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jjkeremika · 9 months

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Express Divine Devotion

description: eremika moments over the years

inspiration: photo above: (“jane austen’s ‘if i loved you less i might be able to talk about it more’ plus sylvia plath’s ‘it seems i can only write you letters that i can never send’ plus lana del rey’s ‘there’s things i wanna say to you but ill just let you live’)

pairing: eren jaeger x mikasa ackerman, eremika (Aot/Snk)

**before they lived together as kids**

Carla stared out the window with an adoring smile on her face as she washed dishes, watching Eren and his new friends Armin and Mikasa play with fallen branches.

Grisha appeared behind her, placing his hands delicately on her hips, which startled her, causing her to jump a little.

He chuckled, “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” and pressed multiple soft kisses to her cheek.

Her smile returned and she turned her head, kissing her husband. Grisha pulled her closer with one arm around her waist, using his other hand to shut the faucet off, then cupped her cheek to attend to the kiss.

Eren, Armin, and Mikasa stood in a half-circle, watching Eren’s parents kiss through the window.

“Ha-have you guys ever k-kissed anyone?” Armin asked in a small voice, his head tilted to the side but his eyes were still fixed on Carla and Grisha, his fingers playing with each other.

“My mum kisses me a lot,” Eren answered with crossed arms, furling his face like he was grossed out, “and pinches my cheek…” He lightly touched his palm to his cheek.

“That… That’s not what I meant,” Armin returned softly, looking down to his feet, “It doesn’t matter; it’s silly.”

“Why do you ask, Armin?” Mikasa spoke quietly yet she always commanded their attention. Eren stared at the loose scarf around her neck.

His cheeks blushed and he dug the toe of his shoe into the dirt, keeping his eyes low. “Curiosity,” he practically whispered it, avoiding Eren and Mikasa.

“Kids, come inside! It’s getting dark!” Grisha called from the back doorway, staying in the doorway even as they made their way back.

About halfway back to the house, Eren grabbed Mikasa’s wrist and pulled her arm, dragging her to a stop. “Ere—”

His other hand started undoing the scarf halfway, then rewound it around her, letting the extra drape around her shoulder.

“Was bothering me,” he answered her unasked question with a light blush, and started dragging her along with the grip still tight on her wrist, “Let’s go eat dinner.”

**during the year they lived together as kids**

Eren was still awake when Mikasa jolted upright from her makeshift bed on the floor—the frame still in wood planks outside. She was breathing rapidly, and her hair was messy from having rolled around.

They made eye contact, Mikasa’s wide scared eyes connecting with Eren’s surprised gaze, and she softly apologized. Then she laid back down and rolled to the side, clutching the sheet a little more tightly.

“Are… Are you okay?” he whispered cautiously, sitting up from his bed, trying to peer at her through the dark.

He heard her sniffle. “Yes,” she answered quietly, sniffling again, “just a nightmare.”

Eren slipped out from his sheets and crossed the room to her bed, sitting down cross-legged. “When I have a nightmare, one of my parents will lie with me. I can go get one of them if—”

“No, it’s okay. Don’t wake them up,” she replied softly. There was a pause followed by a sniffle.

“I’ll do it,” Eren stated factually, moving and situating himself next to her, “and you can’t complain because i’m already awake.”

She blushed softly at the notion, at her friend’s comfort. It felt lonely at night, laying in a faux bed in a different house, her dreams and memories reminding her of the horrific events, haunting her at her loneliest hour.

Yet here’s the same savior, the same protection.

He placed his arm around her and let her cautiously settle in. “It’s okay,” he comforted, “nothing can happen to you when I’m with you.”

**second night after colossal/armor attack**

“Eren! Armin!” Mikasa called from across the shelter room, waving her arm for them to locate her. Armin spotted her first and grabbed Eren’s attention, waving back and heading over.

Armin hugged her when they reunited for the night, squeezing her a little tighter than he used to. She turned to Eren when Armin let go, whose arms were crossed and eyes were dull.

Mikasa reached out, barely grabbed his hand, held it lightly between her palms. “Eren…”

He met her gaze, the color the darkest she’d ever seen, tears held onto the waterlines. “I’ll be okay,” he croaked, like he’d lost his voice from shouting for answers, from crying, “you know… I was thinking…”

Mikasa tilted her head to the side curiously, his hand still between hers. “I told you nothing would happen when we’re together… and… I…” He swallowed tightly, his free hand clenching into an even tighter fist. Mikasa could feel his other hand start to shake. “I couldn’t do anything.”

“We’re alive, Eren,” she quickly responded to soothe his visible pain, to ease the load and carry the burden with him, “Healthy and alive and together. As long as we’re both alive…” She held his hand a little closer, soothed the shaking. “That’s good enough for me.”

**first year as cadets**

Eren watched Mikasa and Reiner spar in preparation for the hand combat exam. From first glance, onlookers would expect that tall and muscular Reiner would easily win; when in reality, Reiner worked twice as hard to dodge the fast and powerful Mikasa, to figure out where she’s going to strike next.

He was watching her form, looking at the way her arms were positioned in her offense, when he noticed the buttons on her shirt starting to pull. Her shirt was too small now that she’d grown from training.

“Reiner!” Eren shouted, which caused the boy to turn around and fail to avoid Mikasa’s punch, knocking him to the ground from the surprise attack.

“Eren!” Reiner shouted angrily from the ground, slamming his fist against the hard dirt, “This is your fault!”

Eren ran over to Mikasa, holding her jacket in his hand, stepping over Reiner. “Mikasa, come with me,” he suggested, putting her jacket over her shoulders and starting towards the dorms.

“Is something wrong?” she asked when they finally were inside, nobody else visibile.

Eren dug through the wooden drawers under his bed for a larger buttoned shirt. “Your shirt is too small. It’ll restrict your movement,” he stated, standing back up with multiple white shirts in his hand, “That could be dangerous in a dire situation.” He held up the shirts.

She hesitantly took them from him. “Don’t… Don’t you need these too?”

He shrugged and blushed lightly. “I have plenty… And I’ll give you more if you need them.”

**day of regiment selection**

“Eren?”

Eren heard her calling his name, but stayed silent as he sat on a rock near the lake. He couldn’t bring himself to speak without memories and tears flooding in. “Eren?”

Mikasa asked again before emerging from the woods to the left of him, spotting him almost immediately. “Eren!” she shouted again as she ran over, collapsing to her knees in front of him.

He looked at her, at the growing morning light reflecting on her skin. He was cold from having forgotten a jacket, but her arrival made him warm.

“Are you okay?” she asked, looking up at him with anxious, caring eyes, “I noticed you weren’t in your bed for a while. I thought maybe you’d gone for a walk, so…”

“Thank you for coming here,” he uttered quietly, leaning back and spreading his legs wider.

She smiled more to herself and moved to sit next to him. Mikasa said nothing, just enjoyed his presence.

“Mikasa, you should join the military police,” he spoke strongly, with more weight behind his words than he weighed, “you shouldn’t be in the scouts.”

Mikasa nodded along with his words, angling her head slightly so she could see him better. “Are you?”

“What?”

“Are you?” she asked again, staring at him directly this time. The eye contact sent a chill down Eren’s spine, and he smiled at the way she wore the moonlight. “Joining the military police?”

He dropped the eye contact and stared ahead at the lake, leaning his elbows into his thighs.

“I can’t. You know I can’t.” He sounded exhausted, determined yet already beaten down by weary trainings. “I have to see the rest of the world. I have to avenge mum. You should—”

“Be with you,” Mikasa interrupted, finishing his sentence for him. He sighed, but she spoke before he could, “You told me everything would be okay as long as we’re together.”

She waited for a reply that never came.

“If you join the military police, I will too. If you join Scouts, then I’m joining too. I… I can’t lose anymore family.”

**first week as scouts**

Eren sat on his assigned bed, near the pillow, watching as Mikasa folded his and her clothes into separate piles at the other end. Armin, Sasha, and Christa sat on their beds around them.

“I heard we’re going on our first expedition soon! Isn’t that exciting?” Christa exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

Sasha pulled a chicken drumstick from inside her jacket sleeve. “Celebratory bite!” Sasha shouted, then took a large bite of the meat.

Armin stared at Sasha in awe. “The statistics on returning aren’t… promising,” he added lowly, sadly, “we really shouldn’t get so excited that we become reckless.”

“We will be inside the walls still, so at least we’ll be able to use our gear,” Christa returned, trying to remain optimistic for the upcoming horror.

“But—”

“It’s what we trained for,” Eren interrupted, glaring at the folded clothes, “it’s our duty as soldiers. It’s what we’re dedicating our heart to. It’s—”

Jean scoffed and the door slammed behind him, “He’s on one of his rants again?”

“Shut up, Jean,” Eren muttered, looking down at his clenched fists. He watched Jean walk behind Mikasa, watched and clenched his fist a little tighter when Jean sniffed her hair.

When Mikasa finished folding the clothes, she sat next to Eren on the bed, inspecting the scratches on his arms he’d acquired from failing the balance tests.

Eren smiled at the warm tickle under her touch, a lingering familiarity that settled deeply in his brain. He wished he could ask his mum about the feeling.

“You should be all set,” she said and smiled, “I think you’ll be able to do it tomorrow.”

**mikasa gets sent on a dangerous mission**

“Jean, Reiner, Connie: you three will be responsible as outer watch,” Erwin dictated, pointing with a stick to the squad formation for this next mission, “Bertoldt and Armin will make up the rear guard.”

Hange stepped forward. “Since our primary goals are to capture titans and avoid causalities,” they started, glancing around the thinning Scout regiment, “Mikasa, you’ll be our sole bait. Levi will render it immobile and the rest of my squad will capture it.”

Mikasa nodded affirmatively. Eren stared at her with his eyes wide and mouth agape, moving to look at Armin, whose face had fallen solemnly.

“What about me?” Eren stood up abruptly, eyebrows furrowed in thought and alternating his gaze between Hange, Levi, and Erwin, “I can lure them too. They love my titan form, and I can atta—”

About half the rook rolled their eyes or slumped in their chair at his outburst. “Sit down,” Levi commanded, glaring at Eren, “We’ll speak later.”

The meeting concluded and everyone but Eren and Levi filed out of the room. Levi walked up to him, slapped his fist against Eren’s chest, ordered, “You’ll be cleaning the barracks,” in a huff and exited the room.

“What’s wrong, Eren?” Armin asked when they were at the dining hall later, just the two of them. Other soldiers from various regiments sat at the surrounding tables, and while Eren occasionally received whispers and glances and glares, they paid them no mind.

Eren sighed in frustration, a hearty breath disturbing the soup, and slumped slightly. “I’m irritated I’m not on the mission,” he answered, clenching a fist near his thigh, “again.”

“It’s for the best,” Armin urged, “We can’t have our best weapon being used as bait. And we can’t risk anything happening to you if it’s not absolutely necessary.”

Eren groaned, “So I have to clean instead?”

They both turned their heads at Connie’s loud laughter. “Haha! So that’s what Captain has you doing instead?”

Jean snickered, “Heh, a nice, clean place to return to after our heroic, dangerous miss—”

“Fuck you,” Eren spat, ignoring Jean’s beady eye contact, swatting at the air like there was a bug.

Mikasa sat next to Armin, across from Eren, and he spent most of the rest of the conversation wondering what to say to her, if he should say anything at all. If this were to be the last dinner together, then…

They all had left the dining hall together, heading back to the Scout barracks early to prepare for the big voyage tomorrow. Eren fell out of pace, fell to the back of the group.

“Uh, Mikasa,” Eren expressed shyly, stepping back and turning to the side to imply that he wanted her to follow him elsewhere.

She turned around, silently understanding and nodding, heading off with him without another word to the group.

She obediently followed him to a small clearing between a few trees, granted invisibility from the rest by shadows and dusk.

“I,” Eren started hesitantly, regretting having not thought of what to say beforehand, his hand fisted, “I’m not going on the mission, so…”

Mikasa stared at him quietly as he trailed off, willing to wait all night if he needed the time.

“So…” He met her gaze, tears threatening to line both of their eyes. He swallowed, raising his hand to take hers. “Please come home.”

**after discovery of the ocean**

The younger scouts all snuck away from camp one night, running off with the new map in the direction of the tiny rocks and wet sky.

Mikasa and Eren watched from the beach as everyone else discarded shoes and clothing and ran into the water, crying joyfully and screaming vibrantly—a welcome contrast to the past.

The moon was almost near the center of the sky when Eren stood up and offered a hand to Mikasa. “Should we…” He stared off at the ocean, smiling peacefully as he stared at the glistening landscape, at the stars in the sky.

He looked back at her when she placed her hand in his and stood up, smiling. Neither of them moved.

“Do you remember,” he started softly, so quietly that Mikasa’s ears tuned out all background noise just to focus on his voice. Tears lined his eyes and he choked on the lump in his throat, “when my mum would kiss us goodbye?”

A tear slid down his cheek at the mention of Carla, of a fond memory of her instead of…

Mikasa’s free hand twitched like it threatened to wipe the droplet away. Eren let it slide to his jaw.

“Remember when… my dad would come home,” he took a shaky breath, “and my mum would kiss him too?”

She nodded, still fighting back the tears. The pink blush on Eren’s face was making Mikasa blush too.

He smiled. “I used to wonder which way I was supposed to…” His blush deepened slightly as he paused briefly before coyly continuing, “…kiss you, but… I think I…”

“Hey, you two! Get your sorry asses over here!” The voice sent shivers down their spines and their hands dropped. They looked over at the source to find Levi and a few more soldiers standing angrily. “Where’s everyone else?”

**during Paradis-Country negotiations**

Unearthing the Founder’s powers came at a heavy mental and physical toll, and sometimes Eren refused to leave his room. Which wasn’t always a solution, because being alone meant exploring his mind, exploring memories and futures that he couldn’t place, of people he couldn’t name.

“Eren, how are you feeling?” Mikasa asked softly through the door after knocking. “I brought you some soup. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind the company for the day.”

Eren debated not opening the door, but he determined her company was better than anyone else’s, his own included. He opened the door and walked away, right back to bed.

Mikasa entered and closed the door, placed the food on the table, and followed him to his bed. She sighed when she saw the morose sight of Eren collapsed in bed, the blankets pulled over his head.

Mikasa sat at the foot of the bed, her hands in her lap. “Eren?” she asked, and she saw him shuffling under the blankets in response, “Remember when I used to have those nightmares?”

His head poked out near the pillow. “Yes,” he answered, nodding simultaneously.

“Are you having nightmares now, Eren?” she asked as a follow-up, shifting closer to the top of the bed.

He paused. “Yes,” he answered again, nodding only once, and looked up at her.

There was no need to speak any further. They shared a short, knowing look, the type of telepathic conversation that comes from collected experience and shared loss.

Mikasa sat upright and Eren moved the blanket, shifting over slightly to provide a clear space for Mikasa to lay. She did, and she delicately draped her arm around Eren’s shoulders, letting his head rest between her shoulder and breast.

He settled into her side, wrapping one arm around her waist and pulling her ever so closer, snuggling ever so deeper into her neck. Her scent and touch were so familiar, calming.

“It’ll be okay, Eren,” she whispered into his hair, using her hand to move a couple strands, “nothing can happen to us when we’re together.”

**during their visit to Marley**

Eren stared at her mouth while she licked at the ice cream cone, unable to take his eyes off her lips. A little stream of melted cream started to melt down her chin and he immediately reached his thumb out, wiping it away.

Mikasa blushed, avoiding Eren’s gaze. But he kept his hand on her jaw.

“You should try some,” she offered to change the subject, to remove his hot attention from her, and tilted the cone towards him.

“Okay,” he mumbled without moving, without taking his palm away. Instead, he rested it further on her jaw, cupping her cheek lightly and leaning down.

It was light. Barely even a light tap. The kiss felt like a buoyant feather floating in water, a tingling sensation remaining on excited nerves, cells reaching out for more. As fast as his lips had tapped hers, he’d pulled away.

“I don’t think I taste it,” Eren whispered, staring at her shiny eyes and red cheeks and pink lips.

Mikasa airily gasped. “Ma-maybe we should try again. For longer this time, so that you can really—”

**first reunion in Marley after eren left**

“Mikasa…” Eren gasped when he saw her, the woman he’d been dreaming of since he’d left, the woman he desperately wanted to return home to.

She stood in front of him, the black uniform suiting her frame so nicely. His heart beat faster than it had in a long time, and he lamented his haggard appearance before her.

She looked the same as in his dreams—better, even. The moon kissed her so beautifully, and he thought back to the last time they were together in Marley; his heart beating faster.

He wondered if he opened his arms if she’d embrace him back, the way he so heavily craved these lost years.

“Eren!” His name came out of her mouth in a half-sob, and she ran to him, practically jumping onto him. She held him close, and he reciprocated, holding her tighter than he’d ever held anyone, the way he’d relished in paths. She mumbled against his chest, her tears dampening his shirt. “Please come home.”

**at the cabin in paths**

A white cat rubbed against Mikasa’s swollen ankle as she sat back in the chair, whistling and rubbing her growing belly as she watched her husband chop wood out the window.

Mikasa sighed and picked up the cat, who purred loudly and snuggled his head into her belly. She smiled in adoration and let the cat settle on her lap.

She must’ve fallen asleep because she woke up with Eren knelt in front of her, his hand caressing her thigh.

“Nice nap, my loves?” he asked tenderly, glancing down at her belly before returning her gaze.

She blushed and smiled, rubbing her hands up and down her sides. “Yes, I think so. Woodchopping okay?” Mikasa placed one hand over Eren’s on her thigh.

He started the stand up, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Yes, we should have plenty for a while. I found a waterfall, though. Maybe we should take a trip when,” he placed a hand protectively over the baby bump, “he’s out.” He winked. “Make another.”

Mikasa giggled and blushed, initially pushing his hands away in shyness before pulling them back. She nodded.

He helped her stand up, placed a hand on her lower back as the other held hers. He let his hand rest on her lower back and brought his other one to the long strands of hair near her face.

“You don’t have to help me, you know,” she urged for the hundredth time, “I’m pregnant, not incapable.”

“I know,” Eren responded, smiling, “but I like to.” She blushed, kissed him, then walked by to grab water.

Eren stared at her as she walked away, tears threatening to fall from his eyes as he watched his pregnant wife move around their house. He smiled in the knowledge that, at least here, she was his to tend to, his to care for.

His to love.

#eren jaeger #eren yeager #eren x mikasa #eren and mikasa #eremika #eremika love #aot eremika #eremika fic #eremika fanfic #jjkeremika #snk eremika #aot #snk #mikasa ackerman #eremika thought cabin

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marydublinauthor · 7 months

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Shot in the Dark releases May 14, 2024!! EXCERPT BELOW 👇🏼

After all these years, Jon Cliff and Sylvia are getting a NEW debut in this 4-6 book series where fairies, hunters, found family and forbidden romance collide. If you’ve read our shorts over the years here and even enjoyed the original 2013 release, you will LOVE this. @kendsleyauthor and I worked so hard on making it epic and more polished than ever before.

I know we’ve been more quiet on here as we struggle to keep up with all our platforms and personal life (mental health struggles suck y’all lol) BUT we truly can’t wait for you to read this.

Updates:

Preorder coming later this month!

If you review books, sign up to be an Arc Reader and help boost our book’s visibility! You get to read a free electronic copy of the book before official release in exchange for an honest review

Add to Goodreads and Storygraph now (also helps us!)

More to come— But for now, enjoy this juicy excerpt from JON’S POV! 💕

“Every non-human I’ve ever met only causes pain and death,” I said. “They want us to bleed by their very nature. But… you haven’t tried anything. You haven’t tried to kill us, seduce us into selling our souls, or trap us in an eternal nightmare. I don’t understand you.”

The fairy’s eyes widened, and she scoffed at me. “Well, forgive me for confusing you by not being a murderer. How can someone like you be remotely afraid of me?”

“Looks can be deceiving.”

“And sometimes, they’re exactly what they are,” she fired back.

I didn’t wrestle off the tired, wry smile that came to my lips. “For someone the size of a mouse, you’ve got a lot of spirit.”

Her green eyes flickered, raking me up and down. Her posture softened like she was slowly seeing less of a snarling animal in me. “If you weren’t a hunter,” she said. “I might actually accept that as a compliment.”

“That’s a shame, then.”

“It is.” She sniffed, looking away pointedly.

The tug in my chest resurfaced—I couldn’t let her sleep thinking I might smother her before she awoke. She had to know we were going to release her. Somehow, it mattered to me that I wouldn’t stay a complete monstrosity in her eyes.

“I lied to you,” she announced, halting my train of thought.

I drew in a sharp breath and leaned away from her slightly. She didn’t appear to be priming herself to attack, but I stayed wary all the same. “What is it?” I asked.

“I…” She wet her lips and wrestled with herself. “I was there the night before you caught me. There were two humans. They didn’t see me, but I heard them. They… mentioned that hunters might be after them—”

“What?” I blurted, crowding toward her.

She cringed away, casting a wild look around the room for an escape.

“Hey.” I lowered my voice. “I’m not gonna hurt you. Look at me.”

Hesitantly, she did.

“You can tell me,” I assured. “It’s alright. What did they look like? What’d they say? Any names?”

“I couldn’t see their faces, and I don’t think I heard any names, but… I’m starting to think one of them was your monster. I’ve never been near one before, but something felt horribly wrong.”

“What does that mean?”

“There’s this… ability I have. A sort of instinct.” Each word fell from her lips hesitantly as though any one of them might set me off. “I can sense non-humans and other beings that you would consider unnatural. It’s meant to help my kind steer clear of those things. Maybe I could point you in the right direction if you take me back to that old house. But if I do that, you’ll have to let me go. Does that sound like a fair deal?”

Desperate hope painted her face. It was a little heartbreaking. I considered telling her I planned to release her regardless of what she offered, but it was a tempting ability to make use of.

“Why didn’t you say something about this earlier?” I asked.

Fresh, uncertain tears welled in her eyes. “I thought you’d kill me if I told you everything. You wouldn’t have a use for me anymore. And then, I thought if I admitted I lied…”

“You thought we’d kill you for that,” I finished. “So why admit it now?”

She shrugged, mumbling, “You didn’t lock me in the microwave. That counts for something, I suppose.”

After pondering her offer, I nodded. “Okay. We have a deal. You help us at the house, and you’re free to go.”

“Free to go immediately after,” she said, pointing a finger at me. “Swear that you won’t enslave me.”

I scoffed. “That didn’t even cross my mind.”

“Not even for a second?” She frowned suspiciously. “When was the last time you negotiated with a non-human? Stars, when’s the last time you spared a non-human?” When I couldn’t come up with an answer, she made a small noise of contempt.

“Fine,” I said. “I promise there’s no strings attached after you help us. But we’re not going anywhere until Cliff comes back with the car, so we may as well get some rest.”

#shot in the dark #gt #g/t #gt writing #support indie authors #fairies #giant/tiny #indie authors #jon and sylvia #Jon pov

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mothguillotine · 8 months

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On the night of your birth, it had been like no other. A storm came of no one's fault, lightning struck the ground causing it to shake and the rain poured down making the roads slick, countless car accidents happened that night. The hospital, which was understaffed for the night, got a mass of patients and your mother, who had come in to have you. That night your mother died, while you lived.

You soon moved in with your mother's best friend, Sylvia Figg. She and your mother met after Aunt Sylvia moved from the United Kingdom. After that, you moved to New York City. Your aunt would tell you stories of magic, creatures, and such tales trying to prepare you. When you were eight the world ceased to make sense to you anymore.

“Aunt Sylvia?” you call from your bed to the woman leaving your room after tucking you in, “Something happened today, and- I'm just confused.”

“What happened dear?” she asked you, even after all this time of living in the United States she still had an accent.

