#that's why the deep dark n ancient city works so well! it's something NEW n engaging with high risk and reward

[drawingdroid]

Melting Point: Chapter II

A Sculptor Din Djarin x Art PhD Reader Series

Read Prologue | Chapter I

Chapter II: The Sculptor/Temper

Summary: You get a job offer you can't refuse and meet your new boss, a gruff sculptor who is so familiar.

Words: 2393

Warnings: This is a slow burn, you've been warned!; a lot of talking about Art and PhD life; Reader is not Grogu's nanny but this is very Grogucentric if that makes sense; And Reader is Din's employee too; Very grumpy and antisocial Mando; Grogu is human but the only thing described are his eyes; Reader appearance is left blank; Age gap of 10-15 years; Fluff fluff fluff

A/N: I darlings! I hope you enjoyed Christmas if that is your thing! I'm back with a new chapter, let me know what you think because I have a lot of feelings about The Armorer being reader's thesis tutor *cries in mommy issues*. Hope you enjoy this!

That morning you so were nervous. No, terrified. Finally, you were having your first meeting with your thesis tutor, the renowned artist and professor Dr. Armorer. You admired her work so much, and her deep knowledge of Ancient Mandalorian Art was admirable. All of her books were constantly by your bedside, extensively annotated. What would your role model think of you?

Your first impression was that she commanded so much respect with only her way of standing. She insisted on meeting in the faculty’s foundry, while you had expected to talk in her office. You couldn’t get your eyes off her while she was working with the red-hot metal against her anvil. She stopped hammering when she noticed you standing awkwardly at the door.

“Welcome kid.” Her voice was flat while the visor of her safety mask was fixed into you. “I’m sorry for the scholarship.” Okay, so right to the point, no pleasantries. You shivered, feeling self-conscious, and downed your gaze to the floor. “Your proposal is magnificent and I pushed for you to be admitted, but the budget is limited and now Nevarro City is placing its interest in other departments.” After placing her tools in their place. She didn’t remove her leather gloves though.

“Thank you Dr. Armorer, I’m well aware that investing in Art has never been one of the top priorities of the governments.” Your tone came surprisingly cynical while it was sad too. Your cheeks blushed for the sudden outburst in front of the professor.

“Do you drink caf?” You nodded and she directed her attention to a little coffee maker in a corner that you hadn’t noticed earlier. Soon she handed you a steamy cup of the dark liquid. She had brewed one for herself but hadn’t lifted her golden mask to drink yet. It looked like she was studying you.

“Professor, I’m very embarrassed to admit this, but I applied to the program expecting to receive that scholarship, and without it I’m afraid cannot afford my studies,” you blurted with your gaze fixated on your drink. “I’m very sorry for having wasted your time, but…”

“What brings you to want to study Mandalorian art, kid? She interrupted mid-sentence and you swallowed hard. A heat started expanding through your veins and it wasn’t because of the coffee. It was always the same when you spoke about your passion.

“Mandalorian culture is one of the most ancient ones still alive. The artistic manifestations were present early in their history and bound intimately with the development of the technology necessary to process beskar. The importance of the clans' signets was another factor to push for a more refined technique when working the metal…”

“I didn’t ask you for the book definition of Mandalorian art. My question was why you, a non-Mandalorian, want to specifically specialize in our art.” Her tone was still flat, but commanding. Had you made her mad? Was it wrong that you wanted to study Mandalorian Art?

“The way your sculpture is so raw and naked and still conveys the most profound, earth-shattering feeling while using something as cold as beskar, turning it into living and breathing things. It’s bold and succinct, it shows and hides and that gives me goosebumps every time I look into a Mandalorian sculpture.” You didn’t want to be so passionate in your first encounter with Professor Armorer, but the fear of being rejected not only by the scholarship commission but also by her, made you snap. Your skin felt hot and your heart was hammering inside your chest.

The Armorer, as everyone called her, hummed in contentment, and then she grabbed a notepad and a pencil that had seen better days and scribbled something. 

“My friend is looking for an assistant to help him around in the studio. Since your background is in Fine Art, I think you’ll manage just fine.” She gave you the paper with only a number and address on it.  You looked at her quizzically. “The salary he offers should cover your stay here. I’ll arrange your schedule so your obligations as a PhD student are met.” You could cry with gratitude right now, even though you knew nothing about this job. “And concerning your tuition fees, let me move some strings. I can’t promise anything kid, but I may know someone who’d be interested in sponsoring you.” You could hug this woman, kiss her on her protection mask. But you stayed in your seat grabbing the mug she gave you like a lifeline.

“I can’t…I don’t know…” You babbled with watery eyes.

“I only expect the best of you kid, it’s gonna be hard work. Now go.” And then she returned to her work in the forge, leaving you trembling with excitement. 

After scrolling down some job portals, you closed your laptop with a sigh, calculating the best way to manage your savings to stretch them to the limit. With maximum frugality, you could make it through three months.

Professor Armourer had given you that mysterious number, but even though you were going to try, you didn’t want to depend 100% on her kindness. Moreover, you didn’t know which type of “studio assistant” job this would be since she provided little description. You grabbed the piece of paper and called. Nothing. You went on with your routine and tried again later, but no one responded.

Would it be too bold to just show up there? After all, your tutor had provided an address, so it was assumable it was okay if you just went there to speak to her friend in person. Like the old times, didn’t people do that? So you made up your mind and grabbed your tote bag and your trusty flannel. Slipping in some sneakers, you went outside to explore Nevarro City.

The area was definitely more industrial, certainly convenient for someone who was a metal artist, nevertheless, it had some charm to it. The warehouses were old, some of them reconverted into homes or other artist’s studios. You looked again at the paper provided by the professor when you recognized a building with large windows and a silver, old truck parked in the door as the one you were looking for. A big container with metal scraps was against one of the walls. You looked for a doorbell or something similar but nothing was in sight, so you decided to just pound the door.

Metallic sounds could be heard from the interior, and you asked yourself which kind of artist they were. After a while, you pounded the door again, it was clear they hadn't heard you. But the noise was loud and on top of that some electric guitar music was playing. You decided to make a bold move and try to open the door.

The inside was bright due to the big windows. The studio was neat and functional with all the tools one needed to work metal from small to large scale. Semi-finished projects were here and there, but it looked like everything had an order inside the warehouse. You could spot a little kitchenette too and a mattress in a cosy corner. 

The man you were looking for was working at the big wooden table that occupied the centre of the room. It looked like he was polishing a metal piece, and sparks were flying all around. The first thing you noticed was the welding mask. It was beautiful, reflecting all the little sparks like fireworks, and had a similar design to the one The Armorer wore. It was shaped like a traditional Mandalorian helmet, the one the ancient warriors once used as battle armour. You smiled to yourself.

You went closer to where he was working, being cautious to not startle him, but it looked like he hadn’t sensed your presence yet, so you just observed him. The sleeves of his work jumpsuit were rolled and you could admire how muscular his forearms were between the fabric and the leather gloves he used for protection. The zipper of his clothing piece was down until his sternum, letting you see thigh undershirt under it, revealing sculpted pecs.

Maker help me if this man is gonna be my boss.

His black visor was suddenly pointed in your direction and you almost jumped from the surprise. He had left de welder on the wooden table and lowered the volume of the music on a radio that looked as old as time and then approximated you. All his movements were slow and restrained. 

“What do you want?” He asked drily, without removing the welding mask from his face. As his friend the professor, he didn’t waste a second in pleasantries. His voice was as gruff as his looks. He didn’t look like an artist at all but a sort of mechanic or technician. 

He waited for your response with his gloved hands in his narrow hips, a leg slightly flexed. The way he carried himself made him look like a statue in a museum. He was observing you carefully, from head to toe. You noticed your mouth was dry.

“I…The Armourer sent me…because of the job…assistant.” You said finally. Perfect, you now had made a fool of yourself by speaking like you didn’t know grammar when you indeed made a living of writing. You could die of the embarrassment. 

“I told her…” He started and then sighed, lowering his broad shoulders in defeat. “Come, have a seat.” He said tilting his head towards a desk next to the large windows.

You assumed it was a desk because it was completely covered by stacks of diverse documents and you couldn’t even guess the material of the piece of furniture. You observed them as you sat in a beautiful vintage chair, while he did the same in front of you.  A lot of invoices, a PC as old as time, sketches of what looked like sculptures, sheets with budgets, newspapers, exhibition brochures. You smiled softly when you distinguished the characteristic doodles of a little kid. You kept that last info to yourself, thinking it wasn’t polite to be nosy in your first meeting.

He then looked at you like it was the first time he acknowledged your presence. His legs were wide apart, but while he looked confident you noticed he was fidgeting with his gloved fingers. What a curious man. And why was he so familiar?

“What can you do?” He asked, always the eloquent one. You looked around you for a moment, gathering your thoughts.

“Anything you need around here.” You responded, now a bit more confident. “I can operate almost every machine in this place, know the basics of wielding, and can help with molds and the foundry” He now looked more interested, bending his large body towards the table. “But for a start, I think the most urgent matter is this mess.” Sure, you were cheeky, but you needed the job, and it was obvious the man needed help with admin. You went from nervous to sassy in five minutes. “Does that even work, or is it part of an art installation?” You pointed to the PC that looked like it was stuck in the 90’s. He made a noise that could be a chuckle or a grunt.

“The Armourer sent me your CV.” 

Oh, so he knew you were coming after all.

“What makes a qualified researcher as you want to work as an assistant?” This was probably the highest number of words he had put together to this moment. His low baritone was warm and nice to hear. 

You blushed a bit. Of course, you had made your apportations, but you were only starting in the Academia even though you had some articles published. But qualified was a bit of a stretch. You could tell him the truth. That you needed to pay rent after being denied the scholarship. But that didn’t put you in a good light, especially in a job interview.

“Being a researcher, I tend to spend most of my day in my head. Manual labour grounds me.” You bit your lip a bit nervous because you had just offered a piece of personal information, even though anything in your tone revealed that you weren’t referring only to your job.

He only nodded in understanding, crossing his thick forearms over his chest. 

“You start tomorrow at 1500.” Okay, former military maybe? That was rich. And it was the shortest job interview of your life. “I usually wrap up at 2100, is that okay for you?” His voice had a kinder tone now, although sounding still gruff. You recounted mentally the bus timetable to your home and calculated it would be tight but you could make it.

“Yes, is perfect.” You offered him a big smile for the first time feeling grateful. “Thank you for the opportunity.” Then he accompanied you to the door and you realized he hadn’t provided you a name. He probably knew you from your CV though. You panicked a bit, trying to recall if Professor Armourer had told you his name but you couldn’t remember and it seemed awkward to ask now.

When you made your exit through the door, he leaned against it and you noticed he was as wide as the frame. The perks of being a sculptor, you supposed. You had to stop admiring his physique if he was going to be your boss. You arranged a bit your heavy tote bag on your shoulder and put a stray lock of hair behind your ear.

“I’m looking forward to tomorrow.” You said to the statue man. He just nodded and you awkwardly acknowledged the interaction was over, so you left with an energetic handwave while he was standing there nonchalantly. Was he observing you? Just having some fresh air? You couldn’t tell with that damned mask. You found yourself wondering how he’d look under it. But it felt weird you didn’t know your boss's name or how he looked.  You turned on your heels and gathered some courage.  He was still in the same position and you felt super awkward. “I’m sorry, I think I didn’t catch your name and it felt wrong leaving without…”

Your new boss sighed heavily, and so so slowly, started to remove his welding mask. Your jaw dropped. Those sad eyes weren’t easy to forget.

“It’s Din, Din Djarin.”

Next Chapter

Taglist: @technicallykawaiisoul @dameron-grant-spector

[cherri-cherri]

Pairings - Yuuji Itadori x Reader x Ryomen Sukuna

Synopsis - Ever since Yuuji moved away to Tokyo, you've been noticing some odd changes from him, it's almost as if...he was becoming another person all together.

Theme - Monster by Imagine Dragons

A/N - An idea hit me in the head while I was working and I wanted to try this out so badly with both Yuuji and Sukuna! A concept of 'What if the vessel wasn't just the vessel?'. The vessel would eventually merged with the being to become something new altogether, and I thought...yes. why the heck not. This is gonna be a long one, So let's hop right it! Because I really like this idea, theres a good chance this is going to be either split up into parts or I'm gonna keep visiting this every now and then.

Warning - The characters in this story will be aged up due to NSFW content here. Dirty NSFW scenes sprinkled in, Gore Warning, Abuse, Etc.

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He didnt want this...

All he wanted was to keep those he cared about safe. Lying to you at the time seemed like a good idea, especially since you weren't tied into the mystical world he was now tied to, and he didn't want you too. But now, perhaps he should've told you everything.

About the finger, about the school, and...

About Sukuna.

You couldn't exactly remember why you originally said yes to the pink haired boy when he asked you to join his occult club activities that night. Maybe it was because of the fact you have nothing really better to do, or maybe because traveling through a forest of possible gruesome death seemed the most attractive thing to you at the time, yet you an Yuuji grew close together that night. Truth be told, walking through those woods during the dead of night was actually creepier than you thought but he was there by your side to comfort you the entire time, holding your hand while cracking a few jokes every now and then to calm your nerves.

"You're not scared? You seem so..well calm?" You asked, looking up at Yuuji with furrowed brows as he just smiled down at you. "Nah, not really. It's just darker and a few trees are around. Not really anything scary, right?" He said, rubbing the back of his neck while chuckling.

Maybe it was because of the warmth of his hands wrapped around your own or how comforting the presence he gave off was to you but it was probably then that your feelings for Yuuji began to grow.

"What you're going to Tokyo?" You questioned, watching Yuuji prepared a few boxes to pack his things. "Yeah, transferring schools. I'm, um .. I'm recieving a sports scholarship at a school there." Placing a few more of things away was when he finally turned to see you, clearly upset over just now being told this. Sure, you should've been happy to see your best friend be able to leave to accomplish more out of his life but it was the thought of him leaving you here that hurt the most. When he saw your face and the conflicted look on it, Yuuji stepped over towards you before wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you in your embrace.

"I'm sorry, Y/N. I just—" before he could finish his sentence, you stood up on your toes and wrapped your arms around his neck and simply smiled to him. "You don't have to say a thing, Yuuji, I'm happy for you. Just promise me that you'll stay safe out there for me, 'kay?"

Your words alone reminded him why he had to leave, why he had to go and leave you here. It was to keep you safe, safe from curses and safe from the curse lying dormant inside of him now. "R-right...Thank you, Y/N"

The school days were quiet once when Yuuji transferred schools. Sadly enough, the occult club had to disband after he left due to them not having enough members with Iguchi still hospitalized. Now it just seemed..boring without him there but he still seemed to have brighten your day with the photos he would send you every day of the bright city lights and bustling streets. His little messages and calls always well timed to reassure you that just because you aren't blocks away from each other anymore doesn't mean you won't still be friends.

So far, you've became pretty happy with Yuuji and how he's able to come so far in Tokyo. He speaks greatly about his sensei and his new classmates known as Fushiguro and Kugasaki, who from the sound of it, are a bit of a handle but great friends who still treat him well. Every week when he had his day off, he would spend time on video call to talk to you and even show you cool things that he either found around the city or around the school's campus.

Tonight however..he was late. Sure, it didn't bother you really if he was punctual or on time since this was Yuuji we were talking about here but there was a tad bit of worry lingering in your head. Soon enough, as soon as that ugly feeling of worry and doubt began to surface, Yuuji's icon appeared on the screen on the laptop as it began to ring to which you quickly opened.

"Yuuji, hey— oh my god, your face." You said right away, gasping a little at the cuts and bruises littered not only on his face but from the looks of it, his arms and shoulders too. Has he been fighting? "What? Oh, oh! These! Yeah, Fushiguro and Gojou-Sensei kinda roughen me up a little today during training but it's no sweat, really! Barely feel a thing," Yuuji tried to give you a reassuring smile while patting his right shoulder only to wince a little in pain from the impact of the pat.

"First the weird scars on your face, now bruises? Dude, I get that this is a sports thing but don't you think it's a little extreme?"

Hearing the worry in your voice, Yuuji rubbed the back of his neck with his left hand nervously as he tried to think of a way to reassure you until a deep voice came from that same hand, chuckling softly.

"What's this? A woman talking to the brat...? How amusing." Sukuna.

Hearing the voice, Yuuji instantly flinched and lowered his arms out of the camera's view. Panic shot through his body as you stared at the screen with a raised brow. "Oh, is someone there with you now? Didn't know you had a roommate."

Oh good, you didn't see him. It wasn't as if he was afraid of you meeting Sukuna, he was afraid of telling you the truth about everything. About how he was now a vessel for ancient being, how he was studying cursed energy and jujutsu, how he died yet came back to life..dumping so much on you with the chance that you might never speak to him again out of fear, out of disgust. That you stop being his friend, and that he would never..he would never—

"Yuuji?" Tapping the screen a little on your laptop as it shook the camera, he soon stared back at you and laughed nervously. "O-oh right, he's only here for a little bit of time, so I figured what's really the point in telling you"

"Really now? Could've swore I was here to stay with you forever. You could at least introduce me to your friend here." Sukuna felt a great amusement watching Yuuji squirm just to keep you in the dark. Yuuji quickly began stammering on his words, throwing you off as he made a quick excuse to leave the call early. Before you could even say a single word, he clicked ended the facetime before sighing to himself and leaning back against his chair.

"...What is the point in keeping me hidden? We are practically one now, me as you and you as me, Brat." Sukuna said, his mouth now appearing on the left side of his cheek with the eyelid opening to stare up at the boy. "Are you scared of me paying your little toy a visit? Young and no doubt a virgin, I could have some fun with her—" Yuuji quickly slapped a hand against the mouth in attempt to hush the curse only for Sukuna to migrate to the hand.

"I won't let that happen, Sukuna." Yuuji said, frowning as he heard the curse chuckle. He didn't like the sound of how he described his bond to the soul sleeping inside of him, how they were one in the same. Shaking his head, the boy tried to reassure himself that he was nothing like Sukuna and simply went to turn off the lights and sleep on it. The last thing he heard before slumber took him were the ominous words of Sukuna,

"You'll see I was right soon enough, brat..."

A week later, Yuuji came back home to visit you. It was one of the days where the school allowed their students a break from their studies and classes and so he wanted to spend it with you as a surprise. And indeed you were surprised. When you had rushed downstairs, you did so wearing only a red sleeved t-shirt that the pink haired male might have left behind with a pair of gray shorts, and so when you opened the door to see the cheery face of your best friend well...it may have left you a bit flustered.

"Hey, Y/—" you quickly shut the door in his face, collapsing on your knees as you felt your cheeks beginning to burn. 'Why of all days, Itadori?!' You thought to yourself as she slowly stood back up and cracked the door open to see Yuuji's baffled face. He looked like a puppy..a sad puppy who was just kicked off his owner's bed and it broke you. Before long, he was now in your house and sitting in the living room couch while you were in the kitchen preparing tea. Your father was currently away on business while god knows what your mother was..it was just the two of you.

And it was awkward.

As you prepared tea on the kettle, Yuuji couldn't help but look at the shirt you were wearing as a small pink blush was lightly spreading on his cheeks. In a way, it filled him with a strange feeling seeing you walking around in something of his, seeing you wearing his shirt made him..prideful. didn't help with how short your shorts were either, it was practically hugging onto your as—

"So, it's just you? Dude, you should've told me you were coming! I would've been more prepared..I barely have any snacks or anything here right now." You grumbled, snapping his attention away to listen to what you were saying. "Hey, no worries, Y/N. Honestly, I'm just hungry for something else..." that last part through him off as he covered his mouth. That wasn't his voice. No, it was but that wasn't him speaking.

As he turned his head to the side to the balcony door, there the boy saw it in his reflection. The eye of Sukuna staring right back at him, causing him to quickly cover the eye.

"Huh? Alright, well what are you hungry for? Theres probably some ramen around here someone or we could just go out to a place to eat if you want.." you questioned, back turned away from him as you began to take the now whistling kettle off the stove. No, he couldn't deal with this now, not while you were only feet away from him. Yet the more he watched you in the reflection, the more he saw your curves in those pretty little shorts or your braless breasts bounce with ease under his stolen shirt...

Shaking his head, Yuuji soon stood up from the couch and placed on his jacket. "I'm sorry, N/N, But I have to go—"

"Wait what but–"

"Sorry, u-um, Gojou-Sensei said something came up and I have to go back! I'm sorry but I'll make it up to you— I promise!" Before you could even protest, he was already out of the door and gone. As he left, you could've swore you saw an eye on his cheek where one of his scars were but that was impossible, right?

-----------------------

He honestly had no idea where he was going to run off to but the boy knew that if Sukuna had a chance to take over and you were in front of him, would've hurt you or worse. Seeing your disappointed face yet again almost shattered his heart completely and when Yuuji finally came to a halt, he found himself beside a small stream and sighed. This was all for the best. It was to keep you safe, or so he kept telling himself.

"Damn, to think you would actually run away when she was begging for you to take her there. What a wimp.." Sukuka said, mouth manifesting on Yuuji's neck as his eye looks up at frowning boy. "Its not often you get an open invitation from a woman. If I was in control, I would've taken her then and there and ram my co‐" Yuuji quickly slapped a hand over the mouth as a faint blush appeared on his cheeks, him now thinking back to you and how pretty you looked wearing his shirt. "S-shut up. Don't go saying such gross crap."

"You know you feel the same. I can see that she affects you even now judging by the sight of your pants. You wanted to stuff her with your seed just as much as I did." Sukuna said, the mouth now on his hand. Much to Yuuji's surprise, his dark brown eyes quickly shot down to his pants and just as Sukuna said, there was a raging boner standing up at attention. Swallowing his guilt, he tried to cover it only for his pinky finger to slowly graze the fabric and giving his cock a small jolt. The boy hissed a little and quickly placed his hands to his side.

"I-i..I just.." "No need to be embarrassed. That girl isn't anything typically special but just seeing her, seeing her ass in such revealing clothing. Women of this era must be extremely dirty~" Sukuna chuckled "and hearing your thoughts, you certainly surprised me, Brat..." the more Sukuna spoke, the more Yuuji thought back to you. Seeing your breasts and ass was truthfully hot, even if you weren't exactly his type, he still found you beautiful. Slowly without him even noticing, his hand slowly motioned for his cock once more and in the silence of the forest, Yuuji Itadori thought only of you during his time in pleasure.

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It wasn't until later on into the night that Yuuji had finally texted you back, saying he would back tomorrow to make things up with you. Sure, it did cheer you up that he would be back but the way he was acting lately made you feel like something was wrong. If you ever asked, he would change the subject or just smile at you awkwardly as if admitting to hiding something but you won't force him tell you what was wrong. When He was ready, he would tell you for sure and you'll wait for however long he wanted.

"N/N, Everything alright?" Yuuji asked, gaining your attention as you snapped back to the present and out of your thoughts. Looking around, you found yourself staring ahead at a bag of popcorn and the large bright ights of a ferris wheel constantly in motion. That's right, the local fairgrounds, Yuuji had wanted to go one more time before he returned back to Tokyo and since you always liked the food here, you of course said yes. "O-oh, yeah! I'm fine. Just looking ahead at the wheel. Remember last time we were here some kid ended up puking on Sasaki from a cart above us?"

"Haha! Yeah, she smelled of salty tuna for weeks afterwards and it left a stain on her uniform" He laughed, staring at the wheel as he thought about the memory. As you stared at him and watch his smile, it had then reassured you that this was still your best friend and you smiled back. For a moment, the two of you were having a blast at the small fair, playing some of the games set up by the booths (and being turned away after Yuuji broke a few with his strength..) it felt like old times all over again. "Wanna play another game or play at bumper carts? We still have some time to kill before you gotta go back?" You asked, carrying some of the plushie prizes the two of you (mainly Yuuji) earned, you looked over to your side and saw a cotton candy display before your attention turns back to Yuuji, The two of you decided just for a moment to sit down at a small metal bench to rest your feet for a moment

Seeing the display, an idea popped up in his head and the words of Gojou appeared in his mind. 'You want advice on how to swoon a girl? Well take small hints when she gives them to you, if her eyes are lingering on something then that's probably a sign she wants it—'. Seeing as how you kept looking up at the cotton candy, he thought this might have been his chance and sat down his own plushies. Without saying a word, Yuuji got up and walked over to the stand, leaving you there by the table alone with your horde of plush creatures.

Seeing you seating there at the bench by yourself, a group of punks who looked to be close to your age strolled up to you, two of them taking a seat on each side of you while the third one was standing right behind you. "Fine evening, isn't it, love. What's a sweet little thing like you doing here by yourself, you looking for some fun?" The purple haired male said on your left side, lowering his shades as he stared noticeably at your chest. "Actually, I'm here with a friend and this seat is for him so if you could jus—" "oh a 'friend'? But I don't see this friend now, so maybe you could tag along with us back to our place and we'll show you a fun time." The punk behind you said, his hands now pressed firmly on both of your shoulders as he leaned in a bit closer to you, causing you to flinch at his touch. "I, um.."

"N/N?"

Turning your head back to in front of you, you saw Yuuji there holding a blue and pink cotton candy stick and face emotionles. "N/N, huh? That's a cute name. This your friend, N/N?" The purple haired punk said, chuckling while rising from his seat "....." Yuuji remained silent for a bit as he stared off at the hands touching you, gripping onto your shoulder and clearly making you uncomfortable. He was typically known for being a calm guy but see this angered him beyond words.

'You see what they're doing to your woman, brat? You're just going to let it happen..?' Yuuji heard the inner words of Sukuna in his head, his eyes dart away from you to the guy standing in front of him, smirking as he touch the cotton candy from the pink haired boy's hand and taking a large bite of the webby treat. "This doesnt have to get rough, all you need to do is walk away and we'll show N/N-chan here a good time she'll never forget." He said, licking his tongue over his lips.

As Yuuji's lips parted, he heard a groan coming from you as you squirmed in the other guys hold with the second punk was now leaning into your neck. Seeing your frown of discomfort, they way they were touching what was rightful his , All he needed to hear were those small words from Sukuna.

'They're touching your woman, they're hurting her. Finish.. them.. off.'

Yuuji stood there for a moment, remaining silent as he lowered his hand, a shadow now cast over his face. Opening one of your eyes as you squirm in the punk's hold, you saw something that made your heart almost stop beating altogether. That smile on his face, that malevolent smile and empty eyes as he held onto the purple haired Male's now broken arm.

The next thing was a blur. The screams of your harassers echoed around you and you heard a wet sound looping over and over again as well as hard thuds. Opening your eyes, you saw it. Two of the thugs bloodied and bruised as their limbs were bent in ways you couldn't imagine, one of them dangling up above you on a tree branch while the other one was limp inside of the cotton candy stand. Looking around for the third one, you saw him behind held against one of the food stands while Yuuji was there gripping his hand over the punk's neck. You couldn't exactly show him any mercy and yet Yuuji was clearly taking things too far, even when the guy tried to beg for mercy and claw his way out of your friend's hold, all Yuuji did was stand there with a grin you've never seen before. It wasnt one of his innocent smiles or mischievous grins, no, it was one of pure sadism. "P-please stop, I'm sorry..I'm sorry.." "you didn't stop when she wanted you too, So why should I?" Yuuji tilted his head to the side a little, chuckling a little as his grip tightened and the man gasped out for air "you'll pay for what you did. You'll all fucking pay..."

The air in your chest almost stopped filling your lungs completely as you watch this. That wasn't the Yuuji you knew, he would've never went this far just to prove a point! Slowly taking a step forward and then another and then slowly speeding up, you reached out and held onto the arm Yuuji was holding the punk up with. "Yuuji, stop it! You'll kill him if you keep this up!" You yelled only to feel a blow strike your face and send you tumbling back a few feet, causing you to scream out in pain. "Stay out of this." Was all he said until freezing and slowly turning back to see what he had done.

Crimson was spilling from your nose onto your shirt and it was gushing out by the bucket to which you quickly covered as you stared up at Yuuji with teary eyes. Regret instantly overwhelmed him as he dropped the thug and slowly reached over to you, his senses coming back to him. "N/N?" He questioned, almost checking to see if you were alright but you backed away as he stepped over to you. What has he done..? Why did he..? He watched you slowly back away with each step, fear in your bright (E/C) eyes and it broke him. "Hey, w-what's wrong? I was only trying to protect them from you, you don't have to be scared."

As people began to crowd in, brought in by the noise of fighting and your scream, Yuuji hand ghosted over the skin of yourself shoulder and you flinched. You flinched at his touch..So many feelings began to overwhelm him that he didn't notice the look of horror in your eyes as you watched what thought were scars slowly twitch and open up, revealing bright red eyes staring directly at you.

"They were going to hurt you," 'She's scared of you now after all you've done' "I saved you! They won't touch you like that again!" 'She sees you for what you are, brat.' "I just wanted to keep you safe!" With each yell, Yuuji watched as you grew more and more scared, the people around all of you terrified as they watched and some even grabbing whatever they could that could be a weapon. Gripping his head as he felt an intense pain through his skull, it was then he noticed..how small you looked as he towered over you. When did you get so small? He thought to himself, bending down to grab you when he saw his arm.

His nails were a dark purple shade, sharper and three black markings were on his wrist. Turning his head a little to one of the booth's and staring into the window was when the truth hit Yuuji hard. His body was different and taller now for some reason and Sukuna's markings were slowly appearing over his face. He was..slipping?

"Y-yuuji, what the hell is happening to you.." he heard you whisper yet before he could respond, there was the sharp pain of something blunt hitting his shoulder. Looking to his feet, he saw a medium sized rock and there another and another. The people were launching what they could at him, yelling at him to leave the girl alone and to leave. Yelling for his death, calling him a monster, calling him a curse. He stared at you for a moment, seeing how now tears leaking from your eyes and Yuuji stepped away before fleeing.

"Yuuji, wait!!" He heard your frantic yell from behind him but it didn't slow him down as he kept running further into the distance and leaving you behind. Your yells becoming drowned out by the mad laughter of Sukuna echoing in his mind.

-----------------------

No, he didn't want this at all. The day was meant to go differently, it was meant to be just the two of you having fun together and end with the ferris wheel and him finally telling you that he...

Thunder crackled outside of the decrepit shrine the boy had taken shelter in, rain pouring outside by the gallons. As he watched the raindrops in silence, Yuuji saw how the scenery slowly began to shift around him as the sky became more malevolent and the cold concrete he was sitting on now a pool of crimson water with piles on top of piles of bones surrounded him. The memories of the fairground echoed in his mind over and over again on loop of him hitting you and your look of fear haunting him, causing his eyes to water.

"Aw, are you going to cry, brat..?"

Yuuji remained silent as he waited for Sukuna to appear at any moment, yet he never came, only his voice lingered around him. "This is all of your fault.." Yuuji whispered, staring off into the rain. "My fault? I don't understand. If I recall, you were to one who eat my finger. You were the one who signed up for being my vessel, everything that has been done was all you..I merely watched from here."

"Bullshit! You made me hurt her..you made me like this!" Yuuji screamed out, flashes of who he did to those thugs showing through his mind, "You made me hurt them!"

"...No, that was all you. You can blame me all you want but I felt what you felt, saw what you saw and you loved every second of that fight. Whipping those who displease you in place, kicking the asses of the men who touched what was yours. Gotta say, made me tear up watching everything unfold" Hear the curse's chuckle echo around in the shrine, Yuuji quickly stood up and yelled out for Sukuna to show himself, only for him to collapse on his knees when feeling an sharp pain in his torso.

"No need to show myself, I'm already with you as close as I can."

Gritting his teeth in pain it was then that Yuuji saw his reflection staring back at him in the water, grinning ear to ear with malice in those sharp fangs.

"You see , Brat, becoming my vessel didn't just mean I was trapped inside of you..no no..You would slowly become me. Your small soul means shit compared to mine and it will be swallowed whole by me. I just needed us to be bound for some time and you would be mine..."

As the reflection spoke to him, Yuuji screamed out in pain as he felt his bones inside of him crack and twist as if they were rearranging themselves. His stomach felt as if it was being cut open entirely as the flesh began to slowly pull apart while tearing open the yellow hoodie in the process, the meat of his torso was forced open as a tongue lulled out and licked his abs like they were lips. The sides of his waist felt as if someone was taking a pair of axes and were merely swinging it down as flesh began to bubble through and bones formed one by one until two new pair of arms were fully shaped. Taking a deep breath, Yuuji slowly chuckled as one of his hands reached up to his head and gripped it and the others wrapped around his waist.

"N-no..no..i.."

"You should be honoured, Yuuji. You get the privilege of becoming one with me, my power is now yours and yours mine." His lips, against his will, began to speak the words of Sukuna as they formed into a forced grin. "N-no..I haven't told her yet. I haven't told N/N that I love—"

"Yuuji?"

Once when he blinked, Yuuji found himself no longer in the shrine but sitting inside of his desk in his old desk with you standing beside him. Seeing you before him, safe and smiling at him, the boy quickly stood up and wrapped his arms around you which took you for surprise in the process but you simply allowed him to let it all out when you hugged him back. "Well hello to you too, welcome back to earth, how was your trip to space..?" You said, chuckling before feeling something wet on your shoulders. His tears.

"Y/N..I..I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for everything, I should've told you everything. I should'nt have hit you. I just wanted to protect you because...because...I love you!" His words surprised you but you simply smile. "I love you too, Yuuji."

Staring back down at the reflection before him of the boy hugging onto you tightly as he weeped, dark brown eyes shift to that of a bright velvet shade. Sukuna chuckled while stretching out his newly formed body. How good it felt to be back in control, to have actual flesh again and to see this brand new world all to himself. Sure, his power was not what it used to be but he would regain all of his fingers soon enough. As his domain faded away and he found himself back in the decrepit old shrine, he smirked to himself while debating his next order of business.

"Y/N L/N...Maybe I should do this body a favor and seize you for my own."

-----------------------

He wouldn't answer any of your calls or texts. No one has heard or seen of him but now there was a witch hunt for your best friend. As you laid in your dimly lit bedroom with bandages over your nose, you stared down at your phone anxiously awaiting something from Yuuji.

Ring~~~

Ring~~~

Hearing the sound of your phone vibrating, you quickly shot up from the covers an grabbed the phone, unlocking it right away and placing it to your ear.

"Hello?" There was nothing but silence on the other end, the soft howling of the wind being the other thing you could really make out. "Hello..?"

"N/N.." your heart practically stopped for a moment but you felt almost a wave of relief hearing his voice on the other line. "Oh thank god, Yuuji..Are you ok—" "N/N, open the window." Was all he said before then line went dead and you were left sitting there baffled. Did he make it back to your house? Slowly crawling out of the bed and slipping on your bedroom slippers, you walked over towards the window and moved the blinds down only a little to peep outside. Standing there in your backyard, shirtless and with his hands in his pockets was Yuuji, seemingly back to normal and everything. There were not increased height, no weird markings, he looked fine and apart of you wondered if it was just the force of his punch that made you see him change. No..because everyone else saw his appearance too.

Taking a deep breath, you lifted up the blinds and unlatched the window. The second that it was free and opened up, Yuuji had jumped above onto the roof and crawled inside to your room. "Y-yuuji, you have a lot of explaining to do— Whoa, whoa!" You took a step back cautiously but he soon grabbed ahold of your wrist and pulled you close to his chest, wrapping his arms around your waist and resting his head in the crook of your neck. "I know I do, but first I just want to say I'm sorry to you, Y/N. I never meant to hurt you.." he said, whispering in a soft tone as his hold on you tighten a bit.

"I'm leaving here after tonight but I just had to see you to tell you that I..I love you. I love you, Y/N" Taken back by his words, you felt yourself being pushed onto your bed and watched as the boy loomed over you before crawling onto the mattress.

He loved you. Those words practically made your heart skipped over so many times that you were positive that you had stopped breathing. "Let me come with you, Yuuji." You said, reaching up to his face and caressing his cheeks, "I don't know what's happening but you can trust me. I won't let you go through this alone and I'll always be here with you."

He didn't say much after that. All he did was lower his head a little until your lips were merely inches away from each other before he pressed them together. The sensation you felt was one like fireworks. Those butterflies in your stomach exploding and multiplying over and over again as you felt his tongue licking your bottom lip but you pulled away before he could fully explore your mouth.

"Always..? So you will always stay with me, N/N?" He whispered, head dipping down to your neck as he left a trail of kisses down your warm skin until he kissed the base of your throat. "Yeah..I will." "Do you swear..?" His hands began to grip your hips, running the tips of his fingers against your clothed thighs while he began to press his own hips to your own.

"I-I swear.." you said, staring up at Yuuji with a small smile. He stared at you for a moment, smiling down at you before sitting up, his large hand covering the upper half of his face.

"That's all I need to make you mine." Sliding his hand upwards was when you saw it. Those spare eyes once again on Yuuji's cheeks, staring at you as if it you were nothing but glass. That sincere smile that calmed your soul became a mischievous grin, showing the sharpened fangs he now had. You watched as those pitch blackp markings began to spread over his skin and yet the moment you sat up, two fully grown arms pinned you down onto the mattress. "Almost as naive as the brat himself but I suppose there is some charm to the naivete of a woman. Makes it easier to influence, to change.." 'Yuuji' said, dipping his head down to your ear before biting down on the lobe of it. You gasped out, squirming in his hold.

"Let me go, Yuuji! I don't know what's going on but I want to help! Just let me help you!" You yelled out to him but soon silenced yourself as you noticed the scenery of your bedroom changing. All of your furniture began to disappear one by one as a red hue began to spread around the two of you

In the blink of an eye, you were taken to Sukuna's innate domain. The water that replaced the softness of your bed now causing your back to soaked and your hair now spread out and floating in the depths. "Yell all you want but that brat can't hear you anymore. Gone forever in a dream that will never come true, but I promise I will keep you company in his stead. By the time I am done with you, will forget all about him. All you'll want is me, all you'll ever need is me. The name Ryomen Sukuna will burned into your soul and you'll learn to worship me, N/N..."

With a single swing, the soft yet wet cotton fabric of your shirt and shorts was torn off of you with ease and revealed your now exposed flesh to the cold. Sukuna stared down at them, his tongue licked over his long and sharp fangs as his eyes motioned down to your folds. His hand traveled down your thighs before his finger swiped against the outer circle of your lips yet he looked displeased from what he felt. "Dry as a drought but that's fine. I'll be fucking you regardless" he said, his index finger slowly pushing inside of your virgin cunt causing you to gasp out for air and arch your back. "You tighten just now, dirty whore...Did you often fantasise Yuuji stuffing his cock inside of you...?" he whispered into your ear intimately, he kissed the bottom of your ear and moved onto your neck, sucking until he found the soft spot that made you inhale deeply. 

Sukuna sucked on your neck while constantly kept inserting his finger in you, pumping in and out, eventually adding a second digit. He curled his fingers and caused you let out a faint moan as his finger crept closer to your sweet spot over and over. It was too much, you thought as he bit down onto your soft skin, and you were feeling so good from it so far and it made you ashamed. this demon, this thing was in your best friend's body and now he was using it to currently assault your body but the feeling of it all was too good. You had to keep your eyes shut for looking up at Sukuna tugged at your heart as all you saw was Yuuji.

"Oh you are loving this..." parting from your neck,he looked pleased seeing the angry red hickey left behind.

"I-im not...I'm not..." A moan escaped your lips, feeling something wet replace his fingers. Lifting your head, you saw a mouth on the palm of his hand and its tongue gently licking the nub of your clit almost like a lollipop. "Feels good, doesn't it, N/N..?" His tone was nothing less than mocking, the mouth taking ahold of one of your lips with its teeth causing you to scream out. "I said, it feels good doesnt it? Speak when your master is speaking to you. "

"Y-yes! It feels amazing!" You tasted so sweet on his tongue, circling your clit, lapping at your clenching entrance, kissing your folds. "A-Ah~" You whimper when he folds your legs to your chest, He takes another nip at your clit, as he listened to your hushed whines. Your moans were music to his ears, yet what he wanted from you was his name. The thought of his former vessel's love screaming his name turned him on, the thought of keeping you only fueling the flames. It was harder and harder for him to contain hisself when you're drowning in the pleasure of his mouth licking and sucking at your sloppy pussy.

"I'll take you as mine. You'd like that wouldn't you? Being the woman of the king of curses, waiting for me to return to fill you to the brim." sweat felt like it was pooling out of your body from the attention he was giving to on your clit. Your bucking hips were a clear sign that you were close and so, he pulled his hand away.

"You don't get to come yet. You're only allowed to when you're milking my cock."

The things he did to were things no man has ever done before. Scratches and cuts littered your flesh and bruises were on your sore ass and stomach. There a few times to where you had even blacked out from the amount of pleasure he had given you..

Now you found yourself with you riding his swollen cock as he stared up at you with satisfied eyes, grunting while large hands were pressed against your abused breasts as his hips pumped up into your leaking cunt. Your head felt like it was spinning as you screamed out, orgasm crashing hard as your cunt tightened around his shaft.

As you felt his throbbing cock inside of you, his hand grabbed ahold of your chin and your lips made contact. Sukuna only pulled away when he silently cursed, his seed releasing inside of you for what felt like the billionth time. Taking a deep breath, he stayed inside of your warm hole, not wanting a single drop to spill and kissed your cheek.

Fucking you only assured his choice of keeping you as he own. Sukuna was going to original kill you while taking Yuuji's appearance after taking you but holding you close like this as you soon became limp (no doubt exhausted), your warmth against his own and staring down at your cum stained face..it made something inside him feel strange.

A weakness no doubt, but one at the moment that could keep him entertained. Combing a loose strand of hair behind your ears, Sukuna chuckled.

"From this day forth, you will be my bride. Consider yourself lucky..."

[the-huntress]

Little Moth - Chapter 3 - Rebirth

[Thank you so much to everyone that has read my story so far and thank you again for liking and sharing the chapters and master-list, it means so much to me and spurs me on to write more]

Masterlist

Y/N Protagonist, female. Reader X Karl Heisenberg. [18+]

Summary: What happened during the attack leaves you with questions for the ever-enigmatic Duke. You took down a beast that was like nothing you’ve ever seen before, but what lies beyond now that you’ve reached your destination?

Trigger Warnings: Chronic joint-pain, menstruation, nudity & genitalia.

Soundscapes Ambience Suggestions: Forest

It made sense to stick with your newfound comrade for the remainder of the journey, for it wasn’t long until you approached the sight of lights in the distance. Night soon fell after the attack, and now, at the edge of the forest, atop a sudden drop you could see the golden glow of candlelight scattered around the village. Though it was not full, the moon’s light helped to pick out the odd detail here and there, and you could see it looked not to dissimilar to many villages that you had seen before from afar, but yet in closer detail it looked somehow as though it was stuck in time. In the distance you recognised it now from Leon’s photographs, the castle or mansion, you weren’t quite sure which.

“Are you sure I can’t escort you directly into the Village, maybe find you an Inn, somewhere at least a little less exposed and safer than out here?” The Duke, for that was how he had now introduced himself to you, asked politely.

“Not today.” You replied. You needed to be alone, and despite the dangers, out here in the forest you were beginning to feel more like yourself than you had ever felt before.

You stopped for a moment, eyes looking down, and then across to the bow that you held still in your hand. “Back there, in the forest, what happened? Who was that?” You asked, turning to look up at the Duke. He looked down at you, fondness masked a little behind mystery, “A friend.” He replied.

“But who?” You demanded, taking a step towards him without meaning to.

The Duke began to turn his carriage, now patched up as best as it could be for the remainder of his journey, and he turned his head to face you one last time.

