#so sorry to whoever saw this on their whatever and saw my system rambling

[solar--systems]

so that one fukouna girl teto cover huh

[talatomaz]

lockdown | jj x fem!teen!reader

a/n: i can’t believe that a year ago today, the last ever episode of criminal minds aired. i miss jj so much 🤧

this is sort of in line with my own experiences (to a certain extent). and there’s not as much jj x d!r as i’d intended but I hope you still like it.

(feedback/positive comments are appreciated)

requested by @ouat2017 : “could you do a jj x daughter where the daughter’s school is on lockdown and jj is worried or something like that?”

warnings: gun violence. blood

word count: 2.6k

masterlist | request list | request rules

r is jj’s 18 year old adopted daughter and suddenly finds herself on lockdown after someone brings a gun into her school

i do not give you permission to repost or translate my fics on any platform - likes/reblogs are okay and are much appreciated

“Look, you’re the one that needs to be tutored so can you please focus?”

You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest in annoyance.

You were currently in the tutoring centre trying to help a self-absorbed jock pass English so he could remain on the school’s football team.

Looking around you, you saw a handful of students giving both you and Cameron - the man-child you were tutoring - disparaging looks.

“You’re not supposed to be yelling at me. You’re meant to be telling me the answers.”

The aforementioned narcissist leaned against his chair, smirking at you in a way that made you fight to hide a shudder.

You could have easily wiped the grin off his face by mentioning who your mother was and who she worked for but instead, you decided to just continue ignoring his advances and carry on teaching him.

“That’s not how this works, Cameron. Now either you listen to me or you fail and get kicked off the team. And quite frankly, I’d rather the latter happen.”

You watched as his brows furrowed in confusion. Sighing, you answered, “latter means the second thing of two things mentioned in a sentence. Now, for the love of God, just finish writing your paragraph on Heller's satire of capitalism in Catch-22.”

You let out a breath of relief when he finally relented and started to scribble on his sheet of paper. You glanced over at one of your friends, who was also tutoring for extra credit, and smiled when she rolled her eyes at Cameron’s actions.

Leaning against the large desk that stood at the front of the room, you relished in the long-awaited silence aside from hushed whispers that came from other students asking for help.

Taking out your phone, you glanced at the screen to see that it was only midday and soon the lunch bell would be ringing.

You smiled softly at your lock screen.

It was a photo of you and JJ, your adoptive mother.

It was taken a few weeks prior at your 18th birthday party. You’d been living with JJ for almost 5 years now; her having fostered you before later adopting you when you were 14.

You still didn’t know what she saw in you on that day you’d first met her - you’d lost your family in a home invasion, barely surviving yourself - but whatever it was, you were grateful because you’d gotten a second chance at life.

Several minutes passed and you’d only broken from your train of thought when you heard someone clearing their throat beside you.

Looking over your shoulder, you saw your friend, the one who’d rolled her eyes earlier at Cameron, standing beside you.

“I see you finally got him to do his work.” She whispered, loud enough for your ears only.

“Barely. He still has an essay to write and hasn’t even finished a paragraph yet.”

“I would have smacked his sorry ass by now.”

You laughed before clamping your hand over your mouth, her comment having caught you off guard.

“Ally!” You whisper-shouted, playfully hitting her arm.

She looked at you with a raised eyebrow causing you to smirk, “Trust me, I’ve thought about it but-”

Before you could finish your sentence, a large bang rang out, shattering the silence the room had once held.

With wide eyes, your head whipped to the door where the gunshot had presumably come from and you listened as the hallways were filled with panicked screams.

Running to the door, ignoring the gasps and shouts from the other students behind you, you turned the lock on the door, pulled down the blinds, switched off the lights and jammed a chair under the handle.

Looking up, you saw everyone had the same look of panic in their eyes; a few were crying, including Ally, and others were pale with shock, Cameron was one of them.

“Guys, we’re gonna be okay but we have to be quiet.” You whispered harshly, constantly looking over your shoulder at the door, listening for any indication of the shooter coming your way.

Everyone stared at you, as if you were the leader of a camp and they were small children awaiting for further instruction.

You supposed it wasn’t far off.

By taking charge, you were the one who’d been unwillingly given the role of protector.

“First things first,” you walked over to the group of 10 students, “I need you all to make sure your phones are on silent. We can’t risk being caught.”

You watched as everyone followed your instructions.

“I know you all want to call your parents but that’s going to attract attention to us so for right now, we need to be quiet.”

Your heart was beating out of your chest and as you spoke, one thought repeated in your head. JJ.

Taking out your phone, you scrolled to find your mother’s name in your contacts. You watched as your thumb hovered over her name.

Just breathe, y/n. Breathe.

Tapping your mother’s name, you brought the phone to your ear.

“I thought you said we couldn’t call anyone.”

Your eyes locked onto Cameron’s, his face pale and his eyes filled with terror and a hint of anger.

“My Mum works for the FBI.” You whispered as the phone rang out.

Any other time and you probably would have laughed at the way his face grew paler, if that was even possible. But, in a situation this tense, it was going to be difficult to find any levity.

Your Mum picked up on the second ring and you let out a shaky breath when you heard her voice.

“Hi baby. A bit early for your lunch, isn’t it?”

You closed your eyes at her soft tone, as if you were trying to engrave the way she spoke into your mind lest you would never hear it again.

From your lack of response, the blonde sensed there was something up, “Y/N? What’s wrong?”

A single tear dropped down your cheek as you struggled to maintain a steady tone. Catching a glimpse of Ally staring at you, you steeled yourself and spoke.

“Mum, you need to come quick. Someone’s brought a gun into school.”

“Oh my-AARON.”

You winced when you heard her shout for her boss, listening as you could hear her run up stairs. You held your breath as she filled Hotch in on what was happening before telling Garcia to hack into your school’s security system.

“Are you okay? Stupid question. But are you hurt?”

“Mum,” you interrupted her rambling, “I’m fine. I’m in the tutoring centre with 10 other people. I don’t know how many people are injured. It just all happened so fast.”

“It’s okay, baby. You’re gonna be okay.”

Though you could hear the clear panic in her voice, her words did bring some form of reassurance to you.

“Penelope’s hacking into the system so hopefully she can have eyes soon.”

As she spoke, you could hear the clacking of keys in the background of the call; presumably Garcia doing exactly what JJ said.

“Mum?” You questioned when you heard Garcia swear.

Instead of JJ answering, the usually peppy tech analyst replied, her voice shaky and wet, as if she was crying.

“Y/N, thank God you’re okay.”

“What’s wrong, Garcia?”

“Someone’s disabled the cameras remotely. I can only get them back online if someone reprograms them from the inside.”

Grasping what she was explaining, you nodded, “I’ll fix them.”

“What? No!”

Your mother had taken the phone off of Garcia.

“You are not leaving that room, y/n. We’ll find another way in.”

“Mum, someone needs to fix the system from inside the school. I need to do it.”

Ignoring your mother’s worried shouts, you continued to speak, “Mum, I have to. I love you.”

You disconnected the phone and switched it off, preventing her from being able to call you back.

“Y/N, you are not leaving this room.”

You’d only just realised that everyone had been watching you intently during that entire interaction.

“Yes, I am.”

Moving away from the huddle, you rose to your feet and replied to your friend.

Cameron rose to his feet and towered over you as he challenged you, “No, you are not. You’re going to put us in danger.”

“Do you know how to hack into our school’s security system and then reconnect the transformer and enter the Mastercode?”

His face contorted to a look of confusion making you reply,

“Exactly.”

Turning to leave, you felt a large hand enclose around your arm.

“I said, you’re not leaving.”

Your eyes flickered from Cameron’s hand up to his face that dared you to take another step.

“Remove your hand from my arm before I remove your hand from your body. You may letter in football but I’ve been trained by some of the best FBI agents there are and unless you want to end up in a sleeper hold, I suggest you shut up and do what I say for once.”

His harsh grip almost immediately lessened as his hand returned to his side.

“Good. Now, have any of you been shot? No? I didn’t think so. Well, I have and whoever did get shot is probably bleeding out in the hallway. I can’t not do anything.”

No one dared to respond and instead, shook their head ‘no’ at your asking if anyone else would try to stop you.

Content that you weren’t going to deal with any more unnecessary distractions, you made your way to the door and gently removed the chair that was beneath the handle.

“Ally, you’re in charge. Lock the door when I leave. By my count, the FBI will be here soon. And Cameron, you do anything stupid and I’ll shoot you myself.”

Unlocking the door, you stepped out into the empty hallway and hastily made your way to where the main security hub was located.

Just a couple of hours ago, all you had wished for was silence but now that your wish had been granted, all you wanted was to hear the playful shouts and conversations between your friends and fellow students.

The silence that currently fell on your school was unnerving and unbearable. And with each step you took, you flinched at the sound your shoes made against the marble floor. Each noise practically acting as a beacon for the shooter to come find you.

You let out a sigh of relief when you found the Hub and you quickly worked to reconnect the security system. Typing on the laptop that rested atop one of the servers, you couldn’t help the smile that formed when all the cameras re-engaged.

Tapping on one of the keys, you navigated through the various cameras, looking for any indication of the shooter or of any injured people. You stopped when you caught a glimpse of someone.

Squinting at the screen, you saw, what appeared to be a freshman - since you didn’t recognise him as being a part of your year - laying on the ground, a hand clutching his stomach as blood coated his clothing.

Immediately knowing where he was, you cautiously made your way to the east hallway before running when you noticed him laying on the ground, his blood coating the once-white marble floor.

Falling to your knees, you pressed your hands against his wound, trying to stop the steady flow. He groaned out in pain, tears staining his face.

“H-Help me.” He choked out.

“What’s your name?”

“Jackson. But everyone c-calls me J-Jack.”

“Jack, you’re going to be okay. I just need you stay with me, okay? I’m-”

“Y/N.”

You failed to hide the surprise from your face making the younger teen smile despite his predicament.

“You’re t-tutoring Cameron. Everyone knows who you are. Y-You’re the one who doesn’t take any of his shit. I think h-he likes you.”

“Well, tough shit for him. I may be bi but he’s definitely not my type.”

Jack’s laugh quickly turned into another groan of pain.

Unzipping your jacket with one hand, you used the other to keep pressure on his wound. After removing the jacket, you harshly pressed it against his torso and watched as it barely absorbed the blood.

“I’m gonna die, aren’t I?”

“No, you’re not. I won’t let you.” You said, tears filling in your eyes as memories rushed back of when you tried to save your brother after he’d been shot.

“You’re going to be okay. I just need you to-”

You stilled when you heard footsteps come up behind you.

“Well, what do we have here?”

You didn’t recognise the voice and couldn’t bring yourself to turn around to face the person who’d caused all this pain.

You opened your mouth before closing it again, unsure of what to say.

Closing your eyes, you readied yourself for your inevitable death when a shot rang out and a body slumped to the ground beside you.

Jumping at the action, you turned around and almost collapsed in relief at what you saw. Your Mum and her team stood behind you with several SWAT members flanking them.

The tears that had once filled your eyes now spilled shamelessly down your cheeks.

Without saying a word, JJ holstered her gun and ran to your side, hugging you as best she could since your hands were still pressed against Jack’s wound.

Paramedics soon followed and after that it was all a blur. It was as if you were floating outside of your body. Logically, you knew it was the effects of an adrenaline crash but you felt so disconnected from your body.

You barely took note as your mother gently lifted you to your feet, allowing you to be briefly looked over by the paramedics. Nor as your mother escorted you to one of the school bathrooms where she rinsed the blood off your hands.

You didn’t even say a word until you’d arrived back at the BAU where a worried Penelope wrapped you in a tight hug which you returned.

“I’m gonna take her up to my old office, Hotch.”

The Unit Chief simply nodded as he and the rest of the team watched as JJ led you to the abandoned office that was still filled with random case files.

Closing the door, she sat you down on her sofa and stared at you, not touching you in fear that even a simple caress would cause you to shatter.

You exhaled a long breath before finally speaking, “I’m sorry.”

Her brows narrowed, “Sorry? Sweetheart, why?”

You looked at your hands that had been coated in blood less than an hour before and then up at your mother; her blue eyes filled with nothing but concern, love and confusion.

“You told me not to leave and I did. I’m sorry.”

And with that, you started to cry heart-wrenching sobs that made your shoulders shake.

JJ gathered you in her arms, gently rocking you as her long blonde hair draped over you.

“It’s okay, y/n. I got you, baby. You’re safe now.”

Her arms wrapped tightly around you as she laid soft kisses on your head, her hand stroking your back.

That only served to make you burrow into her even more, seeking comfort in her motherly embrace.

You muttered your apologies as she continued to reassure you that you were okay.

JJ was afraid that if she stopped, you wouldn’t be here, safe in her arms.

Still rocking you in her arms, she whispered in your ear,

“I got you, baby. You’re safe now.”

[ducavalentinos]

Different anon, and not to drag the fidelity talk onn, but i like reading your thoughs! I was thinking here: would CNM be a good thing for Mon? Or the only type of rl/marriage he could do? I know s3 gave him fuckboy vibes but I’m not sure,Ii don’t think it works for most ppl with normal lives, with him? aún menos. It’s a firm negative to me, what do you think?

Ok, I thought long and hard about this while listening to deftones and lana dey rey, and I had to google what CNM means because I was ???? for a minute there *I'm getting old* but ok, I'll add my thoughts below after the read-more link because this might get long, rambly and repetitive:

So, anon, I think I have to say here that I'm  really not a fan of the p*ly concept/system for rls, and it's why it took me a while to answer, because I had to put aside my personal thoughts and experiences and focus on Món and what the show established about him and think what would be best for him accordindg to that alone, and basing myself on that I will say is such a HELL NO for me, like omg, just thinking about it made me feel bad for Tijuana and all the men in it djsdjdjs. It's just way more than simply him not having the emotional maturity for it, although I don't even think that's related to this quite frankly, but I'm gonna focus on that and say he wouldn't have it, baby boy still watches cartoons and eat cereals, not that there's anything wrong or immature about that, because there isn't per se and I find it adorable with him bYe, but yeah it's a no. And then, we can all speculate and agree/disagree with just how possessive Món would be: a normal level, a high level, a low level, but whatever the degree of it, I think we could all agree he would be possessive with the woman he loved in some way, so already an issue there, too, because this is a concept that requires you don't feel feelings of jealousy or possessivess and/or actively fight on those feelings. Do I think Món could do that? no, I don't think he could, I don't think he's the type to be cool, indifferent that the person he has feelings for, the person he has an emotional and physical relationship with, would also be having that with others (and that's not a bad thing, either,sorry not sorry), that would drive him crazy and mi bb is already a bit crazy 🙄, I say this with affection. I can see him agreeing to it to make his partner happy and thinking more about his side of things, he probably wouldn't have a problem with the part of him getting to sleep/date other women, as a lot of men naturally don't have a problem with that lmao, he'd probably even smile at the words of his gf/wife saying he could be with whoever he wanted and it's ok mi amor, he'd think he has the BEST COOLEST gf/wife in the whole world, and I mean perhaps even a 3some with her and some other girl? HEAVEN. But his happiness would be short-lived imo, because the moment she told him she has other plans with other guys, or she cancelled plans with him because of it, or he saw her making herself look good for other guys, or worse, he saw her flirting, dancing with them, kissing them, having a great time with them and laughing at their jokes, in my view, even if he doesn't want to feel hurt by it, he would, and then he would just freak out, he wouldn't know how to deal with these emotions, not in healthy ways, so instead of having a conversation and being honest like: I don't like this, we should stop, it's not working, he'd probably just skip the convo part and go straight to the action part lol, and like regardless if he would continue or not to f*ck other women while all this is going on, and something tells me the moment it started to bother him, he wouldn't even. I can see him being so bothered, so miserable by the whole thing it would just turn him off from other women and he'd just sulk and be moody, or maybe he'd just have sad/angry/drunk/disconnected sex with them and leave the moment it was over and never call them again and continue to be sulky and moody, I can see him acting similarly as another babe of mine, Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy when it comes to sex with other women, when he says to the woman he loves, who had left their town yeas ago, then came back and was leaving again: "You wanna know how many women I've slept with over the last 10 years? hundreds, maybe more, I don't know. I barely see their faces. [...]because when I'm inside someone, there's only one face I see." 😭 This line gives me Món vibes with his the one, but yes anyways, he'd either go over to the guy she was with and beat him senseless, or he'd send the juniors to do the job for him while he watches happily, or he'd just tell them to kill the guy in the most public way possible so that all of Tijuana, all of México, knowns exactly what happens to whoever dares to date his gf/wife, and any man bold enough to keep persisting, would perish. Or it would be the guy and Ramón trying to kill each other and causing havoc in the city, that's the norm of his world, he's a bandito and banditos have their own rules and norms how to deal with these stuff. And here I'll add that I don't actually think his agression, his anger would also be directed at the woman herself, he might be hot-headed and he might have anger issues, but I don't see in him the type of man who hurts/kills the women he loves tbh, given I think despite his environment, within his family he had mostly positive male and female role models, with his siblings, and that might have given him a balance there. We don't know how young he was when his father died, and we don't know anything about his relationship with his mother, but for me his strongest male role model is Mín, it's possible he and Francisco kinda entered the role of father figure in some way, too, with him and the younger siblings. And we know his closest bond with is with Dina, and that I think gave him a sensitivity and a respect for women, she has a strong personality, she’s a strong woman and he very clearly respects and loves her so much, so as far as Ramón is concerned, I don’t see any danger for the gf/wife, but for the guys around her? oh yes. And I'm not even going to really enter into the personal dramas between the gf/wife and the other women because we’re focusing on Món here, but it’s totally possible the gf/wife wouldn’t really like seeing him with other women either and vice-versa, or into more serious stuff like: what if the gf/wife got pregnant? and she doesn't know who the father is? Would Món be ok with that? it's another hell no for me and I wouldn't blame him for it. And how would this child be raised? wouldn’t already be complicated enough for he or she to grow up in a drug-related environment? wouldn’t it just add an extra layer of complications not really knowing who their father is? or not having them around? And of course this situation would increase Món’s level of stress, moodiness, anger, anxiety, it could make him consume more drugs, too....I’m sorry, but overall I think his life and  his personality are chaotic ENOUGH dsjdjds, he needs as much stability on his life as possible, he needs things, people to keep him centered, to tame his demons a little bit, to encourage him to handle it better, self-restraining his bad instincts more often, not surrendering to them, his lifestyle already makes that too easy, I def. believe he would benefit with a Ruth or a Tata on his side, he needs emotional security and comfort to balance the chaos around and within him, which this concept/system wouldn’t bring to him at all. So, yes, I'm inclined to agree with you. It's true the show gave him f*ckboy vibes djdjsjsj, but again, I don't see in Món the kind of guy to pull off this kind of rls, you have to be a particular kind of guy to pull it off (and to me guys like that are a huge red flag) I don't see even Miguel Ángel pulling it off, and he's infinitely more mature, pragmatic, business-oriented and closed off with his emotions than Món is or ever would be. Ramón is all emotions, so he might f*ck around, but once he got older and/or fell in love with a woman, in my mind, he'd fall hard, and those feelings of jealousy, protectiveness, and deep caring for sure would magnify with him, an attachment would be created there, an emotional bond which sex would only make it stronger tbh, and you can bet he wouldn’t be able to separate all that, (most of us can’t and again I don’t think that’s a bad thing) so even if he and the woman agreed to do open rl thing, and they talked about it, even so subconsciously, understandably, he'd still think and see her as HIS mujer, or MORE HIS mujer than any other guy, and it's likely the other guy/guys would think the same, too, and even the mujer in question regarding other women with him, and any contradiction to this would give rise to trouble, esp. for Món, he'd feel upset, and eventually, very soon, he'd just go off, it doesn't matter what he said, what she said, words are words, feelings are feelings. A lot of things are great in theory, but awful in practice imo, and when it comes to human beings, we're such a mess of feelings and thoughts, we like to pretend we aren't and that we are in total control of our emotions all the time, but that’s not correct, and it sure doesn't apply for Ramón hahaha. As far as serious rls goes, I'll say the closed one is the only way to go with him, I think it's the least bad, destructive path for all parties involved. Sure, problems would still occur, life is full of problems, relationships are hard, and nothing is perfect (well, maybe chocolate and tequila are 💓) and it's possible he would cheat after a while, it's also possible he wouldn't, or it would be one slip up here and there, and then he would just follow Mín's path like we talked about in other asks about this topic, I can see both of these scenarios happening, but even with the cheating scenario, imo that's still a better scenario than the one above with the open rls .And I think ultimately the choice would rest with the woman, if she could make her peace with that, knowing the viejas mean nothing to him and knowing the place she occupies in his life and his heart, I suppose it would be up to Món to make that clear and I think he would honestly. And If we’re talking marriage here, then she would be the wife, the mother of the children they have, the partner he loves and respects, (the one he would die for if necessary), when things get serious she’s his top priority, she’s the one he worries about, the one he wants to provide and protect, all of that stuff. Would that be enough? for some women it is, for others it’s not, so it’s a personal choice in the end, but still as far as I understood his character and the world he lives in, those are the options, in my mind it’s either something similar to Pablo and Tata or Mín and Ruth, anything other than that it’s just asking for double problems and bad things to occur, it’s a firm negative for me, too anon. PS: Can I just add I would pay to see a TV series, 18+ mex telenovela that it would be Món in this kind of rl/marriage?? like oh my god, the drama, the family drama, the heated arguments, the passive-agressive behavior, the sex, the violence !!!!  CHAPO'S JOKES ABOUT IT !!!!! I'm already laughing just imagining 😂😂😂, now that’s a show ok, and it’s my kind of show and it would be sooo entertaining to watch, even if I also felt sad for our Móncito lol.

