#so i’m sort of guessing since I didn’t get tested myself but family members who i was with did test and get positive

[waytoorambles]

Can officially say that I have gotten covid now 💪💪

[wildechild17]

Mag 7 wip

something I'm working on as a side project for NaNo, decided I'd share a little (not really) excerpt here, just because i could

Sam Chisolm wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but as he stood in the sparsely decorated apartment in London, it wasn’t… this.

It was, in fact, sparse. There was a small kitchen, a couch with a pullout that looked slept in, a bathroom, and a tiny closet. It was by no means a luxury place, but it was just one level above being condemned, if you asked Sam.

The man’s heart broke a little as he took it in. There was no sign of the occupant he was looking for, not that he knew who he was looking for—his boss had simply given him this address and said the person who lived here would be a good addition to the team if Sam could convince them.

Given the fact of who the rest of the team was made up of, Sam had two guesses as to whose place he was standing in. Past experiences told him one was more likely than the other.

Something caught his eye, a leatherbound book sitting among the blankets on the pullout. Curious, Sam wandered over, reaching for the book. He flipped through it, noting it was some mix between a journal and a scrapbook. The first entry dated back to just over eleven years ago, and Sam couldn’t help but read.

9-29-12

I’ve always known my family had powers… how could I not, when mom uses hers to heal those in our family, and when both she and gran have told me about other members of our… bloodline? Apparently, the blood is important… and their abilities.

I just assumed, like everyone before me, that it skipped generations… Instead, I woke up this morning with my own abilities. Powers… magic? I like the idea of calling it magic. Who knows, I may have them sooner and didn’t realize it… Skipper had died during the night, and when mom and Aunt Elenore asked who I was greeting this morning because to them it was empty air… I told them Skip, and I was then informed he’d passed in his sleep, so how could I be seeing him?

One quick test later, my mom declared that a) I had magic, and b) it could be classified as necromancy. That’s… a terrifying, truthfully, prospect, but… I can handle it. I hope.

At least it’s the weekend before fall break, so mom can help me figure out how to start managing it. I’m in senior year, so it’s not like I’ll have to hide it from the others as school for long. If I go to college, I can get by with strictly online classes, I think.

Mom suggested I use a journal to track my progress, but I’ve never been the best at keeping records, even school wise. Hopefully with something to keep track of, that’ll change.

I’ll make another entry when something of importance happens, I guess.

10-10-12   10-9-12/10-10-12

What the fuck is my life, truly?

With the influx of my powers, came something else… my memories. I guess necromancy and reincarnation can go hand in hand, because this isn’t the first time I’ve lived. I started having dreams and flashbacks during break, of an older version of myself set back in the Wild West. I thought it was just some weird dream/fantasy thing since… well, since I’m sort of obsessed with that era, anyways, but… no. It all came rushing back to me, today, during fifth period, which is my study block this year.

We got a new student… which, in a small town like Salem, is kind of a cause for chatter, and I wasn’t really paying attention until the guy sat next to me. When I finally looked at him…

Son of a bitch… it’s Vasquez. It all came back to me—Sam Chisolm, Rose Creek, Bart Bogue…

I’m… sort of embarrassed to say that I had a total breakdown right then and there. Mom actually had to come and pick me up early, it was so bad. It’s super late (early?), right now, almost three in the morning, and I’ve been catatonic all afternoon, according to her. So, I guess all these events really happened yesterday?

I’m getting distracted… I told her what had happened, what’s been happening, and she… didn’t seem totally surprised. Fact is, she’s the one who gave me the idea that my reincarnation ties in with my powers. Something about death being involved, which… makes sense, in a weird way.

Mom offered to keep me out of school for the rest of the week, so I can recover, but… I don’t want to do that. Maybe a day or two, but not a week. I want to talk to Vas so I can Vasquez, so I can sort of explain things to him. Hopefully, it’ll go well…

10-13-12 Update: It… I didn’t explain the powers thing to him. I didn’t want to freak him out, but I did tell him why I had my breakdown on Monday. He understood, because when his memories came back to him, he was a wreck for a while too.

He came over for the afternoon, and mom and Aunt Elenore absolutely fell in love with him. Bastard put on the damn charm. We didn’t get any schoolwork done, not like we really planned to, but we did catch up on things. What’s been going on in our modern lives, and he told me a little about what happened after I died in Rose Creek… His family travels a lot in this life, for his dad’s work. He’s got two siblings, an older sister and younger brother. I couldn’t resist and had to make a crack about his ‘three Maria’s’… he asked where mine was.

… I told him Maria died when we were kids. He sobered up pretty quick… guess he could tell it was a sore subject.

Anyways… my magic practice is progressing well. Right now, I can just see spirits, which is weird because they look like just regular people—for the most part. I’ve seen a few grisly sights, but I’m learning how to pick their energies apart from the living, so I don’t make a fool of myself in public.

Oddly enough, Vasquez has a couple ghosts hanging around him…

Sam flipped through the journal, heart twisting in his chest as he noticed a few entries more prominent than others. One, over Christmas break, detailing why Vasquez had ghosts—his father was a hunter of the supernatural, and the revelation apparently caused a rift between the two boys before Vasquez’s father himself had put things to right. He’d put the hunting behind him and was trying to settle down with his family… he could have never expected his son to befriend a witch—which, that had led to Joshua admitting about himself…

Prom. They stopped dancing around their feelings for each other and became official, and that entry made Sam smile, as well as the photos of that night that accompanied the entry. They did make a handsome couple. That was where Vasquez’s writing started slipping in on a few pages, offering extra insight or his own commentary to whatever Joshua was writing.

Graduation. Maybe too quick to those who don’t know about… us, but Vasquez gave me a bloody promise ring tonight. (you’re not actually complaining, are you? Fuck you, I’m keeping it forever thought so) and detailing a rough plan of the future. Plans to stay in Salem long enough to get through college, before moving. Maybe they’d find where Rose Creek was, if it was somewhere they could move to, settle down there. Ideas about where the rest of their motley crew were…

College. Joshua went into Anthropology and the Occult (seriously, guero? Bite me, texican), and Vasquez Art and Architecture (you know there’s a joke about cliches in there somewhere, right? Don’t you dare). Joshua seemed to develop a minor side hobby (?) in helping people with their dead loved ones, the spirits who hadn’t crossed over because of unfinished business (Jennifer Love Hewitt, who?) When they’d both finished their studies… Joshua was the one who proposed.

There were photos of various moments, in those early years. High school included prom, graduation, senior trip, homecoming week. After high school showed moving into their first apartment together, as they worked through college, domestic moments, moments with their families, college graduation, of the proposal, and later, multiple photos from the wedding. Tickets to various date locations, movies, and festivals, were taped in as well. It seemed Joshua (and by some small extension, Vasquez) was eager to keep track of everything.

But just after their return from their honeymoon in August of twenty-fifteen, the entries stopped. The next one wasn’t dated until January of twenty-sixteen. Reading it, Sam felt his heart stop and blood run cold.

1-13-16 I’m sorry, Ale… I’m so sorry I couldn’t help you. I couldn’t… couldn’t save you. If I was faster… maybe you’d still be here. Maybe I could have… God, I’m crazy for thinking it… brought you back. If you’d wanted it… if maybe I’d seen you… your spirit, at least, maybe one more time, to ask…

There are limitations to my abilities… I can bring people back from the dead, but only within a set time… I didn’t make it with you… And I’m so sorry.

You must have crossed over. That’s the only reason I can think of to not see your ghost… it’d be just like you, too… you wouldn’t have wanted me to see you like that. I know you wouldn’t have. I know, but… goddammit it still hurts, you son of a bitch. If I could have just said goodbye…

… you were gone too soon. And those bastards… they’ll pay. Eventually, they’ll pay.

I’m sorry.

I… did find where Rose Creek is. It’s still a small town but thriving in today’s age. I’ll… I’ll go there. For us… for you.

Maybe I’ll find some sort of peace there.

Silence, for a few months, before another entry was made.

5-23-16 God, what have I done? I didn’t… I wasn’t… I didn’t mean for that to happen… I didn’t know I could do that.

I need to get away. From everyone. Anyone that I can hurt…

I’m so sorry Vas…

After that, there were no more entries. Sam flipped through the remaining blank pages and found nothing. Frowning, Sam went back to the last entry, and wondered what the hell might have happened for it to exist.

Actually, he wondered what happened in those last two entries in general—one was obvious. The other… not so much. He’d have to ask Matthew to investigate the dates mentioned, give or take a day or two. Surely, there’d be some sort of record online, somewhere—

“How the fuck did you get in here?”

Sam startled, the book falling from his hands and back on to the bed. He whirled around, coming eye to eye with Joshua Faraday. The first thing the older man noticed was how tired the redhead looked, with bags beneath his eyes, and skin pale. He stood as though the weight of the world was laid on his shoulders, but it didn’t distract from the, frankly, intimidating glare he was fixing Sam with.

“I know I locked the door when I left,” Joshua continued, and then his gaze flicked down to the journal on the bed, and his anger grew. He stood straight, and Sam swore the room grew colder and darker as Joshua set a bag of possible groceries on the floor, “You went looking through my personal things?!”

“Now, hold on just a minute, son—” Sam began.

“I’m not your son,” Joshua hissed, and there was no doubt about it—Joshua was altering the space around them. His eyes were beginning to glow, a toxic green that caused the hairs on the back of Sam’s neck to rise, “What are you doing here, Chisolm?”

“I came to offer you a job,” Sam said, quickly, and Joshua drew up short. A brief look of bafflement crossed his features as he stared at the older man, “That is, if you want it.”

The redhead crossed his arms, eyes narrowing.

“Explain,” he said, shortly, so Sam did.

He explained how he’d been tasked with bringing a crew together (yes, the rest of the Rose Creek bunch, for the most part…) and that while Joshua’s name hadn’t come up directly, Sam’s own bosses had suggested Joshua could be an integral part of the team. This team would be dealing with threats across the world, both natural and supernatural. Clearly, Joshua would be a good addition, if he wanted to join.

“But… I’m not pressing you to,” Sam said, quietly. He glanced down at the journal, then back to Joshua, “You’ve clearly been through a lot already.”

Joshua’s expression darkened, lips thinning, but he said nothing. Just stared at Sam with those eyes of his still glowing. But he was silent, and Sam took it for a good thing.

“… would you have come for me, if I hadn’t been brought up?” Joshua asked.

Sam blinked at the question, but answered nonetheless: “Eventually, yes. It wouldn’t have been fair not to include you and—” he faltered, only because Joshua pinned him with a venomous glare, “We want everyone we can get. We worked so well together, before.”

Silence, again, and Sam could tell Joshua was right on the edge of accepting the offer, he just needed one last push.

“Who killed him?” Sam asked, pitching his own voice low—after all, someone had mess with those he cared about. He was angry thinking about it; Joshua startled, so Sam asked again, “Who did it? We can go after the sons of bitches with you.”

Joshua’s jaw clenched.

“Hunters,” he ground out. “Ones who didn’t approve of his relationship with… with me. I don’t… I don’t have exact names, though.”

“Then come with me,” Sam offered, holding out his hand. “Together, we’ll help you figure out who did it, and we’ll see them get what they deserve.”

Joshua looked down at Sam’s extended hand, before he looked up at the man himself. The temperature returned to normal, and the shadows fell away. The glow in the witch’s eyes faded, but they still burned with anger and determination…

Joshua took Sam’s hand.

“You’ve got yourself a deal, Chisolm.”

[shurisneakers]

shut in [10]

Summary: When your high profile mission goes terribly wrong, you’re forced to hide in a safehouse with a man you’ve never met before. With seemingly nowhere else to go, you’re forced to work together to figure out who is trying to have you assassinated before it’s too late. (Sam Wilson x Reader, Hitman AU)

Warnings: cursing, anxiety, ptsd, shooting, abuse

Word count: 2.8k

A/N: double digit chapter!!! like 3 parts to go everyoneeee woo!!

i also appreciate feedback so if you would like to, please consider dropping me an ask or comment ly guys!!

here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333

Previous Part || Shut In Masterlist

The nostalgia was strong. 

The last time you and Sam were sitting like this, you were deciding on what to make of the bread supply that was now dwindling. The soup had ran out maybe a day or two ago and you were left with just bread, peanut butter and jelly.

You two had to devise an escape plan. You’d been there long enough and now with Sam making his first public appearance as Mob’s Most Wanted, even if it was for a good cause, there was no doubt that people would be after you.

“What if we go back to Ransone and let the rest sort itself out along the way?”

You made a note of it on the paper but you weren’t very convinced with the idea, not with the realisations you had made along the way.

“Do we know any other hideouts?” you asked instead, tapping the pencil against the paper.

“None that you don’t already know.” He chewed on his lip thoughtfully. “What are your thoughts on caves? Think we can make a bed outta some leaves?”

You wrote down ‘Sam’s cave idea’, just to humour him. Stupid, but more plausible than other options.

“If we make a run for it, what are the chances we’ll survive?”

“With law enforcement, civilians and gang members looking for us, I’d give us about-” you said candidly, “-two months. Three max.”

It wasn’t like you had no experience running from the state, but it was never on this scale. 

“We’d have years if it was only law enforcement, but we had to go get the entire fuckin’ mafia involved,” he huffed in annoyance.

An idea occurred to you that made you pause, but you hated it.

“What if we split up?” you suggested halfheartedly. “It’ll take them more time to find the both of us, if they’re looking for us together.”

When he didn’t reply, you looked up at him from the sheet in front of you.

“We’re not splitting up,” he began steadily, just as you knew he would. “The same people who are after you are after me. We need to stick together.”

“I know. I’m not saying we can’t meet again after that, I’m saying that maybe it’ll be easier for us to hide.”

He couldn’t deny that it wasn't the worst idea, but something didn’t sit right with him. He didn’t want to do it.

“Okay, then how do we find each other after that? When? I don’t have your email; fuck that, I don’t even have your number.”

“We’ll schedule it, I guess,” you murmur, trying to work out the logistics. “Whoever gets there late has to buy ice cream. And I’m particular about the flavour I like.”

You tried to lighten up the mood but he wasn’t having it, as much as he appreciated it.

“I don’t care if it’s more difficult,” he said slowly. “But I’d like us to stick together. Not until we’re out of this mess. Then if you want to never see my face again, which you shouldn’t because it’s beautiful, we’ll go our different ways.”

He was adamant about it, and you knew he’d argue and poke holes into the plan until it didn’t make sense anymore. You weren’t going to argue.

“Okay,” you accepted. “We stick together.”

A smile spread across his face which equated to one of triumph. “You got any other ideas?” 

“We stay right here and fight off whoever comes.”

It was dumb. This place wasn’t yours, and staying here would be a death wish. That didn’t stop you from saying it since neither of you were holding back on implausible ideas.

“This is our house now,” Sam added with determination, playing along.

“Damn right,” you affirmed, cracking a smile at him.

Bringing your attention back, you stared at the list. There is one option you wanted to explore but you weren’t sure if you could because you didn’t have the resources. But he may.

“You got any friends whose help we could use?” you asked cautiously, unsure of how this would play out. 

He continued chewing on his lip for a second like he was analysing all options, before nodding. 

“I got a friend. Well, my only friend,” he corrects himself. “His name’s Riley.”

“He got a place we can stay, this Riley?”

“He does. But I don’t want to involve him. He’s-” he paused, trying to find the right words to frame what he’s thinking “-he’s been through a lot.”

“We’ll leave him alone then,” you assured, realising that it must be a touchy topic for him.

Sam didn’t move on, though. 

“I’m all ears if you want to talk,” you offered. 

He pressed his lips together, giving you a tight smile. He looked like he wanted to say more but was holding back. You reciprocated, hoping it would give him some reassurance, noting how he exhaled softly.

“When I joined the cartel, I didn’t really have anyone to talk to since everyone was much older than I was. Riley was the first friend I made. He was a mouthy li’l one.” Sam smiled wistfully and you found yourself smiling with him. “He talked so much shit and he had the spunk to back it up but he never really got that far because no one wanted to test their luck with him.”

“We spent whatever free time we had together. He didn’t have a family so he and I-” he trailed off but you knew what he was getting at. “Ransone found out. Didn’t like anyone in his stupid squad becoming all buddies because if we turned against him, he knew he’d lose.”

Shared experience. You didn’t have any friends in the organization either; they were always separated from you willingly or by force. You wondered if that’s why you had taken such a liking towards Sam, knowing fully well that it was the first time in years you were able to be friends with someone without having to worry.

“He started pittin’ us against one another. Combat training, preferential treatment, just plain out sabotage. Riley’s the reason my back’s all kinds of fucked up.” He gave a short laugh. “Tried everything he could to make sure we’d stay away or even kill each other if it came to that.”

“But you didn’t.”

“But we didn’t,” he confirmed. “Ransone fuckin’ hated it, so one day, he decided that he’s going to finish it once and for all. Sent us on a fake mission so that we’d be alone together, then told us that only one of us could come back. One of us had to die or else both of us would. Some sick fuckin’ form of entertainment.”

It was exactly something that Ransone would do. Dramatic, vile and utterly despicable, just for his own joy,

Your eyebrows knit together when his eyes glazed over. 

“Riley, he- he didn’t even let me have at the gun. Just straight up chose for the both of us that he was going to be the one who died. He was so tired, of everythin’.” The muscles in your jaw tightened at where this was going. “He didn’t do it though. We figured out another way.”

You didn’t realise how tensed you were until you forced yourself to relax.

“Faked his death.” He shrugged. “It was the only way. Let Ransone believe he bled out and that I buried him behind the warehouse he sent us to. Shot him in the leg to make it look convincing. He’s still got a limp.”

“He made a run for it. Found himself a place in New Orleans, changed his identity, basically made turned into a whole new person. Ransone bought it for a while because I’d make it a point to visit the grave, leave some flowers and shit. Told him that if he messed with it that I’d put a bullet in his head and I was angry enough for him to see that I wasn’t kidding. I knew he’d figure it out eventually but I was hoping I’d get rid of him by then.”

“He lived in New Orleans for years. Never had a problem until recently.”

Sam paused for a second, but it gave you the time to pull up an old conversation you had with him.

“He’s the one Ransone threatened you with,” you connected the dots. “He’s the one he found.”

“Said he’d kill him if I didn’t take out Pierce for him,” his words were bitter, confirming what you said. “Sent me a picture of him in front of his house to prove it.”

“Fuckin’ hell,” you breathed, leaning back. Sam’s situation was more dangerous than you initially thought. Having Riley in the picture just made it more difficult to help Sam get out of the organization, especially since he was now leverage material.

“You asked me once what the scariest thing I had done was.” You didn’t get immediately what he was talking about until you remember the questions you had asked to get to know him better. “It was that. Getting him out of this life and trying not to get caught in the process.”

You didn’t know what to say.

“He’s the only family I got left.” The way his voice dropped made him sound so tired. “He’s already on their radar. If they find out I’m staying with him or that he’s helping in any way, they’ll kill him.”

You didn’t say anything, not like you had anything constructive to offer at that moment.

“That got dark real quick,” he remarked, the corners of his lips quirking upward.

Clearly he didn’t have anyone to talk to about this. To explain the entire thing from the beginning must have drained him completely.

“I’m sorry that you had to go through that,” you said quietly.

He paused for a second, looking like he was thinking to himself.

“Me too.”

______

The sky’s beautiful, you decide.

You could stare at the clouds for hours.

Which is what the both of you have been doing.

“If you fucking say it’s anything other than a dog, I’ll push you off the roof myself.”

“It’s clearly a penguin, Samuel.”

“I hate you.”

The cement was cool against your skin even though there was a blanket serving as a mediator between you and it. The sun nipped at your skin and your back was aching from staying in the same place for a prolonged period.

Sam tended to think better when he was outside, unconstrained by harsh white walls and artificial light. So you grabbed a spare blanket, a bottle of water and the ladder to haul the both of you to the roof. It was filthy, as you expected but you managed to tidy a part of it to the best of your ability before laying the blanket down.

“I know why you brought me up here, Y/N,” he piped up.

You just knew that when you needed some space, he often implored you to go outside. You figured the best way to help him was to do the same, not knowing what else you could have to give.

“Just wanted to let you know that I appreciate it,” he added.

Okay good. It helped.

“That’s a tree.” You pointed upwards, avoiding his gaze.

“You get three more seconds to change that answer to a table.”

“That looks nothing like a table. You’re delusional.”

He laughed, not offering a counter argument.

The outside did him good. He was calmer than when you first came here a few hours ago. He didn’t let his spite towards Ransone show very often, especially at this volume. Talking about Riley only reaffirmed how much he despised the man.

“We need to get out of here eventually, you know?” you mused.

You don’t want to. You don’t want to admit that saying it out loud made it worse.

“We do,” he sounded sure and you wondered if he ever felt bad about it too, “but we need a proper plan.”

The clouds shifted. It looked like a kid on a bike; not that you’d ever tell him. He would never agree.

“We need help,” you stated.

“We can’t.” You knew he’d say that.

“You know we do, Sam.”

“There’s no one out there we can trust.”

You liked that he used ‘we’. The only other times you had been referred to as ‘we’ had been for things so sinister, so violent.

