#the former i just slowly drew while working the counter but the latter i drew during a dry cybersecurity training led by the most

[nhura]

🌹 ‼️ highlighter argenties drawn on the clock ‼️🌹

[quietmyfearswith]

girl at home ; andy barber x fem!reader ; 2/3

status — completed series

word count — 4,616 words

warnings — smut!!!!!! unprotected penetrative sex (tho in my mind reader’s on the pill lmao) few swear words, angst??? making out in pool, mean!laurie, sad!reader

pairing — andy barber x fem!reader

a/n — there will be a third part which will be the final part,, lmk what you think

tagging @tonystankschild

masterlist | series masterlist

Andy initially thought that following his divorce with Laurie and Jacob staying with his mom, sadness and loneliness would be his constant companions; however five months later and he found himself feeling warmth and happiness in his house that witnessed the tribulations he’s been through.

“Here’s your coffee and breakfast, bub,” Hearing her call him the nickname he’d been bestowed with after their night out made the attorney smile as he planted a kiss at the top of her head. Sitting beside her at the breakfast bar, Andy’s hand blindly searched for hers as he was reading the newspaper. “Got a busy day ahead?” She shook her no to answer his question, placing the utensil down, she placed her chin on the free hand that he wasn’t holding on to, “What do you say we head to the rec center after work and go there for a swim?”

Eyes peeking from where he was sipping on the hot liquid, “Wouldn’t it be too soon to when it needs to close?” Y/N rolled her eyes as she flicked his tie, teasing him even more, “Just say you’re a boring old man and go.” Before she even got the chance to move away from him to grab her things, Andy placed his mug down and pulled her into him — her back to his chest as he placed his face on her neck, his beard tickling her skin as he purposefully rubbed it on her to elicit a reaction.

Giggling, she scrambled to push away from his grasp, “Okay, okay! I take it back. You’re not boring.” With that he let her go as he put on a stern look, “That’s more like it! And don’t worry I’ll head there after work to prove it to you.” Hooking her bag on her shoulder Y/N waved one last time, “Better not make me wait for you, Barber.” The man could only laugh as he took a sip of his coffee, “Wouldn't dream of it, honey.”

The day dragged on as if to tease Andy since he looked forward now more than ever to clock out of work and head down to swim. And not a second more, when the clock struck four, he quickly chucked all files into his briefcase as he bolted out of his office and drove to where he promised to meet Y/N. Even as he changed his clothes from his formal wear to his swimwear, he’d fumble in excitement. “There you are, thought you’d retire to bed by now,” Her teasing voice greeted him once he walked out of the locker room.

“I’ll show you who should retire to bed,” Andy promised as his arms wrapped around her smaller frame and with his strength pulled her out of her seated position to push her all the way into the pool. Her squeal was the last thing they both heard before they both were submerged in water. “You fool!” She splashed water at him and Andy only threw his head back in laughter, “That’s what you get for teasing me, sweetheart.” Rolling her eyes, she moved to swim away from him and the older man followed her.

The next few minutes they spent swimming and chasing each other; the pool was all to themselves since swim lessons had ended earlier and since it was almost closing, they had the pool all to themselves. “How was your day, attorney?” Y/N asked as she floated around in the middle, but Andy decided she wasn’t close enough; he placed both his hands at the middle of her back, dragging her to him so she had no choice but to wrap both her legs around his torso. “It was boring earlier; but now it’s a whole lot of fun.”

Tracing his face with both her hands, she planted a few kisses on his lip before joking, “I wonder why you’re having fun.” Lowering his hands to her bum, Andy squeezed it as he bit her lower lip, “It’s all because of you, baby.” And with that he engulfed her mouth with his, which led them to make out in the middle of the pool. With both their hands trying to hold on to every part of the other they could reach. Y/N disconnected her lips from his, causing the man against her to growl, but she only smirked as she moved her head to place open-mouthed kisses on his neck. “God you feel good,” the man groaned as he caressed her smooth thighs and looked at her with desire as she stopped kissing him.

As they both were about to kiss again, one of the elderly lifeguards happened to walk in and scolded them, “Oy! Center’s closing in ten minutes; get out of here and don’t have sex in there!” Y/N pulled away from Andy, which the latter didn’t like as he prevented her from doing so. “We’re sorry! We'll be leaving,” She then untangled from his tight grip and pulled on his hand, urging him to ascend from the pool.

“That was embarrassing!” Y/N groaned as they entered their home, arriving from the recreation center and the fast food restaurant they ate at. “Well, it’s not like the lifeguard was there when we began swimming.” Andy countered as he placed his jacket on the coat hanger and plopped himself down on the couch. “Do you realize that sometimes on normal conversations, you use your lawyer logic and tone?”

The former assistant district attorney looked at the girl beside him, bewildered with what she had just told him, “My lawyer logic and tone?” She nodded as she lifted herself from where her head was leaning on his shoulder, “Yeah you get all defensive and list down everything in a serious voice.” She explained with her arms demonstrating how he crosses his arm and looks sternly. But Y/N was quick to reassure him before he could even overanalyze a part of him, “Don’t worry though, it’s hot when you do that.”

Andy then decided to use that as leverage, as he stalked towards her so when her back hit the armchair he placed both his arms around her — effectively trapping her. “It’s hot when I do that, huh?” He adored how she gulped nervously but nodded, “Well what if I do this,” His lips grazed her lips as his moved down on his way to plant kisses on her collarbone. Moving one of his hands from the armchair to lift her head up to look at her, “I think you and I both know where this is going baby, so you need to tell me now if you want to stop; I won’t get mad if you don’t want to continue.”

Throughout the first few months they’ve been living together, Andy and Y/N haven’t gone beyond kissing or the occasional make out. Getting to know each other was more of their priority every time they were together; hence why they have yet to have sex. But now, after getting to know each other better and almost learning everything there is to know about each other, they both saw themselves ready to connect with each other on a whole other level.

Y/N’s hand reached around to rest it on the back of his neck, pulling him in close enough so her lips was against his as she spoke, "I don’t want this, I need it,” And kissed him deeply to which Andy moaned out in pleasure. His hands toyed with the hem of her shirt and pulled it off her. “Such a naughty girl without a bra,” he toyed with her as his lips wrapped around a nipple, she mewled out as he licked and nipped before switching to the other nipple and repeating the same actions.

“Please Andy, don’t tease me,” Grabbing onto his hair, she tried to move his head away from between her breasts, “I need you to eat me out, please.” Kissing her navel he moved down, “Only because you asked so nicely, I will.” Sliding off her skirt, as well as her panties, Andy groaned out upon seeing her sweet pussy. “Let’s see if you taste as good as you look," Was the only warning he provided before his tongue lapped up the juices that were dripping from her pussy. Arching her back, Y/N pushed Andy’s head further; pleading for him to continue on with how he was forcing his tongue in her tight hole as his thumb was rubbing on her hard nub.

“You taste divine, honey,” He spoke without detaching from her mound which caused her to shiver from the vibrations of when he spoke. Licking from her hole up to her clit, he then sucked and nipped on it as he teased the tip of his finger into her pussy. “Time to check how tight this pussy is,” He declared as he slowly eased his index finger in. Closing his eyes, he relished on how warm and tight her walls were on his finger, imagining what more if it was his cock pushing inside her.

“Andy please, I need you,” She cried out as one hand grabbed onto his hair, attempting to pull his head away while the other played with her breast. Opening his eyes, he was enraged at the sight of her adding more pleasure for herself — he pulled his finger and mouth away from where he was pleasuring her and grabbed the hand that was fondling her boob, “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” His wild stare on her aroused Y/N even more and she could only meekly mumble out, “I need your cock, sir.” Upon hearing her grace him with that title, his jaw clenched with desire and he searingly kissed her mouth, “You got sir so hard, baby. It’s been so long since I’ve done this; think you can handle me?”

Y/N desperately nodded as she clawed at his back — and was surprised when her nails clung onto his skin, she never noticed that he took off his shirt, but was pleasantly surprised to feel his skin against hers — and moaned out, “Yes I can take it, sir.” She opened her eyes and watched with hunger as Andy took off his pants and underwear to reveal his cock.

However she didn’t have time to take in all its glory as one of Andy’s large hands separated her pussy lips while the other stroked his cock, spitting on his hand he rubbed some of it to her cunt, “You ready for me, honey?” He slid in one stroke before giving her the chance to reply, her fingers digging into his shoulders as she drew out a moan from being filled.

“Fuck you feel good,” Andy moaned as he rested his forehead against hers, looking down on her doe eyes as he rut hard and slow against her. “Do you like how I’m fucking you?” Y/N was out of breath and could only nod as she bit her lip; but that didn’t satisfy the lawyer as he pinched both her nipples and huskily demanded, “Say it, honey, tell me how much you love it when I ram into you.”

He then proceeded to place both his hands on the back of her thighs, pushing her legs all the way past her back and knelt down properly so he could thrust in and out of her at an inhumane speed. “Yes sir, I love how you pound in to me,” She managed to gasp out as her ears were filled with the sound of Andy’s grunts of how warm and tight she was as well as the sound of their skin slapping.

“Are you close, honey?” Andy rubbed her clit when she mewled out how she was close; he was too and it was becoming a challenge for him to continue on with his harsh and rapid thrusts, but he wanted the two of them to climax together. When her hands grabbed for his firm butt and pushed him so close that his trimmed pubic area tickled the back of her butt and thighs, Andy took it as cue that she reached her climax and was now orgasming around him.

Seeing her body shake in pleasure had him groaning out, “You look divine like this, honey.” He didn’t thrust in and out of her, but settled for moving his hips in circular motion — which prolonged her release and eventually triggered off his own as he anchored his hands on her waist to ground him and hold him steady as he let out a loud groan of pleasure.

Once they both released their cum and calmed down, Andy laid down his head on Y/N’s chest, kissing her skin with more tenderness; as the latter lovingly stroked his hair as her legs wrapped around his torso. Both of them silent as they enjoyed the post-orgasm bliss before Andy peered up to the girl and smirked, “Don’t think I’m done with you yet; I got months worth of pent up frustrations and a round with you won’t keep satiated.”

With that said, the two then continued to go at it like wild animals in heat at every surface of the house.

It was unexpected — no emails, texts, calls, or any sort of communication, really — that warned Andy that Laurie and Jacob would come over the week before Thanksgiving. But here they were — two days after Y/N and Andy had sex for the first time. And upon arriving at their old home for the first time in months, the two immediately noticed how there was another car parked in front of their house.

“I doubt that’s Dad’s,” Jacob suspects as he grabbed his bag from the backseat, “He doesn’t really like compact cars.” Laurie silently agreed with what her son said, but the only thing she could tell him as he placed a hand on his shoulder as they started to walk was, “Only one way to find out, don’t you think?”

Knocking on the door, they were expecting the bearded man to open it and looked surprised at their sudden arrival. It was them who had their mouths wide open upon seeing a girl opening it. The lack of responses from Andy’s former family prompted Y/N to introduce herself as she asked, “Hi, can I help you?”

Jacob was the first one to snap out of his shock by asking, “Is my dad here?” Y/N then widened her eyes upon connecting the dots, “Are you his son, Jacob?” When the boy nodded, she then turned to the woman beside him, “And you’re Laurie, his ex-wife, right?”

When Laurie silently nodded, she then moved away from the door to usher and welcome them in, “Come in, then! Sorry I didn’t know you guys were coming.” As they stepped in the house, they noticed how nothing much has changed from the whole set up, except for the girl’s presence.

“We were planning on surprising him, actually,” There was a bit of sass in Laurie’s tone once she said that but Y/N didn’t notice that as she cooed, “Aw, that’s great! Though I don’t think he’ll be here for a couple of hours. He said there was an emergency in the office.”

Nodding, Jacob couldn’t help but wonder bluntly, “Are you dad’s girlfriend?” The mention of the said title had Y/N’s heart fluttering — it was what she hoped Andy thought of her, but the two never did discuss what their official label was — and she was quick to clarify, “No, I’m not. I just live here, I’m renting the other room upstairs.”

“Oh so dad really went through with my suggestion,” Jacob sighed as he sat down on the couch and fiddled with his phone. Laurie, however, was skeptical despite her justification yet remained silent about it. “Which room are you renting?”

Y/N offered them something to drink, to which they both declined, before answering, “The one across Jacob’s; I think Andy also left that room untouched so it should be good for you guys.”

“Mom can I go meet up with Sarah? I promised her I’d see her,” Jacob asked as and was given permission to do so. “Bye see you, mom,” He kissed her cheek on the way out, “Nice meeting you, Y/N.”

Waiving goodbye to the teenage boy, Y/N felt awkward being in the same room as Andy’s ex wife. She didn’t know how to start a conversation with her and was just hoping she didn’t make her feel uncomfortable. “So you and Andy are just what? Roommates?” Laurie pried as she sat on the breakfast bar, across from where Y/N was standing from the sink.

Clearing her throat, she stammered before saying, “Yeah, we’re roommates, I guess.” The nervousness on her tone gave Laurie all the confirmation she needed; that the younger woman hoped that they would be more.

“Are you sure that’s really all that you are?” The question had taken Y/N back, tilting her head in confusion, “What do you mean?”

Laurie pinned her down with a hard stare as she rephrased her question, “Do you like Andy?” Looking down Y/N fiddled with her fingers as she swallowed before answering, “I think it’d be awkward if I were to answer that don’t you think? Like with you being his former wife and all.”

As she trailed off, the brunette shook her head and reassured her, “It’s fine, I’m just curious that’s all. You can trust me on this,” With her eyes displaying sincerity, with a nervous chuckle Y/N recounted her memories with Andy, “I mean, over the months I’ve lived here, we’d always spend time together. Cooking, talking, watching movies — he’s great company to have around and there never really is a dull moment when I’m with him. And I’d like to think that he thinks the same? Like he enjoys my company as well,” She paused for a minute, recalling if there had been any instance where the lawyer seemed unsatisfied in spending time with her; but when she failed to think of one she proceeded, “And we’ve only been intimate a couple of days ago.”

With how her gaze was on her hands, Laurie’s sinister smile missed the sight of the smitten girl. “Oh you poor thing,” Y/N snapped her head up and furrowed her eyebrows which spurred Laurie even more, “You’re convenient for him; no other woman from this neighborhood would look at him the same following everything that went down. He just missed a female’s touch and companion; rather than being lonely, he’d spend his time with you.”

Blinking back the tears that threatened to escape both her eyes, Y/N shakily breathed in and out as she processed what has been revealed to her. And it made perfect fucking sense, most of the times she’d be the one to initiate their conversations and Andy would look spaced out but be brought back to reality to laugh politely or listen to what she has to say.

“Does he call you honey?” She asked and Y/N did remember how he called her that a lot when they first got intimate a few days ago. Once she nodded, Laurie faked sympathy as she said, “That’s what he used to call me, all the time when we were together.”

Smirking at her current state, Laurie got up from their barstool, “I’m gonna go settle our things in Jacob’s room.” As the older woman grabbed their bags that were on the living room, Y/N headed for her own room as well, “I’m gonna go over to a friend’s for the weekend so feel free to use my room if you need to.”

She didn’t bother hearing out Laurie’s reply and instead hastily went up the stairs. Placing clothes and toiletries on a small duffel bag, she glanced on her phone and noticed how there had been a text message from Andy that read: Coming home in a few, will bring home some pizza and wings. Can’t wait to see you, honey.

Ignoring the text she grabbed the duffel bag and handbag, heading down — thankful Laurie wasn’t anywhere to be found — and started her car and drove somewhere else.

One thing that Andy developed as lawyer was to have a keen and watchful eye; and that became useful as he pulled over to his garage and noticed how Y/N’s compact car wasn’t parked where it usually would be in front of the house. But instead there was an SUV there.

Carrying two pizza boxes with the container of the wings on top of it, Andy entered through the back door. “Y/N, I’m home! I have some finger food so we can watch while we eat,” He called out for her as he placed the food by the coffee table. Turning to the kitchen he was surprised to see that instead of the girl he’d been calling out for, it was his teenage son who was there. “Jake?”