[senotsuri]

Way back when, I posted an image of an OC, who fairly recently got a full name (she only had a surname back then.) So, with Eliza’s name finally figured out, I realised I hadn’t actually given my overview of the game that spawned her; Champions of Vestroia.

Time to lose my mind, I guess.

Some fore-knowledge before we get into this.

I am, by all means, a legacy bakugan fan, not a reboot fan. I’ve only seen one double episode (the become-smaller-child episode, which was cute, and Outer Demons, which has a super good premise, but the execution is. something.) By all accounts, CoV is essentially my introduction to the world of the reboot, and I’ll come to this later.

I played both the first game (Bakugan Battle Brawlers, specifically the Wii edition), and the... third game (Defenders of the Core, shortened to DOTC, also for the Wii. The second game, for anyone curious, is Battle Trainer, a DS exclusive.) This will come up later, of course, but I want to point out these two as they’re basically my control group for the quality here (not for the battles though; different battle system and all.)

I am incredibly stay-at-home. A lot of people I know irl I don’t have contact with, and most of them don’t live in my city. This is only important when it comes to the protagonist and literally no one else in the game, but I thought I’d mention it anyway.

So the game begins with the character creator. This is pretty standard stuff, honestly. My one issue with it is just-- this is probably my fashion sense speaking, but the fashion in the game is very... for lack of a better term, naff. There aren’t many options that look good, personally speaking. This is ignoring the issues where the protagonist loses their name, mid conversation, or is referred to as if I chose the male option instead of the female option. These issues are likely just oversights, by all accounts, but talk about jarring.

The first time you see your character is where 3. comes in. The protagonist, no matter what you chose (I have two save files, in case there was a difference. There isn’t), will always be a football/soccer player. Are you one of many, many people who isn’t sporty, who is trying to play as themselves? Sorry, your character is sporty, and you can’t do anything about it.

In the legacy games, this was never really a problem; your character was never seen doing anything other than brawling and interacting with other characters. Whether they played sports, or stayed indoors and wrote fanfic, the game let you decide on that for your character, by not having them do either of those things: your character only battled, or snuck around in DOTC’s case.

Once you stop playing football, you get to run to your best friends, and I guarantee you, you won’t immediately guess who they are unless you somehow already knew.

I mentioned BBB and DOTC being my control group on quality. Bringing the character creator back into this, the NPCs are laughable in quality. Any character who has the same model as you (older child. There are only two other model types: adult, and younger child) will look like a remixed version of your character. Had it not been for some characters having special eye shapes, you could practically cosplay any character in the game, because they were made the same way you made your character.

This includes your two best friends.

You could easily make the same character (minus clothes) as one of your best friend characters, without knowing it until you saw them.

While, yes, BBB and DOTC had the characters from the legacy anime in them, the fact that your best friends are nigh indistinguishable from any other character in the area, because you could easily make any of them in the character creator, isn’t... great.

Speaking of that. Characterisation is questionable, to say the least. Whatever bakugan you have in your first slot will answer to you the same as any other bakugan you have in your first slot. If you started off with Howlkor in the front of your party, and you replaced him with, say, Barbetra, Barbetra will act the exact same as Howlkor did, and it’s really something.

There’s only (?) Armoured Alliance bakugan in the game, other than Dragonoid, Pegatrix, Trox, Hydorous, Nillious, and the afforementioned Howlkor. That’s a small roster, by all accounts, so having varied dialogue depending on the bakugan would make sense.

The characterisation of the other characters is also a little funky in places. Your best friends don’t brawl, and I honestly forgot about them for a portion of the game. The tournament brawlers are practically as faceless as the villain minions, and the villains- oh the villains...

Preston. I don’t like Preston, at all. He’s a villain from the moment you see him, and the whole “try to find Preston” section in Helena Heights makes me want to punch someone. When you fight him in the Parasol HQ, his dad being the CEO, it’s fairly clear that Preston is little more than a tool for him. Sometime later, you fight Preston again, this time as the final tournament’s final battle, and he’s laughably weak compared to the other challengers. Remember, this kid fights you with Leonidas.

You’d think Leo would be good, but I’ll get into the butchering that happened to my death dragon later.

Anyhow, he fights you, assuming his dad will enjoy him defeating you. With the power of you’re the player character, you beat him, he hands all of his bakugan to you, and gives up on brawling for good. Kinda.

The next time you see him... hoo boy. In Old Town, on the way to defeat dear detestable dad, you come across Preston. He offers you help, and when player character is understandably suspicious, Preston complains that... one of his toys was taken away because you beat him, and now he wants Revenge On Dad.

I wish I was joking. His revenge, by helping you defeat his dad, isn’t because he’s obviously neglected by his dad (company taking priority over him, the CEO’s son), and then is used as a minion to try and get rid of you. It’s not out of bitter feelings because his dad doesn’t care about him, no, it’s because his dad took his ball away.

What’s worse is how player character reacts: “Oh! :) You’ve learned that bakugan aren’t just tools! :) Yes you can help me, despite the fact that you learning this sounds less than genuine and definitely not last minute! :)”

This is a level of stupidity I’ve only seen in DOTC Mira when Spectra tricks her into giving him Drago. He’s literally sulking and moping about over his ball, and then he sees the player character, immediately being manipulative so that player character can take down his dad for him. 

Leonidas also forgives him, and has the same reaction as the player character.

Speaking of Leonidas! I think everyone’s been excited for Leonidas in general - we all love a shark headed death dragon, and we wanted one in the reboot for ages.

I refuse to call reboot Leonidas Leonidas. This is like the Shun Kazami debacle, but one I’m substantially more angry about.

Leonidas, in BBB, was untrusting of everything, wanted to throw down with everything in sight, had no fear of anything because “I don’t fear weak [humans]”, and literally came from hell. He eventually grew to trust you and others, to calm down and enjoy himself at his own pace, and was willing to have help from others, showing anyone around him that his origins aren’t the be all and end all about him.

Leonidas, in CoV, is immediately trusting of the first human who showed a hint of kindness, has a weakness to all attacks in the game, comes from Vestroia (not the Doom Dimension), and forgives the human who threw him away when he didn’t win the battle against you for him.

Ignoring the fact that Leonidas just doesn’t look good in CoV, I’d say he got bastardised. That’s not Leonidas, it’s just a dragon with the same name.

The main villain is the CEO of Parasol, an energy company that, assumedly, used to use solar power. Upon finding out that bakugan battles give off incredible levels of power, they turned to using bakugan, forced to battle, to generate power. These guys literally dug into someone’s house to try and get Leonidas. They’re evil.

On the topic of the battling for power generation; this has a decay effect on Vestroia, as it happens, as battling energy would usually go back into Vestroia, which would be recycled and reused.

The CEO doesn’t bend the knee to you until you break him, which is undoubtedly nice for a villain; I was honestly expecting him to give up, but he doesn’t. You beat him into a corner.

But as my introduction to the world of BP, through CoV, is lackluster at best. Obviously the game is meant for those who have seen the reboot, and don’t mind being completely disconnected from the story, because CoV is self contained, and Dan only shows up to be the tutorial giver (as a jpg, no less).

From what the game tells me about the setting; bakugan are often exploited by adults, bakugan do not like adults because of this, but can’t tell when a human child is manipulating them, unless another child removes them from that situation (the lack of agency here is somehow worse than in the legacy series, who knew).

Despite bakugan being around for 18 years in the setting, no one seems to be aware that they’re living beings, other than the main charcter, as if BP humans are equivalent to Legacy’s Vestals. I was already aware of Vestroia and Earth sharing a location in space, but the fact that drilling deep enough causes bakugan to appear on Earth seems... really weird? Schrödinger’s Bakugan Summoning Pit, but they exist on every digging site possible. Bonus points to all bakugan being able to speak, and they do speak a lot, but only to the player and whoever is around the player in a cutscene.

I’m missing a lot of things, such as battle items being the worst sometimes, I’m aware, but at this point I’m tired of rambling, so let me end off in a comparison.

CoV has, in my opinion, the same replayability levels as Pokemon Shield; I couldn’t replay either game to the end, and I wouldn’t recommend either to anyone unless they were desperate for a new game to play, and had nothing else to chose.

[bluedemon1995]

Hi all!! Hope you like the latest chapter!!! Please let me know what you think and read my other stories :) I love comments and feed back (please be kind-even if you don’t like it you can say but nicely!) Sorry for any mistakes that would be all on me!

Cosmo literally pops us into my work area, and I rub his ears as he whines. I know he’s sad so I lean down and while holding his head still, I look into his eyes. “Don’t worry we are getting him back.”

As always, his intelligent eyes indicate that he understands me and well we seem to be on the same damn page because he agrees. But his lean into me and whine don’t go unnoticed. I can sympathize and understand, we need him back. Krolia is not the only one who needs Keith back! Poor Cosmo!! I give him a quick rub and an ear tug. He bumps me which of course, knocks me down and I smile. I feel my eyes tear up suddenly and I hug him trying to tell myself it’s all going to work out.

I quickly show Krolia what she needs to get aboard, while I run through a systems check. While everything is new there are plenty of bugs that I had planned to work out. With the timetable worked up and now us going into space, well I need to be sure that this crap is working well. After a bit, we were ready to leave. It’s actually mostly due to Krolia. She is like crazy strong so loading the ship didn’t take that long!

I get to the Atlas and stock up on the remaining supplies while gathering the rest of the gang. My dad has called by now and said whatever I need to just let him know. Then he rambled into the he whole routine - be careful, call for help, don’t be stupid and he finished with come back with my guy. What the hell people. I have NO guy! Anyways we are off before you know it. I honestly think it’s within the hour, which is good. Making good time is important at this point. We need to move fast so hopefully no one notices Krolia and Cosmo were missing.

On the ship, once we are off, I’m basically useless. I don’t pilot, that’s Shiro so now I’m I’m so focused on trying to make plans that I don’t even realize that I’ve started pacing again. At some point Lance grabs me, pulling me close and says, “Carina, you need to sleep. You called me a little after 2 am or so, you won’t be any good to us, to KEITH, comatose. The coordinates are in, we have a plan, please just take a break. I’ll wake you up if anything comes up. I swear.”

He has his arms around me and I take a second to look at him, really look at him. He seems better than the last time I saw him, but he’s still too skinny. Too pale especially with the dark circles under his eyes. And as I look at Lance I know he’s right, but I just…I feel too edgy, how could I relax? There is no way I can turn off my brain at this point. Shit, Hunk is already cooking to alleviate stress but what can I do???

I shake my head and say, “No, no, I’m good, I’ve gone on way less sleep. You know me.”

Frowning he nods, “Yes, I do. And that’s why I’m going to push this. Plus, I know you are also evaluating if I’m okay when I’m standing here worried for you!” Lance rolls his eyes and yells that we are getting some shut eye, grabbing and dragging me to the back where the holding bay is. He tells me to sit and comes back moments later with pillows and blankets.

“I got you. Really, trust me.” He sits against a wall and gets me to lay down with himself next to me. I keep fidgeting so he ends up laying down with me, an arm snug around my waist, because I kept trying to get up. Finally, he says, “We are getting him back. Just rest up, so that wicked smart brain of yours is fully functional. I’m here. We are all here and just like back then, everything is going to work out. Seriously who stands a chance against us?! The have no clue of our determination.”

I slowly nod and try really hard to relax. But I can’t. I don’t want to voice my biggest fear. Or more accurately, I can’t. What if we don’t get him back? What if we aren’t enough? What if it’s like Allura, he sacrifices himself for us. I mean honestly, that’s his MO. What if he’s already dead? What if he’s being tortured, or he’s hurt? With all these thoughts swirling in my brain, I just can’t or rather don’t want to voice it, not out loud.

But it’s there, like a sliver of wood stuck in my mind. Just bothering me enough that I can’t forget about it. And there so I cannot stop poking at it.

Finally, he sighs and asks me, “Do you still trust me?”

I can feel his heartbeat behind me and his steady breathing, luring me to unwind. I nod, of course. I can feel his body relax and whisper, “Why? Sometimes I don’t even trust myself?”

I sigh, “Well, tough shit, I trust you, always. Even way back in our Garrison days, when you were being dumb, I still told you about my suspicions and let you come to save Shiro.”

He laughed then, “Let me? Okay, just relax you don’t have to sleep just rest.” Then she felt his finger is stroking my hand and I’m finally warm instead of ice cold. But I can’t help but worry. Again, we know better than most, that everyone doesn’t get a happy ending, most importantly Allura but even on a larger scale Olkarion. I know I’m not going to sleep so I figure, I’ll wait Lance out and sneak out once he goes to sleep.

But sometimes I forget, Lance knows me. The real me. He’s so observant and good at getting others to relax, shit, he probably know me better than I know myself. With him holding onto me, keeping me close, his steady warmth relaxes me, his fingers rubbing circles on my hand and I find myself slowly start to drift off to sleep. Then Lance starts to sing a soft lullaby. In Spanish.

Before you know it, Krolia is waking us up and telling us we arrived and need to get in action. We get up and Krolia and Shiro lay out the facts that we know and what we can hazard a guess of. It’s going to be an extraction with some Razzle Dazzle thrown in. You can insert my eye roll at any point but we have a plan.

Ultimately, it’s been less than 24 hours that I have known that they have had Keith. As far as I’m concerned, that’s at least one day too long. I rub my eyes, crack my neck and get up. I push everything to the side. No worries, we got this I tell myself, after all we got a plan to enact! The team is back! Whoever it is who has Keith, well, they really don’t know who they messed with. Sure the Blades are one thing, they were super scary at one time. But now, I bet this planet just views them as some ordinary humanitarian organization.

Well, wake up cuz we are on the job. I look at my people, my family and take a deep breath. We got this. We CAN and WILL do this. No doubt. No room for other options. After all, Keith is family. And we are here to get him back. Period.

[jcmorgenstern]

@superohclair oh god okay please know these are all just incoherent ramblings so like, idk, please feel free to add on or ignore me if im just wildly off base but this is a bad summary of what ive been thinking about and also my first titans/batman meta?? (also, hi!)

okay so for the disclaimer round: I am not an actual cultural studies major, nor do I have an extensive background in looking at the police/military industrial complex in media. also my comics knowledge is pretty shaky and im a big noob(I recently got into titans, and before that was pretty ignorant of the dceu besides batman) so I’ll kind of focus in on the show and stuff im more familiar with and apologize in advance?. basically im just a semi-educated idiot with Opinions, anyone with more knowledge/expertise please jump in! this is literally just the bullshit I spat out incoherently off the top of my head. did i mention im a comics noob? because im a comics noob.

so on a general level, I think we can all agree that batman as a cultural force is somewhat on the conservative side, if not simply due to its age and commercial positioning in American culture. there are a lot of challenges and nuances to that and it’s definitely expanding and changing as DC tries to position itself in the way that will...make the most money, but all you have to do is take a gander through the different iterations of the stories in the comics and it’ll smack you in the fucking face. like compare the first iteration of Jason keeping kids out of drugs to the titans version and you’ve got to at least chuckle. at the end of the day, this is a story about a (white male) billionaire who fights crime.

to be fair, I’d argue the romanticization of the police isn’t as aggressive as it could be—they are most often presented as corrupt and incompetent. However, considering the main cop characters depicted like Jim Gordon, the guys in Gotham (it’s been a while since I saw it, sorry) are often the romanticized “good few” (and often or almost always white cis/het men), that’s on pretty shaky ground. I don’t have the background in the comics strong enough to make specific arguments, so I’ll cede the point to someone who does and disagrees, but having recently watched a show that deals excellently with police incompetence, racism, and brutality (7 Seconds on Netflix), I feel at the very least something is deeply missing. like, analysis of race wrt police brutality in any aspect at all whatsoever.

