#the road home abnormality

[lesbianredhoodedmercenary]

[Main Tournament Post]

[ruinaimagines]

hihihi!! good to see you writing for this blog again!! hope you're doing well!! can I have road home platonic hcs w/their favorite agent? thank you!!! -🦷 anon

HELLO! I’ve finally gotten to this and here they are! It's great to see you again and hope you enjoy.

The Road Home w/ Their Favorite Agent Headcanons:

The Road Home is quite a joyous individual with those they find trustworthy and friendly! This is only expanded even further if you’re their favorite agent, after all you’re someone who must love adventure and friends as much as they do.

Will speak of their friends happily, wanting you to meet them and join the group, insisting that you would fit right on in. A lot of the people in the facility are so unfriendly or stoic, it makes them feel lonely or unwelcome, but you’re different in that you will listen to their optimistic rambling and entertain their thoughts.

They’re surprisingly pretty easy to deal with if you ignore the times they’ve breached and dropped houses on people, they don’t really hold any kind of ill intent and really just want to go home which is.. Relatable.

Will happily tell you the stories of their journey, how they’ve met the others, and nag at you to come with. It’s quite nice in contrast to the usual gloom and sad energy of the facility where it seems as though hopeful thinking is so easy to snuff out. Whether or not you genuinely think going with them could become a reality it still stands as a bonding point.

Even though they are much more child-like, and their stories fantastical, there are many parts you find mirroring your day-to-day life. Abnormalities are based on human desires and experiences after all.. So it’s not too surprising but still.

When they aren’t getting carried away in their own stories they will ask you a lot of questions about where you came from and such. Depending on your upbringing some of these can unintentionally dive into some more darker aspects of your past you might want to try and tiptoe around, but you know that’s not their intention.

Stares at you with literal stars in their eyes, an expression of awe on their face as you describe the most mundane of tasks you do. It could be cleaning the dishes and they would think you’re so cool, looking up to you like you’re an older sibling.

If there are other members of their little group within the same place you work at you’ll notice that they become a lot less aggressive towards you, likely because of the Road Home’s explanation. How this actually occurred though is a bit more of another question considering management doesn’t really like letting them get together like that.. A tad concerning but hey! That’s a problem from another time.

You’ve been assigned to work with them top priority over anyone else, and this is because you’ve adapted and learned a way to talk them out of more.. Dangerous breaches. Of course they’re a bit upset over the wrench in their plans to leave, but they also don’t wish harm upon people which their actions might end up doing. If you promise to help them find a more peaceful way then they may be more obligated to bide their time for now instead of breaking out.

Their short form will circle around you, occasionally ducking and hiding behind your legs whenever they see something intimidating, believing that you will protect them. And let’s be truthful, you will.

Sometimes they get stuck in places and struggle to get out because they don’t really have arms. This doesn’t happen a lot because they know how to maneuver, it’s been that way their whole life after all, but there are moments where you need to pull them out of wherever they’ve trapped themself in. They’re a curious being so that’s also a reason this happens a bit more frequently than it should.

They occasionally talk about the wizard who took her friends and much more, a tearful look in their big eyes as they recall the events. It very easily can activate overprotectiveness in you because no one wants to see them sad.

You have to assure them that whoever this ‘mean wizard lady’ is, there is no reason to worry about her getting to you. Might additionally need to explain that when you can’t always visit them it’s because work is holding you up, not because you are in danger (even though that one is a bit of a lie).

Takes some convincing but through their sniffling they will eventually nod their head. Through their descriptions though you can’t help but wonder if this ‘wizard’ they’re describing is more of an embodiment of Lobotomy Corporation with separating their friends and preventing them from going home.. It’s truly unfortunate that they aren’t able to be in better living conditions than this containment cell.

They don’t blame you by any means but the Road Home does not like your job and the things they make you do. They’ve seen the way some of the other abnormalities act, dubbing them as ‘mean people you shouldn’t have to deal with’. 

At times you have to explain that you’re a bit restricted in what you can and can not do, and this confuses them a little bit. Why can’t you have freedom to leave whenever? Why do you have to be stuck here? Why do those people put you in harmful situations? It’s a nuanced topic but that’s a bit hard to explain to what’s basically a child.

This makes them all the more determined to take you with them, a place where you and their other friends can all have fun and celebrate! They reason that as long as you all stick together that you can get through anything, and that includes this mean corporation making you do tough stuff. 

Will do their absolute best to cheer you up if they’ve noticed you’re sad, and just their attempts seem to help. They’re a lot more in tune to emotion than some might take them for, they just don’t always know what to do about it. So whether it’s complimenting you or initiating some kind of play, the thought of their concern can drag you out of poor moods.

[holygamerdragongamer]

Abnornality shower thoughts

Since in lore the warm hearted woodsman can take anything that is heart shaped, what would happened if we give it the heart of asperiation, or laetitia's gift would he be content with the heart he was given to him and be more lively ? Or the heart asperation cause him to go into a constant berserk state ? Also in the books the tin man rusts easly, so why not just grab a hose and blasted him with water to slow him down or stops him from moving

Since laetitia gives her gifts to employees when there not looking due to her being shy about, what would happened if sn agent just look back really quickly the moment she pulls out the gift. Would she stop in her tracks and try to hide it to not ruined the surpriesed or give it to the agent, and if it's the latter would the laetitia just stop if the agent says "no" ?

In the wizard of oz road home dorothy fell asleep in a field of poppy flowers, and tin woodsman, the cowardly lion and the scarecrow must carry her out before something bad happeneds to her if agents placed red poppy seeds in her path, would she be alseep or walk past it. And if it's first one would that cause scardy cat turn back into his feline form ?

Dreaming current yearns to see the ocean but with the candy he can see it, but what would happened if we take dreaming current to the ocean would he able to swim ? if so would he not want to return to the facility ?

If piscine mermaid kissed an agent and that agent didn't turn into sea foam, would it not breach and became the agent's lover ?

Do you think the army in black have old war stories? Also if either side get knocked out would the other remains active until the other side wakes up. Also does black and pink have seprate memories or shared the same one ?

If little red riding hooded mercenary kill the big and will be bad wolf for good, would she stay at lobcorp as a mercenary or just leave cuz there is no reason to stay here

road home is dororthy gale, does that make her abberition be tip from return to oz along side of the other oz abnos ?

Doe fighting and surpessing the unborn fetus techanically counts as abortion ? Also would the unborn fetus would calm if it was given big passifyer ?

Does throwing water on the warm hearted woodsman makes the surpessing him easyer because he's rusts easily like the books ?

[aethercurrent]

theres been more snow in the last 24 hours than what feels like the last 10 years combined

and its not letting up either

lmao

[incorrectabnormalityquotes]

The Road Home: Not to be corny, but sometimes I think my purpose on this Earth is to love people, make them laugh, be kind and share joy. That feels like enough to me sometimes.

Warm-Hearted Woodsman, seriously: I'm here to maim and kill, but your thing sounds nice too.

[sharoo]

Manager, you must choose a new abnormality for your facility... pt. 5

Sup y'all! I had a burst of creative energy today leading to near completion of Laetitia (hehe that kinda rhymed). Thus, I'm opening polls so that I'll have the winner by next week, since compared to the little witch, Happy Teddy won't be nearly as time consuming.

By mistake i made this poll a 24 hours one instead of a 1 week one. Go to this poll to cast your votes, sorry for the confusion:

[m4n1ac-f1ggz]

Human versión of "scarecrow searching for wisdom" :D

[weenwrites]

Can you write Optimus, Ratchet, and Predaking with an s/o who has idiopathic Hypersomnia? (It's a sleep disorder that makes someone incredibly sleepy all the time, and no matter how much they sleep, they're always tired and are incredibly hard to wake up.)

[ Please do not repost, plagiarize, or use my writing for AI! Translating my work with proper credit is acceptable, but please ask first! ]

Optimus

If you need a gentle reminder here and there to take any prescribed medicine, he quickly adapts to reminding you. His own sense of time is rather accurate, so he usually doesn't rely on a clock to know when you remind you. If you have a timer of your own to ensure that you'll definitely remember, he'll remind you a little early each time without fail.

And ever since you've told him more about your condition, he's tried to make the base more accommodating for whenever you need to take a brief rest. The couch isn't the most comfortable, given that it's rather old and worn, so he keeps cushions, blankets, and whatever else you might need to make it more comfortable somewhere within reach.

Additionally, the reason the base is made more accommodating is because at times you have to wait for him to escort you home whenever he's out on a mission or for reconnaissance. Granted, the groundbridge is also an option, and he does request for Ratchet to bridge you back to your home at times, but you've noticed that there are periods where the team cuts back on groundbridge usage due to an energon shortage. During these times, Optimus usually escorts you back to your home early and so you don't have to wait, but in the event where you are left waiting, the couch is much more comfortable than it was when you first arrived. He's sorry to make you wait, but he's grateful for your patience.

Ratchet

Whenever you start feeling tired at the base, he's got the couch ready for you with a few pillows and blankets and he's ready to tell everyone else to keep quiet for you just as he begins to work quieter if he can. However, in the event where the main area of the base is too loud, he's moved you and the couch to his habsuite before. It's further from all the noise and its quieter there.

He'll consistently remind you to take any prescribed medication and go to bed on time every night, since he's seen in a health article that it's good to maintain a consistent sleep schedule. So if he sees that you're still active on your phone, you'd best believe he'll be on your case, telling you to go to sleep (unless he knows that you're busy with something important that night).

If your condition prevented you from obtaining a driver's license, or whenever you feel too fatigued to drive yourself someplace to do an important task or go home, he'll of course be your go-to driver as long as he's available. You'll also be doing him a service since he rarely leaves the base, so don't you dare try to assure him that you're awake enough to try and drive yourself around. As a driver you understand how important it is to remain awake and alert 24/7 on the road.

