#sorry this took so long mar! :'D - poster

[the-hollyberrian-beasts]

"..." It seems like Juicebox Cookie is planning something.

Will a certain greenish red dragon approach? We hear you love women that kick your ass.

*Pitaya had been silently watching for a couple minutes now, after a few rather nervous seconds of consideration, they approached.*

"You alright, Juicebox? You look like you're thinking about sssomething."

*Curiosity win! Pitaya is to be doomed by the narrative(Juicebox) (affectionate) in approximately ten seconds.*

[greekbros]

"greek-Bros: Phallic Judgement"

*Surprisingly, Dionysus had gone back to Rome to cause more mischief with Hermes, this time they've brought Ares along*

Dionysus: *again disguised as a wine seller* ok gentlemen, behold. The foulest creatures to crawl on the face of the earth. *Shows just random Roman citizens*

Ares: *who for some reason decided he wanted to disguise himself as the world's most intimidating slave* ......ugh....the goats? *Sees a goat*

Hermes: *cleverly disgusted as farmer* haha no. You see, these guys are absolutely weird. They insist of "rationing" Sapa, they have taxes for literally existing and above all.....their wine is watered down! But they have the best bread I've ever tasted though.

Ares: ... really?

Dionysus: don't be fooled by their baked goods my dudes. These are cruel and unrelenting scum folk. Uncultured, ignorant, and above all....they've inslaved every single country they've conquered.

Hermes: .....it's mostly about the wine isn't it?

Dionysus: ....*turns dramatically* their most unforgiving sin.

Ares: *has wondered off to see a statue of himself*.....my dick isn't THAT small.......*looks at the name plate saying "Mars"* ......I can't believe these guys misspelled my name....*takes some charcoal, scratches out Mars and writes Ares*

Centurion Gaurd: Excuse me slave! Where is your master! Slaves are not allowed near the devine statue of the gods.*sees that Ares has wrote his name on the statue's nameplate* What the?

Ares: *doesn't know the centurion was referring to him considering he's in disguise* .........*turns to the see the back of the statue* ....at least they got the ass right.

Centurion Gaurd: EXCUSE ME! Please stop making remarks about the sacred statue! You've defaced sacred property!

Ares: *slowly peaks over to the centurion* ....hey ugh there's a thing on your helmet*

Centurion Gaurd: oh really? *Pats around his helmet* where?

Ares: *points to the centurion's face* There's a shit attitude a little all over your FuCkInG ugly mug.

Centurion Gaurd: *realising what he meant* YOU'RE UNDER ARREST!

Dionysus: *walks into the situation* Oh there you are Skippy! Bad boy I thought I told you to stay close to me and not open your mouth! *takes a little stick and weakly whips Ares's shoulder with a single thing of wheat*

Ares: *confused* ...wut?

Centurion Gaurd: Is there YOUR disrespectful slave?

Ares: wait you said I was going to be a noblem-*gets a loaf of bread in his mouth by Hermes*

Hermes: please shut up or we'll leave you here to fend for yourself.

Ares: *kinda just enjoying the bread* hmfhmf.

Dionysus: You see my good sir, my slave is extremely stupid, dumb and has testicles the size of grapeseeds. He was used as a human kickball when he was an infant and was raised by goats. He can't help himself sometimes. *Tries to clean the charcoal off the statue*

Ares: *angry noises* ?!?

Centurion Gaurd: .....Ok...you have the pay the "Disrespectful Slave" tax fine.

Dionysus: .....*grumbles and takes a bag filled with gold coins* ....*gives it begrudgingly* .....*grits his teeth* have....a...good day.

Centurion Gaurd: *takes the gold and sees that it's drachma* .....hmm.....*takes out a piece of paper with a semi-crude wanted poster of Dionysus, Apollo and Hermes* ......hmm.....I watching you....sir. *leaves to find Mortus*

Dionysus: *turns to Ares and glares at him* ....you owe me 20 drachma.

Ares: *has finished eat the bread* Why? Don't these mortals know we're gods?

Dionysus: No! We're here in disguise so that was can destroy the city again. You are here to make sure the country doesn't get a chance to get back up.

Ares: Fuck yah. *Literally has no idea what he agreed to*

Hermes: *saw the wanted poster in the centurion's hand* ugh...guys we REALLY need to finish what we came here for because they're definitely on to us.

Dionysus: yeah yeah I know....come on let's go. I want to destroy the coliseum again.

Ares: what's a coliseum?

Dionysus: *suddenly a huge grin forms across his face* Hermes .....is the coliseum....open?

Hermes: let me check. *Literally speeds next to the coliseum and saw a Roman sign that says "Grand Re-Opening" and zips back to Dionysus* yeah. It's open.

Dionysus: perfect. *Pops a waterskin filled with wine, and chugs it* oh gods I'm FuCkInG dry. It's like this place sucks your very essence or something.

Hermes: hmm....yeah, shame really. *as he was following Dionysus and Ares, he accidentally dumbs into a familiar face* oops sorry miss.

Octavia: *turns around with a baby in her arms that looks suspiciously familiar* Oh pardon me sir. I didn't mean to bump into, the market seems rather busy today doesn't it?

Hermes: It's ok, I was just heading to-*knotices the baby* .....ugh...

Caius the baby: *smiles at Hermes as if he knew Hermes was his dad* ba-ba :D

Octavia: Oh sweetie, daddy is working. Oh children are so wonderous, even at a few months old, they have such an imagination. By the way, have we met before? You look so familiar....are you from the countryside?

Hermes: uuggggh *trying his best to not look Octavia in the eye* yeah, I get that all the time. Trust me I have some of my own, I mean children that is. Also no I don't think I have? *Literally hoping she doesn't recognize him even though he shape shifted into her husband a year ago*

Caius: *still happily cooing over his real dad*

Dionysus: come on buddy le-*put two and two together and scowls at Hermes* ......you didn't.

Hermes: ugh....

Dionysus: nevermind we're off! *He pulls Hermes to the direction of the coliseum*

Octavia: hmmm what a strange young man. He's handsome though.

Caius: *coos in disappointment* :(

*later*

Dionysus: *rubs his hands* hehehehehe....

Hermes: this better be worth it. I thought we would write our names on the temple walls here or something.

A Roman Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen! This grand reopening of the Coliseum shall be in honor of our Lord and Emperor Caeser!

Caeser: *does the Royal British wave*

Dionysus: peeeeerfect.

Hermes: ......hey I got to ask...why did you bring Ares?

Dionysus: some bulky bastard is currently the head champion gladiator here, he use to live on Crete before the Romans decided to kidnap a few warriors there....let's just say my pettiness will come with effort.

Hermes: ......ok seriously man what are talking about?

Dionysus: look no one says that their dick is bigger than mine and actually gets away with it.

Hermes: ....you know....you could just smite someone. I mean it's not graceful....but it's effective.

Dionysus: hoho, I'm going to make this extra dramatic.

The Roman Announcer: And now! You're great champion, Maximus the Well-Endowed!

Maximus: *a huge, hulking man came out, roars out* HAIL CAESAR! *Leans to the announcer* I am going to get my 20 hot virgin women after this right?

Announcer: *whispers* yes yes. AND HIS CHALLENGER *looks at a note which was scribbled on his hand* ..... "Skippy the Not-Well-Endowed"! *Looks back his hand still not believing what he had read*

Ares: *is just happy to get into a fight, however was oddly enough only was only wearing a loin cloth and a helmet, armed with a shield and spear* ......oh boy, a whole stadium just for killing? These people rock!

Hermes: ........you didn't....

Dionysus: yep.

Ares: *steps side to side like an exited kid* comeoncomeoncomeonstartthefighting.

Maximus: Alright Skippy, time to end your tiny dicked existence. *Raised his sword on to Ares but Ares was able to break it with his helmet* !?

Ares: ....that's it?

Maximum: *confused* ugh....*waves to order in more weapons, all of which fail to hurt Ares*

Ares: .......aw come on...you guys have some shitty ass weapons. Bet YOUR weapon is just as shit.

Maximus: grrrrr.....YOU PUNY SLAVE! *Rips off his armored skirt* See! You're fucking wrong!

Roman crowd: *gasps*

Dionysus: .....

Hermes: *whistles* holyshit....dude this guy is hung.

Dionysus: If there's one god who can contest me....the only god who's dick is so epic, so powerful, so irresistible, so near perfect......that Aphrodite can't FuCkInG resist it on a daily basis.

Hermes: Heracles?

Dionysus: No buddy, Ares. Ares is the guy who's dick is better than mine I mean come on a guy who shags the goddess of love more times than any living thing HAS to have something going on down there

Some Roman Karen: EXCUSE me is pronounced Venus! We don't use greek words here.

Dionysus: Please leave me alone lady.

Some Roman Karen: *rhees in anger*

Dionysus and Hermes: *both are struggling to ignore her*

Ares: ....ok...that dick of your isn't that great.....*rips off his loin cloth* .....THIS....is a dick.

Crowd: *the women and gay men swoons over the perfect of Ares's bare body, men quake and cringe at their own feeble members and put to shame*

Caesar: *completely unimpressed and decided to leave* hmf. Pathetic.

Maximus: *wriggles in shame* HOW c-C-C-could this be?! The most PERFECT COCK? Oh my gods why is it fucking glowing?!

Ares: ....what you don't shave yourself weekly? I mean come on man that's how you keep the ladies coming back?

Maximus: *starts crying a little*

Dionysus: *cackling uncontrollably* SO THATS HIS SECRET! *writes on a piece of paper saying "shave, dick, weekly"*

Hermes: *still not fully understanding why all of this* ........you brought Ares here JUST to emasculate some gladiator?

Dionysus: Oh much more than that Herms.....much much m-

Roman Karen: EXCUSE YOU SIR ITS MERCURY!

Dionysus: *has had enough and turned her into a chicken* there much better.

Hermes: .....are you ok? Did you have your wine today?

Dionysus: I RAN OUT OF WINE LONG AGO!

Hermes: *deep sigh* not again.

Ares: *now in full naked display* ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!? *The crowd roared and cheered*

Dionysus: well....yah want to set the animals free from their cages?

Hermes: fuk ye-*feels a tough and strong hand practically crushing his shoulder* .....*turns to see an old man who clearly was Zeus* .....

Zeus: .....boys.....

Dionysus and Hermes: .....Uh Oh.

Zeus: *took each of them by their ears like a discontented mother* you're BOTH grounded for bothering these mortals and above all abusing the dark, unholy power of the sacred male member ....if I had a third arm it would be reserved for Ares. *Looks down at Ares now just doing some naked dance for the crowd*........*deep and disappointed sigh*

Dionysus: but dad, I do that like everyday.

Zeus: I don't care if I don't discipline you or Hermes right the now, Hera will have MY male member nailed to the wall.

(Later that day)

Mortus: *inner noir detective monologue* after several months, nothing. Absolutely nothing. The suspects disappeared from the face of the empire. Likely their crimes have caught up with them. My only consolation to solving this case....is the mysterious birth of my son and my faithful wife. .... speaking of which...why does Caius have blue eyes? Me and Octavia have brown.....did ...she?....nah that's impossible.

The Centurion from earlier: MY LORD! I FOUND THE SUSPECTS!

Mortus: *dramatically turns around* This better be the right ones this time.

*much later after apparently an orgy broke out at the coliseum*

Mortus: .... Absolutely disgusting. Practicing Sexual Festivities without a license is punishable by crucifixion, Mark.

The Announcer (Mark): B-b-but sir! It wasn't my fault! Some slave was to challenge Maximus and they just decided to remove their clothing and everyone went wild! ....to be fair the slave did look a little attractive BUT the fornicating ceased once the slave disappeared.

Mortus:....was he accompanied by a portly, dark haired ..... individual?......an extremely attractive blonde slave and a thinner more athletic young man with brown hair?

The Announcer: ...hmm...well yes minus the other slave.

Mortus: Hmmm.....the plot thickens.....are these the mysterious criminals that destroyed the coliseum last year?....What is the motivated behind these depraved individuals?.....

The Announcer: ugh...why are you talking to yourself?

[mickmarstookmyheart]

Life’s a Sick Joke pt 1

Pairing: Mick Mars x Reader

Sidenote: As this story is under construction, I would like to warn you that those chapters which don’t have a proper title are written in the main caharcter’s POV!! Be aware!!! Be awaaare! I hope you will enjoy this storyas I did writing it, have a nice day and feel free to leave marks!

1. Are you okay there?

∆January 1983∆

"You have to apply for this job! I'm not kidding! This can be the chance of your life or...just for a new beginning." Your sister, Isabelle is trying to convince you to accept a job as a concert photographer, which you would kill for, but letting her go to college...is way hard.

"Are you sure? I don't...I don't want you to feel neglected or anything like that." You and your sister had a pretty strong connection and you hardly sent a day without her, so not seeing her for months was a big deal.

"THIS IS WHAT I WANT! I would like to go to college and finally leave you guys alone. No hard feelings." She put her hands up as a defense while looking at the two of you. "I love both of you, but you deserve to have a life as am I, and not looking after me all the time. You can also finally finish university and you can find a proper job for yourself, Dylan.

"She is right, sis." Sighed Dylan, your brother. You looked at him and then glanced at your little sister who was not so little anymore. You recalled the night when she came to your house, you shared with Dylan, soaking wet from the rain in the middle of the night with a bruise under her eyes. That was the moment when you and your brother took her under your wings and stay the hell away from your abusive parents.

"Alright then. But remember that you can come home anytime you feel like." You were smiling at her with a pretty sad smile, not liking she will go to uni. Of course, you encouraged her to continue her studies, but in a much closer school.

"And don't hook up with boys at your first party, please!" Dylan pointed out who was always the clown of the three of you. He was the first one who left the family house at the age of sixteen, then you followed him a couple of years later. In the beginning, you lived in your uncle's home and after his death, Dylan found a job and you moved to the city.

"Guys, let's just stop you here! You know how I behave and that I am quite mature, right? I am not gonna be a mom in a month, don't worry. I will attend parties yeah, drink, and flirting with boys but that's what college is about. At least partly. And don't tell me that you won't talk to boys and be drunk at the parties after the concerts. For the fuck's sake, it's Mötley Crüe we are talking about!" She said pointing at you.

"I didn't say that I won't." You said laughing. You stood up from your chair and sat down next to her and hugged her tightly. A few minutes later, you felt a warm hand on your shoulder. Dylan joined and that was your family moment for a while. The only family you have ever had and you would do anything for them.

Two weeks later

It felt like a minute. Two weeks passed and you spent the whole time together. Went to the cinema and had dinner in your favorite restaurant every day. When you arrived home after dropping her at the uni you sat down at the couch and sighed. Then you glanced at the clock and immediately stood up calling for your brother to escort you to the office.

"You look badass. Don't worry about it. They will love your photos and your passion for photography." He stopped and glanced at you thinking. "Maybe your personality, too." You hit Dylan right in the shoulder for that last statement. You two were walking down the crowded avenue to the office.

"You are not funny. I'm freaking out!" You pulled tighter your coat on yourself shaking like a leaf from the stress and the weather.

"I know you, idiot! Just trying to cheer you up. And keeping you safe" You were so stressed you didn't even notice the red light. A black car was honking at you, making you drop all your stuff on the ground. Dylan pulled you back from the road just in time. He helped you pick your things up and kept your way to the job interview.

"See? I'm this lucky today." You murmured more like to yourself.

"Also I'm sorry for shouting at you, but you know, it's a big chance and a serious job. And I am sure there will be plenty of stunning "photographer" girls whom they will choose over me."

