group.

"Number one I am well aware that Marinette is awesome and that I would be the luckiest man in the world to have her as my girlfriend. However, she's basically my little sister, same as Ladybug. Sorry to burst your bubble, Alya. Number two, she already has a boyfriend, has for a little over a year now, and he scares me. I am not testing if I really have nine lives cause he would take all of them. Number three, can you show me the 'QMC' accounts I want to follow them."

The room is silent as Marinette glares at Chat.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that? Princess? It's not like this is new informa-! They didn't know did they?"

Marinette reaches under her, pulling out a very nice-looking dagger from under the cushions of her chaise.

"Say goodbye to eight of your lives Chat. I need a new black fur hat."

Chat yelps scampering away from Marinette on all fours as she lunges for him with Plagg chasing after them laughing.

They keep running around the room until they pass Kim and he reaches out and grabs Marinette, trapping her in his arms.

"Okay, nice knife. Not sure where you got it nor do I want to know. Second of all, what's this about a boyfriend?"

Everyone surrounds her as Alix pulls the dagger from her hands putting it back under the cushions.

"Why haven't we heard of any boyfriend? Are you out of your mind?"

Alya's calm tone is very misleading as Chat hides behind her.

"He didn't want anyone to know just in case people claim for me to be a gold digger. Scratch that, I didn't want anyone to know so he didn't get sued for assault if anyone called me a gold digger and he found out."

Chat snorts.

"Yeah, you, definitely a gold digger. You know, since you didn't even realize who he was for the first 5 or 6 months of your relationship."

Marinette's glare does nothing as a blush covers her face.

"We don't speak of it Chat. I can and will still skin you."

Everyone looks at Marinette in shock.

"Okay, so all we know is that they are a he. He is rich enough to make people assume Marinette, Marinette of all people, is a gold digger and they are in a secret relationship. Who is it?"

Max looks up from his phone, where he is no doubt taking notes.

Marinette looks at the ground mumbling something that no one but Chat can make out thanks to his super hearing. He laughs and walks over to her phone unlocking it as Marinette finally answers.

"Damian Wayne."

Everyone looks at Marinette in a mix of shock and confusion before Chloe bursts out laughing.

"Only you Marinette. Only you would get over your crush on a millionaire heir to fall for a literal billionaire heir without even realizing it."

She breaks off into hysterical laughter as everyone turns to chat who is now on Marinette's computer connected to her phone as a facetime call takes place.

It answers on the second ring to someone who is most definitely NOT Damian Wayne.

"Hey Pixie Pop! Sorry, but I had to steal the phone from demon spawn. He was trying to kill me and Dick with a spoon and lunged for his phone as soon as it started ringing. Me and Dick were closer so we grabbed it and are now trying to find somewhere to hide so he doesn't actually kill us. Dick wanna say 'Hi'?"

Everyone hears a shout of 'sure' from someone out of the frame before the phone is passed over to someone who looks much like the first, except they are older and have no white streak in their hair.

"Hey, nettie! How's school?"

Chat smirks, covering Marinette's mouth as she tries to reply. A door slams shut as the two guys hunker in the near darkness, a lock clicking into place.

"School is great thanks for asking. Could be better but we are all getting by."

Two faces appear on screen looking a mix between worried and angry.

"I swear to god if you are holding Pixie Pop for ransom you will have the rage of all of Gotham fall upon you."

Chat just looks confused before remembering that he's wearing a mask and is holding Marinette's mouth shut.

"Oh! No, I'm not holding her hostage, we're friends. Chat Noir, Parisian superhero at your service. I just wanted to prank her boyfriend, she's having a sleepover and I was invited."

Their expressions immediately relax.

"Oh good. I was worried about what would happen when everyone else found out. Especially Damian."

Both boys shudder and smile as everyone else in the room comes into the frame.

One of them opens their mouth to speak before a loud bang comes from the door. Two equal looks of fear take over their faces.

A second later a loud bang fills the air as the door basically explodes open, high-pitched screams of terror fill the air before all is silent a new face filling to screen.

"Sorry Habibti, my brothers are imbeciles with death wishes. What do you need?"

"Wow, Habibti? I didn't know you felt that way about me Damian, or should I give you a pet name too?"

Chat's grin SCREAMS mischief, as Damian looks down an ice-cold glare in place.

"Let go of my girlfriend before I fly down there and skin you alive regardless of her wishes."

Everyone shivers at the pure venom in Damian's voice as Chat lets go holding his hands up in the air as he grins.

"Sorry, sorry. Letting go."

Marinette and Damian both glare at him before turning to each other, both looks immediately softening.

"Sorry, Shaytan. I'm having a sleepover and Chat outed our relationship and decided it would be funny to call you."

His smile is so gentle it shocks the rest of Marinette's friends.

"Don't worry, it's not your fault the Cat is a moron. I miss you. When do you think you can come back?"

Both of them choose to ignore Chats highly offended 'Hey!' as well as everyone else in the room with Marinette.

"That depends on when you want me there and when I can catch a flight."

Damian sits down at a table pulling a laptop to him as he sets up his phone so she can still see him.

"Well I want you here now, and I can have you a flight soon enough if I ask Father to get the family jet ready. If I work fast I can have you here by tomorrow morning, if not sooner."

Marinette looks shocked.

"You can't just ask your Father to get a plane ready just for me Damian!"

He glances back at the phone before going back to his computer.

"Why not? Everyone here loves you and if you're worried about the cost of it I can assure you a single minute of your time is worth far more than a measly plane ride."

Kim and Alya make cooing noises at the two from the sweetness of it all as Kagami steps up wrapping her arms protectively around her.

"Before you make any more trip plans you are going to tell me what you plan to do with Marinette in the future. I will not allow her to be some temporary girlfriend if you aren't serious about her."

Damian turns back to the phone looking past Marinette to acknowledge the others for the first time since the call started.

"I can assure you I don't want Marinette to be temporary. I plan to marry her and I truly couldn't care less if any of you have a problem with it."

Marinette's face invents a new shade of red as everyone coos over how cute that is. After getting over their initial shock of course.

"Habibti, do you want them to be able to come with you next time you come over? I can have father speak to their parents if they don't agree right away."

"Are you sure that would be okay?"

Marinette's timid voice makes Damian look away from his computer.

"Why wouldn't it be? If you don't want them to come with you then they don't have to, I know that you have some trouble with a few of your classmates. Seeing how late it is there I would have thought these were the ones who didn't turn on you or came back once they realized how idiotic they were to leave in the first place."

"Rude, but true."

Damian chooses to ignore Alya.

"No I would like for them to come, it could be fun! I'm just worried about space and where everyone would sleep."

Damian snorts.

"You have nothing to worry about, if you don't want them to stay in a hotel they can stay with us in the manor, there's plenty of space. And if there isn't enough space you can just sleep with me in my room."

He finishes off with a cheeky grin as Marinette sputters.

"You can't just say stuff like that Damian! It was bad enough that you said you planned to marry me, you don't need to add sharing a bed to the pile!"

Damian has the audacity to look confused.

"What do you mean? I never hid my plans to marry you nor my feelings, I don't get what the big deal is about sharing a bed anyway. It's not like Alfred would let us do anything and we wouldn't even have the chance with the circus monkeys I call brothers."

Several offended voices with 'I heard that!' 'Excuse me?' and 'You love us and you know it!'s all sound from his end.

Alix and Kim are basically collapsed onto each other as they wheeze at his bluntness.

Marinette sighs resting her head on her hands with a 'why do I even bother?' before looking up again.

"Fine, how is next weekend for everyone. I know Adrien will want to be included and I don't think he has anything going then. It will give me enough time to convince everyone's parents if need be and pack."

Everyone agrees and they end the call. Damian and Marinette saying their respective I love yous and Goodnight/Good mornings.

"I'm going to duel him."

"Kagami NO!"

Kagami looks Marinette dead in the eyes before smiling.

"Kagami yes."

#maridami #daminette #marinette x batfam #dc x mlb #Fluff interactions

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achubbydumpling · 3 years ago

Note

Form your previous tags: "Nomad Steve fucks you from behind with his belly brushing the small of your back" 👀🥴

I feel like Bucky would love this increasingly chubby Steve visiting him in Wakanda and doing exactly that.

aww you actually read what I ramble about in the tags (on this post) 🥺

also I think I should rename my chubtober to "catching up with asks"-tober because that's like all I've been doing 😂 anyway I'm using a wild card prompt for this one even though I have ideas for the actual prompt of Goosebumps and Chills, (I'm just too tired to write anything new right now 😅)

Oct 4: Bulging Bellies and Love Handles

so, yess absolutely Bucky would love it

"I thought you were smaller," Bucky says when he sees Steve for the first time after cryo

Steve has filled out a bit, his waist was visibly thicker, he looks sturdy in his suit, strong, robust, grounded in a way despite the uncertainty radiating off him

Steve had spent the last few weeks in Wakanda after Shuri told him, she had a plan on how to undo the trigger words

but the Wakandan food was not entirely to blame for his weight gain

Steve has one vice: he has a massive sweet tooth

pre-serum he'd never been able to indulge in it the way he wanted because too much sugar made him sick

but then while worrying about Bucky and if Shuri's plan would work he'd eaten every sugary thing in sight

milk puddings and fried dough, hard candies, toasted waffles for breakfast, lunch and dinner when he first discovered them, full-sized candy bars hidden in all his pockets, even though they're always slightly melted from a combination of his increased body temperature and the hot weather

so yes Bucky can tell that Steve gained a bit of weight when he sees him again

the first time Bucky sees Steve he's wearing the nomad suit and it does a pretty good job of hiding the way his belly is puffing up and starting to actually curve out even when he isn't full from a day of eating

Steve gets to stay with Bucky in Wakanda for a week before an emergency means he has to leave for a few days, which turns into a few weeks

when Steve comes back after three weeks the suit is struggling a bit more to hide the new chub he's accumulated

the mission turned out way less physically demanding than expected and Steve had spent most of his days eating while listening to the bugs they'd planted on the target

the bit of softness around his middle has turned into an actual belly when Steve returns to Wakanda

his gut is still contained pretty well by his suit, even though it had been harder and harder to put on with every new pound

Bucky isn't sure if it's just a trick of the light though, the material seems to be straining more to contain Steve, but Bucky isn't sure if that's actually the case or if it's just wishful thinking

the only way to know is to get Steve out of that suit

Bucky wants to take his time, but when he goes to unbuckle Steve's belt he can't help, but notice that it's on its last notch

and once he's unbuckled the belt, he can see the buttons on Steve's trousers straining to stay closed and the fabric pulled tight over his thighs

excitemet bubbles up in Bucky's chest like a kid on Christmas he's unwrapping his present without any care for the wrapping paper

when Bucky pulls the trousers over Steve's thick thighs he can hear the seams creaking in protest

but it doesn't matter when Steve is just as eager to get out of his clothes

he kicks his boots off while Bucky works on removing the armour on Steve's upper body

when he finally finds the zipper, Bucky can't help but trace his fingers over it, the zipper is absolutely straining to stay closed

Bucky barely touches the zipper and it starts opening on it's own, Steve's gut surges forward

how did Steve even manage to close the zipper this morning? how did it stay closed the entire day?

(haha I'm just picturing this fanart, chunky hunk Steve :D)

Bucky goes absolutely wild for the belly, he's been imagining for weeks what Steve will look like after gaining more weight

he did not anticipate an actual belly that's already starting to get a bit of an overhang, the soft underside in contrast with his rounder and more firm upper belly

and normally when they haven't seen eachother for some time, they're all sweet with eachother the first time back, lots of eye contact and whispered confessions of how much they missed each other

but this time Bucky is on the bed presenting his ass like a bitch in heat before Steve can even ask what's gotten into him because Bucky is that feral for Steve right now

Steve quickly gets with the program, he's barely a knuckle deep in Bucky before he can't help himself but tease a bit about Bucky's eagerness

"What's got you going like this? Hm, the beard?"

Steve is draped Bucky's back, practically rubbing his face all over the back of Bucky's neck with his belly resting on his lower back

"The hair?" Steve asks and grinds against Bucky, pressing his middle even harder against his back

Bucky pushes himself back against Steve, he shakes his head, but instead of an actual answer Steve forces a low groan out of him when he pushes another lubed up finger inside him

"What is it then?" Steve asks, almost casually dragging his dick between Bucky's cheeks and over his own fingers, buried in Bucky's hole, like he's not just as desperate to fill Bucky up

"Need you," is all Bucky can say, he adds a breathy, "please"

Bucky doesn't have to ask twice, Steve pulls his fingers out slowly and before Bucky can whine about the loss, Steve pushes right back in with his dick

the stretch sets nerve endings on fire all the way up his body and Bucky collapses forward from leaning on his elbow to his chest being flush with the bed, his hand is fisted into the sheets

Steve goes slow, but Bucky keeps slightly circling his hips, not pushing back, but moving just enough that Steve wants to grab his hips and pull Bucky onto his dick

when he finally bottoms out, Steve sits up from where he had been leaning on Bucky

but even with his back straight Bucky can still feel the ghost of Steve's belly on his his lower back

Bucky is about to tell Steve just that when he starts moving

he pulls out slightly and the movement send tiny sparks of pleasure flying, that turn any current sentence into an appreciative groan

he doesn't think he'll last very long tonight, but he isn't too worried about it because Steve is on the same page as him

his fingers are doing into Bucky's hips and he pulls Bucky back as much as he drives his hips forward

and every time Steve buries himself in Bucky, he can feel Steve's belly on his lower back, just barely there, but definitely brushing over his skin there

Bucky can't take it much longer, he's half lying on his chest and shoulder, his neck is at a slightly awkward angle as he snakes his hand down his front and wraps it tightly around his own cock

he intends to hold himself off from coming right away, but as soon as he gets his hand on himself, Bucky starts fucking into it with the same rhythm Steve is setting

"Steve," he mewls and of course Steve understands right away

"Just a bit longer, baby." He picks up his pace and really starts slamming into Bucky, the filthy noise of Steve's hips slapping against Bucky's ass make him moan with every thrust

"'m so close, a little longer, Buck" Steve keeps repeating the last part

and hearing his name in Steve's lips as he falls apart, just drives Bucky closer to the edge

Bucky meets Steve's next thrust and instead of pulling back again Steve falls forward and drives himself as deeply into Bucky as he can

his entire weight is resting on Bucky's back and his soft belly is pressed against Bucky's back

Steve comes with a shout and Bucky actively starts jerking himself off to follow over that edge just a few moments later

they stay like that for a minute, just coming back to themselves and enjoying the closeness before they become aware of the sticky sweat on their bodies drying

Steve drags his face over the back of Bucky's neck like a cat and purrs into his ear, "so, it is the belly"

#asks #chubby steve #chubby nomad Steve #this is a bit messy and all over the place #but basically yes Bucky loves increasingly chubby nomad!Steve :D #(also I've been reading a lot of omegaverse.. but like 'bitch in heat'? too good 🥵)#so it's in here don't judge~

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rvmmm21 · 4 years ago

Text

[ V V S her diamonds ] – ch 05.

[10:10 a.m] Joohyun turns over, rustling the sheets like autumn leaves. She sleepily buries her face into the warmth of a sky-blue Chrome Hearts hoodie.

. . . . .

Seungwan looks up from the sink and over to the living room. Her head still pounds a little but the Ibuprofen seems to be kicking in. A soft smile traces her lips as she sees who’s asleep on the sofa. It really sucks that they’re both such hardworking students who’d rather be an hour late to a class than miss it, because it’s surely a crime to disturb someone so at peace they’re almost glowing in the sun’s morning rays.

And if the rumours are true, It’s also probably a crime to have her here at all. Seungwan thinks of all the ways she could get arrested for harbouring gangster daughters of mob leaders but ends up losing herself in the composition of Joohyun’s sleeping face.

Even her friends believed that whole dumb ‘secret gangster life’, but Seungwan doesn’t recall gangsters tossing and turning with such fluffy bed hair, looking so cute and tiny in her favourite oversized hoodie.

Joohyun rouses to the sound of gentle clinking and running water.

The faint scent of alcohol and detergent seeps into her nose and she yawns, trying to engulf herself in the toasty heat radiating across her body from– not her hoodie. Glancing down, she realises she doesn’t own the waffle beige pajama pants currently hugging her legs either.

Oh?

Suddenly feeling embarrassed, the older girl shifts off the sofa and grabs her own denim shorts from the floor beside her.

Minutes later, socked feet pad over to the girl in the kitchen, elbow-deep in sudsy water. Seungwan acts surprised when Joohyun hops onto the counter next to the sink.

“Morning, unnie,” she chirps, “did you sleep well?”

Joohyun hums an affirmative and nothing more, but the other girl already senses the multitude of questions running through her head.

“It’s okay, unnie,” she laughs sheepishly, causing an eyebrow to perk up. She gestures to the hoodie swallowing Joohyun’s petite frame. “I didn’t see anything, I swear. I even let you choose which of my pants you wanted.”

“Oh,” comes the reply. “What happened? Kinda hard to remember.”

Seungwan just smiles down. “I wouldn’t be surprised, unnie. You really went ham last night. I didn’t think you had it in you. It was fun to watch.”

Joohyun scoffs, running delicate fingers through disheveled waves. She pauses to watch the younger rinsing out the empty Hite Jinro bottles and stacking them upside down on the dish rack. “Why did you let me sleep? I could– I should’ve gone home.”

The girl shoots a quick glance in her direction, eyes widening at the way Joohyun’s bare thighs press together in her line of sight. She gulps and flutters a few blinks, shifting her attention back to the glass and sponge. “It– it wasn’t safe so late, even for a cab. It’s fine though,” she quickly adds, “Seul’s bus only arrives this evening, and Yerimie texted this morning saying she ate through Saeron’s fridge so she’s coming home tonight. So it wasn’t like you were intruding or anything.”

Joohyun suppresses a slight grin at the girl’s rosy ears. She plucks a freshly rinsed glass from Seungwan’s slippery grip.

“How do you get these so sparkly, Wan?” She inspects it like an artefact, completely changing the pace and throwing the junior off guard. “You could sell this to a museum, I bet.”

“I’m a barista, remember? It’s kinda the other third of my job.” Seungwan chuckles at the thought of her scratched up Ikea glasses in glass displays of their own, with fanatics fawning and taking pictures.

She racks the last glass and dries her hands. “Come on, unnie. We’re running a bit late. I know you can’t function without your caffeine so it’ll have to be campus coffee today.”

Joohyun’s eyes double in size and she claps. “Really? Wow I love that–”

Seungwan whips around to narrow her eyes.

“–you’re willing to lower your standards for me.”

“Thought so.”

. . . . .

[1:00 p.m] Son Seungwan stares at her strawberry-cream sandwich as her brain flicks through memories of last night.

. . . . .

“Yah,” Yerim fakes a punch right at Seungwan’s face, immediately flinging the girl from her spiraling thoughts. “Hell-o? Son Seung-wan re-port to base im-me-di-ate-ly,” she announces robotically, mimicking speaking into a walkie talkie.

“Huh? Yerimie?”

Yerim rolls her eyes. “ Finally. You good? You’ve been spaced out since lit this morning.”

She doesn’t get to ask why she saw her and Joohyun stumbling in through the fire exit twenty minutes late before three people– including the very person in question– are making their way over to the table.

Two trays set down on either side of Seungwan and one beside Yerim. They try not to drool at the sight of the fancy dishes; grilled beef simmered in sukiyaki broth, steaming chicken curry rice, golden-brown battered tempura udon accompanied by side snacks like cubed fruit and matcha ice cream. And don’t even start on the cream-topped, sprinkled drinks.

Because of the sheer number of study sessions they’ve organised, both parties quickly became more comfortable around each other.

“Hello,” Jennie greets while finding the perfect angle to Instagram her lunch. “You were gone a while Yerim-ah. Did you miss us?”

“Pshh, as if.” The girl tries to sound nonchalant but the excitement in her eyes is impossible to mask.

“Sure, kid,” Jennie smirks, and Yerim immediately breaks the fluster building inside her with that stupid bus joke Seungwan’s heard a thousand times.

Still, it gets the laughter pouring in.

Seungwan is internally awe-stricken. Yerimie is a freaking natural.

The table dissolves into mundane chatter, everyone eager to catch up with what each other’s done over the long weekend. Movies are discussed, restaurants are rated and stories are exchanged.

The voices fade into background noise that eventually falls right back as Seungwan starts to wonder things. Silly things.

From across her, she follows Joohyun’s steady hand, deftly gripping the springy udon between chopsticks and masterfully twirling them into the spoon for the perfect mouthful. She remembers that fist punching Lucas in the nose, remembers the lipstick bruises staining sharp knuckles, and then she wonders if that’s the first time something’s ever made her physically violent.

Then her gaze discreetly travels to Joohyun’s lips as she chews. Seungwan wonders the worst thing that has ever come from a mouth as pretty as hers. She wonders if she knows that she tightens the clamp around her bruised heart every time she calls her ‘Wan’, wants to know what it’d feel like to–

“Um, Seungwan?”

The poor kid is only just now realising her daydream is sitting right across her, talking to her roommate and best friend. “You’re right. She’s really spaced out today, huh.” She aims a coy smile at a hapless Seungwan, watching as rouge scribbles across those milky cheeks. “Is something wrong, Seungwan?”

“No, no! I’m fine!” she laughs, nibbling on the corner of her sandwich. “I’m just a little tired I guess.”

“Duh,” Sooyoung casually blurts. “Who knows what time you guys ended up sleeping last night.”

Jennie flinches to interject with some random statement to shut her the hell up but the cat’s already out of the bag.

“I’m sorry, what?!” Yerim cocks her head so hard she looks like a right-angle ruler. Jennie sighs at their idiot friend. Joohyun stays silent but her eyes twinkle mischievously, chin poised on an open palm.

Seungwan can’t breathe, she can’t look away, and she can’t move to help Yerim pick her jaw off the ground.

She can’t process any of it.

Not when Joohyun looks that pretty just… being.

. . . . .

[7:00 p.m] Seulgi barges in and immediately starts handing out little freebies and trinkets she’d acquired from her weekend dance trip. Her roommates are smitten with studio keychains, logo-embroidered plush face towels and a singular roll of toe-wrap tape.

. . . . .

“Wan-ah, what the heck? She spent the night?” Seulgi frantically points at the now cluttered sofa. “On that?”

Yerim nods solemnly, putting on her best betrayed expression. “And I heard it from Sooyoung unnie. The betrayal is real right now.”

The dancer perks up slightly. “Sooyoungie? How is she?”

The youngest laughs. “Right, how could I forget you guys are practically dating right now. ”

Seungwan reassures her with a pat on the back and a sly wink. “She’s fine, Seul. Miss her much?”

The girl hastily splutters a denial but the dust of pink settled in her cheeks tells quite a different story.

Yerim gets them back on track, waving a towel between her two friends’ faces. “Hello, Joohyun unnie plus Seungwan unnie? In the same room? Unattended?”

Seungwan gives up with tantrum legs kicking into the air to relieve the embarrassing heat in her face. “Ahh, it was nothing!!!”

“Wan, there are four Hite bottles in the dishrack and it was nothing??” Seulgi asks suspiciously. “Does she know that?”

#red velvet #wenrene #wendy #irene #sorry it took so long #idek who's here even

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ashdoesfandomarchieved · 4 years ago

Text

we're living in a powder keg (and giving off sparks)

Fandom: Star Trek Lower Decks

Rating: M

AO3

Beckett Elizabeth Mariner wakes up with the absolute unshakable knowledge that she has done something unspeakable.

“Oh my fucking god.”

On the pillow across from hers, Brad opens his eyes. He blinks once or twice, squinting at the obnoxious sunlight streaming through the blinds. It creates bars of light slanting across the bed and floor. There’s a brief moment of confusion where he stares up at her owlishly before he groans and rolls over, burying his face in the pillow. Clearly not shaken at all by the unspeakable horror coursing through Beckett’s veins.

“Oh. My. Fucking. God .”

“Please lower your voice,” he mutters, voice muffled almost beyond comprehension. Almost. “I think I have a migraine. Or a hangover.” A pause. “Or both .”

“Oh god oh god oh god-”

Beckett’s comm begins chirping on the nightstand, derailing her mental breakdown. She lunges for it, flips the device open and answers the call. “Yeah?”