His elbow was touching yours lightly. You wanted to move closer, press against him.

“There’s one person who might be able to.”

He turned to look at you questioningly. You did the same.

You waited till he figured it out on his own. His face shifted the minute it clicked in his head.

“No way.” He turned away, almost laughing out of bewilderment.

“It’s our only option.”

“Then we’ll find another one,” he began to sound more insistent, realising you were being serious. It was a crazy idea, you’d give him that, but it’s the only one you had that had a sure shot of working.

“We’ve tried. You’ve tried. There’s only one way,” you knew that getting annoyed wouldn’t get through to him and you also understood his hesitations. “He’ll help.”

“We don’t know that. It’s too fuckin’ dangerous.” He couldn’t afford that; not this late in the game.

“I know it. Lis- Sam. Look at me,” you commanded gently, and he obeyed reluctantly. “I understand that this is absolutely batshit wild, but I promised I’d help you. This is the only way I can think of. But I need you to trust me.”

He looked unsettled.

He didn’t have anything to go on. Only your word and his faith in you. He could say no and he knew you’d spend countless hours pouring over multiple options just to find another way. He could say no and you’d take it in stride and he wouldn’t have to worry about it. It wasn’t about trusting you, it was about not trusting the others.

But he could also say yes and let you take control, trust your instincts. You had never let him down before and he knew you wouldn’t now. He could say yes and help you work on one solid plan that had equal chances of failing as it did being a success, but it was something that you could be sure of.

“I’ll tell you this though, Sam. You always have a choice.”

He felt your fingers trace at his face patiently. He scooted closer, letting your bodies press gently against each other.

“Okay,” he whispered. “I trust you.”

He didn’t know if he made the right choice or not, but the smile that appeared on your face made him think that maybe he did.

God, he was done for.

___

“You ready?” you asked him.

“No, but what the hell; let’s do it.”

You let it ring right to the very end.

“Hello.” It seemed gratuitous at this point because you knew the conversation wouldn’t proceed with that.

“Code?”

“1993.”

“Y/N. Hello,” his voice came back loud and clear.

“Hey.” You snuck a glance at Sam. He was completely stiff.

“How are you?”

“I’ve been… good,” you admitted.

“Oh?” he sounded amused. “That’s a change.”

“Yeah.” You shifted on your feet awkwardly. “Listen, I need help.”

“Help with?”

“We need to get out of here. We can’t do it without you. I mean we can, but it’d be better if you lent a hand.”

“When you say ‘we’, you’re referring to…”

“Me.” Sam stepped forward towards the phone. You shifted it so it was between you.

“Oh, hello,” he sounded surprised, and he had good reason to be. “You know about-”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Y/N, you trust him?”

“Yeah,” you looked up at Sam, “I do.”

“Alright. If shit goes wrong, you’re both fucked. I’m not taking any responsibility.”

“We get that,” you sighed. “Can you help or not?”

There was a momentary silence on the other end as he thought.

“Tell me what you had in mind.”

“We got a hit.”

They turned away from their conversation with the person walking beside them at the interruption.

“This better be important.” They gestured to their companion who looked annoyed at being interrupted. He was too dangerous to have on anyone’s bad side but the agent didn’t care. This was crucial.

“Someone saw him. Wilson.” He was breathless from the flight of stairs he had run to come upstairs.

“Where?” They could hardly believe their ears, restraining to contain the excitement that was threatening to rise.

“A town, miles away from Pierce’s place. Said he roamed around looking for a store, bought some food and then left.” His eyes shone. “We think we might know where they are. A rough sketch at least. Couldn’t follow him too far because he kept checking.”

“Finally,” their face gleamed, completely discarding the guest they had and the confusion on his face. “Some good fucking news.”

“Do you want us to put a hit out on them?” The relief the agent felt was almost overwhelming. His partner may have died but it didn’t look like he was going to.

“No,” they said crisply, certainly. “This one’s on me.”

Next part

[themusicplayedherlife]

Missy’s Lesson Plan

Lesson #1 Listen to Her Worries

pairing: marcus moreno x f!teacher!reader characters: f!reader, marcus word count: 3.6k+ warnings: fluff, awkwardness, bonding, summary: dating is hard; dating after losing a significant other is even harder, but Missy is sure she has a foolproof plan that will help her dad and her teacher finally confess their feelings and get the happily ever after that they deserve! a/n: sorry for the wait! since so many people liked it i wanted to make sure everything about this chapter was decent to post, so ya’ll have @forevans​ to thank or else this would’ve been stuck in limbo for a long time lol--also, im about to dub reader and marcus the thank-you-couple lmfao--you’ll see why

There are three things you are absolutely sure about in your life.

1. Your name. 2. You love your family. And 3. Missy Moreno is your favorite student.

“Turns out she was just testing us!” She moves around your classroom, picking up scraps of paper and throwing them into the black, durable trash bag she’s hauling around with her, recounting her heroic tale of saving her dad and the other Heroics with her new super powered friends. “A transfer of power or something. Can you believe it?”

Yes and no.

Your heart had literally jumped out of your throat and blood turned cold when Missy was plucked from school during recess—“taken somewhere safer,” the principal had informed you after you stormed into her office wanting to know where your student was and why you weren’t informed.

School was released an hour after that, a way to prepare citizens for the inevitable destruction the Heroics tend to cause in the heavily, populated metropolitan areas, and after making sure every single one of your students had been picked up by a family member, you hurriedly headed home.

You had sat yourself down in front of the television with your mom, worried for Mr. Moreno and the rest of the Heroics (more so for Missy’s dad), feeling completely and utterly helpless.

It only got worse when agents suited in black and white showed up at your doorstep, demanding to know where Missy Moreno and the other super powered children were hiding.

“You lost them?” You had balked—your worry rising to new heights—first Mr. Moreno and now Missy? You didn’t know what to do other than demand how a bunch of agents could have lost a group of untrained children during an alien invasion!

None of them answered you, remaining stoic, and if it weren’t for your mom, you would’ve pounced and clawed the closest agent out of desperation.

The agents only left after turning your house upside down in their search for the children.

And then, after hours of waiting, the news showed the Heroics, Anita Moreno, and the children landing in front of the White House, safe and sound. You almost cried from relief in your mother’s arms.

So, no, you can’t believe it; but seeing her here, this special girl, that has somehow worked her way into your heart from the moment she walked into your life, safe and sound in your classroom, you do believe it.

But you can’t tell Missy all of that when she’s practically bouncing on the heels of her feet, beaming up at you every few seconds to watch your reactions to her story. Instead, you widen your eyes for good measure and your mouth hangs open. It’s a little exaggerated, but you really are impressed with Missy—very much worried, but impressed. “Woah! I’m so proud of you!”

Her grin is so bright and proud, it makes you chuckle under your breath, your shoulders finally relaxing at the rare, childlike mirth dancing in her eyes.

“Are you going to write about it for your report?”

She shrugs. “Maybe.”

Now that stops you from sorting through the craft supplies, eyebrow raising in surprise. “Maybe?”

“It’s stupid,” she murmurs, focusing a little too much on one area.

“Missy,” you start, patient, “why do you think it’s stupid?”

“It’s just—” she shuffles on her feet and then sighs heavily, looking up at you with dark eyes full of doubt—“what if no one believes me?”

It takes you no time to close the distance between you. You coax the bag out of her hands and set it down on the floor, motioning for her to sit at the desk she had just been pretending to clean. “Why do you think no one would believe you?”

“Because I don’t have super powers.” Her nose wrinkles, looking away from you and to the whiteboard.

“Missy…”

“I know, I know!” she exasperates, having heard this spiel from you many times before. “It doesn’t matter, it’s never mattered, I get it!” You stare at her incredulously, and she is quick to assure you, leaning forward on the edge of the chair. “I do, really! But I—it would be useful, you know?” She slumps back, finger rubbing at a spot on the table. “Proof, I guess.”

“Powers could always be useful,” you agree with a soft laugh. “But not always necessary.” She still doesn’t look at you, and you sigh softly, a small amused smile forming on your lips. “I know you know some of the most amazing, most brave people are the ones without powers.”

She looks up at you, head tilting and waiting for you to elaborate.

“You once told me that aside from your dad, your mom was your absolute favorite hero, remember that?”

She nods, a smile finally appearing on her cherubic face.

“Don’t underestimate yourself, Missy.” You crouch down to her level. “You not having powers doesn’t mean the rest of the class won’t believe you. They know you’re a leader, they look to you not just because you’re Marcus Moreno’s kid but because they believe in you.”

“I knew it was stupid,” she murmurs bashfully, tanned skin brightening as she huffs and folds her arms over her chest.

“Hey, no, none of that. Having doubts or being scared or even jealous is never stupid. It’s perfectly human,” you assure her, her brown eyes searching yours. “In fact, I sometimes feel that way too!”

“Really?” She drops her arms and her pout softens. “You?”

“Of course! Just because I’m an adult doesn’t mean I don’t sometimes doubt myself or feel a little insecure.”

“Like what?” she asks, dark eyes curious and wide.

“Oof, a lot!” Your eyes roll to the ceiling as you think. “I think… one of my biggest doubts and fears is not being a good enough teacher.”

“What?” She gasps, jumping in her seat and eyes narrowing with scary determination to get you to believe that: “You’re an amazing teacher!”

Warmth fills your chest at the sincerity in her voice and eyes. “See!” You cross your arms over your knees, but Missy takes your hand in hers, and you let her, squeezing her smaller hand in yours. “Sometimes, we don’t see ourselves in the same light as others do, and that’s okay. We just need a little reminder every once in a while.”

“Yeah,” she drawls, playing with one of your fingers, “I guess you’re right.”

“I know I’m right.” You nudge her nose gently with a hooked finger and she wrinkles her nose in response. “And this is my reminder for you today: I truly believe you’re capable of doing extraordinary things, Missy. Powers or no powers.”

She grins, nudging your nose just as you had. “And I truly believe you’re the most amazing teacher ever.”

Yeah. Missy Moreno is definitely your favorite student.

“I know.” You ruffle her hair and she grabs your wrist to push you away, laughing.

A loud thud by the entrance of the class brings you to your feet, spinning in place and firmly placing yourself in front of Missy and the sudden intruder—only to find a sheepish Marcus Moreno mid trip and hand raised sheepishly.

“I—ah—sorry, I was going to knock, but the door was opened—” he says, quickly crouching down to pick up the empty rack you set up for the kids to place their backpacks and lunch on. “Sorry.”

Missy lets out an exasperated, “Dad!” while your form relaxes (replaced by a new tension squeezing your chest).

Clearing his throat, he straightens up, raising a hand in greeting and an apology. “Sorry,” he murmurs again.

“It’s fine, Mr. Moreno.” You offer him a warm smile, ignoring the little butterflies in your tummy. Turning to Missy, you catch a very much exasperated eye roll that only makes you stifle your laughter behind your hand. “Come on, Missy, get your things.”

She eyes her dad for a moment longer before nodding and hurrying to her table shared with Karina at the front of the classroom, a table away from your desk.

“Thanks for letting Missy stay.” He scratches the back of his head, his other hand resting on his hip as he shifts his weight. “Paperwork took me longer than I would have liked.”

“A hero’s work is never done, huh?” you joke, keeping your voice light.

He cracks a charming smile, the one that always seems to melt your insides into a pile of goo. “Unfortunately.”

Your eyes move to Missy, who is slowly putting her things away, organizing them and reorganizing. Her head tilts slightly when the conversation between you and Marcus pauses, dark eyes trying to inconspicuously look over her shoulder to get a glimpse of you and her father. Her eyes catch yours and widen in surprise before she snaps her head forward, pretending to be busy but not hurrying her movements, either—much to your amusement. What is she doing?

Shaking your head and returning your gaze to Marcus, you’re met by brown eyes full of exasperated fondness, an apologetic smile on his handsome features.

“I heard about what happened,” he suddenly says. “About some of our agents raiding your home.”

“Oh!” You blink owlishly, embarrassment crawling under your skin—what else did he know? “You heard about that?”

“Read about it in the report, actually.” He tilts his head, scratching the stubble on his cheek, and you press your lips together to keep from questioning what else he read in case they didn’t add the part about you losing your cool. “I have agents on their way to help clean up any mess they might’ve made and to replace anything they might’ve broken.”

This man is truly a god sent, isn’t he? “Mr. Moreno, I appreciate it, thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to,” he assures you, firm and kind. “It’s our fault you got caught in the cross hairs.” His eyes fall away from yours, and again, he shifts his weight on his feet as he pushes his glasses back up over the bridge of his nose.

You wait for a moment, but when he doesn’t look back up at you, you let out a little defeated sigh, disappointed that the conversation is over. Not that you want to keep talking about agents ruining your home, but you like listening to Mr. Moreno speak. He has the softest, most reassuring voice that makes you feel safe in his presence; like he trusts you.

“Well, again, thank you,” you start as you make your way over to the plastic bin full of craft supplies on your desk and are about to take them to the closet you store them in when warm fingers brush against yours, taking the box from your hands. “Oh!”

“Let me help you with that,” he says, soft and rich, warm eyes full of kindness staring into yours.

“Thank you,” you murmur—and he’s close, not like when he was sitting across from you as you introduced yourself to him and showed him the first progress report of the year, but close enough that you can see the glints of black and umber in his eyes, tips of his shoes barely touching yours, and a small box keeping your chests from brushing against each other.

“It’s no trouble. Least I could do.” He flashes another smile, and again, your heart melts and you have to physically keep yourself from biting your lips by swiping your twitching fingers over your mouth, eyes darting away from him.

Clearing your throat, you say, “Let me show you where I need them.”

He nods and follows after you, keeping a fair distance even after you point at the empty space the bin was in earlier that day.

“Thank you,” you say—again! all you do is thank the man!—as he puts away the bin and closes the closet doors for you.

“Of course.”

“Okay, I’m finally ready!” Missy announces, a little too loud for it to not to be intentional.

“We should start heading out, then.” His hand settles on Missy’s head, steering her towards the door. “Again, thank you for letting Missy stay—really saved me.”

“It was no trouble at all.” You wave him away, following after them to walk them out.

“That was painful to watch,” you swear you hear her whisper to her dad, and he shushes her.

Did you imagine it?

“Ah, actually, Mr. Moreno, may I speak to you for a moment?”

“Of course!” He pats Missy’s shoulder. “Go on ahead, I’ll meet you down the hall.”

She narrows her eyes at him, as if trying to communicate something to him before nodding and walking off. “See you Monday, teach!”

“Bye, Missy! Have a good weekend!” You wait until she’s completely out of ear shot, or at least on the other side of the hall to address your worries to Mr. Moreno. “Missy told me about what happened on that spaceship and I—I’m worried. I know what Missy is capable of, trust me, I know. She’s—extraordinary. A good kid.” You bite your lip, wrapping your cardigan tighter around your frame, the cold wind brushing against your exposed skin. “But I—I can’t help but worry either way. I know it’s not my place—”

“No, no!” He steps forward and a little to the side, blocking the wind from hitting you. “Thank you for caring so much about Missy. I—I always feel grateful knowing you care about her and that she’s in capable hands at school.”

You release a breath you didn’t know you had been holding, a huge weight off your shoulder now that you know you’re not stepping on his toes.

“I’m worried too, if I’m being honest.” His eyes slide to Missy waiting for him at the end of the hall where she’s rocking on her feet, and you follow his gaze, both of you smiling when she glances up and waves. “She’s headstrong. Once her mind is made up, you can’t stop her.” He chuckles, the sound low and a little self-deprecating.

“I would never ask you to change her mind,” you affirm gently. “All I ask, is that you look after her—not that you don’t already do, because I know you do, but it’s… different out there.”

He nods resolutely. “I promise.”

“You need to stay safe out there, too, Mr. Moreno. I can’t keep having two heart attacks in one day,” you tease, leaning against the metal doorframe.

“I promise you, we’ll stay safe,” he says it so seriously, eyes locked on yours that it practically steals your breath away. “Missy and I—we’ll protect each other.”

“Like you always do,” you hum into the space between you.

“Like we always do,” he reaffirms, just as soft.

“Good.” You stare at one another for a beat longer than necessary, but you look away first, straightening up. “Have a good evening, Mr. Moreno. Drive safe.”

“You too.”

You watch him walk away, waving each time he looks back until he reaches Missy. They wrap an arm around each other and with one final wave, they disappear into the stairwell.

Smiling, you head back inside to get your things.

“So,” Missy starts as they climb down the stairs, “did you ask?”

“No.” He sighs, bracing himself for the ten year old judgement (he can’t wait to see what her pre-teen and teenage judgement looks like, probably even more brutal).

“What?” She pulls away from him as they reach the final step. “No? What do you mean ‘no’? That was the perfect timing!”

He knows it was perfect timing! There were many perfect moments that he could’ve asked if you were doing anything this Saturday, but no! He just had to get distracted by the curves of your lashes and the way your eyes glinted under the setting sun and how your nose wrinkled when the cold air kissed your nose and—“Next time.”

“A deal is a deal, dad!” She reminds him, staring up at him with those eyes that used to remind him so much of her mother, but now they’re becoming less and less like hers and more her own. “You said you would!”

“I know, I know,” he whines in mock defeat. “I just… what if she doesn’t like me?” It’s a legitimate worry, one that has only grown since Missy started encouraging him to ask you out.

“Seriously, dad?” Her hand connects with her forehead. “It’s so obvious! And besides, how will you ever know if you don’t ask?”

“I guess you’re right. Any ideas?”

She cups her chin, thinking. Her eyes brighten. “I do have a plan!”

“And what exactly is this plan?” he asks, a little wary of what his precocious ten year old could possibly come up with.

“Just trust me!” She grins up at him and wraps her arm around his waist, tugging him along with her towards the car. “With my plan we’ll win her over completely!”

[talesofphantombandits]

Zero to Six ~ The Death of Six - Edited version.

Greetings and salutations! So I know this isn’t what everyone wanted but people are still reading Zero to Six and I’m honestly so grateful that a year on, people are still loving this series.  But I never felt like I wrote it properly, the chapters where always too short and I felt like they were never detailed enough so I wanted to bring to you an edited version (that probably still won’t be perfect.) one that I’m more satisfied with.  I will be keeping the original version up just in case people prefer that one, maybe one day I’ll take it down? who knows but yeah so enjoy! <3 P.s I’ve missed you all so much and I’ve really missed this series. Hopefully sometime soon the Prequel will be out which I have started and named ‘Before there was Six, there was Zero.’

Characters: Four X Zero (OC) Summary: Zero was the first person to be ‘saved’ by One, she was his first honorary Ghost.  Her knowledge in tech meant she got the role of ‘Hacker’ she recruited new team members, looked for missions and locations and made sure every security measure was looked at. You know normal hacker spy stuff.  But her tough up bringing meant that if needs be she could fight, she was maybe even better than some people on the team knew. But due to One’s protectiveness over her she had to stay hidden, she was more of an actual ghost than the rest of the team was. This didn’t mean she couldn’t have her fun though, over the months of being with the full team she had formed quite a passionate love/ hate relationship with the handsome Four.  Who knows what sparks would fly if they were ever to meet.  Warnings: Slight swearing, some suggestive flirting in later chapters. 

Tagg list: (I know this is a edit of my original story but if anyone wants to be tagged let me know.) @raylan-c​

Zero to Six ~ Part 2. Edited Version.​ Masterlist.

“You’re stalling.” 

“I’m not stalling.” Zero could practically hear the smirk in Fours voice over the coms. “I’m simply just working myself up to it.” 

She laughed. “You always say that, and you’re always stalling.” She was playing on his last nerve, she knew it but this would be good for Four and entertainment for her. He always worked better when he was frustrated and no one stressed him out quite like Zero.

Four had been doing parkour for most of his life, or that’s what he told them. Yet he was still fearful every single time, still I guess that’s what made him great at it the fear of always falling gave him the adrenaline he needed to make the jumps. 

Another breathless laugh fluttered through Zeros left ear. “Don’t test me darling.” Now it was his turn to make Zero sweat, this always happened. Zero would insult and tease and Four would flirt right back, although most of the team were used to it by now they still broke them up from time to time. 

“Whatever monkey boy, just be ready for when Six gets his ass in gear!” She clicked her tongue. “I can hear you mocking me asshole, remember I hold the key here I can make your life a living hell with just one click of a button.” 

“You already make my life hell darling, But I live for it everyday.” 

“Swear to god Four, you’re a pain in my ass.” She mumbled as she typed away at the computer trying to figure out their next move so she could be ready with any instruction they needed. 

“I’m sure your ass is pretty fine, I can’t wait to see it someday.” She could practically feel the smirk.

“Yeah? And I can't wait to punch the smirk off that pretty face one day, only you could be in a life or death situation and be thinking about my virtual ass.”

“Wait, did you just admit to fancying me Zero? Guys she called me handsome, I think I’m getting somewhere.” 

“Go for Four!” Saved by the bell it seems, One’s voice rang through coms. Zero silently thanked god for she did fancy Four, who wouldn’t fancy that absolute Greek god of a man? With that honey voice and the moves he had! moves he could use on her, she shook her head hoping the images of him forming in her head would magically fall out of her brain never to return, but she wouldn’t be so lucky.