“Today at school, when we were outside, a girl was being mean to this boy. He was swinging and she shoved him off.” you stopped to think about what to say next, “While she was swinging I kept wishing that the swing would just break and she would fall off. Then it did.”

That was the first time you had anything like that happen to you and your aunt knew that she could no longer keep up the roose. That night she told you that everything you once knew as stories before bedtime was real. She told you that your mother was a witch, as was she, and as were you. The stories became more detailed. Your mother had gone to a school called Ilvermormy and she had worked as a healer for many years up until her death. Aunt Sylvia started bringing you around magic users and for once in your life you felt whole.

A few years after that you got your Ilvermormy letter, inviting you to study at the school. Which you did with much excitement, after arriving you knew fast what you wanted to study, plants. In the nonmagic world plants were, well, boring. Here though you could almost hear them speak to you, your professor once remarked “You are the only witch I have ever met that the plants seem to like.”

The plants seemed to flourish in your care, plants that were once deemed on the brink of death came back to life, and no one could figure out why. Perhaps that was why you were in Pukwudgie house, you were incredible at healing plants.

The day you came to this school you had never wanted to leave it. Here you felt closer to your mother than ever before, given you were in the same house as well. All you had wanted was to know her. Around the school, you had found a few mentions of her, mostly of her academics, but she also had trophies in the display case in the main hall. Your mother was an amazing quidditch player you found out, pushing the Pukwudgies close to victory each year she was here. While you found no interest in playing quidditch you still went to all your house matches, loving the sport from a distance.

Unfortunately, your last days at the school, were much sooner than expected. During the summer before your fifth year at Ilvermormy, your aunt got a job offer. The Ministry of Magic wanted her to become the replacement for a soon-retiring department head.

“My dear you do not have to leave the school if you don’t want to,” she tells you sitting in her chair facing you, “You can just travel there during the breaks.”

As much as you did want to stay here it felt too safe, you wanted an adventure. No, needed an adventure. Perhaps it was the fact that not only had the Pukwudgie statue reacted all those years ago but the Thunderbird as well. You couldn't help but wonder, what would have happened if you had picked the Thunderbird house. At age fifteen, you were beginning to doubt if you really belonged in your mother's house.

“Aunt Sylvia, you are the most important person in my life,” you tell her, “I want to go with you.”

So as the summer drew closer to an end you packed up your things and moved to a house in the countryside. The change was drastic, as you were used to living in the city, but you loved it. Here you had space to grow plants and non-majs would never know. Before the school year officially started you and your aunt went to Hogwarts to meet with the headmaster, Dumbledore. That day you were sorted into a house in private, Gryffindor would have a new student as it was decided by the hat. Your aunt looked relieved in a way but you decided not to bring it up.

At Hogwarts, you were welcomed but you didn't really fit in anywhere. Most of your free time was spent with Professor Sprout in the greenhouse. You both got along really well.

“Curse that hat for putting you in Gryffindor,” she complained to you during your first year, “I wish you were in Hufflepuff.”

Your love for plants grew during the many years you went there. Each year you and Sprout became less professional and more like family. At the end of your time at Hogwarts Professor Sprout made you promise to pursue a career in botany, which of course was your plan all along. While you were sad not to be able to see Professor Sprout as frequently you were also relieved that you wouldn't have to deal with Slythirins every day, such as Professor Snape. Who for some reason really hated you, even though you had passed each of his classes with no problems. You had come to terms that he had something against Gryffindor, but the hatred he felt for you was unwarranted. Perhaps he hated Americans that much, but it sure didn't feel like it.

After graduation, you began studying under every botanist who would let you, keeping all your notes in a journal. Traveling across the world to study with different wizarding societies and even after years of traveling you always came back to the house in the country. Years, after you had graduated a young man, came to Hogwarts, Harry Potter. Your aunt had shielded you from the war while it was happening but everyone at Ilvermormy knew the story of the boy who lived seeing as how you-know-who was defeated during your third year. But honestly, a war that was happening across the ocean was the least of your worries at that point. You didn't care to read about violence in your free time and thus stayed oblivious to what was happening in the war.

A bit after that, your travels came to an end. You decided to publish your journal, Botany in the World of Magic: A Complete and Comprehensive Guide. Within a week it was a bestseller. You had also sent Professor Sprout and Professor Dumbledore a signed copy, each with personal notes thanking them. And just for the hell of it, you sent a copy to Professor Snape, signed of course.

You hadn't really expected to hear anything back knowing that the beginning of the school year was right around the corner but much to your surprise you hear an owl arrive in the morning on an August day. The owl you don't recognize but the letter is addressed to you. The letter invited you to Hogwarts for a meeting and tea with Professor Sprout the following day.

The next day you apparate to Hogwarts near midday and even after all these years, you can't forget which way to go. The school confused you for a long time when you first arrived, a giant labyrinth. For weeks you would show up late to class along with the first years, it was embarrassing. You were thankful now to know that you hadn't forgotten.

“Professor Sprout?” you ask into the greenhouse with a knock at the door frame. A second later you see her pop up from behind a row of planters.

“Oh, my dear you are here!” she says, “You look so much older even after just a few years.”

“Well it has been over half a decade,” you tell her laughing, walking into your old classroom and over to Professor Sprout to pull her in for a hug, “How have you been?”

“Wonderful,” she tells you, squeezing you a bit harder before letting go, “Especially since I received your book.”

“Oh, I'm so glad you liked it,” you tell her smiling.

“Liked it?” she asks you, “No, I loved it. So much so that I asked Professor Dumbledore to include it in the school's curriculum.”

“No way,” you exclaim, “What did he say?”

“I'll show you,” she says leading you over to a cabinet to which she pulls open the doors. Each of the shelves is lined with your book. You could honestly say that you had never felt so accomplished.

“This is why I invited you here.” she says, “Me and Albus, sorry, Professor Dumbledore were curious if you would want to give a few guest lectures during the year.”

“Oh Merlin, I would love to,” you tell her smiling.

During that year you had the pleasure of meeting Harry Potter, as well as his friends. Hermione Granger was your favorite though, not that you would ever admit that to any of them of course. Ron Wesley had also caught your attention, not for any good reason, unfortunately. But for his affinity for killing plants quickly. After your first few lectures, you fell in love with teaching. Each week you ended up at Hogwarts at least once. Even though many times, Professor Sprout cautioned you away after students became petrified. At the end of the year though you were proud to have been a part of the cure for the students.

After saying goodbye to the students for the year on the last day of classes Professor Sprout pulls you into her office for a final cup of tea. You both reminisce about the year of chaos, thankful to have a break for a few months before it starts all over again. Nearing the end of your cup you can't help but wonder.

“Professor Sprout, I was wondering if I can come back again next year?” you ask, “I really enjoyed it, I would be here every day if I could.”

“Ah yes well I have been thinking,” she tells you, “I have been teaching here for a long while and I think it's time for me to move on.”

“Oh, do you think that the new professor would mind me coming in?” you ask her.

“Do you not enjoy your own company?” she asks you.

“What?” you ask her, confused.

“Dumbledore asked me who I thought was a good replacement and we both agreed you were the only person for the job,” she tells you smiling.

“Are you serious?” you ask her.

“If you want the job,” she says, “It’s yours.”

Which led you to now, sitting on a train full of students, old and new. You had seen Harry, Hermione, and Ron on the platform before getting on, waving to them before boarding the train. Searching for a cabin that wasn't full of students was difficult before landing on one with a man who looked asleep with no one else. You decided to continue reading your book until three students happened upon your cabin.

“Hello, you three.” you greet them with a smile.

“Do you mind if we join you?” Hermione asks you, “There are no other empty ones.”

“Oh, not at all.” you tell them, “I was lucky to find this one that's only a bit occupied.”

Each brings in their bags and puts them on the baggage carrier above your head. Ron is holding a rat, which is a bit weird.

“Miss, what are you doing here?” Ron asks you, which earns him a slap from Hermione on the arm.

“Ronald, don't be rude.” she scolds him.

“No it's fine,” you tell her, “If you must know Mr. Wesley I am the new professor of herbology at Hogwarts.”

“Oh, congratulations miss, I mean Professor,” Ron says to you.

“Thank you,” you tell him, “I am excited to start. Although I am not excited to see Professor Snape every day, let me tell you. When I was at Hogwarts he hated me, being a Gryffindor and all that. He might have hated me because I am from America but I don't know.”

After a while, they began to talk amongst themselves and you began reading your book again. It felt like being on the train as a teen once again until the train stopped. You look up confused, the train shouldn't be stopping for another hour or so and when you look outside you are in the middle of a field, definitely not Hogwarts. The kids look just as confused as you are and you take out your wand. Readying yourself to protect them if need be, over the summer you had read the articles about the escaped prisoner from Azkaban, Sirius Black. The kids had also been talking about the dangerous fugitive.

Last year it was a giant snake and this year it was an escaped-crazed criminal who was intent on making everyone's lives hell. You had read about what Sirius Black had done to Harry's parents, it made you angry. No one should ever have to go through what he did and you knew his pain well, even though you never knew who your father was. You swore to protect them all but especially Harry.

“Kids get behind me,” you tell them standing in front of them and the door. You knew what this was, a dementor. The three of them sit as far away from the door as possible when a shadow appears on the glass. Your heart is beating fast as the door opens revealing what you had correctly assumed is a dementor. The creature begins feeding on Harry, to which you lift your wand to get rid of it but before you can another light comes from beyond your shoulder.

The man, who was once passed out, is now fully alert. When the dementor is banished with the bright light your first thought is of the children. Ron and Hermione look scared but the more important issue is Harry, who is now passed out in the seat.

The man had stayed after the kerfuffle making sure you would all be okay following the attack. You took note of him, slightly recognizing him, his face had old scars scraping across and he stood quite tall. Everyone's attention was on Harry though seeing as how he was the one attacked. The train started moving soon after the attack and you continued on your way to Hogwarts. You felt guilty about not being fast enough to protect them but it all worked out fine in the end with Harry waking only a few minutes later, being comforted by his friends.

“Harry,” Hermione calls to him softly, which wakes him, “Harry, are you alright?”

She hands him back his glasses to which she receives a small, “Thank you.”

“How are you feeling?” you ask him to which he does not respond.

“Here, eat this,” the man says, “It’ll help. It’s all right. It’s chocolate.”

“Wha- what was that thing that came?” Harry asks after taking the chocolate bar from him.

“It was a dementor, one of the guards of Azkaban.” he explains, “It’s gone now. It was searching the train for Sirius Black.”

“Do they think he's coming after Harry?” you ask.

“I have no idea,” he says, “If you’ll excuse me, I need to have a little word with the driver.”

He stands to leave the cabin and turns back smiling at Harry, “Eat you will feel better.” Then he leaves and shuts the door. Luckily the rest of the trip is undisturbed and you soon make it to Hogwarts. Rain is pouring from the sky when you arrive making you rush to the cover of the carriages.

When you finally arrive at Hogwarts you quickly make your way to the Great Hall which as usual is filled with lit candles and tables full of food. Looking at all of the staff on the platform you realize that you are the last one to arrive, it makes you realize just how out of place you are here. These people are much older than you and have much more experience.

“Professor Figg, running a bit behind?” Dumbledore asks you, catching Remus’ attention.

“Sorry,” you tell him, making your way up the steps to the long table, the only seat left open was the one next to the man from the train, “Won't happen again.”

Soon enough students began coming into the Great Hall and you see none other than your three favorite students among them. Once all of the older students are sat at their respective tables the first years come in, each of them sorted into a house. This was one thing that you had wished to experience while you were at Hogwarts, the cheering of each house as a new student was brought into each house was a stark contrast to the silence of the statues at Ilvermormy.

Before the students were allowed to start their feast the school choir performed a song, you couldn’t help but observe that the man sitting next to you was constantly sneaking glances at you. It was strange, maybe you did know him from somewhere then, but it made no sense to you. ‘Why wouldn't he just say something?’ you wondered. After the song concludes you watch as Dumbledore stands and walks to the podium.

“Welcome! Welcome!” he starts, “To another year at Hogwarts. Now I would like to say a few words before we all become too befuddled by our excellent feast. First, I'm pleased to welcome Professor R.J. Lupin, who has kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Good luck to you, Professor.”

The man beside you stands and makes short bows of appreciation towards the applause. While his face is familiar his name rings a bell, you had once seen a picture of him, but you had no idea where.

“I would also like to welcome back y/n Figg who has taken up the position of teaching Herbology. Professor Sprout sends her well wishes as she has decided to travel the world.” Dumbledore says, “We have a final addition to the staff as some of you may know, Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher for many years, has decided to retire in order to spend more time with his remaining limbs. Fortunately, I'm delighted to announce that his place will be filled by none other than our own Rubeus Hagrid!”

Hagrid stands up but unfortunately bumps the table causing a few things to fall. But you can’t seem to focus on anything besides where you know the man next to you from. At the end of the feast, you make your way to your quarters, where all of your things are waiting for you. Unpacking is a slow process, putting away all of your things you stumble upon an old photo album that your aunt gave you.

All of the pictures were enchanted, at the beginning, it was pictures of your aunt and her older sister, some with their parents, you flip through the pages watching each of them age. You had never met your aunt's sister, only seeing pictures of her when they were younger, up until Sylvia left and moved to the States. The only picture after that of her was one that she had sent many years ago, it was tucked in the back of the book. You flip to the back of the book and gently pull out the picture, in it you find a very familiar face belonging to Remus Lupin.

Turning the photo over you read the list of names including Harry’s parents, Nevilles’s parents, Hagrid, Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, and Arabella Figg, your aunt's sister. There was also a name on that list that made your blood run cold, Sirius Black.

“This doesn’t make any sense,” you tell yourself, confused. All you knew about your aunt's older sister was that she was unable to use magic, a squib. That night you fall asleep with your last thoughts wondering what was going on. With each day that passes you settle into teaching well, but the anxiety in your stomach grows more.

Next Part>

Masterlist

#sirius black #sirius black x reader #harry potter #y/n #harry potter fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic #slow burn #fluff

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hebuiltfive · 1 year

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The Alaskan Train Crash: International Rescue, We Have A Situation.

Six months after the return of Jeff Tracy and International Rescue has finally come back off their hiatus. One of their first missions with their dad back at the helm? A mysterious train wreck in remote Alaska.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Additional Tags: Artist!Virgil, Post season three, slight AU, Mentions of hospitals, Mentions of Blood, description of train crash, Light Angst

Series: Part 1 of The Long Game

NOTES: This has been MONTHS in the making and, I won't lie, I'm a little nervous about finally putting this out in the world. This is only the first chapter of the first part of (what I'm now thinking will be) quite a large story. Disclaimers to say that I obviously do not own any of the characters in this story. They were created by the wonderful Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. The only things I do own are the ideas and situations they end up in. Trust me, they'll end up in some sticky situations in the near future!

Read it below or on AO3 here.

The Hood’s haphazard approach to his criminal scheming, coupled with a blatant disregard for any life that wasn’t his own, only ever led to one outcome — disaster.

The unfortunate beneficiaries of today’s outcome were currently trapped under the wreckage of the buckled front carriage of a derailed freight train. The scene was horrific to look at, even with all of Scott’s years of experience and training that came with being in the rescue business. The whole of the train looked as though it had been flung from the tracks, and had flipped onto its side, except for the back carriage, which had somehow managed to stay the right way up, and the front carriage, which had been capsized completely. In stark contrast to the crisp white snow underneath the wreck, there was a dark patch of leaking oil developing. As Scott hovered in the air over the derailed train, guiding his jet pack over the wreckage to get a sense of the scope, he knew he had to work fast.

There had been three workers on board. Whilst two of the three had seemingly been rendered unconscious by the incident, one was still very much awake and aware of her current predicament. She had made sure that the receiver of her distress call also knew this. John had forewarned his older brother of the severity of this woman’s pleas for assistance whilst Scott had flown Thunderbird One to the danger zone at top speed; the way the woman had begged Thunderbird Five for help had sent shivers down (a normally stoic) John’s spine. Still, despite the advanced warning, nothing could have quite prepared Scott for the look of pure terror on that woman’s face as he landed himself beside the wreck and jogged over to that capsized front carriage.

Two Hours Earlier.

Virgil had just wanted the lounge to himself so he could finally finish his oil painting in relative peace. It had already taken him far longer than he’d expected to get the painting complete. Usually that was due to rescue missions interrupting him and not his two younger brothers, as was the case today. Gordon and Alan had come bounding into the lounge, as loud and as energetic as always, and then began to play the loudest alien-killing game they could have possibly found. Virgil knew that his easel and pallet in front of him had not gone unnoticed by the Terrible Two, but the boys didn’t seem to care. Or, rather, they didn’t seem to realise the disturbance they’d caused. That was normally the case, anyway.

Virgil should have known that asking for any semblance of peace in the Tracy household was very rarely answered. The villa was always a hive of chaotic activity, even when those rescue missions called half of the family away. As Virgil was usually on call in those situations, he rarely managed to find a moment’s grace unless he was up into the late hours of the day. As it was, the sun had already begun to set over Tracy Island and sleep would soon be beckoning to all of them. He only had a few hours left to get some painting done before Scott had another reason to berate him for staying up late again. Thankfully, Tracy Island was large enough to not only house International Rescue’s operations, but also cater enough room for everyone who lived there.

He had not long retreated from the lounge, away from Alan and Gordon’s loud but seemingly futile efforts to defeat an invading alien race, to finish up his work in his art studio. He should have just stayed there this morning and not gone down to the lounge, but when that room was not occupied by bored, young adolescents, the lounge was just as serene as the quiet his studio offered. The views out onto the expanse of the Pacific inspired Virgil’s creative muse, and the colours seemed to flow so much better on his canvas when the warm, tropical breeze blew up through the open veranda. That being said, the picturesque scenery that now filled his peripheral was just as humbling.

His canvas, he’d carefully carried down from the lounge, had been placed on a new easel that stood in front of a large window. In the near distance Mateo stood, the rocks on the island glinting in the last rays of sun. Far more quieter than the disruption his brothers were currently causing upstairs. Content once more, Virgil started to mix the paints he needed on a new pallet.

He got all of two swipes of raw sienna onto the canvas when there was a gentle knock of knuckles against the wood of the art studio door.

“Virgil?” It was a voice that Virgil had thought he’d never hear again, up until a few months the back, that is. A voice that he was still trying to get used to hearing again after living so long without it.

Jeff Tracy had opened the door and was standing under the frame, his hands sitting idly in the pockets of his jeans. He looked over the artwork his second eldest was working on. To a stranger, or casual observer, they might have been deceived by the seemingly dark piece. With the shades Virgil had decided to use so far, that would have been an understandable mistake. But Jeff knew his sons, even after eight years of being separated from them, and he could see the hope that radiated through the painting. In the background, still only an outline and yet unfinished, he could make out the shape that he guessed would become Thunderbird Two. Jeff could see Virgil’s behemoth of a ship was to rise in the distance, to assist in the abstract disaster that was happening in the foreground. The smile that lit up his worn face gave Virgil a warm glow inside. “Looking good, son.”

In those first few weeks of Jeff Tracy’s return to earth after spending almost a decade lost in the outer reaches of the solar system, International Rescue had gone on an understandable hiatus. The Global Defence Force had offered to pick up the rescue work whilst the family became reacquainted and new routines were established. After all, just having their father sitting with them at their breakfast table in the morning again gave the boys enough of a shock. Despite the stresses and occasional disagreements that naturally came with the reshuffling and reorganising of the organisation, having their dad back was one of the greatest miracles to happen to the Tracy brothers, and they all thanked their lucky stars every day for having him home again.

“Do you have a moment?” Jeff asked, gesturing forward as a way of asking whether Virgil was okay with him stepping into his space.

By the look on his dad’s face, Virgil knew that ‘a moment’ was more than likely going to last longer than Jeff had suggested in his wording, but Virgil nodded all the same. As Jeff stepped inside and closed the door behind him, Virgil placed his pallet and paint brush on the side table beside his easel. He rubbed his paint splattered fingers on his equally paint splattered apron.

“Sure. Is everything okay?”

Virgil was used to being the one everyone came to for advice and assistance in the family. Along with Grandma Tracy, he was the soundboard that his brothers, and Kayo and Brains, relied on when they needed a solid voice of reason. Virgil never minded. He never saw any of them as a burden or a bother. Whenever they needed to seek comfort in Virgil’s warmth and way with words, Virgil was there for them.

“I wanted to just let you know that Grandma will be taking me to the mainland tomorrow.”

Virgil’s heart sank a little at Jeff’s words. He knew what his father’s words were code for, knew exactly where Grandma Tracy was taking him: the hospital. Jeff’s health had been fragile upon his return to Earth. Having had to survive eight years on a rock in the Oort Cloud, it came as no surprise to any of them. They were all wise to the fact that the situation would have been a detriment to anyone’s health, and they all were sure that, had Jeff been anyone else, he wouldn’t have lived through the ordeal for nearly as long as he miraculously had. Jeff’s health had been a major talking point in the reorganisation of International Rescue. The main question was whether he was fit enough to take back the mantel of Commander In Chief, or whether it was better for him to take a backseat and oversee operations from the sidelines instead. Both Grandma and Scott had been firm advocates in Jeff taking the back seat, but Jeff Tracy was Jeff Tracy and he wasn’t the kind of man who was content with being sidelined. In the end, they had all agreed on him sharing the job with his eldest son, at least until he was in a better condition.

Hence the hospital visits. Scans, blood work, physiotherapy, drugs and tests were part of their new normal, and they’d been advised that this new normal was going to stay in place for the foreseeable future. Jeff didn’t mind, so long as it meant he was still able to be of assistance, but the constant hospital trips had the boys naturally worrying.

“If dad is so unwell that he needs to be constantly visiting Doctor Mayhew every month, he shouldn’t be placed in a position that could cause him stress!” Scott had exclaimed on more than one occasion. Jeff never listened to him, always claimed that he was fine which only led to heated debates between the two. Usually it was Grandma who managed to calm them both down, but once or twice, the unfortunate role of mediator had landed on Virgil’s lap. Whilst he still didn’t see it as a burden, it was the only time he minded. It was the one time he didn’t like being a soundboard to his family.

“How long this time?” He asked his father, arms folding across his chest.

“A week. Maybe two. They want to check my legs, I think. It’s going to require a few tests back to back and they say that it’s easier if I just stay there whilst they get the results.”

Virgil nodded. It made sense for him to remain in one place. His next question was one he didn’t want the answer to. “Does Scott know?”

Jeff held silence for a moment or two, and Virgil knew the answer instantaneously. “No. He doesn’t. Not yet.”

Virgil pursed his lips, nodded once… twice, and then began to undo his paint apron. So much for a relaxing evening with his canvas. “He needs to know, dad.”

“He overthinks everything—”

“That’s Scott for you—”

“— and I don’t like how stressed out he gets. I don’t want to add to it, or be the cause of more stress.”

Welcome to the club, Virgil thought, but sighed as he threw the apron aside. Scott never knew how to take things easy. He was a classic overreacher, constantly trying to do more than his best. That perfectionism had only got worse in the months following their father’s disappearance, but that was a fact Jeff had still not been informed about. Their father had developed a legacy in people’s minds, one that only grew in his supposed death, and Scott felt compelled to continue that legacy. He had always looked up to Jeff, but this constant need to try and make their father proud, even in death, sometimes meant Scott took unnecessarily hazardous risks, and it had nearly landed him on death’s doorstep on more than one occasion. Virgil and the others had often tried to slow him down and make him see reason, but their talks rarely seemed to have a lasting impact. Come the next day, Scott would be back to his normal, overreaching self.

“Scott’s capable of handling a lot more than you think, dad.”

Jeff breathed out a long sigh. “I don’t want him to handle so much. He should share the burdens.”

“Good luck getting him to do that. We’ve been trying for years, but Scott is way too protective. It’s one of the reasons why he doesn’t want you being so involved in the rescues right now, what with your… health.”