“It is a very dangerous thing to know one’s friends.” He smiled, but something else lay behind the smile, some knowing. “Keep the bow, it is a gift. When one wields a bow, it can feel as though it becomes a part of you.” He paused, “There is more to you than meets the eye, you bring your own darkness to this place; but promise me this little moth, you know where I am should I be of any use to your crusade.” You nodded silently and watched him until he was all the way out of sight. Your attention was caught by something where the carriage had been stood; your small luggage bag. How?

You pulled it up and threw it over your shoulder. Arghhh! Tears welled at your eyes which darted back down to your knee and you drew a sharp breath through your teeth. After all that and it’s my knee that’s causing me to howl. You could feel it, at some point the joint had slid, the cartilage had pinched the softer tissues. It had happened before during dislocations. This was not the right time for this. At the very moment as these thoughts a sharp pain then hit your lower abdomen and more tears welled in your eyes. A mixture of cramps and the pain from where the arrows had made their mark made you feel weak. I need to find a place to rest. You dragged yourself back into the forest, deep enough to feel alone until you found a place that at least had some shelter from the elements.

A very small clearing between a tangle of thick tree roots, forgotten by time. You found a couple of long, sturdy sticks to hold up a small tarpaulin that you’d had folded away into your bag and pulled out a thin sleeping bag to put under it. It was a risk to make a fire for warmth, but a risk that at this point you were willing to make, and created a small circle of stones, filling the centre with a turret of dried wood and kindling inside, lighting this quickly with your lighter. It finally dawned on you to check your wounds; despite it all you weren’t too bad, the obvious scrapes and cuts here and there; arm, knee, cheek. Those would heal. You pulled up your layers to expose your stomach to the cool air of the forest, cool now becoming icy with the moisture that hung in the air. You winced, hissing. It stung, it stung bad, but it would be ok once you cleaned it. You set to work; water from a hip flask, antiseptic from the medi-kit. You considered the stitches, but you knew that you could heal this without that, it would be slower, there would be very obvious scarring, but you had a feeling those stitches might be more of a necessity further into your mission.

“’Cause the Red Storm hits me today.” You mumbled to yourself, hand back over your abdomen and closing your eyes against the pain, wishing for a hot water bottle. You ate a little; dried meats and fruits from packets that you’d brought with you, and then you took to sitting beside the fire, poking it with another stick to keep it going, and lighting yourself a cigarette. The night was full of many sounds, the sounds of owls and small mammals were sounds that you had missed from your childhood. You’d grown up in a house sat next to a field, beyond that a vast woodland, not too different from this. Then there were the sounds that unsettled you; blood curdling screams and wailing. Although all in the distance, each one sent a ripple of fear through your entire body. You weren’t too sure what else to expect from this place, how long you would be here or what else you would face, but you kept reminding yourself of what you and Leon had faced together not so long ago in Racoon City, and why you were here in the first place. With every scream that filled the air, you listened close to see if it sounded like him.

“So, the light bringer has arrived.” The words made you jump out of your skin and you turned to see an old woman now perched besides you, learning forwards against a large stick, which was adorned with small trinkets and bones.

You didn’t say anything but just stared at her, a knot in your stomach. “Come now child.” She cackled softly, a warm smile on her all-knowing face. “Enlighten your elder, what do you seek on your travels?”

“I’m looking for a friend, if you must know.” It wasn’t like you to be this blunt, especially to the elderly, but it had been a rough day and this woman was making you feel uneasy to say the least.

“Perhaps the friend that you have come to find, is not the one that you think you seek.” She replied without hesitation. You raised an eyebrow at her, surely, she didn’t mean herself?

“Who are you?” You asked, looking her straight in the eyes, one of which you noticed was frosted over. Her face fell slowly, turning to look into the fire, before she began to pull herself back up to standing with her stick, the little beads clinking as she did so.

“I am everyone, and I am no one. They see me, and then they don’t. I know all, and yet I know nothing.” Her voice already seemed to start disappearing, things seemed to somehow grow a little hazier, was it the smoke from the fire? “He goes north, and he goes south, he can push as hard as you feel his pull. He can take many forms, you will know him when you seem him, but heed my words; the gravity between destined souls is a dangerous one, and can crush you with the force of nature.”

Everything went black and you passed out.

Song Suggestion: ‘Chimera’ by Hana

The night is silent, and you are forever alone in the forest’s green pasture deep, dark and timeless. In a trance like state, you stand, slowly but nimble, the night air cool against your bare flesh, for you are fully exposed in your natural form and beauty. You know not what guides you, but you find yourself back at the clearing where the beast that you had slain fell, it’s body intact, but a heap of blood and muscle circled up now into the foetal position. Lifting its head up towards you, out from under the big paw he’d held over it in his eternal slumber, you give him a new face; a mask. The skull from a giant deer, with antlers wildly big, adorned with beads, and bone and warning.

You take a fragment of slate from the ground and cut your palms, squeezing them, with pain, and yet with a hidden joy too, over the body. You feel the forest hum around you and bristle. Opening your eyes, still glassy with fog you see swirls and cascades of moths now, flying up from both yourself and the beast. The body stirs and then trembles, you reach out and take its hand, guiding it with you through both the crunch of snow and the moist welcome of the moss.

You come to a clearing, slightly larger than the one where you’d made the conscious decision earlier to set up camp. Here the ground was completely covered with different mosses, surrounded by ancient trees, their roots gnarly, like a wooded fortress around you. You could feel the innocent eyes of small woodland creatures watching you with curiosity, as you lead your beast down the moss-covered rocks towards a natural spring. He did as he was told and waited besides the pool and you descended further down the natural steps, the cool water climbing up your legs and meeting the warmth that was dripping ever so slowly from your womanhood. You let go, sinking your entire body into the cold waters, up to your neck, letting yourself lean back enough to see snatches of the starry sky through the trees. Your beast sat on his haunches, arms over his knees, leaning forward, drinking you up hungrily, thirsting for you, saliva dripping from the deer’s skull, his member tense and swollen from the mere sight of your hardened nipples breaking the surface of the water. But he wasn’t the only pair of eyes drinking you in this way. You floated in the black pool, the mirror of stars holding up your heavenly body as the water between your legs bloomed crimson and then you submerged yourself fully, completely disappearing. Your creature turned his head to the side and lurched forwards unsure for your safety, the life of the forest bristled in anticipation.

Not one crown broke the surface but two; Your hair wet and plastered to your face as you gasped for air, your eyes fully glazed now, entranced by the form in front of you. Somehow you couldn’t take in all the details of his face, but his godly size, the brawn of his shoulders, the lust he was trying so hard to hold back rising in his broad chest, keeping his face down turned, but his cold gold-silver eyes looking at you through a tangle of silvered black hair. You held each other’s gaze, seeming like forever, like your world could end in the blink of an eye. You raised your hands to touch him, and he for you, both knowing somehow that it was not fully possible, not believing that what you were seeing and feeling could be real, and yet; your hands found his, palm to palm, fingers lacing together, fire and lightning burning and sparking between the two of you.

[marshmallow-phd]

Book of the Dead

Genre: The Mummy AU

Pairing: Junmyeon x Reader

Summary: After traveling to the fabled city of Hamunaptra, you read from the Book of the Dead and accidentally resurrect an ancient mummy with extraordinary powers and quest for revenge. The only thing to do now is try and convince your less-than-traditional guide to help you save the world. 

Part 1 I Part 2

**

“I just said a few sentences!”

“What did you do that for!”

“Well, I didn’t know that that would happen!”

You stared at the aggravating, self-absorbed, cocky Korean soldier and wondered why on earth you had decided to negotiate for this man’s life. 

Alright, you did know why. You needed him to show you to Hamunuptra - the fabled City of the Dead. 

Too many times you had stood in front of the museum curator with pages and pages of references and evidence that the place existed and just needed a small team of archeologists in order to track it down. He’d shot you down every time. And each time he took the liberty of reminding you that while your father was an exceptional explorer who had many successes under his belt, you were a woman whose life had been spent between the shelves, cataloging. Your adventures consisted of the fictional kind, devouring any novel you could when you weren’t archiving the latest crate of artifacts and texts. 

Then your cousin showed up. Your normally useless, hare-brained, erratic, drunkard cousin showed up at your apartment with a “fun new artifact” he found on his latest trip. And suddenly your luck had completely turned around. 

Or so you thought. 

Now you were standing in the middle of Hamunaptra, feet sinking into the unstable sand, with an empty sarcophagus and everyone blaming you because you did what you did best - read.

It was only a book. Albeit, a very heavy, possibly-made-of-painted-solid-gold book that was written in the dead language of ancient Egypt, but still. What harm had ever come from reading a book?

Kim Junmyeon stared at you as if you were the one who had risen from the dead. You were still stunned at how different he looked from when you had first met him in that smelly prison, minutes away from being hanged. His hair had been long and stringy, clumps of dirt clinging to the dark brown strands that brushed his shoulders. Now it was shorter, cut above his ears and gelled back in the current style that almost made him look like a gentleman. The several days’ stubble was long gone to reveal smooth skin and a sharp jawline. He was actually very handsome - when he was cleaned up. 

Stupid, you hissed at yourself. Now was not the time for this. Because right now there seemed to be a reanimated mummy running around here. And by the looks of Barney’s husk of a body lying deep within the temple underground, it was hungry. 

As it should be, given the three thousand years it spent locked up under piles of sand. 

“Really, you should have been more careful!” your cousin, Baekhyun, scolded. 

You scoffed. “You’re one to talk. You were the one who snatched the key off of Mr. Kim here at one of your seedy bars and then proceeded to lie to me and say that you found it on a dig in Thebes which in turn brought us here!”

Baekhyun opened and closed his mouth as he searched for a possible retort. 

“I think this is more your fault,” Kim Junmyeon’s own cousin and traveling partner, Oh Sehun, said. “You told us to go down a level and dig under the statue, which in turn,” he mocked your tone almost precisely, “caused the mummy to be able to get out of his sarcophagus. If we had dug somewhere else entirely, then he’d still be trapped under the statue of Anubis.”

“Despite the fact that it was two layers deep, nothing would have been able to hold a victim of the Hom-Dai.”

“Would have given poor Barney a chance,” Kim Junmyeon muttered under his breath. You shot him a glare that he hardly noticed. 

“I say that we get out of here and to the safety of the city before the mummy finds us.” Oh Sehun swallowed thickly. “Or worse. The beetles find us.” The supposedly brave soldier who had two pistols hanging under each arm was more terrified of the flesh eating bugs than he was the living mummy that was bringing about the ten plagues of Egypt. You’d already lived through the locust infestation, but that was always the most minor of the plagues. In your opinion. 

“We told you to leave,” Ardeth said in that low, monotone voice that made him seem centuries old. You had only known him for a few hours, but you already feared and respected him. Despite the fact that he had attacked your campsite the night before. “Now you have condemned the whole world to the very monster that we have spent three thousand years keeping hidden.”

Kim Junmyeon finally tore his face away from yours. “I told you. I shot him. He went down.”

“Mortal weapons are useless against this creature. None can kill him.” Stepping up, he stood toe to toe with the soldier who led you here. “A gun is nothing more than a fly to him. He will never eat. He will never sleep. And he will never stop. Not until this world is only sand.”

Though still not completely backing down, Kim Junmyeon took hold of your arm. “Come on. We’re going back to Cairo.”

**

The camel ride back to the city was long, tiring, and a bit painful, if you were honest. The inside of your thighs were sore from keeping you up right on the animal’s back for hours on end under the blazing heat. You were used to the comfortable back seat of a car, even if the roads here tended to be on the bumpier side. Kim Junmyeon stayed at your side the entire time, up until you were back in your hotel room. All your things were still in there. That was nice, even if it was to be expected. The desk clerk had sworn he would keep the room reserved for you until you made it back. And now that you had, you were on to the next fight. 

“We’re not going anywhere!” 

Kim Junmyeon pretended not to hear you as he started emptying the dresser drawers of your clothes and stuffing them in your suitcases lying open on the bed.

“Excuse me! I said we’re not going anywhere!” As soon as he stepped away again, you slammed the suitcase shut. A stray white cat that you didn’t have the heart to remove from your room took advantage of the newly available space and laid down on the surface of the luggage. Unbothered by the argument taking place in its presences, it purred as it curled into a ball and closed its eyes. 

“You keep using the word ‘we’ and I’m not sure why,” he said. “I believe you were the one who woke him up in the first place.”

“Yes, I get it!” you shouted. “Everyone can blame me because I read the damn book, but that is why we need to stop him.”

He closed the empty drawer and turned back around to face you. “And how exactly do you plan on doing that? You heard Ardeth. No mortal weapon can kill this guy.”

“That’s why we’re going to find some immortal ones.”

He pulled a pair of rounded glasses from his pocket, wiped the lenses with his shirt, and stuck them on the bridge of his nose. “There goes that ‘we’ business again.”

You huffed, trying not to focus on the newest version of the soldier now being presented in front of you. “Yes, we. Because this curse will continue to get worse until the whole world is destroyed.”

“And that’s my problem?”

“It is everybody’s problem! You live here, too!”

Kim Junmyeon stepped up until he was mere inches away. “Listen. I appreciate you saving my life and all, but when I agreed to this idiotic mission my objective was to show you the way and then bring you back here. I have done that. End of job. End of story. Contract terminated.”

You tried not to show how his last few words affected you. Though you had been a little intoxicated two nights ago, you still very much remembered how sweet he had been, how he had listened to you go on and on about your parents and how much you wanted to be a famous adventurer like your father. And how you almost kissed him. And how he was going to kiss you back. Stupidly, you had thought that there was something growing between you. Apparently, you had been wrong. 

“Is that all I am to you?” you whispered. “A contract?”

Kim Junmyeon blew out haughtily from his nose. His Adam’s Apple bobbed as he swallowed. He opened his mouth and then closed it. You waited in hopes that he would contradict you. That he would say, no that was not all you were to him. And it really seemed like he would be saying something along those lines. But other words came out instead. 

“Look. You can either come with me or you can try and stay here and save the world. So. What’s it going to be?”

You didn’t even hesitate. “I’m staying.”

“Fine.” He headed for the door. 

“Fine,” you bit back, following him. 

“Fine,” he threw at you again as he barely glanced over his shoulder.

“Fine!”

“Fine!” 

He got the last word in before slamming the door to your room shut. 

You huffed as you crossed your arms. Yet, as angry as you were, you still hoped that he would come back. That he wouldn’t let you take this on alone. But the footsteps on the other faded away and you were alone.

Looking around your room, you didn’t think there was much you could do. So, you did what you were best at. You grabbed all the books you thought could help you and got to reading. 

While sitting in the wicker chair in the corner, you skipped around the books and pages, clinging on to any small word that you thought could lead you to a possible solution. There wasn’t much to be found, unfortunately. Most works spoke of how to perform the Hom-Dai and how it should never be performed due to the curse that awaits should the victim ever be awakened. You already knew that. You needed specifics on what to do after the victim came back. 

“(Y/n)!”

Kim Junmyeon came bursting back into your room. You slammed the book in your hands closed, feeling very high and mighty indeed.

“Ah. Mr. Kim. Have you changed your mind?”

“Doesn’t matter now, he’s here!”

“What!”

He didn’t clarify as he hoisted you up out of the chair and pulled you out of the room, and into the hall. Through the windows, you watched in horror as fire fell from the heavens. The balls of flame engulfed anything it touched when it landed, whether it be plant or human life. Turning a corner, Kim Junmyeon ran into a room you knew was occupied by another one of the Americans that you had ran into on your way to Hamunaptra. You gasped. 

In the chair, now nothing more than dried, husky skin and hollow bones was… oh, dear you couldn’t remember his name. You hadn’t bothered to learn them. You and Baekhyun had simply referred to them as the “Bloody Americans”. You were feeling a bit awful about that at the moment. 

But you didn’t have much time to dwell on that. Standing in front of the fireplace was a new version of the mummy. His skin was starting to come together, though patches were still missing, allowing you to see the gray bone and lack of organs underneath. Kim Junmyeon pulled out both of his guns as the mummy stalked forward. 

“We are in deep trouble,” he murmured before opening fire. The loud pops banged on your poor eardrums. You stumbled back a few steps to try and soften their blows. It didn’t work. 

The bullets passed through the mummy as if they didn’t exist at all. Even when Oh Sehun and the other Americans came running into the room and firing off their own guns, the mummy still kept going. He shoved Kim Junmyeon back into the others as if he were nothing more than old wrappings. Then he turned on you. 

Completely unarmed, you stumbled back until you were betrayed by the bookshelf behind you. There was nowhere to run. Instead of sucking out your liver, however, he spoke. 

“You were the one who saved me from the afterlife.” His words were haunting, echoing as if he was speaking in a cavern. And the language he spoke… ancient Egyptian. You weren’t sure why you expected to speak anything else. Coming in closer, he lowered his voice. “I thank you.” 

He leaned in his head, those very human eyes lowering to your lips. You turned your head away to try and avoid the kiss, confused as to why he was trying to seduce you. 

Sharp, unpleasing notes from the piano pierced through the air. The mummy turned and gasped when he saw the white cat from your room walking across the keys. In a whirl of sand, he fled from the room. 

“Oh, thank god,” you said with a heavy breath.

“No kidding,” Kim Junmyeon groaned as he sat up. 

You ran to his side, fearful that he might have been injured. “Are you alright, Mr. Kim?”

“Yes,” he huffed. With a very odd expression, he added, “And I told you to call me Junmyeon.”

To be honest, after your fight, you didn’t think you would be allowed to anymore. A strange silence settled between you. He was trying to say something with his gaze, but you couldn’t interpret it. So, instead, you helped him to his feet. “Come on. I know who we need to talk to about all of this.”

It took a while to get back to the museum that had employed you for the past year or so. Every street was full of panicking people. Flames no longer fell from the heavens, but little fires still raged on homes and carts. The Americans had declared that they were coming along, so your group was slower in moving. Although you didn’t really want the mummy bait to be anywhere near you, Junmyeon and Sehun decided that it would be better to keep an eye on them and - hopefully - keep them out of the mummy’s grasp. 

“Dr. Bey!” You ran into the museum’s main storage room, happy when you saw the curator. But then you skidded to a stop at the sight that he wasn’t alone. 

Ardeth was talking with him in hushed tones that stopped the second you appeared. Both men turned towards you, the curator wearing a very readable expression. It was one that stunk of “I told you so”. The others were only a few steps behind. As soon they, too, saw the unexpected visitor, Junmyeon, Sehun, and the Americans pulled out their guns while Baekhyun simply squeaked in surprise. 

“Gentlemen,” Dr. Bey greeted as if this were any old meeting on a Tuesday. 

“What is he doing here?” Junmyeon demanded. Even with the black tattoos etched under Ardeth’s eyes, you could tell that he was tired, dark circles from lack of sleep bruising his skin. 

Dr. Bey raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to know? Or perhaps you would prefer to just shoot us?”

“Either sounds good.” Junmyeon cocked back the hammer of one of his guns for emphasis. 

“Stop it,” you hissed. “Bullets won’t do any good here. Besides, you might damage some of the artifacts.”

Junmyeon failed to suppress a laugh over your concern. Despite the present danger, you still didn’t want to see the carriages or sacred jars damaged because someone got trigger happy. So, Junmyeon holstered his guns and the others soon followed suit. “All right. I’ll give a little faith.”

Dr. Bey motioned for the group to follow him in deeper. “We’re part of a secret society-”

“Aren’t they all?” Baekhyun muttered. Both you and Dr. Bey shot him glares that made him snap his mouth shut. 

“For over three thousand years, we have guarded the City of the Dead. Once we reach manhood, we swear an oath to do anything and everything in our power to stop the high priest Imhotep from rising from the grave.”

“And now we have failed. Thanks to you.” Ardeth gave you a particularly pointed look. 

By now, you were getting very irritated with the constant finger pointing. What was done was done. You were not going to show him any cowardice. “And that justifies the murder of innocent people?” 

“Hm. To stop this creature?” Dr. Bey pretended to think for a moment. “Yes.”

Junmyeon, untroubled by that, raised his hand from the golden seat of a dead royal that he had taken over. “I have a question. Why doesn’t he seem to like cats?”

“Cats are the guardians of the underworld. He will fear them until he reaches full regeneration.”

“Then there will be nothing that he fears.” Worry was very much apparent in the soldier’s voice.

“And you know how he gets regenerated?” one of the Americans asked rhetorically. 

The other one finished. “By tracking those of us down who opened the chest and sucking us dry like a nomad in the desert, that’s how!”

It was completely pointless to go over the things that were already known. Now was the time to try and piece the unused parts together. Two particular moments were sticking out in your head. 

“Back in Hamunaptra, the priest - Imhotep - he called me Ack-Su-Namun. And then just now at the hotel, he….” You cringed at the memory, thankful that you didn’t have to feel the decomposed skin against your own. “He tried to kiss me.”

“It’s because of Anck-Su-Namun and his love for her that he was cursed,” Dr. Bey explained, exchanging a look with Ardeth. “Even after all this time….”

“He’s still in love with her?” Sehun finished with a scoff. 

You appreciated the backstory, however - “As romantic as that is, what does that have to do with me?”

“Perhaps he will try to raise her from the dead once again?” Ardeth guessed. 

“Yes,” Dr. Bey agreed solemnly. “And it would seem that he has already chosen his human sacrifice.”

All eyes in the room turned to you. Wonderful. 

Not only were you the one who read from the book and raised him, but you would also be responsible for the return of his beloved, who was the reason he was cursed in the first place. Absolutely beautiful. 

Baekhuyn came up behind you and patted your shoulder. “That is some rotten luck, dear cousin.”

“Actually, this could work in our favor,” Dr. Bey countered. “It could give us time that we desperately need to kill the creature.”

“We’ll need every second, I think,” Sehun said. He pointed towards the ceiling. “I think he’s getting stronger.”

Through the large window high up on the wall, the sun was in clear view. You all watched in horror as the moon moved too quickly across the sky and blocked the light from reaching Earth. 

“I’m guessing this is the plague of darkness?” Baekhyun said ominously. You nodded slowly. 

“Let’s go,” Junmyeon said softly beside you, his hand coming up protectively behind your back. “We’ve got to get back to the hotel and come up with a plan.”

**

“I’m just saying, it seems very stupid to comdem someone to a curse when the result of that would be for them to come back a supernatural creature who is practically unkillable.”

“The ancient Egyptians believed in balance,” you explained to Baekhyun for the hundredth time in your life. “To curse someone so badly in both this life and the next, there has to be a consequence to balance out the scales. If not, then the whole world could still fall apart, in even worse ways!”

“All of this is kind of pointless now, isn’t it?” Sehun sighed from the small table in the antechamber to your room. His feet were up on the polished surface as he leaned back in his seat. A look of irritation was etched on his face as he stared at your cousin. “What’s done is done. Right now, we need to focus on our next step.”

“Well, I know you two,” you pointed to the Americans, “opened the chest. As well as Barney. Was there anyone else?”

“The Egyptologist that was with us,” the shaggier one answered. “Professor Chamberlain. He has a temporary residence a few blocks over.”

“What about my best friend Beni?” Junmyeon asked. You nearly snorted. You knew the two of them were anything but friends.

“No. He ran out before we took the lid off. Ended up saving his own skin.”

“Sounds like Beni,” Junmyeon said dryly. “Okay. We’re going to go get the Professor. You four,” he pointed to all the men, “come with me. You, stay here.”

Oh, no you weren’t. “Excuse me! I am just as capable as any of them are. I will not- What do you think you’re doing!”

Junmyeon marched over to you, picked you up, and carried you over his shoulder until you were in your room. Then he dropped you on the floor, closed the door, and locked it tight. “This door doesn’t open.”

You didn’t know who he said it to, who he left in charge of watching you like an infant. It didn’t matter. You pounded your fist against the solid wood door. “Baekhyun! Junmyeon! Let me out! Baekhyun, you coward! Help me out here!”

“Sorry, cousin!” Baekhyun yelled on the other side of the door. “But… he’s got a gun.”

“Smart choice,” you heard Junmyeon say. Oh, you were going to kill him. Which “him” was yet to be decided. Perhaps both would be most satisfactory. 

Well, now you were stuck here. 

Crossing your arms, you sat on the edge of the bed and contemplated your choices. Not that you had many. 

A yawn forced its way out. You were tired. Over the past few days, you had hardly been able to get any real sleep. And, well, now seemed to be a time. So, you changed into your nightgown and slipped under the covers. The mattress was soft, like a cloud. The pillows were stuffed into freshly cleaned cotton cases. It was barely a few minutes before you drifted off…

And then abruptly woke up to something moving against your mouth. It started out soft but quickly turned ashen and tough. Your eyes flew open and you screamed, the sound muffled by the kiss of Imhotep!

You tried to shove him off, but he didn’t budge. Your touch meant nothing to him as he continued the unwanted kiss. 

The door to your room burst open, finally taking his attention and allowing your scream to be heard at full volume. Imhotep’s face was half rotten away, his lips completely gone, the cheeks held together by thin strips of jerky-like skin. You scrambled out of reach, to try and get as far away as the tiny room would allow. The movement caused you to fall out of the bed and land hard on the wood floor.

Standing up, Imhotep said something in ancient Egyptian, but your jumbled, still half-asleep brain couldn’t translate it. 

“Oh, really?” Junmyeon mocked. “Here’s my answer.” He held up the poor cat who had saved you earlier, the animal hissing threateningly at the mummy. Just like last time, Imhotep fled in a tornado of sand out the window, terrified of the innocent creature. 

“Are you alright?” Junmyeon asked as he let the cat fall from his hands. The cat landed gracefully on its feet and walked over to the bed with more dignity than you’d ever seen a human radiate. 

“Yeah, I’m good,” Baekhyun answered. After a glare from Junmyeon, he cleared his throat. “Oh. You weren’t- that’s fine. Go… check on her.” Junmyeon did just that. 

Kneeling in front of you, he pushed away a few stray hairs that had fallen in your face. Warm, soft brown eyes searched for any sign of harm. The tips of his fingers brushed against your cheek, setting the skin on fire. Or perhaps that was just the blood rushing up to your face in slight embarrassment. This man made you… nervous in a way. He could be dastardly at times, but… also very sweet. 

Clearing your throat, you pushed yourself up to your feet. “I’m fine. A little disgusted, but I’m fine.”

A smirk and knowing gleam flashed on Junmyeon’s face as he rose. “I’m sure mine was better.”

He was referring to the lip-smash he desperately pulled before he was to be dragged to the hangman’s noose. Not exactly the best first impression. 

You snorted. “No. I wouldn’t say that.” His jaw went slack. Sehun and Baekhyun snickered behind him. “Did you find the professor?” you asked in order to change the subject. 

“Yeah. He stayed out in the sun for a little long by the time we found him.”

“What are you-” Oh. Oh. That was why Imhotep was so far along in his regeneration. He’d found another victim to suck dry. 

“And he has the Book of the Dead,” Sehun added. “According to Beni, that’s what he’s going to use to raise Anacsunmum.”

“Anck-Su-Namun,” you corrected. 

“Yeah, her.”

You rolled your eyes. Why did you even bother?

You started pacing the room, trying to figure out what would be the best next move. You couldn’t keep playing hide and seek with the cat for all eternity. There needed to be a way to end this. Before he read from the book and raised-

The book… 

The book! 

You whirled back to the others. “I have an idea!”

“Care to share?”

“The Black book has always been rumored among scholars to be able to bring people back from the dead. Something I had always thought was nonsense,” you added to yourself. “But since that part is true, that means other rumors must be as well. Such as the Gold Book being able to send a soul back to the afterlife.”

“A balance.” Baekhyun looked awfully proud of himself. At least something finally stuck. 

“Exactly. Now all we have to do is find out where it's hidden.”

Junmyeon frowned. “But I thought it was supposed to be hidden with Anubis?”

“Exactly,” you agreed. “It comes from a translation of an ancient text. A stone that’s at the museum here, actually. It also says where the Black book was supposed to be hidden. I think they got their translations mixed up. So, where the scholars who originally translated it said that the golden Book of Amun-Ra was in the statue of Anubis, it's actually wherever they said the black Book of the Dead was supposed to be.”

“And where is that?”

You swallowed. “I don’t remember. We’ll have to go to the museum so I can read it again.”

Letting out a heavy sigh, Junmyeon checked the barrels of his guns, reloaded the revolvers with bullets from his belt. “Then I guess we’re headed back to the museum. Hopefully we don’t run into Ugly Face before we get to the rock.”

“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” you said with the utmost confidence. 

Sehun, who did not share that sentiment, looked up towards the ceiling. “Oh joy. Another book hunt.”

[passable-talent]

part 4 was so so good!!!!! can you make a part 5? i’m in love with your writing and that series!!! you’re feeding my need for zuko content and i love u for that.

it literally took exactly 19 minutes to get a request for part 5

THANK U THO SHDBCNDGS IM HAPPY YOURE ENJOYING WHAT I DO

been excited to get back to this one, y’all aren’t ready 😏

OKAY I SAID YALL WERENT READY BEFORE I EVEN WROTE IT BUT NOW IVE WRITTEN IT AND LET ME FUCKING REITERATE: YALL ARE NOT F U C K I N G R E A D Y

| part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 |

For chapter five, and my five hundred follower special, we will go back to spring of the year 100 AG, right before Azula’s coup succeeded in their destruction of Ba Sing Se . . .

“So what’s happening?” You asked Mushi as the two of you hurried through the streets of the upper ring.

“Come close,” Mushi answered, and your footsteps brought you beside him.

“My nephew and I are more than refugees,” he began, “my name is Iroh, and I am the brother of the Fire Lord. My nephew, Zuko, is the banished prince of the Fire Nation. I’m sorry we lied to you, but we needed to, in order to stay in Ba Sing Se where we were safe from our family.” Your head reeled, but you kept beside him, because still you trusted this man. You were trained to react and to think, thanks to the Dai Li, so you analyzed his words.

“Were?” you questioned, wondering why he seemed to suggest that he was no longer safe.

“My niece, Princess Azula, has infiltrated the city. She tried to capture me- she did capture Zuko.” Your eyes widened, and your speed increased beside Iroh. “I need your help to retrieve him, and the Avatar’s. That’s where we’re headed.” You looked up at the house you were approaching, half caved in from some sort of destruction. What had happened here?

“The Avatar?” you asked, and Iroh nodded, pausing in front of the door to knock politely. You waited beside him, but held your forehead- you were so shocked about everything you were finding out.

Zuko- not Lee. The banished prince of the Fire Nation. You hadn’t even known that the prince of the Fire Nation had been banished! What else didn’t you know about the other nations of the world beyond the walls of Ba Sing Se?

Why had this information been kept from you? You were training to be in the Dai Li, one of the best and most important police forces of the Earth Kingdom, shouldn’t this information be privy to you? Why wasn’t it?

You were pulled from your thoughts as a girl opened the door, and regarded Iroh with friendliness.

“I need your help,” he began, and you watched the reactions of the other two at the door. They seemed frightened by Iroh- what kind of history had they that you weren’t aware of?

Why were you kept in the dark about everything?

“You guys know each other?” demanded the boy you had to assume was the avatar, who didn’t seem much concerned with your presence. Maybe it was the earth kingdom robes?

“I met him in the woods once, and knocked him down,” answered the girl, and with her gaze that didn’t seem focused on the avatar you wondered if maybe she was blind. She, however, seemed like a strong earthbender. It was one of the things you were trained to pick up on in the Dai Li, and relied entirely on how a person carried herself. “Then he gave me tea and some very good advice.”

“May we come in?” Iroh asked sheepishly, and you wondered why there wasn’t more urgency to his tone.

“Who’s your friend?” the clearly water tribe boy demanded, and you lifted your chin, being acknowledged.

“I’m Y/N, a soon-to-be member of the Dai Li,” you answered, “You can trust me.”

“The Dai Li?” Avatar Aang responded, more shock in his face than before.

“That makes us even less likely to trust you!!” the water tribe boy shouted, and your eyebrows knitted together.

“The Dai Li are the protectors of the city!” you said, though you felt doubt gnaw at your spine- they had kept so much from you, their own cadet.

Iroh turned his eyes to you, and something in his gaze told you to hush up.

“Princess Azula is here, in Ba Sing Se,” Iroh told them, his tone stern and serious.

“She must have Katara!” Aang said, and you looked to Iroh. You didn’t know these people- but that Azula would capture both Zuko and a friend of the avatar meant that she was one of two things: insanely brave or insanely stupid.

“She has captured my nephew, as well,” Iroh said.

“Then we’ll work together to fight Azula, and save Katara and Zuko,” the avatar said, and you felt a little lightness crawl into your heart. You’d be able to help save Zuko, and a friend of the avatar? You were about to go on a crazy adventure.

“Whoa there,” said the water tribe boy, walking back into the conversation, “you lost me at ‘Zuko.’ “

“I know how you must feel about my nephew,” Iroh began, and your expression softened. There was definitely history here, and you’d be interested to learn it. “But believe me when I tell you, there is good inside him.” You brought your eyes to the avatar’s, and nodded, trying to fathom something to say that they’d believe. They didn’t know you, didn’t know what you stood for, and it seemed that you didn’t know much of that yourself.

“I’ve known Zuko for a while,” you said, “and he’s never been anything other than a scared and polite refugee.”

“Good inside him isn’t enough!” The water tribe boy insisted, “Why don’t you come back when it’s outside him too, okay?” Your chest deflated further, and you had to wonder: what had Zuko done, what had Zuko been, that they had this strong of a hatred for him?

Did you want to know?

“Katara’s in trouble,” Aang said to his friend, “All of Ba Sing Se’s in trouble. Working together is our best chance.”

On the way toward the catacombs of the city underneath the palace, you learned Sokka and Toph’s names, as well as the true treachery of the Dai Lee. You learned about the war with the Fire Nation, and had a smile on your face as you took in how lucky you were that the two firebenders whom you had come to love were the only two on the right side of this war.

“Well, whaddaya know, there is an ancient city down there,” Toph said, her hand pressed to the stone courtyard, “but it’s deep.” She opened up a large hole in the stone, heading downward.

“How can you tell?” You asked, and she cracked her knuckles in your direction.

“Right, you’re classically trained,” she mocked with a rude laugh, which made you smile. “I can sense seismic activity through stone. Maybe I’ll teach you, when this is over.” You nodded, intrigued, before Sokka grabbed your attention.

“We should split up. Aang, you go with Iroh and Y/N to look for Katara and the angry jerk,” he said. “No offense,” he added in Iroh’s direction, and once again you found yourself confused on the nature of their shared past when Iroh said “none taken.”

“And I’ll go with Toph to warn the Earth King about Azula’s Coup.”

Aang, Iroh, and you began heading down into the tunnel, Iroh holding up fire for light while you and Aang took turns lengthening the tunnel downwards.

“So, Toph thinks you give pretty good advice,” Aang said, seeming to try to make conversation. “And great tea.” A smile came to your face- Iroh’s tea was the reason that you were, apparently, romantically involved with the prince of the Fire Nation.

Imagine that.

“The key to both is proper aging,” Iroh said, and you laughed under your breath. “What’s on your mind?” Aang paused, and took his turn lengthening the tunnel.

“Well, I met with this guru who was supposed to help me master the avatar state and control this great power.” You turned to look at the avatar as you walked, amazed at both his story and his mere stature. You never thought that you’d get to meet the avatar.

“But to do it, I had to let go of someone I love, and I just couldn’t.” You reached the end of the tunnel, and took stance beside Iroh to take your turn lengthening it. However, Iroh began speaking, and you figured it rude to interrupt him.

“Perfection and power are overrated. I think you are very wise to choose happiness, and love.” With a smile on your face you earthbent and opened up the tunnel further, deciding then and there that you would stick with Iroh. Surely you weren’t to stay and train with the Dai Li, and as it seemed he was teaming up with the avatar, maybe you’d get to help fight in the war!

“But what happens if we can’t save everyone and beat Azula?” You didn’t answer, and let Iroh, both because you didn’t know the answer, and because you felt that the scope of your knowledge and importance wasn’t what it needed to be to even participate in this conversation.

“Without the avatar state, what if I’m not powerful enough?”

“I don’t know the answer,” Iroh said, making you gaze to the side at him. “Sometimes life is like this dark tunnel. You can’t always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving...” Iroh paused as Aang took his turn to break through the stone in front of you, revealing light and a wide open new space, “...you will come to a better place.” You paused, standing on the edge of a cliff, to look out over the ancient city. There was a fountain in front of you, making the air smell fresh even though you were so far below ground. It was amazing, and part of you wished you could have stayed. However, you knew that there was much more pressing matters, and so you quickly moved along with Iroh and Aang into another chamber to hopefully find the prisoners you were looking for.

Aang burst through another wall of stone, and quickly disappeared through the hole as you and Iroh followed.

“Aang!” A girl shouted before embracing him, and you barely put it together that this must be ‘Katara’ before your feet had carried you to Zuko, and hugged him tightly. You yielded this, however, to Iroh, who hugged him with just as much relief as you felt in your heart.

“Uncle, I don’t understand,” Zuko said, a malice you didn’t recognize glinting in his eyes. “What are you doing with the avatar?”

“Saving you, that’s what,” Aang said, and Zuko began to lunge before Iroh caught his chest. You flinched- this wasn’t the boy you knew at all.

“Zuko, it’s time we talked,” Iroh told him, then looking at Aang and Katara. “Go help your other friends. We’ll catch up with you.” Aang and Katara turned away while you stood still, but Iroh turned to you. “You as well. It’ll be alright.” You nodded, and raced down the tunnel after Katara.

“We’ve gotta find Sokka and Toph!” Katara shouted, but you couldn’t answer her before you heard roaring behind you. You didn’t recognize the sound, but when you turned and saw blue fire, nothing could’ve prepared you.

This wasn’t in your training. It wasn’t in your index of attacks to react to. You had no idea what to do- if it wasn’t for Aang and the wall that he raised, you would’ve surely been charred on the spot.

You didn’t recognize the girl that had shot it, but you felt that it was safe to assume it must’ve been Azula.

Katara raced around the wall and picked up water, revealing herself as a powerful water bender before your eyes. The fight between her and Azula created a cloud of steam, and you staggered back even further from Aang’s wall, your chest rising and falling quickly.

You were panicking.

All of that training, everything that your instructors had ever done to harden your will and sharpen your reaction time, it stood nothing against this. This, with the sister of the guy you were crushing on shooting blue fire at the avatar, and you weren’t even sure who’s side you should be on.

That was stupid, of course you knew you should be on the avatar’s side. But something in your head whispered doubts- she was Zuko’s sister. She was the leader of the Dai Li, who you belonged to.

Azula appeared from the steam and shot two fireballs at Aang and Katara, who were forty or so feet in front of you. You just watched, dumbfounded, and realized quickly that she wasn’t aiming at you. She wasn’t targeting you at all.

She landed on a column, which Aang rocked beneath her, and she fell down to stand between Aang and Katara, her back to you. She kept her hands pointed at both of them, but suddenly, her attention turned toward you.

“You’re Y/N, right?” She asked, and your eyes widened. “I remember you. You’re a very impressive cadet, you could be an asset to me. I control the Dai Li, now, and so your allegiance is to me.”

Just for a moment, Katara’s gaze turned to you, wondering if there was any truth to that statement.

Was there?

A fireball impacted the ground between Aang and Azula and you staggered backward, looking up for the source of the flame.

Zuko. Relief filled your chest- at least you knew for sure you were on his side.

As though time was frozen, you watched as he turned his ready stance from aiming at Aang, to aiming at Azula, and your tension melted away. You could fight beside Zuko and the avatar and Katara, and surely between the four of you the princess would be defeated.

Then, from your position fifty feet behind Aang, you saw Zuko’s eyes land on the avatar.

The calmness drifted away, and all you saw was rage.

Fire blasted toward Aang, and he couldn’t avoid the plume, his air bending keeping him from harm but also sending him back beside you. Zuko’s fire kept coming, and you threw up a wall in front of you, turning to the side with your body made into a smaller target out of pure fear.

Zuko had turned on Aang. He’d shot fire at Aang- he’d shot fire at you.

Aang leapt away to continue his battle, which left you behind your wall of stone, paralyzed with fear and indecision and betrayal and anger and sadness.

Didn’t you know Zuko at all? That look in his eye... you had never seen that before. There was pure rage inside him, and you couldn’t understand it, you couldn’t comprehend how this was the boy you’d cared for.

You heard fire roaring throughout the cave, and the whooshing of the wind that Aang sent back. Rocks clattered to the floor and water shot around the cavern, and it was all too much, the sounds of martial arts and groaning and impacts, you couldn’t get a clear thought through your mind.

“I thought you had changed!” Katara’s yell echoed off the rocks, and just for a moment your hands lifted from your temple. Was she talking to Zuko?

“I have changed,” he answered, and it was in the silence that followed that you made up your mind, finally.

Zuko was on the wrong side of this war. Not as you’d thought.

You heard a yelp from Katara and brought up a hunk of earth underneath you, launching you across the cave and into a defensive position in front of her with a battle cry. Both Azula and Zuko seemed surprised by this decision, but before any of you could react, the rumbling of Aang’s reemergence interrupted the fight. They turned their attention to him, which gave you the moment to send a hunk of stone into both of their abdomens, knocking them backward. However, your eyes turned up with the sound of Dai Li stone chains, and you couldn’t pull your limbs in tight enough to avoid their sudden grip on you.

“No,” you snarled as Katara woke, and brought a ring of water around the both of you. You stood back to back with her, small finger movements slowly dissembling the stone chains around your wrists so you could help her in the fight.

But there were too many agents- you knew you couldn’t take them all on. Not even with a master waterbender at your back.

A gust of wind surprised you, and you broke free in time to see Aang rise from shattered crystal inside a beam of light. It was amazing- and you were stunned into awe.

Lightning struck the avatar.

Katara nearly drowned you in the wave she created, but you pulled up a slab of stone just in time to surf on it behind her, just like you had on summer days in Lake Laogai. Mowing down Dai Li agents, and the royal siblings, the two of you raced toward the falling avatar, before he was caught by Katara. Soaked, exhausted, and tears blurring your vision, you stood between her and the siblings, who walked toward her, as though they were predators, and she an easy meal.

Though you knew you should be watching them both, your eyes were on Zuko. Maybe, there was some of Lee left in him, and seeing you would bring it back. But his eyes were firmly on the dead-or-dying avatar, hungry, predatory, and your heart shattered.

Fire cut off their path and you looked up to see Iroh, who leapt down in front of even you.

“You’ve got to get out of here!” He shouted, looking back at you. “I’ll hold them off for as long as I can!” Katara stood and you joined her on Aang’s other side, carrying the avatar toward a waterfall, the sound of fire roaring behind you.

It was terrifying.

“Hold onto him!” Katara shouted, her grip tight on the avatar as she used her other hand to bend an upward spiral around the three of you.

You watched Iroh face Zuko until the rock covered your vision, and you closed your eyes.

Back on Appa, you kneeled behind Sokka, one eye keeping a watch on Katara as she attempted to heal Aang. But mostly, you gripped Appa’s fur, and cried.

The Dai Li had lied to you. Zuko and Iroh had lied to you. The Dia Li turned on you. Zuko turned on you. Zuko turned on Iroh, Azula killed the avatar. Everything was so messed up, beyond proportion, skewed beyond belief. The boy you thought you might’ve loved...

He’d never existed in the first place.

And though the avatar lived, you laid your forehead to the bison’s back, and sobbed.

tag list for this series- @furblrwurblr @eridanuswave

oh yeah request for pt 6 /// already been requested y’all are fine

edit: | part 6 | part 7 | part 8 |

-🦌 Roe

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Out Of Time ~ 118

MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 2,010ish

Summary: Y/N goes on the run.