"Don't say that! You DO look stunning! And I'm an honest person, you know that. And even if you won't get this job, there are plenty of other possibilities." He smiled down at you and pulled you in a sideways hug. "Anyway, I wanted to ask something."

"You know that you can ask anytime, but I may not answer that." You sighed fearing the question.

"I see you still have your sense of humor." He chuckled. "So how will you manage to go to university and do this job? I mean if you will be a concert photographer you have to travel. A lot, along with the band."

"Don't worry about that. I have already talked to the school. We agreed that I will just have to make an appearance at the exams. And I will have plenty of spare time on the tours to study."

"Are you sure?" Dylan snickered in disbelief.

"At least, I hope so." You didn't really believe it yourself either. "But please don't talk about this. I am already stressed out, don't make it worse!"

Finally, you arrived at the entrance of the building. It was a quite spectacular building, with huge windows and an enormous door.

"How the fuck will I find that office? It's a freaking big place!!" If it was possible you became tenser than before. You looked begging at your brother who just smirked as an answer and patted your back.

"I'm sure you will get this job." He kissed your cheek and left you there. All alone. You hoped that at least he will escort you to the office, but no. He let you down. You promised yourself you will avenge this sometime. You took a deep breath and entered the building. The door was easier to open than you thought. You went to the reception, where you asked where is Doc McGhee's office. The lady wasn't really helpful, she only gave you a look and muttered something under her nose. Bitch.

After 15 minutes, you finally found that freaking place, you sat down on one of the chairs beside the door. There was approximately 10 other person with big, professional cameras. Fortunately, you brought your portfolio and CV with you, too, just in case. They wrote in the advertisement that you wouldn't need to bring anything, just yourselves. Well, you were on many interviews in your life and you've always had to be prepared. It's a kinda obligation to bring your CV and proof of what you have achieved.

You have been sitting there for like two hours now. You were super bored so you started to walk from wall-to-wall, reading all the posters and the layers. You just finished reading the latest Rolling Stone magazine when you realized that you were the only one in the corridor. You freaked out a bit so you stood up from the sofa and hugged your portfolio, it gave you a bit of comfort.

"Are you okay, there?" A deep voice echoed and you turned around. The man was wearing all black and sunglasses. He took the item in question on the table and sat down. You also set yourself beside him. "The interview is still on?"

"Yeah, I guess..." The door opened and you jumped. Fortunately or unfortunately, you couldn't really decide it, it was another door. You let out a long breath and leaned back on the couch.

"Really? Cause you don't really look like that." You glared at him. "Oh okay, I won't tease you. First time being...?"

"No, I have been nervous before, you know." He burst out laughing and you hoped he was intelligent enough to understand sarcasm. "Okay, you won." He held his hands up in defense. "Anyway, I'm Mick Mars." He introduced himself. He glanced at you gelding his hand towards you. "But I'm sure you knew it." He chuckled.

Holy shit. Mick Mars. It's Mick fucking Mars! C'mon (Y/N). Calm down, there is nothing to worry about. Just say something witty not to seem like you just came from a cave.

"Are you in the band?" You were desperate both from the stress and the shock he gave you. Dear Satan, how the hell could you say that??! Now you looked like a groupie. Nice.

"What band?" He looked really serious. He glanced at you. Those blue eyes kept you speechless. Another door cracking broke the silence. You turned around and a chubby man invited you in.

"Well, good luck with that." He smirked.

"Th..thanks." You looked down in embarrassment. Your face was burning, but hey who cares?! It's just a job interview!

                 ∆

"So? How did it go?" Dylan asked after arriving home. He was sitting on the sofa watching the Tv when you burst into the flat.

Revenge time.

"Well, not the best, I assume..." Trying your best not to laugh. "They were pretty jerks. Just the usual. They didn't really care about my photos, just my body..." You pouted covering your face so Dylan couldn't see your smile.

"Where are they? Do you have their address? I'm gonna kill them..." You managed to grab his wrist before he could exit the room. You looked at his face and couldn't hold it back anymore, you burst into a laugh. He was staring at you still confused. "Wait...you are just teasing me, right?" He asked back rubbing the back of his head.

"And you know why!! You left me there, you son of..." You pointed at his face.

"Language, you..." Before he could finish his sentence you jumped on him and hugged him tightly. You were grinning like a mad man from happiness.

"I got the job!!! Can you hear me? I did it!!!" You were giggling and jumping like a ball.

"I'm so proud of you. And I told ya." He winked and lift you spinning in the air. "Tell me everything! From the beginning." You sat down on the couch and told the whole thing starting with that bitch clerk and then the conversation with Mick

"You did ask him if he was in the band?" He burst out laughing at you. When he could breathe again he was still smiling but his lip down no to laugh again, seeing the death glares you were sending him.

"It's not funny. He is the most normal person in the whole group, as I know at least, and I managed to screw it up." You covered your face with your hands in embarrassment.

"And what did he say?" He asked putting your hands away from your face to look at him.

"He asked back what band." You murmured sniffing.

"Oh (Y/N). You didn't...it's okay. I think he just saw how stressed you were and he was just joking. And I'm sure he doesn't think you are stupid."

"Are you sure?" You glanced at him.

"I'm pretty sure. I'm a guy, too. I would do the exact same thing. And what about the interview?" You were now in a much better mood. You really thought you fucked it up.

"Well, glad you asked. They were curious about my photos and believe it or not, my qualifications. They told me that they were looking for smart people and not just some pretty slut. So, it was worth taking it." You had a big proud smile on your face.

"And what's next?"

"There will be a meeting next week. About the dates, the stadiums and everything about the tour. Maybe the boys will be there, too. However, they don't seem like they care about it. They just go with the flow, you know."

"And what if Mick will be there?"

"I will try my best to become invisible."

Next chapter

[woo-san-shine]

Our Way

ateez college au

Premise: You and your best friend from high school move away to a university 3 hours away from your small hometown. You find yourself meeting a strange cast of characters along the way that will help you find your way throughout your freshman year.    

Word Count: 3k

Warnings: Slight language 

Author’s Note: A work in progress!!! Mostly just for fun

prev // next 

Chapter 4 

"Does he really think that sprinting up three flights of stairs is going to be faster than the elevator?" Sooyoung asks, turning to Mingi who was pressing the number 11 button on the keypad.

"Jongho like to display his athletic abilities at every chance he gets," Mingi answers while sweeping his hair over to the side. "Pretty soon he'll be asking you to arm wrestle."

The elevator dings and opens on the 11th floor. It looked almost identical to the 7th, except for a smiling Jongho who was leaning against the doorframe of a room about halfway down the hall.

"I found their room!" He shouts to us, gesturing his thumb towards the door he was leaning against.

"Dude! How the hell did you beat us?!" Mingi yells back. He then proceeds to sprint out of the elevator toward Jongho. He's not a very graceful runner, arms slightly flailing at his sides. This makes Jongho immediately burst out laughing.

Sooyoung and I exchange a skeptical glance as we follow Mingi down the hallway at a normal pace. They're certainly acting a little goofier than they were before. We arrive at the still laughing pair. I clear my throat to get their attention. Mingi quickly snaps out of his laughing fit and straightens up, trying his best to look composed.

"Uh, yeah sorry about that," Jongho says while trying his best to stifle in his laughter towards Mingi. "This is their room," he says, pointing to the door again. There is another whiteboard on this door too with the names 'Kim Hongjoong' and 'Park Seonghwa' written on it. He reaches down to turn the doorknob, but it appears to be locked.

"Should you knock?" I ask.

Mingi knocks twice, waits a few seconds, and knocks again. No answer. He proceeds to press his ear up to the door, eyebrows furrowed. Sooyoung follows this action putting her ear up to the door as well. Mingi is so tall that Sooyoung practically stands directly under him without so much at the top of her head reaching the middle of his chest.

"It sounds like someone is... vacuuming?" she says, slightly confused.

"Typical," Mingi says while rolling his eyes.

Jongho steps forward and proceeds to bang on the door with enough force that surely the door should have split in half. A few seconds pass before the door finally swings open to reveal a boy holding a vacuum in one hand and a bottle of all-purpose cleaner in the other.

"Hey there, Mars. Doing some deep cleaning are you?" Mingi asks smirking at the boy with the vacuum.

The boy, 'Mars', cracks half a smile at the sight of his friends.

"We've been here for how long and you're already cleaning?" Jongho asks.

"They said that these rooms would be cleaned before we moved in, but there was at least an inch of dust inside the closet and the carpets..."

Before the boy can finish, Jongho brings him in for a hug that lifts him off his feet, vacuum and all. This makes Mingi bust out laughing again. From over Jonhgo's shoulder, vacuum boy finally sees Sooyoung and I both just awkwardly standing there.

"Well hello there," the boy says, slightly strained. This is probably due to Jonhgo's death grip around his waist.

At this, Jongho sets him down. "Oh sorry, this is Kim Jaemin and Choi Sooyoung," Jongho says, pointing to each of us. "I met Jaemin earlier today while we were moving in, and Sooyoung is her roommate. We all live on the same floor."

The boy politely bows to Sooyoung and I and we each return the bow. "Park Seonghwa," he says. He shakes both of our hands.

Seonghwa is also fairly tall, but not as tall as Mingi. He has jet-black hair that was short in the back, but his bangs are long and sweep across on side of his forehead. His eyes are a greenish color and slightly hooded, making his expression seem almost... sultry? It was the first word that came to my mind. He had very striking features. He wasn't built like Jungho either, being slightly more in the thinner side. His legs were long and his shoulders were very broad.

"They're both from three hours north of here, and they don't have any friends yet," Mingi states.

"Hey!" Sooyoung says while shooting Mingi a glare. Mingi clearly had no idea he said anything wrong and looked slightly confused at Sooyoung's retort.

"I mean, he's not wrong," I say shrugging.

"Anyway," Jongho says while rolling his eyes. "Can we come in?"

"Oh, yeah of course," Seonghwa says, gesturing his hand holding the vacuum into the room.

Sooyoung and I follow Mingi and Jongho into the room as Seonghwa places the vacuum and all-purpose cleaner next to what I assume is his desk. The room is set up the exact same as mine and Sooyoung's. However, each side of the room is drastically different. Seonghwa's side of the room is neatly organized with a muted color pallet. Everything on his desk has a specific place and his bed is perfectly made. The other side of the room is almost overflowing with decorations, books, and posters strewn about the wall. Various clothes, hats, scarves, and other accessories hang from the bed frame due to the fact that there was no room in the overflowing closet. Atop the desk sits a keyboard and a giant computer monitor. In front of the monitor sit a boy wearing a giant pair of headphones. He doesn't seem to have noticed that he has guests.

Mingi begins to tiptoe over to the occupied desk. He turns back to the rest of us, puts a finger to his lips and goes "shhhhh." He then grabs the boy’s headphones and snaps them once against his head. This causes the boy to whip around in his chair so fast that he almost falls off. Jongho and Mingi start laughing and Seonghwa lets out a little chuckle while rolling his eyes.

"What the hell?!" the boy shouts while simultaneously grabbing ahold of one side of his lofted bed to steady himself. He looks angry at first, but at the sight of a still laughing Jongho and a smirking Mingi, his face breaks out into a wide smile.

"Joonie, always so easy to scare," Mingi says, sticking his arm out to help the boy out of his chair.

"That's a lot, coming from someone who's afraid of his own shadow!" the boy replies, finally taking off his headphones. "I figured we'd see you two eventually, but you could've texted us," he says to Mingi and Jongho. His eyes finally rest upon Sooyoung and I.

"We wanted it to be a surprise! And we brought some new friends," Jongho says gesturing towards the pair of us. "This is Kim Jaemin," he points to me. "I met her this morning during move-in.  And this is her roommate, Choi Sooyoung. They live on the 7th floor with us."

The boy immediately steps forward to shake both of our hands. "Kim Hongjoong," he says, clasping my hand with both of his. He does the same to Sooyoung.

Hongjoong had a very unique look about him. He was shorter and smaller than the rest of the guys in the room, but there was something about made him stand out. His hair was a light-brown that was long in the back, reaching the base of his neck. His eyes were large, his nose was small, and his smile was big. His ears were full of different piercings, and the shirt he was wearing looked like it had been drawn and written all over.

"It's nice to meet you both," he says.

"You too," I say shyly. Today had been a little overwhelming in itself, even outside meeting all of these new people. I could tell even Sooyoung was feeling a little out of place due to the fact that she was being fairly quiet.

"Please, everyone have a seat," Seonghwa said. He pulled out the two desk chairs for Sooyoung and I. Jongho and Hongjoong sat down on the floor leaning their backs against the closet, Seonghwa sat himself in a cushioned chair that was next to his desk, and Mingi hurridly climbed up the ladder onto Seonghwa's freshly-made bed. I could see Seonghwa wince slightly as he watched Mingi untuck his comforter.

The four boys were now just staring at the pair of us. I felt a little insecure.

"Urm, how exactly did you meet again?" Hongjoong asked

Sooyoung and I exchanged a quick uncomfortable glance. Maybe we shouldn't have come. I did feel like we were slightly intruding on something.

"Oh, I'm not trying to be rude!" Hongjoong quickly interjected, sensing our discomfort. He looked a little worried.

"Like I said, I met Jaemin this morning during move-in," Jongho said, easing the awkwardness that had fallen over the room.

He flashed me a smile. I instantly felt a little more confident. "Yeah," I added. "I was looking for one of those carts to carry your stuff on, you know? But there were none left. Until Jongho offered to give my family his cart. And then my mom somehow roped him into carrying boxes for us."

"Ooooh how polite our Maknae is," Seonghwa said, giving a side-eye in Jungho's direction.

"Wait, Maknae? Youngest?" Sooyoung questioned.

"Well, out of our group of friends, Jungho is the youngest," Hongjoong explained.

"Little baby isn't even eighteen yet," Mingi cooed. He took one of Seonghwa's many throw pillows that were on his bed and threw it at him. Jongho easily caught it and whipped it back at Mingi, hitting him square in the face. This caused the whole room to start laughing, except for Seonghwa.

"It hasn't even been one day," I heard him say under his breath.

"Wait wait wait," Sooyoung said interrupting the laughs. "How are you only 17 and at University?"

"Ah, well, I was so far ahead on the growth chart during elementary school placement that everyone thought I was older than I was. So I think I technically skipped a grade," Jongho said. He rubbed his hand on the back of his neck, looking a little embarrassed.

"Yeah, so much for your height though," Mingi teased again. Even Seonghwa laughed at this one.  Hongjoong was basically rolling on the floor doubled over in laughter.

"At least I don't walk around like a fucking baby giraffe," Jungho calmy said, staring up at Mingi from the floor. This caused both Seonghwa and Hongjoong to start tearing up from laughs and Mingi to bury his face into one of the pillows.

Sooyoung and I laughed too. I enjoyed watching them joke together and I could tell this was something that happened often.

"Anyway," Hongjoong finally said after he composed himself. "You two are roommates right?" He pointed back and forth between Sooyoung and I.

We both nodded.

"How do you know each other?"

"We went to high school together," Sooyoung answered. "We're from three hours north of here, so we thought it would just be convenient to live together when we both decided to come here for school."

"Yeah, seeing as we don't really know anyone from around here," I added.

"Must have been pretty hard to leave your homes, right?" Hongjoong asked?

"Oh yeah, I loved it back at home," Sooyoung replies.  “I almost had a breakdown this morning while leaving.” 