“I know he’s looking out for me,” Jeff began, his eyes averting Virgil’s own gaze as he took in the view of Mateo from the window. “I just wish he wouldn’t try so damned hard all the time.”

Virgil let out a deep chuckle. “You and me both, dad.” Then, he began to make for the door. “But he needs to know all the same. If you want, I can be your bodyguard.” He joked. In honesty, the thought of having to referee another match between his dad and Scott worried him, but he’d do it if it meant avoiding a bigger conflict in the future.

Jeff’s lips quirked into a smile at Virgil’s humour, but as he opened his mouth to speak, a hologram of John appeared from the holo-disc on the side table beside the easel. “Guys, we have a situation.”

Exchanging worried glances with his father, Virgil dove out of the door of his studio and made his way up to the lounge as fast as possible, Jeff following quickly behind him.

#IT'S FINALLY HERE #well chapter one is #thunderbirds fanfiction #thunderbirds are go fanfiction #thunderbirds fanfic #thunderfam #thunderbirds are go #fic: the long game #trust me #it's going to be really long #jeff tracy #virgil tracy #five fics

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observeowl · 1 year

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You're not supposed to know N.R

Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Summary: R has a secret relationship with her boss that no one knows

Your POV I was one of the first few to reach the office. There wasn't any need to rush to find seats since it's designated but I like to be prepared. The first thing I do is turn on my computer as I get my table ready as the email loads.

"Oh my god oh my god." I could hear the words with the clicking of high heels before I saw the person. "Please tell me Miss Romanoff is not here yet."

"You're safe." I told my best friend, Emily. She's always cutting it close to arriving at the office. Miss Romanoff doesn't like employees who are late and often do surprise spot checks on us.

"Thank goodness I wasn't sure if she was coming today." She heaved a sigh of relief as she sat at the next station next to me. I was about to lean over the separator between us when Sylvia placed some file on my table.

"Finish this by lunch time." She said and left. Sylvia is my manager and she's the assistant for Miss Romanoff. I didn't even get to reply to her. I know this is her work that she didn't manage to finish yesterday as she always leaves work at 5pm sharp.

"Y/N, are you okay? You don't look too well." Emily reached over and tapped my shoulder. She didn't have to worry about Sylvia catching her because she was never the target.

"I'm fine."

"Don't push yourself too hard. You know this isn't part of your work."

"Don't worry." I got started with my work leaving Sylvia's work aside. Midway through, Miss Romanoff came out to pass Sylvia some work and when she turned to look at me, I gave her a quick smile before doing my work again.

I was looking through the designs that the client has sent and checking if we are able to deliver with the suppliers we have or we have to find alternatives if we couldn't, when Sylvia came knocking on my table asking for the work she gave me to do earlier.

"I didn't do it." I told her defiantly.

"I told you to get it done by lunchtime. You're not going for lunch until you're done with it."

I stood up from my desk and was the same height as her. She wasn't going to make me scared of her. I only started helping Sylvia in the beginning because I truly thought she was busy because I knew it wasn't easy being Miss Romanoff's assistant.

"I am your boss. I told you to do it and you're going to do it." She said while poking me in the shoulder, getting faster with each word.

I pushed her hand away. "This is your job. You get paid to do it, why should I do it for you?" She wasn't happy that she wasn't getting the results she wanted and pushed me away. The sudden movement caused me to have multiple images of the table and I wasn't able to hold myself steady before falling to the floor.

"Y/N!" Emily came next to me. "Are you okay?" Her voice sounded like it was underwater. "Don't close your eyes!"

I tried really hard to stay awake but my eyelids are just so heavy.

Natasha POV I heard shouting coming from the office outside. I know during lunch time it gets a bit noisier as they tend to get excited about discussing what to eat but surely there wasn't any need to shout. I stepped out of my office trying to figure out what's wrong.

When I got out, I saw a crowd surrounding Y/N's desk. Y/N has a decent size group of friends in the office because she's friendly and kind to everyone, people tend to gravitate towards her. But seeing Sylvia standing there was odd because she repeatedly told me she didn't like her.

"What's going on here? Why is there so much noise?" I raised my voice a little to let them know I was here. People started to move away slightly and saw Y/N lying on the ground.

"What's happened here?" I immediately pushed people away and got to her side. I knew I shouldn't have allowed her to go to work today. She has been feeling sick for the past few days.

"I-I don't know, I did nothing." Sylvia said. I knew she was lying and faced Emily who was holding Y/N in her lap.

"Sylvia pushed her." She said in simple words.

I started panicking and placed my arms under her leg and back and started carrying her out. "I need to get her to the hospital."

"Why are you so worried about her?" Sylvia insensitively commented.

"Because she's my wife! And if I am not carrying her in my arms, I would have punched you in the face." I glared at her. "I have endured enough of you! You can pack your things and leave, you're fired!" I shouted before running to my car.

"Nat?" Y/N regained her consciousness before I managed to reach my car. "Where are we going?" Her voice was soft as it takes a lot of energy for her to speak.

"You fainted, I'm going to take you to the hospital." I opened the car door and gently placed her on the passenger seat.

She placed her hand on mine as I was trying to buckle her. "I'm fine, I just need to rest."

"I'm not risking it." She sighed but stopped complaining and drove as fast as possible to the nearest hospital.

"Hi, my wife here just fainted, can I get her checked?" I told the receptionist and she gave us a number and we waited for our turn in the waiting area. I could tell she was still weak as her hands rested on her lap and she's saying few words. Her eyes are trained on one thing to prevent her head from moving too much.

"Are you feeling better?" I asked as our number got closer. She just nodded and mumbled a quiet yes. I kissed her temple as we waited together.

---

"I need to go back to the office to grab something first, do you want to come together?" I asked Y/N as we started our drive.

"I don't mind."

"But heads up, I kinda announced that we are married."

Her head snapped to mine but she just sighed afterwards. "It's fine. They are bound to notice in the future."

"I'm sorry."

Your POV I went back to my desk to pack the things I've used and collected my bag as Natasha went inside her office.

"Are you alright now? How can you not tell me that you're married to Miss Romanoff? For how long? Are we best friends?" Emily stood up from her station gaining attention in the office.

"Quiet down." I pushed her back on her seat. "We've been married about five years, I didn't want people to know about our office relationship. I started out as her assistant before we started dating and after we got married, I just wanted an easier job so I asked to be transferred. Speaking of, where's Sylvia? I didn't see her at her desk."

"Miss Romanoff fired her on the spot."

"Ohh... she'll have to find another assistant then." Natasha is very particular about her assistant, if she can't find one within a short amount of time, I know who's going to end up taking that position.

"She's damn hot while doing so."

"Hey!" I widened my eyes.

"Hey babe, are you ready to go?" Natasha came over after collecting her files and bag.

"Yeah. See you, Emily."

We went to the car and Natasha held my hand throughout the entire journey. "You don't have to go to the office so early from now on. Everyone knows now. No one is going to mess with you." Nat said while rubbing her thumb over my knuckles. "You've been working for so long already, everyone knows you're capable."

"Alright..."

"You gave me a shock when you fainted." Nat said when we stopped at a red light. "Are you ready to be a baby mama?" She looked at me lovingly.

"I hope so."

"You'll do great. I know it."

"We are finally going to be parents."

#natasha x y/n #natasha x reader #natasha x you #black widow 2021 #blackwidow x reader #black widow #you're not supposed to know #my writing

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nobleriver · 29 days

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Hi! Hu! Hi! It's me, again! I just had a thought and I needed to get it out and you'll be the one I thought of first- other than my sister who is not a Whovian but does love River. But River- River with children... River taking care of others- at the cost of her self.

River being the one baby/toddler Anthony wants to be held by most. To her parents' joy and exasperation. Cause they will be holding and spoiling him but the minute he sees her- he's straining out wanting to be held by big sister. At first, this used to terrify River- afraid of accidently hurting or dropping him but getting used and being comforted by holding him later on. Also being a bit smug the way firstborn are when little siblings prefers them over Mom and Dad.

And then Anthony grows up- still loving his sister most; other than his parents of course- and his child does the same thing he did- strain out of his grasp because she wants her auntie Melody to hold her. Amy thinks it's payback and teases Anthony about it often. Rory taked Amy's side to Anthony constration and River is just delighted over holding her niece.

When Amy and Rory died- River stayed in the past as long as she could. Helping her brother grief. Making sure he takes care of himself and only letting herself fall apart in silence.

When Anthony died- she was there alongside her niece. They heard his last words. River comforting and hugging her niece and only grieving in the safety of her Mom's console.

Neither Anthony or his daughter or Amy and Rory learned of her fate BTW. Not while they were alive but in their death- the doctor visited their graves- after Deliriuim- to let them know and apologize for not saving her life.

Abused children looking at River and gravitating towards her in planets she saves. Because they know she knows what's it's like- the way children intuitively knows when someone is safe or not and they know she will protect them no matter what. And River does- she protects them, gives them safe homes, bring them back home if they want and if they ask for it, exact revenge against their abusers.

Her losing her cool if a child is a victim and letting her darker side out- same way the doctor does.

Post- library, when she meets 14 and the Noble-Mott-Temple family- she takes Rose under her wing. Calling her niece- going out with her in little auntie- niece dates. Teaching her a bit on how to drive the TARDIS- and taking her out on the TARDIS too. Both of them and Donna teaming up against 14. She had to be held back a couple of times from taking care of transphobic assholes. She still takes care of them of course- with Rose's premission and Donna's help but it's in subtle ways that's can't be traced back to them. The family knows of course. But River flashes an innocent- unbelievable- smile: Donna just smirks and everybody decids it's better not to ask. Sylvia is just disappointed she didn't get to join though. 😒

14 sometimes regrets the day these two met- they're a force of nature individually and unstoppable together. He's just happy he's not on their bad side. Shaun is just delighted his wife and daughter are happy- and happy his brother in law got his wife back.

She does the same thing with Ruby BTW- taking her under her wing- I mean to 15's eternal delight. He was less delighted when Ruby flirted with his wife when these two first met. But tbh, Ruby didn't know River was the doctor's wife at first.

But, that side- in my headcanon- also extends to the companions. Her checking in at first for the doctor and then growing to genuinely like them. Helping them here or there- from the background ofc. Maybe in some cases she develops friendships with them- a la Liv and Helen. I headcanon she and Martha are close friends too- first developed by River dropping in UNIT- fixing things and/or causing chaos. And then River would drop by and take Martha on adventurs here and there- mostly on Earth- foiling bad aliens. Martha was devastated when she learned of River's death.

I just... I just genuinely adore the thought of River being a caretaker and having people love and care for her in return but yet- her view of herself is still distorted and negative. At least until she heals enough to realize otherwise.

Anyway, thanks for letting me ramble. Hope you are having a lovely day!! 💗😘😊💕

Awww how lovely! I am having a good day. However, my brain is a little dead at this point. River has a fiercely protective heart, constantly putting her life on the line to save people just like the doctor, that's part of the attraction. She pretends not to, but she genuinely cares about people, especially her family. Actions speak louder than words. I can definitely see her and Martha hitting it off. They'd be brilliant.

#ask #anon

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silverskye13 · 9 months

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Admire the Architecture by The Scary Jokes reminded me of Tanguish in r&s, thoughts? Adore the fic and I was ecstatic when I saw the new chapters :)

She's only staying here cause Sylvia asked her to

Now that she's gone away, what's she supposed to do?

Tend to the garden and admire the architecture

While her personality pills like a worn-out t-shirt

Wow that's incredibly on the nose huh? Like that just fits really well. Good song call!

And thank you :D I'm glad folks are enjoying the new chapters. If nothing else, I've been having a lot of fun diving back into them.

#answering asks #anonymous #redstone and skulk #i sometimes feel like rns is very stream of consciousness -- i feel half asleep while I'm writing it almost #and then it's been 20k words and i'm praying it sounds right and makes sense and i'm posting it before i can overthink it too much #which isn't to say it doesn't have a plan or anything #its just that the plan is emotions first and words second and that is a little scary sometimes #anyway all that to say -- i'm glad you like it so far #rns asks

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paigelts05 · 3 months

Text

[GORE] Providence [FNAF, Renegade AU]

Artwork: https://www.deviantart.com/paigelts05/art/1072138114

Story: https://www.deviantart.com/paigelts05/art/GORE-Providence-FNAF-Renegade-AU-1072145816

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/57190219

Published: Jul 7, 2024

The investigation into the megaplex have yielded many answers, and only one area is left to search: underneath the raceway.

Made more precarious by the explosions caused by ruptured gas canisters just after the Breach, only a fraction of the large troupe who investigated the megaplex decide to stay for this final stretch. With those participating ready to go and those not participating safely evacuated, the investigators who remain descend into the deepest depths of the megaplex, ready to storm a sanctuary of villainy in hopes of finding the missing construction workers and putting an end to William's plans.

But it's not going to be easy.

When dealing with the execs of Faz-Ent, It never is.

For chapter 1, Luis is kidnapped by Adelaide during the decent, and nobody knows if he's still alive, but they press on anyway. They already know that he would have been taken to the heart of this underground Faz-haven.

They just need to be prepared for who they might be greeted by once they arrive.

For chapter 2, With Luis found alive but critically injured due to Adelaide's control devices, Ness taps into what she learned from William being inside of her brain in order to disable them and hopefully save Luis. When William realises she's down here so tries to posess her from wherever she is, a staffbot rolls up and is able to thwart the possession attempt.

The bot is clearly possessed. Why by is the dire question on everyone's lips.

For chapter 3, With the fate of the construction crew confirmed to be grim, the investigation teams plans to storm the underground diner where an old enemy is lying in wait. They plan to storm in waves, a first wave of six, and a second wave of anyone who can wield a gun. Everyone else remains outside until it's clear to keep some backup just in case things go south.

And who would they meet is none other than the old manager of Location C.

For chapter four, With the old manager out of the picture, the investigation can continue, though the room is sombre as the deaths of the construction crew need to be investigated, and the bodies need to be brought up to the surface. Yet Mike struggles to focus, as he knew the construction crew personally, and knowing that they are dead made him feel like a failure; he couldn't save the construction crew: how many more people will he fail?

But Sylvia is more than ready to deal with the fallout and remind him that he's done more than enough already and that this outcome was unpredictable.

=°•.🌹 Story 🌹.•°=

°°•°°•°°•°°•°°•°°•🌹•°°•°°•°°•°°•°°•°°

[🌹 Adelaide's assassin 🌹]

"Alright. It's six thirty AM, every inch of this megaplex has been searched, and we've found everything there is to find." Mike spoke to a crowd of miscellaneous folk sitting in the construction zone known as Roxy raceway.

Everyone there had been up all night, but Mike seemed to still be fine - another thing to put down to years on night shifts. He took a deep breath before continuing.

"Fritz over there's made sure the systems have been checked over and kept the front shutters open for the past six and a half hours, thank you Fritz you're a star, so if anyone wants to evacuate early, you can. There's already a group in the car park, and from the deductions we have, we don't want to bring hundreds of people down there. There is no rush, so Sylvia and I can escort anyone who doesn't want to go underground to the safety of the car park. We've also went around picking up anything that may have sentimental value and labeled it with where we got it from - that's if the person it belonged to didn't immediately show up, so if you've lost anything, it'll be with Oxana's squad in the car park.

A few hands went up, and when Mike asked the first one what thier question was, they said "I want to leave."

"Just stand by the shutter," Mike smiled, "no need to ask. In a minute, we'll begin escorting in groups of five, I'll take five, Syl will take five, until everyone who wants to leave has left. PT, Verity and Vincent are in charge of protecting everyone, so you're in good hands if one of the animatronics dares to show up."

After Mike asked if there were any more questions, there were none, and people begun to shuffle themselves about, those who wanted to leave standing near the shutter, those who wanted to stay standing anywhere but.

The 'stay' group was by no means large or small. Squads A, B, and C stayed in whole, alongside subsets of people from the other teams.

Squad A was the smallest by far and consisted of Ness, Sylvia, Cass, Mike, and Gregory. Squads B and C were mostly blended at this point but contained Luis, PT, Fritz, PI Jeremy, beta tester Jeremy, Krasnyy, John, Charlie, May, Gaz, Patty, Danielle, and Vincent. The remains of D team were Verity, Carl, and Julian. The only remaining members of E team were Mina, Phina, and Marla. F team had not thinned it's ranks at all and contained Sadie, Morcant, Andromeda, Anna, Raha, Steve, Dan, Mark, Charles, Izzy, Nora, and Tristan.

There were a handful of people from teams H and onwards who appeared indecisive, but Mike opted to save the exact head count for after the evacuation. Many members of D team and onwards had exited the building throughout the night, weather due to fear or injury, but it was a relief that the only casualties that they had taken were still alive to tell the tale, with the most greviois injuries surprisingly enough being acquired by A team.

After escorting a rag tag group of a gothic woman who seemed to have had her fill of thrill for the day, a woman whose nickname was 'Theseus's Cyborg', a janitor, and a pair of ex-guards to the car park, he gave himself a moment to breathe. Today had been rough, so a moment of fresh air was a luxury he needed right now to get the stench of blood out of his nose.

Sylvia soon also exited the building with a group consisting of the 'sound guys', Rachel, her grandpa, and another ex-guard. Mike still remembered how the duo of sound techs smiled when they retrieved the plushies they had left behind in the sound booth, and it let him remember that even if the underground yields negative results, the amount of small victories achieved in information gained and lost items found had already made this raid worth it, because no matter what was down there, this megaplex was doomed to close either way.

'These people who opted to leave made a damn good decision and absolutely deserve a break. Too bad for me that my work's not done yet.'

After a deep breath, he and Sylvia headed back inside - making sure to not break the self-enforced rule of never traveling alone unless dire. He wasn't about to let himself get blindsided by a mangled machine at the last moment again. That thought took him back to his days as a night guard, full of last minute tricks and near-misses. His legs couldn't take being snapped again.

After a few more rounds of escorting groups to the safety of the car park, only those willing to investigate the depths of the raceway remained.

Mike knew it would be no easy task, but he was surprised that so many had stayed.

Then again, those who remained all seemed to have one final peice of unfinished business down there.

One last truth.

The truth behind the disappearance of the electricians, the truth behind the twisted animatronics, the truth behind themselves, the truth behind a case they've been trying to crack for years, the truth behind the suffering they endured, the truth behind the mistaken identities, the truth behind the death of a friend or family member or even themselves.

Mike took a head count of everyone who remained, and he noticed that amongst everyone, Audrey was here too. He was surprised that she'd walk back into the place she almost burned to death inside, but that's Auds for you.

"I guess this is all 38 of us." Mike said, addressing the much smaller crowd, "if you really don't want to go under the raceway, please speak up. You don't have to if you don't want to."

People heard him, but nobody wanted to leave. Everyone seemed to be happy to take on the most risky task yet.

"Ok. I guess we're all going down. Let's watch eachothers backs and try to not get grabbed."

The group then proceeded towards the employees only door that lead down to under the foundations. A cyclone gate blocked the way forward. Gregory would have used Freddy, but as Freddy was once again a head in a bag due to an incident on the roof earlier this night, they didn't have Monty's claws. A head in a bag that Oxana requested earlier, so he didn't even have Freddy right now.

But what they did have was Syl's bolt cutters.

Sylvia made quick work of the yellow chain that held the gate closed, and as they closed the small gap between this and the second gate, they heard what sounded like a dove's call, and Ness had turned pure white.

A gap in the crowd remained where Luis previously stood.

The crowd descended into a cocophony of voices, Mike's included.

"It was so fast."

"Damnit! How could I have let this happen!"

"How the hell were we supposed to counter that thing?"

"Is he dead?"

"Are you kidding? He's going to get used as blackmail to make Ness work for him again."

"I don't want to think about what's happening to him."

After the voiced died down, Ness, despite her shaking and porcelain white face, she was able to speak.

"I know where he was taken. He'll have been taken to the underground restaurant."

"At least that's where we're headed." Gaz said, "maybe dad will be there too."

Ness became silent.

"Well, here's hoping." Gaz spoke to himself before smashing the voice box lock on the next gate, which let him slide the locking mechanism inside and open the gate.

As everyone funneled through, something else was missing from Gregory's past-based premonitions.

"And the elevator's gone." Sylvia sighed before looking down into the pit where it would have taken them to. "I guess it dropped after the explosion in the nearby storage rooms."

"Dad told me it wasn't in the best condition when his team found it." Gaz shook his head, "it was the last message he sent to me: whilst his team sent a construction update, he sent me a text. I think he knew that he wasn't going to come back up any time soon…"

An eerie silence filled the air, and Mike was the one to break it. After all, they had to press forward.

"We have to get down there somehow. …" Mike swayed from side to side as he thought and vocalised his suggestions, "have any of you ever heard of abseiling?"

Setting up the abseiling equipment took ten minutes. Getting everyone down took another thirty.

Mike knew first hand that this was more than enough time for a robot to break someone. And a robot with Adelaide at the helm? He dreaded to think about what she was doing to him.

Thirty seven people descended into the depths.

They had every hope that more than that would come back out.

The way forward was surprisingly spacious, even Gregory remarked on how this corridor felt so much larger in real life. He assumed it'd be cramped, yet here they all were, at the site of the crashed elevator with space to spare, and more space along the darkened path ahead.

As the group trecked onwards, Ness found herself instinctively flicking on the generators that littered the trail they walked, unsure as to why and scared of the answer.

They hadn't even seen the restaurant Gregory had mentioned yet before the tell-tale sounds of activated endoskeletons rung out around them.

Despite the close quarters, everyone assumed a fighting stance. They outnumbered the endos, so this was a winnable fight.

Split into teams of three or four, endos fell, but more descended from the ceiling to take thier place. Whilst some squads handled the onslaught well, some were struggling, yet nobody could turn thier attention away from thier own ever replaced foe lest they be overwhelmed. But luck seemed to be on thier side.

A mysterious figure swooped in from the shadows and begun to dispatch the endoskeletons with the speed and skill of a trained assassin.

Eventually the endoskeletons stopped dropping in and Mike turned to thank the stranger. Yet the mysterious figure didn't seem to hear as he turned his attention to the investigation team, seemingly looking for someone.

Immediately and without warning, the mystery man leaped up into the darkness, only to dive back down and attack Ness. His blade carved its mark on her shoulder, blood spilling from the wound as Ness dodged another stab. One that would have been lethal if she hadn't dodged it.

Despite being worse for wear, she launched a counterattack, tackling the mystery man to the ground.

He didn't even try to get back up.

It was almost too easy.

The investigation team were only then able to get a good look at who this aid and assailant was.

Ness almost didn't believe her eyes.

It was Luis Cabrera.

[🌹 The sewer bot 🌹]

Thousands of questions raced through everyone's minds, some voiced, some left unsaid.

Yet Ness's mind was empty, echoing only the grim truth.

"Adelaide did this to him."

The words fell out of her mouth as she held Luis's bloodied and unconscious form in her arms.

A cocophony of questions arose; one or two didn't know who Adelaide was - reasonable, seeing as she primarily operated outside of Utah - yet the majority who knew of the woman had the same question: how did Ness know that the thing that grabbed Luis was in fact Adelaide.

The question was phrased in many ways, but the answer was the same.

No words came out of her mouth. Even though nobody was suspicious of her - if anything, the questions had an air of sympathy - she felt a stab of guilt whenever she divulged anything she had learned in her time trapped in this place.

"Look, if you guys want to know how Ness knows this stuff, William trapped her in this megaplex for about a month. She knows a lot about this place that she'd rather not." Ness was thankful that Mike was explaining this on her behalf. Whilst she was fit to burst into tears, he still kept a level head as he gave the quick once-over of Ness's situation.

But talking about what she knew wouldn't fix the problem at hand.

Luis was unconscious, bloodied and bruised, but alive. She didn't know how long he'd hold out for.

She let herself examine him. Maybe she'd be able to find out what drove him to do what he did.

