#they team up together to wear North down

[einradi]

Simon trying to diffuse North’s anger over X situation

Simon: “Go on. Be angry in front of him. I dare you!”

Connor:

North:

Connor: … /headtilt with PuppyEyes.exe

North: “FUCK!”

[innohurrytoshout]

kissing cherries in the rain ᥫ᭡ r. mattheo

serving out your second detention for Filch, you come to realize maybe Slytherin's bad boy isn't so bad after all.

who: mattheo riddle x ravenclaw!reader genre: fluff wc: 2k content warning: [this fic is part of a set, part 1 can be found under the authors note], again nothing but heartwarming, school love!! a/n: enjoying the weather fluctuation just a bit !

vol l i hope you're miserable

You bit back a smile as you stomped out of the locker rooms, that idiot.

There was no way he had a crush on you, there was no way because he was Mattheo Riddle and Mattheo Riddle didn’t have crushes. Mattheo Riddle was the Dark Lord’s son, you had to remember that. But–he was just so pretty. You scoffed at yourself–get some common sense, you git!

You ignored your friends’ odd and questioning stares as you passed them, wanting to head straight for your room to study for the AP Potions quiz you had next Monday morning. One of them called out your name, “Hey, where were you? What was with the note?”

Your eyes snagged on the letter in her hands. She shook it around as if to emphasize her words. A little smile tugged at your lips, your mind going to the forbidden Slytherin once more, “long story, ask me Sunday.”

“What?” Her eyebrows raised as you spun around, meaning to head back toward the dormitories.

Your other friend called after you, “Hey, why not Saturday!?”

You waved a hand, “I’ll tell you Sunday!”

Saturday rolled around, you’d fallen asleep to thoughts of him despite yourself, and now you wanted nothing more than to punch his stupid face into oblivion. Filch too–for forcing this upon you–unfairly, you might add!

The morning dew was evident in the air, it smelled like him. You could almost sniff out a bit of teakwood if you tried hard enough. The weather contrasted completely with the day prior.

The skies were grayed, and clouds huddled together as if they were not the ones creating the cold they were running from. You shivered, wearing your sweatervest and your robes today. You wondered what Filch had in store for you–to be sure–but you also wondered how you’d get along with him again.

It shouldn’t be any of your concern–what he does or says, or how he feels–but your mind kept drifting back to the way he flushed slightly at your words, how his own got caught up in his throat right before the rest of the Slytherin Quidditch team interrupted. 

A sly grin spread across your face, though it was small. You wandered toward the North side of Central Hall this time, walking out the exit, trying not to shiver much at the chill.

“Ah, she arrives at last.” You narrowed your eyes at Filch–he was starting to irk you the more and more you interacted with him. You noted a figure behind him–no doubt Riddle. “What’s that smirk for? Wipe that off your face, you’ll be picking cherries for tonight's dessert. Come on, you sad lumps.” he forced open the greenhouse doors, and without thinking, your legs began moving. “Pick up a bucket, come on now!” Filch’s voice bounced off the walls.

You huffed a sigh and stepped toward the baskets. Other than the dull weaving material, there was green everywhere. Green and hints of yellow, orange, blue, black, violet, and red. A sea of flowers sailed along the very back, but unfortunately, you wouldn’t be going anywhere near that part.

“How long do we have to do this for?” Your companion groaned, throwing his head back. 

“Until 10, one of the castle elves will be out to bring you a snack later.”

“This has got to be some form of child labor–”

“–Hush it. Riddle–you best be grateful I’m not having you out here till lunch!” You huffed a laugh, covering it up with a cough. Filch turned his beady eyes toward you, “Was that a laugh I heard, Miss —?”

“No!” You were quick to respond, “just a cough! Must be my allergies.”

“Uh huh,” he looked you up and down, goblin eyes narrowing, “I’ll see you at ten to relieve you.”

“See you then,” you choked, waving him goodbye. The greenhouse smelled strongly of fruit and mint. You took in a gulp of breaths, appreciating the aroma in the quiet.

A few moments later, Riddle’s scoff broke through across the greenhouse, “Allergies?–”

“–Shut it,” you cut him off immediately.

He snorted and began pulling cherries from the bushes in front of him. The greenhouse was full of plants, vegetables, and fruit–most of Hogwarts' resources came from here. There were two acres of cherry bushes, you wondered if you’d finish picking them all by the time ten rolled around. Probably not. 

You gripped your basket–evidently woven by Neville Longbottom–and began picking.

You tried ignoring him. You did. The only sound was the rain of dawn that had picked up again as the sun did its best the rise. “What do you think they're making for dessert?” You found yourself asking, not wanting to admit it was just an excuse to get him talking to you.

Riddle picked up his head slightly and his gaze slipped through the bushes, toward you. You were hidden behind a bush, green leaves distorting your face, the gloom outside not helping. “Probably cherry pie.”

“That’s my favorite,” you hummed, a grin spreading across your face.

Riddle focused back on his cherry picking, biting back a lopsided smile as he threw ¼ of his cherries into a basket he’d set at his feet. “So, question,” he murmured.

“Yeah?” You searched for his eyes again, though they were nowhere to be found. You held your breath, continuing to move down the aisle as you listened.

“Do you watch Quidditch much? Like, go to the games, I mean?”

Your heartbeat picked up, “not really, I mean, sometimes I go with friends when they–” you halted your speech, your sentence breaking off with a dip.

“When they what?” You could hear the raised eyebrow in his tone.

“Just…when they want to go.”

He scoffed, rounding the end of your corner, no wonder his voice seemed so far. “You’re lying, Ravenclaw.”

“Ravenclaws don’t lie,” you crossed your arms, your basket still hanging on your arm.

“Fine,” he grew closer, “then you’re withholding some information.”

Your eyes rolled but your hands dropped to your side, “What’s it matter to you?”

“Are you nervous I might find out some super Ravenclaw secret?” His smirk was full of arrogance. You huffed and turned back toward the bushes, tugging at each cherry you saw. “Or maybe you’re hiding a personal secret.” He tapped his chin and tilted his head up, humming, “could be both.”

His robes were tucked in, nearly hiding his entire uniform. If you didn’t know him, and you saw him from afar, he might look almost…normal. 

But Riddle wasn’t normal; he was Slytherin. That was bad, right?

Though–you bit your lip, letting your eyes slip toward his person subtly–from the miniscule encounters you had with him, he didn’t particularly seem like the big bad wolf rumors around campus made him out to be. 

You wondered why that was. He never claimed to be a saint, sure, but he never claimed to be a monster either–you wondered if that had maybe been an unjust title given to him without much evidence–if any–to back it up. It grounded your gears a bit, a good claim or argument always needed facts to support it–having an evil father…you eyed him…did not count.

“Hey, so…why were you ditching class yesterday?”

You could see him tense up a bit, his expression shifted, what does that mean? “Would you believe me if I said I wasn’t?”

Your brows furrowed, and you turned your head down in thought, a sudden realization daunting on you–but, “you’re–”

“Bet it didn’t even cross your mind, huh?” He laughed, though it sounded slightly…bitter.

“No, listen,” you paused, dropping the basket onto the muddy floor, reaching out for his arm. He let himself be tug toward you. Your eyes burned with a feeling even your brain couldn’t determine in the moment. “I–” his eyes fell to where your hand met his robed arm. You dropped it, turning away, a bit flustered, “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry, it’s fine.” His words were soft, and again, you got that feeling that, given his reputation, he shouldn’t be acting this way, it was too…normal too…boyish too…innocent. But maybe you were judging him just like everyone else–after all, what facts had you now come to know when being around him? Maybe you were just like everyone else, you scorned yourself for being so cynical–so hypocritical–

“No,” you turned your gaze away, ashamed, “it’s not…I’m sorry, you’re right, I didn’t consider it.”

A shaky breath left his throat, and he stepped forward, this time grabbing your arm, “…thank you.”

You tilted your head and beamed up at him, eyes a bit devious, “Of course, Slytherin.”

He chuckled at that, glancing down at your basket, “Come on.”

“What?” Your eyebrows furrowed as he tugged you toward the entrance of the greenhouse, “but we have to finish picking–” you jabbed your free thumb backward.

He paused, only to glimpse back at you and sigh, “Do you honestly want to stay with her for another hour and a half?”

“Well, no but Filch–”

“Filch can wanker off,” he groaned, “come on.” You bit your lip, debating. “You kind of owe me.” He bit his lip and tilted his head to the side, the smile that stretched across his face reaching his eyes.

“Owe you?” Your eyes flashed. His grin said enough. You faultered, looking back and forth between his eyes, and for some reason, you thought this must be what someone in love looks like. But he couldn’t be in love because he was only looking at you, and you barely knew each other. “Alright fine.”

“Yes!”

You let him lead you out of the greenhouse, instantly you were caught in the rain, “Ugh!” You grunted, “I was so not planning on getting drenched.”

“Ugh,” he drawled, “you Ravenclaws and your stuck-up pride.” His head fell back and water droplets beat against his skin.

“Actually, I think that’s you, Slytherins.”

“Probably both,” he nodded, showing the basket you barely noticed he’d brought along.

“You stole that!” Your finger pointed toward the wicker, not even half full of cherries.

He shrugged, “stole, borrow, their synonymous with each other, really.”

“Merlin, you are smart.” You smacked his chest as you rounded toward the front of the school.

“I mean, look at me,” he waved over himself.

Laughter spilled from your throat while he pulled you under a large willow tree, taking shelter. Your eyes snagged on the basket again, “The cherries are wet.” You reached for one.

“Ah-ah-ah,” he held it out of reach.

You scoffed, your arms crossing a second time this morning. “Seriously? You’re going to deprive me of cherries now?”

“Was I depriving you of anything else before?”

“No, but–”

“–Because last I recall, you were the one harboring information.”

Your mouth dropped open, “Are you still on about that?” 

He shrugged, pressing a cherry to his lips, turning sideways. You watched him pull the cherry from the stem with his teeth.

“You are unbelievable.” You shook your head, “Look, my friends only ever drag me to games when they’ve got a crush on one of the players.” His head cocked to the side, nearly facing yours again, “satisfied?”

“Mmmmm…” his head craned from left to right. “Did you ever drag them to games because you liked one of the players?”

“I still don’t see how this is relevant–”

“–educational purposes,” he coolly answered.

You elbowed him, “Yeah, right.” 

He chuckled and averted his eyes to the ground. “...So…” he cleared his throat, “...did you?”

It felt like the air around you compressed. You pursed your lips and took in his expression. If you weren’t being biased, you would think Riddle sounded a bit desperate. You turned away, “no.”

The tension dissipated, and you could only speculate as to why it had gotten so thick to begin with. “Here.” Something cold and wet pressed against your lips. Your eyes nearly popped out of your head when your attention shifted back to Riddle.

You opened your mouth, letting the cherry he pressed against your lips to fall in. You clamped your teeth around it, and he tugged. A teasing smile fell to your lips. You leaned forward and poked his cheek, “You are what you eat.”

Riddle stumbled back, clearly affected by your bold speech. “I am not.”

“Oh, but you are.” You nodded, arrogance flashing in your eyes, “as red as a cherry.”

“Whatever,” he rolled his eyes and looked away. You leaned over him and snatched up another cherry as he shook his head, “...know-it-all Ravenclaws.”

a/n: get ready for some smut

tag: @inkandshadow

[wosospacegirl]

Sweet girl - Alessia Russo (+18)

Summary: Request-> Alessia and Y/n have a quicky in the morning after an argument and Alessia is late for training. Good thing Y/n has a motorcycle.

Warnings: +18!!!; smut; little bit of angst (happy ending); fingering alessia receiving.

Word count: 2.8k

MASTERLIST

..

Alessia was the sweetest girl you could ever meet in your life. She was caring, kind and gentle; sometimes she was too kind to people who didn't deserve it. Everyone who met Alessia fell in love with her right away, that’s how joyful she was.

Y/n often used the words ‘soft’ and ‘tender’ to describe Alessia’s personality as well. Sadly for Y/n, none of these qualities were shining through in her girlfriend at the moment.

Alessia’s week had been a mess– two days of splitting headaches, her period had ended days ago but she still felt bloated and sensitive. All of this affected her training, and therefore her performance in Arsenal's last game. As a result, the team lost 2-1 to Liverpool.

Y/n tried very hard to explain to Alessia that the defeat was caused by the whole team, not just her, but she was upset and wouldn’t listen. Whether Arsenal won or lost, it was never the fault of one player. Alessia knew this, of course, but she was upset nonetheless.

It was one of those days when frustration would linger around her and no one could take Alessia away from it. The match had been three days ago, but she was still upset about it, and an upset Alessia was rude Alessia.

“I just don't understand why you didn't buy the eggs when I asked you to!” Alessia said, slamming the fridge door. “You always forget to buy the groceries, and then I'm late for training because there's nothing to eat!”

Alessia was standing in the middle of the kitchen, wearing Arsenal’s training kit, her blonde hair was down her back, and she had a hair tie on her wrist. She had to be at practice soon, and it looked like that was Y/n’s problem, too.

Y/n listened to Alessia’s complaints as she sipped her morning coffee, sketchbook in hand, drawing tattoo designs for a client.

Y/n prided herself on being a decent girlfriend– she tried to look after Alessia as best as she could. The couple had been together for two years, so Y/n had been by Alessia’s side through a series of injuries, wins and losses.

It was hard to be an athlete's partner; their life was always full of adrenaline, and they were always busy with national and international chronograms.

Alessia was very mindful, considering she wasn’t dating someone from the football world, but unfortunately, when Alessia was frustrated, she seemed to forget that Y/n had a real life outside of being her girlfriend.

Y/n was a tattoo artist. She had opened her own tattoo studio in a corner of North London years ago. Alessia and Y/n had met after the player came into the shop wanting a tattoo on her feet; after their meet-cute, they’d become inseparable.

Y/n took a sip of the black coffee, the rich and bitter aroma filling her nose. Coffee always helped to calm her down, and she certainly needed to be calm, as it was early in the morning and Alessia was looking for a reason to argue.

Y/n sighed and put down the cup in her hand. “Baby, you were the one who had the car this week.” 8 am, it was 8 am and they were talking about fucking eggs. “And Lamar got sick, so I had to take in his clients.”

“I know, but I had a lot going on so I asked you to pick the eggs up,” Alessia said, clenching fists resting on either side of her body.

“And I said I couldn't because I was overbooked with customers, love.” Y/n leaned back in her chair, arms crossed. “How about I make you a fruit salad? We have strawberries and blueberries; I can make you something to eat.”

“I don't want fruit, I want an omelette! I always have an omelette in the morning. Alessia groaned and rolled her eyes. Am I supposed to keep up during training today?”

“Alessia, come on, baby–”

“No! This whole week had been shitty and you’re not even helping me!” Alessia continued to carpet.

And that made it for Y/n.

Y/n stood up. “Room, now.” Was all she said before disappearing into the hallway next to the kitchen.

The girl opened the bedroom door and sat down at the end of the bed with her legs spread open. She heard footsteps in the hallway and soon after Alessia entered the room.

“Come here,” Y/n beckoned to Alessia.

“You haven’t been very nice to me the last few days, have you?”

“No” Alessia shook her head.

“And why is that?” Y/n asked. “Look at me, sweet, I'm talking to you.”

“Sorry. I told you I haven’t had a good week,” she mumbled, playing with her hand. Embarrassment radiating from her.

“I understand you’ve had a bad week, what I don't understand is why you’re going out of your way to make sureneither of us can have a good day today.”

Y/n had always been a very straightforward person. She didn't like drama or didn't like unnecessary arguments. If she could fix something, she would. Since Y/n had earned the autonomy to do whatever she wanted in life she focused on opening her tattoo shop.

At the moment, Skin Deep Studio was her pride and joy. Y/n treated the studio with respect and expected Alessia to do the same, just as she did with Alessia’s career.

“I told you I had clients from 9 am to 9 pm, didn't I?” Y/n continued, her eyes fixed on Alessia. “Did you expect me to cancel on them? Especially knowing that they were booked months ago?”

Alessia listened to Y/n, tears slowly forming in her eyes. “You told me you had clients. I’m sorry.”

“You weren’t being very considerate with me,” Y/n explained reassuringly. “You know it’s not fair to ask me to drop everything to go out and do something you want me to do, I’m busy too.”

Y/n wiped a tear from Alessia’s cheek, “I'm just very stressed with everything,” Alessia cried.

The footballer put her legs on Y/n’s lap and rested her head on Y/n’s shoulder.

“There's this big game this week and I can't seem to play it right.” She continued. “But I shouldn't be mean to you just because I'm stressed. I'm very sorry.”

“It's okay, sweetheart,” Y/n said, hugging Alessia's body. “Just talk to me next time, yeah? You always talk to me. I don't know why you didn't this time.”

“I don't know either,” Alessia admitted, breathing in and out slowly, she was calming down bit by bit.

Y/n kissed her cheek, feeling the saltiness of Alessia’s tears on her lips. “It’s alright, just breathe…f do you feel better now?”