Predaking

Initially he wasn't even aware that your condition was considered abnormal. He already thought that it was strange that humans had to rest so frequently, so he hadn't thought much of your fatigue until you explained more about your condition to him. Though once or twice, he may have gotten a little concerned when it took a little more than a gentle nudge to wake you up, but it's due to his limited understanding of humans.

Whenever you take brief naps aboard the Nemesis, he's always sure to bring you to the quietest and most secluded areas of the ship so you can rest in peace. Of course it's rather hard, given the fact that the engine's whirring can be heard from every corner of the vessel, but he still tries. As such, the other vehicons around the ship quickly catch onto the message he spells out with a low warning growl and his flayed fangs, regardless of whether they see you sleeping beneath all those blankets or not.

If he hadn't been ordered to keep his identity a secret from other humans, nothing would stop him from flying you wherever you need to go whenever you're too tired. But all he can really do for you is try and help you get some rest in peace, or remind you to take your medication but he feels it isn't enough. At times like these, he's embarrassed of his own powerlessness. At the very least he can request a groundbridge to transport you home, but he wishes he could do that himself instead.

[teratosfavouritesnack]

Part. 2 of -> original post

Bouncer!Werebear who’s not fazed at all when you admit that you live quite far away from there; the club he works for is one of the best in the city after all, it's no surprise that you're willing to get on the road every weekend just to go there. Because the club is surely the reason you're so bent on going through that much trouble. Surely. He’s not even fazed by the fact that he has to take such a long detour to get home himself and he lies to you, saying that your house is on his route anyway, just to not make you feel bad about it.

Bouncer!Werebear who guides you to his monster-friendly black suv, opening the door for you and whispering a "let me help you" before he gently but firmly grabs you by the waist and eases you on the elevated seat. The car is sooo much more spacious than a normal one, the reason being: he is sooo much bigger than a normal person like you.

Bouncer!Werebear who doesn't say much during the ride although he can't help but to throw subtle glances at you the whole time, appreciating the way you sit there in the abnormally huge seat, your legs crossed, his jacket dwarfing you, your flushed face turned towards the window. He doesn't know what to say, what to talk about, he’s not even sure if you actually want to chat to him… It feels so surreal to have you there. He wished to have a moment alone with you so many times and now that he actually finds himself alone with you he doesn’t know what to do. And when he realizes he doesn't even know your name, nor has he told you his, he looks at you ready to introduce himself only to notice that... you've fallen asleep. 

Bouncer!Werebear who feels his heart flutter in his chest at the sight of you, snoring quietly, snuggled up in his jacket. You felt so comfortable in his presence that you gave in to your exhaustion and fell asleep? That thought amazes him... but also fills him with a sense of protectiveness for you. You shouldn't be so naive, you shouldn't give your trust so easily to strangers. There are bad people out there that could take advantage of you… Not him though. He means you no harm. On the contrary, he strangely cares a lot for you despite barely knowing you. His heart doesn't stir lightly... but when it does, he can't ignore it. And his heart has stirred for you since the first moment he laid his eyes on you. 

Bouncer!Werebear who doesn't have it in him to wake you up once he makes it to your address so he reluctantly decides to rummage in your purse to find your keys. He hopes you will forgive him for being so nosy but you really looked so cozy and serene, he couldn’t interrupt your peaceful slumber - nor he wanted to.

Bouncer!Werebear who picks you up in his strong arms and carefully carries you inside your house, finding your bedroom and lowering you gently on the mattress. He looks at you for a moment, the thought of taking that dress off of you crosses his mind but he quickly shakes it off. Instead, he goes for your heels, trying not to linger his touch on your smooth skin. Then pulls the sheets up and tucks you in. 

Bouncer!Werebear who's fretting to leave before any more bad thoughts can cloud his mind, but who stops in his tracks, his whole body instantly tensing up, when he feels your gentle touch on his arm. 

Bouncer!Werebear who gapes at you in both awe and intrigue, as you tug at his fur, beckoning him closer, asking him to lie down with you without even saying a word or opening your eyes. He has to gulp and take a deep breath to steady his animalistic instincts. Are you even conscious? Do you even know what you're doing? What you're asking of him? 

Bouncer!Werebear who can't fight against your inviting touch despite his best judgment and carefully lowers himself next to you, grimacing at the way your fragile human bed creaks under his weight. He tries to move as little as possible, fearing he might crush your furniture… but mostly, wake you up and break this surreal moment. 

Bouncer!Werebear who can't stop the purr that rumbles out of his chest the moment you snuggle up with him, your smaller and soft body curling into his huge furry chest with such naturalness that leaves him breathless for a moment. His arms wrap around you with just as much ease, as if you were made for each other, engulfing you in a soft and warm embrace that leaves you humming in contentment; a sound that he wishes he could imprint in his damned eardrums. 

Bouncer!Werebear who lets his gaze roam over your beautiful features which look even more angelic touched by the soft lights of the morning filtering through the curtain, and he feels his own eyes start to droop and close as he dozes off with your sweet scent filling his nostrils and lulling him to sleep.

[there will be one more part]

🪷. You can leave me a tip on ko-fi if you want to support me

[lesbianredhoodedmercenary]

[Main Tournament Post]

[corvidcrossbow]

~•♡•~ Total Eclipse Of The Heart

➳ Summary: You take Daryl to watch the 2017 solar eclipse (Daryl x GN!Reader)

➳ Setting: Southern Virginia, August 21st, 2017 (in the 6 year timeskip in season 9)

➳ Word count: 1.6k

➳ C/W: Nothing

➳ A/N: Simple thing cuz I hated Leah watching something as special as the eclipse w/ Daryl in the show cuz I DO NOT LIKE her ass so I rewrote it cuz I believe there's few things more bonding than watching an eclipse with someone. Whippin out the dad music reference on this one. (I am working on reqs! I just have training for my job which my boss very reassuringly dubbed “bootcamp” and health shit is beating my ass I need to call like 3 specialty clinics again um 🗿)

“Ya ever gon’ tell me where we goin'?”

“Nope. Almost there,” You replied, a cheeky grin on your face as you swiveled your head back to glance at Daryl who sat behind you on his motorcycle. You'd dragged him out of his guilt-ridden solitude in the forest and demanded he get on, saying you needed to show him something and would not be taking ‘nah’ for an answer. You'd been driving southwest for nearly two hours now, headed towards something specific.

Daryl had little sense of the date, having spent nearly the last 3 ½ years out in the woods, wrapped up in his search for Rick. You stayed with him from time to time, Carol checking in as well, but he was too stubborn to go home with either of you no matter how many times you urged it. Even if he knew the day, you weren't sure he'd even know why it was special.

You, however, had been tracking the calendar and lunar cycles, and kept one specific date and pattern in your mind for the last 7 years; August 21st, 2017. You remembered ages ago, reading on science forums and listening to programs on the television, that today, the paths of the moon and the sun would perfectly align and grace a total solar eclipse across the entirety of the United States.

Your lives were such shit in so many ways: flesh eating, rotting corpses snarling after you at every second, run in after run in with malicious and corrupt people and groups, the lack of food, water, shelter and security, so many people gone – and that didn't include everything from before the dead reawoke. And with Daryl unadmittably depressed after the bridge, you would've done anything to show him there were other things in life to focus on. To live for.

So you left Alexandria early in the morning, found Daryl's camp, and forced him to join you. At first he'd thought something godawful had once again disturbed the communities, so bad you couldn’t tell him. But when you started driving the opposite direction, he grew confused and repeatedly asked what was going on, yet you never gave him an answer. Still, he trusted it was important – trusted you – and let you lead him.

❥-》》—————➣

You pulled off the side of the road, powering down the engine and putting up the kickstand, sliding off and stepping to walk into the forest. You'd gone further down into Virginia, knowing that was closer to totality. It wouldn't be complete, but the distance made a difference. “Alright, c'mon.”

Daryl grabbed your wrist, tugging you back and catching your attention, his eyebrows narrowed. “Really? Tha hell's s’all this? Ya haul me'ah hundred miles away tah walk in tha damn forest?”

“Ya spend all your time in a forest anyway, Dixon.” His expression hardered a little, and you sighed. “Please just follow me. I promise you, it's worth it.”

He looked over the features of your face, judging the sentiment they conveyed, and after a moment let you go. You were already here, no point in going back now. As you spun back around, he begrudgingly trailed after you.

You scanned the environment as you went, stopping near an opening in the canopy of trees that gave view to the sky. You could tell by the slanting of shadows and the slightly abnormal shape of light above you that the process had already begun, all that was left was to observe. So you set your bag down and sat, motioning for Daryl to as well.

“Thi'sa picnic or sum?” He questioned, grunting a little as he unsurely slung his belongings off his shoulder to the ground and did the same, settling beside you.

“Could be, I do have some food.” He didn't seem amused. “But no, not a picnic. You know what the day is? Any idea why it's meaningful?”

“Ts'summer, kno’ tha’. M'ah supposed tah kno’?”

“Maybe, I don't expect you to. Here.” You twisted and opened your bag, reaching for a welding mask you'd brought along and passed it to him. “Look at the sun.”

The archer eyed the facial shield, then you, but listened and held it to his face before shifting his gaze up. He squinted, taking sight of the arc carving that ate into the historically circular form of the burning celestial body. And you explained; “It's August 21st… 2017.”

He had to think for a bit. “Tha eclipse?” He lowered the mask and peered back at you. Memories lodged deep in the layers of his mind sparked; learning about eclipses way back in highschool and hearing his teacher mention it, then the annular one in ‘94 and seeing pictures plastered all over the news where they discussed the future.

“Yeah, thought we should see it. It'll look better down here, not perfect, but still… and the lens on that is dark enough it shouldn't hurt our eyes,” You answered, taking your own look before laying back and using your bag as a pillow. It wasn't particularly comfortable, but that's roughly the last thing you cared about right now.

He couldn't help but just stare for a minute, studying how nonchalant you were about everything. How you'd so easily removed him from his rut when so many other attempts had failed, even with his cluelessness around your intentions – like some larger force took hold and finally willed him to break his destructive routine.

