#we figured this would end up happening after yesterday but since we only get flares every few months I forget how bad it is

[thethingything]

we've got a migraine and I can kind of handle that but we've also got a trigeminal neuralgia flare and it's the kind that's constant pain instead of just brief jolts of pain, and unfortunately painkillers just don't treat it so I have to just put up with it until it goes away

[morgana-larkin]

Alright, it seems I’ve gotten a creative boost for Marilyn. In this chapter you both try and move on but also try to make each other jealous, so have fun with that! Not edited in the slightest and I hope you like it!

Cool Your Fire - Part 5

Warnings: jealousy

Words: 5.1k

Marilyn takes a deep breath, it’s Friday today. She spent all week pretending like you don’t exist and it’s killing her. All she wants is to be next to you and comfort you and tell you that she loves you. She can’t do any of that.

Last week you told her you wanted nothing to do with her and to stay away from you forever. And even if it’s hurting her every time she sees you, she has to respect your decision and boundaries. All she has to do is get through today and then she has 2 days off to do whatever.

She’s in bed right now, not wanting to get up but has too. She can’t help but think over some of the events of the week after Saturday.

On Sunday, Marilyn woke up hoping that what happened yesterday was all a dream but when she saw you and you didn’t even look at her, she knew it wasn’t.

She can’t help but think of what happened over and over again in her head as she tries to keep busy. She knew she should have questioned you more as to why you were distancing yourself. She didn’t though and it seems whatever was going through your mind just exploded along with you figuring out who her family was.

She never came here to kill the outcasts, sure she thought about it after her family died but that’s normal to want revenge. She got curious and wanted to know if the outcasts are really as bad as her family told her. And from what she’s seen, they’re just people trying to live their life like everyone else.

“So what does everyone know about the Venus flytrap?” Sally asks you all. You, Enid, Sally and Nickie are placed in a group to do a project about a carnivorous plant that Ms. Thornhill chooses for each group.

“Just that they eat flies and other things.” You say and everyone else nods in agreement.

You all begin looking up all about the Venus Flytrap and Marilyn keeps glancing over at your group. She sees Sally trying to hit on you as well, and while you ignored it at first, you eventually start to flirt back with her. Marilyn feels the anger start to flare inside of her and she clenches her fist at her desk. She knows she can’t do anything about it and can only watch. Have you really moved on already? If you’ve moved on then she should too. There’s a man in Jericho that’s been trying to hit on her but keeps rejecting him since she was interested in you, but maybe she should accept it when she goes into town this weekend.

The bell finally rings and everyone packs up their stuff and goes to their next class. That leaves Marilyn alone to her thoughts and plants as she has a spare right now. She begins her daily routine of tending to her plants while she begins to think about everything again.

Was she really trying to move on or just make you jealous? Then she thinks that it could be both, making you jealous after you hurting her is perfect.

The day passes slowly but eventually it ends and everyone gets ready for the weekend. In the quad at supper time, you’re walking to the table when Sally comes up to you.

“Hey, Y/N, so I was wondering if you wanted to sit with me today? Just you and me, no one else.” She asks you, face full of hope.

“Oh, um sure.” You say and Sally has a bright smile on her face and then leads you to a free table.

Enid, the fangs and Marilyn all watch you go to another table with Sally, their mouths open in shock. Marilyn gets up and leaves after muttering an excuse to the table and goes to her room. While walking out of the Quad, another teacher purposely bumps into her.

“Watch it Normie!” The teacher says, attracting everyone’s attention to them. Luckily for Marilyn, Enid and the fangs saw it all and they all get up to defend her.

“It’s you who should watch it.” Enid says.

“We saw you do it on purpose. I don’t think principal Weems would appreciate you bullying a fellow faculty member.” Yoko says.

“Girls, it’s alright. No need to get the principal in on this, she already has enough to deal with.” Marilyn tells them.

“Ya, no need to have her waste her time on a Normie.” The teacher says and then before anyone can say anything, smoke starts to rise from behind him. He then feels it and turns around to see his butt on fire and begins padding it down. While he does that, everyone turns to look at you with a smile. You just stay sitting at your spot but your body is turned to everyone.

“I suggest you apologise to her or I won’t put it out.” You say to the teacher and barely has a smile on her face.

“Ok, I’m sorry Ms. Thornhill.” He says and you put the fire out and the teacher walks away. You immediately turn back around to finish eating and the fangs go back to their seat.

“Even if you aren’t friends, Y/N hates discrimination.” Enid says to Marilyn.

“Well tell her I say thank you.” Marilyn says then walks off to her room.

The next day you all get on the shuttle and Enid sits next to Marilyn this time so you don’t have too. Marilyn gets her phone out and shows Enid a picture of a guy.

“What do you think of him?” She asks her.

“Oh, I guess he’s cute, I think I’ve seen him around Jericho.” Enid says, not liking where this might be going.

“Ya he lives there. His name is John and he’s been flirting with me for a couple weeks. I’m thinking of accepting this time when I see him.” Marilyn says with a smile.

“Oh, well, if you like him then you should definitely go for it.” Enid says with a forced smile. Enid and Marilyn continue talking a little bit before the shuttle reaches Jericho and everyone gets off.

You and Enid walk around Jericho a little bit before stopping at the weathervane. The two of you sit down with your drinks and pastries when Marilyn walks in with John. Marilyn sees you sitting there with Enid and avoids contact with you or looking in your direction the entire time, putting all her attention on John. When Marilyn gets her drink, she and John sit down and continue chatting.

That got your attention immediately as soon as you heard someone talking with Marilyn. You watch them chat and flirt the entire time and you’re not liking it one bit. Your first clench around your coffee mug and your knuckles turn white. Enid sees this and thinks you might shatter the mug if you don’t release your hold on it.

“Might want to let go of it or you’ll break it.” Enid tells you and while you do let go off the mug, you’re still clenching your fists. “Why do you look jealous? Thought you were growing up?” Enid says and you turn to look at her.

“He doesn’t seem good enough for her.” You tell her.

“You don’t even know him. You’re just mad because you want it to be you she’s talking too.” Enid says casually and you cross your arms.

“I told you that we aren’t friends anymore because of a decision I made. If I wanted to talk to her then I can go right up to her and do it.”

“You do want to talk to her though and yet you’ve stopped yourself all week. You’re cutting her out of your life and yet she’s still your teacher and dorm mom. There’s gonna be times where you need to talk to her or interact with her.”

“And by then my feelings for her would have already gone away. I’m liking her less and less everyday. In a week I’ll probably think of how crazy I was to have a crush on her.” You tell Enid, who doesn’t believe you in the slightest.

“Why don’t you ask Sally out?” She suddenly says and you open your mouth in shock.

“Why would I do that?”

“She likes you and if you’re over Marilyn then maybe you can go on a date with Sally. Oh maybe you can invite her to Rave’N that’s next weekend.” Enid suggests. Enid got involved in this thing between you and Marilyn and she’s trying to keep the peace. As far as Enid knows, Marilyn showed a bit of interest in you but nothing became of it, and now it looks like Marilyn is dating a normie from Jericho.

“I should. And why should I be jealous if Marilyn is dating some random guy?”

“That’s the spirit. And Marilyn is an attractive woman, it’s not surprising that someone’s been interested in her for a couple weeks.” Enid says and your eyes widen a bit.

“You mean that idiot over there has been interested in her for weeks?” You ask her.

“That’s what Marilyn said, but she kept telling him no, until today.”

Just then Wednesday comes in and joins you both.

“What’s up Wednesday?” You ask her as she hasn’t said anything.

“I’ve just been asked to the Rave’N and for some reason I said yes.” She says and you both stare at her in shock. “Are you guys going with someone?” She asks you both.

“I was going to go with Ajax but he stood me up the other night so I’m on my lonesome.” Enid tells you both.

“I was thinking of asking Sally to go with me.”

“She’s interested in you so she’ll definitely say yes.” Enid tells you. That catches Wednesday's interest as she knows you were going out with Marilyn. “Wait, I see her right there, you can go and ask her right now, come on!” Enid tells you and drags you out the door. Wednesday looks over at the table that Marilyn is at, she sees her date ordering a drink and Marilyn looking at the door in shock. Wednesday suspected that maybe you and Marilyn weren’t going out anymore but it was just confirmed. Wednesday sees Marilyn watching you ask Sally to the Rave’N. She thinks that Sally must have said yes as Marilyn looks upset before telling her date that she has to go and leaving.

“Why are you trying to make Ms. Thornhill jealous?” Wednesday asks you when you’re alone in a corner at a dress shop.

“Wednesday, her and I ended the relationship. I’m not trying to make her jealous, I’m moving on.” You tell her and brush past her.

“Well she’s not over you. She got upset when you asked Sally to go to the dance.” She tells you.

“Oh hi Ms. Thornhill, are you picking out a dress for the Rave’N?” You both hear Enid say across the shop.

“Yes I am. John is going with me, I asked him today and he said yes.” Marilyn said, not knowing you were there. You stay out of her eyesight the entire time you were there. The only time she saw you was when you were paying for the dress and leaving.

You were on your way to your dorm room when you turn a corner and bump right into Marilyn.

“Oh sorry Ms. Thornhill.” You tell her and go to leave but she stops you.

“I guess you’re going to the dance with Sally, I see you’re moving on.” She tells you and you see she looks upset.

“Ya, you’re going with John so I guess you’re moving on as well.”

“Well, being with him is better than being with a student.” She fires at you and you get upset at that.

“I guess you find him better than me cause he’s a normie. You know it was a big mistake to ever go out with you.” You tell her and then walk away to your dorm. Marilyn watches you walk away in disappointment, she shouldn’t have said that to you. She honestly would prefer being with you than with John but she does have to move on at some point.

A week passes by and before you know it, it’s the night of the Rave’N. Enid finishes your makeup and then you go and do Wednesday’s after she puts her dress on. You’re in the middle of putting black eyeshadow on her when there’s a knock at your door. Enid goes to answer it and sees that it’s Sally there.

“Hi Sally, Y/N is just doing Wednesday’s makeup then she’ll be ready to go.” Enid tells her.

“That’s alright, I don’t mind waiting.” She tells Enid and then Enid steps aside to let her in. “Hi Y/N.” She tells you when she sees you.

“Hi Sally.” You turn to her briefly before focusing on finishing Wednesday’s makeup. “Alright, that should do it.”

“What do you think?” Wednesday asks everyone.

“You look positively dark and mysterious.” Enid tells her to which Wednesday nods at you in approval.

You then get up and Sally gets a good look at you. You’re wearing a white dress that goes to your mid thighs. It clings to your top half and then flows down the rest of the way, making it fun to spin around in. It also has a v-dip neckline giving anyone a nice view of your cleavage.

“Wow, you look beautiful.” Sally tells you and you blush at her compliment.

“Thank you, so do you.” Sally chose to go a different route and wear a white pantsuit, and you can’t say that she doesn’t look good in it, because she does look stunning in it.

“Ready to go?” She asks you and you nod.

“Yep, let’s go. I’ll meet you guys there?” You ask Enid and Wednesday and they both nod.

You make it down to the gym with Sally and you see Ms. Thornhill there greeting everyone.

“Oh Sally and…Y/N, don’t you guys look cute together.” Marilyn says with a bit of jealousy in her tone.

“Thank you Ms. Thornhill!” Sally says excitedly.

“Thanks Ms. Thornhill.” You tell her with a fake smile.

An hour later, you and Sally are coming back from the dance floor and you go to get drinks from the punch bowl for both of you. When you’re there, Marilyn comes up to you.

“So you brought the girl that’s been flirting with you for a month, how original.” She tells you and you turn to face her.

“You’re one to talk, you brought the guy that’s been flirting with you for weeks.” You tell her.

“I’m surprised you’re jealous considering you’re the one that ended it.” She says with a quirked eyebrow.

“Well believe it or not, I still care about you. Which is why I asked for you to leave me alone forever. I can see how well you’re following that.” You tell her.

“We still have to interact at some points.” She says and you scoff. “You’re still my student and I’m still your dorm mom as you live in Ophelia Hall.” She tells you. Just then John comes up and introduces himself.

“Oh hi, are you one of Marilyn’s students? She loves her students and can’t stop talking about them. I’m John, Marilyn’s date to the dance.” He tells you and holds out a hand to shake. You pretend to act polite to him even though you don’t like that he’s dating her, and you shake his hand.

“Yes, I’m Y/N. Ms Thornhill is my botany teacher and dorm mom.” You tell him.

“Oh Y/N, she’s mentioned you a few times.” He says and you look at her with interest. “She’s told me that you and your group of friends have been the most welcoming to her.” He adds and you nod.

“The other teachers don’t like normies as much but we don’t care if she’s a normie or not. We don’t like to discriminate.” You tell him.

“Oh wait, are you the one that set that teacher's butt on fire last week.”

“Yep, he was bullying her so I acted accordingly. I’m someone you don’t really want to cross.” You tell him with a darker tone. John doesn’t catch on but Marilyn sure does. “I would love to stay and chat, but I was just getting drinks for me and my date.” You tell them both and leave.

“She seems nice, no wonder you’ve talked about her a couple times.” John tells her and puts an arm around her shoulders. Marilyn gives her best fake smile for him even though she doesn’t want to be touched by him, she’d rather it be you touching her.

Marilyn mostly stayed in one place, sitting at one table, watching just you for most of the night. She tried her best to watch the other kids and to keep up the conversation with John as best she could.

“So do you have a favourite student?” John asks her and she turns her head to her.

“What?”

“Just, I’ve heard that teachers shouldn’t have a favourite student but sometimes it happens. So do you have one?” He asks her and her gaze falls on you.

“I did have one.” She mutters so he wouldn’t hear. “No.” She tells him. “I care about them all equally.” She adds.

“Really? I would have assumed it was Y/N.” He says casually and she whips her head to look at him.

“Why would you think that?”

“Just that she’s the one you mostly talk about.” He tells her and she turns to look at you again. You’ve been too busy dancing and talking to your friends and Sally to notice her staring at you for most of the night.

An hour passes by and the DJ announces that it's the last song and everyone goes out on the dance floor.

You are out on the dance floor dancing with Sally when you notice that Enid’s date, Lucas, isn’t there so you include Enid in the dance. Just then you start to feel something drip on your face and then something red starts pouring down on everyone. You’re caught right in the middle of the dance floor and can’t see the way out as there’s too many people running around and too much paint. You start running in a random direction and then all of a sudden you slip and fall to the ground. Before you hit the ground, someone catches you and pulls you up. You go to thank the person but then you see it’s Marilyn who saved you and you stare at her.

“Come on, we have to get out of here, it’s too slippery here.” She tells you and you nod your head. You then grab her hand and you both carefully run out of the gym. When you make it out of the gym, a pair of arms are around you in a hug.

“Oh thank god. We got separated in the crowd and couldn’t see you.” Enid tells you.

“A prank was played, and not even a good one.” Wednesday says. “They didn’t even use blood, it’s paint.”

“Paint? Who would do such a thing?” You ask.

“Enid, it’s suspicious that your date disappeared right before the prank was played.” Wednesday tells Enid, and then Enid goes and runs to see who did the prank. Wednesday leaves to go to her dorm while you look at the state you're in with the paint all over you.

“Even though you look like you just killed a bunch of people, you still look nice.” Marilyn tells you and you look up at her.

“Thanks, and thank you for saving me in there.” You tell her with a small smile.

“It’s not a problem, I had to make sure all my students were safe.” She tells you and then walks away.

You watch her walk away, disappointed that you didn’t have more time with her. You still want to be around her, but you don’t know if you can even be friends with someone who’s family has been killing outcasts for centuries. You don’t know what she was taught growing up until the death of her family. You then decide to talk to the one person who’s the most neutral as she has no emotions, Wednesday.

“Wednesday can we talk about something?” You ask her as you enter the dorm room and she turns to look at you. “Before I say anything, you have to promise me that you won’t do anything about it or tell anyone. You have to swear.”

“I can I agree to something that I don’t know what’s it about?” She asks you.

“Cause you’re curious.” You tell her and she doesn’t look impressed. “And it’s about Ms. Thornhill.” You add on and that catches her attention.

“Ok, I swear.”

“Alright first of all, you were right, there’s no records of her before 13 because she changed her name. She was both as Laurel Gates.” You tell her.

“Isn’t the Gates related to Joseph Crackstone? The one who slaughtered a bunch of outcasts.” She says and you nod.

“It’s the reason her and I are no longer together, well one of the reasons. I also feared she might be going behind my back and hooking up with someone else, someone older.” You tell her and she looks at you curiously.

“Why are you telling me this?” She asks you with a tilt of her head.

“Because I don’t know what to do, I know you’d probably befriend her as her family are killers and that might intrigue you or something, but you also have no emotional attachment to anything so you’re the best person to tell as you’re neutral.” You tell her.

“I wouldn’t befriend her. While her family may be killers, she isn’t one. She seems like the normal one in the family, the boring one.” She tells you. “In my vision, you both seemed happy, disgustingly happy.” She adds on. “You don’t like discrimination and yet you’re blaming her for her family’s actions.” She tells you and you have to admit that you didn’t see that coming. I mean she did have a point.

“I guess I did at first but then I just think that she’ll get bored or maybe some of those Gates tendencies will come back to her and she’ll hate me. And she’s dating John now anyway.” You tell her.

“I don’t understand why you’re talking about your feelings to me instead of Enid.”

“It’s not my feelings I want to talk about, I want a logical answer. What should I do?” You ask her and she looks at you.

“If I were you, I’d leave her alone. People aren’t worth it, they’ll just hold you back. I know you’ve been trying to do that but she keeps coming back to you. Reminds me a bit of my parents, can’t be separated for long.” She says. “Now I have to get rid of the remnants of a bad prank.” She tells you and goes to take a shower.

You then start to feel the paint beginning to dry on you and you start feeling it stick to you more and more and you really need a shower. You then reluctantly walk over to Marilyn’s room and knock on her door. She opens the door and smiles when she sees it’s you.

“Hey Y/N.” She tells you and her hair is wet and she’s wearing different clothes.

“Hi, I was wondering if I can use your shower? Wednesday is using the one in the dorm and the paint is sticking to me and really starting to bother me.” You tell her and she steps aside.

“Of course, come on in.” She tells you.

Before you walk in, you see John sitting on her new couch and you freeze.

“Oh I didn’t know you had company, I’m sorry to disturb you, I’ll go.” You tell her and she frowns.

“Nonsense, you need a shower. Just use mine.” She tells you and you shake your head and begin to walk away, feeling your eyes start to water. “Hey Y/N, are you alright?” She asks you and puts a hand on your shoulder, and at that moment John gets up.

“Marilyn, I think I’ll go. It’s obvious your student needs you right now.” He tells her and she nods at him. “I’ll call you tomorrow though.” He adds on.

“Ok, thank you, and thanks for tonight.” She says and he gives her a kiss on the cheek then walks out. “Y/N, come in.” She tells you but you stay rooted in your spot.

“No, I think I’ve ruined your night enough.” You tell her and a tear slips down your cheek. You begin to walk away but she grabs your wrist and drags you into her room. “Woah! Marilyn! What the hell!” You yell when you’re in her room.

“What’s wrong? You’re crying and it can’t be just because of the paint.” She tells you and she crosses her arms.

“I didn’t expect to see John in here with you, alone.” You tell her with a sniffle.

“We weren’t doing anything, just talking.” She tells you. “Come on, what’s this about?” She softly nudges you.

“You, it’s about you!” You blurt out and you both look shocked. Well, might as well just continue. “And I don’t know what to do.” You add on.

“Ok, listen, how about you go take a shower and then after we can chat. I think it’s overdue anyway.” She tells you and you nod while a couple tears fall down your cheeks and Marilyn wipes them off. “Alright, I’ll get you a towel and a shirt and pants for after.” She says.

After your shower, you slip on the clothes she gave you to borrow and you feel so much better already. You brush your hair and make sure to get all the tangles out before going back into her room.

“Hey, I made you a hot chocolate.” She tells you when she sees you.

“Oh, thank you. I also see you got a couch like you wanted.” You tell her and she smiles.

“I did, yes, 3 weeks ago.” She tells you as you sit down beside her and grab the hot chocolate from the small table beside the couch. “So what got you upset today?” She asks you.

“Today is when it kinda boiled over, but I’ve been struggling for 3 weeks.” You tell her and she nods. Already knowing that’s when you guys broke up. “I’ve been trying to figure out if I made the right choice. And today I actually asked Wednesday of all people. She had a vision of us kissing a few weeks ago and said she won’t tell anyone, and she’s got no emotions so she’s probably the best person to ask. Anyway, she made me realise that I was punishing you for your family’s actions, while you didn’t do anything. And when I saw John today, sitting on your couch, it made me go over the edge and all I wanted was to run away from you. It got me really upset and knowing that I was right to end it and that I should just let you live your life while I live mine. I mean we only went out for like 2 weeks, so I’ll move on eventually, especially since you have already.” You finish and take a big sip of the hot chocolate to help make you feel better.

“Well first of all, I haven’t moved on but I’m trying too.” She starts and you look up at her. “And second, I understand you wanted to distance yourself after knowing I was related to a line of outcast killers. Your survival instincts took over, and while I may not have liked the outcome, I do understand. I would honestly have done the same if I were you. And third, what do you mean by, you were right to end it?” She asks you and you look at her.

“I knew you’d get bored eventually and just move on.” You tell her. “I’m too young for you and you would realise that right away and just leave. And it would probably be after we have sex as I’ve never done it and you’d want someone who’s experienced. But I understand that I need to move on, but it’s hard when I see you everyday, and also the fact that you were my first kiss and relationship, actually we weren’t even in a relationship, just went on a date and kissed.” You tell her.

“I was your first kiss?” She asks you and you nod. “So in your dorm, that was your first ever kiss?” She asks again and you once again nod. “Oh Y/N, you should have told me, I feel honoured to be your first kiss. And also I think I can decide for myself if you’re too young for me. You may be 17 but you act older than that.” She says to you. “Y/N, while I would love to get back together with you, I think you’re right about one thing.” She says and you look at her. “I was born and raised as a Gates. It might have been for the best that we ended things. I’m new to the whole being around outcasts thing, and while I don’t want to kill any of you, I’m not sure how I feel about all of you, especially dating one.” She says and you nod. You take the last sip of your hot chocolate and place it behind you on the table.

“I guess I’ll go then, I’ll just go change out of these clothes and give them back to you. Will only take a minute.” You tell her.

“Keep them if you want. Those pyjamas don’t fit me anymore anyway. I was about to get rid of them.” She tells you and you nod after a few seconds.

“Ok, thank you, they are comfortable.” You say with a small smile that she returns.

She closes the door behind you and then takes a deep breath before sliding down the door. While she wants to be with you, she also doesn’t want to hurt you or you getting hurt by other normies because of who you are. So she put her feelings aside and told a small lie to keep you safe, she just hopes that you’ll stay safe.

[adelheidvonschicksal]

Gosh, the Hawks x intern! Reader sure made me tear up :(

Like imagine him regretting not being there for her and his baby girl from the start and trying to make up for it now 😭😭💖

I was going to imagine this, but I couldn't because I ended up writing 3000 words. 😭 I just love fictional babies so much and want them to be happy, okay? I left it open-ended, so I wouldn't betray the "kick his ass" gang. I'm a weak woman 🥺 I still don't know much about him other than what Wikipedia and memes tell me but here we go!

Part One | Part Two

Hawks doesn’t think you’ll ever let him in, not that he could blame you. Every time you see him, your expression hardens, pretty eyes narrow into a glare, nostrils flare, breathing heavy. His only bright light during your last exchange is that you wait three seconds before slamming the door in his face rather than the usual zero.

Oh, he’s definitely softening you up. Not.

It’s been a month now that he’s been at this, and he is starting to wonder if this entire thing is worth the headache. All he’s accomplished so far is bothering you with his requests to talk. Then, he remembers the little angel that you have with you and thinks it’s worth the headache.

At first, he had ignored your previous exchange that day at the park and the nagging feeling in the corner of his mind upon seeing the two of you. Until that same feeling started to weigh on his heart. He quickly realizes what those feelings were. Guilt and regret at not taking another path with the high schooler he so carelessly took advantage of and impregnated.

If he had, he could be annoying Endeavor about his cute little wife right about now.

Hawks feels a bit like Icarus flying too close to the sun and now sinking in a turbulent ocean of his own making. Instead of drowning, the world decides to throw him a lifeline as the receptionist patches a call through to him.

His heart jumps when he hears you on the other side, resistant but succumbed in your plea, “I need your help.”

The very next day you arrive at the agency, a small hand latched in your own as you stand in the middle of his office. You didn’t want to be here. The thought of being in the same place where your daughter was conceived with the same man who left you makes you antsy. You can’t believe you actually let Fumikage talk you into this.

You remember that phone conversation.

Your daughter’s quirk had been coming in full force, so fast you didn’t know how to handle it. You hoped that Tokoyami would have been able to help her control it since he trained with the very person she received her quirk from much longer than you had and that he was part avian himself.

“Please, Fumi. It’s getting worse,” you begged over the phone. “She accidentally hurt a few of the kids at school. No. No. They’re fine, some cuts and a little shook up, but fine. They won’t let her back in until she gets it under control though, so please.”

“I told you there’s not much else I can do. The best solution would be to go to the person with the same quirk.”

He’s right. He’s absolutely right, but you don’t want to rely on someone like that man especially now. What if he ended up hurting her?

“I don’t want to do that.”

“I know you don’t, but he’s been trying to contact you, right? So I'm sure he'd do it if you asked.”

“Yeah…” You growled. “I swear if he makes one smart-ass remark, I might kill him in front of her.”

“Remember it’s not for you. Although, I don’t think you could kill him even if you tried.”

“If we combined our strength…”

“No,” Tokoyami immediately shot down.

You sighed. “I’m only joking. Do you have the number to the agency still?”

Now you’re here, watching the very man who abandoned you kneel down to your daughter’s eye level. Hawks couldn’t believe he’s actually seeing her. It’s a bit exciting to see how much bigger she’s gotten in such a short time with big fat wings at her back holding way more feathers than she can probably deal with.

“So, this is the special girl,” he says. She shies away from him, hiding behind your leg for protection. “Come on out, Baby Bird, you don’t have to be scared of me.”

Slowly, she peeks from behind you, fingers still clutched in your pants leg, and Hawks smiles.

“There you are. Did your mommy tell you who I am?”

“You’re her and uncle Toko’s old teacher, and you’re going to help me control my quirk.”

“That’s right. You just turned five, right? That’s when a lot of quirks can get kind of hectic.”

“Yeah. I had a birthday party with Elsa last month.”

Hawks’ smile falters for a second as he thinks he doesn’t know exactly what day her birthday is. At least now he knows the month. Quickly, he’s back to normal to keep an air of happiness in the situation. “You know I know a lady that looks a bit like Elsa. She has ice powers like her too,” Hawks says, having grown a little closer to the number one hero's family as he tried to figure out what to do about his own family situation.

When her eyes widen, Hawks knows he has her hook, line, and sinker. She throws her initial shyness to the wind in exchange for excitement. “She does? Can I meet her?”

“I’m sure we could make that happen. If not, her son has an ice quirk, too. I’m sure he’d show you.”

The young girl smiles at him, but Hawks notices her vision drifting to something else. Cautiously, her tiny hand stretches out to him, making him nervous as to what she’s doing, before chubby fingers clutch around the edge of his wing, squeezing into his feathers. “They’re pretty,” she mumbles.

“Want one?” he asks, and she nods.

“This is my birthday present for you, don’t lose it,” he says, offering her a single long feather from the back of his wings. She clutches it to her chest tightly, a happy smile plastered on her face.

Then, you interrupt.

“Baby, mama has to run some errands, but she’ll come right back to pick you up when the clock says twelve. You remember how that looks like, right?”

“It’s a 1 and a 2,” she says, bringing up her hands to show you.

Hawks decides to walk you out as your daughter sits in his office chair, twirling around his feather in her hand. He isn’t sure what to say to you now that he has you near him. Should he thank you for bringing her? Or would that only serve to piss you off since it’s not like you wanted to do this by choice?

“Hawks,” you say, bringing him out his thoughts. “There’s one more thing before I go.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t tell her,” you order. “Don’t you dare tell her.”

His chest squeezes at that but he can understand why you wouldn’t want her to know that information when the two of you aren’t even on speaking terms outside this issue. He didn’t want to do anything to make the situation worse either, so he brings his fingers to his mouth and zips his pinched thumb and index finger across his lips. “I’ll make sure mine and anyone else’s lips are sealed if they want to keep their job,” he calmly reassures you, always calm and carefree so you wouldn’t think that your rejection is successfully deterring him.

From then on, you drop your daughter off at his office twice a week to get a better handle on her powers. You didn’t stay long aside from that, but Hawks likes the small moments when all three of you are in the same room together.

The hero can be thankful that at least one of his girls likes him. His Baby Bird quickly attached herself to him, always pattering after his footsteps like a shadow, and always asking if he’d hold her hand, a smile forming whenever he engulfed her smaller one. He even keeps his promise to let her see Rei, or Elsa as Baby Bird so passionately refers to her, now that the woman is out of the hospital.

He thinks that if that family can recover from what happened then his shouldn’t be much different as long as he keeps trying to put in the effort and not step on your toes too much.

It isn’t long before Baby Bird begins to get a hang of her powers. At least enough that she wouldn’t be hurting anyone at school. Hawks had hoped you would still allow him to train her past that point though, but you quickly told him that she wouldn’t be returning to the agency when she reached that point.