Alessia smiled shyly and nodded her head. “Thank you, I love you,” Alessia said before kissing Y/n's mouth.

The kiss was gentle at first, but it quickly became intense.

Alessia slid her tongue into Y/n's mouth. Her hands were on Y/n's shoulder, trying to balance herself while the other girl put her hands on Alessia's lower back, trying to pull Alessia closer.

“I missed kissing you like this,” Alessia said, placing soft kisses on Y/n's neck. “I missed it a lot.

Y/n squeezed Alessia’s hips. “If you hadn’t been so moody this week, we could have kissed a lot sooner.” Y/n said teasingly, holding Alessia’s hips so that she was straddling her.

“Sorry,” Alessia whispered, slowly beginning to grind herself against Y/n's black trousers.

“Is that why you were so grumpy too? You wanted some kisses and didn't know how to ask for them?” Y/n asked, scratching Alessia’s back.

“I think so,” Alessia agreed, rubbing harder, trying to create some friction.

Y/n cupped Alessia's cheek and kissed hard, tugging at the girl's shorts.

“Take them off,” Y/n said against Alessia’s mouth.

“We can't love, I have training” Alessia whispered, still moving her body against Y/n. “And I'm already late.”

“I’ll be quick, just wanna make you cum,”

Alessia blushed deeply. She was always very shy with dirty talk, So Y/n always lowered it down as much as she could.

“Come on, get up,” Y/n tapped her body, urging the girl to stand up, and she did.

Alessia stood in front of Y/n, who quickly pulled her shorts down. The blonde girl was now standing in only her underwear and Arsenal t-shirt.

What a sight.

“So pretty,” Y/n murmured, kissing Alessia's chin, then her cheeks and finally pressing her lip to her mouth. “I want you to ride my fingers, do you think you can do that? Be quick?

“Yes,” Alessia moaned.

Y/n slipped one finger inside Alessia’s soaked underwear “You're gonna cum real nice because you are already so wet, baby,” Y/n said as she sat further away from the bed, to give Alessia more room to get into position.

Alessia already knew what she had to do. She placed her knees on the mattress, each one next to Y/n’s body. The blonde met Y/n's lips and moaned into her mouth as Y/n pulled her underwear aside and gently played with her clit.

“I’m gonna put them in, yeah?” Y/n said, gently playing with Alessia’s hole before penetrating her with two fingers. “Feels nice?”

Alessia purred in her ear, telling her all she needed to know.

“Ride my fingers, baby,” Y/n told Alessia, easing the girl down until her fingers were properly buried inside her pussy.

“Like that, just like that,” Alessia moaned, sinking deeper and deeper into Y/n’s fingers.

Y/n loved watching Alessia being fucked. She was always so sweet when she wanted to cum, so good. Knowing she was the one doing it made her chest rise with pride. She was the only one to touch this pretty girl, the one responsible for her sweet sounds. They shared another kiss, this one was messier, and Alessia was getting eager.

“I need you to cum, love” Y/n whispered to Alessia, pushing her hips down and dictating the pace. “Or else we’ll be late.”

“Al-almost,” Alessia whispered with her eyes closed.

“Yeah? My love is going to make a mess on my fingers just before she has to go to play?” Y/n said teasingly, sucking on Alessia’s neck, but not enough to leave a mark behind. “Come on, let go for me.”

Alessia leaned forward as she came, losing control of her torso; her lips brushing Y/n’s ear. Alessia wasn’t vocal when she came, instead, she was silent, her mouth remaining open for a few seconds as her body trembled with bliss.

Y/n tenderly ran her fingers through Alessia’s blonde hair with her free hand, letting her come down on her own without rushing.

“I’m gonna take them out, okay baby?”

Alessia nodded, resting her head on Y/n’s shoulder as the girl lifted her hips. Y/n pulled her fingers out of Alessia’s warmth and cleaned them against the blanket on the bed.

“Wow, I’m very dizzy,” Alessia breathed, shifting her body and cradling Y/n.

Y/n chuckled, and kissed her cheeks “Is that because of the orgasm or because you haven’t had your omelette yet, huh?”

Alessia nudged Y/n, a shy smile in her eyes. “Stop it, I’m not the same person I was ten minutes ago.”

“Of course, you aren’t,” Y/n hugged Alessia. “My sweet girlfriend is back, now.”

Y/n playfully peppered Alessias’s face with kisses while the girl giggled, squirming against Y/n’s body whenever Y/n kissed a particularly ticklish part of her.

“Okay, okay,” Y/n said, planting another kiss on Alessia’s chin. “I’ll get you cleaned up and I’ll drop you off at training on my way to the tattoo studio, how does that sound?”

Alessia’s eyes widened. She had completely forgotten about training, too absorbed in the bubble of love they had created.

“Bloody hell, I'm going to be so late,” Alessia gasped, as she broke free of Y/n’s grip and ran to her bathroom, Y/n was close behind.

When Y/n got to the bathroom, Alessia was in front of the mirror trying to fix her hair so she didn’t look like she’d had sex with her girlfriend when she should have been at work.

“Renée’s gonna make me do suicide drills just for the fun of it.” The blonde complained, pulling her hair into a messy ponytail. “She hates it when one of us is late– do you think that’s a Dutch thing?”

“Probably, they do enjoy punctuality in the Netherlands,” Y/n said, handing Alessia’s short back. The girl put it on quickly and started brushing her teeth. Y/n gently pushed Alessia to the side so that she could use the sink too.

“Okay, I think I'm good,” Alessia said more to herself, looking at her reflection in the mirror and fixing an unruly strand of hair. “What do you think? Do I look like a mess?”

She and Y/n made eye contact through the mirror. “You look pretty,” Y/n said with a grin, making Alessia blush. “Now let’s go, I'm gonna get our helmets.”

Alessia stopped in her tracks. “Helmets? What do you mean? We’re using my car today.”

“Nope, we’re using the motorcycle.” Y/n pushed Alessia gently out of the bathroom, closing the door behind them.

“No, we aren't,” Alessia stated, turning around to look at Y/n.

Alessia wasn’t terrified of Y/n’s motorcycle, she genuinely thought it was cool. She just didn't like being the one to ride it.

“Baby, you have to be at Arsenal in…” Y/n looked at her watch, “...six minutes, do you think London’s traffic will allow that?”

Alessia thought for a moment, arms crossed. “ Hmph. Alright,. Well, I don’t have much choice,” she said, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Whatever, let’s go,” she added, grabbing her training bag while Y/n picked up the helmets.

“I won’t go too fast,” Y/n said, putting an arm around Alessia’s waist as they walked out the door. “Just enough to get you there in time without Renée biting your head off.”

“You know I need to breathe to ride, right?” Y/n said as they rode through the streets on London, rain pouring down on their riding jackets. Yes, her riding jackets because Y/n had bought one for Alessias as well.

Alessia clung to Y/n, her head pressed against Y/n’s back.

“I’m scared,” Alessia murmured, barely audible over the wind.

“Why baby? I’m a good biker.”

“Too fast,” was all Alessia could manage.

Y/n had already slowed down to a safer speed, but she let the motorcycle ease down even more. “There, how’s that? Better?”

“Uhun, thank you,” Alessa finally breathed, loosening her grip but still holding onto Y/n’s hips gently.

Alessia had a love-hate relationship with Y/n’s motorcycle. She liked it because Y/n liked it, and she knew it was almost like a lifestyle to her girlfriend. But sometimes, in her deepest thoughts, she wished Y/n would sell it. Alessia was just too anxious whenever Y/n rode it, afraid of a possible accident.

The motorcycle was undeniably cool and honestly, Y/n looked hot when she wore the black leather jacket that came with it. Alessia just wasn’t cut out for this lifestyle. That’s why she preferred her car–more safety, less wind.

When they finally arrived at Arsenal’s training grounds, Alessia got off the motorcycle, and handed her helmet to Y/n, feeling dizzy.

“You okay?” Y/n asked, catching Alessia’s arm. “You’re green.”

“I honestly think I’m gonna throw up,”

“No you’re not, it was an eight-minute ride,” Y/n smiled softly as she opened the motorcycle trunk and grabbed Alessia’s bag.

“Eight minutes was long enough,”

“You’ll have to ride with me more than that, get used to it,” Y/n leaned against the motorcycle and checked her watch. “Your training’s starting, you should go, baby.”

Alessia moved closer to Y/n and kissed her. “Thanks, love, I appreciate the ride, even though I think my insides are turned upside down.”

“Thank you, It’s always a pleasure to have a pretty girl bear-hugging me while I ride,” Y/n winked. “Also, let me know when you get your lunch break. We can get something to eat around here.”

“Okay,” Alessia smiled. “Will you pick me up when the training is over?”

“Yep, I can do that.”

“Can you take the car, though?” Alessia asked, giving Y/n her best doe eyes.

“Baby–”

“Please? The feeling of having something around you when you drive is nicer than having wind scratching on your face”

“We’ll have to agree to disagree there, love,” Y/n said, putting her helmet back on, and sitting down on the bike. “I’ll grab the car and pick you up.”

“I love you,”

“I know.”

..

Notes: Please like, share and let me know what you think! Feedback is important and makes me want to write even more. :D

Notes//2: my smut writing is shitty.

Read more of my work here -> Masterlist

[charliemwrites]

Carrion (extended edition)

Content: Discussion of torture, suicide pact, identity issues, unhealthy coping mechanisms, gore and death, bad firearm handling

“When I am finished with you, all that will be left is carrion for the birds.”

Mr. Z made good on his promise. Your body had been dissected, vivisected, flayed and eviscerated and mutilated over and over again. Haphazardly reassembled over and over again, until the stitches began to intersect, webbing into a demented railroad of agony.

Each time, you scraped together the shards of your mind, cutting yourself on the edges. You don’t remember when you started losing pieces, or when you started substituting them with others.

All that was left at the end were bloody, sticky shreds - a mangled fraction of a person. Something that was once human, and never could be again. Slim pickings for the detritivores.

There were others, or there had been. Fragments of sentience with blood and guts and a bit of sinew still congealed together. When all those bits of viscera and bone were cobbled together, something that was almost whole reformed.

“Promise,” you (he?) wheezed, “promise if we ever cross again, we will end our suffering.”

“We promise,” you (he?) rasped in return.

It sounded like salvation you’d stopped hoping for since the first time your heart restarted.

You were captured. For a long time.

That’s all Laswell is able to tell them before the team is in the air and then boots down, running. A mission too important to delay poking for classified information and questioning you about.

If you notice they’re sideways glances and disquieted shifting, it doesn’t show.

You sit in your (new) customary spot at the back of the plane - first out and last in, no matter how Price reprimands - with your arms crossed and eyes closed. Seemingly resting, except for how your foot occasionally twitches like a hypnic jerk.

But Simon suspects you’ve already stopped falling.

The inverted cross finger-painted onto your helmet burns into Simon’s eyes. Your handgun rests on the same side, the Cyrillic engraving prowling at edges of his mind. Promise, it says, Promise.

“Carrion, you take the north. Keep that route clear for exit. If you need backup, give us a shout.”

You smile indulgently at Price. “We will be fine, Captain.”

And you are. When Simon and Johnny sprint down the hall, charges in hand to blow the whole operation into the stratosphere, the walls are painted in crimson. Bodies litter the edges, laying at unnatural slants and hasty angles, pulled and pushed out of the path they’re running. Swept aside like so much garbage.

But Simon doesn’t have time to stop. He doesn’t catch more than flashes of only-just-fatal gunshots and bone splintering out of limbs, sockets devoid of eyes. There are hostiles hot on their heels, bullets flying, and you’re leaning by the fire door at the end, casual as you please.

“Cover us!” Johnny shouts.

“Already on it,” you reply, sounding focused in their ear pieces. But Simon can see you shrug leisurely off the wall, raise your gun and barely aim before the barrel flashes.

Johnny yelps as the shot whistles past his ear, but he’s none the worse for wear and a body drops somewhere behind them. And then a couple more, tripping over their fallen comrade.

“Like bowling pins,” you muse. “Hurry up, you two.”

You fire in a steady stream, just purposeful enough to be justified as conserving ammo. Simon lets himself believe that’s what it is as he shoves Johnny through the door and yanks you through just after.

(Are you reluctant to go? No, no he’s just paranoid from Laswell’s revelation.)

On the ride back to base you sigh and stretch out. Your gun is still in your hand, still live. You use the barrel to scratch at your jaw.

“Oi!” Price barks.

“Aye, Captain?” you reply, blinking innocently. “I will send you back to basic handling so fast, soldier,” he swears. Your head twitches. Blink and you miss it, just the tiniest bit. Cocking in confusion. “Ah, shite. Sorry, Cap. Won’t happen again,” you apologize. You sound sincere, but you don’t blink once as you holster your weapon. (It happens again. You sit through the remedial looking for all the world like you’re going to eat the instructor.)

“What do you mean they were captured?” Price demands. His voice is taut, stretched too thin, on the verge of snapping.

His office is too small, too full. It’s 141, minus you, and Laswell. It’s not the bodies that crowd the little space, but tension. Confusion, guilts, desperation for answers - but mostly fear. It’s bitter on the back of Simon’s tongue and knows the others taste it too.

“Carrion’s team was captured in Russia while trying to extract a deep cover asset,” she explains. “They were held by Zakhaev for an extended period of time.”

She pauses as Price curses, walks away to the far wall, then pivots right back around to rejoin the conversation. Simon recognizes the name - recognizes the work. The scars beneath his clothes, his mask, flare and itch. He crosses his arms tight against the feeling.

“How long?” Price growls.

“John…” A long time, she’d said before. Long enough, Simon surmises. (Too long, his mind whispers.)

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Price asks.

Laswell is trustworthy, has proved that over and over again - but she’s still CIA. She knows how to trim and prune information down to the bare essentials so that she never actually has to lie.

“Carrion isn’t compromised, we made sure of that,” she says.

The ringing in the back of Simon’s head gets louder. He smells dirt and decay.

“Dammit, Kate, you know that’s not why I’m asking,” Price hisses.

She sighs, shoulders sloping down. “Because I don’t have much to tell you, John. There’s so much we don’t know about what happened. Carrion won’t tell us anything, and the psychologists have advised that we don’t press.”

“So you kept us in the dark so we wouldn’t press either.”

“I’m saying that even if I told you, it would have done more harm than good. I don’t have any triggers to warn you away from, or PTSD symptoms for you to watch out for. The best course of action was to treat Carrion like nothing happened. Are you telling me you could have done that, knowing Carrion was captured and tortured by Zakhaev?”

Price’s jaw twitches. Johnny picking the skin around his thumb bloody and Gaz keeps shifting his weight from foot to foot. They know the answer, but it still smarts. Rings too close to Simon’s own truth for comfort. He talks himself into taking a deep, slow, purposeful breath. The lingering scent of cigar smoke helps clear his head.

“We know now,” Price says.

Laswell nods, gaze steady, unrepentant. “And now you need to act like you don’t.”

“Carrion isn’t right,” Gaz pipes up. “We’ve all noticed.”

The corners of Laswell’s mouth tug down. “What have you done about it?”

“Nothin’,” Johnny assures quickly. “Jus’ noticed ‘s all.”

“Then keep doing that,” she says, meeting each of their eyes, ending on Price again. “Notice and do nothing.”

The days after feel like a horrific kind of fever dream.

Johnny calls your name across the cafeteria in the morning. It takes you a moment too long to turn. (You don’t have so much as a bite of food despite arriving after them.)

When Price shouts “Carrion” on the training grounds later, you alert like a hound. Like that was always your name.

Simon knocks on your door in the afternoon. You swing the door only just wide enough to fit most of your torso in the opening. Beyond you, the room is pitch black despite the sun shining on that side of the building. Your pupils are blown and ebb slowly in the light of the hallway, slithering away from your irises.

You’re still dressed head-to-toe, as always.

“Need your AAR,” he says.

“Oh, right,” you say, “just a tic.”

You step away, the door drifting closed almost as if by accident. In the brief moment and space you’ve vacated, Simon notices a glittery sliver of mirror on the floor. He could almost swear a shadow slides across it. But then you’re back, the report in your hand. Your pupils are pinpricks now, almost completely gone. There’s a smudge on the bottom corner of one page and your signature is yours but not in your handwriting.

“Anything else, LT?” you ask cheerfully.

"I’m sorry,” he says, “about the things I said before.”

“It’s alright, I know I should have been ready to cover you,” you laugh.

“Not the mission. I mean the things I said before you left. I should have at least shook your hand when I saw you off.”

Something slides behind your eyes, your expression frozen.

“Oh,” you say, blissfully blank. “I really appreciate that, but it’s all in the past. I just appreciated you showing up at the time.”

You smile and for the first time, he notices all your teeth don't look quite like he remembers.

"It meant a lot to say goodbye - you never know what could happen on those long missions, yeah?"

"Yeah."

Previous | Masterlist

[wlwsoccerfics]

A North London Love Story: Manchester United,Family time & lots of Love

A/N:please read the First two parts before this one.

Summary: you are Renées daughter and Play for Arsenal & you are married to Alessia.