Daryl sprawled out next to you on the forest floor, trading the welding shield back and forth over the course of the next half hour, as well as a piece of paper to see the casted geometry. You both watched as more and more of the sun was etched away, taking mental images each time and comparing the new form to the old. It was mostly quiet, lost in similar awe but varying thoughts. You inched closer every time it was his turn, assuming he noticed but didn't point it out.

“Y'know… total solar eclipses are meant to be when the deities and energies fuse, just as the paths do. A window for opportunities and transformation… time for change,” You commented, recalling all people said about the symbolism of such an event. He gave an ‘Mm’, just so you knew he'd heard you, but paid more attention to the progression in the ethers.

The world around you began to rapidly darken, a sliver of orange glow visible in the makeshift glasses. Knowing it was close, you slid your left palm into his right, weaving fingers together, and he returned the hold, still remaining absorbed in the view.

The moon crossed over the sun – at least as best it would from your vantage point; golden rays illuminating around solid black. As Daryl's eyes locked on the sky, taking it all in, yours locked on him, choosing to watch him over a potentially once in a lifetime occurrence. He lowered the mask to briefly see it fully, now reaching for the sheet.

He looked at peace, maybe for the first time in his life: the constant storm of thoughts that persistently clouded his mind finally parting, even if for just a small moment. You witnessed the glitter of genuine emotion return to his blue's, something you'd feared was so long abandoned it may have been forgotten. Rich browns of his wavy hair glowed iridescent auburns when shimmers of sunlight peeked through the leaves, perfectly complementing everything about his being.

You knew you each needed that change.

“I love you.”

He took a second, making sure the sound of your voice was real and not crafted by his own imagination. His head turned, somewhat staggered to find your eyes already meeting his. It was impossible to rip away, your visions warping together as you seemed to merge, entranced by the little crescents that reflected on each other's irises. His free hand ditched the paper and reached over as he partly rolled to his side.

“For a long time.”

In fluid movements, Daryl's calloused fingers smoothed across the delicate skin on your cheek, leaning in and bringing you to him in a longing kiss. You didn't entirely expect it, although you didn't expect anything in particular at all, too unsure of how he'd react. But you pushed back against him, deepening the kiss and paying no thought to anything beside how it felt to finally overlap with him – till he broke away.

“I love ya too,” He mused, accent thickening in the confession. When you opened your mouth to continue, he shut you up with another peck and angled your face straight above. “Watch. M'not bein’ tha reason ya miss this.”

Words could wait, but the eclipse would not. So you obliged, cuddling closer to him and squeezing his hand as birds and insects sung in a concerned ensemble triggered by the daylight's disappearance.

The tranquility was eerie, a sensation mostly left in the rubble of society and replaced by prevalent chaos. You wondered if the feeling was shared elsewhere; at home with everyone in Alexandria, with survivors across the entire rest of the country. Maybe those who didn't know thought the holy spirit was returning to rescue your raptured souls. Did the walkers pause to look too? Everything so out of the ordinary it caught their attention?

But none of that mattered to you, because you had it here. And you basked in it with the one person you'd always hoped you would've.

©corvidcrossbow 2024. I do not give permission for my works to be copied, modified or adapted to other platforms. My work may be translated only if asked and with proof of given consent.

[radiance1]

a silly idea based on your various Pariah Dark adopts Danny prompts

When Valerie launched the Ring of Rage away, the missile used accidentally destroys it. When Danny shot the Crown of Fire off Pariah's head, the ghost ray destroys it

Unfortunately, that power has to go somewhere and lookie, these two kids are looking like mighty nice homes for the energies (or rather entities) within the items, so these unfortunate kids are essentially the new Ring and Crown

This is silly but also this gives room for an intense amount of Valerie angst since, supposedly, the Ring of Rage fills whoever wears it with a wrathful, angry influence.

Now if we take that for the truth, then Valerie would quite literally might be overwritten into a more wrathful person simply because of a side-effect to housing the energy of the Ring of Rage.

Danny, meanwhile, might get drenched in mystical green flames as a side-effect of housing the Crown of Fire. It doesn't exactly hurt him, but it does surprise him because, you know, covered in flames.

I also feel like Danny's body could handle it better than Vlalerie's, mostly because of his unique biology but Valerie, being completely human would have a lot of trouble containing all of that energy in her body and may or may not get overwhelmed by said energy and her own, new, wrathful nature.

Anyways.

Pariah Dark just steals them straight up. In the moment it was because he was in disbelief, because two of his prize possesses were both destroyed and housed themselves into two kids. Of course they fought him, but even with this new situation, they were at a level of power where they could fight Pariah Dark.

So Pariah Dark retreats to his castle, furious beyond belief (yet curiously nowhere near the amount of anger he usually possessed) with Valerie and Danny passed out probably.

He was fully intending to look for something to revert this, perhaps give the Rage and Fire a new, better vessel than a random human girl and this abnormal ghost boy.

Unfortunately, nothing works.

On another note, what if Danny and Valeria couldn't exactly touch each other? Or be in contact with each other? It's like, since the Fire along with the Rage grants whoever wields them near infinite power, they can't handle it on their own and caused... less than pleasant effects.

But there was someone there who could.

Pariah Dark. Previous wielder of both Rage and Fire and could handle their power 24/7.

This, unknown to literally everyone but Clockwork, is what leads Pariah Dark down the road of redemption and fatherhood.

Clockwork is there and here in the background, nudging the timeline a bit to his whims to get himself the said desired outcome.

[leonstoenailunderhisbed]

A Southern Myth

Summary: Leon had been sent to a rural place in Texas where sightings of a BOW were reported. But upon entering the forgotten town, he began to get entangled in a horrific twist of events involving a religious cult. Things escalate and now he must survive with the help of a girl who doesn’t believe in anything.

Warning: horror. religion. mentions of blood and gore like description. cult activities. violence. swearing. reader is fem. there is no romance/smut.

A/N: omg I’ve never written something like this before🙈 CAPCOM should hire me for script writing.

“You believe you're on the righteous path, you believe you're a force for good, but you're not.” - John Seed, Far Cry 5

“Come forth, my children. Let your souls become pure under His guidance.”

“Let us rejoice in purity as we bathe in this sacrifice. Let us become one for Him, for He has been waiting.”

-

The sound of the dirt rolling under the car’s wheel made the road feel bumpy for Leon. The heat was intense the further he went into the rural side of what was once a town named Giligand in Texas. Once a lively town that had become a ghost town.

Until a group of religious settlers took over the desert land and claimed it their new home. They built their own society, far away from modern civilization. The orange and dried plants surrounding the new town as the wind blew hard. The sun intensified and caused Leon’s sweat to trickle down his body.

Right in the middle of nowhere is where he got sent- yet again. The D.S.O has assigned Leon a more haunting mission. The government division found in Texas’ own legislation had found weird signs of an unknown entity roaming around the dried up land. He found himself standing in front of an agent in Austin telling him about this entity.

“Our homeland security experts have raised a few concerns regarding a secluded town in Western Texas. They believe that this could be related to the virus incident that presided in other countries,” The senior agent stated as he gave Leon a stack of papers containing pictures and files of the sightings.

The abnormality was big and round. But its eyes were the only visible thing in the dark of night. Pure white eyes protruding from the creature’s face, sending a wave of uneasiness to Leon. The monster seemed tall, definitely more than 9 feet tall. Leon couldn’t tell exactly what it was but he guessed there were some sort of horns coming out the creature’s skull.

Leon had finally reached the town, being greeted by a yellowing sign. The sign written in Times New Roman “Welcome to Cunstacin” on the bottom “previously Giligand” and then near the border edge “Pop. 189”

Such a small town for a big state. Leon didn’t think much of it. He wasn’t aware of how much his life would change the minute he passed the sign without seeing those pure white eyes watching him from behind his truck.

The town itself was small but seemed very busy. The roads were flat with gravel. The houses were old and barren but still usable. He wondered how people were able to make a living of such an abandoned place. As he neared a motel, he was met with the leader of the town. A tall man of tan skin, hair long enough to reach his shoulders as his beard grew to his neck.

He approached Leon’s truck and greeted him with a polite smile, “Ah, you must be the new guy they sent here.” Leon nodded as he turned off the engine and jumped out of his car.

The man walked up to Leon and patted his shoulder, “Hope the road wasn’t too tedious. The distance between here and the city is pretty stretchy.” The man chuckled and looked behind him where two young women stood. “Go fetch his luggage and take it to his room. We don’t want to make our esteemed guest work too much now, don’t we?”

The two ladies nodded and walked over to the trunk of Leon’s truck. They both carried the brown and thick luggages to the motel, their silhouettes getting lost in between the halls.

The man then gently forced Leon to walk with him, “I’m sure you’re tired and you might want to get some rest, but there’s an afternoon mass the town wishes for you to attend. The people want to meet the new guy in town,” the man laughed again and gave Leon’s chest a lazy slap.

“I appreciate the offer but I’m here for work- strictly for work,” Leon replied as he looked at the man and then around the area.

The man chuckled and took his hand away from Leon’s shoulder, “No worries- I get it. You’re a busy guy and your work ethic is commendable,” the man leaned towards Leon’s ear to whisper, “But if you find yourself in need of His words, do come to the church behind the Great Willowed Forest.” The man leaned back and gave him another toothy smile, almost unsettling. “Make yourself at home.” That was the last thing the man said before he began to walk away.

Leon exhaled through his nose. He already got the creeps from the background check he ran on the town but meeting the people in person made the whole experience much more precarious.

He began to walk along the town, trying to find any other civilians. He saw an older woman with two children outside a two story building.

“Excuse me,” Leon said as he jogged to the three individuals. One of the children, a little boy with a bowl haircut pointed to Leon and exclaimed, “Look, meemaw- ‘tis the new guy!” The older woman slapped the little boy’s head, “Pointing at strangers is rude.”