The sight was purely harrowing. She hadn't felt this way since the Riot.

As she checked Luis's pulse, she felt something wrong in her own head; a hint of beauty in the scene before her. That was enough to tell her that William's hideout was nearby, and that he wanted her back as his subject. She couldn't stop herself from shaking as the thought plauged her mind.

The more she looked at Luis, the more she felt her heart break for him. What had Adelaide put him through? Was this William's way of trying to force her back to his side? Would Luis ever wake up? If he did wake up, would he be the same?

As she ran her hands down Luis's back and chest, she finally forced herself to pay attention to the things that she had refused to acknowledge: A circular device between his collarbones, glowing pink with the insignia of a bear; around the device, wires bored into Luis's skin. She moved him to look at his back, and found what looked like a robotic spine over his own, each long vertabre with a glowing pink core.

But one of the cores were dim. Did she do that when she tackled him to the ground? Is that why he wasn't waking up? Even if it was, Luis was alive, and that's what mattered. She needed to steady her thoughts.

She instinctively knew that the devices that Adelaide had surgically implanted onto Luis would function much like the masks that Mark and Anna had been forced to wear during the aptly named Adelaide Incident, so Adelaide had to have been using her tech to mind control him. Yet she was concerned that there was another layer of control that she couldn't see; something that would persist even after the devices were removed, if they could even be removed.

Ness looked over her shoulder and saw the two doctors hovering nearby.

"We've been here since about two minutes ago. We opted to give the two of you some space. From a medical perspective, I somewhat understand what you are going through, but it would be best for you to let us handle him now." May spoke in her usual clinical manner, "I will dress his wounds and see what I can do regarding the devices, and Marla will see to your wounds."

"Right." Ness reluctantly backed away from Luis as Dr May got to work patching up Luis's wounds.

She didn't pay any attention to herself, all she could focus on was if Luis was alright. It was somewhat ironic: back in the east arcade, the night of the Riot, the night he had tried and failed to free her, she had attacked him and he had been scared to hurt her out of fear that it'd kill her.

"This feeling…" Ness mumbled to herself, "it's what you felt back there. Wasn't it?"

Minutes passed as Marla patched up Ness's wounds, but it felt like hours before May approached Ness to tell her the diagnosis.

"He's alive, and will recover. He has been partially brainwashed; no symptoms of possession, no signs of a digital consciousness transfer, no signs of melding." May seemed so deadpan and calm delivering the news, but then again, as May is a doctor, Ness figured that she was numb to delivering news, no matter how good, bad, or mixed, "However, there are traces of remnant, likely coming from the devices. Your results after you were rescued showed William was using similar trace amounts to keep you in check, so it should be nothing to worry about. He's just been badly broken psychologically with a handful of controlled wounds, that's all. Nothing I haven't seen before, except for the devices themselves. The only time I've seen anything remotely like this was those masks from the Adelaide Incident, but this is far clunkier. It almost feels like a step back in technology… Especially where she is concerned…"

That just confirmed her suspicions: Adelaide had broken him and implanted those devices on him. Some kind of last ditch effort to give William a new reluctant follower to torment.

"Can we remove the devices?" Ness asked, moving back over to where Luis lay. She looked to May for an answer.

"I don't know. The devices seem to have been implanted by a master surgeon - you were right to think this was Adelaide's work - so removing the devices may prove fatal without the correct tools." Her tone was clinical, as always, "Our alternative is restraining him, as if he wakes up, there is an eighty three percent chance that he will still be under the control of Adelaide, so he is liable to attack us again."

Ness turned from May to look at Luis.

"What if I try?"

May stared at Ness in shock.

"What?"

"What if I try?" Ness reiterated, "When I was Vanny, I instinctively knew how to do a lot of surgical things and how to use a lot of the devices that the Aftons had made. I could probably put that knowledge to use to at least neutralise the device."

"If you wish." May said, "just be careful."

"I will!" Ness smiled as she lowered herself so she was eye level with Luis's chest.

She didn't see anything at first, but as she touched the device, she felt as if she saw it in a whole new light. It was as if a sealed door in her mind had been reopened.

She knew what this was. It was one of Adelaide's creations: something she had made for William out of salvageable scraps down here. The man had explained the device and it's functions to her once - she did not remember if it was an offer or a threat, as that didn't matter: she knew and could see how the devices were connected together, how they functioned, and enough to remove the important parts.

The device on Luis's chest had two parts: a 'socket' that was physically attached to Luis, and a 'plug' that attached to and covered the socket.

The socket, she knew she could not remove. It was bored into Luis's flesh, and if the blood loss wouldn't kill him, infection certainly would.

The plug, that was the module that contained all the components used to cause the mind control: remnant, code, and way more fragile components she did not quite understand anymore.

But she did know that this module could be removed.

It had been designed to be removable for the sake of modifications and repairs, and as a contingency plan lest the device be turned on it's creators. Ness figured that William, along with the rest of Fazbear Entertainment, now thought twice before making a death machine with no safety switch. This module could be removed safely, and that was what counted.

A near invisible seam showed itself to her, and all she needed to do was twist the device clockwise, and she'd be able to pull it out safely.

Ness hesitated, however.

'What if William took back control?'

She couldn't just sit in worry. She had to have a plan. In fact, her own contingency plan was all around her.

"I'm worried that William may try and take control of me again. On my signal, please, do not hesitate to pin me to the ground so he doesn't make me hurt anyone. I know he's no longer melded to me, but he could still try and possess me normally."

The words didn't come easy, but they were necessary. She wasn't as resistant to possession as everyone else: in part to her family's past, and in part to how her little strength to resist had been eroded from the torment she endured.

Already well aware of the severity of the situation, Mike nodded, albeit with a distressed swallow. "Alright. Just give the signal."

Sylvia also nodded. "Will do. Is there a signal for when he's gone?"

"No." Ness shook her head. "He would just be able to use it. I can't make that kind of signal without that risk. I'm sure you'll be able to tell when it's over though. I'm counting on you."

Mike and Sylvia nodded and stood on standby.

Ness examined the device that had been implanted into Luis once more. The wires from the device bored through his skin around it, and she was scared of how deep the mechanical components dug. The almost invisible seam wrapped around the side of the shallow cylinder like a flush lid. She rested a hand on the device and took a deep breath.

A memory that wasn't hers entered her mind, a scientist woman whose form seemed to be an illusion showing the person whose memory she was recalling how the top layer of the device could be separated from the lower half for emergencies and maintenance. This was one of William's own memories, she was sure.

Opening her eyes and taking a deep breath, she twisted the top layer of the device and tugged.

The module clicked off and pulled away in her hands, the lights in the device powered down, and Luis's eyes opened. He gasped to take in a breath of whatever air he could get before looking around the room, shaking and trying to figure out what was going on.

"Ness? My memory is fuzzy, and you're bleeding. What happened? Are you ok?"

Ness was taken aback by Luis being more concerned over her wound than his own state, but she estimated that what he remembered after getting grabbed was not something he wanted to share. He knew what had happened to himself, but he didn't know what had happened to her, so the reason for his concern was more than obvious. She figured that she was already bleeding through the bandages too, which made things look quite a bit worse.

"I'm fine." Ness replied, feeling a headache brew from the centre of her mind, "I…"

The slight headache exploded into a full blown migraine and she felt the control she had over her body slipping. This was William's work. He was trying to possess her, just as she predicted. But unlike the sly creeping process she had experienced when melded, this time, it felt more forceful. Less like a snake slipping into its hole and more like ramming a jackhammer into a brick wall.

This must be what it feels like for a normal person to be unwillingly posessed.

Pain seared on her neck and throughout her body, the possession bestowing upon her the pain of William's first death: a springlock failure.

She felt weak and ill, sweat dripped from her skin as her body tried to process the pain that wasn't hers. But she had to give the signal.

Mustering up the last of her strength, she raised her hands to her head, fingertips to the sky and wrist perched on her head, like a pair of rabbit ears.

"That's the signal!" Mike yelled as he and Sylvia rushed towards Ness. She had convulsed and collapsed in front of them, and it was only a matter of time before William would pull her to her feet.

They wouldn't let this happen.

As per Ness's own instruction, they pinned her to the ground, and just in time too as she begun to growl like a rabid wolf as she thrashed to escape.

Her head craned around as she thrashed about, hissing and attempting to bite, and whilst her attempts were unsuccessful, Mike could now see her eyes: they were completely bloodshot, as if she was suffering from severe eight ball fracture, and her pupils glowed a deep shade of bright pink.

"She's posessed." Mike grimaced as he shook his head, "Anything that could work, get it over here."

Krasnyy dashed forward from the group with a flashlight; the same one he used to stave of Gerald Taylor's possession back in '97. But as he tested it, it was out of batteries.

"There goes that," the journalist grimaced as he rummaged through his bag for any spare batteries, but before he could fish the replacements out of his bag, a staffbot rolled up, gently pushing through the crowd, it's beeps and boops implying an apology whenever it nudged anyone.

The staffbot was green from moss and rust, and had a chunk of its face missing about the mouth which gave the impression of a gas mask. It moved towards Ness and examined her. After nodding to himself, the staffbot shone his torch in Ness's eyes.

As pink glow in her eyes faded, Ness's movements slowed, and soon her thrashing about stopped entirely. Her breathing remained heavy, and she let herself relax. If it wasn't for her eyes being open, everyone would have thought she was asleep. It had worked.

Krasnyy had a hunch that the bot did this, not because Krasnyy tried but couldn't due to a dead torch, but because it independently knew that this was a method of staving off early stage unwilling possession. But if it knew, it had to be human once. So who was it?

He turned to the staffbot and thanked it, but it had already begun to roll back to where it came from.

As Mike and Sylvia were gently helping Ness up, Krasnyy chased after the 'sewer staffbot' and Gaz followed suit.

Krasnyy and Gaz soon found the staffbot roaming in circles in front of the diner, and now that Gaz had gotten a good look at the animatronic, Krasnyy saw the light fade from the young guards eyes.

"Dad?" Gaz's whole body shook as he approached the animatronic, reaching out to it.

The staffbot rolled closer. It wasn't something physical that had Gaz seen in the animatronic, but spectral that gave away it's identity. Something Krasnyy could only bearly see, but Gaz seemed to see it clearly. A hazy manifestation around the staffbot, as if the ghost of a man was standing in it's place.

The ghost seemed to look around before smiling as his form became more visible, as if he was comfortable enough with the company of those around him to manifest without concern. Krasnyy could now see who this ghost was; an electrician with olive skin who looked very similar to Gaz. This ghost was beyond a shadow of a doubt Sean, the missing electrician; Gaz's father.

Teary eyed, Gaz dropped to his knees and hugged the staffbot, sobbing and wailing. Krasnyy found himself crying as well. After all, he knew what it was like to lose a parent to this corporation, and the sight of Gaz hugging the staffbot as if it would bring his dad back bore a striking resemblance to how he he did the same when his own dad was bleeding to death inside the death trap known as a spring-lock suit back in '84.

Sean and Philip weren't too different, and neither were Gaz and Krasnyy.

It felt like a while before the rest of the group finally approached the diner to be met with a sight in the distance of Gaz sobbing as he hugged the sewer staffbot.

Krasnyy gave the group a quick 'do not advance' signal as he jogged to meet them half way. "The sewer staffbot is posessed by Sean. The missing electrician. Let the kid have his reunion: we're not in any rush."

"Right," Mike nodded, "anything else to report or just that."

"Nothing." Krasnyy replied. Whilst he had intended to stick with the rest of the group, Philip signaled him back over to where Gaz and the sewer bot were.

Upon returning to Gaz and the sewer bot, the guard stood up and turned to Krasnyy. No words were spoken, but none needed to be: they both knew the same grief, they both understood. With a nod, Gaz begun to walk back towards the rest of the group, and Krasnyy followed.

As the two humans and two spirits returned to the group, Gaz stood in place, still a fair distance from the rest of the group, and took deep breaths as he tried to organise his thoughts.

"You know," he said, "My dad and his brother, my uncle, were veteran guards of Freddy's. They worked together since the early 80's, taking evening and filler shifts. In the early 90's, they had a bad night shift, and my uncle was killed by the animatronics. But even being dead didn't stop my uncle: him and his brother kept working together, trying to figure out what made the animatronics tick and how to thwart possession. Uncle wound up working with the head of security to develop that technique he used on Ness back there. He didn't tell me much else… I should probably ask him sometime. And as my uncle died before I was born back in the late 90's, I've only ever known him as a ghost. I also share my uncles name."

Krasnyy nodded and smiled. He vaugely remembered some of the evening staff and distinctly remembered a pair of brothers, but such tragedies were so common with Freddy's locations, he didn't want to jump to conclusions just yet.

They then continued walking and returned to the main group.

Once they had returned, Ness approached the staffbot to thank him for helping her and to ask about what happened.

"Thank you. I'm surprised that actually worked," she said, "I tried that technique back when I was first posessed, but it didn't work. It didn't work for Jeremy, sis, or Cass either - he wound up cutting his face off, Cass was able to segment and remove him from sis's mind, but Cass gouged an eye out getting him out of her own head. They're ok, but… This doesn't make any sense."

"It's not going to make sense." Gaz gave a melancholy smile, "William no longer had his backdoor of the VR headset, so he could be forced out by standard means this time. My dad, he's called Sean by the way, figured that if it was nipped in the bud early enough, it may just work. Besides, William is much weaker now than he was back then."

Ness nodded. She had regained most of her energy, which culminated in feeling a wave of relief; after today, she was finally going to be free of William. Him possessing her didn't revert her to being 'Vanny'; he tried and failed to possess her. William's failure gave her hope that she would be able to defeat him after all. Whilst she was worried that it would be a temporary victory, it would be a victory nonetheless.

Gaz then turned to Sean, who had been talking to Krasnyy. Being perpetually posessed by Philip, Krasnyy was able to speak to Sean as if he were a ghost himself, so it didn't suprise Gaz that he didn't hear the conversation they'd had.

"When you talked about your dad and your uncle, I had a hunch about something and wanted to clear it up with Sean himself." Krasnyy smiled, "I wondered if your uncle was one of the ghost guards who helped me get out of being 'the voice of the animatronics' back at location C. My guess seems to have been correct: your uncle did work with Vincent to show me what my situation looked like to an outsider and use an arcade as a means of finding out how to thwart Gerald's possession attempt. If you see him, please tell him I said thanks. I never actually saw him to thank him myself."

Gaz nodded, "I will. And I've already thanked your dad for helping me come to terms with what happened to mine, so when I tell uncle you said thanks, we'll be even."

The duo nodded before Krasnyy gave the 'advance' signal to the team, the diner being the next objective. As everyone approached the building, they all looked up at the oddly in-tact structure in this dump that was otherwise a complete ruin.

"Well, it's certainly not as damaged as I first thought…" Audrey grimaced as she looked up at the building. This was the place where she had almost been burned to death within for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That building had burned down and fell into a sinkhole, but here it stood once again.

"No, it is as broken as you thought. The burned ruins around this building and the foundations above are the restaurant you almost died in," Carl pointed up at the charred underside of the building foundations that acted as a ceiling to the cavernous ruins they were in, "A survey of the site after the fire showed a replica restaurant underneath the ground, under the foundation of the burned restaurant. Later scans showed labs below that duplicate, but it's reasonable to say that this restaurant in front of us is also a lab; it just doesn't look like one at first glance. The restaurant you knew and the vent maze all burned down and the robots inside took heavy damage as a result. This is the highest floor of the labs, finally unearthed, and the foundations above us are the destroyed restaurants original foundations, not the megaplex's."

"I see," Audrey replied, "It makes sense. Fazbear Entertainment chose the plots, so if William had any idea as to Henry's plan, he would have chosen to only show up at the restaurant with the laboratories underneath. That way, he'd be able to escape the fires. Well, he won't this time. I'm sure of it."

"But do we even know if he's down here still? After botching that possession attempt, he may have decided to evacuate. There was a hidden shaft in that first restaurant, I wouldn't put it beyond doubt for there to be another." Carl replied, "actually, I'll see what Sean has to say. He's been down here long enough."

Carl then approached Krasnyy, Gaz, and Sean.

"Sean, I understand if you don't know, but is William Afton inside the restaurant beyond those doors?"

Sean replied with a series of beeps and blips combined with ghostly static. Krasnyy noted down the reply, whilst Carl was too shocked to make notes. Gaz was just happy he could understand what was being said, even if it was dangerous news.

The only way out was the way the team came in. William had not attempted to evacuate his laboratory stronghold in the basement. Said basement was heavily guarded by something not human, but on the upper floor, there was a lone silver haired human.

As Carl and Krasnyy made notes on the descriptions Sean gave them, people started discussing how they should advance through the restaurant and how to deal with whatever defenses William had stationed, as well as trying to figure out who this person would be.

Some muttered that it may be an executive, others muttered that it may be a clone of Ness. Only those who could hear and understand Sean knew that this individual was actually -

"Daniel Discord never left this building after the construction crew died. He's still in there and never left. Unless he's been eating flesh, he's not human any more, but either way, he's more powerful than you think! If we try to just storm him we'll die!" A panicked voice rose up from the team.

"Mina! You could hear Sean from back there?" Krasnyy looked away from the staffbot that Sean posessed and turned to face Mina who had just ran from the back of the crowd to the restaurant doors.

"Actually, the cards told me. Actually, no, it's safe to say what it really is here: Dunn and I deduced it." Mina clutched her tarot deck close to her chest. Her 'divinations' were always a mix of her and Dunn's gut instincts and deductions made using tarot cards to guide thier thoughts into something more coherent, but they were simply called such as to not draw suspicion to whom should be just an unassuming office clerk. Around this crowd, however, she could call it whatever she liked; these people already knew she was posessed by the dead cop anyway, "I didn't hear a word of what Sean said. But we've deduced that Daniel Discord has to be in there. We have record of him entering the megaplex, and none of him leaving. We've also deduced that he's become incredibly powerful in one way or another, like when William became Springtrap. If we all head in, we'll be wiped out. We don't need numbers, we need specialists."

"You're right about that. Sean told me that the person inside the building is beyond a doubt Daniel Discord, the old C location manager. Seeing as he'd be probably at least seventy by now, and that's low-balling it, I was hoping that he was weak, but I trust yours and Dunn's deductions," Krasnyy replied, making his own deductions by combining what Mina deduced and what Sean had told him. Putting the pieces together, he deduced what had to have happened to the electricians, "So I'm beginning to think that William is not the only mutated monster in the shadows of this establishment. There's no way someone could pack a lunch that'd last as long as he's been down here."

The gas mask bot Sean posessed beeped and booped in an urgent tone. Krasnyy, Carl, Mina, and Gaz listened intently to what he had to say.

"He's saying that that old manager was mutated, he didn't look human that's for sure, and he killed him and his colleagues. He does not remember exactly how he was killed, but a throwing knife was involved," Carl spoke as he noted down Sean's account of what happened that day, "that's confirmation on the 'no longer human' part at least."

"And the knife was never thrown," Krasnyy added as he made his own notes, "whether it was only used as a threat or was used to kill is still something he can't quite recall."

"The man also had claws," Gaz continued the translation, "they worked as an additional weapon, but were a part of his body and not an external weapon. Chalk up three in the 'mutant manager' column."

"It looks like he's far more corrupted by the remnant than we thought. Not just longevity, but built-in weapons? I've only ever seen robots like that before…" Mina delivered the deduction and took a deep breath before suggesting what to do next. "Which settles it. We need our specialists to be agile and already knowledgeable on how he fights."

Mike, who had been tending to Ness's injuries which she had incurred as a result of the possession, strode up to the restaurant door.

"Mina, Krasnyy, you seem to have a pretty good grasp of the situation inside the restaurant. Who should we send?"

"We need to form a small task force to deal with Daniel. We don't want a repeat of the endo situation from earlier." Krasnyy already seemed to have a team in mind and this pre-cursor explanation was more of a formality "So I say we send in myself, PT, you, Vincent, Jeremy, Fritz, and Danni."

Mike nodded. "You, PT, me, Vincent, Jeremy, Fritz, and Danni? Right. Makes sense seeing as we have a score to settle with the bastard."

"And immediately risk most of our specialists on only getting rid of that bastard?" Danni had approached whilst everyone was busy talking, and it seemed she wasn't happy with the team composition. "I'll stay out here. Sure, I may have a score to settle, but if you somehow get injured, which knowing you lot you will, you'll need to be able to safely fall back and we need to have enough firepower left to deal with both William and possibly Adelaide, and keeping one of us who knows Daniel away from the fight means that, not if, but when you guys do get injured, we'll still have a specialist remaining to mop up. Gaz can take my place. He deserves a shot at the guy who killed his pop, and besides, knowledge goes both ways: old man Daniel D. knows how we fight; we've gotta have a wild card to throw him off."

"Alright," Mike nodded before turning to Gaz. "Gaz? Do you want to be a part of task force?"

"Yes." Gaz stared intently at the door, his fists were clenched by his sides, and he was ready to tear a man appart. He'd already grabbed a metal pipe as a weapon, so seemed as prepared as he'll ever be.

Vincent, Jeremy, and Fritz had made their way to the restaurant doors, and PT joined them moments later, shoving an electrical diagram of the megaplex that had been modified to add this underground area that the four of them had been working on into her bag.

"We're all here," PT smiled as she held her axe, itching and ready for a fight.

Verity stepped forward with Morcant and Andromeda following close behind "Myself, Danni, Morcant, and Andromeda will be just outside as the backup task force. Shout if you require assistance or lethal force."

"If I have to, I will." Mike nodded, his face was neutral and sombre, full of grim determination; a far stretch from his usual smile, "Keep an ear out. I'd rather take him alive to get answers out of him, but If he's as far gone as William, we will need your help."

"So that's the plan, hu?" Jeremy cracked his knuckles and smirked, "Then let's stop wasting time and head in. We've got an old enemy to kill."

[🌹 The old manager 🌹]

The small task force consisting of Mike, Krasnyy, Jeremy, Fritz, PT, Vincent, and Gaz burst through the doors of the restaurant and stormed the dining area. Sean tagged along behind.

What met them was a grizzly sight.

An old man was seated on a pile of corpses as if it was a throne. He was clad in a blood speckled white long sleeved dress shirt, a black waistcoat, black slacks, black shoes, and a red tie. He had wiry and thin silver hair that went down to his shoulders, and he had one red eye.

A deep laugh penetrated the air as the man stood up, and as he approached the task force, it was clear he was no longer human. Just the way he approached and the way he acted about the corpses that littered this room told everyone as much.

As he got closer, everyone could see the old manager better, and it got worse the closer he got. From the elbows down to his fingertips on his right arm was mutated, the sleeve had split to make room for his now larger forearm, and the fingers on his right hand were no longer finger, but blood stained claws. The right side of the man's face looked as if it had been burned by a constant injection of chemicals, creating a web of deep scars that followed the path of his blood vessels. These scars were a sure sign that he had been injected with remnant - Carl's chest and Sylvia's arm bore the same horrific markings.

Knowing this man, the procedures were clearly the silver haired man's own choice and a self inflicted surgery.

It was obvious what this man had been doing down here. And it was obvious why there were this many corpses.

"Hello," the man, Daniel Discord, opened his arms in a way that would have seemed friendly if not for the context of why both he and everyone else were in this horrid place, "did you miss me?"

The task force stayed silent, the more experienced in disgust, and Gaz in fear.

Daniel D. strode towards the task force and made a grandioise gesture pointing towards the pile of corpses he had used as a throne. He had one foot far in front of the other, the furthest back arm swung back to guide unwilling eyes, and for the closest he placed his hand on his hip; anyone would think from his pose alone that he was showing off a trophy or evidence of wealth and fortune.

But that was probably what that pile of corpses was to the man.

"I assume you recognise the faces of these people," the old manager's face was plastered with a sadistic grin, "especially you, boy."