He was sad to hear it of course, but he didn’t want to cause what little progress he made to be broken even if he really wanted to see her fly at least a few inches before she left. She’s been getting into the habit of jumping instead of walking to practice like he used to do. Although, she resembles more of a bouncy frog than a bird, to be honest.

He watches, amused, as she bounces along next to him in the hallway.

“You’ve gotten good at that,” he compliments, drawing her attention upwards.

“I’ve been practicing lots at home, but I’m not that good yet. Will you teach me how to fly like you do tomorrow?” she asks.

“No, Baby Bird. Didn’t your mommy tell you that we’re done with training after today?”

She hangs her head down, her bouncing stopping as she drags her feet. “…Yes,” she answers, letting his arm go lax as she releases his hand. Hawks pauses, watching as she draws her hands to her waist and anxiously bunches and twists the bottom of her shirt, and Hawks throat goes dry as she asks with glossy eyes, “Daddy, why doesn’t mommy like you?”

He’s completely silent, wondering exactly when she figured it out or if someone in the office had told her, let alone told her the fact that you didn’t like him. Well, he guesses it doesn’t take a genius to figure that out. “How do you know to call me that?"

“Yesterday, my teacher told us that we inhe-inhe-inherent our quirk from our parents. I remember you said Elsa and her son had the same quirk, and you have big wings like mine and can make your feathers move.”

Hawks smiles. She’s a sharp one to piece it together in a day. “Your teacher is right. I bet you’ve never seen anyone else that looks quite like us.”

“No,” she answers, sniffling. “I don’t want to go home. I want to stay and play with you. Mommy is so mean to you. I hate her!”

Hawks cups her chin in his hand, forcing her to meet his eyes. “Look at me. Don’t talk about your mommy like that. It’s my fault she always gets upset when I’m around. I was mean and bullied her a lot, so if you’re mad, be mad at me. I’m the reason we can’t play together more.”

She sniffs again but it isn’t enough to stop the globs of tears running down her cheeks. “When we saw you at the park, mommy started crying when we went home. I didn’t know why she did.”

Hawks knows why. The reason you’re always so angry at him is because of the hurt you still hold inside for what he did to you. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have cried. The opposite of love is indifference as they say, and he knows it’s true because he had been indifferent to the pain he caused ever since the day you came to him with weepy eyes and shaking arms as you told him you were pregnant. You had been scared, and he told you to deal with it.

Hawks scowls. He’s starting to feel sick.

"If you make someone cry, you should say sorry."

Hawks smiles. “I know, baby. I'll apologize to your mama, and I’m going to try my best to make it up to her, and you, too. I’m not going to make either of you cry anymore. Then, when she forgives me, we’ll play together again.”

She looks to him, a small glimmer of hope. “You promise?”

Hawks chuckles and grins at her, the same charming expression that made you fall for him in the first place. He holds out his hand. “Even better. I pinky promise,” he says and confidently hooks her finger with his. “Repeat after me: birds of a feather stick together.”

“Birds of a feather stick together.”

“That’s my girl,” he praises before dropping her hand to pet her head. “I think we might have a little time for me to teach you something before your mommy gets here.”

At the end of the day, Hawks is already waiting for you at the front steps of the agency as your call pulls into parallel park at the sidewalk. You step out and walk towards the steps, but your daughter meets you halfway by hopping over them, her wings flapping to hover before she falls back down onto her feet.

You smile at her. You can’t believe she’s actually flying, at least a little that is, but your surprise is ruined when she cheers. “Mommy, look at what daddy taught me,” she says, bouncing to show you her new hovering skills. “Are you looking? Are you looking?”

“Yes, I’m looking. You’re so good at that. You need to show me more when we get home,” you say but to be honest it’s the last thing on your mind as you glance over to Hawks. “Baby, why don’t you go sit in the car, and I’ll be right there.”

Hawks watches as she obediently follows your instructions, turning her back and happily hopping towards the vehicle.

“(Name), I-” Hawks says, unsure what to expect when your angry glare turns back on him. It isn’t until his yellow visors are already clicking against the pavement that he realizes you hit him. He hisses at the sting on his cheek. “That actually kind of hurt. I guess I had it coming, but I’m not really sure what I did at least recently,” he tries to play off, but you aren’t having it.

“You told her, you told her,” you keep repeating, and he’s backing away in case you decide to strike him again. “Are you trying to get her on your side?”

“Not in the way you’re thinking, and I didn’t tell her,” Hawks explains. “She pieced it together on her own. She’s sharper than you think, she can see that we look alike when she looks in a mirror, and she knows how quirks work. That’s more than enough for her to tell.”

His explanation is enough for you to halt in your assault, and you angrily huff under your breath. You don’t shift to leave, and there’s no door for you to slam away. He finally has you available. “So, what do you want to do now?” he asks.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean she knows; and honestly, I’m glad she does,” he confesses. “I wouldn’t mind seeing her again if you’d let me.”

Hawks swallows his anxiety as he waits for you to answer. Your eyes shift from him back to where she sits in your car, fiddling with the toys obviously left to clutter in the back before you look back at him, thinking.

“She does seem to like you…for some reason,” you add distastefully, but you know full well how happy training makes her. How her little smile beamed when she fluttered over those steps. How the word daddy came from her so sweetly. “She always likes talking about you after she spends the day here. You make her happy. But that’ll just make it harder for her when you leave ag-“

“I won’t,” he cuts off.

“How do I know that?”

“You don’t but I promise not again. (Name), I’m sorry. I’m sorry for telling you to go away like a burden and for not being there. You must’ve been scared, but I won’t leave either of you alone from now on even if you don’t want me there. I’ll be there if you need me.”

“Drop it. I’m not a part of this,” you tell him.

He knows that you’re rejecting his apology, but his ears can pick up what others can’t. He can hear those soft inflections in your voice right before you harden it into aggression, the slight stutter that you so cleverly thought you hid from him as you nearly fumbled your words, a little glimpse of a teenage girl with a crush on her sensei. “Not yet but do know I plan on trying until I make you fall for me all over again. I miss your cute little face when I'd smile at you.”

You glare. “Say that again, and I will smack you in your "cute little" face.”

"You already did that, but if it makes you feel better go ahead, I can take it if it helps you forgive me.”

He just didn’t expect you to actually take him up on the offer. This time, it’s the other cheek that burns.

“You’re right. That did make me feel better,” you say, smirking as you shake the sting from your hand. Hawks grunts, rubbing his jaw as you begin to walk towards your car. He bends down to pick up his shades before following close behind. You open the driver’s door, and say, “I expect you to pick her up at 9 tomorrow. If you’re late, don’t bother showing up ever again.”

Hawks smirks. You certainly became aggressive these past few years, but he thinks he kind of likes it. As you get in your car, he notices Baby Bird smiling at him from the window, her hand up and clutched around that birthday feather he gifted to her as she waves him off.

He’ll definitely be there on time.

[purplecandygerl]

Fear

— Levi x Reader

— angst, fluff, mention of death, cursing

— summary: Levi never let his fear get in a way of his decision yet for this moment he did

— word count: 2.8k

It’s that time of the month once again, when Squad Leaders were given a tremendous quantity of paperwork to be finish in an unfair amount of time, Levi is unexcluded to this time but even worse for his part. A list of cadets where handed to him early on.

The list consist of mostly from the 104th cadets and his eyes soften at the familiar name included on the list. (Y/n) (L/n). All your efforts and hardship within the past month has finally paid off, he knew about your unspoken goal of wanting to be part of his squad long time ago. He couldn’t be much prouder of you ever since, considering you to his squad would definitely increase his time with you, he can already see himself having you by his side.

Content with list of candidate given to him, he decided to set it aside as he move on to another paperworks, his calloused hand reaches to the papers near him. The thick cursive heading made his breath hitched

Certification of Death

It felt like a hard slap to him as memories of the recent expedition flash before him as he passed through the forest seeing nothing, but the bloody corpses of his members brutally killed by the Female titan as tried to protect Eren till the end.

Worries began to fill him, he couldn’t bear to see you in those situation, this is the only thing that matters to his life and one wrong situation can slip you out of his grasp in a matter of seconds, yet he couldn’t afford any distraction in the moment of the expedition as the lives of the soldiers lies on his own hands, reaching for the list of candidates once again before crossing your name before stacking another paper above the list.

“Levi?” the sound of his name being called out as the door of his office shut close, revealing his (h/c) haired lover “not done yet?” he shook his head, “I see” he notice the lethargic tone you release as you sat on his lap, wrapping your arms around him as you buried your face at the crook of his neck indulging on his scent. He lean onto his chair caressing the tresses of your (h/c) hair. “Did something happened?” he questioned, which you shake your head

“It’s nothing, I just want to ease your stress somehow” those words never failed to cause his heart to leap in adoration, he always thought there will be times that you would finally leave him seeing that he always lack of showing his affection to you, yet one year after \here you are showering him with affection at first, he would stiffen at the unpredicted kisses you place on his cheek during your private time until it become something that enlightens his sour mood daily.

Placing a kiss in your forehead, he wishes for you to forgive him for what he was planning to do. He could take all your anger at him if it meant to keep you alive by his side.

༺═──────────────═༻

The final members of Levi’s Squad was finally announced, the rush excitement you felt were shattered to piece as the roll out of names ended without getting your name called, the combination of anger, frustration and disappointment were enough to put you on the edge, clenching onto your fist as you tried to fight off the tears threatening to fall down your cheeks.

“Are you alright (Y/n)?” you heard your friend worriedly asked as you both head back inside the castle, snapping you out of your thoughts. “Yeah, yeah I’m fine” you immediately answered. “You should head first, I’ll catch up”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you” bidding a goodbye before heading to a certain office for explanation.

“Captain” you called out from the outside of his office, giving his permission for you to enter.

“Why?” The first word that left your lips were the conclusion of messed up emotion you were trying to endure. You knew that he knows what you were talking about, you know that he would be the person who gets to decide on the final list of the members.

“There are more suitable soldiers fitted in my squad”

“So, I’m not suitable for your squad. Is that it?” you hissed, how could he say that when he knew how much you work hard to be part of his squad

“Yes” you stared at him in disbelief as your whole body began to tremble holding yourself opening your lips only painful laughter were able to leave your dry throat, which surprised the man in front you.

“Fuck you, if that was the case you shouldn’t have gotten my hopes since the beginning, you shouldn’t have fucking care if I work myself up if that was the FUCKING CASE, WERE YOU LAUGHING JUST LIKE THEM WHEN SAW WATCH ME FUCKING STRUGGLES FOR NOTHING” you snapped out

“FUCK OFF, (Y/N) ISN’T THE ONLY REASON YOU WANTED TO JOIN WAS TOO HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO FUCKIN LAZED YOURSELF AROUND ME” He spat off, his mind was screaming at him to tell the truth already yet anything that left on his mouth is nothing truthful. He was spouting to stand for his decision. For a second, he tried to reason himself it was for you own good, it really is. Until his gaze returned back to you. He watched how tears drenched down your cheeks for the first time in his life he saw you cried. He could only stand on his feet frozen as you tried to brush off the tears blurring your vision.

“it was never about that case, I--” biting your inner lips, there’s no use for you tell him everything what’s the point of everything at this point, giving up. You only turned your back at him before shutting the door close.

As the sound of the door clicking shut was the only time he realized he fucked everything up, he wanted to follow you back yet he remained frozen on his feet, the silence on his office only left your voice echoing in his mind, every word you left a stabbing guilt and regrets on him. Was everything really necessary? For the sake of keeping you alive he had to hurt you in the process.

“were you laughing just like them” clenching his fist, how his way of showing his affection were seen in a different, only then he realized someone was thinking so lowly of your effort yet it only returned back to him knowing you think he was just like them.

A knock on his door, snaps him back to his thoughts. “What?” he didn’t bothered hiding his irritation to the soldier disturbing him “S-sir, Commander Erwin called you to his office sir”

“What do you mean my squad would be on standby? I thought we would be leading for the clearing up tomorrow?” Erwin sighed, it turns out only two squads would be leaving tomorrow to examine the behaviour of the titans before clearing up the titan near the wall.

“I see, then who’s squad would you be sending instead?” he asked, taking a sip on his tea, surprisingly glad he had a free time which he would dedicated on asking for your forgiveness.

“(L/n) William’s Squad”

༺═──────────────═༻

It was supposed to be a clear up for the remaining titans roaming across the abandoned city, only expecting atleast twenty or less titans left, yet when you encounter a horde of abnormal titans gathered in the deeper corner of the city, you knew this can be the last of something. Right now, the titan’s attention were averted from you with the quantity they had you wouldn’t be able to take them all with the lack of gas and blade, if you fire the flare gun to sign the soldiers around you, the titan’s attention would directly be place to you which would lead to the first option. Lastly, if you tried to escape you will most likely lead them to the other soldiers.

Not only your choices are limited but everything is too risky for you and the other members.

“Fuck this shit” firing your flare gun instead of pointing the gun at the sky, you fire the flare at the titans instead before releasing your hook leading back to where your squadmates are, in the center of the city you found a familiar figure the vibrant red covering him.

“William!” You shouted turning his gaze his eyes widen as you fired your hook on the concrete walls in attempt to carry him “Wait no! AT YOUR BACK” he tried to warn, before you can process his warning a giant palm slaps your body like a fly.

the impact of being thrown inside of a building breaking the window in the process, a static rings across your ears as every part of your body is throbbing in pain, opening your eyes only to feel a burning pain with a blurry eyesight reminding you much of the arguments yesterday, recalling back the words you let out that time. Maybe, maybe they were right,

“Just this last time, let me see them” you speak to yourself, trying to stand up every movement you make felt like you were being electrified in pain, stabbing your blade on the ground using it as foundation for your footing. Feeling the ground continuous shaking, losing balance, hitting the concrete floor hard, a sharp pain once again pierce through you, causing you to whimper in unbeknownst to you a sharp wood stab through your abdomen, leaving you crumbling in pain on the ground the sight of shards of glass soaked a puddle of blood. was the only thing you have seen before blacking out

I was never suitable to be here in the first place.

༺═──────────────═༻

Levi anxiously waited on his seat, no matter how much he tried to focus on the meeting between regiments he found himself drifting back to your situation, despite already reminding a soldier to immediately call him when your group arrived, yet several hours have passed and the meeting is already reaching its conclusion.

“Captain!! They’re here” A soldier barged inside the office, disregarding Erwin calling him out he wasted no time to leave the meeting,

“They’re at the Medical Bay for now.” the soldier reported,

“How are they?” he noticed the grim look on the soldier confirming his fear all at once

“one of the squad were completely leaving only one soldier in critical condition” dismissing the soldier he immediately head to the medical bay, every step he make felt heavy as if the world had collapse at his grasp. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

“Levi” a familiar voice called out, hanji was waiting in front of the medical bay door, “Is she?” the jumbled emotion he’s feeling couldn’t continue the question he needed answers for, luckily Hanji quickly understand his struggles

“It turns out that there were more titan than what was initially reported, their squad had to face a horde of abnormal titans as we split up. We only found her inside of a building after a flare was shot. She was thrown by a titan trying to save her brother, a large wood pierce through her abdomen at the same time she already lose too much blood, the moment we found her” Hanji saw the grim expression from Levi, as he quietly listen the events that had happen, the fear, guilt, and regrets shown directly to his metallic irises. For once, Hanji saw a vulnerable side of Levi, a man so close losing a part of him leaving him once again alone.

A few hour has passed, when the door has finally opened as a doctor step out of the room, looking around the doctor only find him alone waiting.

“Captain Levi, are you perhaps the relative for Miss (L/n) (Y/n)?”

“Yes” leading him inside the medical bay, his eyes quivered at the sight of your figure wrapped in white pristine bandage up until your neck and another to covering your eyes. your pale like skin made it you look like “the progress of the surgery were slightly complicated due to the loss of blood but overall, the surgery was a success” Levi felt a relief wash over him, hearing how his lover is still alive felt like a heavy burden were lifted from his shoulder,

“at least that’s the good news, but the condition of her eyes had receive a different outcome”

“What do you mean?”

“Not only her abdomen where severely injured but also her eyes, shards of glass were able to damage her pupil that may became a permanent blindness, overall she needs to stay bedridden in three weeks before we can discharge her” the doctor explained, Levi remained stiff on his feet, his mind tried to comprehend the information given to him, blind? You wouldn’t be able to see anything from now on? You wouldn’t be able to see him?

Sitting beside your bed, his hand grasp to your bandage covered hand, entwining his fingers to yours, the coldness of your hands gave discomfort to his, it felt like he was holding onto a lifeless body the coldness of your body felt uncanny it might be because he was used to having your warm hands to his cold calloused hand. Pressing a kiss to your knuckle seeing the pattern of your chest rising and falling, was the only thing he need for now. Your alive that’s all that matters to him.

༺═──────────────═༻

Despite how much he doesn’t want to leave by your side yet with the constant nag from Erwin, it’s the third week you’ve remained unconscious, your temperature had increases in the spam of time yet it still frustrated him seeing no sign of waking up. He wanted nothing more but to hear your voice again. Placing a kiss to your forehead as he whispers his goodbye.

That was several hours ago, the sound of someone screaming from the top of their lungs had reached from the hallway he was in, either way he continue onto his path back to medical bay reaching closer the screams become clearer.

“IF IT WASN’T FOR YOU HE WOULD HAVE BEEN ALIVE” the woman angrily yelled out, nurses already had their hands around her preventing the woman from getting closer

“MISS PLEASE STOP SHE’S STILL RECOVERING” one of the nurses begged at the woman “NO LET ME GO” she demanded wanting to remove the grasp around her, she was able to pull you out of your bed earlier leaving you on the floor. Her hand was able to reach to your hair tugging it off roughly pulling you to her.

“WHY DIDN’T YOU JUST LISTEN TO US IN THE FIRST PLACE YOU WOULDN’T BE LEFT LIKE THAT?!”

“what do you think you’re doing?” Levi intervened slapping the woman’s wrist away sending a glare at the older woman while holding you at his arm protectively, the people The bandage on your eyes has already been removed, showing those eyes he long for were finally wide and awake.

“WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! I’M HER MOTHER I KNOW WHAT’S THE BEST FOR HER”

“I don’t care, your daughter is already adult enough to know what’s best for herself. you two” he called out the two-soldier passing by.

“guide the guardian her way out of the castle” obeying the captain’s order, the two already hand their hand to the exit, waiting for the woman to follow looking back at the two of you, clicking her tongue in irritation before following the soldiers.

After your mother left, his attention immediately turned to you carrying you at his arms placing you back to your bed, no words were exchanged during that time. Hugging your knees, leaning your head at the top. He wanted to say something, anything yet he couldn’t bring himself to left words out afraid he might hurt you once again.

“Let’s end this here, Levi”

Levi’s eyes widened.

“What do you mean?” He mumbled, afraid his voice might cracked any moment.

“There’s no point on continuing this”

“How?” your hand clutches on the white blanket covering your lower half, holding back the tears from building on your cloudy eyes.

“CANT YOU SEE?! I LOST MY EYESIGHT I’M ALREADY USELESS AT THIS POINT” snapping at him, the frustration you’ve been feeling since the moment you woke up and being informed by your condition finally took its last trigger and burst.

“I’m sorry” feeling his warm calloused hand at yours “I thought removing you from the list would keep you safer than the circumstance we had. I’m scared (y/n), I cannot bear to see you the same position that my old squad had that time, you’re an amazing soldier. I never mean what I said before”

“It doesn’t matter now, I can’t be a soldier anymore” removing his grasp from you

“Please just leave”

[missinghan]

falling for the first time ⤖ bang chan

❖ genre : hogwarts au; fluff

❖ word count : 2,1k.

❖ warning : explicit language

❖ summary : your plan of putting all effort into avoiding bang chan as much as possible has been going smoothly for almost seven years until he asks you for a dance at the Yule Ball. or alternatively, your families hate each other but wait...has he always had those golden flecks in his eyes?

❖ author’s note : here’s the song they’re dancing to 🖤

one.

The once cold ballroom has waited for eons it seems, for a real heart to beat a new rhythm into the matter that made it. 

Meanwhile, you too have been waiting (for two-ish hours) in the corner with your cup of root beer abandoned at a table for your dance partner. You’re currently half-clutching your dress and half-panicking because Chan wouldn’t miss an event as extravagant as the Yule Ball. He’s not the type to be sour over little things either just because he didn’t win the Triwizard Tournament. Or perhaps someone else just happened to ask him? 

A blood-curdling shriek bursts your eardrums. 

Jeongin gives you a nudge with his elbow from behind. “Grilled scream-cheese?” he asks with a mouthful of gluten and carbs, a plate of a sandwich with a (literally) screaming slice of cheese slapped in the middle. 

“No, my appetite is ruined,” you say, pushing it away slightly and heaving an audible sigh. 

The Ravenclaw boy makes an alarming noise—something similar to ‘uh-oh’ and swallows the big bite from before as fast as he can. “Where’s Chan?”

You only shrug, “Don’t know. Don’t care.” If only you could do that with the train of thoughts that have been going in and out of your ears for the past a hundred and twenty minutes. 

“Y/N, you look troubled,” he purses his lips, frowning at you. 

“I’m not,” you voice in denial, trying your best not to come off as snappy. No, you will not give up your facade that easily. You won’t leave Chan’s ego nor Jeongin to rest without a fight by saying that you actually want to dance with the heathen!

“Yeah right, let me-“

“Don’t. What if he’s already asked someone else?” You momentarily shudder at how sad you sound. The root beer shouldn’t have hit you this hard. “I mean look at him, he’s Bang Chan. I’m pretty sure those girls from Beauxbatons have been eyeing him up and down since the Tournament.” 

Jeongin lets out a huff of laughter in disbelief. “Are you even hearing yourself right now?”

“One of you guys could have asked me. Or I should have paid Jisung to be my partner yesterday. I just, I don’t know, what am I saying? I’m confused.”

Your friend is officially done with your bullshit so he decides for himself that he will now set down his food to make your first and last Yule Ball arguably unforgettable. “Honestly? I can lie and say I would dance with you if you weren’t so full of pride. But truth is, none of us asked you to dance because we all know how badly Chan wants this opportunity. Wake the fuck up! He’s been planning this since forever. I’ll go look for him, wait here,” he points a finger at you before running off, leaving your heartbeat pause awkwardly like a broken record. 

The ballroom feels significantly colder now. 

“Miss Y/N?”

Ah, perfect timing. What’s another way to phrase ‘being an absolute idiot at a ball’? Oh right, it’s ‘talking to your professor five minutes before the first dance while your friends are socializing left and right’. 

“Yes, Headmistress McGonagall?”

Your professor peers around when she realizes that you’re all alone. “Are you and Mister Bang ready?”

“R-ready?” Suddenly, you feel out of place. 

“Well, of course. It’s only traditional that the three champions start the first dance!”

“Oh.”

two. 

Only the celestial bodies above can know how melancholy you are. But you’re met with a sky without stars tonight. 

With your head on your elbows, lips pressed into a straight line, your gaze falls from the endless canvas of darkness to the hustle and bustle of students leaving the Great Hall to head back to their designated dormitories. A sigh. You definitely don’t need to know what they’re going to do for the after-party. Ryujin used to show you an article on this peculiar machine called ‘a laptop’ that the more you sigh, the faster you age. If Chan keeps doing shit like this to you, you’re gonna be all old and wrinkly by the time he comes here. 

If he is going to show up at all that is. 

The moment you peel your eyes away from the overcrowded main gate, a broad figure is shuffling himself through his drunk Quidditch teammates, sloppy couples, and burnt out professors. He dashes through the empty hallways to reach the spiral staircase, skipping three steps at a time, risking the chances of falling on his face just to get to you. 

Pulling himself to a halt at the last step, Chan sees you all curled up against the balcony railings and feels a pang of guilt wash over his innards like a wave. You’re pulling your legs toward your chest, defeated eyes gazing into the space ahead while your hair falls to your face messily. Like you’ve gone through the depths of the Fourth Dimension, struggling through dark matters and a rite of divinity at the end of the line. All for him. 

You’re beautiful. 

And the amount of affection that’s piling upon his rib cage? Astronomical. 

Your gaze is averted away; even with a slight scowl, sloppy clothes and messed up hair, you still flare radiance. He thinks that if a meteor shower is happening right now, you can still outshine it. “You came,” you mention. 

For once, Chan finds himself at a loss for words. “Y-Yeah,” he manages to swallow. Yeah? What the fuck, Chan? Is that all you’ve got to say? 

“I-I’m sorry, Y/N. Yeji accidentally mistook one of Minho’s potions for her allergy medicine so I gotta take care of that before coming,” he scratches his forearm awkwardly, head hung low with guilt. “I didn’t know it would take that long…”

“Oh.” Wow, jealous stinks. This isn’t pre-school, you’d better snap out of it. “Let’s head back. I wanna check on her before passing out.” 

“She’s fine now, sleeps like death. Chaeryeong is there too, you know, just in case.” Chan feels perplexed as he tries to coax anything but the ‘head back’ option from you. 

You tilt your head. “And...?”

“I’m afraid you owe me something?” A slow smile begins to outstretch upon his facial muscles, deepening the dimples on either side of his cheeks that you adore the most. “A dance, I believe,” he makes a thinking face while striding toward you. 

Coldly, you stand up to dust your dress. “I don’t want to.” You’re not having it, he can tell. But does Bang Chan ever give up? 

“A bet is a bet, Y/N.”

Chan’s hand fishes inside the pocket of his trench coat to take out his wand. His hand delicately gives it a swift flick; once, and twice followed by a low mumble from his lips. Immediately, light pulses from the tip of the wand before shooting upward, disintegrating into a million bits as though a starry night is embracing the both of you. He does the same action again to cast a different spell. Music laces through every fiber of air without effort, like honey being poured into your ears. 

“It’s just one bet,” he pouts with a hand fully extended toward you. 

You should have realized how good Chan looks tonight. A black dress shirt that’s buttoned below appropriate, matching trench coat, silver accessories lining his fingers and ears with naturally tousled hair from running here. He looks so gorgeous that it almost suffocates you, that it almost makes you want to hiss ‘fucking unfair’ out loud. 

Enchanted by his poise and grace, your body reacts without the consent of your mind. You seize up when you unknowingly place your hand on top of his, the touch sending electricity down your spine. A simple response has become all too complicated for your brain to process. 

You grow breathless the moment he grabs you by the waist and pulls you flush against him. “Yeah, a bet so you’ll leave me alone,” you remark sarcastically to ease your nerves. 

“Look, it’s not my fault that the Goblet of Fire chose me to participate in the Tournament,” Chan chuckles lowly, eyes crinkling into crescent moon shapes while he sways you to the soft melody. Dots of light continue to float around weightlessly, reflecting the golden flecks in his eyes. He’s ethereal in the worst way—the way that isn’t healthy for your heart. 

But you soon slap on another scowl when you realize he just reminded you of why you’re even here in the first place. If only you weren’t so salty about Slytherin winning your team over at the final Quidditch match before the holiday occurs. Let’s just say you weren’t exactly in the best mind state after getting your ass kicked in your favorite sport. 

And Chan wasted no time to slip in between the line of comical humor and your ultimate torment. Which results in—if you get to attend the Triwizard Tournament, he will leave you alone for the rest of your life; but if he is the chosen one, he gets a dance with you at the Yule Ball. 

It’s really not all that bad if you think twice about it. Dancing with Bang Chan, the Slytherin’s Quidditch team captain, the student with perfect academics and conduct for six years straight, and now one of the Triwizard Tournament champions this year. 

Music threads through the atmosphere and lifts away gravity. You can’t count how many times you have stepped on his toes due to nervousness because you’re too much of a coward to look him in the eye. But he’s the only thing you can seem to focus on right now. 

“Besides, don’t you think this is a good opportunity to get rid of the tension between us?” Chan asks honestly, and this causes you to perk up. 

“What?”

Lights are twinkling with every step as Chan spins you around gently, your dress billowing out prettily as your heels click against the cold concrete. After that, he swiftly pulls you back into his arms and you exhale in relief like you were meant to be there all this time. 

“Don’t act dumb, you’re terrible at it. I know the only reason why you’ve been avoiding me since first year was because of our families’ stupid grudge. ”

Your eyes are cast downward, sadness glinting in your round pupils. “Either way, my parents wouldn’t like to see me talking to you. And look at what we’re doing. It’s going to be catastrophic if they find out.”

“Well, they can’t just magically appear now, can they?” Chan leans a little closer to lock his eyes with yours. 

And you break it seconds later because you’re an absolute coward for a Gryffindor. “We’re attending a magic school. Anything is possible.”

“Did they even tell you what the actual problem was in the first place?” he huffs out in faint annoyance. 

You shake your head. “I don’t think they’d even remember.”

“Then would you stop giving me that look as if I just shooed your owl way every time I said ‘hi’ on my way to class? Have you ever thought about my feelings? About us being civil for once? Like friends? Or even more so?”

“I-“ 

“We’re not our parents, Y/N.”

Your heart becomes all erratic at his words. It’s nothing like those fully-fledged, tear-jerking nor cheesyass confessions that you’ve gawked at one too many times, but it makes your heart flutter and stirs up those cliché butterflies inside your stomach. This can’t be compared to the Yule Ball—it’s even better than that. Because it feels as though you and Chan are the only presences that graze the surface of this land. There’s no one to judge, no fingers to point, no gossip spreading like wildfire. 

It’s perfect. Almost. 

“Us...it’s not- it can’t happen. It’s not supposed to happen. It’s not possible, Chan.”

Wordlessly, he stops, moves both of your hands to his shoulders, and wraps his arms around your torso. The sound of your heartbeat against his is so in sync they just drown out the music completely. Time is frozen in place, leaving you to hang on the edge with him, hanging onto this single moment as thin as the red string of fate. You’re waiting for him to do something, say something. 