I shrug. "Eh, I was ready to leave," I say. "Of course I'll miss my parents, but I'm excited for a change." I catch Sooyoung furrowing her brows at me out of the corner of my eye, but the rest of the boys are smiling at the pair of us.

"What are you guys studying?" Seonghwa asks.

"I'm going into Engineering," Sooyoung answers boastfully. She absolutely loved talking about her future academic plans, how difficult it was to even get into Engineering at this University, and especially about her scholarship.

"Oh whoa, now way," Mingi said, immediately straightening up in bed to look at Sooyoung. "That's what I'm studying too." 

Sooyoung looked thrilled to hear this.  "Really? What's your classed schedule like?" The two start eagerly comparing class schedules.

"And you, Jaemin?" Hongjoong asks me.

"College of Art, specifically Graphic Design."

"Oh cool!" He sounded genuinely excited. "I'm minoring in Fine Arts with a double major in Music Production and Composing."

That was really impressive.  Two majors and a minor?  The keyboard on his desk suddenly made sense.  "Wow, that'll be really interesting to study," I say.

"Yeah, I'm so excited to start classes on Monday," He gives me a big smile.

"Me too," I say to him.  I pause slightly.  “I.. like music and thought about doing something with it but... I don’t know.” 

“Do you sing?” he asks. 

“Oh god no,” I hurriedly say.  “I play guitar.”

“Ahh, I wish I could play guitar, that’s awesome.” 

“He can do pretty much anything else, though,” Seonghwa chimes in. 

Hongjoong blushes a little and waves his hand in the air, dismissing Seonghwa’s compliment.  

“What about you?" I ask Seonghwa.

"I'm in the College of Business, but haven't picked a specialty yet," he answers.

"Fancy boy just likes the idea of getting to wear suits to class," Jongho jokes.

We spend the rest of the evening talking about our intended majors and what we'd like to do once we actually graduate.  Sooyoung and I share more about what life was like in our small town, and the boys continue to joke with one another making everyone in the room almost tear up from laughter multiple times.  I was really enjoying myself and felt much more comfortable around them than I had when I first entered the room.

Seonghwa gets out of his chair, stretches, and checks his phone. "We should probably be kicking you guys out soon.  It's almost midnight."

I hadn't even realized it had gotten so late, the conversation had just been constantly flowing that I wasn't keeping track of the time.

"Yeah," Hongjoong adds, getting up from the floor.  "Didn't we all promise to help the others move in tomorrow?"

Mingi groaned. "Do we have to?"

"It'll be the nice thing to do," Hongjoong said to Mingi giving him a stern look.

This made Mingi groan even more as he slowly climbed down from Seonghwa's bed.

"Well, it was very nice to meet you two," Seonghwa said to Sooyoung and I.  He shook both of our hand again.

"Likewise," I said.

"Of course we'll see you both around again, right" Hongjoong said.

Would we? I hadn't really thought that far ahead. I smile to him and give a slight nod.

"Oooh maybe once everyone is all settled we could all meet up and celebrate finally being all together again," he says to the others.

"Joon, it's only been like a week since we've all hung out," Mingi said.

"You know what I mean!" Hongjoong says back. "Finally all being at College together. We've all worked hard to get here."

"Yeah, that actually could be fun," Seonghwa said thoughtfully while fixing the pillows in his bed that Mingi has left strewn about.

"You two could come too, of course," Hongjoong said, looking to Sooyoung and I.

"Really?" Sooyoung questioned.

"Of course, ya get to meet the rest of the group," Mingi said, winking in Sooyoung's direction. This immediately made her blush.

"Let's let these two get to bed, Mars is yawning over there," Jongho said, gesturing towards Seonghwa who was indeed letting lose a rather large yawn. He looked embarrassed when he noticed us all staring at him.

We all said goodbye to Hongjoong and Seonghwa, left the room, and got in the elevator to head back down to the 7th floor.

"They were really nice," I say to no one in particular.

"Yeah, Hongjoong is great with people and Seonghwa can just stand there and people usually fawn over him," Jongho said to me.

Both boys walked us to our room, which I thought was incredibly nice.

"Goodnight ladies," Mingi said with a smile.

"Maybe we'll see you tomorrow?" Jongho asked.

"Yeah maybe, we'll see," I say, not really knowing how to respond.

"Yeah, feel free to stop by anytime," Sooyoung said, but mostly to Mingi.

We head back into our room and start getting ready for bed. I finally climb into my bed and the tiredness that I had been starting to feel all day hits me.

"I had fun talking with them," I say to Sooyoung who was already in bed.

"Yeah I guess. It was lucky that you meet Jongho this morning."

"Mhhhm," I sigh, feeling my eyes starting to get heavy.

"What was with that comment back there, though?."

"What do you mean?" I ask, sitting up in bed to look at Sooyoung in the darkness.

"The whole ‘ready for a change’ thing,"

"When?" I was racking my brain to try and remember what she could possibly be talking about.

"You said you were ready for a change, made it sound like you don’t appreciate our hometown and all our friends back home."

I pause.  “I mean... you know things were a little weird right before we left.” 

“Do you mean the whole Jihoon thing?” 

Jihoon was my ex of three years.  We had basically been together most of high school.  He had been friends with Sooyoung for a while, and she was the one who had introduced us.  He was an overall nice guy, plain and simple.  Our friend groups all hung out together and it was really nice for awhile 

But things started to get stagnant.  I felt like the relationship wasn’t going anywhere.  I eventually ended things about a month before leaving for university.  He was staying at home to work for his parent’s business and spent most of the last year of our relationship trying to convince me to stay too.  He was utterly shocked when I told him I was planning on moving away for university, let alone three hours away.  He accused me of being selfish and not thinking about what was best for us.  It was hard, but I was doing this for me.  I rarely ever thought of myself first, and I still feel guilty about it.         

“Yeah, I guess..” I say, trailing off.  

“Hmph,” I hear her say in the darkness.  Sooyoung had been very against me ending the relationship, mostly because it made things very awkward in our friend group.  

“But did you see the way Mingi was looking at you all night?” I ask her, hoping to distract her from talking about Jihoon any further.  

“Really?” I hear her giggle slightly.  

“Oh for sure, he couldn’t keep his eyes off you.” 

"Hmmm you think so?"

"Definitely."

She hums happily.  Easily distracted, Sooyoung promptly drifted off to sleep with me following shortly after.

prev // next 

[tuxiedjabberwock]

Ft Big Bang - Smoke Always Follows Fire (Fairy Tail fan-fiction)

My piece for the @ft-bb Fairy Tail Big Bang event! Partnered with @h-eartfilias as my artist!

This is actually a part of the full story - I plan on making it multichaptered after all. It’s Rated M w/lime and features Edo!Nalu so read at your discretion

Mini fires from all over the school, of which he’s taken blame for, leads Natsu to the real source: Lucy Ashley. She counter-threatens him to reveal his underage circuit driving, and the game continues when they find more and more secrets to hold over the other. Soon enough, they’re in deeper waters than expected.

Although completely unintentional, fire always seemed to follow Natsu, and so as he ran down the school’s green with his bag bouncing on one shoulder, heavy textbooks in the other, he was distracted by the sight of it curling from a small building’s open window. So distracted, in fact, that he skidded to a stop, his sneakers scuffing against the wet crosshatched stone of the path as he spun around and warily stalked towards the source. For once, there was a fire and he wasn’t at the source—he had to look, even as his heart pounded out of his chest and his cowardice screamed for him to turn back and get to class before he was late.

 The building wasn’t marked, but it was in the vicinity of the Art and Design section, so he believed it was one of those classrooms. And as he peered through the window, he spotted several literature-based posters pinned on the wall. English Composition, probably, he thought, daring to lean closer. And what a dare it was, as a slender but strong hand snapped out from inside and seized the color of his white polo shirt. He shrieked in alarm, eyes bugging out from his head. The owner of said hand quickly pulled into his peripheral, but all he could see were eyes like smoldering coals.

 “—Oh,” said his accoster shortly, and a moment later he was released to the ground. His possessions scattered over the grass and he stared on with open-mouthed gasps as she met his gaze, arms crossed over her ample chest. Very short blonde hair pulled into a side ponytail adorned her head, and her face, while beautiful, was marred with a scowl. Pinched between two of her black-painted nails was a lit cigarette, the source of the smoke. “I thought you were someone else,” she said as means of an explanation, taking a drag. She never broke eye contact.

 “I—uh—you—” Natsu stammered, but he couldn’t get any sensible words out.

 “You’re that Natsu Dragion kid, aren’t you?” One hand curled into her cheek. “I’d recognize that dye job anywhere.”

 It was on his tongue to say that no, that was actually his natural newborn hair color, but his tongue didn’t want to move to form the words.

 “Don’t talk much, do you?” She raked her eyes over his frayed stonewashed jeans and long-sleeved polo. “Great. Makes this easier.” Removing the cig and pinching the tip between her nails, she tossed the butt into the trash and leaned close to him, close enough for him to count each golden-brown lash. “Say a word to anyone about this, you’ll be ashed faster than one of my fags. Well?” she said when he didn’t respond, baring her teeth.

 “A-Affirmative!” Natsu said in a voice far too high-pitched to be his own. She snorted and turned her nose up.

 “Who fuckin’ says affirmative?” She dusted off her black sweater and smoothed the folds of her far-below-regulation pleated skirt. “Whatever. Scurry away. I don’t want people to walk by and think we’re having a tryst.”

 And as Natsu beat his hasty retreat—without scurrying, he might’ve added with a smidge more courage—he wondered how a top ditcher like her knew the word tryst.

 ——————

 He saw her again the next week, and this time he discovered her name was Lucy Ashley. He knew because at the start of his mid-semester class, she loudly responded to the call of her name.

 “I’m here, as you can see, Four Eyes,” she told the poor professor.

 When Natsu’s name was called, he meekly responded upon feeling her eyes burning into the side of his face.

 Like her, he was hoping never to have a second confrontation. Luck, on the other hand, would speak otherwise.

 After class, he was alarmed to see her standing a way’s away in the hall beckoning him with a finger and a sugary smile. Fitting considered her insides were corroded and rotten. He stalked after her, still balking, and into another empty classroom, where she promptly locked the door and barred it with her body.

 (Granted, she was a whole foot shorter and probably thirty pounds lighter, but he did not want to make a joke of the situation.)

 “Are you stalking me or something?” she said, a nasty skew to the corner of her mouth. Her lipstick was the color of blackberries, and Natsu couldn’t help noting it matched her nails, but stood out stark as death against her pale and blonde complexion.

 “N-No! Of course not!” Why would I be a glutton for punishment? “I just, uh—it’s, err, coincidence?”

 “Coincidence,” she repeated. “Events which act in synergy by nothing but a casual connection.” He balked a little more openly as she set her hand on her cocked hip. She wore a denim skirt this time with ripped leather tights that certainly didn’t come that way, and a cut-up band t-shirt with a grey sweater hanging unbuttoned over her slim frame. “Although, since we never so much as breathed the same air before, I doubt this is a coincidence, Pinky.”

 “W-Well…” Natsu’s words failed him and he took a step back. Lucy’s eyes narrowed and like a predator, she matched his step with two. They continued towards the other end of the room when (expectedly, since he wasn’t quite looking where he was going) Natsu pitched over a desk, overturning it and hitting the ground with a loud noise. He opened his mouth for a pained shout when Lucy’s hand suddenly clapped over his lips.

 “Quiet,” she said under her breath. Natsu’s heart didn’t take the advice, pounding like a war drum, but he didn’t speak, and soon he detected the sound of footsteps. They passed after a moment, but Lucy remained unpleased. “They’re bringing security,” she said in a low voice. Her next action was hauling him up by the elbow and nearly dislocating his shoulder. God, she had a good right arm. “You drive?”

 No, nonono. “Um, that’s not—it isn’t—I don’t r-really—” She released him and was next to the window in a few quick steps, hoisting it open and swinging through. The doorknob clicked and in a fit of nerves Natsu followed.

 “Lookie there, Pinky’s playing truant,” Lucy said as he caught up with her. She moved quick for someone in platform boots.

 “P-People will start thinking I’m a d-delinquent,” he said anxiously as they approached the parking lot.

 “Maybe they’ll think you finally got that stick in your ass surgically removed.”

 Natsu, amid going towards his car and pulling out his keys, gave her a scandalized look. Lucy was unrepentant as she circled the vehicle. “Uh-huh. ’02 Mustang. Wouldn’t have taken ya for a speed demon.”

 You’d be surprised. “I, uh, I’m not.”

 “Well anyway, in exchange for my not kicking your ass and letting you get off scot-free, you’re giving me a ride home. I guess you’re a notch above the shitty people on the train.”

 “I-I-I’m sorry, b-but I—I j-just can’t—” The side of her fist hitting the roof startled him up, and he looked to see her dark expression.

 “Drive, or else.” Natsu complied faster than he would like to admit, and quickly unlocked the car. Lucy slid in first, crossing her arms and legs and glaring at the dash. Gulping, Natsu took the driver’s seat. He was in his right mind up until the door clicked shut. “Well?” Lucy said, looking at him with a raised brow. “Are we going anywhere soon?”

 “You didn’t say the magic word.”

 “What?” Her brow arched further when Fireball Natsu gave her a flat look, hands locked behind his head.

 “Let’s see… You threatened me over your folly, then dragged me into a classroom, and hijack my car for a ride. You got a nice face, Sugar Tits, but that ain’t a payment.”

 “—Excuse me?” Lucy let out a little incredulous laugh before her hand snapped out to fist in his collar. “I don’t know where you’ve been hiding your pair this whole time, but it better get back in hiding if you know what’s good for you.”

 “How about you listen?” In one move, Natsu grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her forward over the center console, bringing them face to face. He held her tight enough to bruise and said in a dangerously low voice, “You’re in my car. You don’t get to give orders to me in my car. Get that through your blonde skull.”

 Lucy stared him down just the same, but her breath was coming a little quicker. Anticipation, or fear?  Either way, he liked a fight.

 “And you don’t make things happen snapping at me. The magic word’s a place to start.” He tossed her back and her back hit the door with a light thump. Lucy braced her hands against the seat and dash and made to move forward again.

 “Quit fuckin’ with me, Dragion!”

 “Another word of advice.” He turned the car on, threw it in drive, and laid on the pedal. The Mustang lurched forward and he made a sharp turn into an emptier section of the parking lot, throwing her back against the door again. “Always wear a seatbelt, eh?”

 “So, what do you call all that?” Lucy said once she regained her bearings, giving him a murderous look. “An act? You’re damn near professional.”

 “No, not an act. I wish it was.” He barely slowed before entering the main road and weaved through the early afternoon traffic with old experience. “It’s more than I want to explain to you anyway, Sugar Tits.”

 “Okay, fine. You’ve made your stupid point, Dragion. Stop the car.” He ignored her and turned onto the highway where he really put the pedal to the metal. Lucy went flat against the seat with a surprised breath.

 “Fireball. Call me that.”

 “Fireball…” She scrutinized his face with narrowed eyes and the corner of his mouth quirked. He never disguised himself on the circuit, only wearing a pair of goggles that just about every other racer did, but he didn’t need to: people naturally saw no connection between the wimp-ass Natsu and the fastest man on four wheels, Fireball. “So, you race. Illegally, I should add. Didn’t think you had it in ya.”

 “Looks can be deceiving. I, for instance, thought you shitted rainbows, and look at us now,” he said very dryly. Lucy snorted.

 “Well, Fireball, I don’t think you’re in a spot to talk about my smoking. You’re no law-abiding citizen either.”