Today was the Match against Manchester United. You would be sitting in the stands with Daphne and everyone else that was injured. It was quite upsetting.

Alessia noticed that you were pouting. Sighing softly to yourself every now and then.

"are you alright,love?" Your wife asked. You looked up from the Laptop.

"i am just upset that i can't play today! I would rather be on the pitch then sitting in the stands." You admitted, biting down on your bottom lip. She walked over to you. Kissing your head softly.

"i know, Angel! But we really need you for the Champions League Final. So you need to rest. The Physio hasn't cleared you just yet." Your wife answered. You wrapped your Arms around her waist after sitting up. Placing your head on her shoulder. She held you close.

"that's probably gonna be tough as well when we get pregnant but at least it's for a good reason!" You stated and looked at her. Smiling a bit.

"that's true! And i already know you gonna be such a good Mom!" Alessia let you know. She played with your hair and you closed your eyes for a moment.

At the Stadium you saw your Mama, she walked over to you. Hugging you gently. She was greeting Daphne, Amanda and you. Before sitting down. You soon were joined by Gio, Luca & your parents -in- law.

"you look a bit grumpy today, darling." Carol stated. You looked at your mother-in-law, chuckling softly.

"more upset then grumpy, to be honest! You know i hate missing out on Games!" You said.

"i do know that. So does Less!" Carol replied.

"she does. But she also still is more Patient then i am!" You admitted.

"that's very true!" Your Mom answered. You were wearing the Arsenal away Shirt with Alessias Name and number on it.

After the game you got onto the pitch. Giving Alessia a quick kiss. Hugging her gently.

"you were amazing Babe! I am so proud of you." You told her, hugging her. Then you gave Tooney a quick hug. "You did great as well!" You let your wife's best friend know. Offering her a soft smile.

"thank you. Looking forward to seeing you on the pitch again soon!" Ella answered.

"gonna be back soon." You let her know. Your Mom walked over. You hugged her.

"i promise you will be back on the pitch in the Champions League Final." She let you know.

"thanks Mom. I felt like i could have played today as well." You answered. "So i am a bit upset still. Gonna get over it though!"you spoke out. Your Mom gently gave you a Pat on the back.

"i believe it was the best choice for you and for the Team. It's a decision that had to be Made!" She said softly.

"how about we celebrate with some Pizza?" Your Mom suggested. Looking over at your wifes parents and siblings and at Ella.

"a Pizza Party? I am all in!" Gio replied.

"let's meet up at our place in an hour then?" You suggested. Looking over at your wife. Who nodded her head smiling.

"Sounds good!"Alessia answered.

"that's a great Idea!" Mario spoke up.

So that's what happened. An hour later your moms and Little Brother were at your place. Together with Alessias parents, her Brothers and Tooney. She was Part of the Family after all.

You were cuddling with your little Brother on the Couch. Sharing a slice of Pizza with him.

"so when are we getting a grandbaby?" Mario asked. You almost choked on your Pizza. Alessia looked at you and then her Mom. Gently rubbing your back.

"Mom, promise the parents will be the first to know!" She said. "Are you alright, Love?" She asked you and you nodded your head.

"yeah for many reasons. cause No way you gonna continue playing while caring our Grad Baby." Your Mom stated.

"i agree with this!" Mario replied.

"thanks for your Take on this, Guys!" You told them and sipped on your Pepsi.

"auntie Tooney better finds out right away as well!" Tooney stated.

"promise. The people in this room will know about it first!" Alessia told them.

"okay new topic, what about this years Family Weekend? Are we going Camping again?" Gio wanted to know.

"we could also do some Wellness?" Luca said.

"i do like Camping! Also we could rent a little cabin by a Lake and just have a nice getaway." Your Mom said.

"well the three of us have the Euros coming Up!" You told them and pointed to Alessia, Ella and yourself.

"still bitter that you don't Play for the netherlands." Your Mom said jokingly. You were able to choose between playing for the netherlands or England. Since your have been born here.

"i am very Happy with my decision." You told her. "Get to spent time with some of my best Friends and my wife. That's perfect in my opinion." You added on and smiled. Placing a soft kiss to Alessias lips, which she returned.

When everyone left that night you and Alessia cuddled up to one another in bed. She was playing with your Fingers while you watched a documentary about Lost Places all around the world. The two of you watched on your tablet. It didn't take long for the two of you to fall asleep though. Having very nice Dreams about the Euros and winning the Champions League Final against Barcelona. May that dream come true.

[shortprince-cos]

A list of my ATLA AUs so far!

Hidden Masks

Zuko wears a mask since he got his scar, so no one from the gaang recognizes him, causing him to infiltrate the group to try and catch the Avatar

Just a Man

Zuko is kidnapped by Hakoda as a baby on vacation at Ember Island. Hakoda raises him as his own.

Jet Sucks (name wip)

Jet kidnaps Zuko and Sokka, causing them to become reluctant allies that escape together.

Of Pirated Princes

Zuko gets kidnapped by pirates and is sold to Hakoda and crew, though they don't believe that he is actually Prince Zuko. They offer to take him home and end up keeping him while they look for his uncle with him.

A Flame Snuffed Out

Zuko gets amnesia after hitting his head too hard in the North Pole. The Gaang convince him that he was planning on teaching Aang firebending and take him with them for book two.

Salvage/TAOB w/Sokka (name wip)

Zuko gets purposefully captured by the Southern Water Tribe in order to get information about their war efforts, only to bond with Chief Hakoda and his son Sokka.

The Blue Spirit of Ba Sing Se

Zuko is permanently banished from the Fire Nation, so his uncle takes him to Ba Sing Se to live as war refugees. Zuko eventually becomes the vigilante known as the Blue Spirit.

Lying with Honor

Azula stands up to Ozai after he burns Zuko and ends up banished in her brother's place.

Moon Spirit Sokka

Sokka and Yue are swapped. Zuko is tasked with taking down the Northern Water Tribe and ends up falling in love with their prince.

Its a Long, Long Way to Ba Sing Se

After Katara decides to take her mini vacation away from the gang while they go to a library, she runs into Zuko in the Misty Palms Oasis. Before long, they both get chased by two random men (were those Toph's teachers?) and have to team up and travel to Ba Sing Se together.

[mackeydoodledoo]

She Wears Short Skirts, I wear T-shirts: Chapter 4

Pairing: Bridget (Cheerleader AU) x (Fem!)Reader

Chapter Summary: Winterbreak has come. The both of you hang out whenever you can. Even inviting each other to your family's holiday gatherings. The both of you begin talking about what'll come at the end of the year for the both of you.

Chapter Warnings: Swearing, Light NSFW

Chapter Key: Italics = Thoughts, +*+ = Time Skip, F/n = Friend's name, B/n = Band Name, Bold/Italic = Flashback

Chapter Theme: Lover - Taylor Swift

A/n: Might be a little bit of a short read :) But, cooking date with Bridget? Big Plus!

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

*Y/n's POV* You finish setting up extra Christmas decor in your living room.

Halfway through Senior year... Finally...

But, you had no idea where you want to take your life. Certainly you wanted to go to college like the traditional high-school graduate. But then there was your life being a musician.

You really enjoyed it... But your parents worried that you wouldn't be able to make a living solely being a musician, especially the fact that your band was still attempting to make it out onto the bigger stages.

You hear a knock on the door and you go to answer it.

"Bridget!" You smile

"Hey! Where's your parents?" Bridget asks

"After Christmas, they went up north for a secluded new years," You answer, "I'm kinda doing the same thing."

She comes in and sheds her warm, outerwear. The both of you sit on the couch as the both of you munch on holiday cookies.

"What are you planning to do once the year is over?" You ask

"Go to college, join their cheer team there," Bridget says, "I might study culinary."

"I knew you had a knack for baking, but cooking. I have yet to see you do it," You say

"Well then, come on, let's cook dinner together," She says, "Have you eaten yet?"

"As a matter of fact, not yet," You answer

You get up and follow her into the kitchen.

"Just, please don't burn my house down," You chuckle, grabbing some pans

"Are you already doubting my cooking skills?" She asks, smirking

"Not at all," You reply, reaching over and connecting your speaker to your phone, "Just tell me what to do chef."

She grabs some pasta and begins searching your pantry for any other food related ingredients.

"Get us started by cutting up onions please," She says

You reach over and grab an onion and begin cutting it up.

"Any song requests?" You ask

"Anything but hard rock, or whatever," She answers, "Only because it doesn't fit the mood."

You chuckle as you put on the first artist you see that's recommended.

We could leave the Christmas lights up 'til January And this is our place, we make the rules

"Oh I love Taylor Swift!" Bridget sighs into your shoulder, "I'm lucky enough to see her before she decided to take a break."

"She isn't my cup of tea, but there are a small handful of songs I'm game to listen to," You confess, "Albeit majority of them you've heard on the radio..."

And I'm highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you I've loved you three summers now, honey, but I want 'em all

"Even though your parents instantly welcomed me into your house, it still feels awkward," You confess

"Are my parents doing too much?" She asks, "I can let them know and-"

"No it's not that," You say, beginning to cut up some onions, "It's just I've never been accepted by non-band parents. Majority of my life, most parents have been band parents. You parents are cheer parents. Yet, they've accepted somebody like me."

"Just because the student body doesn't favor the band kids, doesn't meant the parents don't," She says

"Oh I'm aware of that," You say, "You of all people should know I don't care what the other students think of the band. I'm not going to remember them well enough."

"That's true," She says, "But, you really only interacted with your band people."

"Yeah, because they understand my sense of humor," You chuckle, "Even if someone were to plan the 10-year reunion, I'd skip it."

"Why?" She asks

"I may be on tour," You answer, "Or elsewhere."

She nods.

"Are you going to miss me?" You ask, with a little playful tone

"I miss you when you're in the band room during lunch," She confesses, "I know you hate it but it would be nice for you to stay in the cafeteria..."

"you can always drop by the band room though, it's right next door," You say, placing the onions in the pan as Bridget begins to sauté it

"Yeah but the assistant principal cracks down people leaving the lunchroom early..." She sighs

"Well, he's an ass," You say, "Just head to the band room before you hit the cafeteria. That way, he won't catch you."

"I'll try to remember that when we go back," She says

Can I go where you go? Can we always be this close forever and ever? And ah, take me out, and take me home (forever and ever) You're my, my, my, my Lover

You finish washing up all of the utensils that both you and Bridget used as she adds the finishing touches to the pasta.

"Ah! It's done. Y/n come sit!" Bridget calls you over

You heed her call and sit in the chair right next to her.

You take a bite of the food... Your eyes light up.

"Holy shit! Where has this been all my life?!" You ask, digging into the meal like a slop

Bridget only looks on as you indulge in the meal.

"You made the sauce yourself?" You ask

She nods.

"Man, any high-end kitchen would be lucky to have you," You say

"Actually, this might sound stupid coming from a cheerleader, but I might want to open up my own cafe..." She says

"Really?" You ask, "Well, keep me informed. I might just be your first customer."

+*+

Bridget lays against your side as the both of you lay in dark silence, attempting to spend the last few moments together.

"When are you leaving for your indoor camp thing?" Bridget asks, breaking the silence

"Tomorrow afternoon," You answer, "I'm going to be staying there past new years to hang out with my friends that are down there. My friend is going to look after my cat while we're all out."

"Hmm," Bridget sighs

"Something wrong?" You ask

"I kinda wish I was going with you," She says

"Then why don't you?" You suggest, "Despite you'd be chilling on the sideline most of the time, you'd get to meet all of my out-of-state friends. They're a really chill group of people. You'd also get a first look at our show. Only thing is you can't speak of it until after the first performance: secrecy purposes."

"I trust your word but my family is going up north for new years as well," She says, "I should be getting a text from my mom soon for her to tell me to come home... So, I've been trying to milk out whatever time we have left."

"Well, you can always text me," You suggest, "It isn't that hard."

"It isn't the same as seeing you in person," She says, "I have something for you."

"Oh, you didn't have to get me anything," You say

"Oh, but I wanted to," She says, sitting up

You sit up after her. She immediately holds up mistletoe above your heads. Your body stiffens and your mouth hangs agape as Bridget slowly brings the gap between your faces to a close.

"If... If you don't want to... I'll leave right now," She states

You didn't want her to leave, in the moment anyway: you wanted every moment you could get with her. Your brain couldn't process the fact that Bridget could have talked to anyone in the entire school... Here she is, with you.

She gasps as you lurch forward, kissing her first. Your arm wraps around her hips as the both of you continue to kiss.

The both of you pull away when Bridget's phone goes off. She sighs in frustration.

"I gotta go..." She sighs, "I'm leaving with my family for our new years trip..."

you nearly groan in frustration as she gets up off of your lap. You get up and follow her out of the door.

"Do you want me to walk you?" You offer

"That'd be nice actually," She smiles

You quickly throw on some warm clothing and follow her out the door. However gives you one last quick kiss before the both of you walk back to her house.

Chapter 5

[cailinsblog]

Scared to Say It

Connor bedard x reader

Connor Bedard felt like he was on top of the world. At just 19 years old, he was a rising star in the NHL, playing for the Chicago Blackhawks. But as successful as he was on the ice, he couldn't help feeling a bit of envy that had nothing to do with hockey.

It was the night of a big game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Connor's team was trailing by a goal. He sat on the bench, helmet off, staring out at the sea of red and black jerseys in the stands. Somewhere out there was his best friend, Y/N, who had been a constant in his life for years. He'd known her since they were kids, growing up in the same neighborhood in North Vancouver. They'd done everything together: playing street hockey, biking, going to the beach. She was his rock, his confidante, his best friend. And he was in love with her.

The problem was, he didn't know how to tell her.

Connor glanced over at the Maple Leafs section, and that's when he saw it: Y/N wearing a Leafs jersey. Not just any jersey—it was Auston Matthews', one of the league's top players. A wave of jealousy surged through him, and he felt a tightness in his chest. Why was she wearing that jersey? Had she met Matthews? Did she like him?

"Hey, man, you okay?" asked his teammate, Lukas Reichel, who noticed his brooding expression.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Connor lied, trying to focus on the game. But his eyes kept drifting back to where he knew Y/N was sitting. The jealousy wouldn't go away. He was angry at himself for feeling this way, but he couldn't help it.

"Looks like someone got under your skin," said Taylor Raddysh, another teammate, who'd followed Connor's gaze. "Isn't that your friend over there?"

Connor nodded. "Yeah, that's Y/N," he said, feeling his stomach twist.

"Why's she wearing a Leafs jersey?" Taylor asked, raising an eyebrow. "I thought she was a Blackhawks fan."

Connor shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe she just likes Matthews," he said, trying to sound indifferent, but it came out as a grumble.

The other guys on the bench started to pick up on his mood. They'd seen Connor and Y/N together enough times to know there was something more than friendship between them, even if Connor couldn't admit it. Taylor gave him a nudge. "You should talk to her, man. Tell her how you feel."

"I can't," Connor said, shaking his head. "What if it ruins our friendship?"

Lukas rolled his eyes. "Dude, everyone can see you two are into each other. Just go for it. Life's too short to be scared."

Before Connor could respond, the coach called the team back to the ice. The game resumed, but Connor was distracted. His mind kept racing back to Y/N in that blue jersey. He knew he shouldn't care so much, but he couldn't help it. He was afraid of losing her, afraid of the change that might come if he confessed his feelings.

As the game went on, things didn't get much better for the Blackhawks. They fell behind by two goals, and the crowd grew restless. Connor felt the pressure mounting. He played hard, trying to focus on the game, but his heart wasn't in it.

During the intermission, the team returned to the locker room. The coach laid into them, demanding more effort and focus, but Connor barely heard him. He sat at his locker, his head down, feeling the weight of uncertainty.

Suddenly, the locker room door creaked open, and he looked up to see Y/N slipping inside. "Connor?" she said, her voice soft.

"Y/N, what are you doing here?" he asked, surprised to see her. The rest of the team had gone back out for warm-ups, so it was just the two of them.

"I wanted to check on you," she said, walking over to him. She held out a bundle of fabric—a Blackhawks jersey. "I changed into this because I didn't want you to be upset. I know the Leafs jersey was a bad choice. It was a friend's joke, and I thought it would be funny, but I didn't realize you'd be so bothered by it."

Connor felt a surge of relief, but also a pang of guilt for feeling so jealous. He stood up, his heart racing. "It's okay," he said, taking the jersey from her. "I'm glad you came to see me."

Y/N looked at him, her eyes searching his. "Is something wrong, Connor? You seem... different tonight."

He hesitated, feeling the words on the tip of his tongue. The moment felt right, and he knew he had to take the risk. "Y/N, I—"

"You're back on in five!" one of the coaches shouted, interrupting them.

Connor felt the urgency of the moment slipping away. He couldn't wait any longer. He took a deep breath and stepped closer to her. "Y/N, I need to tell you something," he said, his voice low and intense. "I like you. I mean, I really like you. More than just a friend. I've been too scared to say it, but I can't keep pretending."

