#still though we gotta build up these numbers i don't want it to end at five episodes

[deconstructthesoup]

Deep Space Discounts theory: Immy accidentally killed the DSD CEO

[twstfanblog]

This is more of a worldbuidling question but what do the commoners live like in each district??? I'd there more of an emphasis on art in the west and everyone has like. Crazily painted houses or elaborate gardens, and do southern commoners have a higher cost of living because it's so expensive to shop there? In southern schools, is there a surplus of those kids that bring snacks to school and sell them because if how ingrained business practices are? Or is it just normal? I want to know more about the more middle class characters like Jack and Trey T_T. Speaking of which how did Ace and Deuce become Riddles servants 🤔?

Also what about the slums and Ruggie? Are there more slums in a certain district, I'd assume he'd be placed in the east... maybe the kingscholars like to cut costs and corners to make more profits, even though it leaves the general population poorer? Also do leona and ruggie ever meet in this au???

That's all my questions for now! I'm probably gonna have more but if you don't want to answer them that's totally fine! Hope you have a good day ^^!

*Cracks knuckles*

Ok, here we go. Long Answer coming!

The price of living increases the closer you get to the capital. So the slums of each area are around the edges of the district on the opposite side of where the palace sits.

Class-wise, the southern district is mostly populated by nobles since no matter where you go, it's considered prime real estate. So the South doesn't really have a slums, since its main population are rich commoners and business-owning nobles.

Oh the kids try...but the schools are already running school stores where you can purchase lunches, snacks, school supplies, small plots of land. You gotta be a very crafty school child to get your foot in the door starting a business while still in school.

Schooling is pretty standard across the empire, the southern district puts a heavier focus on math and reading though, just because most of the kids who do attend school normally end up working for their family business. East has a number of culture studies, the west has so many electives to pick from it's almost scary. Northern children basically get funneled into the military (The fuck are you feeding these kids? Why do they all grow up to be TANKS????)

Lord the West district is a nightmare to HOAs. So many houses all with different vibes and color palettes. The scholars who picked the middle ground and became architects building the most insane 'shouldn't be standing against a strong wind' kind of houses. The theming gets more uniform the closer to the capital, but that's just because that's the more tourist area, where all the big theaters and conference halls are.

Speaking in terms of just size, the East has the biggest slums of the empire. Since they are the main resting point for visiting diplomats, it became a culture hub and most of the immigrants moved their because it was more familiar to their homelands. in turn there's just A LOT of people there and sadly not enough work for everyone. at this point it's just cheaper to live on the edge of the empire than moving to the second cheapest housing; the West slums. The Northern slums are basically just living on a mountain and surviving off the land.

Ruggie and Leona do meet! As he gets older, Leona's fights with his dad get worse. One night it was bad enough that Leona just ran away and was missing for nearly a week. Ruggie finds who he assumed was a homeless man and helped him out a bit 'We've all been there man'. In his time in the slums, Leona finds a bit of purpose and wants to help the people he technically rules over.

Leona is found and leaves without saying goodbye to Ruggie. YEARS LATER, a servant of the Duke Kingscholar comes to the slums asking for Ruggie to come with him. Farena is slowly taking over the Duchy from their aging father and Leona listed Ruggie as a good choice for a consultant. Ruggie actually does pretty well in the role, just gotta give him a crash course in etiquette before every formal dinner he has to attend now.

Let me list where everyone is!

North

Jack lives with his family after his mother secured a tutor job for a noble child when they first came to the empire. Once in the north, his family of wolf beastmen flourished and lowkey are treated as untitled nobles.

Sebek's family has strong ties to the royal army since his grandfather served and is friends with THE LILIA VANROUGE. Sebek's dream is to join the army to continue his family's legacy (And maybe see the prince. HE RESPECTS HIM OKAY!? DON'T TEASE HIM ABOUT THE POEMS HE WRITES!)

Epel lives with his family on one of the many farms contracted to supply produce to the palace. As such they have very high standards of their produce and won't let you talk down to them even if they aren't nobles.

East

Ruggie moved to the empire with his 'grandma' in a big group of refugees when he was very young. He does odd jobs around the district to help support his community.

Rook was born and raised in the upper-middle-class East District. He only moves to the West District to further his art career once he comes of age. From there he meets Vil and they fall in artist love.

South

Azul's mother owns a very popular seafood restaurant. It's half in the water and displays the first shell coin her great-great-great grandmother made in the sea (For luck!). She married into nobility with Azul's stepfather who accepted Azul as his own.

The Tweels family aren't titled but with how many dirty dealings they've done with the various shady business owners, they might as well just buy a title. A very wealthy and dangerous commoner family

Trey's family owns a very nice bakery! With the high-quality baked goods and fair pricing, they're normally packed by commoners and noblemen alike.

West

Vil and his father live and breathe the theater. They've been living in the West since Vil's dad moved from the capital to help an old friend establish his theater.

Riddle lives with his mother and live-in attendants and is lowkey miserable but working hard to achieve in his studies. They use to live in the South, but his mother said he was distracted too easily there.

Deuce lives in fairly cheap housing with his mom and grandma. Deuce's mom travels from the West to the capital to work for a week then to come back for a week off.

Ace has a similar situation to Deuce with his mom AND older brother going off for work. It's why they take the jobs to be aids for Riddle. Also known as 'Riddle's mom had to buy him friends'.

The Capital

Cater's dad is a senior member of the imperial bank! He and his family live pretty cushy lives even though they don't have a title. Cater's looking to change that and has been studying how to bag a noble beau every social season since he was seven.

Silver lives in the palace with his father and Malleus since Lilia brought him home. His curse is slowly getting worse with age but he's still working hard so that he can try to pass the army entry exams.

I hope this answers everything! Let me tell you guys, world-building is much FUN!!!!

[pyjamaart]

Breaking Bot (read more for some rambling about mega man fully charged)

Mega Man Fully Charged has been on my mind again lately, which made me realize that there's literally a robot named Chemistryman who worked as a chemistry teacher. Not using him as a Walter White stand-in would be a criminal offense.

I'll have to admit I started getting back into Fully Charged again after seeing some asshole on twitter complain about the character design for the hundredth time. I just can't stand that kind of negativity. I swear to god, Fully Charged is like the Sonic Boom of the Mega Man franchise. Personally, I really enjoy the FC designs. I've probably said this before, but I feel like the redesigns give some of the more forgettable robot masters way more character. Like, do I care for Classic Drillman from Mega Man 4? I mean, yeah, I do, but I wouldn't care as much if it wasn't for his Fully Charged incarnation.

I also really enjoy most of the original robot masters. I already talked plenty about Blastowoman and why I love her so much, but I want to talk about the others this time.

Take for example Chemistryman. Comparisons to Walter White out of the way, I feel like his character was a really fun idea. God knows I had teachers who put me to sleep back in the day. For me, it wasn't chemistry though, it was my economics teacher. I always compared her to a story teller at a Christmas market who would read children stories out of her big fairy tale book. Only that in reality, it was stuff like the minimization/maximization principle. Most of my notes for that class were incomprehensible chicken scratch, because I just couldn't keep my eyes open. In the end, I slept through like half her classes, lol. But I gotta say that I still always got a B or higher in the end. Somehow. I thank god every day that I never have to step foot in a school again.

I really wish Chemistryman got a little more time to shine though. Two episodes is just way too little. I would gladly take three more episodes with him over those gross Gutsman episodes. I know I love talking about wasted potential with this show, but I wish there was an episode that focused on Chemistryman outside of the school setting. I get that his whole character is "boring, bitter teacher", but I'd really like to see what he gets up to when he's not trying to force children to listen to his chemistry lectures. Like having Aki try to talk him into going into retirement for good. And then he tries to find hobbies for him so that he doesn't bore himself to death. I can see him getting into building model ships or something like that, lol.

Now that I'm already writing up a storm again, I might as well talk about some other headcanons I have about the FC bots. Since Woodman was in sleep mode for 30 years after the war ended (I don't know where I got that number from. I rewatched his debut episode, but the exact number doesn't appear anywhere. Oh well, let's just pretend this is canon, even if it isn't.) we got kind of a Shadow the Hedgehog type situation on our hands. All of his friends and family got to live their lives in this new, peaceful world of harmony between robots and humans, while Woodman spent 30 years powered down in a bush or something. Completely forgotten about. Like, why didn't they go look for him after the war ended? I don't think Aki and Suna wandered that far into the forest for their school assignment. If you really think about Woodmans back story for a moment, you realize how fucked up it actually is. 

Now my explanation for this goes into heavy heavy headcanon territory. When Suna calls the principal about Woodman, he warns her that Woodman is dangerous and to get away from him immediately. Now why would he say that? The principal also calls him "ruthless" in that same explanation. What I think happened back then was that Woodman actually planned to assassinate the human armies leader. (Possibly Sgt. Night?) The leader of the robots caught wind of his plan and put him into sleep mode himself, since he and Dr. Light were on the brink of finding a way to end the war peacefully. In my mind, this leader is the FC version of Swordman. Don't ask me why, he was just the first guy I thought of. And then it just stuck.

I know this makes Woodmans back story even more fucked up, but I just love putting my favorite blorbos through hardship. Don't even ask me about my headcanons for Drillman. They'd actually put me in prison.

Now all this culminates after Woodman is reactivated by Suna and Aki. Finding himself alienated from all his former friends and comrades (Maybe the other Mega Man 2 robot masters?), what was he supposed to do? He couldn't spend the rest of his life isolated (and homeless) in the forest, could he? And this is where season 2 could have delivered. But I'm done whining about that. If Capcom doesn't deliver, I gotta write my own season 2. Simple as that.

Anyway, getting back to Chemistryman, since he's pretty old, I imagine that he was already working as a teacher when Woodman was still around. Maybe he even was his teacher at some point.

And since I love having my favorite characters interact, I also thought of a scenario where Drillman wanders into the forest out of frustration over his miserable life, only to meet Woodman by coincidence. In the end, Woodman helps him work through his daddy issues and his body dysmorphia, while Drillman helps Woodman reintegrate and manage this (for him) completely new world of peace. Another great headcanon of mine is that Chemistryman is actually Acidmans father. Just because I think it would be funny. And as Fully Charged has confirmed: robots in that universe do indeed have parents. (Flashback to the time I drew Dr. Light beating the shit out of Drillman's father)

Speaking of Drillman.... For being one of my favorite Mega Man characters of all time, I haven't drawn him nearly enough. That will probably be my next project.

This might also be a great time to tell you that I've never watched Breaking Bad before, lol. Everything I know about it comes from RTGame's Stardew Valley playthrough and the RTVS Half Life parody.

Sorry for all the yapping. But if I don't talk about robots at least once a day, I might die. This is a serious condition.

[paladin-heart5]

Save Her (Part One)

Leon Kennedy x Reader

Summary; Leon's fiancee has been captured by an underground black market group. He needs to save her, but once he does, he needs to prepare for her recovery.

CW; hurt/comfort, captivity, swearing, blood/bruising, mild suicidal thoughts. (lmk if I missed anything)

Three weeks. For three weeks his best friend, no, fiancée, has been missing. And after all that time stressing, all those sleepless nights, he's got a solid lead. An underground gang that sells bio-weapon prototypes. They buy blueprints off the black market and build them to sell to high bidders. With the intel Hunnigan found, they gotta be the ones who have her. The question is, why would they take her? They better not be experimenting on her. He'll have to put a bullet through every head, just like the undead he spent most of his life killing. Maybe he'll do it anyway. When he came home from work one day, he found the door broken open, many signs of a struggle, but they still got her. No ransom notes, nor blood. The anger in his eyes was strong, they can't just take her away like that. She's going to come home safe and sound. She has to. 

“The location has been sent to you, but you'll need to be careful getting down. There's likely going to be some form of security, definitely cameras. Keep your head down.” Hunnigan explains as Leon, Chris, and Rebecca gear up. Leon knew he couldn't do this alone, he needed his friends. Jill is on another mission, and Claire is traveling for TerraSave. Chris wasn't going to let him do this in the state he's in. Barely a wink of sleep, very little food in his system. He had to force him to do both just so he wouldn't kill himself. He can't save her when he's passed out on the ground. “Head to the warehouse, clear the area, and find the hatch. The rest I won't be able to help much with.” She finished explaining, earning a nod from Leon.

“Got it, thank you, Ingrid.” He says softly. Ingrid gives a hint of a smile.

“I care about her too, bring her home safely.” She states, pointing at them. Leon chuckles and gives a two finger salute. The three of them are off in no time, settling into Chris’s jeep before taking off. Rebecca looks through her computer for possible access to the cameras at the warehouse.

“It doesn't seem like there are many camera's underground, just in the warehouse itself. So I'm guessing there might be some muscle down there. Judging by some old files, their number of sales on the black market have increased by 40% in the last three months.” She explains to the men. Leon's leg bounces anxiously as he listens, Chris frowning as he thinks. 

“I just don't understand, what do they want with Y/n?” The muscular brunette asks. Rebecca hums and types for a couple of minutes before answering.

“My guess, using her knowledge as a biologist to build their newest experiment. Though I can’t seem to get through this inscription, so I won’t know for sure until we get there and see it for ourselves.” The professor explains.

________________

The echoes of men cheering down the hall caused a spike in her heart rate. The cold floor of the cell she’s on makes her shiver as she sits in only a dirty hospital gown and undergarments. Her hair is greasy, and knotted. She'd kill for a shower if she wasn't so weak. Y/n hugged her knees to her chest, the chains connected to her ankle making a clanking sound. Bruises and cuts litter her skin, all that fighting ended in such pain. She just wanted to be home, resting in bed with her soon to be husband. But those words from the fuckers that took her. They haunt her, every day she starts to believe them.

“He's not coming for you, doll."

“And even if he did, he won't love you.”

“You belong to us now.” 

She squeezes her eyes shut as she holds her head. Tears starting to prick her eyes for the hundredth time since she's been stuck here. Leon would never leave her like that. He loves her, he promised that when he proposed. “He's just having trouble finding me.” She mutters, but still; as time goes on, hope continues to fade.

____________

The ringing of gunshots caused her to wake with a start. She can hear shouting and footsteps all around. Y/n curls up and covers her ears, too afraid to even try to see what's happening. Could be friend or foe, but it's hard to tell at this point. All those torturous nights of scaring her into talk, forcing her to do tests. She's simply too tired to move, to think. She's not even sure she wants to live anymore. 