 “Then we have an agreement: neither of us blab.”

 “For now,” she said darkly. “But for this, you can bet your ass I’ll find something else to dangle over you.”

 “How about those tits?” He could hear her teeth grinding and grinned at the sound. “The main girl in my life’s my car, but I don’t mind making room for another.”

 “Shove it up your ass.”

 “It’s not my ass that’ll be on the receiving end, sweetheart.” Instead of responding, she whipped her head around to the window, but not fast enough for him to miss her blush. Well, well, it seemed like he found the trick to shutting her up. He was in a much more pleasant mood as he took the next exit to a rest stop. The overly large parking lot only had a couple worn buildings, a gas station and convenience store, before falling away to forestry on all sides. He hit the brakes where the little dirt road turned to asphalt. “And here’s your stop.”

 “You’re shitting me. This is on the other side of town from my stop.”

 “Heh. You must think I care.” He unlocked the doors and gave her a grin. “See ya, Sugar Tits.”

 He continued grinning until five minutes later, she realized he wasn’t budging and grudgingly exited the vehicle. “I’ll get you back,” she said again before slamming his door shut. Then she strode off with her head high and Natsu leaned out the window to watch her retreating behind.

 “And a good fucking day to you too!”

 ——————

 For the next week Natsu fought to not even breathe the same air as Lucy Ashley. He was mortified over how he treated her as Fireball and terrified she would find another thing to blackmail him with on top of the unsolved fires around the school. So, he buried his head in his books during class and beat a hasty retreat as soon as the professor dismissed them. It worked until he was confronted by a thoroughly pissed-off Lucy (which, to be fair, might have been her default state, but this time she was extraordinary beyond normal standards).

 “Boys’ bathroom, now.” She had cut him off in the cafeteria’s line almost literally breathing fire. Natsu’s fingers tightened around the plastic tray.

 “I, I haven’t p-paid yet—”

 THUNK!

 Natsu had a bit of a memory lapse, and next thing he knew he was on the ground with his cup of Jell-O staining his blue shirt and the blood rushing to his left cheek. Lucy’s fist was still raised as she said in a very tight voice, “Move your ass, Dragion.” And she spun on her heel and swept past the curious onlookers.

 “H-Hey, Natsu?” Someone came from behind and pulled him back to his feet. Natsu turned to see Gray offering him a glass of iced water.

 “Thanks…” He pressed the glass to his swelling cheek.

 “Who was that? And why is she so upset at you?”

 “I…we…well, she met F-Fireball,” he said, averting his eyes. It was mostly true anyway. Gray’s eyes widened.

 “Ooh. Yeah. Makes sense.” He looked at the cold Jell-O seeping through Natsu’s shirt. “Want one of mine?” Not particularly, since Gray’s shirts were super thick and (to normal people) it was ninety degrees outside, but it was somewhat better. “I have to meet her in the restroom.”

 “So she can get the other side of your face?” Gray gave a dubious squinty-eyed look.

 “Well, if I don’t go, she’ll do it for sure. If I do…w-well…it’s unlikely.”

 Lucy was leaning against the wall with arms crossed when he entered the restroom. She wore a baggy tunic shirt over denim shorts and combat boots, one of which immediately planting itself in his stomach. Natsu’s back hit the door behind him, then his skull when Lucy grabbed him by the neck.

 “You should know,” she said, her breath coming heavy, “I don’t like being made an ass of.”

 Instinct was a funny thing: there was no cowardice involved in it, just knee-jerk reactions honed by years of environmental factors. Natsu’s hands went out and tangled in her loose hair, and he used his elbows to push against the insides of hers, breaking her grip and pulling her head forward and into his at the same time. He headbutted her hard and she stumbled backwards when he released his grip in shock. The blood drained from his face at the sight of her startled expression. This was nothing he could blame on Fireball.

 “L-Lucy, so-sorry, I’m sorry, I just—”

 The lights abruptly cut out, bathing the windowless room in darkness. Natsu heard Lucy’s footsteps retreat from him before she let out a yelp on the other side of the room.

 “L-Lucy?”

 “Stay back th-there!” He started. Did she just…stutter?

 “Lucy, I’m r-really sorry about—”

 “I said s-stay back there, Dragion!” So it wasn’t his imagination. Certainly, his actions didn’t have her so terrified��if so, she wouldn’t have retaliated for what Fireball did to her. But the only other factor in that situation was…the power went out. So…?”

 “U-Um…sorry, I’m overstepping boundaries, but, err, are you…scared of the—”

 “Not another word!” she interrupted in a shrieking voice. Immediately after, the lights returned. He blinked until his eyes adjusted and saw Lucy pressed against the far wall and crouched under a sink, her hands clasped over her head. She was trembling, he could see that even from a distance, and her eyes were red. “Just…shut up,” she said in a shaky voice. He pressed his lips together and moved forward.

 “I…I wouldn’t, I wouldn’t make fun of you like this…if that’s what you mean…”

 “Yes, you would, because you’re a shitty person.”  She rolled her eyes and added, “Well, everyone is. Just know, if you so much as breathe word of this to anybody—”

 “I won’t.” She gave him a hard look and he returned it with a placatory one. He had incentive to do so—disregarding the Fireball thing, he was still at fault for the brushfires around the school—but there was just something so inherently dirty about exploiting her weakness. That was more up Igneel’s alley to do, and Natsu had long since sworn to do the opposite of his late father in everything. “U-Um…it’s gotta be wet under there, so don’t you wanna, uh…” He offered a hand and she slapped it away hard.

 “Move.” He gave her a wide berth to crawl from under the sink and get to her feet. She didn’t spare him another glance when she stomped through the door and slammed it shut behind her.

 Well, Natsu thought, hand still out in front of him, now she really hates my guts.

 ——————

 Ironically, Lucy was the one to ignore Natsu the following few days. He didn’t like leaving things as they were, but he also didn’t like setting his ass up for a good kicking. As it were, faith was determined to keep bringing them together in the unruliest circumstances.

 “One part of the project requires you to pair up,” Professor Gryder said once the last of the information sheets were passed around. “And you’ve already been paired by a random algorithm. I’ve already posted the sheet on the bulletin board outside.”

 “Well that really sucks the fun from a group project, don’t you think?” Levy Ström said in the most derisive voice possible. Natsu heard Lucy click her teeth.

 “Each of you will spend a day with the other and analyze their interactions and habits. By the end of the week, you should have a reflection prepared: does this person act based on societal influences, or by their own free will? With that, class is dismissed.”

 Natsu watched Lucy from the corner of his eye as she grabbed her binder and dodged past him on her way to the door. He never really thought about it, but he began to wonder what she was doing in a Sociology class as he packed his notebooks away.

 “Fuck no!”

 It said something that Natsu didn’t even flinch at the sound, quietly slipping his backpack on and making to creep past the crowd around the bulletin board outside. Once he heard Lucy scream again and burst into the classroom, he dared sneak a peek at the groups.

 —

NATSU DRAGION & LUCY ASHLEY

—

 Okay, hmm, yeah, that made sense. Hearing Lucy’s muffled vitriol from the closed classroom, Natsu decided to air his grievances later. If Professor Mine even possessed a head after today.

 “Natsu, will you be alright with such an uncouth young…lady?” Cana Domènech was entirely the opposite of Lucy: conservative, refined, and thought “oh my gosh” to be her swearing quota for the day. She looked at him with concern when he let out a little nervous laugh.

 “Y-Yeah, I’ll be fine. I’ll, uh, I’ll survive.”

 “Well, I do wish you the best of luck.” Cana gave him one more sympathetic look before leaving. Natsu heard the door open behind him and looked to see Lucy in noticeably lower spirits than before. She met his eyes and clicked her teeth, tossing her head to the side.

 “I’m not big on the idea—” Obviously, “—but I have to pass. So, let’s go.”

 “L-let’s g-go?”

 “Did you not read the stupid paper?” She fluttered said paper in front of his face. “Analyze each other’s societal interactions. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather get this done sooner than later. I don’t want to spend a second more with you than I have to.”

 “B-B-But, me, I don’t think th-that’s a, that that’s a g-good—” His words died off at her look. He let out a shaky breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “You’ll have to deal with…you know…Fireball.”

 “Sooner than later.” She raised an expectant eyebrow and he sighed again, gripping the straps of his bag.

 “Al…Alright.” She followed him to the parking lot and stood aside a bit awkwardly as he anxiously slid inside.

 “Well, Sugar Tits, you coming in or what?” Fireball asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Lucy rolled her eyes to the sky and practically threw herself into the seat. “Glad to see you’re eager,” he said as he put the car in drive. Lucy barely flinched this time when he laid on the gas and cut onto the street at speed. “So, what’s a respectable young lady like yourself doing in a Sociology class?”

 “It’s a stupid elective that I’m regretting more and more by the second.” She folded her arms and fell back into the seat with a frustrated sigh. Natsu looked at her from the corner of his eye.

 “Any particular reason we’re not doing your part first?”

 “Because I don’t want to.”

 “Sugar Tits, that reasoning’s not gonna fly with me.”

 “Stop with the Sugar Tits shit already, limp dick.”

 “My mouth, my tongue, my car, my rules. Don’t blame me if those jugs are the most appealing parts of you. I can look at them and still feel some semblance of hope for womankind.” Said jugs were encased in a thin black tube top that did nothing to hide their volume or save them from Fireball’s roving eyes.

 “Seriously, do you take improv classes? I don’t get how you can be such a pushover normally and then cart around a record-sized pair when you get behind a wheel.”

 “I’m an enigma, Sugar Tits. Get used to it.”

 There was a slight itch of trepidation as Fireball headed onto the row of dark side streets he called home. But at the end of the block was a building that shone a little brighter than the boarded-up adult stores and bail bond places surrounding it. A place built upon legends of the past and which would continue creating legends well into the future.

 “Aren’t you a little young to be going to a bar?” Lucy said derisively as he pulled into the parking lot behind the place.

 “Not a bar. Home.” He put the car in park and turned it off. She recoiled a bit at his somber tone.

 “This run-down old place?”

 “That’s what you call it.” He let out a sigh and smiled a bit. “Well, Lucy, time to head into the belly of the beast.”

 Lucy’s burning gaze followed him out of the car as he shrugged his things higher on his shoulders. This was the only place he felt as in-control as when he was in his car—not that he thought it’d last with Lucy breathing down his neck. Lucy fell in step behind him as he walked around to the front entrance. “B-Be ready,” he said under his breath as he pushed the door open.

 “What?” Natsu sensed something flying and ducked in time for a beer bottle to miss his head and fly over Lucy’s. She spun around to watch it hit the street with comically wide eyes. “What in the flying fu—”

 “Move it or lose it, Dragion!” Jet shouted. Natsu shrunk backwards.

 “S-Sorry, I was just—”

 “Still apologizing? I don’t know who’s more of an eyesore, you or Elfman!”

 “Jet, stop bothering my brother,” Lisanna Stonestrider said, resting a hand on the crying Elfman’s shoulder and shooting Jet a glare. It didn’t affect him too much, and she turned to give Natsu a warm smile. “Welcome back.”

 “H-Hi, Lisanna.”

 “Ooh, Natsu, you’ve brought a girl.” Mirajane said it very casually but it had heads turning anyway. Natsu turned a deep red and did his best turtle impression when someone let out a loud laugh-whistle.

 “I’m Lucy,” she said, startling him a bit with the sound of her voice. She had her hands on her hips and was standing with her feet apart and chin raised just high enough to squint down at all of them. “And know that next time a bottle comes flying at my head, it’s going up somebody’s ass.”

 “It’s going to be your ass this time, Max,” Warren said. Someone whistled again, then the previous conversations bubbled back into the silence. Natsu went to sit at the bar and Lucy followed him, perching herself with crossed legs on the stool.

 “I’m Mira,” the barmaid introduced, smiling at Lucy. Lucy, as per her dignified nature, snorted.

 “Do you shit rainbows or something?”

 “P-Please don’t,” Natsu muttered, folding his hands atop the clean wood countertop.

 “I’m used to worse coming from these people’s mouths.” Mira, that’s not a thing to happily admit to. “Would you like something to eat or drink?”

 Lucy slid her hands across the bar and her eyes narrowed as she peered around the clientele. “Is there an undercover cop here…?”

 “No, no,” she said with a laugh. “Whatever happens in Fairy Tail stays in Fairy Tail.”

 She still seemed incredibly dubious, so Natsu slowly raised a finger. “Can I get a fireball cinnamon whiskey?” Mira hummed softly as she took a glass from under the bar and filled it halfway before sliding it over. Lucy still looked as if she expected cameras to pop out at any moment, but she slowly slid back in the seat. Natsu didn’t get to the glass before Lucy snatched it and downed it all in one go. “Can I get another?” she said, ignoring Natsu’s indignant yelp.

 “For a friend of Natsu’s, of course. He doesn’t have many, outside of us,” she said as she refilled the glass. Natsu flushed under Lucy’s subsequent scrutiny.

 “For how much of a turtle he is, doesn’t surprise me.”

 “Well what about you? You’re hiding behind a lot of vulgarity.” Natsu jumped when Lucy slammed the glass down mid-drink, splashing the whiskey all over the countertop.

 “Don’t act like you know me!” she said in a voice that bordered a growl. Mirajane held Lucy’s gaze for a long moment, and Lucy was the one to back down in the end.

 “It’s none of my business anyway,” she said breezily, retrieving another glass and pouring Natsu’s share, along with refilling Lucy’s and swabbing the mess she made.

 “Damn right it ain’t, Princess.” Lucy knocked back the glass with marked aggression before slamming it down yet again. Wisely, Natsu retained a Sugar Tits-related comment as he slowly sipped his drink.

 “Sup, idiots?” The door banged open and Levy sauntered in, flanked by Gray and Cana behind her. Sitting down with Jet and Droy created a new course of ruckus in the place and Natsu almost missed Wendy and Romeo sneaking in. She caught his wave and responded with a half-smile and a hair flip; Romeo turned away and hunched a bit more, but Natsu caught a bit of a smile before he did. He’s getting better.

 “You bring little kids in here too?” Lucy nodded at Romeo as Wendy led him to a booth seat. He squared his shoulders and gripped his glass with both hands.

 “W-W-Well, it’s, err—he’s, I-I’m—all of u-us, actually…we, uh, we…” His stammering peaked with his anxiety and Lucy let out a loud groan of frustration. Mira rested a hand atop his.

 “The upper level has a few bedrooms; he stays in one alongside Natsu.”

 “You guys…live here?” Lucy’s eyebrows furrowed as she looked between them. Mira’s smile hadn’t dimmed, but her eyes darkened with a bit of grief.

 “It may seem like a dingy bar to most people, but to us, it’s our only home.” Lucy’s lips parted and she craned her head back to take another long look at the people of Fairy Tail. Young, old; grizzled, bright-eyed; weak, strong; happy and joking, depressed and silent… Her eyes returned to Natsu, but there was no outright malice this time.

 “Your only home?” she asked in a voice so soft it was nothing but earnest. He tipped his head in a nod. She put her hand to her mouth and stared, seemingly at a loss for words. Natsu gave a little sheepish smile and shrugged a shoulder. She blinked a few times to clear a suspicious sheen from her eyes, then pushed away from the bar. “We’ll do this another day,” she said quietly, and took a deep breath before rushing past the tables to the door.

 “Natsu?” Mira asked quietly, bringing his eyes back to hers. She regarded him with a concerned look and he laughed a bit, though not with humor.