Leon cleared his throat, “It’s alright,” he looked down at the kid before looking back at the older woman, “I’ve heard there were some strange… sightings around this town-“

“Ah, yes-“ the woman cut him off, “You’re talking Tervin.” Leon immediately furrowed his brows. They had named the potential B.O.W?

“Tervin?” Leon asked and the woman nodded, “Yes. He was sent by God,” she looked up at the sky and then back at him.

“He was kind enough to send us a messenger. My boy, the end is coming. We must cleanse our souls of our sins in order to enter our Eden.”

Leon immediately felt a weird sense of unease in his lower stomach, the bottom pit sinking down after the woman spoke.

The woman took a step forward and cupped Leon’s face, “He is our savior. He will bring us to an eternal peace. Time is ticking, we must proceed with His plan.”

Leon took a step back, taking deep breaths. What was this feeling? His heart was hammering against his rib cage and he could feel his head become light. Maybe it was heatstroke or maybe it was fear.

The woman stared at Leon, seemingly in a trance. He swore he saw her eye color vanish for a moment, not right before she “came back” and smiled at him. She then took hold of the two children’s hands and walked away. He could only stay there watching as they got further away.

He exhaled shakily as he ran a hand through his hair, this would be harder than he thought.

-

For the next following days, he’s been trying to talk to these people but everyone said remotely the same things.

“Monster? He’s no monster. He’s our salvation.”

“God sent him, it is His gift to us.”

“We must act quickly, the end is nigh”

Leon was currently sitting on the edge of the bed in the room he was currently staying. His elbows rested on his knees as his gaze fell on the picture of the creature he had in his hand. Pure black, except for the eyes. Something felt sinister- almost too evil. But he couldn’t pinpoint what. Everyone looked normal-ish.

He left the motel and began his 15th round of research. He was so sure he’d get kicked out if he kept asking the people questions. His mind traveled back to what the leader said, something about attending mass.

He didn’t want to but he knew that he had to try. Maybe there was something that could be useful in the church.

So that’s where he was headed. To the Great Willowed Forest. A forest full of tall trees and tall grass. The sun was setting and the church came into his line of vision. A tall Victorian structure that was adorned in white and gold. A bell sitting on top of the highest tower peak of the religious establishment. He slowly walked up the freaking and old steps of the church. Muffled talking from just the other of the door. With a light inhale, he pushed the door open with gentleness and stepped into the church.

The inside was much more beautiful. The benches were neatly fixed in rows as the windows were stained glass depicting stories of their God. The church was packed and the leader stood on the podium, preaching about their path to salvation.

“We must obey the Lord’s rule. For we are His children as well as His servants. We must makeup for the loss of His journey.”

Leon found himself an empty seat at the very back. No one seemed to have noticed him enter, they were all focusing on the town’s leader words. Almost as if they were bewitched.

“Tonight, we must bring our sacrifice and cleanse our souls. We must savor the taste of blood as He has given us a vessel from his sacrifices. We must show him our devotion.”

The mass lasted for an hour and a half, and he didn’t find anything remotely useful. He sighed in defeat as he felt like he wasted his time, yet again. There were no signs of any B.O.W and these people were most certainly convinced that the monster was their key to heaven.

It was nighttime when Leon had left the church, walking aimlessly through the forest. His mind preoccupied with thoughts about potentially lying to the D.S.O and telling them it was just some southern myth.

Until he hears clinking sounds coming from behind a bush. His agent instincts activated and he quietly walked towards the bush to see what was behind it.

To his surprise, he’d found another person. A girl working on a garden. She had been couched down on the floor as her hands worked through the soil.

As he walked towards you, his boots crunched against the twigs lost in the grass. Your attention had been drawn to the sound and you quickly spotted the new man in town.

You furrowed your brows as he approached you, “You’re the new guy everyone’s talking about.”

Leon nodded curtly, “The one and only,” you hummed in response and resumed your duties.

“Can I ask-“

“No.”

He was caught off guard by your immediate answer. You didn’t even look back at him. He could only stare at the back of your head as your hands worked through the soil.

“You didn’t even listen to what I had to say,” he approached you and crouched next to you, glancing at the plants you’ve been planting.

“I don’t need to. You’re asking questions about this stupid and fake thing everyone claims to be salvation or some other bullshit,” you grumbled.

“Not necessarily-“ he sighed and looked at your side profile, “I’m not here for that-“

“What do you want me to tell you? That there’s some sort of monster roaming around the forest?” You turned your head to look at him, “Because I won’t. I haven’t seen anything and I do not believe it even exists. Those lunatics are hell bent on their stupid… belief,” you scoffed as you turned your attention back to your plants.

“Bunch of bullshit if you ask me,” you muttered. He looked at you some more before looking back down at your hands covered in dirt.

“So you aren’t with those people?” Leon raised a brow as he analyzed you. You shook your head no, “Hell no. You don’t know what they do to those who don’t believe in their God… you don’t know anything.”

Leon remained silent as your words settled down in his mind. There was more than what you led on and both of you knew this.

“Then tell me,” he replied quietly. You sighed and looked at him with an annoyed expression, “Doesn’t matter. Just go back to your shit and mind your business.”

He didn’t say anything, he just watched you for a few minutes before he stood up and left.

He went back to his motel room and laid down on the bed. Staring up at ceiling as he thought about the events that took place. He still couldn’t shake off the strange feeling he felt about this town. Something felt odd but he just didn’t know what. He sighed and decided to just sleep for the night.

-

Leon woke up early in the morning and tried to find the leader of the town. Surprisingly, he was at the church. He was sitting down on a bench, silently praying. Leon walked up to him and sat next to him as he waited for him to finish praying.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t our visitor. To what do I owe the pleasure?” The man said as he noticed Leon’s presence next to him. Leon cleared his throat and pulled out a picture of ‘Tervin’

“I need you to tell me about this. What do you know?” Leon’s brows were furrowed, he was serious. He didn’t come around to play. The man took the picture and stared at it. Something in his aura had changed upon seeing that picture.

“Where did you get this?” The man asked as he looked at Leon with an unreadable expression. Leon shrugged, “I can’t say.” The man hummed and looked back at the altar in front of them.

“Tervin is a gift from God. He was sent as a warning of impending doom,” the man replied in a flat voice. “If he isn’t satisfied, then he seeks blood. We must cleanse this town of impurities and relay a message to God that we are worthy of his Eden paradise.”

Something in that caused a shiver to run down Leon’s spine, but he didn’t show it. He remained serious and calm. Leon nodded once and stood up, feeling like no one will actually tell him anything.

“Thanks,” he muttered before he left the church. When he walked out, he nearly crashed into you.

“Watch it,” you hissed at him. He looked down at you with a raised brow, “I’m pretty sure you meant ‘excuse me’” he crossed his arms over his chest and kept blocking the doorway.

You sighed and looked at him unimpressed, “Excuse me.” Leon rolled his eyes and stepped to the side. As you began to walk past him, you noticed the picture in his hands. Your brows pinched together and you quickly pointed to it, “what’s that?”

Leon looked down at the picture and then back at you, “I’m supposed to investigate this… thing.” He watched you closely, trying to gauge your reaction as you stood there silently thinking.

“You’ll get yourself in trouble if you keep putting your nose where it doesn’t belong,” you warned before stepping inside the church. He saw you walk up to the leader. He exhaled and walked back to the town. When will someone actually help him?

-

It was somewhere past 11 pm, he was staring at the files he had about this town and his objective. It was impossible to think how he didn’t have any leads. It was the Leon S Kennedy! He always saw that the job got done, always.

He groaned defeatedly and began to walk around the town, he doesn’t even know how many times he’s done that.

The town was awfully quiet. There was a fog occupying most of his vision, making the place look eerie and unsettling. He heard the rustling of the trees and grasses but he paid no mind to that. Not right now, at least.

He saw you sitting on a fountain, staring at your reflection deep in thought. Why were you the only one out here. He walked over to you and spoke in a soft voice, “What are you doing out here?”

You looked over at him and then back at the water, “Could ask you the same.”

Leon sighed and scratched his head, “I just- I wanted to ask questions but seems like everyone just… disappeared.”

You hummed in response as your fingers played with the water, “They didn’t. They’re at the church praying or something.”

His ears perked up, praying at this time? He didn’t want to question it but it still lingered in his mind.

After a few moments of silence, he couldn’t help but ask, “You said you didn’t believe in God, why is that?” He asked in a quiet voice.

You looked at him before motioning for him to follow you, “It’s better if I just showed you.”

You led him through the dark forest, twigs snapping under your shoes and wind howling soft whispers as the moonlight glimmered down you two.

“This town ostracizes those who don’t believe in God. Do you know what happens to nonbelievers?” You looked behind your shoulder to glance at Leon for a brief moment.

“No, I don’t but do tell,” he followed behind you as his eyes scanned the forest for any threats.

You sighed and stopped walking once you’ve reached an abandoned cemetery, you walked up to one of the gravestones and stared down at the name, “Jeffrey Clyle. 1987-2024.”

“Sacrifice,” you whispered. Leon heard you and walked up next to you, your eyes distant and your expression solemn.

“Ever since rumors of the “messenger” started, they’ve been capturing and targeting those whose faith has been faltering…” your gaze remained down at the gravestone and Leon remained silent as he let you talk.

“They’ve been doing human sacrifices in the name of God. They believe that God would forgive them if they kill those who oppose him…” your voice trailed off for a moment before you turned your face to look at him, “It’s evil. Punishing people for not believing in something is inhumane. They’re all slaves to their own fucking religion, that God is not kind and I will never believe in it.”

“Then what are you still doing here?” Leon asked as he stared into your eyes, searching for an answer.

“Because my father is the fucking leader of this whole thing. I can’t just leave,” you mumbled and looked away. “I already get judged for not believing- imagine what would happen to me if I left?”

He remained silent once again. Your father was the preacher and the leader of the town? That makes things even more interesting. Leon never pictured himself to be in this kind of situation- not since Spain, at least. It all seemed the same to him. Religion controlling people, is that all it will ever be?