Y/N appeared in the Zephyr. Immediately on the look out for Coulson. She turned the corner, running into another agent.

“I’m so sorry,” the agents apologized, stepping back. “Are you— you’re Agent Rogers. You’re awake.”

“Um… yeah. Have you seen Coulson?”

“Him and Mack are on the ground, doing some work.”

“Oh, okay. I just wanted to say goodbye.”

“Goodbye? Why would you—“

“Come in, Zephyr One. Come in,” Director Mace called over the comms in the front control panel.

The agent rushed over. “This is Zephyr One.”

“Agent Y/N Rogers is missing. If you find her, take her into immediate custody.” The agent looked Y/N’s way.

“Please,” she whispered, “don’t… I don’t want to force you to not. Just… don’t.”

“We haven’t seen her, sir,” the agent replied to the Director. “We’ll let you know if there’s a sighting.” The agent hung up and walked towards Y/N. “I know that you don’t deserve to be in custody.”

“Thank you, Agent…”

“Johnson.” He held out his hand. “Agent Johnson.”

“Thank you Agent Johnson. Tell Coulson that I tried to say goodbye, will ya? And that I’ll reach out if I need anything.”

“Of course. Stay safe, Agent Rogers.”

Y/N nodded before stepping through a portal. Looking around, she took in her surroundings. It was a cold December evening in London, where she had placed herself. It was time for her to work on gathering her strength for the inevitable fight and for her to figure out how to tap into the Soul Stone. Y/N also knew she needed to stay on the run, the government was going to be non-stop after her, world wide. She couldn’t afford to stay in one place too long.

Y/N found a small shop where she bought a backpack and some essentials she would need for the run. She bought a train ticket to Amsterdam and immediately headed there. In her private room on the train, the news was on. She was ignoring it, simply taking in everything going past the window, until something caught her attention.

“It has been almost two months since Tony Stark announced that he was selling Avengers Tower in New York,” the news reporter stated. “So far, he’s had many bids, but has not officially closed on anything. Rumors have it is that he’s hiding rouge Avengers, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, and Wanda Maximoff in the Tower. Officials have denied it, but who can blame us for asking?”

“In other news about Tony Stark, his former girlfriend has officially been announced as a wanted fugitive of the United States government. Nothing has been heard about Avenger Y/N Rogers since the Sokovia Accords were put in place, until now. That has people wondering if Stark had been hiding her until she couldn’t take being cooped up anymore and decided to join her brother and former lover, Bucky Barnes aka the Winter Soldier, on the run.”

“Again, most of this has not been confirmed. But one can only assume that—“

Y/N turned off the tv, unable to hear anymore. No one truly understood what had happened, nor did they really try to. With a sigh, she laid down and fell asleep.

She lived like this for the past two and a half months, constantly on the move, barely making time to even sight see. She had made her way across a majority of the Europe and Asia continents. It was lonely, but she knew it needed to be done. As much as she tried, Y/N was never able to connect with the Soul Stone. That didn’t mean she stopped trying though.

Currently, she had found her way to South Africa. She had been there longer than she had been anywhere else. Y/N was enjoying it there. She was walking the streets of a market, enjoying the smells and the food when she could sense someone following her. Turning around, trying to make it normal, she couldn’t see anyone obviously following her. Pursing her lips she turned around and headed for an alley way outside of the market. Y/N wasn’t afraid to take on whoever was following her. She was honestly a little curious as to who had tracked her down.

Turning into the alley way, she was thankful that it was empty. She didn’t need any civilians in the way. Facing away from the entry, she heard someone jump down from the building onto the ground. Using her powers, she jumped into the person’s mind, forcing them to freeze. Y/N turned around to see a person in a black suit, more specifically, a blank panther suit.

“T’Challa?” Y/N questioned. They had never really formally met, but she knew who the new King was.

“Y/N,” he greeted through the mask. “Mind letting me go?”

“Not until you tell me why you’re here? Why are you following me?”

“I made a promise.”

“To the Accords you signed?”

“To your brother.”

Y/N let her hold go. She took a step forward as T’Challa let his mask down.

“Steve. Do you know where he is?”

“I do not. But I promised that I would look for you and keep you safe. You haven’t been all that sneaky since you arrived in Africa.”

“I knew I was over staying my welcome. Thank you, T’Challa, for looking out for me. But I think I’m doing okay.”

“And I think you need to rest. Wakanda is a safe place, no one will turn you in. You can stay as long as you want.”

“I don’t know.” Y/N shook her head. “I don’t think I want to risk it.”

“I understand but, Y/N, have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately? You don’t look like you’ve been taking very good care of yourself.”

“Well, not every place I find to stay at is a five star hotel.”

“You do not need to stay very long. Just get some rest and then you can be on your way.”

“T’Challa… I don’t—“

“Don’t make it seem like I’m breaking the promise I made to your brother.”

“You’re good.” She smirked, waving her finger at him. “Fine. Let’s go.”

~~~

Wakanda was more amazing than Y/N had ever imagined. She had heard that T’Challa had opened it up to the world saying that they had the technology and resources to help many. But she had struggled to believe that until Y/N saw it with her own eyes. T’Challa introduced her to the Dora Milaje, the King’s guard, and their head Okoye. Y/N was extremely impressed that the King’s guard were all women. 

Next, she was given a tour of the labs, where she met Princess Shuri and the Queen Mother Ramonda. They were both so kind and welcoming, offering to get Y/N anything she needed. T’Challa then showed her to a room.

“This room will be yours for how ever long you need,” T’Challa stated as Y/N walked around. “I will have your meals for today brought to you, so that you can get some rest. Feel free to safely explore the kingdom. You are safe here.”

That last sentence made Y/N tear up. She hadn’t felt safe is so long. “Thank you, T’Challa, for all of this.”

“Of course. Please let me know if you need anything.”

He gave a kind smile before shutting the door and heading down the hallway. Shuri was at the end to meet him.

“So…” she started, “does she know?”

“I do not believe so,” T’Challa replied, keeping his pace.

“Are you planning on telling her?”

“Not unless it comes up. She needs to be able to rest, not worry about anything else.”

“Well, do you plan on telling him that she’s here? Or the Captain?”

“For now, I do not. The Captain has enough on his plate and you continue must to work with the White Wolf and try to get him better. Do not say anything just yet. We do not know how long she plans on staying.”

“She may stay longer if she knew about him.”

“We do not know that and I do not want to test that.”

~~~

Y/N let herself enjoy a delicious meal before falling asleep. When she woke, it was night and she was now wide awake. Taking T’Challa up on his offer to explore the kingdom, Y/N changed into something warm at set out to find a way out of the palace. She was honestly grateful that it was dark and that hardly anyone was out, it let her wander without the fear of prying eyes. 

As she wandered through the fields, Y/N tried to connect with the Soul Stone. It was frustrated her to no end that she couldn’t find away to tap into those powers. She wanted to feel and interact with the souls she had lost, hoping that it might calm her guilty heart. Y/N had tried to get in contact with the Ancient One, but to avail. It was becoming clearer and clearer that the Ancient One had been right, it was up to Y/N and Y/N alone to figure out the Soul Stone.

Too deep in her mind, Y/N hadn’t realized how far away from the palace and main city she had wandered. But someone else had. He kept his distance and kept quiet, fearing that what he was seeing was an illusion. It wasn’t the first time it had happened, but this was a little too real. He was too busy staring at her to notice the branch his was about to step on.

SNAP!

Both he and Y/N froze. Their hearts started beating faster. His because he was scared that she would disappear and hers because she had just come to the realization that she was being followed. Completely on guard now, Y/N slowly turned around.

“Who’s there?” She called out. 

When she was fully turned around, she saw no one. But that was because he had laid down in the tall grass, trying to stay out of sight. Y/N could sense the person’s presence. She took a few, careful steps forward towards the person.

“I know you’re there,” she said. “No point in hiding. Just show your face and I can promise you I won’t hurt you.”

He sighed, which Y/N heard. Y/N waited with bated breath for the person following her to show their face. The grass several feet away rustled as the person pushed themselves up from the ground to stood. Y/N inhaled sharply at the silhouette in front of her. The man was bulky, clearly long hair and was missing one arm.

“Bucky?” Y/N breathed out.

“Hello, Y/N.” He responded, clearly nervous. “How are you?”

“I—I—I didn’t know… they didn’t tell me…”

“T’Challa probably didn’t tell you on purpose. How long have you been in Wakanda?”

“Not even a day.”

The two couldn’t move. Too scared to get closer to each other.

“How long have you been here?” Y/N asked.

“Since Siberia,” he answered. “T’Challa was there as well, he brought Steve and I here for safety.”

“Is… Is Steve here then?”

“No. He left after I was put back in cryo.”

“They put you back in cryo?”

“Until Shuri could find away to take HYDRA out of my head.”

“Did they…? Did they help you?”

“For the most part… we’re still working on it.”

They stared at each other, quietly, for a few long minutes.

“I’m sorry,” Y/N said, shaking her head. “I’ve got to go.”

“Please don’t.” Bucky reached out, taking a brave step forward. “At least, don’t leave Wakanda just yet. I want to… I want to see you again.”

“I… I won’t… I just… I just need to think.”

“Of course.”

Y/N opened a portal beside her, unable to take her eyes off Bucky. “Goodnight… Bucky.” She stepped through the portal, disappearing into her room.

“Goodnight, doll.”

next chapter >

NOTES: from now on the taglist when be added by a reblog. I will reblog it using my second account, @just-dreaming-marvel-2​​. Just so that my main page doesn’t get too cluttered.

If you want to be added to the tag list, please dm me or send in an ask.

[egcdeath]

a blip in the reader-verse

chapter 3: someone in the crowd

summary: in your expedition through the multiverse, you find yourself in the crowd of a war bond show.

warnings: somewhat of a bittersweet ending

word count: 1.8k

author’s note: let me know if you’d like to be added to the taglist. i’d love to hear your thoughts on this chapter, so any likes/reblogs/comments are very much appreciated! 

previous chapter / series masterlist

Steve sat up abruptly, breathing heavily and heart racing from the vaguely distressing experience of being in someone else’s dream. And to top that off, the stakes of being in the dream were extremely high. If he couldn’t contact you and convince you that something was off, he could be stuck here, in the wrong universe, forever.

Steve rolled over and sighed, only to be met with the curious expression of the Ancient One, and nearly jumping out of his skin.

“Did it work?” She questioned, and Steve wordlessly nodded while anxiously cracking his knuckles.

“So now we wait?” He asked, turning his body around so his feet were planted firmly on the floor. Feeling the ground against him gave him a slight sense of comfort, knowing that he was back in the real world.

“You and I cannot take that risk. I’m going to try to send your consciousness into another universe, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll find your way home. If not, then… I’m not sure what else there is to do.”

“It’ll work though, right?” Steve looked up at her through furrowed brows.

“We can only hope so.”

——

Before your eyes even opened, you noticed the all-encompassing raket of a crowd clapping and hollering for… Captain America?

You opened your eyes and glanced around at your surroundings. If you were sure of one thing, it was that you weren’t in a time that was even somewhat close to yours. That quickly became clear to you as you observed the people sitting around you, and the astoundingly monochrome clothing of those around you.

You looked down at yourself, and observed your own time period appropriate outfit, your knee-length flowered dress fell nicely against your body, but the shoulder pads weighing on your collarbone kind of made you feel like a football player. You also quickly caught onto the fact that your watch seemed to turn itself into a pendant on your neck. You then glanced up at the stage, and noticed your alarming proximity to it.

As the curtains on the stage opened, a profound silence fell across the audience. You looked up at the platform expectantly, and you were not disappointed when your boyfriend of many years popped out.

Except, he seemed much more jovial. The dark circles under his eyes weren’t so dark, and he seemed to have a lightness in his step as he pounced around the stage. In the midst of your ogling, the woman next to you leaned over and set a hand over your knee.

“Didn’t I tell you he was gonna be cute?” she whispered in your ear. At the sound of her voice, you felt a wave of recollection surge over you.

This was your friend Aaliyah, just like your closest childhood friend back in your own reality, who’d dragged you out to this war-bond-promotion thing to see her man crush of the week.

“He’s really dreamy,” you concurred, not taking your eyes off of the man.

“So you’re not mad at me for bringing you out here anymore?” She asked, an air of teasing in her voice.

“Shh!” a voice from somewhere above you hissed down at the two of you.

The both of you rolled your eyes, then you looked over to Aaliyah and shared a knowing look with her.

You looked back at the stage, and watched the routine play out, giggling to yourself at times. The whole show had been at least 10 times funnier, now knowing Steve, even if this wasn’t exactly your Steve.

In the midst of a giggling fit, Steve glanced down at you, and flashed you a pearly grin. Despite seeing that beautiful smile millions of times, you couldn’t help but to slightly swoon, and look over at Aaliyah excitedly.

She gaped her mouth open at you, and pointed at you with a brow furrowed in confusion, ‘You?’ she mouthed. You responded by pointing at yourself with an equally shocked expression, and mouthing, ‘Me?’

It seemed like the show was over after that, and the lights in the room slowly rose back to their original colors.

“Holy shit!” Aaliyah squealed, grabbing your arm. “Did Captain fucking America smile at you?”

“If you saw what I saw, then yes!” You grabbed her opposite arm, “we have to celebrate this somehow, right? I think this deserves celebrating.”

You were honestly surprising yourself with the words coming out of your mouth. Part of you knew that Steve looking at you was a regular occurrence that you were used to, but the part of you that actually lived in this universe’s feelings must’ve been strong enough to override even the most logical part of your brain.

“Uh, hell yeah it deserves celebrating. Let’s go!” The two of you stood up, and you straightened out your dress a bit before squeezing through the aisle of chairs, and heading out of the concert hall.

Leaving the hall turned out to be more of a hassle than you’d initially expected. The lobby towards the exit was packed like a can of sardines, and you and Aaliyah seemed to be standing around for an excruciatingly long period of time.

During this period of time, you zoned out a bit, only half-listening to Aaliyah drone on about some new John Ford movie.

In this downtime, you decided to ask yourself why you hadn’t left this universe yet, since this was so clearly not the one you belonged in, and not the reality your Steve was in. You came to the conclusion that your morbid curiosity of what may happen next in this reality was more than  enough to motivate you not to leave. Besides, who knows? Maybe you could learn a lesson about yourself, or some other corny thing like that.

Lost in your own thoughts, you failed to notice the built blonde man draped in a brown trench coat and looking down speed walking straight into you, and sending you stumbling back into your friend’s arms.

He looked down at you with worry in his eyes, and extended a hand out to you quickly. “My gosh, I’m so sorry!” he exclaimed.

Steve.

Of course, fate had decided to bring you to the man (who technically wasn’t really your man).

You gladly accepted his hand, and let him pull you forward a bit. Your cheeks warmed at the little touch, and you swore you could sense Aaliyah gawking behind you.

“Again, my apologies…?” You could tell that Steve was leaving an opening for your name.

“Oh, uh, Y/N,” you smirked a bit at him.

“Let me make it up to you, Y/N,” he offered politely, and speaking softly so that he wouldn’t attract too much attention.

“Make up pushing me on accident?” You giggled at this. Steve somehow managed to be a bit of an unsmooth dork in every reality.

“Uh, yeah, I guess. But only if you want me to… make it up to you,” a bit of a rose tinted blush was clearly visual on Steve’s face.

“I would love that.”

----

“The perks of having a circus monkey take you out, is that he knows all of the back entrances and exits,” Steve explained while weaving his way through the building.

“Is that some sort of saying from the 40’s?” You casually threw out, following behind Steve as the two of you made your way through the back of the concert hall. As soon as you realized the weight of your words, your eyes went wide.

“What?” Steve asked, looking back at you while the two of you continued your trek.

“Nothing,” your eyes bounced around the room, and you tried to think of something to change the subject to. Luckily for you, you’d arrived at the door, and that was subject change enough. Steve opened the door for you, and held it as you walked through.

You immediately recoiled at the scent of the city. Simply put, it smelled like the Industrial Revolution. Quickly playing it off, you turned your head to look at Steve, and reach out to grab his hand.

“So, where are you planning to take me, Captain?” Steve gladly accepted your hand back, and you happily intertwined your fingers, despite the slight dampness you noticed on his palms. Was The Captain America sweating from nerves from being around you? You’d have to mentally note this to tell Aaliyah later.

“Well, there’s this diner somewhere around here that I’ve heard is pretty good. You interested?” He glanced over at you, and you pursed your lips as you faked deep thought about the proposition.

“You really know the way straight to a gal’s heart, huh?”

----

You had been sitting in a booth across from Steve for what must’ve been hours now. The conversation between the two of you seemed to flow naturally, as if you were longtime friends. In a way, you kind of were, but in another very real way, this was just the beautiful start of something that would blossom more with every second you spent with Steve.

You picked at a napkin, and Steve glanced down at his watch.

“Shit,” he muttered to himself.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, concern clearly present in your tone.

“It’s just really late, and my manager’s gonna be pissed if I miss my flight tomorrow,” Steve sighed sadly, and reached into his pocket for a pen. “I’ll be trading New York for Wisconsin. So exciting, I know, but we gotta get the war bonds somehow,” he chuckled.

“I get it,” you nodded sadly, then noticed Steve scribble something onto a napkin.

“You know Howard Stark?” he questioned.

“Heard of him,” you nodded slowly.

“Well, he’s working on this new thing. It’s just like a phone, but it comes with you everywhere you go. I have a prototype of it, I think it’s pretty neat,” he slid you the napkin. “This is it’s number. You can call me any time, anywhere, and I’ll pick it up.”

You smiled sadly at Steve, but accepted the napkin, folding it into a neat little triangle, and slipping it into your dress pocket. “Is this goodbye?”

“Just for now,” he stood up from the booth, and you followed suit, before he reached for your hand and laced your fingers with his.

The two of you silently walked out of the diner, hand-in-hand. Steve eventually pulled his palm away from yours, and started for the direction of his hotel. Although, before he could get too far, you scurried over to him, and pressed a quick peck against his cheek, catching him by surprise, “Bye, Steve. I’ll see you soon.”

“Of course. Bye, Y/N,” Steve waved as he departed, and you made your way towards the curb so you could hail a taxi.

A taxi quickly pulled up to you, and slipped into the backseat and muttered your address. The soft vibration against your chest that alerted you that it was time to go, did not go unnoticed by you, and you closed your eyes as you attempted to relax into the rather uncomfortable seat.

next chapter

[passionate-reply]

This week on Passionate Reply: We all know “Don’t You Want Me,” but the early Human League is a totally different beast, featuring a different line-up, and songs about killer clowns and wanting to be a skyscraper, on their debut LP, 1979′s Reproduction. Transcript below the break!

Welcome to Passionate Reply, and welcome to Great Albums. In this installment, we’ll be investigating one of the most surprising debut LPs around: The Human League’s Reproduction, first released in 1979.

Pretty much anyone with a general understanding of Western pop will already know the name of the Human League, and associate them, rightfully, with their early 80s hits like “Don’t You Want Me.” For many, the Human League were the first genuine synth-pop that they had ever heard, and their work in the 1980s has been immeasurably influential in bringing the notion of electronic pop into the mainstream. But before they were hitmakers and game-changers, the Human League were a very different band.

Music: “Being Boiled”

“Being Boiled” was the first thing the Human League would ever press to wax, way back in 1978. In most respects, this track is everything that “Don’t You Want Me” is not: its pace is languid, its structure is shapeless and meandering, and rather than a simple and relatable love story, its lyrics offer us a strange and opaque condemnation of the tortures endured by silkworms during textile production. While fascinating, and endearing in its own morbid way, “Being Boiled” does not exactly scream “hit record.” The Human League were not only a different band in a stylistic sense, but also with respect to their personnel, driven by a creative core comprised of budding synthesists Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh. Prior to the release of the breakthrough album Dare, Marsh and Ware would abandon the group over creative differences, and go on to form Heaven 17 instead. It was vocalist Phil Oakey, and producer Martin Rushent, who would create the sound that their name is now so strongly associated with, and this early incarnation of the group is probably best thought of as an entirely different entity. This album, Reproduction, was their first full-length release, and is perhaps the best introduction to their pioneering sound.

Music: “Circus of Death”

“Circus of Death” had appeared as the B-side to “Being Boiled,” and was included once more as the second track on *Reproduction.* It has a lot in common with the other track it accompanied: a plodding pace, a dark and obtuse lyrical theme, and a sparse, fully electronic instrumentation. The Human League were among the first British groups to utilize a totally electronic sound, devoid of any traditional instruments besides the voice, though in this underground and more experimental context, it doesn’t present a threat to the status quo of pop the way that Dare would a few years later. Alongside fellow proto-industrial acts associated with "the Sound of Sheffield," like Clock DVA and Cabaret Voltaire, they dwelt on the fringes of good taste, crafting subversive music for subversive people. “Circus of Death” introduces us to a demonic figure called “the Clown,” who controls, and torments, human beings by use of a drug called “Dominion,” in a scenario that sounds a bit like Huxley’s Brave New World. It’s worth remembering that while younger generations are quick to think of clowns as icons of evil and terror, clowns were unironically beloved as bringers of joy for most of the 20th Century, and these early portrayals of clowns as killers were indeed shocking at the time. Preceding “Circus of Death,” and opening the album, is “Almost Medieval,” a track with some similar themes, but a rather different composition.

Music: “Almost Medieval”

While “Circus of Death” is slow and dirgelike, “Almost Medieval” showcases the more aggressive side of *Reproduction.* It opens the album with a starkly simplistic tick-tocking beat, reminiscent of an unaccompanied metronome, before bursting into its punk-like sonic assault--a musical representation of how seemingly predictable and deterministic machines can also create something outrageous and unexpected. The lyrics of this track seem pointed towards the past, with the narrator exclaiming that they “feel so old,” and as if they’ve died many times before. Juxtaposed against the thoroughly modern setting of an airport with tarmacs and jet engines, it might be taken as an expression of the horror a person from the past might feel if they were shown the world of the future, created by capitalism and high technology. While it isn’t very accurate, we have a tendency to think of the “Medieval” world as a barbaric, unclean, and uncivilized era, full of witch hunts, chastity belts, and the deliberate erasure of “ancient wisdom.” “Almost Medieval” turns that idea on its head, suggesting that perhaps our world is the one that’s truly barbaric. The image of its narrator, “falling through a rotting ladder,” can be taken as a rejection of the notion of a “ladder” of progress. Similar themes of open-ended symbolism, and the sorrow of modernity, can be found on “Empire State Human.”

Music: “Empire State Human”

Like “Almost Medieval,” “Empire State Human” is lively and faster-paced, with driving percussion. With its straightforward rhymes and repetitive structure, it readily encourages the listener to sing along, almost as if joining in some sort of ritual chant. It’s an idea that Marsh and Ware would return to in their Heaven 17 days, with tracks like “We Don’t Need This Fascist Groove Thang.” “Empire State Human” was the album’s only single, and thanks to this exposure, and its (relative) palatability compared to the rest of their catalogue, it remains one of the best known tracks from the early Human League. “Empire State Human” makes its concept pretty clear, with less ambiguous lyrics and an easy to follow mix that brings Oakey’s voice to the fore: the narrator wishes to become a building, and a mighty skyscraper no less, which might rival the achievements of the Pyramids of the ancient Egyptians. While it is clear that that’s what the song’s about, what we do with this once again high-concept subject matter is up to us. I like to think that this is some kind of perverse commentary on the unnatural and alienating experience of urban living, which may come with the feeling that the concrete and rebar structures that surround us are more significant to our lives than the people who may live or work in them. City life is addressed more directly by the track “Blind Youth.”

Music: “Blind Youth”

“Blind Youth” is probably the most “grounded” track on the album, in terms of its theme, making pointed remarks about “dehumanization” and “high-rise living.” It’s tempting to think of it as a sort of parallel to “Empire State Human,” with a broadly similar musical backdrop, and a more literal expression of the theme hinted at more obliquely by “Empire State Human.” With its focus on the experiences of the titular “youth,” “Blind Youth” can also be contrasted with “Almost Medieval,” whose narrator keens about feeling old. Where “Almost Medieval” deals with the disgust an older person feels at the decrepit state of the human race, “Blind Youth” shows the demented, unthinking joy of the youth, who have grown up in an industrialized and urbanized world, and don’t know different--or better.

While there have been many classic underground albums whose covers aimed to shock and displease polite society, the cover of Reproduction is one of the few that I feel would still be seen as offensive, over 40 years later. It was allegedly the product of a miscommunication between the group and the illustrator commissioned to create it; the band requested a scene in which people are dancing above a ward of babies in glass-topped incubators, and the striking angle, which seems to show people crushing infants underfoot, is an unintentional aspect of the design. Unintentional or not, this crudely violent aspect dominates the final composition, and lends it vileness and immediacy. Like the lyrics of many of the songs, the combination of the cover and title can be interpreted a number of ways. Perhaps it’s a glib commentary on human reproduction as fun and games: we partake in the “dance” of courtship and sexuality, and babies drop beneath our feet. Or perhaps it suggests a contrast between life’s enjoyments, like dancing, and its stressors, like the responsibilities of parenthood. It’s hard not to see so many crying, seemingly distressed infants without becoming upset oneself, and I think the deep instinctual revulsion that this piece inspires is part of why it’s remained so resonant in its subversiveness.

As I mentioned in my introduction, the Human League have gone down in history chiefly for the music they made later, which has largely buried this early period as part of their legacy--at least in the public eye and outside of the dedicated diggings of motivated enthusiasts. If you’re a fan of what you’ve heard from this album, you’ll probably enjoy their 1980 follow-up Travelogue, as well as their EP, Holiday ‘80. Given the emphasis on long-form albums among music aficionados, EPs and their exclusive tracks are quite frequently missed, but Holiday ‘80 is a gem from this short-lived line-up, featuring the fragile “Marianne” as well as a cover of the stadium favourite “Rock ‘N’ Roll,” made famous by Gary Glitter. Thumbing its nose at everything the culture of “rock and roll” stands for, and transposing this hymn to its greatness into an abrasive and sterile lunar landscape of synths, this is one of my favourite covers of all time, and seems to prefigure how a very different Human League would later become the archnemesis of all that rock fans held holy. It was also one of very few tracks to be performed on Top of the Pops, and subsequently see not a rise, but a drop in the singles charts!  

Music: “Rock ‘N’ Roll”

My favourite track on Reproduction is one that appears on its second side, unlike the other tracks I’ve talked about so far: “Austerity / Girl One.” Side Two of Reproduction is mainly focused on longer and more narrative-driven tracks, and this is no exception. Like the opener of the second side, “Austerity / Girl One” is a medley, albeit one of two pieces that are original compositions and not covers, as medleys usually are. This track’s story is both timeless and modern, a bit like a contemporary King Lear: the “Austerity” half deals with an aging father, incapable of understanding his children, dying alone and ignored, while the “Girl One” half puts us in the mindset of his daughter, a New Woman whose life is hectic, but also bleak. It’s a story that many of us will relate to, about people who try their best with what they’ve got, but still feel as though they’ve failed in life. Its simple, but effective musical backdrop of wan synth pulses allows the narrative, and Oakey’s evocative portrayal of it, to take center stage. That’s everything for today, thanks for listening.

Music: “Austerity / Girl One”

[abeautifuldayfortea]

A Perfect Spring Day

Summary: Slice of life of the Fellowship members enjoying the peace directly after the War of the Ring and following Aragorn’s coronation. Boromir lives in the Halls of Mandos. Requested by @warriorbookworm

Just the fellowship(boromir lives, ofc) having fun after the war? Have fun, add fluff, and maybe fellowship reunion? In gondor?

A/N: This was a fun gapfiller to write, Boromir lives far west of Arda. By the book canon, the Fellowship never meet up again together as eight members after reuniting in Gondor at the end of the War of the Ring. My personal headcanon is that Merry and Ioreth would be best friends (and that she is the one who inspires him to write the Herblore of the Shire book).

Words: 1555

The warm touch of spring came to Faramir as a blessing upon all blessings. The dark winter brewing in the east had at last relinquished its terror and there was little need now to turn toward the great mountain ranges of Mordor, if only for a little while. A time of peace and celebration. It came to him then that he had never known such a peace in his life, for he had been born in the unhappy years at the waning of Gondor’s power and in all his waking memory the grim forboding of Mordor’s black shadow had hung. Now the fair house of Minas Tirith set to his heart a bloom brighter than any flower of Ithilien and none as beautiful as the golden dawn that sat upon the brow of Éowyn in the morning’s waking hour. Upon the tempered gardens in the Houses of Healing they had walked together and now they had returned, hand in hand. Merry, clad in the green and white livery of Rohan was with them, sat upon the grass beside his lord and lady.

Between his hands, calloused and hardened from the labours of his journey, he absentmindedly turned a young leaf, still green and wet from the night’s frost and plucked prematurely from the fields beyond the walls of Minas Tirith where it grew with wild abandon. He looked with wonder as he beheld the fresh leaf of pipeweed or westmansweed or galena as it was known there and he was silent, as though the many sprinting thoughts and imaginings of his mind were turned elsewhere, placated and seeking some far-fetched place that was beyond Faramir.

The halflings were a hardy and curious folk, Faramir thought to himself. Merry had been loth to leave Theoden-king and it had only been the stout insistence that only kings and stewards had leave to enter Rath Dínen that stopped him from following him to his tomb. In the days thereafter that he spent dwelling in the pensive idleness within the Houses of Healing, he had become fast friends with Ioreth who treated with him as doting siblings are wont to do, and they delighted each other with the ever more exaggerated stories of home in a futile attempt to outdo the other. They found within each other a great kinship, for they were both light of heart and quick tongued and their merry speech filled the halls with the small but resplendent ripples of nostalgia.

“You see, young master Periain, these gardens are only well kempt. I tell you, when I spent my youth in Imloth Melui, the three of us, meaning my sisters and I of course, went tramping around inside the rose bushes. Inside, I tell you! I say, folk will talk, saying you haven’t seen a proper garden at all if word ever gets out of the way you talk about the gardens here! Plain, I call them.” she snorted.

“You must be much mistaken, Lady Ioreth! We halflings live among our gardens and I say that they are both well kempt and beautiful! Our gardens are our pride and joy, and I will say that no garden is fairer than that which has its roots dug deep in Shire earth. It is a shameful waste though, that the westmansweed crop is left without harvest, our folk cultivate it carefully and tend to it like a bairn. It grows everywhere here and to think they are tended only by the grace of the Valar. Perhaps it is the cold air that blows form Lochnarch. Farmers from the Southfarthing would surely weep with joy if they laid eyes on this!” He tutted.

And so Merry’s restful days after the war was lived mostly beside Ioreth in the Houses of Healing, learning from her the arts of herblore and healing when he could not seek for Sam and his cousins. But Ioreth was elsewhere that morning, receiving a fellow kinswoman from Imloth Melui he was told. Pippin was standing guard by the citadel or with Beregond and the Third Company, spinning yarns of his own, green with the enthusiasm of newfound confidence like a fledgling ready to fly the nest. Frodo and Sam were exhausted, spending their days and nights together always, finding comfort in each other from the waking terror that they escaped from in the calmness of sleep whilst Gandalf watched over them. 

There was an undeniable change in Frodo, he noted, in the short moments in between the celebration and hearty tales exchanged between the Company. In the blink of an eye, he was himself, his merry cousin whom he had grown to love as a brother and yet sometimes he was a stranger to him, grave, a gaunt gaze, disconnected, living in a world apart from his reality. His burden had been heavy. In those miniscule moments, the distance between them yawned, and in this strange new territory, Merry could understand why but he could not help his cousin, for he did could never know the living nightmare that Frodo had traversed.

Gimli and Legolas had excused themselves earlier to explore the lower circles of the city, giving their assistance to the Men of Gondor in the long labour of repairing the White City. Far below, caught by the wind and carried to their ears, the small party on the lawn could hear the sound of Legolas singing in the strange Elvish tongue.

The rest of the fellowship saw little of Aragorn in the days after his coronation, for though he delayed the breaking of the Fellowship, he himself was caught up in matters of office and negotiations with many of the peoples of Middle Earth. Gandalf was found in unlikely places at unlikely times and came and went from the fair house in which they resided and that day his white robes and soft footfalls were brought to the Houses of Healing.

“Mithrandir!” “Hullo Gandalf!” Faramir rose and the Merry went with him, gladdened by the appearance of their old friend. They were greeted by his laughter, bright and ringing as though the weight of his labours was lifted and they saw the strange glint of ethereal youth in his eyes, eyes whose light beheld the raising of Arda, the birth of mountains and the delving of the great basin that would become the sea.

“A happy day looks upon the White City, my friends! I see you’re enjoying the music from down below, Faramir”. The man towering over the wizard before him looked away, bashful as a child.

“He is much talented, it is the voice I heard long ago in a dream, though I knew not then who it was. The tune is different and here it sings of celebration, yet I heard a song wearied and lonely upon a blistering night breeze”.

“It is lovely,” he hummed “and if it came to you in a vision then it is fairer still. Music has always had your heart, though I think yours has grown fond of much more than that now. Though, I see something else in you which you withhold from me”. His eyes searched and beheld Faramir’s face in a deep thoughtfulness.

A great sadness came washing over Faramir then, as though he had been swept straight into the path of dark waves. Faramir smiled, although his heart grieved. “Alas, for the parting of the one I loved best! I dream often of my brother, both in waking and in troubled sleep he oft appears to me and at times he speaks to me of fair halls and beautiful citadels that he claims I have yet to see. He laughs with a joy that I have not heard from him since we were both children. I saw him, at the coronation of Aragorn standing from afar, and he cheered for him, as he would when he returned from a battle hard won, but no company echoed him. He lives still, though he dwells where I cannot seek him.”

The wind shifted uneasily. Gandalf’s ancient eyes filled with pity and love for his young student.

“You are a wise man, Faramir, and indeed Boromir lives on and his spirit even now is fostered in the West, awaiting the Second Music, and when the time comes, you will be returned to his side and you too will see for yourself the grand halls he speaks of. It is but another pathway which we must all journey through and when you emerge, you will find the veil lifted and a beauty beyond any earthly treasure.”

“But come! Let us speak no more on these dark thoughts, we must enjoy the peace while it lasts, even as Boromir does so now in the Halls of Mandos. The breeze is fair and the sun is warm and,” he eyed Merry playfully, “I think I might just be willing to share some of my pipeweed”.

Leaning his back against the soft moss-covered wall, Gandalf took out his pipe and smoked in amiable silence alongside Merry as he basked under the midmorning sun, listening to the song of Legolas lulling him into a wakeful tranquillity. As the sun rose, Merry dozed and dreamed of home, the fresh westmansweed leaf began to wilt in his hand. Gandalf smiled, blissfully content with his work, a perfect spring day.

[poptod]

jiāoqiǎnyánshēn (Ahkmenrah x Reader)

Description: jiāoqiǎnyánshēn (chinese, v.) - to have a deep and intimate conversation with a stranger.

Notes: for @hideamnos​! a bit longer than my last couple of fics so I hope you don’t mind. the strange city happenings are all things I’ve seen in San Fran. As always, gender neutral. Word Count: 2.6k

Rain falls down from the sky in great sheets, battering down at your umbrella so harshly that you have to tuck it away to avoid flying off. Wind whips at your hair, biting at your exposed skin, pushing you to seek some sort of shelter, any shelter, from the fall-winter weather.

Nowhere is open. It has to be around midnight – you can't be bothered to check your phone, considering the last time you used it it was on 5% battery. The only light you can really see is the one near the train station, and with that singular sliver of hope, you run off in that direction. With the wind at your back, something finally goes right for you.

In the fluorescent light another man sits, skin that you assumed would've been dark in any other light paled in the station lights. The dull buzzing you usually hear is gone, beaten out by the rain, pounding harsh against the flimsy rooftop. With shaking hands you sit on the bench, curling up into a ball as though that would keep you warmer.

You won't deny that New York City has some strange folks – it's much like that in many other cities, though New York has to be the worst case you've seen of it. There was one point where a long line of monks, numbering somewhere into the fifties, walked down the sidewalk chanting some language you couldn't understand. This one can't be the strangest occurrence, though it is a little peculiar. His clothes are too nice to be a costume but it can't be anything else; a man wearing ancient Egyptian garb, donned entirely in gold and bearing a crown that looked far too heavy for his head. He's standing, carrying a tablet at his side as he stares off into the ink black of the city's night.

When it begins to hail he looks up at the sky, a calmness in his movement that you hardly ever see. Turning back down to the ground, he steps further inside the safety of the train stop, sitting down on the bench beside you.

"Come here often?" He asks in a humorous tone, a British accent shocking you mildly. With a chuckle and a wide smile, you shake your head, mumbling a small 'no.'

When he turns to once again stare at the empty railroad tracks, you let yourself examine him, his bone structure, the way his skin rests on his face – all very middle eastern, probably Arabic or Egyptian, or a mix of the two. It's becoming a bad habit at this point, staring at people's facial structure. Despite the fact that it'd probably make people uncomfortable if they knew you were doing it, it's good practice for you, what with your attempts to become a forensic pathologist. He's pretty, you note that as well – soft skin, sharp jawline, sweet eyes, pink lips – all leading to you blushing and looking away when he notices your stare.

"You're curious, aren't you?" He says in a quiet voice, but you can tell he doesn't mind your intrigue in him.

"Well... yes, but I'm used to not figuring out why people do strange things," you say, recalling the fifty monks and the one woman wearing only dog leashes as clothes. Your comment earns you a tiny smile from him.

"My name is.. Ahk," he says, removing his hand from the many folds of his clothes, holding it out for you to shake. You do so, noting nice fingernails and a firm grip.

"I'm (Y/N)," you respond, releasing his hand.

"I'm from the Natural History Museum, here in New York. The Egyptian exhibit," he says, and for a moment you wonder what the hell he's talking about, before remembering they created a new exhibit recently. Some sort of attempt to 'bring history to life' by hiring actors.

"Oh, you're the actor playing that boy king," you say in recognition, secretly proud that you remembered that.

"He's... he's not really a boy," he laughs sweet, a wide grin and crinkles around the eye – you can't help but continue noting how handsome this man is.

"How old is he then?" You ask, scooting closer in a fashion that made sure he wouldn't recognize what you were doing. This was too good of a chance to lose so suddenly.

"I – um, he died when he was around seventeen," he stutters out, blushing when you both know that's still a very young age for a king. "But – but he would've... grown up."

"All of us would've grown up. Doesn't mean that fellow is 4,000 years old now," you snort.

"Yeah..." he chuckles nervously, "right."

"Are you interested in Egypt or.. is it more of just a job for you? It seems interesting nonetheless," you say, leaning in. Stories have always been a staple of your life, the woes people go through and the accomplishments of humanity – everyone has something interesting about them.

"I'm actually from Egypt," he says, confirming what you'd deduced earlier. "It's a bit like returning to my childhood. I.. um, I lost my parents at a pretty early age, so it's a little difficult sometimes, since my job sort of.. reminds me of that part of myself, but um – I, uh, I still enjoy it."

"I understand. I lost my father recently," you say in a soft voice, your gaze drifting to the hail covered cement as you recall your father. He'd always been much nicer and closer to you than your mother. "It must be difficult. It's great that you've been able to enjoy yourself, though. When did you leave Egypt?"

"... in my twenties," he says after blipping out for a moment, which only makes your sentiment for him warmer – maybe you have a thing for airheads. "I left to go to Cambridge."

"Really? Wow, that's a nice school," you say with a sigh, already shuddering just imagining how expensive it had to be. Not even factoring in the fact that University in itself can be expensive, Ahk is Egyptian and had to be a foreign exchange student, which only ups the price.

"Yeah, I had a mildly pleasant time there," he chuckles, and you laugh as well – you wonder for a moment if you could manage to get his number.

"Here's another question for you, if you don't mind my asking," you say before being promptly interrupted by him.

"Only if I can ask you a question after."

With a sheepish smile you nod, realizing you've been bombarding him with question after question, and leaving him little time to figure out anything about you. He adjusts himself in his seat, and waits patiently for your query.

"Why are you at a train station in the middle of the night wearing your work clothes?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he laughs, but proceeds to answer anyway. "A couple friends and I went out for fun since we weren't actually working, we, uh, we don't work on Tuesdays and weekends, but we do rehearsals and such on Tuesdays so it's... technically work? Anyway, we went out, had some fun, caused several statues to come to life and then we got separated because they got arrested for disturbing the peace, but I managed to escape, ever the lucky one –" you laugh when he says that as though it's a monumental accomplishment, "but I need to get back to the Museum before dawn.. my clothes, and all that. I don't have an automobile, so... train."

"Sounds like a hell of an evening," you say with a laugh, wondering what other hectic things this man could be up to.

He proceeds to ask you the same question, 'what are you doing at a train station at midnight,' but it doesn't process in your head when you realize he said he caused several statues to come to life. He had to be joking, but he didn't mention it, which he definitely should've since it's a very confusing and worrying statement to make.

"(Y/N)? Are you alright?"

"Hm? Oh, sorry," you rush out, registering he's been waving his hand in front of your face. He backs away when you finally react, though he continues to look worried, and asks you if you're alright. "I'm fine, I just.. remembered I haven't had dinner and I need to plan that when I get home."

"Oh, that's not good. Definitely eat something. But, uh, as I was saying..." you perk up again, "what are you doing here?"

"That's – that's a funny story, actually. I was off at an art exhibit, or at least I was planning on going to it, and it was a pretty late night one," you look down at your phone, which is now dead, "it was supposed to go till around 1 AM, not sure what time it is now but – I was, I was stopped at the door because, as it turns out, I had the wrong address. I didn't know that at the time, though, so I kept insisting I wanted to go inside. I sort of thought they might've been discriminating against me but I digress. I finally got inside, turns out I actually was at the wrong place. I'm honestly not sure what kind of party I walked into, but it was.. really odd. Decided to stay because it began to rain, but then somebody started stripping and so did everyone else and I decided it was time to get out, as many people would decide. I left the building incredibly disoriented and a little drunk, got a bit lost, and then the rain picked up and I couldn't see a thing. Eventually found my way here."

"That sounds a lot more exciting than my evening," he says after giving your spiel a moment to set in.

"Yes, well, at least no one got arrested. To my knowledge."

"Right," he laughs, looking down at the floor when you meet his eye. As his laughter fades he tucks in his lip, biting and discreetly rolling his tongue over the top lip, making your heart stutter in your chest.

"Hey, do you know where we are? I might be able to drive you back to the museum," you offer, something you can immediately tell was the right move to make. He sits up a little straighter, a spark of hope in his eye.

"Would you do that? That'd be wonderful, really. I'll die if I don't get back in time," he says with wide eyes, turning to you like you've just become best friends. You giggle and nod your head, thinking about the many strange things this man has said, and wondering if he has always been so different from others.

Unfortunately, neither you nor Ahk have much of an idea as to where you are, so you turn to the maps. Two of them sit on either side of the small rest area, illuminated by the pale light and protected behind glass. There's a marker telling you where you are, and while Ahk is absolutely horrible at reading the map, you manage to pinpoint where you stand.

"It's a good thing you're smarter than I am," he comments as the two of you head off, trying your best to stay out of the hail.

"I don't think I am. I think I've just lived here a while," you say, ducking beneath the overhang of a building roof. "You start to recognize patterns and such the longer you stare at things."

"Yes, I've..." he looks to you as though you're suddenly precious, "I've noticed. I used to look at the stars quite a bit when I was younger."

