#well i know why its because even if my parents have gotten normal-er over the last few years

[boycritter]

im literally seventeen entire years old why am i so scared of the Consequences of Getting Caught having a snack after dinner

[lexosaurus]

Going Angst Week 2021: Instinct

Read: [1: birth]

Warning: Ghost Hunger

---

Ectoplasm was poisonous to humans. Danny knew that, it was one of the first things his parents had drilled into him when he was a kid.

If humans ingested small amounts of ectoplasm, they’d be sick but would likely be fine the next day. If they ingested large amounts of ectoplasm, they’d be rushed to the ER to get their stomach pumped, and if they didn’t make it there in time, they’d die.

Danny had accidentally eaten ectoplasm-infused cookies enough times in his childhood to be able to taste it’s gross battery-acid flavor. He’d felt enough stomach cramps from his mother’s cooking before Jazz insisted that they install a second fridge in the lab to store their samples inside of to know how much the human body hated the substance. 

Ectoplasm was poison. Period.

So then why was it that when he stared down longingly at the carnage before him, did he want nothing more than to dip his hand into the delicious pool of green and scoop it into his mouth?

He knew he should leave—his parents would be arriving soon—but as he stared down at the unfortunate remains of the giant ectoplasm mosquito on the pavement, all he could think about was how hungry he was and how sick he’d been all week and this was it, this was the thing that would cure him, he just needed to reach down...

Danny shook his head in disgust. He was still partially human, he couldn’t just eat ectoplasm. 

But he was so, so hungry.

Nothing he’d eaten in the past week had satisfied his hunger. No, this was something else. Something that originated deep down in his core. No human food could fix this, he knew that on instinct.

Ectoplasm was poison.

But he was starving.

Danny closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. This wasn’t the first time he’d gotten these strange cravings. They’d been happening ever since he learned how to shoot ghost-rays with his hands. 

At first, it was easy to ignore. Just a twinge of his stomach here, a slight watering of his mouth there. Little annoyances, but nothing he couldn’t blame on exhaustion or academic stress.

But lately, the hunger had been getting worse. Just looking at a pool of ectoplasm made his heart skip a beat, and the sight of an entire ghost mosquito carcass was enough to make him want to collapse in relief.

He needed to do something. Leave. He couldn’t stay here, he was going to lose it. 

God, this was horrible. He was disgusting for even entertaining the idea.

Danny glanced back at the mosquito. Its core had smashed somehow during the fight, allowing its fresh ectoplasm to pool onto the pavement before it. The sun was setting, and it was hitting the fresh green in just the right way.

“Shut up,” Danny snapped. He wasn’t some feral vampire, he was Danny Phantom. Amity Park’s local ghost protector. He wasn’t just going to…

He glanced around. No one was here, and no one was passing by on the street either. Maybe he could afford just one little taste…

...just one…

...no one else had to know…

...he just needed to reach down and…

His fingers brushed the cool liquid, and as if he were shocked he jolted up, pressing his back into the brick building behind him and breathing hard. 

That was close. Too close. He needed to get out of here quickly before he lost control.

But as he stared back down at the gooey carcass, it was as if a trance had overtaken him. His mind fogged up, and all his worries and stresses seemed to melt away.

The only thing he knew was that he was starving, and there was food. 

Danny crouched down over the mosquito and shyly stuck his hand back out over the glowing pool of liquid. He hesitated, as if there were still some part of his mind that was trying to resist when he knew that he just needed to chill out, Danny. It’s okay. Trust yourself.

He was a ghost. He knew what he was doing.

Closing his eyes, he dipped his hand into the ectoplasm. He shuddered, allowing his hands to explore the cool liquid. It felt...nice. And his hunger seemed to yell louder until he couldn’t ignore the voice in his head goading him to eat the ectoplasm, just eat it, eat the ectoplasm, eat the food.

He brought his hand up to his mouth, and it was as if something inside him shorted out. 

His brain switched off, all thoughts left his body. The only thing that mattered was the ectoplasm, the food, his hunger, god this tasted so nice. 

His world was green, and that was all he needed.

---

“What’s wrong with me?” Danny cried. “Why can’t I stop?”

His hands were plastered in ectoplasm, and he could feel the sticky substance dripping down his suit, threading in his hair, smearing across his face.

“Well, isn’t it obvious?” Vlad said, hardly looking up from his paperwork on his desk. “You’re starving yourself.”

“But—but I don’t…” Danny collapsed in a chair and buried his head in his hands. 

“Daniel, really. I thought you were better than this pointless drivel.”

Danny shook his head. In a muffled voice, he whimpered, “Please, just tell me how to make this stop. I—I can’t stop. Please. I don’t want to be this monster.”

Vlad sighed and set down his pen. “Halfas have unique biologies in that due to the nature of our deaths, we have naturally powerful cores. The more powerful the ghost core, the more self-generating ectoplasm they can produce for their bodies, which then can offset any ectoplasm lost through daily functions. Like blood cells. Except, if you use more ectoplasm than your body can produce, it starts looking for other ways to replenish it. Typically for ghosts, the ambient ectoplasm in the Ghost Zone would do. But in the human world, there isn’t enough ambient ectoplasm for us to use, so we starve until our core takes matters into its own hands.”

“So, what. I have to move to the Ghost Zone? I don’t understand. Do you get like this?” Danny lifted his head up to see Vlad massaging his temples.

“Well unlike you, I’m not a complete moron who lets themselves get to the point where they can no longer control themselves.”

“But I don't want to do this! I don’t want to...to eat other ghosts.”

“Then don’t.” Vlad stood and yanked Danny through the floor and into his lab. He shoved Danny into the corner of the room. “Clean yourself up. I won’t have you dripping used ectoplasm all over my clean floors.”

Danny hung his head in a mixture of shock and shame as the hot water from the decontamination shower sprayed down on his body, washing the green stains from his suit onto the floor and down the drain.

Meanwhile, Vlad flitted around the lab, wasting no time in between plucking various tubes and files from their shelves to simultaneously berate Danny. “Really, Daniel, I know you’re an idiot but even you can’t be this appallingly stupid. There are many ways to consume ectoplasm that don’t involve tearing the cores out of your adversaries. Of course, if you continue to insist on being a toddler about your different biology then I have no doubt you’ll be back in this sorry state sooner than you can imagine.”

“Please, just tell me what to do.”

Vlad pulled out what appeared to be glowing green lettuce. “These are ectoplasmic vegetables. They grow in the Ghost Zone. I tend to prefer them with a nice cherry vinaigrette and paired with a glass of dry chardonnay. Do you understand, Daniel? The Ghost Zone is a parallel of the human dimension. If there are plants in the human world, there will also exist a variation of those plants in the Ghost Zone. You find the right ally, and you have your dinner.”

Danny stared dumbly at the plant. He’d only been to the Ghost Zone once before, when he was terrified his parents were getting divorced. And that trip had left him too scared to even think about going back.

“Where do you get yours from?” Danny asked.

Vlad put the lettuce back in the metal refrigerator. “Skulker. You know, my lackey? You may have heard of him.”

“Right.” Danny furrowed his brows. He couldn’t ask Skulker if he could have some of the plants—the ghost wanted to kill him. Again.

But he didn’t know anyone else who had ecto-plants either.

“I don’t know where I’d get them. I don’t know any ghosts.”

“Well, that seems like a personal problem.”

“Please!” Danny begged. “There has to be another way. I don’t know anyone! I can’t do this again. Please, Vlad.”

The true question was hidden underneath. But Danny knew what Vlad was going to say, and judging by Vlad’s vicious smirk, Danny’s assumptions were correct.

“Maybe if you stopped fighting your true nature, you wouldn’t have to beg for my food like a pathetic child.”

“Vlad, I—I don’t know what to do.”

Vlad transformed into his ghost form, his eyes glowing a harsh red against the dim light. “You may be a human, but you’re also a ghost. It’s time you started acting like one.”

He could feel it. His core, taunting him from under his skin. Telling him to give in, just trust it, trust his instincts.

But he couldn’t do it. He was scared, he didn’t understand why his instincts were telling him to act certain ways and do certain things. Why were the emotions of his friends and family suddenly so important to him? Why did he feel so compelled to play protector to the town? Why did he have to try to be so normal around Sam and Tucker?

Why couldn’t he go too long without transforming into his ghost form? Why did it feel like an addiction that was impossible to break?

What was wrong with him?

Give in, just give in. 

“I can’t.”

“You have to, Daniel.”

“But if I do that…”

“Then you’ll finally be admitting the truth of what you are. Why is that so wrong?”

Because I’m a ghost, ghosts are evil, ghosts are wrong, they shouldn’t exist, ghosts and humans don’t mix, ghosts are cruel creatures, they’re selfish, they’ll only act in their own self-interest.

But that was what his parents had told him. Was that true?

Did he know anything about ghosts?

Not really. Except for one, crucial thing:

Ghosts were different. 

Danny Fenton couldn’t be different.

---

<previous / next>

[cryptidofthekeys]

This uh- this involves the AU that I made- I call it The Even More Dysfunctional Family AU where uh BoD adopts Daniel essentially and he becomes a new brother of destruction p much, its all kayfabe stuff (I never do anything o u t of kayfabe) and it might not be fully canon to the lore of both Kane and Taker BUT I just decided to put my own twist on things either way so shh

TWs: Fire, Death, literally burning alive p much, and overall just sad feelings and very big emotions

Daniel’s been curious about what happened to Taker and Kane as kids, he also feels awkward in joining them by visiting the grave of their parents, he feels as though he shouldn’t, he doubts they would have even accepted him as a son if they were alive... Little does Daniel know is he’s about to find out things he’s been wanting to know and more...

“Daniel! Come on, let’s go!” He heard Kane yell out and he yelled back “Just give me one more second! Gosh…” The bearded man rolled his eyes as he finished adjusting his outfit, he didn’t want to wear his normal attire going to well, where t h e y were going… He felt like it’d be disrespectful in a weird sort of way, especially considering he hadn’t been with the infamous brothers of destruction for too long… Undertaker had pretty much the perfect outfit for going to places like this, it felt fitting, Kane just wore what he always wore… Even the mask over his face but Daniel understood why, at least on that front. Daniel had felt like he didn’t deserve to go with them at first, not to the graveyard, not where their parents were buried, because hell… Daniel never got to meet them, he knows a bit about their history but not too much… And asking Taker or Kane is like talking to a brick wall, no emotions, no feelings, and nothing much said so Daniel never tried to push it, it wasn’t in his place anyways, if they wanted to tell him he knew they would.

…Still, Daniel couldn’t help his curiosity, he had always wondered just how and why they turned out in the ways they did, now don’t get him wrong… He loves his newfound brothers! He loves them just the way they are and he would never change them or their ways but whatever happened must’ve really messed them up inside and out… And then Kane’s voice called out from the doorway “Daniel?” That made the man jump and turn around to face the masked man who had his arms crossed “Are you… Er… Alright? I was talking to you and you didn’t uh, respond or anything…” And that’s when Daniel realized, he had gotten pretty lost in thought about that, the man sighed “Sorry, I uh, y-yeah I’m fine… I was just thinking about things…” He still felt like he didn’t deserve to go, he felt it was going to be awkward but both Taker and Kane insisted, it’s only fair that he at leasts gets to meet them in the only way he can now.

Kane nodded at that “Come on, the deadman’s already outside, he’s going to leave without us if you don’t hurry up” Daniel sighed and nodded “Okay, I’m ready, just had to fix my uh, clothes…” Kane once again nodded and began to walk off, Daniel slowly trailing behind him as the two headed out the door, and there was The Undertaker, standing there, he seemed to be a bit impatient “Well… It’s about time, what took you so long, boy?” Daniel looked down “I uh, had to… Fix my clothing, so it wouldn’t, it wouldn’t have wrinkles in it?” Taker could sense Bryan’s nervousness and he walked over, gently placing a hand on the other’s shoulder, it still made Bryan jump, he looked toward the deadman and it felt very strange to feel such a gentle touch from him “Look… I know you're nervous, I know you said you feel like you won’t fit in and it’d be awkward to go up there… But, both me and Kane feel that it’s only fair… You should meet them, at least in some way, they’d be just as much your parents as they were ours, you know?” Daniel blinked, he was stunned and didn’t know what to say, he looked over to Kane who was nodding along.

Daniel was silent, he didn't know what to say or what he even could say so the deadman then turned around after patting the man’s shoulder “We should… Hurry, the sun is beginning to set now…” That’s another thing, they both wanted to wait until the evening time, now Daniel figured that was just because maybe the incident happened at a certain time at night on this day, which would make sense, but before he could continue to get lost in his thoughts he trailed after Kane and Taker, staying in behind them for the most part, he was just looking down to the ground as he walked, just thinking about this whole thing, sometimes he’d glance up at Taker and Kane as they walked in perfect sync with each other actually, it was a slow walk, but it was a rare sight to see them walk fast or especially run. Daniel then began to think, he wondered what their parents had looked like, now sure he knew what Paul Bearer had looked like but he wasn’t… Exactly… Well, y-you know… Either way, he knew that bit of history there, Kane didn’t seem to mind too much but Taker had an absolute scowl on his face at the mention of Paul.

Daniel uh, doesn’t think he wanted to meet Paul too much either way, he remembers seeing mere glimpses around of that man and needless to say he looked pretty creepy… The walk was long, even longer with the slow pace these two took but eventually they made it there, and tonight was a full moon, there were some clouds but it merely looked like smoke in front of the moon, it felt eerie around this place… This is the first time Daniel had ever gone to the graveyard and that’s when he noticed… This… This graveyard, it had no lights first and foremost, the only way Daniel could see is when the two brothers turned on their flashlights (they mostly did it for Bry bc im sure they could very much find their way around that graveyard even in pitch black darkness) The place looked to be in pretty rough condition and that’s when Daniel realized… This Graveyard, it had been abandoned, abandoned for a LONG time in fact… The Graves were all unkempt, some were even broken, old flowers wilting away, pots broken, and then the grass and many plants had overgrown and taken this area hostage.

Overall the place looked like it hadn’t been touched in a very long time, that was until they got to one particular gravesite, two tombstones right next to each other… Daniel peered out from behind the two, looking at the graves a bit closer, it read off their parents’ names… This was the only patch right here that was well taken care of, and then Bryan noticed the tombstones were cracked, as if they had been broken before “Wh-What happened there…?” He whispered, not wanting to be too loud and then he noticed Kane looked away shamefully, Taker glancing toward him, it was silent for a moment before Kane spoke up “...I broke them… It was a really long time ago, I came here with Paul and we… We…” Kane clenched his hand into a fist, he seemed angry but more so at himself “...We smashed them, and then set them on fire…” Daniel looked shocked at this, jeez… Okay NOW he understood why Taker seemed to hate Paul Bearer at the very least… Taker said nothing, he merely stared at Kane who shot him a sorrowful glance back, that seemed to take the deadman off guard, he had held a slight grudge against Paul and even Kane for that but… Seeing the guilt, it made his expression somewhat change.

It looked softer, and then Kane sighed, looking down toward the graves “...I’m sorry…” The Undertaker said nothing for a moment, he then placed a hand on Kane’s shoulder, it was extremely awkward for these two to show any kindness or affection toward each other…

They hadn’t done so in decades, in fact… Neither one of them can remember the last time they shared any care or affection between each other, it had to have been when they were young kids, somewhere there… Even something as simple as a hand on the shoulder felt awkward, and he had felt Kane tense up at that but then the two shared a look before glancing down to the graves, Daniel now standing somewhat off to the side, he didn’t want to get in between the two during this moment, he stared down at the graves, keeping silent now, all three of them were silent, just simply paying respects to the dead… Daniel felt awkward still, like he didn’t fit in here at all, but he knew nothing about their parents, he didn’t even ever feel like he could call them his own, he has no idea if they would even accept him as their child if they were still around, sure Kane and Taker might have already taken him in as a new brother but their parents could have just turned him away…

It was silent for the longest time before Taker looked over at Daniel, who shared a glance back at him, and that’s when Bryan had to suppress a gasp… Now sure, Daniel has seen Kane cry before, it was extremely rare but he has seen Kane cry, and he has been there for him even if sometimes it was against his better judgment, but this was the first time he had ever seen tears on the deadman’s face, he didn’t figure he’d ever see Taker cry in his entire life but here he was, tonight, just tears cascading down his face, he cleared his throat and then spoke slowly, trying not to stutter “...She would have loved you, you know that Daniel?” Bryan blinked, he tried not to stare at Taker’s face too long even if he was in shock “...You think so?” Taker nodded “...I know so, both our parents would have loved you…” Kane nodded at this, just standing shoulder to shoulder with his brother, not looking at anything but the graves, this shocked Daniel even more, well he wouldn’t doubt that then, Taker should know more than anyone…

And then Kane sighed “...I can’t even remember what my own mother looks like… …The most I remember is that she was very nice, kind, soft, gentle, and caring…” He admitted, Taker sighing, wiping his eyes with his sleeve as he looked toward Kane, Daniel was shocked to see another side from the two of them tonight but he didn’t say anything, he merely watched as the two embraced each other, man… Coming here really brought out an entirely new side of these two, one Daniel had never fully seen, not… Not like THIS anyways… They didn’t hug for too long though, both breaking away from each other and then turning away “...We miss you” Taker began and then Kane spoke up “We’ll always miss you…” The two then both simultaneously told them to rest in peace and with that they began to walk, however Daniel stayed behind for a moment, now standing in front of the graves, looking over the both of them, after a bit, Kane noticed and looked back, calling out for Daniel “Are you coming or what?”

Daniel turned and shook his head “Uh, no, actually… I’ll catch up with you two later, promise, I know how to get back to the house so just uh, g-go on…” This confused the two but they didn’t question him too much, just told him not to stay out TOO late… Daniel nodded and said he wouldn’t before looking back to the graves, now he was alone… In this eerie abandoned graveyard, well, half-abandoned… Bryan wasn’t even sure why he stayed behind, he felt as if something compelled him to stay as he knelt down to the graves, looking over their names, this felt… Awkward, he should’ve gone home with those two but he didn’t, something compelled him to stay and he needed to figure out what it was, he just kept staring at the graves…

Searching for something, anything… A sign of some kind of what compelled him to stay behind like this “...I guess they care a lot for you… Huh?” He glanced at their mother’s grave now “...I wasn’t around for anything that happened, they just… Took me in not even that long ago, but… I can tell they care a lot about you guys huh?” And then there was a pause, god, he would’ve probably looked like a crazy person had anyone been around “...I wish I knew what happened to them, what happened to you, what happened in general… …I wish I could meet you as well…” There was silence, which of course there was, what was Daniel truly expecting, he sighed and stood up and that’s when he felt dizzy “Ugh… Jeez, o-okay, that’s… That’s new…” The dizziness was so bad that Daniel had to actually sit down, beside the grave, he felt like the world was spinning extremely fast right now, he groaned and rubbed at his head and then he froze upon hearing a voice, he couldn’t look around right now because of the dizziness but he was sure he just heard a voice.

And then it was confirmed, he heard a soft voice calling out his name, a gentle soft spoken voice called out to him and now he should be scared of this, he knew he should but this voice, it didn’t sound like any kind of threat… It didn’t sound like it was trying to threaten him, and then it went dark… After a bit, Daniel awoke with a gasp, he stood up immediately and began to spin around, looking at his surroundings but yet… He saw nothing, it was a pitch black void that had swallowed him up, there was nothing and nobody around and if it hadn’t been for his own heavy breathing, the silence would be deafening… Bryan got into a fighting stance when he heard a voice call out behind him, spinning around to see who might be going to attack him, however his eyes widened when he saw a lady, staring at him, a soft smile on her face, she had a literal glow to her body, she looked to be wearing a long purple dress and that was the most Daniel could see, his body relaxed somewhat and he got back into a normal stance “...W-Who are y-you…?”

The lady gently spoke up “Hello Daniel… My name is Eliza, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you more properly…” Before Bryan could speak up “I know… You are very confused, allow me to explain dear… I brought you here for many reasons… But I should tell you who I am more specifically… I am both little Taker and Kane’s mother… I’ve watched over them for as long as I can remember now… And I’ve never seen them like this before… Before you came along, things between them had always been so very complicated but it seems like… You’ve really begun to help my two boys… And for that, I thank you… Now the next thing I should say…” Eliza gracefully waltzed over, almost like she was floating in fact and she gently cupped Daniel’s face in her hands, it was so strange, this was all so much for Bryan to process, and it should have felt unnerving to feel her hands on his face like that, but they were so warm and so gentle…

“Taker was right… Me, and my husband, we both accept you as our own… You needn’t worry yourself or doubt such a thing… Both my boys have accepted you as their brother already and you’ve helped them so much, even if you may not think it or know it… And for that, we have to thank you…” And then her husband appeared, wearing a similar outfit to Taker’s and then Daniel began to see where he got his style from and favorite colors… He had a similar expression to Taker, a hardened look for a moment before he smiled “She’s right, boy… We accept you, we want you to always remember that… Son…” Daniel was in such shock at this.

He couldn’t move or speak and then Eliza gently chuckled “Yes son… Even if we might not be on the same plane of existence as you, even if we might have passed on… We still love you, love you as our son, and your brothers love and care about you very much as well… They might not admit it out loud but we can tell…” Daniel almost felt tears pricking his eyes at that, to which Eliza gently took a hand and wiped them away, her husband walking over and giving Daniel a pat on the shoulder, Daniel then looked at the both of them “I… Th-Thank you… I appreciate… That…” That gives him some closure on one front, but now he had questions, he wanted to ask but then he thought it might be rude, I mean some of those questions involved the incident… So he shouldn’t- “...Daniel, sweetie… I know you are curious about what happened…” …Ask… Well okay, that’s… “I-I’m sorry, I shouldn’t… That’s-” Before he could speak, Eliza shushed him “Shh… I promise, we aren’t offended or upset, I mean… Curiosity is a natural thing for everyone…”

And then she got more serious “But, honey… I can’t sugarcoat any of this, this won’t be a pleasant thing to view, it might even scar you… And we really don’t want to do that, I would never want to scar one of my own children… But if you REALLY wish to see, then I’ll grant you that wish…” Daniel thought about it for a bit, he had been wanting to know what happened so badly, he had wanted to know the truth and what happened between this family, why Taker and Kane were the way that they were, what they went through, he wanted to know it all… …Even if it may be scarring, at least he’ll know now the truth about his own brothers. After giving it some more thought and knowing his curiosity would only eat away at him he slowly nodded “...Please, I want to… I-I wanna know, I need to know what happened to my brothers… Please, uh… Mo…” He hesitated on that front, but Eliza merely sighed and smiled “...It’s alright, you can call me mom, you can call us mom and dad if you wish to… I promise, it’s okay…” Bryan nodded “...Mom… Dad… I wanna know what happened to my brothers… Please” Eliza’s smile was a sad one, and her husband sighed “Very well son… But please, if at any point you wish to stop the vision… Tell us… And we won’t continue…”

Daniel nodded and then the two ghosts shut their eyes, Eliza’s hair gracefully blowing as if there were a gust of wind… And for a few minutes nothing happened before Daniel suddenly blacked out again… …The next time Daniel woke, his eyes slowly fluttered open, he felt like he was standing up but then… He… He felt taller, w-wait… Wait, something was wrong… This didn’t feel like Daniel’s body at all… And then Daniel heard Taker’s voice, it sounded more so like a young version of him and then suddenly the head of this body was turning toward that direction “Coming big brother!” That was… Kane’s voice, he was stuck in his body, viewing the world from his eyes, he wasn’t in control or anything, just merely viewing the world in Kane’s perspective… He watched as Kane ran toward Taker, laughing as he tackled his brother in a hug who only rolled his eyes “Ugh, get off me…!” The deadman was trying to push Kane off but he had a tight grip on his big brother, this was so weird for Daniel, okay well seeing Taker be an edgy emo-like kid? …Seems legit but Kane being so… Innocent, so full of joy and so happy, just enjoying life like a normal kid would…

He listened as they shared playful banter and then… Taker began to pull out some matches, and that’s when Kane’s eyes nearly sparkled, he got off and stood by Taker’s side now.

“Ooh! Are we going to make the fire come out again big brother?!” He sounded so excited… To which Taker laughed at and ruffled his hair “Yeah we are you lil arsonist… C’mon lil man grab one” Now he knew Kane’s love of fire, that’s partially why he grabbed the matches like he did, because deep down he loved to see his brother so happy… Taker showed Kane how to strike up a match, swiping it up the sides and little Kane’s eyes sparkled with pure delight as he took the match and looked over the flame, a wide smile on his face as he watched the flames dance and wiggle, Taker did the same, before a harsh voice called out “HEY!” That startled the brothers and even Daniel who was still watching in absolute awe of this, to see his two brothers, so full of innocence, just… Like normal human beings, just living normal lives and living out normal childhoods, then Kane’s head spun around along with Taker’s and it was their fathers who ran over quickly and snatched the matchbox and matches from them, quickly putting out the fire “Boys! You know better than to play with fire like this!”

Their dad tried his best not to yell but he couldn’t help it, Taker only looked like an edgy teen, arms crossed and eyes rolling, meanwhile Kane was looking down, clearly upset about getting in trouble “Listen, we have VERY flammable liquids here at the Funeral Home, son… Ya can’t be playin’ with these you hear me? And YOU… Taker, you KNOW better! You know better than this, you're much older!” Taker still had his arms crossed but he was looking down now “...I know, I-I’m sorry…” Their dad sighed and hugged the boys close “Listen, I… I just don’t want you boys getting hurt, your mother wouldn’t want you getting hurt either… And playing with matches, around a funeral home like this? And NEAR the flammable liquids no less? Taker, you know better, like I said, you’re older… And Kane… You just… Just don’t play around with fire like this again, y’all hear me?” The two muttered a ‘yes sir’ and then their dad hugged them tighter and thanked them “Now, go on, get… Taker, you go do your chores” Little Taker sighed but went to do as he was told, Kane watching him and then watched his father walk off, taking the matches with him.