The boy stood from where he was sitting and left his phone on the breakfast bar as he went over to his father, “Hey dad,” They hugged and as Andy nuzzled his cheek on the top of his son’s head, he’d come to realize how much he’d missed him.

“When did you get here?” The bearded man asked as they pulled apart from the hug and sat down on the couch, “A couple of hours ago. You weren’t here when we arrived and Y/N welcomed us. So you really went through with the whole renting the bedroom plan huh?”

Shrugging, Andy smiled at the mention of the girl, “Yeah, it just worked iut well for the both of us.” Not used to seeing his father all smiley, at least not for a while, Jacob assumed that there was something more to it and teased him, “You like her don’t you?”

Andy jokingly hit his son the shoulder, “Shouldn’t I be the one to ask you those kind of questions?” Jacob just laughed as he hit his father back, “You’re avoiding my question, so that indicates that you do like her.”

Rolling his eyes, he decided to change the topic, “Is your mom with you?” Nodding, Jacob pointed to the top floor, “Taking a shower, I will too after her.”

“Good, ‘cause you stink,” Andy teased as the two boys caught up on the recent events of their lives.

In the middle of their conversation, footsteps coming from the staircase were heard, “Alright Jake, it’s your turn.” Laurie yelled as she reached to where she heard noises of chatter were coming from, “Oh hey, Andy.”

Andy waved at her, “Alright I’ll leave you two to it,” With Jacob standing up to go upstairs and bathe, Laurie took the spot her son had left. “How are you?” The lawyer politely asked.

Smiling, Laurie replied, “Good, really good. Me and Jake are loving Bakersfield. He’s doing well in school and didn’t have trouble making new friends.”

Their son had mentioned that and Andy was more than pleased to find out that the events that occurred in Newton didn’t haunt and affect him in the new city they moved into. “He also mentioned how you’ve been seeing someone?”

Eyes widening and blushing at that Laurie chuckled, “A bit? Greg was introduced to me by my cousin and the few dates we’ve been to was fun.” Her former husband was not bitter upon learning that; in fact he was delighted that she had found someone who made her happy. He might have been that person who did so in the past, but their previous mistakes and blunders caught up to them and proved that they couldn’t return to how they once were.

“What about you? Are you seeing someone?” Laurie inquired; since she thought it was only fair to ask about his love life as well. Scratching the back of his neck, Andy could feel the heat rising to his ears as he thought of Y/N. “Kinda?”

“What do you mean kinda?” The answer Andy offered was vague and didn’t scratch the itch his former wife had about his status. “I mean, Y/N, she’s been living here for a few months now and she’s made this house feel like home again.”

He looked over to Laurie to watch her reaction, seeing how she had a stoic one he thought he should explain further, “I was sure I’d be brooding and lonely following what happened,” He gestured to the space between him and Laurie, “But she made it possible for me to be happy again. She looks after me and listens to what I have to say without judgement. Her wits matches mine and she’s never afraid to back down to tease or debate.”

Holding his hands up Andy apologized, “Sorry I rambled a bit; I got too excited.” Before he placed his hands back to where they were on his thigh, Laurie grabbed one of his hands, interlacing it with hers. Fazed with what she did, he looked at her with his mouth hung agape, but before asking her about it she was quick to ask first, “Have you told her about what you feel?”

“No,” He was wiggling to move his hand away from hers but she wouldn’t budge, “Where is she, by the way? She didn’t reply to any of my texts.” Andy heard Laurie laugh multiple times, but he never heard a sinister-like one come out from here, and he did just now as she clarified, “After talking to her she said that she’ll be staying at a friend’s house.”

Andy felt uneasy with how Laurie bridged the gap between them so her front was facing his side. “After talking? What’d you talk about? What did you tell her?”

He could feel the anger and irritation slowly boiling as Laurie shrugged her shoulders, “It’s good you haven’t told her what you just told me,” Her other hand reached over to rest on the back of his neck and caress the skin there, making Andy even more irritated, “Because you and I both know that all of that’s not true.”

Pushing both her hands away, Andy moved from the couch to the opposite one as he snapped, “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Come on, Andy!” Laurie smirked, “You and I both know you’d never go for someone like her!” That contributed even more to Andy’s frustration as his nose flared but she just kept going, “You’re lonely and still longing for what we had; hence why you think you like her. She’s not your type and frankly you’re way out of her league.”

“Lonely? No, that’s not the case! I know in myself that I do in fact like her. What the hell do you mean that she’s not my type?” He sassed back, defensive at how low she thought of his Y/N. “What does it matter to you, anyway? Aren’t you seeing Greg?”

Crossing her arms, she gave him a pointed look, “I am seeing him but that doesn’t mean I can’t look out for you! I’m telling you she’s not good enough for you, Andy!”

Before he could even have a chance to argue back, Jacob’s loud footsteps interrupted their heated exchange. As he reached the main floor he announced, “I’m ready to spend some family time this weekend!” Effectively ending the argument that somehow missed Jacob’s ears.

As they all agreed to have a movie marathon, Andy couldn’t help but worry about how where Y/N was and how was she. Deciding that perhaps through text is the best way to reach her as of now.

Hey, honey. Where are you? Please text me back right away. We need to talk.

[cotncandyboifics]

A Lovely Night: Chapter 5

AO3 Link

Masterpost

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 6

Pairing(s): pre-established roceit & prinxiety, anaroceit, eventual anaroloceit, eventual intruality

Word count: ~2.5k

Story summary: Roman's boyfriends had had a rivalry since before either of them had actually met Roman. Running a bit late to a date night, Roman accidentally gets them to start dating too.

General CW: non-detailed description of an anxiety attack, non-detailed description of physical pain, food, kissing, potentially triggering descriptions of physical bodies, swearing, caps lock, school settings, s-xual innuendos, slight description of gore(imagery), vague descriptions of anxiety, Implications of an eating disorder, fatigue, dissociation, suppression of stimming, implied heavy restriction (ED), inner monologue-style anxiety description, eating,(will be added to as I write more)

Chapter CW: Swearing, slight description of gore(imagery), vague descriptions of anxiety, food, (let me know if i missed anything please!)

Author notes: i like this chapter a lot :) the stage has been set.

...

The next morning, Virgil had an opening shift at the knitting and sewing supply store he worked for. He'd found it the first week the three of them had moved to this town for college, and immediately took a liking to it, likely thanks to his long-lasting hobby of clothing alteration. He'd made some good money to save up in high school from making and selling custom hoodies and other clothing, even having taken a few commissions over the years.

It wasn't rare occurrence, that he was opening the store, and on this particular morning it wasn't so dreadful (once he'd pried himself away from his half-asleep boyfriends, who both vaguely grumbled protests at the incomplete cuddle pile as Virgil was getting ready). Virgil had gotten to his favorite coffee shop, where Janus' brother Patton worked, in time that it would be open and he also wouldn't be late for his shift, which was rare. It only worked out that way if Virgil's bus commute was perfectly timed.

Now caffeinated, and somewhat less-pessimistic-than-usual about the day ahead of him, Virgil retrieved the keys to the shop from his pocket, fumbling for a bit before finding the right one. He let out a breath as he found it, unlocking the door as he'd done a thousand times before and stepping in, shutting the door behind him and leaning his back against it. Virgil noted the clock on the wall, reading 5:02 am. The shop opened at 6, and he had more than enough sorting and stocking to do before then.

The next hour passed rather quickly. His co-worker Emile showed up shortly after him, and they both spent the rest of the time before the shop opened restocking and organizing the horrendous amounts of yarn and string and such supplies throughout the store and in the back room.

Shortly 6 am arrived, and it was time for the two of them to draw straws to decide who would man the register and help customers while the other continued stocking. Typically Virgil enjoyed the latter while Emile enjoyed the former, but their manager had insisted that they make the odds more random in order to get them both more comfortable in their unpreferred positions.

True to their manager's sentiment, Virgil drew the register stick. They both sighed at each other, and Emile returned to sorting through some cerulean yarn balls. Virgil made his way to the front of the store, unlocking the doors and flipping the sign to open, before making himself at home behind the register.

Generally, customers were rare at this time of morning, save for a few early-riser regulars. The bell at the top of the door chimed. Virgil didn't look up, expecting to see Margaret in her usual morning power-walk getup, coming in to check up on whether they'd gotten a shipment of lavender yarn yet.

"Morning, Marge. We still haven't gotten any lavender in, if-" Virgil halted his speaking upon looking up, feeling his throat constrict as he realized who had entered. At any rate, this person was certainly not Margaret.

The first thing that caught Virgil's attention about this new customer was their eyes. They were a burning blue, with small subtle mushes of gray here and there. Through their vaguely foggy colors, those eyes cut sharp like ice shards. The customer seemed entirely calm and stoic, however that did not extend to the ferocious - however not hostile - intensity with which they were staring Virgil down. Of course this intensity did not extend past their eyes, as the very slight twinge of a polite smile was seated at the corners of their mouth. Virgil briefly noted some seemingly familiar physical characteristics (although he was extremely wary to assume anything - what would be the chances of him and his boyfriends all meeting the same man individually, completely perchance?); shining black hair, square-framed glasses, the freckles, the pale and sunken nature of their face. Or, as Virgil certainly noticed, the subtle pronunciation of his cheekbones and jawline. They wore a black coat and a navy patterned scarf that appeared to be hand-knitted.

Virgil stumbled his way over to the closest register to the door - he wasn't sure why they even had two, they never needed to use them both simultaneously - and leaned haphazardly on the counter, propping his chin up on his palm.

"Sorry, hello, I thought you'd be someone else. Marge is usually the first in. What can I do for you?" His face felt really hot, and he was pretty sure that much was obvious to the newcomer, but he tried his best not to think about it.

The stranger didn't speak for a moment, merely leaning forward slightly with a furrowed brow. Virgil panicked for a moment, but followed their line of sight to the name tag on his hoodie. It was quite scuffed up, and the name "Virgil" was scarcely discernible through various smears of odd substances. Virgil quickly unpinned the name tag, beginning to rub away at the gunk with a sweater-covered thumb.

"It's Virgil, sorry about that," He spoke, hiding his hot cheeks behind his bangs as he scratched at his name tag feverishly. He quickly decided on just setting it down, wanting to give the newcomer his full attention.

"Good morning, Virgil," they spoke, and wow, was Virgil gay. The strangers' voice was deep and smooth, and reminded him a bit of Janus'. But this had a tactful, almost clinical and calculated sincerity, whereas Janus' was far more lilted and drawly. Regardless, Virgil felt his throat constricting a bit. He tried subtly coughing the feeling away. "I am in search of some high quality yarn, as a gift for a dear friend of mine. It is my understanding that this establishment is highly regarded for its products' quality?" Virgil tried not to stare. The stranger was running their fingers down and up the inside of one of the lapels of their coat very slowly, and that reminded Virgil terribly of Janus. He felt like he was in high school all over again, ogling over a tall pretty boy.

Regardless of his gay panic, Virgil cleared his throat. "Yeah, we try," His voice cracked slightly, and he tried clearing his throat again. "I mean, we have some pretty awesome suppliers, and we have a really, uh... Big selection of stuff. Do you, do you know what it is you want to get for your friend, exactly?" Virgil thanked any gods that existed had allowed him to formulate a coherent sentence, and he was glad to have the expectation of speaking temporarily off himself.

The customer tapped his chin with the side of his index finger, - which again, reminded Virgil painfully of Janus - humming as he continued surveying his surroundings. "I think he'd appreciate a selection of soft or pastel colors, and he adores the color blue. I think white would be a suitable addition as well. Do you sort your yarns by color?" he inquired, returning his heavy gaze to Virgil and pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Virgil tried not to audibly gulp.

"Yeah, we do. here, let me show you to the right aisle," Virgil stepped away from the register, and tried to get out from behind the counter, only to completely trip over a cardboard box and fall directly onto his face.

"Goodness, are you alright?" the stranger paced quickly over to where Virgil was groaning on the floor, attempting to pull himself up onto his elbows. They reached a pale-white and very bony hand down to Virgil, who stared at it for a little too long before taking it gingerly.

The customer pulled firmly, and Virgil did too, and they both slightly miscalculated how much strength they needed to apply in order for Virgil to stand. Virgil stumbled forward just a bit as he rose. He looked up slightly and found himself nose to nose with the now wide-eyed man. Virgil yelped slightly, jumping away like a startled cat.

"Sh-shoot, sorry about that," Virgil took to fidgeting a bit aggressively with his hoodie strings, curling them around and between his fingers. "Uh, this way," he pushed a bit awkwardly past the man, looking at his shoes as he walked and willing away the burning heat he felt in his cheeks. Of course the first cute guy he encounters besides his boyfriends is right there when he falls on his face.

He paced over to the aisle with hues of blue and purple yarn, spotting Emile still working with a large box of cerulean. After a momentary panic and trying to wave Emile's attention without making any noise, the stranger turned the corner into the aisle Virgil had led him to. Virgil sighed to himself, annoyed at an in-no-way-at-fault Emile who still hadn't noticed their presence.

Virgil cleared his throat. "Hey, Emile, could you take register while I help this... customer?" Virgil had to take a moment to recall a phrase to describe him besides 'very beautiful man'.

"Uh-" Emile went to say he could help the customer for Virgil, since they were meant to stay in the vicinity of their assigned roles, but Virgil was looking at him with an intensity that blatantly said 'I am begging you to let me help this very gorgeous man to find his yarn and if you don't so help me god I will impale your severed and rotting skull on a rusty metal pole'. Emile chuckled a little shrilly. "Yeah, sure Virge," Emile slid past the two of them, making his way to the register as the chime of the door sounded again. "Welcome in, Margaret! Do-you-how-do?"

Virgil turned his attention back to the man looming slightly over him, leading him down the aisle to the softer and lighter shades. The customer was already scanning the shelves with a tactful intensity that made Virgil almost as anxious as it did further attracted to him.

"This variety is more than adequate," he spoke, almost under his breath, and Virgil tried not to shudder at the rumble in his voice.

"Um, great," Virgil piped up after a moment, and the icy gaze of the tall boy was on him once again. His cheeks felt real hot. "I can, get you a bag for... what you pick out? Er, a gift bag, if you'd like?" Virgil tapped the side of his fist into his hip a few times, trying to expel some of his nervousness. The stranger smiled softly.

"That would be excellent. Thank you, Virgil." He turned back to examining his options, and Virgil scurried off to find a gift bag.

The bags were all by the front register, and he grumbled a bit to himself on the way, preparing for some relentless teasing from his coworker for the next century at minimum. Emile was just waving Margaret off when Virgil rounded the corner, stepping behind the counter to rummage through some boxes for a gift bag.

"Sooo, Virgil," Emile started, tone entirely teasing as he leaned a little too far on the counter, tapping his orange pen on his lips.

"Don't. Say. Anything." Virgil hissed through clenched teeth, glancing up to give Emile another pointed glare for good measure. Emile chuckled lightly, leaning back on the counter a bit.

"Whaat? I won't! I'm totally innocent, see?" Emile puffed out his bottom lip and made his eyes look big. Virgil scoffed.

"Is that a cartoon reference?"

Emile grinned, shrugging. "Probably."

Virgil found the gift bags - finally - and began scampering off and away from the prying gaze of his overly curious co-worker.

Virgil helped the customer to find and collect the proper amount and variety of yarns that he wanted. As it turned out, it was a relatively easy task; aside from being impossibly and unintentionally charming, the stranger was mindful and courteous, and working with him was proving to be relatively easy. They bantered a bit, falling into a casual conversation as they searched for yarn, as well as while they walked back to the register for Virgil to ring his items up.