I think it can be compellingly read that batman does heavily play into the military/police industrial complex due to its takes on violence—just play the Arkham games for more than an hour and you’ll know what I mean. to be a little less vague, even though batman as a franchise valorizes “psychiatric treatment” and “nonviolence,” the entire game seems pretty aware it characterizes treatment as a madhouse and nonviolence as breaking someone’s back or neck magically without killing them because you’re a “good guy.” while it is definitely subversive that the franchise even considers these elements at all, they don’t always do a fantastic job living up to them.

and then when you consider the fetishization of tools of violence both in canon and in the fandom, it gets worse. same with prisons—if anything it dehumanizes people in prisons even more than like, cop shows in general, which is pretty impressive(ly bad). like there’s just no nuance afforded and arkham is generally glamorized. the fact that one of the inmates is a crocodile assassin, I will admit, does not help. im not really sure how to mitigate that when, again, one of the inmates is a crocodile assassin, but I think my point still stands. fuck you, killer croc. (im just kidding unfuck him or whatever)

not to take this on a Jason Todd tangent but I was thinking about it this afternoon and again when thinking about that cop scene again and in many ways he does serve as a challenge to both batman’s ideology as well as the ideology of the franchise in general. his depiction is always a bit of a sticking point and it’s always fascinating to me to see how any given adaptation handles it. like Jason’s “”street”” origin has become inseparable from his characterization as an angry, brash, violent kid, and that in itself reflects a whole host of cultural stereotypes that I might argue occasionally/often dip into racialized tropes (like just imagine if he wasn’t white, ok). red hood (a play on robin hood and the outlaws, as I just realized...today) is in my exposure/experience mostly depicted as a villain, but he challenges batman’s no-kill philosophy both on an ethical and practical level. every time the joker escapes he kills a whole score more of innocent people, let alone the other rogues—is it truly ethical to let him live or avoid killing him for the cost of one life and let others die?

moreover, batman’s ““blind”” faith in the justice system (prisons, publicly-funded asylum prisons, courts) is conveniently elided—the story usually ends when he drops bad guy of the day off at arkham or ties up the bad guys and lets the police come etc etc. part of this is obviously bc car chases are more cinematic than dry court procedurals, but there is an alternate universe where bruce wayne never becomes batman and instead advocates for the arkham warden to be replaced with someone competent and the system overhauled, or in programs encouraging a more diverse and educated police force, or even into social welfare programs. (I am vaguely aware this is sometimes/often part of canon, but I don’t think it’s fair to say it’s the main focus. and again, I get it’s not nearly as cinematic).

overall, I think the most frustrating thing about the batman franchise or at least what I’ve seen or read of it is that while it does attempt to deal with corruption and injustice at all levels of the criminal justice system/government, it does so either by treating it as “just how life is” or having Dick or Jim Gordon or whoever the fuckjust wipe it out by “eliminating the dirty cops,” completely ignoring the non-fantasy ways these problems are dealt with in real life. it just isn’t realistic. instead of putting restrictions on police violence or educating cops on how to use their weapons or putting work into eradicating the culture of racism and prejudice or god basically anything it’s just all cinematized into the “good few” triumphing over the bad...somehow. its always unsatisfying and ultimately feels like lip service to me, personally.

this also dovetails with the very frustrating way mental health/”insanity” or “madness” is dealt with in canon, very typical of mainstream fiction. like for example:“madness is like gravity, all it takes is a little push.” yikes, if by ‘push’ you mean significant life stressors, genetic load, and environemntal influences,  then sure. challenge any dudebro joker fanboy to explain exactly what combination of DSM disorders the joker has to explain his “””insanity””” and see what happens. (these are, in fact, my plans for this Friday evening. im a hit at parties).

anyway I do really want to wax poetic about that cop scene in 1x06 so im gonna do just that! honestly when I first saw that I immediately sat up like I’d sat on a fucking tack, my cultural studies senses were tingling. the whole “fuck batman” ethos of the show had already been interesting to me, esp in s1, when bruce was basically standing in for the baby boomers and dick being our millennial/GenX hero. I do think dick was explicitly intended to appeal to a millennial audience and embody the millennial ethos. By that logic, the tension between dick and Jason immediately struck me as allegorical (Jason constantly commenting on dick being old, outdated, using slang dick doesn’t understand and generally being full of youthful obnoxious fistbumping energy).

Even if subconsciously on the part of the writers, jason’s over-aggressive energy can be read as a commentary on genZ—seen by mainstream millennial/GenX audiences as taking things too far. Like, the cops in 1x06 could have been Nick Zucco’s hired men or idk pretty much anyone, yet they explicitly chose cops and even had Jason explain why he deliberately went after them for being cops so dick (cop) could judge him for it. his rationale? he was beaten up by cops on the street, so he’s returning the favor. he doesn’t have the focused “righteous” rage of batman or dick/nightwing towards valid targets, he just has rage at the world and specifically the system—framed here as unacceptable or fanatical. as if like, dressing up like a bat and punching people at night is, um, totally normal and uncontroversial.

on a slightly wider scope, the show seems to internally struggle with its own progressive ethos—on the one hand, they hire the wildly talented chellah man, but on the other hand they will likely kill him off soon. or they cast anna diop, drawing wrath from the loudly racist underbelly of fandom, but sideline her. perhaps it’s a genuine struggle, perhaps they simply don’t want to alienate the bigots in the fanbase, but the issue of cops stuck out to me when I was watching as an social issue where they explicitly came down on one side over the other. jason’s characterization is, I admit and appreciate, still nuanced, but I’d argue that’s literally just bc he’s a white guy and a fan favorite. cast an actor of color as Jason and see how fast fandom and the writer’s room turns on him.

anyway i don’t really have the place to speak about what an explicitly nonwhite!cop!dick grayson would look like, but I do think it would be a fascinating and exciting place to start in exploring and correcting the kind of vague and nebulous complaints i raise above. (edit: i should have made more clear, i mean in the show, which hasn’t dealt with dick’s heritage afaik). also, there’s something to be said about the cop vs detective thing but I don’t really have the brain juice or expertise to say it? anyway if you got this far i hope it was at least interesting and again pls jump in id love to hear other people’s takes!!

tldr i took two (2) cultural studies classes and have Opinions

[primal-screamer-blog1]

Mutually Assured Destruction (Playlist Here) Rating: Mature Pairing: Nikki Sixx/F. OC Description: Growing restless in his discontent, Nikki Sixx is plagued with past anxieties that he never could find the courage to confront. He’d seen and done it all but when it came to Ruby Moon, he’d always felt he had unfinished business. Now, years after their tumultuous relationship had seemingly come to an end, Nikki finds himself compulsively recounting memories and asking questions only she would have the answers to. total word count: 20,586

Prologue One : Red When I See You Two : Attention, Affection Three : Think About What You Know Four : Patience Five : Different Between Us Warnings: Heavy drug use, heavy profanity, alcohol, brief descriptions of sexual acts, yelling, male aggression A/N: Decided not to change Ruby’s name. I know it’s Nikki’s daughter-to-be’s name, but I named my character quite some time before he announced that and I just can’t think of any other name that would fit her. I love the name Ruby Moon and besides, with her being Japanese and Mexican, it’s really just an Americanized version of her name anyway. Her full name will be revealed in a different chapter though. This is my longest chapter and that’s why it took so long to write it. I absolutely love this one, maybe a little more than chapter three, which has so far been my favorite to write. Really hope you guys like it as much as I do. As always, thank you so much for reading, commenting, liking, reblogging, everything you do. 

Nikki was different when he came back from tour.  

At their welcome home party, he was more assured of himself. Rather than slouching and skulking about, looking for someone to direct his aimless frustration at, he stood up taller, happy to strut around his new house. He made eye contact with throngs of people rather than staring at his boots, even pushing his hair out of his face before talking to them. He spoke with more authority, no longer second guessing himself before speaking up and when he smiled, he showed his teeth. His edge wasn’t gone; it was sharpened. He wore a dog collar. He had tattoos. When he saw Ruby, they’d both already been drinking. He lifted her up and crushed her into a hug. He let out a relieved groan as she cackled, her arms flailing for a grip on him. She squealed as he spun her around and let her down dizzy and stumbling. “Fuck!” She grabbed onto his arm for support and he nudged her to set her balance off even further than the alcohol already did. “Has it been actual years?” He shouted, keeping an arm around her and drinking from a bottle of Jack Daniels. He had to shout. Too Fast For Love played over the impressive speaker system wired around the house, the bass shaking the room. His new house was massive and at the late hour, filled with nearly hundreds of people in tight leather and denim. The dim lights in the high ceilings bounced off their studs and rhinestones, glossy black tile floors casting dark, glamorous glares. Cigarette and marijuana smoke hung thick in the resonant concave room, a haze over the night. Nikki was taller than ever in his six inch heels and tight black leather. People crowded around them. Women neither had ever seen in skimpy dresses craned their necks and pretended not to watch Nikki focus his attention on Ruby. In a corner across the room, Tommy excitedly elbowed Mick hard in the side. “Hey! Careful where you stick that thing, drummer!” Mick scolded him, feeling a pain shoot down his leg. “Shit, I’m sorry, man! But check it out!” He nodded over at Ruby and Nikki. “You think he’s gonna score with her tonight?” “Hopefully. Then maybe he’ll finally shut the fuck up about it.” Ruby had to push herself up on her toes to talk into Nikki’s ear over the music and other people doing the same. She wore a tight white cropped t shirt, bright red leather pants and lipstick to match, her black hair pulled over her shoulder. “This place is fucking amazing!” She told him, placing a small hand on his chest. “I know!” He slurred, lifting the bottle to her lips and pouring a shot in her mouth. “Feels like it was only yesterday I was crashin’ on your couch.” “That was only like two months ago!” She coughed, wiping liquor from her chin. “Whatever!” He tousled her hair. “I don’t care! Look at this place! It’s huge!” He spit a shot out somewhere into the crowd. Whoever it hit shouted something Nikki wasn’t able to make out, but he flipped him off anyway and cackled. He turned back to Ruby. “Do we even know that guy?” She hardly heard his question. She was too focused on how happy he seemed, unabashedly and unapologetically himself for the first time in a long time. When she first met Nikki, he often was barely holding it together. Now, she felt nothing but pride as she watched him let it all out. She threw her arms around his torso and laughed. “I missed you so fucking much!” “I missed you too!” He leaned in closer. “Hey, hey, hey….has anyone given you a bump yet?” “No! I was waiting for you!” “C’mon, come with me. Come with me, let’s go.” Nikki grabbed her arm and turned to shove through the crowd, most of them stopping to try for his attention. He seldom looked up to stop, grumbling and shouting playfully at people to make room. “‘Scuse me! Move! I have to go do drugs now!” He called out to no one in particular. Usually plagued by insecurity, he moved with ease now, well aware that everyone had gathered to see him. Ruby shrunk away a bit behind him, happy to let him bask in it. “Nikki!” A deep voice bellowed behind them as the crowd thinned out by the staircase. It wasn’t the first time that night someone called his name, but it was the first time his mass of hair perked up to see who it was. An older man in a dark blue button down and slacks lumbered over to them, a wide smile on his round face. He clutched a small drink in one fat hand and clapped the other on Nikki’s shoulder. “Some party, huh? You having fun?” He boomed. “Oh shit! Doc! Hey!” He patted the man on the back. “Who’s this little piece you got, Sixx?” He motioned to Ruby, grinning at her. “The girl from the magazine!” “This is Ruby.” He said as she greeted Doc, shaking his hand. “She’s in a band too. She sings.” “Really?” Doc turned to her. “With a face and body like that, I don’t even need to hear it. You enjoying the party, little lady?” “Are you fucking kidding?” She exclaimed, ignoring the crass remarks in favor of the offer she heard within them. Working at the strip club kept her on her toes around men like him. She would work with what he gave her. “This is incredible. You put this on, right?” “Of course, I did! I made your boy here a lot of money too. You wanna do the same?” She stared at him wide eyed, unsure of his candor. “You’re joking.” Nikki and Doc shared a laugh. “Listen to me,” Doc began and came in closer. “I’m aware of every face that matters in Los Angeles. I saw yours at least fifteen times before I got back to this god forsaken city. Can you carry a tune? What do you play?” “Rock music. I sing, I can play guitar but I sing.” “A frontwoman! Even better. We’ll both make a boat load. Sixx, you’ll slide the tape across my desk, won’t you?” “Fuck yeah, Doc.” Nikki chugged the remainder of his whiskey in a giant gulp and forcefully smashed the bottle on the staircase railing behind them, party goers and glass scattering. “Oops!” He laughed. “For fuck’s sake! Like you’ll even remember this conversation!”  “Wait, you really mean it?” Ruby asked, grasping Doc’s hand before Nikki could distract him further. “I mean it! I’ve seen your face in two different countries now, I wanna hear your voice. Get me a tape and I'll get you a contract.” He gave her small hand a squeeze  before waving her off. “Now go! I didn't spend a paycheck on this party so pretty girls could stand around sober! Go have fun!”

She was drunk by the time Nikki had led her to his new room. Pressed against his red bedroom door, a couple sloppily locked lips, their hands slowly roaming the others body. “Ew.” Ruby muttered as they came upon the pair. “Aw c’mon man, this is my fucking room.” Nikki yelled, throwing his arms up. “Whoa! Nikki Sixx!” The man gasped, jumping away from the girl. He had big brown curly hair and wore a Kiss shirt and tight jeans. He stuck his hand out enthusiastically and began rambling despite Nikki ignoring his gesture. “Hey, I’m a huge fan, man! Too Fast For Love rips!” He threw up his devil horns before pointing at Ruby. “Oh shit! You’re the girl from the billboard! Oh, man! You score the hottest chicks!” “What are you doing here, dude?” Nikki asked flatly, ignoring his fawning. “Huh?” The man’s smile didn’t fall at all. “This is my house. How did you get in here?” “This is your house? No way! I knew Motley Crue was gonna be here, but I didn’t know this was your house!” The girl leaned up against the wall next to him, too drunk to hold herself up on stiletto heels. She fluffed her white blonde hair and straightened her tight dress under her denim jacket, batting big eyes at Nikki. “What the fuck are you doing?” “Well, honestly dude, I’m a huge fan and I knew you guys were gonna be here so I was actually wondering if you’d listen to my tape. I brought it along with me and I think you’d really-” “Oh fuck off, user.” Nikki pushed the man in the face and pulled his bedroom door open. “And get the fuck out.” “Dude, what the hell!” As Ruby followed him in, the blonde girl took a hesitant step behind her to follow before being met with a hand. “Oh, no! Nah,” Ruby laughed. “You can fuck off too.” She was giggling. She’d hardly been able to contain herself through the whole situation and given the chance to open her mouth, she couldn’t hold it in. The girl rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.  “God, whatever. Goodnight Nikki!’

Nikki stumbled around in the dark room, looking for a light before turning around and holding up his middle finger. He made a loud fart noise and Ruby pulled the door shut behind her. “Oh my god!” She cackled, sliding down the door into the plush black carpet. “What the fuck, dude?” Nikki tripped over a pile of clothes before flicking on a small lamp on his bedside table. “And somehow I’m insane, right?” “No way.” She waved her hands in front of her face. “No way, that was insane.” Nikki groaned. Candelabras began to illuminate the room as he clumsily lit tall candles with his zippo around an overstuffed leather couch. “Pick out a record.” He told her, pointing to a clean Audio Technica set. She stood up, stumbling a little and looked around. She wasn’t surprised to find nearly everything was black but the dark burgundy walls. A huge four poster bed done up in ornate tapestries took up nearly half the room. Long silk curtains covered tall windows and horror movie posters were stuck up with nails around a large television set in the corner next to a bust of Baphomet. “So is that Doc guy legitimate? Like will he actually listen to our tape?” She asked as she thumbed through his record selection on a shelf below the record table.

“For the millionth time, have you seen this house? Do you see how many people are here?” He stood up and rummaged through a backpack that he picked up off the floor. “Doc is the most legitimate. He hooked us the fuck up. Everyone here and everyone on tour….they’re here for us. Motley fucking Crue. They heard our album and they fucking wanted more. Can you believe that shit?” He pulled a small plastic baggy out of his backpack and keyed up a bump on his pocket knife. He took a hit before joining Ruby cross legged on the floor. “Yes.” She told him honestly, stopping to look at the back of an AC/DC record. “Don’t put that one on.” “You told me to pick!” “Fuck, oh my god, fine. Taste this, though.” He scooped up a bit of powder on his middle finger and held it up for her. She took a hard sniff and tilted her head back, feeling a tangy sour taste hit the back of her throat. A subtle vibration spread from between her eyes to her fingertips and suddenly, everything heightened. She felt her cheeks get warm and tension release behind her temples. The light around the candles burned pinker than they did before, dancing on the red walls. She cooed. “Oh that is so good.” “Right?” Nikki cackled, taking another dip for himself and licking his fingers. “That’s what I’m saying. Doc hooks us the fuck up.” “How is that old man getting drugs like this?” “Like he said. He knows everyone! Look, I’m telling you. He did it for us. He’ll do it for you too.” He set up another hit on his pocket knife and held it out towards her. “Come to the dark side, Ruby Moon.” “You better be fucking right about this.” She rolled her eyes at him before inhaling. “Fuck.” “What’s your damage?” He laughed. “What do you mean?” “Why are you so freaked out?” “I dunno. I just...I mean Doc didn’t do it, you did. You, Mick, Vince and Tommy. You guys have been working so hard and I just-” “Oh c’mon!” He cut her off. She shot a look at him. “Whatever you’re gonna say, I need you to fuck off right now. You have been working your ass off. Don’t start making excuses when you get handed a fuckin’ short cut.” He got a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and pulled one out with his teeth. “I’m just nervous.” “Good. That’s the first step. Look,” He exhaled and leaned back on his elbows. He rolled his head on his shoulder and looked up at her. “I don’t know shit about your new band, but I’ve heard you sing. I’ve seen you perform. You were made to do this. Don’t slow that down for anything.” She blushed, remembering all over again why they were friends. Nikki was wild and being close to him came with its own considerable amount of emotional baggage. It’s why he didn’t let many people in to begin with - he felt too affective. But he was honest. For that, Ruby never faulted him for him for being harsh, even when she didn’t let him go unchecked in his turmoil, even when it came down on her. She saw him with empathy when most would simply cut their losses. When given the chance, he was loyal and sweet and kind and in return, she was endlessly grateful. “Forget this.” She told him with a grin. “Tell me about tour.” Nikki and Ruby talked into the night, the party below them pounding bass lines into the floor. They hardly noticed, too drunk and high on cocaine and the others presence to be bothered with a world outside of their own conversations. Even when Vince banged on the door, insisting “Nikki get your ass out here, there’s a girl letting us take shots out her asshole,” he simply shouted back “I’m busy!” “All I wanna do is talk to you.” He told her but with the veracity at which he was funneling grams of coke, Ruby knew that his horde at least had something to do with that. She told him all about Billie and Alex and the songs they started writing. She told him she wanted to focus on storytelling in her songwriting, the way Lou Reed and David Bowie did. She wanted to bring New York to LA and punk ethos to the glam scene, fronting with aggressive feminine sexuality. She wanted to be a counter to what the boys were doing, not just Motley Crue, but all the boys on the scene. All in all, she admitted, she wanted them to feel threatened. She wanted to show teeth. “It’s fucking perfect.” Nikki said. They’d moved onto his bed, spread juxtaposed across the huge mattress. She wore his leather jacket while they smoked cigarettes and tried on big expensive pairs of sunglasses he bought while he was away. He wanted nothing more than to listen to her, to let her fill his head with all the ideas that she conceived while he was gone and all the things she did. Mostly, he wanted to hear her voice, feeling parched for it after being away for so long. But his own thoughts broke off into fractals, too big to stay in his head. He told her about tour, about all the places they’d gone and the things they’d seen. When he thought of leaving the country for the first time, he didn’t think it would be to Canada. But he loved the mountains, so unlike the Hollywood Hills his house was set in. “There was just something really dark and foreboding about them. Fog would rise up on the peaks at night. So fucking metal.” He recounted. He said they ate expensive food, did expensive drugs and slept with expensive looking women. Together, him and Tommy destroyed hotel rooms and Vince managed to get them in a fight with a bar full of bikers. Mick broke it up. They met new people, saw new things and played their songs in front of thousands. He told her how Tommy found her in a magazine in Calgary. “I really hate that it’s blown up so much. They even called me to do another one.” “It’s the fucking last place I thought I’d ever see you. I was like fuck, I can’t get away from this girl!” He groaned. She paused and watched him rub his eyes before speaking, her own words starting to come out too quick. “Is that why you didn’t wanna talk to me on the phone?” “I uh…” He bit his lip and looked away. “I figured while I was gone, I should just be...really gone.” And there it was; what they’d been avoiding all night. Reality. She paused before she spoke again. “You know, I really missed you.” “I missed you too. Thought about you a lot. Tried not to, but I did.” She smiled, feeling a void fill after talking to him all night. She grabbed onto one of his pillows and took in his familiar smell. There was whiskey, sweat, and cigarettes, unleaded gasoline, and for the first time, there was the faintest hint of a musky cologne. She was reminded again of all the laughs, all the highs and lows, and late nights they used to share together. Somehow, it already felt so long ago. She felt the mattress dip as Nikki sat up, holding his knees to his chest. The party was quiet now, the music no longer playing. There was a muffled chatter from downstairs, the last few guests just loud enough to be heard. The dim grey light of dawn streamed in through a slit in his black curtains, his tall candles burned down to stumps in the candelabra. “Hey Ruby.” “Yeah?” He paused. “I wanna try something.” Maybe it was the cocaine or maybe it was the sentimentality. Maybe it was instinct but she moved next to him. She mirrored his pose and rested her cheek against her knee. “Try it.” With a hesitant sweep of his hand to the back of her neck, she lifted her face to meet his. Foreheads touching, there was an unexpected shyness in the approach and he laid his finger tips against hers. She glanced down. An unintended move, their lips brushed and she let out a soft breath to intermingle with his and he sighed lightly on her cheek. A warm ache spread in her chest and her hand moved to his hair but he held back. Eyes closed, he moved against her again, a smile twitching in his cautiousness. Her knees swayed and she pushed her nose into his, trying to make up the space that he teased. She breathed a nervous laugh on his lips, his hair tickling her face. He closed his mouth on hers. Like a first breath drawn in years of anticipation between them, he inhaled sharply and she let out a deep moan, opening for his tongue to hungrily lap at hers. His grip tightened on her neck and he pressed against her hard, sucking her soft bottom lip between his teeth. Her hand slid down his thigh and she pulled into him, responding to the need for control in his bite. Her other hand moved to his chest and he let out a guttural noise. “Fuck.” “Fuck!” Ruby pulled away and nearly sprang to the other side of the bed, clapping a hand over her mouth. “Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. Shit.” She whispered under her breath, her eyes closed shut. She couldn’t look at Nikki’s expression fall to concerned confusion. “What?” He asked, coming closer to her. He placed a gentle hand under her chin. “What is it?” Axl. “Nikki, I…” She began and looked up at him. She took in a deep sigh and moved his hand away. She had no choice but to tell him. “I, uh….I fucked up. Something happened and I didn’t tell you.” His expression fell from concern to disappointment. “What?” “Fuck, I don’t want you to be upset.” “What the fuck, Ruby?” “I um….I started seeing someone.”