After going through both sopping rain and biting hail, the two of you are exhausted by the time you reach your car. You hadn't driven it to the function (it would've been much easier to find had you done that, but you didn't) and you hadn't left it at home either, but you distinctly remembered leaving it in an underground parking lot. The reasons as to your decision to leave it there are unimportant, and Ahk does not ask. Painted an alarming shade of red, your car was a gift from an eccentric aunt, and though it's tight to fit more than two people in there, the two of you manage.

Throughout the evening you've noticed things that are 'off' about him – the way he tells stories, how he recalls memories, his choice of words, his life in general, but sitting in the car with him has to be the strangest thing that's happened to you. It doesn't feel as though he's ever even been in a car, mesmerized by the blinking lights and the soft radio that comes from the surround sound system you have. So it's a fact in your mind – there's something about him that isn't entirely true, that isn't wholly normal, and the idea excites you just as much as it terrifies you. Maybe he's a prince. Maybe he's a murderer. You don't know, but he keeps up the happy energy that seems ever present in his company all throughout the ride.

Large lights dug into the ground shine bright onto the front of the museum, showing off the pillars and carvings and, of course, the ever-changing advertisement posters. The hail has lightened back into rain, though it's still freezing and biting when you walk him up the entrance. Your legs slow in the cold, sore to move and making your whole journey up the many steps just a little more difficult, but Ahk doesn't seem bothered by it. It's another thing that strikes you as unusual – he hasn't complained of the cold, or shown any of its effects at any point. His clothes only add to your confusion, as they're definitely suited towards warm, Egyptian weather, not hail and sleet.

"I want to thank you again for driving me here. I am indebted to you," he says with a small bow once the two of you are safe underneath the portico. Inside, all the lights are on, and it looks as though most of the actors inside are still in their costumes.

"It's not a big deal," you insist. "I'm happy to help."

"Still, you're very kind," he says, taking your hands in his, a sincere smile on his face.

"I, uh –" you stammer, blushing from the contact. "I enjoyed our conversations. Is... do you, um... is there any way I can, uh, contact you?"

He halts, and for a moment you think you misread the signals – maybe he isn't as interested in you as you thought, and the idea of that alone puts an anchor in your chest.

"I don't have any phones," he says, a sentence that sounds wrong but is technically correct, "but I'm here pretty much every night. I'm very dedicated to my job." He winks, and you can't help but smile.

"Then I hope I'll see you again, Ahk," you say softly, biting at your lip as your nervousness begins to get at you.

"I hope to see you again as well."

With that he leaves you starstruck, already dreaming of when you'll see him again.

[thorne93]

The Stars Made Us (Part 28)

Prompt: In this world, you’re one of the “lucky” ones who got a soulmate, but what if the universe gives you more than you bargained for?

(Prompt challenge – You live in a world where your soulmate can write on their skin and you will get the writing on your own and vice versa. Where they can wash away the ink on their own skin, however, the writing is forever scarred onto your skin until you meet face to face)

Word Count: 2741

Warnings: angst and language throughout, seizure/medical complications

Notes: This was supposed to be for @sorryimacrapwriter​​​​​  and their challenge like a year ago, I think? I still loved the prompt though and have been working on this story for quite some time. This aesthetic was made by @dontshootmespence​, thank you so much! Beta’d by @like-a-bag-of-potatoes​​​​​, couldn’t have done it without you, as well as @carryonmyswansong​​​​​ and @arrow-guy​​​​​ and @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo​​​​​

Also, I’ve never really liked the whole soulmate AU thing idea, but this felt so right and it was amazing to write. I hope y’all love it too!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over a month had gone by since Stephen so painfully sent you away. Your work had picked up after a week and you went back to business as usual. You fell back into your role in the mansion quickly and easily and when no one was around, that's when you let yourself grieve the loss of your love with Stephen. 

It was getting slightly better with time. And a large part of that was due to Charles. He was practically worshiping you every day. He surprised you with flowers quite a bit, cooked for you every now and then, took you to restaurants, made picnics. He bought you a few pieces of art you'd been eyeing. He even gave you foot rubs after the end of your long days. 

He was your saving grace. 

The two of you felt as if time hadn't passed at all for you. There was no lull in returning to your romantic lives together. You still loved him with all of your heart and nothing had changed that, not even the issues with Stephen. 

One day, while you were working on a report for  work, you got a call. You frowned, not recognizing the number, but picked it up anyway. 

"Hello?" 

"Y/N? It's Wong. How are you?"

"I'm fine, Wong, how are you?" you wondered, extremely worried as to why he was calling. You told him only to call you if there were issues with Stephen. 

"I'm okay, but Strange isn't. He's... Well he's not himself." 

"Isn't that a good thing?" you joked. 

Of course, Wong didn't respond with any kind of laughter. 

"In this case, no," he informed.

"Why? What's wrong?" 

"Well he took the position as protector of the New York Sanctum." 

"Mhm."

"He's doing that fine, he's just not... You might just want to see for yourself."

"Wong, I told you to call for emergencies. If he's just in a bad mood--"

"He won't talk," he said. "He always had something to say before. Some joke, some horrible crack to make. Now, he doesn't speak. He talks to me about the sanctum, but that's it."

You frowned. That was unusual. 

"I'd like to help, Wong, I would, but Stephen cast me out. He doesn't want me around."

"I don't know what he told you before, but he lied. The moment you left, it was like someone drained the life force out of him. I've been sending him new books to learn, to keep up with his training, but when I check in on him, it's like he's in a fog. He hasn't read, or what he has read, he doesn't retain." 

You chewed on your lip. "Okay, I'll see what I can do. New York sanctum?" 

"Yes, he's there 24/7, never leaves." 

-------------------------

You got home that night and Charles greeted you cheerily, as he always did. Kissing you sweetly before showing you to the dinner he had made. Hank was working late tonight out at a military base. 

"I got a call today," you informed as you began to pick around the roast beef on your plate.

"Oh? Who from?"

"Wong."

Charles stilled momentarily, and he hoped you didn't catch it, but you did. He went back to eating. 

"What'd he have to say?" 

"He wants me to come see Stephen."

Charles put his fork down and gave you his full attention. "Has something happened? Is he alright?" he asked, concerned.

"I think he's okay mentally. He told me that I suppose he can't focus, that he's a bit of an emotional wreck." You sounded almost confused. "Why, I don't know, he's the one that sent me away." 

"Do you want to go to him?" he asked softly.

You chewed your lip. "I don't know. Yes, and no. I want to see him. I want to make him feel better. I want to talk about why he was cruel. But I also can't take it again if he just turns me away, if he's as hateful as he always is when it comes to me." 

"You know I support you either way?" he said as he reached across the table and held your hand. 

You nodded, fighting back tears. "I know, and I love you for it." 

"What does your gut say?" he inquired, staring at you with those dreamy blue eyes that made you melt. 

"I feel like I want to see him, but..."

"But what? Talk to me," he urged. 

You pressed your lips together, worried about what you were about to tell him. "I love him too. I don't want to have to choose."

He nodded. "I know, my dove. While I would be over the moon if you were mine, and mine alone, I also understand that the universe has granted you two souls to love, and two souls to love you back. When you made visits to me from Nepal, that felt quite alright. Of course I'd rather have you here, but if you need to split your time between us, I understand and support that."

Happy tears went down your cheek as you peered at him. 

"Thank you so much."

"Of course, darling. I would never, ever, make you choose. Whatever your heart desires, it's yours."

You got up and went to hug him. He hugged you back, tightly, pulling you into his lap. You were crying, kissing him, and hugging him. The stars truly blessed you when you got Charles Xavier as your mate.  

The next morning, you decided to make your way into the city to see Stephen. You had no idea what you'd find, what you would say or do, what he would say or do. All you wanted to ask, was why he made you leave, so forcefully, when everything seemed so perfect. 

While you were driving to the sanctum, you were white knuckling the whole way. You were so nervous about seeing him again, nervous that he'd turn you away. 

You arrived at the sanctum, sucking in a breath before knocking. You could feel yourself break out in a cold sweat, your heart hammering in your chest. 

The door opened and you saw Stephen. His eyes narrowed quickly, taken aback by your presence.

He looked so much more beautiful than you remembered. His cuts from the fight had healed. Surprisingly, when you saw him, happiness flooded you. You didn't think that would happen. 

"Y/N?" 

"Hi, Stephen. Can I come in?" you asked. 

"Uh, sure." He moved out of the way and invited you in, where you stood at the bottom of those large stairs.

"I see you got the place all cleaned up," you remarked.

"Yeah, uh, Wong helped. Mordo quit the program. After he learned about the Ancient One's power, he felt like he'd been lied to," he informed. 

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. But you're sticking around?" 

"I am. I had an encounter that made me see that you and Christine were right about me saving lives that doesn't require a medical degree." 

You smiled slightly. "I'm glad to hear that. Whatever makes you happy. Um, Kaecilius, is he?"

"Dead. Him and his followers. We sort of gave them up to Dormammu." 

"That dark entity? You encountered him?" 

He gave a slight laugh. "That's one way to put it, yeah."

"What happened?" you inquired, pressing him for more information. 

"Long story short, we went to Hong Kong. I had to use the eye of Agmatto to turn back time, to fix things, to bring Wong back. We realized that if we did that though, we'd only have to keep fighting Kaecilius. So, we went after the source, or rather, I did."

You took a step closer to him. "Stephen, what did you do?" 

He took a deep breath, his eyes staring into yours. "I faced Dormammu." 

"You did what?" you gasped. "How--How did you survive? What did you do? Jesus, Stephen."

"You used to have so much faith in me," he quipped with a smirk.

"And I still do, but I don't approve of anyone putting themselves in the line of danger." 

"I had to." 

"What'd you do?"

"I... I created a time loop, and trapped him in it endlessly. He killed me, over, and over, but the time loop reset. Basically, I annoyed him so much that he agreed to leave Earth alone." 

"That sounds about right. You pestering a dark entity so much that they beg you to leave them alone. Only the great Dr. Stephen Strange could do that." You gave a weak smile. "What did the Ancient One do? Was she helpful? Did she give you the idea to do that or...?" 

"She... she died. We were fighting Kaecilius and she fell from a great height and hit the ground. She died before we ever went to Hong Kong to fight. She was the reason I decided to stick around, do something more meaningful with my life." 

"I see... I'm so sorry. I'm sure that wasn't easy," you said, starting to reach towards him but then you began to lower your arm.

He grabbed your hand and held it in his. "I've missed you," he suddenly confessed. 

"And I you." 

In a shaky voice, he said, "I missed you so much, I, uh, I came to visit you." 

"Was I not home?" 

"Uh, you didn't know I came by," he informed. "I used my astral form."

You nodded slowly. "You spied on me?" 

"No, not quite. I just... I came by to make sure you were okay. I went once to your work. I went another time to your home."

"You did? But why?" 

"Because I missed you so much," he said, his voice thick as tears came to his eyes. He smiled down at you before his hand came up to rest against your neck, his thumb stroking your chin. "I'm so sorry I invaded your privacy, I just had to see you. I had to know how you were doing."

You let out a sigh. "And what did you find?" 

He let out a bit of a sigh, the tears now rolling down his cheeks. "I saw you, standing at your bedroom window. It was pouring down rain. Charles was in bed, fast asleep. You were standing at the window, talking to yourself." 

You sighed, your own tears now. You remembered that night. 

"What... what did you hear?" you managed to ask before taking a deep breath. 

"I heard you asking yourself why I made you leave. I heard you asking why I didn't want you any more. I heard you asking what you'd done. I heard you churning it over and over in my mind what happened. It broke my heart to see you that way. To see what I'd done to you."

You took a deep breath. "Uh, um, but if you have missed me, why did you leave me? Why did you kick me out of your life?" you asked, shaking your head. "I mean if it really killed you to see me that way, why not just come visit me in your normal body and talk to me? Tell me what happened? How do you go from telling me I was just one giant distraction to caring about me? You told me you wanted him out of your life and then you come and see me? That doesn't make any sense. What did I do wrong?"

"Nothing," he assured, smiling at me as he cried. Both of his hands were resting on either side of your face. "You did absolutely nothing wrong. You did everything right. That was the problem." 

You were crying more now, shaking your head. "I don't understand." 

"I... I pushed you away because I saw you almost die, protecting me. You almost died because of a situation I put us directly in. You were pinned to the floor by a blade. You bled out and passed out next to me. You carried me to a hospital to my ex lover. You put everything aside, just to protect and save me. When I saw you and I saw how determined you were to get back and help me, but I felt so responsible. I had to kill a man to protect both of us. You nearly died. I didn't want that again. I don't want to put you in that position, ever again." 

"I'd do it, happily, though," you informed, staring up at him.

"I know," he said, laughing slightly. "That's what the issue is. You're so ready to do so much for everyone else, and I can't risk that." 

You looked down, feeling your heart break all over again. 

"But I can't live without you either," he said, dipping his face slightly so he could see your eyes. 

You looked up at him, surprised. "Me either. I've been thinking about you non-stop. For the life of me, I can't figure it out but I miss your smart-assed comments." 

"Y/N, I love you." 

"I love you," you said.

The two of you searched each other's eyes before you threw your arms around his neck and you collided your lips with his. Feeling alive again at the feeling of it. He kissed you back fervently, holding you close to him.

"Be with me," he requested when he let you go. 

You nodded, feeling a light growing inside you. "I can do that. That's easy. Charles already said that he doesn't mind sharing if that's what I want."

He shook his head. "No, I-- I mean just be mine." 

You took a step back from him. "Stephen, I--"

"Hear me out," he begged. "What if... What if the universe got it wrong? What if Charles isn't your soulmate? Or what if he's supposed to be your first but I'm supposed to be your last? Maybe there's a reason he and I showed up at the times we did." 

"I--I don't think..." You shook your head, letting go of him. "No, that can't be right. It's not right," you affirmed. 

"How do you know that? You don't. No one knows anything about having duel soulmates - no one. It is completely unique to you." 

"Yeah maybe the phenomenon, but not how I feel. Soulmates or not, I am still very much in love with Charles, just as much as I love you. I can't choose between you, please don't make me. Charles isn't. Don't make me do that... I can't." 

"But don't you see? What if this is the way it's supposed to be?" he pleaded, getting closer to you again, putting his hand behind your head. "What if Charles was your beginning, and I respect that, I do, but what if I'm your end?" 

You shook your head. 

"I don't know. I can't..."

"You can't say one way or the other if that's what it's supposed to be." 

All you could do was panic, feeling trapped. What if he was right? What if you were just tied to Charles from all the history you had? Of course you still loved him. You were just as in love as before. Was it even possible that they weren't supposed to occupy your life at the same time? Maybe you weren't supposed to choose. Maybe you were supposed to move on.

But that just didn't feel right. You felt happiest when you had them both in your life. 

"Stephen, I... I'm so sorry, but I just don't believe that. I love you, I do, but I can't choose, I won't choose. Charles is okay with sharing me, so either you are okay too or..." You trailed off, making the implication clear.

He let go of you, stepping back, he still held onto your hands, but barely as he continued to put more distance between you two. 

"Then I can't do this," he said sorrowfully. "I can't have it both ways. I just want you all to myself, so if you can't give me that..." 

"You'd rather not have me at all than share me?" you asked in shock, gasping from the pain. 

"I'm sorry, but I want all of you. I don't want to have to fight for your attention." 

"You wouldn't."

"That's how it would feel." He picked up your hands, bringing both to his lips, kissing them. "I'm so sorry, Y/N. I love you. Please come see me again if you change your mind." 

He let you go and walked away, leaving you standing alone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[twoidiotwriters1]

Written In The Stars CXXXIV (Harry Potter xF!Oc)

A/N: The way the last chapters are like one slap after the other -Danny

Words: 3,761

Series’ Masterlist

Previous Chapter // Next Chapter

Chapter Thirty-Two: Trapped.

Harry, Neville and Luna climbed onto the air... and stayed there. Ron, Erick, Mel, Hermione and Ginny stared at them.

"What?" Harry asked stupidly.

"What do you mean 'what', you idiot?" Mel scowled.

"How're we supposed to get on?" said Ron in disbelief. "When we can't see the things?"

"Oh it's easy," Luna slid back to the ground. "Come here..." 

She guided each of them to a different Thestral. Erick didn't like the way he could feel the creature yet not see it. Mel got used to it quickly, holding tightly onto the invisible crest. The rest were in different states of awkwardness.

"This is mad," Ron said quietly. "Mad... if I could just see it —"

"You'd better hope it stays invisible," said Harry. "We all ready, then? Okay..." He stared down. "Ministry of Magic, visitors' entrance, London, then— Er... if you know... where to go..." 

Mel was lifted off the ground, she swore and closed her eyes, which turned out to be a bad idea, because the moment she opened them again she was remarkably disoriented. They were no longer in the castle, and all she could see were mountains.

"These things are fast!" Ginny said with a mix of excitement and dread in her voice.

"I — hate — this!" Erick bellowed behind her. "Why do you have to get into these kinds of situations all the time?"

"Shut up!" Ron responded. "Some of us are trying not to fall!"

Mel kept her mouth shut the whole trip, it reminded her a bit of the time she travelled in the Ford Anglia, but it was definitely not as safe, and therefore, not as enjoyable. 

When the sky changed from purple to dark blue, the Thestrals landed on the city. Ron stumbled onto the ground, Hermione and Ginny did the same, though without falling. Neville jumped off his Thestral while Harry slid off of his in a swift motion. 

Mel lifted one leg with difficulty, stiff from the time she'd spent in the same awkward position. Her legs faltered and ended up crashing against Erick. He grunted, holding her in place. 

"Thank you for reminding me I'm not safe..."

"Don't be such a baby," Mel's gaze landed on Harry and his tousled hair. "How does he look so unbothered after this?"

"That annoys you now? You used to drool about it," Erick raised a brow. "I call that progress..."

"Where do we go from here, then?" Luna asked. 

"Over here," Harry guided them to an old telephone box and opened the door. "Come on!" 

Ron and Ginny walked in at once; Hermione, Neville, and Luna were next. Mel and Erick stared at each other.

"I don't have a choice, do I?" The boy complained.

"Think about it like this," She responded, "you'll finally receive the group hug you so desperately need!"

"Sod off," He rolled his eyes.

 They were uncomfortably close to each other. Harry spoke over their complaints.

"Whoever's nearest the receiver, dial six, two, four, four, two!" 

Ron dialled it.  

'Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business.'

"Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Mel Dumbledore, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Erick Flint... We're here to save someone, unless your Ministry can do it first!"

"Thank you. Visitors, please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes."

She was given a badge with her name and the caption 'Rescue Mission' under it.

"Visitor to the Ministry, you are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk, which is located at the far end of the Atrium."

"Fine!" The boy said, Mel felt a stung on her forehead, Harry was in pain. "Now can we move?"

The light was dimmer than it had been by day. There were no fires burning under the mantelpieces set into the walls, but he saw as the lift slid smoothly to a halt that golden symbols continued to twist sinuously in the dark blue ceiling.

"The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant evening." 

This was definitely not how she had imagined her first visit to the Ministry would be, but it was surely interesting. It was dark and cold, reminded her of Grimmauld Place... which wasn't a good thing.

"Come on," Harry walked past the fountain to the elevator. He pressed nine, and soon enough they were standing in front of a black door. "Let's go."

Mel shivered when she stared into the long, quiet corridor and got closer to Erick. He reached out blindly for her hand in an attempt to calm himself too.

"Okay, listen," Harry stopped again, turning to see them. "Maybe... maybe a couple of people should stay here as a — as a lookout, and —"

"And how're we going to let you know something's coming?" asked Ginny. "You could be miles away."

"We're coming with you, Harry," said Neville.

"Let's get on with it," Ron insisted.

Harry's face reflected how much he didn't want them to go, but he didn't say anything. 

In his dream, Harry had always walked purposefully across this room to the door immediately opposite the entrance and walked on. But there were around a dozen doors here. 

Just as he was gazing ahead at the doors opposite him, trying to decide which was the right one, there was a great rumbling noise and the candles began to move sideways. The circular wall was rotating.

"What was that about?" Ron spoke quietly.

"I think it was to stop us knowing which door we came in from," said Ginny.

"Brilliant," Mel squeezed Erick's hand. "This is fine."

"How're we going to get back out?" asked Neville.

"Well, that doesn't matter now," said Harry tensely. "We won't need to get out till we've found Sirius —"

"Don't go calling for him, though!" Hermione warned.

"Where do we go, then, Harry?" Ron questioned.

"I don't — In the dreams I went through the door at the end of the corridor from the lifts into a dark room — that's this one — and then I went through another door into a room that kind of... glitters. We should try a few doors... I'll know the right way when I see it. C'mon."

The place was quite empty except for a few desks and, in the very middle of the room, an enormous glass tank of deep-green water, big enough for all of them to swim in, which contained a number of pearly white objects that were drifting around lazily in the liquid.

"What're those things?"

"Dunno." 

"Are they fish?"

"Aquavirius maggots! Dad said the Ministry were breeding —"

"No," said Hermione dryly. "They're brains." 

"Brains?"

"Yes... I wonder what they're doing with them?"

"I don't. I don't wonder at all. Please let's keep going?"

"Let's get out of here," Harry agreed. "This isn't right, we need to try another door —"

"There are doors here too," said Ron.

"In my dream I went through that dark room into the second one. I think we should go back and try from there."

"Wait!" Hermione stopped Luna from closing the door. "Flagrate!" 

She drew with her wand in midair and a fiery X appeared on the door. No sooner had the door clicked shut behind them than there was a great rumbling, and once again the wall began to revolve very fast, but now there was a great red-gold blur in amongst the faint blue, and when all became still again, the fiery cross still burned, showing the door they had already tried.

"I love you, 'Mione," Mel sighed.

"Good thinking," said Harry. "Okay, let's try this one —"

They were standing on the topmost tier of what seemed to be stone benches running all around the room [...] there was a raised stone dais in the center of the lowered floor, and upon this dais stood a stone archway that looked so ancient, cracked, and crumbling that Harry was amazed the thing was still standing. 

"Who's there?" said Harry.

"Careful!" 

Harry and Mel reached the bottom one after the other. 

"Sirius?" Harry muttered.

Mel studied the veil: It wasn't particularly magical-looking, but the way it kept moving even though there was no wind... Harry circled the archway and she stepped closer. 

"Let's go," called Hermione. "This isn't right, guys, come on, let's go..."

The girl felt the need to reach out and touch it, then she caught something in the movement of the fabric, whispers.

"Guys, let's go, okay?" insisted Hermione.

"Okay... What are you saying?" Harry asked, but Mel was barely registering his words.

"Nobody's talking, Harry!" 

"Someone's whispering behind there," Harry mumbled. "Is that you, Ron?"

"I'm here, mate," Ron said from behind them.

"Can't anyone else hear it?"

"I can hear them too," Luna was staring at the veil with curiosity. "There are people in there!"

"What do you mean, 'in there'? There isn't any 'in there,' it's just an archway, there's no room for anybody to be there — Harry, stop it, come away — Harry, we are supposed to be here for Sirius!" 

"Sirius... Yeah..."

The anger in Hermione's voice felt exaggerated, Mel stepped closer to the veil, she stretched out her hand and —

Harry caught it and drew it down, he dragged her several steps away from the veil and shook his head.

"Let's go."

"Are you okay?" Erick whispered once they re-entered the dark room.

"Yeah," She mumbled, watching the doors swirl around her. "I... I got distracted, that's all. I'm fine."

Harry approached a new door. 

"It's... locked..." He grunted.

"This is it, then, isn't it?" said Ron helping Harry push harder. "Bound to be!"

"Get out of the way!" said Hermione at once. "Alohomora!"

"Sirius's knife!" Harry offered. 

It didn't work, his knife was now melted.

"Right, we're leaving that room," said Hermione.

"But what if that's the one?" said Ron.

"It can't be, Harry could get through all the doors in his dream," said Hermione.

"You know what could be in there?" said Luna excitedly.

"Nothing good if it's locked," Erick said darkly. 

"Something blibbering, no doubt," Hermione added.

Neville giggled under his breath, but it came out like a whimper.

Harry pushed open the next door and let out a quiet gasp.

"This is it! This way!"

"Oh look!" said Ginny excitedly.

Drifting along in the sparkling current inside was a tiny, jewel-bright egg. As it rose in the jar it cracked open and a hummingbird emerged, which was carried to the very top of the jar, but as it fell on the draft, its feathers became bedraggled and damp again, and by the time it had been borne back to the bottom of the jar it had been enclosed once more in its egg.

"Keep going!" said Harry.

"You dawdled enough by that old arch!" 

"Nothing here is normal," Mel muttered. "Not even for a wizard — This... I definitely want to be an Unspeakable."

"You're thinking about that now?" Erick asked in annoyance.

"It's not like I have something better to do! I mean, we're on a suicidal mission —"

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't use that word..."

"Do you prefer the term 'field trip'?"

"This is it," Harry spoke over their bickering. "It's through here —"

Everyone had their wands at the ready now, prepared for the next indications. Harry opened the next door.

They were there, they had found the place: high as a church and full of nothing but towering shelves covered in small, dusty, glass orbs. They glimmered dully in the light issuing from more candle brackets set at intervals along the shelves. Like those in the circular room behind them, their flames were burning blue. The room was very cold.

"You said it was row ninety-seven."

"Yeah," Harry started to walk.

"We need to go right, I think," Hermione muttered. "Yes... that's fifty-four..."

"Keep your wands out," Harry reminded them.

"Ninety-seven!" Hermione called after a while.

"There's nothing here," Mel stated.

"He's right down at the end," The boy insisted. "You can't see properly from here..."

Last year it hadn't take Wormtail more than a minute to attack Harry as soon as he was close enough. It felt like they wanted him to keep going, which put her on edge. She held onto her wand and made sure to have enough space to use her hands in case she needed to hex more than one thing at the same time.

"He should be near here," Harry insisted with shaky breaths. "Anywhere here... really close..."

"Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Somewhere about... here..."

"This isn't right," Mel declared. "It doesn't make sense... this hall is clear."

"He might be...Or maybe..." Harry rushed to the next end of the hall, but this time he was the only one that moved. 

"Harry?" Hermione tried again. 

"What?" He spat.

"I... I don't think Sirius is here."

"Okay," Erick spoke, sounding impressively calm. "Are we sure Harry wasn't —"

"I swear if you say 'dreaming', I'll hex you," Mel interrupted. 

"Sirius isn't here!" Erick insisted in an angry whisper. "What possibilities are left?"

Mel looked up at him. "We don't want this to be one of those."

"Harry?" Ron asked.

"What?" Harry spoke again, this time a bit more desperately. 

"Have you seen this?"

Mel followed Ron's gaze and got closer, everyone else following along.

"What?"

"It's — it's got your name on..." 

"My name?" 

S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.

Dark Lord and (?) Harry Potter

"What is it?" Ron inquired. "What's your name doing down here? I'm not here — none of the rest of us are here..."

"Harry, I don't think you should touch it," said Hermione.

"Why not? It's something to do with me, isn't it?"

"Don't, Harry," pleaded Neville.

"It's got my name on," said Harry.

"So what?" Mel frowned, something about the initials felt strangely familiar, but she couldn't tell exactly what it was. "Sirius isn't here, we should go back and try to contact my mum or Lupin — Do not —"

Harry reached for the orb and grabbed it firmly. Mel swore, everyone stood around them with a tense air. For a brief second, nothing happened. Then she straightened in her place at the sound of soft fabric brushing against the floor. She turned around, only to face the tip of someone's wand.

"Very good, Potter," Lucius Malfoy sneered. "Now turn around, nice and slowly, and give that to me." 

She heard as the rest of her friends turned.

"To me, Potter," the man repeated without lowering his wand. "To me." 

"Where's Sirius?" Harry asked.

The Death Eaters around them laughed and Mel closed her eyes in a moment of bitter realization. It had been a lie.

"The Dark Lord always knows!" Said one of the cloaked figures, who sounded very much like a woman.

"Always. Now, give me the prophecy, Potter."

"I want to know where Sirius is!"

"I want to know where Sirius is!"  The woman repeated in a high-pitched voice.

"You've got him. He's here. I know he is."

"The little baby woke up fwightened and fort what it dweamed was twoo."

"Don't do anything," Harry said behind her, though she couldn't tell to who he was talking to. "Not yet —"

"You hear him? You hear him? Giving instructions to the other children as though he thinks of fighting us!"

"Oh, you don't know Potter as I do, Bellatrix," said Malfoy. "He has a great weakness for heroics; the Dark Lord understands this about him. Now give me the prophecy, Potter."

"I know Sirius is here," Harry insisted. "I know you've got him!"

"They don't have him," Mel growled. "He tricked you. Somehow found out you can see his thoughts — That thing you're holding, that's what they'd been looking for all along..."

"Right, Miss Dumbledore. It'll be a bit disappointing for your uncle, the fact that it took you this long... As for you, it's time you learned the difference between life and dreams, Potter. Now give me the prophecy, or we start using wands." 

"Dumbledore?" The woman tilted her head. "Your father was more attractive than you, girly."

"Go on, then," Harry spoke, ignoring the woman.

"Hand over the prophecy and no one need get hurt."

"Yeah, right!" The boy laughed bitterly. "I give you this — prophecy, is it? And you'll just let us skip off home, will you?"

"Accio Proph —"

Harry yelled 'Protego!' before the woman could finish.

"Oh, he knows how to play, little bitty baby Potter. Very well, then —"

"I TOLD YOU, NO!" Malfoy shouted. "If you smash it — !"

The woman pulled off her hood and Mel's stomach dropped. In front of them was none other than Bellatrix Lestrange.

"You need more persuasion?" Bellatrix said. "Very well — take the smallest one. Let him watch while we torture the little girl. I'll do it."

The group closed tightly around Ginny while Harry and Mel stepped to the front.

"You'll have to smash this if you want to attack any of us," Harry told them. "I don't think your boss will be too pleased if you come back without it, will he? ...So, what kind of prophecy are we talking about anyway?"

"What kind of prophecy?" Bellatrix stopped smiling. "You jest, Harry Potter."

"Nope, not jesting," Harry insisted. Mel desperately tried to think of a way to get rid of Death Eaters in one move. "How come Voldemort wants it?"

The adults cursed and hissed loudly.

"You dare speak his name?" Bellatrix asked in outrage.

"Yeah. Yeah, I've got no problem saying Vol —"

"Shut your mouth! You dare speak his name with your unworthy lips, you dare besmirch it with your half-blood's tongue, you dare —"

"Did you know he's a half-blood too?" Harry asked. "Voldemort? Yeah, his mother was a witch but his dad was a Muggle — or has he been telling you lot he's pureblood?"

"STUPEF —"

"NO! "

A jet of red light had shot from the end of Bellatrix Lestrange's wand, but Malfoy had deflected it. His spell caused hers to hit the shelf a foot to the left of Harry and several of the glass orbs there shattered. 

Two figures, pearly white as ghosts, fluid as smoke, unfurled themselves from the fragments of broken glass upon the floor and each began to speak. Their voices vied with each other, so that only fragments of what they were saying could be heard over Malfoy and Bellatrix's shouts.

". . . at the Solstice will come a new . . ." said the figure of an old, bearded man.

"DO NOT ATTACK! WE NEED THE PROPHECY!"

"He dared — he dares —" shrieked Bellatrix incoherently. "— He stands there — filthy half-blood —"

"WAIT UNTIL WE'VE GOT THE PROPHECY!" bawled Malfoy. 

". . . and none will come after . . ." said the figure of a young woman. 

"You haven't told me what's so special about this prophecy I'm supposed to be handing over," Harry asked again. 

"Do not play games with us, Potter," Malfoy spat.

"I'm not playing games," said Harry, tapping his foot anxiously.

But Harry wasn't the type to tap his foot like that. At the sound of a whimper, he stopped. 

"What?" Hermione hissed.

"Dumbledore never told you that the reason you bear that scar was hidden in the bowels of the Department of Mysteries?" 

"I — what?" Harry sounded genuinely startled. "What about my scar?"

"What?" Hermione insisted.

"Can this be?" said Malfoy.

"Listen, if you could cut the dramatics and just spit it out," Mel spoke. "We don't have time, do we? So you either explain —"

"Look at the little brat," Bellatrix sneered. "Acting all haughty — You think that being a Dumbledore is enough to scare us, girl?"

"Well, a Lastname makes you think you're worth more than dragon's dung," She stepped a little forward. "I guess we're not that different."

"You little —"

Mel raised her wand slightly and Erick grabbed her arm. At the same time, she heard Harry turn to look at the others and hurriedly whisper 'Smash shelves —'

"Calm down!" Erick said. 

"— when I say go —" Harry finished.

"Well, well..." Malfoy stared at her friend with a dark smile. "Solomon won't be pleased..."

"I couldn't care less about it," Erick replied tensely. "I'm no longer his son."

"And with good reason," Malfoy's smile widened. "Draco will tell your friends about the new situation, no doubt..."

"I'm sure, I want him to," The boy said calmly. "Otherwise I broke Goyle's nose for nothing."

A man stepped forward, but Malfoy held him back, Mel spoke again.

"What's the prophecy about?"

"Dumbledore never told you?" Malfoy raised a brow. "Well, this explains why neither of you came earlier, the Dark Lord wondered why you didn't come running when he showed you the place where it was hidden in your dreams. He thought natural curiosity would make you want to hear the exact wording..."

"Did he?" Harry's attention was back on Lucius. "So he wanted me to come and get it, did he? Why?"

"Why? Because the only people who are permitted to retrieve a prophecy from the Department of Mysteries, Potter, are those about whom it was made, as the Dark Lord discovered when he attempted to use others to steal it for him."

"And why did he want to steal a prophecy about me?"

"About both of you, Potter, about both of you... Haven't you ever wondered why the Dark Lord tried to kill you as a baby?"

"Someone made a prophecy about Voldemort and me? And he's made me come and get it for him? Why couldn't he come and get it himself?"

"Get it himself?" Bellatrix laughed. "The Dark Lord, walk into the Ministry of Magic, when they are so sweetly ignoring his return? The Dark Lord, reveal himself to the Aurors, when at the moment they are wasting their time on my dear cousin?"

"So he's got you doing his dirty work for him, has he? Like he tried to get Sturgis to steal it — and Bode?"

"Very good, Potter, very good... But the Dark Lord knows you are not unintell —"

"NOW!" 

At once, the group shouted: "REDUCTO!" 

The towering structure swayed as a hundred glass spheres burst apart, pearly-white figures unfurled into the air and floated there, their voices echoing from who knew what long-dead past amid the torrent of crashing glass and splintered wood now raining down upon the floor —

"RUN!"

Next Chapter —>

Taglist.

@dee123ksha @vampiregirl1797 @siriuslysirius1107 @stardusthigh @mikariell95 @vernon-dursley @thesuitelifeofafangirl @tomshollandz @kylosleftbuttcheek @reverse-hxlland @bloodorangemoonlight @omiwashere @t-rexs-world @just-here-to-escape-from-reality @21bruhs @i-am-scared-and-useless-bisexual @dielgonacoffee

[awesomerextyphoon]

Charred Briar Roses - 5

Painful Truths 

Summary: The former princesses learn some harsh truths about their past.

Parings: Orc!Bucky x Black!Reader, Orc!Steve x Black!OFC, Orc!Sam x Black!OFC

Rating: 18+

Word Count: 1202

Warnings: Mentions of Graphic Violence and Strong Language

A/N: I don’t feel the best about this chapter, but it’s important to the plot. Happy Reading! 

Back to Masterlist

So, the people wearing your mother’s necklaces and medallion were the leaders of the Resistance and your half nieces and nephew.

...Yeah.

One of the leaders, Njideka, took one look at your group, “Tch, this is what grandmother went on about?!” she spat at the ground in front of you, “Pathetic!”

“Hmm, the orcs might be useful. We could use more heavy hitters,” Hikmat, another leader,  chimed.

“I’m afraid we’re a whole package. If you want us, then you’ll have to take the princesses as well.” Steve declared.

The five leaders huddled a good distance away from the crowd for a couple minutes and returned with their verdict.

“They can stay. Undo their chains!” Chetachi ordered.

“No need.” Bucky remarked as he and the other chained orcs took in a long intake of breath and broke the chains by flexing and expanding their chests.

Not going to lie, that was a turn on.

–––––––––––

“What is with everyone?!” Ghada exclaimed as she dumped a stack of books on your meager workbench.

The leaders had the three of you working as medics, building and modifying weapons to attack Sophronius’ horde, and deciphering ancient Nephrashim texts while the guys were out in the field. It didn’t seem too bad at the beginning, you and your sisters felt like you were doing some good, but it felt like you were wearing out your welcome.

That is, if they actually wanted you at all.

It’s been three months since the leaders decided to let your group stay and no one has so much as spoken two sentences to the three of you. Most of the time, the rebels would either glower or cast pitying glances their way.

Neither you nor Ghada took it too hard, but Fumnanya was another story. One of the rebels – probably goaded on by Njideka (I swear that bitch has it out for us) – tried to pick a fight with her while she was attending to a patient’s laceration. Fumnanya took it in stride at first, but she lost it when the agitated rebel called her  ‘a poor little rich whore’. It took three medics and Ghada to keep her from adding another patient to the crowded medical sector.

None of them wanted anything to do with you. Really?

It went on like this until Jumana, Chetachi’s assistant, approached your group, “I know why everyone hates you. Follow me,” she imparted as she turned and waited for a response.

“Why should we?” You inquired.

“Do you want to stay in the dark?”

You sighed in defeat, “No.”

“Then follow me.”

––––––––

Resistance HQ was built around ruins of an ancient city with the most intact buildings and public artwork further away from the base. The first couple of mosaics and reliefs depicting Nephrashim aid workers sharing their knowledge and prosperity with the ancient residents of the city. Large markings or graffiti with words ‘LIARS’ or ‘FUCKERS’ were painted over them.

“Keep going. There’s more in the cave.” Jumana hinted as Fumnanya reached out to touch one of the reliefs.

You and your sisters carefully made your way into the cave ahead, holding hands and braving whatever truth is in store.

Steve and Bucky tried to follow you, but Sam clamped a hand on their shoulders, “Not yet,” the trio turned to the voice of a new figure.

The paintings and carvings inside the cave started out the same as outside then the depictions took a dark turn. Paintings depicting what you were taught as war crimes such as mass executions (beheadings, quarterings, etc), babies being ripped apart by their legs, Nephrashim-engineered famines, and the destruction and plundering of cities by Nephrashim soldiers.

At first, you thought that this was the work of Sophronius, but upon closer inspection, the insignias on the soldiers and officers uniforms were from your great-grandfather’s, Ghufran’s, reign.  

How long has this been going on?! Why didn’t anyone tell you?!!!

“I-I’ve seen something like this.” Fumnanya began but she stopped herself. She was deep in the palace library one day after morning lessons when she happened upon a set of scrolls from one of our ancestors reign. It was a detailed list of revenue for about a decade. A good portion of the it was listed as ‘foreign proceeds’. Fumnanya tried to investigate further in the archives but she was scolded by the librarian. The entire section was blocked the next day.

A sigh broke your train of thought. The three of you looked up to see the guys dawdling over to you.

“Did you know?” Ghada asked while Steve rubbed the back of his neck.

“Well…”

“TELL ME!!” She beseeched.

Steve sighed, “Our people once lived in the Rohinda Mountains 250 years ago before Sophronius’ horde forced us off the land. The thing is, the horde was horrible but it wasn’t a whole lot worse than your ancestors who tried to remove us for the same thing.”

“It’s not new.” Jumana piggybacked on Steve’s answer, “Your ancestor, Hasim the ‘Great’ pillaged and harrowed my homeland. Thousands of my ancestors were slaughtered. This has been going on for thousands of years. Where were you?” Jumana demanded with a sneer.

“How-”

“Looks like the princesses’ perfect little bubble finally burst. What wrong, you finally figured out your lives were lies that were bought with the agony of millions?” Njideka prodded with the fake sweetness that you always hated.

“But-”

“But nothing! All your lives you’ve been treated like delicate, sheltered fawns who’ve never done a day’s work! Grandmother would talk non-stop about how ‘lovely’ and ‘talented’ you lot were and it wore down my mother. She was always compared to my mother and uncle to you spoiled, ungrateful cunt-” You punched Njideka with right cross.

You just lost it, “Alright! I have had it with your trash talk!! Ever since we’ve got here, you’ve have either completely disregarded/mocked us or gotten one of your ilk to fuck with us!” Fumnanya gently clamped her hand on your shoulder and you sighed, “I understand that what our mother did your mother and uncle was wrong, but doesn’t give you the right to be-,” you were cut short by a low heavy kick.

“Fuck your apology! You’ve never had to-”

“Enough Njideka!” Oluchi bellowed as he made his way into the cave along with Chetachi, Olanma and a couple other resistance members.

Chetachi ambled over to Njideka, “You shame yourself, cousin,” and turned to you.

“What my cousin was trying to say before she, how to put this (she put her fingers together and touched her lips with them for a few seconds), ‘gone of the rails’ is that most of us only see the pain and suffering of Sophronius and previous Nephrashim colonizers. I know it’s not fair to you, but it is what it is. Look, now you know.”

You were just about to beat Njideka’s smirking ass when Ghada blocked you.

“Well, since we got that out of the way,”Oluchi stated as to dissolve the tension in the cave, “Our scouts were successful in obtaining information about Eckrednst, Sophronius’ 2nd largest base. This outburst won’t solve much, and I, for one, am not at peace with this, but we need your help.”

Taglist: @giorno-plays-piano @lookiamtrying @chris-evans-indian-fanfic @hurricanerin​ @saiyanprincessswanie @pseudonymphet @macheregrace @rosalynshields @retroxvailles @imdarkinme @anyatheladyclown @marvelfansworld @mcudarklibrary 

[sassyduckqueen]

Miraculous: Rise of Anatis 40

Here's heroes day!!! God, this is the longest chapter I've ever written! A whooping 17,000 + words :O so if you decide to read this chapter, get a drink and get ready for a long read. Anyway, this was super fun to do. As for the akumatized heroes, I've got some fun facts about their chosen names in this. Culpeo, Abeille and Leatherback become Void Fox, Frelona and Tortue Serpentine. Void Fox is a reference to a type of Kitsune, known as the shadow fox, the void kitsune or dark kitsune. Frelona comes from the french word for Wasp and Tortue Serpentine is Snapping Turtle in french, which my friend Naruwitch suggested then we have Ryuko and Aspik. Ryuko becomes Okami and Aspik becomes Aapep. Now Okami is a legendary dragon who tends to be portrayed as evil and Aapep is another name for an ancient Egyptian deity who is the personification of chaos and takes the form of a giant snake. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter :D

Oh and also I recommend going back and re-reading Reverser. I've edited it a little to work in with this chapter and Volpina.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter Forty: Heroes Day

"See you next time, Bug a boo!" Lady Noir called out as she ran off in a different direction then him. He smiled and shook his head before running off towards the Seine. He jumped off the building and threw his yoyo, swinging across the water and towards the Liberty. He landed on the roof and backflipped off before jumping through the porthole to his room. He landed on the floor as his transformation dropped before catching Tikki. Both of them let out a yawn before Luka stumbled to his bed and fell onto it almost instantly before crawling into it. Tikki helped him pull on the covers before gently kissing his forehead before curling up on his stomach as he breathed in, having fallen asleep straight away. However, his alarm went off two hours later, causing him to groan and hide his head in the pillow.