 “W…We have a funny relationship,” he said, finishing the last of his whiskey. “Unintentionally exchanging secrets. This time, though…I think this was too much this time. I don’t know, Mira.” He sunk forward until he could rest his head in his arms, and Mira’s hand gently combed through his hair. Well, she got her payback for last time, plus change…

 ——————

 The next day was a Saturday, which meant no class and no Lucy. He just almost pushed yesterday’s happenings from his mind as he came to Aicha’s Autos for his usual weekend shift. He was supposed to open, but when he arrived the garage door was already rolled up and a sports car was waiting with an open hood. He peeked around the corner to see Metallicana reclining in a folding chair, the top of his coveralls loosened around his faded Guns ‘N Roses t-shirt. He was drinking a bottle of Guinness and grinned when he saw Natsu, waving him over.

 “I thought I opened?”

 “Yeah, well, I had a little extra time. Wanna drink?” He nodded at the small cooler next to him. He had about as many qualms as Fairy Tail with underage drinking—not that Natsu minded. It was the “drinking on the job” part that made him uneasy.

 “I-Isn’t this a job here?” He gestured to the sports car. Metallicana shrugged.

 “’s all done save for the test drive, and anyway client’s not comin’ ‘til tomorrow.” Grinning, he pulled the driver’s key from his chest pocket and let it dangle from his fingertip. “Just up and down the block so’s I can make sure the frame’s right an’ straight.”

 “Just up and down the block…” His fingers twitched and he realized he was leaning forward towards the key. Metallicana laughed not unkindly.

 “Haven’t been racin’ in a while? Don’t usually see ya so antsy.”

 “The police got some sort of tip and have been swarming around the usual spots, so the people in charge have to find a new…venue…” He was distracted as his phone received a notification. To his utter surprise, it was a text from Lucy.

 Finished the report. Come check it out.

 Below that was an address not too far from the auto shop. Natsu knew the area: a lot of open road and torn-down homes, leaving plenty of unpurchased lot space. It also was a wonderful place for festering crime, since it lay far from any police station. He might’ve been looking too deeply into matters, but the locale sounded a little too coincidental for his liking.

 “Natsu?”

 “E-Err, yeah, test drive.” He took the keys and pocketed his phone. “Up and down the street. Got it.” He excused himself and locked the hood before sliding into the driver’s seat. He turned the key in the ignition and heard the engine turn, heard the gears in his mind whir to life as he reversed from the garage.

 She ran away, he mused, stopping in the street and heading straight down. Beats me as to why, but she ran. I don’t know what she wrote, but it somehow leaves a pit in my stomach anyway.

 He rounded the corner despite his promise to move up and down the street and cruised along the quiet suburb. Whatever she has to say, I can take it in stride. I don’t regret joining with the Fairy Tail gang—they’re a hell of a lot more my family than that old prick. His hands tightened around the wheel. And as pleasant company as Sugar Tits is, she’ll be in for a heck of a time trying to pull me from my family.

 He lost track of time circling the neighborhood and caught himself as he drove past a gas station. Glancing at the meter, he realized he used up a few gallons in his reverie. He stopped to fill the tank and bought himself a root beer at the convenience store. Well, regardless, he thought as he popped the cap, taking a long gulp. I won’t know until I go there…and I can only hope it’s good news. W-Well, as good as it can get considering Lucy.

 By the time he returned to the garage, Metallicana was working on an SUV. Natsu parked the car on the dirt lot outside and honked once to catch his attention. As he approached, he spotted a suited man about his age sitting against the wall. He had dark curly hair and red eyes that sized Natsu up as he came over.

 “Pink hair. Mr. Dragion?”

 “Um…y-yes?” Metallicana slid out from under the car with a sigh, dropping a wrench and pulling his long auburn hair from his grease-stained face.

 “That’s Gajeel, my son,” he said without delay. “And this is his shitshow he calls a car.” The SUV was old for sure, but Natsu couldn’t see the big deal with it.

 “Nice to m-meet you, Mr. Aicha.” He offered a hand and Gajeel again appeared to size him up before shaking it. His hand was calloused and his grip was firm.

 “Pleased to make your acquaintance.”

 “Don’t say nothin’ too incriminatin’ ‘round him…it’ll be all over the headlines come daylight.”

 “I don’t, um, I don’t understand.”

 “I’m a reporter for Magnolia Times,” Gajeel said. Natsu nodded slowly.

 “That makes sense…”

 “My father has also told me much about you, Mr. Dragion. That you’re his most reliable assistant, and that you’re the most pleasant young man he’s met.” Natsu let out a nervous laugh and ducked his head to hide his blush.

 “Mi…Mister Metallicana gives me too much c-credit.”

 “Nah, yer just too deprecative,” Metallicana said airily, leaning his back against the car. “Anyway, Natsu, met any girls lately?”

 It was something he asked fairly often because Natsu was “that age” according to him—whatever that meant—and now the question made him flush a deeper scarlet and trip over his tongue. “I, err, I don’t, I h-haven’t—”

 “Ooh!” He grinned and his wine-colored eyes glittered. “She got big tits?”

 Natsu choked on his spit while Gajeel face-palmed. “That’s not…socially acceptable to say.”

 “Well, I said it. Does she?”

 “She—she—yes,” he admitted in a mutter.

 “Congrats!” Gajeel sighed.

 “S-S-She’s not, she’s not m-my girlf-friend or anything…!”

 “She single?”

 “Father, act your age,” Gajeel said once Natsu covered his red face with shaky hands. Metallicana let out a hearty laugh.

 “Alright, alright… Let’s finish up his car so’s real customers can have their turn.”

 Despite his words, it was a pretty quiet day once Gajeel left with his repaired SUV (and some choice words on Metallicana’s part; seriously, the old man had a mouth to make a sailor blush, yet there was nothing but endearment behind the coarse profanities). By two o’clock, Natsu’s shift was over, and it was time to face Lucy yet again.

 “I’m leaving, Mr. Metallicana…”

 “Right, see ya Mo—two beers?” Metallicana raised a pierced eyebrow as Natsu shut the cooler, cradling the bottles in his other hand.

 “I need the support… See you Monday.”

 “Yeah, see ya.”

 The tension coiled and formed a pit in his stomach as he headed towards the indicated address. He had already knocked back the first beer at the halfway point, and he was nursing the second one when he realized he was close. It wasn’t enough to impair his driving, not by a longshot, but it fooled him into thinking this was maybe a good idea.

 Lucy’s house was entirely average with two stories, a garage, and a tree out front. It looked too innocent for someone determined to give him hell. He parked in the empty driveway and went up to ring the bell. He stood awkwardly on the porch for several minutes, shifting from one foot to another and feeling like some kind of trespasser, before the door swung open. She stood there and blinked at him dazedly, not saying a word, and the silence melted Natsu’s anxiety a bit.

 “Good…afternoon,” he said. Lucy inclined her head to one side.

 “Yeah,” she replied softly. She wore an extra-large grey hoodie and tights underneath, a surprisingly simple and unassuming outfit choice, but if she was at home, what did he expect? “Come on.” She turned inside and left the door open for him. He self-consciously removed his sneakers before entering, making sure to drop them beside the door after shutting it behind him.

 “You, err, y-you finished it early. The report,” he said lamely as he followed her past the unused-looking living room to the stairs.

 “I thought it’d be harder than it was. Turns out I was wrong.” She shrugged and Natsu balked internally at how sedated she appeared. The stairs led up to a carpeted hallway and she took him to the door at the very end. Opening it, Natsu was bombarded repeatedly with the thought of Lucy’s room Lucy’s room Lucy’s room. Band posters, gun show ads, and social propaganda posters covered every square inch of the wall to where he didn’t know its color, and while the rectangular room could barely fit a work desk and a twin bed, a record player and small bookshelf made the place fit to burst.

 “Cramped,” he said without really thinking, and immediately clamped his mouth shut after.

 “But lived in, unlike the rest of this dump.” She took the comment in stride as she slid past everything with practiced ease to sit cross-legged on her bedspread. Natsu awkwardly stood in the doorway until she gave him an expectant look. “You gonna start sprouting leaves there or what?”

 “N-N-No, I, uh...nothing.” He bowed his head and sat at her desk, which was crammed with untouched journals, bent and dog-eared poetry books, and mismatched puzzle pieces. Lucy picked up her notebook from the bed and flipped to a random page.

 “Listen up,” she said, then started to read: “Natsu is a weak-ass who couldn’t take candy from a baby. Hell, he’d probably be jacked by the baby. Point is, he’s a noodle.” Already he felt like going home. “He’s spinelessly compliant for the most part, and when he’s not he’s an insufferable prick. But not as insufferable as his family. He’s gutless, but he wouldn’t speak out against another person, or hurt them anyhow. All of Natsu Dragion is a good person, and that’s free will.” She dropped the notebook in her laugh and looked at him with a huff. “Well?”

 Natsu gave her a gentle smile. “Lucy, I think you’ve missed the point of Fairy Tail.”

 “What?” She looked at him crossly, which he took in stride.

 “They’re not burdens I have to bear, they’re my family. We’re all family.”

 “Pretty rude-ass family you got there.” He winced; he couldn’t argue for the most part.

 “They’re not…well…they’re not the most optimistic people, not anymore, but we have this…this…” He tried and failed to find the word and gave up. “You don’t really understand us past the surface.”

 “Dragion, I know shitty adults when I see ‘em.” He could only smile again, which she didn’t take as pleasantly. “You’re makin’ fun of the wrong person,” she said, getting to her feet and cracking her knuckles. Natsu instantly went on the defensive.

 “N-N—I didn’t m-mean it like that, no!” The door opened downstairs and Lucy straightened as if by an electrical shock. Her expression changed and she marched purposely from the room and down the hall. She didn’t tell Natsu to follow, but he felt at a loss and trailed behind like a stray puppy anyway.

 She returned to the living room where Natsu was surprised to see an older woman strewn on the sofa like she simply didn’t have the energy to go further. Her blond hair was long and silky and streaked with grey, and when Natsu went around, he saw her in an unkempt server’s uniform. Lucy walked past, combing her fingers through the woman’s hair as she went to the kitchen. The woman didn’t respond.

 “U-Um, L-Lucy, it’s not my place to ask, I know, b-but is she…?”

 “It isn’t your place,” she said tonelessly, grabbing a glass from the cupboard and filling it from the tap. She set the glass down on the coffee table still with no response. Natsu swallowed.

 “M…Maybe she should go to a h-hospi—”

 “This ain’t anything new, okay? Come morning, she’ll be perfectly okay and ready to do it all again.” She pushed her fringe up and Natsu frowned at how exhausted she sounded. She glanced at him over her shoulder, then looked at the wall. He followed her gaze to a photo featuring the woman with less grey hairs and a blond, mustached man holding a laughing little girl. “Sorry if I insulted your family or whatever, but as you can see, I don’t have a splendid example of a stable one. Not anymore.”

 “Lucy…” She opened her mouth, then abruptly shut it and walked out the front door. She sat hard on the porch and pulled a cigarette from her pocket. Natsu glanced at her mother again, who still had her face buried in the cushions with no sign of life, and slowly walked out to join her. He grimaced a little at the smell of smoke as she took a long drag but didn’t complain. “Is she…ah…drugs?” he asked, fully expecting a tirade in response.

 “More like drunk off her ass,” she said without looking at him. “She’s been doing it for six years now. Can’t hold down a job, can’t hold down a conversation… If not for our relatives, we would’ve lost Papa’s house a long time ago.”

 “Why don’t you get help?”

 “She’s the one who has to get help. It ain’t for my lack of trying, me and the rest of our family.” She threw the half-finished cigarette to the concrete walkway and ground it under her sneaker.

 “I’m sorry.”

 “You didn’t make Papa sick, you didn’t turn Mama into a chicken, what do you have to be sorry for?”

 He looked her right in the eyes. “I’m sorry we both have broken families.”

 “I thought you love the people over at that bar.”

 “I’m not talking about them.” She gave him a curious look and he fidgeted with his fingers. “My father…wasn’t the n…nicest person. Not to my mom or me. He wanted her to ‘listen like a wife should.’ He wanted me to ‘grow up an’ be a fuckin’ man.’” He laughed even though nothing about it was funny. “He was… Igneel was a mean, manipulative, and secretly cowardly sunovabitch. And now he’s dead.” He choked on the word dead and almost suffocated at the memories it brought. He doubled over and saw Lucy reaching for him from the corner of his eye, and he bolted to his feet to throw up in the grass. “S…Sorry,” he muttered when he was done, dragging his hand across his mouth. Lucy was on her feet and staring at him with wide eyes.

 “He was killed?” she asked. The word hit Natsu like a blow and he had to fight to not vomit again.

 “Y…Yes, he was killed.” He sat on the grass and pulled his knees to his chest, gripping them and failing to stop his trembling. Warm, he felt warm then and he felt warm now—feverishly, dizzily warm. And his mother’s quick words in his ear; he didn’t understand then, but in the aftermath, they engraved themselves in his soul. The warmth persisted; it was years before he could sleep without twisted nightmares of that day forming.

 Lucy came up behind him and her hand rested in his hair, gently tangling in the strands. Her hand was warm too, but it didn’t make him feel faint and anxious; it was grounding, pleasant, and it made him feel a bit stronger.

 “I’m sorry.”

 “You’re not the reason he’s dead, are you? What do you have to be sorry for?” He laughed bitterly until Lucy’s hand moved to his shoulder and she crouched behind him. Her words dragged him to a pensive stop.

 “I’m sorry we’re both broken people.”

 ——————

 “This is a cruel world. You have to be crueler to survive.”

 “Spend the rest of the week sleeping outside. Maybe you’ll learn something.”

 “I’m the father! It’s my job to make sure things are in order, that my son becomes a man and my wife keeps in line. That’s the father’s job.”

 “If you don’t like me, get out. Life’s gonna fuck you in your little pussy and you’ll come running back anyway.”

 “If you don’t like fighting, you’re gonna get mauled. That’s the rule of thumb.”

 “If you don’t like me, do something about it.”

 …Do something about it? To his father? To the “head of the house?” It was a pipe dream at best, a dangerous fantasy at worst. But…but…

 “Mom!”

 Like a dream, like a fantasy, he made it reality.

 ——————

  Natsu had a headache when he woke up the next morning, and the sunlight streaming through only made it worse. He groaned and turned into his pillow.

 “Natsu…” He peeked one eye at Romeo as he struggled to climb on the bed. Natsu sat up and helped him the rest of the way. “Who’s the girl?” he asked with a little tilt to his head. Natsu rubbed his neck and yawned.

 “Lucy— Huh? Why are you asking now?”

 “Well, she’s here now.” Natsu stared dumbly for a few seconds until Romeo repeated himself.

 “She’s what?” He pushed Romeo aside and jumped to his feet. “D-Did she say why?” He was about to leave before remembering he was in his boxers. He ran to the dresser and rapidly sorted between their clothes (ugh, he had to organize that thing one day).

 “Nope.” Romeo was sitting cross-legged on Natsu’s bedspread rocking back and forth. “But she told me I’m perspicacious. I think it means cute.”

 Natsu was too engrossed in getting dressed to argue no, it did not mean cute, it meant he was probably being a know-it-all little shit to her. He picked a blue collared shirt and a pair of jeans. “Does this look fine?” he asked before remembering he was talking to a seven-year-old.

 “Why does it matter?”

 “N…No, well, I guess it doesn’t.” He smoothed his shirt automatically and Romeo inclined his head.

