“Are you okay?” Levi asks you.
“No.”
“I know, you don’t look it. What’s wrong?”
“Everything is wrong, Levi. I’m exhausted…I wonder what it’s like to have a brain that functions the way it’s supposed to.”
His eyebrows furrow slightly. “Your brain is fine.”
“But that’s the thing, it’s not!” You say exasperatingly. “It’s wired differently and so it makes everything more difficult. I switch between three modes: Not wanting to exist, Surviving, and Beyond Surviving. Guess how much time I spend in each mode?”
Levi doesn’t say anything in response. His expression shows more concern than confusion this time.
“Fine, I’ll tell you. Most of my time is spent surviving. Some of my time is spent not wanting to exist. And just a little of my time is spent beyond suriving…what kind of life is that?”
Levi’s eyes look at you with sadness. “Not much of one, to be honest…but it’s yours and you only have one.” He counters.
“Well, I don’t even know if I want it half of the time. Y’know, someone told me that life is basically climbing mountains. You climb a mountain, which represents a challenge or obstacle, once you get to the top you enjoy the view for a moment…then you climb back down and do the same thing all over again. Rinse and repeat.”
Levi seems to identify with what you’re saying and he knows you’re frustrated right now but he needs to keep you from spiraling. He’s not letting you give up. That’s not the way. “It’s what we have to do, Y/N.” He says gently.
“And what if I don’t want to do anything? What if I don’t want to climb fucking mountains? What if I don’t want to constantly be challenged and given obstacles? What if I just want to sit at the top of the mountain and just be?”
Levi knows these feelings all too well…he’s wrestled with them a few times throughout his life but he’s continued to push through because that’s what you just do. And you’re going to do the same even if he has to do the pushing for you. You snap Levi out of his thoughts with your next statement.
“It would be so much easier if I just…”
“Stop.”
“But-“
“Stop.” He repeats sternly, his steel eyes boring into yours.
You grunt angrily. “You’re not even real, Levi!” You yell out at him. You’re not angry with him. You’re angry at the world, angry for the universe and your parents for putting you in this predicament, angry for placing you into a world that doesn’t accommodate you. “You are a 2-dimensional character I use to cope. There’s no way for you to actually soothe or help me. You. Are. Fictional.”
Your words don’t seem to phase him. He shrugs. “I’m real enough.”
“What does that even mean?”
“I’m real enough to you. Y/N. You are the one who brings me to life. You are the one who decides how real I should be. What does it matter if I’m not a real person?”
“It’s silly.”
“Who says it’s silly?”
“I don’t know, a bunch of people.”
“Well, fuck all of those people then. Just fuck them.” He states as if it’s obvious.
You sigh. “It doesn’t work that way, Levi…”
“So make it work that way. No one else is keeping you alive but yourself.”
“And you…” You say softly.
Levi shakes his head. “I don’t do anything. Like I said before, you’re the one who does the all the heavy lifting. I exist because you want me to. I function the way I do because you want me to.”
“So I control you?”
Levi rolls his eyes at that. “Don’t be a brat. What I’m saying is I’m just an outlet for you.”
You pause, thinking of his words. He’s not wrong. He’s just a character but he’s also not just a character because of you. “I wish you were real.” You admit sadly.
“I wish I were real too…for you.” He sighs as he runs a hand through his raven hair. “But it doesn’t matter if I’m real or not. I still occupy your brain. I still make you happy, that’s all that matters. As long as you let me live in your mind, I’m always going to be here for you.
You nod, not saying anything further.
“Okay?” He asks.
“Okay.”
“Good.”
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picnic one shot with julian >_^
"Come on, darling, you have to keep up!" Julian shouts at me as he trots happily along the path in the middle of the stretching wheat fields. It was a bit of a spontaneous decision to have a picnic dinner, so we had to hurry if we didn't want to wreck our barely-regular eating schedule. Especially since the spot he picked is so far away from the shop...