Daniel wasn’t surprised, he knew Kane’s love of fire, he figured he had loved it just as much as a kid… But then Daniel was watching through Kane’s eyes, the little kid was sneaking around after watching Taker walk off to go do his chores and making sure no one was in sight… Daniel was confused as he snuck into the shed, and that’s when Bryan realized what Kane was going to do… His eyes wide, he tried to call out for Kane to stop but he couldn’t speak, he couldn’t control any of this… It was a vision, even if he wanted to he couldn’t do a thing… Daniel watched as Kane gathered some of the flammable liquids, even when the ghosts reminded him he couldn’t do anything, he called out for Kane to stop, begging Kane to stop as he carried the liquids to his home… Kane wanted to see more flames, wanted to see bigger flames… And didn’t want to get Taker in trouble again, so he’d do it himself! And Kane betted he could create an even BIGGER flame than Taker! His plan was full proof! As he poured the liquids around, Daniel began screaming at Kane to stop, screaming to not do what he was about to!

But Kane continued on, the little kid walking over and sneaking the matches back before slowly doing what Taker had taught him, slid the match up the side and then… Kane gasped as the match lit up, he grinned so happily at it, the flame was so pretty, he knew he could make the flame even bigger though! Bigger than his brother ever could! Kane then tossed the match…

Right to the floor to which Daniel screamed out “NO! NO NO NO!” And that’s when he watched things go up in flames around him, he could see through Kane’s eyes, at first Kane had been excited, clapping and cheering but then some fire had gotten onto him… And that’s when Daniel heard Kane screaming, screaming in agony! Bryan had a hand clasped over his mouth as he watched the scene unfold before him, he heard the dad yelling out for Kane and then his mother screaming in terror, she had a hand clasped over her mouth as she called out for her husband, she began to scream about the fire and that’s when it got so hectic… The fires were quickly consuming them and the funeral home along with them… And that’s when perspectives changed… Before Daniel could see them all being charred by flames, now he was suddenly seeing through Taker’s eyes… He was watching Taker coming back from doing all his chores, Daniel heard little Taker gasp and yell out as he began sprinting toward the funeral home, he heard the sirens and saw the police and firefighters, trying to put out the flames so desperately…

Daniel watched through Taker’s eyes, as the kid tore past everyone, he was about to run into the front door before officers restrained him, he heard Taker screaming for his mom, screaming for his dad, and then screaming for Kane, the little kid screamed for his family, trying so hard to break free from the officers grasp, Daniel was watching in horror at this display, he felt absolutely sick to his stomach… “O-Okay! Okay okay okay! I-I’VE SEEN ENOUGH! STOP!” He yelled out and just like that, he was brought back to the void, he gasped and looked around before seeing Eliza and her husband in front of him, the two holding hands, looking very saddened, tears streaming down their face “We’re sorry Daniel… Perhaps we showed you too much, we- We should have tried to stop you…” Bryan shook his head “N-No! I mean… No, it… It’s… I… I wanted… I needed… t-to know, no matter… I-If it traumatized me… I… I needed to know…” There was a pause before he slowly hugged them back, despite being ghosts, he could physically feel them somehow… It was strange “...I’m sorry… M-Mom… Dad… You… N-None of you deserved that…”

Now Daniel understood to a certain degree, he understood why Kane was the way he was along with Taker, now that he knew what they had both gone through… The screams from Kane wouldn’t leave his mind, the screams of them all really, Bryan couldn’t escape those screams of agony and then screams for a family that was long engulfed by the flames… Eliza and her husband smiled, her husband ruffling his hair “Don’t be sorry, it wasn’t your fault, we should have… Paid more attention to those two… I should have locked the shed up tight, I should’ve put the flammable stuff somewhere Kane couldn’t have reached…” Eliza shook her head “Playing the blame game, trying to pick who's at fault will get us nowhere darling…It was just an accident, it was… A Tragedy… Tragedies happen all the time, we just wish for the boys… Wouldn’t stay at each other’s throats so much… …We wish for their peace, the both of them…” Daniel was silent for a bit before pulling back “...Then… I-I’ll keep trying… I’ll keep trying to help them achieve that peace… F-For their sake, and f-for yours… I promise” The pair of ghosts smiled and interlocked hands “...We know you will son, you’ve already accomplished so much …So before we return to the spirit world, we want you to know one thing…”

And then they both spoke simultaneously “...We love you, son, take care of your brothers for us”

Bryan nodded, tears cascading down his face as he smiled “...I will… G-Goodbye…” They waved him goodbye and then suddenly Daniel woke up with a gasp, jumping up from the ground and looking around, he was right back at the graveyard again… “...W-Was it all a… A dream…?” Daniel looked around and then looked back down at the graves “...No… No it wasn’t…” Bryan sniffled slightly, wiping some tears from his face “...I’ll take good care of them, I promise, love you… Mom… Dad… Rest easy…” Daniel then turned to walk off, it was late, his brothers would be worried sick about him if he didn’t return home soon…! Daniel practically sprinted back to the house, it wouldn’t take him as long since he was running down, still thinking about that vision… Thinking about his mom and dad, he could call them that now, he knew next time… Things wouldn’t be so awkward returning to the graves… Taker was right, he should’ve not doubted him… After all he would know… And after a bit of jogging, he finally got back to the house, he opened the door to both his brothers standing by.

Kane snapped his head up “About time you…” And then Kane looked surprised, he looked in shock as he shot up from his seat, Taker doing the same, the two walking over “D-Daniel? …Wh…What’s wrong? Why are you… Crying?” Kane looked concerned, before he could start threatening anybody if they hurt him, he quickly ran over and hugged both Kane and The Undertaker, hugging them in a tight embrace, the two shared each other confused glances but just merely hugged back, albeit a bit awkwardly “What uh, what’s this hug for exactly?” Daniel smiled “...Just hugging my brothers… That’s all” …That wasn’t the case, Bryan was hugging them for so many more reasons than just being brothers but there’s no way he could tell them what happened, he just… Couldn’t… Even though it was awkward, he knew the two appreciated the hug… “...I’m sorry…” Daniel couldn’t help but feel the need to apologize either, which confused them even more, Taker speaking up “What are you sorry for, boy? Look, we- We’re not mad for you staying out late or anything like that… Don’t worry about it, man…”

Daniel wouldn’t tell them the reason he was apologizing either, he wouldn’t tell them about any of the things he had witnessed tonight, at least, not yet… He wasn’t sure if he’d ever tell them, or if he ever could, but at least now he knows he’s accepted not only by his brothers but by their parents as well, he felt closure, he felt closure in more ways than that tonight, and then he felt their hug get a bit tighter, it was comforting and secure, it made him feel… Safe… This made Bryan sigh, it was a content sigh… And then he had one thought in his head, that he wished he could say out loud but if he did, he’d have to explain what happened tonight, so for now… This was Daniel’s last thought for the night “...You deserved so much better… You all did…”

if y’all wanna know more about this AU then dont hesitate to ask lmao i dont mind sharing deets

[moonbeambucky]

Hey Neighbor (Part 9)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader Word Count: 3827 Warnings: fluff

Summary: You had a plan and then life came along with one of its own. With your future almost derailed you worked hard to get yourself back on track and finally everything seemed to be going right… that is, until your new neighbor moved in.

A/N: A huge thank you to my wonderful beta Sam @buckyofthemyscira​​​​​​​​ Feedback is always appreciated!

PART 8 | HEY NEIGHBOR MASTERLIST

The lobby of Stark Industries is bright and almost blinding compared to the dull grey that looms over the city outside. To make matters worse, the sky would darken into a deep black in just a few hours, a depressing casualty of setting the clocks back.

It was mid-November with winter closing in. You bundle up your coat, adjusting your scarf before daring to step outside. You were having a conversation with Steve, or at least you thought you were.

“He’s been like this all day,” Mr. Lee said, laughing as a confused Steve finally picked his head up from his phone.

Steve apologized as his cheeks turned pink, again. He was texting Peggy and he just couldn’t help the way he felt about her. They had gone on a few dates since they met on Halloween weekend and Steve was one-hundred percent smitten.

“Well anyway, I have to head to Metro-Gen now so you boys have a good afternoon,” you said, saluting them before stepping outside.

Your internship was going well. It had only been a few months but you were very comfortable working in this type of environment. You were familiar with the hospital and some of the ER staff other than Sam. You assisted Elena with her cases and tried not to forget everything you’ve ever learned while under pressure. It was scary but exciting and most of all you were happy to provide assistance and care to those that needed it.

When the weekend finally came you were thrilled to finish up your hours at the hospital. You were cold and tired, and really wanted to take off your bra immediately. Wanda was coming over which was rare since she and Sam became official. Any time he had off they tried to spend together and you understood it, especially with the hours required for his job but you really missed her and were happy to finally hang out after so long.

“So you seriously can’t eat this?” you said, taking a hefty dip of guacamole onto your chip.

“Uh yes I can bitch, don’t hog all the guacamole,” Wanda joked, pushing you aside as she grabbed the dish for herself. “I just can’t eat the chips.”

Wanda was always trying new diets, not that she ever needed to be on one. She was doing the Keto diet now and while you applauded her commitment you could never give up carbs like that.

She sat cross legged on your couch, moving her fork around her bowl absentmindedly as she worked up the courage to speak. “So I wanted to ask you something…”

A pang of anxiety hit your stomach as it tends to do whenever someone says those words, but you tried to remain neutral, wondering what Wanda was going to say.

“I know we usually have Thanksgiving together but Sam happened to be off this year and I know it’s really soon but he invited me for dinner at his parents’ house and I haven’t said yes yet because I wanted to speak with you first because I know it’s our tradition to do something together but– ”

“Wanda!” You had to shout her name so she could stop and take a breath. You smiled at her, letting her know you were okay with her having Thanksgiving with Sam. “I’m really happy for you,” you said against her ear as she leaned over to hug you.

That night you thought about Wanda and Steve, how they both got into a relationship on Halloween. Meanwhile, the only thing you got that night was a blister on your heel.

“Hey neighbor.”

Bucky’s voice echoed from down the hall as he stepped out of the elevator, seeing you locking your door, with a laundry bag at your feet.

With everyone’s new relationships and Natasha prepping for a case no one has gone out since Halloween and things definitely felt a little weird.

“Hey,” you replied shakily, offering an awkward smile in return.

The truth was you were still upset with Bucky on Halloween. Well, not just you but the whole group. It had been weighing on you each day that passed without seeing him. The closer Bucky got to you and his door, the more nervous you felt and you really wanted to get this off your chest.

“Bucky… sorry this is out of the blue but…” You chewed on your lip trying to figure out exactly what to say.

His brows knit together. “Is everything alright?”

You forced a tense smile, wishing you hadn’t said anything in the first place, especially with the way concern filled those ocean blue eyes of his.

“Yeah I just…” With another big sigh you pushed the words out. “I thought it was kind of rude for you to ditch everyone on Halloween without saying goodbye. I know we’re not that close and you don’t owe me or anyone an explanation for wanting to leave or whatever but I don’t know, I just… needed to say that.”

Your lips pressed together firmly, feeling your heart pound rapidly against your chest as you waited to face whatever backlash there was after sharing your feelings.

Bucky sighed, letting his shoulders slump down. “I’m sorry Y/N. Honestly, that’s not how I wanted that night to end. But you were talking with that guy so I didn’t want to interrupt anything and everyone else had each other so I thought I’d do my own thing.”

“Guy? What guy?” You wondered out loud. When Bucky described him you realized he was talking about Bruce. “You thought something was going on with me and that guy? No, no. He’s a friend from work, just a friend.”

“Shit. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to block… anything… just in case.” Bucky chuckled, flashing his bright teeth as he smiled. “Still that was a dick move of me so I’m sorry.”

You accepted Bucky’s apology, feeling a little better about why he left the way he did. It didn’t mean he wouldn’t have left with that girl anyway, not that you care, because you don’t. Although now that most of your friends were in relationships you were feeling a little envious. It’s not that you didn’t want to date but you were too focused on work and school at the moment.

“Well I guess I’ll see you later,” you said, picking up your laundry bag.

“Wait!”

Throughout your conversation one thing stuck out the most in Bucky’s mind, when you said you weren’t close. He really thought you were and he’s not sure why it affected him so much but he wanted to change that and make it right.

You’ve definitely become a good friend of his even if you hadn’t gotten off on the right foot. And maybe he’s been a little busy lately, he hasn’t kept up on the group chat and didn’t think about how his lack of communication impacted anyone else. You were his friend, and so were Steve, Sam, Natasha, Clint and Wanda. He wanted to do better and be there for everyone so he might as well start now.

“If you wouldn’t mind the company I actually need to do my laundry too.”

There wasn’t any hesitation as you nodded back to him, your lips pulling into a smile that grew wider when he returned one of his own. Bucky took a few minutes to gather his laundry and together you walked a few blocks to the laundromat.

It wasn’t too crowded for a Sunday afternoon which was a pleasant surprise so the machines were pretty available. Bucky shared his detergent with you which was kind, saving your quarters from buying the single use packs the shop offered.

You sat beside him on uncomfortable chairs, bouncing your leg to keep warm as you shivered. There was some heat circulating through the room, a muggy wet heat that poured out every time someone opened the machines to check on their still damp clothes. Bucky was a good distraction, keeping you focused on your conversation as you caught up on what’s been going on in your lives.

“Thanksgiving’s going to be a little weird this year with Wanda and Steve doing their own thing but it’s alright.”

Bucky heard the disappointment you tried to hide in your tone but your face didn’t mask the emotions as well. He listened as you explained this was your tradition since you moved to New York. Since you couldn’t afford to fly home for both Thanksgiving and the holidays you had to choose, and so every year you spent the day with friends.

“Why don’t you spend it with me?” he asked, watching as the corner of your mouth slowly began to turn upwards into a smile.

“With you? You don’t go to your parent’s house?”

Bucky’s expression softened, “Normally I do but this year they’re flying out to spend Thanksgiving weekend with Rebecca.”

“Where does she live again?”

“It’s ‘they’ and Arizona.” Bucky rubbed the chill from his arms despite wearing a jacket. “Kinda wish I was there right now,” he chuckled.

The machines shook for their final spin cycle and you and Bucky got up in preparation to grab your clothes.

“You didn’t want to go with them?” you wondered.

“I’ve got a lot to work on plus I’ll see Bex soon, they usually come in for Christmas. So… is that a yes? I know I’m not Wanda or Steve but I’m still your friend.”

Bucky’s expression was hopeful as he awaited your answer. A beaming smile spread across your face as you replied, “Yes. I’d love to have Thanksgiving with you!”

If you looked at Bucky’s browser history over the last few weeks you would find a lot of food related searches: How to cook a turkey, how long to cook a turkey, how to cook a turkey fast, easiest way to cook a turkey, simple Thanksgiving dinner, Thanksgiving for 2, best Thanksgiving sides.

He wanted to make your Thanksgiving special but truthfully Bucky wasn’t the best in the kitchen. He could cook a few things but the idea of making a full Thanksgiving dinner was daunting and he couldn’t exactly ask his mother for help.

Since it was going to be just the two of you he finally found his answer– Thanksgiving dinner on a sheet pan. Bucky wrote out the list of groceries he needed, making sure he had everything needed so he could prepare the dinner.

You were working a full day at the hospital so Bucky had extra time to prepare for your arrival. His clothes were folded neatly, placed in his drawers that could now actually close. He made his bed, well he made sure the pillows were straight and draped his comforter over everything neatly. His instruments were gathered together neatly beside his desk and he made sure his bathroom was clean. Bucky spritzed his cologne in the air for good measure to make sure everything smelled nice.

Once that was done it finally dawned on him that he didn’t have a table. “Good job Barnes,” he scolded himself as he cleared away the last remaining clutter on the trunk that served as his coffee table. It would have to make do.

Bucky opened the package he bought at the store, a harvest themed tablecloth that was entirely too big for the trunk but with a few extra folds he made it look alright. It was an extra touch he hoped you would be happy to see. Checking his phone Bucky began to prepare the food, hoping to time it right for when you were coming by.

“No, no, no,” you cried, passing another bakery that was sold out of pies.

You hadn’t planned this properly. Not one bit. With Bucky preparing dinner you offered to bring the dessert and for some reason you thought making pumpkin pie from scratch would be easy. You were very wrong.

By the time you got home last night you were too exhausted to even look at the recipe. You needed sleep and had no shame in going to bed pretty much right away. The fact that it gets dark before five o’clock definitely helped you justify your early bedtime.

The genius idea you had was to wake up a little early so you could make the pie crust which might have worked out if you hadn’t overslept. Yes, despite the extra sleep you got your body wanted more.

Although you made it to work on time you ruined any shot at trying to snag a pie from any bakery along the way. Now you were headed home, defeated and upset with yourself for ruining Thanksgiving.

You trudged through the hallway, sighing heavily as you stood outside of Bucky’s apartment. Your knuckles rapped against the door, waiting for him to answer. Bucky pulled open the door with a smile that dropped the moment he saw your face.

“Y/N, is everything okay?” His hand came upon your shoulder as he offered comfort.

With another deep sigh you shook your head, “No… well yes.” You reconsidered your words, not wanting to worry him. “I ruined Thanksgiving.”

His mouth opened but Bucky didn’t speak, silently wondering why you think you’ve ruined something that hasn’t happened yet.

“I said I would bring dessert and I wanted to bake but I was too exhausted, so I thought I’d get something from the store but everything was sold out and now I feel like a shitty friend.”

Bucky couldn’t help but smile at the way you pouted so seriously over something as insignificant as dessert.

“Hey, c’mere,” he said, opening his arms. You rested your head against Bucky’s chest wrapping your arms around him as he rubbed circles on your back through your jacket. “You didn’t ruin anything, doll, I promise.”

With a few more reassurances from Bucky you pulled away from his embrace, feeling a little better even if part of you was still disappointed. You told him you would be over in a few minutes, desperate to change your clothes.

Bucky’s door was unlocked and you let yourself in, now wearing a loose sweater and black leggings that would allow you to feel comfortable as you stuffed your face, and casual slip-ons your feet thanked you for. Bucky was equally casual, in a dark grey t-shirt and black jeans so you didn’t feel bad for underdressing.

You stepped inside seeing the coffee table set up in a themed tablecloth and a scented pumpkin candle that smelled delicious as it spread throughout the room.

“Dinner should be ready in a minute or so. Can I get you something to drink?” he asked as you set your bag down beside the couch.

“Wine, I guess?” You weren’t really picky to be honest, happily taking the glass of Pinot Noir as Bucky poured for you and himself.

Bucky barely had a chance to take a sip before the alarm on his phone was going off, his reminder to take the food out of the oven.

“I hope this is okay,” he said, pulling out the sheet pan of turkey breasts surrounded by stuffing, green beans and sweet potatoes.

Your mouth was watering as you inhaled the enticing aroma. “Mmmm it looks delicious. Do you need any help?”

Bucky shook his head, telling you to relax. It was hard, because even though you were still pretty tired from the day you felt like you should be doing more than sipping wine on his couch. You stared at Bucky as he stood in the kitchen, dividing the food amongst two plates.

The muscles of his back were entrancing to watch as they moved beneath his shirt. Dropping your gaze you couldn’t help but stare at the way his jeans hugged his butt.

“You like what you see?”

Bucky’s voice seemingly came out of nowhere as you hadn’t realized he was looking over his shoulder.

“What? No, I’m… tired and stuck in a comfortable stare,” you laughed quickly, masking the awkwardness of definitely getting caught staring at his ass.

Bucky chuckled under his breath. He placed both dishes down, proud of the work he had done. Pressing his lips together Bucky had hope written across his face as he waited for your reaction.

Your hand came up to cover your mouth as you tried to chew fast enough so you could tell him how delicious it was. A smile stretched across his face, happy that he made you happy, and then Bucky began to dig in.

There wasn’t much to watch after deciding to skip over all the football games and sitcom reruns but choosing from Netflix wasn’t much better. There were a dozen cheesy, romantic Christmas movies but neither of you wanted to watch any of those.

“Oh how about this?” Bucky asked as he flashed by Nailed It! Your eyes lit up with delight as you nodded your head. If there was one show that made you feel better about your baking skills it was watching these hilarious disasters.

Bucky had the cutest laugh. The sound itself wasn’t anything out of the ordinary but the way that his whole face lit up while he was laughing. The joy reached his eyes first with crinkles pulling at the corners, his nose scrunched up reminding you of a bunny, and that smile… Bucky had one of the nicest smiles you’d ever seen because it had the power to make your own greater just by looking at it.

You were crying with laughter as the contestants revealed their cakes, each one somehow more horrifying than the last. By the third episode you found yourself comfortably resting your head against Bucky. It was nice to have someone to hang out with like this again especially since Steve had rightfully been spending most of his free time with Peggy.

“I hope you don’t get your baking skills from this show. Maybe it’s a good thing you didn’t make pie,” Bucky teased. Your immediate response was to playfully smack his leg. “Ow I’m kidding!”

“It would have been good, a thousand times better than this,” you gestured towards the screen.

Bucky cocked his head to face you. “So let’s make it now.”

Your head shook rejecting his suggestion. “It takes too long. The dough needs to rest for a while after you mix it and I don’t want to eat pie at two in the morning. Not when I have to get up early again.”

With another day off from Stark Industries you’d be spending a full day at the hospital, trying to chip away at all those hours you needed to do.

“It’s still early, we can make something right? Cookies? Is that the same dough?” Bucky asked, because even though you had to be up early he still wanted to spend time with you and he could also go for dessert.

“It’s not exactly the same but I have all the ingredients. Do you want to make cookies?”

Bucky’s stomach rumbled as if on cue making both of you laugh.

Since it was easier to bake in your apartment you helped Bucky clean up the dishes you made in his, feeling it was rude to leave things a mess. Bucky didn’t want you to clean but you at least insisted on rinsing the plates clean and since you were at the sink anyway you ended up washing most of them.

You didn’t see the way Bucky smiled while watching you. This was probably the only time he’s felt comfortable having a woman linger in his apartment. His flings all begged to draw out their time, promising him pancakes or the best eggs and bacon he’s ever had. As hard as they tried, he shut them all down ushering them out quickly but things with you were different. You were friends and closer than he would ever be to any of the random names in his phone.

In your apartment Bucky helped gather the ingredients needed. Counter space and New York didn’t exactly go together, not in your price range, but together you cleared space on your kitchen table and set everything up there.

Bucky ignored his phone that rang as he cracked eggs into the large bowl you were using to mix everything together in. He picked up the bag of chocolate chips pouring a generous amount in the dough, not that you minded; the more chocolate the better!

Together you scooped up balls of dough onto a baking sheet and placed them in the oven.

“Bucky!” You turned to find him swiping his finger through the bowl of raw dough and eating it.

“What?”

“You can’t eat that you’ll get sick!” you protested, taking the bowl away from him and washing it before he could risk his chance of getting E. coli any further.

He sucked his finger into his mouth, smiling, “No one has ever gotten sick from eating raw cookie dough.” His comment had you look back, blinking in silence. “Okay well I’m sure someone has but it’s never happened to me.”

“I want you to enjoy these cookies Bucky, not vomit all over the place.”

He brought over the rest of the bowls that needed to be washed, this time taking over and returning the favor since you washed his dishes. “You mean you wouldn’t take care of me if I got sick?” He pouted, tilting his head and raising his eyebrows.

“Not a chance,” you said teasingly, unable to hold back your smile.

Checking your phone you pulled out the cookies just in time for them to be crisp and chewy. After letting them cool you let Bucky take the first bite this time, watching as his eyes rolled back as he let a sinful moan slip.

“So fucking good. You’re amazing.”

This isn’t the first time you’d heard similar praise coming from Bucky, and combined with the orgasmic look on his face it made you turn away with embarrassment, now having a visual of what things might be like at night on the side of the wall. You grabbed a cookie to distract your mind, biting into buttery perfection with a massive amount of chocolate thanks to Bucky’s heavy hand.

“Thanks for a great Thanksgiving Bucky. Tonight was awesome,” you said, kissing him on the cheek before wrapping your arms around him.

“You’re welcome Y/N,” he murmured against you, squeezing back a little tighter, both of you now aware of the friendly kiss you had given him.

Bucky left with a dish containing most of the cookies at your insistence. He couldn’t help but eat a few more when he was back in his apartment. Before getting into bed Bucky listened to the voicemail he received earlier.

“Hi James, it’s Mom. We missed you tonight. I don't know why your deadline was on a holiday but I hope you finished everything. I set aside some leftovers in case you wanted to come over tomorrow. Call me back. I love you.”

PART 10

[silvia7272]

Miraculess Ladybug Salt AU: You Always Liked To Play With Fire ~ The Meeting

I have no idea how long I want this to be, but I doubt it will be too long, so maaaaybe 15 chapters? But I’m super glad that this has gotten more attention than I thought it would have.

Might need to point out that I only said there weren’t any Miraculous here, but heroes still exist, but they all hide their identities (from the public because I think it’s stupid for random civilians to know your identity) if they chose to or they only tell families.

This fanfic and its ideas were all made before season 4 came out, so if something doesn’t add up please don’t worry. That information wasn’t available then, and unless it fits into my story or I like it, I won’t include it in my story. Also, that new Miraculous wiki can get lost, I’m not putting any of that new information in here if they couldn’t even put it in the show.

Word Count: 7661

Tags: @vixen-uchiha​, if you wish to be tagged all you must do is say. Also, if you change your name please tell me, I don’t want to leave you out since you’ve asked to be tagged. I’m very sorry if I’ve missed anyone.

Well, I hope you’ll enjoy it.

Summary:

(Fire doesn't exactly have anything to do with this story I just really liked the title)

Note: This book contains OOC scenes of Miraculous Ladybug as well as a ton of salt, so if you don't like that stuff you may scroll past and have a nice day.