Then he remembered something from mass he attended,

“Tonight, we must bring our sacrifice and cleanse our souls. We must savor the taste of blood as He has given us a vessel from his sacrifices. We must show him our devotion.”

Leon’s eyes widened as he began to finally realize what might happen. He looked down at you, “You mean to tell me… that your father participates in human sacrifices? Why?” His eyes were narrowed as his breathing became faster.

You looked at him with narrowed eyes, “Because his idiotic self thinks that sacrificing people will help him and his goons reach their heaven.”

Innocent lives were being used for this town’s religion. This didn’t sit right with Leon. He quickly ran out of the cemetery- his heartbeat speeding as his legs carried his body towards the church.

Under the embrace of the moon and the night, a gathering assembled at the edge of the churchyard, shrouded by the shadows cast by the townspeople. Their faces unrecognizable under the dark night, their chants in hushed tones as they circled around a sacrifice.

Bound by chains, a person writhed in resistance, their muffled cries stifled by a potato sack over their head. Leon stood behind a tree as you came behind him to look at the scene unfold in front of your eyes.

The leader of the town emerged, wielding a sacrificial blade gleaming under the moonlight. Each stroke of the blade sent shivers down your’s and Leon’s spine, as the victim's anguished pleas echoed through the night, a haunting presence appeared through the tethered night.

“We give this sacrifice to you, our Lord. Let us repent for our sins and wash ourselves with the blood of those who’ve been cleansed.”

The creature- otherwise known as the B.O.W- emerged from behind the forest and entered the churchyard. Its stature was 11 feet, towering over everyone. Its black glistening skin reflected the moonlight as its pearly white eyes penetrated the group of believers. Its horns swirled upwards, reaching up to the sky. The townspeople all bowed to the creature as they chanted its name, “All hail Tervin.”

Leon’s eyes widened as he saw the B.O.W while your eyes widened at the fact that this “messenger” was indeed real. Leon took out his gun and aimed it at the B.O.W. You quickly pulled his arm down and whispered in a harsh tone, “Are you stupid? That thing could be dangerous.”

Leon narrowed his eyes at you, “I’ve fought those things before, I know what I’m doing.” He shook your hands away from his arm and aimed the gun back at the beast.

The beast approached the human sacrifice and with its claws, it picked up. Almost instantly crushing the human, letting the blood fall down like rain on the townspeople.

“Thank you, Lord, for this blessing”

The B.O.W then ate the human sacrifice after the townspeople showered in their blood. A scene so horrific and disturbing, it twisted your stomach upside down. The creeping sensation of the fact that it could’ve been you in that situation only made it worse.

To feel your rib cage cave in, piercing your lungs and heart as blood trickles down your mouth. Its claws clawing into your body, letting the blood flow like water.

It only made you shiver and writhe in disgust.

Leon then began to shoot at the B.O.W with his gun, drawing the attention of the townspeople. One bullet shot the creature’s eye, causing it to stagger backwards in pain. The group of believers all turned to look at you and Leon.

Their faces unrecognizable- their faces foreign as the creases and eyes all felt like distinct people. The group slowly began to walk towards you two as the monster howled in anger.

“God, forgive those sinners. They haven’t sought your guidance. Let us illuminate their path,”

The leader spoke as they approached you and Leon. Anxiety coursed through your body as you saw the B.O.W swing its claws at the group of believers. People flying left and right. The leader turned around and observed in delight.

“Yes, God, yes! We shall sacrifice ourselves for Eden.”

The whole group then began to chant, “For Eden. For Tervin.”

The B.O.W only had one goal in mind- and it was to kill the person who injured it. As Tervin kept walking towards you and Leon, Leon took hold of your wrist and began to ran. He dragged you through the forest back to the motel he was staying in.

He looked the door to his room and turned to look at you, “What the fuck was that!?” Leon was stressing, all these emotions resurfaced and he felt overwhelmed. Why was this happening, how was this happening?

“I told you, they’re fucking evil when it comes to their God,” you replied harshly.

“Yeah I wasn’t exactly expecting your father to be the leader of a cult with that thing as its dog!,” Leon replied as his hands traveled through his face and hair.

You scoffed and crossed your arms over you chest but just as you were to speak, the ground shook. Heavy footsteps were heard and Leon rushed to the window. He peeked through the blinds and saw the group of believers walking over to the motel with Tervin in following them. They kept chanting as they kept walking.

“We need to get out of here now-“ you said as you began to hurry out the door. Leon, however, stopped you.

“I can’t just leave, I have a mission to do and it requires me to kill that thing. I cannot go home until it’s dead,” he said as he stared at you with a resolved expression.

You could only stare at him in silence for a few moments before sighing defeatedly, “Fine, do whatever you want.”

“Stay here,” he instructed as he took his gun and walked out, leaving you alone in his motel room.

In the flickering glow of the moonlight, amidst the eerie chants of the cultists, Leon stood there, gun in hand as he scanned the group. He needed to be smart. They had a B.O.W to their advantage.

As the first cultist lunged forward, knife in hand, Leon countered with swift precision, deflecting the blade with a punch to the gut. His movements were a blur of calculated strikes and evasions. As he killed and wounded the cultists, they grew more frenzied, their chants escalating into desperate cries of fury. Yet, undeterred, Leon continued fighting.

“We must bring him to God!” They chanted as they kept lunging at Leon.

Amidst the chaos, the B.O.W stepped forward, its twisted features contorted with rage as it charged at Leon. With the gun pointed at the beast, he shot bullet after bullet, causing it to slow its movements.

“God, please forgive our brother for he has sinned. We must cleanse him.”

Leon ran out of bullets and just as the B.O.W was about to strike, he saw you throw a pitchfork at it. The blades piercing the creature’s skin, stabbing it right in the chest.

The B.O.W let out a screeching scream, “No! Our messenger!” The leader spoke in anguish as he watched the creature stumble back, falling to the ground with a thud. Leon reloaded his gun and began to shoot again, this time aiming for the head.

As Leon became busy, your father glared at you and it was like something turned in him, “You bitch. I’ve had just about it with you. You will submit to your God and you will repent!”

You’ve never heard him speak to you this way, so much malice in his voice that you didn’t recognize the man that used to be your father.

He lunged at you, his hands trying to reach for your neck to strangle you. You took a nearby torch and set his clothes on fire. He stood back and tried to set the fire off of himself- to which he fails. He screams and cries in pain as he began to get engulfed in the flames of his sins.

“Forgive me, my children!”

You finally understood everything. There was no God because your father believed he was that God. The flames burned up in hues of blue and orange right before the sparks flew into the night sky.

His skin melted, his eyes became a blobby mess and he fell to the ground. His screech becoming more faint as the life in being burnt away from his body. The flames expanding over the dried wheat of the town, engulfing the town in a pit of fire.

Leon had been too busy to even notice that you killed your father. He’s been shooting the B.O.W, making sure to blow its head off once and for all.

After two rounds of reloading, he finally was able to kill that damn thing. Watching it fall to the ground, sending harsh vibrations to the floor as silence overtook the ghostly town.

Heavy panting overtook the two of you as the silence grew deafening. You turned to look at Leon as he stared at the B.O.W all lifeless. You looked around and saw the bloodbath. Everyone was dead.

Pools of blood stained the gravel he once stepped, the lifeless bodies of the townspeople growing cold. The flames being the only source of light under the dark night.

Leon turned to look at you for a brief moment before looking up at sky as he tried to take deep breaths. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. He couldn’t believe what he was brought into. But he was glad it was over. For now at least.

Leon packed his things and went over to his truck, he looked at you, “Aren’t you coming?”

You looked at him and then back at the town- or what remained of the town. You nodded and walked over to his truck.

Both of you driving down the lane of the rose, exiting the town. Passing by a sign that read, “Please visit soon!”

Unaware of the presence with the white eyes watching you two leave the town.

[samkerrworshipper]

togetherness | pt.2

part 1. | part 2. | part 3. | part 4. | part 5 |

longawaited and has been sitting in my drafts for weeks now cause i wasn’t quite sure if i liked the direction it’s gone in… but highliting different issues n stuff so i hope y’all enjoy! again i’ve edited this on my phone whilst reading from my kindle lol so not going to lie i’m aware that the editing could be shocking… there’s a few more parts sitting in my drafts so lmk if y’all want more

warnings: child exploitation, themes of sexual assault of minors, just general hurt with protective n supportive tillies

“Now that we’ve settled that, is there anything, anything at all that you’d like to tell me that I could help you with?”

I gulped, there were about six things I could think of just off the top of my head. I was tentative though. I could feel tears starting to form in the back of my eyes as I tried to make the decision in my head.

“No judgement?”

Sam’s immediate nod in response was comforting and apparently enough to get me talking.

“It’s going to sound stupid and I don’t even know what you could do about it considering that I’m probably somewhere in the wrong with it as well.”

Sam looked like a mixture of intrigued and perplexed.

“Y/n, even if I can’t do anything about it, you look like you just need to get it off your chest, I can be that for you as well, just tell me what’s been bothering you so much.”

I sniffled and nodded at Sam, this situation was so abnormally vulnerable for me.

“You know that I was rough around the edges when I got here, I know you haven’t heard the whole story, to put it simply I went through a rough patch when I was 14 and 15, before I got here. I’d just had spine surgery, I thought that I was never going to walk again, let alone play football. I turned to a lot of things, drugs, alcohol, anything. I ran away when I was 14, I don’t remember much of it, just that when I returned home my parents had had enough and they sent me off to the AIS for Tony to train me. Anyways, I’m rambling. Somewhere along the road I sent some explicit videos, photos and texts to my ex boyfriend, graphic ones, there’s a lot of them. He’s been posting them on reddit and twitter and they haven’t gotten any attention yet but with all the media coverage and bad press I’ve had recently I’m worried they are going to be brought up and I don’t know what to do about it.”

Sam’s expression was one thing, completely deflated and shocked. She was typing furiously into her phone whilst she was listening to my story. It took a few minutes of silence for her to reply to me.