“Leon! Check all the cells! We have to get her out quickly if we're gonna blow this place.” A familiar voice called out, followed by footsteps nearing her cell. Why can't she remember that voice, and did he say Leon? As in her soon to be husband? Perhaps her mind is starting to play tricks on her. That little bit of hope left could be tricking her. 

However, the footsteps get louder. A shadow of a man draws closer, and she isn't sure what to do besides try to hide herself. When the footsteps stop suddenly, she peaks her head up slightly. A tall man, fairly muscular and sandy blond hair stands in front of her cell. His eyes are a beautiful blue, but they seem dull. As he sees her, his heart stops, breath hitches. It's her, his future wife. Y/n stares at him in disbelief, this definitely has to be a trick, that man looks just like Leon.

“Y/n..” The sound of her name was breathy, but it immediately made her feel a sense of comfort. His voice, deep and smooth, it's very soothing. Though she still can't be sure that her mind isn't playing tricks. She hugs herself tighter, shaking as he approaches slowly. He kneels down in front of her, worry and sadness clear in his eyes. He frowns and slowly reaches his hand out towards her face. A whimper escapes as she tenses, which only makes him feel worse.

“It's me, baby. It's Leon.” He says softly, managing to graze his fingers along her cheek. Her eyes widen, they look almost lifeless to him. They become glossy as tears quickly begin to pour. 

“You're- you're really.. here?” She asks quietly, earning a nod from the blond. The tears fall heavily down her cheeks as a loud sob racks her body. Leon quickly grabs her hands, trying not to let himself fall apart because he just can't. He has to be strong for her, he needs to get her to safety. Chris runs by and hears her cries, stopping in his tracks. He looks over and his eyes widen. He begins to step into the cell, noticing the chains. He then pulls out a set of keys that he collected from one of the guards.

“Leon, here.” He calls softly, giving him the keys. Leon looks back and smiles thankfully. “Where's Rebecca?” He asks, quickly unlocking the chains around Y/n’s ankles. 

“Grabbing the files so we can figure this out. Let's go, quickly.” Chris states before rushing out. Leon looks at his fiancee and cups her cheek. 

“Baby, I'm gonna get you out of here, okay? Just hold on to me.” He watches her head nod in acknowledgement before carefully lifting her up. She grabs his vest as he carries her bridal style, following where Chris went.  Her glossy eyes wander around tiredly as they move. Everything feels fuzzy, the sounds of gunfire become muffled. Even Leon's voice fades in and out, but when she realizes he's talking, she looks up at him slowly. He holds her close, realizing how pale she is. When they finally find Rebecca, she goes to Y/n to check on her. 

“We have to get her to a hospital. Now.” She states with a firm tone. The two nod and get what they need. Chris sets up some C4 in the computer room before they all rush out. Another group of guards enter the hallway, guns blazing. Leon takes cover, shielding her from harm, while Chris and Rebecca clear them out. Once they're all down, they run out to the warehouse and jump into the jeep. Leon looks down at his lover to see she's unconscious.

"Shit, Y/n!" He calls, trying to shake her awake, but she's out cold. He feels her neck for a pulse, luckily it's there, but faint. He shouts at Chris to hurry, and Chris detonates the bomb before speeding to the hospital.