He then strode back over to the pile of corpses and pulled out one with grey hair with some olive green streaks, wearing a blue coat, a bloodied button up shirt, standard electricians slacks, and black workman's boots.

It didn't take a genius to identify the body.

Jeremy had to grab Gaz's wrist to stop the guard from running towards Sean's corpse, and hardly a second later, Daniel D. was right where Gaz would have been, holding a knife where Gaz's neck would have been if the young guard had been allowed to run ahead.

Daniel D. gave a dissatisfied "hmf," before swiftly moving back to his throne. "I'm going to assume you missed me and have been wondering, 'where did that charming criminal genius, Daniel Discord, run off to' ever since the night I vanished from my cell almost two decades ago. Well, I've been stalking you all from the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to continue my research. And when that oaf, Henry Emily, burned down that facade of a restaurant back in, say, was that 2004, 2006, or somewhere in between, I don't recall, he graciously and generously - or was it truly inadvertently - concealed the labs we had hidden underneath that place from the eyes of all for years to come; I decided that my research would continue there. Getting in and out of here has been a chore since the Pizzaplex opened, but a chore worth the pain; just look at all the resources available to me!"

Daniel D. stood up and made a grandiose gesture once again, sweeping his arm across the room to present all of the mechanisms and carnage within.

The task force couldn't help but feel a fresh wave of nausea and hatred towards the old manager.

"I may only have one eye, but I have eyes everywhere. Even though we haven't crossed paths in years, I know exactly what you've been up to, and needless to say, I'm impressed. You've prevented Fazbear Entertainment from becoming a mega conglomerate and emptied the insane asylums of those I sent there to rot." Daniel D. laughed as he gave a slow, jaded applause. The man may have been foiled in the past, but his confidence in his current plan was suffocating. "But we still managed to open our greatest site yet, and his plans are almost complete. Despite the minor setbacks, soon, William will be truly resurrected and no longer need a recharge station to keep him alive. Immortality is within reach. We just need a few more corpses."

As the old manager ended his monologue, the fight begun, yet nobody moved: they all only braced themselves to retaliate to attacks.

The room seemed locked in an unmoving stalemate. No-one dared attack first, lest they be on the receiving end of a more powerful counter.

Nobody had noticed Mike's face pale at the sight of the corpses, and nobody had noticed him clenching his fists and mumbling under his breath, and in a split second, the room was alight with a hail of bullets, all trained on Daniel Discord. One shot of the gun for each corpse in the room, completely emptying the gun of all it's ammunition. The usually sweet and placid officer's face was cold and distant, a mix of fear, anger, and pure distress.

Whilst the old manager had evaded some of the bullets, most of the shots had hit thier mark, yet that monster didn't fall.

A laugh cracked through the room, and despite the grotesque wounds, Daniel Discord carried on as if nothing had happened, now clearly preparing a counter attack as he laughed.

Mike, on the other hand, was still shaking in a snapped rage. "You BASTARD! You'll pay for what you did to them. You hear me?"

The old manager laughed at the threat, "well well well, I guess the good officer turned-"

"Shut up!" Mike shrieked, his words hardly comprehendable, "they. Were. My. FRIENDS."

The air around Mike became too thin to safely breathe, but the old manager was unaffected. Mike took a step towards Daniel D. before turning to Gaz.

"I know how he fights. That's why I can rush in like this."

'Rush' was not the typical and expected word, as there seemed to be no such rush in Mike's cold and calculated strides towards the old manager.

On the other hand, the speed at which Daniel D. attacked was astounding. The old man was moving faster then what Gaz could track, but Mike seemed to have no problems with evading every single blow.

The double standard on Mike telling Gaz to stay back whilst going in to attack themselves was clearly justified. Sure, Gaz was a trained fighter, but this was above his level.

Besides, Mike and co had been fighting against Faz Ent for longer than Gaz had been alive.

Gaz teamed with Fritz in a supporting role to trace cable and generator locations to use them against the manager, but he did keep an eye on Mike and the actual fight.

Everyone seemed to be letting Mike fight on his own, and by how the air was so thin around him, the reason why was clear.

Whilst Daniel D. dashed about, trying to use his mutated form to land any one of a flurry of blows, Mike's strategy was one of persistence, and it paid off when Mike was finally able to catch the manager off guard, grabbing the man's wrists instead of simply deflecting an attack.

It wasn't entirely clear whom this maneuver benefitted as the old manager attempted to toss Mike, but Mike was able to hold on long enough for the attempted throw to backfire, as he was able to kick the manager square in the face before letting go and landing cleanly with the rest of the group, the air around him now breathable.

Whilst Daniel was reeling, Mike, Krasnyy, Jeremy, PT, and Vincent begun the real attack.

And as they fought, they spoke so casually, as if fighting was hardly as much of a chore as walking. As Gaz listened in as he helped Fritz set up some traps, he didn't want to know what these former Freddy's employees had gone through for combat to be so second nature to them.

"A lot of those builders and electricians were police moles," Mike said between swings of his combat knife before swiftly switching to a hammer, catching the old manager old guard and landing a square blow to his temple, yet the damage didn't seem to have much effect, "I knew them well. They were basically friends. So I hope you know what came over me when I saw them like this, but, I'm worried I wrecked our chances due to snapping like that, since the gunfire has stressed out our team's main muscle."

"It's alright!" PT replied as she swung her axe at the old manager, the blow being taken by the beast as if it were nothing, yet the blow had rendered flecks of flesh like a circular saw through wood. There had never been a good time to actually talk about Ryley's death, even after all the information came out in 97 revealing that it was more of a hostage situation resulting in his murder than it was the 'situation' that everyone had assumed. The revelation had been implicit. PT hacked at the manager again with her axe, the heavy blows rending more flesh in the memory of the young tracker that the monstrous manager had murdered back in 1993. "Sure it freaked me out a bit but I've had to adapt to keep fighting like this. I've had to grow around it; it was that or die. I'd have said something years ago about my progress but there's no good time to talk about what that bastard did to the tracker. Unless I'm trying to draw agro by mentioning Ryley in front of the old coot."

PT used her axe to block incoming blows; scratches from the manager's mutated hands and swings of his knife defecting off of the axe head and sending sparks flying. Bringing up Ryley, even briefly, had worked to draw the manager's attention, and revealing that it was a lure in the same breath had riled the old man up even more, letting PT keep the agro as planned whilst the phantom fox dashed between the blind spots in everyone's vision, letting everyone know that that even Ryley himself had joined the fray.

"That old man is clearly no longer human; he's gloating about committing double digit counts of first degree homicide and mutilation of corpses. Is that human to you?" Jeremy added as he jabbed his spear at the manager, landing several clean shots but causing little recoil from the man, "If you wouldn't have shot him, I would have, but it'll take more than just a few bullets, so sticking to melee might be the plan here."

"Right," Mike nodded as he alternated between attacking with his combat knife and hammer. The tactic was enough to keep Daniel D. on edge, but it was clear that it was still a stalemate.

It only needed to be a stalemate.

Gaz could see that clearly. Him and Fritz were sneaking around the sidelines, tampering with the construction equipment. Turning the room itself into a weapon to use against the manager, and it was this that would grant the upper hand. So everyone else just needed to hold out until the tide could be turned.

Gaz wondered how many of Mike and co's fights were won this way? Through taking the attention for long enough for Fritz to turn the environment into a superweapon.

"Here!" Fritz shouted a whisper to Gaz.

Gaz looked over and saw Fritz holding out a wrench.

"Get these bolts undone, I'll deal with the rest." Fritz said as he handed Gaz the wrench and pointed to a structure near the pit. It looked like it had been assembled very recently with a mix of scrap metal and new parts, with said new parts being bolts that glinted in the dim light.

Gaz nodded, and took advantage of Mike and co keeping the old manager in a brawl in order to make it to the structure undetected. It looked like some kind of make shift distillery, and most of the metal made up a shielding of sorts, likely to protect it from the occasional stone of concrete that may drop from the ceiling or as temperature regulation, as the matter seemed organic in nature and the structure was incredibly cold.

As he wrenched the bolts off of the structure, he couldn't help but watch as Mike deftly dodged attacks and hit back, alternating between a knife and hammer, still keeping the manager on his toes with the same tricks, he watched as PT swung hefty blows of her axe about as if it weighed nothing, causing significant damage with each hit and shattering tiles or wood on a miss, but always being able to pull back in time to use the large axe head as a shield, he watched as Jeremy jabbed with his spear with such ferocity that the old manager seemed to be strategising nearly exclusively around keeping distance from the PI, he watched as Vincent elegantly slashed with his katana and absorbed hits as if they were nothing, with most hits bouncing off, yet a gash on his face that seemed to be from earlier didn't leak blood, but something else, and he watched as Krasnyy moved at inhuman speeds, mixing it up with clawed gauntlets, a combat knife, and a phone head that was definitely fake and made out of cast iron that he spun about on a coiled cable as a flail.

As the last bolt dropped, Gaz gave Fritz the all clear.

Fritz nodded back.

Vincent nodded as well, seeming to catch the unspoken signal.

Vincent threw all his rage at the old manager into a ferocious volley of swings, his face twisted into a rare occurrence of emotion, a deep scowl with nothing but fire behind the eyes. He felt rage. Rage at the man who had ruined his life and had caused his death; he wanted nothing more than for the man who had doomed him from day one to become a walking corpse to taste death for himself for once in his pathetic life. He hacked away with ferocity that would kill a normal man, yet the old manager still stood as the blade cleaved through him, and the bastard's next attack was aimed for a point on Vincent's body that was not covered by the metal of a melted springlock suit: his neck.

The manager carved a deep gash, one near identical to the wound Krasnyy sustained in 1993 during the 'Night 4 incident', into Vincent's neck, causing Vincent to stumble back and collapse.

Vincent's face shifted to another, more familiar emotion to himself: fear.

He scurried out of the way of the fight as to not become a hazard to his allies before assessing his injuries. As he didn't bleed blood anymore, he couldn't use the saline or blood IV's they had packed in the first aid kits to patch himself up. All he could do was bandage himself up and hope the wound healed on its own. He tried to grab his katana and rejoin the fray, but he collapsed again. He knew he had lost too much of his blood substitute to keep fighting.

He then watched as Mike pressed something in his pocket before taking a slash to his side that sent him tumbling across the floor. Attempting to apply pressure to the wound in his side whilst cradling his injured arm, he scurried to the sidelines as well. Instead of patching himself up, he intently watched Daniel Discord's location, holding his thumb in line with equipment unseen to gauge the man's proximity to Fritz's setup.

Knowing what Mike was doing, Vincent patched Mike up, being careful as to not nudge him.

"NOW!" Mike yelled as the manager stepped near the edge of the pit.

In a pre-coordinated manner, a series of events played out like a dance.

The doors flung open.

Verity, Danni, and Carl rushed in.

PT, Jeremy, and Krasnyy dove out of the way.

Fritz released the mechanism and a wrecking ball's worth of scrap slammed into the old manager, knocking him off balance and causing significant wounds where the metal had penetrated his skin, causing the wounds to leak what looked like a mix of blood and mercury.

Verity, Danni, and Carl unleashed a hail of bullets upon the old manager.

Whilst the manager only acted as if he was being pelted with pebbles, that was the point.

He stepped back a little too far and his ankle twisted about the tiles on the edge of the pit. The fragment of tile cracked beneath him, and he was sent plummeting into the depths below.

The gaping hole in the floor seemed to swallow him whole.

Mike, Krasnyy, Jeremy, Fritz, Vincent, PT, and Gaz rushed to the edge to see what had become of the old manager, and all they saw was a glimpse of his limp body getting dragged away by metal tendrils.

Verity, Danni, and Carl looked down just too late to spot it.

Whether Adelaide would kill him or not or whether he died from the fall or not was not anyone's concern.

As it became apparent that this fight was over, Mike droped down to his knees and cried.

[🌹 Turning results 🌹]

As Sylvia sat down to write her investigation report, May patched up the injuries that had been sustained during the fight against the C location manager, and everyone else begun to document and analyse the evidence. Everyone but Mike. He didn't want to look at the corpse pile.

"I knew them…" Mike choked between tears, "I knew all of them. I should have protected them better. … I'm a failure."

Sylvia looked up mid report.

"You're not a failure," She stated. Despite only knowing Mike since she was 16, he had practically raised her since then. She seemed to have adopted his plight too, as she had felt the same way whenever any of the megaplex's night guards became injured. But this was worse; people who Mike had trained had died. "You trained them well. Dude, I trained Gaz, and he told me about how he was out of his depth in the fight against the manager in there. This place is just worse than we could have ever imagined."

"I should have predicted this. I should have predicted him being here," Mike stared at the floor as pools of tears were absorbed into the fabric of his jeans.

"How. Look. Look at me." Sylvia placed her hands around Mike's face and forced her to look at him, "These past few weeks, you've updated me on the VR environment that you infiltrated and the results of the clone 46 experiments, you've updated me on on the special delivery investigations, and you've prepared the raid. You may be an ace Investigator who can turn almost anyone to your side, but you're just that: a master of solving what has been, and using LOGIC to figure out what could be. Seeing the future to the degree that would have been needed to figure this out pre-riot wasn't your job. Fuck, it wasn't anyone's. Faz Ent has NEVER attempted mass homicide on that level before. Five people is one thing. The attempted murder of about 200 people and the successful murder of 30 is another. May I remind you that our resident seer, Gregory, whose skills as a seer has let us find things he or any it us logically shouldn't have known about, wasn't able to predict even half of this crap. Even with the info from this Raid so far. Also, two days after the breach, I basically fed him all the Riot camera feeds. And he still didn't think that something like THIS would be going on down here. He's ran predictions of this place from the breach incident, and whilst we were setting up the abseiling equipment, he ran the predictions again for a present prediction. Not one of his predictions saw ANY of this. He wasn't even able to predict Adelaide turning Luis into a ferral assassin. And that's with you bringing him up to date with C location's incidents. That old manager has been down here since before the Riot. Given that none of Gregory's predictions involved that man, well, then there's something more to this that we've never been able to realise."

"Like, some kind of mental block on the true nature of this place?" Mike questioned. When he was analysing evidence, he wasn't crying, so Sylvia just had to keep him busy.

"Yeah. Evan is an Afton, so it makes sense that William would be able to somewhat taint his son's deductions to focus on him and only him," Sylvia replied, "after all, he didn't predict me catching up to him in the prize counter, or the daycare attendant getting Freddy, and he apparently dealt with everything he did after six, getting the message evidence and saving my sister, all in one shot - or so he says. Whilst startlingly accurate, he knows that it's not the be all and end all."

"So I need to deduce… What… Happened…" Mike's face sunk and froze. He begun to shake.

He felt as if he couldn't take it.

Sylvia didn't want him spiraling. She whacked him on the back and yelled "Snap out of it dad! It's going to be alright! We've got an investigation and a raid to finish."

Sylvia had seen Mike as a surrogate father since she ran away from home as a teenager. Thanks to Joy putting Mike down as a legal guardian and there being a warrant out for Bill's arrest, Mike had been able to keep Sylvia from having to go back to Bill's house when some goons tried to cite the divorce proceedings to try and drag her back to that abusive dumpster fire.

Even over a decade later, Sylvia had considered Mike to be more deserving of the title of dad than Bill ever was.

She didn't want to see him like this.

"Right," Mike pulled himself together as much as he could for his surrogate daughter's sake. Everything was eating away at his psyche, but he could address that later. He had to do what he did back when he worked at Freddy's: push away the mental breakdown for later and focus on surviving.

"That's the spirit!" Sylvia grinned before she resumed writing her reports.

Mike nodded and approached the staffbot that Sean posessed. With a deep breath, he asked, "Excuse me, Sean? could you tell me how you died?"

"I'd love to tell you, but remembering it is… Difficult," Sean's ghost gave a grim expression. It was clear that it wasn't the whole pain of dying thing that was what was making it hard to remember, but something else. "You see, I remember my death being… Particularly bloody. But that conflicts with what's in here."

Mike gave a solemn nod. "Just tell me what you remember."

"Well," Sean answered, "we came down here and saw that restaurant, and the doors were open. We figured that because we were in the sinkhole, there really wasn't anything to worry about." Sean sighed and sat next to the staffbot. "I was so fucking naive. We walked inside, and that man was standing there. I recognised him as the old manager of the Freddy's location that I used to work at, so I ordered everyone to run back to the elevator. But by then, the doors to this restaurant were already locked. We couldn't get out. I tried to buy time whilst everyone else tried to get the door open, but the generators outside were holding it shut. Then, he threw his knife at me. It landed in my shoulder. I tried to grab it so I could fight back, but he was on top of me within a second…"

Mike could hear Sean's voice shake as he spoke. Mike didn't know what to say, so he crouched down so he was eye level with Sean's ghost and placed a hand on his shoulder - more accurately, Frederico locked Mike's arm and wrist once his hand touched the ghost's shoulder, but it was the thought that counted.

Sean took a deep breath, despite being dead and having no lungs to breathe with anymore. "He stabbed me, repeatedly. You saw my body. But I don't get how no blood got on the floor. I don't remember a tarp. I'm… Not even sure if that memory is real or if this staffbot had enough remnant crammed into it to fuck up the one thing I had left: my memories."

Mike thought about what Sean had said. "How did you know the generators were holding the door shut."

"Figured it out in post," Sean replied, "after I woke up dead in this staffbot, I found that the generators were hooked up to the thing that was keeping the door shut from the outside. We didn't know what was keeping it shut before we died."

"Noted," Mike nodded, "anything else?"

"Not really," Sean shook his head, "I don't remember much else. But something I know is that I couldn't turn the generators on myself. These robots have noodle limbs and the amount of loose wires? Believe me, I tried…" Sean then shuddered. "I heard the others screaming. I couldn't open the doors."

Mike wanted to try and comfort Sean, but couldn't think of anything to say. He couldn't tell him it was going to be OK, because Sean was already dead. Tears pricked at his eyes as he said the only comforting truth he COULD say. "I'll… Make sure you and everyone else gets a proper burial, and that your family gets answers."

Mike then felt a tap on his shoulder.

"I was identifying the bodies, and I found something odd about some of them," Dr May Schmidt stated, "Bite marks."

"Bite marks?" Mike was concerned and slightly horrified.

May nodded. "And one body that was at the bottom of the pile has a pulse, and seems to have some bizarre mutations."

"Someone survived?!" Sean exclaimed and looked over at the pile of bodies. Most had been respectfully laid in body bags, yet some were still in the open.

May hesitated. "It's best if I showed you them."

May walked over towards one of the bodies. Sean moved as fast as the staffbot that his ghost was tethered to could go, and Mike followed behind.

The body in question was easily identifiable from the rest.

It was the only body hooked up to an IV drip.

Veins could be identified through the silver lines that snaked across the skin. The individual's chest was broad, and their arms matched. Tearing on the clothes showed that this physique was part of their mutation. Their fingernails seemed to have mutated into claws. Half their face looked like a burn scar.

"Remnant…" Mike grimaced as he looked at the individual.

"These are not the same sort of symptoms that Carl, Gregory, or Sylvia demonstrated…" May stated before looking to her brother for input, as he seemed to hold a look of recognition towards these mutations.

"But they DO match Daniel Discord." Mike completed his sister's statement.

May nodded.

"These are the symptoms of extended use. One injection stays with someone forever; it's main impact may vary depending on the individual, but it but doesn't cause mutations; only the silvering of veins around the injection site." May showed Sean a diagram in a paper she authored on the effects of remnant on individuals based on interviews from people she'd managed to contact who had been kidnapped by Faz Ent and subsequently injected with the stuff. "But multiple over a long stretch of time… I have reason to believe that the temporary effects remnant offers, healing and making more remnant, is what causes these mutations. She must have had a lot of remnant put into her bloodstream in a short period of time…"

"She?" Sean asked. He didn't seem confused: he seemed horrified.

May nodded, "she best matches the description of the youngest member of the construction team. Female, early twenties." May traced the silver veins of the mutated woman to multiple open wounds and to her mouth. "From what we know, the bodies were initially injected with remnant so that they'd produce more remnant than normal. That must have saved her life in the first place. Then after, she must have ingested a lot of it through the bites and from remnant leaking from the others into her open wounds. From what I've gathered, she had to resort to discreetly cannibalising the bodies that were on top of her to survive."

"Lilain?" Sean's ghost crouched by the woman's side. The hulking body seemed to stir.

May stumbled backwards as the hulking woman sat bolt upright upon opening her eyes. Well, eye. One of Lilain's eyes was covered in scar tissue that had been mostly obscured by her auburn hair. She seemed terrified, yet calm.

Carl looked up from the documents he had found, took one look at the woman, and froze.

Krasnyy looked up from pouring over his own pile of pilfered documents and furrowed his brow in a quizzical manner. "Remnant ghosts? Not remnant visions?"

"Remnant ghosts," Carl nodded. He could see the entire construction team huddled around Lilain. The only reason why he could see them was the remnant in his chest from the Micheal Brooks MCI kids. Over the years, it had let him see many things he wasn't supposed to. Mostly remnant and any ghosts that were bound to the remnant though.

Krasnyy, on the other hand, whose body was not full of remnant, contrary to what the porcelain-like scab that covered one of his forearms may lead one to assume, could only see a distortion that was a suggestion of ghosts hovering around Lilain.

"Could you show yourselves? We're friendly." Krasnyy yelled across the room to the ghosts.

Everyone in the room was now looking at Lilain and the ghosts of the rest of the construction crew.These ghosts were now confirmed to be the last signals from the CNS made external, bound to the remains of their memories that leaked from their bodies as they died. Ghosts that were both remnant and electrical. Remnant ghosts.

Hence why no second 'ghost' of Sean was among them. These were not visions of the memories stored within the remnant. These were the actual ghosts of the construction crew, bound to the remnant that was ingested by Lilain.

These were not remnant visions, memories from the construction crew made visible through remnant.

These were thier actual electrical ghosts, bound to remnant. Just like almost every single MCI.

This was confirmation that they were all completely dead.

"You guys are going to want to look at this," PI Jeremy Fitzgerald grimaced as he took a file covered in rubble dust over to Lilain. He'd found the file alongside a key behind the hole in the diner floor. "I believe that they intended this to happen to you."

The file contained few documents, all hastily written in the old manager's handwriting. The ink was dry, and on second glance, looked like dry blood. The blood was as old as the corpses in the room. It detailed recreating the transformation that happened to that old manager on 'any of the construction crew who survive', and going on to say 'If being killed and injected with remnant doesn't kill them, then the condition of the corpse pile they'll be in will be sure to cause them to transform'.

It was some fucked up shit.

"The old fuck was trying to recreate what he'd done to himself," Jeremy glared at the hole in the floor as if to glare at the old manager, "trying to recreate things is about the only thing he ever did."

"So what you're saying is that he killed them to not only create a bulk load of super potent remnant, but to try and recreate a mutation process?" Carl inquired into the PI's line of thought. Whilst Carl was more familiar with William's original work, he knew that every other location was wildly different in both motive and methods. It was clear that the 'C' used to denote the location that Jeremy and his close friends worked at was not only a location signifier, but also short for 'Copycat'. With that new information, a lot of documents that Jeremy had found during and after the warehouse and Pizzeria Simulator incidents in the mid 2000's that he'd handed over to him with little to no context suddenly made a lot more sense. "Now the security guard host club comment on that bit of paperwork makes sense."

"Yes, and," Jeremy's brow furrowed at the host club mention, "can we not talk about the old manager's cover story he gave to the investors as to why the only visible difference between 0 and C locations was an increase in guard/patron interaction. I get it, it's funny, but this is a serious situation can we drop it."

"I found information about the glamrocks original plans!" Julian announced, as if on cue to dispell the awkward situation. "This also has plans that talk about the mass layoffs and how they wanted to handle it."

"What does it say!" Krasnyy beamed at his kid finding a new lead.