“Shut the hell up, stop thinking about ways to seduce Zero and get your ass down here we need you!” And just like that, it was go time. “NOW!”

Zero had been working with this team for a while now, but she was more on the surveillance side of the missions, which meant that she had never officially met the team face to face. The only person she had actually met was One, who had recruited her. He would visit from time to time, she liked to think they had a special bond. She was in fact the first person in need that One had found and ever since then he had become a sort of father figure to her. 

Two was next who was sort of cold at times, Zero put this down to her CIA training but she had never been anything but caring towards Zero. Then she found Three, a hitman who she was reluctant to look into at first but she knew now it was the best thing for her and the team. Despite his past he was one of the most sweet and caring men she’d ever met, and he never failed to make her smile on a bad day.  Ever since recruiting Four, she felt the atmosphere in the group shift slightly, there was nothing bad about him but they both couldn’t ignore the growing attraction between them, and this was just over cyber space.  She then found her best friend in Five, she was different from the rest. Not as violent and rash but still amazing at what she did and protecting herself and others, Zero knew if she ever needed someone the first person she’d go to was Five. 

Six was her latest recruit, one that she knew was extremely talented in not only driving but in all things mechanical too, they had chatting a few times about servers and bots and he’d promised her a round in their shared favourite video game once this mission was complete. 

She’d be lying to herself and everyone else if she said she didn’t want to meet them all in person, they were the closest thing she had, had to family. However she knew that if she was to meet them nothing could ever come of her and Four. One would definitely not allow it, and most likely lock her straight back up.

Still they were sort of this dysfunctional family, and she was definitely the odd one out. She couldn’t remember the last time she had, had a normal conversation with someone who wasn’t ‘dead’ the only time she was allowed to leave the flat was when One said it was moving day. He didn’t like her staying in one flat too long, she must have moved at least four times this year already. While she was alone in her flat eating ready meals they were all back at base eating together, she sometimes pretended she was there eating with them. Three telling her some stupid story that no one else is listening to because they have heard it at least a thousand times, but she would just be so happy to hear his beautiful accent in person that she would listen to anything he was telling her.  How she wished she could hug three in real life. The closest she had gotten to eating with them was over coms, sometimes they would leave the line open for debriefing but it still made her feel like an outcast. 

“I’m coming down!” Everything was going wrong, Six had gone the wrong way. Which Zero wasn’t surprised to see as everyone in the car was shouting at each other, she sat there in her gaming chair drinking Dr Pepper and enjoying her fried chicken meal while everyone was losing their minds in the field. Maybe getting to stay in the comfort of her flat wasn’t so bad after all? 

“Good boy.” She praised Four. “Finally putting those parkour skills to use, other than robbing some innocent person.” 

Even before he started to speak she could tell he’d started to run because his speech came out in huffs. “Shut up, at least I can do parkour which makes me cooler than a girl who sits at her computer all day.”

She had to laugh. “What are you? Five years old? Try again when you can think up better come backs, I can’t take you seriously right now.”  

Wherever One moved Zero was never too far away from where the team worked, the first time the rest of the team worked this out was when Zero first used the drone to help navigate them someplace safe. That was also the first time she finally got to see Four in action, the image of him running along the rooftops like a monkey in the jungle both amused her and impressed her. Hence the nickname she had given him. But there were also times when he would have close calls, where he had nearly fallen to his death that’s when the breath would get knocked out of her and she would only calm when she knew he was safe on the ground again. 

“Right over you guys.” He said in a strained voice while leaping onto another roof.  

“So guys, just look out for the flying monkey above you. That will be Four.” Most of the teasing with Four was just to pass the time while they were out in the field having fun and mainly it was just way too fun to hear him get so frustrated.  

“Zero, that’s not helping us.” One said in a sing-song voice. 

“Maybe it’s not helping you, but it is definitely helping me pass the time.” All she could hear was a disappointed grunt from One which just made her chuckle,it was also very fun to piss One off.

“Six! SIX! Wrong way god damn it!” 

She cringed at how loud Four had screamed down the coms. “Come back! I’ve got an idea.”

“Ladies and gentleman, for the first time in his life Four has an idea!” She said mindlessly typing away trying to find the best route for them to escape by.

“You know what Zero, when we finally meet I’m going to run that fine ass of yours into the ground.” He all but growled.

“You can try monkey boy, but you’ll have to catch me first.” She smirked to herself, she secretly hoped that, that was more of a promise than a mere threat. “Oh, challenge accepted sweetheart. I’d love to have a game of cat and mouse with you.” 

“You two do remember that we are on a mission right now, right?” Six moaned. “What with you two flirting, and these absolute idiots fighting beside me in the car. I’m finding it very hard to concentrate on driving!” With every word Six’s voice got more agitated and louder.

“We are not flirting!” Both Four and Zero exclaimed together. 

“Aww they even said it at the same time!” Zero just rolled her eyes at One’s teasing. “No one cares, now both of you shut up so we can all get out of here.” 

“That’s it Six, keep coming towards me!” The drone was filming just above the action, once she’d wiped her hands and they were free from the grease on her chicken. She finally realised what Four was about to do. 

Suddenly the car that was tailing Six was being impaled by five metal tubes. “God, okay I’m definitely done eating now. That was so gross.” 

Then the screaming started to fill the coms. “Guy’s, what the hell are you doing?” All Zero could make out was something about an eyeball. 

“This is so stressful! Can everyone stop arguing and speaking over each other?!” Zero was getting agitated now. 

“YOU THINK YOU’RE STRESSED?! I’M TRYING TO DRIVE WHILST ALSO TRYING NOT TO KILL ANYONE, DID I MENTION I ALSO HAVE AN EYEBALL ON MY LEG?!” Six all but screamed down the coms, loud enough that Zero had to remove her earpiece until she was sure he was done with his rant. 

“Six sweetie,” she said as calmly as she could, trying not to laugh. “Are you okay?” 

“DO I SOUND LIKE I’M OKAY ZERO?!” She knew he would say that, she finally let out the chuckle she was trying to hold as to not irritate him further.

“Sorry I was just asking. I swear I‘m not using your painful situation to make myself feel better.” She held her hands up in defence even though he couldn’t see her.

He just let out a huff. “I’m going to ignore you now Zero, you’re pissing me off more than these guys are.” 

After the commotion things went quiet for a while, there was now a helicopter tailing them so all effort and concentration went on losing it. While there was little chatter over the coms the main sound that dominated the air was the gunfire, Zero silently prayed to herself while she watched the drone that everyone would make it out of their first real mission alive. One finally found a route for them, conveniently inside of a building that would shelter them enough to lose the aerial surveillance they were under. 

“The drone will meet you on the other side, good luck and please try not to make too much of a mess in there Six. There are some priceless statues in there we would all like preserving.” Just as Zero finished her sentence she heard a loud crash.

“You were saying?” Six chuckled nervously. 

“You didn’t.” Zero stared shocked at her screen, mouth wide open. 

One was the one to respond to her though. “Unfortunately he did, don’t worry we’re all just as disappointed in him.” 

“Okay we finally lost the chopper, Zero do you have a visual?” One asked surprisingly calmly.

“You mean the bright green car, kind of hard to miss. Good choice Six you really blend in.” Zero laughed. “I see you, there are two black vans heading your way. Shake them off then head to the arranged rendezvous spot where Three will be waiting for you.” 

Six’s voice was strained when he spoke. “Listen, fast and convenient was what I was told to get. So that’s what I got.” 

Zero would have responded but she was more distracted by the sight of Four on a skateboard holding a launcher. He jumped off the board and leaped up onto the stone wall just as one of the black vans passed, he aimed and shot, never missing the mark. She was impressed for a moment but then saw the smug smile on his face, he looked directly into the drone and winked at Zero. She just scoffed, what an absolute show off.

“Seems like we have a superhero on our team.” Six laughed impressed. 

Zero scoffed again, but this time loud enough so everyone could hear it over the coms. “I wouldn’t exactly call him a superhero.” 

“Then what would you call me darling? A Greek god?” This is the thing about Four, he’d never met Zero in person but he knew exactly how to push her buttons. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t enjoy the banter from time to time. 

“Hurm more like a vein asshole that thinks far too highly of himself.” She snapped back.

But he just laughed, the complete opposite of what she was expecting. “I mean everyone else loves me, might as well love myself too.” She rolled her eyes, She really couldn’t blame him though he was a very handsome man but no way in hell was she ever going to tell him that. “One day you’ll fall for the charm that everyone else falls for. I know you’re already obsessed with me.” 

“In your dreams Four.” 

“It already happens in my dreams, every night darling. I’d be happy to elaborate later on in a private chat.” Zero audibly gagged. 

“Guy’s can we please cut out the flirting until after the mission? We’re nearly there and I don’t think any of us want to hear whatever this is.” One sounded tired and Zero just laughed at how much their fighting annoyed the other members. 

“Yes boss!” She added in a salute even though One couldn’t see her, he could feel she was mocking him. 

Just then the drone cut out. “Shit! Someone shot down the drone. You’re on your own from here guys.” 

There was a commotion through the coms, one that didn’t sound at all good. Car tyres screeched, bullets rain down on the metal of the car Zero held her breath as she waited for anything. Even just a breath so she knew at least someone was still alive, her heart stopped when the line had been silent for too long she had to know what happened. 

“Guys, come on talk to me. What’s going on? Why are you all being so silent? What happened?” There was another breath of silence and her mind went straight to Four, she shook her head. No! She wasn’t going to let herself think about that, she scolded herself for getting too attached to the little shit.  

The was a crackle over the line, Five cleared her throat. “Six is dead, we’re in the van, the space is clear.”  

Zero sucked in a breath, she felt like her lungs were burning. “What?” 

“Zero listen to me, you need to turn off coms now.” One must have turned from the group, he was using his quiet, serious voice. “I’ll handle this okay, I’ll check back in with you later.” 

Just like that he was gone, she clicked the switch to turn off almost absentmindedly. She sat back in her chair, only snapping back to reality when she felt something wet fall on her hand. She softly touched her face to find her cheeks were wet, when had she started to cry? Six wasn’t someone she knew in person, he had been the last member of the team but still a very important piece of their puzzle. She thought about the game he had promised to play with her after the mission, this would never come to pass now. Now he was really dead, and it was all her fault.

For the first time Zero started to think about the whole team and if One’s master plan of being ghosts to take down the world’s evil was such a good idea after all, why had it taken a real death in the team for her to even think about this. What if it had been Four, she didn’t think she could live with herself if anything ever happened to Four, maybe it was a good thing they had never met. Seeing him in person, hearing his deep honey voice, feeling his warmth would definitely make her fall deeper then she already was. He was just a voice over the coms but behind that was a real person, one that probably wouldn’t even share the same feelings towards her. So she thought ‘Yes, It’s a good thing I’m behind this computer screen and not with them in person.’ She had to try to distance herself from now on.  

 ......

Just wanted to say one last Thank You! for the continued support for this story <3 

[air-in-words]

My Sorting Hat Chats Journey

So, hi! I'm back!

I've been doing fun stuff off in the real world, but I decided to talk a little bit about my own Sorting Hat Chats sorting journey, and how it says a lot about self-acceptance, and how understanding who you really are can sometimes only come from being an active participant in life. Here we goooo...

The Beginning

So, my initial sorting was a Burnt Badger/Bird. This had struck me, because I'd never considered myself a Badger in ANY media. I was seen by my friends as a borderline loner, someone who didn't need anyone else. And yet, all the signs were there.

Looking back on my life, I've always migrated in groups, always looked for a nesting ground, and truly that's all I want. A place to nest, a place to rest, where I can feel safe and surrounded by people who love me. But, after a childhood filled with bullying, I found myself embarrassed of my bold face need for friends, and, for some reason, decided getting too close to people for too long was unwise, so I could probably never have a permanent home. And yet, I always found myself in these little "groups," little packs of people that all travel together.

I've always had these friend groups, where everyone knows each other, we all hang out together, and yet it always manages to eventually fall apart. I asked one of my friends how this keeps happening, and who keeps setting up these groups. She blinked sort of vaguely and said, "uh, you do." It was such a strange realization to look back and see myself as the "shepherd" I was, always creating a flock wherever I went. I had always been the spoke of my friend wheels, the only one that was friends with everyone, or actively tried to be friends with everyone. And I would attempt to hold it together, but it would always ultimately shatter, and I'd leave to find and form another. Family is important to me, and it isn't enough for me to bond with one person. I like for all my friends to be friends with each other, for us all to hang out together and enjoy each other's company.

So, although I still struggle, Burnt Badger came out on top, and I believe is still at the top to this day. I still search for belonging. I still search for family. And, yet, my heart seems to have no intention of unburning. Until recently, I had no idea why.

On the other hand, the secondary I received, Bird, seemed to fit like a glove, and was very obvious to me. I've been called the Encyclopedia before, I was made fun of for being caught reading the dictionary like it was a book, and I always seem to have a "fun fact" for every occasion. And all of this seemed to flow directly into me trying to use these facts and this knowledge to win people over, to get to see me as someone that could be their friend, or that I could be reliable as a member of their "group." So, Burnt Badger/Bird simply made sense. The reasons for me avoiding unburning my primary were irrelevant.

The Now

I'd been gone from this side of Tumblr for a bit, and decided to return on a whim. Saw @wisteria-lodge still posting as much as ever, and saw a lot of my posts had been passed around in the meantime (thank ya by the way) and decided to dive back in, because since then, so much of my life has changed. I've had certain people out of my life for a while that were a hindrance on my self-acceptance, I've moved out of my childhood home, and left a job I've had for the past 5 years. I've been forced to constantly LIVE, to make choices, actual choices, and have been offered the chance to be who I truly am, unapologetically.

So, I took the quiz again, curious if I would come up any different.

I got Burnt Badger/Burnt Snake.

This time, I was almost insulted. A flush of memories, of past feelings came to me, most of all the need to push back, to insist in exasperation I'M NOT A LIAR, as though I was tired of defending myself. As hard as I tried, I somehow couldn't seem to get Bird secondary to reappear.... at all. Which was so crazy, because before, that was pretty much all I could get.

So, I went to the experts, the aforementioned wisteria-lodge and @sortinghatchats .

I looked through the Snake secondary tags and found myself lost in memories I had pushed down, so far down even I couldn't find them, wracked with shame and a need to hide this side of myself, something I'd hidden so well I'd pretty much convinced myself it had never existed.

Being a Bird had always been a choice for me. I decided that was what people must want, becoming intelligent, knowing all of these things, showing off, that would make people like me. But, although I can devour books like nobody's business, and I tend to worry and whinge before every major decision, feeling unprepared, I would always find myself falling short of my own expectations. The amount of times I'd promised myself and others to create a plan and study hard, ultimately fail to do so, and then lie to everyone about it was astounding. My public image continued to be "air-in-words the smart girl" but my private image was still LIAR and FAKE.

I would still somehow get all A's. I was very good at remembering facts and excellent at taking tests. I always thought of them like little tricks themselves, meant to trip you up, but if you paid attention, you could figure out the patterns and be able to bluster your way through stuff you might not even fully understand. You can figure out certain words through context clues, and I was always very comfortable trusting my memory with little preparation beforehand. And yet, I still lied and told everyone I'd studied, at least as a child, before high school.

Math was what eventually messed me up, and sent my self-image whirling into the ground. My grades suddenly went from straight A's to D's and F's. My parents were aghast, what had happened??? I was so intelligent, so smart, such a good student. What had gone wrong?? And, although I never admitted it outloud to them, I knew the answer. With math, you can't trick your way out. You either know how to do it and give the right answer, or you don't. And I had never studied a day in my life, never practiced, never worked hard at all. It was my horrible little secret and math had outed me. It continues to out me, because rather than actually work at it and get better, I managed to keep my grades through high school afloat by leaning on my other grades and taking remedial math courses with a teacher who loved me very much and would let me off easy. To this day, honestly, I can barely count. I might actually have some form of dyscalculia, but I know that if I were willing to try a little harder I could get better. But, why would I do that, when this way works just fine? Just coasting through? But, again, no one could know. Not even myself.

Through high school, I began letting people in on my secret Snake, because being a "slacker" was suddenly cool. I still couldn't let my parents know, or the teachers, but coming clean about not being a keener was what earned me new friend groups. I wasn't some weirdo who actually studied all the time: I was a kid who maybe did 60-70% of my homework and slid by on my good memory and general interest in learning. And my reputation. My reputation was key to my success.

College would be the thing that completely threw me to the ground. There were simply too many sirens singing at me, distractions pulling me away from my work. I'd never looked less like a Bird than in college. I was always skipping class, always not studying, and in fact, would openly fail most of my courses. And I just didn't seem to care. I slid into what I guess must have been a sort of neutral zone, but I wasn't happy. The mask was slipping off and I needed out. I couldn't keep up this charade anymore. It was stifling, trying to be a Bird, going to college for a very Bird degree, surrounded by actual Birds, it was all very much what I didn't want. I wanted something less "academic," less, well, boring. Maybe more Snake like.

And, so, here we are. Currently dropped out of college, living in an apartment with my friend, away from my parents' prying eyes, and with a new job that I chose for myself. On the brink of finally understanding myself, and maybe accepting myself as I am.

My Badger primary is burned because of my Snake secondary. Because I thought I was a sham, a liar, a con, and I didn't feel like I deserved to have people close to me. Those traits are bad, and I was a bad person. No one should be tricked by me.

But, after reading some of the stories from the experts and other Snake secondaries, I found this crazy thought, that perhaps being this way isn't a bad thing. Maybe I'm not a bad person. Maybe it's okay to be who I am. Maybe I can use these "powers" for good, and they aren't inherently evil.

So, at least for now, I'm choosing to identify as Burnt Badger/Burnt Snake with Bird Model. Seeing how it feels to accept myself and not try and force myself to be who I think I should be, or who others want me to be (which is a Snake secondary thing in the first place. Lol!)

For Fun, Here's Some Crazy Actual Snake Secondary Things I've Done That I'm Trying to Be Less Ashamed of Now

When I was little, I used to make up crazy stories about things I'd done to seem more interesting. The one that makes me cringe the most is that my uncle has a statue in his backyard that comes to life and goes on adventures with me. My uncle DID have a statue in his backyard that I really loved but no, it didn't (and still hasn't) come to life.

Some of these, I can't explain, like this one, where I somehow had more than one teacher convinced I'd handed in every piece of homework before the one I was giving them the sob story about that day. I literally had a teacher look me in the face, tell me I'd been handing in my homework really well thus far and knew I was trustworthy, so they'd let me slide with no mark against me. Meanwhile, I had missed the homework for the past THREE WEEKS IN A ROW. I just smiled and let it go. Variations of this situation happened throughout high school and college. And, no, I had no good reason not to do the homework. I just didn't want to do it. Lol.

I usually live in the "neutral state" around my close friends, since I think it's disrespectful not to be straight with them, but I have had to turn it on to help them occasionally. One of my friends was having issues with an ex of hers, she was thinking that maybe she should go back out with the guh, and I had been my blunt, neutral self the whole time, telling her flat out that that was a bad idea. But, it wasn't working. "Neutral state" isn't like a Lion's forceful natural state, I guess. So, I decided I would have to push her in a certain direction to help her get through it. I told her she should go back out with him, and although she did sort of call me out for lying, knowing I didn't actually want that, I told her she should if she really think she should. The dude didn't last one date without showing his ass again, and she thanked me for making her do that. Lol.

Finally, at least for this list, my most prized shameful memory, is when I was taking an acting class in college. We were supposed to create a wordless scene as our final, and I hadn't prepared anything, so I just skipped the day we were supposed to do them. But, I decided to show up for the last day to see if I could still somehow pass. She's going through the grades, and looks up and asks me, "I don't have anything written down for you, I can't remember, did you give a performance or not?" I knew I hadn't then, but decided to give one now. I told her yes I had done one, don't you remember came up with a name on the fly. The same friend from the last story was staring at me like she was about to burst. She thought for a moment, then exclaimed, "ah, of course! Yes, I think I remember. I remember you'd done pretty well. What grade did I give you?" I hedged my bets and said A-. Lol. I had never been filled with more pride shame in my life.

[votederpycausemufins]

The bots are all fixed!!! Well, they are physically. Mentally is another question which we’re not covering hahahahahaHAHAHA! also wack, no smp members. @petrichormeraki @helleborusangel

“There, that should do it. We might want for someone to test it out in the near future, but it does look like it’s fixed.” Xisuma spoke as both of the bots powered back on. “I can see why we had trouble before. It looks fine if you’re not actively looking for that problem specifically.”

“Thank you very much Xisuma.” Mumbo said, checking both of the bots over for his own peace of mind.

“Of course. I also got a response from Biffa in the middle of it all, and while he’s not willing to share all the details of his past, he was willing to give a few notes. As these two are player entities, natural world magic is going to help them adapt more to that. He’s willing to come visit in a few weeks to see the two of them if you’re all okay with that.”

Mumbo looked over to Grian who nodded. “That’s more your guys’ call. You both knew him much longer than me. I mean, we interacted of course and he seemed nice, but you know better.”

“Well X, I think that would be lovely.” Mumbo replied, looking back to the admin.

“You know, is it just a family thing to like people in pink, or is it just coincidence.” Grifter spoke up, making everyone look over at him exasperatedly.