Emile gave Virgil a pointed look as he approached, trading him places as he walked with a skip in his step back to his yet unstocked shelves. Virgil rolled his eyes at him, stepping extra carefully behind the counter so as not to trip on any stray cardboard boxes. He leaned against the counter in front of the register, beginning to type numbers into it as though he knew the yarn prices like the back of his hand.

the customer stood at the counter before Virgil, vaguely examining his purchase as he watched Virgil slightly through his peripheral. He noticed the way Virgil bit at the inside corner of his mouth, worrying the flesh between his canines as he focused on adding the prices.

"Alright... your total is 82.53," Virgil said slowly, looking up at the stranger, who had - oddly enough - already been looking at him. The stranger glanced away momentarily, clearing his throat and reaching into an inside pocket of his coat for his wallet.

He produced a pristine black leather wallet, pulling a shiny navy blue debit card from between its folds and setting the wallet on the counter as he handed off the card. Virgil took the card and charged it, the customer punching in his PIN through the keypad.

A faint buzzing sounded from within the man's coat, and he reached in once more with knitted eyebrows. He pulled out what seemed to be his phone, eyes widening as he saw whatever was on the screen. Virgil couldn't see, but he figured someone must be calling him.

"My apologies, I must depart," The man spoke quietly, grabbing his gift bag of yarn and bringing his phone to his face as he made hastily for the door. Virgil didn't hear what he said when he answered the phone, but his brow was still furrowed when Virgil caught a glimpse of his face walking down the sidewalk out the store window.

"Bye..." Virgil said to the empty store front.

He looked down, seeing the customer's debit card still in his hand. "Shit." He saw the wallet set on the counter before him as well. He grabbed it, opening it to return the debit card to its proper place and see if there was a way of contacting the man within the wallet.

As he opened it, a white card similar in shape and size to the debit card fell to the floor. Virgil retrieved it, flipping it over to see what it was.

"No way..." Virgil was holding a driver's license. The name it was registered under was too familiar for it to be a coincidence.

He'd need to be giving one Logan Lattimer a call on his break.

[just-call-me-the-intrusive-thot]

Soulmate September - Day 2

Day 2 - There is a timer that counts down to when you will meet your soulmate. 

Pairing(s): Romantic RoSleep (Roman x Remy/Sleep), background Analogical

TWs: Mild Swearing from Remy __

“No, no, no, you move my 3 O’clock to 4, my 4 O’clock to 5, then cancel it. I don’t even want to have to look at that scumbag from accounting today, babes.”

Remy kept taking on his bluetooth headset as he approached the Starbucks he’d grown so accustomed to. Normally just inhaling the scent of ground coffee, vanilla, and cinnamon spice would be enough to flood his stressed cranium with serotonin. But that wasn’t going to cut it today. 

Today he was on a mission; his soulmate timer had stopped during his visit here a week ago, and he was determined to find out who it’d stopped for. With his schedule cleared as much as possible, Remy walked into the Starbucks in his business attire, having only bothered to throw on his leather jacket when he’d left the office. Not that his outfit was unplanned, he had made a point of wearing the same white button up shirt, black waistcoat, and matching black slim cut pants he’d been wearing when he first noticed the timer had stopped. If not for making sure his soulmate recognised him, then simply because he looked damn good.

It was a gamble, assuming his soulmate would be there today, but by now he was desperate. Remy knew the rules; after exactly a week was up, his timer would disappear for good and he’d never know who his soulmate was. And he wasn’t about to let that shit fly. No sirree. 

“Now, which one of you is it?”, Remy mumbled under his breath. As he stood just about to open the door and leave, Remy had memorised the men who were present in the cafe that fateful day; eight potential men, two eliminated visually over the first two days when he noted their timers were still going. Another three all eliminated themselves the days following as they revealed themselves to be straight, in a relationship, and very straight, in that order. Remy sighed impatiently as he perused the last three men he’d narrowed things down to.

The first was a short, burly man with chestnut brown hair that tickled his button nose while he leant over to pet the outrageously cute border collie sat by his chair. His cheeks were dusted with freckles that drew attention to his mossy green eyes and sunkissed skin. The blue polo shirt and tan shorts he wore clashed with the fact he clearly worked hard labour in the outdoors. Remy guessed he worked with plants going by his scuffed and dirty boots, and the mud on his pupper’s paws. Remy dubbed him, unsurprisingly, Dog Guy.

The second, Space Cadet, was a far departure from Dog guy; his auburn hair and pale skin spoke of celtic origins while his numerous books concerning the far reaches of the universe spoke of the cosmos. Of a man who harboured an intense scientific curiosity as deep as his sapphire eyes. His black shirt hidden under a dark blue flannel shirt showed the insignia of the local museum, which Remy found fitting. In the nicest way possible, Space Cadet looked like he belonged there with his pristine glasses and tidy upkeep that bordered on neurotic.

And the third man, Anxiety Magnet, was once more a drastic change from the other two. Dark skin melted into an all black outfit consisting of a black hoodie sporting custom purple patches - perhaps he made it himself, Remy couldn’t be sure - alongside black ripped skinny jeans. His purple sneakers matched his nailpolish and eyeshadow framing heterochromic brown and green eyes. Every time Remy would scope out the young man, he’d always be anxiously biting his nails, fidgeting with his napkins, or doodling in the notebooks (Remy noted three different ones at least) he brought with him.

Remy was in for a loooong ride but hopefully today he’d finally figure out which of these lucky doofuses is his soulmate.

He walked over to the counter to order his usual drink, giving the familiar barista a nod as the man recognised him,

“Afternoon, Remy,”, the barista smiled, “The usual for our beloved fairy godmother?”

Remy rolled his eyes fondly, “Roman, babes, kindly shut up.”

Roman laughed, “Come now, wouldn’t want you turning into the Evil Queen, would we?”

“Joke’s on you, babes, I like the Evil Queen.”

Roman feigned a dramatic gasp, only returning to making Remy’s usual once he’d secured a smile from the stressed office worker. Remy twirled his lanyard in his hands; Remy Merryweather. Of all names to be cursed with around a Disney fan like the barista, it HAD to be one of the uncool ones. Okay, maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if Roman hadn’t insisted on labelling his drinks with “Flora”, “Fauna”, and “Aurora” ever since. Remy didn’t dwell too long on the kindly barista though, he was a man on a mission. 

Turning his attention to his first choice, Space Cadet, Remy watched him from the table he sat at; no wedding ring, his wrist was covered from sight, and he was most certainly gay going by the pride patches sewn into the backpack under his table. Perfect, he could just be the one.

As if on cue, Space Cadet shifted his watch and frowned. Perhaps he’d get lucky-

Ah, he’s leaving. Shit. Well, there was nothing else for it, Remy carefully nudged the trashcan by his seat as the man walked past, tripping him. The man let out a yelp and hit the floor. Remy was just getting up to help him when Anxiety Magnet came hurrying over out of the blue, 

“You alright?! That looked painful....”

What the fuck. Remy was about to speak up when Space Cadet locked eyes with Anxiety Magnet and for a moment the two were silent as the latter checked his timer, prompting the former to do the same. 

Son of a bitch.

Space Cadet sat up and reached a hand out to Anxiety Magnet, revealing that his timer had just stopped.

“Logan Baird, charmed to meet you, dear soulmate.”, he smiled warmly at the anxious man who helped him to his feet.

“Likewise,”,the anxious man responded, “Virgil Peyton. Nice to know my soulmate’s so handsome.”

Ugh. Remy watched as Space Cadet and Anxiety Magnet - or Logan and Virgil as he was now painfully aware - gathered up the fallen books and left together to go be happy and in love. While Remy could only watch as they did so. 

Fantastic. Well, at least he knew who his soulmate must be now. Who knew Dog Guy would be the top dog? Admittedly, Dog Guy was Remy’s last choice in a partner, but hey, after all the trouble he went to, he wasn’t about to argue with fate. Once Roman brought him his order - an iced, Ristretto, ten shot venti, with five pumps of vanilla, seven pumps of caramel, four packs of Splenda, and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top with “Prince Phillip” written on the cup this time - Remy made his way over to the lucky fellow.

“Excuse me, mind if I sit here?”, Remy asked as he approached the Dog Guy. 

The man smiled warmly, “Oh, not at all, kiddo! Hope you don’t mind my dog or things might get ruff!“. The joke made Remy want to drive his head into the ground at mach speeds, but if they were soulmates, he’d learn to love it. Hopefully. Maybe.

“Like, no worries babes, your dog is totes cute.”, Remy noted the man’s cheerful smile. He sat down and offered his name, “I’m Remy, what about you?”.

“Ah, how rude of me! I’m Patton Fairchild! And this is Foster!”, he gestured to the collie, “It’s nice to meet you Remy!”. Maybe this guy wasn’t so bad of a choice after all; he's bubbly, friendly, gentle, and Remy truly couldn’t deny the sexy lumberjack appeal.

“Likewise, though I hope I’m not intruding on anything here. Like, I don’t wanna take up your time if you’re here on a date or-”

“Goodness no, I’m not on a date! Don’t you worry, you’re not interrupting anything!”, he assured Remy.

“That’s good, I wouldn’t wanna get in the way of you and your soulmate, sweetie.”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that,”, Patton stated, sending Remy’s hopes soaring before they shattered on the marble floor, “I don’t have one. I mean, I love love and all that, but I never much felt the lure of it myself!”

God. Fucking. Dammit.

Remy’s face fell. None of them were his soulmate. He stayed to talk to Dog Guy- Patton for a while so as not to make the poor guy feel awkward, then watched him leave. Another failure with not enough time left to find his soulmate. Remy sat alone, sipping the dregs of his order. He ignored the constant texts from the office as he stayed til near closing time. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have not paid attention when his timer hit zero? Maybe he deserved this; to be miserable and alone for his negligence. His soulmate probably wasn’t even missing him either. Or maybe they were and now they couldn’t find him-

“Mind if I sit here?”

Remy rolled his head towards Roman, taking in the sweet sympathy pouring from his rather lovely smile. In his hand he held a to-go cup and his work apron was replaced with a red and white letterman jacket. Great, now he was keeping the charming barista from going home. But when had Remy ever cared about not being selfish?

“Sure, take a fuckin’ seat, babes.“, he groaned, no longer caring about keeping up the facade of being more put together than he really was. Roman sat down with a concerned gaze and slowly slid the drink over to Remy.

“It’s green tea. It’s a little less extravagant than your usual tastes, but it’s good for relieving stress..”

Roman encouragingly tapped the cup lid, smiling contagiously, “And something tells me the Evil Queen has some tension she needs to release.”

Remy gave a slightly bitter laugh as he looked up from playing eye-contact-chicken with the table and noted the green tea read “Maleficent”. God, this guy’s such a dork.

“It’s more than just some tension, sweetie,”, Remy began, inhaling sharply as he sat up, “I’ve just realised I’m never going to find my soulmate. I was stupid. I wasn’t thinking and the moment I looked away, I missed him.”. The half-snort he gave came out so much more painful than intended, “I let my timer hit zero, babes, and now it’s almost been a full week. My last three chances just walked out the goddamn door. Two of them as fucking soulmates, Roman! How unfair is that?-”

Roman’s expression gave him pause. It wasn’t the sympathetic expression from before, more like he was seeing Remy for the first time. Like he’d made a cosmic realisation that was about to change his life.

“Your timer… when did yours stop exactly?”, he asked. The wording gave Remy pause as he realised. 

He hadn’t accounted for Roman. How could he have been so blind? Perhaps he couldn’t believe the charming barista could be the one. Perhaps he thought the man who smiled genuinely at him every day while he whittled down potential soulmates and greeted him with only the kindest of regards was too good for someone like him.

“It… stopped on Wednesday-”

“Around 2:15 pm? During the lunchtime rush?!”, Roman cut in excitedly. Remy was aghast as Roman pulled back the wrist of his letterman and revealed a stopped timer about as faded as Remy’s. With no hesitation, anticipation growing, Roman gently reached for Remy’s hand, which the latter offered enthusiastically. To their mutual delight, their timers disappeared, proving that they were indeed soulmates.

Both were stunned, Roman’s expression wildly happy, his brown eyes sparkling with equal elation and adoration. As Remy took in his gorgeous tanned skin, beautiful mocha hair, and that wonderful chiseled face he had the growing urge to caress and litter with kisses, all he could say in the moment was,

“Does this mean you’ll finally spell my fucking name right?”

--

This one was so much fun to write! I think this is the one piece of writing where I mostly nailed Remy’s character, so I hope this one does well TTvTT @tsshipmonth2020

[morelikesin]

Morning

A small drabble on an emotional morning with Phoenix and Miles 💕 This takes place any time after Dual Destinies. I'm writing it where they're already married. This is just a quick bit I wanted to write when I had the idea :') I also drew a quick something at the end. The fic is under the cut!

Phoenix really wished he had more days off - everytime he was, there was always a great smell in the house from Miles' cooking. Being off work more often meant more of that, even if a little less bank coming in. It would definitely be worth it.

Lifting himself up from the cushioned mattress and tossing aside the velvety soft blankets atop of him, he stretches his limbs with a low groan - reaching his arms back before pulling them into his lap as he relaxed. Taking in a deep breath, he pulls his legs over the side of the bed and hoists himself over so he could see what was on the menu this morning.

Closing the lid of the cooking pot to steam the rice, Mr. Edgeworth hummed quietly to himself a peaceful little tune; one of which he'd seem to be making up as he went along. Turning his attention elsewhere as the grains cooked, he lowered the heat for another burner to medium, where he was cooking miso soup. Adding in a good few tablespoons of yellow miso paste, he whisked the substance into the already simmered broth before adding some previously cut up blocks of tofu. Raising the spoon to catch a quick taste, he found it was light, slightly sweet, and smooth in a way he quite enjoyed. Something was missing though, of course - turning towards the fridge to grab a few stalks of watercress to chop and throw in.

Stepping out from their bedroom and making his way downstairs into their kitchen, Phoenix paused a moment to simply watch his love candid from the steps. Miles, dressed in his soft, white robe like every morning accompanied by his perfect-as-always hair. Phoenix could nay say the same, given his own styling takes ten minutes on a good day.

Watching the way he so gracefully moved even without knowing eyes were on him was incredibly cute - though Miles would never let him say that, with how against that description he was when it was of himself. For now, Phoenix knew Miles was cute. Handsome, of course. Sexy, of course. Cute, of course.

Phoenix made his presence known by making a soft yawn as he walked down the last few steps, walking into the main kitchen and making sure to gently hold his hand against the small of Miles' back as he stood next to him. The latter shook his head slightly whilst quickly chopping up the watercress aforementioned - swiftly picking them up between his hand and the knife and tossing it into the soup.

"Good morning, Wright. How did you sleep?"

Phoenix made a darling little laugh that Miles loved so much - the type with a sort of deepness to it; a sort of breathlessness. "Well, I slept just fine with you by me, hun," he spoke prior to pressing his lips against the prosecutor's cheek, "with you being as warm as a radiator and all, ha..!"

Miles scoffed. "Very funny. Is that all I'm good for in bed? To keep you warm?"

"I was about to say no, but..'keeping me warm' sure has a lot of meanings. And I think you're good for all of them." Phoenix sighed, sporting a small smile as he pressed his face into the nape of Miles' neck contently - lips gently kissing his shoulder. It earned a sweet, if calm, sigh from the prosecutor.

"..I could say the same for you. But it's much too early for this, mm? We can work out our flirtations after we eat breakfast."

Phoenix kept his dorky smile splashed on his countenance as he pulled away, raising a hand to brush back some strands of hair from his eyes - finding himself not too annoyed today with his 'naturally-spiky-but-not-spiky-enough-and-more-messy' bedhead. "That works with me; everything smells so good!"

Miles looked flattered from that. "Thank you, Wright. It is certainly better than what you normally make yourself in the morning-"

"Hey- don't knock cup coodles! I could live off of those."

Miles furrowed his brows and gave a glance to Phoenix in exasperation. "This is why I'm the one who feeds us. Anyhow.." The former smiled to himself as he pulled a plastic package of soba noodles in front of him on the counter - removing the wrapper and slowly adding the noodle block into the miso broth. "Maya called me earlier. She asked me to tell you that she'll be unavailable all day."

