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punkshort · 1 year ago

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somewhere to run | 11. austin pt.2

Pairing: sheriff!Joel x f!reader

Chapter Summary: You go back to Austin for another meeting with Madeline, but this time, you're alone, and you meet someone from Joel's past.

Chapter Warnings: language, some mild hints at smut but nothing explicit, angst, hurt/comfort, discussions/recollections of past DV/SA, insecurity issues, jealousy, panic attack

WC: 6.5K

Series Masterlist

Something was wrong.

You hadn't seen or heard from Joel since the diner, and that was three whole days ago. He didn't normally stop by on the weekends, but he had gotten in the habit of sending you a text here or there. Things like how was the rest of your shift? Or watched this movie tonight with Sarah, you would like it. And sure, sometimes it would be more along the lines of can't stop thinking about you, what are you wearing?

You had both stayed true to your word. The two of you hadn't had sex since the time in his truck a few weeks ago. But some of your texts have crossed the line a couple times. And yes, there might have been one small phone call that ended with your thighs clenched around your hand and him groaning quietly on the other end, but that didn't count. You weren't dating. You weren't together. And unless your phone was tapped, nobody would ever know.

Looking down at your phone, you frowned. The last message you sent him wasn't even delivered. And it was already past his usual time to stop in for lunch. Tomorrow was your meeting with Madeline. You were sure he would want to talk to you about it before you left.

It was very unlike him.

"Maria?" you called out when you happened to catch her walking by the counter.

"What's up?" she asked, carrying an armful of menus.

"No Joel today?" you tried to ask as casually as possible.

If she was suspicious, she didn't let on.

"Oh, yeah. He's out of town. We're watching Sarah til he gets back tomorrow evening," she said, looking over her shoulder when an older couple walked in looking for a table. "Sorry, gotta go," she said, then hurried towards the hostess stand to greet the customers.

Out of town? Why wouldn't he have told you?

Because you aren't dating, you idiot.

Still, it bothered you. You told him you wanted to take control of your life and do things for yourself. Did that upset him? Maybe he took it the wrong way. You had still hoped he would give you advice, some guidance on how the process works, what to expect next.

You were probably reading too much into it. Maybe there was a family emergency.

It wasn't until almost midnight when your phone pinged next to your bed. Groggily, you reached over and squinted at the screen, then opened your eyes wide when you saw his name.

Joel: Sorry, something came up out of town. I'll hopefully be back late tomorrow. Let me know how your meeting goes.

You stared at the screen, reading and rereading his text. Hopefully be back tomorrow? What was going on? Why was he responding so late?

Probably because he knew you would be asleep and wouldn't bother him with a reply.

You put your phone back on your charger without answering and pulled your comforter back up to your chin as you stared blankly at the ceiling.

You were spiraling and you knew it. You were letting your insecurities get the best of you again. There was no reason to think Joel was icing you out. He was probably just busy. You couldn't expect him to spend all his time worrying about you.

There was nothing you could do about it now, short of calling him and outright asking him what's going on, so you did your best to push it out of your mind. Closing your eyes, you tried to will yourself to sleep before hitting the road early the next morning.

It was very early when you got up, so you decided to still not answer his text from the night before. If he was up that late, he was probably still sleeping.

At first, you were glad for the distraction. Driving the two hours to Austin kept your hands away from your phone, although you would be lying if you didn't hope to have another message from Joel when you stopped to use the restroom, just to be sorely disappointed.

There was hardly any traffic so you arrived a little ahead of schedule. You parked in the same parking ramp you and Joel parked in last time and walked the few blocks to the law firm, grateful for a few minutes of fresh air to clear your head. When you entered the lobby, you were greeted by the same two receptionists as last time, and the same one as before waved you over with a smile. She didn't appear to recognize you when you told her your name, and as you watched her scroll on her computer, a nasty part of you wondered if she would remember Joel had he been there with you.

She probably would. Joel's effect on the women he encounters wasn't lost on you. He practically had the whole town wrapped around his finger back home. It hadn't bothered you much lately, but something about his sudden disappearance and lack of contact was just bringing out all your worst thoughts. You shook your head as you sat down, trying to make the thoughts scatter. Pulling out a small notebook and pen, you flipped open the cover and reviewed the contact information you had given Madeline's secretary, along with a couple questions you wanted to ask, but your eye kept wandering to your phone, as if you were trying to force it to light up with his name.

You heard Madeline's soft voice call for you and you lifted your head to greet her with a smile. Clutching your notebook and pen in one hand and purse in the other, you stood to follow her out of the lobby. You made sure to shoot the receptionist who helped you a friendly smile as you walked past, feeling guilty for having such catty thoughts about her when she didn't even do anything wrong.

"So, I reached out to the people on your list. All except your mother, like you requested," Madeline said, jumping right in when you sat down in her office. You liked that about her. She didn't waste any time.

"I sent them texts warning them you would be in touch and they all seemed happy to help," you told her, and she nodded.

"Very much so, but I really do feel like having your mother testify would help. Mothers are great at garnering sympathy from a jury."

You chewed nervously on your fingernail as you thought about it.