In a world with no Miraculous, no Hawkmoth and no Ladybug, how does our little heroine do?

Well, it usually would be hanging out with her friends, as any other teenager would do...

But, of course, this wasn't normal.

This was reality. It was cold, hard, and definitely not welcome.

So, when this girl wishes to have some kind of adventure in her boring, mundane life...

How long does it take for her to regret it?

Trigger Warning (If you believe there is absolutely anything in my works that can be classed as triggering please tell me and I will include it after the summery. All off my works are made with a keep reading so you should be able to see if there's anything in the warning before hand.)

Mentions of guns, poison and stitching flesh.

***

Beep… Beep…

Alarms were annoying. Why had someone decided to invent a device that makes you feel guilty for sleeping in? Why not just be a gentle reminder in the form of a lullaby? Or a small caress of a hand brushing some hair, as you simply start to close your eyes, drifting of-

“Marinette you’ll be late for school again!”

She groaned.

So that was why.

Getting dressed she sighed knowing what the day would hold. Glares, being alone, eat, hopefully become nothing but invisible and make sure to go unnoticed before rushing back home.

For the past three years, this is what would happen to her. This same boring, frighteningly normal routine.

And she hated it.

Not just for being alone, or all of the sadness she felt grow each day to a meter she wasn’t sure what level she was on now but whatever. It wasn’t going down any time soon.

No, what she hated the most…

Was the boredom.

Yes, her creativity streak could not be higher, she had been going through her sketchbooks so much she had to work longer hours at her bakery to afford them all, but her love for fashion just wasn’t the same, she didn’t feel any joy producing her work anymore. There wasn’t anyone new to show it with.

She was just alone in her room, mountains of book piles covering every surface.

But she was bored in general. She wouldn’t be able to place the feeling, or even be able to describe what it was. But for whatever reason, she craved for adventure, I mean sure she was safe here, and she didn’t want to worry her Parents with this silly idea of hers. But she just wanted a tiny little taste of some venture.

So why couldn’t she?

“Did you hear?” Marinette heard the whispers, walking up to her classroom door she could hear what they were talking about, over the years she had become silent, become part of the crowd, it was so much easier to eavesdrop, although it was a bad habit of hers, she couldn’t help it.

For example, she heard about Adrien’s relationships.

Now don’t start getting worried, she was 100% over the boy. She would under no circumstances ever fall for someone like him, or even make such a god-like illusion of someone ever again.

But she heard how, the first day Lila came, and their kiss they shared. He really had meant to pull away.

Because he was starting to see Kagami.

But, his feelings became conflicted.

And he didn’t want to hurt Kagami, so he simply never told her.

But then he never told Lila to stop with all of her advances, and Alya had tried numerous times to set them up.

Again, Adrien never said for them to stop, instead went along with it. He never told them he was with Kagami, and Marinette couldn’t help but feel so sorry for the girl.

She learnt from hearing Adrien’s conversation he was her first friend, and she wanted to keep hold of that fact.

Just like her.

Except, the bluenette was able to escape that motion before she was sucked in too far.

She would’ve warned Kagami, don’t get her wrong. But Marinette wouldn’t lie. She was intimidated by the girl.

Every time she saw her, she would glare all the time. It just reminded her of everyone else, and she couldn’t go through with it.

Pathetic she thought bitterly.

But still. If she had confessed to Adrien, and then Lila came. Would he have told her about that kiss?

.

Well, er- Besides that, she had a knack for hearing other things too, for example, footsteps, she was able to tell who’s were who’s just by the sound. Some were light like Rose’s and Juleka’s. Some were heavy like Ivan’s and Mr Damocles. Some were sneaky like Chloé’s and Lila’s.

And she had to learn to avoid interactions with anyone she knew would make a fuss.

It became easy after a while.

Opening the door, she quickly scanned the class, they were all there, usual spots an all.

Around Lila’s desk.

Oh well.

It would be less likely they would notice her.

She was, fortunately, able to get to her seat without any interruptions.

“A hero is coming to Paris, to help all of the Parisians out. Isn’t that amazing?”

“Really, that’s so cool. I wonder what they’ll be like?”

“Oh, I sure hope he’s strong. Hey, do you think it’ll be Eostrix Or Sparrow?”

“And why exactly do you think it’ll be Eostrix? What about Medusa. Or-” Alya gasps, excitement seeping out of her.

“What if it’s Nebula?!”

“Nu-uh, it’s definitely Eostrix”

“No way Nebula all the way”

“Eostrix”

“Nebula”

“Eostrix!”

“Nebula!”

“EOSTRIX!”

“NEBULA!”

“BATMAN!!” The once quiet Rose belted out, before covering her hands in astonishment.

“Sorry I wanted to join in.” She gave a sheepish smile as Juleka pattered her head.

Marinette breathed a sigh of relief, they would always get loud but today must’ve been special.

She looked out the window. A superhero Ey? Coming to Paris? How exciting. She knew she would never get the chance to meet them in person, what with her not so chaotic schedule. But she would love nothing more than to thank them for all they had done, for even volunteering to come here and help.

If she was brave enough, she would love to bake something for them, as a token of appreciation for their work. Maybe even make an outfit inspired by them-

Wait- that wouldn’t be considered creepy, right?

She tried to work on that, with her attachment issues. But she was trying, with no friends at least, she wasn’t sure if it had worked. No one could see her progress without any other remarks.

“You shouldn’t work yourself up so much, besides there’s going to be an announcement in 2 hours, we’ll just see it at break.” Alix laid back in her seat, Marinette couldn’t tell if she had finally realised the truth but was just drowning it out or just grew bored.

But she hadn’t made any type of engagement with her.

Oh well, I guess she was done with hoping.

But it wouldn’t matter, Mlle Bustier came in clapping her hands to gain the classes attention.

“Now now, please return to your seats, I have a very special announcement to say” Please don’t let it be another pop quiz. It was bad enough when someone would glance her way in general. Not when her test score would be one of the highest.

“As you know, this small, lovely class has been so pleasant these past few years. Our own tight little nest, and I couldn’t be prouder of… All of you” Marinette saw the little glance she made, whatever she thought. It was all lies anyway.

“But, we will have to make another new addition to this class” A laugh was heard.

“Well, I for one hope they’ll be better than the last bunch… Except for you Adrikins” The others glared at her as Adrien looked away, not wanting to get involved.

If there was one thing Marinette could commend Chloé for, it was the fact she saw through Lila’s lies with ease. Having Sabrina by her side did make it easier, but she saw through none the less.

She didn’t care that everyone else believed her little tales, Chloé thought it was funny, and loved the idea of their reactions when they would inevitably freak out and cry.

She just had to be patient.

Plus, there was no way she would feel pity for Marinette. In this world, its use or be used. And like hell she’ll be used. She just had to see for herself.

“Chloé please, that’s no way to make a first impression. Ahem, excuse me, you may come in now!”

“Ok~,” A singsong voice said.

If Marinette had been paying attention, she would’ve noticed the newcomer walk in. She wore a long-sleeved unbuttoned cardigan with a t-shirt underneath and a knee-high length skirt. A scarf was tied around her neck, matching her attire and small petite shoes.

She would’ve noticed the pretty little bows in her hair. The pigtailed braids, all going down to her waist, showing off how long it still was even tied up. Little earrings so small worn, a detail many wouldn’t have noticed.

She would’ve noticed the little introduction she did to the whole class, and how it seems she brightened up the whole room. Or the smile she sent their way, not for one but for all. And how a blond boy blushed from it.

But more importantly, she would’ve noticed, or at least heard her name being called out multiple times.

“Marinette, please pay attention for once, I swear your behaviour has gotten worse” She wanted to shrink, now she made a fool out of herself in front of the new girl.

“I’m very sorry about that, that was very rude of her, I do hope you’ll forgive the situation, the only available seat is at the back” Great, now she will hate her.

“That’s alright, I love sitting at the back, that way, I can see everyone and know they’re ok” Hearts stopped, and smiles grew, she really was just a sweet little child.

The bluenette, however, was dreading it. Now there would be another to hate her. And she seemed so innocent. It was only a matter of time before she would be corrupted as well.

Oh, the horror, she really didn’t deserve it, but Lila would have her way, she always di-

“You’re Marinette, right?” She jumped, forgetting she had just been in her own little world again, staring off into space. She really needed to stop that.

“Err y-yeah, and you are?” She cursed herself for not paying attention, now she may just think she was an ignorant stupid-

“My name is Rosaniline Keyne-Hill, but everyone calls me Rosann, it’s a pleasure to meet you Mari” She giggled as Marinette stared back.

Mari? No one had called her that before. But she liked it.

“Yeah, same”

And it felt like something else.

Maybe… Hope?

…

She shouldn’t be so optimistic.

***

Trying to eat in peace was a nightmare. There weren’t many places where she could go to without being in trouble. The library prohibited any foods due to not wanting any books to be damaged, you weren’t allowed to eat in a classroom without a teacher present, and considering all of the teachers chose to eat in the staff room she wouldn’t be able to sneak into any room. The art club, again didn’t want to damage any works, not after Chloé “accidentally” spilt her drink all over Nathaniel’s sketchbook four years ago. He refused to go to school for a week. And the roof was out of the question, too unsafe and a risk if anything were to happen.

But Marinette, since it’s lunch, couldn’t you go eat at home? Why yes, she could, at least two times a week she would just go back and stay at home to eat, but she felt as if she couldn’t always retreat home just for convenience, besides, Mlle Bustier would sometimes tell her to eat in the cafeteria with the others instead of hiding herself away. If she tried going to her Parents when told to stay, she’d be given warnings that soon turned to detentions.

Even if at times she wished to just sneak away, she couldn’t, she didn’t want her Parents to be called in and get wind of any other situations.

Marinette sighed as she played with her food, boredom crept on her face before she tuned into that hero announcement appearing on Face To Face.

Despite everyone trying to shove it down the school’s throat, she was ever so slightly curious about it. She may not have been able to voice her opinions to anyone in particular but she just wants to see who this mystery hero was.

Her pink earbuds at the ready and plugged in, she waited until Nadja Chamack’s report would come in, eerily, the whole cafeteria was quiet, the suspense was enough to put anyone silent.

Then, the logo came on, the sound resonated throughout the room since it was on the TV but Marinette stuck to her phone, she didn’t want anyone catching her watching it.

“Don’t be bemused, it’s just the news. Now a new rumour has been circulating throughout Paris about a new superhero appearing to protect the civilians. I’m sure you’re all dying to know just how true it is. Well, I can assure you that only the best reporter in Paris would only speak of the truth, considering I have the key to answer all your questions.” Lights appeared behind her, all moving in different directions before centring on a doorway in the centre of the stage.

“I’m confident you’re very excited to find out who our mysterious hero is, so without further ado, let’s see who it is.” People began to hold their breaths, the excitement of who this bigshot would be, Nebula, Eostrix, or someone even bigger, they didn’t know, but you could hear a pin drop in that cafeteria with how silent it was.

From behind the curtain, there were ruffles, smoke emerged to give off a more dramatic flair as the crowds became excited.

.

.

*A turquoise and light emerald outfit came into view. Baggy clothing on her arms and legs appeared along with white high boots. Her main outfit seemed to reside a sweetheart neckline dress with a mini skirt, although Marinette noticed it gave the girl some mobility to move around instead of being restricting. She also noticed the slight cold colours centring around her skirt, since she always had a keen eye on different types of design patterns. Light blue overlayers obscured most of the skirts view with golden rims on the bottom.

She had a light blue neck jewel, although she couldn’t see much off it, she’d have to admit. Her mask was a gradient of turquoise to match her dress, her hair was tied up in two twin buns, two red hairpins also there she noticed, but the rest left down, Marinette had to wonder how long it would’ve been all down.

There were a lot of things Marinette noticed, however, one thing everyone could agree on…

Was that they had no idea who she was.

“Salutations everyone, why it’s a pleasure to be here.” Marinette had to admit, she looked… Kinda young to be a superhero. And maybe, just maybe, not what she’d envisioned when she’d heard about a hero coming to Paris. Why, she was making an assumption, and she should really know better than to do that since, y’know, but you couldn’t blame her right?

“WHAT? WHO THE HELL IS THAT?” She heard over the other side of the dining room. Of course, it was Alya, she never could control her voice volume. But she couldn’t tell if the ombre girl was upset over it not being Nebula or supposedly getting hyped up for a hero none of them had ever heard off.

Looking back at the screen, she could tell the news reporters seemed a bit taken back as well, Nadja never was good at concealing her emotions, even on air, maybe they had been promised someone else instead?

“O-Oh, I see. Well, I-’ Her recovery was the same, Nadja always fretted she had to rely on the people up in management to give her a line if she couldn’t think off one herself, she wasn’t very good at improv either.

The heroine smiled before walking down to sit beside Nadja.

“I understand the scepticism, my appearance deters most, but that is just a ploy, however, I’m here to make a promise to all off Paris. My name is Soliane Rin and I’m here to risk my life for everyone in Paris, with or without my mask on. All I ask is to be given a chance.” She bowed to the camera, to all off Paris, and Marinette was able to see her smile, her truthful words as the whole dining room stayed silent at her speech.

Marinette seemed to feel…

Hope?

“Ah- no it wasn’t that, it’s just we were given information you were appointed by both Eostrix and Nebula? How? I mean, how did you meet them, or more importantly how did you get to have this opportunity?” She smiled as Nadja had time to recover from her obvious disappointment.

“Oh that, well I had worked with them on a few cases in New York. I had trained for a few years to be just like that until I was finally able to convince them to train me fully. And well I guess they believed I was ready to protect this jurisdiction by myself over time.” Nadja nodded along, seemingly more at ease as the time passed by, more questions being asked and answered before everyone had noticed how much time had passed.

A beep emitted from the girl’s necklace, in turn making her stand up and bowing or at least curtsying once more.

“I’m sorry for the early interruption, but I must be going now, I have some business to attend too” She threw a peace sign as a puff of smoke surrounded her. When it had passed so had she disappeared. As the crew tried to cover from most of their unscripted events. Nadja headed to commercials.

The long-awaited announcement was over, what would the audience’s reactions be like?

“Really? We get a new hero like her? I’ve never even heard of Soliane Rin. Ugh, we might as well have gotten someone like Doorman” Kim flung his arms up into the air before sitting back into his chair.

Not good apparently.

“I know right, and to think I was excited for this” Alya dramatically fell back into her seat. And she was so looking forward to this news as well.

Marinette would admit to feeling more guilt, she may have… Possibly thought the same, but even still, we’re judging a book by its cover, surely, they all should’ve waited until maybe after she had proved herself.

Wait- making her have to prove herself was too judgemental still, she didn’t mean for it to sound that bad, she just- she was just wrestling with the thoughts in her mind.

Not noticing the annoyed looks from the class, the tiniest blush from a blond, or the tiny smirk residing from a brunette.

With a plan in action, she set to work ravelling a new story that was sure to captivate her ‘friends’. With a tremble of the lip and bowing her head, she waited until at least one person would notice her sudden change of expression.

Luckily, her plan went just as she thought.

“Lila? Are you ok, what’s wrong?” Rose, a sweet and naïve girl mind you, immediately took the bait.

And with that, the others finally took notice of her, a new record she thought, after so long she was used to this routine.

She knew how to work them.

“Oh- it’s nothing important, I’m sure you wouldn’t want to spoil the mood.”

Hook

“Hey c’mon girl, you can tell us. What’s on your mind?” Alya pats her shoulder to comfort the smaller girl.

Line

“Are you sure?” Lila asked again timidly, the other girl nodded, in fact, everyone did, and gave encouraging words to her, they couldn’t see the smirk inside her mind.

And sinker.

She fiddled with a piece off her skirt, a habit she formed when noticing they were always a lot more concerned when she fidgeted, it was a clever trick really. Being able to get anyone wrapped around her finger was a power she loved.

“Well, I just think it’s a bit sad really.”

“What was?” Someone asked, at times she didn’t really care who it was that responded, she just knew what the next response would be, she could always make them say what she wanted without them ever knowing…

Oh, she loved this life.

“It was meant to be a surprise.” She rambled on, waiting for someone to stop her, they had to.

“Lila, what are you talking about?” See, she knew how to play this game a thousand times over.

“Well… I wasn’t really meant to tell anyone. But since all of you are my friends, and I know I could trust you with this, so I guess it's fine to say.”

Everyone around the table leaned in, intrigued by what she had to say. Lila took a deep breath in, bracing herself for the aftereffect of her words she knew would come.

“I knew it would happen, that no one would like her, but I had hoped and prayed that you all would, I guess I should’ve asked for someone higher up” It took a few seconds for those words to tick in the aspiring journalists head, but when they were finally processed, she nearly erupted. It was better to make them think of what she said instead of just outright saying it, decent off her to help their brains.

“Wait- you- you were the one to suggest a hero to come to Paris!? OMG girl that is fantastic” Lila gave a small smile as everyone then shouted the usual praise at her, she nodded along before turning her head down.

“But- you all weren’t happy” They all felt guilty at that, maybe that was why Lila had been quiet the entire time while the news was on. She must’ve been checking for their expressions and yet they hurt her feelings instead.

“Sorry- we must’ve just presumed it was gonna be Eostrix or Nebula, that morning probably messed with our responses” Alya laughed as she draped an arm around Lila.

But the ‘lie’ wouldn’t end there.

“I see, I just thought she would’ve wanted more recognition while being here” Out of nowhere she started crying more, everyone tried to comfort her, but it was no use.

“She’s just such a nice person, and so kind. When I last met her, she was still in training and I promised I would promote her as much as I could” She sniffed as Rose handed her a tissue which she greedily took a hold of.

Before they could exclaim their surprise she immediately jumped right back into her story.

“I knew I should’ve tried harder; I should’ve gotten Nebula or Eostrix. I’m sorry I ruined everyone’s day. I- I should’ve left my big mouth shut. I’m sorry guys” Their guilt immediately intensified.

Lila had done all of that for them, and they had quite easily tossed it aside without realising, how could they? And to one-off their best friends? Despicable, absolutely despicable.

Wait, why did that sound vaguely familiar?

Oh well, Lila was more important.

“Lila no” Alya cooed in a soft voice, feeling mostly responsible, hyping everyone else up and being one of the first ones to dismiss the new hero entirely. She tries to comfort Lila was the least she could do.

“It’s not your fault Lila” Her plan came together.

“Of course, not. We shouldn’t have judged her so quickly” Just like all the others.

“We’re sorry, so sorry Lila.” And she knew how to do it so efficiently.

“We shouldn’t have judged so quickly” Lila’s smirk in her mind grew in size, they were so wrapped around her finger.

As Alya was happily explaining that she would be in fact honoured to create a blog about this new hero- she had forgotten her name, and would quite happily like to interview Lila as well to be able to learn anything else about the hero, a lone figure grew upset.

Lila had just created another lie, she was used to that, but for it to be about the new hero, couldn’t Lila tell just how dangerous that could be? I mean sure, it would be great to actually be able to meet a hero, let alone be friends with one. But to publicly announce that? Was she crazy? Did she want a massive target on her back?

She could only hope no one would buy into that blog, as mean as it was, but she didn’t want them to get physically hurt.

She could only hope that the new hero wouldn’t care about fake news or blatant lies.

She truly could only hope.

.

As shoes tapped against the floor along the dining room, a new figure turned her head.

She had been walking around her new school, looking around for entrances, exits and just in general any hidden secrets. She had previously asked for a school plan from a teacher, but had been informed that her students would be more than happy to help her instead, and she needn’t need some piece of paper. But that didn’t suit her, so when she wasn’t looking, she may have just acquired one anyway. She was quiet so she wouldn’t have been caught.

Now she was walking through the dining hall, she had wanted to take in the cafeteria, just in case there were any rooms she had missed, until she heard footsteps approaching her.

“Hey Rosaniline, come join us, we haven’t seen you all lunch.” She knew she’d have to concede, having analysed each person in her class, she knew, Alya, would not take no as an answer.

So, she flashed her innocent smile and nodded along, it may prove useful to study them further.

Her arm was grabbed before they walked over to a table full of people, so different from the other tables.

“So, newbie where were you? You totally missed the special hero announcement.” Alix asked her, the others looked over to see her answer, if Rosaniline hadn’t been used to having a crowd around her she believed she would’ve been nervous as hell.

“I had taken the liberty off looking around the school, I’m afraid I can get pretty lost in large places, I only wished to remember the layout beforehand.” She placed her hands together with a bright smile appearing. It was half a lie; she couldn’t exactly state her true reason, now could she?

The ombre haired girl pulled a large smile onto her face. She was just like Adrien, new, polite and a literal ball of sunshine, she thought before sneakily looking over at the blond-haired person who hadn’t said much, most probably due to his shy nature due to his upbringing.

She latched onto Adrien’s arm before practically flinging him towards Rosaniline.

She literally took falling for someone to a whole new level.

“Well looks like the two of you would get along swimmingly” Her new ship was bound to sail, she could see it now, their immediate attraction for each other, the dates and interactions they’ll have before proclaiming their love in the rain, a sentimental scene in which she’ll be gladly recording while hiding behind a tree.

I mean who wouldn’t just map out her new friends love life in a matter of minutes of knowing each other?

But… It may just become a crash course instead. They rubbed their heads simultaneously due to bumping into each other. However, one was ever so slightly overjoyed with being in such close proximity to her while the other would think that prank wasn’t funny in the least.

Before any of the duo could express their annoyance/apologise and maybe a get together sometime, someone of course just had to interrupt the moment.

“Oh, Rosaniline we need to apologise to you” Rosann had expected the apology to come from Alya but it appeared that girl didn’t know that she had done something wrong.

“We’re so sorry that you have to sit next to her” That caught Rosann’s attention, what did they mean by that? They must’ve noticed her confused face as the explained further.

“Oh, you poor thing, you really don’t know do you?” Well, no. That is what she wanted to say, she was new, of course she wouldn’t know, hell she hadn’t even been able to see the whole layout as she had planned to. She was sure there was a hidden basement somewhere, she just needed to locate it.

“That girl, the one you have to sit next to in class. The one with dark blue hair?” They all tried to provide as many details as they could without trying to make it too obvious, but Rosann was able to make out who exactly they were talking about.

She took a sneaky glance towards the person the group had started to talk about. She heard a few words of bullying, mean, lies and stalker before zoning it out, she needed to concentrate.

The girl, in a pink jacket and a grey skirt. Sitting alone on a table that seemed to be mocking her by how big it was. All of the tables were big, possibly to do with teachers wanting students to sit with their friends.

But she wasn’t with anyone, she just absentmindedly played with her food as nothing interesting happened.

Rosann stared, that girl, she hadn’t seen her smile once, or even display any kind of positive emotion. She was just lonely; couldn’t they see that?

That girl needed to be saved!

***

Midnight.

Or at least close to that time she thought.

She didn’t know, she had spent many a night out on her balcony just sketching in her book. One would think it would’ve been too cold but the bluenette didn’t mind, she had been used to it, the wind wasn’t particularly chilly out here, even if it was late September. This was part of her routine anyway. Staying up late was just something she was used to, her sleeping schedule was the worse. But she produced so many fantastic ideas when she was awake at night, it was a sacrifice she was willing to take.

With her earbuds plugged in, she was jolted out of her streak when she heard a different notification pop up, pulling out her phone she looked at what could’ve possibly caused it.

[BREAKING NEWS: New Hero Prevents Bank Robbery On First Day.]

Marinette smiled at that. Her first achievement, in Paris of course, she knew she had done a lot before, she had checked a few articles before, although she did have to rely on google translate on a few instances, but this hadn’t been the only thing she had prevented. There had been house fires to museum robberies to even outright terrorist attacks, and yet she was able to stop them all, she did have some help but from what Marinette could make out the other heroes got there after taking most of the civilians out of the buildings, and from what she could tell, she could’ve easily handled everything herself.

She could see Soliane didn’t need to prove herself to others if she was just given a chance for everyone to see what she could do.

To not be judged based on baseless accusations tossed her way. For people to look through and see the truth!

.

.

She didn’t know who that had been aimed at, but she knew she just wanted to get back to her sketching.

But… She couldn’t.

Not now.

Not when she heard a noise behind where she had been sitting!

She quickly dropped her belongings as she jumped up from her chair.

-

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but she knew she had heard something, it wasn’t just her hearing she knows that.

She knew something had happened; something was there. When she stayed put, trying to concentrate more- she heard slight breathing, slow and- hurting!?

She didn’t know who it was, she didn’t know their intentions or they alliance, but, if something was hurt, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she didn’t check it out.

So, she quietly approached the wall, having to stand on the bricks on the side of the wall since she wasn’t tall enough before pushing herself up.

!!!

‘That’s-!’

Even in the night she could see a prominent colour.

Turquoise!

“It- no it can’t be! Soliane Rin!” She whispered more to herself, but even still she couldn’t comprehend how this could have happened.

Noises of pain interrupt her train of thought. She- she was hurt!

Her mind had taken action, and immediately propelled her forward, she couldn’t leave someone out here in the middle of the night hurting, even if she was a hero, she was still human!

She ran towards her, instantly trying to ask if she was ok? Where was she hurt and if she can respond?

But nothing came, no answer, nada. She had to check if she was alright.

She came closer, forgetting about maybe not accidentally startling the young hero.

Her hand was caught midway to the hero, she gasped, her reflexes were still there. Her head was nonetheless limp and her left hand resting on her abdomen.

“W- who ar-” She grunted in pain again. Marinette shot forward to grab her before she could fall back.

“Hey, m-my name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you’re on my roof right now. Please let me help you” Through her strength, she opened one eye to look at her. And through her eyes, she could only see one thing.

Sincerity.

“Right- leg… anti” Her breathing grew slower, as if she were falling unconscious, Marinette had no idea if it would’ve been eternal.

But Marinette was able to determine what she had meant. Looking her over, she looked at her leg, her baggy clothes were slightly torn but that didn’t matter now, slipping her hand inside, she hoped Soliane wouldn’t mind her hand being cold, she tried searching for it, for her antidote.