"Or you could just slow down a little..." I scoff under my breath and promptly almost trip over my feet when the wind messes up my hair again, obscuring my vision. Julian doesn't seem to notice and continues onward... Then I feel Bluebell land on top of my head with a worried screech. "I'm fine, sweetheart, you can keep going... Give him a peck from me though."
I finally start catching up to Julian, just in time to see Bluebell swoop down at him up close, then fly right back up to join Malak in the air. He yelps and his eyes immediately dart back to me.
"Whatever happened to clear communication, Rowan?" he whines at me with a betrayed expression.
"You were running-"
"But I promise the rush will be worth it! Besides, the more tired you get, the better the food will taste."
"Worth it... How is this spot different than any other anyway...?"
"You ask too many questions. Just trust me, ehh?"
He grabs my hand and pulls me along towards a grassier area. Following a small rise in the terrain, we stop on top of a small hill. I set my basket down and take a look around. The wind has already calmed down a little so the whole area looks much more serene. That also means no hair in my mouth when I'll start eating... Julian catches my attention by tapping me on the shoulder.
"Care to help with the blanket?"
We lay the cloth down together. As I stare down to make sure there aren't any folds or creases, Julian already plops down onto it and pulls me along so that I land sideways in his lap.
"Now you can finally rest your poor, weary legs on your favorite pillow in the world."
"...Thank you, Julian." I huff softly and lean against him a little.
"You know I sneaked a bottle of that wine you liked last time...?" he smiles proudly and nuzzles the side of my face, trying to rile me up.
"Briberyyyy, you're so horrible!" I scoff and push him away halfheartedly.
"I can't help it when you're so easy to bribe..."
With one last kiss to my cheek, Julian pulls back a little to reach for our picnic baskets so we can start eating. Time passes by quickly as we munch on our sweet pastries and fresh fruit, washing them down with wine that actually tastes more like juice. As I wipe away some crumbs from my face, Julian turns his head to look behind me. Then he taps the top of my head with his finger.
"You might want to turn around now~"
When I rotate myself in his lap, I squint momentarily before opening my eyes to see a beautiful, vibrant sunset. The sky is clear from clouds so all I see is just vivid reds and yellows melting into the horizon. I didn't even realize it got so late in the first place... I can hear myself take a small gasp.
Then I glance back at Julian, who's batting his eyelashes at me coquettishly. It makes me snicker.
"Fine."
"'Fine' what, dearest?" he tilts his head at me expectantly.
"Fine, it was worth it." I press a tiny grateful kiss to his temple.
———
^ biggest picnic fan ever btw
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TW// Major Character Death, Non- Graphic Descriptions of Blood and Death
Something is terribly wrong.
Donnie feels it in their very bones, as they struggle to open their sleep-riddled eyes. Since when did they get enough sleep for their eyes to be melded shut? Nice, They think, managing to blink themselves awake.
Only to double-take at the sight of their brothers lying on a railroad track not so far away.
They lurch forward, but is held firmly in place by some kind of magic. They glance around, spotting writing engraved on a stone in between the two tracks. A promise. They pale.
The sound of a trolley rings in the distance, uncomfortably close.
Donnie starts screaming, all ration replaced by pure fear and helplessness. “Raph! Mikey!” they screech, their voice breaking. They don’t know if they can be brave for them. But Mikey and Raph don’t move. Donnie squints, seeing Mikey’s slow breath– he’s asleep. They turn to Raph, who’s as stiff as a board. Awake. Thank god.
“Raph,” Donnie cries, pure relief filling their voice. “There’s a trolley coming. I need you to get Mikey and go, okay? I’ll be right behind you.” The lie comes surprisingly easy to them. Raph doesn’t move. Donnie grinds their teeth together.
“Raph.” They say, with all the firmness they can muster. “Get. Up.” The trolley rings again. Panic pools in their stomach. Their tail thwacks anxiously against the tracks. Someone sighs. Donnie’s head whips toward the sound, eyes wide.