Please be okay.

~~~~~~

A/N; Welcome to the first part of my first little series! Hope you enjoyed it, more to come soon!

[mmmichyyy]

one phone call

a spiritual companion piece to chapter four of balancing on the ledge - what if they kept in touch when mickey was in mexico?

“Gallagher.”

Ian sits up straight in his bed. Rubs the sleep from his eyes and blinks at his surroundings, adjusting his vision in the dark. A crumpled pack of Marlboros on the nightstand, surrounded by knocked over orange bottles of pills. A lone sock on the floor, from his missed aim at the hamper. A crack of light peeking into his room, reflecting off the snow falling outside the window.

“Gallagher,” the voice over the phone repeats, tinny and far away. “Are you there.”

It's real, he thinks, pinching his arm. This isn't a dream.

“Mickey,” Ian whispers.

A sigh on the other end of the line.

“Hey.”

“Where are you?” Ian asks faintly.

“Can't tell you.” Sounds of a chair shuffling against the floor in the background. Glasses clinking. Muffled voices. A bar, maybe. “I’m alive, though.”

Relief floods his entire body. It's been a while since he heard from Mickey, maybe a couple weeks since he's received a text from an unknown number. Usually it's just a short message, nothing revealing, nothing profound, but every time his phone chimes his heart starts racing in anticipation to seeing Mickey's name on his screen.

Well, not Mickey exactly. Just M or a string of random numbers. Can't be too careful.

“That's good,” Ian manages to say. “I'm glad.”

A moment of silence. A million questions and thoughts run through Ian's head. How are you? What kind of jobs are you doing down there? Are you safe? Tell me you're okay. I miss you. I miss you. I miss you.

But he doesn't. Can't get the words out.

“Jesus Gallagher, did you fall asleep on me?”

“No,” Ian says quickly. “No, I'm just… I'm just surprised you called, that's all.”

“Thought you wanted me to call.”

“I do, Mick.” Ian lets out a deep breath. “But I don't want you to get caught.”

“It's fine. I'm using a new burner.” A pause. “I wanted to hear your voice.”

The slight slurring in Mickey's voice makes Ian go still.

“Are you drunk?”

A huff. “Can't get drunk anymore. My tolerance has gone way up since I got here.”

“Mickey.”

“Gallagher.” Ian can practically hear Mickey's eyes rolling from miles away. “I'm fine, okay? Fuck, I don't even know why I called. I knew you didn't give a fuck about–”

“Don't do that,” Ian cuts him off quietly. “Please, Mick. Don't push me away. I need–” Sighs. “I need to know you're okay.”

“So you can clear your conscience?” Mickey spits out. “So you don't feel guilty for leaving me at the border?”

“You don't think I feel guilty about it every single day?” Ian practically yells. “I do. I think about it all the time. How I could be in Mex– there for you, taking care of you, building our future together. How we could be happy together. But I couldn't come with you. I couldn't drag you down with my shit. If you got caught because of me, I don't think I can live with myself.”

The line on the other end goes quiet. A minute goes by, then another, long enough for Ian’s nerves to shake. Then–

“I don't have a future, Ian,” Mickey finally says, quiet and soft. “This is it for me. This is my life. I'm going to be here for a long time.”

“The heat is going to die down eventually,” Ian whispers. “The charges are bullshit anyway. Everything's going to work out. I promise.”

A small laugh. “You promise, huh.”

Ian has no idea what's going to happen or what the future holds. But what he does know is that this isn't the end of his and Mickey's story together. One day, whenever it may be, he's going to see Mickey again. And when he does, he's never going to let go ever again.

“I promise.”

A flick of a lighter on the other end. Then, a deep exhale.

“I gotta go.”

Ian's heart lurches.

“Promise me you'll stay in touch. You don't have to call, but just text me from time to time and let me know you're okay.” A lump forms in his throat. “Please, Mick.”

Another deep sigh. But–

“Okay,” Ian hears, and the world aligns itself once again. “I promise.”

The snow continues to fall outside, covering the entire neighbourhood with a blanket of frost. Ian wonders what the weather is like where Mickey is. Warm, he hopes.

“Merry Christmas, Mickey.”

“Merry Christmas, Gallagher.”

[teabagandsugar]

Chiaki Arisugawa ‼️ MILGRAM Oc

"Sup' there!" You must be the prison guard or something? I'm Chiaki Arisugawa, 21 years old! Can we like..just go on with the interrogation? I really gotta pick up my brother from school."

The 11th prisoner. A Visual-kei Idol with strong belief of her innocence. Chiaki is a chill and friendly individual, getting along with almost everyone inside the prison. Still, if her innocence in her crime gets discussed, she will get protective and aggressive, with her doting personality having a 360° change in order to protect her own action. She acts as a mentor or to the youngest prisoners, defending them and sticking by as they need a shoulder to cry on.

"You wouldn't think i'm guilty just for protecting my family, i hope? koki is the only family to me. he is most important. you have a family, right?? you understand me, don't you Guard-kun??"

gender: female

height: 167

birthday: april 1

age: 21 y.o

blood type: A

[Relationship with the other prisoners]

haruka - they have a sibling-like bond. or at least, with her being like family to everyone, haruka clings onto dear life to her, and she bares with it and treats him as her own brother. it might get unhealthy, but generally they just complement eachother's missing things. it's in her nature to care for those in need, and haruka is in need of care after years of neglect.

yuno - they get along as on their having similar personality traits, as well as agreeding with their committed crimes. quite enjoy eachother's presence. surely you can see them hang out around strolling around the building or in eachother's jail at times.

fuuta - even though they do have a similar problem with those hero complexes, chiaki would not agree with futa's actions. she does tolerate him though, both don't mind eachother and there still is respect.

muu - chiaki gets a strong sense to protect muu when she acts like a victim, later changing her opinion on her when she finds out she wasn't much of a victim, yet still feeling conflicted about how manipulative a kid can be. she would try and stay a little in between muu and haruka to try and limiting the consequences, only gaining despisement from muu herself.

shidou - as much as chiaki disagrees with what shidou did with his patiences, she can't help but understand his feelings on the topic of just wanting his family back. they are casual talkers, and she would start conversations with him. both smoke at around the same hour, too.

mahiru - very good friends. mahiru likes chiaki's style being so different from her own, and their personalities match relatively well. chiaki doesn't mind the love talks, though not having much experiences in the topic of love, and would listen to mappi's cheery lovetalk with open ears.

kazui - chiaki feels shocked at confused, not forgiving kazui in the first place as she wonders how you could even make your wife end her own life in the first place. again though, they are not like cat and dog, and have small talk occasionally.

amane - she feels incredibly bad for how the little girl seems to be so mature for her age, wondering just how much she must have only have relied on herself.

mikoto - the two of them are neighbors living in the same apartments complex, just a few numbers away from eachother. they did have some small talk and knew eachother before milgram, and would be surprised seeing eachother in said prison. chiaki, seeing the constant panic he is in, is protective towards mikoto and would try talking it out to es (failing, of course.)

kotoko - she thinks her actions on why she is in milgram are admirable, but won't understand her need to beat people up as a punishment.

es - chiaki has a very chill and laidback personality, but that shatters as soon as you contradict her own sense of justice. her behavior towards es would mostly change depending on given verdict.

[danifesting]

47 inside of an elevator that won’t move ♥️

Sorry this is unfinished but I ran out of steam.

***

The elevator shudders to stop halfway between the 8th and 9th floors. The lights flicker and go out then the eerie bluish light of the emergency lights comes on, casting everything in stark light and shadow, almost black and white, washing out all the color.

Daniel pulls out his phone and texts his boss. Don't know when I'll get to that other delivery, trapped in an elevator

"No! No! No!" The other guy in the car wails. He bangs on the door. "I can't be stuck in here! I have a job interview! And… fuck, fuck, fuck."

"You okay, mate?" Daniel asks the man. He's younger than Daniel, maybe early 20s and he's handsome, all sharp features cast in relief in the harsh lighting.

"No," the guy says and he slides to a sitting position against the wall opposite Daniel. His voice is tight and he's breathing heavy like he's on the verge of a panic attack or something. "Obviously not."

"Well, they can't fault you for being late when the elevator in their building shuts down. We should probably use the emergency call button though, huh." Daniel reaches over and presses the button. It buzzes and a harried maintenance man answers.

"Hey, mate," Daniel says. "We're stuck on the elevator. I think it's number three."

"I know," the man says. "All the elevators in the building are stuck right now and three of them with people in them. Are any of you having a medical emergency or have any medical conditions?"

Daniel looks over at the man. He's ghostly pale but he shakes his head at the question.

"No," Daniel says.

"Well you're gonna have to hold tight for a while. We've got a diabetic in two and a woman who's seven months pregnant in five and we've gotta get them out first. It'll be a few hours."

"Thanks," Daniel says and then the man on the other end hangs up.

"Welp," Daniel says, looking back at the other man. "Looks like we're stuck together for a bit. Might as well introduce myself. I'm Daniel."

"Max," the other man says, voice strangled.

"You gonna be okay Max?"

Max shakes his head, face pulled into a mask of horror. "Don't like enclosed spaces or being trapped."

Daniel crosses the elevator and sits next to Max. "Okay, Maxy. Can I call you Maxy?"

Max nods.

"Would me putting my arm around you or rubbing your back help? Or maybe help you count out your breathing? My mum does that for my dad when he has a panic attack." Daniel bumps their shoulders together.

"Maybe the breathing thing," Max says and it sounds like ting. It's cute.

"Okay, Maxy. We're gonna breathe in for three and our for three."

Max follows Daniel's breathing for a few moments.

"And now in for six, out for six."

They breathe together again and slowly Max's shoulders inch down from around his shoulders and he lists into Daniel's side. "Better?" Daniel asks.

"Still terrified but at least I don't feel like I'm going to die," Max says. He tips his head back against the wall of the elevator and closes his eyes.

"Do you want something to distract you? We can watch something on my phone or listen to music. I'm not picky. Just wanna get you out of your head a little bit," Daniel says. He pulls his phone out of his messenger bag.

"That would be great, thank you," Max says.

Daniel opens TikTok and they scroll through for a while. It turns out Max likes to make little comments about them as they go, just little sarcastic snark or an "of course that is very stupid" when someone does something particularly dumb, but he's funny and Daniel kinda likes him.

[kirblovestopoyo]

I want... To talk about Cathal. And a song I have been thinking about. And how I have been thinking about them together in an animatic sort of thing. they are rotting in my brain. The song in question is ES by Crying, and I'll be giving a sort of explanation for each lyric and how they relate to Cathal to me. Also also, mmmmost of this stuff will be headcannony stuff / my interpretation so not all cannon. ya!!! It will all be under the cut because I do not feel like having a mile long post

"How does the world perceive me, perceiving myself?" - I feel like most of the cogs that work in the Sellbot Building and know about Cathal think that he just sits in a cozy chair all day and twiddles his thumbs and can get away with it because he's the VP's kid which isn't. Entirely false. But there's a sort of deeper layer to that me thinks. It's not that Cathal won't do anything, it's that he can't, cause he has no motivation. It even says somewhere officially that when properly motivated, Cathal is awesome at doing stuff!! He's just not motivated ever. And I feel like they know this and just. Don't know how to change it or fix it or what to do about it, because he doesn't have that motivation.

"All I care to do is sip on beer and chocolate milk" - mmmm sammich

"I'm frightened more than usual lately / I do not translate into / One of the boys / Lotus flower or chinita" - This sort of anxiety in the back of his head that we never really get to see I think; that he'll never be "as good" as someone like, say for example, Graham or Mary. Lots of comparing himself to other people because he thinks he isn't as good as them because he doesn't do as much

"I'm just ES" - They think they're just Cathal, and not anything better.

"I would rather nap than wonder restlessly" - I know sleeping isn't really his thing, but I feel like it's something he still does to pass the time. Something equivalent to this could be watching tv. Both to ignore stuff like worries.

"Will you ever be impressed by me?" - Papa VP is always proud of Cathal no matter what he does (or what he doesn't do, for that matter), excusing him from missing parts of his job, and cheering him on to do better. But this little part of Cathal wonders if his dad will ever actually be impressed with him one day as a person rather than just his kid (if that is what's happening, at least)

"Mom doesn't think I fit into the darling archetype / But that's an ancient pair of jeans" - Mom being. Dad here but same thing still applies. Also not the fault of Papa VP here but I feel like he sometimes does some unintentional comparisons between him and Bobby Jr. (my only explanation for this part is that VP is one of the higher ups so I feel like he would know a bit more about Robert than some of the other normal cogs running around). The "Darling Archetype" and "Ancient pair of jeans" in this scenario being that the kid of a cog in business also has to go into business, since we never really get any clarification on if that's a set thing or not. I know Cogs are like. meant for business stuff usually, but they're also people, and sometimes people don't want to do what's considered "normal", so who's to say there isn't a cog out there that wants to live a different life? nudge nudge

"My thighs are / Crafted holy / Rolling thunder / Forget the numbers / Forget the numbers please" - Okay this one is absolutely my own personal headcannon but I like to imagine that, even though it probably wouldn't work out in cannon, that Cathal is the one who always ends up repairing his dad. His dad being,, not dead. being the motivation behind it, since rebuilding a cog that size is pretty tremendous, plus it would explain a some of his fatigue (imagine every day having to rebuild your dad from scratch. yeah). The "crafted" part being his dad because he's gotta get built!! And "forget the numbers" being Cathal who just wishes his dad would forget about all the business stuff so he could stop dYING EVERY DAY

"Every god damn family reunion / Someone's got something to say / 'How did ya become this way?' / As if I've made a mistake" - Sorry I cannot imagine. Cathal having a family. his only family is his DAD (/j) but genuinely the "family reunion" in this scenario being probably a sort of business meeting with him and all the other cogs talking about,, whatever. Graham is probably the one that always bugs him about something, since everyone else seems to be on somewhat okay terms with them.

"Meanwhile they slaughter the cake" - the cake being ,, Cathal's dad. and they being the toons. and slaughter being pushed off a ledge. you get what I'm saying right. I feel like there's been at least one meeting where VP's been pushed off a ledge while a meeting has been going on and Cathal just had to sit there the entire time

AND THAT IS ALL. if you have read up to this point, than you genuinely so much for reading this, it means a lot to me, i hope your day is going / went well :-]

[dalmascan-requiem]

Lente's Hymn: Resistance - Chapter 3

-------

Sometimes, life forces you to face your mistakes.

-------

Read on AO3 or keep reading after the jump

content warnings: none

< Previous Chapter | Next Chapter >

------

Poor Cid, honestly, lol. He's gotta deal with two grumpy Viera acting like children towards one another. Anyway, this chapter is more or less to get everyone and everything in place, so I can start getting into the real action soon. :)

What in the name of Hydaelyn is going on here?

Cid looks between the two Viera in confusion. Not that he wanted to--but in the cramped convoy to the frontlines, he had little other choice. 

The two, while next to each other in the vehicle, made every effort not to look acknowledge the other. Their efforts to ignore one another even got to the point that that they were staring at opposite ends of the convoy. 

The sight was near ridiculous, and in any other situation Cid would be laughing at the absurdity of it. But the tension in the air was palpable, and he dare not invoke the anger these two harbor onto himself.

Strange… Kris never mentioned anyone in the Dalmascan army that he has bad blood with. As the Dalmasan resistance soldiers filed into Gangos, the Warrior of Light had met with them all. There hadn't seemed to be issues, nor did anyone recognize him. When he asked Kris about it one evening, he replied in a level, standoffish tone. "People see what they want to see, it matters not if they knew me before I became the Warrior of Light."

Cid's gaze shifts to the Viera with the long, brown hair. I wonder if he recognized Kris… it'd difficult to build up so much animosity in a single evening. But why? What had happened between them?

Perhaps he is overthinking this--there are no small amount of people that envy or dislike the Warrior of Light simply for his title, that may also be the case now.

Still, though…

~

"There stands Castrum Lacus Litore, as the Garleans call it."

Kris looks up at the imposing structure in the distance. While it was originally a Bozjan landmark, the garish black spires made it known who occupies the hold now. The Warrior of Light crosses his arms and looks at Bajsaljen "And our goal is to take it back?"

Bajsaljen simply nods, causing Kris to frown in response. "That will be no small feat, given its location. Are we to just barge through the front gates?"

The Bozjan general mirrors his frown. "That is the only way, yes. But with you and the other Blades on our side, victory is all but assured." 

Kris hears an annoyed click of the tongue next to him--he doesn't bother to turn towards it, he already knows who did it and why. Nor could he blame him. I don't know how a handful of soldiers would be enough to turn the tides here, no matter how strong we may be. Alas…