“Beckett Mariner, where in god’s name are you?” her mother’s voice shrills across the tiny speaker. Not exactly the distraction she was looking for, but she’ll take it. “I’ve been calling you for hours. I swear to god if you’re in prison again-”

“I’m not in prison!” she hisses. “And that was one time!”

“Six times. In the last month.”

“I- mom -”

“We’re in Wvaxuv,” Brad snaps, snatching the comm out of her hand. “We’ll be there in fifteen. Over.” He snaps the comm shut, throws it at the nightstand on her side, and flops facedown into his pillow again. Beckett, both impressed by Brad hanging up on his captain and horrified by him hanging up on her mom , stares at him, mouth agape.

“You just hung up on my mom.”

“Mffffmmn.”

“My mom , Bradward.”

“Mm.”

“Your Captain .”

This does get a reaction out of Brad, but not quite the one she expected? He peeks one eye out of where he’s currently trying to become one with the bedding. It’s cute, in like a cat-like way. Which is exactly where Beckett is trying to keep her thoughts from going. There is nothing cute or nice about waking up in the same bed as Brad. There’s not.

“I think I’ll care about that when I’m sober,” he says, at last.

“You don’t care that you just hung up on my mom, but you know what city we’re in?” Beckett raises an eyebrow, both impressed and unimpressed. She contains multitudes.

“I always know where I am,” he mumbles, turning his face back into the pillow. “Also, it literally says in the tourist brochure on your nightstand.”

Beckett grins and then stops herself. “Okay, Mister ‘I always know where I am,’ how long will it actually take us to get back to the Cerritos ?”

“ Ten minutes if we get dressed like right now.”

She stops, face heating at the reminder that oh yeah they’re both fucking naked under the duvet. Beckett carefully inches away, toward her end of the bed, just in case. She casts a quick look around the room and locates her clothes on the floor, near the bathroom.

“Don’t look,” she warns. Threatens?

Brad gives her a thumbs up, seemingly content in continuing his faceplant. Beckett decides that she can trust him not to sneak a peak--not that it mattered at this point but she was not thinking about that --and hurriedly dives toward them and gathers them up. She throws them on the bathroom floor and slams the door shut.

“Oh my god.” Beckett stares at the yellowing tiled floor. “Oh my god .” She turns on the sink, cupping the freezing water in her hands and splashing it onto her face. It does little to clear her mind, but it does help with the hangover nausea. She grips the sides of the sink, breathing in and out slowly. After a few moments of this, Beckett finally dares to look in the mirror.

She’s looked worse. Especially after a night of getting blackout drunk. Her hair is down, out of its usual high ponytail. It’s also completely wrecked, she notes, running her fingers through it to pull out the tangles. She looks a little sweaty and her eyes are bloodshot with dark circles rimming them, but nothing about her appearance suggests that she did anything stupid or dangerous last night. All of her limbs and toes are accounted for. All things considered, it’s not that bad.

Well, except for the trail of hickeys going down her neck. Jesus , she thinks, straining her head around to see how far they go. Nevermind, she doesn’t really want to know. That’s definitely going to be a problem to examine later. Much, much later.

She quickly pulls her pants on, studiously ignoring her sore muscles and the purple bruises in other places besides her neck and shoulder. Fuck . She can hear her comm chirping again through the bathroom door, but doesn’t make any attempts to hurry and answer it. From the sound of things--or lack thereof--Brad isn’t making an effort either. He probably decided, as she has, that they can get reemed out when they actually get back on the ship.

Beckett pulls her tank top over her head, frowning when she realizes that it does absolutely nothing to hide the bruises on her neck. Where the fuck is her jacket? She pops back into the bedroom.

“Where’s my jacket?”

“You threw it in the Gezorvazors’ fountain.”

“And you didn’t stop me? Dude, that was my favorite jacket.”

He makes a vague hand gesture, still face down on the bed. “You can borrow mine.”

“Yours isn’t nice like mine is,” she snaps, picking his weird hoodie/jean jacket hybrid. “Mine is leather, and badass, and-” She slips his jacket on, pulling the collar up to hide the hickeys. “-And. Oh shit this is comfortable.” The fabric is soft in the way that clothes only get after you’ve owned them for years and years and ruined the fabric with too much fabric softener and shit. Also, it’s a little big around her shoulders, and Beckett’s kind of a slut for comfy clothes that are too big for her. “You’re not getting this back,” she realizes out loud.

Brad finally lifts his head off the pillow, eyes zeroing in on her. His face is unreadable. “Huh.”

“What?”

Her comm chirps again. Brad picks it up and throws it to her. “Call your mom.” He jerks his head toward the balcony on the other side of the suite. “Or don’t. Either way, we’re gonna be late.” He makes to get out of bed, which is Beckett’s cue to get the fuck out of there . She escapes onto the balcony which is less of a balcony and more of a ledge.

She flips the comm open and answers it.

“ Your mom is flipping out,” D’Vana says. “She thinks you went AWOL and kidnapped Boimler again.”

“Her thinking that is a thousand times better than what actually happened,” Beckett replies, relieved. “She’s not leaving, is she?”

“ Without you? Fat chance.” There’s a pause. “So are you gonna tell me what did happen-”

“Just a long night of drinking and bad decisions. I’ll see you back on the Cerritos, ” she swiftly interrupts. “If my mom asks, everything is fine. Don’t worry.” She hangs up over D’Vana’s sputtering protests. “Shit.” What was she going to tell D’Vana. What was she going to tell her mom?

A gust of cool wind blows through the street, cutting straight through her. She wraps the jacket tightly around her. It smells like Brad. “ Shit. ”

_____

Beckett sits in her mom’s ready room with a paper cup of coffee heating her hands. The smell isn’t doing great things to her nauseous stomach, but the warmth radiating through her fingers is soothing and the caffeine is knocking out most of her headache. Turn of the century and there still isn’t a definitive hangover cure for humans. Go figure.

Her mother’s slightly raised eyebrow is both a question and a criticism. She has too much tact to say that Beckett looks like shit, but they both know Beckett looks like shit. Damnit.

“I’m not even going to ask,” Freeman says at last, rubbing her temple with two fingers. “Just please stop violating regulations while on shore leave.”

Beckett wants to ask if this means she can violate regulations while off shore leave, but feels too shitty to get into that argument. “You got it, Cap’n,” she says, instead of emoting. She gives her mom a lazy, two fingered salute.

“Also, please remember to keep up with your birth control, I don’t really need any Beckett/Boimler hybrids running around on this ship-”

“Literally what the fuck -” Beckett all but shrieks, voice way to loud for the hangover she’s sporting. “ Why would you even say-”

Her mom looks pointedly at Beckett’s bruised neck. “I’m not a complete idiot, kiddo.”

“Oh my god,” Beckett buries her face in her hands. “Oh my god .”

Freeman rolls her eyes, flicking her fingers at her daughter. “Yeah, yeah, I know, it’s my job to embarrass you. Now get out of my sight. And ask T’Ana for a hangover cure.”

This has Beckett sitting up. “Wha- T’Ana said there wasn’t a hangover cure .”

Flat look. “Beckett. What century is this?”

Beckett scowls at the desk. “Ripped off for five years and counting,” she mumbles.

_____

Avoiding Brad was harder than she thought it was going to be.

(Not that she’s avoiding him. She’s not.)

(She totally is. )

When he first came back to the Cerritos --almost two years ago now?--it had been easy. He’d been in a state of remorse/guilt, and had basically allowed Beckett to call the shots. This was generally considered a bad idea by absolutely everyone, because it meant that Beckett swung dangerously between watching his every move like a crazed stalker to having nothing to do with him. It had accumulated in Sam and D’Vana going the old-fashioned route by locking them in a storage closet.

Things had eventually ironed out after that. Nothing was ever quite the same--it couldn’t be with Brad’s newfound confidence and Beckett’s decision to see him as an equal rather than someone to mentor--but it was better that way. They worked better that way. At least until Beckett had fucked everything up by having drunk sex with her best friend of four years.

So here Beckett was, hiding in medbay because she thought she might have seen Brad walk by.

“You gotta admit, this is weird, even for you,” D’Vana says.

Beckett peaks over the biobed. “He’s gone, right?”

“Honey, what’s going on between you two? Do I need to fight him? I can totally fight him.”

“What?”

“I mean, the last time you were this mad at him was because--”

“I’m not mad at him,” Beckett waves her off, not too keen on dredging up ancient history. Shitty ancient history at that. “Everything’s fine.”

“Everything’s fine,” D’Vana repeats dubiously. “Which is why you’ve been hiding in medbay--your least favorite place--all day. Instead of doing fun things, like moving everything in Ransom’s cabin a little to the left or putting extra espresso shots in T’Ana’s coffee.”

Beckett grins. “We should put extra espresso shots in T’Ana’s coffee.”

“You’re deflecting.”

“I’m not.”

“ So are.”

Beckett scowls. “Aren’t you supposed to be on my side?”

“I am, as in I will help you bury the body if need be, but as it stands there isn’t a body to bury and you’re in my way.”

“Rude!”

“Coward.”

“Killjoy.”

“ Both of you, out,” T’Ana snaps, from like 20 feet away. She’s not even looking at them, but one of her ears is swiveled in their direction.

D’Vana gives Beckett a dirty look, turning on her heel and marching out of the medbay. Beckett follows, more subdued.

“Seriously, you need to get your shit together,” D’Vana says, once she’s caught up to her. “I promise whatever happened between you and Brad isn’t as terrible as you’re thinking. It’s probably even fixable.”

“Real encouraging, bestie.”

“I try.” D’Vana gives her a friendly punch on the arm that’s probably going to bruise. “Now go find your man.”

_____

Becket does not, in fact, “go find her man.” First of all, because she doesn’t have one, but also because the idea of facing Brad right now is so mortifying--seriously what is she supposed to say? --that the thought makes her break out in hives.

(Not literally, but still.)

A couple more days of this has Sam and D’Vana returning to the tried and true method of locking Beckett and Brad in a storage closet to sort out their shit.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” D’Vana shouts through the door.

Beckett flips her the bird, even though she can see, scowling at the door. “Fuck you, D’Vana Tendi!”

There is no response, meaning that her ex-friends have left her alone with her thoughts, Brad, and Brad’s very loud thoughts. Goddammit.

“Look, just say it,” Brad suddenly snaps after the longest, most awkward pause Beckett has ever had the misfortune to be a part of. His entire body is tenser than Beckett has seen in a hot minute. Probably since before he transferred back to the Cerritos.

“Say what?” she says back hotly, now not really sure if they’re about to argue about something, but also not one to back down from a fight.

“I don’t know-just. Whatever it is- just please. I’m tired, D’Vana’s tired--hell the whole ship is tired of this. So just.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Look, I know it was bad, I know that you regretted it.”

“I. What.”

“But, you’re also my best friend and I don’t want things to go back to how they were when. When I came back and you hated me and I was shitty to you and-” Brad stops messing up his hair. “Just say it was awful and we can forget it ever happened.”

Beckett steels herself as she finally admits: “I don’t remember it.”

It was Brad’s turn to go still and quiet.

“Brad--I. You know how I get when I’m drunk.” Beckett has never felt embarrassed by her drinking habits, but now she wonders if she should. Okay, she’s not, not really. But she was at least regretful that she had done something so stupid as fucking up one of her best relationships while intoxicated. Literally. “I don’t remember anything after the sixth drink,” she groans. “I think I was messing with your hair?”

“You said it was the color of jellyfish.”

She manages a weak smile. “Yeah.”

“And then I said jellyfish were translucent and have been extinct for over a thousand years on Earth so your point was redundant and that’s when you kissed me.”

“Oh.” Beckett wracks her memory. Nothing comes up. She doesn’t know if she feels proud or scared by the fact that she was the one to initiate whatever happened between them. “Was it. Good?”

“For me.” Brad shrugs, nonchalant in a way she wishes he weren’t. “Can’t really say if you liked it or not. Rest of the night is.” He makes a gesture with one hand. “Fuzzy.”

“But you remember more details than I do.” Beckett takes a step toward him.

He takes a step back as she crowds his space. Swallows. “Guess I do.”

“Was that good? What came after?” she asks, steadily, taking another step toward him.

His back hits the wall. He makes a little oof sound, maybe at the impact, but more likely at her question. “I-it was fuzzy ,” he reiterates, voice pitching up.

“Just answer the question, Bradward. I thought this was honesty hour for-”

“Yes it was good!” he snaps. “It was awesome, and earth-shattering, and all the stupid fucking cliches we both make fun of and mock together, and-and you didn’t care the next morning! Actually, no, you were fucking horrified-- so I panicked and--”

Beckett kisses him. It’s a short peck, hardly a brush of lips really, but enough to leave him gaping like a fish after. Kind of shocked, like a computer bluescreening. Goddamnit, he is cute.

“I. I- what .”

Beckett carefully leans in, brushing his hair out of his eyes with one hand--giving him time to opt out or push her away if he wants-- and kisses him again. This time she goes a bit more slowly, somehow coaxing his panicked mind into letting him kiss her back. Only for a moment, sadly. As soon as he begins softening against her, mouth opening slightly to kiss her back, he draws away, face disturbed. “Beck, what are you doing?” His voice is weak.

“Experimenting,” she replies, eyes quickly darting back and forth between his.

“ Experi -”

“I mean, there must be a reason I jumped straight from drunken makeout to lets fuck on our last night of shore leave. I’m just trying to find the missing puzzle piece.” She leans back in. Kisses him again. Pulls back almost immediately. “That means kiss me back, dumba-”

Brad cups her face and kisses her back. Like really kisses her back. Like tilts her face to the side until the angle is just right and slips his tongue in to slide against hers-

“Fuck,” Beckett says, when they draw back for air. “ Fuck.”

Brad drops his hands, but makes no move to pull out of her space. “Got enough data?” he asks sarcastically.

“I might need a larger sample size,” she says breathlessly, eyes darting back down to his lips.

“Well, feel free to go makeout with whomever-”

“Not that kind of sample size, dummy. I'm working with just one test subject, you see.” Her hand fingers the top button of his shirt almost thoughtfully. “My sample size needs to be bigger in quantity, not diversity.”

“ Beck- ” he whines.

“What, so you get to remember this awesome, showstopping one-night stand while I wonder forever if you're actually as good as my sore everything implies?”

Brad’s face visibly heats up. “Well, it's not a one-night stand if we do it again, is it?” he mutters.

“No,” Beckett replies curtly, making her eye contact as direct as possible. “It's not.”

“And you really want to fuck in a storage closet.”

“It can't be much worse than on a planet of jellybean aliens.”

“Gezorvazorians,” he corrects. Pauses, considering. “It might not be that good sober.”

“Are you seriously trying to talk me out of having sex with you?” Beckett groans again in exasperation. “This is literally a one time, limited offer, Bradward.”

“I have anxiety, Beckett! It was fine when I was on drink number eight, but I'm going to freak out if I do this without-”

“Oh my god, just stop thinking-” she shoves him back into the wall, hands fisting his stupid Starfleet shirt, “-just do what feels good.”

Apparently what feels good is letting Beckett once again call the shots on this one, like she does on everything. He lets her crowd him back against the wall, pop each of his shirt buttons and makeout as aggressively as they can while still standing upright.

“For the record,” she says, in between kisses, “if you don't want to have sex with me, that's a hundred percent fine, I don't want to pressure you-”

Brad rolls his eyes. “You really gotta-” kisses her again, “make up your mind-” her hand pulls at the short hair on the nape of his neck, eliciting a high pitched noise “- getting mixed signals-”

“My mind is made up, it's just that I realized that I maaay have been a bit pushy-”

Brad pulls away to give her a deadpan expression. “Yeah, if there's one thing I do remember about you in bed, it's that you're kind of pushy. Actually, scratch that, you’re relentless.”

Beckett flushes. “I-”

“I don't mind. Just as long as you're sure.”

“I am,” she meets his gaze challengingly, fighting her blush down.

“Cool.” He nods once, curtly. The image doesn’t exactly mesh right with his disheveled hair and unbuttoned shirt. “Cool, cool, cool. I'm probably going to freak out in the middle of this, fyi.”

“Don't say ‘fyi,’ it's lame.” She glances around the room. “So. Floor or wall?”

_____

They don't actually fuck in the storage closet, much to Beckett's disappointment and everyone else's general embarrassment. D’Vana in particular is going back and forth between remorse and spastic giggling. It’s just as well. Brad really couldn’t stop laughing at her after her “floor or wall” comment which made getting laid kind of hard. No pun intended.

_____

The next few days are kind of a living hell for the Cerritos. Which is unbelievable, considering how weird Beckett and Brad had made it for everyone before their conversation in the storage closet.

It really really doesn’t help that Brad’s bunk is like. Right over hers. Goddamnnit.

“Good news is we have shore leave again in three weeks,” Jennifer says, handing her a wrench.

Beckett, who’s holding a screwdriver in her mouth, makes whahed? noise, eyes glued to the charred remains of the food replicator. Jen leans back against the counter casually, flipping her silver hair over her shoulder. She’s not really helping Beckett, just watching while she takes advantage of her own buffer time. Beckett doesn’t mind because a) everyone’s entitled to their own buffer time and b) Jen isn’t bad company. At least when she isn’t involving herself in the soap opera worthy drama that is Beckett’s life. Like right now.

Jen gives her a bemused look. “You don’t have to tell me what happened last time,” she says, which is great because Beckett has no intention of bringing up the events of their last shore leave, “But you want my advice? Fix it this time. For everyone’s sake.”

Beckett takes the screwdriver out of her mouth and places it on the counter. “I literally have no idea what you are talking about,” she says in lieu of feeling an emotion.

“Me neither,” Jen admits, sighing. “Look, I don’t put much stock in the rumor mill, but even I know there’s something going on between you and Boimler.”

Oh. Shit.

“Oh, shit,” Beckett says.

Jen grins. “Yeah, shit Mariner. Who’d have thought: you and Brad Boimler. Six years ago, I’d have laughed in your face.”

Beckett makes a face. It’s not a laughing one. More of a grimace, really. “It’s not whatever you’re thinking.”

“With you it rarely is.” Jen looks wary, but the corners of her eyes still crinkle with amusement. “I’m just saying, I know something’s up. Don’t really care, but it’s making this ship socially awkward. I refuse to work somewhere socially awkward, Mariner.”

“Oh, we are in agreement,” Beckett quickly defends, holding her hands up.

“Good, then fix whatever the fuck’s going on. I can’t take much more of this.”

Beckett doesn’t have much to say to that. Mostly because she’s in total agreement, but also because that’s the moment D’Vana comes around the corner and she’d rather not get Into It with the perky Orion today.

_____

It’s Sam who brings it up. “So, shore leave on Earth,” he says. “Who’s down?”

The four of them are sitting at the bar, pretending like nothing weird is going on between two of their members. It helps that Sam is sitting between her and Brad, but it also doesn’t because he keeps catching them staring at each other. It’s super fucking awkward, so Beckett takes the opportunity to direct their attentions elsewhere.

She groans loudly, dropping her face onto her folded arms. “If I wanted to be on Earth I wouldn’t have joined Starfleet,” she grumbles. “This fucking sucks.”

D’Vana perks up immediately, like Beckett knew she would. “I love Earth!” she says, enthusiastically gesturing with her martini glass. “So many different cultures and languages and religions on one planet. If I wasn’t stationed in deep space, I’d have asked for a position there.”

“All those religions and cultures and shit is why Earth has a reputation of not getting along with itself,” Beckett mumbles into her arm.

“That’s not specific to Earth though,” Brad points out, pretty much speaking for the first time that night. He looks a bit surprised, like he hadn’t meant to talk to her at all or make eye contact. Which was most likely the case, considering. Still, he pushes on. “I mean, how many interplanetary disputes have we broken up in the last year alone?”

“Yeah, but I don’t come from those planets so I don’t have to feel bad about it,” Beckett mutters.

Sam snorts. “So is that a no?”

Beckett shrugs. “Fuck if I know. Will there be alcohol?”

“There can be.”

She flutters her eyelashes at Sam. “Well, if you insist then.”

Brad and D’Vana exchange a look.

_____

Earth isn’t too bad.

Beckett should know, she was born there.

The distinct lack of shenanigans she can get up to are fairly disappointing, however. And the distinct presence of cops is still as annoying as ever. But Sam drags the four through downtown San Francisco, intent on making the most of it.

He is determined to teach D’Vana how to surf, so they find themselves at one of those swim stores--the ones that smell like chlorine and weed and have like a display of goggles that takes up two entire ailes and the walls are covered in surf boards and body boards, and there’s little naked mermaid figurines everywhere. It’s one of those out-of-this-world vibes that has Beckett remembering the little things about earth she misses.

Sam somehow cuts a deal on four surf boards and some swim trunks for him and Brad. Beckett, who had the foresight to bring her own swimwear, doesn’t spend a dime on anything but the salt water taffy up at the front counter. D’Vana, who showed up for shore leave already in a bikini and has chronic steal Beckett’s food syndrome, walks out of there the least broke.

“So we want to start in the whitewater,” Sam says, rubbing copious amounts of sunscreen on D’Vana’s back. It’s a wise move, considering the last time they spent free time on a sunny planet, D’Vana walked away with the worst sunburns. “That way we can work on your stance without any pressure.”

“Speak for yourselves,” Beckett flips her shades down. “I’m heading out for the Big Bois. The Chungos, if you will.”

Sam rolls his eyes. “Have you ever surfed before?”

“Does doing handstands on a floatie in my pool count?”

“No.”

“Then listen to the expert. We also probably don’t want to go way out until we get wetsuits. Trust me on that one,” Sam says, grimacing. “I mean, I’ve gone without, but it’s cold as shit out there.”

Beckett snatches the sunscreen from Sam’s hand and squirts a glob on her calf. “Fine, defeat me with your logic. You want some of this, white bread?” she asks Brad, who very much lives up to said nickname. He sighs, accepting the bottle from her.

All sunscreen up, Sam stands, picking up his surfboard. “I’ll take D’Vana out first,” he says in a blatant show of favoritism.

Brad and Beckett roll their eyes in tandem. “Whatever,” Beckett says, shooing them off with one hand. “I’m taking a nap.” She flops down on a towel under the giant umbrella that D’Vana got from god knows where . Brad looks from her to Sam and D’Vana unsurely before deciding that he’ll strike out on his own for a bit.

“Don’t drown,” Beckett says, already half asleep.

“Duh.” She can practically hear his eye roll. “Remember to wake up in two hours and apply more sunscreen,” he shoots back.

She gives him the o-k hand signal, not opening up her eyes. “You got it, Mom.”

_____

A few hours later--way past when Beckett was supposed to dump more chemicals on her skin (and yes she’s going to be feeling that later)--Beckett wakes up to Sam and D’Vana’s dulcet tones. By dulcet tones she actually means they’re belting out I’ve Had the Time of My Life in tandem with the music booming on the speaker Sam brought because they are those annoying beach people .

D’Vana must’ve gone to one of the street vendors on the boardwalk, because she has a tray of tiny sandwiches and a paper bag of popcorn that she’s sharing with Sam. Beckett tries to get in on that action, but because D’Vana is the biggest hypocrite Beckett knows, she finds herself banned from the snacks.

“You and Brad can get your own,” D’Vana says stubbornly.

Beckett rolls her eyes. “Where is he, anyway?”

D’Vana points vaguely off in the direction of the water. Brad is sitting on his surfboard, looking more relaxed than Beckett’s seen him in a while.

She stands up, stretching out the kinks and stiffness in her joints, grinning when Sam winces at the cracking of her spine. Shaking the fogginess away, Beckett makes her way out into the waves, shivering at their chill. In a stroke of genius, or maybe just chaotic evillness, Beckett ducks under the water, swimming beneath where Brad is peacefully sitting.

“Nice view,” Beckett says, bursting out of the water. Brad flails, arms pinwheeling. He does fall off his perch on the surfboard, but Beckett catches it before the waves can take it away. She heaves herself gracefully over the side, sitting with her legs in the water. After a moment she offers a hand to a very sulky looking Brad, who’s usually coiffed hair is plastered to his skull by the water.

He takes her proffered hand and sits beside her.

After a moments pause, where they sit bobbing in the waves and watching the sunset, Brad says, “I would like to say that not even the holodeck can recreate colors like that buuut-”

“We do have top-of-the-line technology,” Beckett agrees. “It’s still nice knowing it’s real, though,” she adds.

“How sentimental of you,” he says, almost teasingly. It does wonders for the tension Beckett’s holding.