 “You’re acting weird, Big Brother.”

 “Me? Weird? No, nonono. I’m neurotic all the time. Typical Natsu, right? Aha!” He did an uncomfortable smile that made Romeo grimace.

 “Maybe you should lie down again.”

 “I’m fine.” Despite his words, Romeo followed at his ankles as he went to clean up in the restroom and then marched purposefully downstairs. It was still early on the weekend so many of the adults were asleep; only Mirajane, Gray, Cana, Wendy, and Juvia remained in the bar, lounging around or helping clean up from the busy night. Lucy was on a barstool turning side to side with her head lolling onto one shoulder. She wore a school sweatshirt cut to just below her breasts and high-waisted jeans. Her hair was loose and wet from a shower.

 “Natsu, your friend is back,” Mira said as way of greeting, giving him a not-so-subtle wink and grin. Natsu flushed and tried to hide in his shirt.

 “Yo.” Lucy sat up at the sight of him and smiled. It wasn’t huge and blinding by no means, but it was genuine, and it got Natsu smiling in return.

 “H…Hi.”

 “Slow burn-ass romance,” Juvia said quite loudly, deepening Natsu’s flush and getting a glare from Lucy. Then her face changed to a sinister smirk.

 “Yeah, you know what? I’m totally in love with Pinky. So, like, you should let me in on you guys’ secrets, considering I’m gonna be stickin’ around.”

 “Yeah? Kiss him.” Juvia again, and her smirk was ten times more sinister. Natsu felt Romeo tugging on the back of his shirt but ignored it in favor of some wild-eyed boggling. Seriously? She isn’t going for that. She’s not. She isn’t going for that for real is she? She wouldn’t just—oh—oh yeah nope she’s totally kissing me.

 Lucy had grabbed his face with both hands and pressed her body flush against his to snatch his lips. He could taste her green apple lip gloss and the mint toothpaste on her breath. And…and…shit. He thought only four wheels and an engine could do it, but the kiss, whatever the circumstances and reasoning behind it, stoked the fire in his belly to a roar. He grabbed her forearms, backed her against the bar until she was almost bowing into it, and deepened the kiss. In response to his heat, she melted in his grip, and Fireball relished the little mewls she made as he explored her mouth with his tongue. He wondered what sounds she would make when he explored her body, when he explored her—

 “Eww,” Romeo said before Wendy shushed him. Natsu pulled away in a rush, his face sporting a shade of red not even on the spectrum. Lucy was still leaning against the bar and supporting her body with her hands, staring off into space.

 “It’s not nice to interrupt people when they’re snogging,” Wendy told him. Romeo didn’t respond and directed his attention to Lucy.

 “Big Sister, wasn’t that gross?”

 Lucy snapped out of her fugue and turned to face him. “Uh, well— Big Sister?” She began weirdly fidgety, but suddenly looked at Romeo with wide eyes. Romeo nodded from where he sat on Wendy’s lap and Lucy broke into a wide grin. “Big Sister knows how to handle herself in the face of creeps,” she said, putting extra emphasis on her new title.

 “I…I’m a creep?”

 “Well, you’re trying to get with Big Sister,” Romeo said quite matter-of-factly. Wendy patted his head.

 “Lucy’s not our sister.”

 “Not yet,” he said, “but she likes Big Brother.”

 He was only a kid and his words left Natsu mortified all the same. He ducked his head and asked Mira for a couple glasses of fire whiskey. “You’ve a very adorable wingman.” Lucy grinned at Natsu and he slid a glass her way, sitting next to her.

 “I don’t mean it offensively, but why did you come?”

 “No offense taken. Well, I want to know more about you. And, well, you kinda fled the other day.”

 “Yeah. Um. Sorry that I…fled. It was…” scary, terrifying, horrifying, traumatizing, “…I’m sorry.”

 “It’s another thing we have in common: we’re excellent runners.” She took a sip of whiskey and set the glass down quietly. “Not really a good thing.”

 “No, it’s not.” He took a sip as well and sighed. Mira, who had disappeared for a moment, returned with a plate starring a mushroom omelet for Lucy.

 “I didn’t pay for this,” she said. Mira winked.

 “Breakfast is on the house today.” Natsu gave her a squinty look knowing it was bullshit and she giggled before going back to the kitchen. Lucy pushed it around a bit before cutting in and taking a bite.

 “Wow. This is, like, orgasmic.” She proceeded to stuff her face with it and make very unladylike noises at the flavor, making Natsu warm for an entirely different, not so unpleasant reason.

 “U-Um, Lucy, m-maybe you should…not…should not make those…s-sounds.”

 “Shove it.” And she was back to the Lucy he knew. Honestly, he was a little relieved for it.

 “A-Anyway…there’s not much more to learn about me. You can talk to my friends here?”

 “Seriously.”

 “Ooh, yes, I am very curious to meet the girl Natsu’s making out with.” Natsu started when he realized how close Wendy had gotten, leaning over the counter with her cleavage in his face. “Nice to meet you, Big Sister. My name’s Wendy.”

 “Hmm? Yeah, pleasure’s mine or something.” Lucy looked at Wendy’s tits, then her own, then noticed Wendy was holding Romeo’s hand. “Little brother,” she said, then smiled. Romeo turned his face into Wendy’s legs and she ruffled his hair.

 “He’s a little uncomfortable around people.” She jerked her chin at Gray and Cana’s table. “Gray is the human cocoon over there. Nice guy, but he wears too many layers. And Cana is—”

 “Oh, yes, I know Cana,” Lucy said with a not-so-pleasant tone of voice. “I’ve seen Gray around. Hard to miss.”

 “Well then, you’re already partway there.” She tugged a lock of Lucy’s hair and stopped to gawk. “Your hair is really soft. How do you get it like this?”

 “Don’t really know.” She let Wendy play with the strands and Natsu wished he could as well without it being too weird.

 “Wakaba and Macao are a couple of the oldest regulars. We don’t know what they do when they’re not here though. Mira’s the barmaid and chef; she and Levy room together. Jet and Droy, Juvia, Cana, Laki, Warren, Nab, and Max are the early-birds around here; they start early and you usually don’t see them until the evening.”

 “So who’s the owner?” It was an innocent question that instantly dimmed the bar’s mood. Wendy bit her lip, Natsu averted his eyes, Gray stared at his hands, Juvia clenched her fists, and Cana’s eyes turned glassy. Romeo was the one who answered.

 “He was um, he was extra-diction.”

 “Extradited to Russia some years ago. He’s been imprisoned ever since.” Lucy turned to where Mira was standing, her head lowered and eyes distant. “We never found out what he did.”

 “If he did anything,” Juvia said.

 “Gramps had the kindest heart of anyone around. We can’t imagine him committing a crime so serious they’d drag him transnationally,” Gray said softly.

 “Because he wouldn’t,” Wendy said with finality. “And we’ve never stopped fighting it.”

 Lucy looked between them all before her eyes landed on Natsu. He nodded. “And we won’t ever stop."

 “Family…” She shook her head and straightened, throwing her hands in the air. “So, what do you guys do for fun around here?”

 Wendy smirked. “Ever play King’s Cup?”

 Lucy did not in fact play King’s Cup, and Natsu, while not speaking up, loathed the aftermath. Since Romeo and Cana couldn’t participate, they sat on the side as Mira set one table with six glasses, filling five of them with Guinness, and set a deck of cards next to the empty one. They took their seats and Natsu was the first to pick up.

 “Queen,” he muttered, turning it towards everyone. Juvia, Lucy, and Wendy grabbed their glasses and drank.

 “Okay, okay.” Wendy set the emptied glass down and took a card, flipping it out. “Seven.” Gray was the last to put his arm up since he had so many layers to work with, so he drank.

 “My turn.” Juvia had a wicked smile as she took her card and flashed the 5. “When Lucy drinks, Natsu drinks twice as much.”

 “Seriously?” Natsu cried. It went unnoticed as Gray drew.

 “Nine.” He thought for a moment, shivered, then said, “Cold.”

 “Sold,” Lucy said.

 “Uh…gold,” Natsu said.

 “Mold.”

 “Told.”

 “Bold,” Gray said. Lucy hesitated for a second and Wendy grinned.

 “Let’s go, Big Sister.”

 “Hey, sometimes you hafta know when you take a loss gracefully, as women do.” Natsu gave her a look as she gulped her beer and slammed the glass down. Graceful, my a—

 “Natsu, aren’t you forgetting something?” Juvia said. Natsu drank down his glass and the following glass when Mira refilled it. On Wendy’s turn, she drew 3, so she drank three. Juvia drew a King and the guys drank. Gray drew an Ace and everyone raised their glasses. Lucy choked before Natsu was done, and she had to take another glass as punishment; duly, Natsu drank two glasses after. He was racking up five total, and on an empty stomach, he was past his limit.

 “Alright, Bimbo-gami, take this.” Lucy held up her card, a 2, and Juvia gulped her glass. “Geddit? Bimbo with those tits, and a binbōgami is bad luck.” For how drunk she sounded, her intelligence was still impeccable.

 “M’kay, my turn.” Natsu grabbed a bunch of cards by accident and let them flutter back to the table until he was left with one. “That’s a 4. Gray, yer gonna take two, an’ I take two.” They did their drinks and Gray, at the end of it, started peeling away some jackets.

 “It’s hot as hell in here,” he said with a grimace, tossing his topmost layers to the ground and leaving himself in a black turtleneck. The game continued until there were two dozen empty beer bottles clanging around, Gray was down to his skivvies, Wendy was passed out cold and the warmth was reaching new heights in the pit of Natsu’s gut.

 “Okay, okay, so’s I gotta 10,” Juvia slurred, holding up the card. “I say you guys gotta name your top pick fer hot an’ heavy sex. F’me, a kiddie pool.”

 “Chocolate parfait.” Lucy gave a crooked smile and swirled the last dregs of beer around in her glass. Her shirt had ridden up the last time they raised their hands and she wasn’t in a state to notice; the hem sat at the crest of her black lacy bra.

 “Natsu, ‘s on you.”

 “Sugar Tits,” he said without missing a beat. She looked at him with a confused murmur and he grabbed her wrist, getting to his feet and pulling her up as well. “Let’s go fer a ride.”

 “Too drunk,” she said, stumbling along behind him as he went to the backdoor. “Yer too drunk off yer ass, Dragion.”

 “I know.”

 “Then don’t drive, stoo-pid.”

 “Who said ‘nythin’ ‘bout driving?” He slammed the door open and burst into the sunlight where he pulled her along to his car. It took a moment of fumbling with the keys before he got the passenger door open, and he forced the seat forward and pushed her into the back. He shut the door and settled between her raised knees, kneeling between her legs.

 “Natsu—” she said, then was cut off when he devoured her lips in a searing kiss.

 “M’mouth tastes like ass,” he said once he pulled away, pinning her wrists against the seat. “Let me taste something better.” He kissed the junction of shoulder and neck before sucking the same spot, earning a long and delicious groan from her in response. Her body proved enjoyably receptive as he continued showering her neck and jaw with attention. She trembled like a purring engine, spurring to life when he handled her just so.

 “N-Naat…suuu…” Her breath hitched when he gave the back of her ear a long, slow lick, then she cried out as her body bowed outwards. He grinned at the sight and straightened, releasing her wrists to fumble drunkenly with the buttons of her jeans.

 “Mm. One part I haven’t tasted yet…”

 ——————

 Often times Fireball wondered Laki’s story. He only saw her in the dead of the night in a fishnet top and denim shorts, and she never spoke to him; her presence began with a swing of her arm and ended as he crossed the finish line. His eyes narrowed against the glare of the streetlamps to catch the swing now.

 Three…two…and go.

 He hit the gas and sped off in time with his two opponents. There was nothing else, nothing but the moonlight shining from the leaves surrounding the thin roads at the city limit, the sound of the engine, the night air crisp and clean in his throat—

 “Mm…smells like sex in here.”

 “Wonder why?”

 “You’re a coy asshole.”

 He gritted his teeth and clenched the steering wheel a bit tighter. He walked himself into deep shit with Lucy, he knew that well. The problem was finding his way out again while loathing every step he took away from her. He couldn’t…he could stand her knowing his petty problems, but the big secret… No, she couldn’t learn of that. forget the consequences involved, he didn’t want her to walk from his life as she surely would.

 His reverie made him fall behind a driver and he laid on the gas to regain his head start. Regardless of his activities with a certain blonde, he had to win. Not so much for the money, which he earned a fair bit of from Metallicana, but the peace of mind a simple victory brought. Without that, he’d probably be as self-destructive as his old man.

 They finished a lap as they circled past Laki and the cheers of the onlookers chased Natsu along the track. The adrenaline fueled the fire in his belly and he depressed the pedal as far as it could go, gaining a burst of speed on the straightaway. The next road led into a sharp curve and he caught it at a slow drift that carried him too close into the opponent’s BMW. The cars ground against each other as the road straightened and the BMW, with better positioning, shoved Natsu towards the grass on the side. He lost his traction and speed and lost a lot of ground in the race.

 Dammit, dammit! Get your head out of your ass!

 He got back on the road but finished the lap in last place. The third lap, too, he was a couple cars’ length from the others. His jaw was clenched so tightly it hurt. I have to get ahead. Push, push, nothing matters but the race, the wind, the sound of the engine, the taste of the night…Lucy’s lips taste sweeter than the night—

 Police sirens weren’t a foreign sound in the neighborhood, but they came so close Natsu immediately hit the brakes, skidding to a stop on the dirt alongside the other two. Cop cars materialized from the night and everyone in the vicinity disappeared save for the drivers. Natsu watched the closest car as the doors opened, revealing a striking figure with short hair the color of fresh blood. Nightwalker.

 “Make this easier on yourselves and exit the vehicles now,” she said, making no effort to hide the pistol strapped to her hips. The three of them stood up from their seats and put their hands in the air, none happily. Corporal Nightwalker’s eyes raked over them, sharp as blades. “Reitei Lyon, Sorano, and—” Her eyes narrowed on Natsu. “Natsu Dragion.”

 “A-Ah…” He flinched back at the fiery intensity of her gaze, falling back into the driver’s seat. Nightwalker’s officers advanced on the other two while her sights remained on him.

 “Don’t try to run. There’s no corner of Edolas you can run to now.” Her boots kicked up dust as she walked towards him, purposefully but at a moderate pace, knowing she had him on lock. He stared with wide eyes and his heart feeling like it would jump out any second. “Your street racing has reached its climax.”

 Street racing. Street racing. Despite himself, relief flooded his veins and he put up no fight as she cuffed him. She mentioned his car would be impounded and the cost of bail, but it was small change. His most serious offense had yet to come collect, and he was relieved. After all, what would Lucy think of him knowing he killed his own father?

[flipping-voltron-imagines]

November 9: “We have to do this. We don’t have a choice”

Hunk-Alternate ending 

A/N: after a lot of debating, I did it. It was fun seeing y’all complain about the angst in the original! I hope you like this!

Word Count: 2782

“I’ll see you tomorrow, sweetheart. Sleep well.” Mom smiled at me and cast a look around my now empty room. The walls that had once been covered in posters and quotes were now bare, my shelves empty of all books and trinkets, all having been put away in boxes. I couldn’t take any of that with me when I was married. “I can’t believe you’re getting married tomorrow.” More like she couldn’t believe that she would be relieved of debt tomorrow.