“Did you have to follow us in here?” Mumbo groaned, and Grifter just nodded, feathers coming off of him as he moved from stray ones sticking to his clothes.

“Too many chickens outside. Inside’s safer. Besiiiiiiides it’s less boring in here. And I’m the one who even knew what was wrong with your kids. Also yeah, you fixed it, no need for testing.”

“You’re not lying, are you?” Grian asked, crossing his arms.

“Of course not. What would I get out of lying about it?” Grifter shrugged. “They also look like my little pumpkin rolls, so why would I want to hurt them?”

“Didn’t your version of Jrum try killing ours?” Mumbo said with a frown.

Grifter just scoffed. “I told him about the bug! He was going to make sure your kid respawned correctly. I just needed some help and for you not to know. It worked out in the end, didn’t it? It only didn’t work out for those asshole admins and me.”

“Speaking of, Tommy’s old world has a console now. Well, a console other than Grum. Is the hels version the same?” Mumbo asked, genuinely curious, though the smile that Grifter gave worried him.

“Weeeell, the short answer is no, it’s got a new admin. The longer answer is that the new admin is meee!”

“You?!”

“I’m sorry why you?! I’m not the admin here! I’m not even opped!”

“I know you’re fucking not.” Grifter rolled his eyes, pulling a stray feather off of his sweater. “Our worlds are parallel but they aren’t one to one equals, dumbass. And we’re not just influenced by the shit that happens here. May I remind you that I was a Listener when Deevo and Evo started while you only became a Watcher when it ended. Or at least close to the end. And my boys were born before you built these two. The worlds sometimes force themselves together, like NPG staying around when I was gone and my boys not functioning until yours were around or… you know… Tommy being pulled to Hermitcraft after Theseus ran off to Helscraft.”

That got everyone’s attention. “Wait, is that why Tommy doesn’t know how he got here?”

Grifter smirked. “Yeah. After Nightmare got killed, Thee got the admin powers. He was pissed over things and ran off looking for me. Of course I was imprisoned and Dad wasn’t letting anyone near me, so the best he could find was season five. Member changes are always a forced thing, so I guess something pulled Tommy here to fix it that way.

“But wait, won’t that…” Grian trailed off.

“Shove you into the SMP? Fuck no. I’m admin, but I’m not gonna live there. I’m a Listener, I can check on things while living in Helscraft. Besides, things are different with NPG around. I mean, unless I kill him-”

“Don’t you dare!”

Grifter huffed. “I wasn’t gonna! Despite how much I hate him, he was the one person caring for Sense when he was all alone, so I’ll give him that. So no death, maybe just some torture. Anyway, I’m sure you’re visiting, so it balances out. Probably.” He finished with a shrug.

“Oh joy of joys.” Mumbo groaned while Grian looked so done with the world.

While all of this had been going on, both of the bots had completely powered on. At first they just took in their surroundings, staying quiet since it was clear others were in the middle of important conversations. Then they saw each other.

With everything that had happened, the two bots had barely been in each other’s company, and when they were, they were at each other’s throats. Jrum was the first to look away in shame as he could remember most of what happened clearly, but Grum was a bit fuzzy on a number of details. He hesitated, reaching out towards his brother a bit, before just pulling his hand back.

When it seemed the conversation was coming to a close, Grum got Jrum’s attention and used his screen and hands to signal something before looking over to their dads. “Um, Dads?”

Mumbo and Grian both looked over to Grum when he spoke up. “What is it Grum?”

“Could… Could Jrum and I have a bit of time alone? To… talk with each other?”

The pair looked to Xisuma since it was his place. X nodded before helping to lead them as well as Grifter out of the room and to somewhere else.

For a few moments, both of the bots were quiet, just sitting there, unsure what to say. Then Jrum started up the conversation. “I’m sorry for being mad at you. I got all upset at Dad getting upset at family, but then I was doing the same thing.”

“You don’t need to apologize. I was the one who started things. You reacted to my actions and were influenced by those red plants.”

“Yeah, but Dream was messing with you and made you be mean!”

“No he didn’t.” Grum replied, which confused Jrum for a few moments before Grum elaborated. “I started realizing something was weird and I panicked. I was worried I would do something really bad and hurt you. I didn’t know what exactly, and I also wasn’t sure if I could safely tell you. I knew if I said something kindly or nicely asking us to distance ourselves, nothing would work until I explained more. And I didn’t want to have to deal with you asking to stay because I didn’t want you to go either. So I just sort of… let myself be mean. I can’t even blame it on someone else. It was me and only me.”

Jrum was quiet, just processing what his brother had said. Then, after a few seconds, he scooted closer and hugged Grum. “Then that’s not your fault! You didn’t know what was safe to say, and that’s because the admin was - don’t let Daddy know I said this - Dream was a piece of shit!” Grum paused before giggling a bit, not expecting his brother to say that. “What? It’s true!”

“Yeah, I know. It’s just… nice to be with you again.”

Jrum smiled and hugged a little tighter. “Yeah, and now we’re gonna be closer because we went through trauma together! Speaking of which… how long do you think we can milk this?”

Grum pulled away from the hug to rub his ‘chin’. “Well, Dad is more likely to notice we’re up to something, so only a week or two with him. But if we play our cards right, we can keep things going with Daddy for a month. Maybe even more.”

“What? That long?”

“Well, we sort of got stuck in a time displacement bubble for a month all by ourselves and got controlled by different things. We would need to be careful and not make it seem like we’re having a relapse, but if we have a, quote unquote bad day, we can definitely get a lot out of it.”

“I’m going to build a new shop.”

“Good idea, so many people will want to support us. We might even get a discount on some land in Aquoo town. From Scar and not Bdubs of course.”

“Of course, we have more sway over Scar.” Jrum nodded.

“The question is what to sell.”

“Yeah, that part’s gonna be a bit harder. Hmm, maybe a gardeni-”

“Nope! Absolutely not!”

“Ugh, rude. Hmm… Odea two?”

“Ooo, good idea, good idea. It also sounds like we could get some interaction with the SMP after this, we could outsource there. I mean, we already have the connections.”

“Oh definitely. Speaking of, I kinda said Fundy could come visit Hermitcraft a while ago. Do you think that would be allowed?”

“Oh easy. We can even get Michael and his dad to come too.”

“Yes! I’ve always wanted an actual playdate! And this time I won’t be almost killed by a clone!”

“Let’s find our dads and ask?”

“Definitely!” Jrum nodded, and the two bots jumped off of where they were sitting and went looking for their parents.

“Leave me alone Lynn.” Grian grumbled, wings puffing up.

“Not until you tell me what a Listener is doing here!” The other Watcher gestured to Grifter, who was giving her a smirk.

Grian sighed. “Basically I’m making sure he doesn’t destroy everything by keeping an eye on him. Unfortunately that means he needed to come here while I change some records.”

“Really? You changing records? I thought I’d never see the day.”

“Oh shut it. Remember that Watcher I asked about? You couldn’t find anything but I kept looking into it and found two unknown Watchers.”

“And let me guess, you figured out who they were. Was one of them Eyes?”

Grian half shrugged. “Yes and no? Uh, so both of them are my kids and Eyes is like… part of my one kid?”

“Oh you’re an idiot.”

“Hey hey hey! He’s not just an idiot, he’s also a dumbass!” Grifter spoke up, getting glares from both Watchers.

“But seriously. You used Watcher magic to build them?”

“I didn’t think I did! I mean, I guess maybe? But Mumbo was in charge of the redstone and the redstone was the mayoral reservoirs and that’s what was technically using magic.”

“I’m going to have to tell someone about this.”

“Okay. Can you just try to make sure it’s someone that’s not going to completely freak out?”

“Hmm, no promises.” Lynn replied, and then walked off before Grian could say more.

“Oh I like her.” Grifter smiled. “So how do you know each other?”

“She’s the Watcher that was in charge of at least part of the world I grew up in.”

Grifter nodded. “Well I would love to hear the stories she got from there. But that can wait. Where are we going now?”

“Records room. I need to officially list my boys as Watchers and then get their data transferred to their names.”

“Ughhhh that sounds boring. Where’s the cool stuff?”

Grian just groaned and led them to the records room, needing to give excuses to a few Watchers here and there on the way. He was able to quickly grab the needed files since he already knew where they were. Correcting the names was easy enough since they were currently unknown and waiting for the answer. Correcting other forms was harder though. Normally a Watcher had their name officialized before doing much work. Maybe once or twice based on the situation, and that was the case with Jrum seeing as how his only real use of magic was when Grian himself had triggered it. But Grum had a lot more.

Every time Grum accessed the mayoral reservoirs, he was really looking into all the political data that the Watchers had gathered over the years. That alone would be a hassle, but the fact that there was extra paperwork for accessing certain sub categories was causing more issues. Normally you needed permission for data on destroyed worlds, but of course Grum managed to bypass any blocks and get right into the data. And since he was unlisted, it had caused some more logging errors.

Grian half contemplated just flipping the table he was at. It would send paperwork everywhere, but a quick bit of magic would fix it, and it would feel gratifying. But then again, Grifter was here, and who knows how he would react. And Grian expected a worse case scenario there. “Okay, can I trust you for like three minutes to go tell Mumbo it’s going to take a while here?”

Grifter’s eyes lit up a little and he nodded. “Three minutes! Got it!” Grian immediately regretted it, but before he could say more, Grifter was gone.

Mumbo glanced at his communicator for the time. He expected Grian would take a while, but he also hoped he wouldn’t be gone too long. Plus, he was also worried that if the bots were left alone too long, they could get into trouble. He was just about to go check on them when he heard the sound of them running in his direction. 

Mumbo couldn’t help but worry about why they were running until he actually saw them. With everything that happened the past few days, his mind kept trying to jump to the worst outcome, but the moment he saw the boys smiling, it calmed him down.

“Daddy! Can we invite people over to play?” Jrum asked, looking hopeful.

“Even with everything that happened, we managed to make some friends. It would be nice to thank them by letting them get to visit here.”

“And I kinda said someone could come visit and they’re kinda our cousin and he knows Auncle Iskall so please please please can they come visit?”

“And Michael was nice too. I didn’t get to interact too much, but he seemed rather nice.”

“Pleeeeeaaaaaaaase!”

Mumbo tried to get them to calm down. “Alright, alright. I’m sure the two of you could use some time to relax and have fun. We just need to wait for your dad to come back so he could get them. It may also be a while since I’m sure he wants to wait for Tommy to want to come back too.”

“Okay! We can wait!” Jrum agreed. “Can we go check the shopping district until then?”

“I’m not sure. I should wait for your dad to come back.”

“But we are perfectly able to go on our own.” Grum pointed out. “And even if something were to happen, the shopping district is so commonly filled with others that another hermit would assist us should there be trouble.”

Mumbo hesitated, but then agreed. “Alright, but see if Iskall is home and then ask them to take you there. I don’t want something happening on the way there.”

Jrum was happy to agree, but for a moment, Grum hesitated, their screen changing a bit. “Could we possibly ask Uncle Scar instead?”

“I’m… not sure he’s around. Grum are you sure you should be going?”

Grum nodded. He didn’t want to leave Jrum alone again. “No. It’s fine. W-We can go see Auncle Iskall.”

Mumbo didn’t look completely convinced, but Jrum’s pleading look got him to look away for just a moment. “Alright, alright. Go on before I change my mind again.”

“Thank you!” Jrum smiled and started pulling Grum away. Grum followed behind, though he still looked reluctant, so once they were in the air, Jrum looked back to his brother. “Oh come on, we’re not actually gonna go get them. We’re just going to say we couldn’t find them and since Daddy didn’t give us a second option, we’re just going on our own.”

Grum nodded. “Thanks.”

“Oh don’t worry! To be completely honest, I completely agree with Grifter about chickens right now and feel like I’ll strangle and turtles I see! I sort of don’t even want to see Professor Beaks any time soon!”

“Is that about the-”

“Yeah it’s about the flipping egg!”

“Sorry.” Grum apologized and Jrum made them land so they could hug each other.

“It’s fine. We already went over a bunch. Life sucked, but apparently that’s like… a family thing. I kinda want to give Daddy trauma though just to make it equal.”

“I think he has enough from dealing with us all.”

“Hmmmm you’re probably right. Okay let’s go scam Scar!”

The two of them eventually reached the shopping district and Aqua Town. It took a little bit of searching, but they eventually found the mayor. He already wasn’t the best and giving good prices for his land, but the fact that he was also up against two traumatized children, one of which he slightly feared, didn’t help his case. In the end, he got seven diamond blocks from the bots and Grum happily started building the new shop. 

Jrum went back and forth between the plot and Odea to figure out prices and stocking the place. He was glad to see Grum was happy, and then even more when he saw their dad flying their way. “Dad! Dad! Over here!” Grian heard Jrum and flew down, landing next to the bot. “Look! We’re making a new shop!”

“Oh really? What are you going to sell?” Grian responded, and Jrum had to keep from frowning. The tone of Grian’s voice sounded off. Jrum’s best guess was that something bad happened with whatever he had been doing and he was upset at that, but Jrum also couldn’t be sure.

“Well, it’s going to be a branch of Odea. I’m hoping that if we’ve got lots of people visiting that aren’t all amazing builders and redstoners like everyone here that they’ll want to buy Daddy’s designs! And since everything is moving to Aquway Town, we’re having a place here so it’ll get noticed!”

“Oh, that sounds like a great idea! And it looks like someone’s gotten really far with building already.” Grian looked up to where Grum was standing on the scaffolding, placing blocks down.

“Yeah! I’m glad he looks so happy! Oh! By the way! When you pick up Tommy, can you also ask if Michael and Fundy want to visit? I kinda said Fundy could and then I think Michael would like it too. If his parents have to come along, I wouldn’t mind. And they’re Tommy’s friends so that way he can have people visit too!”

Grian smiled sweetly. “Oh of course we can do that! I’m sure Xisuma would be fine with it all!”

“Yay! I can’t wait!”

“Welp, I’m going to go check on the rest of Aqua Town!” Grian said, starting to walk off. “I don’t want to get too far while I wait for Tommy’s message.”

“Yeah oka- wait. Dad, what did you call this place?” Jrum asked, catching that Grian used the real name of the area.

“Uh… well I better check on Barge Co.! Eep!” Grifter started to back up, but then jumped as an egg was thrown down next to him, followed by another, and then yet another. “AHH! It’s Poultry Man! Run away!!!”

Jrum looked up to see that the eggs had come from Grum, who quickly signalled a sorry to Jrum, which the bot quickly accepted. Grum ended up gliding down to join his brother and the both of them dealt with Grifter, somehow managing to send the helsmit back to Grian, unintentionally making their Dad groan as more paperwork appeared for him.

[wisteria-lodge]

burnt snake primary + bird secondary [model?]

Hi! I have been aware of the Sorting system for a long time now but I always get stuck in typing myself. I was wondring if you could shed some light on the process.

If we go by what I score at the test, it's usually a tie between Snake and Lion primary (most likely Bird last) and Bird/Badger secondary (most likely Lion last).

Internal primary / Built secondary, I can work with that. 

If we go by the "favorite characters" test then most of them are Snake primary and/or Bird secondary. I also have found that Lion doesn't exactly mess well with me, most character with a Lion anything get on my nerves but that's not a constant.

Fictional lions can be exaggerated in a way that works as a power fantasy for real lions... but I’m mostly just interested to see if the ‘favorite character’ test works out. 

I've also come to realise in real life that i absolutely hate deception or betrayal especially if it comes from someone I trust/close to me. 

I mean... is there anyone who is like ‘yes, I’m totally cool with people I trust betraying me.’ 

I also have an issue with loyalty and honesty both so I can understand why Snake/Lion is tied for my primary. My issue with Snakes is that I don't think I have this "no matter what" support. I bond with people a lot but if they don't treat me right I will push back, I will cry, I will tell them off 

Snakes might have more trouble than Lions when it comes to breaking with people who mistreat them... and they might feel more conflicted and “sticky” afterwards, since being loyal to people is the base of their morality. But they will absolutely do it. 

Think about a Lion changing their mind versus a Bird changing their mind. They both *do* it, but since a Bird has access to all the levels of their system, it’s all very consciously constructed, and they’re used to poking at it - change isn’t usually *that* big of a deal.

But I’m a Lion. If I’m going to change my mind, I need to smacked over my head with the lesson, usually multiple times (although I’m getting better about that...) I’m going to have a mini existential crisis (those things clear out the cobwebs.) And then I’ll be emotionally recalibrated. Snakes are internal primaries just like Lion, so their process is more like that. Dropping people is hard and emotional and sticky, but when they are dropped they are dropped. Badgers, since their *reasons* for whether or not they are responsible for someone are much clearer and more accessible, have an easier time writing people off. 

if I don't get the level of intense I'm looking for I will translate that as "not caring enough" and I'll break up or if that's not possible for whatever reason i'll be miserable.

You certainly want to get Snake loyalty directed at you, and if you don’t get it, you’re miserable. And the fact that something like that would make you miserable... is making me think Snake. This is very Snake-flavored angst.

A huge sourse of pain in my life had been some things that happened with my father that I translated as him probably loving himself more than me. I always see that Snakes stay loyal to their close ones no matter what and I'm like: why would I stay unwavering to someone that hurts me? 

You wouldn’t. You shouldn’t. No one should. 

I didn't abandon my dad when he was sick but I'm pretty sure I was Burned and resnting him 24/7 (sorry for the heavy stuff).

Being a caregiver is INCREDIBLY hard (there’s a reason you can hire people to do it, and they’re payed so well.) Being a caregiver to a family member is even harder, and being a caregiver to a family member who’s hurt you is probably one of the hardest things a human being can do. It’s really, really not unusual at all to resent the sick person, and you should not feel guilty about it. 

You also mention that Snakes understand other Snakes when they put their loved ones first and maybe in real life I do it but I have a huge example of me watching a Snake primary character not cutting off his love interest when she was awful to him from my perspective (emotional manipulation, choosing others before him, rejecting him, generally not loving him) and being LIVID about it.

I guess what I would say to you... is that even though the other primaries show their love differently, it does not mean they love any less intensely. A Badger choosing someone in need instead of you does not mean they are *not* loving you. 

Generally I tend to prefer couples that have things in common and two Snake primaries together will most likely be my favorites, most of my ships are like that.

There is something very attractive about two Snakes in a relationship together, but remember that all these different primaries and secondaries do balance each other out. I tend to think that *exact* house matches make unfortunate romantic pairings. They re-enforce each other’s negative traits, get too extreme, and sometimes get stuck because they’ve only got the one way to approach, and solve a problem. 

I have been very adamant about my friends not giving manipulative people the 'get go' to do whatever they want with them because I can see the indiference and the manipulation. 

Manipulation is a problem solving strategy, indifference is a motive. They’re not the same thing.

I get mad when they don't listen to me eventhough I turn out to be right. Most of the times I have cut off people from my life is the reason I said preiously, that I don't think they give as much support as I do to them and they end up after a point on my "I don't need you in my life anymore" list.

I’m starting to think you’re a Burnt Snake. You are clearly Snake, and you want to distribute Snake loyalty to the people around you. But it doesn’t feel safe (probably because of baggage left over from your dad - he hurt you, so you’re scared that they will too.) So you’re hyper sensitive to anything that doesn’t feel like the most extreme devotion. And just like a Burnt Badger rejecting people preemptively, before they have a chance to fail them... you’re rejecting people because it hurts less than them rejecting you. 

I think Lion gets up high because I can understand the need for following a 'cause' but in my case it's not exactly a moral cause, it's simply that I always wanted to be an actress and generally expand my knowledge on cinema/TV/theatre so I studied it. I wanted to be succesful in my job and get better and better and better. I am interested in prizes but only if they come as a recognition of my skillset (if that makes sense). I always thought that people were my priority even though the goal of achieving my dreams was always guiding me but as I grow older I'm not so sure anymore. I just know I couldn't be walking through life all alone.

This sounds like a Snake with no people (who wants people.) Without people, Snakes take care of themselves, and that often look likes job, money, prizes. (It’s where the old stereotype of “ambitious” comes from.) 

When I was thinking about what I wanted to do for a living, I wanted something that would wake me up in the mornings and make me feel that my time at a job won't be wasted. 

As do we all.

But I also needed for everything to be a real job, not charity for the "cause" eventhough I have worked A LOT just because I love doing some things and not ony to get paid. But I guess these things are fueled by my love and I don't see them as "profession" per se. 

People? Until in we live in the Star Trek socialist utopia, you need to be paid for the work you do. Even if you’re working for a charity and even if you’re doing something you love. 

Another pointer towards Lion is that I do identify with the thinking of systems and how they play a part in people's lives and how they should be changed. But I'm not sure I always did this. I think I've been Burned as well at some point (not sure if I still am) so that makes things difficult.

Yeah, you’re Burned. And sometimes Burnt Snakes will latch onto a Lion Cause, the same way that Burnt Lions will latch onto an individual’s morality. That’s actually pretty common.

The secondary thing is pretty simple imo, I think I'm a Bird but I might be Burned? I don't know if that "useful/fun" situation makes a difference for me because I always think that whatever I have collected is actually useful to me and if I got new skills, they would be useful to me as well at some point.