Kris sighs and rubs his neck. "So it shall be, then… I will take my leave." 

He begins to walk away, only to stop as a voice rings out. "Ah, Kris, wait!" He turns around to see Makoto near by, waving him over to a tent. "Cid and I must discuss something with you first."

It's always something, isn't it? "Very well." Kris gives Bajsaljen a curt nod, then makes his way toward the Au Ra.

~

Laurent watches Kris as he walks away with a frown before returning his attention to Bajsaljen. "You all seem to put a lot of faith in the Warrior of Light."

Bajsaljen nods. "Yes, of course. It is through his help that we were able to recreate the Blades in the first place, and word of him taking to the battlefield has raised the morale of many of our troops. He's liberated a number of lands from Garlean grasp, after all."

I've heard the tales of course, but to think it was Eir this whole time… "Still, one man is just one man, no matter how strong he may be. To rely so much on him only begs for misfortune."

"You are not one to mince words, Blade Elja."

"No, I am not." Laurent sighs, then looks towards the command tent. "If we are to somehow push through to the castrum, I'll need to know what the situation is. Can you…?"

"Ah yes, of course." The two make their way towards the tent. "We are lucky to have you. Fran had mentioned you were a talented tactician."

"Not talented. Just have common sense."

"...I-I see." The Hrothgar coughs awkwardly and waves to the tent entrance. "Regardless of what you call it, we'll be happy for your perspective."

"Unfortunately," Bajsaljen continues as they duck into the tent, "the situation is not looking good. Our troops have been spread too thin for two long, while the Garleans are able to launch offensives with little loss of men, due to holding the castrum."

"Why have we not tried to attack from another front?"

"There's no where else to. Other locations within Bozja are more disadvantageous, and with Dalmasca still under the Empire's control--" Laurent's eyes flick up from the map for a mere moment, and the look he gave was clearly enough to stop Bajsaljen from saying what he meant to next.

He turns his attention back to the map, thankful for the silence. So this is their last line of defense and offense alike. And the Garleans have been wearing them down over years… what a sorry state of affairs. "And where do the Blades fit into all this?"

"The Blades will go where help is needed the most. While you all are technically a unit, you'll largely be working separately from one another--though you will be working with another Blade in a pair. I understand that one man cannot take on a whole regime on his own if surprised on the battlefield."

What thin skin he has… "Very well. Who is to be my partner, then?"

"Well, considering all the other Blades are on the battlefield besides yourself and Kris… It would seem you two are the only ones left to partner up with."

It takes everything in Laurent's power to keep a straight face. Of course he is… what god did I piss off to earn this fate? 

~

"Makoto…" Kris puts up his hand with a small smile, cutting the scholar off from her lecture of auracites and Echoes. "I appreciate your enthusiasm, truly, but I cannot make heads nor tails of anything you've said. Your breath is wasted on me."

"O-Oh! I apologize…" Makoto stammers and looks away. I didn't mean to hurt her feelings…

"Don't fret over what he says, Makoto. He's the braun of the operation, not the brains." Cid comes up to Kris and claps him on the back with a smirk. Kris huffs and crosses his arms in response. He's not wrong, but…

"So you want me to place the beacons? And they're… sufficiently able to withstand being in a warzone?"

Cid laughs in response. "Don't worry, Kris, I don't think even you'd be able to manage breaking these. Don't go trying now, though!" He claps Kris again on the back, which earns a scowl from the Viera.

"If you say so." Kris shrugs after a moment, then picks up one of the beacons. "I'll be off--"

"Just a moment, my friend. I wish to speak with you for a moment, first." Cid flashes a small smile. What is it now? You'd think people would want me out on the frontlines instead of chatting…

Cid leads them a small distance away from the others before dropping his voice. "I must ask… the gunbreaker…" Kris tenses up as Cid continues. "Is there a problem between the two of you?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, you both are terrible at hiding it."

Kris sighs in frustration. "It won't affect my ability to fight, if that's your--"

"By the Twelve, Kris! I'm not asking because I'm worried about you fighting. I'm concerned for you, friend."

He probably won't stop until I tell him, and maybe it'd feel better to tell someone… "I… fine." Kris runs his hand through his hair in silence, trying to gather his thoughts. "Laurent's my partner."

"...Your partner? I didn't even know you had one."

"Yes, and I had planned on keeping it that way. He didn't know I was the Warrior of Light, either." Kris scowled in an attempt to look angry, but he wasn't able to hide a hint of sadness in his voice. "He likely believed me dead."

~

Cid listened in silence as Kris continued his story. About who he awoke to the Echo on the day of the Calamity, and how he thought the visions he got were an illness. About how one such vision nearly got him killed on the battlefield, and he deserted the army to come to Eorzea to find a cure--not telling a soul about his plans.

"I think you know the rest of it." Kris sighs, staring down at his hands. "I wanted to reach out, but then the people around me started getting hurt or dying, and…" He lifts his head back up, eyes showing a detached determination. The emotional wall Kris built up called the Warrior of Light. "It's best this way. He's angry, and who in their right mind wouldn't be? Soon enough we'll be done here, I'll leave, and he can… move on."

Cid crosses his arms, taking a moment to process the tale he had heard. Gods, Kris… I can understand the hesitation, but, to take this all this far… He had to give the Viera credit for hiding so much about his life for so long, but perhaps had he confided with someone before now…

Before he could say anything, though, he spots Bajsaljen coming up to them, waving the two down. Ah, best not to talk about this in front of the commander.

"Kris! One more thing I had forgotten to mention." 

"I should really take to the frontlines soon--"

"Yes, yes. About that." Bajsaljen cuts Kris off with a curt wave. "Since the Blades need to move about quickly, we find it best that instead of moving as a whole unit, you will move as pairs. To ensure one another's safety."

Kris's frown deepens as he listens. "Alright… who is my partner, then?"

"The rest of the Blades are already on the battlefield--yourself and Blade Elja were the last to arrive. So…"

"...I see." Cid notices the vitriol in Kris's voice, and he manages to suppress a sarcastic chuckle. Fate certainly works in mysterious ways…

As if summoned, Laurent walks up to the group, and immediately turns his attention to the beacon in Kris's hands. "What is that?"

Cid clears his throat before speaking. "It's a beacon, we need it set to gather information for--"

Laurent clicks his tongue and grabs the beacon before Kris could react. "I'll hold it."

Kris gives the other Viera a pointed glare. "I can handle the beacon."

"I don't trust you with it." Laurent quickly turns around before Kris can object further. "You know where to place it, right? Let's go, we've wasted enough time."

The Warrior of Light continues to glare daggers at Laurent's back for a bit, before letting out a frustrated sigh and began to follow him.

Cid couldn't help but to chuckle at the sight. The fact that they're so angry with one another means they still care… Perhaps there's hope for them yet.

[imapuppy5000]

Some fluff cause all I post is bad stuff. Vlk is happy for once.

If Vlk had known she’d be this lonely and that hell existed she would have never fought those cops. It wasn’t worth the pain of losing Mary and Lilith. It wasn’t worth the eternal damnation and isolation. She should have just played the victim. They would have taken her as Mary’s hostage if she played her cards right and she could stay alive with her daughter for years more. It had been about a year since she died and she was constantly missing her lover and daughter. She missed Mary’s touch and the affectionate way they would pull her closer and kiss her face. She missed Lilith’s radiant smile and her beautiful laugh. She missed them so much, period.

But luckily she had been scraping together enough money for a big purchase… she only hoped they’d accept her offer.

Anxiously rubbing at her wrist she approached the building. A flier was crinkled in one hand and with the other she knocked on their office door.

It swung open with enthusiasm and someone chimed, “Ah a f**king guest with respect! See?! Not everyone has to blow up that g*d d**m wall!”

Vlk looked down at the imp before she was gestured inside and followed him to a desk.

“So what can I do you for?” He asked, looking her over. “You look like the type to ask for an abusive ex to be offed. Am I right?”

“No.” She said sternly though the thought of having him kill Mary was enticing. But the chances that Mary wouldn’t join her down here were too high to take that risk. Lilith couldn’t be left parentless. “Actually,” she continued when he opened his mouth to question her, “I don’t want you to kill anybody. I just want a few photos. Of my partner and our kid.”

“That’s surprisingly wholesome.” He said before looking behind her and yelling, “MOXXIE!”

“Sir?” A shorter and much cuter imp appeared at the doorway on command. He eyed Vlk and adjusted his bow nervously at (what he thought was) a hellhound in Luna’s territory.

“She needs a couple photos taken. Can you and mil handle it? It’s a little gooey for me.”

“Of course sir!” Moxxie’s face lit up and he saluted before bouncing over to Vlk and standing on his tiptoes with a notepad at the ready. “Who am I taking pictures of? What do you want them doing?”

“Their names are Mary Wright and Lilith Smith— though she goes by Wright as well, it’s not a legal change. I just want the pictures to be of them… I want one to have Lilith smiling, one of Lilith and Mary together if possible, and…” she blushed, “One of Mary naked or covered in blood if that’s okay.”

Moxxie echoed her blush and the taller imp scrambled over the desk, “I’m interested!” He grinned. “We’ll get those pictures for you in no time.”

They agreed on a payment and Vlk gave them her number before they parted ways. The next few days were agony. Waiting for those pictures was torture but at least she’d have something of her life on earth. Despite wanting to get rid of it she couldn’t… her mind was plagued by her little family. She may as well a few keepsakes…

Finally, after four days the phone rang while she was at work. She pushed the male off of her and scrambled to her clothes, throwing them around until she found her phone. She picked it up.

“We got your pictures! When can you meet us?”

“I can be there in two hours.”

“Perfect.” The line ended and Vlk grinned at her phone before her scruff was yanked.

She barely stopped herself from snarling at the client by gritting her teeth.

“I wasn’t done with you.” He huffed, holding her up by her scruff. “I still got half an hour.”

“I know.” Vlk sighed, dropping the phone on her shirt. She smirked. “Let’s go then. Make good use of your time.

As soon as she was finished with him she threw on her clothes and ran out of the room, phone gripped tightly in one hand. “Gotta go early!” She called to her boss.

“Did that perv pay you?” He yelled back.

“Don't think so! You can take the money, I don’t care. Bye!!”

Her boss sighed and shook his head but she was already gone.

By the time she got to I.M.P she was out of breath and could barely stand but she opened the door regardless and barged inside. “My photos.” She wheezed, tail wagging excitedly behind her.

The three imps and one hell hound stared at her in shock and confusion before the leader held out his hand. “First, the rest of my money.”

“First my pictures.”

They glared at each other for a few moments before Moxxie came up and handed her a cute little photo album. She hurriedly flipped it open and looked through the pictures. There were so many of her little family. Lilith smiling with some girl from school and a boy Vlk had met once named Mason. Lilith had friends now! Mary was alone or with Layla in most of her pictures, which spoiled some of the excitement. Layla. But she did have a few photos of Mary exactly how she had asked for. And the final picture took up a whole page. It was of Mary and Lilith sitting on the couch, curled up together and sleeping as Layla and another young girl with black hair read beside them.

Vlk wanted to cry she was so happy. She closed the album and paid the impatient imp. “Thank you. I may be a return customer.” She smiled genuinely which seemed to get the larger imp’s attention.

“Well you know where to find us! And we’ll take as many photos as you want.”

Vlk nodded and left with the album tight against her chest. She stopped by a store for a frame and returned to her apartment, framing the last picture and setting it on her nightstand. The album was carefully tucked under her pillow.

[sdyuteiaok]

Hmm, had a pretty mediocre day of calls today, a couple nice ones where I got some people to be aware of our candidates and are looking to be in our column, so I guess that's ultimately what we're going for, but I guess I'm always hoping to persuade at least one voter per session, but I gotta keep in mind that's not terribly realistic. I had a couple of ugly calls, and then one that was quite murky, as we spent some time going over issues and battling some propaganda, but I feel like the guy was still in the tank for that stuff, and not actually looking for clarity--he had a narrative that he was sticking to, and despite facts not aligning with that, he just kinda seemed set in his ways, despite putting on this "undecided" act and seemingly like he was interested in hashing out some things he's been hearing. Some voters--many, such voters, I'd say--who want you to help them understand issues or news are legitimately looking for insight and understanding, and that's why I stay up on the news as best I can, so I can serve voters who need someone to break stuff down, but this voter today didn't quite have that vibe, so I feel like he was just trying to pick apart and discredit reality, rather than seek understanding or clarity around his professed concerns. And then on the Magic front, just played some rounds with my RG MWM BLB sealed deck. Nice and leisurely, as again, it's no slam dunk of a deck, but I did see if there were any other builds possible, and the closest is a BW deck that looks like it's on the cusp of being solid, but really, just feels like it's lacking some punch at the top--too many little cutesy things that don't really close, whereas my RG deck at least has some reach with that indispensable Teapot Dome Raccoon, and then a couple of big tramplers, notably Hugs, who isn't super bomby himself--he's mainly just a 5/5 trampler--but he can help you de-clunk the top of your deck of a couple lands. But I feel like I had a stronger run today. But man, the mana is so rough, sometimes you just aren't playing your stuff, as would happen way too often. They really needed some more dual lands or something in this set, it's just misery not being able to play your stuff, and then the set even has a good number of double-pip spells, so you gotta hope you're on the right side of those, particularly in sealed. In draft, I always try to have at least one of the ETBT gold land and the surveil Grotto land. Can't imagine wanting to play this as sealed unless made to, like for MWM. But hey, it was a free event, and the deck was good enough, so all in all, no complaints here. I don't think I got any rares from this one, though, sadly, just some gems. Speaking of which, I guess it's a little too late to get another BLB draft in, so might as well hop into the Duskmourn waiting room. I'm actually not that pumped for it. Rooms sound kinda interesting to try out, but I don't really feel a driving desire to play the set, weirdly enough. The only other time I felt this way was when the LotR set first arrived. It eventually grew on me, but initially, I just had no desire to hop in the queue. Hopefully this one ends up being compelling in its own way.

[dinrelsanddragons]

So the full list of Blackscales in Lambda's time as a teenager is thus:

Raithyon – Clan leader. Father of Lambda and Reownha, called "Pops." Sekkala – Staff officer. Aunt of Lambda and Reownha, called "Auntie." Furrele – Priest and healer. Noticed the spark of sorcery in Lambda and has taught her how to use that magic to heal. Cedric – Tank (armor master) and combat instructor. Knows some of Hyrule's military tactics. Madre – Driver and escape expert; only other remaining Blackscale who remembers Sableflame; Mother of Bran, and eventually his sisters Harana and Nuthra. Riakshin: Blackmailer and investigator. Son of a now deceased escapee of Sableflame. Moko: Scout and ambusher. Son of an escapee of Sableflame who still lives in Rito Village with his wife, incognito. Eventually, father of Vrondiss. Nethir: Infiltrator and smooth-talker. Sometime law nerd. Handy with performance and magic, but not so much as Quespa. Nethox: Tinkerer and weapons expert. Adopted into the Blackscales after he was framed for a crime he didn't commit. Eventually, father of Mozikth. Horzai: Assassination expert. Adopted into the clan to gain their protection (strength in numbers, after all) after she racked up quite a bounty on her head. Lambda: Raithyon's daughter. Magical assistance and Raithyon's successor in training. Eventually, mother of Mu. Reownha: Raithyon's daughter. Pickpocket and staff officer in training. Eventually, mother of Direcris. Quespa: Magic expert, the Blackscales' problem solver for most issues arcane. Lambda's instructor in magic, though her magic knowledge doesn't translate so well. Akra: Additional muscle, often ends up taking the hardest hits (and dishing it back out). Heskran: Tracker and survivalist. Works best with Moko. –Noncombatants. Spouses and children– Pyxrin: Noncombatant and Raithyon's wife. A well-off Shiekah from a town in Akkala. Rezena: Noncombatant and Madre's wife, a Shiekah. Often disappears from the Blackscales' camp, but always comes back safe with extra supplies, and has kept their secrets faithfully. Gargax: Noncombatant and Riakshin's husband, a Hylian. Keeps a safehouse for the Blackscales to crash in on occasion. Bran: Noncombatant. A child born to Madre recently. Seems to be part Hylian with his black hair and brown eyes, though no one knows who his father is, as he was conceived at a brothel.

Second generation, when Lambda is grown up:

Lambda: Clan leader. Wields powerful divine magic. Reownha: Staff officer. Intelligent and quick, often acquires extra rupees by picking pockets. Bran: Cleanup crew (Evidence removal). Madre's first/eldest. Harana: Scout and eagle's eye. Madre's second/middle child. Nuthra: Driver, escape expert. Madre's third/youngest. Vrondiss: Cleanup crew (witness killer). Moko's son. Mozikth: Weapons expert/tinkerer. Nethox's son. Direcris: Staff officer and mastermind in training. Reownha's son. Mu: Healer and magical expert. Lambda's daughter. Rathkran: Bard and charlatan taken in by the Blackscales when he had a bounty on his head for ripping people off; Reownha's husband. (There's also Lambda's husband but I think he needs redone (again) tbh. We will see.)