Nikki tensed. Any softness he was expressing vanished and he looked away, feeling the silence of the moment build up in the back of his throat. He let out a disbelieving spiteful laugh. “What? Like you have a boyfriend?” “Well...kind of? Not really...I don’t know.” “So what?” He stood up and turned away from her, pulling his hand through his hair. “You’re just gonna be snuggled up in my bed all night telling me how much you miss me and meanwhile you got a fucking boyfriend?” “I do miss you! I didn’t come up here thinking you were gonna kiss me!” “I didn’t either but fuck, you can’t do that shit! Ruby, you know how I fucking feel about you.” He stopped pacing. “God, man. Fuck, you know what? Get the fuck out.” He stormed to his door and pulled it open. “What?” Her face fell and she swallowed an emotion. They had gotten in fights before, screamed at each other until they were both out of breath. They clashed heads often enough that people who didn’t know either of them wondered why they spent time together. But even in the worst of times, Nikki had never told her to leave. Hot tears rose in her eyes.

“Get the fuck out.” “Nikki, please, don’t do this. Lemme stay and explain.” “Explain what? That you don’t give a fuck about me?” “That’s not true! You know that’s not true!” “I don’t know that! Not right now!” “Nikki, I didn’t mean for it to happen! We just spend a lot of time together. We haven’t even really talked about if we’re dating or not. It’s not...like that.” “Yeah? It wasn’t like that with Vince either but you still fucked him for six months while telling me some ‘I’m just not ready for a boyfriend’ bullshit. So it doesn’t really matter does it? I still get fucked over and lied to. And I guess I’m just gonna keep getting fucked over and lied to. So get the fuck out.” “Nikki!” “Go!” Ruby stormed out. She was already halfway down the hall when she heard the door slam shut. She wiped tears from her eyes, sweat prickling up around her neck. She fixed her hair and quickly tugged Nikki’s leather jacket off and dropped it on the ground, suddenly feeling heavy and oppressive. She shook her head and looked down as she rushed towards the stairs, her head feeling airy and her eyes sunken after hours of cocaine use. Her mouth ached. She felt stupid. She felt small. So distracted by her own self flagellation, she didn’t even notice Tommy coming up the stairs before crashing into him. She let out gasp of surprise and wiped tears from her cheeks, knowing she was making a failed effort to hide her wet eyes. She looked down. “Sorry.” She muttered quickly and tried to walk around him but he stepped in front of her. “Are you guys seriously fucking fighting right now?” He pushed his brows together, sounding - surprisingly - pissed off. “Oh fuck, did you hear that?” “Heard you both fuckin’ screamin’ all the way downstairs. What the fuck is going on?” “We were hanging out and uh….” She trailed off and shook her head, deciding Nikki probably needed to vent to Tommy more than she did. “He’ll tell you. Just make sure he doesn’t lock himself in his room and go on a bender or some shit. Rich boy coke has him fucking geeked.” “The fuck? What happened?” “I’ll call you tomorrow when I get outta work.” She told him, already on her way down the stairs.

“You know this was supposed to be a celebration, right?” He called after her.

Ruby sped home as the sun rose over the valley. She meant to get a driver but by the time she remembered, she was already halfway home. She squinted down the road, her eyes bloodshot and tired. She turned over in her head what she planned on doing, as if there was much she could do at all. All that mattered for her now was time; how much time it would take for Nikki to talk to her again and how much time it would take for her to tell Axl what happened. In between then, she’d have to learn how to accept that Doc’s offer was most likely gone. She groaned. It was a minor annoyance compared to the idea that she might not be able to make up for hurting Nikki. She went to bed sobbing Meanwhile, across town, Tommy sat on Nikki’s couch and watched him pace. “Yo what is going on? I thought you guys were totally up here fuckin’ all night!” “Yeah fucking right dude.” Nikki muttered, stopping to cut up several fat lines on his coffee table with a bowie knife. He didn’t intend any of them for Tommy. “Should’ve stayed with you guys. She’s got a boyfriend now.” “Oh what? Fuck that.” Tommy told him. “I heard that shit tonight and I honestly didn’t believe it. I never heard of Ruby having a steady dude.” “The fuck do you mean you heard that tonight?” Nikki looked up, hunched over his drugs. “I dunno, someone was telling me they seen her hanging around with some skinny mother fucker named Axl. I guess he’s a singer for some local band but I can’t remember the fucking name.” “Oh, go fucking figure he’s a singer. Is that her thing or something?” “This is what you guys were fighting about?” Nikki sighed and ripped a fat line. He stabbed his knife into the coffee table and looked up at Tommy. “She fucking kissed me.” Tommy’s mouth dropped slightly, trying to hide his surprise. “Oh…” “She kissed me. And then she told me she’s seeing someone. So fuck it, man. I’m over it. Not doing this shit anymore.” “You’re not even gonna be friends?” “Not if she can’t make up her fucking mind. I don’t wanna talk about this anymore, let’s go fucking blind.” Nikki and Tommy snorted drugs into the afternoon. When they ran out of coke, they moved onto a bag of painkillers Tommy was holding for someone else. They went numb through the night, listening to the heaviest records Nikki could find, barely noticing they hadn’t slept. Mick arrived later on to fill them with litres of vodka, knowing well in his experienced age what an ailing heart needed. “She fucked him up bad, huh?” Mick asked Tommy as they continued shot for shot after Nikki had passed out on the kitchen floor. Tommy looked at his best friend, eyes closed and sweaty cheek pressed against the tile floor. Tommy didn’t understand pain the same way Nikki did and after watching him blow thousands of dollars in drugs in one night, he was thankful for that. Still, he’d known Nikki to have gone through plenty worse and manage to come out on top. Maybe he overdid it, Tommy thought, but he couldn’t blame him. He was just having a bad night. He walked over to Nikki and pulled a lipstick tube out of his pocket, scribbling a crude, red heart on his forehead. He crossed it out. “He’ll be fine.” Taglist: @triplehaitches @itsclaranotcarla @vamprlestat @riders-of-rohann

[edream93]

I’m Hooked On All These Feelings (Harry of Auradon AU) Part 10

Hey everyone! Sorry that I haven’t updated since October. It was a combination of being stuck and just having a lot of different stuff going on in my life. I’m honestly not 100% satisfied with this chapter but let me know what you all think. This is also posted on on AO3 or FF.net. Here’s the link for Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3, Part 4, Part 5,  Part 6 ,  Part 7, Part 8, and Part 9 of the story so far.

EARLIER

Uma crossed, then uncrossed, her legs. Her foot began tapping a staccato beat as she watched Evie step back from Gil and admire her work in the moon’s light. 

Though Evie had assured her that Carlos had taken care of the cell’s security system and that the apple turnovers laced with sleeping potion would keep the guards knocked out until well into the next day, that still didn’t ease Uma’s need to constantly look over her shoulder. When one was used to things going wrong, one couldn’t help but fear glowing green eyes hiding around each corner ready to cause trouble. 

Evie and Carlos had helped her this far, but Isle habits still made Uma’s skin crawl with anxiety, waiting for either a setup or for them to finally demand a price for their help. Afterall, it had been only her and Gil for so long that she found it hard to trust anyone else. Nothing was free. Everything came with a price. That was the one thing her mother made sure she remembered.  

  Afterall, Evie was working her magic on their makeup disguises. Literally. If Uma was in her position, she would be charging by every brush stroke.  

Despite applying several different products that Uma could never hope to keep track of, the Evil Queen’s daughter had worked her magic with a makeup brush and fake hair making Gil look like himself...but also, not like himself. She glanced over at Gil once again but after a few seconds of staring she felt her eyes and thoughts begin to slide off Gil if she didn’t force herself to focus on him. Uma knew that if she looked in a mirror the makeup Evie had done just a few minutes ago on her would have had a similar effect. 

“Her magic is definitely less flashy than Mal’s. It’s like a notice-me-not spell or something,” Carlos brought her attention to him. He stood awkwardly, fiddling with a loose thread of his jacket’s sleeve. Despite his mother’s obsession with dogs and constantly being referred to as “pup” amongst many of the Isle residents, Carlos reminded Uma more of a skittish and weary cat more than anything else. “T-that would be useful back home,” he murmured so softly Uma almost didn’t hear him. 

Her hand reached up to twirl one of her braids thoughtfully around her finger. The motion stopped suddenly when she remembered she had hastily cut and taken her braids out, before twisting her much shorter hair into flat braids against her skull and pulling one of the theatre clubs stolen black wigs over it. 

It was itchy and tight against her scalp and she wanted nothing more than to rip it off. 

 “Back home?” Uma scowled. “You sound like you’re planning to make a trip back there,” she commented before letting out a humorless chuckle. She quirked a brow as she leaned against one of the library’s many tables. “What? Miss the moldy food and the constant risk of catching pneumonia or hypothermia already?”

Carlos ran a hand over the book spines on a nearby shelf, the corner of his lips tugged down thoughtfully. “Guess I’m just not that optimistic about this whole wand thing. That Mal or her mom won’t try to cut out any competition once she’s free. And who knows,” he shrugged absentmindedly pulling out a book, flipping through the pages, “after the Coronation, the Isle may not be the worst place to be in once Auradon goes up in flames.” He paused putting the book back. Then, he glanced over his shoulder at her, observing her silently as if weighing his options before saying, “Unless...”

Uma narrowed her eyes. “Unless what, De Vil?”

Nervous energy radiated off of him in almost palpable waves so Uma was slightly impressed when Carlos looked up at her, gaze steady. “Unless someone gives Mal a run for her money and stands up to her.”

Pausing, Uma let his words sink in before she let out a short laugh of disbelief at his utterly ridiculous insinuation. ‘He couldn’t mean- That would be ridiculous!’ she thought to herself before saying out loud, “Hm, right. You sure that Tourney helmet is actually protecting that big brain of yours when you get tackled? Because you must have some brain damage, De Vil, if you think that-

“I was there you know,” Carlos cut her off, voice seeming loud in the quiet library. His cheeks and the top of his ears reddened but he continued. “When, um. When the shrimp thing happened...” 

Uma stilled. It was like she could feel the cold slime of rotten shrimp sliding down the back of her shirt all over again. Her hand reached up once again to grab a braid that wasn’t there, to check and see if there was any trace of the smell. Her shoulders hunched and Mal’s ten year old laugh rang in her head. 

It felt like drowning. Drowning when you didn’t even know your head had been above water in the first place. 

“Yeah? So? A whole bunch of people were there! Ya want a sticker for that or something?” Uma hissed, all defensive walls and a bruised heart as she stepped toe to toe with the boy. “If you want to satisfy that praise kink of yours find someone else, pup!”

Behind them, Uma sensed Gil taking a closer step towards her. Gil hadn’t been there when Mal poured the bucket but he had been there for everything else - protecting her, patching her up, sitting with her and rambling about unimportant things in her darkest of moments until she could find the strength to cling onto his words with a tired attempt to mock him - and that alone made Uma hold her head up high, rage controlled but ready to crash down like a wave at any moment. 

She didn’t owe this pup anything.

Carlos’s frame shook. The one person on the Isle whose life may have been worse than her own. Despite his obvious fear, his eyes never broke from hers. 

“I saw you,” Carlos firmly stated. “You laughed at Mal but…”

“BUT?” Uma demanded, her patience on its last string. She could feel the heat coming off of Gil from behind her and she knew her friend was giving his most intimidating glare. Carlos, however, must have taken some actual courage potion because he still didn’t back down.

“But you came back for her!” 

Uma baulked, taking an unconscious step back into Gil as if she had been slapped, not prepared for that response.

 “When anyone else wouldn’t have cared. You did. You tried to help her because you knew she couldn’t swim. She was your friend and that was what friends do. They care.”

Uma closed her eyes, the tense energy released from her in a breath until all she felt was tired. She pinched her brow. “Yeah,” she sighed softly. “My stupidest mistake. More reason why I’m not- why I’m not...whatever you’re trying to make me be.”

“Why not?” Evie’s voice caused Uma to spin around and face the girl. She had been unusually quiet, much different from her airheaded chatty persona she put on around Mal and the royals. 

Honestly, if there was anyone right now that Uma felt weary of it was Evie. Mal she expected to be cruel. Jay she expected to do whatever was in his best interest. Carlos she expected to align himself with whoever would beat him up less. Evie...well, Uma can’t imagine being exiled to stay in a rundown castle with the Evil Queen to have left anyone without some...resentment...   

“You’re cunning,” Evie ticked off her fingers. “You’re smart. And you’re powerful.”

Powerful? That was not a word that Uma would ever associate with herself, especially not on the Isle. But Uma prided herself on being able to figure out what others wanted and how to exploit that the best way she could. Evie had no tell though. She was being honest, a rare occurrence with Isle kids but that just meant the girl was delusional because Uma did not have magic.

There had been that slight fluke when they had crossed the bridge from the Isle to Auradon in the limo weeks ago. It was like the ebb and flow of waves caressing her bones briefly in recognition before it sputtered out.

One could argue that she had felt her magic for the first time. Her magic which the Isle’s barrier had muted for all of her life, leaving an inexplicable ache that she had never truly been aware of. 

Days passed after crossing over into Auradon and Mal performed spells from her spellbook as easily as breathing. Evie was able to use her mother’s mirror or stitch together the most heinous looking patterns into wearable art. Uma, however, had to resign herself to the fact that she didn’t have any magic. 

She couldn’t make the small stream of water from the water fountain splash itself into Char Charming’s face after he had called Gil stupid. The potions she brewed for the gullible royals and nobles were just a mix of herbal concoctions that at their best could help with their users indigestion and heartburn when consumed and at their worst were a slow and long acting laxative. They didn’t give a person courage. They could not make someone fall in love or more beautiful. Uma was the daughter of the world’s most feared sea witch. That lineage, as she quickly learned in her first week in Auradon, did not mean that Uma herself was a sea witch. 

Uma was destined not for greatness. It made the idea that anyone could think that she could ever have a chance to go toe-to-toe with Mal laughable...and cruel. It made every time Harry declared her a goddess a painful chip against her heart.

“Uma,” Evie stepped forward slowly. She took measured steps as if approaching a frightened animal ready to flee at any second. Once she was close enough, she took Uma’s only slightly resistant hands in her surprisingly strong grip. “You may not see it but I do. What you’ve hid for years, even from yourself. But we,” she nodded towards Carlos and Gil. “We see it. A storm that has been brewing and brewing for years.”

Uma turned slightly to see both Gil and Carlos nodding affirmingly.

“And your sailor does too,” Evie knowingly added with a prim chuckle.

“He’s not mine,” Uma wanted to reply back hotly but the memory of bright blue eyes filled with something...something that she wanted to hoard for herself caused her to pause. 

Smiling gently, Evie leaned forward and kissed Uma on the cheek, squeezing her hands briefly before letting go and taking a step back. 

“Whatever you decide to do, I don’t think any of us would judge you after all that you’ve been through,” Evie said as she began packing all of her things into her makeup bag before pulling out an envelope from seemingly out of nowhere. 

“They’re identification,” Carlos clarified. “Passports and stuff that I made that’ll help you cross over to the neutral kingdoms. No one should expect that they’re not the real thing.” 

Uma stomach turned as she looked up from the envelope, looking back and forth between Evie and Carlos. Good fake IDs weren’t cheap afterall. “What do I owe you then?”

Evie shrugged. “You may not believe this but we really don’t have any ulterior motives. We...” she sighed, for once not looking like the prim and proper princess she was taught to be but just a girl who was just trying her best. “We just couldn’t take how Mal was treating you anymore. No one deserves that.”

Uma’s frown deepened. So this was pity?

“And anything that makes Mal get all red in the face and isn’t directed at me is a win in my book,” Carlos said attempting to sound too disinterested. “Plus I have a better idea of how lame their computer security is here after bursting Gil out. It’s bound to come in handy at some point. So you’re doing us a favor.” 

Uma nodded, afraid if she said anything she would mess things up. She put the envelope into one of the hastily packed bags she had made for herself and Gil before they broke him out. 

“I’d advise you to keep moving until you hear the outcome of the Coronation,” Evie instructed as she handed one of her bags to Carlos. “Whether or not Mal’s plans for the wand work, someone will probably be after you as soon as they realize you’re both gone. The makeup should last long enough, even if you wash your face, so you’ll be unrecognizable,” she explained confirming Uma’s theory that the other girl had used some sort of magic to disguise them. 

With that said, Evie spun on her heel before strutting out of the library, Carlos throwing a hasty wave over his shoulder as he followed her. 

And then, it was just Uma and Gil. 

Biting her lip, Uma turned towards the window that looked out over the forest surrounding Auradon Prep. Just a little way past the treelines, she could make out the hazy shape of the Isle, surrounded by gray clouds and smog. It had been her prison for crimes that she had never committed. It was that way for everyone born there. Running away had always felt like a dream until it was no longer a dream but reality…

Her hand unconsciously clasped around the shell necklace she had exchanged for her own along with her heart to a blue eyed sailor. She hadn’t even said goodbye to Harry. He was really too good for her. At least he was awake now. He could go back to living his perfect life surrounded by his perfect friends and family. There was no place really for someone like Uma. 