Just then, Chan cracks a wry smile and pulls you closer by the nape of your neck, resting his forehead comfortably on yours. “We’re attending a magic school. Anything is possible.”

[omegasmileyface]

Not in the Job Description

heres a silly lil Danny Phantom concept based entirely off a half-awake sleep-vision that made me laugh :) my subconscious brain is a genius at coming up with things that make just enough sense to be worth writing

summary: Danny's job at a local restaurant is surprisingly fulfilling, even after being crowned Ghost King. Speaking of that job, however, there are some intricacies to it that are hard to keep in mind during everyday life.

warnings: descriptions of nausea and mild sickness

words: 2180

AO3 link

===

Honestly, life was going pretty well at the moment for Danny Fenton. He wasn't even worried that it was a false security or a calm before a storm, because this kind of semi-serenity had been going on for more than a year. It was a long-term stability brought about by adaptation and putting in effort to get help and accommodation. Jazz would be proud!

Sometime at the beginning of Junior year, the Observants had chased him down and crowned him High Ghost King (much to the chagrin of both involved parties). It certainly added responsibility to Danny's plate, along with some new sensations and a series of crises (what didn't these days?), but a little political discussion with some of the more powerful ghosts ended with Danny deciding that, at least at the moment, the position didn't require him to do much more than he normally did. More ghosts would seek him out for help and he would do his best, and some "paperwork" (though there was very little paper involved and it was a lot of talking and oaths and rituals and such) happened about monthly. Otherwise, though, the Zone didn't need much more help than that, having survived off an absent King for centuries. Well, and the ambient purpose of the King as a sort of core for the Zone, but Danny didn't have to put in time or conscious effort for that.

Eventually that settled into normalcy, and Danny was back to worrying about the balance of schoolwork, self-care, and fighting. He still hadn't given up on the prospect of someday becoming an astronaut, and he was determined to have the grades for it. Don't get him wrong, he'd gotten way better about that! He'd formed a practiced, if not entirely stable, system that kept his grades at a solid B- / C+, while getting a solid 5-ish hours of sleep most nights and not bottling things up too much. It was about halfway through Junior year that he realized, with some help from his friends, that his ghosts fights were honestly pretty civil, at least against the regulars. Civil enough that he knew they had some respect for him, and was willing to risk asking for help. So a few weeks and awkward but not bad conversations later, and he had agreements with almost all his regular "foes" not to cause trouble within Amity from 11pm to 7am, 3pm on weekdays. It was more than half the day off-limits on school days, and plenty of ghosts made up for it to a degree by making themselves more common during the "permitted" hours, but it greatly increased Danny's well-being and school performance anyway. "Rivals" like Skulker and Technus had enough respect for Danny and his Lair to abide, and plenty even cared that he was taking care of himself, even between frequent sparring. Maybe a few were really just in fear of his new crown, but he chose to cautiously pretend that wasn't a possibility.

After graduation — he made Senior year with all As and Bs! — Danny's parents had encouraged him to get a part-time job over the summer. He had been interning at FentonWorks (paid! His parents might not be the most attentive but they certainly weren't unfair) since he had accidentally revealed himself a few years back, and they had been thrilled to hear that he still intended to go into NASA if possible, and had done whatever they could to help. They recommended the job because, as good as a paid scientific internship was on a resume, it would help to have a variety of activity and the opportunity to get recommendations from employers who weren't liable to nepotism. After searching local businesses, Danny found a small sandwich shop founded by a middle-aged couple who had moved in and set up shop just before the ghost attacks began. Being close to the school but not far from the commercial sector and offering small portable food (no one wants to sit down for a meal when a spirit could come crashing through the window at any moment), the place got good enough business to pay the employees a proper living wage. Better yet, they were allowed to take home unsold food! Not to mention the owners were both very kind women who held smiling conversation with employees and customers alike. Danny was more than lucky to land such a nice job, even if it meant he had to get up at 7 five days a week.

All this is to say that it wasn't as surprising as it could have been that he was having a slow and pleasant day at work.

Both the owners were out for the day on some sort of vacation, so today it was just Danny and a short teenager named Casey manning the place. Most of their orders recently had been online due to an explosion causing road work near the restaurant and it was mid-morning, leaving work slow enough that they could afford to just have the two until lunch shift started. Danny was on cashier duty today, but unless the door bell sounded, he was helping Casey in the kitchen.

"Aw, man, we're almost out of tomatoes."

"Really?" Casey looked up to the shelf Danny was inspecting and indeed saw only 3 tomatoes. "Huh, guess they didn't restock yesterday. Well, we probably shouldn't risk needing more before the day's out, do you want me to go get more?"

Danny shook his head. "Nah, I can go. I think I could use the fresh air." He said that a lot, especially as an excuse when his ghost sense went off, but that didn't mean it wasn't true. He never had liked being confined.

Casey checked the monitor to see if they'd gotten any new online orders. Since there was a grocery store just a block away, any time someone needed a quick restock they tended to just walk.

They looked up to see Danny already had his jacket on and was looking them in the eye. "Would you take over my position until I come back?"

"Of course. Ten minutes?"

With a nod and a smile, Danny was out the back door.

===

After a moment of habitually wiping down the counters, Casey went up to the register in case a customer appeared.

It was even quieter than before for a few minutes, so they busied themself with mini restocks and organization. They were in the middle of stacking some paper coffee cups when they started to feel dizzy. There had been this subtle pressure on their chest since Danny left, which they figured was anxiety for working the restaurant alone for the first time, and now it had solidified into a warm nausea that flared whenever they exhaled.

With the disinterested panic that came from having strange things happen for years, they wondered if they had missed their medication this morning. A quick glance at their phone, however, showed the notification for it checked off.

Putting the phone back away, Casey noticed the tips of their fingers were somewhat translucent. Alright then, it was definitely something to do with ghosts. Great! Just excellent. The panic was less disinterested this time.

They weren't familiar with any sort of ghost illness that made humans translucent, so they definitely needed to call someone to make sure nothing bad happened. It would be best to call the Fentons' public number so they could go over and get looked over by then. In the meantime, they should call Danny and ask him to hurry back. He shouldn't be much longer anyway.

Casey didn't even get the chance to act on their plan, however, before a short humanoid ghost appeared in the dining area. They didn't look to be up to anything, but Casey reached for the emergency ectoblaster beneath the register anyway. The nausea was getting worse, along with a new chill, and they couldn't be sure this new ghost wasn't somehow causing whatever they were going through.

The ghost looked at them with an expression that was almost desperate. "Ah! Kind human, thank you for your time." The ghost... bowed? "I am Eurusid, from the Spoken Channels. There has been a dispute which damaged public meeting grounds in the center of the Channels, and both groups refuse to allow the damage to be repaired except by the other group."

Casey's eyes narrowed. It was becoming difficult to stand with the dizziness, and if not the ghost himself, then whatever he was saying was probably a hallucination. They didn't even think about responding beyond a detached "what".

It was then that Danny re-entered the back door with the new tomatoes. Good thing, too. At least with another person there, Casey could confirm whether they were hallucinating.

===

Placing down the grocery bag and shrugging off his jacket in one motion, a skill only gained by years of laziness efficiency, Danny called toward the register. "Back!"

Once he caught sight of the teen, however, all casualness shed itself from his body and he rushed over to hold them. "Man, Casey, you feeling alright? You look really pale." The realization that their form was slightly translucent, despite the firm human heartbeat beneath, was drowned out by him finally noticing the ghost standing a few feet away. The reaction of his ghost sense had been so minor that he had ignored it.

He was surprised to see that he recognized the specter's face, marred as it may have been from worry and confusion aimed directly at Casey. "Eurusid? What's going on?"

As the ghost, still confused but unwilling to act impolitely, gathered his bearings and began to bow toward him, Danny's coworker shuddered under his hands, regaining his full attention. He thought back through the day's events for hints as to the situation, before swearing, cutting off whatever Eurusid was about to say.

Danny backed up and said, voice as clear as he could, "I recall my position."

Casey's reaction was immediate, a gasp of air like they had been kept from breathing and a return of their skin's human opacity. Danny rushed back over and put his hand on their back to steady them as their eyes narrowed and went slightly unfocused.

Figures, doesn't it? One of the many intricacies that had come up at his coronation Junior year that just hadn't come up enough to keep at the front of his mind. One of the defenses of the High Ghost Crown was the ability of the King to temporarily give their duty to someone else. As long as that person accepts, during a specified time they substitute for the King in dealing with political matters, as well as taking over as much as their ability allowed of the King's function to process the energy of the Realms.

Danny had no idea that this ability could be activated with words as vague as "take over my position", let alone that it could be used with a human. That potential had never come up during the ceremony, so for all he knew, a full ghost in his position couldn't substitute with a human. A human certainly shouldn't be able to take over any part of the energy processing, though maybe in Amity Park the average person processed enough environmental ectoplasmic energy to make it possible. Regardless of residence, though, it could not be good for Casey's body, which had no Core to properly process energy and had no human equivalent except perhaps a small emotional center in the brain, to even attempt to filter and manage some of the inherent energy of a dimension.

Their skin was still clammy and their coordination was shot. Ancients, if this is what an accidental substitution did to a human, Danny would have to word things very carefully when asking for help in the future.

"King Phantom?" Danny looked up to see that Eurusid was still floating there awkwardly. Right. He had two people here to help.

"Sorry, Eurusid. One moment, I'll be right with you." He turned back to his coworker, who looked confused and less lucid than ideal, but probably still lucid enough to realize this ghost had just called him "King Phantom". Well, he'd deal with that once it came to it. "Here, Casey, let's get you some water." He helped them walk back into the kitchen and sat them down on a bench by the back door. There was a chair in the register area, but they probably didn't want to feel exposed to the dining area like that, even with nobody but the ghost there.

Once handed the water, Casey sighed and eagerly drank from it, eyes closed. Danny rubbed his hand on their back a bit and promised to be back shortly before walking back out to meet Eurusid. Whatever he was here about was probably worth immediate attention but Danny was sure there'd be at least a solid minute of apologies on both sides before the matter was addressed. Hopefully both the Spoken Channels and Casey would be alright before the next shift came in.

[originalhybridloverfics]

When We Collide - A Secret Love

Summary: Esra and Ozan have secretly gotten back together and are sneaking around to keep their love a secret.

A/N: Over the last week, my uncle passed away. And then I found out my cousin who came down for the funeral passed away. My uncle was in his sixties but my cousin was only 34, he was perfectly healthy. My family is having a hard time with it all. I will be taking time away to be with them. I won't be able to devote my time and headspace to write for a bit and I don't want my writing to suffer because of it. Never take family for granted, death happens unexpectedly. For now, I will be helping my cousin's wife in her time of need, my cousin had four young children and she could use the help during this difficult time. This will be the last update until I am ready to get back to writing until then I will be on hiatus.

This chapter has Smut. If that's not something you want to read I advise you to skip it.

I am behind on the show, so if this doesn't match up with canon consider it a canon divergence. This was a requested prompt.

Esra looked up as a figure appeared in the doorway in the reflection of the mirror as she applied her makeup.

She smiled at Ozan. “I was getting ready to head into the office. I made breakfast. It’s on the table.”

Ozan walked up and wrap his arms around her, kissing her neck. “Then stay and eat breakfast with me. I can drive us to work.”

“No, it’s important we keep our relationship secret.” Esra turned in his arm, sweeping a hand through bed hair.

Ozan leaned into her touch. “I don’t want to hide anymore. I want to be able to shout about you from the rooftops.”

“You still can, just not about how much you love me,” Esra pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

Ozan cupped her face and captured her mouth in a deep kiss. “I’ll have to settle for showing you then,” he murmured when he pulled away, his thumb swiping across her bottom lip.

A spark of desire shot straight to her core and she cursed that they had to go into work, she would much rather enjoy having him worship every inch of her body as his actions and words promised.

“It will have to wait,” she gave him a push, “go eat your breakfast, I have to go,” she slipped past him, walking into the living room.

She grabbed her jacket, slipping it on, pairing it with the red sundress she wore, grabbing her phone she slipped it into her bag.

Her hand reached for the doorknob just as Ozan’s hand circled her waist, spinning her back around into his chest, his mouth captured hers in a heated kiss that left her wanting more.

Esra smiled giving him another quick peck, ignoring the desire for more. “I’ll see you at the office.”

Ozan reluctantly let her go. He waited till the door shut behind her, before turning back to go take a shower.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ozan looked at Esra across the table. There was a meeting on a new project and Esra along with the other interns and assistants were taking notes about everything that needed to be done.

Ozan was finding it hard to concentrate, he had to keep forcing himself to look away. Certain he was going to get caught staring at Esra like a lovesick fool.

Esra loved that he couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. Since they got back together it felt like they were in the honeymoon phase and she was enjoying every second of it. Not to mention there was something sexy about keeping their love a secret and sneaking around the company. The thrill of getting caught just made it that much more enjoyable.

Ozan picked up his phone and moved his hand beneath the table and discreetly sent out a text.

Esra jumped in surprise when her phone chimed and laughed it off, reaching for her phone she saw the text notification. She looked up and met Ozan’s heated gaze.

She looked back down and opened the text.

Meet me in my office, ten minutes after the meeting. You will be occupied for the next hour.

Esra bit her lip, wondering just what he was planning. They were at work so surely he wasn’t implying something salacious. And what could possibly take an hour? Occupied how? Was she running errands for him, taking notes?

When the meeting finally came to an end Esra was relieved, the curiosity of what Ozan wanted was driving her crazy.

The interns filed out first and she couldn’t help but trail her hand across his shoulder as she passed. She chances a look back at him when she passed through the door to find him watching her.

Ozan waited till everyone filed out before standing and heading for his office.

He took off his jacket tossing it over his chair and unbuttoned the few buttons of his shirt. His skin was hot to the touch, desire flared through him. It had been impossible to concentrate during the meeting with Esra across from him. All he could think about was her lips parted in pleasure as he spread her open with his cock, feel her breast in the palm of his hand, hear her begging for him.

There was something so fucking hot about Esra, who begged for nothing, beg for him. He needed it like, he needed air, knowing she needed him was a feeling he would never get enough of.

He settled down in his chair, fearing he was going to pace a hole in the floor out of sheer impatience.

When it passed the fifteen-minute mark, he was moments away from calling her when there was a knock at his door, he stood from his chair just as Esra stepped inside.

“You’re late.” He strode up to her, trapping her against the closed door.

“By five minutes,” Esra protested, hands coming up to grip his arms as he caged her in, heat radiating off him.

“Five minutes was too long,” he placed his hand over her collarbone. “I was second’s away from finding you and bringing you here myself.”

“Everyone would know about us,” Esra pointed out, as his hand skimmed up her throat to cup her cheek, his hand hot upon her skin, warming her from the inside out.

“I can’t bring myself to care right now,” His mouth crashed down onto hers, hot and full of passion stealing the breath from her.

Esra surrendered to the lust coursing through her body, lips parting to allow his tongue to slide against hers.

His free hand moved down her body, gripping her thigh, bunching up the fabric of her dress, he pressed his body against her, and Esra jolted at the feel of him, hard, straining through his slacks pressed against her.

Esra ripped her mouth from his and looked up at him with wide eyes. “Did you invite me here to have sex in your office?”

“I wanted you to come here because I can’t focus on anything but you. How can anyone expect me to be able to work with you across from me?” His thumb brushed her bottom lip. “All I can think about is the fill of your lips, your scent, the feel of your soft skin, your perfect curves,” his voice lowered, eyes dark with desire. “All I can imagine is pleasure in your eyes, moans escaping your parted lips as I move inside you, your legs tight around me, squeezing, your voice hoarse from screaming my name.”

“Ozan,” She felt choked, her core throbbing with need with every word he spoke.

When did he get so fucking good with words?

“We can’t.” she protested with a shake of her head.

“We can,” Ozan slipped his hand beneath her dress and Esra gasped as his palm pressed against her. “The doors locked.”

Esra knew she should protest, stop him but god she couldn’t, she longed for his touch. Instead, she tangled her hand into the back of his hair and pulled him down to kiss him deeply.

Ozan smirked and slipped his hand beneath her dress rubbing his thumb against her clit oVer the fabric of her underwear, Esra moan into his mouth, her hips moving searching for more.

The hand cupping her jaw traveled down to her breast holding it in his palm, squeezing.

A knock sounded on the door, followed by the doorknob jiggling. “Ozan?” Cagla’s voice called out.

Esra froze staring up at him, caught. “What do we do?” she mouthed.

Ozan pressed his finger against his lips asking her to be quiet, he leaned down brushing his mouth against her ear. “Go sit down and look like you’re taking notes.”

Esra quickly brushed past him, her skin heated, and took a seat, she ran a hand through her hair and grabbed the notepad from the table and a pen.

“Ozan? Are you in there?” Cagla called again, the door pulled with more force as she obviously tried harder to open it.

Ozan quickly removed his jacket and tossed it onto his chair, he walked to the door and turned the lock and swung it open, and put on his smile. “Sorry about that, Cagla. The door has been jamming since yesterday.” he looked back at Esra. “Be sure to have someone look at it, will you?”

“Of course, Ozan Bey,” Esra answered, relieved that Cagla seemed to be buying his lie if the look on her face was anything to go by. It was that or she really was just blinded by her attraction for Ozan.

Not that Esra could blame her. She felt the needed to fan herself but it would be too obvious.

“Write it down,” Ozan ordered, nodding to her paper and pen. “That’s why you’re here.”

Esra felt a wave of annoyance at his tone but pushed it down, knowing he was only trying to keep their secret from getting out. She made a show of writing it down.

Cagla stepped into the office, frowning at Esra. “Esra, are you feeling okay?”

Esra’s head shot up. “Yes, why?”

“You’re just looking a little flushed,” Cagla observed. “Perhaps you’re starting to come down with something.”

“I feel fine,” Esra assured her.

“Okay, but if that changes, it’s okay to leave early,” Cagla responded before focusing back on Ozan. “I wanted to remind you about that interview in an hour with the magazine for expanding companies. If everything goes well you will be headlining it. This can be a huge step forward for us.”

“Don’t worry,” Ozan assured her, gently moving back to the door. “I will be nothing but brilliant.”

“Ozan, do you want to grab lunch?” Cagla asked as she stepped just out of his office.

“I have plans, unfortunately. Another time, maybe?” she asked.

“Of course,” he waited till she walked away before shutting the door and locking it.

Esra stood and watched him round his desk. “You have plans for lunch? Why didn’t you tell me? I was planning on making us something.”

“You won’t be making us anything.” he grabbed his laptop and tossed it into his chair. “You will be too occupied.”

“Occupied?” Esra repeated confused. “With what?”

Ozan wrapped his arm around her and picked her up, depositing her on his desk, he pulled her to the edge and captured her mouth in a heated kiss.

Esra fisted her hands in his shirt, surrendering to his lips dominating hers, his hand slid down her body, slipping beneath her dress and with one sharp tug he had torn her panties.

She gasped, white-hot lust flowing through her, her core throbbed almost painfully.

Her mouth fell open as his fingers found her wetness, his thumb rubbing her clit.

The phone started ringing and her eyes widened. She expected him to stop what he was doing but he didn’t.

Ozan slipped a Bluetooth device into his ear, connecting it before answering the call.

“Ozan!” Esra exclaimed.

Ozan put a finger to his lips, telling her to be silent, and then spoke into the Bluetooth but his words were drowned out as he sunk a finger inside her.

Esra’s mouth fell open from the sudden intrusion, a loud gasp filling the air. She couldn’t believe what he was doing to her when he was clearly in the middle of his conference call.

Had he lost his mind?!

As he slid a second finger deep inside her she was sure that he definitely lost his mind.

Her mouth open on a silent cry and she stared at him wide-eyed, her skin flushed and breaths coming in quick pants.

Ozan smirked down at her, never once did he stop speaking into the phone, his voice clear and focused. As precise as his thrusting fingers inside of her.

Her moans started out small and breathless as his fingers thrust shallowly but then he started moving them faster and deeper. She couldn’t stop the cry that tore from her mouth when he inserted a third finger deep inside her.

Ozan moved between her legs opening her up wider and found her breast, squeezing.

“Sorry about that, my assistant has the terrible habit of tripping. She’s fine.” Ozan spoke into the Bluetooth.

Esra’s face flushed in embarrassment, and she clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle her sounds of pleasure.

Esra felt her pleasure rise higher and higher, her hips lifting to meet his thrust, the coil inside her tightened further and further.

She was so close to the edge she could taste it, when suddenly he ended his call and tossed the BlueTooth away, and removed his fingers from her sex.

Esra let out a whimper, eyes shining in frustration. “Ozan!”

“Shh,” he grasps her by the hips and brought her to the edge of the desk, he nudges her legs open wider, stepping between them as he gathered her in his arms.

Esra surrendered to his kiss and grabbed onto him, needing something to hold onto as the desperation for more rage through her body.

Ozan slid the zipper of her dress down then pushed the straps down her arm, his hand found her bra-covered breast and she jolted feeling his hand reach inside the cup, rubbing her nipple between his finger and thumb.

His other hand unclasped her bra and pushed the straps down her arms until they dangled at her elbows, freeing her breast.

When he pulled his mouth from hers it was to trail his lips over the shell of her ear, his hot breath coasting against her neck.

She shivered, goosebumps rising on her heated flesh.

“As I was saying earlier you are going to be occupied for lunch,”

His words fanned across her skin and she was confused. “Lunch?” she repeated.

Ozan chuckled. “Have you forgotten our discussion of lunch plans?”

Esra flushed in embarrassment because yes she had but can anyone really blame her? how could anyone focus when he was doing the things he was to her body?

“What will have me occupied during lunch? It can’t be this.” Esra panted, her breaths coming quickly. “I mean, if we’re doing this now, we wouldn’t for lunch.”

“We will be doing exactly this,” Ozan whispered, as he used one hand to unfastened his pants pulling the zipper down. “Except, you won’t have to be quiet. When we do this again, I want to hear every sound you make, every cry, moan, and breath.” He pushed his pants and boxers down, taking a hold of his cock he aligned it with her soaking entrance. “I want to hear you scream my name,”

Esra shifted her hips feeling the head of his cock. “Ozan, please.”

Ozan smirked. “For now, you must be quiet. Others can’t know what we’re doing. Can you do that for me?”

“Yes. Yes, please just get inside me already.” Esra all but snapped the desperation to feel him filling her overcoming all rationality.

Ozan locked eyes with her and surged forward, his cock, pushing inside. Esra’s mouth fell open on a cry, Ozan quickly captured her mouth, swallowing her sounds.

He didn’t give her time to adjust as he started a frenzied pace that had her clawing at his back, arching her body up, her hips moving against his.

With every thrust he sunk deeper and deeper inside her, she squeezed around him tightly like a vice.

Ozan grunted as he fucked into her, one hand on her breast, rubbing her nipple between his fingers his other hand reached between them to rub at her clit, never once ceasing the movement of his hips.

Esra felt every slide of him inside of her perfectly, combined with his hand on her breast and rubbing her, the orgasm she chased earlier came back and hit her with an intensity that had her seeing spots behind her closed lids.

She fell over the edge as his cock rubbed against the spot inside her that had her withering in pleasure.

A scream would have torn from her throat if Ozan hadn’t been sucking on her tongue.

Ozan groaned as she convulsed around him, he pulled his mouth from hers and stared down at her as she came around him.

Esra bit down on her lip as he fucked her through the aftershocks of her orgasm.

She was always so sensitive after and orgasm, she could feel another orgasm building. She tried to keep quiet but it was near impossible.

Ozan felt himself grow closer and closer to the edge, wrapping his arms around her, he yanked, her into a sitting position, her chest flushed against him, he buried his face in her neck as he pounded into her, again and again.

Esra tugged his shirt out of the way and bit down on his shoulder silencing her cries.

The sting of pain from her bite and the pleasure from her squeezing around his length sent him over the edge and he came with one last thrust, burying his cock inside her as deep as he could.

His arms wrapped tightly around her and he placed kisses against her skin. “I love you,”

Esra pilled back and cupped his face in her hands, she leaned forward, capturing his lips in a sweet kiss.

She didn’t say the words but Ozan felt it in her kiss, in her touch.

“We should cut out early,” She murmured, trailing a kiss over his neck, her teeth grazing the vein in his neck.

Ozan groaned. “I want to but we can’t. Not today.”

Reluctantly he pulled out of her and used a kleenex to first clean up, Esra and then another for himself and tucked himself back in his pants.

Esra watched as he slowly fixed her bra and pulled her dress back in place, zipping up her dress, his lips finding her shoulder as he did so.

Her hand easily slid into his hair and tugged him back to her mouth, kissing him with all the love she had inside of her.

Ozan’s hand cupped the back of her neck, his lips dancing with hers.

Esra pulled back, her palm flat against his cheek. “Tomorrow then,”

“No, not just tomorrow. We’ll take the week.”

Esra’s eyes shined with hope. “A week?”

“Yes, we can go on that honeymoon I never gave you. Wherever you want. I don’t care as long as we are together.”

Esra smiled her hands trailing over his shoulders to rest over his heart. “Sounds perfect.” She leaned in pressing a tender kiss to his lips just as another knock sounded on the door.

She pushed him back and made sure her clothes were in order, running a hand through her hair. She grabbed her jacket and notepad and walked to the door. “I’ll see you for lunch.”

“Yes, you will,” Ozan promised, fastening his pants and straightening up his desk as Esra opened the door.

Musa stood on the other side and he looked between him and Esra his smile wide.

Esra breezed past him without a word, Musa stepped into the room the door shutting behind him.

“Is there something you have forgotten to tell me?” Musa’s grin only widened, his eyes shining with excitement for his friend. “Just when did you reunite with my daughter-in-law?”

Ozan laughed and smiled brightly. While he and Esra were keeping their relationship secret, he saw no reason to keep it from Musa.

“We’re happy,” he said simply.

It was all that needed to be said.

Anything else should remain between him and Esra. A secret love between them until she was ready to share their happiness with the world.

Only then would he scream it from the rooftops that he was unbelievably happy with the love of his life.

[taeslovehandles]

IF I WERE YOU CH 1 - LOVE 

What if your significant other had the ability to switch body frames with you? What if you were too big to ride your favourite roller coaster or couldn’t fit in some old clothes you wanted to wear today? Well, Jungkook could do literally that. Switch Jimin’s and his body frame to help his boyfriend love himself the way he was while never feeling insecure or like he was missing out in life due to his big appetite and wide body.

[read on ao3]  

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Click “read more” to read this story on tumblr!

“Sooo, just to get this right. Why exactly are we going to the beach again?” Jimin asked as he held his swim trunk in front of the mirror. It was looking a few sizes too small by now which caused the man to slightly frown. Calm down Jimin-ah, it’s just the beach. It’s okay.

“Because you keep avoiding going literally anywhere with me and your boyfriend wants to visit nice places with you once in a while.” Jungkook pouted. His voice coming out of the bathroom.

“You know why... I mean-” They had this conversation almost every week and honestly? Jimin had no idea how Jungkook hadn’t given up on them yet. But he always talked to Jimin, reassuring him that he was beautiful no matter his size. But to Jimin it was a bit different. 

You see, Jimin and his weight had a pretty complicated relationship. Jimin wasn’t a feedee but rather a foodie. He just loved to eat good food. Most of that food was deep fried and coated in a thick crunchy and oily layer of seasoning dipped in mayonnaise or ketchup but he loved that shit. But eating what he wanted, all the time, had done significant changes to his body. Jimin had always been a bit on the chubby side but he definitely did not count as ‘chubby’ anymore with reaching 500 pounds soon.

His wide bottom was mostly if not always in the way of things. Just yesterday one of his favourite cups shattered and broke as he turned around to grab a cube of sugar to go with his coffee and -smack-. It was a des-ASS-ter. Yeeted that cup right off the counter with his ass.

Anyway, you could say that Jimin loved to eat a lot and he was fine with his body and his changes. Didn’t even mind that he often was out of breath or began to huff and struggle by the most simple tasks like getting socks on with his big belly in his way. But the issue was society. Jimin hated being outside and surrounded by people. He didn’t like the looks he got, the muttering and chatting behind his back. It made him feel anxious and that is why he and Jungkook were not often outside. Of course Jungkook respected Jimins decision but he also believed that his boyfriend often thought things that were straight up wrong or not true.

Just the other day ago, when the young man had finally talked Jimin into going outside with him to go grocery shopping, since he wanted to bake a cake and needed Jimin to come with him to pick the toppings for it, he had noticed that Jimin had began to stiffen up, his muscles tensed and just like that he was like switched out.

Jimin behaved differently when they were in public, didn’t even kiss Jungkook or hug him in fear he would embarrass his boyfriend. Obviously this was a thought the large man had never told him. It would definitely end in a long debate and conversation Jimin simply didn’t want to have.

Back to the story, so Jungkook was going down the aisle to search for what they needed when he noticed two girls talking about a really good show he had recently seen an ad for online. They walked by and spoke about the funny trailer which ended in giggling. After that Jimin had been even weirder.

It got so bad that Jungkook had to literally beg Jimin to tell him what was wrong and why he had gotten so annoyed and irritated until he finally spat it out. For some reason he had thought the girls were talking bad about him and his figure and were laughing about him. Which was ridiculous, Jungkook had heard what the two had spoken about. But nothing he would say, eased Jimins mind.

You could say Jimin himself was his biggest enemy. He heard things no one said and just created this illusion of others judging him the moment they saw him, which wasn’t true either. But Jungkook was tired of repeating himself daily. He just hoped he knew what to do to help Jimin out. Some way to ease his pain in a way that would make him feel better and more self aware and just happy? Because god, Jimin was gorgeous to Jungkook. Who cares what Karen behind the counter thought? Fuck her then.