I don't know what else to write really, I think it's quite a lot to read already. If you have an inclination about my type I'd like to hear your opinion.

You haven’t talked at all about how you solve problems. Which might relate to burning, or it might not. But if you tend to collect skills and tools, that’s at least a Bird secondary model. <3

[all-of-the-imagines-for-eve]

Touchy ~ Embry Call

A/n: MY BABYYYYYYYYYYY!

Request: "Okay here we go! Can I please get a Embry x imprint reader where she’s super affectionate and is always holding a part of Embry or sitting on him. The pack teases her a lot and she gets kinda self-conscious so she stops hanging on Embry. And he thinks that she’s scared of him but she ends up telling him what’s wrong. And the end is supper fluffy and Embry kicks their asses ! Lmao sorry if this is too much! ❤️❤️" by @sweetkiitty

A/n: I'm so sorry this is late. I got... distracted... blame Cameron Monaghan.

MASTERLIST

"Hey guys!" The boys in their usual places around Emily's table all looked up, smiling at the familiar voice.

No smile stretched further than Embry Call's though. He went to move to the girl who'd spoken, but she came in. "Hey babe." She tucked into his side, her arms wrapping around his waste as his arm went over her shoulders.

"Hey." She looked around, greeting each of the other pack members with one nod at a time. When she finished her quick trail, her gaze returned to Embry. "I miss anything?"

"Other than Embry?" Quil jabbed softly. Jared snorted next to him.

Feeling my face growing warm, I rose an eyebrow. What was wrong with missing my boyfriend? He met my gaze evenly so I looked away, feeling suddenly self conscious. "Nothing much," Embry answered, reaching over to shove Quil playfully.

Recently the boys had been making lots of comments like that. Wolf whistling when we got too close or pulled away from the others or headed out for the night. Making kissy noises any time we kissed- even if it was just on the cheek or forehead. They were relentless and never missed a moment, which they never did because Embry often had you on his mind at all times... even when he was a wolf and the others could tune into every brain train he hopped on.

At first it had been fun. I flaunted my ability to kiss Embry, grabbing him and making out with him anytime they began their teasing. They'd get worse for a second and then retreat and it would end there. But then they got braver Quil would squirm between us or Paul would hoot and holler until we stopped, getting louder as time passed. Jared would laugh so hard that he sounded like a hyena and their prodding and poking was starting to get to me.

Were they annoyed with me? Did they want me to be less affectionate? Was I making them uncomfortable? Were they trying to hint that I was doing something wrong, but I wasn't picking up on it? It wouldn't be the first time I'd been oblivious to even the most obvious clues. Just ask Embry what it was like getting me to date him.

Embry didn't seem to mind basking in the attention of the others or flaunting our relationship. He seemed to have no plans on backing off or calming down and often moved to me or pulled me closer if I tried to put some space between us. He was enthusiastic with affection. He could also occasionally read the other boys' minds and he'd back off if it was really bothering them. He wasn't just a good boyfriend- he was a good friend too. Silly and adorable and fun and lighthearted, but respectful. His mom had made sure of it.

So what was up?

"Hey, you okay Sweetheart?" I blinked and refocused on Embry as his question pulled me from my thoughts and back into reality.

Putting on a smile, I looked around to see that the others were distracted, but a few kept stealing looks. Perhaps I'd made an odd face or they'd been trying to talk to me. Oops. Embry's voice was quiet, trying to check on me without drawing too much attention. Even though the others could still hear, I kept my voice quiet as well. "Yeah. Sorry, got some things from school on my mind. Just homework.Upcoming test. The usual." He nodded and relaxed, looking back to his friends.

I reintegrated back into the conversation and soon we were all laughing and having a great time. At one point my fingers found their way into Embry's short hair, switching between fiddling with the strands and lightly running my nails against his scalp. He adored both actions and was slowly relaxing more and more underneath me. I thought it was lowkey, but Paul looked over at us with a huge smirk.

"Careful- get any louder and you'll be moaning." He winked at Embry, who snickered. My hand immediately dropped from his hair. Embry's shoulders sagged in disappointment. Embry wasn't aroused- from my position on his lap I would have felt it. Surely Paul wouldn't have said something if there wasn't something to be said though. I hadn't meant to mess with him in front of his friends. He wouldn't have said anything either, with them so in ear shit. Damnit.

"Do you guys ever part?" Jared teased a little later. We'd moved for Paul who had to go take care of some business and everyone had temporarily parted from their partner at some point to allow him to get through since he was chair locked in the corner, except for me and Embry who'd sort of just pressed closer together to make more room behind us. I hadn't really actively noticed it until Jared said something.

"Nah," Quil drawled, his smirk growing. "If she moves then we'll all see his massive boner."

"Shut up!" Embry laughed,rolling his eyes,

Emily stood, smiling. "Let me through now. It's getting late, I need to get dinner ready."

Seeing my chance, I jumped off of Embry's lap and began to trip over myself to follow her. "Let me help!"

Everyone got an odd look, especially Emily. She was very particular about cooking and we'd all resigned to just letting her do it herself since she usually ended up doing so anyway. "I'm fine," she assured softly.

"I'll do whatever you say, promise." I shot her a desperate look I prayed no one else saw. She didn't know why, but she saw my need immediately and nodded. I followd after her into the kitchen. I felt Embry's eyes on my all the way.

Maybe I was being annoying, in some way or another. I hadn't been in any other relationship. My family was small and it had been a relief when my parents got divorced. I had no idea how people who were happy together acted and it showed far too often. I could give Embry space for a little. Get the guys off his back. Off of mine as well.

Emily asked what was wrong but I brushed it away and she let it drop. For now. This wasn't a big deal. I couldn't overthink it. So I didn't.

I quickly failed and overthought the hell out of it.

What kinds of intimacy should I limit around other people? Were short kisses still okay? Loving staring contests? How much should I pull myself from touching him? Should I hang out with him less? Let him just hang out with other people less? For how long? Should I just take a break, or should I learn how to bother him with my presence less? Perhaps I was too needy and needed to calm down in general.

Why was this so hard?

Short story even shorter, it didn't take Embry a long time to notice my odd activity. After spending every second of every day I was allowed to, attached to him in some way or another, my forced distance and the awkward way I. Was handling him was obvious and painful. After a whole day of me just not touching him because I was hyper overthinking, he finally reached out for me. I tried to find a middle but I was an extreme person. Being allover him was easy. So was not touching him at all. I could set a clear line and rules and not cross them. Where did you step when it was all grey though and you had to make precise movements? Lines that shaped boxes were solid and dark for a reason. It was impossible to navigate without the star difference and clear paths.

Finally, Embry snapped. He found me during lunch one day and pulled me aside, his face clouded with far too many emotions. Fear; guilt; worry; confusion. Maybe more I couldn't quite place. None of them made sense. "Are you okay?"

"Never been better." A white lie. The teasing had died down and I definitely felt better about myself, but I was also massively anxious and craving Embry's touch and it was driving me just a little mad.

He rose an eyebrow. "Are... we okay?" The fear and worry rose a little and suddenly all the buried confusion that left his face rose to my own.

"So far as I know."

He pursed his lips.We seemed to be at an impasse, unsure how to approach a problem neither of us were sure the exact shape of. See? Back at this gray in between kind of there kind of not line again. Things needed to be straight forward! This was ridiculous!

"You've been distant lately," he started slowly, allowing me time to process and jump in whenever.

I shrugged. I felt extremely self conscious. What was I just saying about being straight forward? Geez I was a mess. "Um... I figured maybe you and the guys wanted me to back off a little?"

Embry's face was wiped of all expression, a new one taking place of all of them: surprise. "Why would you ever think that?"

Now I felt silly. "Uh, I don't know." I looked away, shuffling. "The guys' relentless teasing, I guess. They seem to be really annoyed by my neediness and I was thinking maybe they were acting like that because they were uncomfortable. I know I've been stealing you from Quil a lot recently, and distracting you during hang outs. I thought maybe you were secretly feeling smothered and were too nice to say anything." He looked absolutely bewildered and I scrambled to make sense of it. "I just- it seemed that they were hinting at something very strongly, because that's usually the level someone reaches when I'm missing something big. Constantly doing the same thing, repeating certain words or phrases, long eye contact and pointed looks..." My voice faded out.

Embry began grinning brightly, his hands reaching up to cup my face. "You dork. They're all very affectionate, and they can't rough house and play around like they could with me, so they made a different approach. You're kind of like one of the guys- really fun and energetic. Down to go out and do things. They still haver to be super careful though, so that... friendship, I guess, shows up in what they can do: they tease. A lot." He blushed. "They thought it would be fine after you started to retaliate and laugh along with us."

My hands rose to cover my face as realization dawned on me. "I'm such an idiot."

Embry began laughing as he reached up to pull them away. "Don't hide that pretty face from me." He leaned down, pressing a little kiss to the tip of my nose. My anxieties melted away and I couldn't help but done a sweet smile. "At least you're my idiot."

I shoved him and he allowed it to have impact for my benefit. "You jerk!" We both began laughing before moving close again, him pulling me under his arm and into his side.

"You know, you keep being sassy and retaliating with that amazing confidence you have, and I'll beat them up for you, yeah? You can cheer me on."

Little giggles rolled from me. "I'd love that."

Embry kept his promise. The next time we were with the others we unabashedly cuddled and kissed and touched each other being as heavy with PDA as usual. Quil started up first, oohing and aweing. Paul started up with the whistling and even Jake joined in with the kissy noises. Jared ignited that usual laugh, making suggestive gestures in an effort to make me blush or become awkward.

Embry gave a huge sigh and moved to them, leaving me behind in the chair. He played it casual until he got close to Quil, who started it. He then hooked his friend under his arm in a head lock. The boys began rough housing; thankfully, we were already outside so Emily didn't have to worry about it.

People started making bets as the two laughing boys began to get rough. Jared and Paul cheered and Jake came over, throwing an arm around me. "Hey I just wanted to say... sorry." He gave me a small smile. "I know Embry's been worried about you for the last while and since this-" he motioned to Quil and Embry. "-is a thing, I assume it's their fault. They won't apologize, but they really don't mean any harm."

I grinned. "You know, I think I'm catching on. Boys are idiots."

We both laughed before he nodded and admitted, "Yeah. We really are. Especially when it comes to girls we have feelings for, or girls our friends have feelings for."

I grinned so wide it hurt, my face red and radiating heat. It was like having a whole gang worth of brothers. Maybe I'd been embarrassed before, but now I was so glad to have each and every one of them. It wasn't just me- we were all idiots. That's what made us so very, very fun.

What made us family.

"You think Embry or Quil will win?"

Jake shot me a devious grin. "Money's totally on Quil."

I smirked. "You're on." I ran ahead a little so Embry could hear when I screamed, "KICK HIS ASS BABE!"

The boys all erupted into laughter around me.

It was absolutely perfect.

-

Forever Tag List: @bitchyseawitch @alexa-playafricabytoto @chipster-21 @captainxmikaelson @justanotherdaydreamersoul

[creativia10]

Janus in Wickhills Part 4

Notes: (Continuation of recursive fic of @/tulipscomeinallsortsofcolors 's Love and Other Fairytales series

Previous parts Janus in Wickhills Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)

This is an au of Laoft where Remus came back several years earlier, and Linda isn’t in the picture yet. Also takes place some time after Logan has become the Seelie court rep.

Ch 4

They went back to the house the normal way.

Roman and Mamaw already appeared to be looking through some books on witch magic. They both looked up as the three came back into the house.

“Did you find anything out?” Ro asked.

L and V looked at each other. Then V sort of shrugged.

“Possibly? We found some significant information-“

“But it doesn’t necessarily bring us more insight into this” L said gesturing at Janus.

Janus pursed his lips.

“We’re going to try some other things out to see if we can gather anything else.”

Ro started to get up, “Do you need-“

“No, dear.” L stepped forward and held Ro’s hands.

Just then, a cat hopped up onto the table Ro had been reading at, and gave a loud miffed meow towards Ro. Ro gave the cat a look, but then turned back as L continued.

“You are fine as you are. You are the most qualified here to help us search through magic books. You are being very helpful.”

Ro blushed at that and looked away. He then mumbled, “It’s not like we’re the only witches around here or anything.”

L simply smiled, leaned in and pecked Ro’s cheek. V smiled softly at them.

“Oh, go on like I am not contributing just as much if not more,” Mamaw called out.

L huffed, “I thought the plural ‘you’ was implied!”

Ro snickered. Mamaw was clearly fighting a smile, so L let it go. He squeezed Ro’s hands one more time before turning back to V and Janus.

“Should we wait for our songbird for this?” He asked. “We certainly can’t do everything, as we are fae ourselves.”

V tilted his head, then shook it.

“Not for all of it. He loves working at the bakery, I don’t want to pull him away from it.”

L nodded with a soft smile.

“Very well. Perhaps I should get some of my family members to help then?”

V hmmed.

“If they’re comfortable with it.”

They turned to Janus.

“Is that alright?”

Janus hesitated.

“I guess.”

L stepped towards him.

“Don’t worry, my family members are good people. I don’t think they would do anything unprovoked.”

Janus nodded hesitantly. It’s not like he had a lot of options then anyways. L got his phone out to see if his brother was home. When he got an affirmative, the three of them walked through the woods and into town.

Apparently they did not have a ready car, as they lived in the woods, so they were walking for now. L turned to Janus but paused before speaking. Janus was about to ask him what was up, when V quickly hopped into a shadow thing and came back, holding out Janus’ hat.

“Apparently we forgot your hat by the hammock.”

Janus mouth formed an O, and he sheepishly put his hat back on, trying to angle it like he had the other night at the revel despite knowing that would not be enough. Janus looked around as they walked, trying to see if he would get something from this. He wasn’t sure how to describe what he was seeing. It felt familiar but not. And there was definitely a twinge of magic feeling in the air, as to be expected from a town like Wickhills. Although he wasn’t sure how he knew that.

When they got to L’s family’s house, they waited outside for his brother to come out to greet them.

When Janus saw L’s brother come outside, he was immediately struck with the similar appearances the two had. Yet, there was a lack of the faery features that were prominent on L.

Changeling, his mind supplied, although he wasn’t sure how he knew that.

The brother stood on the steps for a moment staring at Janus. Janus shifted in discomfort.

“Bug. I would like your assistance, as we are met with a situation we are unsure what to do with.”

‘Bug’ looked at Janus then to L.

“Yeah, I am getting that feeling.” He walked over to L.

“He has told us we may call him Jay. He woke up on the forest floor with amnesia.”

“We were hoping you could help us to test if he is fae considering,” L said.

Bug looked confused.

“O…k. Why not have your nonfae husbands help?”

“Roman is looking through witch books with nana to see if they can find more info on what may have happened to Jay, and Patton is at the bakery.”

“We, uh, didn’t want to interrupt him,” V said.

Bug smiled a little and nodded.

“Alright. I’ll get some stuff from inside and I’ll meet you in the back yard.”

He took a step back to the house and then turned to L again.

“Am I hiding that you’re here from mom and dad?” Bug asked a little quieter.

L sighed. “I just did not want to worry them.”

Bug nodded. “Alright.” Then he went back into the house. Janus followed the two fae around the house to the back.

Janus wanted to ask about L and his brother’s relation, but he wasn’t sure if he should.

Then again, he wanted to understand what this test would pertain.

“So…your family is human?” Janus asked.

L gave Janus an unreadable look.

“…yes. I am a changeling. My parents were able to get my brother back from the faery who left me with them, but they refused to give me back.”

Janus tilted his head, having never heard of such a thing.

“How did they manage that?”

“I believe there was a variety of factors. For one, they had armed the house up with faery charms, so she was unable to go inside or really outright do anything to them despite their refusal.”

“Oh wow.”

Janus couldn’t help but wonder what kind of people his parents were to be willing to keep a changeling child like that. He was almost afraid to ask why they chose to, out of fear that would offend him.

“and yet…you represent the seelie court now,” Jay said instead.

After a moment L nodded. Before he could ask more careful questions about that, L’s brother came back out holding some different things.

“Ok, hopefully these will do it. Although this could be difficult, as I am assuming we do not want to cause harm, and most ways to tell if someone is a faery when you’re not fae or a witch, is by wards.”

“Actually, that reminds me. Do you think it would be helpful to have your boyfriend come over? Since you’re trying to figure out what’s going on, and his double sight could be helpful,” L said.

Bug seemed unsure.

V seemed hesitant. “Only if he’s comfortable with it.”

“I get the sense he is still freaked out by this Wickhills magical stuff,” Bug said.

L pondered.

“V, do you know if anyone ever looked at your brother through a hag stone?”

V tilted his head then shook it.

“As far as I know, no. I didn’t let Grettie or her family get anywhere near him.”

“So we don’t know if his appearance from double sight would have a similar affect to seeing V,” L mumbled.

“Um, excuse me-“ Janus waved a hand to get their attention. “I’m confused. What are you talking about here?”

Bug seemed confused, but L adjusted his tie and turned to Janus.

“We discovered that my brother’s boyfriend has something called double sight. Basically, when he wears an iron ring that he has, on a specific hand, he is able to see past magical glamor, and can essentially see the magical auras of fae, witches, and those who were blessed by a fae gift. A hagstone is a special type of rock with a hole in it that has a similar affect if one were to look through it.”

“…okay. And why are you concerned about me being seen through it?”

L sighed.

“Because, my brother’s boyfriend freaked out upon seeing V’s true form with his double sight, and as we don’t know your origin, we do not know what he may see and if it would freak him out similarly.”

Bug then said, “I can at least ask him, and we’ll just have to try and be careful. Maybe it’ll be helpful if we’re aware to help him out the moment anything seems off. He’s trying to get more used to these things, since yall are part of my family. In fact, he might even be glad to feel helpful, as he probably still feels somewhat awkward around you guys.”

V nodded and L shrugged. Bug smiled. “Cool, I’ll ask him, and we can start while we wait.”

“Why do you call him bug anyways?”

They jumped a little at the question and looked at him. Janus immediately felt sheepish. That seemed kind of random given their previous topic of conversation. It’s not like that was something he needed to know. Bug rubbed the back of his neck.

“It’s just kind of a nickname from when I was kid. Like how I call him Berry.”

Janus snorted a little, then composed himself.

“Alright, that’s cute.”

L blushed a little at that. V smiled with some mirth.

“I do believe you may be distracting us though.” L said then. Janus gaped. He wasn’t really doing it on purpose. V narrowed his eyes some, before L patted his hand.

“I am suggesting it’s a nervous thing dear, nothing else.”

V relaxed a little at that. Bug looked between the three of them, seeming unsure.

“How about we go over this first?”

They nodded.

“Jay, do you know anything about fae wards?” Bug asked him. Jay’s eyes widened, having not expected the brother to ask him something directly.

“Um, I am not sure actually. I mean, I must know some things, as I could tell L was a changeling when I saw your similar appearances.”

“Hm.” Bug grabbed one of the things he brought out.

“Uh,” he looked at the other two fae there, “Did you two want to like back up or something?”

Okay, that was a nerve-racking statement.

V scoffed. “I am the lord of the forest. I can likely handle human versions of faery wards.”

L nodded a little, “I will probably be ok. I would not put myself in harm.”

Bug still seemed unsure, but he nodded. He held out a daisy. Janus looked at the daisy, then looked back up at Bug with a raised eyebrow.

“What-“

“Just, come a little closer.”

Janus sighed and rolled his eyes and he walked up to the daisy held out. He squinted and bent towards it. Almost immediately he wrinkled his nose as a sudden itchiness hit him. Bug stepped back just in time to avoid getting sneezed on.

“Okay, so that’s one.” Bug said, throwing the daisy back away from him.

Janus sighed.

“Oh? and that’s a sign of allergies as well, I would think.”

Bug shrugged. “Yeah, that’s why it’s one of the less harmful deterrents. Ah, here’s one that can’t be put off as an allergy.”

He held out a jar of honey.

“Honey is known to cause good neighbors to get drunk.”

“I’m sorry what?” Janus asked in bewilderment. He looked around at the others who nodded.

“I am not sure how you would feel about that, though,” Bug continued.

“Perhaps we should go with a different one?” L asked. Bug nodded.

“Here’s another one that can’t be explained any other way, seeing as I am not a witch. Kids used to torment us with this one,” Bug said and then he proceeded to take his shoes and socks off. Janus looked on with furrowed brows. Bug then turned his socks inside out and started to put them back on. Janus was about to ask what the brother was doing, when in a blink, suddenly the brother was gone. Janus jolted and looked around.

“What…the hell”

L and V shared a knowing look.

“Did-did you see where he went? Wha-how”

Suddenly the brother reappeared, startling Janus again.

“Well, that answers that.”

“…what?”

Bug finished putting his footwear back on.

“Humans turn their clothes inside out to hide from the view of fae.”

“…what?”

“In other words,” L stepped forward, “If he disappeared for you when he turned his socks inside out, that’s a sign that you are, after all, a fae.”

“…why would that even work anyways?”

V half-smiled at that. “Do you really expect us to be able to explain why every magical happenstance with faeries happens?”