“Shut up,” she gets out, shoving his shoulder good-naturedly. It’s not hard enough to push him back in the water, but it’s enough that he swats her off. “I’m just saying .”

“So Earth isn’t so bad, after all?” he asks, smug.

Beckett rolls her eyes. “I guess ,” she allows, grudgingly. “But don’t go telling anyone.”

Brad just grins, turning back to the sunset. They don’t say much more after that.

_____

Beckett is lying in bed, staring at the ceiling of the hotel they’re staying at overnight, when she comes to a decision. “I’m going to have sex with Brad.”

D’Vana, who Beckett had been pretty sure was sleeping, chokes in the dark. “Beckett what the fuuu -”

Beckett sits up. “I’m going to have sex with Brad,” she reiterates, throwing the covers off.

The bedside lamp clicks on, washing the room in a pale, yellow light. D’Vana’s expression is somewhere between I’m too sleep-deprived to deal with this shit and a murder is happening tonight .

“Like, right now?” she asks, finally.

“No time like the present,” Beckett says, already halfway out the door. Whatever protests D’Vana has is cut off when the door slides shut behind her. Sam and Brad are staying just across the hall, so it takes no time to get there and knock on the door.

“So are we gonna fuck or what?” Beckett asks the minute Brad shows his face. Sam makes a choked, gagging noise from somewhere behind him. Brad makes an equally despairing sound.

“Sam, could you-?”

“Gone! I'm gone.” Sam pushes past them, heading for the other suite. “I'll just sleep with D’Vana-- in D’Vana’s room!” He hurriedly course corrects, “In her room. I'm--I'll. Bye.” He ducks behind the door, slamming it.

“Yeesh, my girl ain't getting any tonight.”

“But we are apparently,” Brad dryly remarks. Or tries to dryly remark. It comes out strangled. “I thought that was a limited offer.”

“Yeah well, maybe I changed my mind. Are you gonna invite me in or what?”

Brad opens the door wider. “I didn't know you needed a literal invitation like some sort of vampire.”

“I was being polite.” She brushes past him. “I am capable of that on occasion.” She flops on the bed with forced bravado. Brad starts doing that thing where he avoids eye contact but realizes it's awkward so he then makes too much eye contact. Beckett resists the urge to tease him about it, if only because she's starting to feel weird about everything too.

“I’m not saying no-”

“Jesus, okay, rejection time-”

“But right now might not be the best time,” he finishes, face crimson.

“What?” She glances around the room. “Master suite in a five star hotel in San Francisco is a worse time for you than a storage closet? I didn't know you had an exhibition thing-”

“ I don't.” Brad scowls. “I'm just not in the mood.”

Oh.

“Oh,” she says, leaning back with her hands supporting her behind her. She kind of feels like an asshole for just assuming he’d be down anytime. There’s another moment of silence. Awkward.

Then, “I have some old timey soap-opera that Jen gave me, on my padd. You down?”

_____

“I don’t think this is a soap opera,” Brad says, ten minutes into their third episode.

They’re both lying on top of the covers, padd propped on a pillow, watching a collection of random episodes Beckett seemingly has. There’s about four feet of yawning distance between them, four impossible feet that’s frankly starting to piss Beckett off for reasons she’s trying not to examine.

“He’s married to his best friends’ daughter which means his mother-in-law made out with him,” Beckett replies, rolling her eyes. “His wife and her parents are pretty much the same age. He gets assassinated by his wife who was trained by a cultist group to take him down. How is that not a soap opera?”

Brad shrugs. “It just seems to be more action based.”

“Give it time, you’ll get it.”

Silence as they watch the main characters get chased by dinosaurs. Brad, surprisingly, does not offer up why it’s unrealistic--(she can totally hear him lecturing on about how dinosaurs actually had feathers, Beckett, and that one was definitely bipedal why is it on all fours?)-- instead tapping his fingers against the mattress and occasionally spacing out.

Whatever. Beckett’s perfectly comfortable reclining on the other side of the bed and ignoring him.

“It’s not me, right?” she blurts out. “I didn’t like, push you too much and now you want nothing to do with me?”

Way to sound insecure, Mariner.

Brad startles in surprise. “What? No!” He sits up. “Why would-”

“I don’t know, it’s just weird! And we’re not weird like this--we watch shit all the time together and make fun of it and it’s not socially awkward!”

“I’m not trying to be socially awkward! I just-”

“Well you are -”

“I thought you were mad at me ?” He tries, looking askance.

Beckett blinks across the bed at him. “You thought-- what --that I was mad at you for not being up for-”

“If you make that pun, I swear to god-”

“Not a pun, I’m being literal-you thought -”

“Beck-”

“You thought I was upset that you aren’t in the mood for-for my weird need to-to-” She can’t even finish it.

“Ughrhrh.” Brad covers his eyes with his hands. “It sounds bad when you say it out loud.”

“Yeah no shit, Bradward.” She huffs loudly, turning back to the episode only to find that it’s over.

“Sorry,” he says at last, still into his hands. “I’m having a weird night.”

Aaaand now Beckett feels like shit. Because of course she was making everything about her when there were other people emotionally involved. God she needed to talk to her therapist.

“You wanna talk about it?” she asks, nervously tapping her foot at the air.

Brad drops his hands, staring at her flatly. “Do you really want to hear my weird TMI relationship hangups?”

Oh fuck, it’s gonna be that kind of talk.

“Uh, yes? I tell you my weird shit all the time-”

“ Unsolicited -”

“And you don’t give a shit. Why would I be upset about you telling me your weird shit? Is it a kink thing? I bet it’s a kink thing.”

“It’s not a-! Just-just let me talk!”

Beckett makes a phhhft- ing noise, but relents. She twiddles her thumbs for a moment, a mannerism she picked up from D’Vana over the years. Brad’s eyes zero in on the motion for a moment, as he nervously begins tapping his fingers against the mattress again and then stopping to clasp his hands tightly.

“You know how I don’t really. Date people?” he tries, wincing slightly.

“Yeah, sure.” She shrugs.

“Have you ever wondered why-”

“Because our friend group is so batshit fucking certifiable that any potential boyfriends or girlfriends get scared off. It’s why Amina and I were never gonna get back together.” Beckett doesn’t say duh , but it lingers in the air.

Brad rolls his eyes. “ Yes that, but also I don’t date people for the same reason it took D’Vana six years to figure out she and Sam were dating.”

Oh.

“Oh. Oh .” Beckett blinks for a moment, world realigning. “Wait, how did I not know that about you? I know everything about you.” Which is entirely the wrong response to your best friend sharing something that personal, but Brad doesn’t seem to pick up on it so Beckett thinks it’s okay. Hopefully.

“Apparently, not,” he replies, amused.

“But, you’re like. Okay hooking up every once in a while.” God, she hopes so. If she pressured her best friend into having drunk sex with her-

“Yeah, I’m in the mood every once in a while. Like, once a year kind of once in a while,” Brad says casually, alleviating her worries. “Just not right now.”

“Oh okay, cool.” A pause. “Thank you for telling me.”

He rolls his eyes again like she knows she’s going over every social media post and session with her therapist concerning how to handle your best friend coming out to you in her head and settles down next to her. “Whatever. What’s happening?” he asks, turning back to the padd.

Beckett apparently has episodes out of order because the main characters are hijacking the 1969 Earth space missions. “An alien race that controls humans through post-hypnotic suggestions is giving them the technology to land on their own moon.”

Brad huffs, amused. “Naturally.”

_____

Everything kind of goes back to normal after that.

Well, as normal as things get on the Cerritos .

Beckett takes her conversation with Brad to mean that he’s not interested in le sex with her (at the moment anyway) and backing off is in their best interests.

Whatever, she didn’t really know what she was going on about anyway. It’s not as if she was using not remembering their one-night stand as an excuse to hook up with Brad because she’s suffering from unacknowledged requited feelings.

(She’s not. She’s not . Goddamnit.)

The ship seems to give a collective sigh of relief, now that Beckett and Brad aren’t doing...whatever it was they were. Beckett is back to annoying the shit out of her best friend and Brad is back to pretending like he hates everything she stands for. It’s a comfortable equilibrium that Beckett’s glad to be back to.

Even if she still ponders all of the what ifs .

_____

If Beckett’s life is a movie--which is a metaphor she hasn’t used yet, but now’s probably the best time to start because the drama of hooking up with her best friend is totally some awkward comedy shit--then the Halloween party Sam and Jen throw is the punch line. Or the climax--whatever, no pun intended.

Beckett didn’t even know Halloween was like still a Thing until she and her friend group came across a Halloween themed shop during shore leave.

“Isn’t it July?” Beckett had pondered. “I’m pretty sure this holiday is supposed to be in October?”

“It’s one of those “Holiday in July” shops,” Brad said, rolling his eyes at D’Vana who’d donned a witches hat on and was cackling appropriately. “They were totally a thing when I was a kid.”

Sam pulled out his comm. “You know how Jen wanted to throw a party for the end of our assignment in the Neutral Zone? I think I know what theme we should go with.”

Beckett had laughed, delighted at the idea of them throwing a Halloween Bash on the Cerritos , but hadn’t taken it seriously until she walked into her favorite bar on the ship, which was now decked out in the most ridiculous decorations she’s ever seen.

“This is amazing,” Beckett says.

D’Vana grins. “Right? I think I’m going to marry Jen.”

“If I don’t get there first,” Sam retorts, darting off in Jen’s direction. D’Vana shouts after him, breaking out into a run. Beckett shakes her head and heads off to find a corner to enjoy her alcohol in peace.

She finds one, and gets through one red, plastic cup of cheap beer before Brad is at her shoulder.

“So, we’re done being weird, right?” Brad confirms. Surprised that he actually has the backbone to bring The Incident up, Beckett shrugs, eyes still on a dancing D’Vana. She’s somehow roped to humans into a weird-threeway dance that is honestly making Beckett wish she had a recorder device on her.

“Yeah, we’re good,” she says. “Sorry for. You know.”

“It’s cool,” Brad replies, giving her a thumbs up. “I mean, it was bound to happen eventually?”

This gives Beckett pause. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, someone in our friend group was eventually going to hook up and make everything awkward,” Brad rubs the back of his neck, laughing, well, awkwardly . “Sucks that it was us but,” he shrugs in a what can you do way.

Beckett nods back, almost absentmindedly. “Yeah. I mean. Yeah,” she finishes off, lamely and god this is awkward. “Could have been worse,” she finally settles on.

“Could’ve been me and D’Vana,” Brad agrees, nose wrinkling at the thought. She’s pretty sure he had a crush when they first met, but it mellowed out over the years. Especially after D’Vana made it clear to a handsy ensign that she was only interested in girls .

(And being in a co-dependent/queerplatonic relationship with one Samantha Rutherford, but that was beside the point.)

Still, something about the suggestion of the two hooking up leaves a sour pit in Beckett’s stomach.

“It’s too bad though,” she blurts out, “that it happened like the way it did.”

Brad pauses, brow furrowed.

“I mean,” she bulldozes on when he doesn’t say anything. “If I’d have had a choice on how it would have happened...I would have done things differently.”

“Oh?” Brad angles his body toward hers. She leans back against the wall, trying to calm her racing heart.

“Yeah.” Her voice sounds far away.

“How would you have done things?”

“I-” She fists her palms and then forces herself to relax them. “Well, for starters I wouldn’t have been drunk .”

“Ah.” Brad winces, probably remembering the terrible hangovers they had the next day. “Yeah that probably wasn’t the best -”

“And it would have meant something.”

There. She said it.

It’s what her mom’s been hinting at for years now, what D’Vana had been getting at and Jen and Sam and even Brad himself; the one truth that Beckett had been shoving to the back of her mind, since even before that shared night with Brad.

Brad Boimler is her best friend and she’s in love with him.

The pause goes on for too long. Beckett doesn’t dare look at him, doesn’t dare breathe. She keeps her eyes firmly on D’Vana, who’s been joined by a slightly tipsy Sam. They dance around each other, ridiculous and fond.

“It did mean something.”

Beckett whips her head around, meeting Brad’s gaze disbelievingly. He swallows, adam’s apple bobbing.

“Of course it meant something,” he says. “It was with you.”

Beckett likes to think that she’s smarter than the average person. And if not smarter, witty enough to pass as smarter. She has an automated response for every situation, a retort for every comment, a comeback for every line. There isn’t much that phases her-at least not until she woke up in a hotel room, naked, with her best friend at her side. And just like then, Beckett finds herself speechless.

“Oh,” she says, dumbly, as if she just hadn’t shown her own hand less than a minute ago.

“Mmm,” Brad agrees, looking stressed out. He doesn’t take it back though. He doesn’t do much of anything, actually, beyond staring at her intensely. Then, “Oh god, I made it weird again.”

“No, no,” Beckett holds her hands up placatingly as Brad begins to freak out. “ I made it weird first, you don’t have to-”

“Well I made it weirder!”

“No,” Beckett grabs his collar, shaking him slightly, “-no you didn’t -”

“ Then why are you freaking out? ” He throws his hands up in the air, almost dislodging her grip on his shirt. She tightens it, bringing him down to her eye level.

“I’m not freaking out you’re freaking out -”

“Then why are you the one all up in my personal spa-”

“I’m not-”

“ Jesus Christ , WILL YOU TWO JUST KISS!” D’Vana shouts over the booming bass of Spooky Scary Skeletons Communist Remix.

Beckett freezes , as does Boimler. She’s suddenly aware that the two of them are standing, nose to nose, practically shouting at each other--even though the loud music drowns out what they’re saying to the people around them (thank god).

Beckett slowly lets go of Boimler’s shirt.

“Uhm.” She blinks up at him, every part of her completely aware that she left the ball in his court last time they had an opportunity to do anything.

Brad looks like he’s wrestling with himself--not an uncommon emotion when it comes to the uptight little dude--eyes darting from both of her eyes to her lips, to over her shoulder where D’Vana is probably being a little creep. Then, all of the tension bleeds out of his body, all at once and a determined look lights up in his eyes.

“ Fuck it,” he says, cupping her face and kissing her.

_____

The walk from the bar to Beckett’s room has never seemed longer, but maybe it has something to do with the fact that they can’t keep their hands off each other.

Even with the buzz of alcohol in her system, Beckett feels entirely present for once in her life. She pushes Brad back against her door, pressing kisses into his lips and the length of his jawline. He gives a little huff when she nips at his skin, pushing her off enough to get a good look at her.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Never been surer,” she replies, already having a go at his buttons. She gets down to the final one, pleased to note that this time they aren’t interrupted. “Are you sure?” she blinks up at him. “You’re in the mood, right?”

“Yes, Beck, I’m in the mood.” Brad rolls her eyes. It looks fond. “Are you in the mood?”

“So so in the mood,” she agrees.

“Great, now that we’ve covered the consent end of this-”

Beckett interrupts, diving back in for more kisses, much to his bemusement.

A few minutes later finds the two of them on her bed, sans their clothes. Beckett wants to feel very very smug about the fact that it’s been a while since that first, mistaken one night stand and Brad still has bruises in places unmentionable, but she’s kind of in the same boat.

“Holy shit, watch it ,” she swats at his face as he kind of nips at a dark bruise on her thigh.

“Oh I am .”

“Stop, that’s not sexy,” she kicks his shoulder, scowling when he snorts.

“Uh-huh.”

“No, no it’s not .”

“Yeah, okay, I stopped doing it .” Brad stares up at her unblinkingly for a moment.

Beckett stares back, arms folded-which feels weird because she’s super naked right now, but she’s already started doing it and Beckett fucking commits to shit-scowl firmly in place. Their little stare off only lasts for a minute longer before Beckett groans, “ Ugh , do it again.”

Brad does not, in fact, do it again because he's laughing too hard at her.

Beckett raises an eyebrow, flipping them over. Brad does not look like he minds, though, blinking up at her with equal amounts bemusement and what Beckett is assuming is appreciation. Whatever, it’s not as if Beckett doesn’t know that she’s smoking hot. It’s nice to see that Brad can acknowledge it though.

“Sooo,” he says, hands on her hips, steadying her as she grabs a scrunchy off the nightstand to pull her wayward hair out of her eyes. “How do you want to do this?”

Beckett takes a moment to make herself comfortable in his lap. “How did we do this last time?”

Brad’s face turns red. “Uhm, I’m not sure if-”

Beckett grins, leaning in. “How’d we do it last time, Brad?”

“ Beckett ,” he whines. She flicks his nose, but then leans in to give him a quick peck. “That’s cheating,” he tells her.

She shrugs, unrepentant. “Well you have all the time in the world to make an honest woman out of m-”

“ Stoooop ,” Brad covers his eyes with his hands. “I hate you. Maybe we should ’ve been drunk for this.”

“I have tequila under the bed.”

“Why do you-nevermind.” Brad sits up, jostling her slightly. “I really shouldn’t be surprised anymore.”

“Too much talking, more kissing,” Beckett says, pressing a couple of featherlight kisses on his lips. She gets her way--as always--and there’s very little talking after that.

(That’s a lie, of course, because it’s BeckettandBrad, meaning that there’s a lot shit-talk and laughing and an embarrassing amount of awkward moments where Brad elbows her in the eye or Beckett makes a noise that’s distinctly not sexy, but honestly? Neither of them would have it any other way.)

_____

The next day goes like this:

Beckett shows up to her shift 40 minutes late, a string of freshly made hickeys on her neck and a shit-eating grin on her face. Freeman takes one look at her and reassigns her off the Bridge for the day, muttering something incomprehensible about grandbabies that Beckett’s forcibly not thinking too hard about.

She finds D’Vana just outside of medbay, who looks utterly delighted by Beckett’s disheveled appearance.

“So, everything’s fine between you two?” D’Vana is grinning a little evilly.

Beckett throws an arm over her shoulder, delighted as always over their height difference. “Oh so fine, mi amore.”

D’Vana shoves her off, but looks just as pleased as Beckett feels. “Thank god,” she says. “I couldn’t take much more of your sad, sad faces. It was embarrassing.”

This gives Beckett pause. “Hey, we weren’t that bad,” she protests.

“Oh, you definitely were,” D’Vana promises. “There’s only so many times Sam and I can lock you two in a storage closet before our quaple isn’t worth it anymore. We were like a minute away from throwing you out of the polycule.”

“I- polycule? Since when -”

“Oh Beckett,” D’Vana sighs. “I have some bad news for you.”

“Did you know that we were in a platonic quaple with Sam and D’Vana?” Beckett shrieks, practically flying out of the turbolift.

Brad stares at her. “...yes?”

No one tells Beckett anything.

#marinler #my fic #beckett mariner #brad boimler #d'vana tendi #sam rutherford #the warp core four #star trek lower decks #stld fanfic #star trek lower decks fanfic #star trek lower decks fanfiction

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katerinawinters · 4 years ago

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Predator: Huntress Alpha ch 8

"Is this…" she paused, looking around the narrow space in disbelief. "Is this your apartment?"

Jarak looked from her and followed her line of sight around the cramped space, trying to see what she saw before nodding.

"Jarak, it's so tiny!" she blew out an exasperated breath as she sat the fruit on a narrow counter jutting from the wall in an area that looked to be a small kitchenette. Turning back around to the hunter, she gave him a confused look. "You're way too big for a tiny apartment like this. Is rent high here or something?"

Tilting his head in question, Jarak lifted his gauntlet and clacked the tips of his claws against the data-pad. Entranced, she watched him as he read the holographic information before closing it and lowering his arm.

"I do not pay rent," he answered firmly.

For a moment, Justice let the little scene playback in her head and remembered the backward lettering he pulled up from his gauntlet, with a slow spreading smile of realization, she fought back the urge to laugh. He had looked up the word rent.

Pressing her lips together, she stifled her laughter to ask another question, but Jarak's eyes narrowed as he watched her closely, and he cut her off.

"Yautja do not use money. We gain what is needed ourselves. We bring honor to our clan, and if I am worthy, the clan leader will decide what to bestow to me."

Nodding, she walked toward the bed which dominated most of the back wall, save for the two doors on either side of it, the bed looked properly proportioned, at least. Although, she noted it was another black leather mattress. Pulling Larsa from the harness, Justice carefully put her on the bed.

"So, does your leader not think you are worthy enough for a bigger room than this?" She asked, genuinely interested. Maybe this leader of Ojibwe was a real dick. She knew it was only a matter of time before she would need to meet the reigning yautja, and she wanted to know as much as she could about the hunter beforehand.

Turning in place, Jarak watched her as she sat cautiously at the end of his bed and shook his head once at her question. "Rakkah is a worthy leader. He has shown respect to my victories. He has offered me much, but I need little. I have taken a ship as one of my bounty payments, that is all I require."

Right now, she was positive she possessed more information about yautja than all the galaxies combined. Nodding once more, Justice glanced around the cramp quarters and reassessed. It was spartan, just like the hunter's ship. Besides the ridiculous amount of weapons lining the left wall, there was not one other piece of personality lying about like it was in her apartment back on LV594. Baby toys had been scattered across the living room floor. Dirty clothes, hers and Larsa's were sitting in a pile by the door ready to be taken to the laundry unit, and the single holo-photo of her and her sisters kept on a tiny piece of flimsy, all smiling and posing within their suits and guns, tucked under her pillow. All lost to her now.

Running her fingers softly across the bottom of Larsa's soft foot, she looked up to the hunter. Whatever he saw shining back in her eyes made the hunter stiffen suddenly.

"Stay here, I will return," without waiting for a reply Jarak turned and left through the only door.

Justice waited until the door shut once more before finally standing. Taking off her backpack and pulling the gun's strap over her head, she sighed just as her stomach let out a deep growl. Walking over to the kitchenette, she surveyed the simplicity of it: a counter, a sink, and a glass refrigerator nearly tall as she was holding a huge rack of raw marbled meat inside.

A meal of champions, she thought wryly.

Washing off the fruit, Justice took a tentative bite and smirked at the tart flavor. Grabbing and washing three more, she began to walk the length of the apartment. Similar to his ship, the uneven black walls were covered in various striations and grooves, hiding a number of hidden compartments and interactive displays. Circling back around until she was at the bed, she stopped in front of one of the two doors. Pushing the data-panel, she was surprised at the spacious--of course, all black--bathroom beyond.

Stepping into the bathroom, she was relieved to see that this one had a large blank space of wall next to the data-pad. Scrolling through the yautja lettering, she found the selection she wanted and tapped it. The portion of the wall next to her shimmered and rippled as if the metal had turned to water before blinking into a dark mirrored surface. Looking at herself in the floor to ceiling mirror, Justice sighed. Her clothes were filthy with dirt and grime, and her braids, which hung to her waist, faired no better. Picking one up, she was beginning to pick out some of the dirt trapped within the coiled braid when the door to the apartment swooshed open again.

Stepping in holding two black leather sacks, Jarak walked towards the kitchenette counter.

"The other human women have provided you this," he waved a hand brusquely to the bags and stepped back.

Justice looked up at him in surprise. "There are other humans on your planet?"

Well, there goes that theory of her being the first to have collected such rare yautja information, she thought sorely.

"Yes, Rakkah's mate and Akur's," he replied as if she knew the mentioned hunters.

Too tired to delve into the subject, she began to reach for the sack as he turned back toward the door.

"Wait, you're leaving?"

Pausing, the towering hunter did not turn around as he answered. "Yes."

Justice felt a twinge of guilt as she looked around the tiny space. "I don't want to kick you out of your room--your very small room," she added with a smile as he turned to look at her directly. "To be honest. I kind of expected you to put me in some sort of holding cell."

His eyes glimmered in the shadow of his pronounced brow ridge, and his fanged mouth beneath his mandibles moved slightly. "We have no holding cell," he informed her seriously. "Yautja do not take prisoners."

"Right," she nodded, crossing her arms and leaning on the counter to her right. "Yeah, you just kill whoever you don't like or send the rest to your creepy science ones."

Jarak didn't argue that.

Not sure what else to say, Justice looked away. "Where are you going to sleep?"

"I do not currently require sleep," Jarak responded, his naturally aggressive tone at odds with the simple statement.

"But what if you did and you wanted to sleep? I have no problem sleeping on a couch…" she paused, looking around the empty place once more. The front of the apartment was suspiciously empty as if it were designed for seating, but she would bet her last credit that the hunter used the bit of open space to train in. "Ok, floor," she corrected.

"No," his deep tone was final.

"Fine," she said, throwing up her hands and turning back towards the bed to sit next to Larsa. "I'm not going to argue with you. If you want to go sleep in a tree or whatever, be my guest."