“You know I am not forcing you to go right?” Jungkook made sure once more. Yes he sometimes came off as very demanding but he just wanted Jimin to be happy and live his life without being stuck inside all day.

“I know, I know…” Jimin sighed as he pulled his shirt off. He grabbed for his lower belly roll and heaved it upwards. “I don’t think this thing will fit in my old swim trunk anymore Gugg.”

“Mhm, did you try it on yet? Maybe we can buy a new one before we go? I’ll go grab the suncream real quick.” As badly as Jungkook wanted to see Jimin put on the tight swim trunk, he wasn’t someone that stared. Of course he was allowed too and Jimin was more than okay with it but the young man always made sure that Jimin never felt like an object to him. They had talked about Jungkooks preferences about his ideal body type and what he liked. So it was important for Jungkook to always make Jimin feel loved for himself and not his fat. Obviously his fat was a big turn on for him and Jimin knew that, but it was Jimin himself that Jungkook had fallen in love with back in university.

“I’ll try...  Remind me once I become president to make a new law of no clothes needed outside. And charge anyone that wears socks.” Jimin joked. He really hated to bend down and do literally anything clothing related there. His belly was always in the way of everything and it was exhausting.

“I’ll note it down.” A chuckle came from the room nearby together with some rustling through some bags. Where had they put that damn sun cream. “Do you know where we put the sun blocker Babe?”

“Uhm- if it’s not in one of the -huff- bags it should be -huff- in the bathroom...oh fuck these -huff- pants man…” Jimin was getting frustrated.

“Do you need help?” Jungkook peeked into their bedroom with a worried face.

“I- Can you just pull these up while I lift my gut?” Jimin huffed out of breath.

“Sure can do!” Walking over and doing what he had been told, Jungkook made quick work of the tight swim trunk. “Oh boy…”

“That bad?”

“I mean, you can feel it right?”

“You mean that my thighs are too fat for the trunk to get all the way up?...Yup.” Jimin tried to catch his breath as he sat down on the bed and let himself fall on the back. “Why don’t we just buy one online and not go today?” 

“But tomorrow will be rainy…” Another pout from Jungkook. God damn it, these stupid pants seriously. Now that Jimin FINALLY had agreed to go out. IN THE SUMMER HEAT, it was the pants ruining it.

“Okay listen- uhm. Don’t take this the wrong way okay?”

“That only sounds like I will take it the wrong way, but say it.” Jimin was already annoyed, so he might as well hear what Jungkook had to say.

Said man was fumbling with his hands. “So- uhm… since- uhm. Your gut hangs so low… technically no one would see anyway? A-And we could just go to an area without as many people? I mean it is covering your ass… or uhm. Actually, nevermind this is a dumb idea.” 

“I mean. The first one is already dumb, might as well spit it out. And no. I won’t wear pants that don’t fit, are you nuts?” He crossed his arms.

“I told you, you’d get mad…” The young man scratched the back of his head as he went and pulled the pants back down from Jimins legs to throw them away. Not like Jimin would slim down anytime soon and they’d magically fit again.

“Tell me the other idea…” He insisted.

“No seriously, my mouth spoke before my brain gave consent. I do-”

“Well I want to know though.”

-Sigh-

“Promise me you won’t get mad?”

“I promise.” 

Jungkook fumbled with his fingers when he said it. “We could just go to the naked area at the beach��� then no one cares… Ouch!” Jimin had kicked him in his side slightly.

“Are you- I can’t believe -THIS- was even an idea you had!? After I can’t even stand being anywhere other people clothes you think THAT would make it easier!?” Jimins nose was flaring. Sometimes he wasn’t sure if Jungkook even understood what he thought, no matter how often he explained it.

“You promised to not get mad!”

“I am not mad, I kept my promise.”

“You just hit me!?”

“Deserved. Dumb ideas get smacked.” Jimin gave him an eyebrow wiggle and heaved himself up. “Now what do we do?”

“I don’t know…” Jungkook really wanted to go to the beach with his love.

“I wish I could just like.. Snap my finger and switch body size with you. Because I bet you, you’d go to the beach with me, if you didn’t have the issue of others watching you right?” He added.

“Well yeah obviously. I’d even go naked.” He joked.

But that was exactly what was about to happen. The moment Jungkook had snapped his finger and spoke out his wish the both of them felt hotter than before.

“Did it- just get warmer in here or-?” Jimin asked, confused. His skin was tickling slightly, what was going on?

“No, I’m hot too… does your body tickle like mine do- what the… Babe do you see this!?” Jungkook held his slowly expanding stomach as it bulged out, looking more and more like the man had swallowed a beach ball. “Uhm… what is… going on?”

“I don’t know? Oh god, my body tickles too though…” Jimin since he was a lot heftier did not notice a few pounds missing, so he didn’t notice how his thighs and belly were slowly decreasing in size as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“I- I’m swelling up! Wait, wait Jimin are you losing any weight can you feel anything?” Jungkook didn’t believe it but at the same time what was happening right now seemed out of a movie.

“Wait. I am! I- my belly is shrinking… what the… Why though? Because of what you said just now? Is this actually happening!?” Jimin was speechless as he watched how his entire body was getting slimmer and slimmer. He had lost at least 200 pounds by now. The shirt he was wearing was so loose on him now it looked like he had accidentally taken a pillow or blanket and mistook it for a shirt.

Which also meant that someone else was about to gain all of that. “Wait, if I am losing the weight and you are gaining it we should-”

-Rip-

“Take your clothes off…” Jimin finished his sentence.

“Well- too late for that now. And this was my favourite jeans man…” Jungkook watched as his thick thighs began to grow out of the holes his clothes began to create as the fabric kept ripping open more and more. 

-tear-

“Shit, Gugg, get your shirt off, hurry!” Jimin stood up and almost fell over, he wasn’t used to getting off that easily and had used too much strength to get up which almost catapulted him forward and towards his boyfriend who was struggling to get his shirt off. It had already cut into his double belly and was now rolling itself upwards until his big moobs were stretching the fabric too much and the shirt ended up tearing apart as well.

“Oh man… oh wow…” Jungkook was so speechless right now. He kept inspecting himself and watching intrigued how his entire body was swelling up in fat. How each and every body part was slowly engulfed and swallowed by fat. “Jesus there is so much of it!?”

“Welcome to my club, Babe.” Jimin joked and smacked Jungkooks big belly. “How does it feel being that heavy Gugg?” He was actually interested.

“It feels…” Jungkook swallowed thickly as he held his own belly up just to let it fall again, causing a loud smack of skin on skin. “Man, I mean- I knew the jiggling part would cause an ocean of jiggles but I had no idea you could feel ALL of that. Even the little ripples afterwards…” This was amazing. Jungkook was amazed.

“Oh you thought I was faking my moans when you began jiggling my fat to get me off? Hell nah- that shit feels amazing.” Jimin stood there proudly as he kept losing more and more weight. He was beginning to get bulky with some muscles. 

“Well… it just sounded so unreal? I believe you now- Oh shit, oh god…” Jungkook didn’t even know where to look anymore. Each part that grew needed to be explored but the weight was getting to him now. Jesus he was so heavy… he.. He couldn’t stand that much anymore. “Damn, this is how bad your legs hurt from just standing?” 

“Yup.”

“Wow… I would carry you everywhere if I could then. I guess I understand why you love things to sit or lay on.” He giggled...well attempted too. But just giggling was exhausting while standing, so the man waddled. “Oh god, I- I have to walk with spread legs like that…?”

“Yeah. Can’t walk normally if there is fat in between. But you’ll get used to it.” Jimin soothed.

“Woah… -huff- Okay this is really exhausting.” Jungkook could feel his massive bubble butt jiggling as he waddled to the bed and sat down. His body sank deep down into the mattress as he caught his breath and just touched himself all over. 

“Hey, if you need a minute I can let you be alone with your body you know.” Jimin pulled another joke.

“Excuse me for being amazed by this and have to investigate my own body that literally just swelled up 400 pounds.” The other poked out his tongue towards Jimin.

“Well, how do you like it?” Jimin was curious. Because he himself felt great right now. He began jumping and sitting on the ground with his head resting on his knees. Wow, it’s been so long since he could do any of that. 

“I feel great! Well, I feel sweaty and exhausted but besides that I really like it. What about you muscle man?”

“I can see my feet.” Jimin grinned.

“Been some decades, Huh?... Ouch! God stop hitting me. Now it’s unfair, I can’t even reach you!” Jungkook pouted with his cute, thick and chubby cheeks.

“You look so cute with a round moon face Guggie, Naw! And you deserve every slap you get. No taking back.” Jimin had to giggle as he effortlessly got up standing and smiled. “So, are you going to the beach now or what?”

It made Jungkook happy, that Jimin seemed so eager to go now. “Well… I’m pretty sure since we switched bodies that your old pants won’t fit me either.”

“We could go naked.” Jimin grinned and gave his boyfriend a kiss on his forehead.

“I- I mean… but-” 

“What? How did you say? Your belly hangs so low, no one can see anything anyway!” Jimin repeated in a mocking tone.

“Okay I admit it! It was the dumbest idea I ever had! Happy? Let’s not go naked…” Jungkook felt betrayed by his own self. How could he have suggested something so dumb.

“Glad we agree now. So. I got an idea-” Jimin opened up their cupboard in the search of big pants he knew would still fit. Or at least should still fit. Since the man was always or most of the time at home he also didn’t wear a lot of outdoor clothes. “Try these on.” He threw a pair of sweatpants at him.

“They shouuuld fit. I’m not sure. They did fit last time.” Jimin sat down and began helping Jungkook who seemed to struggle. “You don’t know how to get this on, do you?”

“No…” He pouted. “How do you even… it’s like my belly is an End Boss!? How am I supposed to reach my feet and get these damn pants on? How do you do it?” Now that Jungkook was 500 pounds he realized that most things did not work the way he may thought they would. He couldn’t simply bend down and get his feet into the damn sweatpants. There was just too much fat in the way.

“Rule number one. Don’t bend down without taking a deep breath. So, see you grab the legs of the pants here and then you have to sway them like this and catch them at the right time with your foot. It’s really hard to do and sometimes you sit there for 15 minutes trying to get your pants on but I am here to help you. But I want you to try it out first.” Was Jimin enjoying the view and how his boyfriend struggled with all of his weight? Yes, yes he did. His cheeks were slightly red and his loins were tingling.

“-huff- Okay… okay I- I think -huff- Ah damn it! -huff-”

“-huff- ah so close! -huff-”

“No! Pants! -huff- get -huff- back here!”

“Do you want my help?” Jimin asked with a smirk.

Jungkook just looked at him in disbelief. He was beyond exhausted. “I -huff- yeah. If we want to -huff- go soon, then yes…” He huffed out. Jesus this was all so exhausting.

His boyfriend grabbed the pants and pulled them over one swollen leg, up to Jungkooks knee. Then came the next pant leg. “I never realized how fat my cankles were actually.” Jimin notifies as he pokes and grabs at said body part.

“I love your cankles. I love everything about you…” Jungkook jumps in.

“Well, now you got my fat. Make out with yourself, you don’t need me anymore.” Jimin was joking but his boyfriend did not like these kinds of jokes and Jungkooks next sentence came out sternly.

“No. Because I love you Jimin. I love you for you and not just your body. Don’t make such jokes.” He slightly smacked him on his shoulder.

“Ouuch, Okay, Okay! Party pooper.” But Jimin smiled. He’d respect not making such jokes again.

…

After half an hour Jungkook was clothes with his sweatpants, a shirt and Jimin had decided to already out suncream on him because it would be harder to do it later because he knew Jungkook would maybe not admit it, but standing just to get suncream on you was also exhausting.

They had prepared blankets, some fruits and food together with fresh water yesterday, which Jimin shuffled around to get in their bag as well. Some sun hats and of course a beach ball to play with. The older hadn’t been so excited to go out since forever. He simply didn’t feel the weight of eyes staring at him anymore and it was a refreshing experience.

Jungkook simply didn’t care if he got looks. Their house wasn’t far from the beach but it was definitely exhausting to waddle there as a 500 pounder, that Jungkook figured out quite fast.

“Oh jesus… -huff- and you went -huff- grocery shopping -huff- with me…” 

“Stop talking, it’ll make it worse. Just concentrate on putting one foot over another and walk. We are almost there!” Jimin tried to help. He was the ‘heavy people’ expert anyway.

For once listening, his boyfriend stopped talking and just concentrated on walking. It probably looked a bit weird that he was not wearing an actual swim trunk but they’d have to order one online for next time. And it’s not like it wasn’t allowed to go swimming in sweatpants.

“Are you okay?  Do you need a break on that bench?” Jimin knew how exhausting it was and wanted to help as much as he could as he gently grabbed for Jungkooks arms and squeezed lightly.

“Y-Yeah.. -huff- rest… Phew…” Jungkook turned right and waddled towards the bench as he sat down slowly with a loud creak of the wood. He took a deep breath. “My god -huff-. I mean -huff- I heard you breathing -huff- but I had no idea -huff- THIS is how it feels… -huff- for you.”

“It’s quite a task for people like us to get literally anywhere. That’s why I often asked you how long the walk from the car to the restaurant would be, back when I still fit on those chairs because I didn’t want to end up there breathing like an exhausted and sweaty pig for everyone to look at.” Jimin kissed Jungkook on his lips. “Do you want me to get you a drink before we go down? Or Ice cream? I know I always get hungry walking, so…” Jimins smile was genuine.

“A soda sounds -huff- amazing actually. Let’s get ice-cream later? I -huff- really want to swim. I’m all -huff- sweaty.” Jungkook tugged on his shirt with two big dark circles between his arm and torso. His back was probably darker grey too from all the sweat. “Alright, I’ll get you some. Just stay here and get some rest Babe.” With that Jimin jumped up and swiftly walked over to one of the food carts to grab some soda.

That’s when Jungkook noticed it for the first time. How people were watching him, or speaking about it. How they took a glance and turned their head as soon as he locked eyes with them. How some spoke so loud that he was meant to hear their jokes or how their noses crunch up in disgust. It wasn’t a nice sight to see but Jungkook had the self esteem of a diamond. Nothing could cut through him, so he simply smiled back or waved when people did what they did. It didn’t bother him the slighted as he watched his boyfriend grabbing the soda and three HotDogs.

“Hey, sorry it took so long. Here is your soooda-” Jimin held it out for Jungkook to grab. “And I wanted to eat a HotDog, so I got two for you as well.” Another kiss on his forehead.

“Thanks Minnie.” Jungkook began chugging down the soda until it was half way finished when he bit a big chunk off of the HotDog. “Man I love these HotDogs they sell here.” Another big bite.

“Yeah, they are great!” Jimin wiggled his legs up and down as he sat on the long bench next to his love and looked around when he began to frown. “Hey uhm… we don’t have to sit here. We can just go down to the beach and ready everything up you know?” It were the stares Jimin noticed. They weren’t directed at him but at the person he loved the most, which almost felt even worse. He just wanted to punch them all.

“It’s fine Babe. I don’t care.” Jungkook was half way through the second HotDog by now.

“I know you say that, but we really can just-”

“No I mean it. I don’t care. I know you often say you don’t care but you do. You are thin right now, just enjoy it and ignore the others? Who are you living for?” Jungkook asks with a bit of sauce on his cheek. 

“Myself…”

“Yes and that means?”

“It doesn’t matter what others think about me…”

“Exactly! Now let them stare at my hot ass body and be jealous. I feel amazing Minnie. So please enjoy the day okay? I am so excited to go swimming with you.” Jungkook gave him a lovingly squeeze to his thigh and kissed his cheek, with a bit of a huff, before finishing his HotDog and chugging down his soda.

“Alright, I’m ready. Let’s go!”

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A fluff one. Yay! Remember the snippet I shared? Kinda got more chapters now. I have some ideas. But this one will be written in my own pace, how I feel fit. Anyway enjoy my fluff readers <3

If you are wondering why I posted this one on tumblr as well to read. This is one fluff and doesn’t need trigger warnings. The hardcore stuff only goes to my ao3. So enjoy <3

[apathycares]

“Hawks”

So here's an edited piece I wrote way back when. Whoop.

※ Warnings: secretive hawks, possible typos idk, reader with a certain personality ig

※ Pairing: Hawks (Takami Keigo) x reader

Interestingly enough, the first time Hawks met you, you were walking down an empty street, jamming to some music. He had been in the last hour of his patrol, grateful that he hadn't run into anything in particular - causing trouble or otherwise, and he was almost convinced that it'd end as a mundane day. How wrong he was.

You were hopping along down the street, music blaring loudly from your headphones and bleeding out of your ears, as you strutted exaggeratedly to the beat. Hawks flew closer in amusement, watching your performance in rapt attention, wondering how long it would take you to realize that you weren’t alone on the quiet streets of Kyushu.

Two songs and a fit of enthusiastic giggles later, he was hooked. Something about the way you were so carefree, dancing around on the street past midnight without bothering to glance back fascinated him. Hawks wanted to talk to you, but at the same time, didn't want to break the impression that he had of you either. 

The moment he decided to float around behind you and see where this goes, you stopped abruptly to pause the song before turning around with a knowing smile, like you were...

"If you're going to be here, at least pay me." You said in a silvery voice, before your face fell in surprise. "Hawks?"

"Oh, you knew I was here huh?" He chuckled awkwardly, his arm coming around to scratch his nape. When you didn't fill in the silence, he let his gaze flutter back to you. "It's a little late to be out here, dontcha think?"

You tilted your head without a word, eyes boring into his own like a knife digging into butter. Before he could speak up, you beat him to it. "I was feeling a little daring today, but thank you for the concern. Not many heroes would follow a random person for so long -" You threw him a pointed look, letting that notion hang. "Seeya."

Hawks blinked comically as you walked off, before a sense of panic set in his chest to stop you from doing so. "Wait!"

You do so, glancing back for the first time that night. 

"Wanna go on a date with me?"

----

---

--

-

"You did say you were feeling daring today? I mean, how daring can you be am I right?"

Hawks' eye twitched. Why the hell was he convincing you for? 

"Sure." You shrugged, walking back over with a straight face, and then extending your hand when you were close enough. "Give me your phone."

He grinned boyishly, passing you his phone, yet his mind was reeling trying to make sense of the whole situation. While you created a new contact, he took the chance to let his eyes rove your figure. Well, he couldn't really tell with your sweats. You were pretty sexy though. Your eyes trailed languidly up his chest and to his own golden eyes, narrowing in mirth. You were too sexy for your own good, he thought, raising his eyebrows at the gesture.

"This is a cursed question, but how often do you pick up dates like this?"

Hawks laughed, his own eyes narrowing. "What can I say? I have no self-control when it comes to the things I want."

"That's some messed up shit you're saying to a stranger." You threw his phone at him all of sudden, and when he caught it coolly, you snorted. "Or I'm one to talk."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

You sipped your iced tea as you fiddled with her phone, waiting for a response from Hawks since you had nothing better to do on your break. Honestly, you were kind of surprised he reached out to you after last night's... disagreement, but you’d give him the benefit of the doubt.

What you didn't expect though, was him calling you.

"Oh?" You said when he answered the phone, only to hear his deep chuckle.

"You sound so surprised, y/n-chan. Can't I call my favourite person in the world?"

You rolled your eyes. "That's bold. Especially after last night."

"Ahhh, can't we pretend like it didn't happen? I'm not mad at all. I —"

"What's your real name?" You interrupted, staring hard at your desk. From the little exhalation he made in response, you could practically see the disappointed frown on his face.

"Y/n."

"You said you were going to take me on another date, and if that's the case, I still stand by what I said yesterday."

"That's fine, I understand. Can you come to your window?"

You sit up a little, glancing at the window across the room. You bite your lip to stifle your laughter when you notice a mess of blond hair bobbing up and down the ledge.

Unlatching the lock, you gently push the window open and your eyes lock on to Hawks, floating there with a bouquet of flowers and a cheesy smile.

"Can I come in?" He speaks into the phone, eyes fixed on you as his smile grows wider.

"Not sure yet. What kind of flowers are those?"

Hawks inches closer, allowing you to catch a whiff. They smelt expensive. "It's a mixture of I'm sorry for leading you on and please take me back."

You giggled a little, and you were so mad you did. You just couldn't catch him off guard, could you?

"Also —" Hawks puts his phone away and pulls up his visor, golden eyes dead serious all of a sudden. "I don't want to lose you. I don't want you to be pulled into my chaos either. I....I care about you too much, so..."

"So?" You deadpanned.

He bit his lip, studying your impassive face, his heart hammering in his ears the longer you stared at him like that. You’ve always been extremely attractive to him, but that face you made, this one that had all your emotions locked away enticed him and frustrated him in equal parts — he wasn't sure which angle he could go when it came to that face.

"So I don't know what to do." Hawks finished lamely, deciding to be honest yet again. Honesty was a refreshing thing with you, he'd come to know that last night with your interesting reactions to things, but this particular truth was hard to give voice to. He didn't know what to do.

You stepped closer and accepted the flowers, eliciting a pleased noise from Hawks. You pushed the large bouquet on one hip and leaned forward until you were inches apart, and before he could say anything, you kissed his nose, giggling when his face flared instantly. "I like you too much to be mad at that, I guess."

"Does that mean — !"

"Absolutely not." You deadpan with a cheery smile, turning around to put the flowers in a vase, missing his disappointed pout. "What kind of person would I be if I didn't stand by what I say?"

Hawks mumbles some stuff under his breath.

"Hmmm? Are you still here?" You call from your desk.

"You're so mean y/n-chan."

"Also, I prefer tulips and poppies, Hawks."

He was quiet for a moment, before bursting out with a sudden, "Don't call me that."

You look up, perplexed. "Excuse me."

Hawks knew he was wrong. He knew he couldn't, shouldn't pull you into his life. But you were so —

"Hey, you okay? I was just kidding about the flowers —"

He bolts off. You raise your eyebrows in confusion.

You had all but a couple of hours to think about it and get over it, before he's swooping out of nowhere when you’re done for the day and taking you on an impromptu flight around town. 

Did you mention out of nowhere?

[wiypt-writes]

Stark Spangled Banner

Ch41: Drops Of Jupiter Part 2- There’s Still A Life To Live. 

Intro: Pepper finally makes an honest man of Tony, and as the sun sets on, quite possibly, the most horrific year of their lives, the New Year brings a familiar face back into Steve and Katie’s life.

But Tony has some news that puts a smile on his sister’s face. If only her husband was as happy…

Warnings: Bad Language words. Brief mentions of Smut (NSFW, 18+)

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC Katie Stark

A/N: @angrybirdcr​ I LOVE YOU

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Katie Stark and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Chapter 41 Part 1

Stark Spangled Banner Masterlist // Main Masterlist

October 2018

Despite Katie’s protestations to the contrary, Steve refused to believe that Tony and Pepper actually wanted him at their wedding. She had tried in vain to convince him to go but at times like this he was so stubborn and, ironically, the only man on the planet that could rival him for pig-headedness was Tony himself. So now she was doubly pissed at him. He knew that, and if he hadn’t already he would have certainly guessed it by the way she was currently throwing things into her bag after hardly speaking a word to him since the previous night.

FRIDAY informed her that Happy was here to collect her and Katie closed her small carry case. Steve sighed and went to pick it up for her, fully intending on carrying it to the car, but she beat him to it, swatting his hand away.

“I got it, its fine.” she said a little curtly as she did up her jacket. “Baby, c’mon, don’t leave on a bad note.” He pleaded, following her into the living area. “You know I get that you might think Tony doesn’t want you there, but I do.” Katie’s voice was quiet as she levelled him with a look. “And I was kinda hoping that would be enough to make you swallow your pride for once in your God-damned life” His face fell and the expression on it almost made her relent and apologise. 

Almost.

But the Stark stubbornness in her won out and she simply left it at that, slamming the door behind her. 

Steve felt like shit. Absolute shit as he stared at the place his wife had been stood a few moments before, the noise of the door banging shut still echoed round his head. With a sigh he swiped at his face with his hands before he headed into the bedroom, changed and wandered down to the gym to work off some frustration.

****

Katie glanced at her reflection. The bridesmaid dress she was wearing was an Alexander McQueen, as was Pepper’s dress, her favourite designer who hadn’t been dusted. It was a deep, burnt gold, almost brown to look at with a hint of a shimmer, perfect Autumn colours. The dress was plain, with a sweetheart neckline, the bodice drawing in her waist and the skirt was floor length, with a slight flare to it.  Her hair was twisted up and she wore a white gold headband which was studded with diamonds and pearls, her mom’s necklace that Tony had given to her on her wedding day sat flush to her collar bone. But all that aside, what she really loved was her make-up. It was all autumnal colours, eyes lidded under a burnt orange which had a slight golden shimmer to it setting off her green and amber eyes to perfection, and the contouring was amazing. 

Smoothing down her skirt once more, she looked down and stepped into her gold Jimmy Choo heels and stilled as a familiar voice spoke.

“You look beautiful.”

Her head shot up and Steve’s eyes locked onto hers in the mirror before she spun round to face him stood in the doorway.

“I thought you weren’t coming?” She frowned.

“I wasn’t.” He said shyly, stepping into the room “But, after you left yesterday I thought about what you said and you’re right. So I spoke to Pepper and well, here I am.” Katie looked him up and down. He was dressed in his blue suit and underneath it he wore a light green shirt complimented by a tie more or less the same colour as her dress, along with his shiny dark brown oxfords. Exactly the outfit she’d picked for him and left at the front of the closet just in case. With his hair immaculately styled, short stubble impeccably trimmed and a nervous smile on his face, he looked absolutely gorgeous.

“I’m so glad you came.” She smiled, all anger forgotten as she stepped forward and he met her halfway.

“I hate it when we fight.” He muttered, gently kissing her, his strong hands on her back, pulling her to him. “I’m sorry, Doll.”

“Well, well, look what the cat dragged in.” A familiar voice drawled and the pair of them turned to see Natasha leaning in the doorway, two flutes of champagne in her hand. She looked stunning in a knee length figure hugging bottle green dress.

“You look great Nat.” Steve offered, surprised to see a faint tinge of red flushing up the blonde’s neck and cheeks as she uttered a soft thanks before she looked at Katie.

“Came to let you know that Tony’s here.” 

Steve took a deep breath.

“Right, erm…” Katie tugged on Steve’s hand and took a glass of champagne off Nat. “Come on.” “Where are we going?” Steve frowned. “To see my brother, the pair of you need to get this out of the way before the ceremony.” “Baby, I-” “Don’t argue with me Steven.” she retorted, leading him down the stairs and out into the Autumn sunshine, across the lawn which was sporting a banquet tent and down the small path which had been lined with a gold carpet. Tony was stood at the end, under the arch which led into the tent where the reception would be held, directing people. As the Weather was nice, the actual ceremony was going to take place at the end of the wooden jetty. People were already settling on chairs on the banks of the lake.

Steve felt, and looked, like a deer in headlights when he caught sight of Tony. Katie squeezed his hand and whispered for him to relax as Tony, who had seen them approaching, started striding over to meet them.

“Well, don’t you look handsome?” Katie said to him, taking in his dark grey formal tail suit, ivory patterned waistcoat and ivory ruffled tie.

“Errm, shouldn’t you be with Pepper?” Tony asked, dropping a kiss to his sister’s cheek. “You look beautiful by the way.” “Thanks. Your gorgeous bride is just having her hair finished off and then I’m going to get her in her dress, but I wanted to come and see you first, we both did.”

“It’s a err, beautiful house.” Steve cleared his throat as he spoke and looked around. He’d never been before, and he felt ridiculously uncomfortable right at that moment for being a complete jerk. He should have done this months ago. "Well, it’s a bit like you Cap.” Tony replied, his eyes locking onto his brother-in-law’s. “Ancient, but nothing a little modernisation couldn’t fix.”

Steve let out a chuckle and took a deep breath. “Tony, listen, I want to apologize. For everything.” He swallowed a little before he continued.“What went down in Siberia was, well it was harsh, and I was out of order. I should have told you about your parents. I’m sorry, I really am.”

Katie held her breath, she knew how much that would have taken for Steve to apologise, so heartfelt as well and she knew he wasn’t doing it just for her. As she stood watching, she saw Tony bristle and she stiffened slightly.

“You should be.” Tony sniffed, but just as Katie was about to chastise him she saw his face soften, “But all that’s in the past now. You know, I get that Barnes wasn’t in control of his actions but I still can’t-” he stopped himself and took another deep breath ”Look, it doesn’t matter now, so let’s just say I understand why you did what you did even if I don’t agree with it. And I’m sorry too, Cap.”

Steve took a deep breath and gave a small smile. “I missed you Tony.”

“Yeah, well, that goes without saying because I’m so incredibly missable” Tony shrugged before he smiled “I missed you too, buddy.”

The two men shook hands before Tony gave a small huff and pulled Steve into a slightly awkward embrace, the two men clapping one another on the back.

Steve felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. As much as he had tried to deny it, Tony was like a brother to him and he had missed him. Plus, he knew how much it had hurt Katie them both being at odds. And he just wanted his wife to be happy and to move forward, past what had happened. As he looked over Tony’s shoulder he saw Katie watching them both, her eyes shining and she mouthed a thank you to him before she cleared her throat.

“Right, now that’s done can I leave him with you whilst I go do Bridesmaid stuff?” She spoke with a smile on her face that her two best boys were finally over their spat.