“First off I want to start off with telling you how grateful I am for you sharing that information with me, it can’t have been easy and you are incredibly brave for telling me. I’ve got some follow up questions that I need to ask, you don’t have to answer them, I’d just appreciate it if you could try your best, okay?”

I nodded quickly in reply to Sam.

“Okay. How old were you when you sent these videos and how old was your boyfriend at the time?”

“I was 14 or 15, he was in his mid twenties.”

“So that puts him in his late 20s or early 30s right now, if my maths is correct. Did you take these photos and videos or did someone else?”

“I took most of them but he took some.”

Sam nodded at me again.

“Okay based on that question I can tell you that this ex boyfriend of yours is legally in possession of child pornography, that’s an indictable crime. If you want this to well and truly stop then we can go up that path. I want us to talk about this with Tony, it’s ultimately your decision but I think it would be very sensible to take this up with him at the very least. Y/n, you have done absolutely nothing wrong, I need to stress to you how important it is that you understand that. No one is going to blame this on you, because it isn’t your fault, you are a victim of a crime. That isn’t something light. I promise you that I have your best interests in concern when I’m telling you this. I have to ask, have you talked to anyone else about this? Your family? A therapist? A friend? Leah?”

Leah Williamson, my arsenal team captain and my best friend/mom/girlfriend. I shook my head at Sam, I’d wanted to tell Leah, she was the only person I probably trusted enough to tell but I hadn’t seen her in weeks.

“Do you want to talk to someone about it?”

“I was going to talk to Lee about it, eventually. Just with her ACL and us being in different places it didn’t make much sense, plus this stuff is so fucking stupid I didn’t want to bother anyone with it, I’m sorry for bothering you with it, Ellie was right I’m being fucking selfish.”

Sam’s face was unreadable, it was clear she was pretty deep in thought. She sat across from me for a few minutes, in thought, before she stood up and walked around the table, sitting herself down beside me.

“Can I give you a hug?”

I nodded and relaxed a little bit as I felt Sam’s arm snake its way across my shoulders, inevitably bringing me closer to her and into her chest.

“Williamson would want you to tell her, she’ll probably be mad that you didn’t tell her earlier. You are not being a bother to anyone, you have human emotions and this situation you are in is a hard one. You aren't being selfish, you are asking for help, which is a very human thing and you very clearly need it right now, there is nothing wrong with that. Now, how about I call Williamson for you, I’ll see you if you can get down here? I’m going to call Tony down here, I’ll brief him and he’ll help, okay?”

“I don’t want to tell Tony, he’s going to be mad and he’ll probably tell me this kind of behaviour isn’t wanted on his team and then I’ll get sent home.”

I could feel the material of Sam’s jumper that she must have thrown on after training soaking up my tears, that was embarrassing.

“I know you don’t want to, and I can promise you that Tony is going to be nothing but supportive, you’ve done nothing wrong. There is nothing illegal about what you did, now or then. Tony is not going to send you home, I promise. Now, do I need to call Williamson or can you do it?”

Realistically I probably could have, but I really didn’t want to.

“Can you?”

Sam nodded at me immediately, which comforted me a little bit.

“I wouldn’t have offered it if I couldn’t. She should be in Sydney right now to watch the Lionesses play tomorrow night, yeah? I’ll talk to her and we’ll see what we can work out for you. I don’t have her number though, so can you call her on your phone and I’ll talk to her.”

I nodded quickly, shakingly pulling my phone out of my pocket and pushing it out onto the table. I very quickly pulled Leah's contact, I’d called her last night so it wasn’t hard to find. She was the only person in the world that I could talk to when I was at my lowest, the only person who actually cared about me. So last night, whilst I was mid panic attack, on Ellie's and I’s ensuite floor I called her and she’d talked me through it. I should have told her then, it probably would have saved me this whole interaction with Sam, but I hadn’t wanted to worry her anymore, so I blamed it on pressure of being selected to start this week and she’d accepted my answer.

We’d been texting most of the morning, her asking me if I’d gotten sleep and if I was feeling alright, I’d answered shortly with an array of 'yes', because I didn’t want to worry her anymore. I passed the phone over to Sam once I found her phone number and she clicked the call button before pressing the phone up to her ear and standing up from her seat, starting to pace between the seats.

“Hey Leah, this is Sam, Sam Kerr, from the Matildas. Look, I’m here at our Sydney training facility with Y/n, we’ve just had a pretty serious conversation with her about some problems that she’s had recently and I was wondering if you were around so you could be here for her.”

Sam pulled out her own phone again as I assumed she listened to Leah’s response. It amazed me as to how fast her fingers danced across her own screen, it was a different kind of multi tasking.

“Yup, Mmm. Alright, I’ll send you the address, it’s not far from you guys hotel from recollection. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you being able to do this for her, I’ll see you soon and we can talk about it then.”

I gulped as Sam said her farewells and then hung up the phone before walking back over to me.

“She’s coming down, should be here in fifteen or so. She sounded worried about you, mentioned something about you having a panic attack to her on the phone last night and that she was concerned about you. I’ve texted Tony, he’s finishing up with Ellie and then he’s going to be down here. I’m going to get Steph to meet Leah downstairs when she gets here and she’ll bring her up, Y/n, we’re all here to support you however you need, alright?”

Me and Sam stayed silent in the room until about ten minutes later there was a distinct knock against the door.

“Sam, it’s me, unlock the door.”

Steph’s voice was pretty distinct, even through the heavy door. Sam stood up almost immediately, walking to the door and unlocking it before a grumpy looking Steph and a flustered version of Leah made their way through the doorway before Sam had the opportunity to relock it. Leah’s eyes went straight to my own, her whole facial expression was very controlled, she could command an entire room with that face, I knew from experience.

“Are you okay?”

Her words were directed at me, and only me. I pressed my tongue against my front teeth and lip, trying to decide how to answer the question.

“There’s some stuff that’s been happening that I haven’t told you, I’m not in trouble, or at least that’s what Sam is telling me. It’s some stuff from my past, when I was a kid. Explicit images and photos, on the internet, from when I was a kid. They popped up a few weeks ago, starting when I was in Spain with you before we came here. I didn’t bring it up because I thought I was at fault for it as much as the person who has possession of them. Sam told me that it isn’t, that I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m sorry, I know it was fucking stupid and I should have told you about it or not done it, I don’t even remember taking any of the photos or videos, it just happened and now I don’t know what to do because I don’t want it getting out to the public and I just, I don’t know how to deal with it.”

Leah’s face relaxed a little bit as I progressively talked and rambled. Once I was done she walked over to my spot, seated on one of the chairs and wrapped her arms around me.

“Hey, it’s alright, we’re going to sort this out. She’s right, you didn’t do anything wrong and you should have told me earlier but I am so grateful that you are telling me now, yeah? You are so brave kiddo, that’s child exploitation and whoever has possession of those materials is the one who’s in the wrong, okay?”

I nodded into Leah, Steph and Sam were whispering between each other behind us.

“You have to take legal action though.”

Those words made me feel like I’d been stabbed and my guts had been ripped out of my body cavity.

Leah let go of me very gently and pursed her lips.

“Because this isn’t going to go away if you don’t, and I know that you are strong but you aren’t going to be able to live if you know that this person who has possession of these materials is still out there. You’ve been checked out for weeks now, since before Mallorca. You aren’t going to check back into your life until this goes, I know it. I need you checked in, I need you to be my girl, not the skeleton of your own body that you inhabit as a coping mechanism when something bad happens.”

I think Leah would have said more if it wasn’t for the incessant knocking against the door that came again. Sam was the one who went to the door again, letting Tony in. He looked flustered as well, and a little bit worried. I’d known the man since I was 15, he’d seen me in some pretty interesting situations. Sam intercepted him before he could say anything, pulling him aside and giving him what I assumed to be the rundown of the last hour.

“I don’t think I can handle this getting out, it will, if I take legal action this is going to get out and then I’m going to be Y/n Y/l/n, the Matilda’s exploitative rookie and I’ll never be back here. My career will be over, Jonas won’t want me back, everything I've worked for will be done.”

Leah took a deep breath before wrapping her arms around me and working her hands through my scalp and hair.

“If you take legal action you will be supported, I’ll make sure of it. We are a part of a community of women that uplift us for everything you do, this won’t be any different. There will be some who judge, there is always going to be someone there to judge you. Y/n, you need to do this for your sanity, I won’t lose you to your mental health again, not like last year. Kerr has done the right thing here, bringing this up, it shows me that she cares a lot more about you then you think, it also shows me that she knows what’s best for this team and you. She wouldn’t be doing this if she didn’t think this was the best course of action.”

I nodded into Leah, trying to convince myself that her words were correct. Eventually, after Sam had given Tony the full rundown he sat down across from me, exactly where Sam had been beforehand. Sam and Steph both stood behind me and Leah, Sam’s arms resting gently on my shoulders, it was grounding.

“Sam’s told me about what’s happening. First of all I want to say how sorry I am that you are going through this, it’s not something that anyone should have to deal with, ever. Second of all I want to let you know that this team, this whole nation is in support of you. Look, it’s too late for me to take any action now. I’m going to get the police to come down tomorrow morning, you aren’t in trouble. I just think that they are going to have a better understanding of this situation than any of us could. They’ll come down, we’ll have a talk about all of this, they’ll ask the questions they need to. We don’t need to make any decisions now, we’ll talk to them, Sam and I will be there to advocate for you. After that we can make decisions about taking legal action and whatnot. Otherwise I just wanted to tell you genuinely, from the bottom of my heart how much we all care about you and value you here, we are all going to be here for whatever you need in the future, you are a valued part of this team and family and we are all here to look out for your needs, okay?”

I gulped, I could feel fresh tears springing to my eyes again. I was petrified of the police, to say the least, but Tony’s voice was so reassuring. He was the father that I’d never had and when I was 15 and he’d met me I’d been in a bad place, I’d needed him to be that figure in my life and he had been. He gave me a routine, gave me something to wake up for every morning. I probably wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for Tony. He’d given me a chance when no one else had been prepared to and for that I would always be in debt to him for.