Not listing Bran's kids (Fennec and Felicity) cause he never wanted them to join the clan, also I don't have third generation Blackscales. Shrug.

As for what happens to the first generation (Raithyon's): I imagine they were able to retire safely in some corner of Hyrule, building a little settlement. It is their goal to settle down and build a new home, after all. Lambda and Reownha keep the criminal clan going because it's what they're good at, and sometimes you gotta steal from assholes who have too much. Like nobles. Either that or they mostly die some years after the calamity. Idk.

[johnkrrasinski]

started from a call

full masterlist

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x female!reader

Word count: 3,610

Warning: angst with a happy ending! that's all.

Summary: written for @wkemeup's 9k writing challenge with the prompt "character a leaves an embarrassing, drunk message on character b’s voicemail and spends the rest of the night trying to discreetly delete it from [b]’s phone." inspired by a bit of ross and rachel from friends too. you found out from steve that bucky was in love with you in high school but after he returns home with a girl in his arm, you cancelled your plans to tell him how you feel. will you and bucky have your happy ending?

a/n: please like, reblog and leave a feedback. :) enjoy!

"Alright, I'll see you tonight. Bye." He leaned against the kitchen counter and hung up the phone with a grin on his face. "You hear that, Sam? We're going on our third date tonight." He threw his phone up into the air and caught it so casually without spilling a drop of his coffee sitting on his right hand. "Looks like I'm getting that 300 bucks soon."

"Hey, easy. You ain't going to that date yet, who knows? She could bail on you. It doesn't count if the date doesn't end well."

"Oh, but it will. I just gotta turn on my charm and next thing you know, we're already meeting the parents stage."

"Meeting the parents? That's a big step from you, Buck."

"Hey, I'm a man of my words. If I said that I'm going to change this year then I'm gonna stick to it."

"So Leah isn't just a one-time thing to get 300 bucks?"

"Maybe yes, maybe no. We'll see how tonight goes. But one thing's for sure is that I'm getting that 300 bucks."

Sam and Bucky made a bet as their New Year's resolution that Bucky would never go on a second date with any girl or remember to call her in the morning after a wild night. His commitment issues had given him a reputation as the player in the gang. It wasn't a new thing anymore to anyone that when they visited Bucky's place in the morning, they would see a girl with a dopey smile and slightly ruffled hair walking out of his apartment, giddy that Bucky just made a promise to call her later.

You, Natasha, Wanda, Sam and Steve were hanging out at Nat's place. The six of you had been friends since college. You, Nat, Bucky and Steve had known each other since high school and the four of you kept in touch despite going to separate universities. You met Wanda when you went to NYU and Steve met Sam while he was in Harvard. Long story short, after the four of you graduated, you and Wanda lived together as roommates and even started your own bakery business. Steve and Bucky lived in the same building as you and Natasha and Sam lived nearly alone. They were too independent for roommates. Don't even start on Natasha and how much she valued her personal space. That's how the six of you ended up here, gathered at your place on a Saturday afternoon.

"Are you gonna pick her up tonight?"

"Of course. Gonna clean up well, bring her some flowers and knock on her door at 7 pm precisely. Which girl isn't gonna fall for that?" Bucky walked over to the couch you and Nat were sitting on and leaned on the headrest, his arms caging both you and Natasha.

You didn't say anything nor did Natasha because she knew about your feelings for Bucky. Despite never feeling that way about Bucky in high school, your feelings changed a week ago after learning that Bucky used to be in love with you but never had the courage to tell you. That's why he never had a girlfriend during his high school years and he wanted to take you to prom and confess his feelings to you but he was too late. Another guy had already snooped in first.

You were his first love but it wasn't reciprocated until now. That's why in college, he learned how to get over you and slept with as many women as possible because he felt like he lost four years of his life of finding the one. He never intended to be a player and feed girls empty promises, it just kind of became his way of dating. He was too afraid that no one could live up to you yet he enjoyed being with women. Hence, the bet.

The day you found out from Steve about Bucky's past feelings for you while playing truth or dare, you immediately wanted to call him up but Bucky was out of town for a few days and as soon as he was back home, he had Leah in his arm. Your heart was crushed. Wanda told you that it would probably last for a few days and that he'd eventually be single again but you totally did not expect this thing to turn into something serious. You loved Sam with every fibre of your being, he was like the big brother you never had, but you wanted to curse him for making that bet.

So you just rolled your eyes and stayed silent throughout this entire conversation, even though your heart felt like it was being stabbed over and over again. "Alright, I gotta go. Got a big date tonight. I'll see you guys in a few hours." Just like that, Bucky walked out of the room without knowing the pain his words caused you.

The next day you were sitting in your bed watching The Notebook in your pyjamas because you were too heartbroken to do anything productive. It was Sunday so you could just have a whole day to yourself and do absolutely nothing but cry. Wanda knocked on your door bringing a plate of cookies and she had a pitiful look on her face. "y/n? Sweetie? I made you these cookies, they might make you feel better." Sometimes you thank the stars for bringing her into your life.

"Thank you, Wanda. You're so nice to me." You know you probably sound like a hormonal whiny kid but everything made you cry at the moment.

"Do you need anything else? I know how it feels to get your heartbroken, trust me. When me and Vision had a fight and we didn't talk for days all I wanted was to curl up and never leave my bed, so in case you need anything, I'm here." She offered you that warm smile of hers.

"No, all I want right now is to just eat these cookies and go back to my film, thanks Wan."

"Okay, I'll be outside." Your pity party was interrupted when Nat arrived in her leather jacket and burst into your room.

"Get up, you are taking a shower and you're getting that face beat."

"Natasha, what the hell? Leave me alone."

"Y/N, listen to me. I got a date for you. His name is Scott and he's a real nice guy, he's funny, he's a good friend of mine and he is really smart. He is so much better than Bucky, I promise you. Now c'mon, I already told him that you are meeting him tonight at Stark's restaurant at 7."

You whined, doing anything you can to get her to leave you alone with your tears and your cookies but you knew that once Natasha set her mind on something, there's no talking her way out of it. Damn that woman with her determination.

"Y/N, c'mon! Wallowing all day isn't you. I know you and what's good for you. That's why I found you a great guy who will charm you so good that you will forget Barnes even existed. You can't let him win, y/n. If he's going to be happy with someone else, then you better show him that you can be much happier with other people."

You stared at her, trying to absorb her words. There's some wisdom in that. You're not the type to cry over a guy, not even for even Bucky Barnes. So you let Natasha drag you to the shower and asked Wanda to do your hair when she does your makeup. She chose an outfit for you, a dress that was not too sexy but chic enough to leave a good first impression.

Scott was early to the restaurant and he looked elated to see you. He was wearing a grey suit with no tie and he had a really exuberant smile on his face, the type that drew people easily. You could see why Natasha called him a nice guy.

"Wow, sorry, I just- didn't expect you to be this beautiful."

"Ah, thank you, Scott. Have you been waiting long?"

"No, not at all. I just arrived here like five minutes ago."

The night went on and Scott did most of the asking and talking, you answered each question curtly with forced enthusiasm in your face and body language. You weren't even listening to half of the things he said because your mind kept playing images of Bucky with Leah and how you heard from Sam that the date went well so he lost 300 bucks. You kept thinking about Bucky and Leah and how they would probably get married and have kids and live in the suburbs with a golden retriever while you'd still be single and you'd compare every man you meet to Bucky. Maybe it was your karma for not reciprocating his feelings in high school.

Five glasses of wine and you spent more time nodding than talking. Honestly, all you wanted to do was to just go home and go back to The Notebook because their love story was much better than your love life. Scott woke you out of your daze, "Natasha told you that I was cuter than this, did she?" after you gulped your sixth glass of wine.

"Oh Scott, I'm so sorry. It's not you, it's me. I know it sounds cliche but it's just... I'm not in a place where I'm looking for a boyfriend. You are a really likeable guy and I swear, if we had met at another time, maybe I would be a better date but right now, I just- I have someone else in my mind." You sighed, it felt like a relief to get that off your chest.

"Is this guy... an ex-boyfriend?"

You chuckled, "no... He wishes."

Scott nodded, "look, I don't know what your situation is but I've been through a divorce and it's never easy. But eventually, you'll be fine. You can't see it now because you haven't had closure." Then it was as if the bulb above your head was turned on.

"That's it.  Closure, yeah. That's all I need. Okay, give me a minute. I'm gonna call him now and I'm going to get my closure."

Scott sat there watching you comically trying to find your phone in your purse and tapped on Bucky's contact number. The normal you would be sweating with every ring but intoxicated you had no worries in the world... For now.

"This is Bucky. Can't pick up right now, leave a message." Beep.

"Hello, yes, Bucky! Or James, should I call you James? I always thought Bucky was a weird name. Anyways, I'm just calling to tell you that I am fine and I am on a date with Scott. And speaking of dates, I just gotta tell you that I'm happy to hear that your date went well. And that, my friend, means that I am over you. That's right, I'm over you. Tell Leah I say hi." You said sarcastically.

You hung up the phone and threw your phone back into your purse. You felt like you just won a chess game.

The next morning you decided to sleep in because your heart was pounding and you could barely sit up without feeling like you might fall. You were supposed to be working at the bakery but since you owned the bakery, Wanda let you sleep it off until you recover. You couldn't remember anything from last night, how you got back to your apartment was a mystery. You tried to put the pictures together, from being forced to go on a date, meeting a guy named Sean? Simon? Sebastian? Scott! Yes, Scott. You ordered your meals and then... Nothing, it was all blurry. You weren't even sure if anything happened at all after eating your meals.

The apartment was empty because Wanda was working at the bakery and it was just you with your hangover pills. Bucky came to your apartment without knocking because Wanda told him on the phone that you were home. He greeted you with a smile and asked about your date.

"Uh, let's see. I think there was a restaurant, I know there was wine. And there's a guy, Scott and pretty much that's all I can recall."

Bucky made a yikes face. Seeing the state you were in, he could do the math (of the wine you had). You probably enjoyed the alcohol more than the guy. What a doofus, he thought. If he was the one going on a date with you, you'd definitely remember every detail from last night.

"Leah's downstairs and I'm taking her back to her place but I left my keys here last night. Have you seen it?"

"No, check the drawers. Maybe Wanda put 'em there."

"Ah, okay." He opened the drawers and found the keys to his bike.

"Did we... Speak on the phone last night?"

"Nope, my phone was dead and I didn't charge it all night so I haven't really checked it. Why?"

"Nothing, nothing. It's just... Never mind. My memories are a bit hazy right now. You should go, say hi to Leah for me."

Bucky nodded as you walked back to your room to go lie down. Your question reminded him that he should probably check his phone now because there could be work-related messages but the first thing he heard was a voicemail from you. "Oh, y/n. I got your message!"

That instantly stopped you in your tracks. Your eyes went wide and you froze. You immediately turned around and ran to grab his phone away from him. Bucky had a confused look on his face, "who's Scott?"

"Oh my God, no, Bucky, give me the phone. Give me the phone!" But it was already too late, he was already halfway through your voicemail and by the time you successfully snatched his phone out of his grasp, he had already heard every word.

Bucky stood there dumbfounded, he needed time to process everything you just said to him. "What do you- what do you mean you're over me?"

"Oh, God... Alright, um- lately, I've um- sort of, have... Feelings for you." You never had to chase a guy or confess your crush first so this felt new and my God, it was nerve-racking.

"You have feelings for me..." He said it as if he was convincing himself that his ears got it right. Bucky couldn't believe the words that just escaped through your lips, for years he had dreamed of this moment. Though never did he ever want you to make the first move but adolescent him wanted to hear you say what he'd been wanting to say to you too.

He didn't say anything for what felt like minutes and you couldn't decipher his thoughts from the look on his face. "I need to sit down," he pulled one of the dining chairs and leaned on his side in a defeated posture.

"Bucky... Please say something." You alerted him in a hushed tone, not wanting to startle him than you already did. But he didn't. He was lost at words. What the hell was he supposed to tell her?

"Look Bucky, I'm sorry for telling you this way but I had to. I just- I've been wanting to talk to you about it since you came back to New York, well- actually, since Steve told me but-"

"Whoa, Steve told you?!" He interrupted.

"Yeah, it just accidentally slipped when we were playing truth or dare..."

"Okay well," he stood up from his seat, yet he still couldn't look you in the eye. "I can't do this right now, Leah's waiting for me downstairs and I gotta go." He basically ran out of the room and slammed the door behind him, leaving you alone.

Once your hangover had begun dissipating, you decided to help Wanda at the bakery and took the night shift. She must've been exhausted from managing the bakery alone while also helping the employees in the kitchen so you told her to go home and leave it to you. The bakery's usually slower at night.

When it was nearing closing time and your employees had gone home, you decided to clean up and turned off the lights and checked everything one last time before locking the door. The bell above the door dinged and you were slightly annoyed because who the hell comes to the bakery at this hour?

"I'm sorry we're clo...sed." It was Bucky. He stood there in a black coat, with an expression you still couldn't figure out. "Bucky, what are you-"

"You have no right to tell me that you've got feelings for me." His tone was harsh, he never spoke that way to you or anyone... Ever.

"What?"

He walked closer to you, maintaining his gaze, "You can not tell me that you've got feelings for me now when I'm doing well with my life and Leah..."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"I was in love with you for years! Years, y/n! And you never said and did anything and now when everything's going well you're ruining it!"

"I am ruining it?" You repeated the question because you couldn't believe what you just heard. How dare he said those hurtful things to you.

"Yes! I was doing fine with Leah and now I don't know what's going to happen with me and her anymore..."

"Yeah, well, I was doing fine before I found out that YOU were in love with me and never had the balls to tell me!" You did everything you could to not cry, you hated crying in the middle of an argument.

"Hey, it's not like I didn't try. There were your ex-boyfriends and your dates and I had to move on. I couldn't wait forever! And now, now you're too late."

"Oh, so what? You're just gonna walk away and pretend that this never happened?"

"Yes, I'm going to do exactly that and I'm going to go see Leah." He turned around like he did earlier in your apartment and left you alone once again with your heartbreak.

"Fine! Go ahead and see Leah because I don't give a fuck about cowards like you or whoever you sleep with." You slammed the door and tried everything you could to not have a breakdown here because you really hated letting an argument hurt you. You sat on one of the chairs where the customers would sit and you hid your face with your hands and cried.

Not because you just lost an argument but because of what Bucky said and it felt like you had lost Bucky before you even had him. Now there was no hope left for you and Bucky, things were too complicated.

You didn't know how long you had cried there, alone, in the dimmed lighting of your shop but after you felt like the tears had dried, you wiped the traces of your tears from your cheeks with the back of your thumb. You stood from your seat and was ready to go home. You couldn't wait to eat some leftover pizzas, take a warm shower and cry into your pillows until you fall asleep.

But when you were about to leave, you saw Bucky standing on the other side of the door, watching you through the windows with a softer expression on his face. You opened the door and Bucky instantly grabbed your waist and kissed you as if his life depended on it.

You gave in to his kiss, letting him pour every desire and yearning into your lips for as long as he wanted. You grabbed his face because you wanted him impossibly closer and you shut your eyes, letting your guard down. Because it was Bucky, and you'd known him for as long as you could remember and you both deserved this moment.

Bucky eventually pulled away until both of you were running out of air. You were breathless from his kiss, you never knew he was such a good kisser. (It's Bucky and he's had a lot of women on his bed, of course, he was excellent at it. Who were you kidding?) But now that you've had your own front-row experience, you felt a tad of possessiveness at the thought of sharing those lips or any part of him with anyone else.