“Yeah, go ahead, in fact, I have just the job for you,Spangles.” Tony nodded, and the two men strode off, Tony’s hand in between Steve’s shoulder blades as they walked. Steve looked back at his wife as she strode across the lawns to the house before he turned his attention to Tony as they headed towards the lake.

*****

The wedding was beautiful. And whilst he really should have been thinking this about the bride, Steve seriously thought his wife was the most stunning woman there. As she walked down the aisle first, arm linked through Rhodey’s she caught Steve’s eye from where he was sat in between Banner and Natasha and he smiled at her, a genuine smile which she returned. When it was time for Pepper’s entrance, Steve glanced at Tony and couldn’t recall a time where he’d seen the man so happy, so emotional. 

The small ceremony was conducted, and it was time for Steve to perform the task Tony had given to him-signing the witness register along with Happy. It was a small gesture, but one which meant a great deal to the Captain.

Then, the rest of the afternoon passed in a bustle of photos, drink, food and speeches. Tony’s was slightly self-indulgent, as always, before he gushed about his new wife. Rhodey told plenty of stories about them growing up, and then it was Katie’s turn.

“As all of you here know, Tony brought me up from the age of seven.” Katie cleared her throat, glancing round at the various faces in the room. “Our parents died and suddenly there he is, twenty-one years old with a business to run and a pain in the ass kid sister to look after.” She scratched at her head. “My childhood was happy, I wanted for nothing, and that was all down to you.” She locked eyes with her brother. “Tony, I don’t tell you this enough, but I really am grateful for everything you did and everything you gave to me, least of all the absolute, unconditional love I have always felt from you. I know we have had our differences but you always told me that you could never be prouder of me if you tried, and I want you to know, that the feeling is mutual. I love you, not just as my brother, but as the best substitute father I could have wished for. And it makes me so happy to see you here today, after everything, with the woman that finally made an honest man out of you.” A few more chuckles, but Tony’s eyes were now wet with tears as he glanced up at her.

“Pepper has been a big part of my life for almost twenty years now, and I couldn’t think of anyone else I’d be happier with as a sister-in-law. But, you do know what you’ve let yourself in for right?”

Pepper laughed and nodded.

“Good, because he’s your problem now, good luck!”

Katie sat down as the room erupted into laughs and Steve pressed a soft kiss to her lips, gently wiping at her tears before they could ruin her make up.

As the night closed in, the Marquee was strung up with lights and wooden benches giving the place a warm, welcoming ambient feel. Far too soon for Katie’s liking it was time for the first dance. Tony clearly hadn’t told anyone she was performing as many puzzled faces peered up at her as she took the microphone in her hand and cleared her throat with a nod to the keyboard player who struck up the opening notes to Eta James “At Last.”

Tony’s face split into a grin as he offered Pepper his hand and the new Mr and Mrs Stark took to the dance floor, applause and camera flashes filled the tent as Katie sang, watching her brother and his new wife dance closely. In turn, Steve watched his wife, her voice s powerful and sultry, her eyes shining softly as she was watching Tony and Pepper revolve on the dancefloor. And then, as customary, people began to join them and Steve turned to Nat.

“May I have this dance ma’am?”

Natasha studied him for a moment before she smiled and slipped her hand into his, where he took her into a polite hold and steered them around the dancefloor, catching Katie’s eye causing her to smile.

When the song finished everyone turned to her and she flushed a little, giving a shy smile before she cleared her throat. “I’ve got one more.”

Tony frowned as he looked at Pepper who met him with an equally puzzled look, but when the band started to play, Tony’s face slid into a huge smile as Katie winked at him, before she once more began to sing.

“Now that she’s back in the atmosphere, with drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey…”

As she continued through the verse, Tony looked up at her, his eyes shining as he tossed his arm over Pepper’s shoulders, everyone in the tent gently swaying along to the song, and when the upbeat part kicked in, everyone hit the dance floor again.

Katie was now completely lost in the song that her and her brother had sung together so many times. She allowed the memories to wash over her as she sang, suddenly back in his convertible mustang cruising over the Golden Gate Bridge, then again dancing round in shorts and a bikini by the pool, then she was back in the kitchen, both of them holding wooden spoons to their mouths as make-believe mics. She sang out note after note and as she launched into the final chorus. Tony, who knew the song was coming to a big crescendo had stopped dancing to start winding the crowd up as she belted out the last bit of the song, eyes closed as she dipped slightly, hand extended by her side.

And now you’re lonely looking for yourself out there

The marquee erupted into a cheer and Katie smiled to herself, handing the mic back to the singer of the band who thanked her, drawing another cheer from the crowd. Steve walked forward and offered his hand to his wife to help her walk down the small steps from the stage.

“You amaze me every single day you know that?” His lips brushed her ear as the band struck up into a soul song and he led her towards the bar for a drink. She beamed at him, cheeks flushing from the singing and the adrenaline that had been pulsing through her veins at the fact she’d been stood on a stage, singing in front of a group of people for the first time since she could remember. He dropped a kiss to her cheek and she moved her head to catch his lips softly.

“Kiddo?”

At that she spun to face Tony, who didn’t say another word, simply pulled her into his arms and squeezed her tight, kissing the side of her head. She held him back, happily resting her head against his shoulder until he eventually released her, and then turned to head off over the dance floor to greet someone else.

“I saw you dancing with Nat.” Katie slid her hands up Steve’s chest as he ordered a beer and a gin and tonic, his jacket and tie now discarded on one of the chairs behind him.

“Jealous?” He arched an eyebrow, his hand settling on her hips.

“Not in the slightest.” Her hands connecting round his neck. “I thought it was one of the sweetest things you could have done. She’s been so down lately.” “She seems okay tonight.” Steve turned, watching the woman in question as she stood talking to Bruce. “Maybe she just needed reminding that there’s still life to be lived.” “That’s very philosophical of you, Captain.”

“I have my moments.” He grinned, looking back down at Katie, his hand on her hip pulling her closer. “Are you still staying here tonight or coming home?” “Undecided.” She teased, her hands resting on his chest, muscles broad and tense under her fingers.

“Well if you come back with me I’ll do that thing you like.”  His short beard scratched her cheek as he spoke softly into her ear.

“That’s blackmail.” 

Smirking, he kissed her softly. “I know.”

She did go home with him, and Steve was about as gentle and tender that night as she could ever remember him being. His lips were soft as he made sure to cherish every single part of her body. His hips rolled against hers, keeping them locked together, hands entwined together as he gently pinned them at either side of her head, eyes locked onto hers as he took her apart, piece by piece.

They lay there afterwards, Katie’s head resting in its favourite place on his chest, his hand gently running up and down her spine as she slept. Resting his head against hers, he closed his eyes on what had been a pretty amazing day in all honestly. He and Tony were back on an even keel, and being surrounded by people at the wedding, he couldn’t help but marvel at the love, friendship and happiness that had been present at the event. 

He hadn’t ever thought he’d see it again on that scale after the snap, and it gave him faith that, just like he had said earlier, there was still a good life to be lived.

*******

January 2019.

Steve pulled his jacket collar up against the snow and trudged across the car park towards the store entrance. A soft, white blanket covered the cars that lay abandoned after the snap, something he knew that the Government was going to have to sort at some point. Heading into the shop, he noted that it was reasonably busy compared to how it had been the last time he’d popped in a few weeks ago. He supposed that was a good sign. Grabbing a basket he headed straight for what they needed- milk, eggs, bread, bacon, fabric softener and tampons. Okay, so the last weren’t what they needed, obviously, more what Katie needed. She’d laughed when she had given him the list, remarking that this was the first time she’d ever sent him shopping for shit like this before offering to go instead, but he was a modern man now, they’d been together for almost six years, married for over three, he could deal with buying his wife tampons, right?

Now he was making a mental note, as some woman was slyly eyeing him as he grabbed a box, to remind his wife it’s a fucking good job he loves her as much as he does.

He whizzed around picking up the rest of the stuff and was heading to the till when he heard a loud shout. Spinning round on autopilot he saw one of the security guards chasing someone, a kid dressed in a pair of dirty jeans, a jacket that was far too thin for the weather, and a baseball cap, down the aisle. Steve let out a sigh. Shoplifting and petty crime had rocketed as people struggled to make ends meet following The Decimation. As the kid neared him he gently held out an arm to stop them passing and the child, a girl, gave a loud yell and looked up at him angrily. 

Instantly his heart leapt into his throat. Granted, it was a few years since he had seen her at the last Stark Christmas Party, but he’d recognise those large, deep brown eyes anywhere.

“Gerrroffff me!”

“Emmy?” He frowned, and she paused her struggling to look up at him and he removed his hat. “It’s me. Steve.” “I know you are.” She blinked, and then began to struggle again.

“Stop it.” He instructed, voice full of authority and he turned to the security guard. “What’s the problem here?” 

“Caught her down the aisle back there, shoving packs of chocolate and chips into her backpack.”

“Has she actually committed a crime yet?” Steve asked. “I mean, nothing has left the store. If I pay for it…” “No but she was gonna!” “But she hasn’t actually?” The security guard let out a groan. “Look pal, you’ve no idea what it’s like trying to keep this place straight.” “Oh believe me Sir, I do.” Steve mumbled, before he glanced down at Emmy. She was small, her dark, ebony hair was dirty and knotted, and her olive-skinned cheeks were pinched like she needed a good meal. He looked up at the man. “I’ll pay for the items and then ensure she’s dealt with.” “Dealt with?” The Security guard frowned before he looked at Steve properly and then his eyes widened “Holy shit, you’re Captain-” Steve cut him off, holding his hand up. “I assume that’s an acceptable proposition?”

“Of course Captain Rogers.” He nodded. Steve shook the man’s hand and then turned to Emmy.

“Give me the bag.”

She looked up at him before she sighed, handing it over. Steve tipped it out onto the conveyor belt at the till. A few bars of Hershey, some kettle chips, toothpaste, soap.

“Have you been on your own since, well, since it happened?” He asked and Emmy shrugged.

“Foster parents both dusted. Not that I care like, they were horrible. Better on my own.” Steve stiffened slight as he handed over some cash to the assistant. He studied Emmy as she packed her things into her bag. He couldn’t leave her like this.

“No one’s better on their own.” He shook his head. “Listen, I’ll give you two choices. You either come back to the compound with me for something decent to eat, or I can take you to one of the shelters.” “And if I refuse to do either?”

“Okay, three options.” Steve raised an eyebrow at her sass. “I turn you back over to Mall Cop over there and you can be handed into the police.”

Emmy snorted at his film reference before she looked down and plucked at something on her coat. “Is Katie…” “Yeah, she’s there.”

“Suppose coming to see her wouldn’t be so bad.” The small girl shrugged. Steve smiled, picked up the bag of groceries and gently went to place a hand between her shoulder blades, to steer her towards the car, but he stopped dead when she flinched violently to his touch.

“Hey, its okay.” he said gently. “I’m not gonna hurt you.”

She looked at him, with an expression that made her look far older than her years and rolled her eyes whilst giving a snort. “Yeah, that’s what they all say.”

*****

Lucky alerted Katie to Steve’s return home as he shot off the couch next to her and headed to the door before it even opened. Katie glanced over the back of the sofa and did a double take as Steve headed in with a familiar face in tow.

“Emmy?” She gasped, getting up off the sofa. The girl smiled a little and allowed Katie to pull her into a hug “What are you doing here?” “He kidnapped me.” Emmy glowered at Steve who rolled his eyes as she stood up from where he had crouched down to greet Lucky.

“That’s crap Emmy and you know it.” He said sternly as he turned to Katie. “She was stealing.”

“Don’t look at me like that, it was that or starve.” Emmy shrugged.

“Starve? What? Wait, have you been-” Katie let out a groan as she realised the implications of what the kid was saying. “Oh, honey you should have found someone, got help!” “Better on my own.” Emmy repeated her earlier sentiment, kicking the floor with her dirty trainers. “And you can’t keep me here ya’ know?”

Katie looked down at the girl. She would be ten now, but she looked a lot smaller than she should be for her age. Katie glanced up at Steve who nodded to the kitchen.

“Listen, I was gonna cook dinner so at least stay for some food?” She asked. Emmy shrugged.

“Suppose so, what we having?”

“Pot roast.”

“Got any mash?” The girl’s eyes lit up and for a brief second Katie saw the cheeky little kid she had last seen a few years back.

“I can do mash.”

“Okay I’ll stay.” Emmy agreed before she looked at them both, a little sheepishly “Could I have some hot chocolate, like they used to do at the parties, please?”

“Sure I can manage that.” Katie smiled.

After settling her on the sofa, Lucky jumping up beside her, Katie retreated into the kitchen and gently shut the door before she set about making Emmy the hot chocolate she had requested.

“What happened?” Katie looked at Steve who sighed, crossing his arm.

“The Security guard at the store was chasing her after he caught her stealing.” Steve shook his head “She’s been on her own since the snap, said her foster family all disappeared.” “Shit.” Katie sighed stirring the cocoa powder and a square of chocolate into the hot milk.

“Yeah but,” Steve gently moved to hand Katie the marshmallows out of the cupboard, “she said something odd, about her being better on her own and she practically jumped out of her skin when I touched her. When I told her I wasn’t gonna hurt her, she said ‘that’s what they all say’”

Katie’s hand slipped at little as she contemplated Steve’s words, and she reached for a cloth to wipe up the liquid she had spilt. “You don’t think…” “I don’t know.” Steve sighed “But I couldn’t just leave her.” “No, course not.” Katie shook her head, reaching up to touch his face. “Just one of the many things I love about you, Rogers.”

He gave a soft smile. “I thought maybe we could give her a good meal, get her cleaned up and she could stay here tonight whilst we can figure out what to do.” Steve shrugged. His wife smiled at him, and grabbing the mug, she stood on her toes and gave him a kiss.

“You know,” she said, opening the door to the kitchen, “you might not be Captain America anymore but you’re still a hero.”

The three ate dinner and then Katie convinced Emmy to have a shower and, after digging her out a t-shirt and a pair of shorts, settled her down in the spare room, promising her that neither of them were mad at her. Once she was convinced the eleven year old was asleep she dumped Emmy’s disgusting clothes in the washing machine, before she headed into the living room and snuggled down next to Steve who had poured her a glass of wine.

“She okay?” He asked.

“Yeah. Out like a light.” Katie sighed “I’m so glad you found her.”

Steve sighed a little. “She looked so lost. I can’t believe she’s been on her own for so long.” “Yeah well not anymore.” Katie scratched at her nose. “This is exactly why we need to sort those homes out. I mean there are hundreds of kids out there like that.” Steve nodded and took a long pull from his beer.

“Just seems so shitty.” Katie carried on “That she’s had two foster homes now and, ok, the last one doesn’t sound like it was so great, but we’re gonna shove her back in a home and…” She trailed off, tears in her eyes. “She deserves so much better, they all do.”

“Well,” Steve turned his head to look at her. “I’m sure you’ll make sure she has a good place for when she has to leave.” Katie stayed silent for a moment, before she took a deep breath and decide to just go for it and voice what was on her mind. “What if she doesn’t?” 

“Doesn’t what?”

“Leave”

“What, you mean, she stays here?”

“Would that be so bad?” Katie asked, “I just, I dunno, Steve, I can’t…” She trailed off, simply looking at him, a hopeful expression on her face that made Steve want to kiss the life out of her. He knew she loved the little girl, she’d always had a soft spot for her. And would fostering a kid for the time being be such a bad idea? It would mean changes, a lot of changes and they would be inheriting an eleven year old, with an attitude to boot. But, they had the room and Natasha was always on hand as well…

Maybe this was just another little way they could give something back.

“Why don’t we ask her tomorrow?” Steve suggested. “If she wants to stay then maybe we can look at it, at least until something else turns up.” “You mean that?” Katie looked up at him and he nodded.

“Yeah.” 

With a teary smile she shifted so she knelt up and reached to gently cup his jawline with her fingers.

“Thank you.” she kissed him softly.

***** Of course Emmy wanted to stay. And, after a fortnight of her being at the compound, Katie and Steve made the enquiry into fostering her on a more official basis, which was easier than it would have been pre-snap, officials keen to rehouse children with people that were willing to take them in. 

The first month was full of teething problems. Emmy had refused to go back to the house she had been living in, screaming blue murder when Steve had suggested they collect her things. So Katie had taken her out shopping for clothes and bits and pieces that she needed. Then she had refused to try anything on in the changing rooms. Ever patient, and recognising the signs of trauma and panic, Katie had calmed her down and told her they would simply take the clothes home to try on there, and that it wasn’t a big deal.

It transpired, after a tearful confession later in her room, Emmy was simply frightened that they would see the marks on her back left by the belt her foster father had hit her with and she had broken down, Katie simply laying with her until she fell asleep. 

The girl also had nightmares, and would often wake up screaming, but wouldn’t let Steve anywhere near her to comfort her. He didn’t take it personally, not after he knew what she had gone through with her foster father, but it did upset him somewhat to think that she could be afraid of him. As time went by she became a lot more comfortable around him, but still wasn’t really happy with any physical contact from anyone bar Katie. Steve simply respected her boundaries, Katie assuring that she would come round eventually.

Emmy found a friend in Natasha, the young girl spending a fair bit of time with the woman, often Steve would find them in the gym, Natasha teaching her some boxing move or other. Steve wasn’t completely sure it was a very good idea, but he left them to it as Emmy would come back to the apartment gushing about what she had learnt, keen to show them both her ‘moves’ as she called them. It was those moments that they both enjoyed, the signs of a cheeky young, innocent girl flashed through and it made Steve’s heart swell to see her coming out of her shell more and more.

Maybe more surprising, however, was how much she took to Tony. Katie said it was because they were the same mental age, which Pepper had vehemently agreed with. But Steve thought it was because Tony simply treat her like he would anyone else with his usual sarcasm and bluntness and she was fascinated by anything the inventor would show her when they visited the lake house. Turns out she had a real knack for technology, and the two of them set about on a project, building a small remote control robot which Lucky wasn’t quite so sure about as the dog would run away, bark, come back, and run away again whilst Emmy cackled away from her vantage point on the stairs where she controlled it.

Alongside this, Katie was still working on setting up homes for other kids through SIDE, and when she came home saying that there was a place for Emmy at the most recent one, the Rogers were both forced to face the reality that, whilst they had meant the fostering to be a temporary arrangement, neither of them wanted Emmy to be placed back into care.

So at the end of April, they made the fostering arrangement permanent.

Which was why Steve now found himself in a hardware store with a ridiculously hyper young girl, picking out a colour to paint her bedroom in.

“I don’t want pink.” Emmy frowned, looking at the colour chart on the wall.

“Well, what do you want?” Steve asked patiently.

“Purple. I think. Maybe a lilac.” “Okay there are some over there.” he nodded and she crossed the aisle to study the colour.

“I think I like this one.” 

Steve nodded. “Good choice,” before he found the tin with the correct shade in and dropped four onto the trolley. “Alright, that’s that done.” He turned to look at her “You wanted a new lamp too?”

“I don’t need one…”

“No, I know, but you wanted one.” 

Emmy’s face lit up and she nodded so they headed over to the light display. Her eyes went wide as she made her way straight over to a tall lamp, the shade of which was decorated with tiny, silver stars.

“I love it.” She said gently. Steve nodded, picked a boxed one up off the shelf and dropped it onto the flat bed trolley.

“That was easy.” He smiled.

“Please can I get some fairy lights for round my bed?” Emmy asked timidly “We told you kid, whatever you want, well, within reason.”  

With another face-splitting smile, Emmy selected some fairy lights. And a rug. And a few new cushions. And a throw. And a new bed for Lucky who seemed to have taken up permanent residence in her room when she was in there. Several hours and a couple of hundred bucks later they were on their way home after Steve had been cajoled into taking a detour through the drive-through for a burger.

“Hey!” Katie greeted as they walked through the door, Emmy carrying the cushions, Steve lugging everything else “Wow, you buy the whole store?”

“Is it too much?” Emmy asked, nervously “We can…” “No, I’m teasing, honey!” Katie chuckled, dropping a kiss onto her head. There was a moment and then Emmy burst into tears.

“Okay,” Katie sighed, taking her hand “Come on.”

Steve watched, feeling slightly useless, as he couldn’t help comfort the girl. He followed as Katie led her to the couch and he sat on the arm chair as Katie patiently sat Emmy down and waited until she had stopped sobbing. Lucky jumped up beside her and pushed his face into hers, licking away her tears as she wound her hands into the dog’s sandy coloured fur.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered.

“You have nothing to be sorry about.” Katie assured her “Do you wanna talk about it?” “I’ve never had nice things.” The little girl wringed her hands together and looked up at Katie from underneath wet eyelashes. “And when I did, then my foster brothers would break them and then he would hit me because I didn’t look after them.” She never used her foster father’s name. It was always he or him. Steve clenched his fists and felt the nerve tick in his jaw as he fought back the urge to go on a rant about the asshole.

“You know we would never hurt you Emmy.”He leaned forward, fighting the urge to reach out and tuck the hair that had fallen over her face behind her ear. “And no one else is gonna hurt you whilst you’re here.”

She wiped her eyes and gave a small sniffle. “I know.”

“So, how about we dry those tears and you help me make dinner?” Katie looked at her “Whilst Steve-O puts your things in your room.”

Steve let out a playful groan as Emmy giggled. “I really wish you’d stop calling me that.” Katie stuck out her tongue as he rolled his eyes and stood up, slapping his thighs with his hands. “The pair of you are a monumental pain in my ass.” “Language!” Emmy shot back as she smirked at him and he gave a snort, picking up the items they’d bought and taking them into her room.

Whilst they were in the kitchen, Steve set about fixing up her lamp, the fairy lights, tossed the new throw and cushions they had bought on her bed and set the remote for the flat-screen TV they had had installed on the wall on her nightstand. He called the girls to come and look and Emmy’s face was a picture, her eyes lighting up as she saw her room. She glanced around and looked at Steve, then to Katie, then back again.

“We can start painting over the weekend-” Steve began but was cut off when the girl threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her forehead to the top part of his stomach. Steve paused for a moment before his hand gently fell to the back of Emmy’s head as he stooped and gave her a hug back, looking up at Katie who was smiling from her vantage point in the doorway.

“She’ll come round in time…”  

His wife’s voice echoed around his head as he dropped a soft kiss to the top of Emmy’s head and smiled.

That was just another time in a long list of instances his wife had been right.

***** Chapter 42 Part 1

**Original Posting**

[orithereticent]

The Song and Tail Left Behind

Crossposted from ao3 chapter 5

Drake didn’t want to lie to Gosalyn, but he also hadn’t wanted to tell her why he was going and that far outweighed the moral implications of lying to his 8 year old daughter. 

He had told her that Duckburg was having problems with the Beagle boys the first time he had gone with Gizmoduck. 

In reality it was more that someone had broken into a chemistry lab and stolen about 40,000 dollars worth of equipment. 

“But that’s not the strange bit,” Scrooge had said, “the robbery happened in broad daylight, and there were no witnesses, even though there were nearly forty people at the scene,” Scrooge paused, “Gizmoduck was one of them, his armour has been put out of commission temporarily, he could do with yer help lad.” 

Darkwing dropped Gosalyn off at the McDuck manor. He was still a little worried about the fall she had taken the day before (next time he saw Megavolt he was going to kill him. Just the look in Darkwings eyes after Gosalyn had been thrown had been enough to send the supervillian running). After looking her over, she had some bruises and cuts she had gotten from playing outside, but was completely unharmed otherwise.

Everyone figured that Darkwing and Gizmoduck would solve the case by the end of the day, even with Gizmoduck’s arm and headpiece being the only part of his armour working.

Darkwing woke up groggy, with a mouth that was so dry it was like he had drank salt, and with a headache that pulsed behind his eyes. The way one wakes up after tossing and turning for hours and only getting an hour of sleep, or like he had a hangover. He didn’t remember falling asleep. That might lend credit to the hangover theory. Biggest problem with that idea was that Darkwing rarely drank, and even rarer than drinking was drinking to the point of blacking out. He had Gosalyn at home after all. 

Darkwing blinked once, his vision blurred. He blinked again, pain slowly starting to flare up. He reached a hand to his chest and brought it up to examine it. Darkwings fingers were stained red. His suit was torn in the sleeves which were stuck to his arms, sticky with semi-dried blood. He forced himself to sit up. He quickly took in his surroundings. Darkwing was in an alleyway next to a garbage bin. The shadows were long, like it was just getting dark. It didn’t appear to offer any immediate danger. A soft cry made Darkwing jump, he turned around, head spinning at the sudden movement. Gizmoduckー no, Fenton, he wasn’t wearing his suit, dirty and bruised, lay right next to Darkwing. He was curled into a ball, arms covering his face. The suit pieces lay a couple of feet away. Darkwing shook Fenton’s shoulder with his less bloodstained hand. It wouldn’t have mattered as Fenton had some bloodstains of his own, but still.

“Fenton?” Fenton didn’t even move. Darkwing shook his shoulder harder, “get up Fenton.”

“M’ma?” muttered Fenton under his breath. He opened a single eye, then closed it.

“Do I look like your Mom?”

“Sorry…” Fenton started, then he started to trail off, like he wasn’t sure who he was talking to. Finally his eyes fixed on Darkwing, “Drake.” 

“Darkwing,” Darkwing grumbled. He was in costume. He couldn’t have his identity getting out.

“Sorry,” Fenton grunted, struggling to sit up, “where are we?”

“Well, right now it looks like we’re behind a dumpster.”

“Oh,” Fenton rubbed his neck, “umm, how did we get here?”

“No idea, last I remember…” Darkwing trailed off, the last thing he remembered was dropping Gosalyn off at McDuck manor… in the morning, it was evening now. 

“You’re bleeding,” stated Fenton, snapping Darkwing out of his thoughts.

“So are you,” pointed out Darkwing. They were battered, bruised, and bleeding, but nothing too serious as far as Darkwing could tell. 

Fenton reached over for the armour pieces, “It’s dead!” he exclaimed upon further examination, “and where’s the other pieces?”

“Fenton, they’re out of commission, remember?”

“No?”

This was bad.

“What do ye mean ye don’t remember?” questioned Scrooge once Gizmoduck and Darkwing had gotten to the underwater lab, (far away from prying ears, Drake had insisted), “how can ye not remember it was nary even an hour ago!” 

Drake opened his mouth to snap back, but instead he pressed a wet cloth to a wound on his chest he didn’t remember receiving. The bright purple cloth had a dusty look to it with some red blood stains for variety. He pulled his cape over his chest.

“I remember getting to the lab today?” offered Fenton unsurely, he rubbed the back of his neck. He wasn’t quite sure he remembered that much.

“That’s not true,” Gyro said without looking up from where he was examining the Gizmoduck suit, “you haven’t been in the lab today.”

“Oh?” asked Fenton, looking over at Gyro who had coffee in his shaking hand, He seemed surprised by the Gizmoduck suit on the table, “Doctor Gearloose, what happened to my armour?”

Scrooge turned to look at Fenton, surprised but cautiously frowning, “er, lad, do ye not remember what happened yesterday?”

“What day is it?” asked Drake before Fenton could answer.

“Tuesday?”

“No, it’s Saturday,” Drake stated, suddenly sure he was right.

“It’s Thursday,” interrupted Gyro.

Manny turned around and tapped something on the ground. 

“Nay, it’s Saturday, Gyro, ye just haven’t left the lab since Thursday morning, speaking of which Della is driving Fenton and ye home after this.”

“I’m perfectly capable of working on this, Scrooge,” Gyro snapped as he tightened a bolt on the suit.

“Hmmm, ‘perfectly capable’ after being awake for the better part of 72 hours? Lad I watched ye drink caffeine like shots,”. Scrooge answered dryly then in a voice that left no room for discussion he went on, “ye are going home to get some rest and that is final,” Scrooge turned his attention away from Gyro’s death glare and looked directly at Drake, “lad, what’s the last thing ye remember?”

“Dropping Gosalyn off at the front door.”

“So ye remember everything up til a few hours ago?”

“I guess so.”

“Intern, what exactly is the last thing you remember?” asked Gyro, now a bit more interested, but he still didn’t look up from the gizmoduck suit, “you said you remember coming to the lab Tuesday. Is that your last memory?”

“I think so, Doctor Gearloose,” Fenton replied nervously. 

“Odd.”

“This entire thing is weird.”

“Ah meant that ye lost five hours and Mr. Crackshell-Cabera lost 5 days,” replied Scrooge, “let’s make sure ah have this right, ye don’t remember what ye two were doing when the mechanics was robbed.”

“No sir.”

“Ye woke up a couple of kilometers away, behind a grocers, covered in injuries.”

Fenton nodded. 

“Like yesterday,” Darkwing interrupted. 

“Exactly like yesterday lad, multiple people who should have been witnesses, and ye two wake like ye have been fighting, with no memory.”

“Are we really supposed to believe that no cameras picked up on what happened at the mechanics?” asked Gyro with an annoyed look, “I find it incredibly hard to believe that no there were no cameras anywhere.”

“Data was wiped, Dr. Gearloose,” explained Fenton, “phones too.”

That had been Fenton’s first question.

“I’ve got nothing,” admitted Darkwing, crossing his arms. There was silence as Scrooge and Fenton said nothing.

“I do,” Gyro said, setting down his wrench.

Manny, who had been quiet, spelled something out with his hooves. 

“No, not that!” Gyro pointed dramatically at Manny, “I’ve been looking for an opportunity to test some spyware for a while, this just might provide the perfect scenario!”

“Gearloose, whatever happened, whoever robbed the mechanics, destroyed all evidence. It covered it’s tracks completely. How is your spyware supposed to help?”

“Don’t underestimate me, Darkwing Duck, I know what I’m doing.”