“Let’s go,” she murmured softly, quickly wiping away a stray tear that had fallen. They were wasting time. They needed to get as far away as possible.

“But-” Gil began.

“I said we’re going!” Uma’s voice grew hard before shoving one of their packed bags at him. Gil looked from the bag in his hands to his friends quickly retreating back before quickly catching up with her. 

A day later, Uma pulled Gil’s old jacket tighter around her for warmth. They were still too close to Auradon City to light a proper fire without being noticed. 

Judging by the map that Carlos had printed off for them, they were about half a day ways from the Hundred Acre Woods that bordered Camelot and Sherwood Forest. Though Auadon as a whole had taken a step forward towards modern, non-magic advancement, that stretch of land was known for its prime camping scenery with its thick and lush greenery, totally untouched by electronic distractions. It wouldn’t be strange for someone to build a small contained campfire without being questioned. Plus, they probably had better chances of surviving in general in the woods where Gil could be in his hunting element than they would be in a busy city where they could easily be recognized, despite the wigs they both wore and the fake beard that Evie had expertly applied to Gil’s chin.

“Don’t.” Uma distractedly slapped Gil’s hand away from his face where his fingers were itching to scratch at the fake patch of hair on his chin. He pouted momentarily, fiddling with his hands as he glanced around to distract himself from the itchiness.

They were in a small abandoned lighthouse on the coast, north-west of Auradon City. The soft crashing of waves filled the silence between them as Uma systematically took everything out of their packs to take inventory. 

Anything to get her mind away from distracting thoughts.

“Evie and Carlos are super nice for helping us,” Gil broke the silence just as Uma tossed him two granola bars. They had more than enough to last them for a few weeks if they rationed well.

“They aren’t nice,” Uma denied. “Probably just wanted to use us as a distraction for Mal so they can have her try at stabbing her in the back.”

Gil scratched the back of his neck, frowning. “If you say so…” he said not sounding totally convinced before taking a bite out of his granola bar. 

“I do!” Uma would have stumped her foot if she had been standing up. She pulled her knees to her chest, choosing to avoid his gaze. Instead, her eyes fell on something that was peeking out of the teal jacket that Evie had somehow managed to sneak into Uma’s bag when she hadn’t been looking. 

Rolling onto her knees, Uma reached out for the jacket. She leaned back on her haunches as she pulled out the small square of paper that had caught her eye.

A photo.

It showed a dashing young man with perfectly messy dark hair standing close but not touching the young woman next to him. Though she instantly knew who the young man was, It took Uma longer than she would like to admit to recognize that the young woman, with her hand captured midair on its way to push aside an errant curl away from bright blue eyes, as herself even with the telltale teal braids. Harry’s face wore a soft smirk as the fingers of one hand gently reached out for the hand at her side.

“You look different.” 

She looked over her shoulder to see that Gil had moved silently closer to see what she was holding.  

“He was different,” Uma answered truthfully. She took one last glance at the photo, memorizing the way she looked so...unlike herself. She paused, searching for the right word before she landed on it: happy. She looked completely and utterly happy in the fic. 

“Uma?” Gil questioned after she hadn’t moved or said anything for a few moments. 

Blinking as if jolted from deep within her thoughts, Uma turned to Gil, her hand clutching the Never-shell necklace, a faint but steady warmth emitting from it.

“Why have you stayed with me this long, Gil?” she asked before she could even really think about the question or what answer would be easier to hear. 

Tilting his head to the side as if she had just asked why he loved eggs, Gil responded slowly, unsure if he was answering right. Best friend or not, Uma had a temper when she got impatient with him sometimes.

“Because you’re Uma,” he finally settled on. He reached out and gently squeezed her fingers, giving an unsure but warm smile. “Because you’re my best friend.”

Uma choked back a sob at the simple admission. Her mind went back to an alley where this same boy offered easily his own pain to her just to make her feel better. The large calloused hands that held hers now had been the ones that had fumbled but worked diligently to patch her up every time Mal or anyone else on the Isle thought she needed a reminder of where she fell on the Isle’s food chain.

Gil had kept her sane. Motivating her with bumbling but endearing words and acts of encouragement and loyalty that made every taunt, every encounter with Mal, every hazy dream tinged with jealousy and relief of a blue eyed boy surrounded by love just a bit more bearable. 

If Harry was her anchor, grounding in a way that made her realize her life had always felt off kilter up until they had met, then Gil was her compass, pointing her back to herself. And when she really focused on herself, truly focused on her desires and not on the shackles of fear and humiliation that Mal had bound her with - that Uma had allowed herself to be bound with - she felt something powerful stir inside her.

It was like a tsunami; how the tides pulled away from the shore, gathering and gathering into a wave that once it fell would be in escapable. Her blood hummed with electricity, lightning imbued. Uma felt like she was at the edge of something that she equally both couldn’t name but welcomed, like wakefulness after a restful nap. Like a lost key that had finally been turned in a lock.

Magic thrummed lazily in the air and Uma could feel every branch and curl of it. She felt her own unconscious magic that tasted like sea salt, scuffed knees, and trust born out of loyalty and admiration that hung thick with age over Gil protectively like a blanket. She felt Evie’s magic, surprisingly subtle, woven into each stitch of the teal jacket she still held in her hands, strength, courage, and cunning breathed into it. 

And the necklace…

Tears welled up in her eyes as she held tightly onto the warm and softly humming Never-shell. The magic that wafted from it smelled like a sea breeze, mutual respect, gentle touches, and unhindered smiles with bright blue eyes. 

Faith. Trust. And pixie dust. 

 The word “love” floated to mind and the necklace pulsed in acknowledgement, feelings reflected but not hers pouring through like a gate finally opened.

“Did I-did I not answer that right?” Gil frowned disappointedly, shoulders hunched when he saw her tears.

Uma closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. A smile filled simultaneously with lingering fear, uncertainty, and fondness played on her lips as she made up her mind, plans culminating into a long overdue storm, just as Evie had said.. 

Opening her eyes, Uma was going to respond when she noticed something else in the pocket of the teal jacket.

She laughed, the only response she could think of when she pulled out what she could only assume was a burner phone. When she opened the scream, she wasn’t as surprised as she should have been when she saw the name of the only contact programmed into the phone.

Not even giving herself a moment to second guess herself, Uma pressed the contact number, bringing the phone up to her ear. It rang three times before it was finally answered.

“Uma,” a certain voice said her name like a prayer. Like her name itself was worth more than gold or life itself. 

It made Uma’s heart flutter. “This is love,” Uma thought, squeezing Gil’s hand.

“Hey,” she responded into the phone. “How do you feel about breaking some rules? For the greater good, of course,” she tacked on winking at Gil who grinned back.

If Mal was going to eventually take her out, might as well give that purple lizard something to sweat about, right?

---

THE MORNING OF THE CORONATION

Ben always seemed to know when Harry’s thoughts ran heavy even before Harry could hide them behind dashing smiles and his playful flirty nature. 

Ben supposed that’s why they had always been so close. The Prince had always been able to notice the chaotic storm that built within his friend when no one else noticed. When no one else understood. It was probably also because Ben had his own raging beast that bellowed, chained, within him that no one else noticed. That no one else understood…

Except Harry.

The prince and sailor noticed each other. Understood each other. They allowed each other to just...be without the shoulder breaking expectations of a soon to be king and his soon to be royal advisor. They saw each other and all their messy complexities and doubts and fears, a deep sense of trust and respect born out of years of being little boys thrown together with expectations and responsibilities that they could have never had comprehended at such a young age. 

But now as young men, voices still deepening and uncertainty a familiar staple of their identity, they looked out the window of their once shared playroom within the gilded halls of Auradon Castle at the kingdom before them. 

The roads leading up to the castle were quiet this early, just barely kissed by the sun’s light. An hour or two more and they would hear Cogsworth shouting out orders to the maids and butlers and Lumiere singing in the halls doing a fantastic job of both helping his old friend and driving him one foot closer to the grave (or retirement as he always threatened). Mrs. Potts would undoubtedly walk into each of their old rooms, pushing the curtains aside to let in the morning light, moving across the room as wonderfully dizzying as a spinning teacup. She would mother-hen them into getting ready like they were still the rambunctious eight year olds, too tired to do anything other than let her fuss and cluck over them. 

So many fond memories were embedded into the walls of this castle for these two young men, when their world seemed just as big as the two of them. A selfish part of Ben wanted to stop time, to extend the carefreeness of his childhood just a bit longer.

Finally, Ben broke the silence, his words seemingly all the more loud and weighty in the dawn. “In a few hours, everything will be different. Everything will change.”

Harry glanced over at the prince, his soon-to-be king, and friend. His brother not in blood but in all the ways that mattered the most.

“You’ll be High King,” Harry nodded thoughtfully, a small smirk on his lips though his eyes held something much deeper. “Beasty King Junior,” he ruffled Ben’s hair teasingly.

Ben chuckled, shoving Harry slightly, letting his hair stay the messy nest Harry had created.

Putting a firm hand on the prince’s shoulder, Harry’s voice was firm and serious as he said, “You’ll be High King Benjamin Maurice DeFlorian, Auradon’s Just and Benevolent King.”

Ben shrugged off Harry’s hand only to almost knock them both over with a sudden and tight embrace. Harry didn’t hesitate to return the hug just as tight once his balance was stable.

 “I guess this is where I’m supposed to say how you’ll be Royal Captain Harry Jones, Hand to the King and Lieutenant of the Royal Navy. My loyal advisor and friend,” Ben murmured before pushing away slightly so they could see each other, brown eyes staring knowingly into blue. “But that won’t be happening tomorrow...will it?”

Harry didn’t even try to lie. But he didn’t share the truth either. And he loved Ben for not making him tell. Instead, he merely said, “I know you’ll be a king I’ll be proud of.” He swallowed the lump in his throat, the stinging in his eyes. “And I’ll always consider you a friend.” 

They pulled apart, both of them committing this moment to memory, their companionable silence hanging over them like an unsaid good-bye. 

---

“I can’t believe you still do not understand how to tie a proper knot, Harry!” 

Said boy couldn’t help but let out a fond and amused huff of air as he stared down at the top of Audrey’s perfectly styled and crowned head as she none too gently fixed his tie.

They could both hear the crowd cheering excitedly outside, waiting for their soon to be king to arrive at the Grand Hall of King Adam and Queen’s Belle castle. 

“Surprised you didn’t take Ben up on his offer,” Harry murmured just before choking as Audrey made his tie too tight.

“Oops,” she said not even sounding remorseful at all when the boy let out a strangled sound when she tugged too tight. “And I’m a princess, Harry. It would look tasteless to ride with Ben in his coronation chariot after he broke up with me, instigated by a love spell or not. A princess takes pity from no one. I mean, can you imagine what people would have said?”

Harry rolled his eyes, keeping his thoughts on the matter to himself.

“Anyway, where is Calista Jane?” Audrey glanced around the room as if she half expected the half-pixie to appear out of nowhere and startle her with a prank of some sort like CJ was often prone to do when they were younger. 

“Wasn’t feeling well,” Harry smoothly answered, looking at a spot right above Audrey’s head. “Didn’t help that old dad isn’t showing up to this.”

“Poor dear,” Audrey said before her hands stilled, pretty face shifting into genuine concern. “And you? How are you holding up?”

Allowing himself to let out a long sigh, Harry could only shrug. “He takes his duty keeping the waters of Auradon safe very seriously. He’s always been like that so didn’t expect much of a change now.” 

Audrey looked like she wanted to say something but she remembered herself and what was expected of her, so she kept her thoughts about how poor of a father the naval leader was to herself. She took another few seconds to finish with his tie before taking a step back. 

Harry waited silently, watching as she took in his outfit, from how his freshly pressed white dress shirt tucked into tailored black dress slacks and under a dark gold embroidered double breasted waistcoat. Audrey frowned as she adjusted the collar of his long red leather jacket before her previous downturned lips (“Because princesses don’t scowl, Harry!”) smoothed into a pleased expression. 

“There you go,” Audrey turned him towards the mirror. “A dashingly handsome young sailor.”

“Yeah,” Harry found himself swallowing thickly around the words. “Ye did well, lass.”

It was a testament to apparently how well even Audrey knew him that she didn’t pinch his hand for slipping back into the heavy brogue he had a habit of falling into when he was feeling a bit overwhelmed.

“No need to worry,” Audrey placed a light hand on his arm. “You’ll be a great second in command. And besides, everyone will be paying more attention to Ben than you. You just need to stand there and look pretty. Shouldn’t be hard for you.”

Harry looked down at her, taking in Audrey’s pretty smile and soft features and the obvious care and concern she had for those close to her that she for some reason thought was important to hide behind a pretty and vapid mask. Though they had never been as close as he and Ben had been growing up, so many of his childhood memories contained Audrey at their side or somewhere nearby in the background. She was basically like a third sister: annoying, always driving him up the wall, but he would knock out anyone who dared hurt her. (Good thing Harry was under a sleeping curse and Ben had the excuse of being under a love spell when he crushed Audrey’s heart.)

“Audrey…” Harry began. 

Audrey didn’t look up from the mirror as she fussed over invisible imperfections with her perfectly done hair. Typical Audrey, he thought fondly.

 “What is it Harry?” she murmured applying a fresh coat of lip gloss.

“Nothing,” Harry softly sighed, looking away. “You look beautiful.”

Audrey merely rolled her eyes, giving herself one final once over in the mirror before the warning trumpets began to play, signalling Ben’s arrival. “Of course, Harry. I’m a princess. Now we can’t dilly dally for yours and Ben’s big day. Move it mister! Today will be a day to be remembered!”

Harry nodded, offering Audrey his arm to guide her back to her parents before he took his position next to Ben’s parents. Today would be a day to remember.

---

Mal glared at Evie after the Evil Queen’s daughter smacked her hand away from the delicate fabric of her dress’s high neckline. 

“Ah, ah, ah,” Evie tsked, taking a moment to pluck some of Dude’s hair from Carlos’s coat and to tuck a loose strand of hair back into Jay’s bun. “You’ll ruin the lace.”

“How about I ruin your face, princess?” Mal hissed before shoving pass some royals who had the misfortune of getting in her way.

Her patience was practically nonexistent at this point and Mal didn’t care that everyone could see that.

With Auradon on high alert after Uma and Gil’s jailbreak and escape (the exact how still under investigation since there was no sign of physical or magical forced entry), the remaining four VKs were under constant watch despite Mal’s convincing performance with Fairy Godmother earlier that week. That meant that any attempt to try a repeat of the love spell on the Prince to try to get closer to the wand had to be thrown out the window leaving Mal shit out of luck. 

Neither Jay, Carlos, or Evie pointed out the way that Mal’s hands shook or how her eyes seemed to constantly be glowing with barely tethered control. It didn’t help that Fairy Godmother had thought it would be “good” idea to set up a video chat with their parents the day before since Maleficent, Evil Queen, Cruella, and Jafar obviously couldn’t make it to the complete and utter clusterfuck that was Family Day.

Yeah...a talk with her mother was exactly the confidence booster that Mal needed when even the Isle knew of Shrimpy’s little jail break was such uber fun. (NOT!) Even Ursulla, who had also been there during the video chat had laughed in the background like some demented soundtrack of Mal’s failure as Maleificent grew more and more angry with her only child.

There was no more time for mistakes. With determination as hot and unyielding as the fires of hell, Mal’s eyes landed quickly on her prey.

“What’s she doing?” she heard Carlos nervously whisper somewhere behind her as she continued to walk further, closer towards the part of the hall reserved specifically for all of the upper tier royals and several ass kissing sidekicks.

Jay must have said something in response to silence the runt but Mal didn’t give it any thought. 

Mal could not allow herself to fail again.

 She reached her hand into the obnoxiously delicate looking handbag she had made Evie design, pulling out a sewing needle just as she came up behind the once again mousy looking plain Jane. 

“That’ll teach the sorry excuse for a fairy to bite the hand that magiced up flawless hair for her, Mal thought remembering the way that Jane and everyone else had looked down upon them after a series of escalating events during Family Day, starting with a wonderful family reunion with Queen Leah literally two minutes after Mal’s and the other’s arrival. Perhaps in another world, Mal would have been moved by Prince Ben’s promise that he would make everyone understand that even Isle kids deserve a chance. But this was not that world and the Prince’s blind faith merely made Mal want to barf all over him.

“Hey Jane!” Mal put on a poor attempt of a smile, the facade growing more twisted as Jane jumped, startled and fear palpable as she turned to see that it was Mal. However, evil was on a time crunch at the moment. “Just wanted to say, that after everything that happened,” Mal said before sticking out her hand, “that there’s no hard feelings.”

Not for the first time, Mal wanted to laugh at the sheer stupidity of Auradon’s citizens and their idiotic “forgiveness is good” policy as poor clueless plain Jane gave a shy smile before reaching out shake Mal’s hand.

“Ouch!” and pulling back her hand to see where a small prick was made was all Jane could do before her eyes dulled and her expression slackened.

Mal smirked, Jane easily under her spell. Perhaps she could actually pull this off. 

“So here’s what I need you to do for me, Janey.”

[wlwhc]

Requested by anonymous

(A/N): This sickness suck, I can’t even take allergies I would die in a second. Also, I wrote this on my phone because Tumblr is acting weird again.

Warning: Mention of sickness, almost dying, blood, mention of vomit

Words: 1751

Characters: Clarke, Lexa, Octavia, Luna, Raven, Anya. (When I wrote it I forgot to put a few other girls but since I’m too tired to write more I’ll keep it like this, sorry)

Clarke Griffin: Panic. Every nerve in her body was screaming, you didn’t got the virus the first time so when she saw that another wave of sickness had arrived in Arkadia, she panicked. It was worst when she couldn’t find you anywhere. One by one people were dying, you were still missing. There was a big probability that you’re lying dead somewhere in the camp, and in fact you were, nearby the armory, trying to get back on your feet. Bellamy was the one that found you, and took you to the infirmary where the other sick people were. Clarke was already there, since that Abby needed help. When her face found your bleeding one she let out a sigh of relief, but she was still in panic mode knowing that there was still a chance for you to die. even though she needed to check on other patients she was always by your side, holding your hair when the bloody vomit was not letting you breathe, when your eyes started to cry red drops of blood. She didn’t calm down until you were standing on your feet by your own.

“I thought I’d lost you for a second…Don’t do that again please..Stay with me Y/N, please stay with me”

Lexa Kom Trikru: Denial. You’re strong, there was no chance for you to catch that virus, you’re strong enough to be immune, you’re strong and that’s why you weren’t going to catch the virus, that’s what she thought, and she was wrong. No matter how strong you are, your immunologic system didn’t seem to be very strong, because once the sickness appeared in Polis, you almost drop dead on the spot. You face pale as snow and the floor around you colored in crimson blood. She didn’t even believe when Indra came to her saying how bad was your state, she didn’t want to believe it, but once she rushed to your aid, and saw you choking on your own blood, she knew she was wrong. She was immune, so she spends the whole time by your side, wishing that this wasn’t going to be last she sees you. Lucky you survive, but you almost didn’t, and that’s something she will always remember. No matter how strong you are, no matter how smart you are, no matter how far from danger you may seem to be, there’s always a chance that you may die today or tomorrow. You can’t blame her for being so overprotective of you now, don’t you?