Janus paused then shrugged. He…wasn’t sure what to make of this. It made sense, sort of , given what they had already said, with observation. Somehow, it didn’t sound right though. How would he not feel like he was? Maybe he should ask L more about his changeling situation, that was the closest thing he could think of.

“Jay?” L asked.

“Hmm?” Janus looked up. L looked at him with concern.

“Are you alright?”

Janus frowned. He didn’t know how to answer that.

“Hey,”

They looked over to V, who was looking up from a silvery rectangular device he had been leaning over and fluttering his fingers across for some reason.

“I was letting them know what we found. Wren just got off work, so Ro suggested we all meet up at a picnic, by twin cliff falls, like we used to. How would you feel about that?” V asked.

Janus narrowed his eyes. “…a picnic?”

“Yeah. Ro likes to throw together picnics for us, although he doesn’t do that as much since we moved into our house in the woods together. He has also invited Remus. Cricket, would you care to come as well? Your boyfriend can meet with us there.”

Bug smiled at that.

“Sure, that sounds fun. I kind of thought that spot was a place just the four of you liked to go to.”

V shrugged.

“It was, but it’s still a nice spot. I don’t really mind.”

Bug nodded. “Alright, I’ll send him the invite. Do we need to bring anything?”

“I don’t think so, but I can ask. You know, you are in that group chat too.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Janus asked. They looked at him.

“How did he communicate the picnic thing to you?”

V frowned. “Ah, he texted us.” V said, and wiggled the device he was holding. “On the phone.”

“…text? and that does not look like a phone to me.”

They all shared looks.

“Ah, it’s a newer type of phone. And texting is like sending a typed message through it. Here, I’ll show you,” V carefully showed him the flat part of his device, that had blinking words on it. Janus’ face pinched, as he had trouble wrapping his head around this device.

“W-“

“How about we talk more about this when we get there, yeah?” Bug cut in. Janus shrugged. He was just confused though.

“Ok, cool. I’ll go tell mom and dad what we’re doing.”

“And yes, Bug, it’s fine to let them know we’re going there for a picnic.”

Bug nodded before he headed back into the house.

[so-i-dont-forget-again]

So I Don’t Forget Again: A Breath of The Wild fanfiction

Entry 160: ???

 Below the mountain is this trail. Somewhere along the trail is this place, there a mountain with a statue of a horse on top, and the little area is shaped like a horseshoe. We were riding towards it. Zelda thanked me for the advice I had given about horses, but she never said exactly what. Maybe it was for training or bonding? Maybe she directly said my words? She did say something about soothing your companion so they know how you feel, but she just started so abruptly I don’t think I quite caught it. She wasn’t sure about adorning her horse with all the royal gear, thinking it’d have to earn it, but she decided to be more empathetic and give them the benefit of the doubt, whatever that meant. But she was looking directly at me, not in the way when you talk to someone but like the comment, giving the benefit of the doubt to me? She also seemed different in this memory, more relaxed and open. I guess we had become friends, but I’m not sure. When we arrived at the place we got off our horses.

The sun was setting and she pointed out Mt. Lanayru. It’s named after the goddess of wisdom. The goddess said that no one younger than seventeen can step foot on the mountain because they are not wise. I find that rather odd. I don’t think age dictates how wise someone is. I’m a hundred and something years old, and by far I believe Sidon, Kass, and even the children in Kakariko and back home are wiser than me, but in different ways. The children know how to take responsibility when needed but also how to just let go and have fun when needed, Sidon he just understands everyone so amazingly on an emotional level I often overlook, even when the person I’m trying to understand is myself, and Kass, he knows how to stay true to himself, he follows his heart and is such a comforting presents, maybe that’s something he learned from being a father. I however, I struggle with all those things, but I know how to battle and I know how to keep going even when I can’t take any more! It think everyone is wise, but it different ways, it just depends on their experience, and age just says how long your experience was, but it’s doesn’t… age doesn’t show the quality of your experience. I could be wrong, since I’m not wise in… whatever this is, self-reflection? I don’t think that quite describes this, but if a goddess of wisdom thinks wisdom is dictated by age, I might just laugh at her, she doesn’t seem to know much, but I could just be horribly wrong about that.

The princesses had tirelessly trained at the other springs, the spring of courage and the spring of power but she had yet to unlock her powers and so she was hoping the spring of wisdom would finally do it. There was no evidence the spring of wisdom would be different from the others, but there was always the chance, after all… your life could always change completely in just a single moment. Tomorrow was going to be her seventeenth birthday, and she was going to go there.

It… has been a while since I last found a memory. I checked the slate and indeed this was one of the locations. I wonder… Why do I only remember something at these locations, and why only Zelda, and the champions? Why do I never recall my family, or the time before preparing for the Calamity. Why is it never anything before that?

I recall there being the goddesses, but I never really thought about them, or questioned them… They seem rather cruel. Even if it was to test me, it’s not fair to trap living beings just for me to take their scale and place it in water to unlock a shrine. What else have these gods done? Did they set up all the shrine tests? Did they force the Sheikah members to be sealed away in them, to be forced to live in cages till I arrive and complete the trial and allow them to die? What are these gods like, truly. I’d like to know. It’d be nice to know why they did what they did, and if I’m just misinterpreting their actions.

In the memory, I was also riding a black and white horses, it was mostly black with only a little white, but… maybe if Sidon reincarnates, maybe Friend dose too.

If I ever get the chance to meet her again, I just wish I could say I’m sorry, and promise to try to be a better traveling companion for anyone who travels with me, even if they aren’t her.

The castle is so close by and I can see three long red lines of light pointing to it from the Divine Beasts. It’s so eerie seeing the place, those odd pillars pointing to it and that dark smog that shrouds the place.

There’s a deep chasm that a bridge crosses, when nearing it, I heard Kass! He was surprised to see us; I think we more so startled him since he even lost his footing for a moment and almost fell over. First thing I did was thank him for telling Sidon I needed help, of all people I think Sido really was the only one who could guide me through all that. He told me I was looking much better and admitted that I had him really worried for a time. He knew Sidon and I were close and he couldn’t imagine anyone else who could be of better help to me, and he also knew Sidon would want to know about my less than poor condition. I loved getting to talk with Kass again. I told him about how I have the infection that’s eating me and about my dark thoughts, about being some hero when I don’t feel like one, how all that was just taking such a toll. Kass understood completely how all that could be so strenuous, he told me as much as he loves the isolation of exploration, often when left in your own head for too long you end up hurting yourself, that’s why keeping your connections with others is all the more important. People need other people, it’s as simple as that.

He told me he knew of a song of the area, and asked if I wanted to do some puzzle solving again. “When a single arrow threads two rings, the shrine will rise like birds on wings.” This song is rather self explanatory he admitted but because it had been so long since I last had traveled he thought this simple song would be good to get my footing back. There are many oddly shaped rocks around here, some piled atop one another, some not, but almost all of them have a hole that goes through them, so all I had to do was shoot an arrow through two rocks. We had gone searching for a while, some seemed like they might work, but no matter how I shot the arrow wouldn’t reach. Kass taught me a few things about bows and techniques on how to shoot farther, even with that though it didn’t work. We wondered if there was more to this than meets the eye, but we couldn’t figure out anything else. Eventually we did find the right alignment and rocks and when I shot my arrow through them a shrine unborrowed itself from the ground. It took even longer to collect all my arrows, we really should have collected them right after I shot them, but we were kind of impatient and wanted to solve this. We speculated on how Sheikah technology works again, how any sort of technology could recognize that specifically an arrow was shot through both and not two people each shooting through a different rock with great timing or an arrow was shot and it wasn’t some fast bug that happened to fly though both.

It was night so Kass, Bossa Nova, and I set up camp. Kass asked if I was sure I didn’t want to sleep in the shrine. I told him I was okay now, I could get some sleep, and protect everyone from the Yiga Clan, and skeletons and other monsters. Kass asked for me to sleep tucked under his wing. His feathers are much softer and warmer than any blankets or clothing.

Kass asked me how Sidon was doing. He hadn’t seen Sidon since telling him about my looking unwell. He then chuckled and told me I must have had a good time with how I was blushing. He wondered aloud about perhaps writing a song about the love between the great adventurer and Prince of the Zora. I just blushed more. He told me it was kind of obvious though when he saw my new armor piece with Sidon’s scale in it. I think Kass took too much joy in flustering me. I asked Kass how his family was doing. He told me they were safe and staying in the village. How he worded it was odd though and I asked about it. It’s been too dangerous to fly as of late, everyone is earthbound unless they want to be lit aflame in the sky. I know Kass has his own things to do but I asked him if he could lead me to his village. For now I’m going to sleep while Kass keeps look out, then the moment the sun rises we’ll set off.

First Page , Previous Page , Next Page 

[phytolacca-a]

A writeup on my most recent try on ABAXACATABAX charms:

I’m reuploading this with additions. I DO NOT intend this to be a How To post. I’m just wanting to share what I did as well as possible expansions since it’s a pertinent time.

Intended Use: Driving out (and protecting from) all sickness and illness for my immediate family members and I. Particularly to help fight against the virus going around. I feel that this charm can be very versatile in application, so I decided to test how it’d work for this situation.

(From Folk Witchcraft, Roger Horne)

Result Findings/Thoughts, My Procedure, Etc.:

————————————————————————-

TLDR, Current Results/Thoughts: 

- 3/18/20: So far the only thing I’ve been told is that last Monday night (the night after I gave the charms to the 3), they each separately noticed they slept much better than usual and the two who wake up super early slept in a longer (healthy) amount. They each noticed this unrelated to each other, and I never mentioned anything about sleeping to them or even when thinking about the effects. My hopeful guess is this: the good-sleeping effect, presumably by the charm, is related to how getting better and restful sleep is associated with strengthening the immune system and helps get rid of sickness. I will see how it goes going forward.

- Edit, 3/21/20: I feel as though the biggest tests of these charms will be in the next week or two. Will be looking out for any hard notice of it working.

- Edit #2, 3/21/20: I believe I’ve noticed the method of which these charms might work through. I made these, or at least started, in the hour of the Sun on a Sunday. It’s occurred to me that the “drive out sickness” aspect is possibly more... prevalent, violent than expected. But although there have been correlations of sickness bubbling up and either dissipating or exiting the body while wearing the charm, that’s all I can say currently- there’s correlations. But I do believe that a main aspect of this charm is turning out to actually physically drive out whatever sickness from the wearer, at least in some capacity.  So far, here’s what the others have said: My grandmother has said that she believes it seems to be working as intended, as she’s said “Well I think it must be working as I could have been a lot worse off” (in talking about something that happened, related to my correlation of it possibly helping literally drive out sickness.) My stepfather has told me that he’s felt that the charm has been protecting him from getting sick since wearing it, as he travels most of the week and has not gotten ill from the heightened human contact. But like I said, the true tests I think are in the next coming weeks. Will be on the lookout.

————————————————————————-

Prep:

I did this last Sunday, starting in the hour of the Sun although I didn’t end up finishing within the hour. I gave offerings to the Sun in asking for aid in my magic working. I had Elderberries and Bay Leaves, paper, pen & pencil, felt and thread. I can’t find the pestle to my mortar so I tried using a blunt end of something in a bowl. Spoilers: trying to crush the Elderberries like that did not work very well at all. I also took inspiration in preparation from Gemma Gary’s Traditional Witchcraft for charmmaking.

Working:

I began by trying to cast a circle.

I cut out 4 3x3in pieces of paper. I then began writing the ABAXACATABAX charm out in pencil. On the other side, I wrote down what the charm is to do which is something I neglected to last time I tried this. I then drew the symbol of the Sun above the will.

This is when I began empowering the attributes. I poured dried Elderberries into a bowl and began trying to pound and crush them into a powder. While I did this, I closed my eyes and continuously repeated what I wanted it to do loud as I pounded the berries. This went on for a long time, probably a longer time than I realized.

Even though this crushing didn’t actually work (most of them were mostly whole…) I felt like I managed to do what I was going for anyways even if I didn’t get powder out of it.

After this I began to go over the penciled words in ink, to finalize what I wrote. Because I was just tracing, I was able to start chanting again forcefully. And again I slipped into that sort of state where I could just repeat it without thinking about it. Whenever I became aware of myself saying the words, I would switch up the phrasing and slip back in until I became aware again.

After this, I put some Elderberries in the center of the paper and folded it like how Gemma Gary’s book described. Four corners in, fold, fold, then making the cloth holders for the charm. Before/while I did that though, I put the folded papers on a tray, circled them in Elderberries and sat a candle right in the middle of them to hopefully empower them more. I used what I had to make portable holders for the charms, which was red felt and white thread. I tried to empower a bay leaf as I took it into four pieces to place inside the little pouches as I was almost done stitching the sides. I grabbed a pinchful of Elderberry not-powder and put some in. I then picked up each charm paper and placed them in, ending off with a little bit more Elderberry and stitched it up.

I made little loops in the felt to place cord through to wear.

After they were all sealed up, I lit another candle (the only one I had at the time was a little red one) in wanting them to soak in extra continuous juice. I lit some incense. I passed each charm into and through the smoke from underneath it to seal them. I then left the charms around the second candle for the rest of the night; I kept reading Gemma Gary mention leaving spells and charms to “cook” so I figured I’d try even though I don’t have a proper working altar or anything yet.

Possible Issues:

Other than the fact I said that making these charms might have been the messiest spellworking I’ve done yet, there’s one large thing. The good news, is this is only for me and shouldn’t effect the other charms. When I was folding the first charm paper, one of the Elderberries I had in there popped out and ripped the paper. I made sure not to let that happen to the others, and made sure to give myself the possibly faulty charm as I’m in the least danger. This might render my specific charm bunk. Or at least, maybe not as strong as it should be or would be. But I’m not entirely sure this even negatively affected it at all; which would be cool if it didn’t! If I find out it did, I’ll just end up redoing mine.

The other issue was the timeframe. This goes into the messiness, but I took SO much longer than I thought I would making these. I started at the start of the Sun’s hour, and ended sometime in Mercury’s hour. I don’t know yet how exactly this affected my working, if at all?

I’ve yet to do divination on this working.

Things I’d Like to Consider for Changes/Additions:

I think that there’s worth in a change in planetary approach; I’ve been discussing a little bit of this with someone who utilized Mercury rather than the Sun for the charm which seems to have turned out less seemingly violent in approach and rather more preservative-protective. So, something I think I will consider more are other combos rather than just utilizing the Sun, possibly adjusting for the context of the situation of use. I’d still like to feed the charms semi regularly to continue the usage, so I might utilize the different combos of planets in the way I refuel/feed? Not sure, but I’ll be considering it. 

But yeah. I’m hopeful for these charms and I’ll be continuing to monitor them as time goes on!!

[abraxos-is-toothless]

Undercover- Throne of Glass AU (1)

This was meant to go up Friday but my new laptop turned up late, and from now on the schedule should be a Thursday/Friday.

Warnings: Swearing and brief mentions of violence. I’ll update these as the story progresses.

Prologue.

Full Masterlist.

—————

Aelin couldn’t help but grin from as she watched her family bicker amongst themselves. They were in the house they all used for small gatherings including family dinner and movie night or for when they were waiting for new recruits to arrive, such as now.  She was sat at the edge of the room in her window seat where she could see every exit and could have her eyes on every person in the room. Manon and Dorian were sparring in the middle of the room, neither one of them managing to keep the other down for very long before they were at each other’s throats once more.

Aedion and Lysandra were curled up on the loveseat together, the dark haired girl giggling at whatever her cousin had just whispered in her ear, which in turn made Aelin want to smile and gag at the same time. Elide was cleaning her gun as she sat on the floor between Ren’s legs as he braided the girls hair. And last but not least, Chaol was currently fussing over a pregnant Yrene who would bat his hands away and kept threatening to poison him if he didn’t stop.

The last group of muscle they had hired turned out to be undercovers that Aedion convinced her should be left alive, unfortunately, not to mention that they were absolutely fucking useless considering their backgrounds. This time around, Aelin allowed Elide to do the search because the girl was not only capable of killing a man twice her size in under a minute; she was also the biggest nerd and hacker amongst them. Her second in command had pulled through, and when she came to Aelin a few days ago to show her the files, she was told she could have whatever new knives she wanted for such an amazing find. The smaller girl had grinned that awful grin which even terrified Manon sometimes.

Everyone was on alert in a second at the sound of the doorbell and had moved into place by time it had stopped ringing through the house. Aelin was now seated behind her desk with her feet up and hands folded across her stomach.

Celaena Sardothien was present now.

The others were spread about the room, her cousin to her right and Elide to her left, while Lysandra went to greet the new recruits. It would have been Yrene once upon a time, but Celaena refused to let her when she told everyone about the baby. That was their one rule. You do not harm a child. And the gods fucking help you if you do.

Lys came back into the room and wiggled her brows at Celaena before moving to stand beside Ren at the back as five very tall, tanned and muscled men came through just behind her. The first to enter was the man she knew to be one Rowan Whitehorn, sporting an incredibly bored look, much like his second. Lorcan Salvaterre was right on his heels, followed closely by the rest of this little band of misfits. The twins, Fenrys and Connall, she remembered, were the only one with smiles on their faces. Mischievous was a correct description. Vaughan was quiet and looked quite shy on the outside, but she knew he was calculating and planning as he scanned the room and the people inside of it. The last to enter was Gavriel. She hadn’t noticed before, you can’t ever see things in photos, but as he stood before her now in the flesh, there was a familiarity about him that she couldn’t place exactly.

Celaena smirked, making an obvious show of looking them up and down as she spoke, “Gentlemen, welcome. It’s so lovely to finally meet you all.”

They all gave a short bow of their heads with a muttered “Miss Sardothien”.

Manon snorted at that and was promptly glared at when it didn’t go unnoticed by the men before her. The witch rolled her eyes and went back to looking at her nails as if she was entirely uninterested, yet she was the complete opposite.

“Please boys, ignore the formalities. You may call me Celaena,” each of them were clearly about to nod once more but she continued before they could, “if you can survive one little test.”

oOoOo

Rowan was now regretting this whole assignment. Sardothien was an entitled brat that clearly thought this whole thing was a god damned game. She was nineteen years old and had somehow inherited Rhoe Galathynius' empire. It would have made sense to go to Ashryver, being one of the only living relatives Rhoe had left. The whole thing was absurd if you asked him and he couldn’t wait until he and the Cadre had taken everything apart piece by piece.

He wouldn’t let her know how he felt so through gritted teeth he asked, “A test, Miss Sardothien?”

Celaena stood and walked around to the other side of her desk and leaned back against it, still smiling. Rowan didn’t think that he liked that smile which quite clearly said trouble was brewing.

“Yes Whitehorn, a test. Am I not allowed to test people who wish to work for me as I see fit?”

Fucking hell, if this carried on then the mission would be over faster than they expected because he had killed her. “Of course you are. I apologise if I made it sound otherwise.”

He received nothing other than a raised brow and quick once over.

Bitch.

“As I was saying before I was interrupted, if you pass this little test, you’re all hired. If not, well, you won’t be suited here.”

Holding back an eye roll at something as childish as a test, he conceded, “What test ma’am?”

“See how polite this one is Havilliard, why have you never called me ‘ma’am’?” she called out to one Dorian Havilliard, who Rowan knew to be Celaena’s mercy killer. He had the unfortunate job of killing one of their members if any of their injuries were too severe to treat. No matter what business they may be in, he felt for the man and hoped he’d never have to do such a thing for one of his own. He banished the thought when he heard Dorian scoff before her Royal Highness continued.

“If your second here can last at least five minutes in a sparring match against my own second, we have a deal.”

Lorcan, ever one to prove he was better than most, agreed before Rowan could say anything and that time he did roll his eyes.

“Done.” He sneered as he turned to the right of the woman to face Aedion and beckoned for him to come forward. Within seconds of that display the whole room began laughing and more importantly, Blackbeak full on cackled as she noticed their shocked faces. He realised why when a strong feminine voice full of mockery and laughter said;

“I’m over here sweetheart.”

He turned to see Elide Lochan in all her tiny glory, giving his second a smile that even sent shivers down his own spine. There wasn’t much about her in the file they had, just that she was an excellent techy and had disposed of her own Uncle after he tried to sell her off into some underground prostitution ring over in France. No wonder she was second in command when she was so inconspicuous. He should have guessed.

Rowan had barely any time to process the information before she moved faster than he could blink, landing a powerful left hook to Lorcan’s jaw which resulted in his ass meeting the floor.

oOoOo

Having a woman hand him his ass should not have turned Lorcan on, but by the gods it did.

She was a feisty little fireball and Lorcan hadn’t had such a tiring workout since that day six years ago when Whitehorn had nearly killed him and beat him black and blue. He had been an angry, hateful mess after the accident and no one could out last that icy rage for very long. So he had endured it full force until the silver haired had broken down in his arms.

Sardothien did indeed call time after what were a very long five minutes and the two of them were left panting and sweaty in the middle of the room, gazes locked. Lorcan wished it was a different activity that had left them that way.

Enough Salvaterre, you’re here to take them down. No fucking the enemy.

“I’m impressed. Nobody ever lasts even two against Elide, not even the Wolf over there.” The bitch queen jerked her thumb over her shoulder to where Ashryver was standing, who simply flipped her off. Many would have been killed by their bosses for such behaviour, but apparently everything worked differently here.