It was decided that Darkwing would come back the following weekend, and test Gyro’s mysterious ‘spyware’. 

Darkwing left, driving Gosalyn and himself home quickly. She had a book with her, but honestly it was probably a witch's spell book or something. Just something Webby had given Gosalyn that Scrooge wouldn’t like. There was absolutely no way she was reading a joke book. Darkwing decided he would address the book after next weekend, and promptly forgot about it.

He dropped her off at school the following week and drove back to Duckburg.

It took all day, but just before sunset Gizmoduck was back to fully functioning, and a small tracker had been added to his suit. Gyro had explained that it would also record audio. 

With that, Gizmoduck and Darkwing set off.

“Where to?”

“Good question.”

“We could listen to police scanners until something suspicious happens?”

“Sounds good,” Darkwing flipped on the police scanner he had installed in his motorcycle. 

A disturbance at a local diner. 

A noise complaint in an apartment complex.

Quackerjack was spotted at an electronics store.

“So we’re going to the apartment,” Gizmoduck joked as Darkwing drove in the direction of the electronics store. 

“That’s weird.”

“What part exactly is weird?” asked Gizmoduck, who quite frankly thought the whole thing was a bit weird.

“Quackerjack never comes to Duckburg, he barely leaves St. Canard,” Darkwing answered without looking away from the road.

“So you think Quackerjack has something to do with the robberies and widespread memory loss,” stated Gizmoduck, to which Darkwing nodded.

“I have absolutely no doubt about that.”

Darkwing swerve passed a slow car then swerved back in. Then he braked rapidly. Cars had slowed to a standstill. Darkwing pulled the ratcatcher onto the sidewalk.

“What are you doing?” asked Gizmoduck in alarm. His grip on the sidecar tightened to the point that Darkwing was slightly worried he was going to bend the metal. 

“This is faster!”

“Buー look out!” 

Darkwing slammed the brakes, quickly spotting the problem.  There was a person with dark hair laying unmoving on the ground. They were laying on their back with their limbs sprawled like they had fallen quite suddenly. Laying next to them was a woman in a bright sundress. She was laying face first on the concrete with a single arm covering her face. A bit farther away was a man in a multi-colored tank top and neon green pants. Upon further examination there were about half a dozen people slumped on the concrete. Two of them were police officers. Darkwing killed the engine and dismounted. 

He walked over to the first person. They were alive, he could see their chest rising and falling. He grasped their wrist to feel their pulse. Their heart was beating slowly, but not dangerously so. Like they were peacefully sleeping. He checked the woman's pulse, same deal. Gizmoduck had gotten to a few other pedestrians and some unconscious people sitting in their cars. 

He shook the person’s shoulder, hoping to elicit a response, but they remained unconscious. 

He moved them away so that they were leaning against a wall, then he moved to do the same to the woman. Darkwing shook her shoulder as well, and she rapidly sat up.

“Where? What?” she muttered, confused.

“You were unconscious. Do you know where you are?” asked Darkwing in a hurry. He needed to get to the electronics before Quackerjack left, but it would also be uncouth to leave civilians collapsed on the sidewalk.

“No? Is this not Chickago?” she said, pushing herself to her feet and stumbling towards the person Darkwing had already moved.

“No, you’re in Duckburg,” replied Darkwing, glancing over at Gizmoduck. 

“I’m not supposed to be in Duckburg until next week!” she said, crawling to sit next to the unconscious person.

“I don’t know, but don’t go that way okay? It’s unsafe,” Darkwing told her, pointing towards the direction of the store. 

Then a wall exploded. 

“Case in point,” muttered Darkwing pointing his still extended finger at the sky. He turned away from the now screaming civilian. 

Darkwing ducked down to avoid the shower of stone projectiles. They struck the ground, parking meters and cars like bullets. Gizmoduck, despite moving quickly, was still hit. Maybe it was just more obvious because every stone made a loud clicking sound as it bounced off the armour. 

Darkwing peered over the car he had taken cover under. Out of the debris emerged Quackerjack, something was off about him though, he was wearing a mask that completely covered his face except his eyes, it had a filter on the mouth. He was driving a clown car with no windows and a ridiculous amount of electronics stuffed inside. He also had a gun of some kind. His eyes darted around, settling on Gizmoduck who still hadn’t bothered to take cover.

“Gizzy! I was hoping you’d come! Third times the charm right?” he screeched, laughing as he finished speaking. Darkwing, never one to be outdone, tossed a purple smoke bomb.

“I am the terror that flaps in the night, I am the leaking sink that always drips, I am Darkwing Duー”

“Blah blah blah, shouldn’t you be sleeping?” interrupted Quackerjack, “having some insomnia ducky? Well, I think I can help with that!” He whipped out the unidentified gun and pointed it directly at Darkwing’s head.

 Darkwing Duck ducked behind a wall for cover while wondering to himself why he had agreed to any of this. Quackerjack threw something, a yet to be identified something. Darkwing fired his grappling gun at it. That seemed to do the trick and it exploded into shards and blue mist above Darkwings head. Darkwing suddenly hit the ground. Feeling his arms and legs covered in rope. Which had come from his grappling gun. 

Gizmoduck was just as lucky or maybe he thought his armour would protect him, either way, the other projectile struck him directly in the head. Gizmoduck fell to the ground in a metallic heap.

Quackerjack stared at them for a second, unmoving, then a slow grin made its way onto his face. Quackerjack jumped back, laughing as he drove away with the stolen goods. 

He was gone before Darkwing even got to his feet.

Darkwing swore, searching wildly for… something. Nothing. Quackerjack was long gone. 

Gizmoduck hadn’t moved. 

“Gizmoduck,” he said, kicking the arm closest to him, which achieved nothing, “fantastic,” Darkwing hurried back to the ratcatcher. He tore open the glove compartment and dug through items such as an old junior woodchuck guidebook, some expired aspirin, some purple hair ties, until he found what he was looking for. 

He pushed the airhorn right next to Gizmoduck’s ear, covered his own, and pressed the button.

The loud noise sent Gizmoduck soaring into the air.

“Darkwing! Why?!” 

“Huh, I guess Gosalyn was right, this thing did come in handy,” he said, staring at the airhorn in his hand, he threw it back in the glove compartment, “so, I need to test a theory, Gizmoduck, what day is it?”

“Uhhh,” Gizmoduck said, his eyes closed tightly. Darkwing wasn’t sure if he was thinking or the air horn had damaged his ear, “it’s Tuesday? Oh no, did we lose our memories again?”

“You lost your memory, Giz, come on, let's get back before anything else goes wrong.”

[fishfingersandjellybabies]

Still a Little Bit Yours (Part 1) - fic

Characters: Jon Kent, Damian Wayne, bit of Tim Drake and Maya Ducard Pairing: jondami Summary: Damian broke up with him, out of the blue. It didn’t make any sense. But, as it turns out, there’s a reason why it didn’t. A/N: Damian and Jon are in their mid-twenties and no longer go by Robin or Superboy (but not really Batman or Superman either, Tim’s last line is kind of a joke.) Title, and maybe vibe of this part, is based on ‘A Little Bit Yours’ by JP Saxe.

Part One | Part Two

~~

The phone almost slipped from his fingers.

Damian…did Damian just say what he thought he said?

“…What?” He whispered near breathlessly. “W-what did you just say?”

“I said I think we should see other people.” Damian replied calmly. “It would be for the betterment of both of us.”

“Since when?” Jon snapped, anger flaring immediately, but instantly morphing into confusion and sadness. His heart breaking by the second.

They’d been together for three years. Secretly pined after each other for the two years prior to that. Had recently talked about moving in together. Had been happy.

Jon was so, so sure they’d been happy.

“Since…recently.” Damian hummed blankly. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking.”

“And the thought of doing this in person didn’t occur to you in your fucking contemplation?” Jon snapped. “Christ, Damian, we were just talking about getting an apartment!”

“I’m sorry if I hurt you. I know this isn’t what you want.” There was a hint of regret in Damian’s voice, but not enough for Jon’s liking, so it only fueled his growing anger further. “I…I don’t know what else to say.”

“Oh, really? Three fucking years and this is all you have to say?” Jon hissed. “I know you’re emotionally constipated, Damian, but…god. This is low. Even for you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re not!” Jon shouted. A store clerk nearby glanced at him. And that was right, he was in the grocery store. He’d…forgotten. Forgotten the whole world existed, forgot it was collapsing around him by the second, as Damian hummed those words. “Because if you were sorry, you wouldn’t have fucking done it this way in the first place!”

He heard a mother a few aisles down murmur to her children to not use language like that. That people who talked like that were pathetic.

“I…I don’t know what your game here is, Damian.” He whispered harshly.

“It’s not a game.” Damian promised. “I respect you too much to play games with you. I’m just trying to be honest.”

“But you don’t love me enough to break up with me in person, apparently.” Jon countered. He closed his eyes, wouldn’t allow the tears to fall. “I…Damian, I’m going to hang up on you right now. I…I don’t want to say something I might regret.”

“That’s fine.” Damian promised. Then again: “I’m sorry, Beloved.”

Jon scoffed and pulled the phone away from his ear. He hit the call end button so hard the screen cracked under his touch.

…Great.

He stood there a moment, trying to take deep, even breaths. But it wasn’t working real well. Each breath was trembling, and it’s like his lungs suddenly didn’t work, couldn’t hold any air.

Did he do something wrong? Did he say something? They’d fought before, all couples do. They were getting better at communication, Damian was coming out of that emotional shell the League of Assassins put him in.

They’d kissed yesterday. Jon had held him in his arms, had kissed his nose and told him how beautiful his smile was. Damian had laughed and held Jon’s face, stroking his thumb along his cheek.

And now…now they were here?

“…Honey?” Jon jumped as a hand gently touched his elbow. He spun to find an old woman in an apron matching the store’s color scheme glancing up at him. “Are you okay?”

The world around him came whooshing back. He was in the middle of the grocery store. He…he was sobbing in the middle of the grocery store. Fat, ugly tears rolling down his face as he practically crushed his phone in his hand.

“Do you need me to call someone?” The woman whispered.

“No, I…” He gently placed his shopping basket – half full of this week’s groceries – on the floor and backed away. He clumsily ran his nose along his sleeve, a trail of snot left in his wake. “I’m alright. I’m…I’m sorry.”

He turned and barely stopped himself from flying out of the store.

~~

Jon laid in bed for two days, exhausting himself racking his brain, trying to figure out what happened, what changed, what he did.

He texted Damian, almost exactly twenty-four hours after the fateful call, but the other never answered. Never answered any text Jon sent. Or any call that he drunkenly made after that. Didn’t even give him the knowledge of being left on read.

He cried a few times, threw things a few other times.

None of this made any sense.

He thought about going over to Gotham. Walking up to the manor and banging on the door until someone answered. Thought about staging a protest until Damian agreed to see him, if the door answerer wasn’t said boyfriend.

…Ex-boyfriend.

Tears welled up in his eyes every time he thought of the term.

Ex. Boyfriend.

Jon closed his eyes, buried his face in his pillow. Honestly, he thought they were going to get married. He thought they were going to be together forever. He wasn’t ready to plan a life without Damian, not yet. They were supposed to grow old together, die minutes apart like in the movies. Holding hands until the end.

He didn’t lose Damian to death, like he always thought he would. He didn’t lose Damian to space or assassins or even to grief in the potential loss of Bruce or Dick. He lost Damian because Damian…simply didn’t want him anymore.

God. They weren’t supposed to break up after three years. They weren’t supposed to part ways in their twenties. They weren’t supposed to end things for no reason.

He thought he’d gotten pretty good at reading Damian. His ticks, his quirks. What upset him, what didn’t. He thought he was an expert. The world’s leading expert in Damian Wayne.

Apparently he was fooling himself.

He sighed, pressed his face further into the fabric of his pillow. Tried to ignore the memories threatening to overflow. Of he and Damian in this bed. Kissing, cuddling, lazing. Of Jon promising Damian the whole world, and Damian countering with the whole universe instead.

He wondered if he should call Kathy. Or Maya. Hell, one of Damian’s siblings. See if Damian had talked to them, if they had seen any signs. If they knew of anything going on.

He just burrowed under his covers, and kept his eyes closed.

~~

In the end, he didn’t tell anyone about the breakup. Not even his parents. There were intergalactic wars starting and government coups commencing – they had more important things to worry about than their youngest’s love life. And judging by the fact he hadn’t heard from any of the Bats, he had a feeling Damian didn’t mention it to his family either.

Just as well. They were adults. They could handle this as just that. Adults.

So he wallowed in self-pity for a few days, but eventually forced himself up. Took a deep breath, dried his own eyes and distracted himself with continuing his life. Focused on his job, on heroing. The world kept turning, even if he and Damian weren’t together.

His heart hurt less as the days passed on. Not by much, his heart was still utterly shattered after all, but it didn’t hurt as much to inhale. Didn’t hurt as much to smile. Didn’t hurt as much to get a text or a call and it not be Damian.

Damian never answered when Jon tried to contact him. The first few days were understandable, but now the texts were housekeeping. Do you want your shirt back? I think you left Alfred’s cat treats here. I have a box of your stuff and your apartment key, if you’re in town soon, you can stop by and get it.

And still, like always, nothing. Damian was always stubborn, but now he was just being downright rude. It’d been almost a month now! Surely if someone as emotional as Jon could somewhat start to get over it, someone as stoic as Damian had probably completely forgotten about it by now!

He huffed as he watched a couple walk by the park bench he was sitting on, taking the momentary surge of frustration-induced courage to hit the call button on his (recently fixed) phone and hold it up to his ear.

They wouldn’t have to talk. This was just tying up the loose ends. Getting rid of the sentimental things. Getting rid of things that didn’t belong to him. That was all. That was all.

But the line didn’t even ring. It went straight to voicemail. And the frustration turned to hurt. Did…did Damian change his number? No, impossible. It still went to Damian’s voicemail, his phone was just off.

But Damian never turned his phone off. No hero did, and especially no one in the Wayne family. They were always on call, even when they shouldn’t be.

So, for Damian’s phone to be off…was he avoiding someone? Avoiding Jon?

He lowered his phone to his lap and stared at it. He was one of those people who put emojis in people’s contact names. Damian’s name was surrounded by the pink, growing heart, and the cat emoji that looked like Alfred.

He didn’t have the strength to take those away. Not yet.

He swallowed the lump in his throat that he didn’t realize was there, and put his phone back in his pocket.

He’ll just ship Damian his shit, then.

~~

He shouldn’t have. He really shouldn’t have. It’d make him the crazy ex. The ones Taylor Swift wrote songs about.

But at least once a day, he found himself listening. Tapping into his powers and listening for Damian’s heartbeat.

He didn’t do it often while they were together. Mostly because while together they were almost always together. Physically. So he could just reach out and hold Damian’s wrist. Put his ear to Damian’s chest. Watch the pulse as it beat along Damian’s neck.

It was a coping mechanism back then, used to calm himself. When the world got too much. When his day was bad. He could just focus on Damian’s heartbeat in any form. Drown the rest of the noise out.

Damian’s heartbeat now sounded far away, but Jon didn’t feel like pinpointing how far. It was slow and even, and that almost made him angry. Damian was calm. Damian was relaxed. Probably sitting at his easel drawing without a care in the world, while here Jon was listening for him like some kind of fucking lost puppy.

Every time he listened, it was slow and steady.

Stupid Damian, he’d think as he tuned his powers back out, furiously go back to whatever he was doing. Stupid relationships.

Relationships were overrated. Damian was overrated.

~~

“He what?!”

Maya’s shriek had Jon pulling the phone away from his ear with an amused grimace. He laughed as he switched the audio to be on speaker, and absently opened an app on his phone.

(A…dating app.)

“You didn’t know?” Jon hummed. His friend had called to ask some questions on a man she was tracking, someone who rumours said was from another planet. Kathy hadn’t known of the solar system, so she was trying the next best alien. As they talked, something about a crime scene came up, and she asked if Damian could help, if Jon could give him the phone. He had to break the news. “I thought you guys talked like…every day.”

“No way.” Maya scoffed. “Once a month, if that.” Jon could hear the frown in her voice. “And we did talk about a month ago. Maybe a bit longer. He didn’t say anything. In fact, he told me you guys were going to move in together, that he wanted me to plan a trip back to the States for a housewarming party.”

“Well…life comes at you fast, I guess.” Jon chuckled bitterly, remembering that call. He was in the room for that call, dozing in Damian’s arms, half listening to their conversation. He sneered at the choices the app was giving him. None of them were very attractive. “Because about a month ago was when he called it off.”

“Huh.” Maya mumbled. “I’m so sorry, Jon. If I’d had known that’s what he was planning, I would have beat the shit out of him. You were the best thing to ever happen to him, for gods’ sake! What the hell did he willingly throw it all away for?!”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” Jon shrugged. This potential match wore a shirt that said Joker’s Biggest Fan on it, and Jon cringed instantly. “He didn’t give a reason. Just said that it was for the betterment of both of us, and that he was sorry.”

“Fucking turd.” Maya sighed. “I’ll call him here in the next few days, and see if he’ll tell me anything.”

“Good luck.” Jon drawled. “He hasn’t answered a single text or phone call since he broke things off. And I don’t know if that’s to just me or everyone.”

“You ask one of his brothers? Which one’s friends with your brother again? Jason?”

“Tim.” Jon corrected. He hesitated on this potential match option. Just stared. It was a woman. Dark hair, tan skin, standing in a desert. She was beautiful. And she reminded him of Damian. “And I haven’t seen or talked to any of them either. No cases have taken me out to Gotham lately.”

The next match had sharp eyes, ones that said they were smarter than everyone else. Cocky. That was like Damian too.

“Eh, they’d probably cover for him anyway. They’re all a bunch of freaks like that.” She grumbled. “Are you…doing okay?”

“I’m fine.” Jon lied, and he knew Maya heard right through it. “Time heals all wounds and all that. Better every day.”

“Oh, Jon…” Maya sighed sympathetically. Jon didn’t even have it in him to be embarrassed at her pity. Not when the next person on the app was standing on a rooftop, flag tied to his neck, blowing gloriously behind him. Looking far too much like every hero persona Damian’s ever been. “Hey – I’ll be back in the States soon. And I promise, I’ll make my first stop coming to see you so we can get drunk and stuff ourselves with pizza and scream about what an asshole Damian is. Okay?”

The next match was posed in the photo in a fencing match. Damian. The next surrounded by Great Danes. Damian. The next playing a violin. Damian. The next wearing a Batman costume at a Halloween party.

Damian.

Damian. Damian. Damian.

He sighed and closed the app. Stupid.

“Yeah. That sounds like exactly what I need, Maya.”

“Great. It’s a date.” She paused a moment. “Love you, dude.”

Jon hesitated, because he hadn’t said those words since Damian. Hadn’t thought them. Hadn’t wanted to think them, not for anyone. Not for family, not for friends. Not for a single person in his life. Still left in his life.

“Love you too, Maya.”

~~

Jon wasn’t a dreamer. He didn’t know if it was his Kryptonian side, or just how he was, but he didn’t dream often. And if he did, if he remembered them, it was only flashes. Only later moments of déjà vu. Never full sequences. Never lucid.

But…this.

They were in Kansas, out in one of Pa’s fields, lying among the wheat. Damian was flat against the ground as Jon laid over him, kissing him as hard and deeply as he could. They both had their arms around the other, grips tight and unyielding. Like if one of them let go, the whole world would disappear.

He doesn’t know why, but it was a noise Damian made. A quiet moan, and his fingers digging desperately into Jon’s shoulders that snapped him out of it. Made him realize.

This wasn’t real.

He began to lean back, pulled his arms from Damian’s shoulders to steady himself. Damian shifted too, but only to hold Jon’s face, to try and chase his lips.

“No, I…” Jon stuttered, his body wanting to do just that. Dive back in and devour Damian whole. But his mind didn’t let him, forced him to continue back until he was on his knees. “We can’t.”

He got to his feet and backed up a step, half turning away. Couldn’t bear the sight of Damian lying in the dirt, shirt half open and hair disheveled, chest heaving from arousal and exertion. “…Jonathan?”

“You’re not real.” Jon almost whined, running his fingers through his hair.

“Is that so?” Damian scoffed. “Since when?”

“Since I know we haven’t been back to Kansas in like a year.” Jon sighed, turning back. “Since I just remembered you broke up with me.”

“Absurd.” Damian laughed. Jon glared down at him, watched as Damian stood, and wiped the dust from his butt. “I would never do such a thing.”

“Well…you did!” Jon spat. “And over the phone! Not even in person!”

“You’re not listening to me.” Damian scolded. He raised his sharp gaze. “I would never do such a thing.”

“…What?” Jon whispered incredulously. “I just…I just told you that you did! And I…” He snorted, shook his head. “You’re not even real. Why the hell am I even trying to argue with you?”

“Because despite what you tell those around you, you miss me.” Damian sauntered over to him with a smirk, and poked at his temple. “Now I need you to use that big brain of yours and focus on what I’m saying. What it means.”

Jon looked down sadly. Gently reached up to take Damian’s hand in his, and turned so he could kiss his palm, could hide his face against Damian’s hand.

Damian just smiled warmly, stepped closer into Jon’s space. Cupped his other hand around the side of Jon’s throat. “Please just remember.” He begged softly. “I would never do such a thing. Never.” He leaned up on his toes, and pressed their foreheads together. “Not to you, Beloved.”

Jon leaned into the gesture, and parted his lips to kiss Damian again.

But then he woke up.

He woke up in the dead of night, with tears streaming down his face, and the memory of the dream burning against his skull.

I would never do such a thing.

“But you did, Damian.” Jon sobbed, clutching his pillow, curling his knees to his chest. Because it felt like his heart was going to tumble out, all the pieces that it had shattered into were going to come spilling out onto his sheets. “You did.”

He didn’t go back to sleep.

~~

Jon let out a low growl as he stomped out of the café. That was a bust. That was a huge fucking waste of his time.

But that’s what he got for trying to jump back into the dating pool.

The girl seemed nice enough in their limited texting interaction. She was cute and not purposefully looked nothing like Damian. She was bubbly and loud, and also not purposefully acted nothing like Damian either.

(Totally not purposefully. Totally.)

But he’d just spent the last hour listening to her rant about conspiracy theories that were already disproven one hundred times over, and rave about how Lex Luthor was the best and coolest and smartest person to ever exist, because he was rich and going to get them all to Mars. She never stopped to let Jon talk. Never stopped to take a breath for herself either.

Needless to say, there’d be no second date. He’d frankly excused himself with a lie to get out of this one early.

(And she’d already texted him about how great of a time she had, and she couldn’t wait to see him again, despite still sitting in the restaurant ten feet behind him.

Jon didn’t like to ghost people – not like certain ex-boyfriends of his – but this one…he couldn’t wait to.)

So it must have been fate that he chose that moment to leave. Not a few minutes before, or decided to suffer through the rest of his rendezvous. Because as soon as he walked out of the café, he spotted one Tim Drake coming out of the building across the street.

Funnily enough, Tim spotted him at almost the exact same moment. Except instead of waving or smiling like Tim normally would, his face visibly paled and his eyes widened, like Jon was the last person on Earth he wanted to see.

Jon frowned when he saw Tim glance around, like he was looking for an escape route. “Tim!” He called before the other could do just that, glancing up and down the street before jogging quickly towards him. “Hey, wait up!”

Tim took a step backwards, like he was going to try to bolt, but in the end stayed where he was, waited for Jon to reach him. Quickly pulled his phone out and scanned the screen before pocketing it again. “Hey Jon…what, uh. What’s going on? How are you?”

“Oh…been better. But trying to stay positive.” Jon laughed knowingly. Tim didn’t react. “How’s the family?”

“Good. Busy.” Tim shrugged. “Lots of, uh…stuff to do. You know how it is.”

Jon nodded, and the two fell into an awkward silence. Tim pulled his phone out again, but quickly threw it back in his pocket.

“How’s…” And Jon didn’t want to ask, but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t curious. Wasn’t desperate to actually know, instead of guessing and assuming. “How’s Damian?”

But to Jon’s the surprise, at the sound of Damian’s name, Tim seemed to practically deflate. He threw his hands across his face, began shaking his head. “God, Jon, I’m so sorry. I know we should have called, or kept you in the loop or something. But we didn’t want you to become a target too or get hurt, or…”

“What?” Jon cut off, gut suddenly dropping. “What are you talking about?”

Tim peeked between his fingers, eyes narrowed. “…What are you talking about?”

“I…I haven’t talked to Damian since he broke up with me.” Jon murmured. Tim’s eyes instantly widened even more in surprise. “I just…wanted to know if he was doing okay?”

“Damian broke up with you?” Tim whispered. “When?”

“Um, I don’t know a month or so ago?” Jon shrugged. “Why? Tim, what’s going on?”

“How did he break up with you?” Tim demanded, suddenly all but lunging at Jon. His eyes darted between Jon’s desperately. “Was it in person?”

“No, it was over the phone.”

“What day?” Tim asked, almost giddy now. “What day did he break up with you, exactly? What day did you get that call?”

“Uh…” Jon pulled out his phone, and went to the call feature. He scanned the list until he found the one he was looking for. The one that ruined his whole life. “The seventh.”

“What time?”

“Like three or four in the afternoon?” Jon huffed. “Tim, why is this relevant? What happened?”

“Have you talked to him since then?” Tim continued, undeterred. “In any way? Text? Call? Carrier pigeon?”

“What? No! I…I tried calling him a few times, to return his stuff and all that, but he never answered.” Tim suddenly backed away from him, running both hands through his hair, like a case was just blown wide open. For the third time, Jon asked: “Tim, what the hell is going on?”

Tim hesitated for a moment, then looked Jon dead in the eyes. “Damian’s been missing for a month.” He said plainly. “He disappeared on the morning of the seventh.”

And just like that day on the phone, it felt like the world was being swallowed into a black hole beneath him. That the universe was disappearing around him, that it wasn’t real.

He could barely breath. “…What?”

“He, Duke and Cass were on a case in France. Without warning all three of them went radio silent. When we got there, we only found Duke and Cass half dead in a vineyard. They said they were attacked by a…a shapeshifter or something, lured them in by transforming into members of the Justice League. That they saw the shapeshifter and their crew dragging Damian away, but they didn’t see where to, or even what direction.”

Jon’s head was spinning.

“We’ve been looking for him day and night ever since. And when you didn’t come looking for him…” Tim winced. “We assumed he’d told you that he would be away on a mission, potentially for a long time. So your absence didn’t concern us. In fact, like I said, we were grateful. We didn’t want you getting wrapped up in this too, and potentially hurt.”

Jon was barely listening anymore, too wrapped up in what he’d just been told. That Damian had been missing since that day. That the reason Damian’s heartbeat sounded so far away was because he was, he was somewhere in Europe. That he wasn’t answering his phone because he was being held captive.

…That it wasn’t Damian on that call.

I would never do such a thing. Never. Not to you.

“…Beloved.” He murmured. Tim instantly stopped in his ramblings.

“…What?” Tim asked.

“On the call, when he broke up with me. First, he never gave a reason, which I thought was crazy. I guess…I guess it makes sense now.” Jon said thoughtfully. “But before we hung up. He said ‘I’m sorry, Beloved.’”

“…So?”

“That’s what Damian had me as in his phone. Not my name.” Jon explained. “Why would he still call me Beloved if he was breaking up with me?”

“…He would have said your name.” Tim said, the truth dawning on him. “The kidnapper wouldn’t know that. They wouldn’t know your name. So they called you what you were listed as.”

“And recognized that I was someone important to him.” Jon finished. “But…why? Why call me just to…break up with me? Why call me at all?”

“I don’t know. We can think about it later.” Tim was instantly back in detective mode, holding out his hand. “Give me your phone.”

“Why?”

“Because we can track where that phone call came from.” Tim wiggled his fingers impatiently. With his other hand, he pulled out his own phone, typing furiously with his thumb. Jon realized that’s why he was checking it so much, that’s why he was in Metropolis at all. He was looking for clues for Damian, anywhere he could. “And that might take us to where this bastard took my brother.”

“...Need a ride to the Batcave?” Jon asked with a sheepish smile. “…The sooner we get there, the sooner we can track this fucker and find Damian.”

Tim pursed his lips in thought, clearly not thrilled at the idea of including Jon, not after they all tried so hard to keep him detached, but eventually returned the grin.

“Get us in the air, Superman.”

[danipixel]

Wherever the Force May Go pt3

Tags: Tags: @maulieber @botherbother-blog @spookiifi @zabrak-show @alicedoestheinternet @rogue-wonderful​ 

Summary:  The new business opportunity on Mandalore isn’t exactly panning out as planned.  Daia’s new employer doesn’t trust her at all.  Tempers flare and she makes a decision that will decide if she remains welcome, or faces the wrath of Maul and Death Watch.

Part 1  Part 2

The bright Mandalorian sunrise filtered through the windows of Daia’s room slowly beckoning her back to consciousness.  Blinking the sleep from her eyes as she sat up, she surveyed her surroundings to get recenter herself.  She was still in Sundari palace and the room still looked like a thermal detonator went off in it.  Standing up from the bed she let out a groan as all of her muscles protested the movement.  “Ah shit.  Okay so yesterday really did happen.”  She quickly dressed herself and worked on making herself look presentable.  

A loud pounding on the door interrupted her morning routine.  The door then slid open revealing Savage surrounded by an air of impatience.  “Get up.  You’re expected at the morning briefings.”