As if completely satisfied with that option, Jarak turned back around and began walking to the door.

"Wait, how do I contact you," she called out just as the door opened. "...if one of your brethren tries to come in here or something happens and I might need you," she explained. "I would like it to be said I at least attempted not to go with my natural inclination of shooting first."

Slowly, Jarak turned his head until one eye caught her gaze over his shoulder. "No one would dare come into my space."

Like all statements from the hunter, the words were simple, but the meaning was lethal. Letting her gaze drop past the red tips of his long dread-like spines, she observed the strong striation of muscles corded along his wide back, tapering down to his narrow waist. Justice remembered the way the hunter had slung the adult xenomorph by its tail with ridiculous ease as if it were the size of a cat, and she couldn't imagine too many people or even other yautja crossing Jarak and surviving.

Opening his data-pad on his gauntlet once more, he turned around fully and stepped back towards her until he stood only a foot away. Holding out his hand, he gave her a waiting look.

Justice cocked her head in a smile as she obediently laid her hand in his. "How did you know what my rings were for?"

With a gentleness that seemed wholly strange on the humongous crab faced alien, Jarak carefully turned her hand over until her palm pressed against his. Justice could feel the rough ridges of his tough skin press against hers and marvel at the heat that radiated through it. For something with no discernable heat signature, he sure was hot to the touch, she thought. Again that made her think of the amazing sleep she had against the creature the other night.

Touching one of the two white and silver rings she wore on each hand, Jarak activated her personal computer.

"I am yautja," his voice growled out over her like a rumbling blanket made of storms and thunder. "There is little I do not know."

Watching him type on the holographic keyboard her ring projected, Justice gave him an evil grin that caught his attention. "But you didn't know what rent was."

Entering the data with a gruff growl, Jarak turned on his heel and left.

Inside the sacks, Jarak had brought her was proof enough that a human lived on the planet: two thermos-like containers filled with still warm food, bottles of shampoo and soap, a pillow, and even a few baby things.

Justice stared at a stuffed giraffe and turned it over in her hand in absent thought. Were the yautja purposely bringing human women with children back to their planet? And if so, why? It couldn't be torture, she thought as she looked at the hastily written note on a piece of flimsy that she found in the bag as well. Supposedly the woman, named Ember, was more than excited to meet her. Following the helpful instructions on the flimsy, she walked up to the wall near the kitchenette and activated the data-pad, and searched for what the note told her. With a push of a button, a drawer popped out of the wall to her right, and Justice smiled.

A basin that is what yautja called their washing units. Shaking her head in a smile, she thought it was fitting. A washing machine was much too verbose for the towering Jarak to say. Basin in his deep guttural voice was much more appropriate.

Stripping off all of her clothes until she stood completely nude, Justice stuffed her clothes into the drawer-unit and activated the washing cycle. Walking back to the bed, she grabbed one of the sacks in one hand and scooped up Larsa in her other arm. Settling the grunting baby onto the pillow on the bathroom floor, Justice fiddled with the controls on the shower until a black wall raised from the floor. Stopping just above her knee, the half wall turned the bottom of the large black shower into a tub. Pressing a few more commands, Justice filled the tub with water before stepping in with a deep groan. Sitting down, Justice was surprised at the spaciousness of the tub. It was deep and perfectly long enough for her, which was rare indeed.

Closing her eyes for a few precious seconds, she was about to let her head lie back against the wall when Larsa began to fuss. Adjusting so that breasts were pressed against the bathtub's wall and her arms were folded on the rim, Justice stared down at her daughter.

Catching her mother's eye, Larsa opened her tiny toothless mouth and let out an agitated sound. Justice rummaged in the bag with one wet hand and pulled out the soft giraffe. Making little noises, she knew Larsa enjoyed, Justice danced the doll over the baby and played with her from the rim of the tub, letting the sight of the little girl's gummy smile soothe her.

"We're in a new place," she whispered as she kissed the giraffe's mouth against the side of Larsa's cheek. "We are surrounded by big scary-looking hunters, but it will be ok," she said, repeating the kiss on the other fat cheek. "Soon, mommy will meet their leader and hopefully talk him into letting us stay for a little bit."

Playing with her until she was content to quietly look around on her on, Justice grabbed the large sea-sponge that was tucked in the bag and dipped it in the water. Water dripped and splashed as she raised each leg to the surface of the deep tub and ran the soft sponge over her legs. Her mind drifted back to LV549 and the "woolly woolies" in the primigenius. The large docile tusked mammoths were most likely safe but no doubt scared and lonely. For a year now, she had been working with the beast, studying their glowing tusk and their behaviors. Over time she had become attached to them. Their liquid black eyes staring at her with eternal patience as she fed them their favorite leafy treats while she performed her never-ending scans. Even Larsa had learned to enjoy the large beast, engaging them in a battle of stares that made Justice's eyes feel dry just thinking about it. Now her mammoths were bound for an early death on the infested planet. Before she fled the lab, Justice had made sure to call all her mammoths in from the outside enclosure and back into the lab before sealing it off. Inside they would have access to their daily reserves of water and food, but the supplies would run out, and the poor, gentle beast would starve--if they were lucky. Justice could only pray that the xenomorphs wouldn't sense the beast through the reinforced walls of the lab and work their way inside.

Standing up in the now tepid water, Justice paused, looking around. There were no towels. Did yautja not dry themselves with towels? That made no sense. No one this advanced and this meticulous with their technology walks around soggy after each shower, she thought resolutely. As the water drained at her feet, she stood naked and braced one hand against the wall as she jabbed a finger at the control-screen in the shower, going through the options. Stopping at one foreign yautja word, Justice repeated it a few times in her head, searching for a translation. Gusting? After a second, her eyes widened in realization, and she smiled. Pressing the button, she stood back. Narrow vents opened up along the sides of the shower stall, and warm air began to blow through them.

Dry, she stepped out of the shower stall and scooped up Larsa and her things. Changing, cleaning, and getting Larsa ready for sleep, Justice walked naked across the room and found the "gusting" option for her now clean clothes. Letting it run its cycle, she walked back towards the bed and sank down on the mattress, letting the cool leather press against her naked skin. Rummaging through the second bag, Justice grinned at the folded sheet tucked at the bottom and flipped out, spreading it partially over Larsa.

Positioning her gun to the right of her, Justice stifled a yawn as she took a big gulp of the soup from the thermos. Fatigue was catching up to her. She needed to be rested for tomorrow because if for some reason things went south, she would need more than enough energy to fight her way off yet another planet crawling with aliens.

by katerina winters

#writings #yautja fanfiction #predator fanfiction #katerina winters

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bindi-the-skunk · 4 years ago

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The son of Frankenstein chapter 15

Henry was about to ask what on earth she could possibly want, well wondering how fast he could get into his wheelchair to go find Robert, or even if he should call Creature to remove her from the house when something glowing green caught his eye as Frankenstein pulled it from her coat.

His eyes widened in horror when he realized what it was in her hand.

No, it couldn't be! How did she ...impossible...

But there it was, in her hand was a mixed-up H-J 7 potion, stirring inside the beaker as if it was alive, eager to break free of its clear prison and jump down its host's throat to start the painful transformation process.

She must have broken into his office...picked the lock to his desk like she did his recovery room...she truly did have no shame...

Just looking at Frankenstein's face, he knew there was no getting out of this, no words he could spin would help, even shoving her down might just make her more eager to see what happened when Hyde came out, thinking he just did not want to share his discovery with anyone else.

Hyde was strangely silent, but there was an undertone of fear that Henry could feel, like this one time he did not want to be out in the world despite his way out being right in front of them both.

The chemist took the potion into his hands, feeling the heat radiate from the glass, the bottle feeling strange in his right hand as his left had been the one broken, Henry wondered momentarily if she had even mixed it properly, but if she had not, the chemicals would have caused a very different look, this was the potion that brought Edward Hyde to the surface.

Taking off the cork, the brunette, soon to become blond, did not gag as the smell that hit his nose, used to the once overwhelming stench after so long of forcing it down his gullet.

The split man tipped the glass to his lips, the disgustingly lukewarm slime slipping past them without much prompting, and drank it, ignoring the loud footsteps behind him and the resounding shout that followed them.

"HENRY, NO!"

Pain, white-hot pain split through as Henry did not bother biting back his screams, who did he have to muffle them for? Robert was right there, he would know now, everything was already lost for him, just get it over with.

Bones cracked and reformed, fingers twitching as if trying to grasp for some salvation from the agony, hair lengthened and lightened, but the damage done to the shared body did not heal...and no doubt more damage had been done from the violent seizures caused by the transformation...

And when the horror was finally over, a shaking and crying Edward Hyde lay on the floor having fallen from the sofa, clutching his hurt wrist to his heaving chest and broken legs spasmed in pain.

Robert stared in shock at what just happened, the man he loved turning into someone he held nothing but disdain towards and was torn between rushing forward to help the other back onto the sofa to recover from the obvious strain and sitting down himself to keep from fainting.

Frankenstein smiled at the new arrival and stepped forward to scoop him up, with Edward trying to recoil from her grip, now feeling like he did before and could feel Henry felt the same, the adrenaline rush that made him chug the potion wearing off as his pain faded because he was no longer in his physical body.

They both felt like a paticuarly fat bird caught in the claws of a playful cat whose hunger was just starting to pick at their belly.

The other man eventually snapped out of it and jogged forward, nudging Frankenstein out of the way with his shoulder making her shout in indignation and put his hands under Edward's legs and upper back in a way that he hoped would cause the least pain for the other and quickly lifted him onto the couch, earning a mild grunt but no crying or screaming, though the blond was still sniffling from his earlier trauma, and Robert tried to let go to confront Frankenstein, but found Hyde clung to him like a scared child with his good hand clutching at the bicep of the other.

"No....no...s-stay" Was all Edward could squeak out, he normally was confused by what he felt for the freckled man, but right now he knew Robert meant safe, Robert meant no pain, remembering how he had at least attempted to defend him from Lucy throwing him out into the streets to be at the Bazaar exhibitors none-existent mercy.

He never would have led the coppers there if he had not been trying to flee a KIDNAPPING!

Edward had no doubt he would have been beaten and bloody if he had not gotten the five-minute head start and had the skills to roof hop, those hallucinations had almost led to him being caught several times, but he managed.

Robert let himself be used as a teddy bear as Edward hid his face in the other man's shoulder, too exhausted and in pain to care about his image, he wanted some affection and Robert was the closest available source that did not do more damage in the attempt.

The Lanyon heir was feeling a swirl of emotions, on one hand, he was happy that most of the less than savory theories of who Hyde was and where he came from had been confirmed at that moment to not be true, on the other this meant he had a SERIOUS talk to have with Henry when he came back out!

Robert was both angry and upset that this had been kept from him for so long, that his lover had gone under his nose the whole time with this secret, yes, they would be having a VERY serious talk! But for now, he would let things cool down a bit, both Henry and Edward needed to recover both physically and mentally from the past few day's events, then Robert would be able to get his answers.

And he had to admit... the little gremlin was sort of cute like this when he was not swearing like a sailor and was in Henry's too big clothes curled into Roberts's chest for comfort, sort of like a kitten, a ratty looking one but still, smiling softly, the curly-haired man gently pulled down the shirt that was starting to ride up on the smaller man making the blond make a contented sound.

"So you are Edward Hyde, I have heard a lot about you.." Frankenstein said, alerting the other two she was still in the room and breaking whatever peace bond the two had started to form.

"Hi, mum..." Edward said sleepily, not bothering to pull his nose out of Robert's shoulder as he stared at Victoria with a look that was between fear and irritation, he wanted to go to sleep, the stuffy man was surprisingly comfy as a bed and Hyde was fully intent on using him as one.

"Well, that clears it up, your different people" Victoria could not help but drone out upon hearing the 'loving' term as she reached out to pat Edwards head, ignoring the almost snarl Robert threw at her "You both were holding out on everyone if I had even a hint Henry was capable of such a thing-"

"You would have what? Not smacked him in the face?" Edward bit, he had been rudely dragged out of his pity corner and thrown into a broken body that shot pain through every nerve with each small twitch, something that was driving Edward insane as he was used to moving as he pleased, not to mention his pride was still wounded from Lucy's own dressing down and following throwing him out onto her stoop...even though she could not have seen the monsters outside, it was still devastating.

So, he was in no mood to play nice despite how he would not be able to physically harm the other "Not caused a loon to break into the society after your creation and led to this whole mess with the coppers being after me!?"

Henry would have pointed out a few flaws in Hyde's argument, but he was having too much fun, another emotion barreling in to replace the fear and self-loathing, he was not in pain from his mind space and could enjoy the thud from Frankenstein digging her own grave from the mirror that hung over a table nearby.

This! This must be how Hyde felt most of the time! It was a sick sort of glee that Henry partially felt bad at feeling at all, but that same part was the dirty mind...LINT that had been beaten back from the past day's chaos and was currently whimpering in a corner to lick its wounds, the lowly thing would not cause its host any trouble.

Neither side was in the mood to be kind, what had kindness with this person done for either of them? Nothing, she would learn EXACTLY what both of them thought!

Frankenstein wanted to see Hyde so badly?

She got him fully loaded! Hurt to boot, and mad as a rattlesnake with a toothache and snapped off tail.

Henry sat back and watched, smiling, savoring the swelling of sadistic joy that built behind his ribs.

Let the show begin!

#The glass scientists AU #the glass scientists #TGStheory #tgs jekyll #Tgs Hyde #TGS #Son of Frankenstein AU #Jekyon #jekyll and hyde #doctor jekyll #Robert Lanyon #tgs lanyon #Robert Lanyon X Henry Jekyll #tgs frankenstein #frankenstiensmonster

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keigos-dove · 5 years ago

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Fallen Angel

✎ A/N: Being the crackhead I am I wrote this to celebrate 666 followers. This is the longest fic I’ve written yet and I’m honestly so proud it came out as wonderful as it did. I hope you enjoy it.

✎ Paring: Keigo Takami (Hawks) x G/N!Reader

✎ ⚠️Warnings: Angst, mentions of blood, hospital experiences, swearing

✎ Word Count: 2,555

✎ Synopsis: A fight between Hawks, Dabi, and you turn for the worst. Hawks and you being hospitalized, you both discover your future will be different from then on. But maybe it’s a good different.

✎ |Tags:| @secondhand-trash @sparkncharge @redbeanteax @adoringwords @lady-bakuhoe @keigos-wings

Heroes were given dangerous missions all the time. Most of them came out successful. There were also the few who failed those missions, and died, or got seriously injured. This mission given to Keigo and yourself was one of those missions.

You were both in for the final ride.

Gaining information about the LoV wasn’t the most ideal mission, but it’s not like the two of you could reject it. You both were forced to be heroes. You had no say.

Today you both had a meeting with Dabi, Shigaraki’s right-hand man. Dabi wanted to meet both of you one more time before you both meet the rest of the League, and Sigaraki himself.

You both were currently flying to the location sent by Dabi, your only instructions were to meet him there and a given time.

Silence was the only thing between Hawks and yourself at this moment. This meeting could go many different ways.

“Nervous, Little Dove?” asked Hawks, your business partner, and boyfriend.

“A little bit. I’m just hoping this goes smoothly.” you chuckle nervously.

“Hey, this is just a meeting. We’ll be fine. The important stuff doesn’t happen until Dabi says so.” he said.

“You sure?” you asked.

“Positive, Little Dove. Now,” he started. “That’s the location right there.”

Keigo started flying towards the coordinates. It was a building. An abandoned factory in a quiet part of the city. It was dark out, and the streets around were empty.

Finally, the two of you were safely on the ground. Keigo placed you down on the ground and let you stretch.

“This place gives me bad vibes. What do you think, Pretty Bird?” you ask

“It’s quiet, abandoned, concealed. Perfect for a villain to hide.” Hawks analyzed.

“Doesn’t answer my question, Bird Brain.” you chuckle quietly.

“Yes,” he giggles. “It does seem suspicious.”

Keigo walks over to the door of the factory and opens it, keeping it open long enough for you to walk inside as well.

“Ready for this?” he asks

“As I’ll ever be,” you answer. “When should Dabi be here again?”

“Any time now, Little Dove. Just gotta be-”

“Well, well, well. Look who the cat dragged in. A bird and a baby.” Dabi’s voice echoed throughout the factory.

You bit your tongue. You did not need to start a fight when you were this close.

“Well hello to you too, Dabi.” Hawks answered. “What’s the plan for today?”

“Talking,” Dabi replied vaguely.

“About?” you ask.

“Well, if you want me to be honest, I want to talk about you for a bit,” Dabi says, pointing at you. Dabi comes out of the shadows and starts circling you and Hawks. Just like a predator with its prey.

You looked over to Hawks confused. He quirked an eyebrow and shrugged.

“Me?” you ask. “Why me?”

“Why are you even here? I mean I know you’re with him,” Dabi says pointing to Hawks. “But what purpose do you serve? He’s done all the work here, you’re just a tag along.”

You think, trying to choose your words carefully. “I’m not a tag along. I want to be here just as much as he does.”

“Are they a tag along? A burden? Do they really help you?” Dabi asks Hawks, completely ignoring you now.

You roll your eyes. Is this all he wanted today? To question your loyalty?

No matter what you knew you had to stand your ground. There’s no way you’re leaving Keigo to deal with him, with Dabi, alone. You just couldn’t do it.

Your eyes stayed on Keigo. No matter what he was most important. You couldn’t let Dabi get a hold of him no matter what.

“They’ve put just as much work in as me.” Hawks answers honestly. “Why does any of this matter?” he asks, his usual smirk disappearing.

Oh shit. He was serious.

“I have a reason to believe that they’re a traitor. A liar.” Dabi says continuing his cycle around the two of you.

At this current moment, he was behind you. And you still kept your eyes on Keigo. You kept your mouth shut, deciding to let Keigo handle this for now. After all, he was much better with people than you were.

“They’re no traitor. They’ve helped with everything we’ve done so far. You saw the blood on their hands. The blood of a hero.” Hawks said.

“There’s acting, lying, deceiving. Ever heard of those?” Dabi asks. He was closer to you now. Like he was right behind you. You heard his voice ringing in your ears, felt the heat of his quirk radiate off his body.

And still, you looked at Keigo.

Keigo couldn’t even speak. Dabi was too fast for him. Too fast for Hawks, the fastest man alive.

Dabi, quick in reflex, grabbed your arm and twisted it behind your back, keeping you in place.

Snap.

A silent scream left your lips. Pain shot through your arm and up your spine.

“Dabi, let-”

“What Little Bird? I’m not shitting around with this. I don’t care how much you trust them, they’re lying.”

Your shoulder throbbed, tears made their way down your cheeks.

You were in pain and right now Keigo couldn’t help you. His first instinct is always to hold you in his arms and wrap you in his wings if you were ever injured during a fight.

You looked at Keigo, tears clouding your vision. He was scared, he knew Dabi had the upper hand at this moment. And for once, Keigo looked clueless as to what to do.

“Admit it,” Dabi breathed in your ear. “You’re a liar, a traitor.”

“You’re a stupid bastard if you think I’m the liar here.” you spat through gritted teeth.

“Dabi let them go,” Hawks said, his voice shaking. “They’ve done nothing wrong.”

Keigo shot you a glance.

Right now Dabi had his focus on Hawks. Dabi’s grip wasn’t as strong now. Seeing as you’re injured there’s no way you could fight, right?

Wrong.

Keigo shot you another glance.

Now.

You took your uninjured arm and swung backward, hitting Dabi square in the jaw, so hard you’re sure you heard a snap.

You fell to the ground, quickly you started to crawl to Keigo for safety.

But Dabi was one step quicker yet again.

Dabi fisted your hair in his hands and pulled you up off the ground.

“Hawks!” you shouted.

“I got ya, H/N,” Keigo shouted back, running for you.

“No,” Dabi says, his voice dark. “You don’t have them, Pretty Bird.”

Dabi then pulled you back down to the ground. Making sure your head collided with the ground.

Black filled your vision. Ringing filled your ears. Blood rushed to your head.

You heard a scream, but you knew it wasn’t your own.

Then it was silent.

Then you were out cold.

Walking up, pain and exhaustion hits your body like a truck. You look around the bright white-colored room.

You’re in a hospital room. So that means the fight ended. How long, obviously you didn’t know.

It was daytime. The long curtain blades covered the windows but light seeped through the cracks, casting shadows on the blue and white checkered tiled floor. There was an IV in your left arm, connected to a machine by the side of your bed. Other machines and tools sat beside your bed as well. The only thing you could hear was the beeping of the heart monitor.

A creaking sound filled the room, then a click. Stepping out from around the corner was what you assumed to be a nurse.

“Why hello, dear,” she said gently. “It’s good to see that you’re finally awake. How do you feel.”

“Lightheaded. I’m in a lot of pain too.”

“The lightheadedness is most likely the concussion you have. The pain, which I assume is in your arm and chest, correct?”

“Yeah.”

“You broke your right arm in three different places. You also broke a few ribs. That’s probably the pain and pressure that you feel.”

“Oh, how fun,” you say sarcastically.

The nurse stayed silent for a bit. Checking the machines and writing things down on the clipboard she had in hand.

“I’ll most likely end up upping your medicine dosage, I’ll ask the doctor to make sure,” the nurse said quietly to herself.

Your mind started to wander once the nurse started doing her own thing.

Dabi really did a number on you. You don’t remember any injuries to your head or your ribs, so Dabi must have gotten a hold of you again after you passed out. Your mind eventually drifts to Keigo.

Keigo.

What happened to Keigo after you passed out?

“Keigo!” you shouted, quickly sitting up, trying to look for him. You winced suddenly, it got harder to breathe and more pain shot throughout your chest.

The nurse pushed you back against the bed. “Don’t just up so quickly like that, you’ll end up hurting yourself more. Who are you even talking about?”

“Hawks,” you breathe heavily. “He was with me at the accident. Where is he? Is he okay? Please tell me he’s alive!”

“Calm down, sweetheart. Hawks is fine. He’s resting in the room right across the hall. A few injuries as well as some burns, but he’ll be okay.”

A weight was lifted off of your chest and shoulders, but pain and pressure still stayed. You were relieved to know that he was still alive, but you felt as though the nurse was hiding something.

“Is he awake?” you ask. “I want to see him.”

“He’s asleep, sweetheart. You rest for a bit. I’ll let you see him later, okay?”

“Promise?” you ask. You probably sounded like a child, but you didn’t really care. You were way too worried about Keigo to care.

“I promise. Now relax, maybe take a nap.” the nurse suggested. And with that, she left the room. Probably to talk to the doctor like she mentioned.

You don’t really know when, but eventually, you fell back asleep.

When you woke up again, the sun was still out. But the light shining on the checkered tiles was dimmer, so you assumed it was early or late afternoon. Luckily you didn’t feel any pain this time around, so hopefully, the meds finally decided to kick in. The only thing you did feel was a slight throbbing in your head.

The nurse from before was at your bedside checking the monitors again. Sitting behind her was a wheelchair.

“Welcome back, sweetheart. How do you feel?” she asks with a smile on her face.

“There’s no pain which is good, I guess. I only feel a throb in my head.”

“That’s good. It’s progress.”

“Can I see Hawks now? You promised,” you said in a whiny voice.

“Seeing as you’re feeling a bit better, I’ll allow it. I did promise after all.”

The nurse pulled the wheelchair closer to the bed. She helped you sit up, and threw the blankets off your body. A heavyweight pushed down on your chest. Your lungs started burning, it got harder to breathe.

“Deep, slow breaths. It will feel a bit better soon. Just got to get used to sitting up.”

You started taking deeper breaths. The burning started going away and the weight started pulling away. But it didn’t go away entirely. You swung your legs over the side of the bed and held onto the nurse’s shoulder with your good arm and pushed off the bed. The nurse spun you around and sat you down gently onto the seat. She took your IV bag off the rack and placed it on the hook on the back of the chair.

“How do you feel? Good?”

“Yeah, a little lightheaded but I’m okay.”

“That’s normal. You just have to get used to sitting up,” the nurse said. “Think you can wheel yourself over?”

“With one arm? I think so.”

“Your arm is actually all better. Recovery Girl came by while you were sleeping and healed it. She couldn’t fix your ribs though.”

“If my arm is okay I should be able to go about myself, thank you.”

“No problem, sweetheart. I’ll leave the doors open for you.”

She started to walk out of the room and opened both doors, just like she said. And set off to another room. To help another patient most likely.