"Well, they wanted to kill some staff specifically to put souls inside the glamrocks. Rachel Collins grandfather was going to be killed for Freddy, Leo would have been killed for Glamrock Bonnie, … And that lady was supposed to become chica…. And for Monty…. Let's see…. Wow… Elsa and Jenkins were supposed to be on the chopping block too as backup plans for if any of the other guys were fired or escaped… And … Whoa, MY name's on here too?! What so you think made them back out? Normally if you're named in a document like this, you're dead."

"Do - do any of us know Grandpa's name?" Sylvia asked, slightly embarrassed.

"Nope," Julian shook his head, "he's in the system as just Grandpa as his first name and Collins as his surname."

"Right, well, they tried to kill Leo. Long after Bonnie got annihilated," Sylvia answered Julian's first question, "and as for why they didn't, I think I know why: William had a hard enough time getting Ness to function as his meat puppet. Putting souls in the Glamrocks would have meant there would be something in there that could override his code. So keeping the animatronics as code with a side of remnant made controlling the animatronics easier and meant that he wouldn't have to deal with four or five extra souls competing to piss him off. What about the meeting?"

"Right, the meeting notes!" Julian exclaimed before skimming them. "They were going to shoot Des and hoped that the staffbots and endos would be able to overpower the entire staff force."

"Well that was a pathetic plan." Sylvia cringed at how incompetent Faz Ent was. She was kinda glad for it, but the thought that this much pain and suffering was caused by incompetent bufoons who don't even know what humans will do to survive somehow made it feel even worse.

"I want to get deciphering these ASAP!" Julian was practically dancing in place, feral with a burning need to figure out everything these documents had contained within them.

"I found something regarding what Faz Ent wanted to do with my maintenance firm, but I can wait," Anna said, "I have to face off against that pair of bastards behind all of this."

"I can make a start…" Nora stated, far meeker than her usual brash self. The fact that she looked as if she was boiling alive definitely had everything to do with it though, "I found some documents that link what they wanted to do with us to what they wanted to do to you, and if I don't get outa here soon, I'm going to burn up from the inside."

"That'd be great," Anna said as she handed Nora the documents, "and make sure you hike the BACK of your shirt up BEFORE you remove the fireproof vest. You've already lost half your wardrobe that way."

"Yeah, I'll remember," Nora begun leaning on Tristan a bit for support. Mike knew she was on the verge of passing out, and Mike was one of a few people privy to why due to her tipping him off about the more cultish side of Faz Ent, so he knew that it was about time to enact the third phase.

"Right," Mike announced, "everyone, you each have a choice. You can either help bring up evidence, or stay for the final fight. If you bring evidence up and out, you cannot come back down, so all of it needs to go up at once."

"Sadie, Andy, and I will be getting the bodies to the surface," Morcant stated.

"So if anyone else is coming up with, bring as many documents as you can. I have plastic wallets." Andromeda added as she placed a bunch of plastic wallets on the floor.

"Lilain? Are you coming with us?" Sadie asked the sole survivor of the construction worker massacre.

Lilain shook her head. She seemed to have unfinished business down here.

"Right," Sadie replied, "do you have anything you can't carry on your person easily that you would like us to take up?"

Lilain shook her head again.

"Ok," Sadie nodded and smiled, "good luck!"

"Well, I've got everything I need," Patty said as she had filled her entire jacket with who-knows-what and likely so much documentation about how staffbots worked that it was untrue.

"I will head up also," Verity said, "the risks of me facing off against the likes of William is something I have considered, and I don't want to risk being forced by him to turn my weapons on you guys. I assume that's why Morcant and Andromeda wanted to head up too, is that correct?"

"Yeah," Morcant replied.

Over the next few minutes, everyone else decided if they were staying or going.

Mike, Jeremy, Krasnyy, Fritz, PT, Vincent, Ness, Sylvia, Gregory, Mina, Anna, and Luis amongst others stayed.

Morcant, Sadie, Andromeda, Patty, Julian, Verity, Nora, Tristan, Izzy, and Charles amongst others begun to clear the room of evidence and corpses until it was more empty than Gregory's deductions of the room had it be.

"I trust you and your crew have this under control," Charles signed to Anna before leaving with a coat full of evidence.

"More than under control," Anna replied as she watched him and many others evacuate the premises, leaving no scrap of evidence behind.

Once the room was cleared out and only those ready to face William head-on remained, Mike got a ping on his phone despite the lack of signal.

"Oxana here. Got the update from Syl. We've repaired and are deploying the bear. He should be able to help you in the upcoming fight. It'll be a mental one, I can tell, one based on ghost power and shit. You'll need him to at least take the heat. Hope your squad's good at resisting possession, or if they're not maybe they're good at this 'reverse control theory' idea of hers.

And as for Ness, I'm detecting a specific signal from the pit below you. Phantom BB should be there, so Ness may stand a chance against William if they can cooperate fast. You don't need to worry about that heirloom of hers either, as it's long been destroyed. I'll explain what it was when you're back up here. Pretty interesting stuff.

Toodles!"

Familiar metal footsteps echoed, and Gregory rushed up to meet them.

"Freddy!"

As Freddy and Gregory reunited outside of his peripheral vision, Mike looked down into the giant hole in the floor, and he figured that this was going to be a very long morning.

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roadtogracelandx45 · 1 year

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Burnin' Love rewrite| 2| Austin Butler! Elvis

@thatbanditqueen @prettyinpayne @ohnoitsthebat

masterlist

I am so sorry about the long wait for this update, real life and inspiration have been rough and limited. Next one should be out soon

03: Heavy Hearts

“Tell us what happened baby,” Elvis said running his hand over Sylvie’s shoulder, she had climbed into his lap for comfort. “Dick Sr, after he took us from Tupelo, started abusing me.” Billy, Elvis’s cousin, rushed into the bathroom and came back with a box of tissues.

“What did he do?” Elvis’ body trembled as he clutched her tighter to him as if he was afraid that she would slip through his fingers again and somehow be back in Atlanta hurting more. “Started with hitting, and withholding food. And after Andie was born.”

“Your sister?” Petey asked as Grandma Dodger handed Elvis a blanket to cover Sylvie.

“Yeah.” She pointed a trembling finger at the beat-up suitcase, “There’s a couple of pictures in there.”

Vernon, to keep himself busy and not to show his anger around an already frightened Sylvie, opened the suitcase, on top of the clothes were pictures and a folder. He picked them up and flipped through the folder, a smirk forming on his face, not only did she have the smarts to grab her papers but the death certificate for her father. He flashed the papers to Gladys who nodded her head as she went over and sat on the duo’s side.

“That is Andie, she is four.” Elvis had wrapped them both up in the blanket and was holding her close to his chest, angry at himself for not insisting that they go and get her and going to get her on his own. “And that’s Davey. He’s almost one.” All three adults put the time frame together and Vernon dropped the file onto the coffee table and stepped out of the apartment, fury building in him.

“What is it?” Elvis asked he wanted to go after his father but Sylvie’s trembling body stopped him. She needed him right then.

“Stay here baby, I will handle it,” Gladys commented as she leaned over and kissed his cheek and the side of Sylvie’s head. “Petey, clean up your bed, Sylvie needs to have a place to sleep.” “No, it’s okay. I can sleep on the floor.”

“There are going to be no arguments about it, Sylvia Grace. Petey.” ‘Yes, Auntie.” the younger cousin said as he stood up from the floor and rushed back into the room that he shared with Elvis.

“Don’t worry sweetheart.” Dodger added, “We will handle it.” The teen nodded her head trying to tamper down her terror and fear. The older woman tweaked her chin before following her son and daughter-in-law into the hallway.

“What are we going to do?” Gladys asked her husband once they were standing on the landing. Dodger was standing on the step above them. “We are going to keep her with us.” Vernon spoke, “I want you to reach out to her grandmother and let her know where she is at. And we keep her with us. She needs us. Elvis needs her.” The way their son had been without Sylvie being around wasn’t him. They had said from day one that they were made to be together. That she was going to be te one that completed their little family. “I will take her in the morning to get registered for school.”His wife returned,

“Just let it go, son.” Dick Sr.’s father commented he and his wife Marian had come over to the house to take the younger kids to their house. “The way you treated her, it was only a matter of time before she wised up and left.” “Let it go?” he demanded, throwing his now empty whiskey glass against the wall causing Andie to start crying and clinging to her older brother’s pant leg. He scooped down and picked her up and held her. He was never the comforting one, that was always Sylvie’s job, and now he had to step up and help out. He owed that to her. David was already perched in his grandmother’s arms. “I gave that little bitch everything and she just threw it all away.”

“You didn’t give her a goddamn thing.” Robert shouted, “You treated her like trash. You could have let her stay with her grandmother in Tupelo.”

“ Samuel's mother is still alive?” Dickie wondered, “And you tortured her? What the hell is wrong with you?”

His father turned around his hands clenched into his fists, ready to swing if need be. His whole life was falling apart and everyone but him was to blame.

****

After Gladys was happy with how much Sylvie ate for dinner, Elvis took her into the room they were going to be sharing. “Do you want to talk about it?” He questioned as he went to his bed and plopped down on it. She hovered in the doorway, nervous about how much leeway Gladys and Vernon had given her. She was always the last one to do anything and her priority was her stepfather then the kids and her mother.

Then Dickie.

She took a deep breath and took steps into the room to take hold of the hand that Elvis had offered her. “I am not ready to talk about it yet. It has been a lot and I am not sure how to explain it all.”

“Say no more baby, whenever you are ready to talk, I am here. So are Mama and Daddy.” She nodded her head and curled into his side. “Tell me about Dixie. She must be somethin’ special if she is here with Mama, Grandma, and Vernon.”

Elvis laughed lowly and pressed a kiss on top of her head, “We met at school, she is a sweet girl. I think you two would get along.’

“Don’t push me to make friends E.” She started, “My only friend has been Andie.” His fingers stopped halfway to her head and he glanced down at her not surprised to see the button of his shirt between her fingers moving back and forth.

“Well you have me again baby, and you are never gonna be lonely again.”

#ash writes #oc sylvie presley #austin butler! elvis presley imagines #austin butler! elvis presley fan fiction #austin butler! elvis presley oc #oc: sylvie adams #elvis x sylvie

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save-the-spiral · 2 years

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Wiztober Day Six: God-Like

I have now realized how this may have fit better in yesterday’s prompt. welp. Welcome (back) to Malistaire & Sylvia Swap AU, I may have jumped forward in the timeline a bit (skipped like 99% of arc 1). I’ll fill in the gaps if asked.

Content warning for ghosts, death, existential conversation, implied child abuse, implied unethical (magic) experimentation, grief, arguing.

(buy me coffee?) (Maliswap AU Masterpost) (Prompt List)

Malistaire's ghostly form looked so real. Perhaps it was his mastery of necromancy, perhaps it was simply because even as a spirit he had such purpose it made him almost opaque.

Almost alive, yet undead.

"My love-" he started to speak.

"Mali!" Sylvia fell to her knees, the skirt of her robe splaying out, the only thing keeping her upright being Malistaire's own staff, with its rearing dragon surrounding an orb of magical energy, roiling at the presence of its original master.

"Sylvia," Malistaire spoke in a breathy, reverent whisper, "is this truly what you've become?"

Sylvia's grip tightened on the staff and she used it to pull herself up, shoulders back and face set in a grim mask of discipline. "I've done what I must."

"What you must do is live, dearest wife." Malistaire's desperation caused his spirit to waver, smokey gray vapor trailing from his swinging braids as he walked forward, hands out in supplication.

"I cannot." Sylvia said, tendons in her neck jumping as she tensed her jaw, magic shifting around her. Autumnal foliage shed from her coppery hair, burnt orange and red leaves falling behind her in a trail. "I refuse to live without you, beloved husband."

"Please, Sylvia. You are perverting the magic I dedicated my life to, bastardizing your own. You’ve harmed far more than yourself in this venture. You can't-" Malistaire begged, he walked forward a step more, reaching out, the draping sleeves of his robes blurring, hands splayed, his wedding ring glinting in the firelight of Dragonspyre while the rest of his jewelry remained dulled in death.

"Nobody tells me what I can and cannot do- not anymore! I won't be restrained by anyone, not Ambrose, not you, and certainly not by the magic I control! I'm in charge here! I'm the wizard, this is my magic, and I shall use it as I see fit! No longer shall I stand aside and stay silent! No longer shall I be put in my place! I will not be the widow wallowing in grief and accepting condolences when I can do something about it! There is nothing in the Spiral that will keep me from you my love! No wizard, and certainly no law of magic! I am the one who sings the Song, it will not use me as an instrument!" Sylvia was frantic, chest heaving inside her gilded armor, hair rising and her magic crackling like freshly stepped upon leaves, deep green magic snaking around her fingers, up the staff she borrowed from her husband in his death.

"My time is over, Sylvia. I lived well. Far longer than I should have." Malistaire's voice quaked as he finally placed a ghostly hand on his widow's face, cupping her jaw.

She leaned into it unconsciously. "You deserve longer."

"Debatable." Malistaire drawled.

Sylvia snorted wetly, tears falling in earnest. "I missed you." was all she could say, raising one hand to cover Malistaire's on her face. He was cold, and she could delude herself into thinking it was just his bad circulation if she closed her eyes.

Malistaire looked at her sadly. "Sylvia…"

"I'll miss you every day of my life, Mali. I can't… It tears me apart, every moment. I know I could've saved you, we just needed a bit more time…"

"Nothing can save mortals from the inevitable, dear." Malistaire chided.

Sylvia clenched his ephemeral hand in her own, bringing it down and grasping it with her other hand, letting Malistaire's staff fall to the ground with a clatter. "I am the best theurgist of our age, Mali." She stared into his eyes, intense and unflinching, "I will sing the Song, and- and I can rewrite fate! We will have forever, just like we wanted! Us, together, as it should be!"

Malistaire looked so pained, face crumpling, black tears falling from his spectral face. "No, Sylvia."

"Mali?"

"No. We can't live like that. That is not living!" ” Malistaire’s voice echoed and cracked, warping into the telltale death rattle of the undead.

Sylvia's grip tightened on Malistaire's barely corporeal hand as it wavered, as if holding on long enough would solidify his presence.

Malistaire took a useless breath, rattling as he did so before he calmed marginally. "Theurgy and Necromancy are opposing schools for a reason, Sylvia… what is life without death?"

"Yet we do not force a wizard to choose their secondary in their rival school to balance their magics. One can exist without the other, Mali. I know it, Life can exist alone."

"That’s the body, Sylvia! The body, without the mind or spirit! Life, without its fellow spiritual schools, is just- meat! Meat without a soul or a conscience, it’s nothing! You may refuse to live without me, but I refuse to live like that! I refuse to live at all- not just because of how horrific the thought of violating the deepest laws of the Spiral for such a thing- but because my time is over, Sylvia!” Malistaire’s voice cracked with emotion as he stumbled forward, hands bracing on Sylvia’s armored shoulders, phasing through the gold pauldrons and sinking to clutch at her skin.

“I’m dead, Sylvia.” Malistaire said quietly, head bowed. “There are living people who need you far more than I, who deserve the goodness I know is still within you. I belong here, on the other side. Death is as beautiful as Life. One is the journey, the other the destination. Don’t- don’t do this to me. Don’t toy with my spirit.”

“I won’t!” Sylvia reassured him, desperation like a summer rainstorm descending upon her. “I won’t tamper with your spirit- or your body, or your mind, even- I will recreate the Spiral in my own image and you won’t have died in the first place!” Sylvia’s joy bordering mania was clear in her blooming magic, but the green tendrils clutched too readily, strangler vines made to choke out competing plants, to slowly sap them of everything until they are but a husk.

“Sylvia!” Malistaire shook and faded into full transparency for but a moment due to shock. “You can’t-!”

“I am sick of being told what to do, Malistaire! I thought you of all people would understand- to bar me from using my own magic without a good reason why-!”

“Sylvia...” Malistaire’s voice warped and echoed, his face obscured by the black smoke of his own specter as he stepped further back away, afraid.

“No- no I’m sorry Malistaire- I don’t mean it! I’m sorry, I can’t lose you again, don’t leave me- I won’t hurt you, I swear it! I won’t touch your soul-”

“And what of the child, Sylvia.”

“Our child needs both of their parents! They will understand in time why I’ve done what I must! I needed to test the bounds of the worlds and their magic! They assisted me as much as they could, to bring back their father!”

Malistaire’s entire form nearly dissipated into smoke, now little more than an incorporeal wraith, cloaked in black with just his braids as a defining feature. “Sylvia... I could tolerate...” His voice descended into rasps, barely audible as he wheezed. “Harming me... but my child... I will never forgive you. Do not call upon me again lest I force you to join me in Death’s embrace, my love.”

Malistaire disappeared, nothing but a cold breeze in his wake.

Sylvia collapsed in full, unable to muster the emotion that had seized her just moments before, none of that desperation and mania and fear. Simple impulse and need were all that could break past the overwhelming fog of emptiness.

The heat of Dragonspyre and constant low roar of flames and lavafalls filter into Sylvia’s hearing.

Her resolve returned to her in this moment. She refused to have gone so far and stop now. She cannot have done all of this for nothing.

The child she and Malistaire had borne, had raised, was now dead or missing (or worse, her mind whispered insidiously), and she would not have their suffering be in vain.

Even if that suffering had partially been from her own hands.

#maliswap #wizard101 #writing #wizzy101 #wiztober2022 #wiztober #inktober #inktober2022 #wiz101 #malistaire drake wizard101 #malistaire drake #sylvia drake #sylvia drake wizard101 #w101

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the-girl-in-the-box · 2 years

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One Swallow Can Make A Summer V

A/N: Finally back with an update! I'll be real honest, I… finished writing this like at least a week ago if not longer, but I've just been so busy with the holiday season that I never got around to posting it XD So, even if it is super late, I hope you'll still enjoy!

Summary: The world is at war, and none will be left unchanged in its wake. Downton Abbey is now a convalescent home where wounded officers are sent to recover, and Sergeant Thomas Barrow couldn’t be more satisfied with his position in running it. But with the arrival of a kind new maid, the downstairs dynamic shifts, and Thomas finds himself in the middle of a strange situation, which only grows stranger as the war goes on. With the answers he seeks hidden in the Abbey’s past, inaccessible to Thomas alone, and danger lurking around any corner, he’ll have to learn to trust his instincts and his allies before it’s too late.

Masterlist

“I just can’t understand why they hired him. He falls to pieces just because some general is leaving, begging us not to send him back, when that wasn’t even on the table? I don’t know, seems there should have been some sign that he wasn’t ready to work again yet.”

Thomas shrugged in response to Sylvia’s words as he sipped his tea. “Can’t always tell with these things,” he pointed out. “But I will give you that they should have noticed after that stunt he pulled the other night, carrying on in the middle of the night the way he did.”

Sylvia hummed as she pulled a needle through the dress she was stitching up, tugging on thread to make the stitch itself disappear entirely. “A bad dream’s one thing,” she allowed. “Don’t know anyone who doesn’t have those here and there, but waking the whole attic up because of one?” She paused to shake her head. “He won’t last long after today anyway, so I don’t see that it really matters anymore. He needs to just go and rest, and find work again once he’s good and ready for it. Not right now.”

“I’m not sure why you think you get a say in any of this,” O’Brien interrupted. Thomas looked over at her with a slightly lifted brow. “He’s seen things you never have, and I don’t blame him for having a bit of a panic at the thought of going back to war.”

The lack of an immediate answer from Sylvia made Thomas look back over at her, only to find an icy smile on her lips, and a fire in her eyes. This ought to be interesting.

“Maybe I haven’t seen what he has,” she allowed, “but he hasn’t lived what I have. Stay in your place, Ms. O’Brien. If I want your opinion, I’ll ask for it.”

Thomas’s eyes widened. It felt strange, to see the two people he considered to be his friends in that house arguing over anything. But ultimately, he had to say he agreed with Sylvia. “I’ve seen what he has, and I’ve never caused a scene over it,” he pointed out. “All the officers in this house have, and they’re fine.”

Well, no, that wasn’t actually true, but what was he supposed to say? He knew everyone that sort of horror differently. He didn’t have to think very long to remember the things he’d seen at the hospital, what- who- he had lost at the hospital. Maybe he was so quick to write Lang off because of that. It still wasn’t easy for him to go there, and seeing Lang struggle made him wonder- would Edward have struggled this way had he lived? Had this sort of thing played a part in his decision? Thomas himself saw the trenches every time he closed his eyes. What if he could never open them again?

He was grateful for the interruption of William Mason, no longer a footman but now a visitor to Downton, coming into the room. He looked older in his uniform than he had in his livery. Apparently, William hadn’t overheard very much of their conversation, as he sat down and asked, “Who’s fine?”

“The officers upstairs,” Sylvia answered. “You know, maybe Mr. Lang would have done better if he had gotten to convalesce. Do we know if he did?”

“It weren’t here, if so,” William replied, and then he smiled at her. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m William- William Mason.” He stretched his hand out across the table.

“Sylvia Sharpe,” she said, and shook it. “I’m afraid I’ve been busy for most of your visit, but it’s good to meet you now. When do you leave for the front?”

“Tomorrow morning,” he answered. “I’m to be stationed in the Sommes.”

Sylvia turned her attention back to Thomas and asked him, “Isn’t that where you were? He realised then that he also had William’s attention now, not that it made much difference.

“Until they brought me back here after my injury,” he confirmed, then addressed William. “I don’t know why you seem so excited to be going over there, it’s a nightmare.” He grew a little irritated when William just smiled and shrugged.

“I just want to help, I think- however I can,” he replied. “If that’s on the front lines in the trenches, then that’s that.”

Sylvia looked at him thoughtfully, and she hummed softly as she returned to her mending. “I hope you hold onto your enthusiasm,” she commented. “And I hope you’re spared from the worst of it over there. I haven’t been myself, of course, but I’ve heard enough to know I’d never want to.”

William’s smile faltered, and Thomas couldn’t help the way his lips quirked up into a small smirk. If it was so bad he’d gotten himself shot to escape it, how was someone like William going to survive it? He was too soft and nice for the sort of violence and death he was going to face. He was too good for it. Truthfully, although Thomas hated to say it- or rather, strongly disliked saying it- he wasn’t sure he’d make it out of there alive. The thought came out as a halfway sneered, “Oh I don’t know, Sylvia, I think you’d survive it. Not too sure about our William, though.”

There was no faltering this time- William’s smile dropped entirely, completely washed away. Thomas felt a little sting when he saw, though it wasn’t quite enough to make him want to rectify it. Still, he was going off to war in the morning, a war Thomas himself had already seen first hand. Somehow he felt like it might have been a little cruel even for him, and a glance over at Sylvia told him she felt the same way.

He watched William shift uncomfortably for a moment, before finally starting to get up. “I should probably go… see if there’s anything I can do to help upstairs,” he said, rather unconvincingly- especially considering the fact he wasn’t staff anymore. “I’ll be back down later.”

He stood and started to go, but Sylvia stopped him by calling out to him. “William,” she said. He turned back to look at her. “Keep your chin up. Stay alert, stay low. I think you’ve got a better chance than we’ve given you credit for.”

His smile began to come back, even if only halfheartedly. “Thanks,” he said. “I’ll do my best.” As he finally went on upstairs, Thomas found himself a bit relieved that Sylvia had gone ahead and boosted William’s spirits a bit- at least someone had.

But was that really what she wanted? To be always cleaning up the wounds his sharp tongue left behind? As good natured as she was, even to the point of helping him- him!- through his various trials, he couldn’t imagine she’d be willing to put up with this for very long.

Thomas’s mind began filling rapidly with these sorts of thoughts, and so he also soon stood, and stalked off toward his office without another word. Even though he heard Sylvia call out, “Sergeant Barrow?” he didn’t stop, but he ignored her attempts at reaching out to him. If he hadn’t, he would have gone back to hear her out and just put off the inevitable. No, he couldn’t do that this time.