With Phoenix opening the fridge door to grab something to drink, he paused to speak before grabbing the carton of orange juice - much like many of their groceries, an expensive brand that Phoenix wasn't used to, and Miles' choosing. "Oh? Was she planning on taking Trucy and Pearls somewhere?"

Miles shook his head as he wiped off his hands with a damp washcloth that he'd set beside him prior, "Sort of. She wanted to make a trip to Hazakura Temple - she and Pearl are to train while Trucy is their...how did she put it, ah.. 'hype-man'." He felt silly even recalling the term, but Phoenix's expression seemed to prove that he knew what he meant.

"Hah- well, she'll get no bother from me then. I'll just check up on them when they get back. We have the whole day to ourselves, for once.." Phoenix meekly spoke - pouring himself a glass of the aforementioned juice before guzzling it down in a post-sleep thirstiness. He wiped his upper lip with his wrist as he went back in to pour some more.

"It is rare, isn't it..?" The prosecutor seemed somewhat sorrowful in stating that. "I want to make the most of it. It's not often I'm not out travelling, or you're not on duty, or there's no emergencies."

Phoenix parted his lips to speak, before sighing and looking down to his cup solemnly. He set it down. "...Yeah. But..I still love you all the same." He looked back up to the love of his life; a carefree smile pulling at his lips and a special brightness glittering in his eyes, "We're a family. Things are..always going to come up, but our time spent away or together feel all the same to me. The only difference is that I get to actually kiss you, in times like now. Being apart..just reminds me of how much I trust you."

The words hit harder than Miles expected them to. Even with the defense attorney's unorganized nature, and his less-than-articulate manner, it was somehow more meaningful to him. Phoenix was always emotional, and true to what he said - this was no different. Edgeworth's expression was strong; brows furrowed up and eyes purposefully lying low.

Phoenix paused, "..Come here."

He gestured for a hug after his gentle words; Miles all too eager for the embrace. Phoenix's arms draped over Miles' shoulders, wrapping around his neck as to pull himself closer. Vice versa was Miles wrapping his arms tightly around Phoenix's waist; both of their heads lay upon the other's shoulder, welcoming what warmth was available. They held each other for what felt like so long, and simultaneously not long enough; the only reason for their part was so they could meet at their lips, instead. Passionate, and yet soft - just a simple press without much else, yet it was all they needed. By the end of their embrace, their heads leaned forward to touch at their foreheads while holding each other's hands between their chests. Their thumbs occasionally brushed over each other's wedding rings.

"..You know how much you mean to me, Phoenix."

"I know, Miles." He huffed out a short breath before breaking into a smile, "..You could always just say 'I love you'."

And with that, the silver-haired Edgeworth broke into a laugh and slowly pulled away, "Alright, alright..I love you. You know that."

"I love you too, Miles."

Phoenix watched as his love went back to his work - Miles grabbing his wooden chopsticks as to stir the noodles. The more defensive of the two sat at the dining table, glass in hand.

"...I'm going to guess that you won't want onions in your serving of noodles."

Phoenix pretended to gag in response to Miles, "Ghk-! Absolutely-! Onions taint everything they touch..." He hesitated, "..Other than onion rings. But that's the only good thing with onions!"

Edgeworth rolled his eyes with a playful smile, chuckling to himself a bit at just how strongly Wright felt over such a thing as onions. "Of course. Though, you're missing out on their flavour, dear - I've never met someone other than you who has a distaste for them."

"You haven't met anyone with any tastebuds," Phoenix scoffed back - earning a snort from the other.

"Oh, have I? Dear, I think you're referring to yourself there."

The defense paused; his face lifting as his cocky court grin curled onto his lips. "Unfortunately, Edgeworth, I think you have some words to eat. Clearly my statement is right - anyone who's ever tasted an onion could tell you that it tastes like damn garbage."

The prosecution stifled a laugh, lolling his head to look over his shoulder at his rival. "Oh, Wright. I'm afraid you've buried your grave - onions obviously give any dish they're added to an excellent depth of flavor."

"Well obviously they do not- ow-!" Phoenix burst into a soft laugh as Miles leaned over to smack his arm with his chopsticks - ending their court imitations. "Hun-!"

Miles rolled his eyes and looked back down to his cooking. "My love. We don't need to argue over onions. Besides, I'm not about to settle a case over opinion."

"Ha-! Well then, baby doll, I'm prepared to settle a case of any kind. Maybe you just don't have that kind of determination?" Phoenix jested, taking another swig of his orange juice.

"Of course you would be, Feenie." Miles hesitated before chuckling to himself. Swirling the noodles inside the pot, he shook his head. "That's a new one. I don't know where that came from... It's sort of cute, no? Feenie. Hm."

When Miles went to look at Phoenix for his approval, he was numb; his husband's face suddenly not as lively as it once was. His eyes gazed low, gazed dryly. His hands tensed around the glass he held, knuckles bearing white. Worst of all, his countenance really held no expression at all - the fact that it was so stiff, so miserable looking was what'd caused Miles to choke back a breath.

What was it about that name that suddenly struck Miles as odd? Feenie. Feenie.

"It's.. uh.. not great, honestly, Miles. No offense or anything."

"I'm- sorry." Miles was admittedly stunned - a little ashamed, a little confused, very concerned. "..For some reason its.. ringing a bell-"

"Dahlia."

"I'm..sorry?"

"..Dahlia used to call me that. You know, before.."

The room was drenched in silence - Miles struggling to find any words to say. What could he say to that - what should he? Though, the look on Phoenix's pitiful face urged him to find something.

"...I didn't mean to hurt you, saying it. I-" Miles hummed to himself and turned his head to Phoenix, lip bitten and unsure how to word himself. He slowly looked back down to his cooking when words couldn't properly form in his throat.

"It's fine." Phoenix nodded - looking away and tapping his fingers on the table in a sort of anxiousness. "You didn't know."

"I didn't remember," Miles scolded himself, "I should have remembered such a thing like that."

Phoenix looked a little put off. "Don't feel guilty for that. It was so long ago - I.. I didn't expect you too."

The soft bubbling of the broth in the pot filled the silence between them; chopsticks occasionally hitting the sides of the pot, Pess jingling her collar as she scratched herself from the living room all the while. Phoenix tried to will Miles to turn around so he could assure him it was fine, without words - however when Miles never did he spoke up hesitantly.

"I didn't mean to ruin the mood."

Miles quickly scoffed and turned to look at Phoenix with a pained expression, "You didn't, Phoenix. You were just telling me of something that hurt you."

"It's just a nickname, though," Phoenix laughed at himself, seemingly ashamed, "It's a little stupid to hurt so much over a nickname, isn't it?"

"I don't think so," Miles replied, his tone hurt from his husband stuffing his emotions down - such a thing from Phoenix was rare, and it made this hurt just a little more than usual. Setting the chopsticks horizontally on the counter, he ushered himself away from the stove to lay a gentle, lithe hand on Phoenix's forearm, and leaning down so he could rest his chin atop his head.

Phoenix nearly melted into his touch, feeling comforted by Miles' body and his warmth. Finding solace in the safety of his arms, Phoenix allowed himself to exhale a deep breath and relax. Unsatisfied with the arrangements, however, he shook his head and gestured his head down. "Get in front of me a bit, Miles."

He wasn't about to complain, though as he moved in front of Phoenix to kneel, Miles was still a tad confused. Before he could ask why Phoenix wanted him to, the man placed his hands on the prosecutor's cheeks and leaned forward to kiss his forehead.

"I prefer looking at you, dear," Phoenix hummed. He moved his hands down to take Miles' own - raising them to place endearing kisses against flushed knuckles and fingertips, much to his husband's timidity. "..Thank you. For not minding putting up with me and all."

"Ah, yes," Miles started, smiling, "I married you because I simply 'didn't mind putting up with you'."

Phoenix laughed as he realized the hilarity of what he had said, "Hey! You know what I mean!"

"I married someone I just 'put up with'." Miles continued, chortling to himself, "Not in an act of pure love or anything."

Phoenix hushed Miles' teasing by leaning down and pressing his lips against the other's - the two humming against the warmth before falling into the quiet passion, then lingeringly pulling away. Their hands kept their doting hold still.

"..I love you, Phoenix. However, breakfast is due to overcook."

Phoenix shrugged and pressed his lips against Miles' cheek, unwilling to pull away as proven by how he spoke against his skin. "I don't mind."

"Suppose you wouldn't," Miles breathed out, amused.

Miles held himself in Phoenix's grasp before reluctantly pulling away to take charge of the stove again. Phoenix didn't seem to be happy with such an arrangement, so he took it upon himself to stand and wrap his arms around Miles' waist, head resting on his shoulder. The prosecutor pressed his palm against Phoenix's forearm in silent fondness - his other busy stirring food.

[paper-stars-and-fireflies]

Asking for a friend

The second story in the Grimm Omens series! As before, both main characters are OCs: Magnolia is mine, and Omen belongs to the wonderful @splanoot​. Thanks for reading!       “I’m tellin’ ya, you gotta go straight for the heart on those, don’t waste your time with the rest!” Maggie waved her arms, gesturing at some imaginary prey as she argued. Omen and Husk nodded back, Husk holding his bottom lip between his lip to keep himself from laughing. Magnolia was a friendly drunk, if a bit loud, and it’d be a long time since she’d let her walls down like this. For his part, Omen had the visor on his helmet cracked a little wider, his trademark jacket folded over the stool between them. Scars criss-crossed his forearms where the sleeves were pushed up to bunch at his elbows. He kept the gloves on, hands resting carefully around his glass. He shook his head, a silent laugh shaking the stress off his shoulders. It was a good night. 

     “You can’t get to the heart on those until you take care of the rest.” Omen pointed out, tilting his glass at her. Maggie smirked back, finishing her glass and setting it down with a loud clack. She leaned across the open seat between them, almost invading his space - as close as she ever got to him.      “That’s what you think, mister. Hunters like me, we get all up close and personal. Besides,” She drew her words out, jabbing him playfully in the chest before leaning back to her own chair. “Don’t underestimate me just because I stick to blades.” She toyed with her snack, some mystery basket of finger food Niffty had dropped off earlier. Her other hand patted at the sheath on her left hip, one of the few she bothered with when she wasn’t on a hunt. She nodded toward his own holster. “Do you ever draw the wrong one? What’s special about it, the gun itself or the bullets or is it both?” Husk shook his head, refilling drinks, watching the two mercenaries argue back and forth in a language only they seemed to speak. Hell, if he didn’t know any better, he might think they’d known each other longer than a couple months. More than once he’d wondered if Omen had earned another fangirl.        A thump to his left and the sound of hands hitting his bar drew his attention, along with both his regulars. Angel Dust lay face down on the counter, one set of arms wrapped around his head while another pair of hands clutched at the edge of the bar. Magnolia threw an arm over his hunched shoulders, cooing excitedly.      “Angie! It’s been so long!” She said, her cheek pressed against his shoulder. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” Angel just groaned, sitting back just enough to rub at his eyes. Husk got busy making him a virgin drink - he was still on restriction according to Charlie.      “I don’t get it, Maggs.” He moaned, finally dropping his hands to his lap. She moved back, letting him sit up. The others ignored him, unamused with his antics. Maggie egged him on, moving to rub his back.      “What’s wrong sweet pea?” She asked, pushing him her mysterious bar food. He eyed it before, disgusted, shoving it back. He accepted his drink, also scowling at it when he realized it was nothing but juice and soda.      “Men, Maggs! Men are wrong. Well, one man.” He finally spat out, gesturing wildly. Maggie nodded sympathetically, sipping on her drink. Omen turned away some, subtly clicking his visor back down. Magnolia might flourish in social situations, but it was always somewhat awkward terrain for Omen, even with those he was closer with. He didn’t have any ill-will towards Angel, either, it was just… not his area of expertise. It was, however, Magnolia’s. Or least, it had been.       “Oh honey,” she drawled, arms around him still, “Tell me about him and I’ll tell you how to break that motherfucker’s heart.” She bared her teeth in a smile that belied her true nature. Angel flinched back, no matter how many times he’d seen it. She dropped it quickly, biting her lip. Angel quirked a smile of his own that quickly faltered.       “I don’t wanna break it, doll. I want to keep it.” He whined. He dropped his hands to the bar again, taking a slow sip of his drink for an excuse not to talk.      “Oh. Ohhhh. Oh nooo.” Magnolia wailed theatrically, dragging her hands down her face and wiping at imaginary tears. “My baby Angel has all done grown up and found a man he wanna love.” Angel blushed, crossing both sets of arms and turning away from her. She chased him, giggling and smiling sincerely for once.       “Look, I came down here for your help, but clearly I shouldn’ta crashed ya date. I’ll be going now.” He complained, standing up and pushing her off. Maggie lurched after him, latching on to his hand.       “Don’t gooo, babe, I was just havin’ some fun. I’ll help you, I’ll help you. Look, I’m happy for you, that’s great news!” She said, pulling him back to sit beside her. He complied, one eyebrow raised. She nodded, kicking her feet in little circles, doing her best not to wiggle off the stool. Her best friend, in love! He reminded her of her brother half the time, she could only imagine the kind of man that’d caught his eye.      “So tell me about him!” She prompted, when he didn’t start to speak. Angel eyed Husker and Omen. The latter turned away, suddenly fixated by watching the ice bobbing slowly in his glass, while the former shifted bottles around behind the counter, taking stock perhaps. Magnolia sat facing him, both hands perched on her knees, waiting. She shot a glare at Husker when she picked up on Angel’s agitation.       “Do we need to head upstairs?” Maggie asked, sliding her empty cup back across the bar. “Or maybe you need a few songs to calm down? Step outside?” She gestured to her mouth, miming smoking, then snapped, letting a spark dance across her fingernails.       “No way. He’s grounded, Magnolia. Hand ‘em over if you’re not gonna behave.” Husker jumped in, as much as he didn’t feel like it. If Charlie caught Angel misbehaving on his shift, he’d never hear the end of it. Magnolia huffed, reaching for her pocket, but Angel cut her off.       “I, no, doll. It’s fine, I just.” He paused, took a deep breath, held it. Letting it out in a short, he picked through his mind, trying to describe the target of his frustrated affections without giving it away completely. He still had a reputation after all.       “Look, you ever, I dunno, you meet a dude you’re into, like, really into, but it don’t make no sense?” He looked down at his hands, all four meshed together and fidgeting in a heap. Maggie laid both her hands over them, helping him still.      “I can’t stop thinkin’ about ‘im. I’ve been flirting like crazy, but it’s like he don’t even notice! Me! Am I slippin’ or somethin, Maggs?” He shrugged, aware of how his reputation worked against him here. “I can’t get his attention, does whatever he wants. One of those tall, dark, handsome types momma warns you about, ya know? I don’t know what to do.” Magnolia clicked her tongue, nodding along.        “I think types like us fall for types like that because our usual tricks don’t work. I need more to work with though. What have you tried? Or what are you after? What’s the issue exactly?” She asked carefully. Angel slumped a bit, still picking through his brain.      “I tried out all kindsa personas and lines and nothin’ phases him. I can’t read him! Not at all! He don’t get rattled, no matter how filthy my mouth gets or what I wear or do. I offered to suck his dick flat out, and what does he say? ‘No!’, to me!” Angel dragged his hands down his face, grumbling. Husker and Omen had turned away completely, taking up the farthest corner of the bar to give them as much privacy as they could with the open floorplan. Angel lowered his voice, leaning closer to his friend.       “Those eyes, and that smile. Maggs, I didn’t even know I was into suits!” Angel complained, taking a drag from his drink before sticking his tongue out. “Too sweet, Husk.” Angel called out louder, trying to cover his whispering, maybe, or dismiss the tension he’d created. Husk nodded as if he cared, refilling Omen’s drink without looking. Maggie held her chin, thumb tracing her lips, fingertips pressed into her cheek, studying Angel. Finally, she spoke, though it was barely a whisper.       “Angie…. Are you… In love with..Al-?” Immediately Angel lunged at her, almost tackling her out of the chair, trying to cut off the demon’s name. She grabbed his wrists on reflex, springing to her feet and throwing him into a headlock. He coughed, reaching for her side with a free hand.       “Easy tiger, save it for the bedroom.” he wheezed, and she dropped him, hands flying to her face in horror. She helped him back to his seat, apologizing profusely.       “It was just instinct, I’m so sorry! I - I didn’t mean to!” she repeated, hands clasped in front of her. “Oh, Angie, I’m so sorry, I didn’t think it was gonna be - Okay, okay.” She held out her left hand, green sparks fizzling along the back of her hand. She blinked and the same sparks lit in her eyes, hellfire come to witness.       “I swear to keep your feelings a secret, until my extermination or the deal undone. Sound like a deal?” She tried to smile reassuringly, offering her hand to him. He shook, sighing. Green wrapped around her hand, gone in a blink. Both of them settled back in their seats, silence hanging awkwardly over them. It wasn’t the first time Maggie had made a deal with Angel, but she hated using them on her friends. Still, it was to protect them.       “The deal’ll keep it safe, and he doesn’t send shadows after me when I’m not out on a contract. Your secret’s safe. I, um, bet I can help you out! You’re lucky I’ve been working for him for a while, though, or you’d be shit out of luck.” She continued on, trying to cheer Angel up, but Omen didn’t hear her anymore. He gestured to Husk, bowing his head slightly. Husk moved in close, disguising it by changing his drink for another.       “She’s one of Alastor’s?” Omen asked under his breath, eyes trained on Maggie behind his visor.       “Has been for a good few months now. Since a couple weeks before you met her, anyways. That boy she’s tryin’ to kill, he’s the real deal. She struck a deal with Alastor to even the playing field.”       “Why.” Omen couldn’t keep his voice as flat as he’d have liked, but it wouldn’t have mattered. Husk could see through him.       “She needed help. You saw how tore up she got. They probably have some kinda kinship or whatever, or same rulebook.”      “Husker. What are you talking about.” Omen barked at him, anxiety spiking. Just when he thought everything was going to be peaceful for once.      “She’s a crossroads demon, Omen, same as him. You saw the light show. Made a deal with the bastard.” Husk turned away, knowing he couldn’t say anymore. Omen lowered his head, nails digging into the countertop where he clenched his fists. He stood up abruptly, patting at his pockets. “Gonna go out for a minute,” he said, but only Husk was listening. Magnolia was too wrapped up in swapping stories and details about difficult love interests with Angel and moaning about the ones they’d missed out on for one reason or another.       “Do you have any, not tryin’ to be rude here, doll, but any actual, helpful advice? Something for this, ah, particular case?” Angel asked, eyeing the door shutting behind Omen. He had a theory of his own.      “Hmmm. Well….” Magnolia hesitated, glancing at the empty barstool behind her. “Those types of men are...very hard to work with sometimes, you know? Your normal tricks aren’t gonna work. Can’t come on strong, can’t come on too weak, or leave it all to them. Hmm.” She paused, running a hand through her hair. There was a flush in her cheeks that definitely wasn’t the alcohol.       “Those types, you gotta be blunt and honest, but not so forward. Just kinda, friendly? But a litttttle bit more. You kinda gotta give them room to come out of their shell to you, not the other way around. Take it real, real slow. Make them as comfortable as you can, meetin’ them on their turf. Every now and then, it’s alright to give them a little push or nudge, let them know you’re into them or you want something, but you really gotta leave it up to them in the end. That...that make any sense?” She looked at the empty stool again, then the door, trying to find Omen’s silhouette behind the dark glass.       “Uh-huh. Real helpful, doll. So! How long you been datin’ the big bad biker?” Angel shifted gears, leaning into her space. She sputtered, leaning away, face red.       “We’re not dating at all! Just friends! We’re just both...regulars here! Right, Husk?” She looked to him with pleading eyes, but he just smiled, not bailing her out.       “Uhh-huh. And you just so happened to be into a ‘tall, dark, handsome’ hunter guy that don’t let nobody close, and it’s not your drinkin’ buddy who just so happens to match up perfectly to everything you’ve hinted at for weeks? I ain’t buying it, doll.”       “Angel! There’s nothing - I’m not!” She grabbed her drink to hide her embarrassment with a sip but was disappointed to find it was empty. Angel just laughed at her, grabbing at her basket of snacks.       “You’re a crossroad demon! Just make a deal with him!” He managed through his laughter. She pouted, carefully tucking her hands away.       “I don’t wanna go that route. Not with him.” She whispered, face turned down.      “You’re breakin’ my heart, Maggs. I thought I was special!” He whined, arm thrown over his face. She huffed at him, staring at her hands. He softened, dropping his hand on her shoulder.      “Tell you what, doll. You take your shot, and, after a little bit, I’ll take mine. How’szat for a deal?” He asked, offering a hand. She took it hesitantly, shaking just once. Another wash of green light snaked around her palm and she sighed, overdramatic as ever with them.      “Alright,” she said finally. “Sounds like a deal. But -” She stole a glance at the door, and the figure beyond it. “Not tonight.”   