Her fingertips tried reaching out until she felt smooth glass. Wrapping her fingers around and pulling it out she pulled it up for further inspection.

The writing around the glass wasn’t in French unlucky for her, however, there were pictures, she had to quickly conclude this would’ve been used for situations just like this.

The picture appeared to show that it should be drunken not spread on the wound, so she quickly unscrewed the cap. Looking back at the hero she could tell she had indeed turned paler, she wasn’t faring so well, she knew she needed to do it quick.

Tilting her head back so she could pour it down her throat, she could only pray that she wasn’t too late.

.

.

One minute.

.

.

Two minutes!

Why wasn’t anything happening!?

Marinette had to take a deep breath, maybe it would need some time to take an effect.

In the meantime, maybe she could look her over to see if there were any other injuries. And then maybe go downstairs to collect some supplies. Living as a baker meant she knew her way around burns, scars and scratches, so they were always prepared with a medical box in the kitchen.

Looking at her over appeared to be the right choice in action. Her lower abdomen had been hit, Marinette reasoned with herself that must have been why she had yet taken her handoff.

But as Marinette covered her own mouth with her hand, she was a gasped at how much blood there was.

Now what? She couldn’t tell her Parents, she loved them, she really did, but she knew how loud her Dad would get whenever he got happy, angry, or frightened, she knew it wouldn’t be a smart choice, especially with how jumpy the hero was. Not like she couldn’t blame her.

Then that would mean calling an ambulance might be out of the equation as well, plus the Soliane Rin may not want the publicity of her going to the hospital after only one day of patrolling. She knew if she had gotten cold feet or even hurt like this on her first day heroing they’d be a high chance of her giving up.

Well… She was a seamstress.

She had been doing it for a very long time, so she knew the ins and outs of sewing.

But still… It could be extremely risky, and she’d need to get consent first… But if she didn’t wake up… And she knew how open wounds could be, how dangerous it could be if they didn’t get any treatment, and how much trouble she’d be in if she accidentally killed the hero when trying to help her.

.

Well…

She had dreamed of some adventure in her life…

And she got her wish.

***

Stitch… Stitch…

Flick-

“Ahh!-”

“So-sorry”

Her prayers off Soliane Rin waking up were answered, after she had collected a few blankets, medical supplies, and a needle & thread, she had come back up.

Only to find Soliane on her balcony, if it wasn’t for her shock, she knew she would’ve screamed out zombie.

How she had the strength to get there she would never know, but she had to guess, heroes have all sorts of endurance.

She quickly sped to catch her. She did reprehend her of course; it was in her caring nature, so she just had to.

But… The way she weakly smiled at her, she couldn’t help feeling guilty, she probably was in so much pain and here she was berating her for- for what exactly.

This was why they had all left her. She was too quick to jump the gun, to jump to conclusions, too fast to even see from anyone else’s perspective.

Which is why she was a perfect target.

She lowered her onto her bed, careful not to hurt her anymore. Setting her down so she would’ve been comfortable, lots of pillows to help as well, she was glad she brought so many in her childhood. Or whenever her Nonna would come, she’d always get a new toy from her travels.

And that was when she set to work, conversing with her about what she may have to do, and as hesitant as Soliane was, she also knew there was no choice.

“Fine, I’ll trust you Marinette” Those words felt like a gift, in any other situation she would have been jumping for joy, getting acknowledged by a hero? That was amazing.

But- she really couldn’t celebrate, the look in Soliane Rin’s eyes, the were… Fearful. She knew she wasn’t trusted, yet. But she would prove it.

Snip, snip.

The room was silent, no words had been muttered or mentioned, Marinette was concentrating on her stitching, just hoping she wouldn’t hurt her anymore. She must have regretted her decision now, of course, she had, anyone with the right of mind would’ve. No wait- she didn’t mean it like that! She just meant-

“It’s not your fault. I- shouldn’t have let my guard down” It became silent again, and this time Marinette had a lot more to think about. There had been one thing that was stuck on her mind and couldn’t leave her mind.

“H-How did it happen?” She saw Soliane grab a nearby pillow even tighter than she had.

She knew she should’ve kept her mouth shut! It wasn’t her place to ask anyway.

Before she could utter any type of apology, she was stopped when she heard her start to speak.

“It was right after one-off my patrol routes. I was surveying the city, just in case, I needed to report anything else. I guess- due to this being my first time alone, as well as having previously prevented some other crimes, I would have to say I wasn’t in the same mindset.” Marinette stayed quiet so she could continue without pressure, she knew from personal experience how frustrating it could be to start talking and get interrupted by someone else, it was always a pet peeve of hers, making her not wanting to finish her story out of pettiness.

“So… When I was too busy with moving around on my wire. I was shot!” Marinette jolted away, she knew something drastic had to have happened, and she had tried to brace herself. But she couldn’t, it sounded so surreal.

“I was careless, it was such a stupid mistake, no novice would’ve been hurt like me” Marinette jumped again, she was so serious, and so… Angry with herself. But, she had just saved a bank from robbers, of course, she could’ve been tired, she was human after all.

“And due to my shock, I wasn’t able to pinpoint who it had been. A poisoned bullet had just barely scared me, and I was still affected by it… Sir would be so disappointed in me.”

The last stitch had been completed. She was done, now she just had to bandage it. She noticed Soliane seemed physically more relaxed.

“I should be going now, I’ve troubled you too much” She was trying to get up, but even the bluenette knew she would still be in pain for a while, just until she would get herself checked out, probably as her civilian self.

“No, you’re still hurt. If you move too early the stitches might come undone” She laid a gentle hand on her, just enough to draw attention to herself.

“But I must, I need to report back, besides, don’t you need to go to sleep?” Yeah but- the words paused in her throat, why could she say anything?

“You’ve already helped me so much, surely you’d prefer me to leave, it would be unbefitting for a hero to be seen so helpless for so long?” She saw it, her face, it was just like her a complete replica, always so helpful, to never think about yourself even when it could be life or death.

…Ok maybe that last part was a bit extreme.

“Hey, don’t try to suggest that, I could never think that! You still need help, just because you’re a hero doesn’t mean you can’t rely on anyone else.”

…Maybe it was her stubborn side, or even her Mother’s. But she couldn’t even think of the hero going out in that condition.

Grabbing her hand, she was adamant about letting Soliane Rin stay. So, she just told her.

Told her that she can’t just go out in that condition.

Told her that she needed to get better, because if she was still hurt, how could she save other people. And how she also needs to look after herself.

Told her that… She shouldn’t have so many expectations of her, because it won’t do her any good, mentality wise… And if the expectations become broken, she’d be unrightfully angry at herself.

Told her that- oh god she was arguing with a hero in her bedroom and she wasn’t saying anything.

She wasn’t saying anything! She’s just standing there looking at her. Never had Marinette wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out?

“I-I’m sorry, I should have never shouted like that, you were just doing your job and here I come saying you need to stop- wait not to stop I meant maybe slow down, although if you wanted to carry on then that’s fine by me. What am I saying you don’t need my permission; you don’t need anyone's! Do you-?” Her hands had been waving in front of her frantically. She just couldn’t imagine all of this would’ve been happening to her, her emotions were spreading out of control. She really needed to compose herself.

-

Wait, why did she grab her hand?

“I -ahem- it's fine, I’m incredibly humbled by your generosity. You have a big heart, not many have such kindness like you” She brought her hand closer to her mouth, and the blue-haired girls’ heart was pounding more and more.

“I shall stay” She pressed the hand to her mouth, a small feeling off lips against her skin sent shivers down her back while she held her gaze.

“So long as mi Belle stays with me” It took her a moment to compose herself. It took another to realise to she was talking about her… It to yet another to compose herself from that.

“Sou yure- I mean you show- ah, I’m mean. Yes.” Marinette felt as if she couldn’t say no, and yet, she didn’t feel uncomfortable, she felt accommodated. She believed if she had said no, she wouldn’t have felt pressured by the hero to stay.

And she smiled at that.

They both had.

So sincere.

***

The morning had come.

And not a moment too soon.

Light poured through her drawn curtains, and her first reaction was to grab the closest thing to plummet it towards the sun.

Not like that would’ve done anything mind you. It would’ve just been to make her point.

Rising up and stretching her arms, she headed down her steps, it had been a weekend, after all, she was allowed a lie in occasionally.

Although, she felt oddly a lot more refreshed than she had remembered, what had change-

Soliane Rin!?

Her head zoomed around the room, where- where was she?

No one was in the room besides her.

So- was it just a dream? Did she really see just imagine it all?

But she couldn’t have, wouldn’t that have just been too cruel, even for her?

Did the gods really hate her as well?

Wait-

That piece of paper wasn’t there before?

Stepping over to her desk, she gently picks it up, almost afraid she’d rip it up.

As her eyes traced over the first words, her mind relaxed.

‘Dear mi Belle, apologise for “dropping in unannounced” and to cause you such trouble. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine thanks to you, I’ll promise to be more careful next time, sincerely your local hero, Soliane Rin…’

Her heart fluttered in gratitude; those events were real. She really did meet her.

As her hands curled around the letter, she smiled. A true sincere smile.

Because after so long, she felt…

Hope.

***

*I absolutely suck at describing clothes, which is why I much prefer to draw instead, I literally have no idea what some clothes types are called so I always end up having to ask my Mum and even then, she doesn’t know half the time so I may end up not describing much clothing in the future so sorry.

Well, I hope you liked it, I do believe these chapters are gonna end up getting longer and longer. I know a few of them are but hopefully, you won’t mind that. It will just make my progress slow but hey I was always slow so it shouldn’t matter too much right? Anyway, well Marinette has met the hero and classmate, she’s definitely different to my other version. But I do hope you like both versions.

Oh, and I may need help with Jess/Jace. I know that she’s Native American, but I’m unsure if there’s any type of detail I must include for them, for example, I’m aware that they don’t cut their hair for symbolic reasons? I’m not even wholeheartedly sure about that. So, I would like to ask if there’s any information that I’m forgetting/missing and I would love to be informed, aka if I need to include a tribe, any type of clothing that would be appropriate to wear or activities they do. Sorry if it seems stupid, I just want to be informed and try my best to make an accurate representation. You can ask me questions, but I will apologise if I don’t understand them in advance. (Just so you know, I’m changing everyone’s design but I’m definitely changing her earrings, I just keep having images of someone pulling them out ugh, hence why I’ll never draw large earrings that people could grab)

Also, if you’re confused about anything feel free to ask any questions.

Cya next time.

Note: Please tell me if I should add anything else to the card, there will be one of these cards for all 15 chapters, however, because I have uni work all updates will be slower because I really need to focus on the uni stuff, then I might be able to upload quicker. They also may change in the future because I can never stop adding stuff.

[jadethest0ne]

In need of Refueling, Chapter 12 - “He was supposed to be”

Summary:  “You?! Why would I trust you? You have brought me nothing but failure. Time and time again; nothing but disappointment!”

His father’s words might have been a result of his possession by the  White Bone Spirit, but whether or not they were his true thoughts, Red  Son vows to prove them wrong. To do so he seeks to attain a power strong enough to destroy his father’s immortal enemy. After all, he’d much rather throw fire at his problems.

Word Count: 3241

Ratings/Warnings:  Teen and up; injury, burns, angst and hurt/comfort, toxic thoughts caused by toxic parents, panic attacks, abuse

Notes: Red Son is brooding, Mei finds out that Red Son is Sandy’s house guest, and Sandy is trying his best to deal with two rowdy teens.

Credits: Big thanks to @painted-arachnid and @simplyfornardo  for helping me bounce ideas off of them. And also thanks to @lemonsqueazie for providing me with “Journey to the West” lore. I don’t know much about the original novel or other iterations, but I still tried to keep  some things compliant with the lore. You should check all of them out, since they’re really great content creators with neat ideas!  

Read on AO3

———-

All in all, Red Son had received a lot of injuries from his conflict with his father.  Broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a broken arm, burns, hypothermia (including a lingering cold sensation all over his body that refused to go away), a sprained ankle...

And no powers.

That last one gave him pause. Injuries could be healed with time, and as a demon, he was a fast healer. But he did not know what happened to his powers. Were they really all absorbed by his father’s armor? Were they then extinguished by whatever that Noodle Boy did? He didn’t even know that it could be extinguished. It had to have been though, because based on what little he could get out of Sandy, the Monkey King had survived the conflict. Red Son isn’t sure how he feels about that. Sure, he had attacked him and intended to have him defeated by his father. But that’s not how things turned out. That’s not what his father wanted. And despite him giving the Samadhi Fire to his father, which is what he thought he wanted, that turned out to be disastrous as well. Were his parents even alive? And if they were, what would they want with someone who had nearly gotten them killed? What would they want with a son who didn’t even have any powers? In this state he was useless. Relying on the enemy, no less. How shameful.

Red Son had tried a few times to activate his powers. Each time he was met with not even a puff of smoke. If his parents thought he was a disappointment before, what would they think of him now?

At the very least he was making progress physically, and could hobble around the houseboat a little bit on his own. The Blue One said he could leave when he was better. But where could he go? He didn’t want to think about it. He wanted to just be able to do something about it. But he could no longer simply throw fire at his problems. And no matter what anger and vitriol he sent Sandy’s way, the blue giant simply refused to be upset at him. Why didn’t he just kick him out? He certainly deserved it! His own parents likely wouldn’t want him around, why would an enemy?

So when he wasn’t yelling at Sandy, or his numerous cats, he just withdrew into himself. Fuming with no fire. Brooding over his current situation. What was the point anyway? A small part of him wanted to know if his parents were okay. As much as he was sure they would hate him, they were his parents, after all. But the thought of trying to find them terrified him in a way. On one hand, if they were alive, he was useless to them like this. If they weren’t… well, he didn’t want to think about how that would mean that it was his fault if they were dea--

Red Son angrily throws the closest thing near him across the room, which happened to be a mug of tea that he was holding. It flies across the room just missing a few cats who leap out of the way with an indignant hiss. The cup breaks apart and spills its contents all over the floor. He takes some seething breaths, before a voice speaks up next to him.

“Well that’s a much stronger throw than before. At least you’re healing!” Red Son had forgotten that the Blue One was there. He had given him the tea in the first place after all. Red Son had just gotten lost in his musings and forgot about the ever-present, overly pleasant companion. The big man goes over and gets a broom. “However, maybe we could find other, more constructive, ways for you to release your anger?”

“Ugh! Don’t try to give me life lessons! What are you, some sort of life advice guru?”

The Blue One laughs heartily, while picking out some of the larger shards. “No, I’ve just learned how to control my anger via anger management therapy. And I’m always open to listening if you want a friendly ear,” he says brightly.

Red Son can’t imagine this guy ever being angry, and the idea of talking about his feelings makes his stomach bubble in disgust. “What? So I can give away all my family’s secrets? Why would you care anyway?”

The Blue One shrugs. “I just do!” He pauses and thinks. “And also, maybe I could ask you to maybe not throw my cups and scare my cats…?” He ends the last part in a hopeful lilt.

“No promises,” Red Son grumbles.

“What do you normally do to de-stress?”

“Destroy my enemies.” Red Son looks pointedly at Sandy.

“Ah… um… would throwing fire around (preferably in a contained area) help?” Sandy asks hesitantly.

Red Son scowls. “No.”

“Would you like to try contacting your parents…?”

An uncomfortable flutter pangs in his heart. “No.”

“What about, er, a hobby or…?

Red Son is getting fed up. “WOULD YOU JUST STOP!” he shouts. “We are not friends! We are enemies! You are the good guys! I’m the bad guy! The villain. Stop trying to be all buddy-buddy with me! If you’re trying to change me or get me to open up, it’s not going to work!”

“I’m sorry, I’m just trying to figure out what would make you feel better… Maybe healing up at your place would make you feel safer…?” Sandy looks truly apologetic, but Red Son is already too worked up to care. Furthermore, bringing up the possibility of going to see his parents causes that fluttering feeling to worsen.

“No! I can’t go back! I--”

Sandy raises his eyebrows. And Red Son shuts his mouth suddenly realizing what he almost revealed. The Blue One nearly had done it! How dare he. He hates him for that. For his stupid honest niceness. He hates that he is here. That he let down his father, again. That he has to rely on a big-hearted idiot of an enemy. He needs to leave. He doesn’t have anywhere to go. But he needs to leave.

He clumsily slips out of bed and does an awkward combination of stomping and limping past the Blue One and towards the door, ignoring the giant’s protests.

He swings open the door and he sucks in a surprised yelp as standing on the other side of it is a girl with green highlights in her hair, and pigtails sticking up from behind, with her fist to the door poised to knock on it. It’s the Dragon Girl. The two stare at each other. They exchange blinks of confusion.

The Dragon Girl is the first to react. Her surprised features shift into a look of pure rage. “YOU!” she shouts.

She flings herself at Red Son, elbowing him in the middle and throwing him across the room. Pain explodes from his various injuries, especially from his ribs and chest area. He crumples to the ground and barely has time to react as she is pulling a sword on him. He rolls out of the way, under a table and pulls himself up using an adjacent book case. He slips a little bit, and is forced to put weight on his injured ankle, which burns horribly, but he needs to get away from this crazy and enraged attacker.

He leans on the far end of the bookcase and holds up a hand. “W-wait!” he wheezes out before he devolves into coughs and choking gasps. He stumbles as he backpedals away from another swing and falls again to the floor. He grabs desperately at anything in his surroundings that can help pull him up, but the pain drags him back down again.

The tip of the sword is pointed at his center and he flinches back. He can’t do much but cough some more. When no attack comes, he chances a look up at his attacker. She’s looking at him with a paranoid gaze, which flickers up and down in confusion, but she does not lower her weapon.

“What are you doing here, Red Son?!” she yells.

Red Son does his best to regain his breath. When he does he shouts back, though not as loud or as strong as he wants it to be. “I was brought here, Dragon Girl! By your blue friend, no less! So- so back off or I’ll burn you to a crisp!”

The threat is empty. He knows it is. And even if she doesn’t, she knows she has the upper hand. He can’t hide his injuries or look powerful, half curled up on the floor and locked down by her sword. But he won’t appear weak. Not to her.

“Mei!” calls the Blue One, as he stands up from the floor, stepping carefully over the glass on the floor and rushing into the adjacent area to move between the girl and the demon.

“Sandy! Are you okay? What is Red Son doing here? Is he hurting you? Is he--”

“He’s injured!” Sandy says with some amount of exasperation quickly shuffling over and kneeling down by Red Son’s side. He puts a hand on the demon’s back and offers another for him to take to support him. Red Son stays silent and looks down, as Sandy helps him up.

“What?!” Pure incredulity drips from the Dragon Girl’s voice. “Are- are you helping him?!”

When he’s able to set Red Son upright, and leans him against a nearby cabinet, he looks to the girl and rubs the back of his head absently. “Er, yes, I am.”

She continues to give him a questioning look.

“He was hurt!” Sandy says simply. “I had to, Mei.”

The girl looks between the two of them, before sighing and lowering her sword. “I was wondering why we hadn’t heard from you much.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys. I was hoping to tell you first instead of you finding out this way. Are you… mad?” The big man looks small, like a child revealing that they had snuck a cookie out of a cookie jar.

“It’s not you I’m upset at, it’s him. I don’t trust him. You could get into trouble. What if the Demon Bull family comes and attacks you? What if he burns down the houseboat?!” Red Son gets dizzy at the range of emotions that cross the girl’s features and body language as she talks, from a distrusting glance to panicky waving arms to exaggerated sweeps of her entire body. He remembers why he finds this group so annoying. And even moreso, he is annoyed at being left out of the conversation.

“Excuse me, I am standing right here!” he says with as much afront as he can muster.

“That’s the problem, Red Boy!”

“It’s Red Son to you, Dragon Girl!”

“Oh and now who is getting the names wrong?”

“I don’t stoop to uttering the names of peasants!”

“Shut up! You shouldn’t even be here! Do you know how much pain you caused! Sandy is here helping you, and you don’t deserve any of it!”

“Now now--” Sandy tries interjecting, but is caught in the middle of a now shouting match.

“That’s because you’re all so styoooopidly sappy! I’m GLAD I attacked you! You weaklings are too noble for your own good!” A smile spreads on his face seeing he’s getting under the girl's skin. It made him feel stronger. Shouting let out his pent up frustration from earlier. And banter with the Noodle Boy’s friends made things feel normal for once.

Mei shouts back at Red Son, contempt and hatred dripping from her words. "You hurt my friend! You nearly destroyed the Monkey King!!! You and your dumb dad! I bet DBK is proud of you!"

Red Son’s smile drops immediately and something in him snaps at the mention of his father, and before he can stop himself, the words come out. "HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE!"

There is a beat of silence and Red Son had a moment to realize what he said. He hadn't meant to bring up his father in such a way. How weak is he that he keeps revealing his inner thoughts to his enemies? His heart hammers against his ribs in shame and embarrassment, and he’s about to babble out some excuse, when the Dragon Girl speaks instead.

"He was supposed to be what? Destroyed?"

 What?

"Well, you know what? You failed to destroy the Monkey King. And it was the Monkey Kid who beat both of you!"

A spark of relief lights in Red Son's chest. The girl thinks he was talking about the Monkey King. Not his father. She had misunderstood his shout. He pushes down his shock and embarrassment, and forces a well-practiced sneer onto his lips. "Y-yes! The Monkey King was supposed to be destroyed! You just got lucky, that's all!"

The girl gives him a hate-filled look. Just the way it should be.

But when he looks over at Sandy, he sees confusion. And… sadness? Perhaps a bit of worry. Well, they should be worried and sad and angry at him!  They should both be afraid. And weakened or not, Red Son isn't going to let them forget that he is still a force to be reckoned with!

He fixes the Dragon Girl with what he hopes looks like a dangerous scowl. "Next time I'll be more thorough in my destruction!"

The girl doesn't look quite as frightened as Red Son would've hoped, but at the very least she clamps her loud mouth shut. She then sighs and turns to Sandy. "I don't know why you helped him. I don't think this is the kind of guy who can be saved."

Red Son's chest burns uncomfortably. It must be because of that shove she gave him earlier, exacerbating his wounds, and not the hopelessness of her statement.

Sandy shrugs and replies simply, “I've got to try, don't I?"

The girl's lips spread in a small smile of understanding and pats the large man's arm. "Yeah, and that's what's cool about you, my friend."

Sandy beams widely. But his expression switches to nervousness. "You won't tell the others, will you, Mei?"

She quirks an eyebrow up and gives him a look. "Sandy, MK is my best friend. I tell him practically everything," she deadpans.

Sandy wilts a bit, but the girl gives him another reassuring pat and says, "But I'll ask them to leave him alone…,” she shoots Red Son a dark look as she finishes her statement, “...for now.” Switching back to something more friendly, she returns her attention to Sandy. "So you better come clean yourself, soon, and give us a better explanation."

"Of course!" Sandy brightens.

With that the girl exits the houseboat, leaving Red Son and Sandy alone.

There is silence between them. Sandy looks at Red Son, and the demon does his best to not notice.

“Did she hurt you much?” Sandy sounds both worried and a bit embarrassed.

“I’m fine.” Red Son says too quickly.

Sandy comes closer and reaches a hand towards him. Red Son flinches back and the motion causes his whole body to wobble. Before he can fall back down, Sandy catches him. Red Son goes stiff and Sandy makes sure to give him some room once he regains his footing.

“Sorry.” Sandy shifts where he stands. “I noticed that one of your bandages is loose.” He gestures to a bandage on his wrist. “I may have to check you over again and re-do your bandages… If that’s okay…?”

Red Son’s chest burns again. He hates this. But he nods anyway. “Okay.”

Slowly, Sandy goes about washing and re-bandaging Red Son’s wounds. Luckily nothing was hurt too badly, but some bandages did come loose during the scuffle, and a few deeper burns had to be cared for.

They stayed mostly silent throughout much of it. Until Sandy finally spoke up. “Did you mean what you said earlier? About how ‘he was supposed to be.’” He was sitting behind Red Son working on some of the bandages on his back, and Red Son was glad for this so he didn’t see his eyes widen in alarm.

“Of- of course! I definitely meant to destroy the Monkey King and bring him to my father as a prize.” Red Son tries to keep his voice steady.

Sandy is silent for a moment as if trying to find his words. “Were you really talking about the Monkey King then? Not… someone else?”

“I-- don’t know what you mean…” The words come out stiff and stilted.

“I thought…” he began, before giving a sigh. “I guess I misinterpreted what you were saying.”

“Yes, I suppose you did.” Red Son answers curtly.

After a bit more silence Sandy continues. “Have you made any progress with your powers…?”

Red Son twists around suddenly giving Sandy a wide-eyed stare. “How did you know about my powers!?” The movement hurts, but the ache of sudden vulnerability is worse.

“I noticed you trying to throw some fireballs and stuff over the past few days… And also you didn’t attack Mei. Or me, for that matter. So I just… guessed”

Red Son feels small. Like the world is pressing in around him. The Blue One’s large form, not helping. And the pain radiating from his wounds makes the sensation worse. He pushes himself away from the blue giant as he starts shivering again, the cold suddenly feeling more apparent. Everything is suddenly fuzzy, like when he first noticed that his powers were gone. But now Sandy knew, and his friends might find out. And if they found out, then maybe his parents would know. They’d know just how weak he was. His chest is pulsing with pain and he isn’t sure why. It feels like the Dragon Girl hitting him over and over again.

Warmth is suddenly draped around him. The downy sensation of a comforter holds his form. He notices that his breaths are rapid and that’s what was hurting his chest. “Breathe,” a voice calls. So he obeys. Slowly, his breaths return to normal. The blankets surrounding him give the feeling of being cradled, but not trapped, and the warmth brings his trembling to a minimum.

“Red Son,” the voice he now recognizes as Sandy calls. “Do you hear what I am saying?”