“Okay, I’ll get in contact with the police, we’ll get a constable down tomorrow morning and we can have an open conversation with them about it, you are not in trouble, nothing is going to happen that will end in consequences for you. I think though that you need to head back to the hotel and get some proper sleep, your body needs it. So head back, don’t worry about any of this, because I’m going to sort it out and we’ll talk about it in the morning with a clean slate and mindset, alright?”

I nodded at Tony, I didn’t really have much to say.

“Thank you Coach.”

He nodded at me, before standing up and walking around to the other side of the octoval table and giving me a pat on the back.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, don’t worry about this anymore, it’s going to be okay. Get back to the hotel, we’ve got an early wakeup tomorrow.”

I nodded at Coach, watching as he left the room just as quickly as he’d entered it.

“I’ve talked to Steph, her and I are rooming together so we’ll switch, she’ll stay with Ellie and you can come and room in with me, I think we’ll keep it that way for the rest of the tournament.”

I looked over at Sam, nodding along with what she was saying. Leah reached her arms around me, a big bear hug.

“And I am here, I expect you to check in with me, at least twice a day. When you guys head off to Melbourne or Brisbane I’m not going to be able to be there, so I need you to stay in contact with me, okay? Anybody does so much as look at you wrong I want to be the first to know, okay?”

I nodded at Leah, half in fear, half in adoration. She was the only person in the world that I actually trusted in. Our bond had been forced, when I’d moved to London to play for Arsenal I’d been moved into the spare room in her apartment and in a very short amount of time we’d created a bond that extended beyond the realm of friendship. I loved her, she was the first person besides Tony to give me a chance and he was obligated to give me on, Leah had chosen to fight for me and to stick by my side even when it wasn’t easy, she was a good person, better than I was sure I’d ever be.

“We’ll drop you back to your hotel on our way home Williamson, it’s the least we could do considering you got here so quickly, can you just give us five minutes to grab our things from the locker room?”

Sam’s voice held no room for argument, she was insisting on giving Leah a ride home and Leah didn’t try to object.

“Please, call me Leah and if it’s no trouble I would really appreciate it. I can meet you guys down in the foyer in about five, I need to go to the loo, so whilst I’m doing that how about you guys go and get your stuff together?”

Sam, Steph and I all walked back down to the change rooms in a comfortable silence. It was when we actually made it back to the rooms that I realised I still had my boots on, the cleats that were spotless from not even getting any wear at training. The cleats that a few hours ago had seemed impossible to tie up. I made quick business of pulling them off of my feet, throwing them into my kit bag and pulling out the pair of Nike dunks that I’d worn in earlier when we’d all come down here for our match analysis. Sam and Steph both made quick work off slipping out of their training kits and changing into sweat pant duos that matched with me. After they’d gotten changed and refreshed we all grabbed our bags and whatever other things we had lying around before making our way down to the foyer.

Leah was waiting for us, tapping her foot violently against the marble floors. When she spotted the three of us out of the corner of her eye her stress ceased almost immediately. I’d learnt a lot about Leah in the amount of time I’d known her. One thing about England’s captain was that she was not as fearless as everyone credited her as being, she put on a brave face, a bloody good one, but she was just as human as everyone else and sometimes it showed, especially when she felt uncomfortable in a situation or she didn’t think she deserved to be where she was. I’d moved in with her initially just before she'd led the Lionesses to their victory at the euro’s, and at the time Leah had been a basket case to be nice. I think that was how we’d bonded, through our similar insecurities of not being good enough to fill the shoes that had been passed down to us.

“C’mon cap, let’s get going.”

Leah smiled at me and nodded. We’d been keeping our relationship under wraps for a few months now. Neither of us were insecure in our situation and we were happy to enjoy our private, happy and blessed life together. Plus we hadn’t really seen much of each other in the past month or so, being caught up with our obligations to our national teams. Leah was also very committed to her rehab and I couldn’t be there for every step of that so we’d spent some time apart. We’d both agreed when the new Arsenal season rolled around that we’d tell the team, but still keep it under wraps from the public for as long as we could. Neither of us were worried about the public finding out, I was out, had been since I was 14. Leah wasn’t officially but she’d also never dated a man and in the eyes of the female soccer world that pretty much means you're gay. It would come out when it did and we were prepared for that to happen.

We walked out to Steph’s car, piling all of our bags in the boot before Sam and Steph slid into the passenger and drivers seats whilst Leah and I both took seats in the backseat. Somewhere along in the drive her hand made its way to my own, resting gently on top of my knee cap. I interlocked our fingers and smiled up at her, this was the part of a secret relationship that I liked, getting moments just between the two of you that only the two of you understood. The sweet nothings. I felt my heart plummet a little bit as we arrived out the front of Leah’s hotel and I realised that I was going to have to say goodbye, potentially for a few more weeks. That was the suckish part of being a professional athlete messing around with another professional athlete, there wasn’t always a timeline on when you’d see each other next, sometimes it was just situational.

I made the call to walk Leah to the door of the hotel, when we got to the doors I gave her a hug, a big, long hug. She hugged me back, tightly. Leah was good at hugs. When we finally had to come apart I looked up at her, with my big green eyes and apparently she couldn’t resist because she reached down and honoured me with a peck. It was nothing more, a small gesture but to me it was everything.

“I love you okay, be safe, text me, call me. I am always here for you, don’t keep me in the dark on things that you think are going to burden me, they aren’t, call your therapist, please.”

I nodded at Leah, she was using her captain's voice with me that she knew I couldn’t refuse.

“When you get back to the hotel I expect you to eat some proper food, not of those bloody granola bars that you insist are nutritional, proper food. Hydrate, at least a litre of water. Sleep, you deserve to sleep, let yourself sleep. Call me in the morning and tell me how you are feeling, okay?”

I gulped and nodded at Leah, an action that I was becoming aware I might have done too much of tonight.

“Love you too, thank you for being here for me.”

“Anytime, I’m only ever one call away, now go home.”

I gave Leah one final look before walking back to the car, closing the door behind me only to be bombarded with googly eyes from the two co captains sitting in the front of the car.

“You and Williamson?”

Sam’s voice was the first one to break the sound barrier, it scared me a little bit.

“Yeah.”

I made it sound like it was a non fact, like every person on the planet knew that I was in the bed sheets of the Lionesses Captain.

“Fuck, I knew it, McCabe owes me fifty quid.”

Steph’s voice was steadier and surprised me a little bit.

“We all had bets, how long have you guys been together?”

“We’ve been dating for 6 or 8 months, fucking around with each other since I joined Arsenal so about a year or so.”

Steph’s eyebrows rose to the top of her forrid, obviously very surprised by my answer.

“You're trying to tell me that you and Lee have just casually been hiding a relationship behind closed doors for months.”

“I mean we’re roommates, it wasn’t that hard to hide, plus we just aren’t rabbits who need to fuck on every surface unlike Sam and fucking Kristie, I’m never going to be able to mentally burn the image of you two getting at it on the pool table after the olympics, that was fucking traumatic.”

Sam’s face had flushed, we constantly brought it up with her. After our bronze loss to the US in the olympics a lot of the team had gone out in celebration with the Americans, what I hadn’t expected to find that night when I’d walked into the room that I thought was the bathroom was Sam eating her secret girlfriend out on the table. It had messed with my brain permanently.

“Hey you're the one who’s always bringing it up, maybe you were secretly into it, secret fantasy between you and Williamson.”

I loudly gagged from my spot in the backseat, extremely displeased by Sam’s imaginative imagery.

“Nobody thinks that Sam, it’s just you and all of your lost brain cells.”

There was something so comfortable about the dynamic between Sam and Steph, something so sisterly and bonded. They were like family, they messed around with each other and pushed each other but they loved each other and the both of them knew that at the end of the day. They might not have been the closest on the team, they weren’t each other's best friends but they were family and that was all that mattered.

“Whatever you say Stephy.”

[sharoo]

Managers, you must pick a new abnormality for this facility... pt. 3

While I still have vacation, I might take one more suggestion for a doll from among the contenders that I can feasibly make (I have a few other favourites who are simply very complex and this will require me to learn how to do certain things/spent a lot of time on them).

[ghostboneswrites2]

HELLOOOO :333

since im re-watching twd and im back on season 8, what if Y/n was to get bit aswell but had no intentions of telling daryl? So she makes the most of her remaining days with him until she gets consumed by the infection. Kind of like the whole carl thing. thankyou in advance :P

hi angsty anon sorry for the wait I love this req so much 💕

Last Man Standing

Warnings: TWD typical violence, death, grief, mentions of sex

dividers from @sister-lucifer

Gratitude could be hard to come by. You’d think it would be bountiful in a world where a simple meal could be considered a luxury. With all the carnage and loss, it was easy to forget that there were still things worth being thankful for, but today you were grateful. You were grateful often, but especially today.

Today would be the beginning of the end of your life. So, you’d spend the morning with Daryl, drinking instant coffee and complaining about the taste. He’d part for only a short time to shower, offering you to tag along, only to be shot down.

“No thanks, babe. I actually showered last night before you got back.” You’d say in your casual chipper, and he’d believe you, because you never gave him a reason not to. How was he to know what you were hiding beneath your shirt?

After his shower, while you were cleaning up the kitchen for him, he snuck up behind you, snaking his arms around your waist and inhaling against your neck. He loved the way you smelled.

With a chuckle, you’d ask him, “All clean?” To which he’d just grunt and squeeze you tighter, pressing you into the counter. You’d spin around, plant your lips on his, while he hoisted you up onto the countertop and stripped you down. The sex was passionate and sweet, never breaking the kiss until you had to get dressed again.

“Do you want to go for a walk with me?” You asked him as you adjusted your bra and fixed your hair.