 "Five more minutes," He mumbled as it kept ringing. He groaned and slammed his alarm, silencing it before trying to go back to sleep. However, his second alarm went off, making him groan even more. Once again, he turned it off and went to fall back to sleep but the final alarm went off, turning on the radio. As the person on it talked, Luka groaned, wanting nothing more to sleep and was mentally cursing Hawkmoth for creating an akuma at 3.30am. However, his eyes widen when the host mentioned Heroes day and he jolted up, wide awake. Tikki gasped and jumped as he did before he grinned at her and jumped out of bed.

 "Are you ok?"

 "It's Heroes day!" He gasped, getting dressed and grabbing his school bag before he stopped with wide eyes. Tikki rose an eyebrow. "Oh no! I forgot to plan a good deed! Uh!! I am an awful human being,"

 "And the fact that you were up all night saving Paris isn't enough of a good deed?" She asked, causing Luka to shake his head.

 "Unfortunately not. You see heroes day is when everyday citizens preform a good deed for everyone's benefit " He explained, making her pull a thinking expression. "Besides, it's not like I can't tell anyone about been a hero and two it would count as Anatis' good deed, not mine... well, I'll just do what I did last year,"

 "What was that?"

 "See what happens and improvise," He grinned, making her smile. "Last year, Rose ended up needing help with something so I helped her. I'm sure there'll be someone I can help this year too,"

 "That's a great idea, Luka," Tikki smiled as he handed her a cookie. She happily bit into it as he made sure he has his books before pulling on his usual hoodie. He glanced over at the jacket Marinette made him and smiled to himself before turning to Tikki, who had finished her cookie. He opened his bag for her and she flew in before he closed it and left his room. He grabbed a piece of toast from the kitchen and gave Anarka a kiss on the cheek before heading up to where Juleka was. Almost instantly, he was hit with the emotion of the city, making him grin. All of Paris was singing today and it was a gorgeous song. For a second, he closed his eyes and let himself bask in it's crescendo before Juleka cleared her throat.

 "What are you doing?" She asked, as he looked at her.

 "Listening to the music of the city," He replied, making her roll her eyes before he grinned at her. "Shall we get going?"

 "Sure," She nodded, walking off. Luka shook his head and followed, smiling to himself. They passed several stores and saw lots of balloons. Luka smiled a little as he saw Juleka go bright red when she noticed several Culpeo themed things.

 "So what's your good deed for today, sis?" He asked, making her look at him.

 "Oh... well, me and Rose are sharing a good deed," She mumbled, moving the bangs from her eyes a little. "We're planning to doing a collection for Prince Ali's charity,"

 "That's a great idea," He grinned as they came to the school, along with some of the other kids. Rose was already there, waving happily and Ivan was stood with Mylene. They greeted Luka and when inside almost straight away.  Luka looked at his phone and decided to linger for a little bit. He closed his eyes and breathed in, once again listening to the melody of the city. He opened his eyes as he heard a familiar melody. Marinette was running over, causing him to look at his phone again. She was on time but only by a few minutes. She stopped to take a breathe, causing him to smile. "Hey, Melody, you ok?"

"Luka!" She gasped, jumping. The box she was holding flew out of her hands but he caught it, causing them both to let a sigh of relief as he handed them back to her. "Uh sorry,"

 "No, no... I'm sorry," He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to make you jump,"

 "Ooh, it's ok!" She grinned before holding up the box. "Want a macaron?"

 "Sure," He smiled, taking a chocolate one before gently kissing her cheek. She blushed and smiled shyly. "Thank you,"

 "N-No problem," She gasped before jumping against as the bell rang. "Ah that's class! We have to go!! See ya for lunch! I have a favor to ask!!"

 "Ok," He nodded as she ran off. He shook his head and smiled a little as he walked to his classroom. He walked in and took his seat as Kagami waved at him. He smiled and waved back as Aurora rushed over with Jean and Mireille and wished him a happy heroes day. He wished them one back as Ms Mendeleiev walked in and clapped her hands.

 "Alright, students, we have an assembly so let's move it to the gym," She ordered, causing them to get up and grab their bags. They walked over to the gym and took seats as the other classes came in. There was a stage at the front with a couple of teachers stood on it already. Luka took a seat next to Aurora, who smiled at him. He smiled back as the rest of the classes took their seats. Marinette walked past with Alya, shaking her head as she walked behind her.

 "I don't get it, Marinette... I know you and Lila don't get on but she isn't lying about this," She sighed, making Luka frown as Marinette turned to her.

 "Not lying?! Alya, you know she's a liar!" She gasped, clearly stressed. "It is literally on your blog,"

 "Ok so it was a one time thing and who wouldn't want to know the heroes?" Alya gasped, shaking her head. "Besides, I asked her about that and she apologized. Sure, it wasn't cool to do that but she just wants friends, Marinette and she promised not to lie again so why would she be lying that she's in Achu?"

 "Because she's a liar, Alya," She gasped, looking annoyed. "Even Miss Bustier questioned her!"

 "Yeah and Lila literally showed us that she had permission from both her parents and her therapist," Alya sighed, pinching her nose. "Been away has been good for her. You know it's stressful getting akumatized. I mean you took a day off after yours,"

 "Exactly! I took a day! One day! Not weeks!" She gasped, making Alya roll her eyes. "And none of us got a 'trip' around the world to deal with our stress,"

 "True but her mom is also there and she's the Italian ambassador," She stated, making Marinette roll her eyes. "Look, why don't you give Lila a second chance for your good deed for heroes day? I know she was lying but trust me, girl, she's turned over a new leaf,"

 "No! She hasn't because she's lying!" Marinette gasped, sitting down and crossing her arms. Alya sighed and shook her head as Miss Bustier walked in front of the school and clapped her hands, getting everyone's attention.  

 "Hello everyone and welcome to our annual heroes day assembly," She grinned, causing everyone to look at her. "Now I know everyone may have a hard time working out what good deed to do for today but let's not forget today is about been able to be a hero for one day and your good deed doesn't have to be something huge liking helping save planet earth. It can be anything from making small donations to a local charity to helping an elderly neighbor. All we need is..."

 "A little imagination! Hoo, hoo!" Mr Damocles called as he ran onto the stage in his owl costume. "This year, Anatis and Lady Noir have been our heroes, protecting us from the terrible Hawkmoth. They have shown us that heroism is beyond comic books and fairy tales! Heroism is real and it is up to you to show how Anatis and Lady Noir have brought out the best in all of us, by been every day heroes! Now a few of our students will tell us their eyes to be everyday heroes! For those of you who have yet to work out a good deed, their suggestions may be able to inspire you! Over to you, Miss Bustier!"

 "Thank you, Mr Damocles," She smiled. "From my class, we have Nino Lahiffe and Alya Cesaire. Care to tell what you two have planned for heroes day?"

 "Of course, Miss," Nino grinned, standing up. The whole student body faced him, causing him to take a deep breathe. "I gotta admit. I never use to do anything for anyone before but Anatis and Lady Noir have showed me what been cool is really about... so, this year, I'm gonna visit the elderly down at the retirement home and play them all their favorite songs!"

 "Excellent, Nino," Miss Bustier smiled, clapping along with everyone else. "Alya?"

 "Last year, I wrote an article about public buildings providing disabled access," Alya stated as she stood up. "But after seeing Anatis and Lady Noir going that extra mile every single day, I decided that I too could do better... so I got the mayor's approval to improve facilities so disabled kids can actually attend our school!"

 She sat back down as she got a round of applause. Mrs Mendeleiev stood up next as the applause died down.

 "From my class, we have Aurore Beauréal and Kagami Tsurugi," She stated, causing both girls to stand up. "Girls, care to tell us what you have planned?"

 "Yes, Mrs Mendeleiev," Aurore nodded as everyone looked at her. "Me and the others at the Kidz plus tv studio will be doing a live show with celebrities guests and all proceeds we get will be donated to a number of children charities,"

 Everyone applauded again, making her smile as she sat down. 

 "Kagami?"

 "I have signed up to volunteer at a soup kitchen for a couple of hours on the weekend," She stated, getting a round of applause but she held her hand. "My family will also be making a considerable donation to a number of charities who help the blind and the visually impaired,"

 She got a huge round of applause for that one. She sat back down as the other teachers introduced to of their students who proceed to tell them what their good deed would be. Luka frowned to himself as a little as the whole thing made him feel like he wasn't doing enough. It wasn't that he was jealous of the other students. Far from it but compared to what they were doing, just helping a person out seems so small and trivial. He let a sigh out and looked around. He frowned a little as he saw Marinette didn't look happy either. He decided he would ask her what was wrong for lunch. Aurore leaned over to him and gently poked his arm, causing him to look at her.

 "You ok?" She asked, making him nod.

 "Yeah," He whispered back. "Just not sure I can match up to whatever one else is doing,"

 "I'm sure you'll do a cool deed, Luka," She grinned, making him give her a small smile as Mr Damocles took to the stage again as the lunch bell rang.

 "Alright, everyone, now don't forget that we have the parade this evening," He shouted before dismissing everyone. Luka got up and headed over to Marinette but before he could reach her, she bolted off causing him to frown but she did say she needed to talk to him. He took out his phone and messaged Juleka, saying that he was going to grab dinner at the bakery before heading there. He hummed a little as he walked there, glancing over and smiling as he saw the huge balloons of Anatis and the other heroes. His phone vibrated, causing him to take it out and read the text. Apparently, Marinette was going to be hosting a massive tasting party after the parade tonight and has invited everyone. She and the rest of Kitty Section will be going so she thought she'd inform him off it. He texted back, saying he'd love to go before walking over the bakery door. He knocked on the door and entered, causing Sabine to look up and smile. Marinette was talking to her father, who was looking at a list nervously.

 "That's not the same as every year, Marinette," He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. 

 "How about just half then?" She asked, looking at her hand. "500 Macarons, 100 pies, 300 sweet buns and just a thousand croissants! That should be enough!"

 "Is that for the party at the park tonight?" Luka asked, making her jump and turn around. She grinned and nodded before turning back to her dad. 

 "You can do that... right?" She asked but Tom frowned and sighed, scratching the side of his head.

 "If I didn't have this giant Anatis cake to finish by tonight, I would gladly rise to the challenge but there's simply no way I can do both," He replied, making Marinette frown and look down. Luka frowned a little too. "I've committed myself, Marinette. I can't let the mayor down,"

 "I committed myself way over my head and now I'm gonna let everyone down," She sighed, slumping down on a stool. Luka frowned a little and moved over to her. She looked up at him with a sad expression. "Sorry, Luka,"

 "It's ok, Marinette," He smiled in a reassuring manner. 

 "You know it's not too late to tell your classmates the truth. I'm sure they'll understand like Luka has," Sabine smiled at him, causing him to nervously look down.

 "But it won't be very heroic..." Marinette muttered, looking down. 

 "Of course, it will," Sabine smiled, trying to reassuring her. "Been brave enough to face one's mistakes is heroic,"

 "You're right!" She gasped, jumping up and grabbing an apron as Luka rose an eyebrow. She rushed over to the door before turning to them as Luka rose an eyebrow. Her parents on the other hand appeared to be use to this. "If I get to it right away, I'll have enough time to make the macarons myself!"

 With that, she disappeared into the apartment, causing her parents to sigh as Luka shook his head a little. While he loved how passionate and enthusiastic Marinette was, he worried about her a little bit. Sabine cleared her throat, making him look at her as she held out two bags.

 "Would you mind making sure she's eaten, dear? Tom needs a hand with the cake," She smiled as he took the bags.

 "Of course, Mrs Cheng- I mean Sabine..." He muttered before nodding and heading into the apartment. Marinette was mixing something in a bowl and appeared to have already started to make the macarons. She grinned at Luka who placed the bags down before giving him the bowl and checking on the macarons in the oven. However, they were burnt, making her groan and sink to the floor, tears filling her eyes. Luka put the bowl down and knelt down next her as she sniffed.

 "This is just one big failure," She sniffed as he wrapped his arms around her. "I'm a terrible everyday hero..."

 "No, you're not,"

 "But I haven't done any heroic at all today... all I did was bring macarons to class wherever else is doing so much more. Alya is helping disabled kids, Nino is going to visit old people, Adrien is helping his classmates and all I've done is brought in stupid macarons," She mumbled, looking down as tears roll down her face. Luka frowned and gently wiped them away. She hugged her arms and let out a small sigh. "I doubt that made anyone's day..."

 "It made mine," Luka stated, causing her to look at him. She narrowed her eyes a little, looking for any sign of pretense or lies but her eyes widen when she didn't find any. Instead, she saw sincerity and honesty. 

 "T-That really made your day?"

 "Yeah," He smiled, causing her to blush as he looked to the side. "No one's ever offered me a macaron before... anyway, I think the bravest thing you can do is just tell everyone the truth... they'll understand,"

 "But that will ruin the whole party..." She mumbled, looking down as he frowned.

 "It's not the end of the world if it doesn't happen," He replied, making her sigh before he gently moved a stand of her hair. "I don't want to see you burn yourself out just to please everyone else, Marinette,"

 "Luka..." She muttered, blushing before gently leaning in and kissing his cheek. "Thank you,"

 "Let's have our lunches,"

 ~Meanwhile~

 "Lila?" Mrs Rossi stated as she knocked on her daughter's door. A few minutes later, Lila opened it and smiled falsely at her, though she was more focused on her phone. "Were you on the phone earlier?"

 "Oh, yes, it was my boyfriend, Adrien," She gasped, making her mother nod. "He just misses me so much,"

 "You weren't lying to me, were you?" She asked, briefly looking at her. Lila mentally cursed Anatis as his live interview with Alya had almost revealed her for the lying fox that she was. However, she did damaged control as best as she could. With Alya, she claimed that she just lied to be popular as she was afraid that no one would like her, especially since Marinette seemed to have it in for her. Alya was weary at first but she also was too willing to give Lila a second chance, especially Lila 'promised' not to lie again. She also convinced her that she didn't realize that she had overstepped boundaries with certain people and was learning how to understand social interactions with her therapist. Alya lapped it up and easily forgave her. The school, on the other hand, wasn't as easy but Anatis and Hawkmoth unintentionally gave her the perfect reason. She was far too stressed out to possibly come back to school right now. She knew she couldn't get it to last forever but it was a temporary solution. As for her parents. Well, that was the easiest. Her father dotted on his little princess, refusing to believe a word of Anatis' interview as he believed the ladyblog was ran by an amateur tabloid writer. He wasn't exactly wrong but this man is believed that Elvis Presley was abducted by aliens so pulling the wool over his eyes wasn't exactly hard. When he questioned it, she just turned on the water works and since he didn't want to upset his precious princess, he would drop it and ignore it. It helped that he worked aboard a lot of the time. Her mother on the other hand wasn't as easily convinced and she was forced to take a similar route to Alya. Of course, she promised not to lie again and to go to a therapist to get help but her mother's job worked to her favor as well. Since she was constantly busy with her job, she trusted her husband to arrange a therapist for Lila and since Lila was his little princess who could do no wrong, she was able to convince him to send her to a very basic therapist who was certainly not equip to deal with a teenaged pathological liar who knew how to exploit people's weaknesses and strengths to her advantage. She had even convinced the 'therapist' that she needed time of school to help her deal with the trauma. Contrary to popular belief, this wasn't the first time she had been exposed. The only difference was it wasn't a superhero who called her out last time. It was some snotty nosed kid who thought that people actually cared about what he thought. That's where she came up with the whole been bullied thing. It did wonders for her that time but she would have to play her cards a little differently this time. Most because she was dealing with a superhero but there's also the fact that someone else might catch on her lies and get akumatized. "Well?"

 "Of course not, Mama," She sighed, making her mum frown. She began to 'cry' as tears rolled down her face, causing her mother to gasp. "Y-You don't believe me, do you? I'm trying so hard to be a good person and you d-don't even believe me,"

 "Of course, I believe you, mia bella," She gasped, looked distressed. Her phone vibrated, causing her to looking at her phone as the sound of cheering caught Lila's attention. She moved over to her window and frowned as she saw people cheering in the streets. Huge balloons of Anatis, Lady Noir and the other heroes moved past, making her scowl as she closed the blinds. Her mother walked over to her. "It's just... Well... that interview Anatis did..."

 "B-But I didn't even do half of those things... I know I told the principle that Marinette had stolen off me but I really thought she had because of how she was treating me and because of what Chloe Bourgeois told me," Lila replied, making her mother frown as she took in her points. Seeing her chance to poison her mother's mind, she smirked a little. "It's not like Anatis is competent anyway..."

 "What do you mean?"

 "Well, he lost a miraculous which ended up in the hands of Chloe Bourgeois who used it to cause a crash and then was akumatized but he didn't take responsibility for his actions," She pointed out, noticing her mother had a thoughtful look. "I don't hate Anatis but he could at least own up to his mistakes instead of blaming someone else. After all, he blamed the Style Queen for it. I understand that Chloe is her daughter but none of that would have happened if he hadn't been careless..."

 "You have a point, mia bella," Her mother replied, making Lila smirk a little. "And these akumas are concerning. I'll bring it up in the next embassy meeting. Ciao, mia bella. Your lunch is in the fridge. I'll try not to be home too late,"

 She kissed her hand and walked off, failing to notice Lila's wicked smirk before she glared at her closed blinds. She turned on her heel and walked over to her laptop, logging back on. She went onto a news website and the ladyblogger, growling as she saw the recent video from Alya that was devoted to Anatis and the other heroes. It was showing a bunch of floating balloons that had the faces of the heroes on it. She growled as she saw the Anatis one and rolled her eyes at the Culpeo one. She was the better and the original fox. Volpina was the best and these were just second rate heroes compared to her, especially that pretender Anatis. He may pretend to be the kind hero that everyone loved but she knew the truth. He was a cruel and malice bully, who deserved to fall for calling her out. Sure, she lied but it wasn't hurting anyone and he didn't have to ruin her chances with Adrien. He would be hers by now and she would be worshiped by all of Paris as the true hero if it wasn't for that goody two shoes and his dumb sidekick, Lady Noir. She nearly had him at her mercy with that Marinette illusion but that stupid cat worked out it was an illusion. She didn't think it was possible to hate someone more then Marinette but that was before she met Anatis. At least, Marinette was easy to torment and it was child's play to get her expelled. Targeting Anatis wasn't going to be as easy. In fact, it would be the most challenging take down of her life, which is why she had prayed every night that Hawkmoth would choose her again. She longed to have her powers back and squash that nasty bug. 

 "Liar," She growled, flicking through different channels as she glared every moment. All of them showed something on Anatis and his pathetic team. They showed him stood next to the mayor, waving shyly at the cameras or standing with some little kids in Anatis themed merchandise. "Traitor! Coward!"

 "In honor of the wonderful Anatis, who has saved my son, Adrien, and myself and who has relentlessly protected us everyday, I have financed this tribute to him and his team of heroes," Gabriel Agreste stated, causing Lila to stay on that channel as she stared at the screen. Gabriel moved his hands together and looked up at the camera. "Anatis is clearly a true hero... unlike false heroes such as Actis, Lady Copycat and Volpina!"

 Lila gasped and threw her laptop against the wall in rage. How dare Anatis think he is better then her?!

 "I hate you, Anatis!!" She screamed as she began to trash her room. She would give anything to be Volpina again right now. Then she could show Paris who Anatis really was. She would reveal him for the monster and fake he is. After all, he ruined everything for her and she was yet to have her revenge. She swiped her desk before sinking down to her knees before hugging them. "I hate you, you stupid bug!"

 The sound of fluttering got her attention, causing her to look up and gasp in surprise as she saw an akuma right near her. It flew into her bracelet, causing it to turn dark as a connection with Hawkmoth formed. A wicked smile came across her face as she felt him inside her head.

 "Volpina," He stated, making her grin even more.

 "Hawkmoth,"

 "Your dreams were once a reality until Anatis turned them into a nightmare," He declared as she stood up. "Reclaim your power of illusion and make this heroes day a nightmare for all Parisians,"

 "With great pleasure, Hawkmoth," She declared, moving her arms up in front of her face before moving them to the side. The purple smog engulfed and transformed her into Volpina. She climbed out the window and jumped across the rooftops until she got to the Eiffel Tower. She jumped up and landed on top of it before stepping onto the fencing. She narrowed her eyes as she looked down at the city, happily celebrating their heroes. Noticing a helicopter near by, she smirked and listened to what the reporter was saying with her fox hearing.

 "Look at these Parisians," The blonde reporter stated as they filmed live. Volpina's smirk increased. "So happy to be parading in honor of their heroes,"

 "Well, that won't do," She stated as she narrowed her eyes. "That won't do at all,"

 Smirking to herself, she took out her flute and placed it to her mouth as she envisioned the illusion she wanted. When it was clear in her mind, she played a tune on the flute, creating a ball of light at the bottom of it. She threw it towards the parade, causing a bright orange light to cover it. When it disappeared, there stood Lady Noir facing a very scary looking Anatis.  

 "Look, Mummy," A little girl stated, pointing to the balloons. "Annie looks weird,"

 "Come on, sweetie," Her mother stated, kneeling next to her. "That's not Anatis... that's..."

 She gasped as she looked over and saw Anatis and Lady Noir. Only her daughter was right. This Anatis didn't look like his normal self. Unlike the normal one, he had pure black hair and his skin was a little paler then usual. His outfit was reversed with red spots and sides on a black back ground instead of red background with black spots and sides. He also had long black gloves that showed off his hands, revealing his nails were black and his boots were completely black and styled like combat boots. His mask, yoyo and earrings were reversed as well, along with his boots but the bit that really sealed was the dark smirk on his lips and his eyes. His normally blue eyes were replaced with black scleras and crimson irises. Not only did he look terrifying but he wasn't standing with Lady Noir. He was fighting her. Luckily, the cat girl was giving it as good as she got but it was a scary sight.

 "Anatis?!" She gasped, causing other people to look as he grabbed Lady Noir and threw her his shoulder, sending her flying across the Culpeo balloon. She managed to recover and landed on it, taking out her baton as Anatis let out an evil laugh that send shivers down the spine.

 "Move out of the way everyone!" Lady Noir shouted, panic clear in her voice. "He's been akumatized!"

 He jumped across to the balloon she was on and laughed again before looking at her with a psychotic grin.

 "What's the matter, Kitten?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. She growled but didn't answer. "Cat got your tongue?"

 "Annie, this isn't you!" She gasped, clearly not wanting to fight him. "You can fight this! You can fight against Hawkmoth!"

 "Aww, such sweet words, kitten," He replied, playing with his yoyo. "But you didn't take one thing into account!"

 He threw the yoyo at her, causing her to knock it back as he grinned.

 "Oh and what's that?" She asked, charging at him. 

 "I don't want to!" He grinned back, jumping up and slamming his fist towards her. Luckily enough, she jumped out of the way before he could hit her, making him growl before he straightened up and narrowed his eyes. She narrows her back as he threw up his yoyo. "Dark Charm!"

 "D-Dark Charm?" She gasped as he summoned a huge blade and grinned evilly at her. She gasped as he charged at her, trying to cut her into tiny pieces before she managed to grab the sword and threw it away from the scene, causing him to growl.

 "You think that will stop me?!" He roared, trying to kick her and hit her. She dodged and blocked his attacks before he threw his yoyo at her. She managed to move her head but he brought it back and threw it again, causing her to move and jumped back as the helicopter filmed them. Distracted by the yoyo, she didn't see his foot coming until he kicked her, causing her to fall back. She landed on her feet and faced him as he spun the yoyo, walking towards her. She backed away as he smirked evilly. "It's over, Kitten. You know I can't be beaten so give me your miraculous!"

 "Never!" She screamed, running away from him. He smirked evilly and ran at her, spinning his yoyo. She jumped up and he followed, clashing with her in the air. She intentionally got the upper hand but he headbutted her and hit her with his yoyo, sending her flying onto the Leatherback balloon as he landed on it. Blood was dripping down her chin as she weakly looked up at him.

 "I'll tell you one more time," He started as everyone gasped, looking at them. "Give me your miraculous,"

 "No," She growled, getting back up and taking a fighting stance. "If Hawkmoth wants a ring so badly, he can go to the jewelers like a normal person,"

 "Now, now, Kitten," He scolded, glancing at her. "It's rude to deny a request from a friend of a friend. Clearly, I'm going have to teach you some manners,"

 "We're not gonna be friends until you're deakumatized, Annie," She shouted back, causing him to growl and throwing his yoyo towards her. She caught it around her arm and held her hand to it. "Cataclysm!"

 "I don't think so, Kitten," He growled, yanking her towards him and grabbing her hands, holding one behind her back and one in the air. She struggled against him as he moved his lips closer to her ear. "I've always wondered what would happen if your cataclysm was used on a person... let's find out, shall we?"

 "No!" She cried out as he slammed her charged hand onto her chest, causing her to gasp as a tear rolled down her cheek. Her body appeared to turn to coal and disappeared into dust as the wind blew. He laughed and picked up the ring, holding it up as he looked at it as a purple mask appeared over his face.

 "You've won, Hawkmoth. I have both the ring and the earrings!" He declared, making everyone panic before the mask disappeared. He held up his hands like a typical villain and laughed evilly. "Fear, people of Paris! Your heroes have fallen and there is no one left to save you!"

 He let out a wicked laugh before swinging away, leaving devastation in his wake. Volpina smirked to herself as she grinned from the Eiffel tower. That when even better then she expected. A purple mask appeared around her eyes, making her smirk.

 "My dear Volpina, you've performed your role very well for the time being," Hawkmoth declared as she smirked. "We will meet again, very soon,"

 "I'll be waiting, Hawkmoth,"

 ~Hawkmoth's Lair~

 "So much sadness! So much disappointment!" Hawkmoth declared as he looked up at the window. "I can feel the chasm of despair and fear able to open about to open and swallow up every single Parisian... my dear Volpina, you've performed your role very well for the time being. We will meet again, very soon,"

 "I'll be waiting, Hawkmoth," She replied, causing him to call back the butterfly he used to grant her powers. With that one called back, he took another one and corrupted it before turning to Nathalie.

 "Are you ready, Nathalie?" He asked as she walked over.

 "They've been keeping you from achieving your dream for too long," She declared, looking up at him. "I will go to any length to end the reign of Anatis and Lady Noir,"

 "Good," He declared, looking at her before he placed his hand on the tablet she was hold and lifted it up. He placed the akuma on it, causing it to enter the item and set up the psychic link before him and Nathalie. "Catalyst, you've always been my most loyal supporter. I give you the ability to boost powers,"

 She nodded, transforming into a strange looking akuma. She had periwinkle skin and wore a black helmet with a red visor with black edges and a red spike pointing towards the back of her head, leaving her mouth exposed. She was also wearing a black dress suit. It had stiff shoulders, a dark red front and swan neck collar with red arrow-shaped sections in the center. The sleeves covered her entire arms, with the tips of her fingers fading into red. She also had pocket-like ridges on each side of her hips, and her pant legs came down to her feet, turning into red high-heels with red soles and tips. She took Hawkmoth's arm and placed her other hand over the top of his cane, infusing it with a crimson energy.

 "Hawkmoth, I give you the power to release as many akumas as you desire," She declared as he looked at her. "From now on, you are the almighty scarlet moth,"

 A red energy traveled up from his feet, transforming his outfit into a crimson version. He grinned as the transformation was complete. He took out his cane, spinning it before tapping multiple butterflies with it. Each one turned into a scarlet akuma, causing him to smirk even more before addressing them.

 "Fly away my little akumas!" He declared, continuing to tap more butterflies with his cane. "Find the Parisians as they despair over Lady Noir and Anatis' final hour and evilize each and every one of them!"

 He threw his arms out, causing the scarlet akumas to flutter out of the window and decent on Paris as he smirked at them. Once they had left, he turned to Catalyst.

 "Stand here while I head to the Eiffel tower," He ordered, getting a nod of her before he dropped his transformation and left as Gabriel Agreste. It would be much easier to get to the tower as Gabriel Agreste then as Hawkmoth after all.

 ~At the Bakery~

 "You ok?" Marinette asked, causing Luka to look up from his phone. "You keep looking at your phone... Am I boring you?"

 "Oh, no!" He gasped, shaking his head. "I was just keeping an eye on time so we're not late for the rest of school,"

 "Ah, ok," She smiled a little as she cleared up their lunches. They had disposed of the burnt macarons as well. "What time is it anyway?"

 "Nearly time to head back actually," He replied, getting up. "Shall we head back to school? I've got double art,"

 "Lucky you," She huffed, grabbing her bag and walking with him into the bakery. "I have double maths,"

 "Ouch," He replied as they waved to her parents. Sabine gave him a grateful smile and a thumbs up before grabbing something for Tom as they left. Almost as soon as they stepped out of the bakery, Luka was hit with an intense amount of fear and despair that it actually caused him to stumble back and grip his head in pain, causing Marinette to look at him with worry.

 "Luka?" She gasped, moving over to him. "What's wrong?"

 "I.. I don't know... I just... never mind..." He muttered, looking to the side. While she knew he was a musical empath, she didn't actually know how deep his empathic abilities went. Most people would think that the music is his empathy but they are far from it. The music is simply how he projects it into the world but it's not the ability itself. For him, the feelings that he plays, he actually feels them as if they are his own. He can feel other's pain and symptoms when they are sick or their sorrow when they are down. Music was an outlet for him as it can become too much to have everyone's feelings as well as your own. It especially helps with the whole akuma thing. Marinette gently took his hand, making him look at her.

 "You can tell me," She smiled, making him look at her before nodding.

 "The world sounds different," He replied, making her frown. "Like this morning, the song of Paris was glorious this morning. Everyone's hearts were singing happily at their fullest,"

 "And it's changed?" She asked, making him nod. "To what?"

 "It's fear..." He muttered, making her frown. "Something isn't right..."

 Before she could question him any farther, he grabbed her hand and ran as fast as he could to the school. As soon as they walked through the door, Marinette realized he was right. Everyone was in the courtyard but they were completely silent and looking at their phones with horrified expressions. Marinette looked at Luka before the two of them rushed over to Juleka, Rose and Mylene. 

 "What's going on?" Marinette asked, causing Rose to look up at her before she showed them a news broadcast on her phone.

 "Lady Noir defeated," Nadja Chamack stated, looking heartbroken. "Anatis in the clutches of the terrible Hawkmoth! This is Paris' worst nightmare!"

 "What?!" Marinette gasped as Luka frowned deeply. "I... I don't understand..."

 "A-Anatis was akumatized..." Mylene sniffed, making her frown deeply. "Lady Noir tried to stop him but he used her cataclysm on her..."

 "No..." Luka gasped, looking what the girls mistaken for distraught as they nodded. Marinette covered her mouth as Jagged Stone appeared on the video.

 "Anatis defeated?" He gasped, playing a sad song on his guitar as Clara Nightingale looked heartbroken. "Nothing will ever be rock and roll again!"

 "We'll have to cancel the concert?!" She gasped, causing him to play his hand on his head dramatically and pull her in for a hug.

 "You're right, Clara," Nadja gasped, sadly. "There's no sense in celebrating Heroes Day either,"

 She closed her eyes sadly as Luka frowned and Marinette looked afraid before she turned to him.

 "You were right..." She gasped but the sound of screams came from the video, causing them both to look back as the camera turned, showing red butterflies fluttering towards everyone. Clara and Jagged ran away from them as Nadja attempted to swat them but then one of them went into her mic and engulfed her arm with a red energy, causing her to fall back before the video briefly cut off. Marinette looked at Luka, who was frowning deeply.

 "Akumas?" She asked, frowning.

 "Red ones..." He muttered as the video went back online. This time showing Prime Queen.

 "Dear viewers, what does makes sense is getting ready for the coming of..." She declared, gesturing to the side as Guitar Villain rose up, causing Luka to grit his teeth a little.

 "Our New Lead Rockstar..." He stated, playing his guitar as Frighteningale spun onto the screen.

 "Scarlet Moth!!" She sang, making both Marinette and Luka gasp. Literally as hundreds of Scarlet Akumas fluttered over the school. One of them aimed for Marinette but Luka grabbed her and pulled her to him, glaring at it and daring Hawkmoth to come at him. He would keep his promise and hunt him down. The butterfly seemed to know what he intended as it fluttered away from him, causing Marinette to look up at Luka with awe as students and teachers began to get akumatized as they panicked. One flew over to Mylene, turning her into Horrificator. Ivan backed away as one came towards him but Luka ran over and pulled him away from it as a number fluttered over to Juleka and Rose, who were backing away from them. Adrien and Kagami backed away and ran from the school as fast as they could. He didn't blame them.

 "T-This is bad..." Juleka gasped as she and Rose backed away from some. "R-Real bad... Aah!"

 "Juleka!" Luka gasped, causing one to come at him again.

 "Don't let fear get a hold of you, Juleka!" Marinette called out, causing his heart to flutter. The akuma stopped, confused about his conflicting emotions and giving him a chance to came down. He took a deep breathe before glancing at his sister and Rose.

 "Marinette's right!" He shouted. "Don't let fear control you, Jules!"

 "Remember, there's a hero in everyone of us!" Miss Bustier added in as they moved in closer to people.

 "As long as we show we aren't scared! Hoo, hoo!" Mr Damocles added in as Nino ran past. Almost instantly, he got turned into the Bubbler, causing Alya to cry out before she turned into Lady Wifi. Luka frowned as more people panicked, creating more fear. He climbed onto a bench and looked around before he placed his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly, getting everyone's attention.

 "Everyone, listen!" He shouted, making people look at him in surprise. "We can beat this because they are nothing but stupid little butterflies and we are Parisians and we do not go down without a fight! Jules, you are not easily scared! And Rose, thinking of pink and fluffy kittens!"

 Juleka took a deep breathe and began to calm herself down, glaring at the akumas at it.

 "That's it!" He grinned. "Don't let fear get the better of you,"

 Rose nodded and took a deep breathe too, glaring at the butterflies as well. Luka jumped down as Dark Cupid swooped down, terrorizing a few people and allowing them to turn into akumas. Marinette was helping a few people escape as Luka rushed over to her, along with the others.

 "We can't stand here," She pointed out, making him nod. "Or we'll end up been akumatized,"

 "It might sound crazy but we need to split up and find a safe hiding place in the school," He points out, making everyone nod and split. He rushed over to the boys bathroom and opened his jacket, causing Tikki to fly out. 

 "This is bad!" She gasped, causing him to nod.

 "There's too many to fight at once. We need to see Master Fu right away," He muttered before transforming into Anatis. He slipped out of the bathroom and made his way to the roof, keeping low as he saw the akumas. They were leaving the school, making him let out a sigh of relief but he did wonder where they were going. He had a feeling he would find out but he needed to get to Master Fu's. He jumped off and swung off, landing on the rooftop. He swung down to the ally but stopped as he felt like he was been followed. He glanced around but saw nothing. However, he didn't go to Master Fu's shop. Instead he opened a manhole and headed down there. He moved around the corner and frowned as the manhole was opened and closed again. He narrowed his eyes as Vanisher moved down and threw is yoyo at her but to his surprise, she dodged it and charged at him, knocking him back. She dived at him but a baton knocked her back, causing her to dodge. Taking the chance, he got his feet and grabbed her glasses, breaking them before catching the butterfly and purifying it as Vanisher turned back into Sabrina. He let it go as Lady Noir grabbed her baton and rushed over to him. 

 "Annie!" She gasped, hugging him. He hugged back. "God, I was so worried when I didn't see you on the roofs,"

 "I'm sorry, Kitten," He gasped before glancing to Sabrina, who was confused. "I had a tail to get rid off,"

 The two of them looked at her before Lady Noir let go and Anatis walked over to her. She gasped and backed up a little, causing him to frown but he knelt down in front of her as Lady Noir walked over. Sabrina gasped and looked at her in surprise.

 "Lady Noir? You're alive?!" She gasped, making both heroes frown before she looked at Anatis. "And you're not akumatized?!"

 "Akumatized?" He asked, making her nod before looking at Lady Noir.

 "Y-Yeah, everyone saw it on the news!" She gasped, making him frown even more. "You were akumatized and you killed Lady Noir... but it wasn't real because she's here right now and you're you... you are you, right?"

 "Yes, Sabrina," He smiled, causing her to hug him. 

 "I'm so glad!" She gasped, tears rolling down her face. "It was just..."

 "An illusion," Lady Noir muttered before Sabrina jumped on her. "Whoa!"

 "An illusion..." Anatis muttered, standing up before his eyes widen. "Volpina!"

 He turned Sabrina, who had let go of Lady Noir.

 "Sabrina, head back to the school. It's probably the safest place right now," He stated, making her nod as he walked over to Lady Noir and began climbing up after her. 

 "I will do, Anatis!" She grabbed. "And when I get there, I'm gonna tell everyone not to lose hope, cause the real Anatis and Lady Noir are still going strong!"

 "Well, it is heroes day after all," Lady Noir grinned as she opened the manhole.

 "And we wouldn't miss it for the world," Anatis continued before the two of them climbed out of the sewer and ran to Master Fu's shop. Checking that no one was around, they headed inside and knocked on the door. Master Fu answered it, looking afraid.

 "I always knew that Hawkmoth would one day realize how powerful he could be," He muttered, letting them in. "That day has come,"

 He walked over to the phonograph and took out of the miracle box, placing it in front of the two heroes and opening it.

 "Anatis... Lady Noir... you must pick an ally you can trust to fight along side you this mission," He stated as the draws popped open. Anatis reached for them as he looked at him, working out some sort of plan. "Once the mission is over, you will get the miraculous back from them and return it to me,"

 Anatis nodded and looked around at the miraculous. He honestly didn't know what to expect. Lady Noir leaned near him.

 "Take them all, Annie," She whispered, making him look at her. "They're need to be as many of us as possible..."

 "No, Kitten. In this case, less is more," He stated, surprising her. "We don't have time to find new holders and explain everything again. We need allies who already know what they're doing,"

 He grabbed the bee, the fox, the dragon and the snake before looking up at Master and gesturing to his bracelet.

 "May I, Master?" He asked, causing Master Fu to take off the bracelet and handed it to him. "Hawkmoth wants miraculous and that's exactly what he's gonna get,"

 "You got a plan?" Lady Noir asked, leaning on her baton as Anatis took out his yoyo and checked something before she walked over to the draw with the little boxes in. She grabbed enough for the miraculous as he walked over to her.

 "The akumas are all heading to one place," He stated, showing her. "The Eiffel Tower... we're gonna head there too... as soon as we have help that is,"

 "Calling in the cavalry?" She grinned as he placed the miraculous in the boxes. He put the fox, the bee and the turtle in his yoyo before handing the snake and the dragon to her. She took them and put them in her pocket.

 "Once you've collected Ryuko and Aspik, head to the Palais de Chaillot," He stated, getting a nod of her as he walked over to the window. She moved over and quickly gave him a kiss on his cheek, making him blush before he saluted her and dived out of the window. He landed on another building and saw Lady Noir heading to the neighborhood where Kagami lived. He smiled a little before diving off that building and swinging through the city. He landed on the school building and jumped down into the courtyard before looking for Ivan, Rose and Juleka. He found Juleka and Rose in one of the locker rooms, trying their best to fend off scarlet akumas. Juleka was holding Rose and gently talking to her while trying to keep her own emotions under control but he could tell they weren't going to last much longer. Just as two akumas fluttered towards them, he burst through and caught them with his yoyo, causing both girls to look up and gasp. "I don't think so,"

 "A-Anatis?!" Rose gasped as he let the two purified butterflies go. Juleka stared speechless as Rose began to cry tears of joy. "It's really you?!"

 "Yes," He smiled, causing her to hug him. He gently hugged her back as Juleka walked over before sighing. "I'm really sorry for what I'm about to do. I know that I'm able to reveal your secret identities but I haven't got time to find excuses to give them you separately,"

 He took out two of the boxes from his yoyo.

 "Culpeo and Abeille," He stated, holding them up to them. "I need you both,"

 "You're Culpeo?!" Rose gasped with massive eyes as she held her face, causing Juleka to blush as she took her box. "So cool!!"

 "And you're Abeille?" She asked back as Rose nodded with enthusiasm as she grabbed her box. "Awesome,"

 "Why didn't you tell me though?" Rose asked as Juleka opened the box and allowed Trixx to manifest.

 "It was suppose to be a secret, right?" Trixx grinned as Juleka put on the necklace.

 "Trixx, let's pounce," She mumbled before swiping her necklace as Trixx got sucked into it. She swiped her hand over her eyes, creating her mask before holding out her arms as the orange energy spreaded over them and her body, creating her outfit. She swiped her hands over her hair, creating her ears and changing it to orange and black before swiping her hands down her back, creating her tails. An orange light appeared on her back, creating her flute and completely the transformation. Rose squealed in pure excitement as Culpeo nodded at Anatis. "Ready when you are, Boss,"

 "Good," He smiled before looking at Rose, who nodded and opened her box. Pollen manifested and bowed to her.

 "Greetings, my queen," She smiled, making Rose smile. "It is good to see you again,"

 "Same here, Pollen," She replied before fixing the comb into her hair before holding her hand up. "Pollen, Buzz on!"

 She threw her head back as her hair turned honey blonde and black strips appeared in it before holding up her arms as a golden light traveled up her body from her feet, creating her suit before the second light appeared, giving her gloves and adding the black detail to her suit. She swiped her hand across her face, creating her mask as her transformation completely.

 "Let's go kick some akuma butt!" She declared, causing Culpeo to giggle and Anatis to shake his head.

 "Head to Palais de Chaillot but stay low," He ordered, making them nod. "Lady Noir is collecting Ryuko and Aspik and I need to find Leatherback. I'll meet you there as soon as I've got him... be safe,"

 "You too, Anatis," Culpeo nodded before taking Abeille's hand and leaving through the window. Anatis turned on his heel and left the locker room.

 "Now if I was Ivan, where would I hide?" He muttered to himself before clicking his fingers. "Of course,"

 He ran to the music room and looked inside before opening the door and looking around. He found Ivan hiding under the table as best as he could as he hugged his knees but as soon as he saw Anatis, he jumped up.

 "Is it really you?!" He gasped, making Anatis nod. He lifted him off the floor as he crushed him in a hug before putting him down. "I'm so glad you were deakumatized.... but Lady Noir..."

 "Is alive and kicking," Anatis grinned, making Ivan look at him in surprise. "And I was never akumatized. It was just a cruel illusion, engineered by Hawkmoth and excused by Volpina, to create mass panic and sorrow,"

 "That's awful," Ivan gasped, looking disgusted. "Mylene was re-akumatized... I would have been too if my pal Luka hadn't helped me... you know you should consider him for a miraculous. He's really brave,"

 "I'm sure he is but right now, we need to focus on the task at hand," Anatis replied, trying not to give away how happy he was that Ivan saw him as brave. He took out the last miraculous box. "I need Leatherback's help. You up for it?"

 "You bet ya, Anatis," Ivan grinned, taking the box and open it. "Sup, Wayzz,"

 The two of them did a secret handshake before Ivan slipped on the bracelet.

 "Wayzz, shell on," He declared, causing Wayzz to be sucked into the bracelet before stomping his feet on the ground and pushing his arms out, causing a green energy to creating his outfit. The green energy burst from the center off his chest, creating his emblem that resembled a turtle's shell attached to a harness. The energy traveled down his arms, leaving a gray strip in it's place before causing green spikes to burst from his gloves before he pulled down a pair of goggles over his eyes as the blonde tuff of his hair turned a forest green, completing his transformation. "Alright, Boss, what's the plan?"

 "We're heading to Palais de Chaillot," Anatis declared before the two of them ran out of the music room and jumped up to the roof, heading to the Palais de Chaillot.