“Oh no, no no no, Indra this-I thought-….Y/N, Y/N stay with me, I’ll take care of you-I-Niko! Niko…sis em au beja, beja” (Help her please, please)

Octavia Blake: Terrified. She should have gone with those stupid idiots that brought the contaminated dear, she would have known that the animal was infected with the fever, she should have gone, but she didn’t, arguing with her brother. She was called by Clarke, the blonde’s face twisted in agony. So many deaths, and maybe you were part of that pile. Octavia ran to the infirmary, whoever that saw her may think that her brother was there, but he wasn’t, you were there, shaking with a think layer of sweat and blood in your clothes. She didn’t want to freak you out so she just walked to you, knowing exactly what to do to make you feel better and hopefully save your life. her strong and steady hands were now shaking, and every time you fight against the sickness to make your lungs work her heart would stop, shouts of help would come out of her mouth even though Abby had already told her what to do. The Skairipa, mighty warrior was terrified, the love her life may die today, and she couldn’t do anything to stop it. After a long day and almost dying, you were starting to gain some color on your skin and didn’t seem to bleed anymore. Octavia’s hand were still shaking by the end of the day, same as her heart when you woke up from the fever’s daze, greeting her with a weak smile and groggy voice.

“Hey love, are still with me?…good…good…you’ll be okay babe…I’ll take care of you, go back to sleep I’ll-I’ll be here…always”

Luna Kom Flowkru: Helpless. Oh lord, it started with the kids, not many of them survive due to the lack of provisions and medicinal herbs. A lot of the adults had already gone through the fever and other few were affected by it. Luna thought you already had gone through the sickness when she saw you helping them…but then she saw your red tears, your pale skin, and the sweat on your forehead. She knew whatever she does you would not stop helping the kids. She had to drag you to a bed, it wasn’t hard at all, you were already weak and the fever was starting to making you hallucinate. The rest of the adults were helping the kids, and decided to leave Luna with you. So many of her people were dying, and she couldn’t do anything to stop it, you were dying in her arms, and couldn’t do anything to stop it. Helpless was how she felt, knowing that the waves of the sea may take you away from her today. She keeps you with her arms around you, holding you impossible closer to her. He fingers running through your skull somehow trying to give you comfort. When the bloody vomit came and the violent shakes didn’t let you sleep, she was still holding you tight. Not wanting to face your upcoming destiny. Right when she thought she had lost you, and her tears got mixed in the locks of your hair, Niko came to the Flowkru clan and manage to keep your heart beating.

“I almost lost you ai hodnes…if you die I….I would drown in agony” (My love)

Raven Reyes: Freak out. Raven hates when people called her every 5 seconds just to tell her or ask her how she was, even you do that. That’s why she just turns off her radio sometimes, especially when the Zero G-Mechanic was playing with explosive things. This time she wished she could have let the radio on, and let you ramble at the other side of the Radio. While you were lying on the infirmary, Clarke doing her best to keep you breathing, Abby had to call Bellamy to look for Raven, knowing that you may not pass through the night, at least you could have Raven’s hand holding yours. When Bellamy appeared at Raven’s door, his shirt covered in blood, Raven’s heart started banging against her chest. The words “Y/N is not okay” were enough to Raven. As fast as she could run with her damaged leg, she manages to get to the infirmary in a minute, Bellamy almost couldn’t keep her pace. Abby had told her about your state and had also informed her that you may not survive. Raven didn’t seem to react to those words, you were fine this morning, bombarding her with questions. And now you were coughing your lungs out. You smile lazily at Raven when she sat next to you, tears threatening to spill. Raven had to get out of the room when you started convulsing. Now her lungs were the ones that couldn’t work. Abby had to leave Clarke with you so she could calm Raven down, her panic attack not ceasing when a wave of nausea hit you, resulting in a pool of blood beside your bed. She had pleaded to Abby to save you, but the oldest Griffin knew that it wasn’t very much she could do. After a long night and a few heart attacks from Raven, you woke up at the sight of a sobbing mechanic, her eyes red and puffy, her hair no longer in a ponytail, now it was down and free, somehow giving her an angelical look despite the distress in her face. She already had the sickness so Abby couldn’t find the words to keep Raven’s lips away from your face when you talked to her.

“oh my god-She’s awake-You’re a-awake-I thought I lost you-you-y-you idiot!, I would probably kill you if you die! you beautiful asshole…don’t do that to me I almost died-god you’re okay-Abby! she’s okay!”

Anya Kom Trikru: Terrified. She knows how bad this fever is, she had seen armies of enemies die for this fever, so when a wave of this virus hit her clan, she was not happy about it. She had rushed to find you, planning to leave the city at least until the virus had gone, but instead of finding you already on your horse, she finds you being attended by Niko. Her heart sank, little drops of blood were running down your nose, you smiled at her anyway, telling her that you were going to be alright, but she knew that this was it, you were going to die, and that, terrifies her even more than when she realized she had feelings for you. She had done her best to keep her stoic face and her hands steady when she held yours. But when you didn’t answer her after you had fallen asleep, she panicked. Her cheeks were wet, and hands shaking, a big hole was taking place in her heart. Her body was breaking with sobs. Niko had rushed to your tent after hearing Anya’s shouts for you to wake up, the grounder had never seen Anya so distress. She was sobbing, pleading you to wake up but you didn’t respond. Niko had to reanimate you, and after what of felt like hours you started coughing again, making Anya’s heartbeat again. Anya didn’t let Niko leave the tent after that, swearing to kill him if he did. She didn’t care about any other person, right now she cares about you, and nothing more. You survive, and Anya had threatened Niko to forget about what had happened in that tent. And even though Niko may forget about it with time, Anya never will. You were not going to question her strong arms embracing you at night, or those times when she had to wake you up just to make sure you were alright.

“You died Y/N…you didn’t wake up, no matter how hard I called you …you didn’t wake up…so next time I say wake up…you must wake up!”

I’m sorry, I haven’t been posting, but I’m so busy, I manage to write this :D. Updates are going to be slow guys, and I’m so sorry for that.

[p3nnywrices]

— 001. SUMMER || CHAPTER LIST

a.n — I hope you like the first chapter! Feedback is needed to know what I need to change. please let me know, okay?

words — 1.6k

warnings — none that I know of.

“Hey, do you have a light?” I heard a young voice say behind me, as I turned around, and saw Bev Marsh smiling sheepishly at me. “Hey, wait, you’re…”

“Bill’s older sister, yep.” I gave a lazy salute and handed her a lighter. “…why are you wet?” I frowned.

“Trash soup.” She answered as I winced and nodded. I knew the feeling, and I had already graduated from Derry High School. “You know the feeling?” She caught up to my pace as I heard my brothers’ friends talk behind us. Richie was always the worst.

I smiled down at her, “Well, how about we go get some ice cream to make the first day of summer a lot better?” She glanced over to the side, silently telling me she didn’t want the boys to come. I nodded, then turned around to face the group of boys. “No catcalling friends of my brother allowed.” I looked at Richie as I said the words, and then smiled at Bill.

“Go home, kid. Make sure to take the system down before dad gets home.” I kissed his hair as he gave me a nod. “Be good.”

I got home late. Late enough that it really wouldn’t be worth unlocking the door to face the wrath of my parents. So, I didn’t.

I wandered the eerily silent streets of Derry, watching streetlights flicker here and there as I walked. I frowned as I heard what sounded like growling but knew we didn’t have any wild coyotes until later in the summer. It came from an alleyway that I should’ve probably walked away from very quickly. Did I? No.

I grabbed my pepper spray from my keys, and peeked around the corner, seeing nothing but darkness. The growling had stopped, which made my stomach drop down to my ankles. Well, I’m dead.

I let out a scream and sprayed whoever touched me, backing away as a tall figure groaned in pain, holding their face. “Shit, that burns.” My nonattacker mumbled into their hands, while I clutched my pepper spray and backed against the wall.

“Um.” I tilted my head as the figure got a little better over their eyes burning. “Sorry?” I frowned.

“It’s…okay.” They looked down at me, and smiled. “I didn’t mean to…scare you.” They spoke. “It was my fault anyway, sneaking up on you like that.”

I blinked at him. “Well, um, it’s okay?” I looked back down the alley where I heard the strange growling from. “I heard...something.” I shrugged. “I thought it was an animal or something, I don’t know.”

“I didn’t hear anything…” The tall man mused, wiping his mouth as he seemed to realize something. “I’m sorry. I’m…Paul.” He frowned for a second before nodding. “Paul.” He smiled again.

“I’m Sage.” I gave him a smile back, as I took in his features. He seemed familiar but I couldn’t figure out from where.

“Sage,” He whispered my name, “Like the…herb?” He giggled slightly, as I shrugged.

“I guess? It was my great grandmother's name. But she passed so I can’t ask her why her parents named her that.” I rambled for a moment.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Paul frowned, touching my shoulder. “How long ago did she pass?” He asked, as he lit a cigarette.

I followed suit, and nodded a bench with better-ish lighting. “Like, 27 years ago. I never met her.” I shrugged again. “When did you come to Derry? Usually, everyone knows each other, but…I’ve never seen you.”

Paul thought for a moment while taking a drag. “…Not a people person. They tend to stay away from me and I do the same. I like the night better, less looking over your shoulder.” He chuckled as I did, making sure there’s nothing behind us. My heartbeat was rising again.

“Scared?” He whispered, as he blew out smoke.

“No.” I lied through my teeth. “This town…I want to leave, but…I can’t. There’s something wrong here.” I mumbled. “The town seemed haunted. Kids’ go missing, from ages 4 to 16. Hell, my kid brother…” I frowned. “The poster’s say he’s missing, but I know he’s dead,” I whispered. “Something…took him. My other brother thinks he’s in the sewers with it, as he calls it. He has this whole sewer system set up in the garage, trying to figure out where Georgie could be, but…He’s not comin’ back.” I whispered. “Bill wants to know what happened, and our parents hate it, because they’ve come to terms with it,” I stopped my sentence as the local cops made their way around the town.

“Shit!” I got up, grabbing Paul, and running into the alley, hiding behind some trashcans as the cop car drove by slowly, checking for stragglers that were breaking curfew like I was. “My parents must be freaking out,” I mumbled, realizing that I was still holding onto Paul’s hand. I quickly let go. “Sorry.” I whispered.

He chuckled, his eyes seemed to glow some strange topaz color. “It’s fine, dear. I can…take you home, if you’d like. Explain to your parents why you were out so late…” He trailed off, stepping closer as my heartbeat picked up again. “Scared again?” He seemed to growl for a moment, watching me closely, before straightening back up.

I swallowed my fear and shook my head. “No, that’s okay. I’ll face the wrath alone. My parents don’t scare me.”

We walked back out onto the main street, as Paul looked down at me. “Then what are you scared of?” His eyes glowed again.

“Whatever took my brother,” I whispered. “It’s still here, I know it.” I glanced at Paul, who was listening intently. “Some kid who bullies my brother, Patrick, he went missing just two nights ago. He was in the sewers too.” I whispered.

Paul stopped at a corner, a block away from my house. “It won’t you.” He seemed so sure of his answer. “It…” He frowned, shaking his head. I frowned, as I thought I heard bells. “I promise it won’t hurt you.” He then gave me a big smile. “You’re too old anyway.” He laughed, as I chuckled, even though my gut was telling me to run.

“Thanks, because that’s so helpful.” I smiled. “But the promise doesn’t bring back Georgie, or keep it safe from my brother and his friends.” I frowned, before I felt a hand on my cheek, lifting my face slightly.

Paul seemed confused. “It’s okay.” The words came out as a question. “Go home, Sage. I’ll see you again soon.”

“When?” I whispered.

“How about….how about tomorrow? By the ice cream shop?” Paul smiled again. “Can’t you taste it already?” He cocked his head, eyes glowing again.

I giggled and put my hands over my lips. I could taste the ice cream. “Woah.” I let out another giggle before nodding. “Tomorrow.”

“Around…8?” He gave me a smirk, knowing curfew was at 7.

“I’ll try my best, I might need to sneak out.” I whispered, “But that’s a secret.”

Paul nodded vigorously, “Secret. Shhhhhh!” He placed a finger on his lips as he nodded to my home, “Get some sleep, Sage. Dream happy things.” He whispered.

I nodded, and then turned around, waving without looking back as I made my way home. When I made to my house, I could still taste my favorite ice cream. But the second I opened the door, it was gone, and all the lights turned on in the living room.

Well, shit.

“Sage Marie Anne, it’s 3 AM!” My dad stood up as he yelled at me, “Where on earth have you been?!” My mother didn’t say anything as she looked at me, tears in her eyes.

I could see Bill looking from his room, telling me that he needed to talk to me. He had also been crying. Shit, I really messed it up this time. I turned my attention back to my parents.

“I was just out and about, I stayed on the main street, I sat on the bench and talked to my new friend.” I shrugged.

My mom raised an eyebrow, “What new friend?”

“His name’s Paul.” My stomach dropped again as I realized that his name was the only thing I knew about him, not where he lived in Derry, not his last name, nothing. Not even his age.

My dad mocked my words. “Is that all you know, just his name?! God dammit, Sage. Be an adult!” He got louder and louder.

I decided to risk it all. I yelled back. “I could be if you stopped treating me like a fucking child! I’m 18, a legal adult and then you pull shit like this! I don’t actually need a curfew. If I wanted, I could become brain-dead like all the other adults in this damn town and not blink an eye when another kid goes missing!”

That shut everyone up. I could hear the clock ticking from the kitchen. The water dripping from the faucet that was in the bathroom.

“I’m going to bed.” I finished, heading to Bill’s room as I quietly slipped in the room.

Bill sat up, moving so I could sit next to him. “S-s-s-sage what w-w-was t-t-that?” He asked about my yelling.

“I’m a legal adult. I can do whatever I please.” I shrugged. “Keeping my kid brother safe is on the top of that list.” I smiled, ruffling his hair. “I’m sorry I scared you, buddy. I realized it as I was in that alleyway between the library and the ice cream shop how freaked out everyone was. I’m sorry.”

Bill hugged me tightly. “Are y-y-y-you g-g-going to br-break curfew a-a-a-again?” He whispered.

“Yeah,” I whispered back. “But I’ll be home at 12, on the dot,” I promised. I kissed his head, before I snuck back into my room, easily falling asleep as I thought about ice cream and glowing eyes.

[minky-beta]

Noah Foster x Reader:  Eventually... Eventually

Request:  Noah imagine where you accuse Audrey of being the accomplice so he breaks up with you bc he thinks Audrey would never betray him? And you can decide the ending thanks!! ❤❤❤

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, a lot's gone on in this past year. Either way, I hope you all really like it!!!!

Also there is like little to no fluff. 

Warning: A couple of cuss words??

You smiled at Noah's Mom, rambling off a generic greeting as you rushed your way over to Noah's room. Ever since Piper's killer wave, you and Noah hadn't been the best. Noah was obsessed with the accomplice theory, so you didn't exactly have the best support system from him right after it. You guys had countless fights from seemingly everything, from his podcast, to the murder board, to jealousy, to going to a place for dinner. With every fight and argument, your relationship seemed to edge closer and closer to the edge. 

You and Noah had a huge argument the night before because he didn't think you supported the podcast. You had gotten over your initial reaction of it, which had been triggering flashbacks of being stabbed. But now you were afraid of the accomplice or whoever tracking him, and what could happen if he got too close. Either way, you didn't want to be the one who kept him from doing something that made him happy and seemed to help him cope.   

"Hey babe," you said as you walked inside and saw him staring at the murder board. 

Noah turned towards you and smiled. Like usual, he tried to not be petty after fights. "Hi sweetie," he said. 

"Do you have any new clues?" you asked. 

He frowned and shook his head. "All the clues are gonna connect together into some story, but I have no idea who pulled the strings. Who's the person that connects everything." 

"Maybe we should just go through everyone involved again." You pressed your lips together and sat down on his bed, staring at the murder board as well. 

"I've already tried that," he muttered. 

You rolled your eyes and sighed. After staring at the board for a few minutes, you groaned and went up to the board. You snapped a picture of the board. "We're starting with a clean slate," you said as you pulled down the pictures of everybody on the board. 

Noah nodded as he helped you peel off the photos. You both stared at the stack of pictures on his desk. "Now let's take out all of the victims and separate them on died and-" You struggled for the words. "Just stalked." 

He smirked at you. "Those were definitely the best words you could've chosen," he said. 

"I am trying to help you find the accomplice of a dude who both stalked and tried to murder me." You gave him a playful shove. "Watch it, or I'll do a big reveal of how I'm the accomplice," 

"You know, this wouldn't be a bad cover to be honest," he explained with a smile, "Date the guy who's the most dedicated to finding you and 'help' him in the investigation," 

"Shut up," you laughed as you finally separated the pictures. "Now who can we rule out for sure?"  

"Emma," Noah suggested, "She was attacked the most. And Piper wouldn't have told Emma her story if that happened; she thought that they were completely alone," 

You nodded. "And Brooke, since you and Audrey found her in the freezer." Noah grabbed the 'dead' stack and pinned them up to the board, while you handed him the next stack of people. "And Audrey," he said as he held out his hand for you to pass it off. 

You pressed your lips together but handed it to him, nonetheless. "What crosses her off the suspect list?" 

"She helped Emma kill Piper." Noah looked at you confused. 

"After Piper had already told her story, and Audrey was hiding during that. Me and you tried to track Emma and lost her, how else did Audrey find them at the lake?" 

"Why would she kill Piper if they were accomplices?" he demanded, but still trying to keep a level voice. 

You sighed. "It wouldn't be the first time people who had differences stopped working together. A lot of people will sabotage their co-workers, think of how brutal that can get with serial killers," 

"Then what about Rachel?" 

"Same thing as before. They had a fight, Piper killed Rachel... Or maybe Piper did it as a warning because Audrey wanted to leave. Audrey felt pressured and went back to Piper. When she had her chance, she killed Piper with Emma as a... last revenge."

He ran a hand through his hair and glared daggers at you. "She is my best friend, Y/N," he growled, "I trust her. She wouldn't do this!"

"We can't cross people out of this unless the evidence does it for us!" 

Noah began pacing up and down his room before turning towards you. "I know Audrey, Y/N," 

"We thought we knew Piper," you snapped. 

"Piper wasn't my best friend. I didn't know her for years." 

You shook your head. "We need to think about this logically, without any emotion. All I'm saying is that you've crossed her off the list every time before this, and it's never made complete sense," 

"How could you say this?" he asked, "This is Audrey you're talking about. We've known her for years. She's helped you calm down from panic attacks and given you rides so you don't have to walk out when it's late. And you're telling me to consider her of being the reason you're scared to do that in the first place?" 

"I've always considered everybody! Ever since this happened, I've been scared of literally everybody being the killer and accomplice!" You screamed. You blinked slowly as tears shone in your eyes. "Unless there's evidence, I'm going to keep questioning everyone," 

"Have you considered me?" Noah asked. Your breath hitched as you froze. He stopped before scoffing, "Oh my god, you have," 

"It's nothing against you! I've always had trust issues," you yelled, while Noah stared at you shocked, "Some wack job murdering my friends puts me on overdrive!" You sighed and pressed your lips together as you tried to calm yourself down. "I didn't want to think it was you, but I couldn't help it. Then there was evidence, and I never questioned you again," 

"I trust Audrey," he pleaded and stepped closer, "Shouldn't that be enough?" "I wish it was." You stared at him with tear-ridden eyes. "I need something logical to make me believe, with no questions, that Audrey's innocent," 

The both of you watched each other for a few moments. Noah dropped his gaze and sighed, running his hand over his face, before looking at you again. "Maybe... we shouldn't be together then..." 