Sylvia frowned a little when he didn’t come back, and she let out a small sigh. “Any idea what might be wrong with him?” she asked O’Brien, turning her attention from the now empty hall back to the lady’s maid on the other side of the table. They hadn’t spoken very much, not with as much time as Sylvia spent either with Thomas or working, but she figured now was as good a time as any- especially knowing how close she was to the man in question. At least, that’s what Anna had told her.

O’Brien gave her a bit of a funny look, and frowned. “Nothing’s wrong with him,” she said. “He just likes to make himself scarce sometimes, that’s all.”

“Does he?” Sylvia questioned. She had noticed that he usually kept himself to himself, sure, but somehow that didn’t feel like that was all this was, not in the immediate aftermath of his little spat with William (if it could even be called a spat, she wasn’t sure it had escalated enough to warrant it).

“He does,” O’Brien replied. “What’s it to you, anyway? He’s military staff, not house staff. He won’t be any help to you.”

Sylvia’s smile turned almost imperceptibly fake. “Is it so wrong for me to want to be friends with him without wanting something from him?” she asked. Why would O’Brien think she had to have a motive?

“No, not at all,” O’Brien answered. “But he’s a prickly one, I just don’t see why you’d go for his friendship instead of, say, Anna’s… or anyone else who seems nice like you.”

She chuckled a bit in response and shook her head, cutting the thread as she finished her mending. “I didn’t connect with them the way I did with him,” she confessed. “Maybe he can be a bit prickly. But is it any wonder with everything he’s been through?”

“He’s told you then?” O’Brien questioned. “Funny- he’s not the type to open up.”

Sylvia shrugged and started to pack up her sewing kit. “No,” she agreed. “But we’re quite similar, he and I. I think things just tend to come out when you’re talking to someone who knows the same pain you do.”

“And you know his pain, do you? How convenient,” O’Brien accused, and Sylvia bristled.

So, she was going to go there, was she? It was one thing to wonder about her intentions with Thomas- she’d expect that from a friend who just cared to protect him, but to insinuate she’d make something up on this level just to get through to him? It told her quite a lot about what O’Brien herself would do, certainly. Projection had always been such an eye opener.

“If you think you’re going to make me try and prove myself to you, you’re wrong,” she said, her tone and words clipped. “I can see what this is, anyway- you’re jealous. He agreed with me instead of you earlier, and now you’re afraid you’re losing his grip on him. But I’m not going to stand here and let you sling accusations at me just because you feel threatened, and I’m not entirely sure how comfortable he’d be with it if he knew.” Sylvia smirked at her just slightly. “So be careful, Ms. O’Brien, and be sure to mind your own business. I won’t have you minding mine.”

O’Brien blinked a few times, surprised with the pushback, but Sylvia could see her quickly readjusting, making new calculations which were reflected in her eyes. Eventually, she said, “I do wonder if Sergeant Barrow knows this side of you.”

“Of course he does,” Sylvia said with a roll of her eyes. “Haven’t I already said we’ve become friends because of the things we recognise in each other? Even down to how ‘prickly’ we can both get. Why do you think that’s no surprise to me?”

“Because you’ve turned out to be the same way, if you’re to be believed,” O’Brien said.

“Are you just trying to rattle me, is that what this is?” Sylvia asked, narrowing her eyes and letting out a disbelieving chuckle. “Really?” She shook her head. “Well, I think I’m going to get on with my work, and check in with Thomas. Good day, Ms. O’Brien.”

She stood and gathered the dress she’d mended, walking quickly toward Thomas to make good on that. But, as fast as she was walking, she knocked straight into Anna who was coming around the corner with a dress of her own- or likely, of Lady Mary’s. “Oh goodness, I’m sorry,” Anna said with a light laugh. “If you’d been a snake, I think you would have bitten me.”

“No, I’m afraid the snake’s just through there,” Sylvia retorted, and tossed her head back to indicate O’Brien. Anna’s eyes widened.

“Has something happened?” she questioned, concern lacing her voice.

Sylvia sighed and shifted on her feet. “Unfortunately so,” she replied. “I don’t think Ms. O’Brien approves of my friendship with Sergeant Barrow, and she’s decided to make that my problem.”

She could read in Anna’s face that the maid wasn’t exactly surprised, especially as she very nearly rolled her eyes. “Of course she has,” she said, just a touch exasperated. “I don’t think she’s ever had an opinion without making it someone else’s problem.” She sighed and shook her head. “Just… try to keep your head down, and don’t fight her unless you’re prepared to fight fire with fire. She’s the type who won’t drop it unless you do.”

“Apparently so,” Sylvia agreed. “Unless she’s the type to give up if you don’t react very much?”

“Oh, I wish she was,” Anna chuckled. “No, she’ll push it until she’s satisfied- but your Sergeant Barrow’s much the same way, you know.”

Sylvia hummed slightly. “Well, on that note, I think I should be going,” she said. “You’ve reminded me that I meant to speak with him about something, so if you’ll excuse me…”

She brushed past Anna before she had a chance to say anything else, not wanting to stand and talk about Thomas in that way. Besides, she had more important matters to attend to.

Thomas looked up when he heard the door to his office open, and his brows lifted at the sight of a rather frustrated Sylvia walking in. He didn’t even get a chance to say anything before she had asked, “Is O’Brien always like this?” Ah, that explained a lot.

His lips quirked up into an amused sort of smirk. “You’ll have to be more specific,” he quipped, but then grew more serious as he asked, “What did she do?”

“Oh, the usual…” Sylvia said, rolling her eyes. “Just, accused me of making things up to get close to you, questioning why I’d even want to with as ‘prickly’ as you are… Then Anna was telling me that you’re just like O’Brien, which I don’t agree with in the slightest of course, but it’s just… is this whole house against you, or something?”

Thomas chuckled bitterly. “Seems like it sometimes,” he confessed. “I take it you’re not though, if you’re in here mad about that?”

“Of course I’m not,” she replied. “You and I are too much alike for that, I think. And everything they try to tell me to change my mind, it isn’t as though it’s nothing I haven’t heard before…”

Nothing you don’t know yet, Thomas thought with a hum. But he knew O’Brien had information on him that really might just change her mind. Not that he was surprised to hear she was beginning to meddle, but if she went too far… Well, he just had to hope it wouldn’t come to that.

He decided to try and change the subject before that conversation went deeper. “Did you see William again?”

“William?” Sylvia repeated, lifting a brow. “He’s the one shipping out in the morning, isn’t he?” Thomas nodded. “No, I haven’t seen him again.” Thomas hummed quietly, and her tone grew more gentle as she asked, “You two don’t get on very well, do you?”

“We could have, I think,” Thomas mused. “It’s not his fault. I just…” He paused and sighed. “I say things sometimes, I don’t really know why. I don’t even know that I meant what I said earlier… Not that anyone would believe me if I tried to tell them that- if they’d even care at this point- so I don’t really try anymore. I was snippy when I was a kid, and they wouldn’t believe it if I tried to change. Why bother?”

Sylvia offered him a small, somewhat sad smile. “Have you tried telling William this?” she asked. “I don’t get the feeling he’d have a bad response, and anyway… you don’t want that to be the last thing you say to him, do you? If the worst does happen?”

Thomas began to drum his fingers on his desk. She was right, and he’d known the truth of everything she was saying from the moment he’d said what he had to William. “It won’t be the last thing I say to him,” he eventually told her. “I’ll send him off with something nice.”

“That’s good,” Sylvia replied, and her smile turned a bit happier.

Thomas looked up at her curiously, then chuckled. “Next thing I know, you’ll be telling me to make friends with him when he gets back, if he makes it,” he accused her with a playful smirk, and Sylvia chuckled a bit herself.

“Would it be the worst thing in the world, though? If you did?”

“Would it?” Thomas repeated. William may well have been one of the nicest people he had ever known, but there was a lot of water under that bridge- probably too much, if he was honest with himself. Then, there was the other thing… That was what made Thomas shake his head. “It’s too late for that,” he said. “And you know me, I don’t need too many to be close to me anyway, so even if he was willing…”

“Do you really think he wouldn’t be?” Sylvia asked. “He seems too nice to hold a grudge, if you really did decide you wanted to start over.”

“Of course he is,” Thomas agreed. “But that doesn’t change the rest- I just don’t need him.”

“Is that really all it is?” Sylvia questioned. “Or do you not want to let him get close to you for some reason?”

“That’s all it is!” he snapped suddenly. He regretted it as soon as he saw the way her eyes widened, but that was an answer he just couldn’t give her. Thomas knew what people thought of men like him, and even as friendly as she was… well, that was just the thing. She was good, he’d finally realised that, and yes, she was friendly, but that didn’t mean they were alike just enough for him to trust her with this. Who could say if she’d still accept him if she knew? How could he really justify taking that risk? Oh, but that look on her face…

She nodded. “Alright,” she said, and he wished her voice hadn’t gone so quiet. “Well, I should… probably get back to work, then. I’ll see you at dinner.”

Sylvia slipped out of the room, leaving Thomas to do nothing but sigh and run his hands over his face. He really couldn’t stop sabotaging himself for one minute, could he? Just because he couldn’t tell her one thing… he had gone ahead and scared off the one person who didn’t talk to him because she wanted something from him. Fantastic.

Well, he imagined she’d believe the stories now, what Anna said, and everyone else. It had been a rare chance for him to start from scratch when she told him she didn’t believe gossip without any evidence, but now he’d given her plenty. And what if she went and started spreading her own story? How she had been nothing but kind to him, and he all but bit her head off for trying to help him patch up a relationship.

Thomas tried to distract himself by angrily flipping through his various records, but he found it hard to do as he kept imagining how everyone would welcome Sylvia with open arms as she told them what happened, how she’d finally seen the light, and they’d be so happy that she wouldn’t be wasting her time on him anymore… Even William would probably tell her she’d dodged a bullet in him.

Let her talk! She’d told him plenty enough to fight back with. Sure, she could do a lot of damage with as much as he’d told her, but it wouldn’t be without paying the price for it herself… She’d thought she had found a kindred spirit in him, clearly, and… And…

And he had thought the same, hadn’t he? He had really thought he’d had a shot at something genuine for once. But he couldn’t keep his mouth shut for five minutes, and it had cost him. Now, instead of talking to her over late night tea, he was planning to fight back against her if she started anything.

Will that really make you feel better? Sylvia’s voice whispered to him in his mind, and Thomas frowned, returning to his work to try and shut it out.

Taglist: @butwhyhavethey, @marxin-grilli, @queencharleeblog

If you want to be added to the taglist, feel free to reach out either by commenting, reblogging, DMing me, or sending an ask, and I’ll be more than happy to add you!

#thomas barrow #thomas barrow & oc #downton abbey #one swallow can make a summer #chapter five #robert james collier #tw: ptsd

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arcthebreeder · 3 months

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Dark Dragon Retrievement Operation_08:

A Power Water almost falls on top of us, but Tlalocmon and Megidramon quickly took advantage of it, and condensed the attack into a cloud Tlalocmon would use to cause rain over the army of cyborg digimon.

This at least slows them down, but won't make them short circuit or something, for that we have other plans.

"D's" Dukemon Crimson Mode suddenly began a crusade against the digimon on the lower part of the field, stabbing them with its Gungnir lance, and then throwing them off the field.

Soon after, I caught Marin Angemon trying to do something, so I warned it and also warned "M" about Ocean Man, there's a chance that freak is around and he could take advantage of the water formation created by the Ocean Love, and use it for his advantage, so I asked them to stay as cose as me as they could, so I could immediately do something in case he's here, we better clean ourselves from every bother we could get.

As I was worrying about all this possible Ocean Man situation, I got yelled at by Rasenmon...

She can't fight all alone... They need my orders to do this.

It's better that I keep myself centered.

I gave the order of charging against Giga Seadramon as soon as possible, the shield it raised last time was basically the reason we're all here, and it could only get worse if it's used in this case.

Giving Rasenmon a Devil Chip A, a chip that would enhance her strength, agility and speed for a few minutes, in exchange for some of her judgement, she's powerful but crazy, basically.

I gave her the power needed to jump at Giga Seadramon alone for a while. Rasenmon has good stamina, and even if the Devil Chip A affects her mind, I know she is centered in fighting Giga Seadramon, and at least that can keep it entertained for a while.

Aegisdramon, on its side, began a fight with Arcturusmon apparently, it doesn't know what it's getting into.

Arcturusmon is not a fighting enthusiast anymore, he prefers peace thanks to the Vamdemon data that interfered with his evolution at the beginning of this route. However, if he has to fight, then he knows how to take care of things.

Aegisdramon is trying to push Arcturusmon into surrendering using its light-based attack, the Shine Breaker, however, a little bit of shining only makes Arcturusmon look better, since every scorching blast is rapidly avoided with his cape, causing a shining explosion behind him each time one of the blasts crashes with the walls, casting shadows upon his silhouette, making him look like a dark knight, with shining eyes, coming for it's pray.

After messing a little with Aegisdramon, Arcturusmon used a variation of the Black Confession, waving his GRB Factor covered drills in the air to make some of the particles almost stop in time for a second, just to then, swiftly point I'm his drill into the direction he wants the particles to go, creating an attack similar to Vamdemon's Night Raid... I know he is proud.

Down in the ground, Siriusmon and Dukemon are, once again fighting over who gets to defeat more digimon, and WHAT

A huge, and when I say HUGE, I MEAN HUGE Deckerdramon just tried to Boltmon just tried to chop Dukemon in two with the Bousou! Naturally tho, Siriusmon covered his back!

The Sylvia blades stopped the axe just in time, allowing Dukemon to pierce Boltmon using his spear!

And, once again, with an elegant dance of blades and spear, the enemy team sees itself facing a tough situation, and even HUH!?

Siriusmon is charging a Breaquasar and Dukemon is on the way!? WAIT

I see

Using the impulse of the Breaquasar's shoot, Dukemon used his Gram lance's Royal Saber to reach the energy ball before the Sylvia's cut could reach it, causing a devastating explosion on the surroundings! Of course, Dukemon is kinda hurt, but "D" has more than enough Recovery Chips A for him!

On the other side...

Megidramon, a Digimon known for its cruelty and monstrous attitude is committing an altruistic act thanks to its Tamer.

It's carrying Andromon on its back, as he shoots the Gatling Missile: Rensha Mode towards the field, they seem to be moving in a random order, I wonder how Andromon can keep it up with that being a totally logical digimon, further than that... I wonder what it thought about Tyutyumon when we saw him...

No time for that, I need to keep on!

Something I've failed to mention until now because I can't keep up with everything at the same time, is that Fenriloogamon is using the Hróðvitnir to clone himself around the field and attack from the sides using the Jötunheimr Gale, since a Ragnarök Howling could also be a menace for our companions.

Ah!?

It appears that Tlalocmon and Kuzuhamon are joining forces! Using the Taizoukai Mandala, Kuzuhamon has been creating a reduced field around the enemies, allowing Tlalocmon to take advantage of it and summon the Netotiliztli, summoning a powerful storm that even resembles a hurricane, and then turning the raindrops into knives to quickly end the enemies!

Cannondramon and Spinomon on their side, are joining their powers to create a great explosive attack with the blasting of the Grenade Storm combined with the Sonic Slash Rain, that makes them blow up randomly!

As for the Vortex Warriors...

Why are they so... Intimidated...?

Huh-

HUH

THE FLOORGISHHAWHAT

#digimon #blog #blog entry #coding #larp #story #fictional world #digimon vpet #vpet #virtual pet #v pet #digital monster #digital monsters #dmo #demon #dark dragon #demon lords #seven deadly sins

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neitherlightnordark · 3 years

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Still caught up in the whirlwind, the past months are a blur They try to trace the lines, they tangle in their mind

They only love her 'cause she's beautiful and sweet Complex and mysterious, and mildly delirious She's also something of an exhibitionist

But they both love her and that’s all that matters to them now

#i'm very tired.#but admire the architecture feels like a mansion gang™ song #she's only staying here cause sylvia asked her to #now that she's gone away what's she supposed to do?#sweet talk on the phone ugly doubts that won't leave me alone...#personal

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nonokoko13 · 3 years

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Child!reader being adopted by spy x family characters Pt. 2

As I said in the previous part, these adoption headcanons are really specific, including your hypothetical pronouns and name; these two are extra so you can imagine yourself with your name and desired gender. You can ask for less specific headcanons if you want too. Part 1 here

Enjoy!

Sylvia Sherwood

How you met

She carries the responsibility of WISE, she needs to be committed to it. More than ever now that the peace was threatened every day by those who wanted war to arise again

She missed her family, but she overcame it. Just like the HQ she had to be impenetrable

At least, that's what she thought

Because right in front of her there was the question which answers she wanted to hear. A kid.

It would be normal to see one if she wasn't at the HQ

It didn't help no one knew there was a kid there until you spoke up

The camera system didn't record you and there wasn't any entrance to the agency that had been forced. You weren't any employee's kid either

After scolding them and order to search your parents she met you again

"Hello little one. May I ask you how did you get in here?"

You smiled, seeming to have been waiting her to ask

"Because I like to play and explore! And I'm really good at hide and seek"

Sylvia raised an eyebrow. No matter how well someone was good at hiding there was no way you could break into the HQ; it sounded surrealistic

"But how did you find this place?"

"Because it was easy to find"

"Don't you think you could end bad breaking into unknown places?"

"If I don't know what isthis place how I'd know that?"

Fair enough

That conversation wasn't going anywhere, yet she was angrier with the security staff than you. You didn't look worried though

You gave her an idea

"Do you want to play with me?"

Both entered in the nearest police station, she talked with the officers before telling you to count until 1000 while she was going to hide. You started the count facing a wall

She felt bad, but there were some traffickers she had to catch before they made the exchange

She was following their car; everything fine until she believed to see a small hand greeting her from the car's trunk

She returned to the police station to find out that moments later of her departure you disappeared without anyone realizing. She went to the point where the delivery would be made

Outside the abandoned warehouse there was no signal that you were there until she saw you getting out from under the car on the other side

Something caused a shooting that would make the police come and caught her at any moment. The bands kept shooting at each other while you were behind a transport container

"What were you thinking?! I told you to stay with the police!"

"I'm sorry, I counted until I know, then I saw you following the car, so I followed too. But before they caught me I hid in there...I'm sorry..." You pulled out a walkie-talkie

"I got two from the police station. I left one in there so the others thought the guys of that car were betraying them, it should have worked to scape with no bad guys seeing us"

She was impressed. However, there was no time to ask where you learn that from

Analyzing the situation the principal scape was blocked, fortunately they hadn't noticed you yet so–

You pulled her shirt, pointing somewhere else

"Let's get out"

General headcanons

Sylvia was still surprised that your plan of exiting through a rear window she hadn't seen and walk away without hurry could work

She stopped walking to watch you smash the walkie-talkie and take out some matches to burn it

"Now they can't find footprints!"

The police may not get answers about it but she had many questions for you

She lied to you about the HQ, after the shooting her lie was on the floor. Thenceforth Sylvia's not able to tell if you were playing along and keeping her secret or you have no idea what's all about

You thought her name was Handler. When you knew she was called Sylvia Sherwood you pointed your hoody logo and say "S of Super, you're superman–Superwoman!"

That's how she begun to be mistaken with an endearing mother and her son. She was superwoman and you "kid", because you said that's how you were called, along with child, shrimp, demon...

"That's unacceptable". She handed you lists of names to choose, unfortunately no one convinced you

It wasn't until you two went to a jewelry store that you found the name

The casual way you break in HQ when you want still frustrates her, how do you do it?? You don't see big deal though

Fullmetal lady didn't remember how tough was motherhood

Anyone would freak out if they found out about spies. Yet there you are, admiring flying guys in underpants

Sylvia asked you about your family, but you always tell the same: you lived with dad until he left you with a woman that he said was your mom

The Handler found out your father is a repeat offender, currently on a maximum security prison in another country. Both him and the woman without offspring legally

"Please, don't tell me one of his criminal records is jailbreaking"

The informant doubted "Actually, that's the main one"

"..."

The Forgers

Scenario where it's up to both of them to adopt you. To keep Loid's mental sanity safe it will be independent of the timeline where Yor has a kid on her own, feel free to imagine both kids being Anya's siblings at the same time. You can ask me to include that idea if I write more about this

How you met

As I said before Twilight wouldn't adopt anyone due his job, only one kid for Operation Strix and that was Anya. For now Yor didn't want more kids, she loves Anya and that's enough for them

Not for Anya. She wanted a little sibling

All started talking with Becky when Damian mentioned his brother. Back at home she brought the topic and neither Pa or Ma were giving her an answer of where babies come from

That's when she begun to feel like being a sister. Any plan helped her to convince her parents though

Anya remembered something Mr Henderson told them. "If you want something, take it into your own hands"

And she took it too seriously

Next day Anya and Bond disappeared, she was in the dogs park with Yor

While Mrs Forger panicked Anya had returned to the place she met Twilight

As the time passed the Forgers worried more. When they found Anya and Bond at their building's door they felt relieved

Your presence didn't make things better

They asked Anya where she had been and where did you come from. She said she adopted you

Of course Anya wasn't going to say she broke into an orphanage and took you

Loid's scolding made you cry

"Anya, we aren't adopting–"

"If she's not my sister I won't go to school ever again!!"

"Just for a trial period" that's what Loid hoped

General headcanons

Loid thought babies were easy because it's unnecessary (more impossible) communication with a living being that can't talk; after all babies only have basic needs. He was wrong

It would be easier if you could talk. Why are you crying? You have eaten! Are you sad? Cold? You dislike him?

Yor is not better either. Because her parents died when Yuri was a kid Yor didn't have experience with changing diapers, or anything related with babies

She was more scared than Loid to the point she didn't want to hold you. She broke Yuri's ribs with a hug when he was a toddler, what if she kills you with few contact?

In less than 24 hours you already had a crib and all kinds of things a baby would need. However, having three bedrooms and parents sleeping in separate rooms meant all your things ended in Anya's room

You cried at night until they discovered you calmed down when Anya let you a plushie to hug

She can't wait for the day pa and ma share bed to take back her bedroom

The second night Anya had an idea

Ma is scared of being your mom, solution? Leave you in her bed while Yor is asleep imagining that would work

Thanks God Yor doesn't move much when sleeping. On the other hand Yor is a light sleeper due not being used to sleep with someone so she woke up minutes later

She almost jump out of the bed, realizing that would make you cry made her contain. You groaned, did she wake you up? Yor wasn't sure of holding you, instead she laid down again and approached you to her chest

Seeing you so peaceful by her side melted her, thinking about it you looked a bit like her and Loid.. She blushed at the embarrassing thought

Bold of them to not imagine that's why Anya chose you

In the morning Loid discovered what happened and had a little words with Anya during breakfast before she went to school

Yor went to work and he decided to take a day off from his work to spend the morning with you. The Handler said the first days you should see them to recognize faces

Walks with Bond, buying toys, trying to teach you sign language...Normal stuff

Loid is glad you don't do anything but sleep and eat, except your obsession with munching. When you first kissed Yor he found it normal until you munched her cheek and now you do that to everyone; probably you're teething

Yor found it really cute, but you shouldn't go kissing and chewing cheeks. Anya thinks is funny just don't try to chew her hair again please

Another problem came with names. Loid was going through a list of 850 names in alphabetical order, meanings included; Yor didn't take it to the extreme

"Hum, what about Rose? I think it's a cute name, I mean it's both decision and I'm not good with names Loid–"

Welcome to the family Rose

A spy, an assassin, a telepath and... Well, a baby. Seems like a good mix

Yor Briar

As we know Twilight only would adopt for Operation Strix's sake. Yor became mother by marrying Loid, but what if she had already a kid before being Mrs Forger?