Y/N's eyes widened, and her cheeks flushed. "Connor, I—"

But before she could finish, Connor leaned in and kissed her. It was gentle and hesitant, yet filled with emotion. It felt like everything he'd been holding back finally broke free, and for a moment, the world faded away.

When they broke apart, Y/N's eyes sparkled with surprise and happiness. "Connor, I've liked you for a long time," she said, smiling. "I just didn't know if you felt the same."

Connor couldn't believe his ears. "You do? Why didn't you say something?"

"I was scared," she said, shrugging. "I didn't want to ruin our friendship."

Connor laughed, feeling a wave of relief. "Me too," he said, pulling her into a hug. "I guess we've both been scared for no reason."

Their embrace was interrupted by the coach's voice. "Bedard! Get back on the ice!"

Connor sighed and kissed Y/N's forehead. "I'll see you after the game, okay?"

"Good luck," she said, watching him as he left the locker room with a huge smile on his face.

The game turned around for the Blackhawks after that. Connor played with renewed energy, scoring two goals and leading his team to a thrilling comeback victory. As the final horn sounded and the crowd erupted in cheers, he skated over to where Y/N was sitting, wearing his jersey and cheering him on.

He pointed to her and grinned, his heart swelling with happiness. She blew him a kiss and waved, her excitement as palpable as the rest of the fans'. The game was a success, but it was nothing compared to the feeling of finally being honest about his feelings.

After the game, Connor and Y/N went back to his place, where they cuddled on the couch, watching a movie and enjoying the simple comfort of each other's company. It was a happy ending that felt like a new beginning—a beginning where fear and uncertainty no longer stood in the way of their love

[shutupineedtothink]

Ok so my friend and I just recorded 4 HOURS of raw audio breaking down the OUAT pilot, season 1 finale, and discussing the show in general for our new podcast where we make each other watch episodes of our favorite shows and talk about them together. It’s exactly as fun as you would imagine. :)

But even after all that, I still have things I forgot to say or didn’t get to. So here’s a few of them:

1. “Evil” as addiction: the OUAT writers treat the concept of being evil like addiction/substance abuse which is really interesting and kind of a bold choice for a 2011 show about fairytales. Then within that structure they show basically the two choices you have when facing addiction: choose not to use and become a better, healed version of yourself (Regina) or keep using and stay stuck in your patterns and hurt everyone you love forever (Rumple). As a child of an alcoholic who has chosen the latter, I loved watching Regina’s journey in this context and while she stumbles a lot, she keeps striving to be good even though she gets the short end of the stick most of the time. And her North Star is always Henry, which I think is important to show that you don’t just change because you feel like it, there usually has to be the threat of something worse happening if you don’t change (in this case, losing Henry physically and emotionally).

2. Regina Mills might be the most psychologically complex and interesting character on prime time tv in the 2010s? Period??

3. I rambled a good bit in the podcast about the costumes and color symbolism but here’s a bit more for you: Once Regina is on team heroes she often wears some kind of red top (the hero’s color) with a black jacket/coat over it showing that she’s changed on the inside but she still *looks* like the evil queen on the outside and can now use that persona/power to her advantage instead of being consumed by it. By the end of S5 this contrasts with Emma who wears her signature red jacket but a black/white/gray sweater underneath, showing that she’s a little more of a mix of good and evil these days post-dark one. In a color sense, they’re almost mirror images of each other at this point, and it’s really cool.

4. I know a lot of people are really salty about how Emma’s light kind of dims toward S4, 5, 6, and I’m right there with you. Her character feels flatter, and honestly kind of depressed. Now idk if this was a real choice on the writers’/JMo’s part, if she was going through some stuff at this time and it just showed up in the character, or what. That said, it does track for me in a way, especially post-dark one. She should be kind of thrown off by everything that’s happened! She should be changed! I just wish they had done something with it instead of pretending it was normal. If Regina’s struggle with evil is analogous to addiction, why can’t Emma’s struggle with evil be analogous to depression? It would have been an interesting take. Somebody write the fic.

I could keep going but I’ll stop here for now. Stay tuned for the podcast!

[tyrantisterror]

At Sea Without a Map pt. 24

Despite the imminent peril something catches your eye, and the more you look at it, the more focused on it you become. Because your eyes do not deceive you...

...that is a fucking pirate ship. And, being a ship, it would follow that there are in fact people on it, perhaps - dare you hope to dream? - humans. You jump and wave your arms in an attempt to get the ship's attention, hoping that maybe they'll spot you and lend some much needed assistance.

The dolphin's fin comes closer and closer, snapping you back to the reality of your situation. You see its head crest out of the water, its long jaws open in a cruel giggle, and watch as its sinuous body leaps out for another deadly slam against your boat...

Thunder booms and seconds later the dolphin is hit straight in the cheek by a massive cannonball. Its shrill laughter rises in pitch to a wretched shriek, and then, in defiance of physics as you understand it, its body is sent not forward, but straight up into the sky by the blow, twisting and turning in the air until it disappears in a tiny glint of light hundreds of feet above your ship.

"Holy shit," you say as you watch the dolphin go blasting off into the sky like Team fucking Rocket. "It worked? It actually worked?!?" You leap up into the air and wave at the pirate ship. "Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you!"

As if hearing your words, the ship moves towards your boat, giving you a better view of its stranger details. The main sail bears an emblem that looks like a cat's pawprint, the figurehead is a sort of half fish, half-panther creature, and the "stairs" to the upper level where the steering wheel sits are less stairs and more a sort of jagged ramp. You begin to wonder how eccentric the owner must be when he walks down to the main deck and looks you in the eye.

...

It's a tiger.

It's a fucking tiger.

As your ships come together, you find yourself staring at, well, a tiger wearing a pirate hat, a pirate coat, an eyepatch, and a hook on the tip of its tail. All of these would make it seem pretty silly if it weren't also a big fucking tiger, complete with sharp teeth and claws with which to rend your flesh. It levels a pant-shittingly terrifying glare at you before opening its mouth and releasing a bone-shaking roar from deep within its massive tiger lungs.

"He says he's Captain Peter," Calibani says as she sidles up next to you. "And that we have the privelge of being rescued by his ship, the Great Growl-Tiger."

You stop, blink, and stare at Calibani for a moment. "You can speak... tiger-ese?"

"Oh, no, I actually speak sea-lion," she says with a humble smile. "But they're very similar dialects." She roars out some... words? you don't understand at the tiger, who growls back in what could pass for a conversation if it weren't completely batshit to consider it such. "I thanked him on our behalf. He'd like to know if we need any further assistance - apparently it's been a long since he's seen a human out here."

At a loss, you consult your compass.

(Once again, you may submit questions/discussion topics for this next update based on the four directions of our poll. The more that are received, the more informative the interaction will be.)

[blacklegsanjiii]

Trafalgar!Sanji + ASL+S childhood friends (Acesan Childhood Friends to Lovers trope)...

Sanji goes with Baratie at Foosha and meets this chaotic trio of brothers, quickly befriending them. They are his first friends (since Law is his big brother) and even if he adores them, Sanji still never tells anything about his past or the scars he has.

And the blond goes to Foosha every couple of months, so he's not in the island when everything with Sabo happens, he just discovers about this the day the Baratie docks on the village again and he sees his friend with a scar on the face. And after knowing he almost lose his friend, it's like something tells him he shouldn't keep this, because he don't know if he will have them forever.

Sanji still don't tells his brother's name, because Law's "death" was still pretty recently but he still talk about him. The trio likes to hear about he saying moments he had with his brother (mostly Ace and Luffy, because they almost lost their brother).

So live goes on, Ace and Sanji start to date some time before Ace set sail, then Sabo also set sail and after 3 years Luffy do it. But the rubber boy finds Baratie and he goes with him in Luffy's adventure so Sanji can find the All Blue.

Everything we know happens, until Marineford where Sanji go to help to save his boyfriend because he knows how being punished/haunted by your family line is horrible. And they save Ace and Whitebeard.

So, the timeskip happens, and then Punk Hazard also happens and Ace is there (because he asks pops if he can stay with the StrawHats for some time since, y'know, he wants to be with Luffy and Sanji), but he notices his boyfriend is very close with the Trafalgar, that he is always with him and things like that.

Ace end up becoming a little jealous, bc Sanji never telled his big brother name so no one can make the connection. Until one night Ace asks Sanji about it and then the blond notices he never said Law's name to the ASL brothers. So y'know, he explains everything and the next morning Sanji talks with Ace and Law together, where the siblings tell the Portgas about everything they had gone through from both their points of view.

And after, Law decides to gave Ace a "little" shovel talk, since y'know, big brother worried about his young brother (Ace completely understands bc he IS a big sibling himself but still, being threatened by the Surgeon of Death is scary)

Love this, ASL+Trafalgar!S. A horrific set of people you never want to meet as a marine. Also yeah, we have to push the times back a teensy bit for most things but Sanji being twelve when he meets and befriends them shortly after Baratie opens and starts hanging out with them. He doesn't say where he's from or anything about any of his family. His scars hidden by the clothes he wears and the front he puts up.

Eventually he starts considering them closer than friends but he doesn't want to put a name to it. Not after everything he's been through. When Sanji comes back after the Grey Terminal Fires and finds out Sabo will be leaving soon with the Revolutionary Army. So Sanji breaks down and tells them he lost his brother in the North Blue with some friends(Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin) and he's scared to lose others. Sanji starts talking more about his brother, his spots on his skin.

When Sanji and Ace start dating Sanji comes ashore one day basically bouncing because Sabo's there but also his brother is alive and he got to talk to him!! Turns out they thought each other were dead, but they figured out they're not dead because of the paper. ASL still do not ask for the brother's name. Then Ace sets sail, and then a couple years later Luffy does and takes Sanji with him.

Sanji just barely making it to Marineford after Luffy and the Impel Down team make it out and the war is already raging. Sanji helping however he can and shocking a lot of people with his fire legs. They save Ace and White Beard and Sanji gets a good look at Teach as they leave. He gets a good look at Law too who is taking his captain to treat him after the punch from Akainu got him and Jinbei. Marco has Ace and White Beard. Sanji thanks them both and leaves for Kamabakka to train. He saved them. That's what matters.

After the TS Ace says Pops is retiring and Marco gave him permission to travel with the Straw hats. Luffy and Sanji are happy to be spending time with Ace and Luffy even has Franky fix up the Captain's quarters so that Ace and Sanji can have privacy. When they pick up Law in Punk Hazard Sanji is suddenly spending a lot of time with the warlord who saved Luffy. Law is allowed in the kitchen when Ace and Luffy aren't, they speak in a language no one else speaks, Robin keeps sending them looks Ace really doesn't like. So he asks Sanji about it when they're alone on deck one night headed to Dressrosa.

"Oh, shit. I never told you my brother's name." Sanji says with a sudden realization.

"Huh? What does your brother have to do with any of this?" Ace asks.

"My brother is Law. The shitty surgeon on the ship with us." Sanji replies.

"Oh." Ace says with wide eyes. "Oh shit, does he know we're dating?"

"I don't know." Sanji groans. "Oh shit, the bastard's gonna kill me."

"I think he's more likely to kill me than you." Ace deadpans and pulls the cook close who keeps mumbling apologies and leans into him. The next morning Ace is allowed in the kitchen for coffee with Law and Sanji even though it's ungodly early and no one should be awake. Law is somehow reading medical jargon at the table which is wild to Ace.

"So we need to have a talk." Sanji says.

"I figured that's why Fire Fist was in the galley. What about?" Law asks as marks his book and closes the book.

"He just found out you're my brother." Sanji answers sheepishly and Law takes off his hat, runs his hand into hair and groans.

"Does anyone else not know?" Law asks in dismay.

"Robin knows, Luffy might?" Sanji questions and then sees the look Law is giving him. "I didn't ask you to send a hundred marine hearts to Navy HQ! This is your dumb revenge plan!"

"Yeah, and when I get your birth family's name they're next!" Law orders.

"Wait, even he doesn't know that? How did you two even meet?" Ace asks in a confused and whiny tone. Sanji laughs and gets breakfast in the oven and brings the coffee set up to the table. Law and Sanji explain almost everything, how Law found Sanji but doesn't mention the helmet, Bepo joining and Shachi and Penguin shortly after. The storm that separated them and then the rock and Zeff. The phone calls between them until he joined Luffy's crew. They go back and forth, trading their sides of the story and Law thinking Sanji died again on Sabaody when the crew got separated after Kuma and Sanji rubs his neck and apologizes to the eldest.

Later Ace and Law are alone for some reason on deck, everyone else is doing something and Law isn't in the galley for some reason. Ace looks at him with confusion as Law leans over the railing next to him. Law pulls a heart out of his pocket and Ace's eyes widen as he watches it beat.

"It's just my heart, calm down." Law tells him. "One of the first things I learned with my fruit, I don't do a lot of killing since I'm a doctor. The marines' hearts are all just fine at their head quarters."

"That really calms me down." Ace deadpans and Law laughs lightly.

"I just wanted to talk to you, about Sanji." Law says.

"I get it, Akainu is at the top of my list for what he did to Luffy, you'll kill me, I got it." Ace replies.

"Once again, doctor, I don't do a lot of murdering," Law points out, "I'm not a kind doctor of course, I save those who would die by any other doctor and I'm not kind. I will do anything to protect Sanji, no matter who gets in my way. So if you can't or won't, I'll sink the worst generation and more to get to him." Law says as puts his heart back in his pocket and stands straight. "But you understand that."

"All too well, are you going to put that back?" Ace asks.

"Nah, this one is going into hiding. I have a different one." Law smirks and taps his chest.

"What the fuck does that mean?" Ace asks as Law walks away and laughs. "What the fuck does that mean, Trafalgar!?"

[my-rewrite-academia]

Week 24 (Final Exams - Part 2):

Start!

Monday comes around. Tenya and Momo give Nedzu a list of their finalised teams. He is already aware, of course, as he kept an eye on them through the cameras.

After the written exams, they have half-an-hour to relax, before Aizawa finally explains the exams in depth, everyone now dressed in their costumes.

The goal, as explained before, is to capture the enemy team leader for five minutes using a special capture tape provided to everyone. For those five minutes, the leaders can escape. If they escape, that time held captive will be reset to zero. Other team members can be taken out by capturing them for two minutes. Once those two minutes are up, the capture tape will glow red, and the captive will have to stay still for the rest of the exam.

They will be fighting in City D, where there are many civilian bots provided by Power Loader. They are small and if they are damaged, they will set off an alarm and their eyes will glow red. Damaging a civilian bot will dock points from the individual student. 

Speaking of docking points, students will be marked based on their performance. He doesn't explain the specifics of the marking, but does let them know that the better they act, the higher their points. Within the exams, they are only to refer to each other by hero names. Using real names will mark them down a point.

The exam is two hours long, but it doesn't have to last two hours long, nor do they have to fight for the entirety of it, (that would just be asking for the impossible). It will end earlier as soon as the team leader is marked 'out'. Again, if neither are taken out, both teams will lose, not win, meaning nobody goes on the trip.

The students are handed two rolls of capture tape each. "Good luck," Aizawa says once more.

Each group is taken to a starting point. As Aizawa said, the fake city is full of civilian bots, each small with a friendly smile on their faces. None of them want to see what it looks like if damaged. They start on opposite ends of the fake city, and the exam will start when Mic, in a booth, announces it.

They go over their plans first, modifying it to fit in with the city layout, the map provided in their starting point, both highlighting the team bases. Momo creates earpieces for her teammates, who wear them gratefully.

Both teams have decided to make protecting their leader their number one priority but in different ways. They have five minutes to refamiliarise themselves with the plan and modify it accordingly. At the end of the five minutes, it starts.

"STAAAAARRRRRT!"

Revelry in the Dark

As soon as it starts, all of Team A leave the base. Momo is guarded by both Izuku and Kyouka, heading north towards Team B's base. Yuuga and Tooru split off together to the west. Tsuyu and Minoru partner up, heading east. Mezou, Kouji, and Hanta head northwest together.

Meanwhile, everyone in Team B splits up, with only Shouto guarding Tenya. Mashirao and Rikidou go in the same direction, while everyone else travels alone to different locations. Ochako and Denki head off to the base, undeterred. 

Fumikage heads straight to the west, using what he learned from Hawks to aid him, having Dark Shadow wrap around him and fly up ahead until he spots two students – Yuuga and Tooru. After spotting them, he assesses where the civilian bots are, before dive-bombing onto their location.

The dive-bombing, of course, creates some noise, and Tooru and Yuuga are able to see him coming and react accordingly. Tooru pushes herself out of the way, moving the light around her costume to turn it invisible. Yuuga uses his navel laser to propel himself out of the way, accidentally taking a civilian bot with him, the blue smile turning into a red frown, blaring some noise. He winces. 

Fumikage uses Dark Shadow to soften his landing, and he stands from the small crater his divebomb creates. "Greetings, Kousen. Spotlight." He stances up, ready for battle. "Let us observe who shall win. Light? Or dark?" 

"That's quite cheesy, mon ami," Yuuga stutters, civilian bots evacuating at the battle soon to happen. "We're not after you, you see! Perhaps we should leave the fighting for now."