“Ya sure? Hotter than hell out.” He asked skeptically, knowing how much you loved having a home with an AC.

“Of course I am.” You grinned wide, a smile that shone brighter than your inner turmoil. “It’s the only thing I miss about being on the road. Our walks in the woods.”

A tiny curl appeared at the corner of his lip, a small show of affection he often reserved for you and you alone.

“Get your boots on.” He told you. Once you were both geared up to leave the walls, you went out into the trees and disappeared together.

He picked up quickly on your unusual silence. It wasn’t that a quiet walk was abnormal for the two of you, but you had a habit of pointing out different types of birds and bugs as you strolled. Today you hadn’t done that. Your focus was on the small beams of light that filtered in through the canopy above. Life was so beautiful, and you were determined not to take it for granted in your final hours.

The heat, however, was not so enjoyable. The fever was starting to set in and you knew it would be only a matter of time before your skin went pale and clammy. Your hours were numbered, more than you had anticipated. Of course, you’d seen it happen much faster than this. You were still one of the lucky ones.

When you found a suitable log you took a seat, being sure to control your breathing. He couldn’t see you get winded after such a short walk. He’d know something was up. So, instead of giving him the chance to think about it too much, you decided to distract him.

“Remember when we first met?” You asked. He snorted.

“I remember a psycho comin’ after me with a knife.” He joked.

“I’m my defense, I didn’t know you, and you were in my house.”

“It was a damn gas station in the middle o’ nowhere.” He argued. You giggled.

“Home is where you make it.” You told him.

“Nah. Home is people. The ones who matter.” He corrected. You felt a twinge of pain in your heart. You knew he was referring to you. You were his home, just like he was yours.

“Yeah. But, sometimes…” You trailed off, chewing at your lip anxiously. “Sometimes home is just where you belong. Even if the people that belong there with you aren’t there anymore.”

“Nah.” He shrugged away your sentiments. “My people’s my home an’ if I ain’t got them I ain’t got nothin’.”

You took in a small breath and blinked a few times to avoid tears. It was moments like this that reminded you why you could never tell him. A surge of emotion washed over you. Suddenly you felt dizzy in the heat. Whether it was the infection or the stress, you were visibly pale and short of breath.

“Y’alright?” He asked with concern.

“Yeah.” You breathed with a nod. “It’s just really hot out here.”

“Told ya.” He gloated. “You’re spoiled now.”

He stood and offered you a hand, which you took, and he led you back home.

After some cold water and a small snack, you hadn’t felt much better. You knew it could only be a sign of what was to come, which was surely worse than what you were currently experiencing.

“Damn. That heat really took ya out, huh?” He commented as he refilled your glass of water. You nodded and hummed, somewhat absentmindedly.

“Wanna watch a movie?” You asked him.

“We got movies?” He asked. You laughed.

“Yeah. Not sure which ones but I found some DVDs when we moved in.”

The two of you searched until you found a movie called Pay it Forward. It was about a boy who did a class project in the concept of paying it forward. One good deed for fellow man, paid forward consistently, to make the world better for everyone.

By the end you were in tears, and so was Daryl despite his best efforts to conceal it.

“Kid reminds me o’ you.” He admitted. “Always tryin’ to do right by everyone else.”

“Yeah.” You sighed. All the good deeds you had done, only to die in the end, just like the little boy in the movie. The only difference was that you knew you were going to die.

The sun was beginning to set, and as you went to stand and turn off the TV, you collapsed. The weight of your upright body was too much to bear. It felt as if your bones were being crushed under the weight.

In a panic, Daryl rushed to lift you back into the couch. Your head swayed around, eyes glazed over. Your skin was clammy and drained of color. Your eyes had sunken in and the whites around your irises had yellowed. He took your face in his hands and tried to steady it, looking you in the eyes with a deep concern.

“Y’okay? Hey, look at me. Ya good? You’re scarin’ me.” He begged softly as your tried to focus on him through the blurry vision. “Y/N? Talk to me, baby.” He pleaded again.

When your vision had reduced him to a single figure, you finally spoke.

“I’m sorry, Dar.” You whispered.

“Sorry for what?” He asked with a gentle shake of your shoulders when your head began to droop down again. “Did ya take somethin’? Ya sick? What’s goin’ on?”

“I couldn’t tell you.” You admitted, voice crackling under the weight of fear and agony. It felt like your bones were splintering under your skin, lodging into your flesh like needles. Everything hurt. Everything burned. Everything aches and throbbed and begged for relief.

“Tell me what?!” He begged. “Talk to me. You can tell me anythin’, ya know that!”

“I’m sorry.” You began to cry. It was all finally caving in on you. The terror of becoming a walker, the fear of death and the unknown, the guilt of leaving him behind. “I’m sorry.”

“Y/N..” He whispered, eyes beginning to water.

With nothing left to lose, you hooked your weak fingers under the hem of your shirt and struggled to pull it over your head. Daryl reached to help, but he froze when your ribcage came into view. A deep round bite showed it’s ugly face, bruised and discolored all around. The veins around the wound had turned black. The nasty infection had entered your bloodstream. Hell, even if it hadn’t, it wasn’t like you could amputate and save your life.

A sick feeling crept into his heart and spread over his body. He was nauseated, enraged, devastated. He couldn’t even decipher the range of emotions, and frankly he didn’t have the time to. You were slipping away, like sand falling through his fingers.

“When?” He choked out.

“Yesterday.” You admitted weakly.

“Ya didn’t tell nobody?” He asked in shock.

“I couldn’t. They’d have told you.”

“Why couldn’t ya tell me?” He asked you, but it was too late. Your eyes had fluttered shut. He shook you with a rough desperation. “Y/N, come on. Not now. Talk to me. Open your eyes. Why couldn’t ya tell me? Come on baby. Please.”

He begged and cried as he shook you, pulled you into his arms, tried everything to bring you back. Your body was limp against his. All the strength of a man ripped away from him as he crumpled up on the floor, cradling the love he had lost. He sobbed over you until the heat of the fever had left your flesh and you turned cold. All signs of live had vanished. He pulled away and looked down at you one last time. Scanning every feature, imprinting it into his memory.

Then, he screamed. It was a deep, guttural, primal kind of scream. The kind you only heard from a man who lost everything he loved, or a woman who lost her child. It was filled with agony and despair. He screamed and screamed until neighboring Alexandrians rushed out of their homes and over to your front step. They pounded at the door and called for you and Daryl, overcome with worry for their neighbors.

He couldn’t hear them, though. Not over his own heart, over his own thoughts, his screams and cries. He stood in place and dug his fists into his hair, hoping the pain of tugging at his scalp would distract him from the overwhelming ache in his chest, but it did nothing to soothe him. He paced around your body, hyperventilating, losing touch with himself and the world around him.

His hands found pictures on the walls, furniture, the television, the dishes and decor. His heavy boots echoed as he stormed around and destroyed the reminiscence of his life with you there. He could leave no trace, for he could not bare it. By the time Rick was summoned, the home was completely destroyed. Broken glass and splintered furniture littered the home. Lamps turned sideways, flickering in the dim rooms.

He found you first, a cold half-dressed corpse that he barely recognized amidst the destruction. He found Daryl next, on the kitchen floor, curled up on his side as he sobbed on a bed of broken china and scattered cutlery. Rick could barely recognize him as he laid there, a shell of a man. A man who lost his whole world.

It would be weeks before anyone aside from Rick saw him again. Without Rick to check in on him and talk him into eating or drinking, he likely would have died of malnutrition or dehydration. At least, that would have been the formal cause of death. Everyone would know, though, that he would have died of a broken heart.

Eventually, he emerged from his solitude and found your grave among the others. He’d sit there for hours, reading and rereading the letter you left him, which he only found because it was under the bottle of whiskey you’d both saved for a rainy day.

Daryl,

It’s strange to imagine the final hours of one’s life. It’s even more strange to experience the final hours of your own life, knowing that everything you do, you do for the last time. I suppose I should feel afraid. Oddly enough, I’m sort of finding peace with it.

In retrospect, I was so lucky to make it as far as I have. My survival up until this point largely boils down to the luck of the draw. Right places, right times. Still, though, there were a few times where I lived because someone else died, or because someone was there to save me. There were times where we all lived because we fought like hell and earned the right to survive in this new world.

It is new, by the way. The world we once knew died, but it’s been reborn. I’m grateful to have been part of the beginning of something new, something that might be great. Most of all, I’m grateful to have been a part of it by your side. I’d never change a single thing. Even if I was given the chance to go back and stop the outbreak, I wouldn’t. Because I would have never met you, and had I not, I would have never found my true self. I pretended to be someone else for as long as I can remember. The time I’ve spent with you has felt more natural to me than anything I’ve ever experienced.

You, Daryl, are the most raw, genuine, unfiltered person I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing. You showed me how to find that version of myself, and in doing so, you set me free. I might be dying, but I’m dying as my true self, and for that I am thankful.

Despite all that, I know you, and I know nothing I can say will console you the way you need to be consoled. If nothing else, I hope every time you retreat into solitude and shut yourself off from the world, you can hear my voice in the back of your mind. Reminding you to admire the beauty in the natural world, nagging you to go see Carol and get out of your head.

I know you get tired of being the last man standing, but the grief doesn’t have to consume you. You don’t have to be alone. You deserve a happy ending too.

I love you, more than I could ever show you. I hope you can forgive me for leaving you behind. Whatever awaits me on the other side, I hope to find you there one day, after you’ve lived a full life and found a purpose outside of being by my side.

tags: @kissmeunicornbaobei @thesadcatt0 @clairealeehelsing @duckybird101 @tmntfixationxreader @ryoujoking @blackvelveteen1339 @yondus-girl @ladylincoln @sunshinebug9 @saylum559 @yoowhatthefuck @duffmckagansbandana @celtic-crossbow @virginsexgod69 @dazzling-roaring-20s @l0kilaufeys0n7 @uhnanix @superbowlisgay @liizzygrant @eddiemunsonsupremecy @raeraegoaway