The demon looks up, meeting the Blue One’s eyes, and gives a short nod.

“I won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to. I don’t think you are weak. You are just injured and healing, and that’s okay. I won’t tell anyone,” Sandy’s calm voice is reassuring. But Red Son worries about how much he might’ve just babbled.

Sandy gives him a few more moments to calm down before talking to him again. “I finished working on your bandages. I can get you some tea if you want.” Then he gives a small knowing smile at him. “If you promise not to throw the mug…”

Red Son looks the gentle giant up and down. He slowly shifts into a more comfortable and relaxed position on the bed, and huddles down into the blankets more. He doesn’t smile, but he sounds and feels more like himself in his response. “No promises.”

Sandy’s smile reaches his eyes and he goes off to make more tea.

Red Son manages to not throw the mug this time.

start || <– previous // next –>

[i-simp-for-gintoki]

Visiting Yuji in Tokyo

“yuji x reader where she was childhood friends with yuji and its basically the friends to lover sort of thing? and basically reader is visiting tokyo and meets up with yuji for the first time in months?? bonus if gojo and megumi are there :)”-anon

Damn its either super short or long no inbetween huh? Sorry if this isn’t exactly what you wanted! Some of the characters are little ooc (when are they not when i write them-).This turned out much much longer than it needed to be

You and Yuji have known each other since kindergarten

He’s such a sweet kid its always really fun to hang out with him

You guys play lots of video games together and are basically inseparable

Constantly reading manga or watching anime its great

Your parents disapproved of you hanging out with a dude all the time but you could care less

Why should you only be friends with your own gender? Thats so stupid

You always wondered about why yuji had such great strength and speed but he says he was just born that way

Hes just built different

Around middle school his grandpa’s health had dropped and was moved to the hospital

You did your best to make sure yuji stayed in good spirits and often visited the older itadori with him

He’s not the best at wording things but hes always there for emotional support

Maybe it was around 7th grade you noticed something was different around yuji

Like he himself hasn’t changed but whenever you look at him your heart just melts

Your thoughts or compliments seem more filled with love for him and thats when you realized you started to fall for him

Thinking the crush would go away you didn’t act much on it

Oh what a fool you were

Around 8th grade yuji had started acting kinda weird around you

He’d be much more easy to fluster and tenses up for a second if you ever make contact

You confronted him about it and cue the very awkward and middle school like confession

“I really like you!

You were so happy you confessed back and said that the only reason you didn’t before was because you feared to ruin your friendship

He says even if he somehow didn’t like you back that something like that wouldn’t effect anything

From then on you guys are such a wholesome couple

All the cuddles

No fancy dates just casual arcade or movie sort of things

His grandpa gave him a hard time but approved of your relationship

Throughout 8th grade summer and the beginning of highschool everything was going great

But a few months into highschool lots of things happened

Yuji’s grandpa had passed away, he and his friends in the exorcist(?) club had gotten hurt and after that night he had weird markings on his cheeks right below his eyes

And to top it all off now he was supposedly moving to tokyo??

“Yuji why are you moving away? My parents would gladly take you in you know”

He tells you he can’t explain why which breaks your heart

“Who are you staying with then??” he stops for a second and it pains him to lie to you. “A distant relative of mine, he works at a private school and thats where i will be going from now on.”

“But what about us?”

And so you guys decided to do a long distance relationship

Every night when you can you call and chat for hours

But thats not enough

You want to be held or hold him, you want to just cuddle or atleast be in the same room

It pains you to have a relationship through a screen and you grow respect for those who do

Trust isn’t an issue since you know yuji wouldnt even think to cheat at all

Probably doesnt even know what the word means

But after a few months you decide to go to tokyo for a few days

With the help of your parents you rent a room in a hotel and head there

Were just gonna pretend your parents are super super chill(and slightly uncaring like my parents would never let me) and lets you go to a whole city by yourself for several nights

You were super nervous and excited

Its your first time visiting a huge city like tokyo and its gonna be the first time you see yuji in months

Itadori was super excited that you were in tokyo

So excited that he got lost trying to head to the hotel you were staying at

After an extra hour you guys finally meet

He walks through the hotel lobby doors and gives a smile and a wave

In an instant you tackle him in a hug which he GLADLY hugs back in

After just holding each other for a while he decides to show you around

Hes still clearly learning the area himself but he’s very excited to show what he does know

“The place over here makes amazing sushi! Oh! And over here they sell little action figures! Oh oh and over here the steak is kinda bad but its cheap so its worth it! And-” you could only smile as he pointed in random directions with one hand, the other was busy holding yours

Buying food from a bunch of random vendors and wearing silly getups you guys take loads of pictures

Tons of hugs and cheek kisses

Yes its frowned upon to be touchy and stuff in public in japan but honestly you guys could care less

The sun was setting and you guys were currently sitting at a park munchkin on some crepes when you turn to him

“Yuji, do you think i could visit who your staying with? I’d hate to impose but i just wanna know if your in good hands”

His chewing pauses

Its not like he didn’t want you tell about jujutsu

But he doesn’t want you to be apart of that world, he wants you to stay as safe as possible with no harm ever headed your ways

With him being a vessel for sukuna gojo had told him that he and his friends could potentially be targeted

Theres a reason sorceres put up cloaks when engaging in battles and its so normal civilians can continue living in peace without the knowledge these monstrosities actually exist

“Mm its a bit sudden and he’s out on a mis-er meeting right now so maybe tomorrow?” he says

You frown, you can tell he’s lying but he wouldn’t do it without a reason

“Fine. But Yuji. Just know that if you ever feel unsafe or want to come back your more than welcome too. There will always be a spot for you at my home” you say hugging him

You both kinda forgot you were holding crepes and when you pulled away from each other laughed as the ice cream and sauce was smeared all over your shirts/jackets

He walks you back to the hotel and says goodnight with a kiss

The next two days went by in a flash

Just spending time with itadori, even if it was just sitting in silence has been the most fun youve had in months

He had showed you many places and has boughten many small trinkets for you to remember

Your phone has grown about 300 photos just from the past couple days with him

It was about midday of your final day in tokyo and so you both wanted to make the best of it

You both where sitting inside a cafe exchanging stories and just chatting when suddenly two people walked in the cafe

One was very tall and had spiked up white hair and was wearing a blindfold, and the other had spiky/messy black hair

You didn’t think much of it at first but did question the blindfold

‘A fashion choice?’

Turning your attention back to yuji you gave him a soft smile as you listened to his ramblings about a manga

“I love you” you said cutting him off

Immediately his face turned red and whatever he was just saying turned into stuttering nonsense

Before he could respond he let out a short yell when someone placed a hand on his shoulder

It was the two dudes who walked in from earlier

��So this is what you’ve been doing.” “Fushiguro! Gojo sensei!”

The shorter one who looks yuji’s age started talking about how it wasn’t good to turn his phone on mute and go out the whole day

The tall one gives you a wave

“Sorry to interrupt your date but we gotta take yuji away for a bit” he says grabbing yuji’s collar

“Wait who are you guys?” you ask and they pause to give short introductions

“Fushiguro Megumi.” “Gojo Satoru, nice to meet ya miss girlfriend” “How did you know??” Yuji says making gojo laugh

“Its pretty obvious, you didn’t do much of a job hiding it” he says pulling yuji a little bit more.

“O-Oh im L/n Y/n, nice to meet you” you say realizing you forgot to introduce yourself

As the three chatted along with each other, you sat in silence as you tried to remember where you heard gojo’s name from

‘Oh yeah, he’s the one who yuji described as his relative. Even if it was really fast since he tends to change subjects whenever i ask’

“Wait Gojo? White hair...blind fold..are you Yuji’s relative?” you ask making both of them pause

They both turn towards yuji who gave a sheepish smile

“Thats me, im his mothers little cousin” Gojo said, a very quick and random asspull

“So why does he call you Gojo-sensei instead of uncle…Satoru?” “Well if im his moms cousin that would make me his cousin once removed wouldn’t it? And he calls me sensei since im a teacher at a school he goes to”

“And what about you?” you ask the other boy

“A classmate.” he says in a very short and uninterested tone

“Welp lets go” Gojo says dragging yuji but he quickly resists

“Wait wait! Sensei can i please stay? Today is her last day here and i don’t know when i will be able to see her again”

The teacher and student stares at each other for a long time

You have literally no clue what the blindfolded man could but thinking its so hard to read him

Then again you just met him so

Gojo sighs and lets go of yuji

“Just this once, and only because im the greatest sensei you’ve ever had. Lets go megumi. See ya miss girlfriend” gojo says walking away with a wave

Megumi looks surprised but follows him “really?” “Yeah yeah its fine, its only a couple of grade 3’s anywa…” as their voices faded when they left the building you gave yuji a look

“Are you going to get in trouble?” “im probably going to die in training…” “huh?” “nothin”

The rest of the day you guys hang out and its mmm

Yuji would be such a good boyfriend hes so wholesome

When its time for you to part he give you a big hug, kiss and ‘i love you’

You do the same and tear up a bit

With one final photo you head back to your home town

You make it a mission to visit tokyo more often and yuji tries to visit you whenever he can from then on

[lostonehero]

Tw sexual themes mentions of child abuse mentions of murder

"Remember Maxie instincts are a powerful thing, even on land you cannot escape them."

"You'll never be human you idiot."

"Humans are food not something you should desire to be."

"You're the weakest here."

"You deserve every punishment."

"You were the mistake of mating season"

"Follow orders like your older siblings."

"You need to be punished."

Maxie gasps as he jolts upright in his bed

The red head fumbled for his morning coffee that nightmare, well more like memories he hasn't had in such a long time. He sighs mixing in a red liquid to his coffee and drinks. Human blood wasn't hard to get and it helped keep his instincts from going nuts because he was hungry. He sighs shaking his head of memories he didn't want to remember.

"Hey Maxie I thought you were going to sleep in, it's our day off, and Steven keeps telling you to rest more so then your former admins." Archie chuckles placing his hand on Maxie's shoulder.

Macie sighs, Archie did worry about him, they were still new to the whole dating thing so they were taking it slow. "Bad dreams Archie didn't want to return to it."

Archie frowns a look of concern in his eyes. "Was it about that day." He trails off referring to the day they both summoned two titans to destroy the world.

"Actually no, just old memories of family." Maxie frowns sipping his coffee.

Archie slightly taken aback. "You had bad parents?"

Maxie froze forgetting that he was never really open with his past to Archie even now that they were together. He sighs letting his guard down. "My siblings were kind my parents however were not you've seen my scars Archie they were from the many punishments I received from them."

"That's horrible Maxie."

"Its been a long time since I've seen them so don't fret that much."

"Is that why you're iffy around my folks."

"Yeah..." Maxie sighs one secret down the next he wasn't ready to face let alone tell Archie.

"Shit sorry"

"Not your fault Archie, besides I like your family."

"Right good so uh did you put your iron stuff in the whole coffee pot?"

Maxie chuckles. "No Archie just my cup I know better then to repeat that."

"Good because your supplements medication or whatever you put in your drink is horrible."

"To you."

"To everyone Maxie."

Maxie chuckles feeling better talking to Archie.

......

"I swear Archie something is up with Maxie." Shelly frowns sharing lunch with Archie on there break.

"I would normally disagree, but he has been awfully clingy lately and a but er forceful in other ways." Archie sighs a light dusting of red on his cheeks.

"Is he hurting you? Archie I swear I'll kill him."

Archie slightly stunned. "No no no not at all, actually it's the opposite besides the bedroom. He has been giving me gifts and little trinkets for the past week, and he has been singing whenever we are alone just to me. Weirdest part is that I keep catching Maxie lingering by the beach."

"Shit Archie that lava nerd hates the ocean. Do you think he might be getting sick because his behavior is weirder then normal."

"I don't know Shelly, he'll everytime I try to ask he gets weirdly embarrassed and runs off."

"That rock head is being weirder then normal uh has the bite mark he gave you gone away yet?"

Archie frowns and shakes his head. "It turned black and the doctors said it wasn't infected."

"That can't be good."

"I don't know Maxie keeps getting embarrassed or mad at himself whenever I bring it up. I think he might be harming himself over it but I'm fine with it, and I keep trying to tell him that."

"I can ask Courtney to help get Maxie to the doctor."

"I want to try to help first."

"I get it but if Maxie is being self destructive again he needs more help then you can give."

"I know amd I never want him to go down that path again."

"Just be careful and keep that nerd safe I hate to say it but he is good for you."

Archie nods throwing out his trash. "Yeah I'll tell you if something changes."

......

"Leader Maxie." Courtney's deadpan robotic tone nearly made Maxie jump out of his skin.

"What is it." Maxie snapped then sighs rubbing his temples he needed to reel in his temper, I was smack in the middle of mating season and he already marked Archie, and they were going at it like buneray but it wasn't what he needed. He knew he needed to claim Archie in the water to complete the bind as mates and his instincts were drinving him up the wall as he kept denying the action.

"My apologies for bothering you but we are growing concerned with your recent behavior."

Maxie freezes rubbing his temples. "Have I been that bad?"

"We are concerned for your mental health."

"I'm fine Courtney I promise." He pauses and scowls. "Don't argue with me I just have some personal issues to sort through."

She frowns and watches Maxie leave. Something was wrong and she needed to figure out what.

.....

Archie was playing with his sharpedo on the beach when Maxie approached him. "Good job Bruce you are such a good boy."

Maxie glares and unconsciously growls getting Archie's attetion.

"Maxie what are you doing all the way out here I thought your admins made sure you got some bed rest. We are just worried about you I know you don't like being locked-" Archie's words are cut off as Maxie forces him into a deep kiss.

Archie pushes him away. "Maxie what has gotten into you? Shit I'm calling the doc-" again Archie is cut off when he hears Maxie begin to sing but it was different it was as if his body was reacting to the song and his body was yelling get into the water and let him finish the bond. Archie blacked out after that.

~~

Maxie woke up and he felt like he was floating then he realized he was in the water. A weight was on top of him as he drifted in the ocean. Then it clicked it was Archie sleeping on top of him as he floated on the waves. "Fuck " he cursed waking up Archie.

Archie woke up wet sunburned and his ass was so sore, also where were his clothes and why was he drifting in the middle of the ocean. Panic started to bubble up in his chest as he was gripped from behind unable to struggle out of the grasp.

"Archie relax I can explain."

"Maxie? Fuck this has to be a dream."

"Archie relax please I'll get us back to shore."

Archie breaths eventually evened out as Maxie began to explain as they made the long trip back and turns out Bruce was with them the entire time and Archie decided riding on him was better then Maxie.

"Maxie I'm sorry."

"Stop it's my fault I forced you to mate, and I didn't even stop and ask if it was OK I just sang and I used you."

"Maxie stop I would of agreed regardless I love you."

Maxie sinks deeper to hide his face before resurfacing and splashing Archie.

Archie laughs feeling the tension leave. "Wait is that why you were acting weird?"

"It was mating season amd I was courting you."

"Is that what the gifts were, and the bite mark was a marking?"

"Y-yeah."

"And the constant sex?"

"Yeah sorry."

"I mean I'm not I found out I was a bottom and a size queen I feel no shame in learning new things about myself."

Maxie huffs frustrated. "Why aren't you mad at me, I lied to you about what I am, I used you, I bonded and mated you without explaining or asking for permission."

Archie sighs. "I was more worried you were hurting yourself again, and it turned out like this so I'm more relived then anything, slightly annoyed because I'm dating a damn ironic bastard who is a sea creature I used to have fantasies about."

"You're disgusting." Maxie tries to cover up his blush as they continue making Archie laugh.

"You know you love me, and now you're stuck with me."

"I know that doesn't mean I can't get annoyed with you."

They devolved into some nice banter as they reach the shore until Archie breaks it asking a simple question.

"So this is a one time thing right? You bonded and mated me so you're good right?"

Maxie watches Archie go back on land picking up his discarded clothes. "Not exactly."

"What?"

"Next year I might knock you up." He says quickly enough Archie almost doesn't catch it.

"What? Maxie last time I checked I am a man and that's impossible."

"Last time I checked I'm a siren and sirens during mating season biology for humans doesn't matter.... I mean well " he frowns trying to find the right words. "You'll develop the parts if it takes and they will vanish once you have the kids."

Archie stays quiet and Maxie frowns flinching and biting his tongue.

"I can be a dad, we don't have to adopt?"

Maxie slightly taken aback. "Well I mean you could but I won't force you not like this."

"No Maxie I always wanted a family of my own and he'll with our history nobody in there right mind would let two criminals adopt or foster a child. But I can still be a dad " Archie rushes back into the waves and grabs Maxie's hands. "We can be dads."

Maxie can feel himself pur and go red at the same time. "Archie relax I want to get my instincts in check, and I don't need you making a fuss over this."

"You purr this day keeps getting better doesn't it."

Maxie huffs but doesn't push Archie away. "I need to explain my instincts to you and my behaviors." He sighs "could you maybe get me a fresh pair of clothes my tail kind of destroyed my pants and my back fin ripped my shirt in two."

Archie laughs as he runs off to get the clothes leaving Maxie red faced in the water.

......

Maxie hands Archie a very detailed list of several pages. "Here is a detailed list of my instincts and behaviors you may witness and experience, I've also made copies for our former admins since I trust them with my secret... and they also seemed concerned for my wellbeing the past few weeks."

Archie hums reading over the list then pauses. "So the jealously thing was unintentional?"

Maxie looks away. "Well you are my mate now and sirens can be very protective of there mates, and I don't want to share you."

"Why aren't you annoyed when I hang out with Matt or Shelly?"

"There your family, I mean not by blood but I" he grumbles. "I can tell that you guys are family."

Archie blushes. "That's actually really sweet." He continues to read then stops again. "Wait how are you going to tell the others?"

"We have a pool in this facility I'll show by example. Physical proof is hard to disprove."

"Alright but are you ok with this?"

"Its not like I have a choice Tabitha found my blood packets last month and I had to make an excuse for that, and they are already concerned with my recent behavior. " he frowns. "And its not like I haven't saved them from drowning before."

"You did?"

"I mean yeah Courtney can't swim, and Tabitha gets a panic attack when in the water so swimming isn't a option for him. It wasn't there fault I just happened to be close enough to save them."

"Thats really sweet. You really are a big softie."

"I have eaten many men Archie I am terrifying."

Archie gives Maxie a soft kiss making the shorter man blush.

[vanguardangel]

Atsushi and Akuatgawa were the boys sleep the first time over at the s/o house? She lives alone and has a very pretty home..😅

.

-sighs- Oh the glory of having a home of your own....one day I shall have my little plot of land in the forest with a tiny little cottage with my dog and my own hi-speed internet.

ANYWAYS, yes I gotchu fam! Sorry for the length, I went a little overboard but I had a lot of fun writing this!

Atsushi

Oh my goodness, I’ve only watched season 1 so far of Bungou Stray Dogs (I keep getting distracted), but I know for sure this little sushi roll is an absolute sweetheart, and quite hospitable to boot! (He slept in a cupboard when he shared his room with Kyoka for fuck’s sake)

Needless to say, this poor boiyo is quite flustered when the tables are turned on him.

The two of you were walking through the streets of Yokohama together, hand-in-hand as the two of you enjoy the beautiful display of ginkgo trees. Their golden leaves swirled both below and above the two of you as the wind began to pick up.

Unfortunately, while you were admiring the trees, you didn’t realize just how dark the clouds had gotten. Suddenly, there’s a crack of lightning and the rain just comes pouring down. Thankfully, your home was nearby and the two of you quickly speed-walked in that direction.

He didn’t fully realize you were pulling him into your house at first. All he knew was one second; he was being bombarded by rain and the next; not so much.

“Hey uh....y/n?” he manages as he watches you fuss about in the house, looking for towels for the two of you. “Where are we...?”

You simply smile at him, tossing the towel over his head to dry his hair. “My place!”

ATSUSHI IS SHOOK

“Your place?! What about your parents?”

“They live on the other side of town, I moved here to be closer to the Agency.”

Atsushi already admired you, but now there are literal stars in his eyes. You were the newest to the agency, right behind Kyoka, but you had your own place! Amazing!

And it’s so pretty and cozy! It wasn’t terribly big, having only about two or three rooms, but it was perfect. Atsushi could already see himself planning some tea dates with you, with the window open and the cool autumn air wafting in.

CRACK!

The lightning struck again, causing the lights to flicker. Upon peering out the window, the two of you gaped at just how quickly the streets had begun to flood.

“Well, looks like we’re stuck here for now,” Atushi chuckled nervously.

The two of you tried to ride out the storm, cuddling up on the couch and watching movies. You were watching Aragon rallying the troops at the Black Gate when another god-awful crack of lightning finally severed your electricity for the night.

Atsushi begins to actually get worried. It was getting really late, and he didn’t want to impose on your hospitality. You were already so kind to him, he couldn’t possibly ask to stay.

So instead, you asked him, insisting even as he’s trying to assure you that he can get home by himself.

Yeah no, Atsushi, you’re not going anywhere in this nasty weather.

When you manage to convince him, he tries to insist he’ll sleep on the couch, so you’ll need to persuade him if you want him to sleep in the same bed with you.

Bribe him with cuddles. Tiger-boi is warm and weak for cuddles.

Atsushi and you will sleep well tonight.

Akutagawa

First off, I gotta give you props. Somehow, in this crazy and bizarre world of mafia and literature-inspired powers, you managed to do something that was nearly impossible.

You managed to earn not only Akutagawa’s respect.

But his trust.

You had a weird effect on him as if your presence and words were like a tranquilizer for his crazy emotions. His outbursts are few and far between, especially compared to the early stages of your relationship. Maybe it was because you were one of the few people to treat him with kindness? Maybe it was your still innocent view on life? Maybe its just one of those weird situations where AKutagaw is simply fascinated by the fact you’re one of the few people he doesn’t want to hurt? It’s one of the wonders of the Port Mafia.

Even still, it's still quite the surprise when he invites you to his little outings into the city. He just kind of takes your hand and leads you throughout the quieter areas of Yokohama, sometimes even venturing into the little shopping centers if he’s feeling brave enough.

One day, he leads you to a tiny ice cream shop that Gin recommended. The two of you sit outside, enjoying the nice autumn breeze alongside your tasty treats.

Now, Akutagawa usually doesn’t talk much during these types of dates, usually preferring to listen as you chatted away.

But today, he seemed distracted. His eyes flickering between you and the other patrons around you. At first, you thought he was still jumpy from his prior mission (then again, since when did this guy ever fully relax?).

“Akutagawa, what’s-?”

“C’mon, y/n,” he abruptly says, taking your hand as he quickly stands. You just barely manage to hold onto your ice cream as he quickly leads you out of the patio area and into the maze-like alleyways of Yokohama.

“Easy, easy!” you manage to squeak out. “You’re pulling really hard...!”

“Quiet,” his tone was more than enough to shut you up. “Don’t look behind you, just stay close to me.”

You gulped down the knot in your throat and quickly did as he said.

The two of you wandered through the streets and alleys for what seemed like hours. Sometimes you would speed up, only to quickly slow down and return a normal walking pace. It was late sunset when he finally stopped.

“We’re safe,” he announces nonchalantly. You groaned and flopped down a nearby bench.

“Thank God,” you moaned. “My legs feel like lead. What was all that about?”

“I’ll tell you later,” you could swear he smirked a little when you simply huffed in response. “But...I may have to call for a car...we’re a fair way out from base.”

“Well, this is actually not too far from where my place is. Wanna just crash there?” The words were out of your mouth before you could stop them. The blush arrived even quicker.

Akutagawa gave you a pointed look.

“Er uh....w-well, it's almost dark. And it's dangerous for even the Port Mafia to wander the streets at dark. Not that you’re helpless, you can easily hold your own, I’ve seen you, but I could just get in the way, and I’d much rather die than be a hostage, and-”

“Okay,” Akutagawa cut off your nervous babbling. “Let’s go.”

“Yepp, yessir, let’s go!”

Saying you were nervous was an understatement. You were a man to your house. The house you lived in. Alone. And not just any man; Akuta-fucking-gawa! The self-proclaimed “dog of the Mafia.”

“Here we are...!” your voice nearly broke when you opened the door. “I know it’s small and I know it’s not much, it’s just me here but...”

“It’s nice.”

“....huh...?”

Akutagawa casually strolls in, taking in the quaint little surroundings before settling down on your couch. There was the ghost of a smile on his lips. You just sigh and join him.

“So, you gonna tell me what just happened?”

“We were being followed,” Akutagawa said simply, not even reacting to your shocked expression. “Noticed them before we even reached the ice cream shop. Didn’t think they’d be stupid enough to do that in broad daylight, but there it is.”

“......why didn’t you kill them?”

He didn’t answer. Instead, he shuffled himself to nestle his head in the crook of your shoulder. “Doesn’t matter.”

The two of you spent the rest of the night just talking. The conversation focused on nothing in particular, switching between work, your interests, and other random topics. You two end up actually falling asleep on the couch, just leaning against each other.

Your back was aching, but managing to wake up and see Akutagawa actually at peace was so fucking worth it.

[the-dead-skwad]

Miss Lestrange Part 3 X Reader X George Weasley

Sorry it’s been a spell ;) I’ve been super busy with my new job and metal health kicking my ass. Also don’t get hung up over the spelling mistakes, my nails are so long and I always miss something out. 

Summary: It’s going to be lonely tis Christmas or so you thought. 

?!? Warning: Slight mention of self harm, Parental abuse. 

Tag : @hopeladybug​ @supernaturalidjitjess​ @til-the-end-of-the-line​

This year had gotten even crazier and it wasn’t even Christmas yet. Umbridge was terrified of you; Not long after your screaming match in her first lesson she called you to her office. She told you you were there to write lines but of course there would be a catch. As you started to write the words formed as scratches on the back of your hand. You looked up at her with her sadistic grin. You glanced back to your hand “Does the ministry approve?”

“Excuse me?” She cleared her throat.

You smiled “That’s what I thought.” You stared straight at her with a smile on your face.