I couldn’t believe it either, nor did I want to even think about it. The thought of getting married at 17, to a man I didn’t want, made my heart hurt. At the moment though, marriage was the only answer to the problems of my family. My parents owed a lot of money, and if they didn’t pay it off soon, everything would be taken away from them. After expressing their problems to a family friend, hoping he would help, he came up with a solution: if I married his son, he would give my parents the money they needed. They wouldn’t lose their home, their car, or their lavish lifestyle, and all it cost was the life of their only child.

��Me too, mom.” I mustered a smile. We said goodnight and she closed the door, leaving me alone. My last night alone.

All my life my parents raised me to dream of adulthood; I would fall in love and marry that person, raise a few kids, and they would fall in love and the cycle would repeat. The only part of that dream that I would never get to accomplish was marrying the man of my choice. The man I wanted to marry was Hunk, and even though we were both 17, we’d been through a lot together. We could work as a team very well, we were able to work through arguments, and more importantly, we loved each other. A lot. It hurt me to know that I wouldn’t be able to marry him and make this decision for myself, that we couldn’t have the life we dreamed about in space.

Tears spilled from my burning eyes, running down my temples and dripping into my pillow. I turned onto my side, curled into a ball, and turned my face into my pillow to muffle my sobs. I wished we hadn’t found my parents, or, better yet, that Hunk and I had chosen to go back to space and live our lives out there. We could have opened a restaurant that sold food from Earth. We could have come back to Earth just to get married. We would be happy. Instead, a month after getting home, the solution to my family’s debt problem was brought to my attention.

My phone began to ring and Bruno Mars’ “Marry You” began to play softly. It was Hunk. I didn’t want to talk to him. My heart hurt too much already and I couldn’t bear to talk to him-in fact, I couldn’t talk to him for the rest of my life.

Hunk called three times that night and I didn’t sleep a wink. I cried until there were no more tears left, and then I cried more. I had a decision to make, and if I didn’t see him or hear his voice, that choice would be a lot easier. I knew that the second I heard his voice or saw his face, I would come running, and he knew it, too. It was easier to force myself to stay in bed than it would be to listen to Hunk plead with me to go with him.

After the third time, I got up to check my phone. I lingered at my desk, where my phone charged. There were two messages from Hunk. I didn’t allow myself to read either of them, and to prevent any further distraction from my thinking, I shut the phone off. I went back to sleep and after what seemed like an eternity, I closed my eyes and was finally able to drift off.

“I object!” Hunk’s voice was a blessing to my ears. I snapped my head in his direction and saw him dressed in his usual clothes, running towards me down the aisle.

My parents both stood and grabbed him by the arms. As big and strong as he was, he didn’t want to hurt them on accident by ripping his arms away from them and continuing towards me. His eyes never left mine though, and I had never been so comforted to see them.

“Y/N, if you don’t marry him, I’ll take you away from here. We can go wherever you want. And I’ll love you for the rest of my life.”

Suddenly I was aware of the man I was arranged to marry. He let go of my hands and shoved me towards Hunk, my beautiful, loving boyfriend. Hunk appeared next to me and threw his arms around me. “I knew you’d choose me,” he breathed, and we left. The next thing I knew we were in the Yellow Lion, and I realized this was just a dream. The Lions were all gone so I couldn’t possibly be in one.

In the morning, I got up before the sun and stood at my window with my arms crossed. I stayed there for an hour, watching the sun rise. The closer I got to my wedding, the more anxious I got and the more my dream of running away with Hunk became a possible reality. It no longer seemed like a fantasy. I began to hope that Hunk would show up at my wedding, declaring that he objected, march up the aisle, grab my hand, and take me away. Maybe we wouldn’t be in the Yellow Lion, but we would still be together.

“You’re awake.”

My mother’s sharp voice startled me from, awakening me from my fantasy-induced trance. I turned and nodded. Mother was ready for the wedding, wearing a dark green skirt and a pale pink shirt. I hated her outfit, but those were the colors she had chosen for the wedding.

“I woke up a while ago,” I responded softly. My throat hurt from crying all night so I was a little hoarse. I wondered if she’d heard me. If she did, she didn’t look like she it. She didn’t even look sorry or like she pitied me. “What time is it?”

“Time to shower. The wedding is in three hours. You need to finish in two, so hurry up.” Then she left. I wondered if my mom did feel bad about forcing me to marry this guy and that was why she was being so curt. If she really felt bad, she wouldn’t make me go through with it.

I took one last look outside before grabbing my phone and heading to the bathroom. I turned it on and while I waited for the shower to heat up, I chose a few songs to listen to. Then the messages started pouring in. I got seven texts last night and earlier this morning, and all were from Hunk.

Please answer your phone.

I need to talk to you.

I know you probably don’t want to hear from me, but I need to talk to you.

It’s late and you’re probably asleep. I know you’ve got a lot of anxiety about tomorrow

You don’t have to go through with this

I love you

I’ll see you later <3

I wondered what he meant by “I’ll see you later.” Did that mean he was coming to the wedding? While he hadn’t been formally invited, and he didn’t know where it was being held, I’d told him a few of the locations my mother was considering. Did he call each of the places to find out where and when the wedding was held? And when would I see him? How? Surely my mother wouldn’t leave me alone to make sure I wouldn’t run away.

It was dead silent as my mother worked on my hair and makeup. I ate a small breakfast of yogurt, not sure how much food I would be able to eat because of my anxiety. I didn’t even want to eat the yogurt, but I knew I needed to have something in my body to keep me going throughout the day. When I finished my food, we put my clothes-that I hated-and climbed into the car. We were running late, not that I really cared. I wanted to delay the inevitable.

My mother and I drove in silence to this little botanical garden. My mother picked it because it was closed on the day of her wedding, and she’d always wanted to get married there. I wanted to get married in the countryside at night, far enough away from the city that I could see the stars, but I didn’t have my special person, so I didn’t care where I got married. If I couldn’t have Hunk, I didn’t want my dream wedding.

I stepped out of the car, careful not to let the hem of my white clothes touch the ground. I didn’t need a lecture from my mom to kickstart the most miserable portion of my life. Hoping to see Hunk somewhere, I lifted my head to look around. My heart clenched and I wanted to cry more. He wasn’t there. My mother urged me inside. People were waiting for us.

“Y/N! Wait!”

A chill went through my body. I immediately turned around. Hunk ran towards me, and for a few seconds that was all that mattered. My mother’s sharp fingernails dug into my upper arm, and she yanked me towards her. “Let’s go,” she hissed. “You can’t talk to him.”

“Mom, please. You can stay right there,” I begged, “just please let me talk to him. You owe me that much.” She looked unconvinced. “Please. Let me say goodbye.” Without waiting for an answer, I ripped my arm out of her hand and, ignoring the pain in my arm, approached Hunk.

He looked really good. He wore a white button up shirt and a suit jacket with dress pants. I had never seen him wear something like that, and I was sad that my first time seeing him like this was for my wedding. His brown eyes were just as warm as they’d always been, and when I smiled at him, he smiled brightly right back.

Hunk immediately wrapped his arms around me and held me rightly. I threw my arms around his neck. “Please don’t do this,” he murmured. “You don’t have to. We don’t have to.”

I pulled away and put my hand on his cheek, using my thumb to rub his cheekbone. “We have to do this. We don’t have a choice.”

“But we do,” Hunk insisted. He kissed me and when he pulled away he pressed his forehead to mine. He looked intently into my eyes with a determined gleam that I had only seen a handful of times. That look made my insides liquify and knees turn to jello. “We can still run away. Lance has the car running, we can run away.”

I closed my eyes and kissed him. It was a long, soft kiss. I tried to say goodbye without actually saying it. If I had to say it out loud, I would break down. “Hunk… I have to help my parents.”

“Their debt isn’t your fault. You shouldn’t have to pay the price for their mistakes.”

That was something I knew, deep down. During my absence, my parents had wracked up their debt very quickly. I’d never heard anyone tell me that, though. To hear that out loud… it made me want to run away with him even more. Why should I have to pay for their years of excessive spending? Their debt was wracked up while I was in space with the paladins. I shouldn’t have had to pay for something I had no part ot.

“Where are you parked?” I asked, looking around for his car. There were so many cars in the parking lot, though, so it was difficult to find even though it was at least 10 years younger than everyone else’s.

Hunk grinned and pressed his nose into my cheek. “I knew you wouldn’t go through with this.” He pointed to the road, where is rusty brown car sat, still running. “Brought Lance with me to be my getaway driver.”

“Awe, what a good friend.”

“So what are we going to do?”

My resolve disappeared just like I knew it would. “We are… going to get revenge really quickly, and then we are going to go open up the restaurant in space.” I smiled and kissed his cheek. “But first you have to look upset, like I said I wouldn’t marry you.” At the sight of his wider smile, I realized what I said. “I-I mean, like I said I wouldn’t go with you.” He was still smiling. “I’m not going with you, Hunk. I have to take care of my family,” I announced loudly, taking a few steps back, and turned around to walk to my mother. I pretended to wipe tears from my eyes, careful of my makeup.

“I thought we were family!” Hunk shouted. “That’s what we always said on the castle!” He was trying to sound desperate and on the verge of tears. It was so fake I wanted to laugh, but I had to remain serious. Knowing that if I said anything back I would laugh, I stayed quiet.

When I reached my mother, she allowed me to walk in front of her. I almost couldn’t stand how close I was to freedom, how close I was to exposing my parents in front of the entirety of my family. The excitement made me feel light hearted and giddy. I wanted to jump around and celebrate, but that would have to wait.

As my father walked me down the aisle, I planned what I would say and when I would say it. I couldn’t jump the gun, and I had to maximize the drama. Before I knew it, the officiator asked if anyone had any objections. I looked at the door, half expecting Hunk to burst in, announcing that he objected, like in my dream.

But dreams don’t always come true. Sometimes you’ve gotta do things on your own. I raised my hand. “Yeah, I object.” Shocked whispers filled the quiet room. The guy I was supposed to marry looked relieved. “I’m supposed to marry this dude so that his dad will take care of my parents’ debt that was built up while I was gone. I shouldn’t have to do this. It might be selfish of me, but… I’m going to go marry someone else, someone I love more than anything else in this entire universe, and you all know I’ve seen a lot out there. So if you’ll excuse me, I’m running away. Goodbye mom,dad.” Then, to my fiance, “Have a great life, and good luck.”

My parents were furious, that much was clear. I dodged their hands as I kicked off my shoes and took off running back down the aisle barefoot. I burst outside and looked to where Hunk’s car was, and ran in that direction. The grass underfoot was wet and slippery, and I nearly tripped a few times. Hunk scrambled out of the car and opened the backseat door for me. I practically jumped into the car, and as I situated myself Hunk yelled for Lance to leave. Hunk got in next to me and closed the door as Lance began to drive away.

My heart was beating faster than I’d ever felt before, thanks to the adrenaline pumping through my veins and the running I did. I was so excited. I turned my head to smile at Hunk but found him already looking at me with an adoring look on his face.

“What?” I asked, laughing.

“Nothing, just-you look amazing.”

“Am I how you imagined?” I teased. His cheeks darkened and he shook his head. “This isn’t how I imagined myself on my wedding day, either. I’m glad I get another chance.”

“When we’re 18, right?”

“When we’re 18.” When we’re adults and we don’t need permission from our parents. I couldn’t wait.

Hunk smiled and kissed me. When we pulled away I shuffled closer and nestled myself into his side. His steady breathing and warmth made me realize just how exhausted I was. As he and Lance talked to each other, I drifted off to sleep, grateful that I could continue on my adventure of life with my best friend.

[almaasi]

reaction post typed while watching SPN 13x23 “Let The Good Times Roll”

idk what you guys thought but I LIKED IT and here’s why!!!! (EXCEPT THAT THING WITH THE KNIFE??? WHAT THE HELL???)

04:02pm

so it only took 45 minutes to an hour to find somewhere to watch this, my thanks to @trisscar368 for helping me out!!!

eventually found it streaming rather than downloading, would not recommend but HEY IT WORKS (for now) [http://gorillavid.in/zbtu97hfei65]

this feels like it’s 2008 all over again, trying to watch doctor who after school

OKAY LET’S GO

i’ve seen a bunch of major spoilers but i know cas doesn’t die so i’m good. apparently it’s A Boring Episode but also MICHEAL and LUCIFER so

idk idk let’s just watch the thing and find out what happens

-

04:04

rowena: is there, i dunno, music? CARRY ON MYY WAYWAR---

fuck

-

04:09pm

feels good having bobby there

-

BOBBY’S REACTION TO TRUMP IS THE BEST EVER

“and you call where WE come from ‘apocalypse world’?”

-

04:11

cas: “they’re talking about whether kylie jenner would make a good mother. consensus is no”

hey give her a chance

i mean i know nothing about her but she seems... teachable?

-

dean: “yeah well, that’s why i’m a chloe man”

WHOOOOOP dean loves his girly trash tv i see

-

brown werewolf: “now that is why i’m a chloe man”

dead brown person alert :|

how naive i was to think he might be left alive because he got a speaking line and made himself a dean parallel with that single line

-

04:16

mary: “do you really like the rain?”

bobby: “when it’s this beautiful, i do”

lest anyone forget bobby is a gentle down to earth sweetheart

soft papa bear

-

“rowena and charlie are road-tripping it through the south-west”

WOULD WATCH THAT SPINOFF

but #savewaywardsisters first

-

04:19

dean: “can you imagine? you, me, cas, toes in the sand, couple of those little umbrella drinks, matching hawaiian shirts, obviously”

PLEASE

“....some hula girls“

mmmm *squints at how that part was said after a....... pause, off-screen with the camera on sam*

-

04:24

dean to jack: “it’s not about being strong....... i don’t know what you went through over there... but i know you came out the other side. because you ARE strong”

good papa dean words

much love for him and his emotional avaliability

-

04:26

dean: “whatever you’re dealing with, whatever comes at us, we’ll figure out a way to deal with it. together. we’re family, kid”

sam said it to dean, dean said it to jack

i guess the next step is ...jack saying it to cas?? SOMEONE’s gotta say it to cas

but also WOOOO DEAN’S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT REGARDING JACK SINCE THE START OF THE SEASON

-

04:32

um

is it just me or is this a seriously unfortunate racist-looking coincidence

desperately hoping this wasn’t the guy who killed maggie

(i don’t think it is, which means maybe this is a “don’t jump to conclusions” kind of storyline which has a race-relations subtext??? i wish it meant nothing besides jack’s need to protect others, but given the lack of living characters of colour on this show, the minute a person of colour shows up, it BECOMES about the fact they’re not white, bECAUSE they always die, invariably)

anyway, my point is: this is problematic

also the red shirt. as in “red shirts always die” ??

edit: thank goodness....... RED HERRING

-

“3 sheeps” poster in the background

i remember this symbolism from something earlier but can’t remember exactly what

i’m thinking lambs to the slaughter, or being part of a flock, or being herded into something they’re wrong about, being naive, following each other one by one into the unknown

wow reading tarot has improved my “make a list of all the obvious symbolism” skills

-

04:39

the fact cas is suffering with the angel language whistle is interesting?? i thought it hurts dean because he can’t understand it

which means.......cas isn’t understanding this noise?

or maybe he is understanding, it’s just real loud

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04:42

enjoying sam being protective of cas

-

lucifer: ........”the three amigos.... sam, dean, and the other one”

that’s probably how a lot of people see team free will tbh

how sad

-

lucifer: “you want a lightsaber?”

jack:

vroom

we mAY HAVE LONG SAID HE’S TOO PRECIOUS FOR THIS WORLD BUT WE NEVER MEANT FOR HIM TO LEAVE

-

04:50

that awkward moment when you’re trying to solve a murder and your adorable magic grandson comes home with the devil