 ~Meanwhile~

 Lady Noir jumped across the roofs until she came to Kagami's house. She dived down into the garden as Kagami practiced her fencing. She stopped as soon as Lady Noir landed in the garden and rushed over to her.

 "You're alive?!" She gasped, causing Lady Noir to nod. "And Anatis? Is he... still akumatized?"

 "No, he never was," Lady Noir explained, making Kagami frown deeply. "It was an illusion,"

 "An illusion?" She asked, frowning deeply. "That was an extremely cruel one,"

 "Indeed but part of Hawkmoth's plan," She replied, reaching into her pocket and taking out a box. "Which is why we have a plan. You in?"

 "Of course," Kagami grinned before taking the box from Lady Noir and opening it, causing Longg to manifest. "I'm honored to see you again, Longg-sama,"

 "The honor is mine, Kagami-san," He replied, nodding and making her smile as she put on the choker. "We shall accomplish great things together.

 "Indeed," She replied before holding her arms out. "Longg, bring the storm!"

 Longg got sucked in her choker. She held her fingers in the peace sign and moved them across her eyes, creating her mask. She threw up her left hand, creating a dark light that created her glove. It traveled down her arm and body, creating her outfit as she held out her other arm. She held her head up as a golden light covered her hair, creating her horns before the same golden light created her sword on her back and the tail detail on her suit, completely her transformation.

 "Alright, let's go find Adrien," Lady Noir grinned.

 "I believe he should be at home with his bodyguard," Ryuko stated, getting a nod of Lady Noir. "As soon as the red akumas hit, we escaped. Both of our parents have been akumatized and we wanted to make sure they were ok,"

 "Understandable," She nodded as they jumped across roofs, coming to Agreste Manor. Lady Noir held out her hand, causing Ryuko to stop. Adrien was there in his room but he was been guarded by Gorizilla. The two girls dived off the roof towards them. With Ryuko keeping Gorizilla busy, Lady Noir grabbed Adrien and jumped to the roof with him, placing him down before joining Ryuko and breaking his akumatized object before grabbing a jar and capturing it in a jar. The two girls jumped back on the roof as Adrien started at them.

 "Lady Noir! You're alive!!" He gasped with relief. "And Anatis?"

 "Not akumatized and never was," She smiled before she handed her the akuma jar to Ryuko and took out the snake miraculous, holding it out to Adrien. "Annie needs help. You in?"

 "Anything for my friends," He replied, taking it and opening. Sass manifested and nodded to him as he slipped on the bracelet. "Sass! Scales slither!"

 He held up his hand as Sass got sucked into the bracelet. He moved his hands over his face, creating his mask and giving his hair green streaks. The teal green energy moved down his body creating his outfit before a ball of teal light turned into his lyre. He grabbed it and placed it on his back, completing his transformation. 

 "So what's the plan?" He asked, looking at the girls.

 "We're meeting Annie at the Palais de Chaillot," Lady Noir replied, spinning her baton. "Shall we go?"

 Ryuko and Aspik nodded before the three of them jumped off the building and headed to the Palais de Chaillot. They ran across the buildings until they came to the Palais de Chaillot and jumped on it. Lady Noir grinned as Culpeo and Abeille was already there. Abeille was gently leaning on her and Culpeo was patting the bee's head, making Lady Noir smile. They were very cute together.

 "Hey, foxy," Lady Noir grinned, causing Culpeo to gasp and look up. "How's it going?"

 "Lady Noir," She gasped as Abeille looked up as well. "I'm really glad to see you're ok. Anatis told us it was a trick but still,"

 "I get ya," She nodded, looking around. "Where is my handsome partner?"

 "Getting Leatherback," Abeille replied, smiling as they moved over to the edge of the building and looking at the akumas. Lady Noir frowned a little as she looked at them but they didn't seem to be planning anything, just waiting. She wondered why. "They've just been stood there for about 15 minutes,"

 "Strange," She muttered as she heard the sound of a yoyo. She turned around as Anatis landed on the building with Leatherback. "Hey, Turtle, good to see you again,"

 "Lady Noir!" He grinned, hugging her as Anatis smirked. "I'm glad you're alive!"

 He put her down as Ryuko threw the glass jar at Anatis. He caught it and looked at it before he opened it and caught the akuma before releasing the now purified butterfly before he signaled for all of them to moved over to the edge and hide as he looked down at the akumas. He narrowed his eyes as it reminded him off Princess Justice's reign but it appeared that she wasn't here. However, almost every akuma that ever was had turned up yet they weren't running wild like they did with Princess Justice. They were just stood there. Lady Noir moved over to him.

 "So what are they doing?" She asked in a hushed voice.

 "They're waiting," He muttered back, making everyone frown as they moved a bit closer to him.

 "For what?" Aspik asked as an extra person jumped onto the Eiffel tower, causing Anatis to narrow his eyes and clutch his fist a little. The rest of them gasp in shock as they stared at the person. "Is that-"

 "Hawkmoth," Anatis stated, causing his mini army to look at him. "In the flesh,"

 They watched as Prime Queen sent up one of her flying camera, causing Hawkmoth to look at it.

 "Anatis! Lady Noir! Behold my powerful army!" He shouted, gesturing to the akumas. "And have no doubt that today belongs to Scarlet Moth!"

 "Not for long," Anatis muttered, glaring at him.

 "He better not get too cocky or I'll slam my shield into his face," Leatherback grinned as Aspik smirked.

 "It's only like ten villains to everyone of us," He grinned in a chilled back way. "Who wants Hawkmoth? How about we rock, paper or scissors for him?"

 "No need for that game, danger noodle," Ryuko smirked, holding her sword. "For he shall taste my blade,"

 "I'll protect you no matter what, Culpeo," Abeille gasped, determined.

 "No, I'll protect you," Culpeo gasped as Lady Noir leaned next to Anatis as they both glared at Hawkmoth and his Scarlet army.

 "So what's the plan, Annie?" Lady Noir asked as Anatis narrowed his eyes. The akumas had started to chant 'hail, scarlet moth' repeatedly, causing Anatis to frown even more as questions popped into his head. Scarlet Moth held up his arm, silencing his akumas. He smirked as Prime Queen's cameras focused on him before addressing them.

 "Anatis! Lady Noir! I can feel your close present," He stated, smirking as he brought down his arm before lifting his other into a fist shape. "If you want to save Paris and all it's people, I'll give you one last chance!"

 He threw out of his hand dramatically.

 "Give yourselves up and bring me your miraculous!" He shouted as Anatis watched with a worried expression. Lady Noir moved a little closer to him and gently placed her hand on his arm, causing him to flinch a little before looking at her and his team.

 "Annie?" She asked as he looked back over. "Want to share what's on your mind?"

 He frowned before sighing a little.

 "It's like he's been preparing for this for a long time...." He sighed, making his team frown as he glanced at them. "But we... we're not prepared for this..."

 "Yes, we are," Lady Noir stated, making him look at her in surprise. "We've faced all of these akumas before... this is just like Princess Justice's reign but on a slightly grander scale. Only this time, you're not alone. There's seven of us this time,"

 "Yeah, Hawkmoth doesn't stand a chance," Aspik grinned as the rest of the team nodded. Anatis looked at them all, seeing nothing but determination in their eyes.

 "Alright but if we're gonna do this, we have to have a plan," He muttered, glancing back over to Hawkmoth and his army. "If we want to win, we have to fight Hawkmoth even though we've never fought him before,"

 The team nodded as Anatis stood up and climbed onto the edge of the building.

 "Hawkmoth!" He yelled, getting the villain's attention. "I hope you liked Volpina's illusion... because me and my team will never hand over our miraculous!"

 "And we've got a better idea!" Lady Noir shouted, joining him before she pointed at Hawkmoth. "You're gonna give us your miraculous!"

 Culpeo, Abeille and Leatherback stood next to them, on Anatis' side.

 "You may have an entire army of akumatized warriors!" Leatherback shouted, clicking his hands.

 "But we're a team of heroes!" Abeille added in, taking out her spintop.

 "And we're gonna kick ass..." Culpeo added in, albeit quieter then the rest. Ryuko and Aspik jumped up and stood next to Lady Noir.

 "So bring it, old man!" Aspik shouted, making Hawkmoth frown a little.

 "We're ready for a fight!" Ryuko added, smirking before tilting her head. "Are you?"

 The seven of them took their fighting stance, making Hawkmoth laugh. 

 "I understand you want a fight," He stated, smirking. "Then so be it. Guitar Villain, Frighteningale.... Music!"

 The two musical villains began to sing and play as some of the scarlet army charged towards the heroes. Anatis nodded and jumped down with his team, charging towards them. They could hear Prime Queen narrating the fight as they ran towards them. Anatis narrowed his eyes as he couldn't see her around. He could see Lady Wifi, Pharaoh, Mime, Timebreaker, Style Queen, Troublemaker and Desperada running towards them on the ground while Bubbler, Stormy Weather, Reverser, Sandboy and the Puppeteer flew towards them. Rogercop and Malediktator stood at the back, along with the giants.

 "Don't forget our main object!" Anatis yelled towards the others. "We want to get to Hawkmoth!"

 "Well then let's go for the big, bad boss," Lady Noir grinned, getting a nod of Ryuko and Aspik as Stormy Weather lifted her parasol towards the sky.

 "Cyclone!" She shouted, creating a whirl wind that lifted up Desperada, Trouble Maker and the Mime. 

 "Horus, give me your wings!" The Pharaoh shouted as his head transformed. He flew down towards Lady Wifi and picked her up. Timebreaker smirked and sped up on her skates as Style Queen turned into glitter. Stormy Weather directed her parasol towards Anatis, shouting Thunderbolt as she did.

 "Leatherback, shield!" He shouted, causing Leatherback to throw it as a bolt of lightning headed towards him. It blocked it, causing Stormy Weather to growl and pull back her parasol. The wind disappeared, allowing the akumas to fall. Desperada went to hit Anatis but he jumped back as Ryuko ran over and held out her sword as Mime and Troublemaker landed behind her. Mime mimicked a sword while Troublemaker clicked her pen before the three of them charged towards them. "Your weapons are no match for Ryuko's sword. Show them what you've got,"

 "Lightning Dragon!" She shouted, transforming into a bolt before repeatedly attacking the three akuma, keeping them busy as Anatis dived back as Lady Wifi fired at him. Leatherback jumped in front of him and blocked her attacks. 

 "Abeille! Pharaoh's pendent!" He shouted, causing Abeille to throw her spintop and break it. Pharaoh transformed back into Jalil Kubdel, causing him to drop Lady Wifi. Anatis captured the butterfly as Lady Wifi threw a symbol and landed on it, flying upwards. However, Jalil was still falling. "Culpeo! Rescue!"

 "Good aim, mon cherie," She smiled as she slid and caught Jalil before turning around and throwing her flute at Lady Wifi's phone and turning her back into Alya. Abeille jumped and caught her as Anatis captured her butterfly too. Bubbler dived towards Ryuko as she blocked Mime's invisible sword. Lady Noir jumped over to her and used her baton to pop the bubbles he created as Apsik slammed his lyre into Desperada, which caused her to fall onto Troublemaker, who was attempting to fight Leatherback. Unfortunately for her, she clicked her pen at the wrong time which allowed Desperada to knock her down. In turn, she dropped the pen, allowing Leatherback to break it as Apsik grabbed Desperada's guitar back and slammed it into the ground, breaking. Anatis captured the freed akumas as Lady Noir blocked Bubbler's sword with her baton. She grinned and stomped on his foot before grabbing him and throwing him towards the mime, who was too distracted by Ryuko to notice Bubbler flying at him. Both villains fell to the ground, causing Mime's hat to fall off. Ryuko impaled it as Lady Noir jumped and landed a kick at Bubbler's sword, crushing it. Anatis captured those butterflies next before jumping back as Stormy Weather started to fire at him. He caught Timebreaker skating towards him, causing him to backflip and throwing his yoyo, destroying her skates as Lady Noir extended her baton, allowing Abeille to balance on it as Stormy Weather fired a bolt towards Anatis again. She threw the Bee heroine towards the weather witch, who used her parasol to protect herself. Abeille brought her leg down on it, breaking it and freeing the akuma. Lady Noir dived and caught Aurora as Anatis caught the loose akumas. Leatherback and Culpeo ran towards Rogercop, using Leatherback's shield to protect them from been hit. Culpeo threw her flute over Leatherback, causing Rogercop to dodge it but Anatis broke his whistle while he was distracted, capturing that akuma too. He jumped back as Style Queen went to slam her staff at him. Lady Noir  dived at her and began to fight her as Ryuko ran towards Leatherback, who held out his shield. She jumped on it, causing him to throw her into the air and towards Reverser. She cut his plane and caught Marc before dodging Sandboy's attack. Aspik jumped over them and threw his lyre at Sandboy's pillow, ripping it. He caught his Lyre and the little boy who fell to the ground. Anatis caught their akumas as Lady Noir wrestled with Style Queen. He jumped over them and threw his yoyo, breaking her rose and capturing that akuma.

 "By the power invested in me, I declare your miraculous are mine," Malediktator shouted, throwing balls of light at them as Puppeteer charged towards them. Since she didn't have her dolls with her, they couldn't be used in battle but it appeared she could control people she hit with her wand as she got Alya to try and attack Lady Noir. 

 "I'm sorry!" Alya gasped as she tried to punch the heroine, allowing Malediktator to fire a ball of light towards her. Anatis jumped over and blocked it as Leatherback threw his shield at Malediktator, who knocking him back. Abeille jumped at him and grabbed his sash, tearing it and freeing the akuma as Leatherback grabbed his shield and held it up again. This time, Abeille ran and jumped onto it, flying towards Puppeteer. She wrapped her spintop around her wand and pulled it from her hands, snapping it when she caught it. Manon flew from the sky but Leatherback caught her and put her down as Anatis caught the rest of the lose akumas. Lady Noir pushed Alya towards the other civilians.

 "Your days of attacking innocent people will soon be over, Hawkmoth!" Anatis declared, throwing up his yoyo. "Lucky charm!"

 He frowned as he caught a tennis racket before he glanced around, working out what to do with it. His luck vision lit up a canal boat, a lamp post then finally his team as a plan came into his mind. He smirked before nodding to his team.

 "Get ready," He stated, turning to the akumas. "I'm gonna need all of you,"

 The team nodded but before they could do anything, the sound of arrows been fired caught their attention. The people they rescued suddenly turned angry and aggressive, showing off black stained lips as they glared at the heroes. Anatis' eyes widen as Hawkmoth released and handful of akumas that turned them all back into their akumatized selves, causing Anatis and his team to go the defense. Lady Noir glanced up at the sky before gasping.

 "Hawkmoth is using Dark Cupid to create all the negative emotions he needs!" She gasped as Dark Cupid flew up into the sky and aimed his arrows at Anatis, causing him to jump out the way and the fight to start up again. Ryuko was fighting against the Mime while Aspik was up against the Bubbler . Culpeo and Abeille were going against Style Queen and Malediktator as Leatherback was trying to fight off the Pharaoh and Troublemaker. Anatis was blocking Desperada's attacks while Lady Noir was fighting Lady Wifi, all while Dark Cupid led the air bound villains in an assault on the team. 

 "This is a nightmare!" Aspik called out as he dodged an attack from Reverser and hit Bubbler with his lyre before grabbing it and kicking the mime as Ryuko cartwheeled away from Stormy Weather's attack.

 "Stay focus!" Anatis shouted as he jumped down and tripped up Desperada before blocking an arrow aimed at Leatherback. "We can't let them win,"

 "Fall on them like rain, my scarlet akumas!" Hawkmoth shouted, causing Anatis to look at him as he thrust his cane into the air. A huge swarm of Scarlet akumas fluttered up from behind him, causing Anatis' eyes to widen in horror.

 "Oh no," He gasped as they fluttered towards them. He turned to his team as they continued to fight. "Watch out!"

 Lady Noir gasped as she looked over before pushing back Lady Wifi and landing a kick on her, sending her flying. Lady Wifi smirked at her as Puppeteer and Sandboy flew down towards her, shooting at her. She jumped back as Aspik fought with the Pharaoh, who managed to knock away his lute and grab his arms. Aspik managed to get free and kicked him back, glaring at him.

 "Aspik! Watch out!" Ryuko called out, causing him to look behind as Dark Cupid fired an arrow at him. His eyes widen as she dived in front of him, taking the arrow. He caught as she fell and gasped as her lips turned black. She shoved him back and glared at him. "Keep your hands off me, you snake!"

 "Ryuko..." He gasped as an akuma fluttered towards her. Anatis caught it before it could hit her.

 "Ryuko! Don't let any negative emotions over take you or you'll get akumatized too!" He shouted, blocking Rogercop's attack as she sunk down, trying her best to fight it as she held her arms. "That's what Hawkmoth wants,"

 "It's going to be ok, Ryuko," Aspik gasped, moving closer to her and causing her to look up.

 "Coward," She growled before trying to attack him. "You're not worthy enough to be a hero!"

 He grabbed her and restrained her as she struggled against him. One of the akumas tried to take advantage of the situation but Abeille dived over and blocked out the attack as Culpeo fought against the mime. Style Queen and Malediktator began to attack Abeille, causing her to move away from them. Ryuko slammed her fist into Aspik's rib and threw him over her shoulder before opening her arms and allowing an akuma to flutter into her choke.

 "I am now... Okami!!" She declared, turning into a scarlet version of her self as Apsik looked up at her in horror and fear. Almost instantly, an akuma flew into his bracelet, covering him in a red smog as Anatis looked over.

 "Apsik!" He shouted before blocking an attack from Pharaoh. 

 "There is no more Aspik," He declared as the smog disappeared, showing a scarlet version of him. "There is only Aapep!"

 He then dived at Anatis, causing him to jump back as he slammed his fist into his ground. Leatherback threw his shield at him but Aapep dodged it as Okami charged at him. Abeille dived out of the way but Despair Bear jumped at her and forced her to stop. Culpeo jumped and landed in front of her, spinning her flute to deflect Dark Cupid's arrow but Lady Wifi threw a pause icon at her, trapping her too. Dark Cupid fired two arrows, hitting her and Abeille then akumas landed in their miraculous.

 "Culpeo! Abeille!" Anatis called out, getting knocked back by Pharaoh. He kicked him back as they turned into scarlet akumas.

 "Culpeo is no more, pest!" She growled, charging at him and trying to fight him. "Only Void Fox exists!"

 He blocked her attack as she tried to attack him relentlessly. He managed to kick her back and jumped away but the akumatized Abeille jumped at him, trying to sting him with her now unlimited venom.

 "Stay still, cockroach!" She growled as he back flipped away. "Frelona orders you to!"

 Malediktator smirked and held up his fingers to his mouth.

 "By the power invested in me, I order to stand still," He declared, throwing it towards Anatis. However, Leatherback pushed him out of the way and took the hit, allowing Dark Cupid to fire an arrow at him and a scarlet akuma to fly into his bracelet.

 "Leatherback..." Anatis gasped before jumping out of the way as the newly villain threw his shield at him.

 "Don't call me that!" He growled, catching it. "I'm Tortue Serpentine now!"

 "Annie!" Lady Noir gasped as a number of akumas dived at her. She fought them off as Anatis blocked and dodged the attacks aimed at him. "Now would be a great time to use that lucky charm!"

 "I need all o us for it to work!" He called out, rolling out of the way of Frelona as she tried to sting him again and block several attacks with his yoyo. "I can't do anything with it now,"

 He jumped over and landed next to her, holding up his fists as she held up her baton. All of the akumas began to move in on them, causing both heroes to try and look for a point of escape. However, there wasn't one. The two of them blocked the attacks as best as they could but they really needed to get out of there.

 "How are we gonna get out of this?!" Lady Noir gasped as she blocked another attack. Aapep managed to get pass their defenses and dived at Lady Noir but Anatis grabbed him and pinned his arms behind his back, in cased he had already activated his second chance. Anatis nodded at Lady Noir, who threw up her hand and summoned her cataclysm before slamming her fist into the ground. Anatis threw Aapep away from him as the ground cracked beneath them and gave away, causing the two heroes to fall into the sewers. Wasting no time, they swam away from the scene and climbed out of the water. Anatis helped Lady Noir out of the water before the two of them took off. Judging by the fact that they were still running and hadn't been ambushed, Aapep hadn't activated his second chance. They ran as fast as they could, heading deeper into the sewers as they did. Anatis frowned as his earrings beeped before glancing at Lady Noir.

 "I'm about to transform back," He declared as they saw forked tunnels up ahead with a wall between them. "I'll take the side of the left, you take the right,"

 "Kay!" She nodded, jumping across to her side. He jumped across to the other side and sighed as his transformation dropped. He caught Tikki and took out a macaron for her. She happily took it as he heard Lady Noir call off her transformation and give Plagg some cheese. "Enjoy it but don't take too long,"

 "Let's share it," Plagg replied as Tikki suggested the same thing with her macaron. Both holders thanked their kwamis before eating their halves.

 "You ok, Annie?" Marinette asked, causing Luka to sigh.

 "Hawkmoth has never akumatized so many people in one go. The amount of akumas was... worrying to say the least and he looked different..." He frowned, thinking about it. He called the akumas scarlet akumas and he was referring to himself as Scarlet akumas. Not just that but the amount of them was well in the hundreds. "Something's changed,"

 "He must have worked out how to boost his powers," She sighed, thinking. "Just like we did. Though I don't think he did it with magical food or potions.... Annie?"

 "Do you still think we can win?" He asked, making her frown a little. He sounded small and so unsure of himself. Despite the fact that she couldn't see him, she knew he was holding his arms and looking down. She placed her hand on the wall as he let out a small sigh.

 "We can't give up hope," She declared, causing him to look at the wall. "People are relying on us,"

 "But our whole team crumbled," He sighed, looking down. "I failed to protect them..."

 "Annie, listen to me. You did not fail. Hawkmoth cheated and that's all there is to it," She stated in a firm voice. "As for a crumbled team... well, let's go back to what we know works. A duo! You and me against the world, Annie,"

 "Thank you, Kitten... I needed to hear that," He muttered, making her smile a little before they hear the sound of snarling and running. "They've found us,"

 "Time to make a quick escape," Marinette grinned before noticing the flowing water. "You like Water Rides, Annie?"

 "Don't forget to put your diving gear on," Luka replied, taking out a green macaron as they both ran towards the edge and dived off with their eyes closed. He threw it towards Tikki, who ate it as Marinette did the same with Plagg. "Tikki, power up!"

 "Plagg, Power up!" She shouted as they free-fell towards a pool of water. "Aqua Plagg, Claws out!"

 "Aqua Tikki, Spots on!" He shouted. They both transformed then hit the water. Once underneath, they opened their eyes and swam into a tunnel but Syren appeared to block their way, grinning. They heard a splash, causing them to look behind them as Animan in the form of a fish swam towards them. Anatis grinned as Syren charged at them. Lady Noir grinned back as she blocked Syren's attack. She knocked her weapon out of her hand and broke her bracelet as Anatis tied Animan up with his yoyo and broke the button on him before catching the akumas. Animan and Syren turned back into their civilian selves, causing Anatis and Lady Noir to give them their weapons so they could breathe before swimming off with them into the Seine.

 "It's gonna take a long of time to deakumatized these villains one by one," Lady Noir pointed out as they swam.

 "Which is exactly why we have to take on Hawkmoth directly," Anatis replied as they swam. "I think his cane is the source of his power up. I'm not sure how he did it but if we can destroy it, it should revert him back to normal and free everyone from his control,"

 "Good plan but we can't do it from the water," Lady Noir pointed out as they both swam up and jumped out of the water, landing on the ground as they transformed back into their normal forms. As soon as they did, Timebreaker skated towards them, holding her hand out. However, Anatis clocked her before she could get them and broke her skates again, capturing her akuma before jumping to the bridge in front of the Eiffel Tower, causing Hawkmoth to glare at him. Ondine and Otis ran off as Anatis faced Hawkmoth with Lady Noir stood next to him, holding her baton behind her back.

 "Hey, Hawkmoth! You're not gonna wanna miss what happens next! Time to show everyone that the real Anatis and Lady Noir are back!" He yelled out before taking out his yoyo. He pressed it open and threw it up in the sky, releasing all the purified butterflies he captured and causing a white beam of light to escape from it. Almost instantly, he could feel the change in the city's song and smirked as he closed his yoyo, knowing Hawkmoth could feel it too. "You feel that, Hawkmoth?! It's called Hope!"

 "No more escaping for you, Knaves!" Dark Blade called out, causing Anatis and Lady Noir to face him and his army. "Down with the enemy!"

 "Time for a little detour, kitten," Anatis suggested as they began to back away.

 "Couldn't agree more, Annie," Lady Noir nodded before they ran off, causing the akuma army to follow them as they ran as fast as they could through the streets of Paris, trying to avoid the akumas that followed them. The ones from the sewers climbed out and joined the hunt. Lady Noir looked at him as they ran. "Got any ideas?"

 "Besides running and surviving?" He asked, glancing at her before they both look ahead and saw a barricade of cars and a bus. The two of them jumped over it, rolling as they landed before noticing those behind it. Both heroes blinked as none of other then Nora Cesaire climbed onto the bus and lifted a broom up. Chloe and Nathaniel joined her, along with Tom, Sabine and Gina. Alya's mother was there too as was Anarka, Tomoe and a number of others. 

 "Parisians!" Nora shouted, getting their attention. "We can be heroes just for one day!!"

 "What?! A revolution!" Dark Blade yelled before pointing his blade towards them. "Charge!"

 "Charge!" Chloe shouted back, causing the Parisians to run into battle. A number of them grabbed the akumatized heroes from windows as Gina moved over to them, along with Anarka and Marlena Cesaire before helping the heroes to their feet.

 "Are you two ok?" Anarka asked, causing Anatis to nod. 

 "It's awesome seeing you two again," Marlena grinned, clearly happy to see them as Gina placed her hand on Lady Noir's shoulder.

 "Parisians are all on your side,"

 "We're slow them down, Lad," Anarka grinned, clearly thriving in the chaos. "You two go save the world!"

 "Leave the akumas to us," Gina grinned, causing Anatis to smile.

 "You guys are amazing," He gasped as Lady Noir nodded.

 "Thank you so much," She added as the two of them turned and ran off before jumping onto the rooftops. They came to a stop as the giant akumas arrived but the Parisians distracted them too, giving Anatis and Lady Noir a chance to get to the Eiffel tower. The two of them worked together against Glaciator and Gamer, causing them to take out each other before they jumped up and landed on the Eiffel Tower, rushing over to where Hawkmoth was standing, causing him to gasp as he turned around. Lady Noir held out her baton as Anatis spun his yoyo.

 "It's just us three, Hawkmoth," He declared, causing Lady Noir to summon her cataclysm before he threw up his yoyo and summoned his lucky charm. He caught the little box and opened it before glancing at Hawkmoth, stopping as he got a shiver. This was too easy but he knew he couldn't let Hawkmoth catch on. He lifted his arm in front of him so the box reflected what was behind him before grinning. "It's a sign, Hawkmoth. That your miraculous will end up in this box,"

 "Are you sure you're not making a mistake?" Hawkmoth asked. "How do you know that my wish wouldn't be beneficial for everyone?"

 "Hm! I doubt that!" Lady Noir gasped as Anatis stepped forward. He moved his hand behind his back and pointed to his shadow. 

 "Even if it was, there would be a price," Anatis shouted, hoping Lady Noir got when he meant. Using the box, he saw her glance downwards towards Hawkmoth's feet. "Why don't you tell us your wish, Hawkmoth?"

 "Give me your miraculous and find out," He replied as Lady Noir flicked her hair in a way that made it look like a nod. Anatis hid his smirk. "Unlike you, I'm not afraid to use these powers. Since you're so good, why did you never bother to change the world for the better?"

 "We are changing it... by our actions..." Anatis stated, making Hawkmoth frown. "Instead of just wishing for it or taking advantage of innocent people,"

 They moved forward to him as Anatis held out his hand with the box so he could still see behind him.

 "But it's not too late.... you can fight for good with us," He stated as the real Hawkmoth climbed behind them with two akumas in his hand. Anatis placed his hand on his yoyo, waiting til he released the akumas. "Now!"

 Lady Noir destroyed the Hawkmoth illusion and blocked Dark Cupid's arrows as Anatis captured the two akumas. She threw her baton at Dark Cupid, breaking the button on his chest. The akuma escaped and Anatis captured it, returning Dark Cupid back to Kim before he caught him with his yoyo and lowered him to the floor before the heroes faced Hawkmoth. 

 "No!" Hawkmoth growled.

 "You're such a coward," Anatis growled. "But did you really think we were stupid enough to fall for that?!"

 "No where to hide now," Lady Noir smirked as Hawkmoth growled. The two heroes charged at him and began to fight him. Anatis blocked his attack with his yoyo before he knocked him back. Lady Noir instantly took over, using her baton like a bo staff and attacking him relentlessly, annoying Hawkmoth until he got annoyed enough to try and beat her with his cane. Seeing his chance, Anatis threw his yoyo and snatched his cane out of his hand as Lady Noir flipped over to him. Hawkmoth charged at him but Anatis threw to Lady Noir, who caught it with her charged hand, destroying it. Hawkmoth returned back to his normal form as a number of white butterflies fluttered away. "As Annie said... it's over!"

 "Alright, Kids," Hawkmoth growled with a look of determination on his face before he got into a fighting stance and held up his fists. "Watch what a man who has nothing to lose can do,"

 The two heroes charged at him as he ran towards them, fighting him as best as they could but Hawkmoth was so much stronger then they were. He used his limbs and height to his advantage, beating them as he did until he knocked them onto the floor. Anatis tried to push himself up as Lady Noir's ring beeped. Hawkmoth smirked as he walked towards them.

 "You're never going to win," He declared, walking towards them. "You're still so green, young heroes. You can't even stay transformed after you use your powers!"

 He went to grab Lady Noir but before he could, Anatis slammed his foot into him, knocking him back before he got up, surprising Hawkmoth as he held up his arms in a strange position, similar to a snake.

 "Annie..." Lady Noir gasped as he stood in front of her. 

 "I'm not done yet," He snarled, making Hawkmoth smirk before charging at him. To his surprise, Anatis managed to hold his own, using his hands to hit Hawkmoth with powerful jabs but gradually Hawkmoth got the upper hand, knocking him back. Hawkmoth smirked and lifted his arms to beat the knocked down heroes but he went flying when a shield was thrown into him. Leatherback jumped with the other heroes and caught it, allowing Anatis and Lady Noir to jump. Anatis threw his yoyo around, creating a net around the Eiffel Tower that trapped Hawkmoth. Ryuko clicked her fingers as the seven of them stalked towards Hawkmoth. Abeille held up her spintop and called upon her power, ready to sting him as he backed up. "It's over, Hawkmoth,"

 However, a blue mask suddenly appeared around his eyes, causing his expression to change to one of genuine surprise. Anatis frowned deeply as they moved closer.

 "No, don't do that!" Hawkmoth suddenly gasped, making everyone confused. Who was he talking to? The mask disappeared and he sunk to his knees, apparently admitting defeat. Anatis took another step forward but as he did, a giant moth suddenly appeared, causing the heroes to gasp before it began to flap it's wings, causing a gush of wind that sent the heroes flying. Anatis tried his best to hold onto his yoyo as he grabbed Lady Noir's hand, stopping her from been blown away.

 "What is that monster?!" He gasped as his yoyo's string up wrapped, sending him flying. He threw his yoyo and wrapped it around the moth's tail, pulling himself and Lady Noir towards it so they could attack but it vanished as soon as they got near. They landed on the Eiffel Tower and looked around as the others returned. Anatis moved over to the broken cane as a darkened feather escaped it but as it fluttered away, it turned back to white. Lady Noir walked over and looked up at it as the others looked around for Hawkmoth.

 "A feather?" She questioned as he frowned before his eyes widen. 

 "Master Fu mentioned that the Butterfly Miraculous wasn't the only lost miraculous," He muttered, making her look at him. "There's another one... the Peacock and I think we just saw it's power,"

 "Anatis, Hawkmoth is gone," Culpeo stated, making the team move over and look around.

 "He must of have escaped when that monster appeared," Lady Noir sighed before they moved over to the broken cane. Abeille leaned down and picked it up as Aspik and Ryuko frowned deeply. 

 "The timing of that monster was too good," Ryuko muttered, frowning.

 "But where did it come from?" Aspik asked, getting a nod of the rest of the team.

 "Another miraculous holder," Anatis answered, standing next to them. "Which means Hawkmoth is no longer working alone. He had help from the owner of the Peacock miraculous,"

 "Well, maybe this can help us track him," Lady Noir muttered, taking the cane from Abeille but it disappeared, making them all gasp.

 "There goes our chance at tracking him," Leatherback frowned as Anatis sighed.

 "He must have detransformed," He muttered as his earrings beeped along with Lady Noir's ring. "We've gotta split, guys... but first..."

 He held up the box and threw it into the air.

 "Miraculous Ladybugs!" He shouted, causing it to burst into the magical swarm and fix everything before the heroes headed back into the city. Leatherback, Abeille and Culpeo followed Anatis while Ryuko and Aspik followed Lady Noir. Landing back on the school roof, Anatis jumped down, followed by Leatherback who detransformed and gave back the bracelet after saying goodbye to Wayzz. Anatis thanked him before jumping up to the roof, where Abeille and Culpeo were waiting. They detransformed and said goodbye to their kwamis before handing back the miraculous. Anatis thanked them before swinging off into the city back to Master Fu, briefly de-transforming on his way there. Meanwhile, Lady Noir dropped off Ryuko and Aspik at Kagami's house. The two of them detransformed and said goodbye to their kwamis before handing her the jewels without hesitation. 

 "Thank you for your help, you two," Lady Noir smiled.

 "Thank you for trusting us," Kagami replied, bowing a little before her ring beeped again. "Send my best to Anatis,"

 "I will," Lady Noir nodded before jumping off into the city. She briefly found somewhere to hide before her transformation dropped. Taking out some cheese, she threw it towards Plagg and headed to Master Fu's place. Arriving there, she re-transformed and entered through the open window, smiling as Anatis placed the fox and bee back in the box. She moved next to him and placed the dragon and the snake back, allowing Master Fu to close the box and lock it away.

 "You both did very well today," He stated as he moved over to them. "But I sense something is troubling you, Anatis. Would it help to share what's on your mind?"

 "The owner of the peacock miraculous helped Hawkmoth escape..." He muttered, frowning. "And I feel like Hawkmoth was planning this... I think Princess Justice was his inspiration for this attack... since she was arguably one of his most successful and intelligent akumas, he took her plan and evolved it... he was calling himself Scarlet Moth and had amplified his own powers... it was concerning..."

 "Yes, it does seem that way," Master Fu agreed, making both heroes frown. "We were lucky that she did not make an appearance though... however, I think you two have earnt a well deserved rest. Go and celebrate this victory. It is heroes' day after all,"

 "That's a good idea," Anatis nodded before getting up. "I have something I need to do,"

 ~After the Heroes Day Parade~

 Marinette frowned to herself as she walked towards the park. She wasn't sure why but Alya asked her to meet her there at 7 pm, despite the fact that she told pretty much everyone that she couldn't do the party. Alya also insisted she bring a box of macarons. Luckily, because of the time, she was able to make some from scratch and these ones didn't burn. She saw Alya stood outside and waved towards her, getting her attention. Alya rushed over and smiled.

 "Did you bring the macarons?" She asked, confusing her but she nodded. "Good! Right, close your eyes!"

 "Uh.." She blinked. "Alright?"

 She closed her eyes and allowed Alya to lead her into the park. She frowned as she felt Alya leave her side, making her nervous.

 "Ok! Open your eyes!" Alya gasped, causing her to open them. She gasped as she took in the scene in front of her. Fairylights had been put up and tables had been set up. All kinds of food covered them and there were several picnic blankets with people on. Everyone who she had invited were there and it was exactly how she imagined it. Tears filled her eyes a little as she looked around.

 "Oh my gosh..." She gasped. "But... I don't understand.... I cancelled the picnic because I couldn't provide the food I promised,"

 "We know," Kagami stated as she walked over, holding a tray of food. "Which is why we all brought a dish each,"

 "You're always helping people," Rose gasped as Juleka nodded. 

 "Like when you helped me with my photo curse," She muttered, pushing her hair out of the way as Nathaniel and Marc came over.

 "Or when you helped me and Marc meet so we could create a comic book,"

 "Or the time when you helped me escape so I could see my mother on the big screen," Adrien piped up as she looked around. "That's why we all jumped at the chance to help you. You do some much for us so today it was our turn to help you,"

 "B-But... I still don't understand..." She gasped, confused. She was sure she cancelled the picnic. "Not that I'm not grateful... cause I am but I definitely cancelled the picnic so who asked you all to help?"

 "I did," Luka stated, making her turn around in surprise as he walked over. "That's why I was looking at my phone all lunch,"

 "Y-You did this for me?" She asked, tears appearing in her eyes as he nodded. She suddenly hugged him, causing him to stumble back a little as he caught her. "Thank you so much,"

 "It's fine," He muttered as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's heroes day so this is the least I could do,"

 "You're my hero, Luka," She muttered, causing him to blush before she kissed his cheek and looked at him before the two of them joined the rest.

 ~Later that Night~

 "Hey, Annie," Lady Noir grinned as she joined him. He was sat on a rooftop, writing down something down. "What ya doing?"

 "Working out a code," He muttered, looking up at her as she sat down next to him before he handed her the note pad. He had written down several colour codes on there. Each one corresponded to a threat level. The lowest threat was Code Gray for weak akumas like Mr Pigeon. Code Black were for akumas like Lady Wifi. Code Yellow is for akumatized miraculous holders that weren't them. Code Orange was literally reserved for Volpina. Code Blue was for the peacock holder and Code Purple was for Hawkmoth. "I'll be adding more as time goes on but what do you think so far?"

 "It works but what's Code Red?" She asked, making him frown a little.

 "It's the warning if I'm ever akumatized..." He muttered, making her look at him. "The list isn't finished yet but I think it helps to have codes. That way we can prepare... speaking of preparing... I think we should train the newbies and look into calming techniques,"

 "That's a good idea," She nods before looking at him. "You are ok right?"

 "Yeah, I'm good, Kitten," He smiled, placing the notepad in his yoyo. "Are you?"

 "Yup,"

---------------------------------------------------------------

Next Chapter: https://ultra-sassyduck.tumblr.com/post/638625574156419072/miraculous-rise-of-anatis-41

[inthedayswhenlandswerefew]

But You Can Never Leave [Chapter 10: Premonitions]

Several weeks and depressive episodes later...I’m BACK! 😃

And guess what: we’re officially approximately halfway done with BYCNL! (There will probably be nineteen chapters total.)  

The Queen/BoRhap fandom is feeling extra quiet lately, so if you’re still out there I’d LOVE it if you dropped me a comment/message/etc to let me know! I appreciate you all so much and hope you are finding things that bring you happiness, fulfillment, and peace. 💜

Chapter summary: Roger makes a purchase, Freddie makes a friend, Y/N makes an unsettling discovery, John makes a bewildering request.

This series is a work of fiction, and is (very) loosely inspired by real people and events. Absolutely no offense is meant to actual Queen or their families.

Song inspiration: Hotel California by The Eagles.

Chapter warnings: Language, babies (but not your babies...or are they?!).

Chapter list (and all my writing) available HERE

Taglist: @queen-turtle-boiii​ @loveandbeloved29​ @killer-queen-xo​ @maggieroseevans​ @imnotvibingveryguccimrstark​ @im-an-adult-ish​ @queenlover05​ @someforeigntragedy​ @imtheinvisiblequeen​ @joemazzmatazz​ @seven-seas-of-ham-on-rhye​ @namelesslosers​ @inthegardensofourminds​ @deacyblues​ @youngpastafanmug​ @sleepretreat​ @hardyshoe​ @bramblesforbreakfast​ @sevenseasofcats​ @tensecondvacation​ @bookandband​ @queen-crue​ @jennyggggrrr​ @madeinheavxn​ @whatgoeson-itslate​ @brianssixpence​ @simonedk​ @herewegoagainniall​ @stardust-killer-queen​

Please yell at me if I forget to tag you! 😊

“Roger, this is too much.” Your sandals click on the marble tile floor, a sandy gold like the beaches of Ostia. You peer up at the winding staircase, the Tudor-style diamond windows, the chandelier dripping with crystals. “This is way, way, way too much.”

“There’s no such thing as too much,” he parries merrily. “And look!” He pulls back an armful of sheer white curtains that had obscured the backyard. “The pool has a slide!”

You smile because you have to; he’s so elated, so young. “Roger, baby, unless you’re planning to acquire a literal harem of women we will never have a use for six bedrooms.”

“Sure we will!” He counts on his rugged fingers. “There’s one for us, and one can be the guest bedroom for when my mother or your parents visit, and then there’s one for if Chrissie ever wises up and leaves that wanker Brian and requires a place to stay between husbands, and one for when John needs an escape from that mind-numbing domestic purgatory of his, and one for Freddie’s overflow cats...” Roger trails off. He’s lost track.  

“That still leaves one unnecessary bedroom.”

He grins. “One for Roger Junior.”

“Oh my god.”

“It’s a wonderful home for children,” the real estate agent chimes, flitting around rearranging pillows and dusting off tabletops. “Plenty of space to spread out in, lots of bedrooms, fenced-in yard, security gate, spectacular school district...and such a lovely garden to explore! Does your wife garden?” she asks Roger.

“Girlfriend,” he corrects. “And no, she’s thoroughly useless in the agricultural department.”

You laugh and shove him away. “I have other talents.”

“You certainly do.” He growls as he grips your waist, inhales you, bites playfully down your neck and collarbones. The real estate agent raises her eyebrows, but politely averts her gaze and pretends to check if an artificial fern needs watering.

It’s the downturn of August, 1976. The sun is glaring and hot and spills in through the windows, setting the metallic flecks in the marble floor alight. It makes you think of the Yellow Brick Road, of fantasies built piece by piece into truth. John and Veronica bought a house in Putney, Brian and Chrissie a far larger one in Chelsea, Freddie and Mary a posh flat in West Kensington. Roger has his heart set on nothing less than a Surrey mansion. On the rare occasion that Queen has been home since the start of the A Night At The Opera Tour, you and Roger stay in his shabby—dodgy, you remind yourself—old apartment and pack boxes late into the evening, giggling over all the random and ancient relics you stumble across, sticks of Freddie’s eyeliner and dust bunnies tangled in strands of Brian’s spiraled hair, crumpled up spheres of paper with excerpts of songs scrawled on them, fossilized crusts of grilled cheese sandwiches beneath the couch. Queen is preparing for a brief UK tour at the start of September, including a free concert in Hyde Park organized by entrepreneur Richard Branson. Then it’ll be back to the studio to record their next album, a highly anticipated album, an album that will make millions regardless of what’s on it; and what’s on it, in your humble and musically unlearned opinion, is pretty goddamn great.

“Seriously,” Roger prompts, quietly now. “Do you like it?”

“Of course I like it. I love it. I just don’t need it.”

He grins. “I know you don’t need it. But I do.”

“That list of yours is getting awfully long.”

“You have no idea. We haven’t even started on the exotic pet collection yet.”

“There’s a marvelous koi pond out in the backyard,” the real estate agent says. “You could add turtles, and frogs, and all different types of fish. I can recommend sturgeon, they have such an alluring primeval sort of look to them, and the shimmer on shubunkins is just delightful...”

“You heard the lady.” Rog stretches his right hand like he does when his arm bothers him, when the bone that will never fully heal aches like something ancient and irredeemable, like hunger, like unrequited love: fingertips sprayed outwards, then folded into his palm, then outwards again.