“Just a moment, I’m almost done.”  She set about fetching her boots from the pile she’d left them in the previous night.  “You could have waited more than 5 seconds before opening the door, you know.  I could have been indecent.”  Savage snorted and rolled his eyes.  She finished pulling on her boots and placing her weapons in their usual homes, with her blaster prominently displayed.  There had been no indication as to what would be expected of her today besides to learn, so she might as well look like she belonged among the Mando’ade.  If Death Watch was anything like they used to be, they held more respect for those that armed themselves.  “Okay, ready.”

Savage led her down the long hallways of the palace at a quick pace.  His long strides forced Daia to slightly jog in order to keep up with him.  They walked the halls in silence for a few minutes before Daia finally broke the quiet. “It’s Savage, right?”

He momentarily flicked his eyes in her direction before answering.  “Yes.”  An answer is better than being ignored, I guess.

She took a deep breath before speaking again.  “Does Death Watch know about me?  I mean, they obviously know I exist but, do they know I used to be a Jedi?” Savage still would not look in her direction while speaking.  “They know what you told them.  Why does it matter?”  There’s the million credit question.

Her hands ran over her face a few times before she had a semblance of an answer for him.  “Things get...complicated when people find out.  Especially when they’re Mandalorian.”  Exactly one member of Death Watch had found out about her past before, and had immediately tried to kill Daia for it.  That woman was now a corpse in Concordia’s forests.  Mandalorian distrust of Force users runs deep.

Savage finally glanced at her but never broke his stride.  He didn’t seem to understand her dislike of revealing her past to most people.  “Death Watch remains unaware.  Hide what you are if you wish, Jedi.”

“Not a Jedi.”  Daia whispered to herself.  The two continued down the halls of the palace.  Her mind unfocused, Daia kept trying to find anything to keep her mind busy.  Patience and quiet were never her strong suits.  She settled on studying the man she was walking with.  He was huge, that much was obvious.  He carried himself with less grace than his brother but with the same confidence in his own power.  Wait, how did I not notice this yesterday? Her eyes focused on his left arm as she realized the entire thing was synthetic.  That was a detail she had failed to notice the previous day.  Whatever life the two Zabrak had led before coming to Mandalore, it had obviously been a violent one.  A sudden thought crossed her mind about the previous night’s…  What even was that? An attack?  A test?

She held her hand up to get his attention.  “Hey, Savage.  I want to apologize for last night.”

He fully looked at her after hearing her words.  “What?  Apologize for what?”  He didn’t understand what there was to apologize for.

“For the table.”  She gestured at her face and then at his.  “I know we were fighting but still.  Sorry about that.”

“Last night”  Savage’s voice took a slightly threatening edge,  “was not a fight.”

“You’re right.  Had it been a real fight,”  Daia stretched out her painfully sore arms.  “one of us wouldn’t be here this morning.”

Savage stopped walking to turn and study her for a moment.  Confusion and mild surprise painted his yellow and black features.  “I accept your apology.”  That’s it?  He’s just fine?  

The two rounded the corner into the familiar hallway that led to the throne room.  The door slid open to the brightly lit throne room and it was already filled with people.  Savage entered first nodding to his brother as he guided Daia to stand far to the side of the throne.  Maul was at his rightful place in Mandalore’s throne, one leg thrown over the arm of his seat while he leaned on the other.  Daia made momentary eye contact with him as she walked past and smiled.  “Good morning.  Sleep well?”

Maul studied her face a moment but didn’t respond to her.  Instead he addressed the rest of the room while they took their seats.  “Many of you met Daia after her...entrance yesterday morning.  She will be joining us for these meetings for the time being.”  He turned to pin her in place with his gaze.  “Pay her presence no mind.”

Savage whispered to her before taking his place at Maul’s right hand. “Stay here and stay quiet.”  She was beginning to feel more and more like a captive than an employee.

The meeting began with a wave of Maul’s hand.  The first priorities of the day being domestic matters.  Almec droned on and on for what felt like hours.  While he kept talking, Daia took stock of who was in the room with her.  Several members of Death Watch lined the room, acting as a palace guard force.  Saxon and Kast stood near Maul with their helmets removed.  Kast had changed her hairstyle since the last time Daia had seen her but that was no surprise.  Saxon still looked like he had just eaten something sour.  Can he make any other expressions?  In the seats near Almec were two holographic figures.  A Falleen and a Pyke.  That was never a good combination to see.  He’s got Black Sun and the Pykes working for him?  Shit.  Daia was unaware of just how much power Maul wielded from this world but it was obviously substantial.  She took a quick glance over to the two brothers.  They seemed just as bored as she was but Maul seemed to mask it better than both her and Savage.

After about a week of speaking, Almec finally surrendered the floor to someone else.  Thank the Force, he’s done.  It was Rook Kast’s turn to speak.  “There are some new weapons we’ve been trying to get a hold of for weeks on Agamar.  The Separatist fleet is still an obstacle.”  Savage visibly perked up at the mention of weaponry but Maul only reacted with the slightest of expression change.  Had she not been a Force user, Daia most certainly would have missed it.  Maul had a greater amount of control over himself than his brother.

Maul shifted to lean forward in his seat.  “Are these weapons something we truly need?”  Mandalorians need weapons like they need air.  Of course she’s gonna say yes.

Saxon stepped forward to answer for Kast.  “My Lord Mand’alor, these weapons are more powerful than the ones we are currently equipped with and as our ranks increase, so too do our needs to arm them appropriately.”

Maul considered his soldier’s words for a moment before turning to the holograms before him.  “What about Black Sun or the Pykes?  Can your ships make it to the surface?”  Daia snorted softly and rolled her eyes.  The Pykes were drug lords.  They didn’t care if they got caught.  They’d just send more spice on a different ship.  Black Sun was no better.  They were brutes.  Sure, they could provide capable soldiers and bounty hunters but they lacked the finesse needed to sneak past military vessels.  He’s lucky he hired me.

The transparent Pyke spoke first.  “There’s no guarantee of success but we will send the ships, my Lord.”  They’ll just get caught.  The Falleen also responded.  “Our pilots will succeed when the Pykes fail.”  Like hell they will.

Daia couldn’t keep quiet any longer.  Maul was making a mistake by letting these two idiots try to get his shipments.  She stepped forward from her place by the wall and addressed Maul specifically.  “I can get those weapons for you.  I’ve slipped past Separatists plenty of times before.”

Maul fixed her with a glare that could burn a hole through a star.  “You will do no such thing.”  He was clearly angry at the sudden interruption.  Daia felt the Force flare out with his outburst.  To his side, Savage narrowed his eyes with a similar look of displeasure. 

She knew she was right and continued to press the matter “But you…”  Maul quickly stood and threw her back to the wall and held her in place with the Force.  “No.  That is final.”  He continued holding her in place as he stalked in her direction to snarl directly in her face.  “Is that understood?”  She felt her temper flare but let it go before she could do something else stupid.  “Of course, Lord Mand’alor.”  Maul released his hold on Daia and turned to return to his throne.  

The rest of the meeting continued without incident.  Daia stayed focused on Maul the entire time.  The information being shared didn’t matter to her anymore.  She was pissed and he knew it.  There was no way he couldn’t feel it.

Once the meeting ended and those in attendance started to filter out of the throne room,  Daia left her spot on the wall to leave as well.  Maul quickly barked her name to stop her.  I guess he’s not done.  Fine.  Quickly she made her way back to the throne and started talking before he could berate her.  “You said I would start work today.  Smuggling weapons past a Separatist fleet sounds an awful lot like what you hired me to do.”

Maul rose and immediately entered her personal space, never once letting go of her gaze.  “I also told you that you are to remain in this city until I decide you may leave it.”

Daia’s eyes may have lacked the flaming appearance of Maul’s but the fire was certainly present regardless.  “Very well Lord Mand’alor.”  She dipped into an exaggerated bow.  “Shall I inform you when I eat, bathe, and sleep as well?  If there are no more restrictions on my movements, I’d like to go to my ship and let my job contacts know I’ll be unavailable for longer than I expected.”

A soft growl left Maul’s throat before he stepped back.  “I expect you back here in the morning.” “Of course.  Whatever my lord wishes, right?”  She turned on her heels and strode back out of the throne room.  

The long walk to her ship was thankfully uneventful, the only people she was forced to interact with being the same dock guards she’d seen the other day.  Lowering the ramp of the Fever Dream, she trudged her way up and into the small freighter.  Thoughts about how the last two days could have gone so wrong so fast had slowed her usual confident gait.  Lost in thought she was suddenly in the cockpit in front of the long range communication console.  The console was lit up to alert her to waiting messages.  Pressing a couple buttons revealed a small holoprojection of a Rodian missing his left antennae.  “Daia I asked around and I finally got a couple jobs for you.  These are gonna get snatched up quick so get back to me asap.”  Well shit.  Aside from Death Watch, Skax always found the best paying work.  It wasn’t always necessarily safe or completely legal but it kept plenty of credits in her hands and fuel in the ship.

With a sigh she sent a signal out to Corellia hoping the Rodian would answer.  After a minute a similar holoprojection to before shimmered before her eyes.  “Well if it isn’t my favorite pilot!  You get my message?”  If his joyful demeanor was anymore painted on, it would flake off his face.

“Yeah Skax.  I got your message.  Look, I’m gonna be unavailable for a while.  I may have done something stupid.”  May have was an understatement.  The more she thought about it, the more certain she was that this whole trip had been a mistake.  The Force had tried to warn her something was off but she didn’t listen.

Skax muttered in Rodese for a moment before switching back to Basic.  “What do you mean unavailable?  Is your ship damaged?  That thing never breaks.”  That’s because I don’t tell you how often I fix it.

Daia shook her head with a small insincere smile.  “No, she’s not broken.  I’m just gonna be grounded on Mandalore for a while.  I’ll contact you when I can leave again.”  With no indication as to how long she’d be stuck in Sundari, a while was the best answer she had.  

The Rodian’s sickly pleasant demeanor finally dropped as he threw his arms in the air.  “What the fuck are you even doing on Mandalore?  I thought you stopped going back there months ago.”  

“So did I.  Look, I’m fine.  I just can’t take any work right now.  Let someone else have them.  I’ll get in touch with you later.  Try not to miss me too much.”  She ended the transmission before he could argue with her.  She knew he’d get over being cut off.  He always did.

The second day of her extended stay at the palace began the same as the previous, with a pounding on her door, but this time Savage waited outside instead of forcing his way in.  After a final check of her clothing and weapons she stuffed a large yellow fruit between her teeth and walked out the door after her chaperone.  Walking down the hallway she finally took a bite of her breakfast.  The fruit flooded her mouth with a bright sweet flavor that made her momentarily forget she was under house arrest.  Savage’s words broke her silent reverie.  “What is that?”

“This?”  She held up the fruit in her hand.  “A meiloorun.  You can get them in every market from here to Coruscant.  I love them.”  

He just shrugged and shook his head at the unfamiliar fruit.  He’s never had one?  That won’t do at all.  Carnivore or not, every sapient being had to try one at least once.  “Hang on a second.”  She pulled a small knife out of her pocket and Savage instinctively grabbed her wrist to stop her movements.  “It’s for the fruit, not you.  Knife’s not big enough anyway.”    Once he let go of the vice grip on her wrist she cut the fruit in half and offered one to Savage.  “Here.  It’s illegal to be a grown man and have never tried it once.”

Savage looked between Daia and the fruit with extreme suspicion but made no move to take the offered fruit.  She huffed and slapped it into his hand.  “If I was going to kill you, I wouldn’t use a fruit.  Just eat it.”

He sniffed at it and tentatively took a small bite while Daia rolled her eyes at him.  The juice and sweetness caused his eyes to widen in surprise before he greedily finished the rest.  A small smile crept onto his face before he was able to hide the unbidden expression.  After a few seconds of wrestling with his thoughts, Savage muttered “Thank you.”

“No problem.”  She couldn’t help the smile on her face as they finished walking to the throne room for what was sure to be another mind numbing meeting.

The throne room was the same as the previous morning, the only difference being Almec’s clothing and Maul’s ever changing seating position on the throne.  Maul’s gaze followed her as she and Savage walked across the room to her place on the wall.  She nodded and smiled at him as she passed but said nothing.

The meeting began with a wave of Maul’s hand as it had the day before.  Almec droned on again, Saxon and Kast gave their reports on Death Watch’s work.  Daia half watched Maul’s reactions and half pretended she was somewhere else until she heard the Pyke representative mention the weapons waiting on Agamar.  “My lord Maul, we have not heard word from our ship sent to Agamar.  We have sent a second to ensure their success.  We...we hope to hear from them by day’s end.”  You won’t.  

Maul’s irritation whipped dark waves around him in the Force.  Everyone in the chamber fell silent,  It didn’t take Force sensitivity to sense his feelings about failure.  He completely ignored the holographic Pyke as he addressed the Falleen. “Have your ships ready to go to Agamar by morning.”  He snapped his head back to the Pyke  “For your own sake, you had best bring news of your success tomorrow.”  The Pyke took a step back despite being on another planet. “Ye-yes lord Maul.”

Daia sent out a small message through the Force to Maul before the next person spoke.  A simple sensation more than words.  A push to say that she could perform whatever task was laid before her.  He responded to her intrusion by shoving her back into the wall without so much as looking in her direction.  All heads turned in her direction at the sound of her back smacking into the wall.  “It’s nothing, please continue.”

The daily briefing finished as it had before and Daia walked out the door with the rest of those who had attended.  She spent the rest of her day walking through the city or fighting with P4R-E in the palace training room.

The next day started with another pound on the door from Savage.  This time when Daia left the room she tossed him his own meiloorun with a grin.  “Since you liked the last one so much.”

Savage responded with a smile of his own before enjoying his gift.  The two walked in comfortable silence to the throne room for Daia’s third day of being Maul’s wall decoration.  

Once again Almec droned, then Kast and Saxon delivered reports.  Again, Daia kept her eyes on Maul monitoring his responses, both visible and only present in the Force.  This time, a different Pyke representative was present.  I guess they failed.  Big surprise.  Maul spoke to the Falleen hologram “Send your ships.  Do not fail me.”  The Falleen bowed, “Yes lord Maul.”

Daia stepped away from the wall and cleared her throat.  “Lord Mand’alor, I believe that you would have more success if I was permitted to accompany the Black Sun ships in my own ship.  I swear to you, I can make it to the surface of that planet.”  Maul stared at her for a moment, his expression completely unreadable to her.  “No.”  Why am I even here if he won’t listen?

She left the room as soon as everyone had finished.  The Death Watch target range called to her.  She needed to shoot something, or several things many times.  Death Watch had taken over a section of the gardens to convert into their own personal target range.  Armored warriors joked and showed off their marksmanship for one another.  A few kept to themselves and stayed focused on their targets while others still crowded around benches to clean and maintain their weapons after their firing exercises.

Daia pulled her blaster out of its holster and gave it a quick once over as she made her way to join the others.  It could use a good cleaning.  She’d have to disassemble it and scrub it clean after her practice today.  She’d been too lost in thought to keep an eye on what was in front of her until she collided with an armored chest.  Looking up she found herself face to face with Gar Saxon, wearing a particularly intense look of disapproval.  “What are you doing here smuggler?”

“The same thing as the rest of you.”  She looked around as if he could have been speaking to anybody else.  “Perfecting my aim and taking care of my blaster.” Saxon crossed his arms and stayed planted directly in her path.  “You aren’t welcome here.” Daia rolled her eyes and scoffed at him.  Shit, did he find out?  “I was welcome amongst you all the last time you saw me.  In fact, I recall sharing drinks with most of you.” “Last time we saw you, you were bringing much needed supplies to Concordia.”  Saxon leaned down close to her face.  She should have felt threatened but with the way her week had been going, she was just irritated.  “Then you stopped without notice.  Some of our soldiers starved without those rations.  What makes you think you’d be welcome among us after that?” “I’m sorry but last I checked, you stopped contacting me.”  After her last visit, Almec had been thrown in prison and Viszla had tried killing a Jedi in his attempt to take Mandalore for the Duchess.  It was best that Daia remain scarce until somebody from Mandalore or Concordia contacted her.  Nobody ever did.  “It’s a little hard to set up cargo drop off when your contacts are either in prison, exiled, or dead.”

“Let her through, Saxon.”  Kast came up from behind him and gave him a shove to the side.  “Mand’alor told her to make herself at home in the palace.  Like it or not, she can be here too.”

Saxon snorted and shoved his way past Daia, bumping her shoulder with his armored one on the way out.  Feeling petty, she lightly flicked her fingers as she slightly tripped him up with the Force.  His quiet curse brought a satisfied smirk to her face.  “Vor’e, Kast.  Would you care to join me?  There’s no shortage of targets.”

“Ba’gedet’ye.” Kast waved away Daia’s thanks.  “I guess I’ll have to stay and teach you how to shoot properly.”

“Is that so?”  Daia barked out a laugh and made her way to the nearest shooting lane.  She pulled out her blaster again and took aim at the humanoid shape downrange.  “I look forward to making you eat those words.”

She stayed at the range for a few hours, trading shots with Kast and mocking each other whenever a blaster bolt went wide.  It felt good to have a friend on Mandalore again.  When they’d had their fill the two cleaned their weapons and went their separate ways, but not before making plans to meet up for target practice again.  After Kast left, Daia found herself a meal and took off to the training room for P4R-E's company for the rest of the evening.  Perhaps fighting with her droid would erase her frustration with her employer.

Another morning, another pounding on her door.  Five days since she had come to Mandalore and four of them spent as Maul's silent pet.  This time she walked past Savage without stopping as she deposited a meiloorun in his waiting hand.  "Come on.  Your brother's waiting for me to hold up the throne room wall again."  The path to the throne room was beyond familiar and allowed her mind to wander until she once again found herself leaning in the same spot she'd occupied for most of the week.  Her mind slipped into the Force, feeling the failure of the Black Sun before anyone could address it.  Maul must have felt it too.  His presence in the Force had become an inky rolling boil, a significant change from its usual flowing shadows.  Somewhere in the room Daia distantly heard someone mention contacting the Hutts for a ship to make the pickup.  The boil around Maul managed to become even more intense as she felt her own temper flare simultaneously.  The Hutts?  Only if you want them to steal a quarter of your cargo and claim they lost it.  Her patience had finally met its end.  The moment others began to leave, she flew out of the room without a word and back to her own.

Daia's mind was a flurry of thoughts as she gathered the necessary things for a fast trip off of Mandalore.  I'll get those fucking weapons.  She shouldered her bag and paused a moment to leave a bowl of meilooruns on the table with a note, “Savage, these are all yours.”  She stormed out the door and made a beeline for the Fever Dream.  The same guards she’d seen every time nodded as she passed.  “Just dropping some things I don’t need at the ship.  I’ll be right back,” She lied.

Once out of sight she dropped her bag and ran for the cockpit.  “Who does he think he is?  Sending Hutts to do my fucking job.  Bastard.”  Daia’s hands flew over the controls of her ship, skipping through her usual preflight checks and firing up the engines.  The ship rose from the platform and began to turn in place to head out of the city.  Over the roar of the engines, Daia could just make out the guards shouting at her, probably to land the ship before they shoot.  She waved at them out the window before closing the loading ramp and flying up into the atmosphere.

Before she could rise high enough to watch the sky turn from blue to black her comm crackled and Saxon’s furious voice filled the cockpit.  “What do you think you are doing?!”

She checked her proximity sensors.  No one was following her.  Not yet anyway.  She hit the comm to open the channel so she could answer the man.  “I’m doing my damn job.”

Saxon wasn’t hearing it.  She didn’t think he would anyway.  “You have exactly 15 seconds to turn around before I blast that piece of garbage out of the sky.” Daia let out a sharp laugh at his threat.  “Now now Saxon, why would you shoot someone else’s ship down when it’s me you’re mad at?”  Every moment she kept him arguing with her was another moment for her to fly out of his range.

The supercommando ignored her and began counting down.  “15...14...13...12...11…10...9...” She cut off his countdown.  “I’m sorry, I’m having difficulty hearing you.  Did you say ‘nine’ or ‘good flying’?”  A few more seconds was all she needed before being able to jump to hyperspace.

Maul’s voice rolled out of her comm’s speaker.  “Let her go.”  He must have been standing there listening the entire time. “I’m sorry Lord Maul, what?” came Saxon’s confused reply.

“I said, let her go.”  Daia could hear the irritation in his voice at being questioned.  There was also a hint of curiosity behind it.  He wants to see if I can do it, doesn’t he?  “Either she returns with the weapons or she dies and is no longer our concern.  I trust you heard that Daia.  Either you return with those weapons, or don’t bother coming back at all.”

Again she let out a short laugh.  “Oh that won’t be a problem at all, handsome.  Hopefully the palace doesn’t collapse without me holding up the walls.  Try not to miss me too much.”  Her ship had cleared the atmosphere completely.  She was free.  With one last glance back to the planet behind her, she hit the hyperdrive and was thrown away from Mandalore and towards Agamar and her prize.

[barcaavengers]

Complete Safe Haven||Newt Imagine

Note: I'm not that proud of this since I edited it about 6 times. I feel like it lacks something I can't really tell what it is, but here it is! Will definitely write a part two so we will see how everyone responds to it. I was listening to "That Would Be Enough" from Hamilton cause I think it tells a bit how Newt could be somewhat hesitant of the idea of having a baby after everything he has gone through and how unsure he can be of himself, you know? I don't know, that song inspired me a bit. Also, struggled a lot to think how the Safe Haven would be like after two years of them moving there so yep. Feedback and ideas are encouraged! <3

Tag: Tagging those who liked my posts that I was writing it since I said a few weeks ago it was going to be up and totally didn’t. @late-to-the-fandom-party @loverofmazeandthrones @gaymistakeboi @enixgucci @the-panwitch @expectroyalpurple @thepotatoes-havefallen @queenkitten695 @lovefelps @kurtzyoufunkylittledruggyprimary​ @smallsleepywriter​ @haiykuuia​ @sskeletonsoffun @thiccheerioss​ @demiwitchavenger7​ @infinite-piper​ @sungjungelf​ @hanniejji​ @solovehasblindedyou​ @sleepysnapesnake​ @little-odd-dude​ @washing-machine-headcannons​

The soft waves going against your body so early in the morning was your favorite feeling ever since you have gotten to the Safe Haven. The waves would just make you forget what had happened, cleared your head from any memory that was too painful, and those were mostly of that night. You still had nightmares, watching him turn into a Crank, his attacks, him hurting you unconsciously...You were lucky that things ended the way they did, but even then, you knew that those memories would always get to you. Arms rest on your shoulders making you jump, but relax under the knowing touch, rubbing your shoulder blades soothingly and you smile. "Hey."

"Morning, love" Newt's voice was still groggy, you guessed it hasn't been long since he woke up. "Why aren't you in bed?" He presses a kiss on your shoulder before his hands land on your waist, the soft waves rocking you both slightly.

"You kicked me out" you say playfully as you turn to him. 

"What a terrible boyfriend I am," he says with a chuckle. "When was the last time you slept properly?" 

It has been about two years since you have moved to the Safe Haven. The island was now covered in construction, buildings, and houses. Yesterday it was your four year anniversary, and Newt had planned a beautiful evening in what you were proud to call your new house, "First night home" he called it. After living in a small hut that reminded you of the Glade, now you had a bigger house, all for the two of you. You have been looking into The Last City, or what used to be, after Jorge took you and others back a few months ago, and you had the chance to gather a few technology items in a somewhat black market set in the city. The immunes that survived had built a city within the city, but no sign of what Wicked once was. You had seen people losing themselves to the Flare, so you started to play around with the idea of a cure again, using Thomas' blood and trying to figure out what made his blood different, without human trials and finding a way to help without draining him from his blood. You managed to do it with Newt. Vitals were missed when he attacked Thomas' back at the Last City and the serum was administered when he woke up on your way to this place. You took the serum and mixed it with some of Thomas' blood and applied a second dose, that one seemed to have done it. Unfortunately there wasn't enough serum for everyone back there and you had to find a way. 

"I can't say" you admit with a smirk. "I need to keep working…" you say as he removes a strand of hair from your face. 

"You look pale every morning, love" he points out.

"Maybe the late nights I'm working" but you knew better than that. Newt hasn't noticed, but you have been having morning sickness more often and feeling dizzy. 

"Take a break" he kisses your forehead. "We have our new home, we have to enjoy it" he says and you smile. You had a slight idea of what could be going, but instead of raising hopes, you rather wait to get things confirmed. 

Vince had brought a doctor who was the one to help you around the idea of a cure, as well as helped you learn a few things about medicine. She agreed to run a few tests while Newt was out with Thomas, Gally and Minho as they went to check an area for tonight to set a bonfire like back at the Glade, just a close group of friends, you have refused when they asked you to go and went to get the results at the medical hut instead. 

"Hey" you greet the doctor after walking into the tent. 

"Y/N," she greets as she turns around. "Couldn't wait I see?" She teases. 

"I have barely slept" you admit with a nervous smirk. "Between this and thinking of ways to make the cure…"

"You shouldn't lose sleep over this" Elena, the doctor, says as she lifts a piece of paper causing your heartbeat to increase. 

"Oh God…" you mutter. 

"You ready?" She asks as she walks towards you and you nod. "You might not know much about medicine and all this, but you were right" she hands you the piece of paper, your eyes widening. "Congratulations."

For a moment every sound goes silent, it felt like everything around you stopped and so many feelings rushed in. How were you supposed to feel? How would Newt react? "I-"

Elena reaches you and places a hand on your shoulder, "Everything alright?"

"I don't know…" you say. "I never really thought about it...I mean, I did but now that it happened…"

"You are scared" she says and you nod your head slowly. "Don't be" she assures you. "If what you are scared of is Newt's reaction, I think he will be shocked at first, but he will grow to the idea of it. He loves you."

"I can't even think of a way to tell him…" you admit. "What about this place? I don't think it's completely baby proof."

"No place is baby proof. Certainly not during these times" she points out. "Doesn't mean everyone will stop having babies. You will have everyone's support I'm that sure. We will look into ways to get what you need as everything goes" somehow her words made your whole body relax. 

You were away from Wicked, away from the Flare it seemed, but you never trusted that. The Flare could travel through air according to Ava, and Wicked could easily find you if they get as determined as they were, if there was anyone left that would go with such crazy trials. It didn't appear so, the times you have been into the Standing City you have not heard a word from Wicked or possible takers in the tasks. Everyone who survived the attack was just trying to get their lives before the Flare decided their faith, and any immune would just mind their business. Would there be anyone crazy enough to bring back what Wicked once was? Or something worse? Your mind was spinning around the idea. You didn't want your kid to be taken away and used for crazy experiments and trials, you knew that much. Not that you wouldn't do anything in your power to keep them safe from anything that happened. 

You have gone back to your new house and went to lay back on the hammock to try to keep all your feelings in check and find a way to tell Newt the news. Will he be happy? Will he have the same thoughts of bringing a baby to the Safe Haven was a bad timing right now? It wasn't planned, but it wasn't not planned either. It was going to happen eventually. You two were careful, but after some time you two stopped, knowing the consequences but did it anyway. Was it maybe that you both have wanted this but never talked about it with the other? You knew you wanted a life with Newt, wanted everything with him, but what about him? Kids were not something you two have talked about before, because you two were now growing into the relationship and taking bigger steps, like the new house he had built up along with the guys for the two of you. 

"Hey, love" Newt calls as he walks in and you turn around from your hammock.

"Hey" he leans in and you peck his lips once you sit up. "How was it?"

"Well, it's not the Glade," Newt says as he stares off blankly. "but it's big enough for a group of us. I don't think many people would get going in the middle of nowhere and set a bonfire and get drunk...or fight Gally" he chuckles and you join him. 

"The latter is the one people won't get" you say and lean against him, your heart beating wildly as you thought of telling him. 

"Probably" he says and wraps an arm around your waist and pulls you close. "I mean, getting wasted is kind of a thing to go for that one. I don't think that anyone right upstairs would fight Gally, except you when you kicked his ass" he adds. "I'm betting on you to do it again in front of everyone," he smirks. 

"That was a good day" you agree and smirk. "Don't think I'll have the same luck now" he takes your hand and kisses your knuckles. 

"Let's go get ready for tonight" he says and kisses your forehead before pulling you by your hand. 

When you arrive at the bonfire, you see that even if not many have come, it was enough to make you remember your times at the Glade and you feel a knot growing on your throat, eyes watering. You remembered Chuck, Winston and Alby. Newt side eyes you and pulls you close, "I'm okay" you assure him.

"You don't have to be" he throws an arm around your shoulder and kisses the side of your temple. "I know what it feels like," he knew that this was giving you major flashbacks. "They wouldn't want us moping around though, so let's go have some fun" he takes your hand and makes you spin after he pulls away and you giggle, he pulls you close to him again and join the others.

Newt was with the boys while you sat with Harriet, Sonya and Brenda. They knew about your tests, so that was the topic. 

"So? What did they say?" Sonya asks as she leans in. 

"I bet it is what I said. Come on, I can't be the only one who thought about it as soon as she said how she was feeling" Brenda says with her hand extended to you. 

"I don't know if I should tell you" you tease as you grin. "Or just say it at the bonfire...at some point" you say and look back at Newt who gives you a wink, making your cheeks flush. 

"Oh come on, you are gonna make us wait?" Harriet says with a pout. "Please?" Her hand extends and you sigh, pulling out the piece of paper that read the results. You were carrying them around hoping to know when the time would be right. 

The girls gather around Harriet, all of them smiling which only makes you grin wider when their eyes widen and the three look at you in cue. "Oh my God!" Sonya squeals before moving to you and hugging you. 

"Just keep it a secret for a few, I haven't told him yet," you say and she pulls away. 