[yaachtynoboat711]

Fonder Ch.1

A/N: It’s finally here! Welcome to the series premiere of Fonder. Apparently, y’all were excited as hell for this series, which forced me to write my ass off and force myself to stick to angst. This is definitely going to be much longer than At First Glance was. If you have any feedback, please free to talk to me in either my asks, my messages, or in the notes. Don’t forget to reblog and like!

Warning(s): Angst, Our faves separating, a few typos(?)

Word Count: 1.6K

June 20, 2014, 2:37 PM

Manhattan, New York

New acting endeavors and opportunities called for Winston to decide to make the move to Los Angeles. The success of his Law & Order: SVU episode made him a hot item for more exposure (as it should’ve). With a few more days until his big move, he wanted to show his girlfriend Khalida the final draft of his talent agency contract. Though she wasn’t by any stretch an entertainment lawyer, she understand the deceptive language of contracts and how to counter the finesse. So much so that the final draft of the contract was actually the sixth draft. No one was bullshitting Winston Christopher Duke and his career as long as she was “Black and breathing” as she always said.

She entered his Manhattan apartment as she always did: ringing the doorbell as she unlocked the door with her key. Before she could announce herself , she was sidetracked by the various moving boxes that littering the apartment floor. Pictures and posters that sat or hung throughout the apartment were packed up, making the main room feel much bigger than it was. The furniture had already been sent to his new space in Los Angeles. Winston walked into the living room to meet his girlfriend.

“Hey, you.”, Winston said as he stepped over two boxes to pepper her lips with two kisses.

“Hey,Mr. Hollywood! I didn’t even know your place was this big. You look like you’re ready to go today.”, she laughed as she returned his kisses, “You got that final draft for me?”.

“Of course.” He ran back to his room and returned with a thick stack of papers.

She rested her elbows on the kitchen counter carefully read every page of the contract,occasionally shaking her head or making comments to herself.

“Perfect. Gone ahead and sign. I also came to turn my key in. I’ll be in court when you leave so I came to say that I’ll miss our New York/D.C. weekend excursions and complaining to you about these cold ass days.”, she noted as she looked down and toyed with her keys.

“Well, funny you say that. I was trying to figure out how to ask…”

She sat up from the kitchen counter. “Ask what, Chris?” She helped herself to the second to last Naked Green Machine juice in the bare fridge.

“Ask if you could move in with me?” Silence.

She choked on the juice. Her eyebrows furrowed and a corner of her lip drew into her mouth as though she was processing what Winston just asked her.

“Move to where?”, she responded.

His face turned. “Khalida, be serious. For once.”

“For once?! Fuck you mean for once? You the one asking stupid ass questions and you’re telling me to ‘be serious for once’? On muvas, you trippin.”

“Excuse me? I’m the one asking stupid questions?”

“Hopefully, you’re the only person I’m talking to right now. I can’t move, Winston. We’ve gone over this, yet you don’t wanna listen. What happened to us maintaining the long-distance relationship?”

Winston pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger. “Because…”, he began, “I feel like this’ll be easier for us to stay together and bond.”

She stared at him with a confused look on her face. “So what the hell have we been doing for the past seven months then? Hmm?”

“I just feel like we can take our relationship to the next lev—“

“—We just started dating. You’re talking about the next level and we’re barely in through the first level. It’s not gonna happen,Chris.”, she shrugged. He walked across the room closer to Khalida.

“Why not,Yaa?”, he exhaled sharply.

“I can’t leave D.C. right now, Chris: I just started my career! Hell, the ink on the lease hasn’t even dried completely, Kimya and I finally are gaining some clientele, and even if I weren’t just starting a few months ago, California’s the last state I’ll ever move to. At least in my right mind.”

“What are you saying?”, Winston scoffed.

“Honey, lemme break it down for you: I’m a lawyer. In order to legally practice law, I have to be barred in insert state or commonwealth here. While there are a handful of states that have a Universal Bar Exam, Cali ain’t one of them. The California State Bar is the hardest bar exam in the country and I’m simply not taking that shit. You’ve decided as an actor that the best move for you and your future is to be closer to the action in Los Angeles. My work is in DC; moving would defeat the purpose. I can’t just stop what I’m still figuring out for someone else.”

He shook his head, “So this has to be easiest decision you’ve ever made, I see. Choosing your career over us? Is this what you’re doing?” He paced the floor.

Khalida pushed off the kitchen counter and walked closer to Winston, “First off, don’t ever do that. You have a career to nurture and grow and so do I. I’m not your possession. Pussy don’t pay the bills,Wins.”,she hissed.

“You still didn’t answer my question, Khalida. Are you choosing your career over us?”

“Why can’t I? Apparently, you’ve done the same and it’s no issue for you. I can’t just drop my career and my purpose for no reason at all. You know what? I gotta catch my train in an hour. Traffic’s a whore, y’know?”

Khalida walked towards the front door, stepping over the moving boxes in her path. Sensing her sincerity, he began running behind her.

“Khalida, if you walk out of that door, consider us done.”, his shaky voice commanded.

Her head whipped around. “Come again?!”

“I said...if you walk out of that door, Khalida, consider us finished.”

Khalida’s bottom lip quivered and tears began falling down her face as she slowly closed the door. Still facing the door, she inhaled deeply. She slowly turned around walked towards Winston, who was now standing in the former dining area. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. Afterwards, she held his hands in hers, placing her key in his palm.

“What’s wrong, baby? Wh-What are you doing? Don’t do this to me, Khalida, please. I love you so much.”, Winston pleaded. His words choked him and he sensed an unsettling feeling come over him. The conclusion.

“I’m so sorry. We need to take some time to ourselves and build our careers and ourselves up. We've gone too fast in such a small window of time. I think for the preservation of us that we should take a break.”, she cupped his face into her hands.

Tears began to well up in Winston’s eyes, “A break? I thought you said you’d be here for me every step of the way.”

“Here isn’t exclusive to the physical, Wins. No matter what happens, I’ll always be here and here.” She pointed at his forehead and heart. “Moreover, you need to be there for yourself. This is what you were made to do. I’m still gonna cheer you on. Plus, I’d rather the plane malfunction on the ground than 10,000 feet in the air.”

The latter part of Khalida’s words hit Winston like a ton of bricks. She said the exact same thing back in New Orleans after Carrie disclosed their inevitable separation. Carrie and Khalida’s words replayed in his subconscious all the time. He never wanted to think about separating from the love of his life. Moreover, he didn’t want to think about how easy it was for Khalida to let go so easily (or so he thought).

Before she walked out of the door, she turned around one last time. “Is this truly what you want,Winston?”, she asked softly.

Winston pondered on her question. He didn’t want to let go. He couldn’t let go. But if it meant saving their special bond, then by all means. He nodded with hesitation. She reluctantly accepted his non-verbal response.

“Okay.”, her voice broke barely above a whisper. She turned around one final time and walked out of the door. “We’ll be back together, I promise.”

When she closed the door, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Seven months worth of memories quickly replayed in her mind. The intimate moments stuck out more. The realization of their end hit her like a truck. “Oh, God.”, she said to herself as her hands rested on her knees to keep her from falling over. Her grief overwhelmed her; the tears released and so too her anger. She was angry with herself for allowing a stupid prophecy for separating them. Before she could allow her spirit of lamentation to further consume her, she ran down the hallway to the elevator.

He was incensed. He was mad at everything and everyone. Mad at Yaa for letting a suggestion tear them apart. Mad as hell with Carrie for even fixing her wicked mouth to even suggest a separation in the first fucking place. Mostly, he was pissed with God for allowing any and all of this to happen. Tears quickly fell from his face as he too lamented over his sudden loss. There was now a void in his heart. He held on to what was left of Yaa: her key. Suddenly, he shot up from his seated position on the floor and chucked the key at the wall. All of the anger,hurt, and confusion went into that one throw. He fell to the ground as his pain grew stronger.

Carrie was right: it was doomed to happen, but only time would tell if absence would make their hearts grow fonder.

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[checkmate-cherik]

Because this prompt by @cherik-inspiration is too good not to attempt:

Erik set his laptop down on the counter and began pulling out ingredients.

He’d gone shopping specially for today. His coworkers were coming over for the holidays; it wasn’t for Christmas, though Azazel was a new Christian, and it wasn’t for Hannukah, though Erik was still Jewish. It was just that they were all tired of the “holiday cheer”, hated their families (if they had any), and needed a place to gather and complain without anyone calling the cops.

Erik finished setting out his ingredients and clicked ‘play’ on the Youtube video.

“Hello, everyone!” Erik adjusted the volume on his laptop, making it a little louder, and gazed at the cheerful blue eyes and ruddy-mouthed smile of the man in the video. “It’s Charles again, and I have a new recipe to try. Here to help me is my sister Raven.” Erik shook his head a little, as he always did when Raven, the pretty blond woman, slid into view and smiled shyly at the camera. “We’re going to make a cake our great-grandmother wrote down. It turned out pretty delicious when we first tried it. Don’t forget that you can adjust the flavor however you like. Alright, let’s get to it!”

Erik followed the instructions faithfully, using his powers to move and mix things while he kept his intense gaze on the video. He’d already made this cake several times, but he wanted to get it exactly right. It had always turned out well, so he was fairly sure he could make it correctly… But he liked having the instructions in front of him. He liked hearing instructions, rather than having to read them.

No. He’ll admit it. He liked watching and hearing Charles.

Charles--or ProfessorXavier, if you went by his channel name--didn’t just cook and bake. He did educational videos, too, that were actually quite popular. But while it was soothing to listen to him lecture about English classics and biology and genetics and how mutants weren’t any different than non-mutants, it was his cooking show that really drew Erik in. The way he smiled, the way he spoke… he was comfortable in the kitchen as he never was in front of his smartboard. Not that he wasn’t comfortable lecturing as well, but he always seemed slightly stiffer than he was in his kitchen.

Erik absently dropped a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips into the batter, watching Charles’ graceful hands do the same while Raven held the bowl. Erik’s bowl--like all his kitchen utensils and paraphernalia--was metal, and therefore did not slip as the metal whisk briskly worked the batter.

When the batter was poured, Erik paused the video to pick up the cake pan and slide it into the oven. The oven was electric, so he was wary of using his powers on it. Then he turned back to the video, turning it on and feeling a small smile tilt the corners of his mouth as Charles laughed at something Raven said. His laugh was rich and deeper than expected, and it made Erik less annoyed.

He watched the video to the end, watching them make icing, Raven making pretty patterns and Charles botching a simple squiggle. Then came the tasting. Raven scrunched her nose, and Charles rolled his eyes heavenward.

“Too sweet,” Raven said.

“Just right,” Charles replied smugly. Then he smiled at the camera. “And that’s all folks! See you next week!”