“Rog...I don’t know.”

“Come on, baby! It has everything. Roman-style master bath. Bedrooms with mirrors on the ceiling. Space for my own studio. Land. Enormous refrigerators. You’ll have abundant room for John’s drawings.”

“Ohhh, now that’s true.” John is always adding to your collection, slipping you sketches as the boys scurry around getting ready before a show, during songwriting sessions that last long after midnight, when the band and its expanding circle of friends and family gather for birthdays and holidays. You don’t ask him about You’re My Best Friend, or, come to think of it, any of his other songs. You don’t ask him how he feels about his new life as a husband and father. And in return, John doesn’t ask whether you’re ever going to marry Roger, if you even want to, if you worry about what the future holds. It’s a loaded peace, but a comfortable one. A safe one.

“It doesn’t bother you, does it?” Roger asks suddenly. “The girlfriend thing. The not-wife thing.”

“No,” you reply, smiling. “Of course not.” Roger isn’t someone who pens love letters, recites all the reasons why he cannot live without you, sings love songs. He rarely speaks of love at all. Roger is as he always is: all action, all energy, eyes forever looking forward. But he does love you; you’re sure he does. Everything he does bleeds with love.

“Good. Because there’s no one I’d rather acquire a harem and zoological park with.”

“Okay,” you relent. “But no lions or tigers or bears. I’m quite attached to your limbs, and you’ve come close enough to ruining them already.”

“Deal.” He taps the Canon that hangs from your shoulder by its strap. “We should document this momentous juncture. One day we can pull out the photo album and show Roger Junior. ‘Hey look kid, this was the day Mum and Dad bought the house you were conceived in.’”

You laugh, almost positive that Roger isn’t serious. “I can guarantee you that precisely zero percent of children would ever want to hear that.” Nevertheless, you ready the camera and hold it as far away as you can, the lens aimed towards you.

“Don’t forget to smile!” Roger trills in his high, victorious voice as he rests his chin in the dip of your collarbone.

You snap the photo. The flash bursts through the kitchen of the Surrey mansion, blinding you both. The artificial bluish light dissipates like smoke.

~~~~~~~~~~

His name is Laszlo, and he’s one of the most beautiful things you’ve ever seen...even when he’s not especially well-mannered.

Currently, Laszlo—an Eastern European moniker from somewhere in his mother’s comically vast family tree—is whimpering and squirming against Veronica’s chest as she pats his tiny back and sighs wearily. Veronica, ever the good Polish Catholic wife, is already pregnant again. Chrissie smirks triumphantly and puffs on a cigarette, her rings glimmering on her left hand, her dress violet and new and very expensive. Brian is lost in some deep intellectual conversation with Richard Branson, gesturing with his long nimble hands and nodding empathetically, his dark curls rustling in the breeze like the lithe branches of a willow tree.

“Thank god you’re here,” John calls as you and Roger approach. “Freddie is about to get this concert cancelled.”

“I’m about to make this concert fabulous, darling,” Freddie objects. “We need pyrotechnics, we need sparklers and explosions and fireworks!”

Mr. Branson shakes his head. “Can’t do it, Fred. The embers could travel and set the trees on fire.”

Freddie groans. “Tell him, Roger!”

Roger shrugs, grinning, resting his elbow on John’s shoulder. “I don’t know, maybe we shouldn’t burn down Hyde Park.”

“You’ll be under a huge orange canopy, right over there.” Mr. Branson motions with a sweep of his arm. “You can’t do anything aerial. Flashing lights, sure. Fog, sure. But no fire. No explosions. Oh, and there’s technically a noise ordinance, but we’re working out a deal so the city won’t enforce it on the day of the show.”

“Orange?!” Freddie squeals.

“How will the acoustics be in a tent?” Brian asks, troubled.

John smiles mischievously. “Yes, how dreadful if no one could hear the extraneous guitar solos.”

“I have a gong, Rich,” Roger says. “Everyone will be able to hear my gong, right?”

“Your gong?” Freddie whines. “What about my voice?!”

“I miss stadiums,” Roger grumbles. You exchange a knowing glance with Mary and Chris and Veronica, who is imploring Laszlo to take a bottle. Our boys are difficult, aren’t they?

“The acoustics will be fine,” Mr. Branson snaps. “The tent color will be fine. Everything will be fine. You don’t need any fucking fireworks. Please for the love of god just tell me what kind of sandwiches you want.”

“That’ll be an ordeal as well,” Chrissie quips, and you all laugh; even Laszlo perks up, stops wriggling, glimpses around the open green space with curious greyish eyes like John’s.

Some teenage employee carrying a tangle of cables trots over, sweat dripping down his flushed freckled cheeks. “Mr. Branson? There’s someone from the city here to see you.”

Richard Branson smacks his forehead. “Jesus christ. Okay, I’ll be right there. Hey, Steve, hey, have you seen Dom? Go find Dom and tell her to come over here, okay? Thanks.”

The teenage employee nods and disappears into a sea of bustling people ferrying equipment, fliers, chairs, messages.

“I’m so sorry about this,” Mr. Branson says. “These city bastards are out to crucify me. You’d think they’d be a little more grateful that Queen of all bands is willing to put on a free concert in their backyard, but alas. Hey, Dom, over here!”

He waves to a petite young woman with a glossy shock of black hair and olive Mediterranean skin. She’s wearing all yellow: shorts patterned with daffodils, a tank top the color of butter, a headband like a sunbeam. One of her trim arms is cradling a notebook; the other reaches out so she can shake hands with everyone. The gesture is courteous but somewhat unnatural.

“This,” Mr. Branson begins, “is my personal assistant Dominique. She’s wonderful, she’ll listen to all your pretentious tales of woe and do it with a smile, because she’s a true professional. Better yet, she’s going to ask you the tedious questions I was supposed to so you don’t have to wait for me to finish sparring with the city council. Okay? Okay. Have fun. I’ll be back.”

“It’s a pleasure,” Dom says placidly in a heavy French accent. So that’s why her handshake was off somehow, stilted and weak; the French usually kiss as a greeting. You choke back a snort as you imagine Veronica’s reaction to that. Mr. Branson stalks away muttering about litigious twats.

“Oh, aren’t you just darling!” Freddie circles Dom, admiring her outfit, her hair, her gold hoop earrings. He wafts his cigarette around flamboyantly, completely forgetting to smoke it. “The French are so tasteful, aren’t they? You simply must connect me with your stylist.”

“I would be happy to, Mr. Mercury. But regrettably, I am my own stylist.”

“Ahh!” Freddie exhales, enamored. Mary lifts Laszlo from Veronica’s tired arms and cradles him, tickles his nose, beams down into his fresh and inquisitive face.

Dom pulls a pen from her shirt pocket. “May I ask your sandwich preferences for the day of the show?”

She immediately receives four very different answers, and she raises an eyebrow, her pen hovering over the lined paper of her notebook.

“I’m so sorry about them,” Chrissie says, and Dom chuckles civilly.

“Ham and cheddar,” Freddie tells her, synthesizing the responses. “Bacon, fried fish, steak and onion jam...and something for Brian. Cucumber maybe. Could we get some cucumber sandwiches, dear?”

“You’re a vegetarian?” Dom asks Brian, jotting down notes.

“He’s morally superior to us in every way,” John sighs dreamily, and Rog and Freddie cackle.

“I’m not a strict vegetarian,” Bri clarifies. “But for the sake of the animals and the planet, I try to limit meat when I can.”

Roger adds: “And I order twice as much of it, just to spite him.”

Dominique leads Queen around the portion of Hyde Park where the concert will be held, runs through the itinerary, fields a litany of questions and complaints. And you decide that you like Dom; she’s professional and reserved, yes, but she’s also patient with Freddie, smiles at his jokes, compliments his black-and-yellow striped shirt (“We match, and you remind me of a...oh, what’s the word in English? That bug...it flies around buzzing...buzz buzz...a bee!”), asks him what he’s planning to wear to the show. She assuages Brian, listens to John, takes the time to chat with the women about children, makeup, homes, what it’s like to be in love with rock stars. But Dom mostly ignores Roger, dodges his grins, remains staunchly undazzled. And that would worry you—because Roger loves the chase, you know that firsthand—if he hadn’t already taught you how to trust him, how addictively flawless and exhilarating life with Roger Taylor could be.

When Laszlo begins to fuss in Mary’s grasp, you take your turn holding him; and he blinks up at you with eyes that are wide and clear and seeking, and you find yourself feeling like you always do when you’re around your godson: like maybe you have a stronger opinion about wanting children than you thought you did, like you can’t stop envisioning a baby with Roger’s eyes instead of John’s.

That evening—after leaving Hyde Park, after dinner, after drinks mixed out by the koi pond—as you doze in a sweltering bubble bath and steam curls through the air, you hear Roger’s voice floating from the kitchen downstairs. You rise out of the tub, towel yourself off, slip into a white silk robe as rivulets of bathwater slink down the back of your neck. You tread gingerly towards the kitchen, keep silent so you can hear, lurk in the shadows of the hallway with your palms pressed flat against the wallpaper.

“Hello, is Dominique Beyrand in?” Roger says into the kitchen phone. “I’ve been trying to track her down. Sure, I’ll wait. Thanks.” After a pause, he continues. “Hi, Dom! It’s Roger Taylor, from Queen. The irritating blond one. I was just wondering if you’d happened to stumble across my wallet since this afternoon, I seem to have misplaced it. Oh, you haven’t? Bloody hell. Well, thank you for taking my call. Aw, that’s so kind of you, I’m sure I’ll locate it eventually. I’ve got a terrible habit of losing things. Okay, thanks so much. Goodnight to you too. See you soon. Cheers.” He hangs the phone up as you step into the kitchen. His smile is bright and innocuous. “Hey, baby!”

“Who was that?” Your tone is similarly casual; or so you hope.

“Just Richard Branson’s assistant. That French woman Dominique. I can’t find my wallet and thought I might have left it at Hyde Park, but no dice. Oh well.”

Roger begins rummaging through the drawer full of business cards and address books, tapping his foot, humming to himself. And surely he isn’t trying to avoid my eyes. Your gaze skates over the marble countertop. There, by the refrigerator, just a few feet—a meter, you correct yourself to be properly British—from where Roger stands, is his black leather wallet.

“It’s right there, Rog,” you say, pointing. And now your voice isn’t so nonchalant.

Roger spins to check. “Oh my god, I completely missed it!” He snatches up the wallet with a celebratory chuckle. “I’m such a twit sometimes. You’re too fucking smart, you know that? You’re making me look bad.”

He rushes to you, takes your left hand, bites your knuckles lightly like he did outside Massachusetts General Hospital under dawn skies over two years ago. And then Roger whispers to you, nuzzling your neck scented with lavender soap and doubt.

“Let’s go to bed.”

~~~~~~~~~~

There’s a knock at the door. John is standing on the front porch of the Surrey house with his hands in his pockets and a vague sort of smile on his face. He’s in a black suit.

“Get ready,” he says. “Do your hair, throw on some earrings. Maybe the pearls Roger got you last Christmas. We’re going shopping.”

“Why do I need to look fancy to go shopping?”

John shrugs, feigning indifference; but the puckish glint in his eyes gives him away. Yet there’s something a little sad and weighty in them too, isn’t there?

Your own eyes narrow. “I’m onto you, bassist.”

He laughs as you tug teasingly at a lock of his downy hair. “You always are.”

John takes you to a dress shop on Bond Street where the corsets trickle with gemstones and the designers all have Italian names: Armani, Prada, Abate, Cerruti, Valentino, Biagiotti. He sinks into a leather chair just outside the fitting room and lights a cigarette, takes a long drag, points to you with the lit end.

“Go ahead. Go wild. It’s a blank check.”

“Really?!” You glance around the shop, your pulse racing. “But I don’t know the occasion. I don’t want to be underdressed or overdressed or whatever. Although I don’t think I’ve ever been overdressed in my life.”

“Yes, you can’t seem to shake those pragmatic service industry roots, can you?” Another drag. “You need a dress and matching shoes. Formal, but not too formal. Think a record company party. Elegant but exciting. Lots of sparkle. Slightly slutty, if you’re so inclined.”

“This is an unconventional bonding activity,” you tell John, trying to conceal your nerves.

“Love, this isn’t something you can fail at,” he says, gently now. “You’re going to look amazing no matter what. So just have fun with it. This isn’t a test. This is one of those adventures you’re always searching for.”

I can promise you that your life will never feel like a cage; that’s what Roger once told you. But maybe you don’t always want to be quite so free, so unmoored. “Okay. But you have to swear to give honest opinions. I don’t want to show up looking like a wombat because you were too nice to say anything.”

John just chuckles to himself, shakes his head, devours cigarette after cigarette.

With the assistance of one of the shop employees, you climb into a pastel pink dress with a full ruffled skirt, an emerald green dress with an empire waist and loose sheer sleeves, a shimmering metallic silvery dress with a form-fitting silhouette. John nods at all of them, wholeheartedly approves, defers to your judgment. He periodically consults his wristwatch as he taps his cigarettes on the rim of an ashtray, and deflects your questions when you ask him why. Then you step out of the fitting room—balanced on gold heels—in a white dress with a hem that hits just above your knees, a halter neckline, a slim keyhole down the center of your chest; and John’s cigarette tumbles out of his fingers.

“That’s the one,” he breathes, soaking it in. Then he asks the employee to cut off all the tags and whips out his wallet. “Toss your old clothes and shoes in a bag. We gotta catch a cab.”

“We’re going straight to the party?”

“We certainly are.”

“What the hell kind of ridiculously lame party starts at 3 p.m.?”

John smirks craftily. “The kind of party we’re going to. Let’s rock and roll, Florence Nightingale.”

John gives the taxi driver an address and you sail through the streets of London, splashing through shallow evaporating puddles, squinting when sunlight ricochets glaringly off the slick pavement. The taxi rolls to a stop outside of a grand stone building with columns and intricate carvings of leaves and flowers. The sign outside reads: Kensington and Chelsea Register Office.

You turn to John. “Who’s getting married?!”

He just smiles, a deep harbor of secrets.

“It’s Fred and Mary, right? Jesus christ, John, you can’t wear white to someone else’s wedding, Mary’s going to strangle me—”

“It’s not Mary’s wedding.”

Slowly, your jaw falls open. “No,” you whisper in disbelief.

John darts out of the taxi, jogs around to your side, and opens the door for you. You gape up at him senselessly, struggling to remember how to form sentences.

“John...this...this is some bizarre and elaborate joke, right?”

“Nope.” He offers his hand, helps you out of the taxi, leads you up the front steps of the Register Office. Inside, everyone is waiting: Freddie and Mary, Brian and Chrissie, Veronica with babbling baby Laszlo, Roger’s mother and sister...and Roger, of course, in his best black suit and bleached blond hair and trademark guaranteed-to-dazzle (unless of course you’re Dominique Beyrand) grin. He flies to you and takes your hands in his.

“You look incredible, baby.”

“Roger, what’s going on...?”

“Don’t freak out,” he commands, and instantly your panic vanishes. There’s a pink rose pinned to his lapel. “I know we don’t feel like we need to get married. I know we agree it doesn’t mean anything.” Is that still true? “So don’t think that this is about trying to trap you or control you or bullshit white picket fences or anything. And of course you can say no, I won’t be mad, no one will hold that against you, we can find some other reason to party. But the simple facts are that I’m a British national with a mansion and a plethora of perpetual royalties and you’re an American here on a work visa, and the law gets a bit thorny in this situation. And I want to make sure you’re taken care of if something happens to me. That you can carry out my wishes. That you can stay here with the band as long as you want to. So, I’ve got your passport and birth certificate and everything else we need...and some overly-enthusiastic witnesses. Are you cool with signing a piece of paper today?”

“Of course she bloody well is!” Freddie exclaims, and everyone laughs. Mary is carrying a basket full of champagne flutes, Chrissie several bottles of pink champagne, Roger’s sister a tub of ice. Brian has been entrusted to chronicle the event with your Canon. Veronica is more giddy than you’ve ever seen her, even more animated than she was at her own wedding. Well, I suppose she doesn’t have to worry about any illicit pregnancies or condemnatory great aunts this time around.

“Okay,” you tell Roger. And you wish you weren’t beaming so broadly your cheeks ache, because it feels a little pathetic to be this happy about an admittedly meaningless wedding. But it does make you happy, your general aversion towards conventionality be damned.

You sign papers and you toast glasses and you giggle uproariously in the lobby of the Register Office with the best friends you’ve ever had, guzzle pink champagne, pose for photos, take your turn holding Laszlo, kiss Roger beneath the stone arch of the centuries-old building.

It doesn’t mean anything, you remind yourself, suddenly very aware of the missing weight of a ring on your left hand. It doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t mean anything.

But you catch a few furtive glances between Chrissie and Bri, the twist of a frown on Freddie’s face when he thinks no one is watching, the distance in John’s shadowy eyes as he inhales champagne like air.

It doesn’t mean anything.

[smolbeandrabbles]

How Not To - Ralph Anderson x Shifter!Reader 3 (The Outsider)

Finale to Halfway Home & Control GIF Credit: X X @wltz-bby​ @happyskywhale​ #mendotagsquad @crawlingmist​ @mendelskrull​ - for your special interest in this series

Author’s Note: I thought I’d be lucky to induct Ralph Anderson to Team 10K. I didn’t realise he would become the second longest fic on here...

I underestimated just how much I wanted to put them through for their finale. I just hope it’s satisfying. 🙊🙏🤞

Muscially this has always been a big song for me, it seems appropriate to use it here. How Not To - Dan & Shay

Eyes Closed - Halsey

Special shout out to Amanda for her GIF analysis! Couldn’t leave it at just one, though...!  😅

Disclaimer: The Outsider nothing to do with me / These shifters are my creation, but I am once again using Stephen King’s ideas as references / lyrics & gifs not mine

Premise: Ralph Anderson never wants to hear the word ‘Shapeshifter’ again. Apparently that seems inevitable, and Holly brings him a new case. But they need an Outsider to catch an Outsider. And there only seems like one option...  

Words: 15,330

Warnings: Swearing / just a whole bunch of angst/angsty fighting / sex (not smut)

⚠ Hurt / Angst Caution Warning (Not as bad as previous... but it’s there!) ⚠

_______

I can honestly understand why it's over I can go through the motions of walking away I can give you the key and take my things back I can find plenty things to fill my days

You're like second nature, baby, you're just like breathin' A melody that you hear and you can't forget The time goes by and I still need you Yeah, you worth the heartbreak and the regret

But I don't know how not to think about you When it's late at night and quiet And I know that I ought to be the one who is strong and just moves on But I’ll probably turn down your road, knock-knock on your door Fall back in your arms, wake up in the morning Hating myself for the way that I can't help the way I still want you I just don't know how not to, how not to, how not to I just don't know how not to, how not to, how not to

--- I, I know where to lay, I know what to say It's all the same And I, I know how to play I know this game, It's all the same

Would've gave it all for you, cared for you So tell me where I went wrong Would've trade it all for you, there for you So tell me how to move on They don't realize that I'm thinking about you It's nothing new, it's nothing new Now if I keep my eyes closed he looks just like you But he'll never stay, they never do Now if I keep my eyes closed he feels just like you But you've been replaced I'm face to face with someone new 

---

If there was one call he never wanted, this one was it. Ralph could have sworn that when he said goodbye to Holly Gibney saying he’d like to work with her on a case again, he’d stated a normal one – and he absolutely did. Holly was great, once he’d got used to her. Once he’d kicked his ass into gear over the Frankie Peterson case and immersed himself into the supernatural side of things. When she called again and mentioned the word ‘shapeshifter’, once more Ralph was forced into silence. Preceded by ‘another’, of course, and Holly had to call his name multiple times before he found a voice to tell her he was listening. Now Ralph Anderson and Yune Sablo found themselves sitting back at Cherokee City PD as Holly stood in front of them: police board, evidence, photographs, markers to connect everything. Ralph’s heart sank completely; he didn’t need this again. He’d had enough of this for one lifetime, and unlike Shapeshifters he only had one lifetime. Holly had put together a good investigation; she’d been tracking this one for quite some time, and although it hadn’t stopped over in Cherokee City, it had been through here according to her research. Yet, even though Holly was able to track its movements, she was uncertain she could do much more without the help of the people who had been through this with her before. She was certain she could stop it, determined to, but after Tennessee she didn’t think she could do this alone. This shifter also seemed different to her than their first, it was only because of the patterns she recognised that Holly was even able to keep track of it at all – this one was being extremely careful. Still, none of these factors excused it from the fact that murders seemed to follow wherever it went – finishing it was the only option. And for that she needed Ralph with her, as he had been before. Holly paused her onslaught of information and turned back to them, glad they seemed to be following everything she said. When she asked if they were clear, both men nodded, causing Holly to smile… except she placed her hands together in front of her lips in thought; “If only there was some way to get inside the head of these things, then maybe we’d stand a better chance of catching one...” Ralph, who was still preoccupied with his own thoughts on Shapeshifters – for obviously he had many - raised his head slowly to her musings. Yune stood a little straighter where he was leaning against the desk and looked across to his companion – Ralph, feeling eyes on him, turned to Yune. “No-” “Ralph.” By the look on Yune’s face he wanted Ralph to at least listen to reason. For Ralph Anderson there wasn’t a reason on Earth he’d ever agree to such a senseless idea. “No. No we can’t-!” “She’s our best hope, maybe our only hope!” Yune at least had the decency to plead it. Ralph’s eyes only narrowed, and his voice was firm;  “I never wanna see her again.” Holly looked between them, clearly confused, “What?” Yune glanced across to her, just as baffled, hardly believing that Ralph wouldn’t have imparted that information; “Didn’t he tell you?!” “I said we broke up.” Was the flat reply from Ralph, the detective folded his arms, looking like he’d rather talk about anything else. Holly blinked a few times, quickly catching on, “Y/N-!? She- she’s a...?!” Ralph Anderson didn’t let her finish the sentence, teeth gritted; “Don’t even say it.” Before turning his rising anger at having to be reminded on Yune: “We don’t even know where she is - I let her go!” Yune folded his arms and crossed his legs, leaning slightly away from his friend; “And you’re thinking it’ll be hard to look her up!? We have the database – we’ll find her!” Ralph glared back; “She’s a shapeshifter-! What if she changed!? That’s as easy as...” He stalled, looking away again, clearly not in the mood to talk about it anymore. Yune had attempted many times to get Ralph to impart what he’d seen in that field in vain; and although he never told, Yune knew whatever it was haunted him. Instead, Yune turned his attention back to Holly, “It would take maybe a day to figure out where she is... if we go pick her up, two tops... do we have time?” She nodded, that was the only shot any of them had to stop this thing. It wasn’t like before; they would need a shifter to catch a shifter. Holly looked back to Ralph, voice firm, not to be argued with; “We need her.” Ralph was still staring at nothing, and shook his head slowly; “I’m not going. I can’t go...”

*****

The pure ecstasy was almost stifling. So high you could barely breathe. Being with a shifter was always like this; humans always loved softer – probably because love actually factored into it. Human guise or not, there was nothing about your feelings for each other that had anything to do with how you would tangle together under sheets. An urge, an instinct, a call to be answered.

Shimmers of silver in the darkness as your eyes glowed with a refusal to burn out. Elongated talons and razor-sharp teeth left deep scratches across your back, immobilising, painful bites to your neck. Females were bigger and stronger, and for you not to do him any real damage he had to hold you down. But those needles sinking into your skin and drawing up rivers of ink from your veins only hit you with a further shot of pleasure. He wasn’t the same species as you – but he was damn close in his true form. You always preferred sex like this; humans had nerve endings in places your race didn’t – a form of pleasure you were unable to replicate unless you presented as one. Also, having been loved on by one for four consecutive years (who also knew damn well what he was doing), it was unsurprising that you’d not want to go back to anything remotely animalistic. Still – you were unable to stop yourself from crying out as your race would. It was by no means pretty; nowhere near the same as whispering someone’s name breathlessly as you held them tight, the trail of their lips down your neck. It sounded like it belonged in the far-off wilderness of some ancient jungle – where it used to be heard frequently. A call answered by his own; not filling a starry summer night sky, but now a bedroom in a modern house, in some town that could not be further away from where you had been born and grown up. How times change - How your race had always underestimated the advancement of humans. But even with the way you were pinned now; with your blood running from at least three separate places, stuck in some ancient ritual, a biological need engrained in your race since millennia before you were born – the man you were with was not the one you were thinking of. Your eyes were closed, and all that flooded your head was Ralph Anderson. You could feel the way he held you, running his hands over your skin and paying attention to every detail. As a detective he never missed anything – that adorable little smile before he asked you if everything was okay. The feel of him inside your body; making love to your slow, steady, breathing your name carelessly – a whisper across your skin as he planted tender kisses instead of bite marks. Although sometimes Ralph would graze his teeth, even on accident, and you would shudder in the memory of something a lot more like this. If you concentrated hard enough on your human, your partner blended into him – and it was Ralph you could feel all over your body – even this rough. And you couldn’t keep him out, you wouldn’t keep him out. It surprised you that somewhere along the line you hadn’t tipped your head back to call his name instead. You missed him, more than anything – you missed having this with him. Ralph could care about you the way a shapeshifter never could. This was good, but it wouldn’t last. You were the only shapeshifter who stayed in one place. It might take a little while, but your partner would move on. For now you sated each other’s appetite; familiar company that you could truly be yourself around. You didn’t have to control your body; your own claws and teeth sinking into him as you tightened your embrace: you were in charge, and he would move as and when you wanted him to. That taste on your tongue, not quite metallic the way human blood was: of salt and earth, ancient minerals lost to time and space that no human technology would ever recognise. Damaging your partner as such was just another part of the act – it was expected, and your partner knew that he was damn lucky you didn’t kill him. Younger ones would suffer worse with you – even killed accidentally from too many fractures, broken bones, blood loss… Not him; with a name of ancient origin you thought he could have been older than you – but from a different part of the world.  

You squeezed your eyes shut again – on the edge of your, very human, climax. And Ralph was right back with you, the gentle sound of his voice coaxing you, hands laced with yours, how his kisses would swallow your groans as you struggled to hold back and the sweet way he would chuckle; ‘Baby… come on… just a little more… I got ya…’ Everything went cloudy for a moment, and Ralph flooded your senses heavier than before: it was his body and his weight, Ralph’s scent and his heartbeat flush with yours. His shiver as he unwound himself from that high that you couldn’t experience – not the way his human body would, but that fascinated you to watch, to feel. You withdrew your needle like teeth from the shoulder of your partner, running your tongue gently over the punctures to stop the flow of blood – you’d both heal quick. Another trait of your race. You slowed your breathing, silver eyes burning a little brighter, but Ralph’s ghost didn’t leave you this time. And before you knew it a single tear was sliding down your cheek. He didn’t see – this man would surely take his leave of you, even when you settled your head in the crook of his neck and pulled him closer, pretending this was anywhere near to what you had in Cherokee City. Yes, he’d leave – but Ralph Anderson never would. ***** Five Years Later… You raised your head from the morning paper – dumfounded. Once you’d got a good feel for people they were never really gone. Even if they’d never touched your soul – even if you’d never had their DNA flow through your veins, people still left a mark on you. This one you hadn’t felt in 5 years, and of all of them to turn up at your door, his wasn’t who you expected. You felt it long before his car pulled into the drive, but you let Yune Sablo step out of the vehicle before you opened your door, standing on the porch with your arms folded as he approached. There was a healthy silence between you as he kept his head bowed. Taking a deep breath before he raised his eyes to yours; there was a hard look on your face, it wasn’t welcoming. “What, is he too good to come and collect me himself!?” Yune immediately looked deflated, “You know I didn’t come here for Ralph.” You held your hand up, “No. Don’t – Don’t ruin it and say his name. What do you want?” “We need you.” Your arms folded and you ran your tongue over your bottom lip, eyebrows raised, “Uh huh.” “No really-!” Yune didn’t dare take even one step up your porch, he knew what you were. Even if he didn’t know what you were capable of, he’d seen enough from your fellow shapeshifters to not want to incur that from you – considering the displeasure on your face. “Y/N, there’s been a string of murders… Holly’s been putting it together and she came to Cherokee City for our help. But we need you.” “Holly?!” For a moment you seemed perplexed, your expression softened and Yune thought he might be able to sway you just by using her, but your eyes narrowed, “You told her?” “We had no choice. We need you. Don’t do it for him – do it for us. Do it for your race.” “Yune. It’s been 5 years, I’m DONE with Cherokee City. And I’m particularly done with its police department. What makes him think I want to see him again?” “I know it’s been 5 years. I think about that every day. That I could have prevented this, and if I’d just got to him quicker then he wouldn’t…” You let out a sigh, dropping your stance and relaxing, “Don’t beat yourself up over what Ralph Anderson did… I won’t let you do that to yourself. What do you need me for, you killed one before?” “Psychology. Getting inside its head. It’s trackable but… it’s careful. Much more careful than the last one.” You lowered your eyes, but nodded; “What makes you think I haven’t gone down that path myself? What makes you think I’m not gonna turn on all of you?” Yune shook his head; “I know you.” He did take that step, but hesitated as your eyes pierced his with an unnatural glimmer of silver. “If you care about us like I know you do, do it for us. Us.” He swallowed, “Y/N. You’re not a bad person. Or whatever you want to qualify yourself as. You can make a difference, and prove to us that you’re not all bad.” “I don’t have anything to prove.” This time when the silver shimmered to life it stayed, and Yune couldn’t tear his eyes away from it. He still had no idea what Ralph had done to you; he was starting to think maybe he should have pressed his friend before coming out here. You looked around at the other houses, suddenly glad that Yune was in his own car and not a marked one, “How did you find me anyway?” “Like I said, you’re a good person. You kept your name and you’re registered here. It’s not… too hard.” It wasn’t a warm smile by any means, but you flicked your head towards your front door – “Okay. Before I come with you, you best come inside – for one, I better pack.” Yune grinned, happy that you were seemingly accepting, that you would answer their plea: “And notify work, right!?” Once inside you packed quickly; not before making Yune a quick cup of coffee. Allowing him some time to unwind before he’d have to drive all the way back. As you packed, Yune sat with his coffee staring around your house. Minimalist. There were barely any photographs on walls, or pictures either. It hardly looked lived in; a shell of a house. Even the bathrooms held no trace of being used. But there was something else too, where there should have been a bathroom mirror, he was faced with nothing. And being inquisitive, Yune found that if the mirrors in this house were still in place, then they were turned around. He wondered if that was a question he could just ask. Yune supposed he wasn’t exactly sure what Shifter etiquette would be. You’d just have to tell him where that line was. Realising just how trapped you’d be with him in a car back to Cherokee City, you weren’t surprised that Yune wanted to try to get all his questions in. You didn’t seem reluctant; and he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to feel about that. Because you weren’t exactly happy either. “So, how’ve you been? What have you been doing? There, uh, anyone you need to tell you’re leaving?” “Uh, I’m an analyst. It’s okay, it’s a job and I get paid… I like where I live. And no, I’m not attached, which is also fine… What else is there to say?” “I guess I expected you to be upset but… you’re here. You’re just, gonna come.” “I’ll be damned if I let Ralph Anderson make me bitter and twisted.” You smiled, “The street I live on is entirely couples. I surrounded myself with love – as I always do. Now that is truly the only way for my race to live. I thrive on that kind of love.” If you could call what you were doing right now ‘thriving’. “I could have lived on his, but we all know what happened there.” “Do you miss him?” There was silence for a long time, and your face was stoic as you mulled your answer over, before it fell, and you started to look upset: “It’s not just about missing him, Yune. He’s a part of me – they all are. And I’ll carry them all for the rest of my life, every strand of DNA I’ve ever replicated. But Ralph… I let him deeper than anyone. It’s easy to collect DNA and just go off and use it, but he… Do you have any idea what it’s like to look in a mirror and hate every fibre of what you are? It’s not just me he hates – it’s what I am! I can’t get away from that even if I do wear another face.” “That explains the mirrors.” He said it before he even realised, and quickly added an embarrassed “Sorry.” “No. You’re right. I can’t… stand myself. But I can’t stay out of this form for very long. So, I have to face it… but it’s not easy. Ralph Anderson is torture. But he helps.” “You – shift into Ralph!?” “He never told you what happened in that field did he?” “No.” “Figures.” But you offered no more on the subject, turning to the window, and Yune wouldn’t press you either: “I drive his car, I wear his clothes, I can face him in a mirror and I even keep track of what he's up to. When I remember. He’ll never get out of my head, and I’ll never get over him. That’s what I’m learning to live with. And now he’s dragging me back. Do I have a choice in facing this? You already know I don’t, Yune.” He reached out and gently patted your hand, “I’m sorry.” You whipped around quickly at the feel of his hand on yours, and he caught that silver again: “I’m not afraid of you, Y/N. And I’ll get you back soon I promise. I won’t let him hurt you.” You could only nod, and barely smile. You understood Yune’s sentiments; but what he was promising was impossible. Just seeing Ralph Anderson again would be more painful than anything you’d faced. You returned your gaze slowly to the scenery and took a deep breath. You weren’t about to tell Yune that you were nervous, thoughts chasing themselves around your head. You were already being torn up by the prospect of seeing him again, and the longer you had to stay in Cherokee City the more torn you’d become. Get in, solve the case, get out. And it being that quick was your only hope… ***

Ralph Anderson would probably never admit it to anyone, but what he was feeling towards you wasn’t far off what you were feeling for him. Ever since he’d gone home from the ‘agreement’ he hadn’t been sleeping well. This morning Yune had simply sent him a text to let him know he was on his way to collect you. You still bore the same name and face – and Ralph wasn’t sure how he’d react when he saw you. Last night had been the worst; wrecked with dreams good and bad, and all of them about you. The worst, and one that had been reoccurring since you left, was the field – playing out exactly the same, except sometimes he’d pull that trigger – sometimes you would attack him and leave him to die – and sometimes he’d be back in that cave in Tennessee, but it’d be you he was facing. You wouldn’t leave him, and he was anxious. What would happen when he did see you again – would he be just as fearful as he was facing you before? Or would it turn to anger and hatred? He wasn’t sure he wanted to show that side of himself to his friends. Which made Ralph ponder exactly what you might be telling Yune. There’s two sides to every story though, and surely Yune would understand mine… He was nervous to see you too – because something else he’d realised, in the past 5 years, was that he couldn’t hate you. Of course, Ralph did hate you, but only because he couldn’t love you. How was that possible, after all you’d done? With what you were. It was still early but he was sitting at his desk and sipping straight bourbon. He’d need it, Ralph knew that much. He opened the top draw and was faced with a picture of you; pulling the frame out he stared at your face, wishing he felt nothing and only stopping when his eyes started to smart. It had only been recently that he’d cleared traces of you from the house. Yune shouldn’t have been surprised at the mirrors in your home because the pictures in Ralph’s told the same story, turned around or face down until he finally rid his residence of them. Your clothes were all in bags in the garage, but he’d never quite got around to his promise of burning them all. Ralph had been on dates but, he’d never found anyone else. He just classed himself as emotionally unavailable. But never had much trouble blaming you for this. Maybe he was just waiting for something he couldn’t have – and maybe Ralph was waiting on miracles. Although he’d never mention that either. As he strolled into the department that morning, Holly observed him with worry. Of course she was already up bright and early. Ralph slumped down in his chair with a sigh; and looked more tired than she’d ever seen him. Holly made coffee and set it in front of him without even asking. She felt Ralph probably needed more than that, but wasn’t about to encourage drinking when she needed them to focus. “You look like you didn’t sleep much.” “Yeah, well. It’s a big day, I’m not the best sleeper as it is these days.” She at least looked sympathetic as he gazed up at her to thank her for the coffee. “Are you ready for this?” Ralph nodded a few times slowly, before it quickly turned into a head shake; “I’ve never been more unprepared in my life.”

*** Ralph’s adrenaline and heartbeat spiked the second he heard your voice – but he could control it. Your sentences were cut and single words to answer Yune’s questions – but not unfriendly. The unmistakable sound of your footfall had him looking up as you both walked into the room. You stopped dead as your eyes caught his – as did your talking. You hadn’t changed one bit, you looked like you hadn’t even aged a day – frozen in time, just like the pictures, and memories that filled Ralph’s mind. Somehow that made everything hurt just that little bit more. Yune and Holly stood around like awkward third wheels; but, certainly aware of the hostile tension that had just engulfed the room. Your face didn’t really convey a lot of emotion, but your glare was heavy and it made Ralph shift uncomfortably in his seat. That movement undid all his hard work of keeping it together, and although he was still holding your gaze, he suddenly looked pathetic and guilty. It didn’t make you feel anything: As he should. You turned away from him, to Holly. “I believe you need me for your investigation.” Ralph immediately shuddered at the sound of your voice and found it hard not to vocalise something, even when you weren’t talking to him. “You want to get inside the mind of a shifter, you’ve got one. I will caution you before we begin, we aren’t all the same. So, lay it on me – what you want to know AND already know. Yune said there was a pattern, maybe I can determine what type this shifter is from that…” You took a breath, unable to keep yourself from smiling at her, “It’s good to see you again, Holly. Thank you for believing in me.” And Ralph knew that was an immediate shot at him. Holly instantly beamed, and the tension in the room dissipated, because you weren’t expecting it. The third human in the room was forgotten for a moment, and you let your icy façade melt. These two hadn’t done anything to you, at least not yet, so you had to behave amicably to prove a point. Not that you wouldn’t have – but in the presence of people who knew what you were, you at least knew you had to be careful. “It’s good to see you too, Y/N. I have to say this revelation is at least a little fascinating.” “Well… Anything I can do to prove we aren’t all like him. This seems to be getting a little ridiculous.” “You’re not wrong…” But she kept smiling as she studied you, “I mean, they’ve told me what they know…” she indicated to Ralph and Yune. “And you don’t appear to be like he was – you don’t shed, is that correct? You… uh… shimmer?” Your eyes gravitated to her coffee cup, “I can show you. If you want. The problem is your last one was a baby. If you start coming up against those much older it’ll just get harder. The patterns this one is leaving could just be a flashy show of confidence. Not mistakes.” “Show us?” Ralph shifted anxiously and you could feel his unease, turning your eyes on him: “You already know I can do you, what’s the point in that?” You indicated to Holly’s coffee cup, “If you’re finished with that… I can…” She tipped her head in thought, then decided to nod and handed it over, continuing her questioning as you inspected the rim of the cup. “You don’t need my blood?” “That’s the easiest way, and how we start off – then we graduate. Any form of DNA works fine and it doesn’t need to be consumed. But again, that depends how old you are.” You stopped twisting the cup and glanced back to Holly, “You’re SURE you want me to do this? I can’t get inside your head, I promise that. But I will feel your emotion.” She nodded, but questioned again, “What is that like?” “For me…” You gave a shrug, lifting the cup to your lips and running your tongue across the edge, “It’s all I know.” You placed it down and waited patiently for the DNA to code itself into you – “This’ll take a second-. But you put me in a café and you leave your cup behind. Bam. I have you on file for the rest of my life. Some would rather their long string of love affairs; one-night stands or kisses its all the same, some just like the taste of blood. I think the less interaction the better, personally.” You stretched, “You sure you’re ready for this?” Holly nodded, but you knew all of them were immediately more tense as you took a breath and shimmered – Ralph couldn’t help but be transfixed to watched the way your eyes lit that haunting silver as your body once more seemed to wash with pixels, before Holly stood face to face with herself. You blinked a few times, eyes still shining. “Sorry.” Holly and Yune jumped at her voice from your mouth, “The eyes always take a little longer than anything else.” “And you can just change back?!” “Mhm.” You gave a nod, “Give me a few minutes, it’s like going through a hard reset.” “Why are there so many different species? I mean he wasn’t like you… I met another and he wasn’t like you either…” “Evolution. We do the same thing in different ways. Species and genus, I guess. But practice. He took a month to change, it used to take me longer to change. I had to go through a middle step of reverting back to true form to switch humans. It’s not the most intuitive thing.” “True form?” “I said to Ralph before…” You paused for a minute as your DNA began to even out over Holly’s, “I’m much more traditionally monster than human. Think… animal, not… person. In fact, we’d fit a lot better in your animal kingdom than we would the way you live. Excuse me.” You held your hand up and shifted yourself back, “See. It’s THAT simple.” Holly tilted her head; “Could… you elaborate?” “Sure. I’m Quadrupedal, little bit more front heavy. Sharp teeth like needles, claws… I’m used to four digits. If we did stand up…  maybe 8ft tall, probably bigger. Females are the larger of the species. You seem to be getting lucky on that front. Males don’t tend to survive the mating process – think spiders.” “I’m starting to think it’s a good thing you look human.” Yune sounded more than a little faint. “Yeah well, humans went and hunted us down – so we had to adapt.” You nodded to Holly’s board, “What do you think you have? One like me? Worse?” “WORSE!?” Yune looked across to you. “Hun, I am by no means the oldest of my kind. There are worse out there than the type I am. There’s a kind that never evolved – think parasitic worms.” “W-WHAT!?” You smirked, “Yeah. Way worse. That’d kill me easy.” You shot Ralph a look, “Detective, sitting there thinking ‘shame’ isn’t exactly helpful.” Ralph looked perplexed for a minute, deer in headlights. “Just because I can’t hear your thoughts, doesn’t mean I don’t know what you’re thinking.” You sat back on the desk as Holly went through her discoveries and you started to try to piece together the person she was describing. Which type they could be.  You could already offer suggestions: it was a strange set of patterns, and there were things they weren’t seeing because they weren’t shapeshifters. You liked that at least two people in the room seemed receptive and thankful for your presence on this. Holly brought up her video footage after that – the suspects looked slightly different in each but they all had the same movements, the same way of doing things. They weren’t trying to blend into the people they were copying, simply use them as a disguise. You were impressed she’d managed to get so far on body language. Yet there was something familiar about it that concerned you. Just how many of your kind had you been around in your life? Too many to recall and yet each one, just like the DNA you all collected, imprinted into your memory in a different way. This one was in your bank somewhere. It wasn’t what you wanted to realise. That unease certainly didn’t end as Holly continued to pull up pictures; and suddenly you became too alert, straightening and stiffening on the desk your nails gripped the table, eyes wide in shock. He’s not hiding anymore… Holly read this immediately; “You know him… don’t you?” You swallowed hard, realising all eyes were now on you. You did, of course you did. And he wasn’t someone you had to comb through your memories to find – he was right there; the man had just left you. “Better than I would care to say…” you nodded to her screen, “He’s not hiding. That’s his face. The equivalent of what I chose to present to you.” Then you shook your head, “SHIT!” After what you’d been through for nearly three years? Now you find this out?! It shouldn’t have bothered you, loving and leaving was what your race did. But this was worse than that. Ralph could read you like a book, and found that his jealousy and pain were blending together; “Oh, it hurts doesn’t it? When you find out the person you’re with isn’t what they seem.” You didn’t miss a beat: “What, don’t like what you see in the mirror?” Once again your detective didn’t have a comeback. “How recently?” “He left me 3 years ago. That’s nothing new, that’s how it works.” “What works?” You hesitated, but opted to continue: “Well, any ‘relationship’ really. We don’t… mate for life.” It was like air had just left the room, and you didn’t dare look at Ralph Anderson’s face. All you would see was anger and betrayal. “We were together a surprisingly long while, I suppose our cycles can be sensed. 27 years is a long time to wait for something like that.” Holly blinked a few times; “I didn’t think you could have… children. Every 27 years?” “Nothing to us. But I can assure you, we have children. At least my branch of our race can.” “So... you’re not sterile?” “Anything in your hospitals, honey, would say I was, even during the cycle. Males don’t have cycles but would still show as sterile in your readings.” “How many do you have?” Well, you’d come this far… “Alive? I can’t tell you. 17 total.” Ralph did the quick calculation in his head. That made you 435 years old, minimum. On the assumption that every 27 years you did in fact bare children. And you looked like only the last 2 numbers of that. But it was bothering him; “How – how can you not know how many are alive!? You only just had one.” You sighed, turning to him – sure enough he was the spitting image of the man who’d pointed a gun at your head. Only now Ralph just looked like he wished he’d pulled the trigger. “What part of monster, or, animal don’t you understand?? We’re not humans, we present as human. There’s no 18 years and close relationships, Ralph. Once they’re ready to leave, they leave. When a bird can fly it leaves the nest. It’s exactly the same – you’re thinking too much about my body not my genetics.” Why was he still so pissed about the whole kids thing, anyway? Why did Ralph care either way about you and your race? You crossed your arms and narrowed your eyes; “As you keep pointing out – Ralph Anderson – I’m not human.” You turned back to Holly, “His name is Aldric. And we have a problem here, his race is like mine – maybe a little worse and certainly faster. I might be bigger, but I’m almost certain he’s older than me.” Ralph scowled from his chair, folding his arms and crossing his legs: “Fucking perfect.” They continued their rounds of questions and you remained to help them work through patterns you could see that they couldn’t. But every time you saw Aldric’s face it jarred you – mating wasn’t the problem, that was a call you had to answer if possible. If their first shifter had been around you’d have still answered it; it was the fact that it had been a relationship, of sorts, first. And you didn’t form friendships with Shifters that did things like this – dead against killing for what it had cost your race in the past. Aldric had passed all your tests, a genuinely upstanding guy – you hadn’t sensed that he was hiding anything – so what had happened? It wasn’t a question you could answer, but one that you desperately needed to know. Nothing like having a second personal stake in all this… Having said that, every time Ralph said something pointed or facetious, you only ever responded cold and emotionlessly; shutting him down at every turn. You weren’t going to let him sit there pretending he was in the clear on this one. You were around the point of calling it quits, when they were all explaining to you where he’d been seen most recently. Currently it didn’t look like he was moving from that city – they all theorised that Aldric was choosing his next victim before he moved on. You couldn’t help but agree, even though you didn’t want to. The next few days would be vital. Although as they continued talking about next steps, you tipped your head and lost yourself in another thought. Was this going to involve killing Aldric? Was that what you wanted? Was it the only way? Could he be brought to justice… could a monster like you ever be brought to that kind of justice? Instead you voiced your question quietly; “Don’t you guys think you’re going to need a lawyer when this blows up?” They turned to each other, and it was obvious that none of them had considered a situation that didn’t end with a body. Yune frowned: “Well there’s always the DA?” Ralph immediately scoffed, “The DA is useless, I still don’t get how he won the election. I don’t trust him with half my shit.” “…Then who!?” Yune was clearly going to keep your spirits up, yet you weren’t under any illusions. Instead you got a bright idea of your own, Hayes: “I know just the guy.” Then it really was late, and you did all have to call it a night. Ralph was the first one to stand, and looked to you, “Well, you can come stay with me.” You looked at him like he was insane, and then laughed, “I’d rather sleep in the car. Or in a jail cell here, than go home with you.” That clearly stung, Ralph wasn’t expecting it. But you had enough doubts about this detective not to take him up on it. You didn’t want to be in that house, and certainly not with him. Ralph was making his feelings for you quite obvious and if the last five years had changed his stance, he might truly kill you this time. To stop the silence from being any more awkward, Yune stepped in, “It’s okay – you can stay with me. It’ll be fine.” “Oh…” You weren’t sure you expected that, “Thank you.” He nodded his ‘you’re welcome’, “If you’re ready we can go. Be back here bright and early.” You all said your goodbyes, but you paused at the door; “OH! Can I take the map? It might take me all night, but I’ll figure out where he’s likely hiding. Shifters are nothing if not habitual…” “Sure! Thank you, Y/N!” Holly once again beamed as you rolled the map up and smiled back, “No problem. Mutual goals and all that right?” “Mhm, Goodnight Y/N! Don’t stay up too late.” “I’ll try-!” You grinned, “Goodnight, Holly.” The obviousness of you not even acknowledging Ralph, let alone wishing him a goodnight, was not lost on him – you still didn’t care. With the map tucked under your arm, you followed Yune out to the elevators. “You still love her, don’t you?” Ralph’s eyes flicked to Holly, then back to your receding frame – talking to Yune, you seemed so much happier out of this room. Out of Ralph’s presence. The detective chewed his lip, deciding to let his expression answer for him. ***