You wheeled your way across the hall to Keigo’s room. Making your way in, you see the curtains closed, allowing little light to come in. Keigo was sitting up in bed slightly. He was asleep, or so you thought, his eyes were closed but you couldn’t really tell from the doorway. He had bandages wrapped around several parts of his body. Some were clean, others stained with blood. Many machines, tubes, and wires were connected to Keigo’s body. And as clear as day you saw it. You were right. The nurse did leave something out.

Keigo’s wings…

They were gone…

Not just the feathers, but the entire wing itself.

Both of them. They were gone completely.

Screams filled your mind. Blood curtailing scream. Screams of pure pain. You remember waking up before passing out again. You heard the screams, you wanted desperately to help Keigo, but your exhaustion took over you again and you passed out. You couldn’t help him.

You could have saved him. But you were too late.

“Keigo,” a choked sob escaped your lips.

Keigo’s eyes shot open at the sound of your voice. “Little Dove?” his raspy voice whispered.

You wheeled over next to his bed. Tears flowing quickly down your rosy cheeks. “Keigo, your wings. They’re gone!” you sobbed.

He stayed silent. He couldn’t speak. Tears started falling down his cheeks as well.

“Keigo that bastard Dabi clipped your wings?” you sobbed, shouting.

“He didn’t clip them, Little Dove,” he whispered.

“No-” another choked sob escaped you.

“He burned them and tore them clean off.” he cried softly.

“Pretty Bird.” you cried reaching for his hand. He took your hand and squeezed it tight.

“Little Dove, look at me,” he said softly.

“Yes, Keigo?”

“We’re free,” he said.

“What do you mean we’re free? You’re quirkless now!”

“Exactly. I’m quirkless.”

“That means…” you whispered, finally realizing what he’s hinting at.

“I’m not going to be a hero anymore. You can retire, and we’re both free, Little Dove.” he cried, happily this time.

“We're free. You're free!” you cry happily.

“Took this long to find it, but it's finally here,” he said as tears ran down his face.

“I'm going to miss hugs from your wings, Pretty Bird,” you say softly.

“You might not get hugs or free flights anymore. But I can tell we're going to be so much happier,” he said back, squeezing your hand again, and ran his thumb over your knuckles.

“What are we going to do now?” you ask.

“We have more free time than we know what to do with. We'll figure it out,” he said, his usual smile splitting his face.

“We'll be okay,” you said happily.

“Damn right we will.”

And he was right. You both are okay. Free from hero expectations, society, everything. It's finally just the two of you. Just like Keigo wanted it to be. He may have lost his wings, but he still had himself and you. That's all he needed.

#bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #boku no hero academia imagine #my hero academia imagine #hawks bnha #hawks x reader #wing hero hawks #takami keigo #bnha keigo #mha keigo takami #keigo takami x reader

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hallowed-be-thy-username · 5 years ago

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If You’re Good At Something, Never Do It For Free Chapter One: In Need Of Some Assistance

I figured I’d post the first chapter of my WIP on here! TDK Joker x Original Female Character. It is currently at 17 out of ? (Where it stops, nobody knows!) chapters on AO3!

**Warnings for full fic include: Graphic violence, explicit language, blood and gore, smut smut smut, graphic depiction of corpses, murder, aaaand recreational drug use!**

Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think! I might eventually put all of the chapters up on here or check it out on AO3!

Meet Nora Hawthorne. She spent her time like most Gotham residents. Go to work, go home, keep up with the news. That changed one night. Her life becomes even more interesting after Gotham's own Clown Prince of Crime comes crashing in with a life-threatening injury, leaving her questioning her morals as well as her romantic desires

Jesus, it’s been a long day. A woman with brunette hair above her shoulders, wearing a pair of loose teal green scrubs stands from her desk chair to twist her torso until a satisfying *crack* is heard, followed by a deep sigh. The noise of her tired spine popping into alignment is heard only by her as she stands alone in the treatment area of the now empty veterinary hospital. The brick structure sits between an apartment building and a law firm in West Harlow, the Gotham City neighborhood west of downtown, adjacent to The Narrows. This location makes Dr. Nora Hawthorne one busy veterinarian. On a daily basis she tends to anything from impatient businessmen toting in their wives’ teacup Yorkies with a little cough to large Rottweilers with deep neck wounds. To say she’s gained a variety of experience is an understatement.

She doesn’t own the place, though. Two years out of school and 30 years old means she has some hefty bills to pay. Dr. Moore owns the clinic. Taking this job meant long hours and a busy schedule with not much sympathy from David Moore. “Your generation expects everything handed to them, don’t you? I had to work harder than this to get where I am,” as he just loved to remind her of every time she requested time off for a little… what is it called again? Oh right, work-life balance. Sure, Moore. Enjoy your mini mansion in Uptown since it seems you have no problem balancing the weight of your business on a pair of younger shoulders. Even if it means those shoulders are constantly wound up in to deep knots that no amount of morning yoga can seem to unravel. But she can’t quit. Those bills to pay threaten to pile higher and she’s afraid of heights. Plus, job security in Gotham is hard to come by. Especially since the Joker escaped from Arkham two months ago.

That was in May. Everyone in the city has been on edge since then and the Summer heat is not helping. The days go by but not a peep has been heard in regard to the Clown Prince of Crime’s whereabouts. Same for the Batman. The eerie silence has only been making it worse. The traffic congesting the city streets increases in intensity every evening as Gotham’s citizens rush home in an effort to avoid getting caught up in whatever devastating scheme the Joker has been cooking up during his involuntary vacation. But the threat never comes, leaving the city’s inhabitants to nervously watch and wait. Maybe it won’t come. Maybe he left Gotham for good. Left to terrorize a new city. Wishful thinking is what gets us all through the day. But the tension still weighs on everyone’s nerves, making Nora’s day that much harder when she gets an earful from her clients on a regular basis for things that are out of her control. “Sir, you don’t need to speak to me like that. I did not give your cat a urinary tract infection,” is not something she thought she’d ever find herself saying.

It is what it is. All she can do is keep her head on her shoulders and do her job, care for Gotham’s only truly innocent citizens. Animals don’t dwell in the past, they only live in the present. In that regard, they’re smarter than the majority of Gotham’s inhabitants. She made it her job to advocate for their health and well-being, since they can’t do it themselves. Nora was staying late to finish medical records for the sea of patients the clinic took in that day and she wanted it all recorded while it was fresh in her brain. If you don’t write it down, it didn’t happen. She told her assistant, “You go on home, I’ll just be here finishing notes. Get some rest.” The heavy set women expressed her concern for Dr. Hawthorne being here by herself but the job has gotten her used to being out well after dark. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep the door locked,” was the response her assistant, Jen, would always get in return. She didn’t want to argue so she would leave Nora to her work within the off-white walls of the dimly lit hospital in silence.

Nora stretched once more and shifted a glance to the clock on the wall. 9:58pm. Had it been fourteen hours already? Her stomach responded with a growl as if to answer in the affirmative. The hard-working staff finished cleaning the treatment room a couple of hours ago leaving the two metal tables in the center of the room shiny and ready for whatever tomorrow brings. The room wasn’t very large but the open design left ample room for patient care. The treatment tables against the walls opposite from each other extended toward the center of the room, leaving a four foot space between them, and had ceiling-mounted exam lights above them. Along the walls there were shelves of neatly organized equipment and tools. Essentials. White medical tape, boxes of gloves, bandage scissors, IV catheters in a variety of sizes, thermometers, bottles of isopropyl alcohol and hydrogen peroxide, jars with gauze soaked in chlorhexidine scrub, sterile lubricant, needles and syringes, and bandage material being among the most heavily utilized items. Along the back wall is a bank of cages and kennels for patients spending the day in the clinic (any patients in need of continued care were transferred to a nearby twenty four-hour hospital) flanked by drawers full of IV fluids and sterilized tools. The back right corner of the room opened into a short hallway leading to the area that housed a small surgical suite, devoid of any light this time of night, where a cart with monitors and a gas anesthesia circuit sat in wait for its next use. Just beyond this suite is a small door marked “Radiology” indicating the digital X-ray equipment kept inside, keeping radiation exposure to the rest of the place at a minimum. Nora’s desk is in the back left corner of the treatment room, a shelf full of medical reference books sitting above her head. Also that “World’s Greatest Dog-tor” certificate Jen gave her last Spring. Nora didn’t have the heart to tell her she found it kind of insulting.

With the last medical record completed, details of the day’s procedures noted in succinct but thorough language, it was time for the doctor to make her way back to her nearby apartment for some much needed rest. She left her seldom-worn long white lab coat on the back of her chair where it always was and removed the black stethoscope from around her neck to place it on her desk. Walking toward the red-lit exit sign above the side door leading to the alley, she flicked the switch to turn the remaining lights off. She usually had a small can of pepper spray readied in her hand when she left alone at a late hour. But Nora had been practically beaten into the ground with exhaustion at this point and her thoughts were instead centered around a hot shower and her soft bed.

She opened the door to receive a gust of warm night air to her face, intensifying her sleepy feelings. Letting out a rather large yawn, she turned to put her keys in the door to lock it. As she removed the key from the lock, she felt a strange sensation on the back her neck. Like a crawling of her skin, a feeling of dread. Before she could turn around in search of the source of her body’s sudden danger signal, a purple glove slammed onto the door next to her head. Her eyes snapped to the glove and she froze, unable to breathe, while her heart jumped into her throat.

“Evening, doc,” a nasally, raspy voice said. She slowly turned her head to find herself face to face with the Joker himself, leaning with his gloved hand against the door. His makeup was smudged wildly and he was wearing his signature purple overcoat and suit. All color drained from Nora’s face as her breathing quickened to a practically panting rate, the idea of sleep drowned in a surge of adrenaline. Before she could make a sound his other gloved hand clapped over her mouth, a knife tucked between his thumb and index finger, the blade laying flat across the top of his hand.

“Ahh tah tah, no screamin’, doc. Wouldn’t want to wake the neighbors, would we?” he said, his dark eyes staring straight into hers. Nora struggled to regain her composure, it did her no good to panic. She knew begging and crying would get her nowhere with the Joker. Better to have as clear a head as possible. She took a sharp inhale through her nose. The wave of gasoline and extinguished matches that met her nostrils was overwhelming. It almost made her dizzy. But she slowly let the breath back out through her nose. Their gaze into each other’s eyes, hers wide with fear, his black and hooded, had not been broken since his zeroed in on hers. It was like magnets were keeping her eyes on his, no matter how hard she tried to look away, she couldn’t do it.

“Now. I’m going to move my hand and youuu are not gonna scream. Got it?” his voice getting slightly higher as he spoke. Without thinking Nora nodded slowly, still not breaking their stare, as he slid his hand from over her mouth.

She allowed herself to blink. Then, trying not to let her voice crack, she quietly said, “H-How did you know I’m a doctor?” Stupid stupid stupid. You are an idiot Nora Hawthorne.

Joker let out a breathy giggle and Nora’s gaze then fixated on his mouth. His scars. They were even more striking up close. Nora was no stranger to stitching up wounds and these must have been awful. She didn’t want him to see her eyeing them so she shifted her eyes back up to his.

“Who else would be here this la-te, hm?” Nora couldn’t do anything but open her mouth and shake her head, her eyebrows knitted together with anxiety.

Still bracing himself against the building on his left hand planted on top of the door he said, “Enough with the formalities doc. I am in need for some, uh, assistance, you see.” It was then that the doctor noticed the Joker’s breathing. It was shallow and rather fast. Like he couldn’t catch his breath but was trying to. Oh shit, what does he mean by that. She wasn’t sure how she didn’t notice his labored breathing until now. She supposed being paralyzed with fear would do that to a person. Nora watched as the Joker then lifted the flap of his coat from his right side, revealing a two inch wide piece of glass sticking out from between his ribs. There was blood trailing from it, down his green vest. She gasped. He dropped the fabric and grabbed her by the chin, jerking her head so her eyes met his yet again.

“So, my little doctor, youuu are going to provide said assistance-ah,” he growled. Nora’s eyes grew even wider.

“Wait wait, what? No no I’m a veterinarian, I’m not a human doctor,” she said in a panicked voice. Yeah, nice one, Hawthorne.

“I can read, doc,” the Joker said, gesturing to the painted door that read Gotham City Veterinary Urgent Care. “I know you’ve got what I need in that pretty little head of yours.” He tried to stifle a gasping sound from his throat as he attempted to inhale before speaking again. “I am an animal after all aren’t I, hm?” he said, leaning his head forward and bouncing his eyebrows suggestively. Nora was stunned.

“Why me? Why did you come here for help?”

“Can’t quite go to the emergency room, can I doc? Besides, you take care of little doggies and kitties all day. Just think of meee as a lost little, uh, puppy,” he said, shifting his weight to put his knife-wielding right hand against the door on the other side of her head so Nora was trapped beneath him, their noses inches apart.

Fear bubbled its way up into her head again. She couldn’t think straight. How did Gotham’s most notorious criminal end up here, in front of her, with a life-threatening injury? It didn’t matter how, it only mattered that now it was happening. But, how could she justify helping the Joker? He caused so much death and destruction to this city, her city. She could do her best to fight, she might stand a chance against him in this weakened state. But he was the Joker. He’d probably still be able to slit her throat faster than she could get out from under him. He was the Joker but he also was a person. A person in what she was sure was a significant amount of pain. Another gasping sound made its way out of Joker’s mouth.

“Haven’t got all night, doc.”

Nora’s expression softened. What the fuck am I getting myself into?

“Ok,” she said, lifting her keys and turning to unlock the door.

#joker fanfiction #tdk joker #heath ledger joker #joker x oc #fanfiction

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thecrazydragonlady · 5 years ago

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Pride Zine 2020 Piece

Summary: After travelling, Aria and Magnolia get a moment’s rest in a hotel. However, they’re still learning about each other and with it, comes some pretty open talks about identity. How does one classify a half-dragon anyway?

Author’s Note: Happy Wrath Pride Month everyone! This Zine was established by @kestrelmakesart and is available for free download at gumroad. There are optional tiers for some extra goodies. All proceeds are going to global charities. Please check out the hardwork of all the amazing creators who put a lot of work into it.

One last note, this is an original character story. Aria and Magnolia are the main protagonist for a novel I’m planning for my Dragon Breeder’s Daughter series. I hope you enjoy this small snippet from their world!

Aria sighed as she sat down on the edge of the bed. The heat was high in the village they were in; it was much different than the comfortable, temperate climate she was used to with her teacher, but that was a past, many days, and months now removed. Thinking back on it almost seemed like a dream. One minute she was training to be a town doctor. Then she was on this journey, trying her hardest to help her friend find her mother.

Who could’ve imagined that this was how her life was going to turn out?

Speaking of her friend… Aria opened her eyes and assessed her sitting on the windowsill, her tail’s tip twitching back and forth as her ruby red eyes scanned the ground below. A soft rumbling noise came from her throat. She pressed her face closer to the glass as something caught her attention. The two horns that protruded on both sides of her head, circling a bit towards her face, made a soft tapping noise as they hit it. Aria giggled into her hand. She wasn’t sure how aware Magnolia was of her cat-like behaviors, but it was always cute to her when she spotted them, especially in the calm moments.

The room they were in was pleasant. It wasn’t big but had two beds for the both of them, a table and chair for writing, a basin for washing, and that was roughly it. The walls were made of sandstone. The floor, a hardwood harvested from the odd trees she had seen in their passing. Aria was not sure what to call them, but she would be sure to ask. The door had a deadbolt on the inside, which was good for them since this was where Magnolia was going to spend most of her time during the day, just to keep her perceived unnatural appearance out of sight of the common people. It made her feel a bit sad. After everything that they had been through, this type of situation fit their current lifestyle, but she hoped that, one day, after they found her mother, Magnolia was going to be able to live the life of freedom that she deserved.

“I’m sorry that you can’t be in the sun,” she said. Magnolia turned from the window to face her. Aria looked at her with soft eyes. Magnolia shrugged.

“I am dragon,” she returned, “Dangerous if in front of humans.”

“Your language is getting better,” Aria praised. Magnolia beamed a bit. Aria reached into her satchel and pulled out her notebook and quill, documenting the brief exchange. Magnolia leaned her head to the side.

“Why write?”

“I’m documenting.” She smiled when the word elicited another turn of her head. “It means I’m copying down what just happened. It makes it easier for me to remember things.”

“Why write instead of remember?”

“Well,” Aria mused, “Sometimes, my brain does funny things. It can change what I remember so to be acc- correct, I write what I need to as soon as it happens, so I don’t forget.” She held the book up for Magnolia to see, and the half-dragon squinted at it. “See? I wrote down ‘She claimed to be a dragon today by saying, ‘I am dragon’. That way, I’ll remember how good your language was and I can figure out how to help you more.”

Magnolia’s tail hit the ground a bit harder, “Why she?”

Aria froze. She placed the book down on her lap and looked calmly at Magnolia, taking in the signs of irritation: the tail twitching, mouth at a slight angle, eyes narrowed, pupils narrowed like a cat, tiny wings twitching a bit. After a few moments, she asked, “Do you not identify as ‘she’?”

Magnolia huffed. “Am dragon. Not she.”

“Yes, well,” Aria started. The words were caught in her throat for a second as her head spun. How in the world was she going to explain supposed gender identity to Magnolia?

“Not he or she,” Magnolia repeated. “Dragon.”

Finally, Aria released her breath, “Okay.” Magnolia perked up.

“Okay?”

“Sure,” she smiled. “It’s how you identify.” She paused and the smile turned a little bit sadder. “Magnolia, I know you don’t like it, but I have to ask you something really serious.” She moved a bit closer, pulling the wooden chair nearby closer so that they could have this conversation. Magnolia allowed her. “Magnolia, there are some dangerous people in this world. You know that, right?”

“I remember,” the half-ling growled. “Circus. Bad men. Stole me. Hurt Mama.”

“Yes, just like them,” Aria confirmed. “However, there are people out there that are dangerous for other reasons.”

“Different… dangers?” She shook her head. “All dangers are the same. They hurt.”

“You’re not wrong.” Aria took another breath. “There are people out there that aren’t going to care that you are part dragon, like my teacher. You remember her, right? The nice lady I was with when we pulled you out of the stream?” Magnolia nodded. “But there are people that are going to seem like they don’t care about that, and they won’t, but if you say you are not a ‘she’, they will… hate you.”

“Hate me? For that?” Aria nodded.

“It’s sad, and pathetic,” she confirmed, “but cowardly people can be afraid of people who don’t always fit their ideas. Gender, the ‘she’ and ‘he’ thing that you don’t like, is one of those ideas.” She reached out and gently grabbed Magnolia’s hand. Aria could feel the heat radiating off the golden scales embedded into their skin like tiny metal plates, the claws gently brushing the skin of her wrist; there was a stark difference between Magnolia’s golden color and her darker skin. “It doesn’t make sense. Humans don’t always make sense. However, I’m telling you all this so that I can ask you if you would be offended if I used ‘she’ and ‘her’ to talk to other people about you? I want to protect you and sometimes, if we don’t know that person is going to be dangerous for that reason, it would be best if we used the ‘she’ and ‘her’ to keep you safe.”

Magnolia’s tail thumped again, “Don’t like…but understand.” She nodded. “May use when talking to strangers.” Aria smiled softly.

“Thank you, Magnolia.” She released their hand. Aria looked out the window as a small flock of birds flew past it, up into the crystal blue sky and white fluffy clouds. “One day, I pray that someone changes the laws and the mindsets of the people. I hope that people can learn to love everyone, no matter their type.”

“Speaking from sadness.”

Aria turned, surprised. “What?” Magnolia huffed again but didn’t divert their attention from her, ruby red meeting hazel brown; they sparkled with a wisdom that was yet to be voiced and Aria made a mental note to document her questions into her journal later: was it Magnolia, the human-dragon hybrid, speaking now or was it something much more ancient? Could she truly carry the knowledge of her parents as dragon legends often proclaimed? Would the dragon blood make her that perceptive?

“You speak from sadness,” Magnolia repeated. “You know.”

Aria sighed-chuckled. “You did much better that time with the sentence. You added in the subject at least.” She looked back out the window. “Yeah, I do speak from sadness. I know what it’s like, being attacked by people who hate you because you don’t fit their narrative.”

“Skin?”

“Oh no. That was thankfully not one of the reasons. My hometown was fairly good about that; I don’t recall anyone ever attacking me for my skin color or its condition.” Her shoulders slumped a bit. “In fact, nobody there hated me for anything that I am. They were pretty accepting when I finally was old enough to tell them.”

“Tell what?”

Aria looked down at the people. She spotted a couple passing by and she pointed to them, “You see that couple down there? They’re together because they love each other and what is traditionally supposed to happen next is that you’re supposed to be attracted to them sexually.” She could tell that the last part escaped Magnolia’s understanding, so she explained, “Having sex between a male and female is how more humans are made. They make a baby together.”

“No egg?”

“Well there is an egg, but it’s really complicated, and not important right now. I can explain it later to you if we can work on your language first. Okay?” She coughed. “Anyway, I do not feel that kind of attraction. I love people, and I have had relationships like that in the past, but I do not feel that need to make a child with anyone.” Her head dipped forward a bit as she looked at her hands in her lap. She squeezed her skirt as the memories came back to her, to the harsh words that were thrown her way after visiting the capital for the first time. “My family was visiting a cousin,” she whispered. “I had never met him before, but he was related to my dad. I was so used to the safety of my hometown that I didn’t think anything of it, when I explained what I felt to them.” She sighed. “They called me broken, told me that I was less than human, and failing my job as a woman. For a long time, I thought that I was broken because of it and I tried, I tried hard to feel something for someone, anyone, for years after that. But… I never could. I was a kid. They hurt me, a lot.”

“You are not broken. You are Aria. Aria is Aria. Aria is whole.”

She couldn’t help but laugh, “You’re right. I am Aria and I am whole.” She sniffed a bit. “I am better now. I promise. My teacher helped me to understand that when she agreed to take me in as her student.”

Aria looked down, in surprise as she felt the warm scales of Magnolia’s tail wrap around her left arm. Her little wings flapped a bit. She knew that this was one of a few ways that they showed affection; many nights, she had found them curled around her when they were sleeping in the woods or a nearby cave. Their tail was often wrapped around her arm. Aria closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth they gave off, even if it was already so hot in the room from the desert sun. It was comforting to be supported.

“I like you.”

She had to catch her breath for a moment, remembering that Magnolia’s “like” was not a normal human’s like. The dragon part played a role in this so Aria smiled, and softly said, “Thank you, Magnolia.” She stood, allowing the tail to gently slide from her arm. “I’m going to purchase lunch. I’ll make sure to grab your favorite grilled meat if I can find some.”

“Travel safe,” Magnolia chirped, another sign of happiness. Aria waved to her as she opened the door and stepped outside, pulling the hood up on her travelling cloak to protect her from the glaring sun.

#pridezine 2020 #pride zine 2020 #magnolia #aria #original characters #oc #the dragon breeder's daughter series #dragon's heir

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loveforpreserumsteve · 5 years ago

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The Chilling Adventures of Steve Rogers: Part One (Magical Hydra Horror AU)

Sixty-Seven:

Slowly, Bucky came back to himself. Starting with fingers gently carding through his hair, soothing him. The images that flashed through his mind twisted his stomach. Luckily, they were just a nightmare. Right? There was no way that Bucky had actually done those things. It just didn't make any sense. There was simply no way to explain it, other than to call it a nightmare. The way that his loved ones looked at him when he did all those awful --

"You're thinking too much," Steve whispered and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

In relief, Bucky sighed. Realizing that he was cuddling Steve, Bucky nuzzled even closer. Burying his face into Steve's chest, Bucky wrapped his arms around Steve's slender frame. Only, it wasn't right.

Brows furrowing even more, Bucky pulled back. Opening his eyes, Bucky squinted against the dim light and suspiciously at his boyfriend. Frankly, there was no way that Steve should look the way he currently did. It just didn't compute with what Bucky knew about the universe and how things worked.

"I'm still dreaming," Bucky groggily assumed. Drooping back into his cozy bed, Bucky allowed himself to snuggle up to this version of the love of his life. The version that Steve had always wanted to be.

"You're not dreaming," Steve corrected. His hand pausing from running his fingers comfortingly through Bucky's messy hair. Swallowing thickly, Steve hesitated for a moment before starting, "Buck? We… gotta talk."