“What are you?” Her grin was gone.

You put the torture quill to the parchment and started to scratch, scribbling a giant bunch of mess, never breaking eye contact.

“Stop it!” She screamed. “Get out!”

You collected your things still smiling. When you finally got to the hallway you stopped. “Owww.. merlin that hurt.” You held on to it with your other hand.

After all that she hadn’t even acknowledge you were even there. Every lesson, if she saw you in the hallways, you were invisible. It suited you fine.

I was approaching Christmas now and you just weren’t feeling it. Everyone would head back to their parents, their family’s have a really nice time and you would roam the empty halls all alone. Some kids would stay but it was no one you knew.

You went to leave the dungeons when Draco stopped you. “How you doing?”

“What do you want Draco?”

“I hear your joining the quidditch team.”

“And what if I am?”

He walked over to the table where there were two large boxes “Mother sent you these.”

“What the hell is that? I don’t need your charity.”

“It’s not charity. She was proud of you making the team, you got brand new kit and the best broom.”

“Oh…” Narcissa was the only person who had looked after you ever “Tell her thank you and that I’m sorry I can’t come home.”

“She understands.” He walked off and you took your stuff to your room.

“What’s that?” Pansy was in your dorm.

“Er Quidditch stuff.”

She pulled a face at you “How did you afford that? Aren’t you like an orphan?”

“Just because my aunt buys me things and can’t stand you doesn’t mean you have to be bitter.” You flashed her a sarcastic smile. “And besides.. my parents are very much alive.” Winking at her made her exit the room, fast.

When you left the dungeon Fred popped up out of no where. “It’s Christmas!” He shouted in your face.

“Fuck Fred! I know.. I’d like to make it to Christmas without having a heart attack.”

He laughed “Sorry, George wants to see you in the astronomy tower.”

“Okay, you know why?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“Right..” You looked at him funny “A good one?”

He frowned at you “Is there bad surprises?”

“Well that heart attack you just gave me wasn’t pleasant.”

“Just go!” He pushed you forward.

--

He stood at the rail looking over the grounds. “Hey.” Your soft voice from behind him melted his heart. He turned to look at you “Hey beautiful.”

“Fred said you wanted to see me?”

He leaned in and just millimetres away from your lips he whispered “Always.” Causing your knees to almost buckle. He pulled away making you sad at the lack of contact. “I know you’re not looking forward to Christmas and I thought you could spend Christmas with us.”

You sighed “You know that’s the only thing I want to do but it’s not safe. I’m not putting your family in danger.”

“Shut up for a second.” His abruptness shocked you. “I have something for you.” He handed you a small box.

Inside was a necklace made of a chain and a beautiful crystal. “Oh George, this is stunning. What stone is this?”

“Well that’s the cool thing you see. This stone is enchanted and when wearing it anyone who uses dark magic can’t find you. It’s a protection stone.”

Your mouth dropped open. “So… so I can be with you?”

“And it gets better, I have spoken to my mum. We are staying at the Burrows to collect some things just for the first night and then we’re going to a safer location where the order meets. So you’re even safer.”

“George I don’t think you know what this means to me..” You threw your arms around his neck. “Thank you so much.”

You leaned back and looked at each other “I love you Y/N.”

“I love you George.”

--

Travelling to the burrows made you nervous at first. Every noise you heard your heart jumped. But George was there to squeeze your hand or wrap his arm around you. When you finally arrived looking up at the house your whole body relaxed. It felt like home.

“It’s no Malfoy Manor but it’s home.” Ron smiled at you though the mouth full of food he had some how found.

You smiled at them all “It’s beautiful.”

A small yelp made you jump “You’re home!” You turned to see the happiest woman covered in multi-coloured wool. She ran to the boys and hugged them. “How was the trip?” She turned to Ginny. “You all in one piece?”

“If it wasn’t for Fred’s driving.” Ginny snapped at him. He just shrugged in response.

She looked at you “Oh sweetheart!” She opened up her arms and squeezed you tight “You must be Y/N. How are you feeling deary?”

“Much better now I’m here. Your house is amazing Mrs Weasley.”

“Oh pff please call me Molly. George has told me so much about you.”

“Oh that’s not terrifying.” You could see the look in her eye. All the things she wanted to say to you but didn’t know how. You smiled and gave her a reassuring nod.

She squeezed both your hands “You must be starving.”

The food was incredible. Everyone sat there shovelling it in while all the siblings bickered. You heard Ginny from across the table “Ron I swear if you don’t put your elbows down I’ll tell Hermione you still have a blanky.”

His face turned bright red “No I don’t! And why would I care what she thinks anyway?”

You and George shared a look. Ron pointed a chicken leg at him “I saw that!”

After you had all finished you sat by the fire for a while. They all told stories from when they were children. Like George turning Ron’s chocolate into spiders or when Fred tried to hide the firework he made and blew up the toilet.

Your eyes started to get heavy. “Shall we head up?” George whispered in your ear. You nodded.

As you both walked up the stairs Fred whistled after you receiving the middle finger from you both.

You stood by his bed in just your t-shirt and shorts. He raised his eyebrows at you.

“What?” you said as you tied up your crazy hair into a loose bun.

“I’ve just never seen you like this.” His head propped up by his arm.

“What? Scruffy?”

“No!” He laughed “You know, we’ve just never been allowed in the same room alone like this.” He swung his legs off the bed and sat on the side.

You sat on his knee facing him, your knee’s either side of his legs. “You nervous Georgie?”

He placed his hand on your lower back to keep you steady. He smiled into a kiss “Far from it.”

After a few minutes of kissing you leaned back. He groaned from the lack of contact. “Sorry I gotta pee.”

“Down the stairs next to mum and dads room.”

You did an army salute as you left. The idea of him lying there in just his boxers, waiting for you. You practically leapt down the entire flight of stairs.

Leaving the toilet you could hear raised voices coming from Molly and Arthurs room. You weren’t rude enough to listen to a couples argument but then you heard your name.

“You are not listening to me Molly.”

“I am but you’re talking nonsense.”

“No I’m not.. Did you see her at the table? She can already do things without her wand!”

Hearing them talk about you in a bad way hurt you deep.

“We knew she was going to be powerful. There was no question in that. Arthur she is only a child.”

“How can you trust her? Not only is she powerful she is literally the spit of Belatrix. How can you just let her into our home?”

“You are just paranoid. George trusts her!”

“He is blinded by love! Or by a spell she put on him. I think she should leave.”

Tears started to roll down your cheeks. Maybe he was right. Maybe you should leave, you were selfish to think that you could live a normal life with someone you loved. What you thought you would get married and have children? Live a normal life? You were just kidding yourself. Prolonging the time till your mother got a hold of you again.

As you ran down the stairs you tripped over something making a right noise. You looked up the stairs as Molly Arthur and George ran to the stairs.

Tears blurred your vision as you ripped through the front door. You looked out into the vast fields around you. Without your broom there was no where to really go. Felling started to become overwhelming. You dropped to your knees and screamed. A circle of fire burst around you.

George stood in front of you the flames roaring between you. He looked down at you and noticed your hand wrapped around your necklace. “Y/N stop.. please listen to me.”

You couldn’t hear him over all the voices in your head, all the people telling you you were worthless, a bad guy, the devils daughter, nothing but a traitor, only good for wiping their feet on. You were completely unaware you were pulling on the necklace.

George knew you couldn’t take it off otherwise they would come for you. “Y/N please! Listen to my voice. Just mine.”

Slowly his voice pushed through the noise. Your breathing started to slow.

He got his arm and went to reach forward. “George!” Molly shouted “What are you doing?”

“She won’t hurt me.” He stuck his hand straight through the fire. To him it was almost cold. He stepped through and knelt down in front of you.

Him placing his hand over yours cause your eyes to burst open. “George?”

“Its me. You’re okay.”

As you fell passing out in his arms the fire disappeared. He held onto you tight. Scooping you up into his arms he walked back into the house. He placed you down on the sofa and lit the fire to keep you warm. The rest of the family stood looking at you both.

“Do you have an idea what she has been through?” He voice was sharp but not loud enough to wake you.

“All I said was that I’m not sure after everything that has happened we should trust her.” Arthur stood his ground.

“She doesn’t just burst into a circle of fire because someone doesn’t trust her. I am all she has.. Her own family want her dead and everyone else is too scared of her to even look at her. Do you know how she must feel? Her own mother almost tortured her to death.”

Arthur swallowed hard. “Maybe I was a bit harsh.”

“Maybe?” Ginny looked at him in disbelief.

Molly approached your sleeping body, she moved your hair out your face and stroked it gently. “Maybe she needs the love of a real family.”

George sat on the sofa and pulled you into his body. “That’s all she’s ever wanted.”

Molly smiled at him sweetly “And that’s what you’re going to give her?”

“That and the entire world if she wishes.”

She nodded “Then that’s what we’ll give her. This family.”

[jonathanvik]

Starlight Dream - Chapter 10

"I can't believe Takako duped us like that!" Colten said, fuming in anger. "We underestimated her, and she's gotten stronger!"

"It didn't fool me for a second." Mr. Kiyojiro said.

"What?!" Aiko, Colten, and Seina exclaimed in surprise.

Seina's bodyguard smirked. "It wasn't like she made it difficult. She barely acted differently than her normal self."

"I suppose." Seina blushed in embarrassment. The deception was obvious if you stopped to consider it.

Mr. Kiyojiro rubbed the back of his neck, his turn to be embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I allowed her to train with you because I thought she'd be a good rival to increase your abilities."

Her bodyguard's mood darkened, voice tinged with self-loathing. "I never considered she might team up with the vampires. It almost got you killed."

"Yeah…"

"It's fine!" Aiko said, trying to disrupt the dark mood that had overtaken the room. "She saved my life, remember? I'm certain we can become friends again."

"You want her back?" Seina said, annoyed. After everything, why was her friend so quick to forgive the dark magical girl? "She hates me, remember?"

"Oh, that's just Maeko, er, Takako, being her usual self. I'm confident she doesn't really hate you." Aiko puffed out her chest. "We had a lot of fun together, didn't we?"

Siena looked away. "I'm still not sure I want her around." While part of her understood Aiko's argument, the nastier part of her refused to forgive Takako's deception and betrayal. It was childish, but Seina couldn't help herself.

A weak smile appeared on Aiko's lips. "Okay, I can't force you to be friends. Still, open your heart to forgive her, okay?"

"Sure." Seina changed the subject, wanting to discuss something less painful. "I still have the entire day off. How about we celebrate my victory with some lunch? We still haven't tried that ramen place you recommended, Mr. Kiyojiro."

Much to her relief, this restored her bodyguard's mood, and he nodded. "It isn't far from here."

"Actually, could you go without me?" Aiko said.

Seina blinked. "You aren't hungry?"

"There's some matter I need to attend to. Go and have fun. I'll catch up with you later." Aiko gave her friends a wink. "And I'll come with a special surprise! Later." With a wave, her girl dashed off in the other direction.

"Okay," Seina said, after some reluctance.

"What's she up to, I wonder?" Colten asked, before shrugging. "More ramen for me! All that action has made me starving!"

A pebble fell over the bridge as Takako kicked it away. Since she'd ruined her day-out plans with Seina and the others, it left her little to do. Without Nier, she couldn't leave this universe, unable to escape her shame. It burned her that Seina had given her mercy. Not that Takako wished to die, but it was still a black mark, regardless. Her stomach rumbled, and she groaned, hanging her arms over the bridge's railing. Why hadn't she fought with her rival after they'd gotten lunch first?

Should I go back to Lilha's place and raid her fridge? Still, it meant encountering her former ally, and Takako despised seeing a reminder of her shame. Because of that woman, Aiko had gotten hurt, and Takako found she couldn't forgive herself for it.

Wonderful. I just realized something. Without Lilha, I don't have a place to live anymore. I'm homeless and trapped. Did this mean she'd need to live in a cardboard box by the river until Nier returned? Or live in an abandoned building full of rats? Takako grimaced when her stomach rumbled again. She gasped as someone pushed a bento box into her face.

Takako glanced up to find Aiko smiling down at her, carrying her own bento box. "You haven't had lunch yet, right? I thought I'd join you."

For a moment, Takako hesitated taking the lunch box. She hated taking charity. Was this some kind of trick? A way to mock her for her failure? Yet, Takako sensed genuine kindness behind Aiko's smile. Her stomach growled again, and she grabbed the box, grasping the chopstick inside.

"I don't know what you're scheming, but thanks," Takako placed her back against the railing.

"I just thought you needed a friend," Aiko replied, joining her. She gave thanks for the meal and dug into her bento box.

"Friend?" Despite her hunger, Takako still hesitated, staring at her meal untouched. "After what happened, I thought you hated me, like Seina."

"Hate you? Nah. I never hold grudges. Waste of time." Aiko waved a dismissive hand.

Takako only stared at the girl, dumbstruck. "Really?"

"And I doubt Seina hates you either," Aiko said. "She doesn't take betrayal well. She's had a bad history with it. Are you going to eat or what?"

Takako mentally slapped herself and gave thanks for the meal. She grabbed a piece of shrimp and bit into it before gasping in amazement. It was spectacular!

Aiko smirked when she caught her friend's expression. "I'm glad you like it. A really nice old lady down the street likes making them for people. She was a famous chef before the vampires came. We're old friends."

They ate in silence for several moments before Takako broke it. "She truly doesn't hate me? Maybe she should. She wasn't completely wrong." Seina's accusations still burned in her mind with its unwavering conviction.

"Yeah, she was right," Aiko said, nodding, making Takako wince. The girl caught her reaction. "What? I won't lie and say it's a good thing you've allowed people to get hurt through your inaction."

"Thanks."

"But I won't say you're hopeless either," Aiko said. "If you were evil, you would have allowed that brute to kill me. I don't believe anyone is beyond redemption regardless of their past actions."

"You're a marvel, Aiko. You know that?"

"Huh?"

"The others argued I was too dangerous to leave alive, but not you. After everything you've suffered through, I thought you'd be the first to condemn me for my sins."

Aiko snorted. "That's because I can see people's hearts. Besides, most people aren't evil regardless of what they've done. They just need to do better. Or, that's what my mom always tells me, anyway."

"What makes you think I want to be good?" Takako asked defensively.

"I'm not asking you to be a saint," Aiko said, snorting. "How did you even get into this magical girl business, anyway? You seem to hate it."

"You're not wrong," Takako said, admitting the truth. "I'm not like the other magical girls. I don't like hurting people. As for how I became one…" She hesitated. It wasn't a story she'd told anyone else before. It had been so long ago, Takako had almost forgotten it. No, that wasn't true. She hadn't wanted to remember. Yet, something about Aiko made Takako want to trust her.

After taking a deep breath, Takako began her story. "It began almost three hundred years ago. I was just an ordinary girl. Plenty of sass, sure. It drove my parents and teachers up a wall, but ordinary. One day, my fairy partner appeared to me while I was sitting on a bridge, not unlike this one. I'd had a fight with my parents and wanted to be alone. They wanted me to attend a cram school, and I hadn't taken it well. Nier, he offered me the universe with the power to do anything. I was so angry and frustrated with my boring, ordinary life that I accepted without hesitation."

"They told me magical girls exist to cause suffering, but I was more interested in exploring the cosmos. Some magical girls like to burn their homeworld as an initiation ritual to join the order. I just left and never looked back. I ignored my magical girl duties and went exploring." Takako smirked. "It annoyed Nier to no end, but the multiverse is a beautiful place.."

Takako's mood darkened when she remembered the next part. "I'm immortal, and the cosmos is a huge place. When I finally remembered to return home, over four decades had passed. Everything I'd known had long disappeared. My brother already had teenagers, and my parents had long since passed. My disappearance devastated them. They never really recovered."

An unexpected tear slid down her face. "They loved me so much. They did everything to find me. Every day my disappearance tormented them, and I was gallivanting around the universe. Our relationship wasn't the best, but I loved them." How had she allowed herself to forget it? She'd been such a child. Aiko grabbed her hand and squeezed, giving Takako some measure of comfort.

"After that…" Takako trailed off.

After learning about her parent's fate, she ran away again, unable to bear the reality of what she'd done. It had been too painful. Her brother would be long dead now, forgotten by history. She had never even visited his grave. Takako couldn't deny Seina's accusation. She was cowardly.

"It's okay." Aiko pulled her into an unexpected hug, and Takako cried into her shoulder. Long suppressed emotions spilled out like a burst dam.

After several minutes, Takako wiped her eyes. "I'm such an idiot. Look at me. I'm a mess." Yet, the cry paradoxically felt good, not realizing how much she'd needed it. Aiko continued to say nothing, using her presence to comfort her new friend instead.

"I suppose once you grow accustomed to being alone, you forget how good it is to be around people," Takako considered her relationship with Neir. Could she even really consider him a friend? It pained Takako to realize she couldn't answer that question.

Aiko smiled and nodded. "That's true. But remember, you aren't alone. You have Seina and me."

This made Takako flinch. "If she'll even take me back."

"She will. Just give her time."

A horrible realization came to Takako's mind. "I've basically betrayed our order! The other magical girls won't tolerate such treachery." And her fairy partner would have an aneurysm.

"You haven't told them about Seina yet, have you? After your first fight with Seina, we'd assumed you'd returned home."

"No, but Nier went to Starlight Dream to gather more info about Seina's weird powers. She shouldn't be that powerful. He might have told someone." Takako sighed. "I suppose it doesn't matter, regardless. My report about this universe is super late. They're bound to send someone." They tolerated Takako's laziness, but only to a point.

Aiko clapped her hands together. "That's no big deal. Together with Seina, I'm sure you'll make an unstoppable team!"

"I'm only a lowly grunt. You have no idea how powerful the Devil Princesses and their minions are." Wait, had she just resigned herself to betraying Starlight Dream?

No, I suppose I don't want to go back. They're a bunch of jerks, anyway.

"Can you teach Seina how to better use her abilities? She's been trying to learn magic, but it hasn't really worked out."

"Maybe? I'm surprised she hadn't already. Normally, magic comes intuitively to magical girls. She has her weapon already. It should be enough." Another oddity about Seina. What the hell was she, anyway?

"It's something, I suppose. But we can worry about that later." A mischievous smile appeared on Aiko's face. "In the meantime, how about we go shopping as we planned? I really want to see that trendy place I mentioned earlier. And I have a fantastic idea to help you get back into Seina's good graces."

Takako blinked. "Really?"

"We'll get her a cute purse. It will be a great makeup present."

"Okay." Takako shrugged and quickly finished her bento box. "I'm actually in the mood for some shopping." Even if she bought nothing, Takako loved trying on cool outfits. Besides, it would be fun to go out shopping with someone. Nier hated doing it and whined about every single time.

Aiko beamed, grabbing Takako by the hand. The girls giggled as they ran towards the shopping district. Takako's heart felt lighter than it ever had in several centuries.

"Yo, we're back!" Aiko waved as they entered the training dojo, her hands full of bags.

It had taken several hours, but they'd found several outfits Aiko was certain Seina would love. After their shopping session, they'd gone back to Aiko's house, and Takako had spent the night over. Aiko's parents had been very kind, treating Takako like a second daughter. It surprised the magical girl how much she'd missed having an adult fret over her. Plus, Takako was beyond grateful she didn't need to spend the night on the street. Aiko's parents were happy to have her sleep over anytime. It gave her a home base while she considered things.

Takako still wasn't certain she wanted to turn against Starlight Dream and the Devil Princesses. It was an insane risk. Yet she couldn't stand the thought of anyone hurting Aiko. She'd at least train with Seina for the time being and get stronger. Their fight had reminded Takako how far she still needed to go.

"Oh, so you brought her." Mr. Kiyojiro said, scowling when he spotted Takako.

"Uh, hi." Seina gave Takako an awkward wave, not eager to see the dark magical girl, either. Colten watched the unwanted newcomer with suspicion.

"We brought gifts!" Aiko said, beaming, and pushed bags into Takako's hands.

"What?" Takako suddenly became self-conscious. Aiko wanted her to present the gifts to Seina? Her friend gave an encouraging smile, and Takako steeled her nerves. Here goes nothing.

"Here, I got you these," Takako said, voice stiff. "I'm sorry for what happened. It was wrong for me to betray your trust like that."

Seina accepted the offering, peering into the bags. Colten joined her, peering over her shoulder. The girl's face brightened when she lifted the purse out.

"It's so cute! Thank you!" The purse had stitchings of lotus blossoms sewn onto its side. It had taken many shops to find it.

"There's more in there, too. We found you this sundress you're sure to love!" Aiko gave a wink.

"Huh." Seina peered deeper into the bags.

"Do you really expect a purse and a few dresses will make up for your past transgressions?" Mr. Kiyojiro gave Takako the stink eye.

"Yes, actually. Stay out of this. These are girl matters!" Aiko said, matching the bodyguard's glare.

"It's a start, at least," Seina said.

"It's not bad." Colten gave Takako an encouraging smile, accepting the apology.

"Don't expect me to help you fight against other magical girls," Takako said, trying to regain her cool factor. She couldn't allow her rival to see her as going soft. "But we aren't enemies anymore either."

"Everything is mended!" Aiko nodded in satisfaction. "Now you can train together again."

"Uh, actually." Seina rubbed the back of her neck, embarrassed.

"Yeah, I'm Seina's new training partner!" A giant brute with a mohawk walked into the gym. "The name's Masato Shibata."

"What?" Takako said, baffled. Wasn't this one of Lotus Butcher's goons? The memory of the fake magical girl still caused her to stutter in horror.

"We couldn't find anyone else." Mr. Kiyojiro didn't seem pleased by the idea either. "Some vampire was threatening girls to not train with Seina, and they're too scared to argue."

"Don't worry, sensei. With my Fist of the Scorpio, Seina skills will be unstoppable!" Masato smacked the bodyguard across the back, earning a further glare from him.

"No, we're sticking with karate." Mr. Kiyojiro replied without compromise. "Besides, you literally only know one move."

Masato coughed into his fist. "Well, they kicked me out before I could learn much else. But I've supplemented it with my own self-taught techniques."

"Your useless self-taught techniques you mean." Mr. Kiyojiro shot back.

"Now, let's not fight," Seina said, trying to avoid a bigger argument. "We're glad to have him, regardless." Though this was an obvious lie.

"I'll prove my worth, you'll see," Masato said.

"Hey, what about me?!" Takako said, unable to hold back her frustration any longer. They'd replaced her with this lug?! It was beyond an insult!

"You've lost your right." Mr. Kiyojiro said, crossing his arms. "I don't see any reason why I should train you any longer."

"Give her another chance!" Aiko's glare intensified.

"No, I'm not changing my mind on this." Mr. Kiyojiro said, refusing to budge.

"Forget it! I don't need these guys!" Takako stormed out of the room. It twisted her insides when Seina didn't move to stop her. Only Aiko loyally stood by her side.

"Damnit!" Takako kicked a trash can, which made a satisfying thud when it crashed to the ground.

"Those two." Aiko rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I can't believe how uncompromising Mr. Kiyojiro is! The jerk!"

Takako's entire body sagged. "I guess they don't want me around."

Behind them, someone coughed. It was Seina. "He means well, but Mr. Kiyojiro is hard headed sometimes. So, uh, sorry. That could have gone better."

Seina fidgeted on her feet before gaining the courage to speak again. "I really enjoyed the time we trained together. I won't mind continuing our training, but it won't be full-time or anything. Though, I'm not sure I'd be a great teacher."

"Seina." Takako said, lost for words.

Aiko beamed, glad her two friends were mending their differences. She suddenly turned thoughtful. "Actually, I have a better idea!" The two girls gave her an expectant look.

"How about Takako finds her own master? Then you two can spar in your free time. It's a great way to hone your skills. Besides, karate doesn't really suit Takako, anyway."

"You're a genius!" Besides, Takako had hated training under Mr. Kiyojiro, not liking the subtle disapproval he radiated whenever she was around.

Seina nodded in approval. "We can meet together in one month's time and spar to see what we've learned! Without powers, of course."

"I'll be there!" Takako would beat Seina, but in her own style.

While she hadn't become friends with Seina, Takako valued their rivalry. It brought some excitement to her usually dull magical girl life. They extended their hands and shook on it with Aiko's hand sitting on top of it. Takako couldn't wait for next month.

Still, it offered a burning question Takako hadn't considered until now. Where would she find a new martial arts master in a ravaged world barely recovering from the vampire's evil reign?

When she asked Aiko about this, the girl only smirked. "Don't worry. I have plenty of contacts. They'll find you something."

"Okay," While still unconvinced, Takako wouldn't argue the point. Her upcoming battle with Seina sparked a fire within her, and she was eager to see what awaited her down this strange new path.

[fictionalpeoplecompleteme]

I’m a bisexual girl and I’m in love with Julie so I was wondering if maybe u could write one where the reader thought she was straight but slowly realizes she’s bi and in love with Julie, reader comes out to parents and when they don’t accept she runs to Julie and they kiss and it’s kinda angsty but then BAM fluff

Title: Valid

Request: Yes / No

Word Count: 3234 (!!)

Warnings: homophobia !!, probs not well written angst omg

(A/N): not me saying im back and not being back i hate myself. yall, there’s no schedule i just post whenever im like, active and thats a really bad habbit that i should NOT keep doing istg. also au where the band never died, but theyre never mentioned. anyways ty ty TY to the sweetie who asked for this ! i literally squealed when i read this request. not this being 3k words umm help

You had your moments. Those weird moments where you didn’t know what you were feeling, especially to the person you were feeling those emotions to. Like this one time where it was a normal day watching Disney Channel and eating pizza (basically living the dream) and then a new movie popped up. “Teen Beach Movie” was the film, and let me tell you, when you saw Butchy AND Lela wearing leather, let’s just say you were confused why felt his way for both of them... it wasn’t right.

No, of course it was right ! You had these feelings for both genders, and your feelings were valid, so why wasn’t it right? Well, it was a simple answer. 