Erik clicked the searchbar and typed in ProfessorXavier stuffing recipe. Many videos popped up, but he selected the top one and gathered ingredients while Charles went through his usual cheerful greeting.

Raven did not help with this one. It was just Charles, his voice soothing as he explained his process. Erik set his knives to chopping and slowly shredded day-old homemade bread with his fingers, as Charles had done. The bread was Erik’s mother’s recipe. He would never do any other, not even Charles’.

Charles smiled at the camera and Erik smiled too.

Azazel was the first to arrive, just appearing to lounge on Erik’s sofa, tucking his linked hands behind his head. Erik didn’t even notice him at first, too busy leaning on the kitchen island and watching the newest cooking video (a “fake lasagna” made with ravioli instead of noodles). When he did, he jabbed pause and slapped the laptop shut. Azazel smirked.

“More of that charming professor?” Azazel asked, his accent barely changed despite his many years stateside.

“No,” Erik replied stiffly, going to check on the stuffing. It was done; time to let it cool. “When are the others coming?”

“They’ll be here in a few minutes,” Azazel drawled, making himself more comfortable.

“Good.”

Emma and Angel, the newest addition to the group, arrived together. Emma had a key to Erik’s apartment and waltzed right in, Angel following a little more slowly. The former set a covered dish of assorted cooked chicken (grilled, fried, and baked) down on the dining table, since Erik didn’t eat ham, and the latter two bottles of Michigan cherry wine.

“Budge up,” Emma ordered Azazel, and he glared but sat up, swinging his feet to the floor. “Thanks, ‘Zel.” Emma sat primly on the middle cushion as Azazel scooted over to the side, and patted the empty cushion beside her. Angel sat, gazing around with interest.

Erik’s flat didn’t seem very personal unless you knew him. Everything was stark black and white, and shades of grey and silver. The furniture was comfortable and clean, the floors honey-colored wood or white tile. He had some medieval weapons on the walls, all of which he knew how to use, and all polished and sharpened to mirror-brightness. In his bedroom he had four bookshelves stuffed with books; out in the living room, only two bookshelves, holding a paltry assortment, but proudly displaying various metal sculptures he’d made himself. They didn’t look like anything; they weren’t supposed to. He’d just liked the shapes. In his office he had more books, and a glass and brushed steel desk upon which sat his Mac and precious iPad Pro. He was a Mac person in his personal life, though he liked PCs for work. And the kitchen was a wonderland of metal.

The less said about the state of his bathroom the better.

Janos arrived with the salad, since he was a vegetarian. It was excellent salad, none of the disgusting bitter leaves or the empty white bits of iceberg lettuce. There were walnuts and cherries on it, too.

Azazel said grace over his meal while everyone else tucked in. No one minded about what the others did; religion was too trivial to the atheists, too important to the spiritual, to be mocked, belittled, or scorned. Everyone pretended not to hear as Erik muttered in Yiddish around his first mouthful of bread, knowing it was his own version of grace and he did not like it when people said anything about it.

After everyone had a few bites in them, the Great Complaining began.

Emma kicked it off. “Shaw is disgusting,” she snorted, picking at her chicken.

“What’d he do this time?” Erik grunted.

“Grabbed my butt. Again. Then told me to get him some ice. Honestly, I’m the secretary, not the maid.”

Angel nibbled a walnut and looked uncomfortable. Erik met her eyes. “What’d he do?” he repeated, this time to her.

“Threatened my friends,” she murmured, lowering her gaze, “Because I wouldn’t let him grope my boobs.”

Emma wrapped her arm around Angel’s shoulders. “He won’t hurt them,” she assured her younger friend confidently. “He hasn’t done anything himself in years.”

“And there are ways of lying to him,” Azazel added, sticking his forked tongue out at Angel, which always made her feel better. She had said it reminded her of her older brother, who’d been distinctly snake-looking when he came into his powers.

They complained about Shaw, then they moved on to their coworkers. Emma was The Secretary of whom all the administrative staff were terrified, Janos was the bodyguard and in charge of transport, and Azazel was the one who did all the arm-breaking and throat-slitting. Erik made sure everything balanced; the company, the personal life, and the mob connections. Angel was Emma’s new assistant, and swiftly proving herself among the underlings as one to be wary of. Her temper was quiet, but damn, it was fierce. And if you weren’t nice to her or didn’t do something she told you to… well, enjoy life with half a left foot when she delicately spit acid on it.

Shaw was growing very fond of Angel, despite Emma’s best efforts to shield her.

After dinner, Erik brought out the cake. Azazel jeered at him about where he learned to bake, but shut up when Erik said coldly, “I guess you don’t get any.” Everyone who’d ever tried anything he’d baked said it was The Best and did everything in their power to convince him to make more for them. Azazel included.

Janos got vegan cupcakes because Erik respected his dietary restrictions. The others were happy with cake.

They sat around and drank wine until it was gone. Angel got giggly and tipsy, so Azazel took her home, returning in three minutes with the announcement, “She’s asleep now.”

“Poor kid,” Emma murmured, running her finger along the rim of the glass. “You know, she told me she stopped talking to her friends when she joined the company? Except her friend Raven. They talk on the phone every night.”

Raven? Erik frowned and undid his shirt’s top button. He was too warm. But it surely couldn’t be Raven from the videos. No, that was just too much of a coincidence. He dismissed the notion. Surely there were plenty of other people named Raven. And Emma hadn’t even said if Angel’s Raven was female or otherwise.

Erik kicked them all out at midnight and collapsed into bed. He dreamed of cherry-red lips and laughing blue eyes.

[andinewton]

Second Chances - Avengers Redemption Series - Part One - Chapter 45

Characters:  Loki, Maia Tomson (OFC), Sigyn, pretty much everyone from the MCU appears at some point, including some special appearances by members of the X-Men!

Pairings: Loki x Maia Tomson, Loki x Sigyn,

Warnings:  Smut, so much smut, violence, swearing; listen, it’s NSFW and 18+, just bear that in mind!

Word Count: 179105

Summary: Loki has been handed over to The Avengers to pay penance for his past crimes, underpowered and underwhelmed by his post he is assigned a new ‘guide to Midgard’ by his superiors and is more than a little surprised when a petite freckled, redhead is waiting in the conference room, not at all like the previous handlers he has been assigned, who quit after a very short time with the snarky god. Maia Tomson is a trained literature teacher and counsellor, maybe not someone you would have picked out to be a guide to the God of Mischief but her mentor, Charles Xavier, knows she likes a challenge, and when The Avengers ask him to recommend someone she is top of his list. Surprised by the assignment, Maia takes it on, promising to do her best, but was not counting on a mutual attraction with her charge.

Join Loki on a journey to discover that his heart is not as frozen as he believes it to be, an adventure spanning almost a millennia of love gained and lost and rediscovered in the most unlikely of places…

Master List

Chapter 45

Summary:  Tony is not impressed with the news, Maia meets an old friend.

Tony badgered them for information on the walk to the common room while Thor called Steve and asked him to have the other Avengers present for a brief meeting and Maia realised this wasn’t going to be some small reveal if the entire team would be there. She tapped her teeth with the thumbnail on the hand Loki wasn’t holding nervously and after a few minutes he realised and squeezed her hand reassuringly while deflecting another question from Stark, telling him, yet again, he would have to wait and see.

The common room was busy, as they had expected, all of the onsite Avengers present and sitting on various chairs and couches waiting and chatting, but it was Darcy who saw them enter and jumped to her feet. ‘You’re going to tell everyone, right? Because Jane swore me to secrecy.’ She gesticulated with her hands. ‘Do you have any idea how hard that is?’ Loki laughed while Maia covered her smile with her hand. ‘Darcy, sit down.’ Jane pulled on her sleeve and the younger woman did as she was told. ‘Yes, Darcy.’ Loki answered her question. ‘We are.’ ‘Oh, thank God.’ She sighed. Tony leant against the counter nearest them, giving a serious look. ‘You know, my imagination is running riot here, so spill it.’ Maia looked up at Loki. ‘I don’t even know where to start.’ ‘It is complicated.’ Loki agreed. ‘They’re getting married!’ Darcy blurted. That got everyone’s attention. About eight different voices asked; ‘What?!’ as Darcy clamped her hands over her mouth, Jane shook her head, and Tony stepped forward, pulling Maia out of Loki’s grip and across the room as he spoke. ‘What the hell? Has he got you under some kind of mind control? Tricks?’ ‘No, none of that.’ She made him stop. ‘It’s a hell of a lot more complicated.’ ‘No, it’s not. Something’s off about this and I’m taking you home, now. This was a bad idea.’ He waved his finger in her face until she leant back. ‘Friend Stark.’ Thor called, his hand on Loki’s shoulder, preventing him from going after Maia. ‘Let them explain fully, then you may ask informed questions rather than spewing accusations.’ ‘I don’t like this either.’ Steve said as he stood. ‘But we owe them the chance to explain.’ ‘There’s no explanation good enough to excuse this.’ ‘Try us.’ Maia suggested. ‘Charles will flip!’ ‘Charles knows.’ She insisted. ‘I thought you had more sense than this.’ ‘I do!’ She glared at him and his stubbornness at refusing to even listen. ‘This is new for us, but Thor knew first.’ She looked back at her former, and probably future, brother-in-law. ‘Loki and I were married before. In a former life I was Sigyn of Asgard, Loki was my husband, and I died in an ambush. Neither of us realised, we think because we had to fall for each other again first, but Thor will back us up. If you don’t trust us, trust him, because that’s who I was and who I am. I’m not running down the aisle with Loki, but we will, eventually, because we’ve been given a second chance and that rarely happens. We’d be stupid not to take it.’ No one spoke, Tony just stared at Maia as though he didn’t know what to think, and it was Steve who eventually broke the silence. ‘Thor?’ ‘She speaks the truth. I have known her identity since I first saw her, before she even knew, and I for one back them, as there are few loves truer than that of the God of Mischief and the Goddess of Fidelity.’ ‘Goddess of Fidelity?’ Darcy gasped excitedly but Maia shrugged. ‘Just a title.’ ‘No truer a title was ever given, besides my brother’s of course. You were the most devoted wife ever to grace our halls.’ ‘To be fair he’s easy to be devoted to.’ She smiled at Loki whose smug face said it all, but Tony still wasn’t accepting it. ‘Seriously?’ He said so suddenly it made Maia jump and Loki was across the room before Thor could stop him from pulling away. ‘I understood when I thought the two of you were hot for one another, but you’ve already been married? How does that even work?’ Loki drew Maia to him and away from Stark, but slowly so as not to cause alarm. ‘We were as astonished as you, Anthony, but soon came to terms with just how rare a thing this is, how truly lucky we are. We see no point in hiding the fact.’ He sensed power and tensed for a moment, turning towards the window as the bifrost activated, and he relaxed again. ‘And as this is the first opportunity we have had to tell you all I do not think you can say we have been anything but transparent.’ ‘Are you expecting someone?’ Steve asked Thor as he went to the stairs. ‘Possibly.’ Thor nodded. Steve remained alert but was aware that Tony needed reining in a little, that he wasn’t taking this well. He walked towards the three of them, speaking as he did. ‘Well, I think it’s great news. Congratulations.’ ‘Thank you, Steven.’ Loki bowed his head in gratitude as the rest of the team began to offer their own well wishes. Thor reached the door as the bifrost disappeared, seeing Sif turning on the scorched grass to face him. ‘Sif, what news?’ He greeted her as she came to meet him. ‘Very little.’ She said solemnly. ‘We have traced the location the drake was transported through, however we are no closer to knowing who opened the portal for it.’ ‘But it was a who?’ Thor asked as she reached him. ‘High sorcery.’ She nodded. ‘With the loss of your mother, Loki is perhaps the most powerful sorcerer of our realm. We are quite certain the cuff leaves him incapable of something like this?’ ‘Quite.’ Thor nodded. ‘Thank you for this information.’ ‘What little good it will do.’ She said frustratedly. ‘I have further avenues yet to explore. Hopefully they will prove more fruitful.’ ‘Thank you.’ Thor bowed his head to her. ‘Before you leave, I have a surprise for you.’ ‘A surprise?’ She frowned. ‘Should I worry?’ ‘Not at all.’ He smiled and led her inside. ‘Should I guess?’ ‘You will need none, once we reach the top of the stairs.’ Sif and Sigyn had been good friends and he couldn’t wait to see them reunited. Tony was still standing silently as everyone asked questions, frowning heavily. Was this even possible? Sure, he’d heard of weirder things, most of which were standing in front of him, but…maybe he was overthinking it. He was happy for them, but this seemed kind of fast, even given the circumstances. If only there were more than just the three of them to vouch for the story. Sif and Thor came up the stairs to be greeted by excited chatter and Sif glanced around, finding Loki easily in the group, then seeing Darcy and Jane, the latter hugging an equally petite redhead, but when they parted she stopped in her tracks, not believing what she was seeing. ‘Surprise.’ Thor said in her ear. ‘Sigyn?’ Maia turned at the sound of her name, her eyes locking onto her old friend, a smile spreading across her face. ‘Sif?’ She whispered. She stepped out of Loki’s arms and past the group as Sif started towards her. ‘How can this be?’ She asked, taking Maia in an embrace. ‘Rebirth, my old friend.’ Maia grinned as they parted. ‘You have…shrunk.’ Sif said the first thing that came to mind and Maia laughed. ‘I just didn’t grow quite as much.’ Sif was the first person to comment on the fact she was at least half a foot shorter. ‘It really is you?’ Sif looked her over as though expecting her to change somehow. ‘It really is.’ ‘Odin’s beard, this is…incredible!’ She suddenly exclaimed before turning to Thor. ‘You knew my favourite battle sister had returned and you did not tell me?’ ‘We have only known days ourselves.’ ‘You’ve known for days.’ Loki pointed out. ‘Maia and I have not even known for one.’ ‘Maia?’ Sif looked down at the woman whose arms she still held. ‘That is your new name?’ Maia nodded. ‘Maia Tomson. Literature teacher, counsellor and Loki’s guide in all things Midgardian.’ ‘Other than the Midgardian part I see very little has changed.’ Sif gave Loki a teasing look. ‘You were always setting him right, one way or another.’ ‘That is a little unfair.’ Loki argued. ‘Sigyn got into ample trouble without me.’ Steve sidled up to Tony as conversation resumed amongst the group, folding his arms but not looking at him. ‘Sounds plausible.’ ‘Convenient.’ Tony stroked his beard thoughtfully. ‘You think it’s a lie? Some sort of ruse?’ ‘I don’t know what to think.’ ‘I thought you were their biggest supporter?’ ‘I was, I am. She’s good for him, I think, but didn’t this spiral kinda fast?’ ‘Sometimes you just know.’ Steve shrugged. ‘Yeah, and other times you have a trickster god and a girl convinced she’s his dead wife.’ ‘There’s a lot we don’t understand, Tony.’ ‘No, Cap, there’s a lot you don’t understand. I’m a scientist. It’s my job to figure stuff out.’ Steven looked at him doubtfully. ‘Science versus love?’ ‘It’s all biology.’ ‘Not chemistry?’ ‘Funny.’ Tony gave him wholly unamused look. ‘It’s sweet you’re protective of her, but I think she knows what she’s doing.’ Tony looked at Maia laughing with the team, Sif looking at her with some degree of disbelief, while Loki looked at her lovingly. ‘If this goes wrong, it’ll be my fault.’ Tony admitted. ‘It won’t be your fault.’ ‘It will,’ he turned to Steve, ‘because it was my idea to bring her in.’

Chapter 46

[fountainpenguin]

Hey, you said a bit ago that you actually prefer "ChalkZone" to "Danny Phantom". Reasons?

It’s completely a matter of personal preference. I really like both shows, but the former squeaks past the latter. “Danny Phantom” is plot-oriented, “ChalkZone” is more world-building oriented (You can see right from the titles where the focus of the show is placed). 