:o

-

the face you make when the devil makes an ableist joke about your son and then says “no offence”

(the ”i would murder you but there’s enough dead bodies in here right now” face)

-

04:56

maggie: “kinda seems like you have... you know, bigger.... satan-y... problems”

bless this girl

-

05:00

dean: “as shakespeare once said: eat me, dick-bag”

tbh shakespeare probably did say that at one point or another

add shakespeare to the list of dean’s bisexual heroes

(follow up thought: what if when cas could time-travel, he and dean and sam went to go explore shakespeare’s town and dean made.... Friends)

-

05:04

lucifer’s talking to jack about their future space travels

i mean i think it’s fairly obvious, lucifer was the one who killed maggie, so he could bring her back and impress jack

maggie said “i didn’t see their face but i saw their eyes” and that means it was either lucifer or michael with the glowing eyes, and micheal said to dean “you’ll be the first life i take in this world” which leaves lucifer

stinking nasty manipulative trash angel

-

05;07

micheal, while strangling dean: “could’ve done this quick, but i wanted to enjoy it, that moment when the soul leaves the body”

yeeeah okay sure, speak aloud your reasons you’re stalling for time while jack figures out how to get back

-

05:10

jack to lucifer: “you’re not my father. you monster”

HUZZAH

-

for the record i’m... reaLLY ENJOYING THIS episode so far

it’s all big and mighty and magical but the core of the story is a boy trying to find his family and figure out the truth behind his manipulative father

i’m so glad it led to this because i am HERE for this kind of story

the world hangs in the balance, but it’s not dean, cas and sam trying to save everyone, it’s jack trying to find his place among loved ones, and by following his desire to help people he’s learning what he needs to know

i fucking love this okay

-

05:14

lucifer: i just need your power--

OH NO I SPOKE TOO SOON

OH NO

-

05:17

michael: “this is the end. of everything”

I SEE DEAN’S COGS WHIRRING AND I WORRY

nine years of not saying yes to micheal and now it’s happening isn’t it

-

05:20

jack’s pained little whimper :c :c :c

-

05:21

dean: “i am your sword”

CHILLS

-

05:22

dean: “CAS I DON’T HAVE A CHOICE”

cas: D:

PERFECT MOMENT FOR AN AGGRESSIVE KISS but nope that would be too much like goodbye

-

05:24

third option rather than sam or jack trying to kill each other: they pick up lucifer’s blade and kill lucifer with it

-

05:26

WHAT 

NO

??????

BAD IDEA????

JUST STAB LUCIFER????

-

jack:  i love you

NOO ;;A;A;A;A;A;A;A;;A;A

DJSGJD

I’M NOT ENJOYING THIS 0/10 WOULD NOT RECOMMEND 

PLEASE STOP

-

05:27

WELL FUCK

hi there

WHHHOOOOOOO

meanwhile back at the bunker: cas has the weirdest traumatic boner

-

05:29

THE WINGS KEEP GETTING BIGGER

-

05:31

interesting angel flying physics here

dean flails while sailing slowly backwards

i mean i know he’s on a suspension wire but technically waving his arms about ought to affect his position

-

05:33

LITERALLY SAM COULD’VE DONE THAT TO BEGIN WITH

WHAT EVEN WAS THE POINT OF THIS

HE COULD’VE ACTED LIKE HE WAS ABOUT TO STAB JACK AND THEN GO WHOOSH AND STAB LUCIFER

SAM HAS FUCKING NOODLE ARMS HE COULD’VE DONE IT WITH HIS EYES CLOSED

JEEZ

-

05:35

okay but i’m laughing right now

are you telling me this is what happens if lucifer accidentally trips and falls on his knife

where did that golden blade come from anyway

has lucifer just been carrying it around this whole time?

COULD ANYONE HAVE PICKPOCKETED THAT KNIFE AND STABBY STABBY >>> EXPLODING FLYING FLAME DEVIL ??

WHAT BRAIN CELLS WAS LUCIFER MISSING TO HAND THAT BLADE TO SAM WINCHESTER IN THE FIRST PLACE

OR GO INTO BATTLE WITH MICHAEL WITHOUT THE KNIFE

OR TO HAVE THAT BLADE ON HAND IN THE FIRST PLACE ??????????

I’m sorry i just find this hilarious

i mean good fucking riddance to this trash angel but wow what a way to get there

all of this was so easily avoidable ?? i seriously don’t understand what possessed sam to think “aw yeah let’s pick up this magic devil blade to KILL MY OWN SON and/or HAND IT TO HIM SO HE CAN KILL ME” instead of “umMMM the devil just gave me a magic knife and is trying to tell us to kill each other maybe we should kill him with it”

I HOPE SOMEONE IN THE WRITER’S ROOM HAS A REALLY GOOD EXPLANATION FOR THIS

-

05:45

HAPPY RELIEVED SAMMY

why do i feel like everything’s about to go terribly terribly wrong, worse than before

-

05:48

i mean micheal!dean looks good though

despite everything i think dean would approve of the outfit

-

like he actually looks a little bit TOO attractive

definitely not to be trusted

you know when people just look TOO handsome and shiny and perfect and they’re TOO charming and you know something’s up

this guy’s got danger written all over him in sleek & elegant calligraphy

-

05:50pm

mmmmmmmmm okay, it’s over

i liked it ?

felt old-school, kinda like a buffy episode or an x-files episode

things i’m happy about: everyone lived and lucifer died!! this is a pretty cool progression of events and i’m interested to see where it goes (not EXCITED, i’m not EAGER, but i am interested). that black dude was not the one who killed maggie. maggie survived!!!

things i’m not thrilled about: the fact sam didn’t just stab lucifer in the face when he was right next to him holding the magic knife?????? i don’t get it and i don’t think any kind of meta is actually gonna be able to explain how ~UM EXCUSE ME JUST ONE SECOND~esque that moment was

no bechdel test pass

jack’s personal arc this season was great and i love him

as always, this show is riveting to me only because i care so much about the characters, and i cannot tELL YOu how fucking pleased i am that this show’s universe is now a universe where bobby, charlie, mary, rowena, dean, cas, sam, jack, jody, donna, claire, the other wayward girls, and billie ALL EXIST AND ARE ALIVE

seriously could’ve done with some kevin too, i’m still bummed that he’s died TWICE now and isn’t back permanently yet

but HOLY SHIT THE REST OF THEM ARE ALL ALIVE 

GIVE ME A TEAM-FREE-WILL-MAJOR SEASON WITH ALL THE SQUAD ALIVE AND KICKING ASS AS A GROUP

like... save dean as a group, then one by one discover that dean and cas have been locked in a room without clothes for three days, then save the world and retire forever as a happy, healthy hunter squad with their gay dads

FUCK YEAH

overall, this episode is maybe a 9/10 just because that FUCKING KNIFE man. i dunno what to think about that.

like .........why

i also want cas to have a season arc!!! a positive one!!! where he actually accepts love and expresses affection and receives AUDIBLE AND VISIBLE AND TANGIBLE affection from others!!!

and for fuck’s sakes stop killing people of colour, give us more women of colour who are good and don’t die, pass the bechdel test more often

AND ABOVE ALL GIVE US WAYWARD SISTERS I WANT THAT SHOW SO BADLY AND EVERYTHING IT REPRESENTS

IT WOULD FILL IN ALL THE GAPS THAT ARE MISSING FROM THIS SHOW

PLEASE

[ernmark]

Any chance we could see Juno and Peter pulling that heist together in the new au? (It's quickly become one of my favorites.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

You know, for someone that watched as much Burn Notice and White Collar as I did, I’m not good at the super flashy heist stuff– especially since it seems to me that the most effective heists are the ones where the mark doesn’t even know they’ve been robbed.

For the record, the concept of every town having a foundation festival comes from Germany.

I can’t help a sense of unease as we approach the DiMaggio mansion, but I swallow it down. A bit of discomfort isn’t worth calling off a job, after all, and this is hardly the first floating mansion I’ve broken into since New Kinshasa. Besides, it seems we’ll be out of here in short order.

Juno knocks at the door with an expression of intense focus. It’s a good look on him, all professional and intent.

When the valet opens the door, he’s already got his badge out. “Detective Steel,” he says, and jerks his head at me. “My partner, Detective Markovik.”

I flash my own badge, stolen from the apartment of the real Detective Lazar Markovik less than an hour ago. According to Juno, Tuesday afternoons are when he’s busy at the Triad card tables; it should be a few hours before he realizes his badge is gone, which means that it won’t register as missing when the valet runs my credentials. Juno’s credentials aren’t quite so clean, but before he can hand over his badge, a voice echoes through the voluminous front hall.

“That won’t be necessary, Jeremy.” A remarkably beautiful man stands at the top of a flight of stairs, draped over the banister like a renaissance painting. He’s almost waifish in his build, but soft-skinned and bright-eyed, and he carries himself with an ostentatious glamour that very few can pull off. I respect that. “Or did you think I wouldn’t remember you, Detective Steel?” 

As a matter of fact, we’re counting on it. 

‘Good cop/bad cop’ is a law enforcement tradition that spans the galaxy, but in Hyperion City, it’s no game. When Julian DiMaggio was suspected of murder, Juno was one of the few good cops left in his precinct. 

“Julian,” Juno said, nodding at him. “Or I guess it’s Mr. DiMaggio now?”

“Oh, please, call me Julian. Really, it’s the least I could do after you saved me. And now you’re back to do it again. We really must stop meeting like this.”

Juno clears his throat. “Julian, maybe we could have this conversation somewhere more private.”

“Oh, of course, of course.” He sweeps down the steps like it’s his own personal gala instead of a faux police investigation. “This way, detectives. Jeremy, if you’d be a dear?”

He leads us into a study large enough to be a ballroom, and the valet shuts the door behind us. 

“Please, sit,” he says. I’ve seen the posters and commercials; I assumed that the drama behind the Prince of Mars was an elaborate bit of showmanship, but it seems there aren’t many hidden layers. He really is that loud. “Can I get you two a drink? Coffee? Tea? Something stronger?”

“Sorry, Julian, but we’re on duty.” 

“Of course, of course.” He leans forward. “Oh, I must know. What is this really about, Detective?” 

Maybe it has something to do with the lingering discomfort from being this high in the air, but I’m irritated by the look he gives Juno. My partner in crime, for his part, makes no sign that he notices the attention.

“This morning we got some leads about a planned robbery of one of Saffron’s facilities. Something in the R&D department.” 

“Really?” he giggles. “Oh, but that’s adorable. I can assure you, our security is state of the art.” 

“Are you certain?” I ask.

“Utterly. I hope you understand, Detective. It isn’t that I don’t trust you, but the rest of the department has a rather… unsavory reputation.”

“I know,” Juno says. “That’s why we’re working off the books. We already ran into some trouble when we started this investigation. Looks like this is part of a bigger picture, Julian, and there are a few uniforms who don’t want it solved.” He lowers his voice. “That’s why we need you.”

“Me?” DiMaggio gasps. 

“If we find out what they’re after, it may help us uncover their greater plan,” I say, my voice hushed nearly to a whisper. 

DiMaggio is an excitable man, and it isn’t difficult for him to get swept up in the drama of it all. We tell him what little information Miasma gave me about the Pill I’m meant to steal, add it to stories of the Mask, the Key she procured before she hired me, and a few other odds and ends that Miasma’s been collecting. Before long, DiMaggio is chiming in with guesses and suggestions of his own, and Juno and I lead him into planning an ambush against the thieves. By the time we return to our car, we have all the information we need, in addition to recordings of our little meeting for the voice authentication in the building.

“He seems quite taken with you,” I muse as I begin the drive back to our apartment.

“Nah, he’s just loud like that.”

“Oh? He barely said a word when I was speaking to him.” I adjust the altitude controls to take us back to ground level. It seems you’re the one he wanted to impress. You did save him, after all.”

I flit a glance in Juno’s direction long enough to catch his raised eyebrow. “He’s a married man.”

“That fact stops fewer people than you would think.”

“Then maybe it helps that I’m not interested.”

“No?”

“He’s not exactly my type.”

We’re in a stretch of clear air, so I take the chance to lean closer to him. “And what type would that be?”

He swallows and his mouth opens involuntarily. I could put this car on autopilot for a few moments…

“What’s it to you?” Juno asks.

I flash a smile. “Nothing at all, Detective. Simply curious.”

I leave Juno at the hotel while I slip into the basement of Saffron’s headquarters. Not for secrecy’s sake– at this point, I’ve broken into the building so many times that I know where all the cameras are by heart– but because I don’t want to explain to Juno why I know it so well. I take pride in my competence; I don’t want him to know that I’d done this so very often and never bothered to check the basement.

It isn’t my fault, after all– how was I to know that an entire department had been left off the building’s blueprints?

With DiMaggio’s instructions, reaching the proper room is simple enough. Finding the Pill itself, though, is slightly more difficult. The entire wall is covered in lockboxes, and I have to pick almost half of them before I find what I’m looking for. It takes hours, and an aggravating amount of that time is spent hiding when the guards make their rounds.

By the time I find the Pill and its associated documentation, the sky is gray-pink with the first light of dawn.

I send a message to Miasma and make my way back to the hotel.

Fortunately, Juno is a late sleeper; with any luck, I’ll be able to slip into the room without waking him.

That plan dies, though, when I open the door.

Juno’s sitting on his bed, still in yesterday’s clothes. When he turns to look at me, his eyes are bloodshot and lined with dark bags.

I close the door quietly behind me. “I hope you weren’t waiting up for me.”

He shrugs. “Just a bit of insomnia.”

I might be more inclined to believe that if he’d gotten under the covers. Or bothered taking his shoes off.

He notices the glance, and slides them off, dropping them unceremoniously at the foot of his bed. “If you ran into trouble, you should have called me.”

“Don’t tell me I had you worried over me.” I won’t pretend I’m not charmed by the notion.

“Of course not,” he grumbles. “You’re my ticket out of here, remember?”

“How could I forget?” I slip off my coat and hang it up on one of the thick metal hangers that can handle its weight.  “Have you done much thinking about where you’ll go after we leave Mars?”

“There are a few planets I’ve got my eye on.”

“Any place I’ve been?” I sit on the edge of his bed. “I might be able to show you around. Perhaps get you started on... whatever it is you’re planning to do there.”

“Something in the Tau Ceti system, maybe,” Juno says.

“Orcinus is lovely,” I yawn. It seems the night took more out of me than I thought. “Every city has a holiday commemorating its foundation. There are people who spend their whole lives traveling from fair to fair.”

“Sounds like a lot of opportunities for crime,” Juno says.

“What do you think attracted me to it in the first place?” I grin. “But I imagine it would have plenty of room for a seasoned detective. Unless you’re planning to change careers?” The last word is half-swallowed in another yawn.

Juno rolls his eyes at me. “Oh, for the love of-- lay down if you’re tired.”

“If you insist.” I know he means on the other bed, I sink into the mattress, just to annoy him. That might have been a mistake, though. I really am exhausted, and the bed is so very soft.

“You asshole,” he mutters, but he pulls back the covers. “At least take off your shoes first.”

“Anything for the lady.” I sit up to untie the laces-- these shoes are far too nice to scuff up so casually-- and stretch out on the proffered side of the bed.

Juno throws the blanket over me, then crawls under the covers beside me. “And no biting this time,” he mutters.

I hum. “Not unless you ask nicely.”