Your parents.

Of course, they didn’t down right say they hated the lgbtg+ community. Although they might as well have downright said that they did, because with the things they say,

“Why do they get a whole MONTH of pride?”

“Ugh, the gays are making it EVERYTHING about them.”

“Do they have to do that in public? Couldn’t they have waited until they got home?”

“Why would they put that in tv?! The kids are gonna watch that and think that they’re gay!”

Obviously you heard their views, and when you started to realize you somewhat fit in their hate demographic, you “decided” that you weren’t going to. And that’s how it has been for a long time.

RIIINNGG

Ugh, another school day.

“Kill me now.”

You got up your very comfortable bed, and did your daily routine. After you were finished with that and dinner, you were dropped off at the infamous Los Feliz High School. You were then greeted by your best friend, Octavia.

“Hey bestiee.” you joked.

“Hey rat.” Octavia said with the same energy. 

“So, did you finally finish atla last night?” you asked.

“Of course! To have a chance to see my husbands is a chance I’ll always take. Even started watching tlok! Mako does looks scrumptious not gonna lie.” she said, doing that weird tucking her hair behind her ear and having a look of thirst on her face. Its the fact that she basically always does that for me.

“Not you finishing atla AND starting tlok the very same night. I don’t think that’s normal.” you said shaking your head. 

“Lets just say that if I get diagnosed with insomnia, don’t be surprised.”

“I don’t think anyone would be.” you said while the both of you are putting your supplies in our locker.

“ANYWAYS, I’m sorry for you getting moved to Mr. G’s class. I know he can be very mean.” Octavia said sympathetically.

And it’s all true. Mr. G is basically known for being modern day Snape, favorites and all (especially to the popular kids). Considering you were fresh meat to his class, you were not looking forward to the inevitable insults. 

“Ugh, don’t remind me. I can NOT stand the fact that I wasn’t even in his class in the first place, thinking I was safe, and then I got moved!” you yelled.

“I know, I know.” she said while putting her hands on your shoulder. “(y/n), if he even BREATHES in your direction, just tell me and I swear the next time I see him its on sight.” Octavia said with a very stern look on her face. “Honestly I can’t believe that the principle wouldn’t fire him, he has enough complaints for at least a suspension.”

“O, what would I do without you? And besides, don’t blame her. She genuinely tried to fire him. But I heard that he lawyered up to the point where he was basically untouchable.” you said.

“We lost.” “We truly did.”

Right after that conversation, the bell rang. 

“Good luck (y/n)! I love you !!” said Octavia while going to her 1st period class. 

“I love you too!” you yelled back.

Oh lord. Please please make this class bearable.

You walked to the door, and took a deep breath. As you went inside, not one second went by as you already got a taste of his scrutiny.

“Well well, if it isn’t the newbie! (y/n) (y/l/n). Just pick an empty seat as that’ll be the only way you’ll get someone to sit next to you.” he chuckled

You wanted to die right then and there. 

And it got worse as the whole class seemed to find that insult funny, considering that they all laughed. 

“O m gosh, Mr G. That was your best one yet!” said Carrie. Of course she had something to say. Not one situation where she kept her mouth shut and yelled her commentary to everyone in the room.

You shuffled your way to the back of the class, to find an empty seat next to this girl. She looked familiar, but not to the point where you knew her name. Though you wished you had. She looked quite.. pretty. With her amazing hair, and her beautiful eyes. Not to mention her face in general..

NO !

No. Of course you had these thoughts of her, she’s just naturally pretty, anyone would’ve thought that. You then put your backpack behind the seat and proceeded to sit down next to her. A few moments passed of you sitting next to the girl, until she said,

“Sorry about that. Mr G. can be very mean sometimes to everyone, -not that that’s okay!” she stuttered. “It’s just, don’t take it personally.”

“Er- thanks.”

“I’m Julie by the way! What’s your name?”

“I’m (y/n).”

“Nice you (y/n)! With each other, I promise you, we can get through his class.”

You smile at her. And Julie smiled back. of course she had to be nice too!

“Well Ms. (y/n), Ms. Molina, talking in my class? I’m not even mad, just surprised! Ms. (y/n) actually found someone to talk to!” said Mr. G.

Aaand of course, he has something to say again.

“I’m surprised she has anything to say at all, considering the amount of times you had already talked down to her. Just simply leave her alone.” said Julie with assert. 

You were shocked to say the least. And it showed to, having a look of disbelief all over your face.

“Um, wel- uh, Ms. Molina, keep that mouth closed, if you don’t want to spend your lunch in detention.” said Mr G. 

You were honestly very glad that she stood up for you in that moment. A little too glad, because in that time, the feelings started to flood in.

Of course, why wouldn’t it! She was just simply nice to you and you had already developed whole feelings for her! But was it exactly bad? Sure, your parents deemed that it already was, but that didn’t mean that you had to. This is who you were, a human being with valid feelings, and there was nothing wrong with that. So with this whole situation, you said with a big smile,

“Thank you.” 

Hey, you never said you were good at speaking with other people. But I don’t think it mattered to Julie, because she had returned your smile, and in that moment you realized you can find yourself deeper in love.

The two of you really had bonded during class time. Sure, you can say that you both flirted but you were never really good at figuring that out, even when you were flirting with boys (it had always been Octavia’s job to figure that out.) But considering the things she said to you.

“I love your hair!”

“You have very nice hands.”

“Your eyes are a beautiful shade of (y/e/c).”

After class, you both knew that you liked, liked each other. But that's where the hard part came in, actually confessing. To be totally honest, you could barely manage confessing to a boy, imagine with Julie? Although you were happy to know that Julie had already thought about this, because when you both walked out the door, she took your hand and guided you to the music room, where the both of you were alone.

Both of you were facing each other. You could tell she was nervous, cause she was playing with her hands, and didn’t seem to try to make eye contact with you.

“(y/n), I know we just met this class,” she said, both chuckling, “but would you like to get coffee with me sometime?”

Oh boy, she actually asked you out! Don’t get you wrong, you were happy! In spite the fact that you had your parents to worry about. So with that, knowing all that was at risk, you still said with full confidence,

“I would love to.”

Julie gave you the biggest smile you had yet to see. She moved a strand of hair out of your face and then proceeded to hold your hands.

“It’s a date! How about at 4 after school?” she said.

“The perfect time.”

After exchanging numbers, you both felt ecstatic, the both of you just left the room with the biggest grin. You couldn’t believe that you had gotten a date with Julie! Now I know that you’re gonna say that you should’ve told Julie about your situation with your parents, but she looked so happy that you couldn’t possibly have ruined the moment with that.

After that amazing moment, you had managed to spot Octavia in the hallway. You walked up to her like you normally would, though this time you had a scared expression. You had never come out before. Though you thought the possibility of keeping this from your parents, this wasn’t something you could keep from her. So walking up to her, you just blurted out the truth, without a second thought.

“Hey! How was Mr-.”

“I’m bi!”

She seemed stunned after a second, but only a second as she bursted out laughing out of nowhere.

“Um-”

“Oh my gosh, the way that was the way you came out to me! It’s the disorganization for me.” said Octavia, while wiping her tears away.

“Wait-, you don’t care?” you asked confused.

“Do you want me to be bothered or something?” she asked in a more sarcastic tone.

“Well no- it's just- I don’t know, I was just scared I guess.”

“Listen,” she said sternly while again putting her hands on your shoulders as a way to comfort you. “I will love you no matter who you love. Understand?”

“And I you. The problem is my parents. I know what they think of people like me, and it’s not good. How am I going to survive this ughh.”

“They’re your parents, I’m sure it’ll be a shock to them, but if they truly love you, they’ll accept you.”

“Thank you Octavia, what will do without you?”

“Hey, that’s what I’m here for.”

After you finally finished your classes, you nervously went to the front of the school to wait for your mom to pick you up. You felt so nauseous, to the point where you were sure that you were going to throw up right there. After waiting for 5 minutes, your mom pulled up. You got in the car and you felt so nervous that you were just silent the whole car ride. Your mom for sure took notice.

“Hey sweetie, you’re alright?” said your mom.

“Yeah, I just don’t feel so well.”

“Oh, are you alright? Did you eat something bad maybe?”

“Yeah, probably something during lunch.”

And after that the conversation fully stopped as your mom noticed you were not in the mood to talk.

You finally got home and you felt even worse than before. You dreaded this moment, and just felt like passing out. As you got inside, you quickly went inside your room, not bothering to say hi to your dad. You put your stuff on the ground and just started to really think about this.

They’re my parents! Like Octavia said, they should still accept me, I’m their child. And if they don’t? They have to, right?

Right?

You finally built up the courage to go outside your room and go to the kitchen, where both of you parents were.

“Mom, dad? I need to tell you something.” you said, basically shaking.

“Sure, what is it sweetie?” said your dad.

And without a second thought, you just blurt it out?

“I’m bi!”

It was dead silent. And that scared you. 

The part that truly scared you? Hearing the words that you had been dreading to hear.

“You’re pranking me, right?” you dad chuckled, as if it was a joke.

That’s when you started to get a little irritated. You knew how your parents were, so this reaction was inevitable. So considering all the preparation, you still got mad. 

“Why would this be a prank?!” you said with an “attitude” (that’s what your parents would say at least, although you were just simply defending yourself).

“Honey, as much I love you, this isn’t natural.” said your mother with a normal tone, which you could argue was just as scary as an angry tone.

“If you actually loved me, you would accept me as I am!” you said, starting to actually get aggrieved.

“Don’t yell at your mother like that!” said your father, who actually stood up from his chair.

“I wouldn’t need to be yelling, if you would actually accept me for who I am, not all this!”

“LISTEN, I’m sure this is just a phase. You either change your ways or you are no longer considered my daughter! No daughter of mine would feel such a disgusting thing!” your father yelled.

That’s when you lost it, you knew that no matter what you did, they would never change their way. That’s why you just let it out, because they would never change their way, so why not just let it all out?

“You know what?! I’m going to leave! I rather be homeless than to live in a house with you two! My two parents who don’t even accept me, WHO DON’T MAKE ME FEEL LOVED OR VALIDATED!” you yelled.

At that point you were shaking and crying. With the anger that you were feeling inside you didn’t even think to get any clothes or basic necessities, you just grabbed your phone and just ran out with your parents yelling your name. But you didn’t care, you were not going back there, that’s for sure.

After that horrible fight, you went to a park that was near your house. You went inside a private bathroom that was thankfully unoccupied, cause if it wasn’t, you were pretty sure that you would’ve broken down right then and there. Once you had gone in there, you surprisingly didn’t cry. You just held it in, and really thought about your situation. You realized that it was pretty stupid of you that you didn’t get your belongings and then left the house. Oh! And that you were pretty much homeless.

After a good thinking session, you did the most sensical thing you could do in that situation. 

You called Julie.

Now I know what you’re thinking! ‘Why Julie, why didn’t you call Octavia instead?’. Well it was pretty simple, you just desperately wanted to see Julie. You pressed on her contact, not really knowing what was coming with it. What if she thought you were weird? What if she laughed at you? What if she felt weirded out with you and then blocked your number? What if-

“Hello?”

“Julie?” You sounded pretty distraught, so it wasn’t surprising when she sounded concerned herself once she heard your voice.

“Hey, is everything alright?”

“Julie, this might sound really weird, but something really bad happened and you were the only person I could think to call! If you’re busy I’m sorry I won’t-”

“Hey! I’m sure everything’s going to be fine. Where are you?”

You took a deep breath, you were just thankful she didn’t block you right then and there. “I’m at the park in (street name).”

“Okay, just stay right there and I’ll come and get you.”

When the call ended, you walked out of the bathroom and sat on swings, waiting for Julie. After you waited, for what seemed an eternity, you saw her.

Julie.

She spotted you in the swings, and gave you the sweetest smile. She walked closer to you and stretched out her hands, which you took. After just staring at each other, she gave you the biggest hug, which (not gonna lie) you just really needed. Much to your disappointment, she let go of you, she swung an arm around you, and started walking to her house. The both of you didn’t say anything, but you guys didn’t need to, the peaceful silence was nice.

The both of you then arrived at her house. That’s when you started to panic, you weren’t looking forward to bother her family. 

“Are you sure we can go in the house?” you asked 

She gave you a chuckle, “I think we can go to my house.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to bother any-”

“Hey.” She proceeded to grab your hands and then moved to cup your face. “Everything’s going to be okay, my dad and brother aren’t home, and even if they were, you would absolutely be greeted with open arms.” she said,

You both went inside the house and then inside Julie’s room. She motioned to sit on her bed and you did. She sat next to you and then held your hand, intertwining with each other.

“It’s okay, you can talk to me.”

You took a deep breath, and just let all your feelings out. “It’s just my parents were never really supporting of the lgbtq community, so it was stupid of me to actually think they would have any other different reaction. And the fact that they would react like that? To say such cruel things? I just..- I don’t know, is it wrong for me to feel bad?”

“They’re your family, of course you would have this sensation of feeling bad. But I just want you to know that they’re in the wrong, not you. Any sane person would think that, everyone just wants to be accepted. Just know this,” she said while leaning closer, your hands still intertwined. “you are valid, so many people love you no matter who you love.” she said while moving a strand of hair out of your face.

You continued to smile, but looked into Julie’s eyes with so much adore. And the best part was, she was looking at you the exact same way.

Without a second thought, you decided to just go for it. You kissed her. The kiss was passionate, and sweet. Julie then gave soft kisses to you cheeks and knuckles, murmuring comforting words such as “it’s okay” “you’re alright” “i’m here”. 

After pulling away you both looked at each other, and then you offered your favorite pastime.

“Can we go to sleep? I just wanna sleep the stress away.”

Julie chuckled and then agreed. You both got into a position of Julie laying down while your head rested on her chess, and her holding you. While you were half asleep, you said those three words,

“I love you.” 

You were half asleep, so you didn’t understand the severity of the action, but before you fully drifted, you heard these words coming out of her mouth.

“I love you too.”

Taglist (link in bio!)

@noncannonships @mandiscadelinha @yoyokzzz @twist3dtinkerbell

[seunqs]

[ a long get to know me tag ]

tagged by: losers @woosohn @yeonjuins

what day is your birthday?

27th june! it’ll be on a monday next year

what’s your favourite colour?

blue! a rather specific shade of light sky blue but i also like dark blue! might be misleading because everyone would think beige/black since that’s the aesthetic i like + almost everything i own is black...

what’s your lucky number?

i don’t have one i think but i tend to say 7 if i’m asked?

do you have any pets?

sadly no >:( will get one in the future idc idc

how tall are you?

158cm tiny i wna be abit taller

how many pairs of shoes do you own?

off my head i think 3 pairs...? just 2 black and 1 white that i rotate depending on the outfit i’m wearing

favorite song?

asdjekw i don’t think i have one specific one but recently i’ve been listening to maniac by nct doyoung & haechan!

other honourable mentions: a book of love by ha hyunsang, wide eyed blind by saint raymond, irreplaceable by nct dream, lmly by jackson wang. that’s all i have off my head

favorite movie?

surprisingly i’m not big on movies... but i’ll always answer parent trap when someone asks! why do i sound like i always have prepared answers in my head for various questions... okay that’s bc i do.

what would be your ideal partner?

@june look away i already know you’re gna say this sounds a lot like someone..

shy... is the main characteristics lmao idky it’s not even like i’m outgoing but i tend to find myself liking shy-er boys over the outgoing ones! aaa those with very obvious leadership qualities and quietly cares and looks out for those around them :’) tsundere! i think shy may appear cold sometimes but i’m rly :’) when the shy ones become very affectionate in private or when you get to know them better :’) or shy with strangers but very goofy and silly with their closer social circle heh those that are more cat-like than dog-like, only approaches you when they’re comfy. okay also shy but willing to speak up when necessary! doesn’t let themselves get bullied for being quiet and also pls speak up for me i hate ordering food pls do it for me HAHAHHA also if they’re passionate about something they like/are good at! good listeners too heh doesn’t need to always have the best advice, just if they would sit with me silently and listen to me and give me a hug afterwards :’’’’’) i think i’m on the touchier side too so if they don’t dislike that it’ll be nice! OH someone who’s good at cooking too bc i hate cooking and the kitchen in general.. i’ll do the dishes though HAHAHAH ok that is all there is a certain idol in my head that is the embodiment of my ideal type and i hate him >:(

do you want children?

no... not so much bc i don’t find them cute or i can’t handle them but i think it’s a commitment that scares me! bringing up the child well with the right character and values ajksdbwkje i don’t know if i’m up to that HAHAHAH

have you gotten in trouble with the law?

nope @woosohn @yeonjuins pls be proud of my direct no why are the two of you......... 

bath or shower?

shower! i don’t know if i’ve actually taken a bath before... probably when i was younger HAHAH i think i’ll get bored in the bath and i much rather be relaxing in bed than in the tub

what color socks are you wearing?

barefoot at the moment! the socks i own are mostly solid colour socks / simple cartoon or animal patterns but all ankle socks that can’t be seen with my shoes

favorite type of music?

i listen to pop, r&b and indie! that’s about all and favourite depends on the mood!

how many pillows do you sleep with?

just 1! and a bolster too

what position do you sleep in?

either on my back with hand over my head lmao or turned to either sides while hugging my bolster and face buried into the bolster

what you don’t like when you’re sleeping?

when it’s too hot! canNOT sleep if the weather is too hot. also if i get woken up rudely, by screaming or someone smacking me awake LMAO just tell me nicely to get up and i’ll be out of bed in 10mins pls give me awhile my brain is turning on HAHAHA

what do you have for breakfast?

recently i haven’t woken up early enough for bfast or my family is just about to go out to buy lunch by the time i’m up hahaha but on the days that i’m alive for bfast, iced coffee and any pastry sitting in the fridge! my family is big on pastries like croissants and cakes like banana and carrot cakes! so one of those but the iced coffee is a constant in my first meal of the day

have you ever tried archery?

nope and idt i’ll be good at it tbh....

favorite fruit?

strawberries, apples, peaches! there are some seasonal favs where i rly like them for a period of time and then suddenly not anymore but these 3 are the constants

favorite swear word?

hahahaha i dont think i have a favourite one..... but i say tf a lot and mf for kpop boys who make me more flustered than they should

do you have any scars?

i don’t think so! i have a few stretch marks around my waist and tummy tho 

are you a good liar?

yes... HAHAH i used to get scolded so much for lying as a kid lmfao

what’s your personality type?

isfj-t has probably only dipped to isfp-t once but if not constant isfj!

what’s your favorite type of girl?

HAHAHAH uh.... okay with all kinds i think? except people in general who try too hard

innie or outie?

innie. was this question necessary tho AHHAHAHA

left or right-handed?

right-handed

favorite food?

ramen! but i like lots of food lmfao tiramisu, pork belly, lots of noodles, also lots of rice, beef, cakes, ice cream, i think i’m more salty > sweet!

favorite foreign food?

japanese ramen, korean cuisine!, lasagne

are you clean or messy?

clean

most used phrase?

i think alot of keyboard smashes, lmao, wtf, HAHAHAHHAHA, sigh, i’m tired LOL

how long does it take for you to get ready?

depends! fastest i think i can get out of the house 20mins after i’ve woken up. longest probably an hour where outfit is taking a while and accessories needs to be chosen

do you talk to yourself?

in my head yes.

do you sing to yourself?

not often but i sing out loud for the family to hear LOL in my head very often a song is playing up there

are you a good singer?

nop. i don’t think i’m a BAD singer but wouldn’t classify as good either HAHHAHA

biggest fear?

wow so many things but i think biggest is complete darkness, i need to see and know what is going on around me. i sleep with a night light on heh 

are you a gossip?

with closer friends yes def HAHAH my school culture tends to have lots of tea that my friends and i don’t like to get too involved in but we do talk about the gossips that goes around hahaha have also been in the center of gossip way too often

do you like long or short hair?

long! can’t imagine myself with short hair.. used to have reallllyyy long hair that goes beyond my waist and cried when i cut it to slightly below shoulder length. that’s the shortest i’ll ever go

favourite school subject?

wow nothing i don’t like school lmfao but humanities and language are way more bearable than math and sciences

extrovert or introvert?

introverted

what makes you nervous?

unpredictable situations, being alone in public (contradictory because in private i would strongly prefer to be alone but i don’t enjoy being alone in public i feel judged HAHAHA), also currently waiting on a reply for something and that’s been keeping me anxious the past 2 days :’)

who was your first real crush?

when i was 13/14, tablemate in school that was kinda shy and had very limited social circle but talked to me endlessly in class lmfao he apparently liked me too but we never dated and went to different schools at 16 y/o. we’re still kinda in touch though! we talked quite a fair bit last month just catching up but he’s more of an acquaintance now

how many piercings do you have?

2! just one normal lobe piercing on either ears, don’t think i’ll get anymore

how fast can you run?

back in school i used to be one of the fastest girls in my class LMFAO i could clock 12.5 minutes for a 2.4km run. stamina came from dancing since i had to run laps before dance class 2 times a week. but that is long in the past and now i get tired from climbing more than 4 flights of stairs pls spare me

what color is your hair?

naturally black but dyed brown! my hair has grown quite abit since i dyed it though now its black at the top and brown from above my ears onwards

what color are your eyes?

a very dark brown lmfao almost black

what makes you angry?

irresponsible people. just pushing responsibility to others or avoiding their responsibilities. don’t need you to do a good job with your responsibilities, just don’t make your issues my issues. and if its a shared responsibility like group projects, then do your part to contribute and don’t expect others to cover you

selfish people, in many ways. just being self-centred, not caring about how others feel, doing things for personal gain at the expense of others

speaking in a passive-aggressive/sarcastic manner. i say this even though i’m afraid of confrontation but i much rather someone outright tells me they’re unhappy about something or wants to get a point across. i hate when they talk about it sarcastically or tries to sugar-coat their words to make themselves look less aggressive about their words. tell me straight as it is, if you’re already gonna talk about something bad don’t piss me off with your attitude at the same time

do you like your own name?

rae is nice! has a very nice ring to it and looks pretty!

do you want a boy or a girl as a child?

i don’t.. want one.. but both have their good and bad i can’t decide.. i want a puppy

what are your strengths?

is this an interview question i have had a few interviews over the past weeks i am well-prepared for this HAHAHA

i think i’m pretty resilient! i bounce back from bad times pretty quickly or i psycho myself to see the situation positively. but it is ofc coupled with a lot of complaining to the people around me first

although i hate unpredictable situations and having to quickly adapt to new settings, i think i adapt pretty quickly too. flexible? easy-going? idk what’s the right way to call it but yeah something along those lines. good at it but i still enjoy my stability and calm don’t want to have to quickly adapt to new situations.

what are your weaknesses?

very emotional HAHAH used to be much worse but i often let my emotions rule my head. i think i’ve improved A LOT though i used to be so bad but i think i’m now able to make rational decisions even if im bawling LMFAO

this sounds like a compliment but i’ve been told this too often as well. i tend to be way too nice to people who don’t deserve it. even if the person doesn’t deserve it or they’ve pushed all my buttons in the wrong way possible, i would still try to be as nice and polite as i can. really helps with me working in the f&b industry lmfao.

what’s the colour of your bedspread?

dark blue / grey! 

colour(s) of your room?

white & wood (throughout my house actually + green from the plants in the living room) @yeonjuins says i live in a muji showroom

[petri808]

Hauntober prompt Ghost (sort of lol)

Bakudeku requested by @nona-inc Angst w/happy ending, AU modern times. Longer than I’d planned to write but stories go where they wanna lol.

Got the idea here

A Second Chance

In his adulthood, Izuku Midoriya did quite well for himself career-wise. He had a nice home and lived comfortably even though it was alone. Relationships had never really crossed his mind, which he chalked up to the turmoil of his childhood. It wasn’t a terribly horrible one but coming from divorced parents is never easy on young child minds. Why get close to anyone if they’ll probably leave eventually? That was a lesson bolstered by the end of primary school when his best friend ditched him for the popular kids.

It was Halloween night, and Izuku’s simply followed his normal routine after work consisting of dinner while watching a bit of television. Trick or treaters were a rarity in his neighborhood, so there was no sense in celebrating the holiday. As he waits for the news, he lets the current show drone on in the background while he scrolled mindlessly through his social media. He didn’t pay a lot of attention to what acquaintances posted and mostly looked for interesting or funny posts instead.

“Deku...”

Izuku’s brow furrows slightly at that ancient nickname. He looks at the television characters on the screen, had one of them said it? But instead of the tv show, he finds a fuzzy, staticky screen. He grabs his remote assuming something had gone wrong with the channel or service when...

“Deku, I’m sorry...”

“What the?” Izuku starts clicking the buttons and getting no response. The screen stays stuck, yet that voice... it was a familiar voice from long ago...

“...I’ve watched you from afar for all these years, because I could never admit how much I loved you and now it’s too late. I’m so sorry Deku. You’ll always be my only true love.”

Silence. Dead silence for a flash of a second when the television loudly blares back to life and startles Izuku out of his seat into a standing position. “What the fuck is going on?!”

The show had ended, and the news is now on in its regular-timed slot.

‘Breaking news, a major four car accident on the I10 highway has left 3 people dead and one in a critical condition. The victim identified as 37-year old K. Bakugou had been transported to the hospital for treatment. Police have closed off the highway in both directions, so anyone traveling in that area should use alternative routes...’

As he watches the footage of the accident story, Izuku’s hand unconscious covers his mouth and tears gather in his eyes. “Oh my gosh....” That was the voice he’d just heard! Of course, Katsuki was the only one who ever called him Deku.

He quickly calls one of the nurses at his hospital and they confirm that the man had in fact been transported there 15 minutes ago.

“Oh! Dr. Midoriya! We were just about to call you! Yes, patient Bakugou was brought in unconscious, lacerations to his arms and chest, broken leg, possible punctured lung, internal bleeding, concussion, and brain swelling which is why I was just about to call you in.”

“I’ll be right there.”