"I shall respectfully decline." With that, Fumikage sends Dark Shadow to attack Yuuga, who dodges in a panic, sweat coating his face. Tooru, unseen, charges at Fumikage, reeling back a fist to punch him, only for her fist to meet the might of Dark Shadow.

"Sorry, lady!" Dark Shadow cheers. "But the bird mutation ain't just for show! You can look invisible, but you should learn about this thing called magnetoreception! Disturbing the magnetic fields is just as loud as yelling." 

Tooru backs up, and she smiles. How exciting! An opponent who can figure out where she is! It's good practice, she reckons. With that, she charges back in, forgetting about relying on her invisibility, dodging and weaving between Dark Shadow's attacks. He's hardly affected when she tries to burn him or freeze him, and she gets knocked back time and time again, barely landing any hits against him. But it's so exciting!

Yuuga is a coward. He knows this. The reason he chose Momo's group wasn't because he thought he'd work well with Tooru, or because he wanted to prove himself. It's because he wanted to lose. Team B's group is full of powerhouses with strong quirks, like Shouto, Bakugou, Ochako, Denki, Mina. He knew he'd stand no chance against them, and that's why he chose Momo's group. There's a reason he wanted to lose.

Except, as he watches Tooru fight against Fumikage, (although, 'watch' is hardly the word to use when she's invisible), he feels a deep sense of shame within himself. Here his teammate is, fighting against someone like Fumikage, who is so strong, not a single scratch or bruise on him. Tooru is fighting him, getting hit at every turn, and she gets back up. Charges in again. She fights.

His hands shake, tears already building in his eyes. (He's always been a crybaby.) He shouldn't want to win. He should be doing everything to make sure his team loses. To make sure half of the class doesn't get to go on that trip.

But, as he watches Tooru, he knows he can't. Yuuga may be a sad excuse of a hero, but he refused to be a worse friend. So, he stands up, hands behind his head, and he fires a beam of light straight at Fumikage.

He dodges. Of course, he dodges. Because Yuuga can't do a single thing right.

But then– "Good job, Spotlight!" As Fumikage focused on dodging Yuuga's laser, Tooru dived in further, finally managing to land a hit on Fumikage's jaw. His head flies back, and Dark Shadow retaliates by smashing into Tooru, sending her flying back, right to where Yuuga stands. "Look at that! We managed to land a hit on him!"

"… No. You did. I missed."

Tooru's voice is as peppy as ever, "I only hit him 'cause you fired." She pats him on the back, strong. "Now, let's do that again! Until we get a chance to capture him!"

"Unfortunately for you," Fumikage says, "you won't get a chance." He attacks once more, and Tooru dives in, Yuuga yelping and trying to hide. But Tooru's words replay in his head. He did something. It was pathetic, and yet it somehow helped. 

… He shouldn't. He wanted to lose. He shouldn't be trying to win… But he can't leave her hanging. Not like this.

So, he readies himself, and fires again, unsure of where Tooru is, but trusting her to dodge. She does, and she lands another hit. The more Yuuga fires, Tooru notices that Dark Shadow begins to shrink as the lasers pass by. A lightbulb switches on in her head.

"Hey, Spotlight! Do you remember what Kyou said? About how we could work together?" Yuuga thinks. And he remembers. Tooru grins, unseen. "Wanna try it out?"

"My fair lady, you are quite daring!" Yuuga turns his navel, stomach churning dangerously, but adrenaline high. "Whenever you are ready!"

Tooru backs off from Fumikage. He charges in, unnerved by this sudden turn, but he's too late. Yuuga fires a laser, as strong as he can. Tooru steps into it, absorbing all of that radiation and light. Fumikage, stunned, freezes. Yuuga just hit his teammate. On purpose.

Then Tooru begins to glow. "Hey, Tsukuyomi-san, dweller of the dark." She steps forward, Dark Shadow retreating with it. "You wanted to see how light combats the darkness? Here you go!" Light blooms from her body, bright and all encompassing. Dark Shadow screeches at the overwhelming amount of light, Fumikage panicking at the sight.

Yuuga shields his eyes, pale and sweaty. When he opens his eyes, Dark Shadow is little more than a heap on the ground, Fumikage curled up and palming at the ground, blinded momentarily.

"Spotlight! The tape!"

"R-Right!" Yuuga rushes forth, tape at the ready, and he ties Fumikage up, taking a step back a moment later. Tooru, as soon as the tape is around him, jumps on top of him, recalling how Izuku kept her pinned down in the Sports Festival, and recreating it with Fumikage as her victim. 

"G-Get off of me!"

"No way," she sings, gleeful. "With that super strong quirk, I bet you've barely worked out. I'm gonna lay on top of you for two minutes! And I know you're not overpowering me!" She turns her head, activating her suit one more. "Spotlight! Be a darling and fire super short bursts around Tsukuyomi here. That way Dark Shadow can't even grow, can he?"

Fumikage doesn't answer. He doesn't have to. Two minutes pass. The tape glows red. Tsukuyomi is out.

-

Rangers – Attack!

As Yuuga and Tooru encounter Fumikage, Tsuyu and Minoru are quickly confronted by Team B's only duo: Mashirao and Rikidou. Tsuyu is on the rooftops as it happens, Minoru following on the pavement. Mashirao and Rikidou are the first to notice Minoru, but neither notice Tsuyu, who spots them. 

Mashirao makes the first move, chasing Minoru into a vacated building, where there are no civilian bots to harm. Rikidou follows after. Minoru is deceptively fast, screaming as he runs away, but he's just as quickly cornered in the third story, in a room full of pillars and wooden boxes. 

"Uh, hey," Minoru greets, nervous. "So, how's your day going?"

Mashirao doesn't grace that with a response, lunging at Minoru with a tail to his face, only for Minoru to duck, making him miss entirely thanks to his lack of height. He guns for the door, only for Rikidou, powered up with a stick of sugar, to block his way via breaking a pillar and covering the door in rubble. Minoru screams once more, believing now that Tsuyu cannot come to his rescue.

"Fight's on, Purple Rain," Mashirao declares, before both him and Rikidou charge at him. Minoru manages to escape, running around the room. Rikidou chases after him, Mashirao cutting him off at several points. The fight reigns on, Minoru getting struck every so often, while Mashirao and Rikidou are merely sweating with how much they have to run after him.

Eventually, however, Mashirao does manage to strike Minoru in the gut with his tail, sending him flying against the wall. Rikidou picks him up, grinning all the while. Minoru struggles in his grasp, tears in his eyes, but he can't fight as Rikidou begins to tape up his body. 

"Wait!" Minoru cries. "Please! Not like this!"

"I could make it worse," Rikidou says, dropping Minoru on the ground. "Just accept your loss."

Mashirao nods. "He has to stay like this for two minutes, right?"

"Yeah."

"Too bad." A tongue shoots past them, wrapping around Minoru and dragging him away. Mashirao and Rikidou turn around. Tsuyu stands on the windowsill, ripping the tape off Minoru's body. "Sorry I'm late, kero. I didn't know which floor you were on."

Minoru sobs. "I-It's okay, Froppy! Just get here faster next time!"

Tsuyu nods. "Sure." 

Rikidou lunges at her, attempting to punch her, but she drops inside the building, ducking past Rikidou and wrapping her tongue around him, before throwing him into a pillar. Mashirao jumps in next, tail swinging. She ducks, moving back towards the wall. This time, Minoru attacks, throwing a ball with accuracy, pinning it to Mashirao's tail. Tsuyu ducks once more, and Mashirao pales as his tail latches on the wall behind her. Stuck. 

Minoru freaks out, internally. He couldn't do this before – dodging and attacking with two people on him was impossible. But with Tsuyu here, victory is in sight!

Rikidou jumps back into the fight, powered up with three sugar packets… and his IQ takes a hit, attacking mindlessly. Tsuyu has more trouble dodging, as does Minoru, getting hit a good few times, but with Rikidou in this state, he's become oblivious to anything other than his targets. Mashirao struggles against the wall, cursing how sticky Minoru's ball is. As he does, he notices Minoru throwing more balls onto the floor around Tsuyu, who stands still

Mashirao figures it out quickly. "Fornax! Wait!"

But it's all for naught. Rikidou is too mindless to listen, and he charges at Tsuyu. When he does, his foot lands on top of Minoru's trap. He rips his shoes off, but it's too late, as Minoru slaps a ball on his back and Tsuyu delivers a kick to his stomach, sending him on the ground, stuck. And in an uncomfortable position, with one foot stuck too. 

Tsuyu wraps Rikidou in capture tape, Minoru sticking his hands to the ground. They turn to Mashirao next. He pales. 

Two minutes pass. Rikidou and Mashirao are out.

-

Rivals Riot

Back to Yuuga and Tooru!

Tooru speaks into her earpiece, declaring that Tsukuyomi is down. A moment later, Tsuyu declares that Fornax and Tailwhip are out. As soon as that's announced, Tooru and Yuuga celebrate, Fumikage watching them blandly on the ground. 

"Ah! I didn't expect to win," Yuuga claims, holding his stomach.

"Don't speak like that!" Tooru yells, slapping his back for emphasis. "If you only expect failure, then that's all you'll get!" Yuuga chuckles nervously, still sick. He's sure that if he tried to use his quirk again, he'd throw up immediately.

"Well said, Kousen!" As if to spite him, Mina steps in, beaming. "Now, I believe we have a rematch we never missed?"

Tooru smiles back. "That we do! Spotlight? Let me handle her. You go get some rest, okay?"

Yuuga steps back. "I-If you're sure."

"I am." Tooru cracks her knuckles. "I have a score to settle, after all."

Yuuga steps away. As soon as he does, Tooru charges in, suit turning invisible. It matters not, as Mina spreads her acid all around. Tooru yells in pain as the acid strikes her, burning through her clothes and searing her arms.

Mina grins. "I did some research, Kousen. Acid isn't radiation! I can burn you!"

Tooru breathes in deeply, tears stinging her eyes from the burns on her body. Crap. Her bluff is completely gone now, especially since she instinctively screamed. "Then," she says, voice wavering, "I guess we can both go all out." As soon as she says that, the atmosphere begins to drop. Yuuga shivers, Dark Shadow coming out to provide warmth to Fumikage. A puff of condensation leaves Mina's mouth. "I did my research too… There's a reason I've been training my temperature control. Did you know that liquid travels slower when it's cold?"

Mina readies herself, cold but eager nonetheless. "Good! I'd hate for my rival to fall behind."

The battle begins. Tooru manages to dodge much of Mina's acid, and she grits her teeth as she slams her fist into Mina's acid-coated skin. Mina retaliates with well-placed strikes, finding her acid solid when it strikes the ground, making her unable to slide across the floor.

Their fight is gritty. With every hit Tooru lands, she takes damage. But Mina isn't nearly as sturdy as Tooru, who has built her body for years. All-in-all, it's a pretty even fight, but Tooru has far more constitution, even if their stamina is on par with Mina's years of dance. 

Tooru manages to hit Mina hard enough to make her dizzy, and quickly wraps the capture tape around her.

Then Mina dissolves it. She smiles, hand on her head as she tries to regain her bearing. "Sorry, hunny," she says through chattering teeth. "But I don't think I can be captured." 

Tooru only grins back. "Then, I'll just have to knock you out!" Mina blanks. Tooru kicks her in the gut, then punches the back of her head, sending her face-first into the floor. She's out-cold. Unconscious. Tooru whoops in victory, and quickly ties her every orifice up, hoping to every God out there that she doesn't wake up before two minutes.

As she lets the temperature return, she quietly cries, as a third person arrives, landing harshly on the ground from the rooftop. 

"Yo!" She turns, shaking. Before her stands Eijirou, a wide grin on his face, legs hardened before it returns to its normal muscles. "Be a pal and give my teammate back, won't you?"

Tooru stands, her burns aching and body tired. Three back-to-back fights. Damn. "Hey, Spotlight? Gimme a hand, won't you?"

Yuuga walks to her side. "I'm not sure if even ten hands will help us."

They wouldn't. With Yuuga still half-sick from overusing his quirk against Fumikage and Tooru exhausted beyond belief, they know that they're not emerging from this as the winners. Still.

"But, as you said my fair lady, if we expect failure, then we'll only get failure."

Tooru laughs. "That we will!" 

In fairness, they last longer than they expect. Eijirou can't fight lasers, nor can he dodge what he can't see, but he can react to it. Two minutes go by and Mina's tape goes off. Two minutes go by, and Tooru and Yuuga lie in a heap, tape wrapped around them. Knocked-out. 

Eijirou emerges as the victor. Acid Trip, Kousen, and Spotlight are now out.

-

Electric Punk

Denki and Ochako travel south, and they meet Momo, Kyouka, and Izuku halfway, who are travelling north. They collide, Ochako jumping Momo, who moves her cape to block Ochako's hand, and Denki follows after them.

Kyouka and Izuku react quickly enough, chasing after Momo, who creates a copper pole, directing Denki's electricity away from her. Izuku kicks Ochako away from Momo, while Kyouka sends a blast at Denki, who gets sent flying. Civilian bots are fleeing the premises, some glowing red and blasting their alarms after Momo was tackled into them.

"I'm going after Chargebolt!" Kyouka yells, then doesn't wait for an answer, running after Denki. He's landed far away from Momo, Izuku, and Ochako, already wielding his water gun. He shoots, and Kyouka steps out of its path, retaliating with her own projectile. Denki sends a wave of electricity towards her through the ground, and Kyouka blasts her speakers once more.

His jaw drops as the electricity fizzles out, some even recoiling towards him. Kyouka smirks, seeing his shock. "Did nobody tell you? Radio waves can affect electricity. Sorry, but I'm a great match against you."

His grin is limp. "Great match for me, too."

She rolls her eyes. "No chance in hell." With that, she sends another blast at Denki. He decides that playing long-range will only result in failure, and charges at her with a cry of war, metal baton in hand. She's ready for this – it's only logical that he would do this. Still, Kyouka breaks out into a sweat as she finds herself in close-quarters combat. Not her forte.

She manages to dodge a few strikes, sending small blasts in retaliation, but she can't dodge them all. With each strike, Denki runs a small charge of electricity through his baton, shocking Kyouka in tandem. She falls to her knees, when one strikes right into her shoulder, and manages to roll out of the way of the following strike. As she lands, she blasts again, this time small and targeted: right into Denki's wrist. His wrist flies back and, with another blast, the baton soars from his hand, lying in a heap.

He panics, running to get it, only for Kyouka to strike the back of his knees with a blast, making him fall to the ground. She charges at him, one lobe leaving her speaker, and wrapping around Denki's ankle. He instinctively sends a wave of electricity around his body, and Kyouka grits her teeth, blasting her own lobe with her soundwaves, cutting it off before it could travel any further. 

She leaves one speaker on, keeping a steady noise going as she pulls Denki towards him. He panics, clawing at the ground, grabbing his water gun, only for her to yank him forth and slap it out of his hands. She lowers the sound little by little, and his heartbeat follows with it, slowing down.

Before she blasts it, loud and piercing. Denki chokes, his head spinning, eyes rolling back. As much as he fights against it, he falls unconscious, with no idea what the hell just happened.

Kyouka grins, wrapping him up with tape, before limping away to get back to Izuku and Momo. Hopefully she didn't rupture his eardrums.

-

Contact

Back to Ochako, Momo, and Izuku: they're fighting. Momo is using a bo staff, keeping her distance away from Ochako, while Izuku attacks with his katana, stepping back whenever Ochako tries to grab him. All-in-all, it's the most ferocious game of keep-away to be known by mankind.

Ochako's physical abilities have been amped up by Miruko, and she is using every bit of knowledge to aid her. Two-on-One? Who cares!? She sure as hell doesn't. She's learned a lot from friends and Miruko, and she will prove her worth here and now. After all, she already promised to fight Momo again, and she really wants to beat Izuku at least once. This is her chance to kill two birds with one stone.

Izuku slashes at her, and she dodges, bringing her hand to slap his katana, only for Momo to jump in as Izuku draws his katana back, slamming her bo staff into Ochako's gut. Ochako grabs it as soon as it makes contact, and Momo lets it float away, simply creating a new one.

Really now, it's a good fight. Ochako does well against two opponents, none of them giving anyone a chance to breathe. She stands her ground, managing to graze her fingertips against Izuku's sleeve, and accelerating him backwards, far away. He manages to cut the top of his hakama off, leaving his black turtleneck to cover his chest. It takes a while, with carbon fibre woven into it, but he manages.

While Izuku struggles against his own clothes, Ochako and Momo continue their fight. Ochako reaches for Momo, who bats her wrist away, kicking her leg out to trip Ochako up, only for her to jump over it, lunging with her other hand. Momo drops to the ground, creating a pole from her bare stomach, which slams into Ochako. She chokes, landing on the ground, clutching her abdomen.

Momo gets up, rushing at her, one hand holding the capture tape, the other holding her staff. Ochako manages to get herself together before she can reach her, getting her feet under her and kicking off to Momo, tape at the ready. She manages to catch it around Momo's stomach, then taps herself, accelerating herself into the sky, fast, Momo hanging on by the tape. 