At that any fatigue that remained disappeared entirely. We gotta talk, was one of the worst phrases in Bucky's opinion. It never led to anything good. Well, except for the time that Bucky admitted his feelings for Steve to the boy, himself. But this was different. It was all in Steve's tone.

Sitting up, Bucky kept his gaze leveled with Steve's and repeated, "We gotta talk?"

Steve nodded his confirmation, causing Bucky's mind to spiral. What could he need to talk about? Flashes of what Bucky thought was a nightmare developed in his mind. Like polaroid snapshots of the worst things Bucky could ever imagine.

Remorsefully, Bucky reasoned, "Because of… because of… what I, uh… did…?"

"No," Steve quickly reassured. Cupping Bucky's face in his large hand, Bucky took comfort in knowing that at least Steve's hands were still the same as they had been. Now they just fit the rest of his body. Steve stroked Bucky's cheek and clarified, "You didn't do anything. That wasn't you. And don't worry, once they broke free, Uncle Loki and Uncle Thor took care of everything. Azazel might've crushed Sam's windpipe, but luckily, Hildy found us. She managed to fix him right up."

"Jesus, Stevie," Bucky sighed in relief. He would've felt like shit if he had truly killed Sam. And perhaps Bucky should've worried a bit more about how Sam was going to feel about his best friend being possessed and strangling him, come Monday morning, but his eyes roamed over Steve's new body. His brows furrowed further, "What the hell happened?"

"Remember what I told you?" Steve prompted, licking over his lip as he gathered his thoughts.

Remember what I told you? Bucky paused before answering. A lot had happened in such a short amount of time. He remembered the Carter house. The wine cabinet. How bad energy radiated off of it like heat. Dark, terrifying images filled his head, giving him a headache. Then…

"You're a, uh, a --"

"Witch," Steve admitted. "Well, half-witch. My dad is mortal. My mom's bloodline though…"

Bucky rigidly sat back against his headboard. Not sure what to think anymore. Especially not once everything seemed to fall into place. The way Thor and Loki spoke about history like they were there. Why the cats seemed more coherent than others. How Hildy knew answers to questions that he hadn't spoken aloud. It all led to one thing: magic.

"So, that, um," Bucky articulated.

There was so much that Bucky didn't know, but wanted to. His questions all swam together and muddled his brain. Maybe it was because of the possession and the stress, but Bucky couldn't concentrate on anything in particular.

"Means, what, exactly?" Bucky attempted again. More sense than before, at least.

"Well," Steve sighed, dropping his hand from Bucky's face, and taking his hand instead. Holding one of Bucky's hands in both of his, Steve kept his gaze down.

Something definitely wasn't right.

"Stevie?"

Steve worried his lower lip with his teeth for a beat longer and finally confessed, "I'm transferring schools. Permanently."

"Oh." Trying to save face, Bucky grasped at straws. Trying to make the best out of a seemingly terrible situation, "We can still see each other on the weekends. And… and…"

Clenching his jaw tightly, Steve sat there for a moment just looking at Bucky. Bucky knew that expression all too well. It was the look that Steve had before he got involved in a fight that he had no business in being in. It was the look of trying not to cry at school for being teased. A look of control. Of being emotional and trying not to be.

Lip quivering regardless, Steve suggested, "I think we should take a break."

"What? Why?" Bucky shook his head. This didn't make any sense. Out of everything that didn't make sense, this made the least amount. "No, Steve. That -- No. Why? Because you're going to another school? That's --"

"No," Steve chose to hold Bucky's face again. A tear fell down, rolling over Steve's cheek, but he didn't dare remove one of his hands to wipe it away. He just kept holding Bucky as he explained, "I've got a lot of stuff to figure out, and I don't want you to be mixed up in --"

"What if I want to be mixed up in it?" Bucky sniffled.

Steve shook his head and reasoned, "I'd hate to do that to ya."

"But we --"

"This doesn't mean that I don't love you," Steve said before Bucky could get the accusation out. It still left a bad taste in Bucky's mouth though. Steve wiped Bucky's escaped tears, "I love you, so, so much."

"But," Bucky prompted, hearing it in Steve's steady breathing even if the word itself hadn't left his mouth.

"But," Steve confirmed, "This is what's best. For now. Just until I can figure things out."

Although Bucky's heart was breaking, he knew better than to argue. He'd do anything for Steve. Even listening to his ridiculous request. Nodding, Bucky agreed to his own demise and licked the saltiness from his tears off his lips, "Okay."

Steve nodded too. Seemingly debating something before leaning forward and kissing Bucky's forehead. Affectionately pressing his lips to Bucky's skin caused Bucky to close his eyes and more tears to escape.

"I do love you, Buck," Steve assured, pulling back, "I always will."

Bucky sniffled and held up his hand, "Promise?"

A small smile tugged at Steve's lips. Hooking his pinky with Bucky's extended one, Steve pledged, "Promise."

Steve pressed a kiss to the back of Bucky's hand and climbed off Bucky's bed. As he crossed the room to leave, he wiped his face, and Bucky couldn't let that be their last kiss for their foreseeable future. So, he climbed off his bed too and bullshitted, "I hear a deal doesn't count unless you seal it with a kiss."

A tiny chuckle startled out of Steve as he teased, "I think you've watched too much, Supernatural."

"Maybe," Bucky conceded, challenging, "You gonna seal the deal, or --"

Surging forward, Steve kissed Bucky, cutting off Bucky's teasing completely. Sure, the height difference was throwing Bucky through a loop, but he didn't mind. He snaked his arms around Steve's newer, stronger torso and held him tight. While Steve tangled his fingers in Bucky's hair, Bucky let out a soft moan, giving Steve enough of an entrance to slip him the tongue.

Bucky wasn't sure how long they stood there kissing, but when they pulled away to catch their breath, Bucky believed Steve when he vowed, "Promise."

To be continued…

#chilling adventures of steve rogers #stucky #steve rogers #bucky barnes #steve rogers x bucky barnes #marvel #fanfic #wattpad #ao3 #modern au #halloween au #spooky #hydra #hail hydra #cut off one head #magic #mortal boyfriend probs #part one #to be continued

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s-nebul0sa · 5 years ago

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Borrow the moonlight

Read it on AO3

Lena stares distantly out the window. Ice blooms on the glass, mirroring the weather outside. It’s been freezing for a while now but the ice flowers on the window are new. Something they have the power outage that happened only hours ago to thank for.

The castle is losing its heat. Even with the extra isolated walls and roof, double glassed windows and currently burning fire places, the air is cooling down at a rapid pace. And as night starts to descend over the isolated building, Lena starts to worry about surviving the night. Not exclusively because of the still steadily dropping temperature.

Hypothermia is a real threat, though. None of the bedrooms having fireplaces — the risk of smoke inhalation having been deemed too dangerous a long time before Lena started living here — and Lena herself isn’t very warm blooded, for a human.

Muffin, the fattest cat of the castle, plops down on Lena’s sock-clad feet. His body radiates a very welcome heat even though Lena knows the only reason he’s picked this spot to lie down is to leech her own warmth. A steady purring from the animal calms Lena’s anxiousness slightly. Muffin seems perfectly content and maybe rightfully so. They can all help each other keep warm. It isn’t the first power outage they have to endure, even if this is the coldest.

A warm blanket appears around Lena’s shoulders and she instinctively leans back into its heat.

“Come to the living room, babe, it’s a lot warmer there,” Kara suggests, pulling slightly on Lena’s shoulders in an attempt to get her to turn around. “I built a blanket fort for us there and most cats are already inside. It’s really warm.”

Lena relents and turns in Kara’s arms, pressing a quick grateful kiss to her lips. “I just worry.”

“I know. But all the doors are bolted shut. The windows are locked and there are still swords on the walls in case someone does break in, which won’t happen.” Kara reassuringly rubs Lena’s arm and lets her hand slide down so she can old Lena’s hand and drag her away from the window.

“Those are decorative swords,” Lena protests as she lets Kara guide her to the living room. Muffin meows grumpily at having to leave his warm spot but follows them anyway.

“You and I know that, but a trespasser won’t. Tadaa!” Kara steps aside when they reach the living room and reveals an intricate blanket fort inside. It’s built a safe distance away from the fire but close enough to be warmed by it.

A fond smile creeps up on Lena’s lips. Her wife is ridiculous. Ridiculously cute, too.

“Come on, Lena! Our kids are waiting for you. Don’t leave them longing and don’t stay out here catching a cold.” As if to prove Kara’s point, a chorus of meows sounds from inside the fort.

Lena laughs as Kara holds her hand over her head so she can enter the fort without hitting the roof and sending the whole thing crashing down.

“You know being cold doesn’t actually give you a cold—” Lena starts to say as she takes in the roomy inside of the construction. The floor is padded with mats and pillows, a small lantern placed in the middle to light up the space.

“I know, I know. Bacteria and viruses do,” Kara finishes with a slightly exasperated tone, having been told that fact time and again by both Lena and Alex.

Lena hums approvingly at having educated her wife on at least one thing. “It looks really good, dear. How long did you even spend building it?” It looks like it should’ve at least taken Kara the better part of the day with the extensiveness of it.

“I started when the power went out.” Kara makes herself comfortable on the floor, fluffing a pillow for her had as several cats jump on top of her as soon as she lies down. She happily greats each one and pets them as they paw her for a good space of Kara to use as their mattress.

Lena hesitantly lies down next to her, quickly smothered by cats too.

“Not on my face, Nala,” she softly scolds, pushing away a skinny black cat. Nala reluctantly gets up and moves to another warm spot, paws digging into Lena’s thigh before deciding to lie down there.

“Isn’t this nice?” Kara asks, turning her head to watch Lena.

“Mhmm.”

“Lena,” Kara berates her, not unkindly, “get out of your head, please. We’re perfectly safe here. Relax and enjoy the quiet.”

Kara reaches out her hand to hold onto Lena’s as they stare up at the colourful ceiling of the fort. The quiet isn’t exactly quiet. The fire crackles and pops occasionally and the purring of several cats fills the silence even further. It’s different from the normal sounds, the buzzing of electronics, music, typing, their own footsteps on the floor. Lena decides Kara is right and she should try to enjoy it.

After a while, Lena turns on her side to watch her wife, pressing her cheek into her shoulder. She can’t fully relax, something keeps nagging in the back of her mind making her feel on edge. Kara looks back at her, as if she can feel Lena’s staring. She wraps her arm around her and pulls her a little closer, forcing some disgruntled cats to relocate.

“See, it’s nice here, right?” Kara presses a kiss to the top of Lena’s head, hoping to help her let go of that last residual bit of anxiety.

“I guess,” Lena answers. Kara is right, it’s nice here but she can’t shake the feeling something is going to happen. They’re sitting ducks without electricity in such a huge building. She should’ve gotten them a hotel room as soon as the electricity went out instead of try and find out what was the cause.

“Just admit you love it. Lots better than last time, at least.”

The reminder of how they got through the last power outage in winter brings a small smile to Lena’s lips. It’d been so cold and they had trouble keeping the fire in the fireplaces going because Lena hadn’t thought to stock up on logs. She hadn’t expected the power to go out. Or the castle to get so cold when the central heating wasn’t on. Or for Kara to stay, for that matter.

Her biggest concern back then wasn’t her own safety but mostly that of her cats and Kara. She’d already grown fond of of the blonde, who was just an employee she was on friendly terms with back then. Kara helped with the cats and taking care of the huge property.

Kara had returned Lena’s worry and they ended up huddled close together beneath several layers of blankets, trying to keep warm by the barely existing fire, talking all night. Lena had refused to leave behind her cats and find a warmer place to spend the night. Kara had refused to leave Lena behind, having noticed how uncomfortable Lena was.

Lena is sure that night is what kickstarted her romantic feelings for Kara. It wasn’t long after that they started actually dating. She holds fond memories of the night. Neither of them slept and as they grew tired, their conversations grew weirder. Lena specifically remembers them talking to the cats and Kara running circles around the room to warm up and stay awake, jumping over obstacles as she went and nearly tripping several times.

“Certainly more comfortable and warmer, yes. But maybe you should run around some more. That was very entertaining.” Kara jokingly sticks her tongue out at Lena, getting repaid in kind. “And while you’re at it, you can double check the doors and windows again.”

“Babe, no one is getting in. Trust me. And if one of us is getting cold, I know a much more efficient and fun way to warm up.” Kara wiggles her eyebrows suggestively at Lena.

Lena gives Kara a friendly slap on her shoulder as she laughs at her, shaking her head in rejection. She isn’t relaxed enough to be able to enjoy sex right now. She wants to be able to hear all the sounds their home makes. Make sure they’re really alone. She can’t do that when they’re making all sort of noises themselves.

Also, there’s at least a dozen pairs of eyes staring at them and Lena doesn’t want to scare their cats.

“Don’t laugh at me!” Kara admonishes. “It’s a good idea. Two birds one stone Why are you so worried about people getting in anyway?”

Kara turns over and curls herself around Lena, offering some comfort and as a kind of promise. She won’t initiate anything Lena doesn’t want.

“When I was little, six, maybe seven, I heard noises downstairs so I went to wake up dad. He told me to get back in bed and went down to check out where the sounds came from. He said he’d keep us safe and that it was probably nothing. Maybe Lex getting some water. I knew that was a lie because Lex had a bathroom across from his bedroom so he wouldn’t go downstairs for water but I listened to my dad and went back to bed.

“I waited for what felt like an eternity but was probably only a minute. You know how time works differently as a kid, especially when you were waiting.” Kara nods, putting her hand over Lena’s to stop her nervous fidgeting with the buttons of her shirt. Instead, Lena starts fidgeting with Kara’s fingers. “When he came back, he told me to get in the closet and hide behind the clothes. He threw some of them off the hangers so I was hidden from view completely. He told me not come out until he came back. I don’t know how long I spent in there. After some time, a gunshot went off and I was so scared, I wet myself as I tried to quiet my crying because daddy had told me if I made a sound the bad man might find me.

“Eventually, he came back and got me out of the closet. He was fine. I was fine. I remember police being at our place but I didn’t pay them much attention, having attached myself to dad and refusing to let go. Well, until mother pried me off him and made me take a bath.

“I know it’s an irrational fear but I’m always scared that something like that will happen again, except now my dad isn’t here to protect me and my family. And maybe, now that I’m saying this allowed, I’m also afraid that same burglar will come back and want revenge. I guess the entire thing just left a much bigger impression on me than I realised.”

“I didn’t know,” Kara says apologetically, unsure whether she should really apologise for it happening or should offer her support and comfort.

“I never told anyone before. I guess I thought if I didn’t acknowledge it, it was like it never happened. But that’s not true, is it? It happened regardless of whether I talk about it or not.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” Kara offers. “And I’m sorry for making fun of you bing scared of people breaking in. I shouldn’t have made those jokes.”

“You didn’t know,” Lena says calmly, resting her head close to Kara’s, foreheads nearly touching. “You can’t take things into account you don’t know about.”

“I was rude regardless. I should’ve stopped and thought for a moment. Everyone has a reason reason to do the things they do, or feel the things they feel.”

“I didn’t even know I had a reason until you asked me. It never really sounded significant when I tried to shove it to the back of my mind and not acknowledged it.”

“Thank you for trusting me with it and I promise, I will keep you safe if something ever does happen.” Kara presses a quick kiss to Lena’s nose, making Lena’s face scrunch up for a moment.

“And yourself. You keep yourself safe too. No reason keeping me safe if you’re not.”

Kara gives Lena an incredulous look but quickly agrees with Lena when she raises a single eyebrow at Kara.

“And myself.”

“Thank you.” Lena closes the distance between them and kisses Kara. A short and tender kiss before she presses back into Kara’s side. “I’m not completely defenceless either, you know. I can protect us too.”

Kara smiles lovingly at her wife. Of course she knows Lena is no damsel in distress but she also cannot help her inherent instinct to protect her family.

“We will keep each other safe,” she suggests instead. “Stronger together.”

“Stronger together,” Lena agrees before rolling over to lie on top of Kara, stomachs pressed together. “Want me to read you something now that we don’t have much else to do?”

Kara enthusiastically agrees. She loves it when Lena reads to her. She briefly slips out of the safety of their fort after tickling Lena’s side to get her off of her so she can get a book and some extra blankets.

Hours later, when Kara has fallen asleep, Lena thinks that maybe a power outage isn’t so bad. Kara’s arms are protectively wrapped around her and they’ll probably be safe. They’re definitely cozy and comfortable and if Lena forgets about her fears for a moment, it almost feels like a little vacation in their own home.

#lena luthor #supergirl #supercorp #kara danvers #kara x lena #karlena #fanfic #my writing #cryptid au #borrow the moonlight

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twitevie · 6 years ago

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You want a Revolution (Some Kind of Resolution)

Title: You want a Revolution (Some Kind of Resolution), Chapter 1. Rating: PG-13 Fandom: Sailor Moon Summary: This wasn’t how her last summer with her friends was supposed to go. Usagi had thought she was done fighting, that the peace they had worked so hard for would last just a little bit longer. But, her dreams are telling her otherwise. And the heat, this unbearable violent heat that wont seem to go away, might be the start of something....

The land under her was shaking, rocking back and forth as if on an ever-wavering sea. Her eyes searched around her, skipping from object to object unsure of her location but the familiarity of the surroundings sent a nagging feeling of irritation through her. She knew this place; she just couldn't place it. Her gaze finally landed on a single white five petal flower, ends curled in on themselves, that appeared to be too delicate to touch. For reasons unknown to her, the flower brought about a sense of peace and love, causing a warm smile to grace her lips.

"Lilies always were your favorite." The deep timbre of the voice behind her was so smooth and calming she didn't even startle at the unexpected intrusion. She could feel the soft sweep of air through the lace of her dress as the man came to stand beside her, his calloused hands gently stroking the flowers fragile petals. "Until another flower caught your attention, I'm afraid."

She wanted so badly to ask this man before her, who seemed so burdened with loss and sadness, what he meant but words failed her. It was as if even the simple task of forming them seemed to tiresome to try.

"Why do you haunt me so?" Turning, the man brought a hand up to caress her cheek but sighed when his hand met with no resistance. "Is it because I failed you?"

The question fell upon deaf ears. Her heart was racing, why had his hand gone right through her? Why was he speaking to her in such a way that it was as if she were nothing more than an echo from his own memory? She felt a painful palpitation in her chest as her heart rushed to catch up with her feelings. This was a dream! A memory? Something unknown and scary and she did not welcome the implication that she was nothing more than a memory to this man. She was real!

... wasn't she?

His hand hovered over her cheek, as if he wanted to touch her, but was afraid. "A war is coming. One that has been in the works for millennia." She watched as his eyes started to glisten with such raw emotion, she couldn't help but feel her own eyes well in sympathy. "All I ask is for your understanding. And, if it should happen, in the end, your forgiveness."

A war? War with who? Before she could even try to pose the question, something pulled at her, something bright and painful. Her breath hitched as she was wrenched away from the man.

"WAIT!" Usagi jolted awake breath coming fast and hard, heart beating a painful staccato in her chest.

"Usagi?" The quiet voice and gentle paw on her hand had the young girl turning towards her cat.

"Dream." She responded. "Just a very vivid dream." With a heavy sigh of relief Usagi brought a cool hand to her forehead to sooth the warmth it was radiating.

Luna delicately made her way to sit on her friends’ legs, head ducking to stare into the girl’s eyes. "Are you alright?"

Usagi let her hand fall to rest on the top of Luna's head. "Mmhmm, I'm fine Luna."

"Good!" Luna shrugged Usagi's hand off before she jumped down to the floor and stretched. "Then you best hurry or you'll be late."

Forehead scrunched in confusion, Usagi grabbed her phone from the nightstand and hit the power button, eyes widening at the time. "9:00! Rei is going to throttle me!"

Usagi threw the covers off and scrambled to her closet. "Luna how could you let me sleep so late?! You were supposed to wake me!" Hastily, she grabbed a simple sundress and a pair of sandals before sprinting towards the bathroom.

All the while, Luna just watched with a raised brow as Usagi passed back by the bedroom door this time dressed for the day. "Silly girl."

-_-_-_-_-

"-corded its 4th consecutive day of temperatures 35 C or higher on Wednesday, reaching 39.8 C. That's the highest temperature recorded anywhere in Japan this year, according to JMA, and ties for the 25th-highest daily high temperature ever recorded in Japanese history. Authorities are cautioning citizens to please stay indoors as it's likely this period of extreme heat will be with us for the rest of the we-"

Rei switched the TV off and dropped the remote onto the coffee table. "Another hot day."

Ami set her book down and nodded. "Global Warming is starting to be a worrisome thing."

"Eh, I don't think it's Global Warming." Minako stated as she inspected the small cookie in her hand. "It's probably aliens bent on global destruction."

Ami sputtered. "W-what?"

Makoto shook her head in shame. "Please don't tell me you were watching that stupid documentary again?"

"Aliens of the Ancient World is not a stupid documentary it's based in fact! They have scientists and everything!"

"I... I don't know how to respond to that." Rei muttered, head in her hands. Letting her hands fall, the raven-haired teen plopped down onto the floor. "Why were you even watching that in the first place?"

Minako shrugged. "Artemis thinks the host lady is cute."

"Oh!" Makoto started leaning forward and resting her head on her folded hands. "Does he now?"

A giggle. "But don't tell Luna, she might get jealous."

"We really should be studying. College entrance exams will be here before you know it. And, I do not want to be one of the few people who have to take a Gap Year."

Makoto grinned and flicked a cookie crumb towards the blue haired genius. "I think you'll do fine, Ami. You're the top student in the year."

"Be that as it may-"

"Sorry, I'm late!" The group of four turned to see Usagi shoving the door open with a bright smile on her face. "I overslept again."

Rei rolled her eyes. "What else is new? We haven't started anyways, so you’re just in time."

The grin slowly fell. "You guys didn't have to wait on me, really!"

"And let you miss all the fun of..." Minako paused to glance down at the title of the book in front of her, cringing. "Civics, ugggh."

"Hey, Civics is pretty interesting."

Minako looked up, smiled at Makoto, and wagged her eyebrows suggestively. "What'll it cost for you to do my homework?"

With a wink, the brunette replied, "You couldn't afford me, girl.", before she leaned back onto her elbows with a sigh. "Besides, we're on break, we still have a while before we have to worry about homework. Come on, let's go do something fun!"

Rei shook her head. "In this heat? We'd all wind up in the hospital with heat stroke."

"Too hot to go outside and now stuck with the two people who think homework is fun. Told you, Aliens."

Usagi raised an eyebrow at Minako before turning to look towards Ami and Rei, who both appeared annoyed at the comment. "Did I miss something?"

"Nothing important." Rei stated glaring at Makoto, who was covering up her laugh with a fake cough.

"Right..." Usagi knelt between Rei and Ami. She slowly reached for the civics textbook, her eyes lingering on the bright green cover with bold red lettering. She had a love-hate relationship with schoolwork. She knew she needed to try harder. She couldn't always be lazy daydreaming Usagi, but when she thought of all the battles she and her friends had faced and all the hardships yet to come, schoolwork just seemed like such a minor thing. She had talked to Mamochan about her concerns. Explained to him that she couldn't get motivated to complete her studies. And the stupid lovable jerk had been so understanding that she had ended up far more frustrated after their conversation. She wanted someone to push her, someone to hold her accountable, someone to tell her how silly she was being. She just-.

"Usagi?"

Startled, Usagi turned to Rei's concerned gaze. "Hmm?"

"You alright?"

Usagi took a deep breath and turned to stare at the cover of the civics textbook once more. "Yeah, just... just thinking."

By the time they had finally finished gossiping and buckled down to study the afternoon bells were already ringing throughout the shrine.

"Yaaas! Break time!" Minako shouted in jubilation, dropping the textbook onto the table.

"It's only been half an hour, Minako." Ami admonished, gently slipping her glasses up onto the crown of her head. "I'm very sure-"

"Break time~!" Minako interrupted in a sing-song tone.

Makoto stood and stretched, groaning as her back popped. "I agree, I could use a break."

Ami took a breath ready to issue another protest against taking a break but stopped when she heard Usagi's stomach growl beside her. She sighed in defeat. "Alright, I suppose a break would be beneficial."

Usagi blushed and held her stomach embarrassed. "Sorry."