A hand rests against the lever, one that would change the direction of the trolley. The being the hand belongs to has an infinite amount of faces, each of them flickering from one to another every second, each mouth pulled into an indecisive frown.
Pick Donnie, or their brothers.
Their brothers, who won’t leave. Who… can’t. Donnie wrenches their gaze away from the figure, their eyes throbbing. They try calling out to their brothers again, and Raph turns to them, his face… annoyed?
“Don’t worry, Don.” He grumbles, expression nonchalant, rolling his eyes like he does at Leo when she goes into Mamanardo mode. Donnie’s mouth is agape, words lost. Raph scoffs. “I wanna see what will happen. This is the ultimate test of my strengths!” Donnie inhales.
“By getting hit by a bus?!” They screech, their voice high with fear, anxiety, and slight anger. Raph turns away, his shoulder hiked up to his mask tails. This isn’t their brother. He’s bullheaded and proud, but he wouldn’t put Mikey in danger. He wouldn’t cause another heartbreak for their family on purpose. And Donnie. Donne panics, throwing themselves at the force shield as if they’ll be able to break it.
The trolley is practically upon them now.
Donnie sobs, begging Raph, screaming for Mikey so he’ll just wake up–
None of it works. Mikey snoozes away. Raph remains rigid. It reminds them, in a morbid and extremely inappropriate way considering the situation- reminds them of The Great Mouse Detective, when Sherlock Holmes as a Rat had lain there, waiting for Professor Rattigan's trap to go off. They laugh hysterically, the tears falling from their eyes in droves now.
The figure at the lever pales, chewing the inside of their cheek. Like their trying to pick what to have for dinner. Donnie snarls. “Don’t fucking touch that goddamn lever.” They hiss, tensed, and ready to lunge. The figure only looks at them with fondness, as if they were seeing a scared cat, who only needed to be cleaned and fed. Donnie bristles.
The trolley roars into view, chugging chipperly toward them. Donne pales, their hisses turning into pleas.
“Hit me,” They gasp, tears starting all anew. Their not even sure that they ever stopped. Suddenly, the figure’s face shutters, becoming solid and indifferent.
The trolley reaches the divide. The figure leaves the lever untouched.
The blood splatters at their feet.
They scream.
Donnie lies there, shaking with indescribable grief coursing through their veins, sloshing around in the newly formed pit in their chest for who knows how long.
Something brushes against their fingers. They lift their heavy head, blinking through the tears. It’s a pink flower, brushing innocently against Donnie’s fingers. They thumb the delicate petals with careful fingers.
The flower born of blood seems to wash away all the bad. When had Donnies ever felt this light? They smile, infatuated by the simple plant. The strange red liquid has no meaning now, as Donnie stands on surprisingly – why surprisingly?-- steady legs, stepping off the tracks, leaving the broken bodies of people they used to know behind.
Why were they ever crying?
Something’s happened.
Leo feels it in every fiber of her being, as she struggles against the rope she had found herself in. Her siblings were gone, and her instincts were pinging around her body like a chaotic game of ping pong.
She struggles for a bit longer, digging her teeth into her cheek before she starts hyperventilating. And then, without warning–
She feels something drop from her chest.
Mikey. Raph. Donnie. Gone. Stolen.
She pitches forward, sobbing, held fast by the rope wrapped around her, burning her skin. Her tears lap at the feet of faceless beings, the ones, she knows instinctually, who did this to her family. She’s burning now, her skin flaking off and twirling into dust. The rope turns into greedy unknown hands, grasping at her mask tails.
Blood oozes from their hands, staining her shell, and clogging up her mouth and nose.
She knows it’s not theirs.
She’ll make it, one day.
She hopes they never untie her, for their sake.
Hahaha! Oh my God! First things first, how was it? I know its certainly not my best work, I wrote this in an hour- but it's my first official wholly completed fanfiction! This is for @probably-not-a-rutabaga 's Trolley Problem Poll they had with their Tmnt Aberration Au! Go check them out, they make super cool stuff.
Anyway, I hope I did you justice! This was so fun to write :))
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