Momo yelps, realising that she has no choice but to hold onto the tape, or fall and get captured anyway. After all, she can't recover from a landing that fast, and Ochako could touch her while she recuperates. No, she could create a layer of sorbothane to soften the impact. But what if it's not enough–?

As she thinks, Ochako pulls her up by the tape, and taps her too. Now, even she can't event all and create sorbothane to absorb the impact. She swallows nervously, the ground further and further away. "Well played, Uravity."

Ochako smiles down at her. "Thanks, Izanami!" Now, all she has to do is keep Momo in the air for five minutes.

For a moment, Momo considers giving up. She knew she wasn't cut out for this - she's not like Ochako, so strong and unafraid to be herself and look good while doing it.

But.

But.

She already promised to live up to her teammates' expectations. They trust her. And she won't betray that trust.

Momo looks around the area, spotting Kyouka and Denki's ongoing match. An idea flutters into her head, watching as Denki shocks Kyouka with his baton. Though, right now, it's far more dangerous. Right now, she'll just have to trust Izuku. (Not that it's a hard thing to do.)

Meanwhile, Izuku cuts his hakama off, finally, and stops accelerating, his clothes flying past him. He runs back, spotting the shadow on the ground. He looks up to see Momo and Ochako in the air, Ochako slowly wrapping tape around Momo. That simply won't do. 

Good thing he added that hookshot.

He hasn't had much practice with it, only latching onto poles and buildings. He hasn't practiced this yet. But, well, no time like the present.

He activates his earpiece, aiming his hookshot up. "Izanami. Don't let Uravity hear me. Just make sure to catch." Momo doesn't answer, but in the sky, she's pretty damn confused. That is, until, a line of reinforced, metal rope flies by her. She doesn't think about it, and only grabs onto it. Ochako jumps in shock. Then Izuku brings the hookshot back down. Momo goes with it.

"Woah!" Ochako yelps, moving back down as Momo severs through the tape via creating blades from her body, only to drop them on the floor. She chuckles. "Guess that plan's gone sky-high." Pun absolutely intended.

"Guess so," Momo agrees. Her hand glistens, and she creates yet another long staff. This time, there's a taser attached to the end. Ochako gulps. "Thank you for giving me a perfect view of Chargebolt and Amplify's match. It inspired me." 

Faced against two people, Ochako was doing incredibly well. Faced with two people, one with a taser? She's a goner.

Kyouka arrives back at the scene, and Ochako is wrapped up tightly in capture tape, her fingertips covered in plasters. Kyouka grins. "Yeah. I beat his ass too."

Chargebolt and Uravity are out!

-

Explosive Temper

Back with Tsuyu and Minoru, they're back on the move, Tsuyu on the rooftops and Minoru on the ground, rushing towards the east, as they decided earlier. Minoru is weary, tired from getting beat up and from using his quirk so much. Tsuyu is far less affected, only sweaty, as she was only hit a few times. Sure, her ribs are aching, but it's nothing bad.

As they travel forth, an explosion sounds, and they both stop, turning around. As they do, Bakugou lands in front of Tsuyu, grinning widely. She realises arbitrarily that it's the first time she's seen him in costume since the second day of school. His gauntlets are now gone, (confiscated after the support team realised how hazardous it was), replaced with a thick armband to propagate sweat.

"Hey," Bakugou greets, then raises his arm. She has that moment to react, before he fires an explosion her way. She dives off the building, into the populated street. Minoru shrieks as he figures out who has come after them, and Bakugou drops to the ground, loud and abrasive. He blasts at the ground to soften his landing, damaging some of the civilian bots, who all run away in fear. 

He strikes once more, bringing up rubble as he does. Tsuyu and Minoru are forced to dodge, unable to get close at all. Minoru throws a ball at him, but Bakugou has been stuck watching them for weeks. He knows now to touch it, and instead blasts at it, sending it back. Panicking, Minoru throws more, which Bakugou weaves through, before blasting one at the side, sending it flying at Tsuyu. 

She doesn't expect it at all, and thus gets struck in the chest by it. Bakugou follows up by charging at her, getting behind her and sending a small blast at her back. It sears her costume, only slightly stinging her skin, and sends her to the ground, her shoulder stuck to the ground. 

Minoru screams, panicking even more, and Bakugou gets to him with speed, blasting him away. He goes back to Tsuyu and wraps her leg with capture tape. Minoru picks himself up and screams into his earpiece, "Backup! I need Backup! Bakugou's here!" Bakugou slaps his hand away from his earpiece, cracks his knuckles, and blasts by his ear, disorientating him and giving him enough time to wrap him up too. 

With that done, he shoves Minoru next to Tooru and sits. Back-up, Minoru requested. Sure, Bakugou grins, he'll beat up the back-up too.

Minutes go by, five, ten, fifteen, before the back-up arrives. Mezou and Kouji. 

"What?" Bakugou questions, standing up. "Only two of you?"

Mezou grunts. "There were three of us, but Cellophane went on ahead to take down your leader."

Bakugou guffaws. "Good fucking luck! We got Shouto on guard duty. That Cellophane bastard won't last a minute!"

"Then," Mezou stances up, "we'll beat you and back him up."

Bakugou cracks his neck. "Tough words. See if you can back it up."

Mezou lunges first, fast. But Bakugou has been watching for weeks. He knows how fast Mezou is, despite his bigger form. Kouji yells loudly and birds respond to him, diving down at Bakugou to peck at him. He explodes, scaring them away and burning the feathers of a few. In the same instance, he blasts out of Mezou's path, using another blast to send him up and over Mezou, reaching out to blast his back.

Kouji yells once more, summoning rats too this time. Birds and rats attack Bakugou, pecking and biting, messing up his vision and crawling all over him.

"ARGH!" he yells, setting explosions off all around him. "You're pissing me off!" He charges at Kouji, who tries to run away. Mezou, back stinging, rushes back in, managing to strike Bakugou in the jaw and get him away from Kouji. Bakugou growls, swinging back at Mezou, who dodges, grabbing onto Bakugou's arm and pulling him forth while bringing his knee up, right into Bakugou's stomach. He chokes, falling to the ground.

Spotting his chance, Kouji calls out once more. But, as soon as his voice leaves, Bakugou raises both hands, creating a super explosion, drowning out his voice. With the blast radius, Mezou goes flying back, as does Kouji. Kouji, a bit further away from the explosion, is conscious, but Mezou is out-cold. Bakugou turns to Kouji, who shrivels from his attention, and wraps him in capture tape. Kouji can only watch as Bakugou does the same to Mezou. 

"Damn," says Bakugou, scowling all the while. "You fuckers… fought. Well. I guess."

Then he takes off, back to their base, leaving Kouji as the only one to have heard a compliment from him. The mute kid. He sure knows who to speak to, huh?

-

Hot n' Cold

Hanta, as foretold by Mezou and Kouji, arrives at the base. Really, he's not sure if he got here too early for the plan or not, but he's here now. The plan was to head all the way to their designated directions, then head to the enemy base, taking out anyone they meet along the way.

As it stands, Hanta is apparently the only one who has gotten here in time. Tooru and Yuuga aren't here, Tsuyu and Minoru needed back-up with Bakugou, Mezou and Kouji went to back them up, and Izuku, Kyouka, and Momo are away. 

To be fair, he and Tsuyu are the only ones who can travel fast in a dense city, with their respective quirks. Still, that doesn't change how much he wants to cry.

Why? Well, it's simple.

There's only one guard with Tenya. The guard in question? Shouto. He stands outside of the entrance, not moving an inch. Momo and Izuku suspected that Shouto would stay guard, as he's skilled in both defence and offence, but it didn't make him any easier to face. Theoretically, he could sneak past him, but highly doubts that the son of Endeavour wouldn't pick up on him.

(Dammit, he's screwed. He should have written his will already.)

"I know you're there." AH! He knew it! "Come out."

… There's no use playing dumb. Hanta takes a deep breath, before leaving the corner he hid behind. "Hey, Shouto. Any chance you could let me pass?" 

Shouto blinks. "No." Hanta blinks, and he's covered in ice. Dammit. His teeth chatter, and his limbs would shiver if they had room to. Not even leaving his place, Shouto holds out his tape, and sends out a small bit of ice, taking the tape with it. It slaps on Hanta's face. Guess that also counts as 'captured', huh? It must, because the tape glows red two minutes later. Shouto melts the ice, leaving Hanta on the floor.

"Man," a familiar voice enters. Eijirou walks to Shouto's side, eyes on the water on the floor. "You went overboard."

"I did not," Shouto rebukes. "If I let his elbows out, I would have been in trouble." While that is an awfully high compliment, Hanta distinctly recalls how one-sided it was. Eijirou only laughs, patting Shouto on the shoulder. Shouto frowns. "I wasn't joking."

"Didn't think you were," Eijirou assures.

Hanta has the urge to sob as he hears explosions in the distance and– yep. Bakugou drops by Shouto and Eijirou. Dammit, that means Mezou, Kouji, Tsuyu, and Minoru are out. 

"Welcome home," Shouto deadpans. 

Bakugou sniffs. "This ain't home." He looks down at Hanta, and snorts. "Man, I didn't think you were actually stupid enough to come alone." Hanta wants to yell at him, but he quickly remembers that he's not allowed to move after being captured. "Shit, is this everyone?"

Eijirou nods. "Guess so. I took down, er, Kousen and Spotlight. They got to Tsukuyomi and Acid Trip."

Bakugou rolls his neck. "I got fucking, uh, Froppy, Purple Rain, Tentacole, and Anivoice."

Shouto looks at Hanta. "Only Cellophane has come here. That means Kyou and Amplify are left with Izanami. Unless Chargebolt and Uravity got to them first. If they did, I doubt we'd still be here."

"Ding-ding. Full marks." Hanta doesn't even need to look to see. That's Kyouka's dry wit, after all. "They've been captured now."

Bakugou grins, slamming an open palm against his fist. "So, three-v-one, huh? That's fine by me! I'll take you all on by myself."

"There's no need," Shouto states, before icing the door behind him shut, covering the entire front of the building, ignoring Tenya's yell of indignition. "I'll take Kyou."

"No, actually," Kyouka retorts, stepping up. "You'll be taking me." Shouto narrows his eyes at her, and she lashes out with her lobes, throwing Shouto aside to the right alley.

Kyouka charges after him. Shouto is already annoyed – he joined Tenya in order to fight Izuku, not her. He sends out a large iceberg, and Kyouka grins almost manically. She grunts as she stabs her lobes into the ice. A few pounds is all it takes, before the ice shatters. Shouto's eyes widened. Once again, he's found someone who can destroy his ice with ease.

Good thing he can use his fire now. At least, that's what he thinks. But then Kyouka plugs both lobes in, aiming directly at his hands, and fires. The sound waves crash into his hand, his flames flying back towards him. Kyouka smirks, "Sorry, but I've been training against fire since the USJ. Guess I'm just a good opponent for anyone with an elemental quirk."

Shouto levels his gaze on her. "That's fine," he says. "I hope you don't mind training with me in the future."

Kyouka huffs. "I'm honoured." The fight reigns on.

As much as Kyouka can combat Shouto's quirk, it's not invincible. She takes elemental damage. She gets burned. She gets slammed in the stomach by ice, frozen by it. Her ears ache with the cold. Shouto, now using both sides of his quirk, doesn't have to worry about being frostbitten or overheated. So, while Kyouka is able to put up a good fight, Shouto goes untouched for much of it.

That is, until he uses his fire once more and Kyouka's blast is even louder, even stronger than before. Shouto stumbles back, ears ringing. He's disorientated. Kyouka doesn't stop there, using one speaker to project her heartbeat as loud as she can go, the other piercing into the ground, sending it through the ground. The ground beneath Shouto trembles, but he can't tell if it truly is or if it's all in his head. 

Keeping it up, Kyouka approaches as slowly as she can, and Shouto groans, the noise becoming louder as she does, and he slams his hands as hard as he can against his ears. He falls to his knees, and Kyouka smirks, grabbing her tape. As she reaches out to wrap him up, he reaches out, grabbing her arm. Her eyes widen, spotting blood coming from his ears.

Oh, shit. He ruptured his own eardrums. Who does that!?

Shouto does. He pulls her arm over his shoulder, throwing her over. In doing so, her lobe rips free from the ground. The floor no longer trembling, Shouto goes to swing at Kyouka.

And misses.

Kyouka feels a beat of hope. He's still disorientated, and his ruptured eardrum only makes it worse. She charges back at him, swinging wide, and manages to strike his jaw. He winces, and sends out a wave of ice. It knicks Kyouka's arm, but mostly misses thanks to his vertigo. 

With a cry of war, she runs at him, catching the tape around his stomach and dragging him to the floor, wrestling to get on top of him. With his eardrum ruptured, she can't use the same technique she used on Denki, but she can try to brute force her way through. So, keeping a stream of noise around them, she keeps her tape wrapped around Shouto, arm at his neck, the force of her soundwaves destroying his ice and extinguishing his fire before it can grow.

She struggles against him, crying out. Two minutes feels more like two hours, before the tape finally glows red, and both she and Shouto crumple. 

"You," says Shouto, louder than necessary, "did good!"

Kyouka nods against his chest. "You too!"

-

Rock and a Hard Place

When Kyouka throws Shouto aside, Momo creates a pile of rope, throwing it around Eijirou. She pulls him towards her, further down the alley. "And I'll be fighting you."

Eijirou grins, landing on his feet and hitting his fists together. "Fine by me!" 

Momo starts, using the same tactic she used for Ochako, and striking at him with a taser. He smacks it aside, lunging at her with hardened arms. She manages to step back and out of the way of his swings, throwing her hand under his chest, palm facing up, and creating a pipe shooting straight up. Eijirou manages to react in time, softening his arms to harden his chest. Still, the impact has him stumbling back.

Momo discards the pipe, instead creating a grappling hook. She shoots it up, attaching to a building, dropping down a single item as she rises and forming a visor around her eyes. Eijirou panics, first thinking that it's a bomb. To an extent, he's right. He hardens his body, able to do so for a short second, but it's for naught. After all, it's a flash bomb. It goes off, blinding Eijirou, and Momo drops back down, eyes protected by the visor.

She creates a net weighed down by tungsten as she falls, dropping it on top of Eijirou's body. He flounders, black spots appearing in his vision, before he hardens his arms and cuts past the netting. Momo greets him with tape to his face, but it's easily taken off before he can truly be captured. 

Momo moves back, and nearly trips over Hanta as she does. Hanta wants to apologise, but he can't, both because he's supposed to stay still and because Eijirou has already shoved Momo further down the alley. She yells out in pain as his hardened arm makes contact. His vision isn't entirely clear, but he can see enough.

But, tripping over Hanta does give her a neat idea. Her arm sparkles with creation, but Eijirou lunges in, spotting it, and punches her hand away before can make it. Momo can't make it as fast as she can make other stuff, because she doesn't remember the exact mechanics. If she wants to search it up on her watch, she'll need the time to do it. And she doubts Eijirou will fall for the flashbomb again.

As she dodges between Eijirou's strikes, using a staff to aid her, she urges herself to think, Momo! In the background, a wall of ice appears in her peripherals. Oh. That'll work.

When Eijirou lashes at her, she doesn't bother dodging, allowing it to hit. As his fists lands, Momo throws her hand out, her palm sparkling, and metal plating protrudes, building a large wall in front of her. Eijirou bashes into it, and Momo is given a bit more time. She creates her item of choice, filling it with her prepared one, and aims at the dent in the metal wall. 

Surely enough, Eijirou breaks through it, and Momo fires her tape gun. The capture tape lands directly onto Eijirou's chest and, before he can rip it out, Momo throws her hands out harshly, creating super glue from her hands as she does, and it spreads across the tape.

It's not an invincible tactic. She knows. So, while Eijirou struggles to get it off, prioritising that, his chest burning with the application of the super glue and from his trying to rip it off his bare skin, Momo dives forward, discarding her tape gun, both hands sparkling. Eijirou manages to pull the tape off his body, and looks up to see Momo, holding a bomb in one hand, her other hidden behind her back.

Eijirou instinctively covers his eyes. Really, he should have covered his nose and mouth. Because Momo's bomb is full of chloroform. She places her gas mask over her face, and detonates it. Within seconds, Eijirou falls unconscious, and Momo places her capture tape around him. They got two for a reason, after all. 

With Eijirou taken care of, she retrieves her other roll of tape from the gun, and marches back to the enemy base.

-

Blessed versus Hollow

Bakugou licks his lips, dry for a reason he can't tell. "Then, I guess you wanna fight me," he says to Izuku, who only smiles nervously. He walks around, the left alley, katana in hand. Bakugou swallows a thick lump in his throat, and he tries to grin. "Fine! But remember: you asked for this."

Their fight starts with Bakugou swinging. And Izuku has known Bakugou for years. He also knows that Bakugou always starts with a right swing. So, he ducks beneath it, moving behind Bakugou. He lets one hand go from his katana, and swings an open palm as hard as he can at Bakugou's back. Bakugou stumbles for a moment, before swivelling around, sending another blast at Izuku.