-_-_-_-_-

Mamoru sighed in utter exhaustion as he fell back against the cool sheets of his queen-sized bed. He was worn out and beyond ready for sleep. Sniffling, he turned on his side and hugged one of his pillows to his chest nuzzling against the cotton with a breath of contentment. The twenty-one-year-old frowned after a few minutes when he felt his back begin to throb in protest of the position.

With a frustrated grunt he turned over onto his other side and slid his arm beneath his head. A smile graced his tired features as the new position sent the minor pain fleeting. Moments ticked quietly by before his hip began to elicit the same annoying throb.

Mamoru groaned; he was no stranger to insomnia. During the last months of his high school years he knew the affliction well. Between moonlighting as a masked vigilante, rising early in the morning for school, and staying out well into the evening hours for cram-school sessions; he was used to surviving on minimal sleep and taking small naps where he could. So, he didn't understand why his body was disagreeing with his current need for sleep.

He laid there for a few more moments before he sat up and scrubbed at his gritty eyes. With a sigh of resignation, he grabbed his cell phone from the nightstand and clicked the power button, squinting against the intrusive light to see it was only 10:48pm.

Completely ridiculous.

He set the offending object to his side and stood. The bright city lights of Boston greeted him as he made his way to the apartments glass fronted balcony. He stood there momentarily, taking in the bustling late-night activity of the city below, before slipping out of the balcony doors. The updraft of wind stole his breath as the traffic below sent an aching fire through his head.

"All's well my Liege?"

Mamoru clasped his hands together as he leaned against the balcony railing. The faint glamour of a man long past settled beside him, the warm brown eyes of his old friend studying him in concern.

"Can't sleep, unfortunately."

A non-committal noise of understanding escaped the man.

"For some reason, I just can't seem to get comfortable. My body is aching more."

"The winds of change have begun to blow."

Mamoru raised an eyebrow at the cryptic idiom. "That's not ominously vague."

The man shook his head, the crinkle at the corner of his eyes showing his amusement at the comment. "All life on this planet, organic or otherwise, is shaped by the forces and presence of Earth and the Cosmos. The connection, such as it may be, is deeply inherent to one’s well-being."

"What, exactly, does that mean?" The side eye he received from his old friend had him sighing in frustration. "Kunzite!"

"You modern humans surround yourself with buildings of stone and metal." Kunzite started, crossing his arms. "You immerse yourself in machines and technology that cause a disconnect between the natural flow of energy from the Earth to your physical vessel."

"It's the way of the world." Mamoru stated matter-of-factly, turning to lean back against the balcony railing. "Technology is the future."

"Technology is ever changing. Even in the days of old." Kunzite agreed, "But you are of this Earth, Endymion. You are not just a being upon this planet with a vague sense of connection to this world. Who you are, what shapes you, your very state of being, is of Gaia."

"Okay." The information was not necessarily new. The connection he maintained with the Golden Crystal, as infantile as it was, connected him to his old home Elysian and to his new home on Earth. But what he didn't understand was how that pertained to his current predicament. "Okay, so what does this have to do with my insomnia and body aches?"

Kunzite let his head fall back with a roll of his eyes.

"It means, Nekkid Time!"

Mamoru sputtered and turned towards the second youngest of his generals, face beet red. "W-what?"

"I believe," A voice soft as silk whispered from Mamoru's right, "what Jadeite means to say is grounding yourself in nature will help relieve your ailment and restore yourself."

"Well, if you want to define it in the less fun way, then yes." Jadeite confirmed, winking at Mamoru with a grin. "You need to realign yourself and to do so you'll need to bare yourself in nature."

"Bare myself in nature." Mamoru repeated, closing his eyes with a put-upon sigh. "Sounds wonderful."

-_-_-_-_-

"-in the end, your forgiveness," Somehow those haunting words swept through her mind once more. The man had seemed so heartbroken and wistful during her dream that it made her heart ache. She wanted to help the poor man. She wasn't sure how, but she had a sense that the man from her dreams was real. She tried hard to remember if anything had stood out, anything that would help her identify the man; but the haziness of the dream was making it difficult to remember.

"What do you think?"

Usagi blinked, a brightly colored spoon hanging from her mouth as she turned questioningly to Makoto. "Hmm?"

Makoto let out a small laugh and bumped her shoulder against Usagi's, "Noryo-Matsuri is next week, I was thinking we could all meet at Patio-dori? Make our way from there?"

"Mmm." Usagi nodded, pulling the spoon out of her mouth. "Sounds good."

Rei, who was sitting across from Usagi and Makoto, raised an eyebrow at the gentle response. "Don't get too excited over there, Usagi."

Usagi blushed and stared down at her shaved ice. "Sorry, just... I have a lot on my mind. I didn't sleep very good last night."

"Bad dream?" Rei asked in concern.

Usagi shook her head, "Not bad, just... odd?"

Ami rose an eyebrow, "How so?"

"Odd because...it just, it felt real?" Usagi took a bite of her shaved ice and sighed. "I don't really remember much. Just that there was a man, he seemed so sad. He was begging for me to understand. He asked for my forgiveness." Usagi paused for a moment, eyes focused on the frozen treat before her. "He said there was a war coming."

"Usagi..." Makoto whispered, arms wrapping around the blonde in comfort. "I'm sure it was just a dream."

"Yeah! You probably ate something weird before bed, right?"

Usagi looked towards Minako with a smile and nodded. "Probably. Mama did make spicy taco rice for supper last night."

"See!" Minako pointed out happily. "Nothing to worry about. It was probably just your belly and brain having a disagreement."

"I guess."

Rei pursed her lips, eyes lingering on Usagi for a few beats before the noise of rowdy shrine goers had her turning towards the door. "I swear if the heat doesn't get to me the stupidity of the visitors will. Hey!" Rei shouted before whisking out of the room in a blur of black hair and indignation towards the youths roughhousing in the courtyard.

"Should we help?" Usagi asked watching the scene outside unfold with wide eyes.

Makoto laughed and proceeded to finish the last of her shaved ice. "I think Rei can handled a couple of loud-mouthed kids."

"I'm not worried about Rei," Usagi started, watching as two kids - presumably their age - ran pass the door screaming apologies to the red-faced Rei currently chasing them. "I'm more worried about the poor people she's running after with a broom..."

"Don't do the crime if you can't face the angry Hino." Minako surmised with a wink. "So, Usagi, have you heard from Mamoru?"

"Mm, he called a few days ago. Said he was settling in just fine. He's supposed to call tonight and tell me how his interview went."

"Oh? Where's he working?"

Usagi pursed her lips in thought before answering Ami. "He said he was hoping to get a position at the university hospital as a nursing aide. He thought the hands-on approach would help him when he takes his testing this year."

"That's very smart of him." Ami agreed. "It's hard to believe he'll be starting his second year of Medical School."

"I know, he's been such a nervous wreck all week. I told him that he was being silly. That he would do just fine whether he stayed here in Japan or studied in America." Usagi sighed and nestled her chin in her hands. "He over thinks things. I wish sometimes he'd turn that oversized brain of his off and learn to trust himself more."

"Men are very complicated people, Usagi." Minako pointed out. "They don't have the intuition that us women do. They all think with their upstairs brain and not enough with their downstairs one."

"That's the truth." Makoto agreed and then paused, flabbergasted. "Wait, what!?"

"Their hearts, dummy!"

"Oh, Minako... that's not, they're just..." A sigh. "Please, don't ever change."

"Okay?" Minako replied confused.

-_-_-_-_-

Rei huffed out a breath as she watched the three teenagers scurry onto the sidewalk and rush down the street. She couldn't believe the ignorance of some people. To come into such a respected place and act so ill-mannered, it was ridiculous!

"Did you hear? They said JAXA is meeting."

At the voice, Rei turned from her position to the stare across the street. Eyes lingering on the two-gentleman standing beside a trash can outside the Argentinean Embassy. She had always loved that her home was across from the embassy. The location brought much needed foot traffic to the shrine and such interesting characters as well. But, like everything, the government building brought its own share of problems too. Most recently in the form of a protest about human rights, that had seen the streets crowded with people and the sidewalks lined with police. That day had Rei seeking privacy in the back rooms of the shrine trying to calm herself from the raw energy running rampant.

But now, as she watched the two men in business suits quickly make their way into the building, she could sense the panic and anxiety they were projecting in waves. Squeezing the broom handle, she strained her ears to make out anymore of the conversation but could only understand every few words. Something about strange lights and communication delays but nothing more. She wasn't sure why JAXA - an Aerospace agency - would have government officials worried but it definitely piqued her interest.

With a sigh, Rei moved to head back into the shrine but a heaviness in the air stopped her. An oppressive heat that had nothing to do with the sweltering air enveloped her senses. From the peaks of the trees above a guttural croak echoed down and filled the suddenly silent grounds of the shrine. Rei looked up in time to see Phobos and Deimos stretch their wings and rustle the drying leaves in panic.

"You feel it to, huh?" Rei crinkled her forehead in concern, watching as her feathered friends hopped from branch to branch in distress.

"Alcippe."

If it hadn't been for the wind carrying the soft whisper, Rei wasn't even sure she would have heard it. The pleasant gentleness of the voice had an almost calming effect, sending the unease from before dissipating along with the breeze.

"I'm sorry?" Rei questioned the owner of the voice, turning around only to be greeted by the empty street behind her. She glanced left and right her eyes searching the barren sidewalks for the owner of the mysterious voice, but none appeared. The errant whisper, she decided, most likely belonged to the lasts wisps of a spirit.

It wouldn't be the first time a random spirit had passed through the shrine and it would most likely not be the last. Rei had learned early on many souls visited religious places on their journey to rest; but, fewer of them had the required spark needed to manipulate the energy around them to affect the world of the living. That had caught her attention. Whomever had decided to pass through had been very energetic. And while worrisome, didn't really bother Rei, the spirit didn't appear to be lingering and had already seemed to have moved on, hopefully to find peace. Her current concern were the two feathered noise makers, whom had landed hastily in front of her, cawing and hopping back and forth; the parody of children trying to get their mothers attention.

"Hush now, you two." Rei admonished, turning her gaze to the two birds jumping at her feet. "Whatever was here is gone. No need to be so hyperactive."

"Go on,” Rei shooed, "find some sort of shade and cool down. I don't want to have to take you two to the clinic because you overheated yourselves." Phobos and Deimos cawed in annoyance before flying away to the inner branches of the trees above.

"And don't forget to drink something!" She hollered after them.

-_-_-_-_-

Mamoru wiggled his toes in embarrassment. Cheeks cherry red and his hands, cold from the late night, strategically placed to cover every aspect of his exposed manhood. The small wooded area that Zoisite had identified as a ley-line, a place of natural energy, had thankfully - for dignities sake - been vacant.

The soft chuckle and the ghost of a hand slapping his shoulder had the poor man cringing. "What did you think 'Bare yourself in nature' would come to mean?"

"I thought it was an expression." Mamoru muttered, eyes down cast. He was trying very hard to remember that the figures who had accompanied him were nothing more than a fantastical manifestation of energy from his deceased friends; And, that he had nothing to be embarrassed of.

"If the expression comes to mean buck-ass naked as the day you were birthed, then yes. It was an 'expression'."

"Nephrite," Kunzite started, “must you always be so crass?"

"The prince is ashamed of something that once would have been considered a time of celebration and renewal. It's most maddening." Nephrite answered before turning to Mamoru, "Your parents would hold week-long celebrations. There was much merriment and feasting to be had for all in attendance. It was a way for the King and Queen to honor their subjects for their fealty. The last great spectacle before the birth of the new year. It was definitely a sight to behold."

Nephrite sighed and lowered himself to the grass beside his princes’ legs. Eyes shining in fond remembrance. "I do so miss your parents... They were stricken from this world far before their calling."

Mamoru swallowed hard against the sudden lump in his throat. He could barely remember his parents from this life – just faint flashes of a shadowed smile and the gentle caress of a hand on his cheek - let alone even attempt to try and recall the family from a life long since passed. With a breath of determination, Mamoru knelt beside Nephrite with a nod. "You'll have to show me this renewal ceremony."

Nephrite nodded.

"Very few were ken to the ceremony." Zoisite explained, settling himself in front of Mamoru. "Only those of the royal family and their court bore witness to such an intimate experience."

The poor man was back to blushing again. "Intimate..."

"It's not a sex thing!" Jadeite exclaimed, "The amount of raw energy that courses through the Mother Gaia, is nothing but pure elation."

"Calm your mind, My Prince." Kunzite whispered, "You must allow yourself to think what your mind wishes. Acknowledge the thought and let it pass, do not react. Your goal here is the allow yourself to connect to the energy of the Ley Line that runs through this very place."

"But how-" Mamoru started but was interrupted with a sharp tongued 'Focus' from Zoisite.

Focus, right.

Mamoru closed his eyes and wiggled against the ground trying to find a comfortable position, a hard task when one was naked and sitting on top of dry itchy grass. He wasn't even sure what he was supposed to be focusing on. Sure, he had meditated before, but that was as simple as letting his mind wander whichever way it wanted to go. This felt more like he should have a single goal to set his sights on; as to what, he wasn't sure though. He was curious as to what time it was, he had to be up early tomorrow- today? - to finish buying supplies from the University's bookstore. He couldn't believe he was only two weeks out from the start of the school year. He had so much to do in the coming months. He had to get a hold of the exam board to see about taking the NBME. Not to mention he would be taking step one of the USMLE. The thought of taking that particular exam alone was enough to make his stomach roil with sickness. If he didn't pass the first test for his license, he couldn't start his rotations next year. And if he didn't start his-...

"Focus!" Zoisite admonished, again. "You are not allowing your mind to quiet itself. You are intentionally over-thinking."

How did-?

His answer came from Jadeite. "Your forehead does this weird constipated thing when you think too much."

Right. Focus.

Mamoru took a deep breath, expanding his chest as far as he could, allowing the cold night air to calm his worried thoughts. Slowly, as his breath left him, he allowed the sounds of the wooded area to encompass him. He forced himself to focus on the feeling of the late-night breeze sweeping over his goose pimpled skin. The sudden chill sending a slight shiver through him. He could hear the rocking of the tree branches above as the wind seemed to create a gentle legato with the rustling of the leaves; a rhythmic caress that blended well with the staccato of an owl hooting off in the distance.

Inhale and exhale.

Ever so slowly, Mamoru let the tension in his body release. An unknown weight seeming to disperse as his body slowly sank deeper into the ground under him. He felt odd. As if he were so light he would float away but the heaviness of the land beneath him kept him grounded.

Gradually, his breath began to even out, no longer a harsh respiration but a continuous unchanging motion.

In with a rush of chilled night air and out with a sigh of warmth. He continued this until the sounds of the woods slowly faded away to the quiet of his breath, his body leaving the sensations of the brisk night behind as he continued his journey inward. Here, thoughts which had plagued him earlier, stilled. In this place of dark quiet, Mamoru allowed himself to settle- to be at peace.

The soft lub-dub of his heartbeat welcomed him to this place of restoration. He felt cradled in a blanket of warmth; a soothing heat that reminded him of the many nights he lay entwined with Usagi on his bed. Nights where the two were so entangled together he was never sure where she began, and he ended.

"You two would have conquered the Cosmos."

Mamoru startled at the intrusion, "I'm sorry...?"

"No need to be sorry."

The darkness around Mamoru suddenly flashed a brilliant blue, a beautiful spectacle sending a cascade of light sweeping through the black and illuminating the towering figure draped in fine linens before him. Mamoru stared in awe at the figure. Taking in the sheer unadulterated beauty of the Titaness before him.

Ringlets of pure silken earth fell gently from beneath the golden crown adorning the unknown woman's head. Eyes that seemed to be made from the very seas of the Earth bore into him. Commanding his attention with every fiber of his being. The woman's aura seeped into the surrounding air between them and in that very moment something sparked to life inside Mamoru, something he had thought was long since lost to him. Something he never thought he would be intimate to again.

"M....mother?"

The light surrounding the woman slowly gave way as she swept forward hands reaching towards him. "Endymion. My baby, I had always hoped one day that we would be reunited. And, by the Gods, here you stand before me."

-_-_-_-_-_-

“What I would not give to have my Kiseru.” Kunzite murmured with a sigh.

Nephrite snorted, “You’re an ethereal being housed in a crystal, how would you even smoke it?”.

“I would find a way.” Kunzite retorted.

Nephrite smirked in response before slowly shifting to stare at his glove covered hands. Paying attention to the fact that even though he knew the white leather should feel buttery-smooth – given the sheep stock the garments came from – he felt nothing. He clenched his hands as a thread of anger began to the twine through him. He was a useless shadow of a man who fought on the wrong side of a war that claimed everything he had cared for. Blinded by a prophecy of fear and malcontent - too afraid to shake the foundations of what he had come to know for fear of his Prince’s life and the Kingdoms future. He was such an incompetent guardian to allow himself to be swayed by the sweet promises of a devilled-tongued handmaiden.

“Do not dwell on the sins of the past, my friend.”

Nephrite glanced to Kunzite with a grunt, “Hard not to when everything went to hell.”

“We all believed we were doing what was needed.” Zoisite tried to console.

“Except we were at the forefront of a war that ended with the deaths of thousands.” Nephrite hissed in anger, refusing to be comforted against his wrongdoings. “Because of our idiocy the Silver Millennium fell! We were supposed to protect our Prince and the Kingdom, instead we let a vile demon slither into our minds!”

“Nephrite! Enough!” Kunzite barked quickly coming to a stand, towering over his second-in-command, who was still seated on the ground beside Mamoru. “What’s done has been done and if this is our penance for transgressions past, then we will face this with the dignity expected of our positions. Understood?”

Nephrite came to a standing as well, his brown eyes dark with anger at Kunzite’s words. “Our positions? And what would our positions be? We are nothing but shades of our former selves, doomed to council a Prince we can no longer protect!”

Zoisite raised his hands, “Nephrite. Kunzite. Please, arguing about this will not bode well for anyone.”

“Um, guys?” Jadeite tried to interrupt, blue eyes tracking something off in the distance.

“No, but it will make me feel better!” Nephrite retorted.

Jadeite slowly stood, eyes widening as lights began to cast eerie shadows across the clearing. “Guys!”

Kunzite turned towards the younger man, “What!?”

“Something’s happening.” Jadeite stated, nodding his head towards the sky.

Zoisite glanced from Kunzite and Nephrite to the sky above. “Holy Mother.” He whispered stepping back in shock.

High above them, in a sky that was quiet with the novelty of peace just moments before, was chaos. Fire rained from the heavens leaving a shimmer of ashen dust behind as the flames travelled quickly through the night. Lighting flashed in the distance, tendrils of brilliant white spidering out across the cloud cluttered night sky, heralding the oncoming crack of thunder. The echoing boom ricocheted off the surrounding woods, startling the four men.

“What the heck is happening?” Jadeite questioned.

“A meteor shower?” Nephrite answered, unsure.

“Not a meteor shower, something else.” Kunzite supplied, eyes widening in horror as one of the fireballs seemed to collide with an unknown object high in the sky creating an explosion that resounded through the small clearing. “It feels hostile.”

“Hostile…?” Zoisite murmured in concern, “An attack? But, surely Serenity and her court would-.”

“Guys!” Jadeite interrupted in panic, “Incoming!”

Kunzite growled eyes tracking the same threat Jadeite saw. “Formation!”

Instinct took over as the four generals surrounded Mamoru, each reaching for the hilt of their sword about their waist. Kunzite watched as the swirling flames came ever closer to their position, the charred and still burning remains of the collision trailing behind. A gross reminder of the destruction that was raining down on, not just them, but the city of Boston.

A ghastly orange glow crept over the small clearing, casting distorted shadows across them. The trees above began to smolder from the encroaching heat; their overturned leaves, already dry from the harsh summer heat, quickly kindled to life. Flames, as brilliant and seemingly hot as the sun itself, quickly lapped against branches and trunk alike, hungry to feed the ravenous blaze. Plumes of thick grey smoke curled high into the air fading to a harsh black, a warning for those in the distance of the danger below.

Kunzite tightened his grip on his sword, unsure exactly what their defense would be against a firestorm and a massive forest fire. He looked back towards the still form of Mamoru, the poor mans skin already a bright cherry red and glistening from the intensity around them, and grit his teeth. What had Nephrite called them earlier – shades? How was a shade supposed to protect the most important person in their life from such destruction? In short, they couldn’t. He was useless! He was a leader, Advisor to the Crown Prince of Earth and Protecter to the Bearer of the Golden Crystal and yet powerless to do anything but bear witness to the inevitable. Kunzite blinked hard against the sudden reality that struck him. After everything, this couldn’t be how it ended… it just couldn’t…

“Kunzite?” Nephrite questioned, trying to gauge the older man’s thoughts.

“Hold position.” Kunzite replied, steadfast. Regardless of the hopelessness of the situation, it was his- their- bound duty to protect Mamoru.

An orange haze had settled over them, a choking smog that had Kunzite worrying at his bottom lip. Another quick glance at Mamoru also had him deeply concerned; the Prince’s breathing had started to sound strained, the heat and smoke most likely irritating the man’s airway. He hadn’t wanted to wake Mamoru, the trauma of being ripped from the ley lines energy would be stressful and cause a disconnect within the younger man. But Kunzite didn’t have a choice, they had to awaken him.

“Zoisite!”

At the call, the youngest of the group turned towards Kunzite.

The elder jerked his head towards Mamoru. “We need to wake him up.”

Zoisite nodded hastily, kneeling quickly in front of his Prince. “I am sorry for this, but confused and alive is better than the alternative.” With a shaky nod to himself, Zoisite placed his hands on either side of Mamoru’s head and closed his eyes. He had no idea if trying to connect to Mamoru would even work; but, by the Gods he would try.

Zoisite concentrated on trying to follow the bond he shared with his Prince but every time he thought he had found the thread that tied them together it slipped just that much farther from him. He crinkled his forehead in frustration. Magic was his specialty; energy manipulation was basic schooling. He had learned how to guide people into and out of restoring trances before he ever learned to ride his first horse. But this game of cat and mouse seemed like someone was deliberately trying to keep him from waking Mamoru.

Once again, he came upon that thread of warmth that always seemed to make the world that much brighter, the air that much clearer, but it slowly fell from his grasp. Zoisite could feel his Princes energy slowly slip from him. A dark seemed to settle over his senses, a deafening quiet that, had he been alive, would have had his ears burning from the silence. With a flex of his fingers, Zoisite prepared to follow the faint signature into the black but was pushed back into awareness by a sudden onslaught of raw energy. A soundless scream escaped him as he shoved against the force and pushed himself up; he tried to break the connection, but it was as if something had latched onto him, sending waves of nausea through him.

“Something’s wrong…”

“Of course, somethings wrong, the skies are trying to kill us!” Jadeite replied harshly, turning towards Zoisite in annoyance.

Zoisite blinked owlishly at his friend, suddenly feeling weak. “The energy… something’s happening…” With one last slow blink, Zoisite fell forward into a faint.

Jadeite rushed to help, “Zoisite!”

Nephrite turned at the panicked shout, watching as Jadeite knelt beside their fallen friend. He stood captivated as a brilliant golden light seemed to explode from Zoisite, cascading waves of pure energy, beating in tandem with a seemingly phantom heartbeat, enveloped Jadeite blocking the younger man from view.

“What in the Heavens?” Nephrite questioned starting towards the two when the light seemed to sense his movements and reached out and swallowed him as well.

Kunzite blinked against the harsh display of energy, he unsheathed his sword, and steadied his hand. He’d be damned if he went down without at least a swing from his blade. With a scream of frustration Kunzite raised his sword as the blinding light engulfed him.

#Sailor Moon #Sailor Moon Fanfiction #sm fanfic #Did you guys know that actually zoisite is the youngest of the generals #not Jadeite #me either till I started looking into their ages #fyi: I am posting this to help me get the writing juices flowing to continue #read with caution as I honestly dont know when I will update

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bipolarweeb · 6 years ago

Text

Amity

Summary: A conversation that took place the night Natsu stayed with Lucy after he returned from his year-long training mission.

Rating: G | Word Count: 2,635

Read on AO3 and FF.net!

A/N: I’m finally cross-posting this from AO3, it always seems more difficult to get everything right here on Tumblr.

Support me by buying me a coffee!

Lucy leans on the doorframe of the threshold between her bedroom and her living room. She smiles softly at the picture before her; a rose-haired man snoring loudly on a couch much too small for him, laying on his side curled up in a ball in a way that couldn’t be comfortable. A blue cat is draped across his shoulders, tangled up in his scaly scarf, acting somewhat like a blanket to the feline.