After staying up most of the night pouring over the map and your laptop, you had a fair idea of where Aldric could be. After all, you knew him, right? At least you thought you did. You were starting to think that the revelations of your ex-partners were becoming a little too much. You left Yune’s house early – just about catching him as you were taking off out the door. Upon asking where you were going, and you announcing you were about to drag the ex-DA into this, he laughed. “Need a lift?” “No. I could use the walk.” “You know where you’re going?” “Mhm. I did the research; I’ll meet you all back at the precinct. Hopefully lawyer in tow.” “Alright, see you soon Y/N… OH!” You turned back at his gentle tug on your sleeve, “It’s good to see you again. I don’t know if I said yet. It’s just real good to have you back.” You let yourself beam, “Thanks Yune… I needed that.” The sign read K.W.S.Hayes and Partners – KWS? Well okay, Mr. Two-Middle-Names. You laughed to yourself as you walked through the front door. You were glad everything was still quiet; you could avoid a lot of people you knew and awkward questions that way. You didn’t even need an appointment. Well, not that you’d let someone who barely looked out of her twenties stop you, with your “I’m an old friend.” Kenneth Hayes jumped, and this time his papers did scatter everywhere. You watched them float to the floor, only wishing it was five years earlier, before your eyes met his again and you closed his door. “How the HELL did you-” “Old friends tends to get me places.” “Jesus, who let you back into Cherokee City?!” “I’m not in your office to do anything but get you on this case.” He hesitated, “What case?” “Surprise, surprise, there’s another of me out there and your PD want my help.” There was too long a pause and you knew that he was only pretending to be disinterested, “No thanks, isn’t that a DA role?” You folded your arms, “They left you in the dark last time. I won’t let them do it again. Besides, I hear the current DA isn’t so hot and I KNOW a good lawyer when I see one.” He squinted at you for a moment, then scoffed, very nearly disgusted. “Find someone else.” “Don’t misunderstand me, Hayes.” You took a step, eyes flashing. “I don’t just want you on this case, they need you on this case. And if I have to drag you across town to the PD kicking and screaming… well…” You indicated to yourself, knowing that would explain enough. Hayes swallowed, accepting his fate, “When do we start?” You smirked, “Oh baby, the fun has already begun!” As you might expect, and they probably expected to from their previous experience, there was a good network of caves on both sides of the city and scores of abandoned buildings grouped together - from what you’d been able to gather, also fairly overgrown. “But he’s older than you.” “It’s habitual.” At this point you were getting sick of Ralph questioning everything that came out of your mouth, and were sure the other three (now Hayes was up to speed) were sitting there internally groaning ‘ohhh my god, will you two quit it! We got a case to work on.’  “It’s not about the hiding to change, although it may be to do with not wanting to be disturbed. It’s about dragging your prey somewhere quiet. It’s about remaining inconspicuous and in the shadows. None of us grew up in cities and towns, the world simply changed around us. Places like naturally occurring caves are like our ancestral homes.” You tapped the map, “Abandoned shells of buildings are an alright substitute. We all adapted to this sure, but he’s actively killing – and that’s an instinct we evolved with. He’s thinking home. I know it.” You placed your balled fist against your mouth for a moment allowing for a pause for thought; “I can’t get you closer unless we’re actually there, but, once we are it’ll be more accurate. And I can pinpoint exactly where he’s staying – especially considering our history.” “Can he sense… you?” “Possibly. But I doubt he’d think twice about it. He wouldn’t know why I’m there…” Suddenly you found yourself getting disheartened: “I just don’t get it. It’s been the first time in a long while I’ve seen so many of us. Holly you’ve seen three, well four, of us now. How am I’m the only good one? It was never like this. They shouldn’t be the rule.” The silver shine on your eyes was dull as they smarted, and Yune put his hand over yours; “Maybe it’s because you’re the only one left alive old enough to remember the times when you weren’t oppressed. You said it yourself, you don’t know how old he is. Maybe everyone else has heard these stories and wants revenge. Wants to feed on our pain and suffering, because humans caused your entire race pain.” “But how can they not realise that LOVE... love is...” Holly reached for your other hand, understanding what Yune was trying to do; if they lost your help to delusion they would never get anywhere: “But you experienced that. Who’s to say they ever did?” Try as Holly might she was unable to keep her glance off Ralph, who gave Holly a similarly worried look. “But how can they not tell the difference?” “Closed off to it? Maybe they don’t recognise it... maybe pain is so strong that the sustainability of love is not worth it... it doesn’t register.” You took your hands back, not allowing a sob, but rubbing the tears away before they could flow down your cheeks. Too many people were suffering – you had all suffered too but, humans didn’t need to bear the sins of their ancestors. Was there no way to live in harmony? You found yourself crying, not only for your race, but for everyone who had to grieve because of it.

*** You all gave yourselves an hour to get ready, not that you weren’t already living out of a bag. The original idea was the four of you went down and confronted him, as they had done in Tennessee. That this time they’d keep Hayes completely in the loop. The lawyer was already clearly invested, which made you happy, as he shook his head: “I didn’t get involved last time on your decision. I’d quite like to be included this time on my own terms. I can see it through – then I’ll avoid any strange stories floating my way.” He was clearly referring to that Jack Hoskins lie, he nodded to you, “Besides. I trust her.” Your eyebrows raised at this but you bowed your head in thanks. 3 down, 1 to go. Of course he would be the most difficult. Yune let you sit quietly alone as he packed and before you knew it you were standing back in the precinct deciding on whose car was being taken. The final decision landed on Ralph’s and Yune’s, so you split your things and yourselves between the two cars. Obviously, the idea was to keep you and Ralph separate. He wasn’t so happy about that decision and ended up overruling everyone by force; arm out to pin you back against his car. “What are you-” “Nope.” “Ralph!” “They might trust you, but I certainly don’t. You’re coming with me.” His voice was low and left you glaring at him again, he nodded Holly towards Yune’s car but she was hesitant. You took a breath and moved her on instead. “It’s okay Holly, I’ll be okay.” She clearly wasn’t having that, and as Ralph kept you pinned there, you watched her whisper urgently to Yune; you could imagine that she wanted to make sure this car was in sight of theirs the whole time. You drew your eyes away from them and back to your ex-partner, “What, so you can finish what you started?” “Don’t flatter yourself. I swear to God, you even THINK of hurting them.” “Don’t you think I would have done it before now? What is wrong with you?! How can he change your opinion of me so easily?” “You lied to me!” “And you threatened to shoot me twice. You said it yourself Ralph, if you didn’t love me I’d be dead, so you can stop acting like I’M the threat here.” It was strange to be so close to him again, his DNA used to be a part of your everyday existence. By shifting into him so often – and being comfortable there – you’d kept that true. But now he was back this close to you, your body was giving you many different reactions. It was as repulsed by him as it wanted to pull him into you and never let him go. The confusion was not helping you keep control and you knew that silver was burning again by the way distress momentarily flickered over his features. Somehow the car ride wasn’t as tense as you imagined. You supposed there was so much you really had to say to each other, considering the passage of time. Yet neither of you knew how or where to begin; and both of you were guilty of something. For a long time there was silence, before Ralph took a calm breath and broke it. “Why did you come back?” You eyed him curiously, “You needed me. I assumed if you let Yune turn up on my doorstep at all, you were fine with it. I want to stop this as much as you do, even if you don’t believe that.” “You understand why I have trust issues with you, right?” “I think you must understand the same.” Ralph nodded: “As long as we’re on the same page.” There was another pause before he started again, “Five years is a long time to still hate someone.” “I don’t hate you, and I’m certainly not scared of you, but if you touch me I’m gonna throw a fit.” He nodded to the car in front, “Don’t think I haven’t seen Yune checking his mirrors every five seconds and the way Hayes always turns around. They’re watching out for ya.” You lowered your eyes to the floor, and spoke quieter, “I am not to blame for the sins of my race. I wish you’d been able to see past that. But every time you look at me, all I can see is how you feel about them. I’m the rule, Ralph. We’ve never been like this... I guess we’re all just angry.” “All. Including you.” “Understanding, of why humans rose up. We’re not Gods – even if we acted like it. Stories passed through generations; those so twisted by what happened. I get that – it hurt, to be hunted that way. But murdering humans doesn’t help anything. And killing you all now? Children with bad tempers don’t represent my race. And yet will become the poster children.” Ralph shifted in his seat, about as uncomfortably as you might expect, before turning his eyes on you. There really wasn’t a lot you had to ask, he understood what you were getting at. You turned away from him, rubbing your hands together, before moving the same motion to your wrists. It was too painful for him to think of you in handcuffs, so he took another breath and smiled. He was beginning to think that you were as wrong as you were right; no, you weren’t like them, but Ralph considered that you were the exception these days, not the rule. It was unfortunate that the group had dealt with so many bad ones. He was warming to you; it was going to take some time, but he knew he was. He wanted so badly to reach for you and tell you that. But he knew he couldn’t, Ralph Anderson swallowed fixing his eyes back on the road and the car in front just as Yune eyed him again. They didn’t trust him with you either and he had more than proved they had grounds. You should have known that the amicable atmosphere between you wouldn’t last. Your question was innocent enough, he knew you had ‘moved on’ – if that was even a thing your race did; you’d at least have classed yourself in something akin to a relationship with Aldric. He was the father of one of your children after all – but Ralph had kept quiet about his own love life. It’d been five whole years – he might have been older, but that didn’t mean you didn’t know how women looked at him; and with that face? You couldn’t blame them. “Are you single?” He blinked before he answered, slowly, “Yes.” “Huh.” Your mouth became a thin line, nearly a frown, “I’m surprised, I thought it’d be easy for you to move on. Surely all the girls are killing to date you now? Have you been with anyone?” Maybe he had and it hadn’t lasted – it’d been a long time. You were met with immediate hostility: “Well how can I trust anyone is who they say they are after you?!” Feeling that was pretty uncalled for, you shot back, “Don’t blame me for YOUR feelings. You know all the tells. You should have just gone ahead and dated!” Ralph glared at you, it was icy and threatening, causing you to back up against the car door; “Yeah well, I didn’t, did I? I didn’t just go off and fuck someone else. And have kids.” Your eyebrows knitted together in anger, “Screw you Ralph Anderson. You’re the one who said you never wanted to see me again. And I TOLD you, we can’t have children. What is your obsession with that-?! I’m surprised not to find you married with kids the amount you go on about it!!” “Well I’m not, am I?! I don’t just get to choose to do something like that! I accepted we couldn’t have kids, but that’s all bullshit anyway! All you ever did was lie!” “Don’t you put this on me!” You slammed your hand on the dashboard, turning your body fully to him; “WHY DOES IT ALWAYS COME BACK TO THIS, WHEN YOU TOLD ME YOU DIDN’T CARE!!” “Because you can have them!” “Once every 27 years Ralph! And you can’t treat them like human children. They would never stay. You can’t bend them to that, and they wouldn’t be… yours.” “I dunno, surrogacy? Adoption? We never even talked about it.” “Why didn’t you bring that up!? How easy do you think that would be? I don’t… die like you do. I’d live my life with you, and then when you passed on, I’d take a few years and disappear. And then start over. But there’s never going to be another you Ralph. They always warned me about humans, and they were right. But you were worth every fucking second until you tore it all up." “Are you saying this is MY fucking fault!? If you’re at least over 400 then how the hell did you ever think we’d work out?!” “I’d age up with you. It’s easy. Ralph, you never would have noticed. Without him all my little tells are ticks and tricks of the light.” “You bleed blue!” “Well that still took you four years and killing one of us.” Then you remembered, “Fuck, you nicked me, didn’t you? To check that I really was…” You placed your hands over your eyes, groaning, “Why didn’t you just ask?! You could have just asked. And calmly told me to get out… instead you pointed a gun to my head and threw me in a jail cell.” “Y/N-” “No. No.” You protested, “I’m fucking DONE Ralph. Don’t touch me, don’t even talk to me.” You rolled your body away from him and curled yourself up as best you could in the seat, closing your eyes. Hopefully sleep would come quick and would last the rest of the car ride. Hopefully it wouldn’t be plagued with bad dreams… You wouldn’t say that your dreaming was bad, just that your dreams were more content to feed you memories… This one of Aldric, of course. You understood why, perhaps most obviously because you couldn’t wrap your head around his sudden change. Aldric knew all about Ralph Anderson, you were only too happy to share your experiences with someone who understood them. Yet it wasn’t just because you’d told him, but because of your tendency to shift into Ralph: just to hear his voice, or see his face (albeit in a mirror), because you felt safe and comfortable in a body so familiar to you. Ralph looked – and was – a 6ft-odd tall, sure of himself man; no one was going to bother you when you were Ralph Anderson. It was a face Aldric got used to, but saw less and less of the longer he stayed. He counted that as progress, with his best smile. Aldric knew you still had bad days, where you’d lie on the bed and all the mirrors would turn around – humans had scarred you deep, and he didn’t like that much. Unlike everyone else, who would get angry and do something about it, you’d become a little more withdrawn; a mix of heart-break and self-hatred. He’d asked a thousand times ‘why always him’ and it wasn’t a question you could answer. ‘Why someone who caused you so much damage?’ The simple answer wasn’t one you could say out loud: that DNA coded into you was all you had left of him. The long answer would require you spilling to him all your feelings and details of your relationship that were yours to know – and would go unspoken to your grave. The best you could do was shrug; “Because I loved him. He’s just… familiar.” That was a lie too, there was no loved past tense about it. Even if Ralph had uttered that word himself. Aldric took your hand in his, with a gentle sigh: “Isn’t it amazing, over millions of years of our own race’s evolution and countless lifetimes, just how much one man has fucked you up? You’re hung up on one human and four years… in all that you’ve lived. Y/N…  I’m just sorry he did this. Though as if it isn’t something typically human.” He took a breath, gathering your body to his and stroking your hair; “Well. I’m here, for now… and I won’t let them hurt you again.” Aldric was always so nice and gentle with you and just as lovely to the humans you lived around – he never talked about having problems with them, so you doubted it was all a façade. It didn’t make any sense. How can THIS man now be murdering people…!? *** Ralph wasn’t the one who woke you up when you got to your destination, Hayes was. If he was trying to make up for anything, you would call him out on it – but he wasn’t. He was just trying to be a good man – whilst simultaneously checking that his friend was treating you right. You appreciated that they were worried, they didn’t have to care about you. Only that you’d help them solve this – and you would despite Ralph’s treatment of you. Or, in spite of it. In fact they always kept at least a body between you and Ralph, and you wondered exactly who they were protecting; him or you.

 It was late, but you had to strategize and figure out where he was. It wasn’t hard for you, Aldric was everywhere, so whilst the other three were trying to figure out the best and fastest way to hit him, Hayes drove you aimlessly around town. “Where you think he’ll be?” “He’s not in town – but it’s a recent move. I’m certain he based himself here.” “Will he be able to sense you?” “We’ll need a miracle…. My reason for being here could be anything. It’s the rest of you I’m worried about.” You were lying down in the back seat, trying to focus on the signals you could feel and almost taste in the air. That familiarity hurt now as much as Ralph’s did… You pushed your detective back for a minute, why won’t you stay in your godamn lane!, as Hayes took his rings around town further and further out, until you sat bolt upright. “STOP.” You were immediately on edge, too close and too soon. Like your head was spinning. “Woah, you okay!?” Hayes turned in his seat and it was plain to see the tension in your face and body, “Y/N? Is he here!?” You pointed to the map; “Are we leading anywhere?” “Uh…” He picked it up, “Yeah, there’s like an outcropping here…” Hayes jabbed it, “It looks like mountains though, and we are slightly inclining.” He handed it to you and you studied the map hard for a moment, before you traced your finger along what looked like a mountain ridge to one small black dot. “Here.” You turned to the lawyer and for once he didn’t even flinch as your eyes flickered bright silver – was that fear? “Do you have a pen?” “Yeah-!” Of course Hayes had one in his pocket, you put a ring around it and turned to him pushing the map into his chest. “He’s there.” *** Holly was the one in the car with you today, and she took your hand in hers. “You okay?” “No.” You had to be honest and she smiled, squeezing your hand, “Oh, sweetheart… This must be harder for you than anything else.” “What if I’ve always been wrong about my race?” You chewed the inside of your lip. “You’re better than we are, Y/N. Whether you’re the exception or the rule shouldn’t matter, should it, but how good you are. And after what you’ve seen from this particular community… that’s enough to twist anyone up. Yet here you are, still you.” You turned slowly to her, and couldn’t help but smile: “I could say the same for you.” She laughed, “I guess we both understand each other.” “An outsider knows an outsider.” You repeated a phrase of hers that had burned in you then, it held no less significance now. Holly squeezed your hand once more as you seemed to approach the cave entrance – your breath caught again and you tried not to let Aldric flood back: focusing just on Holly and smiling through it, “You got that right!” You slid out of the car with her, watching the guys all gear up just as fast. They would have to work quick and quiet if they were ever going to make it through this alive. You were glad everyone was wearing long sleeves: no one was taking chances. You nearly scoffed as you watched Hayes holster a pistol: “You know how to use that?” “I’m from Georgia, sweetie. Yeah, I do.” You laughed as if that had any merit to it, and Holly cleared her throat, holding a pistol out for you. You raised an eyebrow and grinned, shaking your head; “Honey, all my weapons are in built. I don’t need that.” Yune also sidled over, “And none of us want to see that in action.” “Pray you won’t need to.” “How is he?” “Quiet. If Aldric’s expecting anything he’s not tense, or angry, or frightened. I wouldn’t count on the element of surprise, just assume that he knows.” Ralph seemed to be taking an awful long time about this, and your eyes narrowed at his back, causing the others to turn to him. “Ralph?!” “Yeah, I- you guys go – We’ll bring up the rear.” “We?” “Yeah.” He pointed at you, “We. I want you at the back where I can see you.” “Why?” Although you knew it was a stupid question as soon as you said it and his face darkened, “Okay. Okay, we’ll do this your way.” Although you were loath to point out that if he was scared you were about to team up with Aldric, putting you at the back left the four of them trapped in the middle. It was more likely so Ralph could keep a gun trained on you at all times. You turned to the rest of them, “You guys go. Be careful, maybe two groups would be better, don’t do anything stupid.” They almost couldn’t believe you were agreeing with this, but nodded along – anything so as not to cause a huge argument right in the middle of the operation. They weren’t walking so fast though, clearly not wanting to completely split the group, you assumed that they would wait for you just inside the entrance. You crossed to him: “Is there gonna be a problem with you and me?” “No.” “Ralph you don’t have to lie to me.” “I told you, they might trust you, but I don’t. That’s all there is to it.” You leant against the car, looking dead in his eyes, “How do I know I can trust you?” “You don’t.” And he proved it; all too late did you realise that he’d been ready all along, and before you could stop him, your wrist was cuffed to the door handle. “RALPH!!!” “Shut up, or I really will finish what I started in that field.” He growled, hand over your mouth as you struggled. “You son of a BITCH-! They will DIE without me! What are you doing-!?” “We survived before, sweetheart.” His smile wasn’t friendly, so the pet name wasn’t either, “I don’t trust what you’ll do when you see him, I don’t trust you around him, or us. And I won’t see good people die again on account of YOUR race.” “Are you kidding?! I thought we were getting somewhere, but here come your true fucking colours again!” You pulled against the handcuffs, “Ralph! Let me go!” “No. You’re gonna stay here until we get back. And if we don’t get back, you’re gonna die here.” “What the fuck is your problem!?” He raised an eyebrow, and you realised it was another stupid question. “RALPH!” but he turned and started walking, “Shit! RALPH!!!” You tugged again, foot up against the car, to no avail and the cuff dug in. You rolled your sleeve back, wrist already showing a friction line. “You fucking asshole!” You turned back to watch him walk into the distance, “Are you SO stupid as to kill everyone on account of me-!?” When Ralph reached the group of three waiting just inside the caves, they all peered around for you and simultaneously took a deep breath to give him hell. He held a finger to his lips – knowing that what was waiting for them was far more dangerous. They didn’t need to announce their arrival any more than necessary. “I don’t trust her. Would you? We’ve seen what one of them can do, you think we can handle two of them? I don’t think we can risk it.” And the look on Ralph’s face said no protesting. “Where is she?!” Yune hissed, surprisingly looking the most pissed. Considering he’d tried to do right by you twice before Ralph had decided to screw it up. “Safe. But most certainly in handcuffs, now are we moving or what?!” They all looked to each other before begrudgingly moving on into the caves together, but Yune paused before he allowed Ralph to go any further. “You’re a fucking idiot. You know that?” “I’m doing this for the good of everyone.” Yune rolled his eyes, and muttered something in Spanish that Ralph assumed wasn’t good. “You ever think about her?! Even once?” Ralph gave him a look that shut the conversation down completely. But it couldn’t have juxtaposed the situation more; and his outward attitude was fooling everyone nicely. Of course he had; he was doing it to protect you. *** Focusing on them and their wellbeing became increasingly hard for three reasons. Ralph and your bond wasn’t the strongest, even though you had his DNA in your vein’s – as the group of four traversed deeper you started to lose him. Aldric’s own feelings were giving you unease – pretty sure that he knew you were here, if he hadn’t already he’d become aware of the presence of four human’s soon; without you protecting them you were sure it would become a massacre. And finally, you were trying to concentrate on breaking the cuffs – or the car door, whichever buckled first. Preferably the cuffs though, because hopefully you’d get to drive out of this. You had more strength than a human in you, but all that was helping with was the metal digging deep into your skin; ink blue already ran from your wrist and spotted all over the ground. If you did all die here forensics would have a field day with that. The change happened instantaneously. Aldric’s calm aura became hostile, forcing you to gasp and wheel back to the cave entrance: Guys! Why didn’t Ralph think about this? Aldric was leaving a string of murders, did they really think he would care about 4 bodies in the middle of nowhere. What about your presence; this wasn’t going to end well no matter what way you looked at it. And Ralph - Aldric knew everything about Ralph, if he attacked them your detective would be shown no mercy. You turned back to your handcuffs; “SHIT!” crying in both frustration and the pain of the cut. There was no other way to save them but by shifting completely; reverting back into the real monster they thought you were. To save them you would do anything. To save him- You closed your eyes and breathed deep, inhale, exhale; your eyes reopened to blurred and burning silver reflected back at you, human skin dissipating into something rougher and grey; elongated fingers splicing from five to four digits – this was the first time DNA separation had caused you to feel so dysmorphic. You knew the look you’d see on his face; if he rejected you now…well, hadn’t Ralph already? The metal snapped without you needing to pull as your wrists expanded – body filling out to complete mass. You stepped back, hands down; quadrupedal, and turned towards the cave entrance, sure of yourself enough to sprint towards it. They needed you NOW – or they weren’t leaving this alive. ***

Four beams of light swept in concentric patterns across the floor, walls and ceiling of the cave. It seemed darker and colder than the one they’d confronted the Outsider in. But pretty – patterns in rock cut and smoothed from millenniums of ancient water ways – the paths weren’t narrow though; it didn’t feel half as claustrophobic. There must have been openings they couldn’t see, as the air smelled clean and fresh, and every so often a soft draft would catch them from the depths of the cave. The majority of the time the four remained quiet; and Ralph assured himself that every time one of them shivered it was the cold – and not fear that he was sure all felt. The occasional verbal communication was to check everyone was close; and to agree on which direction to take – it wasn’t hard, Aldric wasn’t trying to cover his tracks. Ralph supposed he didn’t expect to be followed, or he had the confidence to know if he was found he’d just as easily kill those that stumbled on him. But three of them had come across his kind before and lived; the fourth was at least clued up. Ralph Anderson didn’t plan on dying here either. After about half an hour of careful searching they entered a larger cavernous area, much like a room, and all of them froze. To one end was a semi-circular collection of lights; all in the same UV soft white spectrum. Near to those was a heap of blankets, bundled together in organised chaos; but they were within a ring of piled up silt and dirt that covered the floor. Ralph swept his torch but saw no evidence of bones which would suggest food, hunting, more murders – you had said you didn’t need to eat; you could survive on feelings. The Outsider had and you had announced grief as unsustainable… yet Aldric was perhaps different. Able to sustain himself on something else. Aldric also wasn’t ‘a baby…’ Ralph received the feeling that he was being watched all too late, and a cold tremor ran over his body. From one of the darker corners of the room came the sound of shifting rocks, and an animalistic growl. All of them whirled around, torches gathered on two eyes – iridescent silver. “Shit-!” Ralph was the one to voice what they were all feeling as they backed up; all four of them clicked their safety’s off. “This isn’t good right?”  Hayes’ comment was unhelpful, but it was Holly that came back with; “We’ve done this before. We can do it again.” Yune was the only one to glance down; “Uh, guys!” Ralph let the others call attention to whatever he’d found, he was way more concerned with training his gun on this man. Holly and Hayes did, and then gave each other the same look; the prints in the dirt were not feet or shoes, as they had been elsewhere in this cave, but four clawed and elongated. They were in more trouble than they’d realised. As Aldric stepped into the light of both their torches and the semi-circular arrangement, all Ralph could think was someone had smoothed down and elongated the limbs of a blue-grey crocodile. In this form he stood a little higher off the ground than that – and those razor-sharp teeth and talons told the whole story. He was maybe Ralph-and-a-half should he feel the need to stand on two legs; and it was already apparent by the way Aldric moved across the floor that he was deadly fast. Even though the four of them were getting pushed up into the wall, Ralph kept in front; if Aldric came for them he’d sacrifice himself so they could get a good shot or a head start out of here, whatever it took. Aldric growled again, this time as his mouth opened Ralph noticed those needle like teeth had more than one row and the only thing he could think was ‘this is how I die’. Only Aldric did draw himself up onto two legs; ‘Oh no, this is much worse!’ “Do we think guns will work in here!?” Yune was trying to focus on not making his hands shake. “Hell, maybe we’ll at least bury it under rubble!!” Holly’s voice appeared calmer than Ralph would guess she was. Both of them holding up better than the lawyer, whose face was white and Ralph was thinking Hayes regretted his demands to come along. The shifter wound up, muscles in his back legs poised to spring; Ralph’s finger moved from discipline position to his trigger, swallowing hard. They could get through this, they could… even if only three of them made it out alive. This time the creature roared, echo loud, Hayes took a further step back and connected with sharp rock. Nowhere to go. Aldric sprang. The blur of blue and grey was joined by another call. This one different to the one Aldric was emitting: like no known animal on earth. Blood – or assumedly blood – spattered across the ground as Aldric reeled back from the force of the bulkier shape. Larger, spine far more defined down the slope of its back, and not ending in a tail like Aldric did. It turned, face fairly flat, skull round, just as reptilian with the same ghostly silver, needle teeth jutting out at angles and barely containable. Compared to Aldric this creature was much better proportioned, and the power as it launched itself at him again made Ralph glad that wasn’t what they were facing. Claws ripping through Aldric’s arm once more, before the force of its leap had it skittering off in the direction of the lights. “There’s TWO of them now!?” Hayes had finally found a voice, but Yune was smiling; “Of course there’s two of them!” Ralph didn’t understand why it hadn’t clicked with him before and he turned to Yune almost in shock; “Y/N!?” By the time they all turned back, in place of the creature was something a lot more human; panting, balancing gracefully on one hand as you pushed yourself to standing. Brushing your hair back from your face, eyes still that silver, you dusted yourself off, looking to the darker spot you’d pushed Aldric to. Although no one else in the room had eyes good enough to pierce that darkness, you did, and if he went for them again you would step in. Your wrists still ached, and as you shook them out blood cascaded to the floor; what you really wished you were was self-healing. The human laugh emitted from the dark corner had the group looking from you to him and Aldric stepped out of the shadows. Picture perfect as the day he left; the man on the CCTV Holly had identified. “Y/N… I suppose I should have guessed that.” “I don’t see why. After all, I’d never have guessed you’d be out here murdering humans.” “Don’t you preach to me about their race.” Aldric stretched out, placing a hand over his arm; “Man. That smarts; you’re a little sharper than I remember.” You glared, stalking around him so you ended up in front of your friends. …ex-friends. “Why?” “I got tired of the injustices they get away with, that they’ve always got away with because of us. It was time to stand up.” You planted your feet firmly in front of them, stance strong but wide – showing him you could cover all angles. You weren’t sure you were about to accept that as an excuse; you knew the pain he was talking about and you’d never gone there. Aldric merely scoffed; “Really? You would defend them after what they did to you-!? After what this particular man did to you-?!” You held your nerve, not rising to the bait. Ralph Anderson felt four pairs of eyes on him and at least two of them held a degree of hatred, he shuffled uncomfortably for a second, glad he couldn’t see your face. You opted instead for: “I thought I KNEW you-!!! You’re killing people-!? That makes you no better than the shifter that caused all this-!! For godsake Aldric, we have a child!” You stopped yourself from going any further, eyes pulling from his face momentarily as you frowned; what a human thing to say. Aldric wouldn’t give his angle up, and smirked pointedly: “Oh, we all have our weaknesses, darling.” Your eyes widened, for a second your silver was shot with red at the blind anger that overtook you. You hated him for that, for insinuating that Ralph was yours… the problem was Aldric was right, and he knew it. You were defending the man that had intended to kill you, twice, over the one that had cared for you – maybe even loved you for almost as many years. Ralph would never understand you even if he tried and Aldric was the only one who did… Yet here you were, because you just could not let Detective Anderson go. And you would rather die than lose him. “I want real answers Aldric. Even you must know that there’s only two ways this ends.” “As long as both end with him dead, I’ll take my chances.” Jealousy?! Was that it? After all this time…? Aldric looked like he regretted saying it and cleared his throat, “Don’t you ever get tired, Y/N? Of defending everything they do? It’s not just us, it’s the world, every creature will be driven to extinction by the end of this, just like they tried to do to us. With what consequence? We kill a few of them and we’re the ones that end up hunted to our demise in caves.” “It’s murder.” You knew that feeling, you’d felt it many a time but you had never let it consume you, and Aldric had finally let all his hatred take over. “It’s justice. It’s less than they deserve. And I know you see that.” “If we let you go, you’ll just do it again.” “Well then you have a choice to make, Y/N, because I’ll start with your detective’s friends, just so he can watch, and then I’ll end with him. And if I have to go through you, then I’ll make sure you get to see me kill him. Don’t worry, I’ll go slow – make a spectacle. But really I’d rather you didn’t make me kill a member of my own race.” “Stop it.” “You think I won’t go through with this!?” His talons were already elongating and you swallowed hard – there was no choice, you were standing here because you’d already made it. “Y/N…” Holly tried once, but you shook your head. “Go.” “What?!” “All of you get out of here.” You too entered that between transition: not human, not monster. “Y/N, We’re not leaving you.” Yune didn’t seem like the type to make such a stupid comment, but here he was. “If you don’t leave, you will get caught up in this and you will die. I’m not prepared to take any kind of risk. GO!” Now your voice fluctuated into more of a growl. “As soon as I’m done with you, I’m dragging your detective back here screaming and begging for his life.” Aldric’s eyes were hard. He was glaring through you at Ralph, who was urging the others to leave, and quickly. “You’re not going to fucking touch him.” You heard them shuffle away, catching them in your peripheral, Ralph last. He stilled for a minute and turned back to catch your eye. You gave him five seconds of satisfaction and locked with him – Ralph opened his mouth; you had no idea what to say. If it would even be of consequence, if it would be what you so desperately wanted. Or just good luck, will you be okay, do you want help, do you need this gun? Whatever it was neither of you had time for, and you gave a slight shake of your head. This time his face changed, not stoic, not mad at you, but startlingly apologetic. I’m sorry - two words he’d never got to say, before Ralph backed up, and faded into darkness. You turned back to Aldric, who had been privy to the whole exchange. “Un-fucking-belivable. You still love him.” “You said it yourself, we all have our weaknesses.” You couldn’t deny it. Aldric sneered: “I mean it, when I have you close enough to death to be immobilised, I’ll kill the other three – perhaps even mercifully. Then I will drag his body back in here and it will give me no greater pleasure than to gut him in front of you.” Then he smiled, and it was frightening, wild, one you might expect out of such a killer. “Heck, maybe I’ll even eat this one.” It was the last thing he said before you saw red, and lunged for him. ***

Once outside the group of four weren’t about to admit how in over their heads they were. Scrambling to set up behind cars, weapons trained on the cave entrance. “That was crazy.” Holly was the only one who thought about talking, “You think the one in Tennessee could do that!?” “Maybe…” Yune’s arm twinged at the thought of that particular shootout; “But clearly a lot slower… Ralph!” Detective Anderson by this time was back by his own car; handcuffs in bits, but the blue that covered the floor had him more concerned, and he shifted the dirt around to cover it up. “I’m coming-! Just let me get rid of her DNA…” The other three exchanged looks; now he cares? Or did he always care? Ralph pulled open his trunk and gathered spare guns, before settling with them behind the car. “How long do you think it’ll take?” “We have no way of knowing. They looked so different… But I’m thinking those scratches she gave him were nothing more than grazes. Warnings…” Holly mused, hand over her heart – it was beating far too fast, “It could be a while.” “Maybe we’ll lose both.” Yune’s muse was sad, and he hoped against hope that wouldn’t happen. He still wasn’t prepared to count you amongst them, even when you were one. Hayes’ eyes had hardly left the cave mouth; “Have we considered what happens if the wrong one makes it?” “Give it hell.” Ralph voice nearly shook with anger, and Holly and Yune once again raised eyebrows. Seemed Ralph Anderson wasn’t about to hide his feelings anymore. “…We can’t let it get out of here.” “Especially not if it’s killed her, right?” Yune looked across to him, almost smirking. Ralph didn’t verbally respond, but the nod was enough. It wasn’t long before they were met with a shuffling sound, and the scattering of rocks as they were kicked out of the way by tired feet. “That’s two legs, right?” “With the echo it’s hard to tell.” Holly and Yune listened harder; half minded to throw the safety on. But they both knew that your race could be tricksy; there was no way they could risk that move. “It sounds hurt.” Hayes’ mouth pressed into a thin line, “Let’s just hope we want to help it!” Sure enough eventually it was you that hobbled into view; though in the state you were in it really could have been anyone. Covered in red and blue blood from head to foot you were clutching your right arm, which seemed to be hanging fairly uselessly by your side, and you were certainly limping. Honestly, between the four of them it was hard to tell who was the most overjoyed – despite the initial reaction of horror at your presentation, they were all grateful to see you standing there. The way you felt could not be more different. There wasn’t a part of you that didn’t hurt, physically and emotionally. At this point there probably wasn’t much of you that wasn’t bleeding. And despite the fact that walking back to the entrance all you could think was ‘He had it coming. He brought it upon himself. He’d kill your friends if you’d have let him go. He’d have done WORSE’. You still lamented at having to kill yet another shapeshifter just to protect them. They were good people, and he was a murderer that much was true; but it was affecting you deeply. Aldric and you had created a life together – and your heart was broken. Yet another one of an ancient species struck from existence – maybe you were all too dangerous to be kept alive… Even when you were trying to do good. Your eyes were still shining in silver, but part of that could have been accented by the blur of tears. Ralph Anderson had never felt like a bigger fucking idiot.  For a moment you had never looked more stunning or beautiful, even though you were injured, limping, covered in blood and still seemed like a threat – more than one shifter tell still in play. Therefore Ralph was the first one to move from behind the car, running across the path to you. The movement itself spiked your adrenaline, body throwing you into a defensive stance as he slowed to a stop beside you. Your eyes were hard and cold: somehow you were also scarier than any time he’d previously seen you like this. The power in you to still be standing right now; how many years and lives you’d lived to be here right now, with him. Just human. Flesh and blood and bone and nothing all that special compared to what was in front of him. You’d given him your heart and he’d never really returned it. Ralph got the feeling you’d never wanted it back. You stood for a few seconds, feeling like far longer, staring at each other. It felt like you were between saying something snarky to him, or half expecting him to shoot one of his many you’re not human phrases at you. He wanted to, of course he did, but not for any reason you’d think. Instead neither happened, and Ralph grabbed you, one hand into your hair and one on the small of your back, his lips crashed onto yours. You made one small noise of surprise and complaint, before you pushed through the pain; closing your eyes and letting tears run. Just about able to tangle your left hand in his jacket as he supported your body. The (arguably) best four years of your life flooded your head immediately. It had been so long that his kiss felt foreign, even though it was so familiar. How many times had you relived this… wished for this in your head? Granted, this was never exactly how it happened – but then in your wildest dreams you weren’t sure you’d ever expected it to happen. Ralph didn’t care that there was blood all over you, that all he could taste was metallic, a little too much iron, flavours he’d never tasted in his life – he’d attribute that to your non-human DNA – he needed that kiss. YOU needed that kiss. He loved you. He loved you so much, he always had. It had prevented him from pulling the trigger twice – but it was also why he had so much anger and felt so much heartbreak. Why he was so glad that you were here right now. He broke the kiss slow and delicate, so as not to hurt you anymore, but didn’t exactly pull back; his forehead against yours as you opened your eyes. Ralph was crying, and you knew why, you knew exactly where this was going and you’d let him say what he thought he had to. “I’m sorry… I’m so, so sorry… Y/N… I… I don’t know how you’re ever going to forgive me. And Geez, if you never do then I get it. I don’t deserve you to, but I…” he shook his head “I never stopped loving you. I didn’t. I don’t know if I hated you because of that, or… because what I’d caused to happen. I’m not worthy of your forgiveness either, but- I’m sorry… I just… I’m so sorry.” You did pull slightly away from him, eyes returning to a far more natural colour as you studied Ralph hard. There was a lot you had to say; certainly nothing that could be fixed with the words or kisses that spilled from his lips. Ralph Anderson would, in time, earn your trust back. But he’d never lose your love – and he knew that, somewhere in his heart he knew that. You sighed; “Don’t you think it’s a little too late for sorry?” You shook your head, but as you stilled, you smiled: “I forgive you...” “C-Can we go home? C-can we start over?” “Home?” You tilted your head, “You may take me back to Cherokee City. But as for your other request, I’d quite like to pick up where we left off, Ralph Anderson.” “I…I think I can do that.” “Wait- I have a request of my own.” You took those steps back into his body. “Yes?” “Kiss me, again?” You nearly got a laugh out of him, and you would take it, as his arms wound around you again and you felt his lips back on yours. Your relationship would have to heal, but would probably take a little less time to do so than your body would. There would be a lot of learning to be done; but you could both do it. You could both fix your mistakes. There was a light at the end of that tunnel and you could walk through this together. In all your lifetimes, every lover that had come and gone no matter how long or short, you’d known as soon as you met him that there would never be another Ralph Anderson. And you were right. But there was no one else’s hand you would rather be holding down this road. And you couldn’t wait to live the rest of his life with him.

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I know this one is a big one but thank you SO much for reading it!🙊💕 It really does mean the world to me, and if you can give this series some love I’d really appreciate it, I do feel like this is some of my best writing...

You guys are so great! Thank you for sticking with me!