Izuku uses the blunt edge of his katana to knock his arm away, ducking in and elbowing Bakugou in the gut. In the same movement, Bakugou moves his hand up, blasting Izuku to the side of his face. Izuku hisses, pulling back. He trains his katana towards Bakugou, frowning.

Bakugou grins. It's strained. "What's wrong? Realise you picked wrong!?" He rushes at him, and blasts at thin air as Izuku steps back, slicing his katana through the explosion at a distance. Bakugou growls. "Come on! You wanted to fight me! Fight back!" He pushes on. A short, controlled blast at Izuku's chest.

Izuku bashes his wrist up with his katana's handle, then swings in the next instance, leveling his katana at Bakugou's neck, frown still present. "You're holding back. Why are you holding back?" 

Bakugou's eye twitches. He doesn't answer, instead knocking Izuku's katana away and charging in. 

"Why are you holding back!?" Izuku yells, kicking out, his foot landing on Bakugou's chest. He grabs onto Izuku's ankle and throws him away.

Izuku lands on his feet. "Like there! You could have blasted my ankle instead of throwing me! Why are you holding back!?"

Bakugou is silent, teeth grit, and he rushes at Izuku, lashing out and blasting at his face. Izuku swings his katana up, slicing through it again, and barging into Bakugou with his shoulder.

"Why!?"

"I don't wanna hurt you!" Bakugou finally reveals, shaking. "There! You happy now!?"

"Of course not!" Izuku moves into Bakugou's personal space, bashing his head into Bakugou's jaw. "You never cared before! Why do you care now!?"

"Because!" He punctuates with a louder, larger explosion, forcing Izuku to reel back, heat kissing his skin. "It was never okay, was it!? That's what everyone says! Then you go ahead and decide to fight me!? Why!?"

Izuku grabs his hookshot, firing past Bakugou's head. He flinches away from it, and Izuku steps in, katana reeled back, low. He brings it up, and Bakugou just barely moves back in time, the blade catching on his shit and tearing it open. "Because I wanted to! I wanted to prove to myself that I'm not that defenceless, weak, pathetic Deku I used to be!"

Bakugou growls, throwing another explosion at him. This time, it strikes Izuku's shoulder directly, and he nearly drop his katana as his arm drops from the force and heat. It's been a while since he's experienced Bakugou's explosions.

"Ain't it obvious you're not!?"

Just like that, Izuku stops, eyes wide.

Bakugou scowls. "Dammit, do you really need me, of all people, to spell it out!? You're not the same as middle school! You're in the student council, you survived the USJ, you got fourth place in the Sports Festival. Everyone fucking respects you! As if you're the same nerd from Aldera!"

Izuku lowers his katana, taken back. Bakugou scoffs, hiding his face in his hands, and he groans, loud and full of frustration. "I've had to spend months watching you get stronger. Watching all of you fuckers get stronger. Months spent with a shrink, makin' me question everything I've ever done, everything I've ever believed! Fricking Present Mic had to spell it out for me! You think I'm blind!?"

Stricken, Izuku can't respond. He doesn't know how to. For once, his brain completely fails him.

Because Bakugou removes his hands and there are tears in his eyes. "So, there. I didn't come into this expecting to fight you. 'Cause I didn't want to. The only reason I joined this team is 'cause I wouldn't feel right on your team."

Izuku breathes out shakily. "That's insulting, you know. I chose to fight you, so you should have at least honoured that by giving your all." 

Bakugou observes him. And he nods. "Fine. Whatever. I'll give it my all now."

But Izuku only sighs, sheathing his katana with his left hand, his right hanging limply. "There's no point." 

"HAH!?"

He waves a hand. "When I slapped your back earlier, I slapped some capture tape on it." Bakugou's eyes blow open. He struggles to look behind him, and he spots a flash of red. He turns back to Izuku, gaping. Izuku smiles wryly. "Maybe next time. If there is a next time."

Izuku walks away and Bakugou falls on his arse. He tilts his head back. And he laughs.

-

Speedster

Tenya was prepared for many scenarios. He wasn't foolish enough to think nobody could ever get past Shouto – he was prepared for anything. But, as Kyouka breaks down Shouto's wall of ice, Momo and Izuku her side, he can firmly say he did not expect this.

Izuku? He was hoping to face him. That's the reason he requested Izuku to join a different team. Kyouka? Unexpected. He didn't realise she would stand a chance against Shouto. And, going by the burns and the fragments of ice on her, she was the one to win against him. Momo? Definitely unexpected. The whole reason Ochako and Denki went to the enemy base was because he expected her to stay there, not join the battle.

He didn't join the battle, because he didn't want to risk losing like that. He didn't want to risk going into battle with, say, Minoru – a good match against his quirk – and lose in such a way. 

"Give it up!" Momo demands, breathing harshly, bruised and battered. "All of your companions have been defeated!"

She's not the only one hurt. Izuku has many minor burns on his body, his right arm useless. Kyouka still shakes from frost and burns dotted on her skin. 

Nevertheless, Tenya will not insult his friends by taking them lightly. Even now, he's sure they'd put up a mighty battle. As such, "I refuse," he takes his stand. "Giving up so easily will only bring dishonour upon my comrades! I will fight!"

It's not an easy fight, not at all. Tenya's right to take them seriously.

Even injured, Kyouka can still blast sound waves at him, disorienting him. Even injured, Momo can still act as an ample, versatile threat. Even injured, Izuku can still act as a good back-up. 

Kyouka is too exhausted to move around, only attacking from long-range. Izuku's shoulder is too injured to swing his katana, and he settles for using his hookshot to direct Tenya back to Momo. Momo is the only one fighting up-close, settling with her trusty rapier, battling speed with speed. It helps that Izuku and Kyouka cut off Tenya's escapes, forcing him to battle her up-front. 

He manages to land a good few hits, and Momo returns them in kind, though they're not nearly as strong as Tenya's. It all comes to an end, however, when Momo forms a can of spray paint, coating Tenya's visor with it. He takes his helmet off, a short-term solution, but that turns out to be a mistake when Momo creates dust, throwing it into his eyes, and then, with all the strength they have left, Izuku and Kyouka jump him with rolls of capture tape, keeping him down. 

When he tries to boot his engines to escape, Momo relies on an old tactic, spraying liquid nitrogen onto them, forcing him to shut them off, lest they explode. 

He struggles for five whole minutes, Momo joining on the dogpile, keeping the tap secured to his body until–

"IT'S OVER!" Mic yells, jazzed beyond belief. "INGENIUM HAS BEEN CAPTURED! TEAM A WIIIIINS!"

-

Notes:

OOOOOH BOY! THIS ONE IS A LONG ONE! 8.4K TO BE EXACT!! It was originally going to be split into two parts, but I decided to write it into one. You're welcome :))

I gave everyone their time in the limelight this chapter. Before I get another oh-so-smart anon full of sarcasm and barely-disguised insults, read over the fights one more time. They make sense. I made sure of it. 

Bakugou is getting there. He still doesn't know what he's supposed to become, but he'll learn as the series goes on. And, NO, I do not intend to create any sort of friendship with Izuku. But, at the same time, Izuku needs to have that closure. Until Bakugou gets his head sorted, however, he's not getting it

Oh, Tenya. Taken down by the good ol' dust in your eyes followed by a dogpile. What a lad. But, in all seriousness, did you expect him to be able to take down three people all at once? Didn't think so!

Conclusion:

Aizawa debriefs everyone

The civil war starts

Team A vs Team B. Winners: Team A

[jbuffyangel]

The Canary: Arrow 2x05 Review (League of Assassins)

Yeesh there is a lot of Lance drama in the beginning of Season 2. We finally get the backstory on Sara, but it’s the spectacular Oliver and Laurel scene that has me cackling.

Let's dig in...

Sara Lance

They reshot the whole pilot scene between Oliver and Sara only this time, we see what happens to Sara after the boat sinks and she’s swept out to sea. How this woman did not get hypothermia from only wearing a bra and underwear in the North China Sea is beyond me.

This scene just incenses me.  It irks the absolute crap out of me when Sara says, “Laurel is gonna kill me.” Sara says it like she’s borrowing Laurel’s sweater without asking. YOU ARE SLEEPING WITH HER BOYFRIEND.  This destroys a relationship. She’s not going to kill you, but she will absolutely cut contact with you, Sara.

I know he’s pre-island Ollie and he’s just the absolute worst, but the smarmy “Your sister will never know” as he climbs on top of Sara is just so disgusting. I cannot fathom why people would ever want Laurel to be with Oliver after what he did. Forgive him, fine. Date him? Absolutely not.

Okay, the rage is dying down. Hopefully this is the last time we have to watch this scene.

Sara is staying at the Queen mansion, which doesn’t see very covert, but with Moira in jail and Thea sleeping at Roy’s all the time it actually is a good place for Sara to crash. Better than a clock tower at least.

Oliver is still trying to convince Sara to let her family know that she’s alive, but she’s not convinced all family members *cough*Laurel*cough* will be happy to see her. Sara asks Oliver if he ever got back together with Laurel after he returned home.

Oliver: We tried. It’s too much.

Sara: Some things are better left in the past.

After The Gambit sinks, Sara is floating on a door similar to Rose in Titanic when she’s picked up by the freighter.

Source: saralances

We’re all going to pretend the canary landing right next to Sara is not the most obvious foreshadowing in the world. For anyone questioning if Arrow is making Sara their OG Canary – there’s your answer. You know - if the suit, wicked fight skills and sonic weapon didn’t answer it for you already.

The color of the Canary is important though. It’s yellow. Not black. Arrow is drawing a clear distinction between the two. This is an origin story. It’s not Green Arrow and Black Canary. It’s The Arrow and The Canary.

Sara is thrown in a cage on the freighter, similar to Oliver’s current predicament, but Dr. Ivo protects her from the crew members.  He tells Sara he is going to save the human race and invites her to help, so I can only conclude we’re going with Stockholm syndrome in the flashbacks. A twenty something college kid would have very little to offer a mad scientist.

However, Sara’s reticence to return to her family is not related to whatever happened on the island, but rather who she became and what she did to survive AFTER the island. We’re just about to get some details when a man dressed exactly like Malcolm Merlyn comes crashing through a window.  Oliver and Sara fight him, but before we can get any answers the man disappears. This is getting annoying. WILL SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN SOMETHING?

Oliver introduces Sara to his team and we get the iconic first meeting between Sara and Felicity.

Source: oliversmoak

Sara does not want Team Arrow to find the assailant however. She knows exactly who he is. 

Sara: He’s called Al Ow-al, “The First.” And he’s a member of the League of Assassins.

Oliver has a very strong reaction to this revelation so we can deduce Sara didn’t join the Girl Scouts. The League is, you guessed it, a bunch of assassins who kill and vanish like ghost - previously thought to be an urban legend by Diggle. The League rescued Sara after the island, remade her into an assassin and she swore them her allegiance.

Sara left after she killed a local diplomat in Guyana and his children found his body the next morning. She didn’t want to be a murderer anymore, but now The League is coming after her.

Source: laurelscanary

Felicity’s humor and compassion put Sara at ease after her horrifying confession and this is why I love this character.  There’s no judgment from Felicity. She sees Sara for what she is – a person in pain, even if Sara doesn’t see herself that way. Not unlike how Felicity looks at Oliver. And just like Oliver, Sara Lance is SMOAKED.

Source: smoakamell

After Felicity finds Al Ow-al, Sara and Oliver argue about whose fight it is. Sara isn't used to playing with others, but you'd think she'd understand basic strength in numbers. This is the guy who trained Malcolm Merlyn. He stops an arrow with his bare hand while his back was turned!

Al Ow-al: The child of Ra’s Al Ghul awaits your return.

I know who Ra’s Al Ghul is from my Batman days, but in Arrow's world he has a kid. A kid who sent Al Ow-al  to collect Sara alive or dead. This is getting complicated. Is there like an employment flow chart we can follow for the League of Assassins?

Oliver: The League of Assassins. Why wouldn’t she tell me what happened to her all those years?

Diggle: Probably the same reason you didn’t tell us what happened to you on the island.

Wow. This is stunning lack of self awareness. Oliver, in case you haven’t noticed, Sara is the girl version of you.

The League has threatened Sara’s family, so Oliver keeps watch over Laurel. Felicity calls Detective Lance to convince him to leave town - while promising Sara to not reveal she's alive.

Source: @noone-seesyou-likeido

Unfortunately, Lance does not listen to Felicity, so Sara decides her secret is not more important than her father’s life. Finally, she is seeing some sense. Diggle, ever the loyal solider, offers to go with as back up, but Sara continues to have this thing about fighting on her own. I guess being an assassin is a solitary job. This does give us one of the best bad ass Sara Lance speeches ever, however.

Sara: Dig, you may be a three tour Special Forces veteran, but I was trained by the people that make the Special Forces look like a kindergarten class. So step aside or get put down.

The reunion between Lance and Sara is all we hoped it could be. It’s not every day your kid comes back from the dead, but Paul Blackthorne does a phenomenal job of moving from shock and disbelief to overwhelming joy.

Source: laurelscanary

Quentin wants answers, but he’s careful not to spook Sara who is still reticent to give details. They go through the nuclear bomb that was set off in their family (the divorce, the alcoholism).  Sara apologizes for the damage she caused, but Quentin insists he was to blame, which is more proof he is a really good dad.

He can clearly see his daughter has changed. She speaks Chinese now and is ready to fight to the death with a butter knife. He pieces together Sara is the woman in black; she knows Felicity, The Arrow and is wrapped up in this League that’s after both of them. How this man has not put together Oliver Queen is The Arrow I will never understand.

Quentin: If these assassins, if they hadn't shown up, would you have ever let us know that you were alive?

Sara: No.

Well, at least she’s honest. Sara promises Lance that she never forgot who she was or him despite staying away for so many years.

Source: OILVERSQUEEN

She takes her father to the clock tower which she’s outfitted with booby traps for when the League comes for them both. Sara and Lance hold their own against the assassins, but when The Arrow arrives they achieve the upper hand. Sara has no problem breaking Al Ow-al’s neck, but allows one assassin to live to warn Ra’s Al Ghul.

Sara: Tell Ra’s Al Ghul that my family is off limits. His quarrel is with me.

She is ashamed to show Quentin who she has become – a killer.

Source:  sohpiabush 

But Quentin feels only pride. How little children understand the depth of a parent’s love. We have already forgiven anything you’ve done or may do the moment you are born.

Quentin: I think you’re a survivor. I think you’re one of the bravest people I’ve ever known. You’re my daughter.

Sara leaves town to lead the League away from her family and Quentin agrees to keep her secret. He will not tell either Laurel or Dinah that Sara is alive because it would get them killed… or something.  The logic is not logical, but I don’t really care. They’ll hold the “Laurel finds out Sara is alive” card for May sweeps.

Source: @laurelscanary

This is not the last we will see of Sara Lance. The Canary’s story is just getting started.

Oliver and Diggle

Despite Oliver's spectacularly hypocritical statement about Sara and honesty, there is serious emotional growth this episode. Oliver making this statement about forgiveness a year ago would have been unthinkable. He did not return home with any hope of being forgiven or even welcomed back. I'm going to give the Lance family a shoutout because they had the most to be angry about with Oliver. He asked both Laurel and Quentin for forgiveness and they each have extended olive branches at various time. Hell, Laurel was ready to get back together with him. So, the fact he's able to offer the same hope to Sara is really a full circle moment.

Source:  anissagraces

Oliver beginning to believe he is worthy of forgiveness is a direct result of the many hours of therapy with Diggle and Felicity. He is finally starting to really hear them. That's why this moment with Diggle at the end of the episode is truly note worthy.

Source: NUGETAE

Diggle should have this date embroidered on a pillow because it's not often Oliver will admit he was right. But Oliver is not done yet.

Source: COPHINES

He breaks out some Russian vodka and confesses to Diggle he was not always on the island the five years he was gone. Oliver is ready to unburden some of the secrets he works so hard to keep buried.

Source: laurelscanary

Oliver is able to see his own demons reflected in Sara and it finally connects the dots for him. He doesn't have to remain isolated in the world like Sara. Oliver can see Diggle (and Felicity) reaching out to him and he FINALLY reaches back. This is monumental character growth.

Sara: You three are quite the team.

Diggle: We have our moments.

Why Diggle and not Felicity? I think it's easier for Oliver to tell his war stories to another solider. He also doesn't have any fuzzy bunny feelings towards John, which makes things simpler between them. But every time Oliver opens the door to the past, and shares his pain, he is one step closer to the future he truly deserves.

Laurel Lance

Laurel is sitting second chair in Moira Queen’s prosecution, which is actually an INSANE CONFLICT OF INTEREST. Marc Guggenheim, you are a lawyer sir. What is this nonsense?  

Never fear! Laurel has used all her pull to get Moira a plea deal - life with the possibility of parole. Understandably the Queen family isn’t thrilled. It’s either life or the death penalty.  Laurel even discussing Moira’s case with Oliver is improper ex parte contact. She should be excluded from the case and sanctioned, but this is Arrow and that’s never going to happen.