"I couldn't go back to her knowing you are here alone and I had thrown away what I've wanted for as long as I could remember."

"I'm glad you came back." You pressed your foreheads and you rested your hands on his chest. You could get used to this.

"I hope it's not too late to say this but, y/n y/l/n, will you let me take you to dinner and see a movie after maybe?"

"I wasn't the one who said it's too late," you halfheartedly teased him.

"Shut up, so is that a yes or a no?"

You bit your lip and nodded, "yes. Definitely a yes." You stared into his ocean blue eyes, so deep and beautiful, you could easily get lost in it.

"y/n y/ln, I'm going to put all of your ex-boyfriends to shame."

"Hm, we'll see about that." You put your arms around his neck. Then a thought crossed your mind and your smile faded away, "what are you gonna do about Leah though?"

"I'll talk to her in the morning. Let's take you home now, yeah? It's getting late."

You bit your lip and nodded, "okay."

Ninth grade you dreamed of popular jocks and athletic seniors, but little did you know that, sometimes, the one who sincerely loved you was the book nerd who loved The Hobbit a little too much.

[rendevousz]

freak

avengers x teen!fem!reader

summary: you get captured during a mission and the team saves you.

warnings: language, violence, brief misogyny, torture, **NO sexual assault (because as i was proofreading, i only implied most of the torture scenes because i didn't want to write it in graphic detail and i realised the vague wordings might be misinterpreted as sexual assault which IT IS NOT, just clearing it up), and also again, my inability to write good endings

word count: 4589

notes: i just rewatched iron man 2 so that explains justin hammer LMAO also ooc justin hammer because even tho mans evil, he gets extremely um.. cruel here but anyways i hope you enjoy this!!

you were 13 when you first met the avengers and 16 when you officially joined. you grew up as one of HYDRA's experimented children and the team had found you when they raided the base that you were in.

a small, sickly-looking kid you were, sat against your cell wall, hugging your knees. 13 but you could probably pass off as a 10 year old due to how malnourished and miserable you were. burying your head in between your knees, you covered your ears as the loud gunshot noises filled the whole place. the metal door of your cell slamming open against the wall had you whimpering, hands above your head in fear.

every time the door slammed open, guards would come drag you out for more experiments so it was an instinct for you to cower in fear at the sound.

"last room in the west hall, i found a little girl."

you heard nothing because you were covering your ears, preparing yourself to be forcefully dragged by the guards to the experiment room. but it never came.

"hey," a soft voice called. you were violently shaking at this point, breathing heavily as you tried to calm down. "hey, it's okay." the voice called out again and you felt them touch your shoulders.

your head immediately jolted up, flinching away from the stranger's touch. your eyes met a blue pair as you backed away into the corner in fear. "i'm sorry! i'm sorry, i didn't mean to." the man apologised. you slowly looked up at him, observing him. he had on a full black outfit, a quiver of arrows slinging on his shoulder and he was holding onto a bow.

"don't be scared. i'm here to help," he states with his hands out, as if to calm you down. "that's what they all say." you hissed through gritted teeth and a tear-stained face, glaring at him even though that could've been a very wrong move had it been with an actual HYDRA guard.

despite the strange feeling of being safe around this man, you didn't let your guard down. that's exactly what those scientists said seven years ago. trusting kind-looking men got you into this hell you never thought you would ever escape from and you weren't going to make the same mistake again.

"clint," a red-headed female, also in all black, entered through the open door of your cell with her pistol up. at the sight of the weapon, you broke your glare towards the man. your breathing quickened and you went back to your original position before the archer came; body pressed up against your knees and covering your ears with your palms.

"i'm sorry! i'm sorry! i'll come! please don't use that on me again," you whimpered, voice muffled as your face was hidden against your knees. the woman freezes mid-walk, looking at her friend with a bewildered expression.

"nat! put that away!" clint whispered harshly, eyes glaring at the pistol in nat's hands. nat's jaw dropped in realisation, a small gasp leaving her lips as she immediately put away her weapon.

she slowly makes her way to you and clint puts his arm out before she could get closer. he looks at her with a worried expression as he shook his head, as if telling her that she can't get too close to you. nat nods understandingly, crouching down a distance from you.

"hey," she spoke softly. "i promise you that we're not here to hurt you." you kept your face hidden from her, still hugging your legs tightly. nat sighs before sitting down.

"here, let's introduce ourselves. i'm nat and this right here is clint." you hear her speak and when you slowly lifted up your head, you saw the both of them sitting down in front of you, seeming to have made themselves at home in your pathetic cell. "what's your name?"

name? you had never been able to use your name before. you always kept your own name deep in your heart despite no one ever using it, afraid you would forget it if you stopped thinking of it. the only name they ever called you here was 'number five'.

"y/n," you whispered, still doubtful about these people's intentions. you almost burst out crying when you said your name out loud. that was the first time you introduced yourself with your actual name and not the number you were given ever since you were captured.

nat must have noticed this because she immediately spoke up, trying to distract you from your consuming thoughts. "y/n...that's a pretty name for a pretty girl like you. how old are you, y/n?" she asks again.

you contemplated once more but decided it was fine. you knew you were probably going to regret trusting these two strangers but what could be worse than what HYDRA has been doing to you for years?

"13," you muttered, looking down at your lap. you were now timidly seated cross-legged, playing with the tattered hem of your shorts. you heard a small gasp from one of them and looked up to see clint with his jaw dropped.

the two adults were both thinking of the same thing. how could you be 13? you were so small and sickly-looking, they didn't even think you were older than ten, let alone an early teen.

"i know you're scared and you have all the reasons in the world to be, but i promise you, we're here to help. we'll get you out of here, only if you trust us. will you trust us?" nat says. your mind was conflicted. you were either going to finally get out of this hellhole or you were going to be taken somewhere even worse than here. but could anywhere really be worse than here?

you decided to take a leap of faith and trust these two strangers. that decision had to have been the best decision you've ever made in your life.

you were now 18, an official avenger and you had the most amazing family you could've ever asked for. they were a bit on the crazier side but could you really have a normal family when said family consisted of superheroes? but you weren't complaining. you loved these people.

they were the ones who took care of you when you thought you had no one. having been a HYDRA experiment, you had abilities the normal human didn't. said ability being shapeshifting and healing. that's why you became an avenger. your shapeshifting ability was essential during missions where you had to sneak in and you being able to heal others was crucial when medic wasn't able to be there on time.

you pretty much came along to every mission despite the adults saying you don't have to. you knew they were only doing that to protect you from dangers of all those missions but how could you not when you had such abilities? they'd be much better with you helping.

that was why you were here, in bulgaria, fighting alongside the team. well, just steve, nat, clint, bucky and tony.

justin hammer had managed to get his hands on a type of out-of-this-planet weapon that tony was also trying to retrieve, and he had big plans with it. hence why the avengers had to come where hammer had wrecked havoc in; sofia, bulgaria. he had upgraded his robots with the tech used for the stolen weapon.

with evil robots attacking the whole city, it felt like you were living the story that wanda told you of what happened in sokovia before you met the avengers.

an hour passed before all of the robots had finally been taken down and you all knew you had to get to hammer before he activates more robots to distract you guys and uses the weapon for bad things.

"tony, have you located hammer?" steve's voice sounded in your ear through the comms. you had just finished healing the nasty gash on clint's side, nat's cut on her forehead and the bruises all over bucky. you were feeling significantly weaker now, from the amount of healing you did. you stumbled slightly when you walked and bucky immediately held onto your arm. "doll, are you okay?"

"i'm fine, buck. nothing i haven't dealt with before," you told him, gently removing his grip on your arm, walking back to the quinjet.

-

"no, absolutely not. we are not sending y/n right into a death trap. she's not even strong enough right now, she just finished healing us."

you were all back at the compound now and planning a second attack on justin hammer.

"it's not a death trap, buck. and i know you're worried but she's the only choice we got. y/n, all you gotta do is sneak in as one of his henchmen and provide entrance for us. once we get in, we'll take all his guards down and get that weapon from hammer and we won't have to worry about his world domination plans anymore. it'll be over as soon as it starts and she'll be back safe with us. sound good, y/n/n?"

"yeah, sure." you agreed, already having a person in mind that you were going to change yourself to.

-

the plan had gone just as steve wanted and they managed to raid justin hammer's building, tony stealing the very item that could've aided in the massacre of millions. justin and his henchmen managed to escape the building before the avengers could catch them.

"well, that was anticlimactic," tony scoffs, already making his way to the quinjet. "but good job, y/n. you saved the day once again."

he expected to hear a laugh from you, like you usually did, being the only one who ever responds to him after missions. but instead he was met with silence. "kid?" still no answer.

"y/n, where are you?" steve panicked, finally realising that you were the only one who hasn't responded in a hot minute. "y/n/n, this isn't funny." he breathed out.

"she's...she's gone."

-

"well, well, well," a voice spoke right as you woke up from your slumber. you squinted, noticing that you were in some sort of dark room with only one light bulb right above you. "what do we have here?"

a figure walks right in the light and you could barely make out justin hammer's ugly face with how dizzy you felt. "if it isn't the little freak." he states condescendingly, smirking down at your helpless position, both wrists and ankles cuffed onto the metal chair you were sat on. you struggled against the restraints, trying to get free but to no avail.

your breathing quickened, your current vulnerable state reminding you of your later years in HYDRA. they had started off experimenting on you on a metal gurney but as you grew older, you realised that what they were doing to you was bad so you started fighting back. that ended you up on a metal restraint chair instead of the gurney, strapped to the chair with cuffs on your wrists and ankles.

this felt like deja vu. the same panic you felt, the same breathing difficulties, the same amount of effort put into trying to get out of the restraints. "you should know, princess, that that doesn't work." hammer chuckled, a fake pout on his lips as he crouched in front of you, a rough hand on your cheek. you instinctively jerked away from his touch, to which he paid no mind to because he had expected that. he then grabbed your chin harshly, turning your head up towards him. you glared at him.

"you think i didn't know what you did? snuck in as one of my men using your freaky powers? not to mention useless. imagine having powers but not being able to use them to even escape from mere humans," he laughs in your face, harshly letting go of your chin, throwing your head backwards. "you tell me where stark planned to bring the weapon and i'll let you pretty little thing go."

"no."

before you could even comprehend, his fist came flying at your face and your head dropped to the side at the impact. your left cheekbone was throbbing and you could already tell you were gonna have a black eye. despite the pain, it wasn't something you weren't used to. you were an avenger, after all. getting decked in the face was practically in the contract.

he grabbed your chin once again, pulling your head upwards to face him. "you're gonna tell me where it is or i'm gonna make you regret it."

you looked up at him with a bored look. he punched you again. and again. and again. until you could taste the blood on your tongue. "think you wanna tell me now, sweetheart?"

"never. not to someone like you."

the man seemed to get a kick out of beating you up because he punched you again in the face. your whole face was pretty much numb now and the metallic taste in your mouth intensified. you smirked at the man before you, chuckling darkly.

"sure, beat up the helpless girl. that's the only way you can beat me, right? when i'm all tied up? what a man,"

his hand was around your throat within a second and he forced you to look him in the eyes again. "sweetheart, you're a girl. tied or not, you're still weak. not even with that useless power of yours."

taking advantage of how close his face was to yours, you gathered as much bloody saliva in your mouth before spitting it in his face.

it was very much the wrong thing to do because after he wiped off his face, he left the room and two men came in, various tools in hand for their fun with you.

-

"stark! my buddy! how's it going?" justin hammer's face appeared on the screen in the conference room, where the avengers were having a meeting about your possible whereabouts.

"where is she?!" wanda growled, standing up abruptly.

"what ever do you mean?" hammer smirked, feigning innocence. "you know what we mean. where is she?" steve spoke authoritatively, trying to control his anger at the sight of the man's face.

"i'll tell you where your thing is if you tell me where my thing is." he smiled wickedly. this caused wanda to get angrier. "y/n is not a thing! and the weapon was never yours in the first place!" vision held onto her to calm her down and it worked because she sat back down, though still glaring at the screen.

"oh she's not a thing? seems like it to me, though." he smirked and the team frowned, not understanding what he meant until they heard screams and justin's smirk widening at the sound. what a sick bastard. "what are you doing to her?!" bucky screamed, knocking his chair back as he stood up.

"i don't know, you tell me." he chuckles, and the screen changes to the live footage of you in the restraint chair with the two men in the room.

you were no longer fighting back now, just sat limply with your head dropped to the side. the first hour with them, you had been fighting back like you did with justin, despite the restraints, but now entering the second hour, you were too exhausted for anything.

your left eye had been swollen shut, you could barely breathe through your nose, your cheeks were throbbing like hell and your bottom lip was busted. your head was the only thing that moved freely when hit so the men seemed to find satisfaction the most when they punched you in the face. though that didn't stop them from inflicting pain on other parts of you.

"let her go, she's just a kid!" sam exclaimed, his grip on the edge of the table tightening to control his anger. peter and wanda were crying looking at the awful state you were in, clint, tony and bruce were silent in shock, steve and bucky were getting increasingly angry as the abuse continued.

"are you going to tell us where stark is keeping the weapon or have you not gotten enough?" one of the two men was heard asking, pulling your hair back to make you look up at him. you look at with your half-opened right eye, breathing heavily. "my answer's never gonna change no matter how many times you ask."

he scoffs, stepping back before the other man swings a bat right at your stomach. the air was immediately knocked out of your lung. the men laughed as you coughed up blood profusely. this caused wanda to get more hysterical.

"well, looks like she wants more. i'll call back when she's had enough. toodles," he waves his fingers at the camera with a sinister smirk before abruptly ending the call.

the room went silent after the call, save for bucky and sam breathing heavily from the anger they felt. bucky then turned to steve, pain could be seen on his face. "you said she would be safe."

"i–i'm sorry, buck. i didn't know he was gonna take her with him." steve was still frozen in shock, the image of you on the chair now permanently ingrained in his brain. in everyone's brains actually.

"guys, gear up, he's in colorado."

all heads turned towards natasha and she looked back at them with a 'what?' expression. "you were tracking him down the whole time?"

"um, duh? now come on, gotta save our girl."

-

you awoke to a stinging sensation on your inner forearm. after your bloody coughing fit, they proceeded to beat you up again and you were knocked out then. now you were slowly regaining consciousness but you were starting to prefer being passed out. your whole body was in pain and the fact that you couldn't even move made it even worse.

"oh, lookie here. sleeping beauty is up." you were met once again with justin hammer's ugly face. he was sitting on a chair perpendicular to your left side. you couldn't wait to get out of here so you didn't have to keep seeing his face every time you woke up. your inner forearm was stinging even more now so you looked down at it. you gasped at the sight.

"how'd you like my artwork?" he chuckled at your reaction. there on your arm, obviously carved out with the bloody knife that the asshole was so proudly holding on to, was 'FREAK'. carved out big and bold. on your skin. "pretty fitting, eh? freak? because, you know, that's what you are."

the blood was seeping out through the cuts and it stung even more now that it had been exposed to the air. the asshole moved his chair to your other side. "what should i write on this arm?" he feigns a thinking expression, looking up thoughtfully with his thumb and pointer finger on his chin.

"please, i–i don't know where tony put it. i really don't." you cried, tears now flowing freely down your face without a shame.

he looks at you with amusement. "what is this? are you...are you giving up already? can't take anymore?" he smirks and you sigh, closing your eyes. you just awoke but you were exhausted. so, so exhausted.