"Right. Of course. Newt should be the first to know anyway" Sonya says as she pushes her hair back and tries to act normal. "I'm so happy for you guys! It's like everything starts getting normal around here."

"Life wise anyway" Brenda says as she looks at you. "How do you plan on telling him?"

"I'm not sure…" you admit. "but I have to do it soon. Gally is going to bring his moonshine any minute now and I can't find an excuse to neglect it" you point out and just in cue Gally walks to the clearing. 

"Leave that up to me" Brenda says as she stands up and pats your shoulder before walking towards the boy. You eye her curiously and you smile at how nice Gally was around Brenda, not like he wasn't nice with the others, but he smiled and laughed quite often. Brenda puts her hand on his shoulder and you look at Sonya and Harriet. 

"We are as clueless as you are" Harriet says and you laugh. 

Time goes by and you are all eating and laughing. The groups have gotten together and now you were all closer to the bonfire. Gally was around handing over his moonshine and Brenda helped. After everyone had their drink, Brenda spoke, "I know we have done our own bonfires before," she begins, "but this one is different for some of us. To some this is a reminder of how we bonded" she looks at you and you look at Newt who smiles. "For others, it's a reminder that no matter what, we have fun with the people closest to us, our new family" she raises her glass. "For our family" she says and her eyes widen at you and you shake your head before you feel Sonya's hand shoving you slightly, so you stand, holding your own moonshine.

"For our family," your knees feel like giving up on you from how nervous you felt. "For the one that we found..." you trail off. Your heart was beating wildly against your chest, hearing the thuds in your ear. "And for the ones on the way" you say and place a hand on your stomach, your eyes glued to Newt whose eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Then, there was silence for a few seconds.  

"No way!" Frypan is the first to get it, a huge smile on his lips, Minho eyes him like if he was crazy. 

"Am I missing something here? Secret conversation?" You eye the girls and they are laughing at how clueless the boys were after Minho's words.

"Dude, come on! Y/N is going to have a baby!" Frypan pushes Minho before his smile fades for a moment and looks at you. "At least that's what I took as a hint…?" 

You laugh nervously and you eye Newt whose mind seems to be lost in the maze, everyone is looking at you waiting for the confirmation. "Newt, we…" your words feel jumbled up, "You are going to be a dad" you say and everyone starts cheering around. Newt's eyes go wide open as he processes the information, everyone is patting his back and congratulating him but he was motionless. They come to you as well, and even if you are smiling and saying thanks, your eyes were glued to your boyfriend. 

Everyone started to drink and cheer, except Newt who was looking down at his drink, your mood was slowly dropping, but you found some courage to walk to him after a few minutes. "You alright?" You ask as you sit next to him against a log. 

Your voice breaks him out of his trance and he looks at you before nodding his head, "Yeah, just... wrapping my head around what you just said…"

"I know it's a lot to get around with...I still don't believe it…" you say. 

"I should be more excited...and I am, trust me...but I can't help but think…"

"Newt, I know we never-"

"It's not that" he shakes his head and looks at you. "Not the slightest. I might not have said it, but after everything started to settle down, I started to think about us...our future" he says and takes your hand in his. "I thought so many things and you were always there, but…"

"But?" You were expecting the worst. 

"Y/N, I don't have anything to offer to you, or the baby," you frown as you watch him play with your fingers. "Not now, anyway. This place is being built from scraps.."

"Newt, I don't know what you mean by that…" your free hand goes up to his hair, running your fingers through it. 

 "We have a home now, but... We are still getting used to this place, we don't have all the supplies, the equipment…"

"We do this as it goes, like Thomas does" you say to make him smile, which he chuckles at.

"I know" he continues to play with your fingers avoiding your gaze. You could tell he wasn’t at all convinced, so you tighten your fingers around his. 

"Hey," you call. "Talk to me…" You try to meet his gaze, but it was dropped to your fingers. 

"I-" he pauses. "I am happy, I don't want you to think I am not" he finally meets your eyes. "Having everything with you...Just makes this place way better" he smiles. "And having a little girl just like you" he cups your face with one hand and kisses your lips. "Who else can say they survived what we have and have a family" he says playfully and you grin. "But bringing our baby to this...place, this world…" he confesses, his fingers running nervously on his lips. 

"Newt, I know…" you assure him. 

"I don't want them to go through what we did, Y/N…" he admits. "I don't want them to live in a world where they could be chased for being healthy, or feel cursed because they are not immune to the Flare like I was."

"I'm just as scared and I will work on a cure now more than ever...but we can't start worrying like this…" you take his hand and place it on your stomach. "We will figure it out like we always do, together" he is looking at your stomach, his concerned features softening. 

You can see his body relaxing, his thumb moving soothingly on its place on your stomach. "There is a little boy or girl growing right there and it's ours…" 

"I know you'll do anything for them…" you assure him. You felt like Newt had to be reassured, and you could understand where he came from. He has overcome so much to get where he is now, from the dark places of his mind to what was now his new life. He was doubting himself, to not being able to provide your baby with the best, but what was that here in the Safe Haven? The simplest thing you had them already. You were all healthy, you had a home, food, friends...You still had time to get used to the idea and get adjusted at the thought that soon it was going to be more than just the two of you. 

The Safe Haven has provided you with everything you needed for a basic life, and every now and then as you went to the remains of the city you tried to bring something that would help. Jorge and Brenda were working with technology along with some of the other Gladers from other groups. It was true, this place was being brought up by remains of what once was the Last City, but it was getting close to what you once imagined it would turn to. 

"I love you, princess…" he pulls you in and gives you a kiss, the type he holds his breath and let's go of it softly through his nostrils, making it last. "I'm sorry for not acting like you probably wanted me to…"

"I get it. It's a lot to take in. I feel the same way" you admit. "I was so scared of what you would say" you pause. "But we have gone through so many things together that I don't think a baby will be the exception" you voice. 

"It scares me to death to be quite honest" he says with a smirk. "I'm trying my best to be optimistic here, I am" he paused. "I'm happy to start a family with you, but just the thought of what could happen… This place is not ready for a baby…"

"I know...but we have time. We will know…" he is staring at you lovingly, smiling. 

"Congratulations!" Thomas joins you with Frypan, sitting right besides you. 

"Took you long enough" Minho says as he steps in. 

In the deepest part of your head, you were somewhat disappointed that the boys seemed to be more excited about it then Newt. Yes, the blonde was scared of the what ifs and the possibilities and so were you, yet something told you that he wasn't very wrapped around the idea of it and his mind was only repeating the bad scenarios. 

"Shut up, Minho" Newt says, but the boy only grins. 

"I am going to have a little helping hand in the kitchen in a few months" Fry says. 

"I could use the help patrolling" Thomas and Vince have established a guard in the island. Not like much happened, you knew everyone and they all went by the rules set, but it gave you the sense of feeling that if anything were to happen, you'd be ready. 

"You are all doing bloody plans without the baby even being born" Newt says. 

"Don't look at me I haven't said anything," Minho says. "It'd be nice if it has Y/N's genes though. No offense."

"Well that baby wasn't done just by me, Minho, so be ready" you say playfully. 

"I don't need to know the whole thing so if you can skip the lesson" Minho says. 

"Newt, you alright?" Thomas calls out and you look behind you at your boyfriend. 

"Yeah, just, thinking…" you frown. "Just give me some time, that's all" he admits and smiles, placing his hand on your belly and looms up at you, something told you he will grow to the idea of it soon. 

"So Y/N, can't drink with us now, so let's drink for her" Minho raises his cup and Fry cheers, shoving Newt playfully. 

"To our baby, I guess" he says with a shrug. 

"Our?" Minho questions. 

"Not ours you slinthead" Newt reaches to try to smack the back of Minho's head playfully. "Ours" he looks down at you and you smile softly. 

"It's the baby from our Glade anyway" Thomas says. "I'm happy for the two of you" he gives your arm a soft squeeze and you nod your head. 

"So, when is it too soon to start thinking of names?" Fry asks and the boys look at you. 

"How the hell should I bloody know?" Newt asks after sipping on his cup making the boys chuckle. 

Thomas eyes you as the guys talk to each other, and his eyebrows furrow in question. You shake your head and do a small wave with your hand to tell him that you will talk to him later. If someone could help you understand what was going through Newt's mind was Thomas, or Minho, but mostly Thomas. Newt seems to trust him more for a few things. 

Now it was a matter to wait and see how things went. At least it was out there that you were expecting, and Newt knew. Thing now was, how everything was going to start working after these news… 

[sneezehq]

Broken then Mended

"Do you know how much it hurts to see your friends hurting and to not be able to do anything about it?"

Just an idea that has been bouncing around in my head for a while, since I felt like it was unfair for Ruby to get pushed out of talking to Yang and Weiss like that when she's been trying so hard to help. Set in volume 5, right after Yang and Weiss reunite with Ruby. Enjoy!

Steam is pouring off the surface of the scalding water in the sink, but Ruby hardly even notices the heat as she plunges a dish into the water and starts to scrub furiously. She's using far more force than necessary to clear the remnants of dinner off the plate she's holding, but again, she barely notices. Her mind is too focused on the events of the day, especially the conversation she'd overheard between Yang and Weiss.

Yang snapping at her had stung, but Ruby has known her sister long enough to not be surprised when her sister's temper flares. Sure, some small, selfish part of her might be tired of getting yelled at by her sister when she's only trying to help, but she'll get over it. It's fine.

No, what's not fine is having her sister shove her away and refuse to tell her what's wrong, only to hear her break down and explain everything to Weiss. And it wasn't just that Ruby had just had bad timing—Yang had snapped at Weiss when she'd knocked on the door, assuming that the other girl was Ruby and insisting that she still didn't want to talk.

But despite her insistence, her sister had been more honest with Weiss than Ruby has even seen her—than her sister has ever been with her. Maybe it's silly, but deep down, that really hurts.

And really, Ruby is being selfish. She should be happy, really, to see Yang and Weiss bonding. They've always been the two members of team RWBY that hadn't gotten along so well. It's nice to see that they've gotten closer.

But it still hurts, to know that after all her efforts to reach out and be a good friend and a reliable leader and partner, that Weiss still won't come to her when she's having problems like this. And to know that despite how much time has passed and how much Ruby tries to prove herself, her sister still insists on pushing her away and putting up a façade in front of her.

She sets down the now-very clean plate with more force than necessary. It thuds loudly as it collides with the countertop. Whoops. She grabs a half-full glass, dumping its remaining contents in the sink and prepares to scrub it as well.

The glass shatters in her hand. Ruby blinks in surprise. She must have been gripping it too tightly, and now it's been reduced to a pile of glass shards at her feet. Blood trickles down her thumb; she must have been nicked by one of the broken pieces. She sticks the injured finger in her mouth and crouches to pick up the mess. She'd better clean this up and quickly finish the rest of the dishes so she can get to bed.

It's been a long day. She hadn't slept well last night, after all the excitement of Yang and Weiss' return, and she'd woken up way too early. She'll feel better after she gets some rest.

Unfortunately, she doesn't feel any better in the morning. She sleeps badly, interrupted by the now-usual nightmares about the Fall of Beacon, and once again finds herself waking with the sunrise, unable to fall back asleep. She hopes that this isn't the start of a new routine.

But with the threat of Salem on the horizon, there's no time for breaks or excuses. So, Ruby pushes her exhaustion aside and drinks several cups of coffee in an attempt to feel more awake before heading to the dojo to join the others for training.

The coffee doesn't help. The caffeine just leaves her feeling jittery, without even making so much as a dent in her exhaustion. Bummer. Still, Ruby didn't come this far just to let her friends down.

She volunteers to spar first, hoping that she'll feel a little better once she gets moving, and finds herself facing off against Jaune, their friends watching eagerly from the sidelines. She shakes her head to clear it, before getting into a proper fighting stance, fists at the ready.

It still feels strange, fighting without Crescent Rose.

Jaune ends up making the first move, and they quickly fall into their usual routine, trading blows as they make their way back and forth across the floor of the training room. Yang and Nora cheer loudly for their respective teammates, but Ruby does her best to ignore the distraction and focus on maintaining a good hand to hand technique.

Everything seems to be going well, and Ruby has just spotted an opening and is preparing to move in when Jaune abruptly lunges forward, sweeping her legs out from under her and sending her crashing to the ground. She curses under her breath and attempts to struggle to her feet, glancing up at Jaune to see how much time she has to recover.

And for a moment, it's not Jaune standing over her, but Mercury, taunting her and preventing her from helping Pyrrha and Penny. Mingled terror and fury fills her veins.

"Leave me alone!" she shrieks, lunging to her feet. With one swift move, she shoves him and sends him stumbling back. Good.

"Ruby?" Mercury says, but his voice doesn't sound quite right. She blinks, freezing in place, and suddenly Mercury is replaced with Jaune. The blonde is frowning at her, eyes narrowed in concern. "Are you okay?"

"I—" Ruby feels like she's been knocked off her feet again, like the world around her is unsteady. It's obvious that Mercury isn't here, he never was, but it had felt so real. "I'm fine," she replies weakly.

She wishes that everyone would stop staring at her. It feels like the walls are closing in around her.

"Are you sure?" The question makes Ruby jump, even though Weiss' voice is quiet. Her partner looks—afraid. Whether it's for Ruby—or of her—she can't be sure. Beside her, Nora is looking at Ruby with wide eyes, and Yang opens her mouth to say something—

It's too much. It's all just too much. She can't be here right now. Before her friends can say anything else, Ruby summons her semblance, vanishing in a cloud of rose petals.

She doesn't stop running until she's back in her room. She just—she needs to be alone right now. She ignores the cloud of rose petals fluttering around her feet as she rematerializes, slamming the door behind her and locking it. She even shoves a chair in front of it for good measure, before diving into bed and curling into a tiny ball, pulling the blankets over her head as if they can somehow shield her from what just happened.

Hopefully, the others will take the hint and just leave her alone for a bit. She just needs a few minutes to get herself under control, figure out what happened, without everyone staring at her like she's some kind of zoo animal.

After all, they're always so intent on making sure that she gives them space when they're upset. Surely, they'll be willing to do the same for her.

And anyway, she doesn't even need to talk about it, she's totally fine, really. It's only been a few minutes and already her breathing is starting to slow down. She's not shaking anymore. A few more minutes and she'll be ready to go face the others, reassure them that she's okay, that they don't need to worry—

Her train of thought is interrupted by a loud bang.

Someone is knocking loudly on the door. Very loudly. So much for giving her space.

"Ruby!" her sister demands. "Open up!"

Ruby's sigh is smothered by the blankets. She debates ignoring Yang, staying silent and pretending not to hear her sister.

"Ruby?" Weiss' voice is softer, more hesitant. "Are you okay? We were worried about you, after what happened earlier."

She sighs again. Great. They both came after her. She better respond before either Yang breaks down the door or everyone else comes to check on her. Or both.

"I'm fine, guys."

Her sister snorts. "C'mon, Ruby, none of us are going to buy that right now. We all saw how you freaked out back there."

"You looked like you saw a ghost," Weiss says gently. "I know it's hard, but can you try to tell us what happened?"

It's a nice idea, but difficult to go along with when Ruby herself isn't sure what happened. And she really doesn't want to talk to anyone right now. So, she reuses the line that Yang tried to use on her yesterday. "I really don't want to talk about it right now."

"Well, that's too bad," Yang retorts. Ruby can hear her shifting impatiently on the other side of the door. "You can't keep bottling this stuff up and not telling anyone."

Ruby almost laughs at the hypocrisy, except that she doesn't really feel up to laughing right now.

"You know that you can talk to us about anything, right, Ruby?"

Ruby wishes that she could believe what Weiss is saying. But if she's being honest? She's really not so sure. It's not like they were willing to talk about her about their problems before, so why should she trust them to listen to her when she wants to talk about things that are bothering her? Especially when it's something as weird as this.

"Ruby?" Weiss asks again. She sounds almost like she's pleading.

"No," Ruby murmurs quietly. Once again, the sound is lost in the mountain of blankets surrounding her.

"Sorry, Ruby, I didn't catch that," Weiss replies. She and Yang are being surprisingly patient.

She clears her throat. "No," she says again, loud enough for her teammates to hear this time. "I don't know that."

There's a pause. "You don't know what?" Yang asks, sounding confused.

"I don't know that I can talk to you guys about anything."

The statement hangs in the air for a moment. It feels strange, heavy, to have said it out loud.

Yang scoffs again, breaking the silence that's fallen over the three of them. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Ruby sighs quietly. Now that she's said it out loud, she feels vulnerable. She wishes that she could take it back, but she doubts that the other girls will let her turn back now. "It means that I have a hard time believing that I can come to with my problems when you guys refuse to come to me with yours!"

She can hear Weiss gasp, as if startled. "Ruby, we don't—"

"Yes, you do!" Ruby quickly cuts off her denial. "I overheard what you guys said yesterday. Do you know how much it hurts to see your friends hurting and to not be able to do anything about it? To be constantly shoved away and snapped at when you're just trying to help?"

Now that she's started talking, it's like she's on a roll.

"Ruby, we didn't mean it like that," Yang says hastily.

"You guys think that I don't get lonely? I just crossed an entire continent without my teammates! I spent the whole time worrying about you guys and hoping that you'd be okay and missing you, and then I finally get you back and you still won't tell me anything! How am I supposed to trust you and talk to you about things when you won't do the same for me?"

Once again, silence descends over the three of them. This time, it feels more thoughtful than hurt though.

Surprisingly, Yang is the first one to speak up. "Ruby, I'm sorry. I promise that I wasn't trying to make you feel that way." He sister pauses, chuckling softly. "I guess that, even after all these years, even though you don't really need me to, I'm still trying to be strong for my baby sister. But you're not a baby anymore."

"And I'm sorry, Ruby." Weiss takes a deep breath. "I guess after going back home, I got used to being alone all over again. But I'm not trapped there anymore. And I'm not alone anymore. I have you guys with me. Both of you."

"So c'mon, Rubes, please open the door. We're worried about you."

"I might have convinced Ren to make some hot chocolate."

Ruby laughs quietly. "I'd like that." She throws off the covers and makes her way over to the door, moving the chair away and unlocking it. Upon opening the door, she finds her arms full of her partner and sister as they pull her in for a hug. "Thanks, guys."

Whatever happens next, at least the three of them are together again.

Now, if only Blake could be here too.

[lys-lilac]

The Realization of Importance

Part (3/3)

Let’s end it. 

A/N:  This is to say that all the characters and the main story line belong to Voltage Inc. Only the fictional story is a work of mine, as well the fictional characters, Hana, Touma and Akari. Also this story is based on dream event, because I had this as a dream many days ago. It might be a little different from the usual genre, a little more angsty, so this little girl wants to know your honest opinions about the work. Be honest and do let me know what you think. But, if it feels a little bit dreamy or weird, you can discontinue reading from here.

Part 1 II Part 2

                                                      Part 3/3

Hana: ?!

Standing behind me was none other the man I loved the most, Kasumi. But, why is he here? His face is looking as cool as a cucumber. And, is he smiling? I hurriedly get up from my seat.

Hana: Kas- Err, I mean Chief Kasumi! What are you doing here?

Kasumi: Listening to your conversation.

Hana: ...I- Well, I am not MC. 

Turning my head where I put the hairpin to his side, I show him my ‘recognition symbol’ or whatever.

Hana: I am Hana, the new resident.

Kasumi: I know that. 

Hana: ?

Why? Just as I am trying to focus on my work, why does he drop such lines? What work has he with me? I rack my brains for a possibility. 

Hana: Oh, are you here to talk with Touma?

Tucking on my white coat and holding me like a scared child, Touma slowly ducks his head to the side. I knew that Kasumi loved children, like he played pictionary with Sora that time. So I decide to give it a try.

Hana: Touma, he is the head of EICU, Dr. Kasumi. You can talk to him. He really is good person. Oh yeah, we might play pictionary together!

Kasumi: ...

Probably not expecting the response, Kasumi’s eyes go wide. Did I say something wrong? Wait, don’t say me... This event has already happened here already. If that’s the case, I might be in knee deep water right now.

Hana: I thought that Touma might like to draw, since he is good at gardening and sightseeing, so I asked. That’s it. 

Kasumi: Touma, I know you can do it. And as she said, we can play pictionary anytime you want. But, I have a request to make.

Touma: What is it?

Kasumi: Can I accompany you to the visit to your garden?

Hana: What?!

Okay. I seriously need to check my mental health now. Am I really in my senses? What in the world did I hear just now?

Hana: But, we shouldn’t trouble you. After all, your schedules might be packed. And what about Dr. MC?

Kasumi: She has a lot of study to do. Besides, I want to see how this resident handles the case.

So it was just as a mentor... I see. Although I would have felt pangs in my heart at this time, I feel relieved, although I don’t know why.

Touma: I would be happy to! 

After finishing our drinks, I drop Touma to his bed, and go towards the CSD (Cardiovascular Surgery Department). But, Dr. Kasumi is following me. I was sure that was not the case at first, as both CSD and EICU were in the same direction. But, instead of turning to the opposite side in the fork, he turns in my direction. WHAT IS GOING ON?! Oh god, stop, my heart...

Hana: Dr. Kasumi, I need to ask something. Do you have any work at the CSD? I can help you out with the menial tasks, if you ask.

Kasumi: ...

The silent intimidation! His dark prince cape never slides from him!

Kasumi: I need you to meet me in the outside in the evening. I have something to discuss with you.

...aand, there he goes, not listening to me. And, why the heck is he calling me to join him in the evening? The more I try to clear out my mind, the more it becomes tangled with his words. Guess I have no choice left. Maybe it’s something related to Touma?

Hana: ...Alright.

[Evening: Seimei Medical University Porch] 

As I am sitting on the bench after completing the post OP rounds of some patients, a chilled can of coffee hits my cheek.

Kasumi: Here.

Holding two cans of coffee in his hands, he gives me one, and takes a seat beside me. Surprisingly, it’s my favorite flavor, mocha. 

Hana: So, what is it that you wanted to talk about?

Kasumi: ...

Gazing at the children playing at a distance, he remains silent. 

Hana: Dr. Kasumi, I am not a psychic that I can read your mind by telepathy. You have got to say something.

This time also, the response is nothing. Giving up, I look up at the sky, which is painted with a hue of orange and yellow. Gradually, the Sun sets, leaving a pinkish violet band spread in the horizon.

Hana: Look, Dr. Kasumi, the Belt of Venus! Now, you have to say the reas-

What leaves my mouth leaves me surprised. Clasping my mouth with my hand in order to shut it, I slowly move my fingers around the coffee can.

Kasumi: MC.

Hana: Dr. MC? What happened to her? Is she busy today?

Kasumi: You are MC, right? And that name ‘Hana’ is just a false one. Am I wrong?

Hana: You are getting it all wrong, Dr. Kasumi. Look at this hairpin, I am the new resident, not MC...

Kasumi: And what if I say that the hairpin you are wearing is the one you bought when you went to the zoo with me?

I can’t even dare to say a word. What exactly am I supposed to say? That “I am MC, I don’t know what’s going on here” ? I try to push another excuse.

Hana: This hairpin is common here! I think that Dr. MC may also have one at her home. Look, Dr. Kasumi, you might need some rest as you may be overexerting yourself. I will go and inform Dr. Kyogoku, okay?

As I get up from the bench, a sudden grab of my arm makes me stop.

Hana: ?

Kasumi: At least let me justify why I think of you as the MC.

Why those pure eyes? Was his pull not enough? Those eyes are my weakness, and I can’t resist his words.

Hana: Ok, I will listen to you.

Kasumi: Until yesterday, I was unsure myself that which one of you was my MC. The way you said that you are a new resident, all of us had no choice but to believe it as the truth. But when I saw you talking with Touma, that made me clear of your identity. Because my MC is a little childish, likes to get acquainted with patients, and...

Hana: and?

Kasumi: No wonder where you are, I can always recognize you.

His fingers intertwine with mine, and as I am about to reply, Kyogoku comes from the building.

Kyogoku: Kasumi, we have got hold of her true identity.

Without any delay and without loosening his hand, he drags me with him, and we all leave for the EICU. My mind which had turned to mess after all the things he said, was not working at all, so I stay silent to know the truth.

[Evening: Seimei University EICU]

There was she, Dr. MC. All the other doctors were also there. But, why were people from Metro Police Department standing there? And that to, handcuffing her? What the heck was going on while I was outside? Just as I was thinking, a police speaks up.

Police 1: Finally, this miscreant got caught.

Police 2: We are sorry for all the trouble she caused. We will make sure she gets the ‘reward’ for what she had done.

Police 3: Thank you for the help doctors! No wonder you all are jewels! Now, give us the permission to leave.

What the WHAT?! No one was in shock as me. She, A MISCREANT? So, inso and dreaming were not the reason?

Hosho: I am glad to see our MC back!

Takado: Oh, and how foolish of us to think that the silent impostor was this idiot. Never in life.

Ekuni: She didn’t even falter when we threw jokes on her.

Matsunaga: And here I thought, we are going to get two talented doctors... Although I am happy that you are the only precious girl of the EICU.

Kyogoku: Butthead, now you know who you are right?

{A/N: Now, Hana is the actual MC, so no need to use the fake name, otherwise who knows what will Kasumi think of me... ^^;)

MC: God, can anyone please explain what is going on... I might just pass out from the overdose of information.

Kyogoku: Apparently, she was a die-hard fan of Kasumi, or whatever it may be, and was super jealous of you. So she arranged all of this. Went through a plastic surgery to look exactly like you, changed your documents by adding a false name, just to take your place.

MC: Then, how you all figured it out?

Hosho: It was Kasumi who first told us that something was weird.

Takado: That how the office, which is a place of damn banters, was as silent as the sea. Although it was peaceful, it felt wrong.

Ekuni: She didn’t know her own schedule of scrub ins, and didn’t lash us out.

Matsunaga: And most importantly, I was not satisfied her response when I asked her to join me during breaks.

Kasumi: We all are aware of your behavior and your nature, so it was not long till we figured it out.

Kasumi: MC?

Ha... haha, my life. I will not hesitate to say that it is more intense than what happens in mangas. One can do this much only for jealousy? 

MC: Thank god, thank god you all remember me. Here I thought I was in a parallel world and no one recognised me. 

The doctors could sometimes lead me to release smoke from my ears out of fury, but nonetheless, they cared for me, and that’s what of value to me the most.

[Some days later: Touma’s garden]

{A/N: Again, a random picture}

Touma’s surgery is a success. On the day of the surgery, Kasumi volunteered to accompany me in it, as his schedule was open for the morning. The good thing is that he can still walk and talk, although now in wheelchair for some days of recovery. Me and Kasumi, to fulfill our promise to Touma, were leaded to Touma’s garden on the day we paid a home visit to him.

Can I say that the place is paradise? Tulips, lilies, hydrangeas, pansies, daffodils and all the varieties are lined in rows. Adjoining to it is the fruit garden, and beside it is the vegetable one. Huh, did I even know how to plant a sapling when I was of his age? Answer: no.

As I was appreciating the beauty sitting on the cool grass, a small flower is tucked into my hair. It is a Syringa Vulgaris. In other words, a small lilac.

Touma: This looks pretty on you.

MC: Oh, thank you Touma.

But, just after that, a flower crown is placed on my head.

Kasumi: And I think this looks even prettier.

MC: ...

My cheeks flare up crimson. Aww, just how cute are these two, adoring me like that! I can just float in the sky out of happiness,

MC: Thank you. 

MC: Oh, but I wanted to ask something. 

Kasumi: Sure.

MC: If you realized that I was the original piece, then why didn’t you recognize me in the office?

Kasumi: That’s because the other you submitted your reports just before you came. Did you notice that when you were about to submit the papers in your hand, it was not the original but only blank papers?

MC: ...No! Now that I think about it, I was so heartbroken at that time, that I didn’t even glance at it. And probably, she might have done it when I was in post OP rounds, and my documents were all laying on the table. Ah, the headache I felt there might be due to her making me unconscious using chloroform, because I found myself in the closet. God! And here I was thinking that I fainted due to overwork!! That chick, grrr...

Kasumi: Pfft, as expected.

MC: Don’t laugh at me! Well, how did you find the clue then? Even I was confused of my own identity. Didn’t your thoughts waver?

Kasumi: I got the first hint by the hairpin you had. I was pretty sure that it was the same one that you bought when we went to the zoo, and that you always kept it in your bag. But when I asked the other you about this, she just made excuses that she had left it at home. Further, you mentioned about Sora and also exclaimed when the Belt of Venus appeared, so my confirmation was strengthened.

MC: A prodigy you are, aren’t you?

Kasumi: No.

MC: Huh?

Kasumi: No matter which different identity you own, or wherever you may be, I can always recognize you, because you are the most important person to me in my life.

Seeing my blank face, he chuckles and a soft touch lands on my lips, like a feather fluttering on my skin. 

MC: The same goes for me too. I can always recognize you anywhere, because you are the one I love the most.

 As I see the dandelions dancing in the wind, the flowers, fruits and vegetables bathed with sunlight, and the smile of Kasumi, which I yearn the most, I realize something. That I am important to him and so is Kasumi to me. No matter whatever may come, I will always stay by his side, and support him with all my heart.

~

END.

{Author’s trivia: I actually woke up just after the scene where Kasumi realizes that she is his MC. So, I just added the after plot, to complete it.}

That’s it! I am telling you, I was myself feeling butterflies when writing the end part. So I am sure, the story will appeal you just like it appealed to me. Pure nature of Kasumi, dipped in honey felt words. But gahh, it felt so dramatic, the police and all... Let me know what you think. If any requests, feel free to drop it in the suggestion bowl. Have a good day ahead, and give your best everyday, just like our dark prince!

~Lys