Inspired by this post of @say-seira

How you met

Long ago before Twilight adopted the identity of Loid Forger, the Briars moved to a flat in Berlint

While the eldest sibling had recently become an adult Yuri was only a kid, Yor decided to move to the city so he had nearer his school. It was possible due her proper salary as Thorn Princess

This change would make her job easier too. She had a new client which death could pay Yuri's entrance to a good university

There was a politician who negotiated with terrorists, helping them to get into Ostania and providing them with weapons in exchange to gain good propaganda abroad and getting rid of competition

Knowing this was enough to make Yor's blood boil. He deserved to die, she was sure of it

Struggling with the security around him, Yor finally killed the target without leaving trace

The only inconvenience was a bad injury made by a bullet that she received. After removing the bullet the wound got worse

She went to the hospital to avoid an infection. In the waiting room she met a kind lady, Yor swore that she had seen her before

The woman was scared, but Yor reassured her she will wait her

While Yor was attended the girl was taken to another room. As she promised, Yor waited in the hall after her wound was treated; with a buttoned medical gown on because she didn't want to attract more attention due the bandaged wound in sight

Time passed and many people enter and exit from the room, but she didn't. A nurse carrying something mistook her for one of the staff and scolded her for standing there

"Here, take the baby to the nursery"

"Me? But— wait! What about the woman? Is she okay?"

From afar she heard the answer, but before Yor could explain the error the woman had left. She was shocked, how? She seemed fine

Against her will the dark-haired looked at the lump she was holding: rosy cheeks babbling in dreams, you were in peace

Her shock grew when she saw you shared the username that the man she killed had. That's why the woman was familiar: she was the politician's daughter

Yor searched someone who hand the baby when she recognized the doctor that guided the woman to the room, he was talking with a masked nurse

The fact they went to a private place and maintained their voices low made her suspect

"Did you take care of the mother?" the nurse asked

"Yes, they got ahead of us with her father but I think they will pay us anyway. When they found it was a medical negligence we'll be far from here"

Yor understood they were assassins as well, probably paid by a rival. Luckily they hadn't seen her yet

"Heh, do you they will pay more if we got rid of the baby?"

Yor left the hospital with you, unsure of what to do. Did you have more relatives? The widowed politician didn't have more kids, and your mother came alone. What if they wanted to kill the rest of the family?

A small hand grabbed hers, and every fear disappeared. Looking at each other, she knew you were safer with her. Perhaps it was only guilt or sympathy, but she would try

General headcanons

The moment Yuri saw Yor holding you was in disbelief. Yor said she found you in the streets and he believed it

At first he tried to convince her sister to leave you in a orphanage but once scolding was enough to cease

Still disliking you for the first months. It took some time until he saw you like one of his family

Yuri helped, although they had a rough time because you refused to eat Yor's purees. Your endurance might grew up to make you the only person who can eat her food without bleeding but it doesn't mean you like its flavor

She viewed you as a sibling until you were two, being called mom made Yor too happy to correct you. Yuri was just Yuri, you never feel like using formalities with him or addressing "Uncle" everytime you talked

Yor decided to let your belongings, it was better that way. When you were older, and only if you wanted, she would tell you the truth

She's bad with names, Rose was the only name she could think of but you're a boy. Yor's parents loved that Yuri and her had matching names, therefore you would be the sweet addition to it

The only name I could think of is Yuu because it's gender neutral and means "you" sorry

During the first year of your life she didn't try to hide the blood of her clothes from you. Yuri never suspected either and you wouldn't remember it when you grow up

Your lack of childhood amnesia was something she didn't have in count. Not that she knows you know anyway

Yor has been training you since you were able to walk, if she wasn't there when you needed at least you would be ready to defend yourself. Proud to say you're her strong boy

That said, if the assassins that tried to killed you found were you lived it's something you ignore. Being the protective mother Yor is they could be dead by now

Six years later, it was still Yor and you against the world, with Yuri being the only paternal figure you had. Before one day she met a man and everything changed

She said he will help her by accompanying her to a party so Yuri stopped worrying about her. She said it would be one night, and the next morning you woke up with Yor waiting to talk with you

In part she accepted because of you; you passed the Eden exam before knowing you needed a dad for it. That requisite seemed stupid for you, as you reassured her you could go to any other school; now you would be accepted into the best school!

You agreed and started packing. What else you could do? The decision was made before you were asked anyway, and you didn't want to argue with your mom because she was doing it for your future too

Of course it affected you. No matter how nice they were it was a huge change; in one day you had to move to a new place which didn't feel like home and live with strangers who you'll have to share mom with isn't easy

Anya was nervous too, but for different reasons. She was so excited to meet her soon-to-be sibling! For her, who was an orphan last week, having a pa, a ma and a friend to play with was great

Her expectations went down when she read your mind. You didn't think bad of them, but excited wasn't the word to describe your emotional state either

Loid may not be good at understanding children, but it was clear for him you wasn't comfortable. For him would be weirder if you didn't seem affected at all

On the contrary, Yor seemed cool with all of this to you. Even without any idea of how to be a wife or mother for Anya she enjoyed her time as Forger, which confused you a bit

Yor is happier, not only because she didn't have to worry about the SSS or Yuri anymore. They make her happier, it's just matter of time she could fall for Loid and have a baby that was her own, real kid

Being sure Yor loves you and your new family want you to feel welcomed doesn't make disappear the feelings you carry with. Still, if mom is happy you prefer to keep it to yourself and try to maker her smile too

If it wasn't because Yuri hates the idea of her sister hiding her marriage for a year and sympathized your situation he would have laughed at the irony when you told him during your uncle-nephew walk the next day of his meeting with "Loiloi"

He doesn't know they got married before you attended school so he assumed you had been holding it for a long time. He passed his fingers through your hair

"I understand it's difficult, but I'll be for you whenever you need me"

+ Honorable mention to compensate you for the mild ansgt without warning

Daybreak

We don't know much about him but I included this dork for fun

Thinking about "Daybreak" and "parenthood" makes anyone's mind stopped working

Mainly because it's difficult to say which one would be the child

Not "How you met headcanons" because he wouldn't be able to adopt to begin with

From what we saw in chapter 27 he seems to live alone, depending on his amazing spy career to afford pork steak for dinner. So he must not live too good given that after his first mission he was fired

If he had a child, it would be likely because of a previous relationship he had and didn't end well

He didn't adopt you. You're his biological kid, the only not adopted of this gang

Sorry we can't choose our family good luck ig

Not necessarily ended bad, even remaining as friends, your mother took a different path and is happily married with another man

If she knew he wanted to be a spy either thought "it's a joke" or *sigh*

She was who brought money in the relationship, now you live with her and your step-dad but at the beginning you didn't want to

Daybreak talked with you and promised you could visit each other and even live with him when he could afford it

They don't get it

Who would take care of him? The idea of living on his own was frightening to you

Imagine being father and is your kid who worries about whether pops know how to pay taxes without mom

You took after him in terms of appearance. Any signal of intelligence was from your mother

Average smart but surely smarter than him

Probably he thanked God that you were a boy. He will love whatever you are but he was relieved of saving himself of buying female products when you were on that time of the month and guide you through puberty

As much as he says to be a charming man he's not good with women either so

Your name is Sunny. Guess who chose it

Probably you see him more on weekends than during the week

Until you showed him Spy Wars he didn't have no idea that existed such good series

Of course not cooler than the legend he is but Daybreak jokes about how reading that and seeing your cool pops in action would make you half as good spy as he is someday

Quite sad is that your common sense along with the things you see on TV are enough to be better spy material

You try to watch it with him to see if he learns something

Unsure of what you'll be in the future but in the mean time you had fun watching cartoons and liking kids stuff like dinosaurs and skateboard

Current status: Busy with your first year at school and getting him out of trouble

#spy x family #sxf headcanons #sylvia sherwood #the handler #loid forger #yor forger #anya forger #yor briar #thorn princess #daybreak #child!reader

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nctrsn20 · 3 years

Text

01 : Coincidence, Or Not?

GENRE ― nct as mafia, txt as mafia, college!au

AUTHOR’S NOTE/WARNINGS ― slight violence and gunshots, links of the moodboards would be put below for the mentions of NCT's soulmates (for those who are lost on who is who), and the villain of the story is similar to Kingpin of Hawkeye,

SUMMARY ― It was a coincidence that the memory she had buried at the back of her mind suddenly came to her during her sleep, and it was definitely not a coincidence that she shot someone she had known from her past.

As soon as she entered his dorm room, Natalie didn’t hesitate to close the door shut before stomping towards him.

She did not hesitate to grab him by the collar, basically thrashing him onto the wall - despite the height differences, Natalie is strong and he knows that.

Soobin knows that, hence he didn’t struggle on her grip.

Natalie looked him by the eye, glaring towards him. “Why did you agree?!”

“I had no choice, Nat.” He muttered, still making eye contact.

The grip on his collar tightens, at the same she can’t help but shake him slightly.

Soobin knows she is furious, hence this is the result.

“You have a choice, Soobin! You’re basically joining a suicide mission– In this case it’s for life suicide mission!” Natalie whispered aggressively, at the same time trying not to be loud due to her anger.

Her anger somehow made Soobin frustrated - and shockingly, he shook himself off from Natalie’s grip.

Causing her hands to fly to the sides.

She could see him getting angry.

“I don’t have a choice, Natalie! I’m not as rich and spoiled as you and your family!” He spat, his eyes snapped towards her.

“Besides, my parents sold my brothers and I to him. There’s nothing I can do and you could do.” He aggressively said and that’s what made Natalie’s mind stop.

Not the fact he called her a spoiled brat, but the fact his parents sold him and his brothers to the enemy.

“So yeah… Just stay away from me, if you don’t want to be involved in an ugly mess. Us training to be assassins is already a mess but with him, it’s ugly.”

That was the last thing he said to her.

She just stood there, watching him exit his own dorm room.

Not knowing the tears were already rolling down her cheeks and her, not knowing Soobin was crying as soon as step out of his own dorm room.

“Hey, Nat! Are you listening?” Sylvia snapped her fingers in-front of the day-dreaming girl - seeing her eyes blinking a few times, before facing the brunette hair girl with a confused smile.

“..Yeah.. What were you saying again?” Natalie frowned, literally she wasn’t listening.

She was in a deep thought from the dream, well more like a memory.

A memory where she had kept hidden at the back of her mind.

Natalie wondered why all of a sudden it came back last night.

All these years, it didn’t even appear once in her sleep.

“Forget what I said. Let’s talk about you. You look bothered by something,” Sylvia knows Natalie, of course they know each other way back.

Sylvia exists in the memory that appeared last night.

That’s how close they are, it’s been 5 years.

Natalie trusts her, so she grabbed her to a safer corner for her to confess to - since there were students walking around here and there.

“Do you remember Soobin?” Natalie whispered, and Sylvia nodded slowly. “Yeah, of course. Well, I have never seen him ever since he left the programme… Why do you ask?”

Natalie gulped down the lump on her throat, thanks to her own anxiety building up slightly. “..Well I was thinking—

“Wow, the two of you look really suspicious.”

Sylvia and Natalie quickly turned towards the voice, with Sylvia giving him an annoyed look. “Of course, unlike you who basically speaks like you’re the only one here,”

Sylvia slightly gestured around, seeing students basically minding their own business – walking up and down the stairs just go to their every day classes.

Haechan slightly glared towards her before turning towards Mark with a pout, who kind of looked like he was in a daze. “Mark! She is bullying me!”

“I have to agree with her though,” Mark awkwardly said and Haechan dramatically gasped - before turning towards Sylvia who looked unbothered. “I’m telling my girlfriend on you, Sylvy!”

And so the two of them begin to bicker, and both Mark and Natalie don't mind at all. Both of them were always like this.

“Hey, you okay?“ Mark casually asked her. Although Natalie was laughing, Mark noticed something different just by her expression.

Natalie was caught off guard with his question. Maybe because she was indeed not okay. “..Y-yeah.. I’m good.”

Mark scoff, “C’mon, Natalie. I know you. What’s up?” His eyes watched her slightly, seeing her frowning slightly before smiling slightly.

Mark admits that he gets protective of her, not that much like Taeyong - he loves her, well he hides it by saying he has a tiny crush on her towards Haechan.

But Haechan knows better.

“I’m okay, really Mark. You know me, if there’s anything. I’ll tell you,” Natalie nudged onto his arm, earning a smile from Mark.

“Besides,” She paused, facing him and this made Mark slightly nervous.

“You will always find out in the end, just like the other days,” Natalie winked at him before patting him on the shoulder - then catching up with Sylvia who was already up ahead to go to their next class.

Leaving Mark standing there, cheeks tinted in red slightly.

“We are gonna be late if you keep standing there, loverboy.” Haechan teased, trying not to giggle and Mark is fast enough to listen to his words.

He wordlessly walked past Haechan, and it was Haechan’s turn to run to catch up with the flustered leader.

Natalie was peeking through the curtains, seeing expensive cars lining up one by one in-front of the hotel.

She recognizes a few familiar faces, more like old businessmen and women.

“I’m not surprised. Taeyong having a party just after our first day at school, after like what a few months of break.”

“Exactly. It could be replaced with me having my sleep.” Natalie turns back to look at Sylvia who was adjusting her own dress.

“Sleep or no sleep, you will still attend for your big bro. C’mon.” Sylvia shrugs before dragging Natalie out of their shared hotel room.

Sylvia coolly greeted the bodyguards as they nodded their heads. There were bodyguards stationed out of the rooms of the VIP which included Natalie and Sylvia’s.

They were the only ones who got into the elevator. “I heard Taeyong is inviting everyone.” Sylvia stated.

Natalie could only hum in response while pressing the elevator number.

“….And that includes Kingpin,”

It seems time froze for Natalie - it was more like she froze to Sylvia’s words.

It’s been 5 years since she heard his name, that name caused so much pain to Natalie that it hurts her because she couldn’t do anything - even Taeyong and her parents aren’t that powerful enough to fight him.

Well, that was 5 years ago, but this time, the Lee’s are much different.

Natalie’s eyes turned towards Sylvia in a snap, and Natalie knew she just revealed herself to Sylvia - Natalie’s shook in horror.

Before Natalie wanted to probe Sylvia, the elevator door made a sound and the door opened revealing not only a few boys, but their voices were heard quite loud.

“Oh— Babe!” He greeted Sylvia as soon as he stepped into the elevator followed by the others.

Haechan stood right in the middle perfectly.

“Nice dress!” Renjun complimented Natalie, “Thanks! You gentlemen look fine too!” She replied with a small smile, at the same time watching her steps since she was wearing heels.

“Thank you,” Jaemin shyly answered while standing right at the opposite.

“Thanks!” Chenle and Jisung thanked in unison, and they proceeded to have their own conversation.

The elevator was quite small and Natalie naturally stepped back towards the corner. She slightly bumped herself at the back, and a hand naturally blocked her head.

She caught Mark’s gaze, his face was literally in front of her. “Hey, watch yourself.” Mark muttered, and Natalie’s eyes went downcast.

“Thanks. The dress and my heels aren't going well today.” Natalie's smile formed thinly.

It’s true. Sylvia had to help her by holding onto Natalie’s hand every time she walked - if not she would either trip or lose balance.

“You look pretty though.. I mean it doesn't matter with heels or without heels… or formal or casual..” He muttered softly, not making eye contact.

Natalie can’t help but smile shyly.

Mark is cute whenever he speaks softly.

Just then the elevator door opens, and that’s when they could hear the party - which was whispers and buzzing along with soft music.

Natalie straightens herself, along with grabbing the hem of her dress before exiting out of the elevator.

“You guy came just in time,” A knowing voice called and the Dream boys greeted the boss before returning back to their goofy sides.

“Although it’s a green light party, everyone has their own roles to play.” Taeyong instructed and the boys nodded - that includes Sylvia and Natalie too.

What he meant by roles to play is, to keep watch of the grounds and of themselves.

Taeyong’s eyes then landed towards his sister, “Nat, mother and father would like to see you after this…”

Natalie gave him a nod, usually she would ask him more but seeing men in suits and women in provocative dresses passing by them here and there, maybe she should keep all the questions to herself.

“Oh and they want Mark to come along too,” Taeyong added at the last minute that the Dream boys didn’t hesitate to turn towards their leader with a slight smirk.

Just like that, Taeyong excused himself.

“..Okay, so this is the part where I’ll leave you with Mark because… you know….” Sylvia glanced towards Jeno as he smiled towards Natalie innocently.

Natalie nodded. “Of course, text me if there is anything, Sylvy.”

“Alright! Have fun, Nat!” Sylvia gave her a hug but she leaned towards Natalie’s side. “We’ll talk about KFC later,” Sylvia whispered, before giving a pat on Natalie’s butt.

That was Kingpin’s nickname, KFC – yes, the fried chicken brand.

They used to talk about him during the times when they were in the programme, a mafia training programme.

It was kind of like a school but it was specifically practical.

That’s when Natalie met Sylvia - just a few days of talking to each other, they got close.

Sylvia was the one who came up with the nickname – since both of them were in a rush from being questioned by the assassins that taught them, at that point of time.

Both of them were kind of similar back then, but Natalie was a different person.

In a bad way, unfortunately.

It wasn’t just Sylvia she got close to, there was another boy.

He actually changed Natalie slowly, she was more empathetic and he taught her how to use her privileges in a better way.

But in the end, she couldn’t use her own rich and powerful privileges to save her best friend.

Natalie just watches her best friend being dragged away by her boyfriend - leaving her standing dumbfounded.

“Did she say anything weird?” Mark stood beside Natalie, and the girl shook her head.

“No.. It’s just Sylvia being her own self– Right, Mum and Dad want to talk to us. We should find them,” Natalie didn’t let Mark finish as she just grabbed him by the arm.

Till this day, Mark doesn’t understand how Mr and Mrs Lee gave birth to a son who is known to be ruthless in the mafia world, yet he is kind-hearted only to his family and trusted friends.

Like, the duality.

Mark doesn’t understand that and he absolutely does not understand how they gave birth to a daughter who is very similar to her older brother yet courageous and empathetic individual.

Not to mention she is sometimes funny too, in Mark’s eyes.

Maybe because Taeyong was taught differently in life since he is the first born and he is by right the next heir of Lee Organization, although he is now the CEO.

Mark is peacefully walking next to Natalie, right behind her own parents - after them basically interrogating Natalie about her love life right in front of Mark.

Her answers actually amused Mark - well maybe the way she answers and the way her face expression shows when Mrs Lee asked about her sex life.

“Okay, hold on.” Natalie skillfully stood in front of the older ones, “Firstly, you can’t just ask me about my sex life in front of the leader of NCT Dream.” Natalie ‘whispered’ – or she seemingly tried to, at the same making an eye glance towards the gentleman right behind the Lees’.

“Secondly, no – I never had sex with anyone and thirdly, I have never been in a relationship. I’m not an expert, unlike Christy, Mom.”

Natalie’s brows raised up, earning amusement faces from Mr and Mrs Lee and a very surprised Mark.

Christy is Renjun’s girlfriend, she is known for being a femme fatale in school – way before she started dating Renjun. She is a loyal femme fatale now.

“Christy is a sweetheart. Of course boys will love her. Maybe you should learn how.... To get be with a boy - just like how Christy and Renjun are now, ” Mrs Lee commented, smiling towards Mr Lee who was just glancing towards Natalie with a somewhat confused expression, yet a small smile.

Natalie frowned towards her mother, looking at her quite suspiciously. What is that supposed to mean?

“..O—kay.. For a record, they were best friends at first and they fell in love– Well more like Christy who is preoccupied with other stuff that she didn’t realize Renjun had fallen for her since at their best friend stage’.. Right, Mark?” Natalie called him out of nowhere, which caused Mark to nod at what she was saying.

Mr and Mrs Lee turned towards Mark – he looked pretty nervous although he had plenty of meetings with them along with Taeyong and the consilegres of NCT.

He wasn’t nervous in those meetings though, in fact he was confident and his usual serious self.

The reason why he is nervous now, is because he is standing alone with his crush and her parents’.

Unlike Mr Lee who just gave Mark an acknowledgement smile, there was a look of realization from Mrs Lee as she stared at Mark more – Mrs Lee was known to read people by their facial expression and eye contact.

She clearly sees everything from Mark’s eyes and it causes her to openly nudge Mr Lee’s arm, while openly whispering to him.

Natalie shakes her head, “Wow, how mature of the both of you whispering in front of us.” She proceeded to stand beside Mark, who just gave her a little smile.

“I’m sorry, well, it’s a secret,” Mr Lee winked towards Natalie and she rolled her eyes in annoyance with their secretive self. “We will leave the two of you….” Mrs Lee’s words trailed off when both Mark and Mr Lee’s phone rang at the same time.

Both of them answered, but Mark took a look at his phone screen and Johnny’s name appeared.

‘This better be a good news,’

The moment when Mark answered the phone, then hearing Johnny basically yelling on the phone for him to get Natalie and her parents out of there, gunshots were right outside the hallroom.

Loud gunshots.

The first thing Natalie did was pulling her parents down, getting them close to her.

“You don’t have to worry about us, honey! We can deal with this!” Mr Lee already started shooting from different directions. He is fast, Natalie didn’t even see him reaching out for his gun somewhere in his suit.

Both him and Mark were basically aiming for the unwelcome guest – it was easy to know because those intruders were wearing full black, only their eyes were being shown, while trying their best not to shoot the innocents.

Everything is already in chaos that Mark didn’t have the time to inform Taeyong and the consiglieres.

The two women were hiding down one of the tables.

“Mom–

With slightly shaking hands, Mrs Lee pushed a gun towards Natalie – the women placed them on Natalie’s thigh holster.

Natalie didn’t have time to be embarrassed about how her own mother knew she was wearing that.

“You stay close to Mark, Natalie. Don’t be stubborn and the two of you better get to safety— I’ll call you!” Mrs Lee was being pulled by Mr Lee – his bodyguards were already pulling them out of the ballroom, heading to the safety exit.

“C’mon, Nat! We have to go!” Mark yelled, at the same time holding his hand out to support her up. Natalie quickly took his hand at the same abandoning her heels since she can’t even walk properly let alone to run with them.

They exited through the safety exit but they met an obstacle causing both of them to stop abruptly, with Mark pulling Natalie onto his arms.

Natalie can’t help but gasp slightly while gripping onto Mark’s hand – seeing the intruder basically pointing his gun towards the both of them

Her eyes made eye contact with him, and Natalie frowned slightly.

She recognized those brown eyes.

The longer she stared at him, the longer she could see the frustration in his eyes.

He wasted no time to shoot out bullets towards both Mark and her – Mark quickly shoved Natalie to the side where walls were covering her.

It felt like forever that Mark tried to shoot his enemy – he was a good shooter, Mark admits that.

Natalie couldn’t hold onto her own frustrations that she sighed loudly before getting ready to shoot out a bullet.

Mark was too busy with his own battle and it was a good thing he was distracting the opposite – Natalie took a slight peek and she already memorized his location.

She did what she had to do, she shot a bullet.

Silence fell the hallway, and that's when Mark realized Natalie perfectly shot the enemy by the leg – right by his thigh twice.

The silence was supposed to be a relief one, but Natalie can’t help but feel tension – only for her though.

That's because she definitely knows the shooter.

It was her best friend.

Natalie can't help but look twice through his eyes, and she was confident that it was him.

There was no way this is a coincidence.

She just watch him try to run away, just by jumping out of the window – as she stood there at the same time reinforcement had come to get her and Mark.

next chapter [chapter 2]

[ Hero for Heart : Natalie's Series, Base On Her Sorrowed Past ]

[ N-DREAM MOODBOARDS ] - [ N-DREAM’S SOULMATES ]

[ MASTERLIST ]

#nct mafia #nct mafia au #nct 127 mafia au #nct dream mafia au #nct mark scenarios #nct mark imagines #nct mafia fic #nct scenarios #nct imagines #nct dream imagines #nct 127 scenarios #nct 127 imagines #mark lee scenarios #mark lee au

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