he takes out his phone, the smirk now permanent on his ugly face. "stark! kid's finally had enough. wanna tell me where the weapon is now or do you want to find her body at the bottom of the ocean?"

you couldn't even be bothered to react to his statement. the pain all finally registered and you were tired. tired and in excruciating pain.

"kinda busy right now, can you call back later?" you could hear tony's voice sound from justin's phone and the man beside you laughed. "i see you don't care for the girl. what could possibly be more important than saving her?"

"i don't know, you tell me." a voice said from behind you two and before you knew it, hammer was knocked off the chair he was on. you weakly turned your head just in time to see a metal arm force hammer up onto his feet before wrapping around his neck. "don't you fucking touch her again."

"y/n!" you heard wanda's voice as she entered the room with peter. more tears flowed down your face at the sight of them, stinging when they rolled past the cuts on your face but that didn't matter. your family was finally here to save you.

you saw the red mist of wanda's powers surround your cuffs before they clicked open. "oh, bubs, i'm so sorry." she cried, both hands hovering around your face, hesitating to touch you in fear of hurting you. her eyes fell onto the words carved out onto your skin and her mouth fell open before covering it with her hand. "i'm so sorry we couldn't get to you sooner." peter's voice cracked and you could tell he was emotional.

"it's okay," you told them, giving them a small smile, the biggest one you could give in your current state.

tony, sam and steve entered the room to see bucky relentlessly beating up your captor and wanda and peter standing by you as you cried.

"cupcake, we're here now. don't cry, you're safe now." tony came closer and despite knowing that you were because your family was finally here, you couldn't help but let out all the pent up emotions you've kept throughout your time of captivity.

sam had a go at justin once bucky was done and steve had to physically pry them both off of the sick bastard so that nat could cuff him and bring him back to the jet.

"y/n/n, i'm so sorry. if i hadn't–"

"it's okay, stevie." you cut him off. truthfully, you only did so because you knew he was going to giving a long-winded explanation justifying his actions and your headache couldn't bear to hear lengthy sentences. but you also didn't think it was in any way his fault so he didn't deserve to be beating himself up for this. shit happens, anyway.

"let's get you out of here, doll." bucky says, cringing when he sees the blood on the floor of your chair, as well as on your clothes. he quickly reaches to lift you off the chair but stops when you let out an ear-piercing scream of pain. "doll, i'm so sorry! did i hurt you?!" bucky questions in panic.

"y–you didn't, they did. it...it hurts everywhere," you cried, feeling hopeless that you couldn't even bear being carried by someone, let alone get up by yourself. their hearts broke when you said that. you never really cried much in front of them and you were known to withstand pain well because of how much shit HYDRA put you in as well as your powers being healing, meaning you had a higher pain tolerance than most people.

"it's okay, bubs. i got you. let's get you home, alright?" wanda's calming voice broke you out of your breakdown and red mist surrounded your whole body, wanda moving you with her powers. you were thankful of that because it didn't cause any more pain to your body.

maybe hammer was right. maybe you are just a freak with useless powers. wanda floated you into the jet and she set you down on the bed. "y/n, oh my god!" clint cried out once he sees you. you looked much worse than you did on hammer's camera footage during the call an hour ago. "kid, i'm so sorry."

"clint, take the wheel. bruce doesn't have all the resources needed. she needs to be treated ASAP." nat tells her best friend and he nods, taking the wheel and immediately taking off once everyone had boarded.

you were laid on the bed, right eye slightly open as bruce examined you. exhaustion hit you like a truck and before you knew it, you blacked out.

-

"how is she, doc?"

"pretty banged up but y/n, as i already knew, is a strong girl. lots of internal bleeding, broken bones, bruises and scars but she'll be fine. you can check her file later if you want," doctor cho tells tony outside of your room. "it's fine, can we see her?" he asks on behalf of the whole team standing behind him.

"yeah, of course! she woke up five minutes ago. i'll be off now, call me or my team if you need anything." she bids goodbye and left the group of superheroes.

steve slowly opens the door and there you were in bed, staring up at the ceiling. "hey, y/n/n," he greets sheepishly, feeling as though he had interrupted your alone time of blankly staring at the ceiling. the team trailed in behind him and soon your bed was surrounded by the avengers.

"hi, cupcake."

you looked away from the ceiling and turned your head towards tony. "oh, hey tones." you smile as sam helps you sit up while the rest sat on chairs all around you. "how you feeling, bub?" nat asks, eyes flickering down to the bold scarring of letters on your forearm.

"as okay as i can be." you answered truthfully, pressing your inner forearm closer to your body so the team doesn't see the letters carved onto your skin. you already know what you are, you didn't need the rest thinking so too.

"you're not a freak, bubs."

you look up at wanda. "i'm sorry, i didn't mean to read your mind. but they were awfully loud. you're not a freak, y/n. and you're not useless too. that bastard may have carved out that word onto your skin but the scar will fade. it's not permanent. you know why? because that's not what you are." she tells you, taking off her jacket to wrap it around you because you felt self conscious of the scars all over your arms where the team could see.

"yeah, doll. you're an amazing person and your powers help us so much. i mean, you saved millions just helping us get the weapon back from justin hammer. if you hadn't, well, who knows what could've been happening right now?" he places a gentle hand at the side of your head, stroking your hair.

"yeah and who heals us when we get really hurt during missions, huh? i mean, if you hadn't healed that stab wound i got during that mission in new mexico, i probably wouldn't even be here at this moment." clint tells you and you roll your eyes at him. "you're exaggerating."

"i am not!" he laughed and you playfully rolled your eyes once again.

"y/n/n, i'm really sorry for—"

"i don't wanna hear it, stevie."

"but–"

"no. it's not your fault. shit happens." you brush him off. "lang–"

"you say language to me, i'll blame this shit on you even when it's not your fault. try me, rogers." you glare at the blond super soldier. he raises his arms in surrender, leaning back on his chair as the team laughs.

the team continue to entertain you and you couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of you. these were the people who would drop anything for you and were willing to dropkick any asshole in the face for hurting you. justin hammer never had a chance against your family to begin with.

taglist <3

@amourtentiaa @rqmanoff @abitofeverythinggg

[soyouthinkucanwrite]

The money thing (part 1/2) - Daniel Ricciardo

It's always the little things, isn't it? The smallest stupidest things make almost no difference and then make all the difference in the world. They make everything special, but they also have the power to tear everything appart.

You and Daniel fight about money for the thousand time and he's had enough of it.

Warnings: super angst, but with a happy ending :)

Guys, this turned out WAY BIGGER than I expected, so I'm just gonna do a part 2, okay? Okay, thanks for understanding!

Song that inspired me: A list by HVOB

You and Daniel had been dating for a couple months now, having met through a common friend and hitting off almost instantly. You lived in Amsterdam and he, well he lived all over the world really, but his "time off" (meaning not racing) was spent between Monaco and London (for work), and Amsterdam now too, of course.

The changes were small and subtle at the beginning, like your weekends being spent traveling to meet him wherever in the world he was and consequently spending almost all your savings on plane tickets. You never complained to him (you planned on spending the money traveling anyway, so you didn't see the point), but didn't accept when he offered to buy your tickets, either. There's been some awkwardness around the subject but it usually died on its own.

*beginning of flashback*

"You’d have gotten here in time if you'd gotten the early flight like I told you" you remembered him saying that time you got in the paddock after the qualifying session had begun and couldn’t kiss him good luck.

"Baby, I told you. It was crazy expensive! Absurd even!"

"(y/n) for god's sake! What are we saving money for? I told you, you have my credit card number, I've offered to get you one, this is ridiculous, I can't believe I literally earn millions and my girlfriend wasn't there with me because the ticket was too expensive! I'll fucking fly you private if I have to!" he was almost yelling in his driver's room. You could only stare from the corner.

He took a deep breath running his hands through his hair. "Sorry. It's just... it was crap out there. I needed you" you grimaced at his words.

"Sorry. I really am..." you tried to approach him. "I'm here now?" you touched his arm. "It can't have been that bad, you're still on the top 10 and we both know what you can do from the 8th car..." you smiled at him.

*end of flashback*

He started to spend much more of his time off with you at your place, so you decided to get a place by yourself (having a roommate was great for company and splitting the rent, but having a roommate there while you guys just wanted some much-needed privacy was not working). Then there were more traveling to meet him, furniture for the new place, clothing for all the events (GPs or not), uber rides here and there... all of that without mentioning that you weren't being able to get the freelance jobs you used to get to make some extra money, so yeah, to say things were tight was an understatement. You tried to do all your shopping alone, so he wouldn't offer and you wouldn't refuse or be awkward about it, but Daniel seem to be glued to you whenever you were in the same city (not that you’re complaining).

He started to spend much more of his time off with you at your place, so you decided to get a place by yourself (having a roommate was great for company and splitting the rent, but having a roommate there while you guys just wanted some much-needed privacy was not working). Then there were more traveling to meet him, furniture for the new place, clothing for all the events (GPs or not), uber rides here and there... all of that without mentioning that you weren't being able to get the freelance jobs you used to get to make some extra money, so yeah, to say things were tight was an understatement. You tried to do all your shopping alone, so he wouldn't offer and you wouldn't refuse or be awkward about it, but Daniel seem to be glued to you whenever you were in the same city (not that you’re complaining).

The thing is, you always had trouble dealing with money. Sure, you liked to pay for your own stuff so as to not owe anything to anyone (especially boys), but it was so much deeper than that. Ever since a kid, you hated asking for money from your parents, and sometimes even the thought of buying stuff that was a bit more expensive made you sick. You couldn't explain why, you just felt guilty having so much and knowing that most people have never even seen that amount. It's not that you didn't want to spend it and save for the sake of it, you just didn't handle the idea of money very well. Needless to say, dating a millionnaire was bound to cause trouble in the relationship for you.

You were currently at his place in Monaco. It was the summer break and you had decided to spend some days just chilling at home, just the two of you - which you were glad since going out means hair, makeup, clothes, accessories, shoes... and, let's be honest, the kind of places he usually took you is not the kind of places you just throw something together last minute (the Instagram models and other driver's girlfriends looking you up and down were enough to make you think about spending money you did not have to hire a stylist or something like that). The whole situation was really stressing you out and you knew you would have to be honest with him eventually, instead of only dodging the subject and refusing most of his offers to pay. You tried to. You kind of tried. You suggested staying at home, in bed, most of the time, and he gladly agreed, but that strategy wasn't gonna work forever. You had to be honest with him. But at the same time, you knew what he was going to say and do, and the thought of him spending money on you, even if just by handling the restaurant bill, wasn't something you were much more comfortable with. Besides, it was only a matter of time before the "gold-digger" term starts to fly around in the small world that was the F1's.

You were laying on his couch, the Olympics playing on the TV but you were too busy overthinking the money thing to pay attention. Daniel was laying with his head on your lap, absently caressing your thigh and watching the TV. His phone went off and he moved to pick it up.

"Hello?" you watched as he answered the phone. "Hey mate, how's it going? Uh nothing, we're just chilling at home. Getting some rest... Yeah, I'm getting rested, you dirty-minded son of a bitch" you rolled your eyes while he laughed out loud on the line with someone. "Yeah, I know... the 19th is it? No, it's fine. Yeah, yeah. I'll be there. Alright, mate. Thanks for calling. Have a good one! Bye!" he hanged up and leaned in to peck you on the lips.

"Good news?" you asked him.

"Not really. Just wanted to kiss you" he shrugged, smiling. You smiled back and hugged him, pulling him in for another kiss. He was always so caring with you, always finding an excuse to kiss or touch you. You knew some people didn't like it, but you loved it. Physical touch was definitely one of your love languages.

"What's happening on the 19th then?" you asked him once you guys set apart from the kiss.

"Gotta be in London. Gonna run some testings and other boring race stuff..."

"Hum..." you hummed in understanding.

"You know what would make it less boring though?" he asked and you just looked at him, you already knew what he was going to ask you and it wasn't that you didn't want to spend every minute of the day with him, but you simply couldn't afford any more traveling, especially not in such short notice. "If you came with me. Huh? What do you say? A week in the Queen's land? Then we can fly together to Spa and after the race, I can go with you to Amsterdam. The next one it's the Dutch GP anyway, I'll just get there sooner" he laughed. It was crushing you, the man of your dreams was literally beaming at making plans with you, talking about spending the next few weeks glued together and you couldn't say yes.

"Dan, I have to work" you smiled sadly.

"Can't you work from distance? Or, I don't know, I mean... I know it's tiring, but you could come to London and fly home a bit early, then just meet me in Belgium?" great, his solution includes even more flying. And the thing is, you really didn't mind the flying. You always slept during the whole thing anyway, so you never got tired and the jetlag was minimal. You could work from distance, sure. Your boss wouldn't mind, as long as you got there eventually to check in on everything. But the whole logistics were just too expensive. There was no way you could afford it.

"I... sorry, I don't think I can" you said sadly and watched as his face dropped.

"That's fine, baby. I get it. I'm asking too much, all this traveling... don't worry about it" he tried to mask his emotions but you knew better. He knew you could in fact work from distance, so he was probably thinking the reason you couldn't do it was because you didn't want to.

He got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. Meanwhile, you couldn't help but bury your face in your palms. This was so frustrating!

"You wanna go for a run or something? Maybe get something to eat?" he called from the kitchen, already moving on from the subject. You knew this whole thing was only gonna keep build up till he got tired of your excuses or you blowing up, probably the former, but you just keep going.

"Yeah, sure" you answered, getting up from the couch.

You and Daniel were both very active so going for a run, hiking, riding bikes, or whatever in the middle of the day was really routine for you. The Monaco summer weather was as beautiful as always and the sun was shining bright. You enjoyed the rest of your afternoon racing each other, kissing in the harbor, and just taking in the views, spending quality time together. Money wasn't even a thing in your bubble for a while.

"I'm getting hungry" he said on the way back home.

"Me too, and I'm super hot. I could go for a juice or something right now" you were all sweaty from the running, but you didn't care, he was too.

"You're always hot baby, I don't think juice gonna help with that" he grinned at you and you just rolled your eyes at him.

You passed by one of his favorite spots for food, nearby his place and he suggested getting some take-out, to which you agreed.

"Green juice, and a chicken wrap?" you tried to decide while the both of you waited in line.

"I'll never understand how you drink that"

"I've seen you drink that too, it's actually very refreshing"

"Because I'm forced to, I'm a high-performance athlete baby. But I'm on a break, so I'll have a coke, thank you very much" you laughed at him. He was holding your hand and tried to kiss you, wrapping his arm around you, you didn't dodge his kiss, you would never, but still laughed at the fact he wanted to kiss the sweaty mess you were right now.

"I'm gross, only you" you laughed.

"That's my baby, with no makeup she a ten" he rapped shrugging and grinning.

"Alright Lil Wayne, I know that one, don't even finish the verse" you laughed at him, making him laugh out loud, getting everyone's in the restaurant's attention.

"It's true, though"

"Sure..." You just shook your head smiling. Then you heard someone call his name.

"Hey! Daniel!" you both turned around to see Charles and Charlotte sitting in a corner, him waving at you two. You had met Charles a couple of times before but never spoke too much to him. They seemed to be leaving anyway, so they walked towards you guys, instead of towards the door.

"Hey mate, how's it going?" Daniel greeted him with a handshake. "Hey, Charlotte! You know (y/n) yet?"

"Hi! I don't think so, hi! How are you?" she greeted you smiling.

"Hi! Nice to meet you. Hi, Charles!" you said.

"Hey, (y/n). You're keeping him in line during the break? Char won't let me cheat my diet either" he laughed.

"Oh, that ship has sailed long ago! Daniel will just roll into the paddock if it's up to him" you laughed back.

"Hey! I think I've earned the right to some extra calories, we've been working out extra hard lately" Daniel said waving his eyebrows suggestively, making Charlotte giggle, Charles rolls his eyes and you go even redder than you were from the actual workout, while he just laughed out loud.