The entire way there, Izuku struggles to rationalize the message. If Katsuki was unconscious, how could that have been his voice? Then again that’s if you believed his television had somehow sent the message in the first place! Oh, this was entirely crazy! Izuku didn’t even know why his logical mind was allowing him to believe it had happened if not for the coincidence of the news coverage.

But as a neurosurgeon, he had to put all those questions aside and focus on the task at hand. The description the nurse had given him already indicated major problems, but it wasn’t until his own physical examination that determined the true extent of the damage. Primary surgical nurse Uraraka already had set up the operating room by the time Izuku arrived.

“The patient was revived once by EMTs in the ambulance and a second time in the ER after his heart stopped. Right now, the patient is intubated and prepped for emergency surgery.”

“Thank you, nurse Uraraka.”

Along with a fellow doctor, Izuku switched into a hyper focused mode. He works to repair the damage to the patient’s brain while the other doctor simultaneously focuses on internal chest injuries. Time was of the essence to stem the blood loss and mitigate further damage if they had any hope of saving the man, because even if he made it through the surgery, only a miracle would bring him back at this point.

It was now a waiting game. They keep Katsuki in a medically induced coma for the first three weeks as his body worked hard to repair itself. Once he was brought out of the induced coma, he still didn’t wake up, was breathing with the assistance of a machine, but at least the man’s heart was functioning normally. Surprisingly, Katsuki’s parents remembered Izuku and were grateful their son was in familiar hands. They’d initially flew in after the accident, but the cost to stay for such a long length of time would be too steep. So, after they returned home, he kept them up to date.

Each day that passed by, Izuku would check in on Katsuki’s progress like a normal doctor would, but at night he’d go home and ponder the ghostly message that had come through the television. He’d told no one about it because who would believe something so crazy? It just didn’t sound like the man, or rather child he remembered. Never once was there any indication Katsuki had romantic feelings for him, especially considering it was him not Izuku that ended their friendship. They saw each other in passing though middle, then high school and still nothing. So why is he now being told this?

Some say that when you die, any regrets you have must be released or your soul cannot ascend to the next plane. Izuku wasn’t religious or spiritual and before that Halloween trick he would have said he didn’t believe in anything beyond what he couldn’t see, touch, feel, and analyze. Ugh! Maybe that’s why this was all driving him so crazy. He wanted answers but the one person who could give it to him was stuck in a coma.

“Everything okay doctor?” One of the LPN’s asks Izuku. “I just need to check on the patients vitals.”

“Do what you need to nurse, I’m just visiting before I go home for the night.”

“Yes, doctor.” The woman makes her chart notations and leaves them alone again.

Because of Izuku’s standing at the hospital, he’d gotten Katsuki a private room. The man was taken off the breathing machine a week earlier and this way he could monitor the man without being pestered. There were times he would spend a few hours just watching the man sleep, trying to study what had become of his childhood friend. Through research, Izuku learned Katsuki had moved here around the same time that he’d started his internship at the hospital. Before that the man lived in the same town as the medical school he attended. It appeared Katsuki really was keeping track of Izuku, never married, and just worked in the marketing field.

Izuku squeezes the man’s hand with his eyes closed in a silent conversation. The only sounds being the beeps and noises of the machines to break the stillness. Lost in his own thoughts, he didn’t know what to think, what to feel, just that this man was dredging up long buried emotions that part of him was afraid to open up. Hadn’t he built up a good life, albeit a lonely one, it was still by his own wit and merits whereas Katsuki always had it so easy. The man was a smart, handsome jock, popular, and had been on track to do great things. While he was the geeky kid with freckles and wild green hair who the popular kids teased.

They were so close as little kids, all through preschool and the first years of primary. Katsuki was the extroverted one pulling him along on make believe adventures to emulate a shared love of a comic book character. In fact, it was with Katsuki’s help that he’d weathered his parent’s divorce. He idolized the stronger boy and wished he was Katsuki, not a weak like little nerd... perhaps having his child’s heart broken, really was the reason he swore off ever caring about anyone else again.

Did he just?! Izuku’s eyes pop open when his hand squeeze is returned by a weak one. Katsuki’s eyes are still closed and nothing else seemed unchanged. Perhaps it was just a nervous tremor, they happen sometimes. But no there it is again! Izuku stares down as the weak squeeze slowly turns into a grasp of his hand.

“Katsuki?”

A third squeeze. That meant the man was alert enough to hear and understand! Friend or not, it was the kind of thing to get a neurologist excited! Izuku quickly moved into doctor mode again and starts checking all the stats as well as alerting the nurse on shift.

“Welcome back Mister Bakugou.”

The man squeezes his hand.

“I’m your doctor, Midoriya. You might remember me...”

The man squeezes again and tries to talk, but after being intubated for a long time the throat tends to be dry, sore, and the muscles weakened. All that comes through is so faint it’s barely audible.

“Mister Bakugou, you’ve been unconscious for almost two months now, please try not to talk just yet, everything will be fine.”

But that only makes the man angrier. Furious red eyes flashing, Katsuki grips harder to Izuku’s hand using what little strength he has to try and pull him closer. So, Izuku leans in. “Calm down, it’s gonna...”

“Ma—y...” angry growling noises. “Mar...”

Obviously, the man wasn’t going to stop until he gave in, so Izuku leans in even more until his ear is practically next to Katsuki’s mouth. “I’m sorry?”

“Marry me damnit!!”

Izuku shoots straight up. “What?!” Is the guy serious?! The first words out of his mouth is that?! Wow... Katsuki really hasn’t changed, feisty as ever even after almost dying.

“Pa-pa—per pen!”

“H-hold on, just try to calm down please! I don’t want you to strain your heart!”

Midoriya grabs the chart, flips the paper over to the blank backside, and puts a pen in Katsuki’s hand. He holds it steady as the man scribbled shakily. ‘No waste 2nd chance marry me Deku.’

“Mister Bakugou, this is...”

The man pounds his fist on the bed then scribbles more. ‘Stop call me that! nickname!’

Izuku sighs and squeezes his eyes closed for a second. He hadn’t used that name since primary just like he’d hadn’t heard Deku all these years. “Kacchan. Happy now? I-I can’t just say okay. You—y-you ditched me remember and now you suddenly pop up and expect me to marry you?! Kacchan you almost died, I get it, that’s a scary thing to deal with, but you just need time to process...”

Katsuki writes, ‘Nothin 2 think bout. No more regrets,’ Then he mouths out the rest in a whisper, “I love you Deku.”

Izuku sighs, “I’m not saying yes or no Kacchan. Just get well first okay, then we’ll talk about everything.”

“Fine.” The man closes his eyes again seemingly satisfied with the answer.

He squeezes Katsuki’s hand. “I’ll see you in the morning Kacchan.”

When Izuku leaves that evening, he couldn’t help but walk out with a flutter in his chest and a pang in his heart. There really was a lot he still needed to get off his chest, but... he felt the honesty from Katsuki. If his dying regrets had been strong enough to reach him via spiritual mail, and the first thing he wanted to talk about was love, then... ‘take the second chance Izuku.’ Not everyone gets one.

[emmelineparker308]

Secrets Part-1

Fandom: Harry Potter: Marauders Era

Pairing: Remus x Reader (eventual) 

Warnings: Angst but nothing major 

Summary: Remus and you have been dancing around the fact that you are both in love with the other. As a new year starts, Remus is determined to tell you about his secret as well as his feelings for you. However, something is off about you, you are keeping a secret that he does not know. A secret that could destroy everything they have.

Y/N/N= your nickname

“Just remember, you are and will always be our perfect princess,” your father said as he held you close and placed a kiss atop your head. 

Your mother was next to tackle you in a bone-crushing hug, “Remember to take the potion, Slughorn will give you more if you run out. This doesn’t change anything, you are to write to me every week, two weeks at max. Focus on your studies as well as having fun. If you ever feel like you need us just write to us and we will come rent a place at Hogsmeade.” She stated all this while trying to brush off invisible dust and lint from your clothes, a motion that showed you exactly how nervous she was. 

“Now, Now, Estella,” you say, grabbing onto your mother's hands, “Keep that up and you’ll burn a hole through my clothes.” Your attempt at humor got her to forget her worries for a bit and crack a smile for you. 

“I love you, my Star,” she breathed as she kissed your forehead. 

“I love you too, Mom and Dad. Please don’t spend every waking moment worrying about me,” you say as you board the train, “You can worry about me for 23 of the 24 hours, after all I am the most important person in the whole of this universe. Take care of Estella for me Dad!” you throw out waving a final goodbye to your parents as you are pulled into the throng of students trying to find their friends. 

Breaking away from your friends, er, rather, acquaintances, you thankfully had found an empty cart, and sat in it patiently waiting for the train to start its trip to Hogwarts. 

Now that you were away from your parents, the brave facade you kept up to not worry them was slowly crumbling away. This year was going to be a tough one for you. Sure academically you were only in year four and the material wasn’t too tough, but that’s the least of your worries. What if someone at school found out your secret? The news would spread like wildfire and your poor parents would have to relocate with you. Actually, that wouldn’t happen, you had a backup plan if the whole castle found out about your problem. You had already packed that bag, ready to leave at a moment's notice if necessary. Sure, even the thought of having to isolate yourself from your parents brought you nothing but pain, however you had to protect them. They had already suffered through so much in their lifetime and you did not want to add onto their list of problems.

As you were lost in thought about all the possible outcomes of this year, you were startled back to reality by the door to your compartment being thrown open and two rowdy boys throwing themselves on the empty seat in front of you. “Sorry, (Y/N/N),” the boy with chocolate brown eyes and the kindest smile of all time apologized as he took the seat next to you. 

Ah, Remus Lupin, the brains behind the infamous Marauders. Funny, witty, and intelligent not to mention the one and only love of your life. Remus and you had become friends while traveling to Hogwarts for the first time, he had caught you when you tripped over some first years suitcase and one look into those eyes and you were a goner. The friendship grew into something much more during third year when the two of you spent a Hogsmeade trip by yourselves (the other three boys had gotten themselves caught doing a prank and were punished). During that trip you saw a different side of Remus, rather than being shy and quiet, he was outgoing and in charge. He shared with you memories and secrets that made you draw nearer and nearer to him. His gentleman characteristics didn’t help your heartbeat slow down. After that trip you had come into your dorm room with the realization that you had fallen in love with the kind boy with chocolate brown eyes. 

“It’s quite alright Remus, I was actually wondering what took you lot so long,” you stated. “How was your summer?” you asked trying your best to be as normal as you can. 

“Mine was fine. My parents insisted on taking me to Paris, it was quite beautiful and magical on it’s own,” Remus answered slightly blushing. “How was yours?”

Before you could find a good enough lie Sirius decided to interrupt by sitting in between you two and openly started flirting with you. You knew well enough that Sirius only saw you as a sister and that he only flirts with you to piss Remus off. 

Why would it piss Remus off? Well because he was in love with you.

[mybrothershands]

spoon 2

if tumblr dies just know it was by mine own hand but I think i got the paragraphs to post in order this time bngfhuriepiio

link to the part one: 

https://mybrothershands.tumblr.com/post/617963341198016512/would-be-very-interested-to-read-about-the-spoon

The boy sat vigil outside of the doctor's home, legs long since gone numb. The worst came to mind. What if his friend's lungs collapsed? Was he bleeding on the inside? Or his heart- was it safe? No one had come out to tell him otherwise, so all he could do was sit there and worry.

Dew had settled on the boy's neck and shoulders as he stared down at the hands in his lap and listened to the dogs bark in the distance. His stomach growled, and he found himself wishing he had eaten the apples and oats that had been put in front of him earlier instead of throwing a fit. He was not sure he could eat anything now. The growling sound came again, louder this time, and he clenched his jaw. Maybe he should go back and at least try, if only it would shut up this horrible noise.

Just as he was about to get up, he heard a door creak open, and firelight spilled out onto the street in front of him. At first he worried it was the doctor, and all of his fears flooded past his eyes. Yet it was not Dr. Baker and instead there was a young girl holding the doorknob. Her eyes travelled up, up, up, until she met his face with wide eyes, her mouth agape.

If the boy had not been near tears before, he certainly was now. Surely this child would scream and run back into the house any moment now. He closed his eyes and waited, frozen in place. Yet as the time ticked on, no such cry was raised. Instead, she clutched a pillow in her arm, the end of it dragged the ground, and took a step out onto the stoop. "You are very big," she observed.

The young giant squeezed his eyes shut tight. Yes, he was painfully aware of this. It was not until she started to approach that he drew in a breath. "Uh, uhm… maybe you should return to the barn- er, house. I mean house."

She seemed to ignore him, dragging her pillow in the dirt as she came closer still, eyes full of wonder. "Are you Caw?"

He took both his hands and clamped them under his armpits. To keep her safe. "It's Ka," he softly corrected. Though the difference was subtle, "caw" always sounded stupid to him. "Why don't you return to the house?"

He cleared his throat when she persisted, "It's late. Dr. Baker will be upset."

"He's busy," she shrugged, drawing closer to his left leg. "You look a lot different than I thought."

He narrowed his eyes. How had she known his name? Then an image came to mind- one of her and Dr. Baker and his wife around the table, telling stories of the town menace. Ka closed his eyes and sighed softly. "What did you expect?" He said, more because he felt obligated to ask than out of true curiosity.

The girl shrugged, stopping short of touching him. "I dunno. You just look more… real. More human than I thought."

Silence grew between them. "I am not human," Ka said decisively. He clamped hands firmly to his sides. "And I am not safe. Return inside."

She cocked her head. "You talk funny," she said, ignoring him again.

"Leave," he ordered.

"This is my house," she countered, looking him straight in the eye. The girl opened her mouth as if about to say more, but left it at that. She reached out to touch his knee, despite how nervous this made the giant.

It took Ka several seconds to recover from her words, but was quickly brought back into reality when she started trying to climb onto his folded knee. "I- uh, erm. Well, this is my... self-area."

She peered up at him. "What?"

"Self-area. I don't want... you are too close."

"I don't give a crap," she spat, proud to say the word. Just as she did, there came another horrible noise. The girl stilled for a moment, an arm and a leg hooked over his knee, and made a face. "What was that?"

"That was your tummy?" She said, eyes wide. "It sounded like a monster."

Ka grimaced. "I'm… well, today I haven't eaten anything. I should leave."

At this, the giant grew still, and his face sombered. He shoved his hands deeper into his armpits, hugging himself. "I think you should return to the house," Ka said quietly. His eyes began to sting. "Now?"

For once, the girl paused. She slid off his knee, though not completely on purpose. "Will you come back?"

"Yes," he lied.

In the dim moonslight, she could not quite see the shadow of his face way up there. Yet the way his eyes would not meet hers- well, that much she could see. "Promise?" She asked.

Ka studied her for a moment. If he said no, she would not back away enough for him to get up. Moving her himself was out of the question. Not after what he had done. "Maybe," he decided.

This seemed to satisfy her well enough, and she dragged her pillow back to the house. Ka's eyes followed her, and was surprised to find her mother standing at the door, watching. How long had she been there for? She did not give him a chance to ask, however. With the child safely under her wing, she glared him square in the eye, face blank. The only thing that broke her gaze was the door as it closed between them.

The boy drew in a deep breath which turned into a stifled, nervous yawn, and sighed. He uncurled his arms and leaned forward. Finding his legs had gone to sleep, he stayed there on his hands and knees for a moment, allowing the blood to return to his feet. That was when he noticed it. A little human footprint in the dirt, right next to the crook of his thumb. How small it looked, like a mere bird's track, and as he removed his hand he found more of the same.

He did not belong among them.

When Ka at last could stand again, he left for his barn. Thankfully, he met no one on the road. Yet the dogs did hush as he lumbered past. Tails tucked, he imagined.

There was not much to pack up. Only a few spare clothes. He looked at his plate, untouched, and the utensils beside it. Though he finished off the apples and oatmeal, he did not touch the spoon. He wanted to bend that one up, to destroy it, yet it felt wrong. Cairo had bought it for him, after all, so it was not his to break.

The boy's eyes drooped. His muscles still ached from the previous day's work, and having gotten little to no sleep the night before was wearing on him. He could sleep once he reached the outskirts, the young giant decided. That way no one would have to gawk or cower from him if he left during the day. So, with the little bundle under an arm, Ka ducked out the barn, headed south.

He would miss Cairo. Very much so, he realized, but it would be safer this way.

---

The morning came with the patter of hooves on grass. At first he thought it was Lempkins, come to fetch him for work again. Yet the beats sounded different, not like the buckskin he usually rode. Ka lifted his head to find a pony coming up the road towards the trees under which he lay. The little beast's trot looked rougher than river rock, with its head reared to spot any opportunity to turn back towards the barn. The rider: a young boy.

Ka decided he would get out of his way. He knew how spookish horses got around him. Slowly, he got to his feet and turned away, quickly putting ground between himself and the rider. Yet even as he did so, the hoof-fells did not seem to fade. Rather, they picked up at the tick of a whip. Maybe he should hurry more to get out of the pony's way.

Then came a voice. Unsure at first, not knowing how to call. "Hey! Uhm," the human struggled with the pony a moment before redirecting his attention. "H- hey, giant! Wait up," he called.

Ka slowed, not sure if he had heard correctly. At last he paused and glanced back. The boy was staring straight at him, half pleading and half angry at his mount. The pony stopped as soon as her rider stopped kicking, and took instead to fidgeting, trying to turn around. "Your brother- he asked me to fetch you."

The young giant's brow traced with worry, and fear grew in his eyes. "My...?" He noticed the equine looked fairly fresh. Surely his brother was not so closeby? Mouth dry, Ka swallowed a lump in his throat. "What… did he hurt you?"

The rider looked a bit confused, but too distracted by his mount to voice it. "No. I mean he was grouchy, but that's normal."

Ka blinked. That description did not fit. "Wait, who? My brother, you said."

The boy nodded, a bit indignant at this stupid giant. "He's back at Baker's. He can't ride with his ribs broken, so he sent me."

"Wh-" the pieces began to fall into place. "C- Cairo?"

"Yeah, him!"

Ka was still a moment, lips parted and jaw slack. Cairo had called him that? Even after what he had done...? He looked away. "Tell him you could not find me."

"He's not going to pay me if I come back without you," said the boy. He glared up at him, a question in his eye. Why did he balk?

Pausing, the giant considered this, studying the little human. He remembered the tracks in the dirt from the previous night and how tiny they had looked beside his hand. How effortlessly he had struck Cairo and yet still broken him. Even the pony the boy rode could easily be picked up in one hand. It was just a simple sum of money for the boy, but for him? Ka sighed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Could you make up your mind?" Said the human, pulling heavily on his chubby steed's mouth. The pony was getting back to the barn, even if she had to back-pace the whole way there.

"No," Ka decided, turning away. Cairo would get by just fine without him. They all would.

"Please?"

Ka glanced over his shoulder and firmed his brow. "What of your parents? Wouldn't they be happy I'm gone? This would be a giant-free place again." He grumbled.

The boy did not hear, busy fighting the pony. As the crop whacked her rump just a touch too hard, she sat down, and the boy slid off. Free, she got up and galloped off with a trail of dust rising behind her. Hearing the boy curse Ka paused, turning around to find him in the mud. He took a step towards him, but stepped right back.

"Are you hurt?" Ka said from a distance.

The boy glared in response. He pushed himself up and wiped the mud from his pants. "Just get your sorry butt back to Baker's so I can get my pay," shouted the messenger.

The young giant sighed, then pursed his lips. Maybe just to say goodbye. He owed him that much. Ka nodded, but did not move until the boy forcefully pointed back towards the town. Making sure to skirt well around the little human, the giant headed into town.

---

Ka did make it back to Baker's, but was quickly turned away. Cairo had left hours ago, and not before raising cain. The girl from the night before waved at him from the window, but the curtain was curtly drawn before she could open it. Well, he had tried, anyway.

Lost in thought and out of habit, his feet carried him back to the barn. There he found a curious sight. Cairo was sitting in the massive open doorway, staring up at nothing. Ka padded softly over, and the man's head turned ever so slightly before returning to stare into the dark. They were silent for a moment, neither sure what to say. When they did, it was both at once.

"Cairo, I-" he sighed. "Tha mi duilich."

The human did not answer for a long time. The wind rushed past them in the quiet. Birds began to chatter, and even distant conversation of farmers reached them. Still, not a word. Quietly, Ka sat down beside him, crossed his legs, and stared into the barn. At nothing.

"You were just going to leave?" The human said at last, his voice quiet.

"You would be safer without-"

"What! Safer without you?" Cairo snapped, instantly regretting it. He turned to face him, eyes red and cheeks wet. "Come down here so I don't have to yell," he grumbled, wincing as he gripped his side.

The giant obeyed, pulling his feet out from under himself until he lay flat on his belly in the dirt, his face propped up on his arms. Even as he did so, he had moved further away. Enough so that the motion barely served its purpose. "Tha mi-"

Cairo held up a hand. "No, me. I'm sorry."

"Sorry," Ka mouthed the new word, and the human nearly scowled at him for it.

"I-" He cleared his throat. "I shouldn't have thrown that lamp at you. That was cruel of me. Even if you can take it."

Ka was silent, not meeting his eye. As if there was something on his tongue, he opened his mouth but thought better, and clamped it shut again.

Cairo continued. "This wasn't your fault," he said, indicating his broken side. "Do you understand?" His voice was stern.

Silence came again as the giant stared at Cairo's ribs. It was covered in some kind of bandage, and a shirt over that. In the back of the boy's mind he could still feel the bones crinkling in his grip, and felt his face heat up. Words flowed out, but in that language, Cairo could barely understand what the young giant was saying. At the end of his little rant, Ka buried his face in his arms and began to shudder and cry.

There came a grunt, a growl, and a curse which was presumably Cairo getting to his feet. In a moment, there was a small but firm hand on his shoulder. "Hey now, you quit that crying," he said, though his tone was soft. They sat there for a while like that, the human still awkwardly patting the shoulder he had ridden on so many times.

It took awhile for Ka's breathing to slow, though not as long as it had last night. Wiping his nose on his shirt collar, he picked his head up and sniffed. "I'm sorry, Cairo," he said, the words awkward on his tongue.

"Don't be. It wasn't your fault, remember?" He lightly punched the giant's arm. Some of his normal gruff tone began to return. "And don't run off like that, fool. Now I have to pay that kid."

"I'm s-"

He punched him again, harder this time. "Stop saying that," he growled.

Ka nodded, but kept his gaze down at his hands. Cairo's feet rested within the crook of his right thumb, and though his boots were bigger than the little girl's bare feet, they still looked tiny next to his own fingers. "He told me… that my brother was looking for me," he said quietly. "Why did you tell him that? That I was…."

Cairo reached out and grabbed the bridge of Ka's nose and tried to shove his head back and forth. "Because you are, idiot." he said.

Although Ka's eyes followed him, he was too close to focus on. Even so, he could still hear the smile in his voice.

Brother. He mulled the word over in his mind. How strange it was, because if this were true, and Cairo were older…. A smile cracked on his face. "A bit silly."

"No it isn't," Cairo said, and backhanded Ka's cheek.

The giant flinched, more out of surprise than anything. "No, I meant. You would be the 'big' brother," he said. Sitting up on his elbows, Ka reached out and nearly poked the man before freezing up. He curled his fingers back and tucked his hand away.

Cairo glared at the retreating hand. "You can still touch me," he growled. "I'm not made of glass." He then reached up and whacked Ka's jaw as if to demonstrate, but winced and came away gripping his side.

He then noticed the bundle of clothes Ka had been carrying, then to the barn, and sighed. "Look, I know it's rough, but you can't just up and leave like that." He looked away, voice quiet, "Lempkins may let us keep the wood you've collected, maybe we could…" he rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Would you rather be around your own kin?" He said at last, almost as if defeated.

"Yes," Ka said at once. Then paused, bringing his hand up hesitantly. "But, I would miss you," he said. Slowly, he reached out again. This time he softly poked Cairo's belly, which awarded him a curt smack and an angry glare.

"I won't run away again," he said, hiding a smile. "Not like that… not without saying goodbye."

"Hmm, better not." Cairo grumbled, then quickly changed the subject. "Lempkins won't bother you today, but I did talk to him about your pay."

As if in response, Ka's stomach growled. The boy grimaced as he remembered the girl's words. About how he sounded like a monster.

Cairo, however, laughed at the sound as he patted Ka's arm. "I told him a growing boy needs three squares a day. He didn't like that much but," he winked, "I think he needs you too much to let you quit."

At this, Ka felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "Thank you," he sighed.

"Mmh," he grumbled. "Well, come on, then. We'd best tell him you're back or else he won't feed you. Get up, come on. I've walked out there once and I'm not doing it again."

At this, Ka paused. Poking him was one thing, but the idea of picking him up brought back nightmares. "I'm…" he began.

"Safe," Cairo finished. "And I'm going to carry my ruggedly handsome big brother so he doesn't have to walk with this ghastly war wound."

Ka almost smiled before sitting up. Safe? The idea seemed almost foreign now. Yet he found himself offering a weak hand for Cairo, who readily took to it.

"Alright, already," The human urged, waving him up with his hands. "Get your lazy bones off the ground and let's get going. If we hurry back, I can still get drunk before noon."

Ka raised an eyebrow as he slowly got to his feet, still taking extra caution. "Or not," he said.

Cairo clawed his hands and scrubbed the palm beneath him. This tickled a bit, causing a smile to finally poke through again. "Oh, come on, now," the man teased. "Little liquor never hurt anyone, did it?"

"Uhhhh."

"Forget I said that," Cairo said as they started walking.

It would be awhile before Ka would be comfortable touching or handling humans again. Maybe it was best to take something like this as a learning experience and move on, but it was certainly easier said than done. It took a while, even longer than it took for Cairo's bones to knit (which was much to Cairo's frustration) but move on they did. Still, the human made it a point not to throw any lamps at his brother from then on.