So yeah, I was a bit disappointed that DP didn’t explain the Ghost Zone as much as I felt it could have. We just don’t know a lot about the flora and fauna there, or the nature of ghosts (especially the ones with less shape and character) or energy or how different ghost powers work… 

“ChalkZone” is HUGE on world-building, which is exactly what I would expect and want from a show about an alternate universe. In fact, I wrote a strangely popular post about some highlights of “ChalkZone” world-building that you can find here. I’d struggle to do the same thing with “Danny Phantom”. 

And no fantasy plant will ever beat ChalkZone’s eyeball plants that record what they see on film strip roots and that crawl into the host’s eye sockets and manipulate the way said host views the world until they reach the place where they want to deposit their seeds. Remember Sam’s comment in “Memory Blank” of “Who wishes for evil plants?!?” Yep, that’s “ChalkZone”. All the time.

You may notice on KissCartoon that the “ChalkZone” episodes air in sets of four. Each link contains two main episodes that cover Rudy and the main plot, and then the third one is always a slice-of-life episode about Snap’s life in ChalkZone when Rudy isn’t around. It’s pure world-building. He even has his own television show, “Snap Shots”, which doesn’t come up a lot but always covers world-building when it does, like taking the viewer on a tour to describe ChalkZone plants, animals, and even the life of Skrawl and the Beanie Boys at their training camp. It’s exactly the kind of thing I adore. The fourth “episode” is always a one-minute song, which is a little weird, but okay.

Character-wise, “ChalkZone” is very great too. They were never shy about portraying the main characters as jerks. Regularly. Heck, one of the reoccurring plot points is that Rudy views himself as the One True Defender of ChalkZone, despite the fact that the Zoners never asked him to be their guardian and many wish he would just go away and leave them alone.

I like how in “Danny Phantom”, Sam and Tucker are good friends who love and hang out with one another even when Danny isn’t around. But “ChalkZone” is as opposite as you can get without splintering the trio up. Snap and Penny got on one another’s nerves from the beginning, and although they can put their differences aside and work together, they never learned to love (or even like) each other as much as Sam and Tucker do. It’s a very interesting portrayal.

Not to say that DP isn’t heavy on characters too, because it is and I appreciate it. Some of the characters (super-judgmental Sam) just weren’t my favorites. And DP is too heavy on romance for my personal tastes.

Compare with “ChalkZone”, where platonic friendships are the major focus. Despite meeting for the first time in an episode named “Rudy’s First Date”, Rudy and Penny show little romantic attraction to one another until Season 3, when they were watching their doofus duplicates (the “doofi”) flirt with one another, and Penny reminded Rudy that “They’re nothing like us”, and Rudy’s reply was, “Yeah, [unlike Doofus Penny], you really are a genius”, and she came back with, “And you have genuine artistic talent”, and they just scuffed the ground and smiled while Snap sat there being grossed out.

It was very sweet, and the show moved on without bringing it up again for that episode, or in the high majority of the remaining episodes (even when they go dancing together, it’s mostly platonic and they never become canon- that’s even a Snap-centric episode, so we don’t even see the two dance!). And I mean, when Penny tries to kiss Rudy in “The Smooch”, he bolts, and only returns out of necessity to lift the “smooch curse” off her. It’s great. 

Though to be fair, “Danny Phantom” involves high schoolers and “ChalkZone” is about ten-year-olds. It would be more surprising if DP brushed completely past all romance. But I just really appreciated the way it was handled in the latter show- I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a less romantic kiss between two cartoon leads than Penny tackling Rudy into a giant peanut butter and jelly sandwich and having it snap shut on them. 

The show just didn’t make a big deal out of romance - no dangling ship-bait, no love triangles, basically none of what “Star vs. The Forces of Evil” is doing right now that makes me cringe - so that’s something that means a lot to me.

These two shows are similar in that they both involve heroes, portals, alternate universes, and a main trio. In both shows, the real world starts off not knowing about the existence of this alternate universe, but slowly becomes aware of it- the people in the real world don’t lampshade their encounters with entities from the other one at all!

But put side by side, I’ll pick “ChalkZone” every time. Not only is it easier for me to buy into the idea of magic chalk that can easily fall into the wrong hands than a boy whose molecules got rearranged after contact with radioactive electricity, but I just can’t resist the absolute world-building focus. My love.

I just haven’t come up with any good ‘fic or drawing ideas, that’s all. With TD, FOP, and DP, I get bothered that after all these years, there are so few ‘fics related to some really cool characters despite the size and activity of their fandoms. I like to fix that. “ChalkZone” is just a super small fandom as it is, so it’s never surprising if characters I like get glossed over. Doesn’t bother me.

I guess what I’m saying is, it’s sad watching my favorite characters get dragged through the dirt so many times (with “Total Drama” especially). But with “ChalkZone”? Does anyone even hate any character in “ChalkZone”? They’re all so adorable! Did you see “Poison Pen Letter”? That’s such an amazing episode that portrays Rudy’s Wrath and recklessness, and renders Michelle Norwegiano perhaps the best “popular girl” cartoon character ever.

I need to draw Rudy’s parents. His dad is a butcher and his mom is an opera singer, and they are amazing. Ooh, and I need to draw Penny and Chloe. They both come from veterinary families, so they’d probably get along great! And I just remembered that “Mother Tongue” was the episode where Penny has a breakdown because of all the pressure her mom puts her under, and they talk it out. I think I might be uncovering the reasons I liked Chloe from the start.

“ChalkZone” is weird in that it was so perfect, no one writes fanfics about it because most AUs can easily be treated as something that could actually happen, and there weren’t plot holes for people to point out and/or correct. One of the only plot holes I can think of is why Rudy never drew another magic chalk mine, but that in itself is countered by the ideas that you don’t want the chalk falling into the wrong hands, and the hints that magic chalk is different from other chalk and only grows there. 

That, and due to the whole “no love triangle” thing, which unfortunately “sells”, I guess, combined with the fact that it was competing with literally every show that sent a character to Nicktoons Unite, rather sealed its fate. The Internet and fandoms were different back then. Bet people would love it if it aired now.

(By the way, some of the episodes on KissCartoon are missing and/or cut off early. You can usually find them if you Google ‘em. The early episodes are out of order because of “Oh Yeah! Cartoons”, but I can help you out. The only episode I’ve never found is “Knight Plight”. If anyone has that, I’d love to see.)

[thatcrazyfanfictionwriter]

Secret of the Sewers: Fast Forward

After the turtles made their declaration to Splinter, they knew that they were in for a rough time. They knew that to prepare them for the challenge ahead, the rat was going to push them past their limits, then keep pushing. It started with Splinter’s decision to choose a leader for the group.

“Your enemies will come at you in numbers that greatly exceed your own.” He had told them, “the best way to combat this tactic is to work as a team, and every team needs a leader.”

Nobody was surprised when he picked Leonardo to be the leader, even if Raph was a bit miffed at the choice. Neither were they surprised when Splinter upped their training greatly. He had already lost one family, and he was not going to lose another.

When they weren’t training, the turtle’s attentions fell on various personal projects. Leo spent most of his free time meditating, trying to strengthen his mind and spirit for his new role as leader. Raph had begun tweaking the stolen motorcycle, making it turtle ready so it could be used on the streets. It was a common occurrence for the red turtle to come down for dinner covered in grease and oil. Donny had several projects to keep him busy. Along with Master Splinter’s request for a way to communicate, which he created the shell cells for, Donny also found time to work on turtlizing the van they’d commandeered, as well as help Hisako with her physical therapy. Thankfully, Mikey was more than willing to help take care of the afflicted human in their care.

With the aid of Donny and Mikey, Hisako’s road to recovery shortened considerably. In time, the emancipated girl Leo had plucked from the dumpster faded into memory. Her once stick-like arms became toned with the muscles of a gymnast. Her numerous scars slowly faded, though they would forever remain a part of her, and her ratty hair grew out healthy and long.

This positive physical change brought a spiritual change to Hisako as well. She no longer feared her own shadow, and she came to trust her caretakers, eventually coming to see them as more than just friends. The turtles became her brothers, and she their sister. Master Splinter grew to be her father, and she became his daughter.

As the weeks turned to months, and the months into years, Hisako proved herself an eager student. She absorbed the knowledge and moves like a sponge, picking up nearly 10 years on ninjutsu in a mere 4, a record that put Leonardo’s dedication to shame. Soon, Hisako was finally confident enough in her abilities to take the test that would recognize her as an official Kunoichi.

…

Splinter sat on his meditation mat, looking out onto the training ground. Donatello and Michelangelo were kneeling on the left side of the grounds while Raphael knelt on the right. From their spots, they watched Leonardo get into a fighting stance, katanas at the ready. Facing against him was Hisako, a pair of beautiful Japanese war fans, or tessen, in her hands.

"You ready Hisako?" Leo asked.

Hisako popped her neck, smiling.

"Oh yeah."

Splinter raised his paw in the air, then brought it down in a chopping motion.

"Hajime!"

Leonardo struck first, his first swipe coming at an almost blinding speed. Hisako quickly dodged it, her smile becoming somewhat cocky.

"Gonna have to do better than that, Leo!"

He struck again, but she quickly rolled out of the way. Getting back to her feet, she opened her fans and swiped at him. Strike after strike, Leo either evaded or blocked with his katanas. During one block, Leo twisted his sword and disarmed Hisako, sending one of her fans flying across the mat. It soared towards Donnie and Mikey, who raised their hands to catch it. Unfortunately, they both missed and it collided with the wall and clattered to the ground. Hisako looked back at her weapon as Leo pointed his sword at her neck.

"Ready to give up?" Leo asked.

"Not a chance." Hisako responded.

She ran forward and performed a jumping kick, knocking one of his swords out of his hands. This put Leo on the defensive as she continued to slice at him, forcing him to dodge every attack and preventing him from gaining room to respond. He quickly leaped back a bit in an attempt to gain the upper hand, but Hisako merely followed his movements. He performed a quick leg sweep, sending Hisako to the ground. However, she managed to hook onto his legs during the fall, tripping him and bringing him to the ground too.

"Nice one." Leo admitted.

"Same to you." Hisako agreed.

Both of them were quick to get back to their feet, preparing their remaining weapons as they charged toward each other. Their respective strikes were so hard that they knocked each other's weapons out of their hands. The two then fell back onto hand to hand combat, trading punches, jabs and kicks with unerring accuracy.

Leo went for a roundhouse kick, but Hisako dropped to the ground in order to duck it. Once Leo restructured himself, Hisako sprang back up with an uppercut to the jaw, knocking him to the ground. As he prepared to get up, Hisako planted her foot on his shell, placing two fingers on his forehead.

"Yame!" Splinter called.

Both Hisako and Leo were panting as the former got off the latter. Hisako offered a hand up, one that Leo gladly accepted.

"Great job, Hisako." He complimented as he collected his swords. "You got me good."

"Yeah!" Raph agreed. "I thought he had you with that spin kick, but you came back strong."

"I guess all those push-ups you've been doing really paid off." Donnie agreed.

"I don't know..." Mikey disagreed. "Near the end, it almost looked like-"

Splinter's tail came up, whacking Mikey across the head hard. The orange turtle yelped as Splinter came forward. Hisako quickly got down on her knees, placing her tessen before her. Leaning on his walking stick, Splinter smiled down on her, a hand behind his back.

"You have done well, my child." He congratulated her, “You have proven yourself a capable warrior, a compassionate soul, and an honorable ninja.”

He pulled his hand out from behind his back, revealing a black tanto with a green sash on the scabbard. Hisako couldn’t keep the grin off her face as she held out her hands for Splinter, allowing him to place the tanto into it. As her fingers closed around it, Splinter placed his hand on her head.

“Hamato Hisako, it pleases me to announce your graduation, and to grant you the official title of Kunoichi of the Hamato Clan."

Hisako bowed, then stood up, looking down at her tanto with a grin.

“I did it.” she said before jumping into the air, thrusting the tanto upwards. “I finally did it!”

Both Leo and Raph grabbed her, hoisting her onto their shoulders as she punched the air happily.

"I say this calls for a celebration!" Raph suggested.

"How's about a run topside and some rooftop pizza?" Donny asked.

"Oh yeah!" Mikey shouted. "Let's do it!"

Hisako grinned, then leapt off of her brothers' shoulders to get a head start, snagging her tessen as she did.

"Last one topside hatched from a rotten egg!" She announced.

The four brothers all shared pleased expressions before taking off after their sister. Before Leo could go, Splinter intercepted him.

"You did not have to provide her with that opening." he told him.

Leo just shrugged before resuming his chase.

"It was worth it!"

…

Hun knelt before his master, his hulking frame just barely maintaining the illusion of calm. Before him, his master paced irritably, an aura of seething rage surrounding the man like a blanket.

"Four years." The master hissed. "For four year, you have had but one task; locate a mere handful of interlopers. And yet, you cannot even perform that simple task!"

The master ceased pacing, his fist coming down on his desk so hard that the various papers flew off of it, fluttering to the ground. The sound of the blow caused Hun to jump violently, his heart racing with fear.

"Master-"

"I will not hear any more of your excuses!" The master interrupted.

Hun flinched, but wisely remained silent. The master then stalked towards him, grabbing his hair and forcing him to look him in the eye.

"I grow tired of waiting." he snarled. "If you do not have these creatures in 48 hours, you can consider your position terminated."

He dropped Hun's hair, the behemoth falling to the ground.

"Do I make myself clear?"

Hun gulped, then slowly got back onto his knees.

"Yes, Master."

…

The turtles and Hisako sat on top of the Manhattan water tower, a large meat lover's pizza balanced precariously on the top of the cone-like roof. All five of them munched on their slices as they stared up at the stars. They were playing the very same game that Leo and Hisako had done on her first adventure to the surface. It had become a sort of tradition now, one that all five of them thoroughly enjoyed.

"I see... a giraffe eating a plate of spaghetti." Mikey called out, pointing to a particular cluster of stars.

"I see… an elephant playing the trombone." Donnie countered.

"I see… an aardvark driving a school bus." Hisako added.

"That's a good one sis, but I think I got one better." Raph chuckled. "I see… Mikey wearing a clown costume."

That elicited a chuckle from everyone, though Mikey decided to throw his pizza crust instead. As the laughter died down, Hisako turned to Leo.

"Alright, your turn."

Leo squinted up at the sky, trying to find the perfect picture.

"I see-"

A clatter in a nearby alleyway drew the blue turtle's attention. He turned, and his eyebrow raised.

"A group a purple dragons breaking into a convenience store!"

Everyone immediately abandoned their pizza, coming over to Leo's part of the tower. Looking down, they saw a gang of about five thugs wearing punk attire adorned with purple dragon insignias smashing a convenience store window with crowbars.

"Don't these bozos ever learn?" Raph wondered out loud. "I mean, how many times do we have to kick their shells before they finally get the message?"

"Well, maybe this time, the message will stick." Hisako commented. "Leo?"

Leo drew his swords, then jumped off the tower. Hisako drew her fans as the remaining turtles readied their own weapons.

"Take it away Mikey." Donnie remarked.

"Cowabunga!" He shouted.

The two punks guarding the window looked up to see the five of them jumping from the tower, landing in the alley before them.

"Make this easy on yourselves, and drop the crowbars." Raph warned.

The two punks gripped their makeshift weapons as they charged at the turtles. One punk swung his crowbar at Raph, who gabbed with one of his Sais. Raph then twisted his wrist, yanking the crowbar out of the punk's hand. Now disarmed, Raph kicked the punk in the gut, sending him into the wall, knocking him out cold.

"Hey," a voice from inside the store questioned. "What was that?"

The other three punks stuck their heads out of the broken window to see the five figures beating on their teammates.

"Oh no you don't!" One of the guys, most likely the leader due to his flashier attire, shouted. "Get 'em boys!"

The other two jumped through the broken window, running towards the five siblings. While his lackeys went to deal with the interlopers, the leader reached into his pocket and pressed a button on a small device emblazoned with a dragon's claw symbol.