Lucy wipes a silent tear away from her face. The fondness she feels in her heart is nearly overwhelming as she takes in the sight. She can’t even form words to describe how much she missed the two of them this past year.

When Natsu left, the feeling of betrayal was indescribable. She lost her partner, her nakama, and the one person she was supposed to able to count on no matter what.

Although he said in his letter he was going to be back, after everything that had happened with Tartaros and the dragons, she couldn’t believe he just up and left with nothing more than a note.

On top of that, she was the one who had to tell the rest of the guild the dragonslayer was gone.

Not long after, the guild disbanded.

If losing Natsu hurt, losing the guild was devastating. The loss she felt was almost tantamount to the pain she experienced when her mother died. She lost her family for the second time and there was nothing she could do about it

The sound of shuffling and a groggy voice bring her out of her thoughts. “Lucy?”

Lucy can see Natsu blinking sleepily as he tries to sit up, impeded by a sleeping ball of blue fur. He gently removes the snoozing cat from his shoulders before sitting up and placing him on the pillow he’d been using. Happy stirs for only a moment before curling back up in Natsu’s scarf and placing his head on his paws.

“What’s wrong?” Natsu stretches for a moment, and Lucy quickly averts her eyes from his flexing arms. Now is not the time to be ogling his muscles.

Lucy bites her lip as she looks away. “Nothing Natsu. I was just thinking.”

She hears him get up from the couch, the wooden floor squeaking a little bit under his weight.

She looks back at him to see he’s standing right in front of her, his head cocked to the side as his eyes roam her face. Lucy tries her best to hold his gaze, but he’s always had a way of analyzing her that made her feel like she was under a microscope. She can’t help but squirm a little bit.

As dense as he is, Natsu has always had a way of reading her emotions like a book; well, emotions that didn’t involve him. When it came to romance, Natsu had a lot to learn. Anyone with eyes could see how Lucy felt about him; even Happy made comments now and then.

And if there had been doubt in anyone’s minds before, Lucy’s reaction when Natsu left was proof enough. She had been utterly heartbroken.

Lucy can feel her heart fluttering nervously as his intense gaze searches her face. He’s close; close enough for her to feel the usually comforting heat that consistently radiates from him. She wants to lean into him, but resists.

“No, something’s wrong,” he reaches up to grip her chin between his thumb and forefinger, and brings his face closer to hers. His eyebrows furrow as he continues to look at her. “You’ve been crying.”

She tries desperately not to flush at their close proximity, but begins to feel her face warm and her eyes sting as she realizes he knows she’s upset.

She tries to turn her head out of his grip, but he moves his hand from her chin to her face, wiping an escaping tear that runs down her cheek.

Natsu’s eyes widen when her tears keep coming, and tugs her into a hug without hesitation.

Being in Natsu’s arms only makes it worse. His comfort, something she hasn’t had in nearly a year, only makes her realize how long it has been. He’s so warm, and his smoky scent makes her overwhelmingly nostalgic. She doesn’t want to let him go as she fists her hands in the back of his shirt.

He draws back a little bit, both hands gripping her upper arms. She opens her mouth to protest, but he takes her hand, leading her back in to her room. He shuts the door softly so not to wake the sleeping cat in the next room.

They both go to sit on the edge of her bed. Natsu takes her hand again, placing it in his lap. His dark green eyes plead with her before he speaks again.

“Please tell me what’s wrong, Lucy. Something about you has been off since I got here. Why are you crying?” he asks softly as he runs a thumb over her knuckles. “I hate seeing you cry.”

Lucy sighs deeply, wiping some of the tears from her face with the hand not in Natsu’s grasp.

It’s hard for her to look at him. It’s hard for her to look up into his too-innocent eyes and be upset with him. It’s too hard to hold onto her anger when she knows he doesn’t realize he is the one who caused her to get so upset.

How can she be angry when he just doesn’t know the effect he has on her?

“Why did you leave, Natsu?” The question comes suddenly and without her permission, but she can’t take it back.

“What?” he asks with a small frown. It’s clear he’s confused by the question, hadnt been expecting it.

She’s about to say ‘nothing,’ to ask him to forget it, but the sudden pull of resentment in her belly won’t let her.

“I mean,” she bites out, “Why did you leave Magnolia? Why did you leave Fairy Tail? Why did you leave your entire family behind without so much as giving them a way to contact you? Why did you leave me?”

Tears that had momentarily stopped begin to fill her eyes against her will, but like hell she’ll let them fall while she’s trying to get answers from him.

“Do you have any idea what that did to me? You left me with just a note. No real explanation, no way of knowing where you were or if you were alright. You just left.

“Why?” she emphasizes, and he leans back a little bit when she looks up at him. Tears aren’t the only thing in her eyes now. They’re filled with hurt and anger too. He’s never seen her like this and doesn’t know how to tread carefully. He takes his hand out of hers to fiddle with his hair.

“I-I-I…” Natsu stammers out, but closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in order to compose himself before trying to answer her questions. But he doesn’t know where to start. “Wh-Where is this coming from, Lucy? I don’t understand.” He truly doesn’t.

“’Where is this coming from’?” Lucy repeats, and Natsu’s eyes widen as he realizes he just made a huge mistake. He watches her take in a deep breath.

“I’ve lost everything, Natsu,” she whispers to him in a deadly voice. As scary as she looks though, Natsu can still see the tears shining in her eyes. “I lost you, Aquarius, and the entire guild, my family, all in a matter of weeks. I had my life completely ripped out from under me, and then suddenly, after a whole year, you’re back. No warning, no notice. You literally just blew up the stadium, beat up a few wizards to the point of incapacitation, and then expected to be welcomed back again like nothing happened. After all that time, you’re just here again and I don’t know what to do.”

With her final words, her head falls into her hands. She hadn’t realized how true the last sentence was. She has no idea what to do with the maelstrom of feelings whirling inside her, and doesn’t know what to do about the clueless, pink-haired dragonslayer currently sitting on her bed, staring at her with wide eyes.

All the reeling thoughts in her head have gotten to be too much; she can’t keep trying to stay composed. The pressure built up inside of her bursts as she finally lets her tears fall.

Without hesitation Natsu scoots closer to her on the bed. He places an arm around her shoulder, pulling her to him in a way that would allow him to wrap his other arm around her waist. He hugs her tightly, and after tensing for only a second, Lucy finds herself clutching at his shirt.

She lets herself cry over all of her losses for the first time since the guild disbanded.

After a while, Lucy’s sobs quiet down to hiccups. As he soothingly rubs her back, Natsu feels like she’s calmed down enough for him to speak.

“I-I didn’t know about Aquarius.”

“No,” Lucy says softly, face still buried in his shoulder. “And you couldn’t have. No one knows, I never told anyone. It was my burden to bear, no one else’s. They didn’t need to know.”

Natsu pushes her away from him abruptly and she draws in a sharp breath at the loss of his warmth. She can see fire in his eyes as he speaks.

“How can you say that Lucy?” Natsu asks fiercely, “The guild is family, family is supposed to help you through hard times! You should’ve known you could trust them when you needed the support!”

“Of all people, you can’t say that to me, Natsu!” Lucy bursts, standing up from the bed and throwing her hands up in the air. “You can keep saying you left Magnolia to go train, or get stronger, or whatever crap you said in your letter, but we both know you left because Igneel—”

Natsu stands up just as quickly, both hands finding her shoulders and gripping tightly, cutting her off.

“Don’t, Lucy.”

She pushes his hands off of her before jabbing a finger into his chest. She stands up on her toes in order to better look him in the eyes. “You were running, Natsu,” she snaps at him. “You were running away because you didn’t think you could lean on your guild mates when you needed them. You—“

“I didn’t want to burden you all even more with problems that didn’t concern you!” he all but shouts back, leaning in closer to her face.

She’s startled when she sees a stray tear fall down his cheek, but he turns so she can’t see his face. He takes a few steps away from her, and she immediately feels guilty for bringing up his father.

“What happened to Igneel…” he begins, softly this time, almost like all the fight has drained from him. “After he died, I needed space and time to think. I’d been searching forever for him, and then all of the sudden he’s in front of me, fighting, after fourteen years.”

Natsu lets out a large sigh, running a hand through his bangs before sitting back down on Lucy’s bed. Lucy cautiously sits down next to him, having calmed down a bit, hoping to every deity out there that he isn’t angry at her for yelling at him. She gently takes his hand and breathes out a quiet sigh of relief when he doesn’t pull away.

“And then, just as quickly as he appeared, he’s gone again. But this time it’s different.” He shakes his head as if trying to clear his thoughts, and Lucy tightens her grip on his hand. “This time he really is gone. There’s no more wondering what happened or searching for any clues to where he might be. He’s dead. I dedicated so much of my life looking for him, and all that time was wasted. It was completely pointless.”

He looks up at her, and this time he lets her see the anguish filling his eyes. Her heart breaks for him as she lays her head on his shoulder. She feels him place his cheek on top of her hair.

“I felt like I lost everything in that moment, Lucy. I didn’t know what to do, so I took the coward’s way out and left.”

After a few moments of silence, Lucy finally finds her voice to speak. “I would’ve gone with you, you know,” she says softly.

She feels him puff out a small exhale of soft laughter against her hair and can hear the small smile in his voice when he speaks. “I know you would have, but this was something I needed to work through on my own without someone constantly on my back about it.”

Lucy nods against his shoulder. “I understand,” she tells him, “And I forgive you… but I’m still mad at you,” she adds.

For a minute he pauses, seeming like he was just going to let the moment pass in companionable silence. But then a grin begins to take over Natsu’s face. “But Luuuucyyyy,” he whines, and suddenly he’s tipping them back; he lands on one of the pillows, and her head bonks against his chin as he brings her closer to him.

She places a hand on his chest in order to steady herself. She readjusts to where they are both laying comfortably in her bed, her head on his chest and his arm around her shoulder. His warmth seeps into her bones as he presses against her side.

“What can I do to make you not mad at me anymore?” His tone is that of a petulant child, but the way he breathes it in her ear has her heart fluttering in her chest.

“I don’t know, Natsu,” she says as she rolls over so that more of her body is pressing into him. He’s just so warm, and she’s starting to feel sleepy. “Rain check? I’ll let you know as soon as I think of something.”

He chuckles softly before burying his nose in her hair, tightening his grip around her. She can’t help but smile at the sound of his laughter, a sound she missed so much. She feels utterly content in his arms.

They are both silent for a few minutes, and Natsu is sure she’s asleep, but the low sound of her voice breaks him out of his own groggy state. He deeply inhales her comforting scent as she speaks.

“You know,” Lucy begins, and Natsu can feel her fingers tracing absent-minded circles across his stomach as she talks. “All those years you spent searching for Igneel weren’t a waste of time. I never would have met you in Hargeon if you hadn’t been looking for him. I never would’ve joined Fairy Tail, I never would’ve become your partner, and I never would have found my true family. It may be selfish, but I’m so glad you were looking for him that day, Natsu.”

For a moment he is speechless, but then a broad grin takes over Natsu’s features. He reaches to grasp the hand Lucy has on his stomach, the one with the guild mark she still bears, and holds on tightly.

“I am too, Lucy,” he says quietly, and brings her hand up to his mouth to place a light kiss on her mark.

“I can’t believe Fairy Tail is gone,” she whispers, sleep heavy in her voice. She probably won’t remember this conversation in the morning, Natsu thinks. Natsu moves her hand from his lips, placing it back on his chest. He places a soft kiss to her hair as he speaks. “I know, Lucy. And we’ll get it back. I promise.”

#fairy tail #fairy tail fanfic #nalu #nalu fanfic #natsu x lucy

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pancake4848 · 6 years ago

Text

Too Soon

Female version of chapter 1 blue exorcist x male reader!

Everything felt…. Light. (Y/N) couldn’t see anything. Her body felt like a feather, almost like she didn’t even have one. ‘What is this? Where… ‘ (Y/N) trails off as she hears a dull muffle, the sound soft but faint.

‘Someone’s speaking, what are they saying? They sound… angry..’ The sound grew louder, hearing it ring in her ears.She tried to make sense of the muffles, but it was as if she was underwater. She tried to move but found no success. She couldn’t feel her body.

(Y/N) began to panic, confused as to why her senses were gone. The moment her panicked thoughts began to grow so did the voice. A few more voices joined, and chaos ensued.

But just as quick as the voices grew, everything stopped. The light was gone, replaced with a deep darkness. She couldn’t see anything but could now feel her body. She flexed her fingers, her breaths uneven. She felt her feet on the ground but looking down she saw nothing but black. (Y/N) saw her bare feet seemingly on flat ground, her brain having trouble making sense of any of this. “Where am I..?” Her shaken voice echoed off invisible walls.

Whispers. (Y/N)’s head whips around, looking around with fear as she hears quiet whispers echoing around her. Her hands reached up towards her head, covering her ears as they grew in numbers.

“Stop…” (Y/N) weakly whispers with her eyes screwed shut.

“I said stop!” She shouts into the dark abyss, silencing the low chorus of whispers. She slowly opens her eyes, staring down at her feet. Color drains from her face, seeing a red glow shine on her legs. Her breathing became uneven as her hands trembled. Her mind begged him to not look, fearing for what would be revealed. Her eyes slowly inch up from her feet to meet two glowing red orbs, the eyes pierced her soul, a chill running down her spine. Her heartbeat races, creating a harsh thumping in her ears. Sharp glistening white teeth stretched into a sickening grin, giving her awful images of how they could easily rip her body to shreds.

(Y/N) trembles before the creature as it began to let out a spine-chilling laugh, her mind screaming at her to move but found her body frozen in place once again. The creature made steps for her, their sadistic laugh growing in volume before lunging for the female.

“No!!”

(Y/N) bolts up into a sitting position, her chest heaving while her eyes were wide open. Sweat shined on her (S/C) skin and dampened the roots of her (H/C) locks, is hands gripping tight to the heated sheets beneath her. Her eyes strained in the dark to scan the room, searching for the red eyed beast that taunted her mind. (Y/N) looks down to her hands, releasing the sheets to run a shaky hand through her hair.

Once relaxed a soft groan rumbled in her throat, pulling her legs over the edge of her bed and letting her feet make contact with the cool flooring. The teen looks towards her desk, seeing the bright red blocky numbers of her alarm clock which displayed 7:48 AM. (Y/N) willed herself to stand to her feet, scratching the side of her neck while she moved towards his door. She definitely needed a shower. Both to relax her muscles and to wash away the now cooled off sweat adorning her skin.

(Y/N) was glad that her father was gone at work because she didn’t know if she could come up with a lie as to why she looked like she ran a marathon and why she had shouted ‘no’ in his room. She scratches her head a bit, glancing at her father’s door before turning into the bathroom.

She was met with her reflection when she flips the light switch on, now able to see her physical appearance. Slight bags under his eyes, bedhead hair matted together by sweat and pale skin to bring out her tired eyes.

Dreams like this have been going on for quite some time, starting just the beginning of last year. First it was a onetime thing, one nightmare thought to never come back again. That was until three months later she had a different but related dream. Nightmares soon became frequent, telling her father about it once or twice but never telling what her dream was about. She figured she should keep it to herself, hoping they would go away eventually.

‘A year later and they’re still here...’ (Y/N) sighs through her nose and began to take off her clothes, ready for her shower before work.

She only worked on weekends, the only time she had off due to classes. What irked her was that her father worked every day of the week, weekends included. Being an accountant, (Y/N) didn’t understand why he wouldn’t have any sort of days off however she never questioned it, thinking that was the harsh adult life.

A nice calming shower later, (Y/N) emerges from the bathroom while drying her damn (H/C) locks from any water. She quickly changes into her work clothes, grabbing her wallet phone and keys before rushing downstairs. She planned to head straight out the door until a small orange note caught her attention from the corner of her eye. She glanced over, reaching towards the small paper to pluck it off the fridge.

“I’ll be back earlier tonight than usual, work let me off early. Make sure to eat and if you do not eat then don’t think I won’t find out young lady. Love dad.” (Y/N) rolled her eyes at the note but a small smile growing on her lips. She figured she would eat once she got to the store. ‘At least dad will be back earlier.’

————

(Y/N) opens the door to the small store causing a soft little bell to go off, announcing her presence. A few people were inside looking around and she could see two of her coworkers were still there.

“(Y/N)! About damn time! Thought you might have been dead.” (Y/N) snickers to hear the voice of Bill, another teen who was a good few years older than her.

“Oh shut up I’m on time!” (Y/N) strolls over behind the counter and hung her bag on a few hooks for the employees. She plops down onto a stool, watching and Bill helped out a customer at the cashier a few feet next to her. There was another woman, Lisa, in her mid-thirties who also worked there, always fixing things in the back or helping customers around the store.

“So, anything new?” (Y/N) question and stares at the male who waved to the woman leaving the store.

“Nope. Not much goin’ on over here. I did finish moving though,” the green-haired male turned to (Y/N), “how about you? Any chance at getting a date?” (Y/N) blushed brightly and waved her hand with a nervous laugh. “Of course not, no sane person would dare come in a twenty-mile radius of me.”

(Y/N) has never been the best at dating others. She often had crushes, falling for many and going on a few dates. But once she dated them for anything longer than a week, they would always come back the next day bruised and shaken up. They would break up with her, scared half to death and giving no reason before avoiding her like the plague. She never understood why no matter how hard she tried to figure it out and eventually stopped going out, keeping her crushes a secret so they wouldn’t leave her a week later.

Needless to say, she wasn’t doing so great in the dating department.

(Y/N) shook off the conversation and changed the subject, beginning to take a stack of clothes and placing colored sale stickers on each one. The rest of the day was filled with some work, the occasional customer and charting with Bill.

(Y/N) opens her mouth to speak once again to Bill, wanting to continue their conversation on Bill’s fears of Bakemono and him explaining why he hates cats but stops when a female walks up to the counter.

“Hello! Can you help me? I want this shirt but there aren’t any in my size.” A short female with long brown curls spoke, holding up a plain black tee. Bill was currently helping another customer at the cash register so (Y/N) smiled, standing up from her stool to hep the pretty girl.

“Of course! Follow me.” (Y/N) says and gently took the shirt, checking the tag and brand before she began to walk to the back where the storage room was directly across from the break room. She takes out her keys and unlocks the door, going straight to one of the many boxes along the walls, with her back turned towards her. She knew where most of it was by heart, having come back there all the time for sizes clothes not on shelves or to check for extras. She took out a small stack, looking through them all.

“So what size were you looking f-“ (Y/N) turned back around to face the female only to be cut off by a rather strong hand around her throat. A choked gasp left her lips, dropping the clothes in shock when her head and back collided with the wall.

There in front of her stood not the short cute girl from before but black shadowy being with black mist radiating off of it. It had no facial features or no features of any kind, just a shadowy humanoid figure. What sent chills of terror down her spine was the deep glowing blood red eyes with no pupils and a razor-sharp toothed grin that unnaturally stretched across it’s face.

(Y/N)’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates as she gripped and clawed at it’s arm that kept her in such a tight grip, her feet just centimeters above the ground. If it weren’t for it’s inhuman grasp cutting off her air circulation she would be hyperventilating.

“(Y/N)~” The voice that left the thing’s lips sounded deep and guttural, a man’s demonic voice, different than the sweet voice she previously had as it tightened her grip on her neck. (Y/N) began to kick and claw at its wrist, using every bit of strength she had to try and pull the thing’s hand away as dark spots slowly fill her vision. The deep laugh left it’s mouth, but she could just barely hear any sort of sound, the female grunting as she lifts her foot and delivers a rough kick to it’s stomach.

This made it grunt and stumble away, releasing her neck from its harsh grip. (Y/N) fell to her knees, taking in large gulps of oxygen while her hand held her burning throat. She looks up, seeing the creature stand up with the same sickening grin.

Though her mind screamed to run and shout for help, her trembling body reacts on its own, a new surge of adrenaline pumping through her veins.

(Y/N) pushed herself up and lunged at it, roughly shoving it out the door way and into the hall. When the demonic being gripped her arms, digging it’s nails into her skin, she ripped her arms away, leaving red scratches. In a motion one would use to try to ram a door, her shoulder collides with its body, effectively knocking it down and into the break room. In the spur of adrenaline, she didn’t wait for it to get back up and slams the door shut, locking it faster than she could even process it. She steps back, heavily breathing while her wide eyes stare into the window of the door, seeing the thing now lying on the ground. The black mist that previously surrounded it began to pour off its body, revealing the short brown-haired girl from before.

“What...?” She whispers in disbelief, her body beginning to feel sluggish while his neck held a throbbing pain. Her breathing was uneven, staring at the unconscious girl through the door. ‘Was she possessed...? It was that thing... It was the-‘

“Hey (Y/N) darling, could you get me a size medium in the black jeans for me? (Y/N)?” (Y/N)’s head whipped towards Lisa who stared at her in growing worry. She saw that the poor teen was clearly shaken up, fear evident in her eyes, looking as if she just saw a ghost.

“(Y/N) darling what’s wrong?” She asks and comes closer and gently placed her hand on her shoulder only for the female to flinch. Her frown deepens, looking into her eyes.

“Why don’t you go home (Y/N). I can tell you have trouble sleeping so it’s best you get some rest okay? Me and Bill can close up the place for today.” (Y/N) looks at the female, too scared to move but glances at the break room. The brown-haired girl began to sit up, brows furrowing in pain and confusion as she reached a hand up to hold her head.

(Y/N) nods slowly, offering a weak smile to which she returned. She walks down the hall quick, grabbing her bag and leaving the store. Her hands held a tight grip on the straps, (E/C) orbs staring down at the concrete ground beneath her feet.

Thoughts and questions bounced around her mind, each making her head thump with a dull headache. ‘That was a demon...it had to have been right? Is it the reason I have those nightmares? Am I going crazy? Did anyone else see it? What if it’s my imagination? ‘

(Y/N)’s hand reached up, gently touching the skin on her neck where the thing had grabbed her and flinching when she felt pain. ‘It couldn’t have been.’

The female shook her head, walking faster to get home but glancing over her shoulder every few steps. Paranoia settled in her mind, but she pushed it back, relaxing her hold on the poor bag. ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have stayed up watching reruns..’

——

By the time (Y/N) got back home she was a lot calmer then before but that didn’t stop her stares going off into the distance, thinking of the millions of questions filling her mind.

She opens the door to his home and was seconds away from making a B line to her room when a familiar voice stopped her.

“Hey (N/N), you’re back early.” (Y/N)’s dad stood in the open kitchen connecting with the living room, smiling at his daughter. Upon closer inspection a frown settled on his lips.

“You okay sweetheart? You look...exhausted..” He mumbles and reached out to place a hand on her shoulder. (Y/N) shook her head and flashed a grin towards the black-haired man.

“Yeah! Lisa let me off early, store was slow. I’m just gonna go take a nap ‘kay?” Yoshi frowns while he looks at (Y/N), his hand lightly squeezing her shoulder before pulling away.

“Alright then.. Just don’t sleep for too long, I will be making my famous rice cakes for dinner.” (Y/N) nods and sets her bag down onto the couch, leaving for her room quite quickly in hopes to sleep this day off if her nightmares could graciously not plague her dreams once again.

Yoshi watched his daughter leave, staring for a few moments before turning back to continue making dinner. His brows were creased, his steal grey eyes staring down at the stove. He turns towards the counter and grabs his phone, beginning to shift through many contacts. He glances over his shoulder for a second before dialing, holding the phone up to his ear. He waited as it rung, his stern gaze looking to the ground once the phone picked up.

“Well if it isn’t Yoshi Sukiyaki~ It’s been quite some time hasn’t dear old friend?” Yoshi didn’t waste any time, not caring to make conversation with the flamboyant man.

“It’s getting worse. She’s been attacked by one of those things.” Yoshi’s voice held pent up anger, saying ‘things’ with poison in his mouth, scowling at the very thought.

With these words the male on the other line went silent, soon followed by a long sigh.

“I was hoping it wouldn’t have come to this so soon but I guess there’s no helping it. You leave by tomorrow. The longer you wait the more will find and come after her.” Yoshi was shocked, his fist clenching at his side but reluctantly huffs. ‘That’s too soon...’ His thoughts echoed but he shook his head.

“I....Fine. I rather have her hate me for a few days then in danger...or even dead.”

“Marvelous! I’ll see you very soon Yoshi.”

@realdwalton

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