This was going to be difficult.

“Ren you shit stain, show them to their rooms. You’ll be on the first floor along with Manon, Dorian, Lys and Aedion. They’re very loud lovers so I hope you brought ear plugs with you.” She said it with a smile and wiggled her fingers in goodbye as they were ushered out of the room by a man with a scar on his face. Just before the door closed, Lorcan saw the swagger facade drop as Celaena fussed over her second, worry written on her face as she turned the dark haired woman’s face this way and that way.

Each individual room was pointed out to them by Ren as they passed, he didn’t look too happy to be given the job though. The twins were in the room closest to the stairs, next to them was Vaughan and Gavriel and then himself on his own followed by Rowan’s own closest to the next flight of stairs up. They stopped outside of Rowan’s room before they were allowed to disperse and were given a few ground rules as if they were dogs.

“Boss says you can use the ground floor as you wish; watch a movie, read a book or whatever. You are not to go up to the second floor with permission from Lochan or the Boss herself. Most of us have our own houses so we won’t all be here twenty for hours. The only permanent ones for now will be the Boss, Lochan, the Westfalls and myself. Any questions?”

They all shook their heads which was apparently deemed acceptable.

“Good. Take the day to get yourselves situated; we’re all having dinner at seven, if you can call it that. Don’t be late.”

He nodded before disappearing back down the stairs and Rowan addressed them now that they were alone.

“Get unpacked and sorted.  I want you mingling to your heart’s content tonight, the faster they trust us, the faster their empire falls. Understood?”

They each murmured a “Yes Sir” before walking back to their own respective rooms and Fenrys and Connall went to the stairs to go get their bags from the car. Just before he could turn the handle to his room, he stopped when Rowan spoke again, all seriousness and a stern look.

“Oh and Lorcan? Keep your fucking dick out of tiny, short tempered ladies please. I will not allow us to fail because your hormones led you astray.”

Vaughan chuckled under his breath while Gavriel just shook his head, the twins already out of hearing distance, thank fuck.

A woman had never messed with his morals before and he certainly wasn’t going to let such a thing happen this time.

Not now and not ever.

—————

I hope you like my baby Badass Elide and Horny Lorcan;) If you want to be added/removed from the tags just give me a shout!!

Tags: @bryaxisthefaceofnightmares @fancyclodpaintercookie @empress-sei @acourtofterrasenandvelaris @tswaney17 @queen-of-glass @thesirenwashere @awkward-avocado-s @b00kworm @http-itsrebecca @eatmysandwiches @poisonous00 @flowersinvegas @julemmaes @mu-si-ca-l @spyofthenightcourt @sis-it-dont-add-up

[jiminrings]

uu abt homebound au, what goes on with racer! hobi and jk?? i guess this is kinda a request? thanks ilysm :")

homebound: koo’s pov

a lil homebound special that’s in jungkook’s pov and u get to see what’s going on in his noggin :D

glimpse: kook’s a protective best friend, hobi is a hyung that he never knew he needed, aND he just needs y/n as his forever emotional support shoulder :D

wordcount: 3k

notes: aHHHHH first of all i love you too!!!! write that down pls

this is a spin-off because earlier, i made a drabble from a request about jimin and y/n’s tough love relationship as crew chief x crew member!!! i loved making that piece they r so dynamic :D

read homebound the fic!!!

it’s not easy being jungkook

ugh yeah he kNOWS he’s handsome and talented and charismatic but gOd this is getting out of hand now

he has to save your ass

AGAIN

well not literally your ass,.,. it’s your thumb this time

he’s met you like what?? two months ago and you’re already a handful!!! LOOK AT YOU

“g-googie pLEASE just h-help me i can’t do it mYSELF!!!”

if only two months ago, jungkook was pulled from basketball practice and shoved into the empty-looking gymnasium AND sat in the front instead of the back right next to you

if only he hasn’t opened his mouth and told that he liked your softball uniform aND coincidentially found a fellow athlete that lit rally only joined sports for the uniforms.,.,..

if only he didn’t reciprocate by saying that he joined basketball for the fluffy warmers.,.,..

HE WOULDN’T BE HERE RIGHT NOW

he wouldn’t deal with you calling him urgently and sAying it’s of a great emergency and that he had to sprint from the other side of campus grounds to where you were

you wouldn’t be right here sat on the ground, hand outstretched for him to mend as he’s only giving you a sCOWL of disbelief

ok fine

jungkook doesn’t regret you being his best friend but he dOES regret having a weak spot for you

“didn’t i specifically tell you NOT to play softball and take it easy for awhile???”

“b-but-...”

“and now someone was being a big dummy and then dISLOCATED her thumb and she’s made ME run all the way to the field because she’s tOO scared to pop back her dislocated thumb and wants ME to do it for her!!!!!”

you are Insufferable

u really are

he can’t help but feel agitated ok

he’s just so stressed and he almost got a near-flunking store at the calc test awhile ago and he studied!!! he studied for THREE hours and he was about three wrong answers away from being failed!!!!

meanwhile you sleep at that class and you bARely even studied because last night you were just calling him up to ask if you were down drinking some shots with you and then yOU pass????

also also!! his basketball coach has been extra tough on him lately and he isn’t even doing anything wrong!! he passes the ball and how come it’s HIS fault that the one he’s passed it to doesn’t make a score???

how is it hIS fault that this guy was an utter dUMBASS

on top of that, the pit crew training is taking a massive toll on his body and this particular time,, it’s jungkook’s only few breaks

and you just hAD to dislocate your thumb and be scared shitless of popping it back

hold on

are you uh.,...

are you crying

jungkook’s flustered a tON because uhHHh he’s not exactly the best person when it comes to these things

there was one time when jungkook added so much wasabi underneath your california maki to the point that you were CRYING

and sue him he didn’t know what to do

everyone in the restaurant thought the two of you were a couple and now there’s a LOT of angry stares aimed towards jungkook and that makes him sweat a little

that one buff guy who’s chopping the squid even sTopped what he was doing and that makes kook audibly gulp

jungkook was a tiny bit intimidated and so he did the next big thing

panickedly threw the packet of tissues to your face :D

lmao he’s gotten a lot better since then

“okay, okay, i’m sorry for yelling at you :((“

god he should know better

i mean you are in physical pain already and you don’t need him yelling at you now, do you??

after all jungkook did have this one big splinter on his thumb when he was doing something stupid aND although you were angry and amused, you didn’t yell at him

ok fair

he’s setting his things down and he had to coax you to give him back your hand because u retracted it when he yelled

“on the count of three, okay?? one, two....”

you’re already wincing and jungkook has to be swift with this when he doesn’t want to prolong your pain

aLTHOUGH this reminds him of how you have to distract him from the pain when he has you pluck out some of his eyebrow hair so they don’t form a unibrow

“two.... you’re still not — two.,..., you’re the one who’s supposed to adjust not me...,.,. t- yO IS THAT MIN YOONGI???”

“wHAT WHERE-“

pOp!!!!!

that shit hUrts

min yoongi is an especially good trigger point for you because jungkook, cannot, and especially cannot stress to how you have a crush on that guy sO bad

he’s a racer ok sure

ehhhh his skills are so-so

honestly he doesn’t even know if this yoongi guy is actually great at racing,,, maybe it’s just his family name that gets him where he’s at ya know....

“don’t joke with me like that! i’m telling you, jungkook — one day i’ll work with min yoongi.”

he snorts at that as he’s holding your hand up, checking to see if there’s any bruising or the sort

he wants to make sure nOw that you’re okay and not have anything else pop up later because he doesn’t want you ruining his alone time again

“yeah. mhmmm. sure you will.”

uGh where would you be now without jungkook

what was LIFE before jungkook

you’re that grateful for him

jungkook’s been avoiding you a liTTLE and you’ve been noticing it but you just didn’t prod into it

the dish was that he thinks he likes you

it’s just this roulette going on in his head

do i like y/n OR have i just been so starved from affection and companionship that i immediately the nearest person to me as someone i love?????

aha it’s the second option :D

you and jungkook fight a lot tho that’s no surprise

it could be over on the most stupid things ever for discourse and well as sensitive as you were, jungkook was even mORE sensitive

one time he cried when not only you gave him the silent treatment, but also literally pretended that he was iNVISIBLE and even got some people in on it

yeth it was a petty fight over stubornness and a sorta petty solution bUt it did give you some peace

what made it even worse was because you befriended these new guys!!!

the kim line!!! jin and namjoon and taehyung were quite the eye-catching trio over on their department and you kNow that jungkook was annoyed by them

actually they were very likeable and jungkook’s just annoyed at them for no apparent reason

and when you ignore jungkook for the whole day AND have the kim line over on your lunch table,,,

when kook offers you a tray of the best batches for your cafeteria food and even a fresh cold carton of chocolate milk,,,,

then pretend you didn’t even hEAR him nor SEE him when he was holding up the tray for you,,,

he absolutely cries because w-why are you :(((( i-i-ignoring me :(((( please d-don’t :((((

fighting and crying has been at an all-time low ever since that particular one

he was so frustrated that he didn’t even notice jin patting his back and he bARELY even knows jungkook

namjoon’s acting as a shield so no one could see that this guy was absolutely Losing it

taehyung’s trying his best to shove some tissues underneath jungkook so he could wipe them down

but this time

tHIS time

it’s jungkook who doesn’t know what to do

it’s you who’s crying so painfully that he’s sure not even the kim line could help try and fix

“he’s just sO — yoongi is uNBEARABLE!!”

oh it’s him again huh

jungkook wasn’t sure at first on how he’d process the news that yeah sure the two of you were the ones chosen to be the victors of the program

but it meant that the two of you were gonna work for different teams and now that just doesn’t make any sense.,...

sure he’s happy because he gets to work for jung hoseok!!!! the racer he’s in awe with and thank god because he didn’t want to work with-

ew he’s shuddering

min yoongi

yOU’RE the one who’s working for him and well!! you should be happy!!! why are you CRYING

jungkook was so nervous meeting hoseok for the first time

he wanted to please everyone so bad it wasn’t even funny :’)

he’s bought four boxes of donuts for his fellow pit crew members alone

hoseok was special special

he gets his OWN dozen and on top of that, kook even made him a crepe cake

from s c r a t c h

that was the most time-consuming jungkook’s ever spent in making food and he is pOsitive that he doesn’t ever want to subject himself to that again in his life

( with the exception for jung hoseok of course hehe )

jungkook’s kinda burnt himself on the pan atleast three times and he was a sweaty mess by the end of cooking it because again

wHO has the time to make crepe cakes????

deadass even bought a lil cooler with him just because he wants to impress his boss even more :)))

:))) tiny lil ice cream cups :)))

“hi!! nice to meet you, i’m hoseok!! why are you holding tHAT big of a bag??”

jungkook was starstruck for sure because wow jung hoseok was kIND???

normally being famous and being kind don’t exactly belong in the same sentence

but uHHhh his idol is right here in front of him being polite and cool and not coming off as snobbish??? wow

“for you, sir — uH sir jung?? uHm-...”

“oH! no, no-...”

“ho — sir???”

hoseok was just meant to tell him that it’s cool to drop the sir thing because he’s working with him not for him

poor kook was so nervous that he called his idol a hoe :(((

“aH, calm down!! it’s okay!! lol you seem cool anyway!!! you can just call me hobi-...”

that sounds SO precious omg

jungkook was about to bow again for the nth time but then hobi over here added something to his sentence

“... -hyung”

bROTHER??

now listen

hobi doesn’t have a brother in his family and gOd something about this younger guy in front of him,,,

he’s read jungkook’s forms and he’s younger than him and he’s iNTIMIDATINGLY large but he just looks so innocent y’know

it reminds him of nemo in a big vast ocean but maybe that’s just because he watched finding nemo last night and was emotional

but look!!! jungkook!!!! he wants to protecc this guy from the world and he looks so eager too!!!!

if you squint hard enough u could see jungkook’s fists in his sides clenching from being so happy

anyway

“hey, hey. c’mon, don’t cry now you’re gonna get uGly!!!!”

okay that did not help

jungkook’s rubbing circles on your back as you try to recollect what happened awhile ago at work and how yoongi was an absolute asshole

he’s tough on you and you don’t know why!!!

on top of that, your crew chief jimin is aLSO tough on you and you don’t know why either and it’s just!!!! why does everyone hate me!!!!! when i am just!!!!! bREATHING!!!!!

“want me to put in a good word for you for hobi-hyung? he could pull some strings then work for him instead... with me..... the people are a LOT nicer too...”

hobi knows about jungkook’s friendshio with you and he wasn’t really bothered to how his pit crew member is best friends with a pit crew member for his main rival :D not really :D

in fact he was even endeared!!! asked a lot of questions too because jungkook hOW do you contain yourself?? you’re so competitive and you’re not even the oNE who’s racing between us two???

“oh that’s easy hyung!!! y/n and i just kinda trashtalk each other for every game, then on free days we’re all cool!! :D”

“is that.... is that healthy..,.,.”

hobi wants to take you under his wing if that was possible

your contract and perhaps min yoongi are the only variables stopping you

he’s never said this to anyone but he dID make a semi-empty joke to yoongi once that y/n will also be working for him next season before he could even blink

and yoongi normally looks stoic but hobi swears that he must’ve flipped a switch aha :D

he looked sO infuriated and angry at the mention of your name and “working for me” that he actually thought yoongi would lunge at him

“it’s okay i guess :(( don’t wanna give up just yet :((“

“mHmmm okay whatever you say, sport :))”

jungkook praises you a lot for your dedication because if that was him?? he would’ve bitch-slapped yoongi in a second and quit right then and there!!

he cares for you!!! a lot!!! no one could ever take up your spot as his emotional support shoulder

he’s perfectly content with his job that he’s in!!!

hobi teaches him about things he’s never known before

practical life lessons too!!!

jungkook’s now equipped with the knowledge of how to make bread taste like french toast wITHOUT even making it like french toast

he now knows how to drift!!! like aCTUALLY drift!!! :D

hobi even taught him some tips about making the best use out of your car’s gas and how to nOT cower when it’s blinking that you’re about to run out

aHA jungkook’s still a little bit panicked whenever he sees the light blinking but then he’d remember hobi in his mind looking at him dead-straight

“you’re one of the buffest guys i’ve ever known, and you’re rattled at a tiny light blinking at you?”

you could still go for 50 km tOps with a blinking gas notice on!!! you’re nOT gonna believe jung hoseok the racer??

sigh

jungkook may be content with his job rn

but of course he’s still looking out for you :D

you’re much happier and giggly these days,,, yoongi and his character development being the causes for it

but every now and then aha :D

jungkook likes to relish over the fact that yeah yoongi may be over him in terms of seniority :) but that’s hIS best friend that he’s dating :)

he may just want to spook the guy sometimes

yoongi’s minding his business as he brings over lunch to kim kradle again, chopping up your cheesy tonkatsu for u when he makes the mistake of lifting his eyes

jungkook’s casually munching on his own meal that yoongi’s aLSO bought for him :D giving the older guy a thumbs-up and it makes yoongi smile

right before when jungkook’s eyes flicker from him and to you and his thumb is nOW resting daintily on his neck as he wiggles his eyebrows

g-gulp

yoongi will take care of you for sURE

[n1ghtcrwler]

This gets long

I found myself thinking about the churches I’ve left behind in my life. What prompted it was a concern that too many of them were over some sort of strife between myself and the pastor, but in retrospect that was a way less common occurrence than I expected it to be (in fact, of churches where I was a member, it only happened twice; there are reasons I expected that number to be higher, but the fact remains that it was not). But in the process I found myself contemplating a lot more about the church I grew up in, and my involvement in the later days of our time there, which I don’t tend to talk about much because it rarely seems worthwhile. I don’t know for certain if I’ve ever told the story here, or to any of you that I’ve talked to outside of tumblr. But I can’t shake the thought of it now, so I thought I’d jot it down.

I grew up in what was officially a nondenominational church, but in practice was decidedly Pentecostal. It was called New Life Covenant Church, which in retrospect is weird because they didn’t hold to covenant theology, but whatever. We were at that church during the Brownsville Revival and the Toronto Blessing, and there was a great deal of interest in us getting in on a piece of that action. We were also there when the “Left Behind” series began coming out, and were absolutely convinced that it was a gospel-truth rendition of what was surely coming any day now. I first started running the sound system there when I was nine, and we had a flag ministry (basically a flagline for worship) that I had joined and, if I may be so bold, kind of excelled at. The church campus had originally been a Christian campground, and our original sanctuary was the mess hall, but by the time I was nearing my teens we had raised funding and built a massive geodesic dome as the new sanctuary and relegated the former mess hall to Children’s Church.

You know. To get a sense of what the place was like.

The church was still being pastored by the planting pastor for a significant amount of my time there, and once he left in disgrace over something that isn’t relevant here, the associate pastor stepped into the lead pastor role. My dad was an elder by then, and sang on the worship team, so he and I would frequently arrive early on Sunday mornings to be present for worship practice, he on the stage and me in the booth. One Sunday morning, shortly after Hugh took over the pastorate, as we were walking into the nearly empty sanctuary, something caught my eye and I stopped to look up.

I saw the dome open up, just completely fold down so I could see the whole sky and many of the trees above and around us. There was fire, raining like water, and slowly filling the room. In the distance, in every direction, I saw a battle raging. Angels were engaged with various forces of darkness, apparently keeping them at bay. I took the whole thing in, and when I understood what it was, it was gone.

So I went to Hugh and told him I’d seen something. When he asked what it was, I told him in as much detail as I could recall at the time about the vision, and then he asked if I knew what it meant. I told him that I did, that a massive blessing was waiting to be poured out on our church, to overflowing, and through us to the community around us. But, I warned, there was great opposition to it, and we had a responsibility to avoid temptation to turn aside from the gospel and needed to stay true in the days of testing that were coming.

Well, of course he loved that, and that morning it was mentioned in the sermon and I soon found myself getting praised for being wise beyond my years and clearly a prophet. This was bolstered by a poem I’d written about missions that the church really seized on and my relative youth in the work I was doing around the church. It was kind of a big deal, or at least I was led to believe everyone thought it was a big deal. I didn’t really know what to do with that, though, so I kept running sound and doing my thing.

But I was already starting to question some of what I was being taught there. As part of the agreement that allowed my cub scout den to use a building owned by a local Presbyterian church, I had attended a handful of services in uniform as an usher, and noticed that their version of Christianity was radically different from the version practiced at New Life. It was so different, in fact, that I had already determined that either one of us was decidedly not Christian, or the list of essentials for what defined Christianity was much shorter than I was being told. I had been baptized probably a half dozen times because I didn’t fully understand that it only needed to be done once, and I was beginning to wonder why they let me keep doing it if I was so clearly unaware of what was going on. And I’d been baptized in the Spirit, which basically meant I stood in the church library with elders praying over me until I started speaking in tongues, but I knew full well I’d just started making random noises to appease them because I was getting hungry. And then there was the time I fell asleep on the floor in the back of the church during a revival night that was running a bit long for me, and when I woke and found people celebrating my being ‘slain in the Spirit’ I realized they couldn’t tell the difference between what was supposed to be a powerfully holy moment and a snoozing child.

I must not have snored back then, I guess.

But over the course of the next couple years things got weird. Chasing the dream of a revival like the ones north and south of us, the services were beginning to focus more and more on music and spontaneous messages and less on the Bible. It reached a point where we didn’t have a single sermon for months at a time, and when we did there was a solid chance it wouldn’t even reference scripture. One famously odd sermon had Hugh preaching from an anonymous blog post he’d found online that seemed prophetically relevant to our body, only to later learn his own wife had written it and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it being read in front of the whole church since it was, in fact, something of a vent post about some people in our church.

People who were very concerned about the declining role of scripture at the church started to quietly leave. We stuck around far longer than we should have, specifically because my dad was an elder and, as such, he felt it was his responsibility to stay on and fight to bring the church back on course. There was a short-lived stint where he had convinced Hugh to let him preach a sermon every Sunday just to make sure there would be one, but it was scheduled for the hour before church officially started for the day.

I knew friends were leaving, and I knew things were getting strange, but Dad wasn’t really explaining the problems he knew about to us. I knew Hugh had challenged the church that anyone who was leaving should come to the mic and tell the church why, and I knew no one had done so. But most of it was something I would learn later, after we left. But before that happened, I had another vision.

One morning, while Dad and I were arriving early again, something caught my eye and I stopped and looked up and saw the dome open as before. But this time there was no fire raining down, and the room was bone dry. Outside, the sky was just dark, with no traces of the angels or the battle that had been raging before. And when I knew what it meant, it was gone, and I went and found Hugh. I told him I’d seen something, and he was positively giddy. “Yes!” I could clearly tell he was thinking, “here it is!” So I told him what I saw. He looked at me confused for a moment, then asked what it meant.

“We did it wrong,” I said, “we squandered our chance and the blessing isn’t coming. This place is and will be spiritually dead.” I was no more than 14 at this point, and as his countenance changed he reminded me of that. He demanded to know what made me think I knew anything about it, anyway, when I was just some arrogant little kid. He stormed off and I stood there a moment, considering what he’d said. Then I went to someone else on the tech crew and told them I was no longer going to be mixing sound and they needed to find someone else. I walked out of the sanctuary, wiped my shoes clean on the carpet, and walked off into a stairway above the mess hall where I sat the rest of that morning reading Isaiah and praying and singing a couple songs by myself.