You felt frozen. You opened your mouth to speak but struggled for the words. "W-wait... What are you saying?" you stuttered, going on even though your voice was cracking. 

"Be honest Y/N," he whispered, "We've been on the edge of a break up for weeks, maybe months," 

"I love you, Noah" you pleaded. 

"We've been fighting about nothing over and over again. Only to apologize, and then do it again by the next hour." He shook his head. "And now I know you've questioned whether I did this. You're even trying to convince me to consider my friend as someone who murder people, who psychologically tortured all of us. Someone who, at one point, was my only friend. And you think she could have done that,"  

You were about to fight to hold onto this. To hold onto the relationship you had cherished for a  year. To hold onto your boyfriend that you loved. the person you loved. 

But when he glared at you, you knew that there was no way you could talk your way out of this. When you guys usually had fights, Noah would look pissed, but a kind of pissed where it was obvious that he didn't want to keep fighting, where he was desperate to calm down and work it out. This time, though, this time he looked at you like he was ready to do or say whatever it took for you to get out. You just had to get out. 

You couldn't try to explain yourself, at least not right now. 

"You really want to break up," you whispered, not sure if it was a pleading question or a statement. It felt like both. You knew it was true but didn't want it to be so. He nodded. You bit into your bottom lip. "Then bye Noah," you whispered. You stepped slowly over to the bedroom door. "I do love you, ya know." 

Noah looked back at you, and for a moment it reminded you of how he looked at you back before everything that happened. When you guys had been dating and didn't fight unless it was an actual issues and you guys understood each other. When you guys were completely ignorant of what it felt like to be on the phone with a dying friend, or a murderer, or to be stabbed. When you guys knew you loved each other and thought that you would be the high school sweethearts (and your friends thought you would be to)

You sent him a pathetic smile and stepped out of his room. Mrs. Foster smiled brightly at you as you stepped downstairs. "Hey sweetie," she cheerily said, "Do you think you'd be able to stay for dinner? I'm making your favorit-" 

Unknown to you, Noah had text Audrey about the breakup, without any detail. He ran a hand down his face as he tried to stop the salty tears from dropping. He stared at the board for a moment before slowly walking to it and taking Audrey's photo down before dropping it to the 'Suspect' list.

"I actually really need to meet up with friends, for a school project," you rushed out, "Thanks though Mrs. Foster. You're great," You rushed out of Noah's house, finally letting your tears fall. You called the first person that came to your mind.

"Brooke," you sobbed. 

She immediately became concerned. "Oh my god, Y/N what happened?" 

"Me and Noah broke up," you choked up. 

"Where are you? I'll pick you up." 

"I'm heading to my house right now." 

You could already hear her scrambling around on the other end.  "I'm heading there. And listen to me, he made a horrible fucking mistake, okay? You're amazing, how could he do that?" You pressed your lips together. You didn't want to tell anyone about what had been the last straw. You didn't want anyone to be rude towards Audrey, or you if they took her side. Noah might tell people, but you figured he wouldn't want anyone questioning her either. 

"We had another fight, and that coupled with how many others fight we've had lately." You wiped at a few more tears. "I really loved him Brooke," 

"I know sweetheart," she whispered, "Don't worry, you'll get through this. I mean, we all got through Piper, you can get through this," 

You couldn't stop the small smile as some hope appeared in the heavy pit in your stomach. "Thanks." 

"I'm going to hang up right now, but I'm going to show up at your house with the post-breakup crew and supplies," she said. 

"I'll see you, and I am completely ready for this crew." 

"Bye then," She laughed, and you heard her car start. "You'll be fine, Y/N, eventually." With that, she hung up. 

You brought the phone down and could only imagine Brooke calling Emma. She'd probably rush through an explanation before calling Noah every name out of the book. You figured Noah was calling Audrey, who was doing the same to you. 

Noah...  

His caramel hair. And hazel eyes.... Those eyes lighting up when he found a movie conspiracy theory. How he would try to make a song of stuff he had to memorize, and then promptly forget it. Man, you had a lot of his movies and books in your room that you'd have to get rid of. How he'd lean forward a little in his chair and narrow his eyes whenever he got really interested in something in class. His clothes... They smelled like the markers he used on his board and the snacks he would eat at his desktop. They smelled like him. The same scent that always stuck to his flannels a little longer whenever he fell asleep in them, usually studying or working on the podcast. Those were the ones you usually tried to borrow (or steal). You would wear them to bed, then when you had a nightmare, you'd feel like he was there. You had lost track of how many might be hiding away in your closet. You thought of how close he'd hold you when the murders first started. He'd beg you to stay over at his house, until you asked Brooke to cover for you and did. The two of you would watch conspiracy theory videos to stay up all night when the nightmares would be too bad. The late night phone calls where he would test out scripts for the podcast with you... 

Just Noah. Noah in general.... Everything about him. It all came rushing back to you. You weren't losing a dream. You were losing, no, it already happened-- you had just fucking lost him. Noah. 

"Eventually," you whispered to yourself, "Be fine, eventually," 

You could only hope it was true.

[magmawrites]

I Like You Just the WEIGH You Are

The Times They Remembered Pidge Was a Girl

One-Shot 6: I Like You Just the WEIGH You Are

Even defenders of the universe have insecurities - Hunk

(FF | | AO3)

"Hunk, it's fine," Pidge said, trailing after the yellow Paladin as they marched through the castleship.

"It's not. We almost—because of me—"

"You didn't do anything wrong."

"Pidge, I got stuck."

"So? It was a pretty narrow vent-"

"It's not even the first time I got stuck. Remember when we were all separated? Lance and I crash landed in some water covered planet. Lance had to do things alone because the mermaids saving us couldn't pull me through the hole. And then I tried to kill him!" Hunk rambled quickly. "And when Keith and I had to go into the weblum I got stuck in part of the circulatory system. Now that was just temporary but still the fact is-"

"Wha- What…? Hunk!" Pidge exclaimed. "Focus! You lost me."

Hunk stopped and exhaled slowly, turning to face the youngest Paladin, guilt on his face. "You almost didn't escape because I was stuck."

"Hunk…"

"You should have went first. You should have left me."

"…I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."

"It's true."

"Hunk, how can you say that?" Pidge said, placing her hand gently on his arm. "Do you honestly think I'd leave you?"

Hunk closed his eyes briefly but Pidge could feel him tremble. He pulled his arm away. "You should have."

.

.

Pidge collapsed onto her back, the hard floor of the lab strangely soothing as the cold seeped through her shirt. She rubbed her tired eyes and stared up at the ceiling remembering the time she was stuck with Hunk in zero G. She laughed softly to herself. Sure, the Castle of Lions was basically trying to kill them at the time but she remembered it fondly.

She snorted. Hunk didn't want to kick her because she was his friend. He looked surprised that she would even suggest a thing.

Pidge rolled to her side, resting her head on her arm as she picked at some grit on the floor thinking.

Today was tough for all of the Paladin's. They found a small Galra delivery base and decided to take it down. A small step in defeating the large empire but it was something. It wasn't too difficult but things got hairy near the end.

Pidge huffed, sitting back up and folding her legs. What time was it? She glanced at her laptop screen. Late. Of course. She didn't mean to stay up all the time it just happened. But right now she wasn't thinking of herself. A few more tics and Hunk should probably be up for a late night snack. She'd meet him in the kitchen for occasional late night talks while she refilled on something caffeinated (they weren't able to scrounge up Earth coffee but found something that came close) while he made something to soothe his rumbling tummy.

Pidge got up, wiping dust off her shorts as she made her way back up to the kitchen. The halls were long and it was always eerily quite. Her mind wandered to familiar thoughts. The Castle of Lions certainly wasn't built for just seven people in mind. There were several kitchens spaced throughout its halls and floors, many different communal bathrooms, and even more bedrooms. The place should be bustling with people and yet…

Not everything goes as planned.

Pidge had yet to explore every nook and cranny of the castle. It was too big. As she neared the shared kitchen closest to the Paladin's sleeping quarters she tried to listen for Hunk's familiar humming or the sound of clattering dishes and utensils.

Silence.

Just like the desolate halls.

Pidge walked inside, the automatic lights turning on. Spotless. Untouched.

"Hunk…" Pidge whispered to herself.

He should be here. He should be here testing out strange ingredients with labels he couldn't read, trying to mimic Earth recipes. He had told her baking cleared his head and now would be the prime time to de-stress. And he wasn't even here.

Pidge waited.

And waited.

She waited long enough that she nodded off, falling asleep right at the counter. The light sensors turned off and she was left in the dark.

Alone.

The castleship suddenly felt too large.

But perhaps that wasn't the right word to use right now.

.

.

"AHHHHH!"

Pidge woke up with a shout, swinging her mug around to hit whoever was trying to attack her. "Wha-what-" she spluttered, blinking as her glasses sat askew on her face.

"What are you doing sleeping here in the dark?"

Pidge blinked as the world came into focus. Coran stood clad in a robe at the kitchen entrance, hands on his hips.

Pidge groaned and sat down, exhausted. "What do you mean? I don't know about you Alteans, but humans like to sleep in the dark."

Coran moved closed, wagging his finger to chastise the girl. "You know what I meant, Number Five. It's bad for you to sleep like this!" Pidge half listened to the older man, briefly thinking of her father. She yawned as Coran continued with his lecture. "Think of your back. You should go sleep in your room."

"I was just waiting for…" she paused. "What time is it anyway?"

"Very late."

"What are you doing up?"

Coran straightened, pulling at his mustache. "I got hungry. I think Hunk noticed I get hungry at strange times…I've yet to train the mice to make me sandwiches on command…" Coran trailed off, as if thinking of new methods to get the space mice to obey his instructions. "Anyway, he always seems to leave something interesting to eat. So here I am."

"So here you are," Pidge said slowly, looking around. "Well, he wasn't here today."

Coran sighed, disappointed. "Pity." The older man seemed to change resolve quickly. "It's my chance to return the favor! I'll leave him a dish!"

Pidge smiled. "That's nice."

"You know what else is nice?" Coran asked, leaning down so they were nose to nose. "Sleep!" he exclaimed, straightening his back and gesturing towards the door. "Now come on Number Five, off to bed."

Pidge grumbled under her breath but did as she was told. She slouched and dragged her feet as she walked back to her room, passing some of the other bedroom doors.

She slowed as she approached Hunk's.

Hunk was a deep sleeper. Pidge swore his snores could shake the ship. But at least that meant he was sleeping soundly.

She paused for a moment outside his room.

Silence.

And that screamed louder than any snoring would.

.

.

Pidge didn't know what to do.

Hunk, though one of the more sensitive ones of the group, was the teams emotional crutch. He was their rock. And right now he was crumbling.

Pidge sighed. She felt tainted. Dirty.

Going to go wash off this guilt.

She didn't know why she felt guilty. There was nothing to feel guilty about but the thought of her Garrison friend upset…

Pidge sulked all the way to the bathroom. She debated going down to one of the ones further away, which normally gave her some more privacy, but right now the familiarity of the common bathroom would probably soothe her nerves. By some unspoken rule each of the Paladins had claimed a sink and shower. Lance's countertop area was home to his facemask and different beauty products. Shiro kept a neat little razor and Keith had a comb. Hunk kept a neat little array of his headbands, which Pidge noticed one day because she realized he did own different colors, but seemed to favor his signature yellow.

The bathroom door slid open and Pidge walked towards the hanging towels, reaching for her green one when she felt a prickling at the back of her neck.

Pidge whipped around, heart beating in her chest, before she realized it was just her friend.

"Hunk, what're you doing?" Pidge asked, watching the yellow Paladin stand at his sink, staring intently at the mirror.

Hunk seemed surprised to see her there, turning to look at her briefly. "Oh, hey Pidge. Sorry, I'll get out of your way if you want to shower."

The showers were off beyond a small curtained area so him being here was no issue at all and he knew that.

"That's alright," she said, walking closer to him, her towel draped across one arm. "What're you doing?" she tried again.

Hunk shrugged, leaning both arms against the counter as he stared intently at his face.

"Do you have a pimple or something?" Pidge asked, oh so sensitively. "I'm sure Lance wouldn't mind if you used his face wash."

Hunk shook his head. "No, no. Nothing like that." He slapped his cheeks a couple times, leaning in closer to the sink. "Look at that."

Pidge approached him carefully, leaning with him against the counter. "Look at what?"

Hunk poked his cheek once more. "That jiggle."

Pidge huffed, exasperated. "Hunk."

"Sorry, Pidge," he said quickly, moving away.

She quickly grasped her arm, shaking her head. "No. You don't have to be sorry. You can say whatever you want. That's not-" She huffed, not sure how to say what she wanted to say. She wanted to comfort him. She wanted him to know he could talk to her freely. She just couldn't. "Just- just wait here. I'll be back. Give me a few minutes."

Pidge tossed her towel onto the counter and Hunk watched her run out of the room before turning back to the mirror, placing his hands on his hips. He turned to the side, staring at himself longer before letting out a defeated sigh.

Pidge came back a few moments later-

"Wow!" Hunk looked at her, surprised. "Pidge, you look so-"

"Don't say it," she cut him off, stopping beside him.

"But-"

She glared at him and he chuckled nervously. They stood together for a moment in silence. Hunk, his large, hulking height a great contrast beside her short, petite self.

"Where'd you get it?" Hunk asked.

"It's Allura's," Pidge explained, tugging at the end of her dress. It was a simple, dark green, lace dress that clung to the top half of her body, sheer near her collarbones, and openly flowed mid thigh. "She said she wore this as a child," Pidge snorted. "It was too short on her. I'm probably triple that age and it fits me."

"Is that a bad thing?" Hunk asked.

"Mm, yes and no."

"Well, I think you look beautiful," Hunk said, resting his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm a rectangle," she went on. "I saw this online but I think it fits," she explained before going on. "Turn me sideways and I disappear. Stick out my tongue and I'll look like a zipper."

"That's not true!" Hunk defended. "You're awesome!"

"I'm flat as a board," she continued, ignoring his attempts at reassuring her that her flaws were not flaws. She pressed her hand against her chest. "Okay, not exactly a board but-"

"I wish I could give some of my curves to you," Hunk said.

Pidge laughed softly. "What a kind gesture, Hunk. Thank you."

He was their emotional support. She couldn't find the right words to say but she knew he sure could.

"How come you don't wear dresses more often?"

Pidge snorted. "A dress wouldn't exactly be easy to take care of as a Paladin. And I like wearing pants and stuff but I guess sometimes it would be nice to feel attractive."

"I never want to hear you talking about yourself like that," the larger Paladin continued. "You are amazing-"

"So are you."

"You kick ass-

"You kick ass."

"You're super smart-"

"You're super smart-"

"And you're loved, I never want you to forget that."

"I don't want you to forget it either."

Hunk looked down at her as a few ticks passed. "I see what you did there."

Pidge laughed. "I'm trying, okay?"

Hunk leaned down and pulled her into a hug. She accepted it readily, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you, Pidge."

"Thank you, Hunk."

.

.

Lance walked in on them while they were bonding.

"Wow, Pidge, you're wearing a dress!"

"Go away, Lance," Pidge said, her voice muffled against Hunk's yellow shirt.

It was silent for a little while until she felt thin arms envelop her. She opened an eye and saw Lance embracing them both.

"I don't know what's going on here but I want in," he mumbled, squeezing tight.

Hunk snorted.

"Garrison trio, reunited!" Lance exclaimed, his voice echoing throughout the bathroom.

Pidge didn't feel dirty anymore.

.

.

Authors Note:

Because I felt we could have used more Hunk and Pidge in S3.

Dress Inspiration x

[myselfinserts]

i’m fated to be lonely and i’m destined to be hated

The castle was far grander than anyone anticipated. Large, shining, brilliantly built. There were beautiful spires and elegant towers, all locked within a giant gate that, based on the set up, was usually open to the public. There were people at the gates, looking in and waving, hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever was on the other side. There were guards performing their usual duties, and with every guard was a cat. Some large, some small. All adorable and dressed prepared for duty. 

The civilians seemed enthralled when the carriage appeared, all of them getting excited. Children were pointing, Surely whoever was in there was of royal ilk, or perhaps of great importance such as a politician. 

They were close. The ones in the carriage were of great importance. 

“This just keeps getting more and more exciting,” L said. “Don’t you think?”

“Never seen so many cats in one place,” Phoenix muttered. “It’s almost creepy.”

Regi’s eyes were wide in awe. “If I got a job setting up a security system here, I’d be set for life…I could pay for Tanith to go get a PhD if she wanted. Hell, I could probably go to school myself for once…”

“Tanith’s a full grown adult, Reginald,”  Étienne scolded, “and really close to graduating school. Start focusing on your needs a bit more.”

Phoenix leaned toward the window, smiling and letting out an excited yelp. “We’re here!”

As the carriage pulled up to the front of the palace and the gates closed, the weight of everything finally began to set in. They were about to meet a king. A KING. Regi was nearly shaking. If it weren’t for L and Étienne’s steady hands on his shoulders, he’d probably have passed out. Never in his life did he ever think he’d end up someplace like this and not be expected to be a guard or on assignment. This time he was a guest. 

“Just relax,” L assured. “We’re going to be fine.”

The door to the carriage opened, and the group stepped out. Their bags were already being carried inside to their rooms. A man dressed in a deep blue suit with gold detailing and a rather bold cravat stood in the middle of the doorway, bowing politely to them as they approached. For some reason, he seemed just as regal as the building. Maybe he was royalty too and wasn’t too pleased with them.

Though that might just be the nerves talking, Regi thought. 

“Welcome to Estmund,” the man greeted. “My name is Alto Graceworth, secretary, head of personal research for his Majesty, and musical director for charity concerts. I’ll be your escort for the evening. If you’ll please follow me, I’ll take you to the parlor room.”

The group looked at each other, a clear level of distrust shared between them. Not that they had any reason. It was just a feeling. One that they certainly weren’t going to take lightly. L and Phoenix walked slightly ahead of Étienne, with Regi coming up right behind him. Quietly, they followed their escort, keeping a close eye on their surroundings. 

The further along they went, up stairs and down hallways, he couldn’t help but feel smaller with every step. And that was saying something, since he was the tallest of the group. The ceilings were so high, you’d need several ladders to reach them. The windows were clean, clearer than spring water. He saw the paintings of royals past, most of whom looked rather stern or sorrowful. 

But then there was one painting that caused him to stop dead in his tracks. A woman sitting in a garden holding a bouquet of sunflowers, with light tawny hair that fell from her head past her shoulders in intricate tight curls. Unlike the others they’d passed, she was dressed in relatively normal clothing. Or at least what would probably pass as normal in the kingdom. She had freckles, warm sun-kissed skin, and one of the sweetest, most hypnotic smiles he’d ever seen. 

And her eyes. He knew those eyes. A deep, romantic shade of pink that reminded Reginald so much of spinel stones. The same eyes he prayed to wake up to every morning. 

Luci’s eyes.

“Regi?” L called. “Sweetie, what’s wrong?”

Regi was snapped back to reality, turning to see the others hurrying back to him. “N-nothing, I, I just…uh…” He pointed to the painting, trying to regain his composure. “This one just seems different from the others.” “

They all looked up, observing the painting closely. Phoenix nearly let out a gasp. Étienne seemed relatively unaffected, though Regi noted the small twitch of his brow. L seemed almost enthralled. Or at least that’s what he thought, given her posture and smile. Regi could never tell what she was thinking under the mask. 