Back in the fight, one punk swung his crowbar at Donnie. The purple turtle was quick to duck it and use his staff to jab his opponent in the gut. He then used his momentum to spin his staff around and struck him on the back of the head, knocking the punk out as he hit the ground.

Mikey came up to one punk and grabbed the guy's wrist with his Nunchucks. With a flip, he landed on the guy's back and began making the punk punch himself.

"Why are you hitting yourself?" Mikey taunted, punctuating each question with another forced punch. "Why are you hitting yourself? Why are you hitting yourself?"

The punk tried to throw Mikey off his back, but the turtle merely flipped, using the trapped wrist to pin the punk to the ground.

"Nighty-night!"

With his second Nunchucks, Mikey conked the guy on the head, knocking him out cold.

Meanwhile, Leo was having a sword vs crowbar fight with the fourth punk. Leo's superior training gave them the edge needed to easily knock the crowbar out of his hand. He then used the hilt of his sword to strike the punk on the head, knocking him out. This left the last punk, the leader, all up to Hisako.

"You're going down, freaks!" The leader threatened. "Nobody messes with the Purple Dragons!"

Hisako just grinned, giving the guy a 'come-at-me' motion. The leader charged, repeatedly swinging at Hisako with his crowbar, but the girl just kept side stepping out of the way. Each failed hit seemed to enrage the leader further.

"Hold still, brat!"

He took a wild swing, one that would have knocked her head clean off… if it had connected. Instead, Hisako went under the swing and used her fans to sweep at his legs. The sharp edge of the fan sliced through his baggy pants like they were made of tissue paper. The punk looked down, then at Hisako. She winked, then closed her fan and brought it right up into his face. Blood squirted from his now broken nose as he fell to the ground.

"Punks..." Hisako said with a shake of her head. "May they never grow a brain."

The turtles all stowed their weapons as they tossed the punks into a pile.

"Well, that was fun." Raph remarked. "Though a bit too easy if you ask me."

"Yeah." Mikey added. "They went down way too fast. Guess they couldn’t handle our mad skills"

Hisako’s head snapped up, her mind catching a signal not far from where they were. In fact, there were several signals closing in on their location. The turtles saw her do this and they tensed, knowing all too well what that meant.

“What is it, sis?” Mikey asked.

“I don’t know.” She whispered, gripping her tessen. “But I don’t think we’re alone”

Leo looked up at the opening of the alleyway, a worried expression crossing his face.

"I think you’re right." he told her. “Look.”

Everyone turned to see that a group of motorcycles were parked in front of the alley and an army of black suited men wearing full-faced helmets were slowly closing in. Turning around, the five saw a similar situation occurring behind them. Everyone quickly drew their weapons, forming a circle.

“The motorheads.” Mikey hissed. “How’d they find us?”

“Three guesses.” Raph sneered, giving an unconscious dragon in the guts.

"Doesn’t matter how they found us." Leo told them. "They found us, and you know what to do"

Raph twirled his sai in his hands, a maniacal grin on his face.

"I am so gonna enjoy this."

The motorheads then charged at them from both directions. The five siblings dispersed to take them down head on. Donnie used his staff to vault over two of them before they could even land a hit. Once he landed, he spun around, using his staff to sweep the two guys off their feet. A third one pulled out a small staff, preparing to do the same thing to Donnie. The purple turtle was shocked to see the staff extend to be about the same size of his own, but brushed it aside as the Motorhead prepared to attack.

"A fellow bo staff fighter." he mused. "But can you actually use it?"

The motorhead then spun it around for a moment to demonstrate his skill. Growing impatient, Donnie then ran towards the motorhead twirling his own staff along the way. Finally, the two staffs collided, each warrior blocking the others blow.

Mikey, meanwhile had just back flipped out the way of two motorheads of his own.

"You think you guys are so tough." He asked pulling out his signature weapons. "Well wait till you get a load of this."

With that he proceeded to spin his Nunchucks around showing off to his opponents in true Michelangelo style. The two motorheads just standing there, looking at each other with cocked heads. Mikey continued to show his skill to the motorheads by raising one foot off the ground and moving the spinning Nunchucks under it, a smug smile on his face. Unimpressed the motorheads pulled out and threw a barrage of shuriken at the orange clad turtle. Mikey acted on instinct and used his weapons to block every blow that was dealt him. Once the motorheads stopped throwing their projectiles, Mikey held one Nunchucks in his hand while the other was locked under his arm.

"Is that all you got?" he asked in a very confident tone.

Unbeknownst to him, another motorhead snuck from behind him, raising his staff to knock him to the ground. Mikey fell hard, his head pounding as his opponents standing over him.

"Ok, guess not." he observed.

Meanwhile, Leonardo was engaged in an intense sword fight with one motorhead. He was impressed with his adversary's skills, and was relishing in the genuine challenge the battle offered him. His focus was turned away from the battle when he heard his brother cry out.

"Mikey!" he shouted.

The motorhead used this distraction to kick the blue turtle into a wall. Leo regained his focus enough to see the motorhead running toward him. Thinking fast, he flipped onto a nearby awning, thinking he had the higher ground. That brief feeling of security was destroyed when he saw the motorhead jump up and run along the wall towards him. Leo couldn't believe his eyes.

"Who are these guys?" he asked as the motorhead joined him on the roof.

Raphael had his hands full as well, having to deal with four motorheads at once. Dodging and blocking each blow they tried to deal him.

"You guys got moves, I'll admit." he complemented with half sincerity. "You guys know this one?"

With that, he planted his sai in the concrete, using it as an anchor to perform a roundhouse kick. The move was successful, knocking them all out cold.

Hisako was not as fortunate, being backed into a corner with three motorheads closing in on her. Thinking fast, she slid under her enemies' feet with fans extended, slicing their ankles and causing them to fall to the ground. However as she stood up, she realized one had avoided her attack as he grabbed her from behind. Not to be deterred, she was able to get one hand free and put a mind blast on him.

For the motorhead, it was as if his senses were suddenly turned up to maximum. The dim light of the alley was suddenly as bright as the sun. The sounds of the battle made his ears feel like they were about to burst. The stench of sweat and garbage made him want to gag, and he could taste the remnants of all the meals he had eaten in the past few days.

With her assailant mentally occupied, Hisako brought her fan down on the back of his neck, knocking him down. With this small moment of tranquility, Hisako felt a small ping in the corner of her mind, like her powers were picking up stray thoughts. Most were just the usual babble of New Yorkers dreaming, but one string of thoughts piqued her interest. Following the hypothetical string, Hisako found a familiar hulking figure hiding in a large van, accompanied by about two or three Motorheads.

"Hun..." She whispered.

Back with the turtles Mikey was not holding up well as he was shoved into Donatello's back.

"Say Donnie, is it just me or are we getting our shells kicked?" Mikey asked.

Before Donnie could answer, he grabbed his brother's shoulder and pulled them both down, narrowly dodging a barrage of shuriken.

"Ask me again when we're winning." Donnie responded slowly standing up.

At that moment, he noticed he couldn't see Hisako anywhere on the battlefield. A sinking feeling grew in his stomach as he scanned the alley for his sister.

"Hey, where's Hisako?" Donnie asked.

Having heard the question, Leo looked over his shoulder to see Hisako running towards a nearby fire escape.

"What's she doing?" Leo asked before being drawn back into the fight by two more oncoming Motorheads.

Back with Hisako, once she had climbed high enough on the fire escape, she jumped off soaring through the air until she landed on the roof of the truck she saw in her head.

"Time to draw them out."

…

Inside the van, an entire array of surveillance equipment was hard at work trying to capture images of the turtles and Hisako. He’d attempted to gather intel before using CCTV cameras and security footage, but the video always ended up either going missing or being heavily edited. Thankfully, his van seemed to be doing its intended purpose, providing Hun with many satisfactory images of the turtles. Now, all he needed was an image of Hisako. So far, all images of her were either too blurry to make out, or she was partially covered by the turtles or one of his own men.

"Mr. Hun." One of the motorheads at the controls called. "We lost the girl."

"What?" He demanded.

He shoved the motorhead out of the way, scanning the multiple screens. Unfortunately, the girl was gone. That's when he heard a thud coming from the roof. It didn't take a genius to figure out what the sound was.

"It's her." Hun hissed as he gestured to the Motorhead he had shoved out of the way. "Go get her."

The Motorhead opened the van doors. Before he could take a step outside, a slender hand grabbed onto the front of his jacket, yanking him through the doorway. There was the sound of three consecutive blows, then an audible thud of a body falling to the ground. Hun saw that, then pointed at the remaining two motorheads. They went out the door as well, and though they seemed to put up more of a fight, they too fell easily. Hun sighed, then cracked his knuckles.

"If you want something done right..." He growled.

He came out of the van swinging, his massive fist catching Hisako across the jaw. She went flying across the street, hitting the wall of a building hard and slumping to the ground.

"You do it yourself." he finished.

He grabbed Hisako, hoisting her into the air with ease. However, that was as far as he got before an angry shout rang through the street.

"Hey! Lou Ferrigno!" a furious voice taunted.

Hun turned to the source of the shout and saw that the alleyway was now devoid of the turtles. In fact, only the unconscious forms of his motorheads was visible. That's when he felt someone poking his head with what seemed to be a stick. He slowly looked up to see the four turtles standing on top of the roof of the van with weapons drawn. The orange one was crouched down, identifying him as the one who had poked him. The rest looked pissed beyond measure.

"Give us back our sister!" the red turtle demanded.

Hun just smirked, figuring he had the turtles dead to rights.

"Touch me, and I snap this girl's neck like a toothpick."

Raph was seething in anger and had to be held back by Leo to prevent him from doing something monumentally stupid. Hun chuckled, glad that everything was going according to plan, even if there had been a slight wrinkle.

That's when Hun noticed that Donatello had his hands behind his back.

"You! The purple one!"

Donny looked up with a faux innocent look.

"Yes?" he replied, his voice dripping with that same false innocence.

"What are you hiding?" Hun demanded.

"I'm not hiding anything." He said. "But if I were you, I wouldn't stand in the middle of the road like that."

"And why is that?" Hun asked.

All of the turtles crouched on the roof of the van, as if bracing themselves for something.

"Oh you'll see in about 2.4 seconds." Donnie responded in a coy manner.

Hun raised his eyebrows in curiosity. His train of thought was interrupted however when he was a pair of headlights coming up the road, approaching at about 3 times the speed limit. He squinted a bit to see a strange truck charging towards him. It was about the size of an armored van with green shell-like designs all across it, as well as Japanese kanji for turtle and ninja on one side. On the other, in obvious graffiti font, was the word "Shellraiser!"

Before Hun could react, the van hit him dead on, sending him flying across the street. Hisako was launched into the air when the car hit, so Leo leapt into the air and caught her in his arms. The two landed with ease on the now parked car.

"You good?" he asked as Hisako began to come to.

"Yeah." she responded groggily.

"I make a motion we get out of here before that guy calls reinforcements." Donnie suggested, getting into the driver's seat.

"Agreed. Let's move." Leo ordered.

The turtles scrambled into the car, Leo buckling Hisako in as Donnie hit the gas. The tires screeched as they made their getaway.

…

As the Shellraiser pulled into Renaissance motors, the five siblings finally started to relax. Though they'd been battling New York's street trash for four years, tonight's battle had shown them that they weren't top dog on the street's food chain.

"I'm just gonna say it." Raph commented as he jumped out of the Shellraiser. "That could have gone better."

"You said it." Mikey agreed. "My bruises have bruises."

"Do those guys ever give up?" Donny asked.

Hisako, who was still a bit left of center after her face-to-face with Hun, just groaned.

"They’ve been hunting us for four years, why stop now…?"

"These Motorheads are getting tougher by the day." Leo commented. “Their skills far exceed our own, and if this keeps up, we may not be able to get away so easily.”

"Remember when life was simpler?" Mikey reminisced. "When the only ninjas in New York were us, and where the worst we dealt with were those Purple Dragon jerk faces?"

"Those were the days, Mikey" Raph replied, patting his brother on the shoulder. “Those were the days.”

…

Hun found himself kneeling before his master once more. The man paced around the behemoth, an air of disappointment mixed with unbridled rage surrounding him.

"Perhaps I was too lenient when I gave you 48 hours to complete your mission." The master mused. "It is obvious that you do not have the skills necessary to combat five minor annoyances."

Hun raised his head, praying the footage he had acquired would be enough to keep his head firmly attached to his neck.

"Master, while I have failed to capture the interlopers, I have succeeded in acquiring usable footage."

The Master ceased pacing, an eyebrow raising in intrigue. Hun reached into his trench coat, pulling out a flash drive. The master snatched the drive, walking over to a thin laptop that rested on his desk. Inserting the drive, he witnessed footage of the four turtles fighting with the Motorhead soldiers. His eyebrow arched at the sight.

“Turtles?” he questioned.

“Yes Master.” Hun replied. “There is a fifth member of their group, a human girl, but I was unable to get a clear enough shot of her.”

"I see." the Master said, the disappointment in his voice causing Hun to tense up, wondering what he was going to do. "This is suitable. It would seem you still have a purpose here."

Hun let out a sigh of relief as the Master pulled the drive out of the computer and tossed back at Hun, who barely caught it.

"Take this to Baxter Stockman." The master ordered. "One of his… 'Pets' should succeed where you have failed."

Hun visibly tensed at the idea of willingly visiting Stockman in his lab, but he knew better than to question his master, especially when his position was on such unstable ground as is.

"Yes, Master."

With that, Hun left to see Stockman. Alone, the master pulled up a copy of the footage he had saved to his laptop. The way the Turtles fought his men reminded him of something familiar. Something… from the past.

…

Hun walked into a large building, entering a secret elevator hidden as part of the wall. The elevator descended until it opened up into a large white hospital like area. All around him, there were men and women dressed in lab coats milling about, but one doctor stood out.

Hun!" Stockman called. "Long time no see! How is my favorite patient?"

Hun's growl was like that of a rabid lion.

"I. Am NOT. Your patient, Stockman." He replied through gritted teeth.

"Not anymore, no." Stockman replied with a shrug "But with all of your screw-ups these past four years, I'm almost positive that will change."

Hun's huge fists clenched in anger, but he resisted the urge to punch the smug doctor. He came here for a reason, and if he failed his Master, then Stockman's prediction would come true. Without another word, Hun held out the flash drive. Stockman raised an eyebrow, taking the flash drive. Commandeering a nearby computer, he took a look at the footage. Once he played the footage, it was obvious that he was intrigued.

"Well, well. Aren't these interesting specimens?"

"These are the creatures I spoke of four years ago." Hun explained.

Stockman stroked his chin, examining the photos.

"Hmm, Terrapin Carolina by the looks of the shell design… mutated box turtles… very interesting. I would very much like to examine them."

"Well, you might just get the chance." Hun stated bluntly. "Master wants you to send one of your pets after them."

Stockman grinned at the thought, hitting the print button and printing an image of the four turtles.

"I think I know just who to send."

He turned and walked down a long white hallway towards a large metal door with several large bolts and chains over it. Two burly guards in heavy, full body armor, armed with tranquilizer guns and stun batons, saluted Stockman as he approached a small opening in the door where someone could peer inside.

"Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey." He called. "You awake in there?"

There was a loud thud as the door shook slightly, accompanied by the rattling of chains. The two guards jumped back, aiming their weapons at the opening. Stockman just chuckled as he waved the two men down.

"Congratulations," He called cheerily through the opening. "Today is your lucky day. I have a mission for you."

There was a growl that almost rivaled Huns coming from the other side of the door. Stockman slipped the pictures through the slot, careful to keep his hands clear.

"Find these creatures and bring them back in one piece. Do this, and I'll postpone your tests for a month. How does that sound?"

A large, dark green, clawed hand picked up the pictures as dark red eyes focused on the pictures. Then a guttural voice spoke at a hushed whisper.

"Deal…"