"I don't even want to know" Charles said. "Always great running into you mate" he was getting ready to say goodbye.

"Are we seeing you guys tomorrow?" Charlotte asked you.

"Tomorrow?" you asked her.

"Stefano's birthday" she said like it was obvious. Stefano Domenicali was the President and CEO of Formula 1, but you didn't know that yet - still, her tone made it seems like it was someone Daniel knew, so you just looked at him. He just rubbed his neck, looking a little embarrassed. "Oh, wait. Please tell me I didn't just said something I shouldn't" she looked at Charles.

"No, no. He invited me. Us, actually" Daniel reassured her. "I don't think we're going though, forgot to mention to you" he said looking at you.

"Uh mate, I wouldn't skip that if I were you. He didn't even invite all the drivers I heard" Charles said. "Maybe just stop by to say hello?"

"Stop by... a yacht... at the sea?" Charlotte said grinning at him. Daniel looked at you.

"You feel like going? It should be fun" he asked you.

"Sounds fancy... I mean, I don't mind if you go" you said.

"Common... I’m not going alone" he nudged you.

"I don't even have anything to wear, Dan" you told him.

"Oh! We can go shopping together!" Charlotte said and you had almost forgotten they were still there.

"Perfect!" Daniel answered for you. You could only imagine the types of stores she shopped.

"Tomorrow morning, then? Daniel can text your address to Charles for me? I'll pick you up!" she was being really nice about it.

"I thought you wanted to go today?" Charles said.

"That's when I thought I would have to go shopping with you, so I could use the extra time since you're the worst shopping partner ever!" she laughed at him.

"Burn!" Daniel laughed.

"His fashion taste is not the most reliable, let's face it" she laughed and kissed his cheek. "It's a date then (y/n)?" she looked expectantly at you. You didn't want to let her down, it was so hard to make friends with the girlfriends of other drivers, they were usually so... not nice. You could always just help her and find something to wear in your own stuff later.

"Yeah, sure! See you tomorrow, at 10?" you said simply.

"Perfect!" she beamed.

>>> end of part 1 <<<

[bucksfucks]

           amorosa // steve rogers

           chapter three: midnight

    chapter one // chapter two // chapter three

                    chapter four // chapter five

               ─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

                             main masterlist

summary || you wake up alone, a single note in the kitchen detailing where steve has gone. a few hours later you’re in his lavish office where he hands you a contract telling you to look over it before he takes you out to dinner. what you don’t realize is that dinner soon turns to something a little more risqué.

pairing || sugar daddy!steve x reader

word count || 2,908 words

warnings || financial struggles, sugar daddy dynamics, undefined age gap, public washroom sex, unprotected sex, heavy daddy kink, mocking, degradation, name calling, orgasm denial, blowjobs, praise kink, dirty talk — 18+ ONLY//MINORS DNI

      When you awoke the next morning you found yourself alone in your bed. The sheets were cold, though his side still smelt like Steve. You groaned as you stretched your arms above your head and your legs as far down as you could. 

     You were sore.

    Sore in the best possible way as butterflies flocked to your belly as you thought about how Steve was perfectly situated between your thighs or the way his cock filled you full. 

    You finally got the strength to get out of bed, legs slightly shaky as you grabbed your phone only to find it dead. It was plugged in and forgotten soon after as you started on a pot of coffee. 

    Your eyes caught sight of a note neatly placed on your small kitchen table, coming closer to inspect the neat writing over it. 

    Had to run to work, last night was everything and more. Give me a call when you see this. xx 

    Steve (678-136-7092)

    You smiled, as old-fashioned as a note might be, it made you feel warm inside as you impatiently waited for your phone to charge. It was only ten in the morning, you were sure he could wait just a little longer. 

    Your peace was soon disturbed by loud, incessant knocking at your front door that startled you, making you jump. You barely had time to set the piece of paper down before an envelope slipped under your door. 

    Grabbing it and quickly tearing it open you couldn't believe your eyes. 

    An eviction notice? 

    You groaned, rolling your eyes in disbelief as you shot daggers at your front door where your landlord was surely standing not even minutes ago. Still, you shook your head, tossing the notice onto your table before grabbing Steve's note and hoping your phone had enough juice to turn on. 

    Your day seemed to be turning up as it flashed on, a small victory as you quickly punched in Steve's number, turning speakerphone on as you tapped your foot waiting for him to pick up. 

    "Was startin' to think I scared you off after last night," Steve chuckled as he picked up the phone on the third ring. You playfully rolled your eyes, falling back against your bed. 

    "Scared me off? If anything you'll have trouble getting rid of me." You chid back as you heard Steve laugh followed by a click, probably an office door closing. 

    "Princess I won't be gettin' rid of you anytime soon." He said earnestly as you bit your lip trying to conceal your smile. You felt giddy, like a high schooler talking to their crush late on a Friday night. 

    "Do you think you can come down to my office this afternoon? I think we should discuss some rules." He said seriously, a twinge of professionalism coming through as your stomach flipped with nerves. 

    "Uhm yeah, sure, does one o'clock work?" You asked, sitting up to take a look at the time on the wall clock mounted right across from your bed. 

    "That's great, I'll send over a town car. See you soon, Princess." Steve said and you could hear the smirk in his voice as you stood up, feeling more confident in yourself. 

    "I'll see you later, Daddy." You nearly purred as he groaned lowly on the other end of the line, "oh I can't wait." And with that you were getting ready for your day. 

~

    Stark Towers was an impressive, daunting looking building as you stepped out of the town car Steve had sent over. The driver told you to just go to the front desk, tell them your name, and the rest would be taken care of. 

    You did just that, the petite woman behind the desk giving you a warm smile as she led you through a set of doors where you both got into a polished elevator. She hit the number 92 on the panel before you began your swift ascent. 

    The doors opened to white marble tiling, dark blue accents, and crystal clean statutes as she led you to a large set of where the name Steve Rogers, VP read in neat writing. She knocked twice before the doors were opened. 

    Steve had a hard look on his face that softened immediately as he caught sight of you. 

    "Thank you Belinda, can you prepare an all access card for her please?" He asked as she nodded her head, disappearing back into the elevator as Steve led you inside of his office. 

    He embraced you, wrapping his arms around your waist and placed a sweet kiss to your lips. 

    "I haven't stopped thinking of you," he mumbled, smiling as you played with the short hairs at the nape of his neck. He hummed, feeling the vibrations against your own chest as he leaned his forehead against yours. 

    "But as much as I'd love to take you right here, over my desk and in front of the windows, we have to set some rules." You couldn't help but whimper at his words, your arousal growing as he took a step away. 

    "Sit," it was a gentle command, and you did as you were told, taking a seat in one of the two plush chairs that were positioned right in front of his large oak desk. He leaned against the front of the desk, crossing his arms over his chest as he licked his bottom lip. 

    "I'm a man of business as you know, so," he grabbed something behind him, "there is a short contract." 

    You narrowed your eyes at the paper, extending your arm wordlessly as he gave it over to you. You skimmed over the first few paragraphs, noting how there were four pages total before you glanced at where he had already placed his signature. 

    "You signed already?" You asked, a little puzzled as he chuckled, "this is something I'm confident in." Steve shrugged, pushing himself off the desk and placing both of his hands on either side of your chair. 

    "Take your time, I don't need an answer right away." He says sweetly, his body towering over yours and the only thing you can think of is how much bigger he felt as he was on top of you last night. 

    You nodded your head slowly, swallowing thickly as he straightened his posture. He was so tall and broad and you had to stop thinking of him like that. At least for right now. 

    "I'll take a look at it tonight," you replied as he smiled, "good girl." 

    The praise sent another shiver down your spine as you watched him lick his bottom lip, he knew what he was doing to you, was this a test? 

    "Let's have dinner tomorrow, same time, different place? You can ask any questions you have pertaining to the contract, how's that sound?" You nodded your head again as Steve spoke. 

    "That sounds good." You told him with a smile as he extended his hand for you to take, he helped you up before his arms were around your waist again, lips against yours before his hands travelled down to your ass. 

    "Good girl, maybe this time you can skip the panties?" He purrs against your neck, his lips already nipping at your exposed collarbones as you feel him stiffen against your hip. You gasp, nodding your head, "o-okay." 

    "Okay who?" Steve eggs, "o-okay, Daddy," you whisper, biting your lip as he slowly rocks your hips against his. 

    You're just able to get your hand on the outline of his cock as his intercom buzzes, "Mr. Rogers, your one-thirty is here, should I send him in?" A woman's voice interrupts the two of you as Steve groans, rolling his eyes. 

    He hits a button on his desk harshly, "give me five minutes." 

    You reluctantly step away from him, taking in the bulge in his pants, wet lips, and slightly mused hair. 

    "I'm sorry Princess, Daddy's gotta work," he winked, readjusting himself as you gave him a small pout. He cooed at you, pressing a kiss to your forehead, "don't pout, if you're good maybe you'll get a surprise or two tonight." Steve promises as your eyes light up at his words.  

    "Now be a good girl, okay?" He says, giving your bum a pinch as he leads your out of his office, pressing the button on his elevator. 

    "Stop at the front desk on your way out and pick up your access key, okay? And text me when you get home, the car's out front for you." Steve says as you nod, clutching the contract tightly in your hands. 

    He presses a chaste kiss to your cheek before the elevator doors close leaving you alone to your thoughts. 

~

    You sat in your dimly illuminated kitchen, Netflix playing softly in the background as a cooling cup of tea was at your side. The contract was in front of you as you tapped your pen against it. 

    Clause 1.0: You will attend all events asked by Steve Rogers assuming he gives you enough time in advance. 

    That seemed fair, not like you were about to turn down anymore fancy dinners or a trip to the Alps. 

    Clause 2.0: In return, Steve Rogers will take care of and pay all bills. Any extra cash needed will be provided. 

    2.1: A credit card with a limit will be available at any time

    You stared at the words, it almost seemed too good to be true. You'd struggled with money nearly all your life and for Steve to just take all those troubles away? 

    Clause 3.0: This is a monogamous, exclusive relationship where no third party shall be involved unless each party involved agrees. 

    No problem there. 

    Clause 4.0: Transportation and housing will be provided through Steve Rogers. 

    As your eyes scanned through each clause you felt yourself getting antsy, wanting to see Steve again as you chewed on your lip. 

    You got to the final clause, skimming it over. 

    Clause 10.0: You are to refer to Steve Rogers as Daddy unless specified otherwise. 

    Your stomach flipped, thighs burning as you longed to feel the weight of his cock between your legs. You wanted to sign the damn thing right then and there, but you capped the pen, sliding the contract up the table before hopping into the shower. 

    Tomorrow would be interesting. 

~

    Steve had chosen an equally fancy restaurant, you expected nothing less as you walked through the glass doors, led to the table where Steve was waiting for you, phone to his ear as he caught sight of you. 

    You were wearing the only form fitting dress you owned, but it clung to you like a second skin and you could see his eyes darken as he cut whoever was on the phone by hanging up on them without a second thought. 

    "Christ, Princess," he groaned in your ear as he enveloped you, "you tryin' to give me a heart attack?" He smirked, taking your head and letting you spin around as you giggled. 

    "Only the best for you, Daddy." You purred, watching as his jaw clenched. You slid into the seat, Steve climbing in beside you in the booth before his hand was instinctively on your thigh. 

    Two menus are placed in front of you, the waiter pouring two glasses of water as you skim through the pages. 

    "I have something for you," you whisper, grabbing the folded contract out of your purse, handing it to Steve as he looks at you darkly. 

    He looks through it, noting the signature as he shoves it into his blazer pocket. 

    "It's all official now, Princess," he purrs, tilting your chin upwards with his index finger so you're looking up at him. You can feel the heat coming off of his body, the warmth of his finger under your chin causes you to shiver as his lips hover over yours, "meet me in the bathrooms in three minutes." 

    With that, Steve slipped out of the booth and gave you one last glance over his shoulder before disappearing from sight. Your heart was racing, nearly beating out of your chest as you tapped your fingers on the table before deciding fuck it and slinking away to the bathroom. 

    Steve was leaning against the wall, foot against the wall as he cocked his head to the side. 

    "There's my best girl," he said, extending his hand before pushing you both through the threshold of the toilets. 

    The door was locked seconds later, Steve whipping around to pin you against the sinks. 

    "Princess do you have any idea how hard it's been to keep my mind off of you? When I've had you writhing under me, my cock deep inside of you as I fucked you senseless?" His words were a low growl in your ear as you gasped. 

    "Daddy, fuck, I-I need you." You mewled, pouting and nearly begging him up you looked up at him through your lashes. 

    "Love hearin' you beg for my cock, Princess." He growls, hand snaking behind your neck as he kisses you roughly. It's teeth and tongue as he nips at your lower lip, tugging it before he's shoving his thick thigh between your legs. 

    You gasp at the contact, his hard flesh meeting your core as jolts of electricity run through you. You can barely keep your eyes open as his mouth is sucking right below your ear, his coarse beard tickling at your skin. 

    "Grind yourself over my thigh, Princess. Wanna watch as you ride it." He whispers darkly into your ear. You're shamelessly grinding yourself over his thigh as his hands go to palm your breasts through your dress. 

    It feels quick and dirty, but it's exactly what you need. 

    "Fuck, Daddy, want your cock." You whimper before he's stopping all movements to grab your chin and force you to look up at him. 

    "Oh is my dumb baby already so desperate for my cock, hmm? Then get on your knees and open that pretty mouth of yours." It's a simple command, your breath getting caught in your throat as you're pushed down onto the cool tiling of the bathroom floor. 

    You watch as he undoes his belt, bulge meeting your eyes before he's freeing his cock. 

    "Go on, Princess. Put that sweet mouth of yours to work," he purrs, running his thumb over your bottom lip as you wrap your hand around his base. 

    You pump him slowly, eyes watching him as he lets out a low groan, throwing his head back when you wrap your lips around his tip. 

    You can taste the salty pre-cum as you take him further, slowly relaxing your throat before hollowing your cheeks as you bob your head. 

    "Oh fuck—what a good little girl, look so pretty with Daddy's cock in your mouth Princess." He praises, your arousal growing as you feel your panties get wetter as you take him further. 

    Steve's gripping the edge of the counter as he lets his head fall forward. Your saliva coats his cock, your hands, and your chin as you moan around him. Steve's low grunts and groans fill the echoey bathroom before he's pulling his cock out of your mouth. 

    "Up. Now." And there's a sense of urgency in his voice that you've never heard before. 

    You do as you're told, Steve lifting you onto the counter and hiking your dress up, sneering when he finds you wearing panties. 

    "What did I tell you about panties, Princess?" It's a condescending tone as your head falls forward. He's pinching each cheek with his fingers as he makes you look up at him.

    "Good girls get rewards," he speaks, "but bad, bratty girls don't get to cum." He growls, ripping your panties off as you squeak. 

    He's plunging his cock into you seconds later, the action causing your body to jolt upwards. Steve is merciless in his thrusts as he keeps your body locked with his, your legs wrapped around his torso as he clamps his hand around your mouth to keep you quiet. 

    "My dumb little baby, couldn't even listen to simple instructions," he grunts, "God your pussy feels so good wrapped 'round me, Princess."

    You can feel the coil starting to form, the pressure building as your toes curl inside of your shoes and you want nothing more than to chant more, more, more. 

    "I know you wanna cum, baby, I can feel you squeezin' me," he whispers huskily, a dark smirk on his lips. 

    "If only you had listened to your Daddy," he almost snickers as he pulls out, fisting his cock until he's painting your thighs with his cum. It makes you shudder, watching him cum, feeling him cum, as he makes you watch. 

    He's breathing heavy, panting nearly as he drops his hand and kisses each cheek lightly before sealing his lips over yours. 

    "Let's get you all cleaned up, Sweetheart." Steve's tone has changed, now sweet and caring as he takes care of the mess he's made. You let, relishing in the gentle touches before he's helping you down from the sink and back onto your feet. 

    You pout when you meet his eyes again and he taps your nose, "don't give me that look, Princess." He warms playfully before you're making a hmph sound that makes him chuckle. 

    "How about I take you back to mine, we'll order in tonight, though what I want a taste of isn't exactly on anyone's menu."

tagging // @jennmurawski13​ | @nakedrogers​ | @vollzeitliebe​ | @kelbabyblue​ | @jevans2​ | @babyyhoneyydarling​ | @rogerslovesstark​  

any and all feedback is always appreciated! <3