“She’s beautiful,” L sighed. “I wouldn’t mind asking her out to dinner.”

“She is really pretty,” Phoenix agreed. “There’s just something nice about her.”

Étienne nodded slowly. “Seems almost…happier than the other paintings. More in love with life.”

“I would hope so. I did paint her after all.”

Everyone stood stiff, slowly turning toward Graceworth, only to find him standing at attention, eyes focused at the wall as a man dressed in a dark navy suit strode toward them. His hair was long, a slightly darker blue than Luci’s, but the face was unmistakable. The only thing differentiating them were the man’s eyes, which were narrower and a snow white hue. 

And of course, the crown upon his head.

“I-I’m so, so sorry, sir,” Regi stammered. “I-I, mean, you, uh, your Majesty, Highness, sir. I didn’t-”

Davis raised a hand, smiling fondly. “Relax. Formalities are not needed. You may address me as Davis if you’d like. It’s a privilege to finally meet you all.” He looked them over, nodding slightly as his gaze washed over them. “From my understanding, I have three heroes and a designer I’ll be hosting. One of those heroes also being a designer?”

L nodded, giving a polite bow. “That is correct.”

“Reflective mask, strong, ethereal presence.” Davis held out a hand to her. “You must be Lady Lazarus. Your reputation precedes you. Though the stories of your charm certainly don’t do you justice.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” L said, accepting his hand. “I must say you are quite the charmer.”

“I am no such thing,” the king chuckled, turning to the others. “This lovely young lady must be Phoenix then?”

Phoenix let out a snicker. “That’s me.”

Davis shook her hand, his smile quickly fading to concern. “Are you alright, my dear? You’re looking a little red.”

“It’s nothing,” she assured. “Just a little overheated. That boat was unusually warm and the carriage was a bit stuffy. A nice ice bath and some ice cream and I’ll be fine-”

Without missing a beat, Davis nodded to Graceworth, who clicked his heels and quickly faded through the floor. “One ice bath coming right up. Should be ready in a half an hour but if you need to cool off sooner we can have the pool ready. And we’ll have ice cream for dessert.”

Phoenix looked at L with a shocked expression. “Can we adopt him?”

L giggled. “No, love. We can’t adopt the king.”

Davis’s smile returned, though Regi couldn’t help but note the flicker of regret in his eyes that just barely passed. Almost lonely. 

Reminded him of someone else he knew. 

“Monsieur Allard,” the king greeted. “Its a privilege to finally meet you. Thank you for agreeing to see me.”

“I just happened to have a dropout,” Étienne said. Regi had to stifle a laugh. By ‘dropout’, he meant he recently cancelled a few mediocre heroes who had pissed him off one time too many. Left his whole week open.

“Luck favors us then.” Davis motioned for them to follow. “I’ll show you to the parlor-”

Étienne glared at him, his voice echoing through the halls. “Your Majesty, why in the ever loving hell are you covered in hair?”

Everyone froze. Étienne was bold, sure, but to speak that way- no to SHOUT at the king? Well, Regi had to admit that was absolutely one thing his best friend would probably do. King or no, Luci’s father or no, Étienne Allard prided himself on being professional and clean in any environment. And he held other professionals to the same standards during work hours.

And as much as Regi wanted to enjoy this, this trip was 100% business.

The king shifted on his feet, tugging at his sleeves nervously as he tried not to blush. (God he’s almost exactly like Luci, he thought). Davis let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

“I’m terribly sorry,” he said. “I was spending time in the cat room playing my dulcimer for them and then the new mama cat arrived and I had to help feed the babies-”

Oh my god he rambles like me!

“Cat room?” Étienne interrupted.

“Yes, cat room.” Davis’s eyes lit up. “Because of my quirk I’m fated to be lonely and destined to be hated by most of the world. But cats aren’t that judgmental of quirks. They judge character, and that’s why I like them. They’re honest. The cat room houses cats without owners or in need of extra care for whatever reason. It’s the second largest room in the house, beating out the throne room and the dining room and just barely missing the #1 spot because the ballroom is bigger.” 

L leaned forward, no doubt batting her eyes behind her mask. “What’s this about babies?”

Davis chuckled. “A mama cat, I call her Vera, she just had a litter of ten kittens and the littlest one is this cute little blonde tabby that needed extra attention-”

Étienne stormed up to him, getting as in Davis’s face as he could with the nine inch difference between them. 

“Your Highness,” he said sternly. “I absolutely cannot begin any sort of work until you show me this ‘cat room’. I request you show it to me immediately.”

Davis blinked a few times, trying to process what was happening, but soon managed to recompose himself and turned around. “It’s this way. I’d be honored to share with you.” He stopped for a second. “Though do avoid the large box castle in the corner of the room. That’s Leona’s domain and she’s a bit prickly.”

Regi let out a sigh of relief and followed the others down the hall. All the tension was gone, but he still felt anxious. 

This plan has to work. It just has to.

[ladyofthecastleproject]

#5 - Unknown Place

He didn’t know what had happened but there he was… In the pitch black. This time no dreams, except for some weird strange voice telling something in another language.

Then… He opened his eyes.

The place he had been was odd, looked like old and haunted. A poorly lit room, some old wardrobe and a chest… Lots of spider webs… Ah, he was lying on that bed. Not comfortable like the ones at home, but he wouldn’t expect the Digital World to have some sense. Not when most creatures in this world wouldn’t mind to sleep on a rock or on spikes.

Daisuke got up, looked around and found a desk. On the desk, here were his goggles, lying and getting dust from the furniture. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to be separated from V-mon, since he had been attacked by…

“Wait, who was that guy? Why am I here? Why this place gives me some weird feelings?”

He couldn’t explain but… He felt like it was familiar. But how? He never had been in that room before! Or in that place. Wait, where is he right now?!

“Oh man, I think I will have to escape from this room before some evil digimon try to torture me!”

But he was ALONE. Yet fear had taken control over his body. Ironic huh?

“Easy, easy…” - he said to himself - “V-mon will find me! He’s a digimon, and I know he will be here in a few seconds… Or minutes.Or hours. What if I spend a whole day here? What if I spend an ETERNITY trapped in this place? Wait, is it a house? Wow, this digimon needs to clean this room, I’m sure it forgot what the sunlight is. Look at that window! Who lives in this house? I really need to do something to make this place feel a bit better and healthier!”

He tried to open the window, but a cloud of dust attacked him. He coughed a lot, but he successfully opened the rebel window. When he looked back, he saw another shadow behind him. It was…

“Tailmon, you’re here! Where have you been? Where’s Hikari-chan? Also, you look a bit different from what am used to. Where’s your Holy Ring though?”

The cat frowned. Hikari? Who’s Hikari? Those golden eyes were watching Daisuke babbling and complaining about the room. How it was dirty, abandoned and needing to see water, a broom and other stuff.

“Uh, human” - she said - “I have no idea what you’re talking about? And I’m not a regular Tailmon, I’m a Black Tailmon.”

“Oh…” - Daisuke glanced at her, blinking his eyes twice - “I’m sorry, I mistook you with a friend’s partner.”

Indeed, the digimon was a Tailmon, except a virus variation with black fur. No Holy Ring. Her voice sounded younger than Hikari’s partner, and a bit more… Playful?

“You’re my lady’s guest,” - she chirped - “Don’t worry, she’s nice. Although José is not a gentleman, he’s too rude for a bodyguard.”

“José?” - He tilted his head - “You mean, Gennai-san’s clone from Mexico? It was him??”

“No, no!” - she shook her head - “I don’t know any Gennai person. José hates to be called by his name.”

“Nevermind, I want to clean this place first! Before I get sick!” - he coughed again - “Really, whoever lives here doesn’t like to have a clean environment!”

“You…” - she said it slowly - “... want to clean this castle?”

“C-castle?” - he repeated - “No wonder why I was feeling like am inside a terror movie! Black cats, kidnappers, being someone’s guest… Am I Belle now?!”

“I’m afraid that I have no idea about what you’re talking, human.”

“It doesn’t matter…” - Daisuke sighed - “Can you please show me the exit?”

“Downstairs, follow the end of the corridor on the left and you will find the entrance hall.”

“Ok, thank you” - he bowed and left the room, following the directions given by the cat digimon.

He didn’t care to examine the place, all he wanted was to leave and find V-mon before something bad happens. And when he finally crossed the entrance hall… His hand a few millimeters from the golden fancy knob…

“Oi, human. Do NOT dare to open this door.”

He felt chills running down his spine. Some snort on his neck and the presence of some DANGEROUS creature behind him, staring at him with a murderous glare.

Instead of looking back to see who was behind him, he stepped back in silence as he was trying to control his fear. A panic attack at that time wouldn’t help the situation, it could make it worse. Animals can feel fear, right? Maybe digimons can do that too…

“Be nice,” - the male voice said, sounding familiar to Daisuke but he couldn’t recognize it at all - “My lady wouldn’t like to have her guest smashed by my hands. And human beings are all fragile.”

Pride hit Motomiya Daisuke hard and ignited the flames of courage within his chest. No, he wouldn’t let someone underestimate him just for being a fragile human.

He turned back, with an anger expression on his face (making him look like a fluff mad dog) and stared at the shadow:

“OKAY LISTEN HERE YOU JERK, I AIN’T WEAK, I CAN FIGHT A DIGI--!!”

He gulped when he saw the height and size of the creature. Bigger than him, stronger than him. A Black Weregarurumon was in the entrance hall, crossing his arms, those eyes judging Daisuke’s stupid attitude and determination.

“Y-you know what?!” - the goggle boy babbled in panic - “I’m not a street f-fighter, I’m just a-an ordinary Elementary s-student who hates v-violence!” - he couldn’t fight a weregarurumon oh my god he had a DREAM to accomplish!

The digimon remained in silence, waiting for something. Perhaps this is the part Daisuke runs away and tries to survive without V-mon?

“AAAAAAAAAH!!”

Yep. He ran as fast as he could go. He had to find a door, a closet, a room… ANYTHING. There was a wild werewolf chasing him and trying to… To… What would that digimon do to him?! It doesn’t matter now, he needed to ESCAPE.

A door a door… There it is! Uh-oh, LOCKED.

“This can’t be happening!” - he shouted in despair - “Come on, open, open it!” - he glanced at the corridor and then saw the wolf approaching - “COME ON, I DON’T WANT TO DIE HERE!”

He tried again and no success. Whatever! Gotta go fast, Daisuke! He ran to the end of the corridor and went upstairs, ran to that dusty room and locked the door. At least that old bedroom saved his life!

“Okay I am the Belle” - he said with disgust - “And there’s a Beast. I’m trapped! I can’t leave! Help, I want to go home!!” - he sat on the floor and took his D-terminal - “Please work, I need to be rescued! Miyako, Ken, Iori, Hikari-chan, even Takeru! Come as soon as possible, I got separated from V-mon and now I’m inside a haunted castle, with a Black Weregarurumon chasing me!!”

Although the D-terminal system was badly-developed and with flaws, he was desperate to able to type something more or less that he was muttering to himself.

 Meanwhile… V-mon was having a bad time. Unable to find Daisuke, he had to risk and leave the area. But his sixth sense was telling him to go to the north, following the wind and… Wait!

“Those branches on the ground are broken…!”

A clue!!

“Maybe if I go in the opposite direction… I may find Dai-- Huh…? I feel something… I smell smoke… A Firewood stove or a bonfire… Someone is around, maybe they saw Daisuke…!”

And then he left. Too bad he couldn’t evolve by himself without Daisuke’s D-3 (unlike the former Chosen’s partners, like Agumon or Gabumon). He was small and not so fast. But he had to give his best to save his friend, especially before letting anything bad to happen to Daisuke.

“Daisuke, please stay safe…!”

 “No answers?!”

He was looking in awe at the D-terminal screen. It had been an hour and no reply. Also no signal of V-mon. And if he tried to leave the castle, probably that werewolf would appear and scare him again.

“This is definitely not my day…” - he whimpered - “Maybe I can try to find another exit, maybe a window in the ground floor, or a backdoor…” - he got up from the floor and opened the door a bit to lurk around the corridor. No signal of the kitty or the doge. That’s it, it’s your chance to try again!

He left the room calmly and without doing any noise, but he was sure the wooden floor would NOT cooperate with him. But he’s used to it, his home had those problems, noisy doors and floors, and he only had gotten caught a couple of times because he hadn’t paid attention to what he had been doing.

It was working. Yes, it was. He was able to reach the ground floor without calling anyone’s attention. Now head to the entrance hall.

This time he didn’t see the Weregarurumon there and felt relieved. At least the floor of the entrance hall was made of ceramic so no worries with a noisy floorboard. He touched the knob, He was so close…

“Hey!”

DANG.

“I’M CLEANING THIS PLACE AND YOU WON’T STOP ME!” - Daisuke yelled, removing his glove to use as cloth and polish the entrance door’s knob. A lie, of course, but he didn’t want to die. The Weregarurumon kept judging his behavior, and then Daisuke heard something odd.

“Seriously? Does she think this human is the chosen one?”

The digimon was rambling, ignoring Daisuke’s presence and giving the boy a couple of minutes to try and escape. But nope, Daisuke may be silly but he’s not dumb. He knew he couldn’t open the door and flee. The wolf would chase and bring him back to the castle.

Things could’ve been worse, like, some witch-like digimon appear and transform him into a frog! But he thought that part would’ve been too fairy tail-ish to happen… Except he believed in everything after getting a digimon, seeing vending machines on jungles and using PC monitors and TVs as gates to travel through the worlds.

Yup. Daisuke’s life is quite surreal but it was real.

“Listen,” - he put his gloves on again and walked towards the big wolf - “I have no idea why am I here, but I have a family waiting for me they will be worried in a few hours. If I disappear, they will call the police and then my friends will come here and will fight you and I don’t want them to do that. Let me go home.”

“You can’t,” - the Weregarurumon pouted. What a big baby - “She told me to bring you here, so you will stay here until you meet her.”

“Sure, meet her” - Daisuke narrowed his eyes - “No one told me WHO is her! Don’t tell me it’s the owner of this castle and she needs my help to do something. But couldn’t she call me INSTEAD?”

“Watch your mouth.”

“I know I’m more like a servant to the Digital World, but that’s no reason to kidnap me! That’s illegal in my world! Also this place needs a household. Really, was that the reason I am here? Nice, from the protector of the worlds to the janitor of the Digital World.”

“Watch.Your.Mouth.”

“Wait a minute” - anger came in when he realized what had happened when he had gotten separated from V-mon - “IT WAS YOU WHO HIT ME IN THE HEAD AND LOCKED ME IN THAT ROOM!?”

“Human, I told you to--”

“José,” - the Black Tailmon appeared behind them - “The dinner is ready.”

“D-DO NOT CALL ME LIKE THAT!” - the wolf hissed.

“Dinner?! But it’s still afternoon!” - Daisuke blinked - “It can’t be that late! It should’ve been afternoon tea or a snack, but dinner??”

“You know I won’t call you by that ridiculous name” - Black Tailmon said with an annoyed tone - “Especially because your real name is much better than that.”

“Wait a minute, José?” - Daisuke pointed at the werewolf - “You’re the José the kitty was talking about?”

“It’s Amis, not José!” - he growled - “Amis Lupe! Not José!”

“You sound like a grumpy friend of mine” - Daisuke smirked - “Seriously? That tough werewolf digimon’s name is José?!”

“I GONNA TEAR YOU INTO PIECES!” - Amis roared, showing his claws, but he glanced at the small kitten - “And you, you are not allowed to talk about it!”

“Well, look at you,” - Black Tailmon rolled her eyes - “trying to be someone who you will never be, hiding the truth from everyone. At least I’m who I truly am.”

He saw Amis glaring at the cat with wide eyes. She really had triggered something inside the werewolf.

“Huh?” - Daisuke frowned - “What do you mean by that?”

“Ah, the meal is ready” - she ignored Daisuke’s question - “If this makes it sound friendlier to you, human” - and then she left, walking calmly to the end of the corridor.

But the question kept bugging Daisuke. So the wolf has a secret…?

“Hey man,” - Daisuke started after an awkward silence in the entrance hall - “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to…--”

Knock knock, someone was there. He heard a muffled voice coming from outside and sounded like…

“Bu… OI” - he glanced at Amis - “Lemme open that door! I know who is there!”

“You won’t fool me” - the other snorted.

“I’m not planning to escape! If I need to stay here to see your master then I’m going to do whatever she wants first. I promise you.”

“Fine…” - Amis sighed, then the wolf opened the door. He couldn’t see who was outside, because it jumped on Daisuke’s arms. When he looked at the boy, he saw a...

“V-MON!! You’re here! I was worried that you wouldn’t find me in this place!”

“Daisuke!!” - V-mon was almost crying - “I’m sorry I thought you had been attacked by a digimon!”

“And I was” - he immediately glared at Amis. V-mon gasped.

“... I’m sorry” - Amis muttered, avoiding to look at Daisuke.

“But I’m fine, no one hurt me!” - he smiled at his partner digimon - “except…” - and here was Daisuke narrowing his eyes at Amis.

“I already said sorry!” - the wolf growled.

“Now let’s go home” - V-mon said expressionless - “I’ve found your soccer ball, but I… dropped it when I heard you screaming” - he gave Daisuke a disappointed gaze, lip quivered.

Daisuke put him on the floor, then patted the digimon’s head. With a smile, he replied:

“It’s okay. We can find it someday; I believe the digimon will enjoy playing with it. But no, I promised to stay here and do something I’m about to know right now.”

“What? Why do you want to stay in this place?” - V-mon didn’t understand it.

“Well, maybe they need someone to clean the house” - he laughed - “Maybe they needed someone able to do it. And this place deserves a retouch” - and looked around, now noticing all the details of that place. It looked like those movies from the Medieval period, except there were light bulbs and electricity. Well, this is still the Digital World right? That world had an Edo period city with some technology if he could recall it correctly - “Can you give me a hand?”

“Why one hand if you can have two?” - V-mon chuckled.

“No, I didn’t mean literally!” - he snorted and laughed again.

“Can we go now?” - Amis said, closing the door and analyzing V-mon.

“Yes, we can” - Daisuke answered - “Do you mind if I bring him with me? He’s like my little brother” - yep, he was referring to V-mon. Amis just shrugged, maybe the ‘lady’ wouldn’t mind that digimon anyway.

“He’s already here, unless my lady wants him to leave” - he answered calmly - “Now come. She must be waiting for you.”

V-mon and Daisuke looked at each other, but they followed the big guy. The door in the end of the corridor on the right was huge, leading them to the dining room: vast and gorgeous, with some red carpet, white walls with a few portraits and medieval-esque yet steampunk decoration. Amis led them to the table, and showed them their seats. It was a long table like the ones from the royalty, and it was filled with food, though Daisuke was finding that all suspicious and expected something bad to happen next. Like, being just an illusion and in the end a digimon appear to surprise-attack him. At least V-mon was with him now… He had a chance to evolve his partner and protect themselves… And escape.

They sat on their chairs, V-mon drooling because of the delicious food. But Daisuke… He kept finding something odd there, but he couldn’t tell what was it.

Suddenly, the other door from the room opened and a female silhouette appeared. The sun from the other room’s window couldn’t help Daisuke to see who was.

But the servants, the Gotsumons, closed the fancy door…

“Welcome, my noble guest. I hope you don’t mind for asking a little help.”

“H-Hikari-chan?!”