I didn’t go back. I had to go to the physical church every week with my family, but I would turn aside while they entered the sanctuary and I would go sit in the stairway, or wander the grounds, or sometimes sit in the car. I never saw another service there, until the day my dad told me we were going for our last Sunday and he really, really wanted all of us together when he took Hugh up on the offer to explain our decision. So I went in that day, and as soon as we entered Dad went to the mic and delivered a 40-minute sermon on where the church had gone awry and why we were leaving, and then we all left and never returned.

I’m told the church got down to about six people in the end. As I heard it, Hugh stepped down after admitting to an affair with a younger man, and when his associate pastor took over he either couldn’t or wouldn’t change course, and eventually the church was completely dead and disincorporated. The grounds and everything in the buildings was donated to a local church planting team, and every semblance of New Life Covenant Church was erased.

But what happened the other night, when I first started thinking about these events again, is that I was drawn to a certain detail in the story. See, I hadn’t ever thought back to what the content of those encounters actually was. I hadn’t though about them at all, really, let alone enough to analyze them, but suddenly I really wanted to do that. And I noticed for the first time that the point of that whole thing had been about the way the church was handling the gospel and relating it to mission, and how they were so focused on some other objective that they were sacrificing scripture to get some other thing they really wanted.

And then an assortment of times where I have confronted people, individually or in groups, about the way they handled the gospel and were trying to use it for some alternate purpose, culminating in the fights I’ve been having with people for the last five years about unquestioned and cultic Evangelical support of Trump. And I realized, for the first time, that I got this message once when I was a kid, and have never stopped saying that same thing ever since, often to the exact same people who are still in my life that I first met at New Life Covenant. And I thought, “man, no wonder they’re sick of me.”

But yeah. So now that’s just kinda stuck on my mind, and it keeps just sitting there like I should know or think something specific about it, but I don’t know what. And I don’t know why I felt the need to write about it, but I did, and now you’ve read the whole thing, so thanks for your patience, I guess.

[escapingreality1992]

The Guardian Angel Program

What happened between Civil War and Infinity War with Team Captain America and Natasha Romanoff? This is my take on it. A program was created to shelter superheroes. Angel Welsh is one of the many who have a safe house to do so. She’s what the program calls a Guardian Angel, though she’s not a traditional angel. She comes from a legacy of angels and agrees to house a few members of team Captain America. She’s taken care of Natasha before, so she has no problem. As time goes on, Steve and Angel grow closer and fall in love.

A/N: For the purpose of this story, I’ve gone a little off canon and have Steve Rogers returning as his younger self rather than the old man Steve we see in Endgame. I wanted them to continue to go on living with each other. I still kept both Natasha and Tony’s deaths in this, though.

           An angel’s job is to protect people from dangers they may face. Sometimes it’s their duty to hide them from their foes. When someone needs to lay low, they can provide shelter from those looking for them. In ancient times, they weren’t made for love. They were made to fight to provide assistance when needed. To strike down enemies bent on causing corruption in the world. Sometimes to deliver important messages from up above. No feelings involved.

           Modern times were different nowadays. A program was created to provide protection for innocents and superheroes. Though, not all of the agents in the program were actual angels. Some of the were, warriors created from legend. Being an angel meant something else entirely. To protect, of course. To hide people, sure; now you could fall in love with your soulmate, legendary warriors included in the mix.

           When superheroes needed to lay low for a while, we were there to provide a kind of safe house – or houses – to shelter them from whoever they were hiding from. The government, enemies, old lovers, etc. To become an angel – warrior or guardian – there were particular skills you needed to possess or have done to qualify for the job. Skills like weapon use, training in hand-to-hand combat, powers that could be useful to protect. Some had to have protected innocents in the past. Others having healing powers to heal enhanced superheroes or beings.

           Another option could be you were born into a line of angels. Trained to become one yourself. The leaders were harsher on the legacies. They treated them much like the warriors from above. Some failed, some passed. That’s how it was. I had been lucky enough to be born into one such family, lucky enough to pass their tests. I’d had my fair share of heroes to look after, both during my childhood and the beginning of my adult life. I came equipped with all knowledge of weapon use, including swords, – both long and short, two handed and one handed – daggers, as well as some modern weapons; for instance, guns and tech similar to Tony Stark’s creations or alien tech in case there came a time they needed to be used.

           I also possessed minor healing abilities, limited to deeper wounds rather than shallow cuts, bruises and broken bones. Additionally, I wasn’t what you called a traditional angel. The irony behind this is my family had the good sense to name me Angel. I know, I know. A guardian angel named Angel, who was not in fact a halo-wearing, white robe, right hand of God angel. I am, in fact a good, old-fashioned, young mortal; one of the chosen to look after those with super abilities.

           We’re told from the beginning not to pick favorites. You know, in case they die – under your watch or not. Yes, it can happen, nothing you can do about it if it does. They don’t punish you if it does, especially if the hero in question has a hand in a necessary battle. Too bad, I already had one favorite. No one needed to know, a secret I kept to myself. Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow happened to be the one favorite I kept in my records. She had stayed multiple times, most being just to visit instead of hiding. It also didn’t help matters that we had become good friends; best friends in fact. Like Clint, who she would sometimes bring along.

           Though, he only came a few times before he started a family of his own. Nat still came of her own accord when she needed it or if she wanted a long-time vacation. Who could blame her? I did have the safe house located at the beach in Oak Island, North Carolina. Speaking of the safe house, I should tell you each house comes warded and shielded against those who don’t require it or hosted it. My particular one had plenty of rooms; ten for bigger parties.

           Business had been quiet for a while, no one needing a hideout. Nat didn’t visit for fun, her schedule a bit busy for one at the moment. Until I got a call from a friend of hers. The same call which would bring me face to face with the love of my life.

  One Month after the Events of Civil War

 Steve’s POV            “Here. Give this number a call,” Natasha said. She tossed me a business card, which hit me square in the chest, falling to the floor. I bent to pick it up and inspected it.

           “Angel Welsh. Guardian Angel, Protector of Heroes. Nat, what the hell is this? A new recruit. How does it help with my problem?” I asked. She rolled her eyes in answer.

           “I know you’re worried about hiding away from Ross. You need a place to lay low for a while. So, do I, though it might only be a few weeks before I want to return to Russia. She runs a safe house in Oak Island. I’ve used it several times. There’s no one like her. She’s one of the best I’ve encountered when it comes to hideouts,”

           “I don’t know. Is she an actual angel? What if she plans on striking us down?” I asked.

           “She’s human. She’s not going to hurt us. Look, the house is warded and shielded from people who are trying to find heroes. We can stay for as long as we want. There’s plenty of room,” She continued. I glanced down at the card, trying to come to a decision.

           “Steve. Angel can help us. Besides, when do we ever get to go on vacation. It’s at the beach of all places. We go south, breathe in the salt air. Try to relax. Until we can come out of hiding or if we need to,” Nat said. I took a deep breath. She managed to persuade me in making my choice. I knew she was right and pulled out my phone to dial.

  Angel’s POV

           My phone rand and I answered it, expecting another boring assignment.

           “Guardian Angel Welsh speaking. How can I help you?”

           “Hello,” a male voice spoke. He went silent for a while, I wondered if he hung up. Then his voice came back over the speaker. “My name is Steve Rogers. A few others and I need a place to lay low for a while,” he continued. Contain your excitement. Be professional, I thought. This was Captain America and he was planning on staying with me. A legend with a legacy.

           “How many others? When you be arriving?” I asked.

           “Uh, five. That’s including me. I’m not sure. Give us three days,” Steve said.

           “Names. I’ve got yours, but who else is in your company?” I said. I needed to record everything and prepare for the others he was bringing along.

           “Wanda Maximoff,” Ah, the woman who accidentally caused casualties in Lagos. “Sam Wilson,” Falcon. Hmm, sounds like they’re running from the Accords. “Vision, Natasha-,” The other name I didn’t recognize but when he said Natasha, I knew my best friend would be here as well.

           “Romanoff? You’re bring other heroes with you? I didn’t realize you were friends with Nat,” I interrupted. A pause. Did I scare him off? “She gave me this number. Said you were the best she’s come in contact with,”

           “It must be urgent if she gave you my personal number rather than the programs. There are certain protocols you’re supposed to go through, and they assign you based on priority or urgency. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything. If you can, get here earlier than you intend. Welcome to the Guardian Angel Program, Mr. Rogers,” I said. I ended the call and prepared everything needed for this assignment.

   Two Days Later (They took my advice)

             The buzz of the intercom echoed in the house alerting me to their arrival. At least, he had the sense to come early than he intended, I thought. I opened the door and Natasha was the first to greet me. She threw her arms around my neck, squeezing me tight. She stepped back, allowing the rest of the company to come inside, luggage carried behind them.

           “Angel! Long time, no see. How have you been?”

           “Bored. I’ve been less busy than usual. Everyone has. No assignments were sent out for a few weeks. Take your regular room. I’m going to give the rest the tour,” I told her. She flitted off and I turned my attention to the rest of them. Two guys, one woman, and…I cocked my head examining the other…man.

           “That’s Vision. He’s…well, I guess you can say he’s a robot. A sort of artificial intelligence created by…” the blonde guy explained.

           “Tony Stark. Must have been a terrible break-up,” I said.

           “How-,”

           “Natasha tells me everything, much like Clint tells her things. Come along. I’ll show you the house and assigned rooms. Set your things down by the couch. You can take them up later,” I cut him off once more.

           “Shouldn’t we introduce ourselves?” the other guy said.

           “You introduced me to Vision already. Wanda is the only other woman included on the phone, so she’s easy. You’re Sam Wilson, also known as Falcon. Which leaves you,” I gestured to the blonde man. “You must be Steve Rogers. I also do my research. I have to be able to recognize the heroes or people that come under my protection. Follow me,” I answered. They shared a look, unsure whether or not to trust me.

           “I don’t bite. Not much anyway. You’re safe here. The people after you won’t find you. I promise. Try to relax,” I said. To show I meant no harm, I linked my arm through Wanda’s and walked her to the kitchen and began the tour of the house.

           “Natasha has the best room in the house. Since she’s a frequent visitor, she has seniority over it when she’s here. If you want to visit on your own, it’ll go to one of you. Wanda, I’ve given you the second best, right next to hers. It has a view of the ocean and a balcony. Sam, Vision, you’re upstairs on the third floor. Though, you don’t have a view of the ocean up there. Steve, your room is across from mine,” I said. I went to the liberty of showing them their room, delight showing on their faces.

           “Wait, if this is your home, why don’t you have the best room?” Sam asked me.

           “Ah, because, my room gives me access to both the pool and the beach. I can open the sliding glass door next to my bed and walk out on the deck to find the stairs for both,” I explained. To prove my point, I opened the back door on the second floor and showed the exact door to my room.

           “Now, on to the outside. This is the walkway to the beach and those stairs lead to the pool. Car port is next to the pool and there are two outdoor showers in case you decide you would rather clean up in the salt air. It’s quite refreshing if you ask me,”

           “That’s all there is. Feel free to unpack and do what you want. Oh, one more thing. Nat and I will be going out to the store to grab supplies. If there is anything you need or would like to request, please provide us a list and leave it on the kitchen counter downstairs. Also, the rec room is on the bottom floor, down the hallway and the second door on the left. It has a movie theater and a billiards table that doubles as a card table,” I said. Everyone dispersed, except for Steve.

           “Thank you for helping us. I appreciate it Miss Welsh,” he said.

           “Call me Angel. It’s no problem. It is my job after all. Do me a favor and try not to get too attached. You will have to leave here at some point,” I told him.

           “I can assure you I won’t, but thanks for the warning,” he said.

  One Month Later

Steve’s POV

           When we first arrived at Angel’s safe house, I’d been nervous to say the least. Nervous about being found here and nervous something bad would happen if we were. On the arrival, I realized I was also nervous around Angel. She was gorgeous; Long, dark brown hair with light brown ends and the prettiest gold-green eyes I had ever seen before. If the light hit them just right, they almost looked like a rainbow shining out at us. I shut out my feelings right then, focusing on trying to relax in a new place.

           After two weeks, the tension eased a little. We were still hidden, and no trouble came for us. There were a couple of movie nights and card nights, which had us all becoming closer as friends. Natasha had left a week after, receiving a call about the Black Widow program rebooting and she wanted to put an end to it. She flew back to Russia and I wondered if I would be seeing her again. Wanda and Vision had also requested permission to leave, heading to Scotland to spend more time together. Alone.

           Though, they thought we didn’t notice, they were finally together as a couple. They wanted to pursue it more and they felt they couldn’t do that if we were around. This left Sam and I alone with Angel. We managed to have fun between the three of us going to the beach or going out to get food.

           I worried we would be recognized going out, but Angel assured us we would be fine. No one in the town knew about us. The names maybe, but I guess they didn’t pay too much attention to our appearances to put the name to the face.

           There were times when Angel and I spent nights alone together. Movie nights when Sam didn’t want to join, pool days when Sam wanted to go to the beach. I had to admit, she relaxed me when I didn’t think it possible. The tension would release from my muscles when she was around, and it wasn’t because she knew how to massage us to ease that tension. It was when she started up a deep conversation between Sam and me that I started to see her more than a friend. I tried to push back my feelings, knowing the inevitable move would come and I wouldn’t be able to see her anymore. The more I pushed them back, the more they grew, and I came to the realization I was now in trouble of falling for her.

           We were now a month in, and I felt more relaxed than I had in a couple years. I chose today to lounge by the pool. I made a few laps until I decided to lay out in the sun for a while. All the noise drowned out, my body going limp as I pushed away all thoughts of work, of battles; stress melted away piece by piece. I breathed deep, the salt air filling my nostrils and providing me with more calmness. So much so that I didn’t hear anyone approach me.

           “Steve? Do you want some lunch?” a voice asked. Angel’s voice. She startled me and the second her hand came into contact with my shoulder, I opened my eyes and flipped her, pinning her body against my chair. In doing this, I had allowed our bodies to be pressed close, our lips a breath apart; our chests heaving as the chemistry heated up between us.

           “I guess this teaches me not to sneak up on people,” she stated. Her voice rasped, sparking heat which coursed throughout my entire body.

           “Sorry. I…Let me get off of you,” I told her. I was reluctant to move but did anyway allowing her to sit up. The sparkle of her gold-green eyes met mine; I fought the urge to push her back down and kiss her. Fought the same urge to remove out clothes and make love to her by the pool.

           “You looked pretty relaxed. Careful, I don’t want you falling in love with me,” She said. Too late. I might be on my way there, I thought.

           “Don’t worry. That won’t happen,” I lied. I’d been harboring my crush for the past two weeks. I wouldn’t reveal my feelings until the right moment.

           “Oh. Good. Uh…Did you want lunch? I made sandwiches for the beach. I thought I’d come by and see if you wanted some. There’s also a few beers in the cooler if you want one,” she said. Her teasing smile had faltered making me wonder if she was secretly harboring a crush on me as well.

           “Sure. Thanks, Angel,” She handed me a couple bags of turkey and cheese sandwiches and two beers before she left towards the beach. Damn it, Steve. You should have kissed her, I thought.

  Four Months Later

Angel’s POV            Sam was the next to leave, Steve being the only one left at the safe house. There was one week, he left to check up on his best friend; Bucky Barnes. Steve had told me all about him; how they were childhood friends and how they were there for each other. I knew the name, the assassin responsible for over a dozen deaths. I also suspected he had been brainwashed, making Bucky a victim of HYDRA’s plans to take over the country. I also knew he was being rehabilitated in order to not be triggered anymore.

           This did nothing for my feelings for Steve. What’s that familiar phrase? Distance makes the heart grow fonder. I had been unusually happy when he had returned from Wakanda and cursed myself for crushing on my assignment. Sure, you couldn’t get in trouble for it, but I hadn’t wanted to mix my work life with my personal life. Friends were one thing, but a romantic relationship was another. Which only made the next time I ran into Steve a little more awkward than it should have been.

           “Hey, Steve? Want to make a trip to the store? We could grab pizza…” I walked in his room to find him shirtless, the signs of a beard coming in. The sight stopped me dead in my tracks. “…on the way back,” I finished. I felt my cheeks heat up, a sign I was blushing. It was hard not to stare; harder not to blush deeper. He met my eyes, but not before they raked over my body. My throat went dry, my core pooling from the action.

           “Sure. I’ll put on a shirt and we’ll go. Want to watch a movie tonight?” he answered. I’d rather take you on that bed right this instant. Ride you until dawn, I thought.

           “That sounds perfect. Maybe, we can tick off one from your list,” is what came out.

           “Perhaps. Let’s go,” We picked up the necessary supplies and decided to split a margherita pizza while starting a Star Wars marathon. I tried not to steal glances at him. Really tried not to. My eyes kept drifting though. Next came the scenarios and boy, were they naughty.

           “If you keep staring at me like that, I’m going to have to strip you naked and play with you on this couch,” he said. Damn, he caught me.

           “I can’t help it. You gave me quite a sight this afternoon,” I stated. He shut off the movie – we were on Empire Strikes Back – and turned to face me. He grabbed my hands and pulled them under his shirt to touch him.

           “Tell me you don’t want me. Tell me and I’ll stop,” he said. He dragged my hands over his stomach to his chest and back down again, until they rested at the waistband of his sweats.

           “I can’t tell you that. I would be lying to you. I want you. I need you so much it hurts,” I told him. The next moment his lips were on mine, his body pushing me back on the couch. We practically ripped each other’s clothes off, out movements rushed and rough. Fully naked, he trailed kisses down my body, his beard scratching me between my thighs. His tongue found my core, and I moaned, tugging his hair. He rubbed my clit before pushing them inside me, coaxing me to my first orgasm.

           He wasted no time, coming back up to kiss me as he sheathed his cock inside my pussy. He thrust hard and fast, my nails digging into his skin. He came, followed by my second orgasm, then he flipped us; Steve laid on his back, allowing me to ride him. We didn’t stop until exhaustion took over and I collapsed on his chest, his cock still inside me.

           “I want you to be mine, but I think we should keep this quiet. To be safe and not used to an enemy’s advantage,” he said.

           “Agreed,” I told him.

 2018 – The Beginning of Infinity War

Steve’s POV

           We kept our relationship a secret until we couldn’t anymore. Everyone caught on to it, exposing our love life. Around that point, we didn’t want it to be quiet any longer. We were ready to show the world the love we had for each other. Things were going great. We checked in on everyone. Natasha and Sam came to visit; Wanda and Vision stayed in Scotland becoming closer. Angel came to visit Bucky with me in Wakanda.

           I had made plans to propose to her. I had the ring, the plan to get her alone to do it. It would be on the beach and I had a beautiful speech worked out. It would be perfect. It was meant to be today. Until the world collapsed. There was a phone call; Wanda and Vision were in trouble and Natasha, Sam and I had to go rescue them. Another one followed. Bruce Banner; the world is in trouble. Thanos is coming. We weren’t ready. We never were. An Avenger’s job is to protect innocents. We thought we could win. How wrong we were.

   Angel’s POV

           Love hit Steve and me hard. We got caught up in it. It made us blind to potential dangers. We wanted to explore a future together. We thought we could. We had been wrong. Everything happened so fast. Steve had come in looking nervous about something. I had a suspicion he may have wanted to propose. In a different way altogether. Then his phone rang. His expression changed; Nervous, shock, worry. It darkened to something more serious. He hung up. It rang again. It darkened more. Danger. For the world.

           “What is it? What’s happened?” I asked. I reached out, placed a hand on his shoulder.

           “War. Thanos is coming. He means to wipe out half the planet…planets. Wanda and Vision are in trouble. I have to go,” A pause, a sigh. “I hate to do it this way. There was a plan, but I need to leave right away. I can’t without asking an important question,”

           “Steve? I…”

           “Angel, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?” he proposed. Maybe it hadn’t been ideal for the both of us, how he wanted it, but we had no other option. I didn’t want to be without him.

           “Yes. I will,” I accepted. He opened the box and pulled out the ring, sliding it on my finger.

           “Go save your friends. Come back to me when you can. I love you,” I told him. We kissed. He left. They lost.

Everything.

   The Aftermath – Five Years Later

           For five years, I provided comfort to Steve and Natasha. For five years, I watched the grief consume them. We didn’t marry. Not yet. He wanted everyone to be part of the ceremony. He was hurting. He wanted Bucky there and Wanda, Vision, Sam. Too much pain. For anyone. The saving grace had been Scott Lang. A plan formed.

           Time travel and again I was left alone until he came back. A sacrifice and Natasha had died. More grief, more pain. Still, they had to move on. Bring the rest of them back. This time I fought. Swords and all. This time we won. Another sacrifice had been made; Tony Stark. A greater heartbreak for them. A funeral had been held and Steve needed to return the stones. When he returned, he passed down his title to Sam. Then there was a small ceremony for us. Wanda, Sam, Bucky, and Clint had joined us. A moment of silence for Nat and Vision was given. We continued living. It was what they would have wanted.