In the middle of all of this, Oliver continues to ask if Laurel is okay. She is trying to kill your mother, Oliver. I feel how this is impacting Laurel shouldn’t really be your top concern. He is so exhausting around her. Take the hint, my dude. She doesn’t want your help and I’m tired of you two having the same fight episode after episode.

But this episode is not just another round of the same old some old. No, my friends this is a very special episode because it contains one of the best Laurel and Oliver scenes to ever grace our television. Oliver needs to protect Laurel from the League of Assassins, so he takes her out to dinner. Then he walks Laurel back to her apartment (because assassins) but she thinks he’s come up for a very different reason.

And OLIVER REJECTS HER.  The way I cackled.

I’m going straight to hell, but I don’t care. This moment is glorious. First of all, Laurel did not have a drink at dinner, so she can’t blame the booze and pills. She just flat out reads the situation wrong. Oliver apologizes for sending a mix signal, but he’s a bit confused. Didn’t they decide they shouldn’t be together out of respect for Tommy? Yes, Oliver. Yes you did. WHAT ABOUT TOMMY, LAUREL?!! This woman did not deserve that man.

Source: ILOVEKCASSIDY

Me:

Oliver promises Laurel he will never leave her and has certainly made every effort to help her, but it is the capacity in which he will stay in her life that is really in question. This moment is HUGE in terms of where Oliver is at emotionally. He is drawing a firm line in the sand. There was a time when Oliver would’ve welcomed Laurel trying to climb him like a tree no matter the circumstance, but not anymore. He clearly states that he cares about Laurel but only as a friend. His concern has no romantic undertone to it.

The balance of power in their relationship has always been tipped toward Laurel. This is the first time it feels like a more even playing field. Instead of Laurel rejecting Oliver – he is rejecting her and for a very good reason. Oliver is not stoned on pills and he remembers they don’t work. They tried to go back and it failed. Oliver has not interest in trying again. For the first time, Oliver is looking forward.  

And Laurel, cemented in the past and alone her in apartment, takes some pills.

Stray Thoughts

This secret Moira is keeping is a real humdinger if she’s ok with life with the possibility of parole.

Oliver and Thea promise Moira that she will not lose them no matter the secret. Sure Jan.

"Gee I didn't get you a bag of dirt." Bless this cupcake.

Where did Sara get her suit?

Malcolm Merlyn is also a member of The League of Assassins.

"Oliver’s lucky to have you both as friends. He hasn’t always had the best of luck in that area." Sara’s not so casual remarks about Slade and Shado are friggin ominous. It’s time to get real nervous about the flashbacks.

“You think because you are the beloved that you will be granted your freedom?” We all know who Sara’s beloved is and I’m very much looking forward to her arrival.

"Pain and I came to a little understanding a few years back." Sara takes a licking but keeps on kicking. This is such a bad ass line. The episode is chalk full of them. I love the OG Canary.

Listen to the Watchover podcast reaction to 2x05!!

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Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me!

[brighter-by-the-daly]

Erin Cuthburt x Reader

Road Back Home

Part of the Beth McCarthy mini song series

What Do You Call It?

Can't help overthinking

Every, "What if, is it a phase? Will I get over it?"

Like, "What if things change, what if I'm fake?

What if it's all just for the hell of it?"

But I'm in it, I admit it, I wanted this, ayy

I'm in it, I admit it, I'm different

Driving back up to Scotland all the memories came flooding back. Your childhood best friend Erin was in the passenger seat singing along very badly to the radio. Scotland had qualified for the World Cup and you were making the long drive up north from London together. Erin was the type of person to be able to make everyone in the room laugh and cared deeply about people she loved. You’d grown up together since primary school and was the reason you got into football. She was always playing at lunch time with the boys and needed a goalie, she convinced you that you wouldn’t have to do much - just stand there. That’s when your love of diving in the mud and throwing yourself on the ground was born, much to your mam’s disapproval. You’ve been through every stage of your careers together - from academy to climbing the national team ranks to pro. But that’s when you grew apart, you were signed to Arsenal while Erin got signed to Chelsea. Although you both live in London, you rarely get time to meet up and your friendship now consists of extremely quick catch ups after derby days.

Erin knew her sexuality from a very young age but you, yours was a bit more blurry. In the past you’d always dated men but ever since you could remember your feelings about Erin were always a little bit more honest than any previous relationship you’d had. You both had grown apart but now she’s sat in your car about to fly to Australia for two months all those feelings had come flooding back. She was still making you laugh and still showing signs that she cared about you deeply. While you were in the toilet at the service station she’d bought all your favourite snacks in your favourite flavours. Specifically the Wispa Gold or the purple Nik Naks or the vanilla Coke you barely even see anymore. Starting the car back up ready for the last stretch she handed you a cup of tea, taking a sip to taste the exact number of sugars you like for long drives caused a sound of pleasure to exit your mouth. “6 sugars because those sachets aren’t full spoons, I remember!” she chimed pleased with herself as she kicked off her shoes and placed her feet on the dashboard. “If I crash you’ll lose your legs” you scolded, hitting her legs so she took them down. “Where’d you learn that, Grey Sloan?” she was joking but she was right. You were always butting in on medical situations with your knowledge earned from binging hundreds of hours of Grey’s Anatomy. Proceeding to recite the episode of a pregnant woman breaking her legs because her feet were on the dashboard, she laughed at you. “I think you should be our medic rather than our goalie!” she remarked as you joined back onto the M6 heading for Glasgow.

Dropping her off at her mum’s house you headed back to yours for a few days before you met up with the rest of the team. Your bedroom hadn’t changed since you left home at 17 for Arsenal and still had football posters on the wall. Your bed still hoarded the shoe box of all your childhood memories, including the friendship bracelet Erin gave you in Year 6. Flicking through the photos of you both as children you laughed at some of the outfits you were made to wear. Old boyfriends were amongst them which you quickly passed by before finding the day you both got signed professionally. Proudly wearing your clubs shirts and holding hands, vowing to stay friends forever.

Except, was just friends enough for me? Would telling her the truth ruin everything? What if we could be something amazing and I never tried? I’d famously dated male players my whole career, would I be seen as fake? As an attention seeker? Does this mean I’m gay? Is there a word for only fancying your best friend? The second I say anything everything changes. If I admit that I like her, I admit that I’m different. All the questions running through your head went on for days, you were distracted the entire time by thoughts of how you’re going to have to pretend for two months.

“What ya thinking about?” Erin asked, you’d been staring out of the plane window since you boarded, unable to look her in the eyes since you picked her up this morning. “The fact there’s probably still a desk with your name etched into it back at school” you mumbled. “What, why?” You turned to look at her but you could tell she knew what you meant the second your eyes locked together. Feeling the whirl of the engine power the plane as you rumbled along the runway distracted you from the awkward silence. Grabbing your arm rests tightly to prepare for take off, you hated flying, it always made you feel sick. The nauseating feeling was lessened by Erin clawing your hand away from the plastic and into her lap. “I got you” she said resting her head on your shoulder, “I got you”.

[busycucumbermelon]

Come on, just paint one thing for me?…please love.

 Summary: The man was determined to have a painting no matter what, and once he received one, he would always cherish it no matter the meaning. It would be a true treasure to him and a reminder of his ownership of the girl who created it.

 Warning: obsessive, delusional

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

Carmen gave you the north wing of his house, which is comprised of four rooms: a kitchen, a bathroom, an art room, and a bedroom. Carmen gave you a few days to make these rooms your own before sharing everything with him. Obviously, your room would always be exclusively yours, but he could enter at his discretion.

He made sure that every window would be bulletproof, making it impossible for anyone to open them, both from the inside and outside. Occasionally, he would take you out of the room and air it out, knowing that your request to do so was likely just a ploy. It's a method he would have used if he was in the same situation, assuming that he was as innocent as you were in such a scenario.

But after the first time you asked him to air out the room, you decided not to do it for around two weeks. Anytime Carmen came in, you would either be sitting in bed or cooking food in the kitchen, making Carmen sad as you never painted anything for him. However, as you were still adjusting to your new environment, he felt it would be rude if he rushed you with a request to paint something for him, as he was sure it would eventually happen once you noticed how in love the two of you are, even though you already were well in Carmen’s mind at least 

Except at first, nothing significant really happens except for an increase in the amount of time you stay in your room and starting to go into a bit of a depression. This prompts Carmen to start spending nights in bed with you, initially just laying on the other side of the bed and picking up after you. But as time goes on and his patience begins to wear out, he starts doing small things like taking you out of your room to watch a movie together or have a day out. He even goes as far as hiring a team of professional cleaners to help tidy up your room.

During that time he’d show you how much the two of you were really in love. 

Instead of the two of you sitting apart with snacks in between, you sit pressed up close together and have snacks in front of you. If anything is out of your reach, Carmen will quickly grab it for you. He likes to be in control, which makes him feel like he can protect you better. In addition to that, Carmen also pushed you a bit more every day. After one week of movie nights and cuddling, he decided that he needed more attention and you weren't allowed to sleep in your own bed. This meant that you had to walk across the house to Carmen‘s room if you wanted to take a nap or anything. Unless you wanted to spend time with Carmen. that meant the only other room you could relax and let your guard down was in was your art room.

Carmen got the best of the best art supplies - various paintbrushes, canvases, easels, and sketchbooks. He knew that some artists don't use sketchbooks, but he got them just in case. As time went on, his bodyguards began to report that you were spending more and more time in your room, Carmen got super excited at this news.

Even though Carmen has gained a deep appreciation for art, there's still a slightly bitter taste in his mouth whenever he thinks about it. Although he enjoys it, he won't personally pick up a paint brush or a pencil to create it himself, since it brings him back to his childhood - a time which wasn't bad, but it still had its ups and downs. Despite that, right now, he's happy to have you, his sweet little dove, to provide for and live a lavish life with.

To avoid boredom, Carmen would sometimes spar with you or work on paperwork, never telling you what it was about. Instead, he would tell you that your fragile mind "shouldn't be burdened with such scary things like that." He even went as far as to say, "Who knows what would happen to you if you knew, but if you're really that worried, you could paint me something, for my legacy. You know, just in case."

After your brief conversation about his work, Carmen grew more and more hooked on you and your art. Whenever he came into the art room to find you sitting on the floor or mixing paint, he would ask if you're painting something for him. Even during your movie nights together, he'd occasionally ask if you are painting something for him. Eventually, you got annoyed at this constant question and finally decided to paint something, not for him, but for yourself.

Every time the question of your painting was brought up, every time you remembered your scenario, every time Carmen held you down for a movie, or curled up against you in bed, you decided to paint something - anything - to help you remember, remember before this. You decided on your painting being inspired by one of the places you wished to travel to so badly. It was an attempt to not forget and to create something you could cherish, even if only for a moment.

There was a castle in the background, with a greenhouse near the front, which was surrounded by lush trees and various flowers. Everything seemed to have grown to the fullest extent, except for a fog that floated through the area. Inside the greenhouse was a woman, with her hand pressed against the glass, desperately trying to escape. This was how you felt for nearly every moment, except when you were painting. In that moment, you felt truly free, perhaps even happier than anything else you had experienced.

Carmen knew what the purpose the painting served: it was meant to be a slap in his face. However, he still chose to hang it up in his office.

He would approach you from behind, hugging you whenever you were unaware. He laid his head on your shoulder and slowly rock back and forth as you both did various activities. He wished for you to open up to him and explain to him what your piece of art meant and why it was so significant.

“Hello my love," he would often hum lightly in your ear. You would attempt to respond firmly and tell him to leave you be, but your voice would always crack. Carmen would always respond with a chuckle and claim that he just wanted to know what you were painting or hear you speak. You would insist on being left alone to continue working but Carmen constantly attempting to persuade you to explain the meaning of your paintings. Carmen would claim that perhaps this next piece would be displayed in the dining room so you two could see it together during dinner.

Every day, Carmen would approach you in your art room, intent on hearing every explanation you gave regarding your paintings. It was clear that he was obsessive about you. He never allowed you to venture beyond your space on that floor, making your art room your whole world. Although painting was your precious escape, Carmen's obsession gradually intruded on that space. In time, you would come to realize your love for him. Carmen knew he needed time to wear you down until you were aware of your affection for him.

At some point, your resolve might break, particularly with the constant pressure from those around you, claiming how perfect Carmen is. They believed that you two are a perfect match together. For now, Carmen could deal with what he currently had with you, but he was confident that eventually, you would come to realize your feelings for him and love him as much as he loved you.

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Saturday lovely Fandom. Zero Chenford in this one but it is very good ep overall regardless. They’ve got good separate moments. Still a good ep for them as characters. This will probably be way way shorter than usual ha. We haven’t had this small of content since the Fed eps in S4 which were meh af ha Let us get started.

5x15 The Con

We start out with Lucy and Aaron doing some leg work for Angela's OP on Elijah. This entire ep centers around it and everyone's part in it. I do love how Aaron fits in with both Lucy and Tim. Fun to see them work this OP together to take down Elijah. Lucy moving like a skilled bad ass planting the bug on his car. Aaron being the decoy pretending to be a clueless bystander. I adore her ‘Tell your dog I said Hi’ Feels like a Melissa shirt and I love that. I recall her wearing it in 4x03 as well. Always enjoy seeing pieces of Melissa appear on the show. Anyways fun to see her being a BAMF in the field. They work well together.

19 minutes into an episode to see my boy isn’t acceptable LOL Mmm but what a shot it is though my god. Metro Tim in his tight shirt, can see his badge near his hip, and his gun also hanging out on display. Mmm yummy. That duty belt is doing thing to me clearly haha *ahem* Back to the SL though... They’ve captured Elijah’s top lieutenants. Trying to give the illusion Abril has captured them. Trying to get Elijah to spook for their OP tonight.

I do love the crossed arms. One of my favs Tim positions. Those sexy biceps will be the death of me. But then so will this entire ensemble of his. Then we get a nice shot of him staring into interrogation as Garza leaves. ‘Metro Police’ Stretched deliciously across his back. Man is fine af. Oozes sex just standing there.

Aaron and Lucy are still following Elijah around. Listening into his phone calls. Seeing if their spooking is working. It would appear that it is. He is in a panic since his Lieutenants have been snatched and now his lawyer. It is fun to watch Lucy in her element in the field. Her and Aaron make a solid pairing to watch. We needed this since her and Tim can’t always be together on job now for most part.

Elijah calls for Angela. Earlier in the cold open she offered him a deal. To help him take out Abril’s heavy hitters in exchange for her family’s safety. He scoffed at her offer and passed. Now he’s in a panic and wants the deal. Angela telling Elijah her hitters are at a house in North Hollywood. That he can take them out tonight. It’s a smart trap to set for him and he’s taking the bait.

Celina is involved in this OP as well. Nice to see all hands on deck for this. She is being used as decoy for Elijah’s guys to see. Make them look like they’re distracted and weak before they move in. Mmmm love Tim leaning against that door frame. Sexy beast of a man. Just waiting with his team to spring into action. I love watching Tim in the field. See how his mind works. Always have because he's just so damn good at what he does. Watching him in full tactical gear doing same thing? *fans self* I'll take Metro Tim in the field all damn day.

I also love watching Lucy in field as well. They’re both in their element in this OP. It’s really fun to watch them do what they do best. They're both so good at their jobs and this episode is a good reflection of that. I'm just so proud watching Lucy in these scenes with Aaron. Getting to see Lucy command her portion of the OP. Directing Aaron on what to do. Making calls for them on the fly like above. I know Tim would be so very impressed just watching her handle herself like this. I know I am.

The tension leading up to Elijah getting up to the house is immense. They can’t arrest him unless he is physically on the premises. Not only that but has break into the house with their illegals firearms. If they do anything before then it won't stick. It'll look like more retaliation from Angela and nothing more. Tim and his team waiting inside for him to enter guns at the ready. Yum.

Lucy and Aaron coming in as backup. They’re entering the perimeter when Aaron kicks a bottle…loudly ….It ruins the entire OP. Elijah bails on the attack. They head back to their cars. They spent the entire day setting this up and it's ruined in an instant because Aaron wasn't looking where he was going. Oof.

The angry glare Lucy gives Aaron. Phew Lord. Man if looks could kill.... This is my favorite part of the episode. She learned that disapproving glare from her man. Aaron is feeling the weight of it as he follows her. Deflated and knowing he is the one who blew this OP. It's a rough night to be Aaron.

Also i’m just continuously proud of the bad ass Lucy's become. Running her own side of this OP like a boss. Aaron following her without question. It’s why he’s feeling crushed she is disappointed in him. That look said more than she could ever yell at him in this moment. LOVING her hair in a pony tail for this OP too BTW. Fantastic.

That’s all she wrote for this one. Zero content but still good field moments. Watching them both in their element always fun to watch IMO.

No side notes since this was basically all non Chenford ha

Thank you thank you to all who like, comment and reblog these reviews. Insane we're barreling towards the end of this season. You all have made this so much fun. I shall see you in 5x16 :)