"Besides my cousin, she's the only one who I confided in the most," you began, dropping your hand to your lap. "But she never seemed to see it the same way I did. If Patrick hit me, she thought it was because I was talking back or pushing his buttons. She would defend him, telling me 'he works so hard, he deals with so much stress'. And I'm sure you saw what she would say about the sexual abuse," you said, motioning towards the papers on her desk.

Madeline sighed and looked down at a copy of your statement.

"Yes, I did see that. Can I ask you a difficult question?" You let out a dry laugh.

"Just one?" you asked, and she smiled.

"Did you father ever abuse her or you growing up?" she asked gently. You sat back in your chair, deep in thought.

"Well, definitely not me, but I don't know about her. If he did, it was behind closed doors."

"Was there anything that you maybe saw or heard to make you think that would be a possibility?" she pushed.

"I mean, my dad has a temper. He would shout a lot, fly off the handle over little things, but I don't remember him ever calling either one of us names or hitting my mom."

Madeline nodded as she jotted down a note on her legal pad.

"I'm just trying to find a reason why she would think the way Patrick treated you was acceptable," she explained.

"Oh, right," you said, racking your brain for anything that would give an insight into your mom's response. "I never thought to ask. I was so wrapped up in my own shit, it never occurred to me that she might have been going through something, too." That guilt that never seemed to go away began to stir deep in your belly once again.

"Well, I'll do whatever you're comfortable with," Madeline said, tapping her pen lightly on her legal pad. "If you'd like me to reach out, I will. If you prefer to talk to her first or leave her out of it entirely, I'll stand by your choice. But in my professional opinion, I think it's worth exploring, and if I don't think she would make a good witness once we talk, we can always let it go."

"She doesn't even know where I am," you said softly, more to yourself than anything. "We obviously don't have a very good relationship. When I left, I didn't tell anybody where I was going. I only told my cousin I was leaving so my family wouldn't think I died or was kidnapped or something."

Madeline nodded, listening closely. You loved that about her: you always felt like you were being heard whenever you spoke.

"Why don't you sleep on it and let me know what you decide," she said, and you agreed, watching her flip through her other notes. "As far as the divorce petition goes, Patrick didn't respond. No surprise there."

"What does that mean?" you asked, inching forward in your chair.

"He still is allowed some time to acknowledge it. Specifically, 30 days since he was served, so he has a few more days. If I still don't hear anything, we can file for a default divorce. If we do that, Patrick will give up his rights. Obviously beneficial for you, definitely not for him, so I anticipate a response at that point."

"Okay, that sounds good," you said, feeling a bit of relief. Regardless of how this will go, the end will be the same: you will be free.

There was a soft knock at the door behind you, causing Madeline to look up in surprise, then smiled and waved in the guest. Turning around in your seat, you saw a tall, beautiful woman with warm, brown skin and perfectly styled curly, dark hair enter the room. Madeline stood from her chair, and you followed as Madeline reached an arm out to the woman to introduce her.

"This is Michelle, she's one of the firm's partners."

Michelle shook your hand, her grip firm, and she gave you a dazzling smile.

"Oh, wow, it's so nice to meet you," you said. "I can't thank you enough for taking on my case. This is life changing for me, you have no idea."

"Don't mention it, we're happy to help," she replied, her smile still plastered across her face.

"I didn't realize you were in the office today?" Madeline asked, pulling Michelle's attention from you.

"I was supposed to be in court but the guy ended up pleading guilty last minute. Love when that happens," she said to you with a wink, and you smiled. She glanced around the office quickly before turning back to you and Madeline. "Just you today?"

You paused at first, not understanding what she was asking, and then Madeline stepped in.

"Joel's out of town at the moment," she said to Michelle, and you couldn't stop yourself from frowning. How would Madeline know that?

"Oh, that's a shame. I was hoping to run into him, I haven't seen him in a while. Thought we could catch up," Michelle said, another wide smile spreading across her face, revealing perfect, white teeth. Catch up?

Madeline smiled back but you thought you could see some tension behind her eyes. Or maybe your insecurities were getting the best of you, yet again.

"How do you know Joel?" you asked, and hoped you didn't come off as defensive as you felt.

Michelle gave a soft chuckle and leaned against Madeline's desk.

"So sorry, you're probably confused. I'm sure he didn't mention it because he didn't want you to feel indebted to him since we took your case pro bono under his suggestion," she said, and you blinked rapidly, trying to keep up. "We were together for a long time. Almost got married, actually, but then I got a promotion out here with a different law firm and he didn't want to move... I'm sorry, you probably don't want to hear about ancient history," she said with a laugh.

You tried your best to smile in return but you were fairly certain you couldn't move. You felt like the walls were closing in and you could barely hear what she was saying. Fortunately, Madeline swooped in and distracted Michelle while you tried to get your bearings. Slumping back down in your chair, you tried to remember how to breathe without looking like you ran a marathon. How could he not tell you about this?

Glancing back up at her, you examined her features as she spoke with Madeline. High cheekbones, curly hair, athletic build... the question slipped out before you even had a chance to think.

"You must be Sarah's mom."

The two women stopped talking immediately. Michelle looked down at you in your chair and finally you saw that perfect smile crack. Something told you bringing up Sarah was a sore subject, and that nasty, jealous part of you felt good.

Michelle forced a wider smile and tucked an imaginary stray hair behind her ear.

"Yes, actually. I didn't realize he told you about Sarah," she said, her eyes drifting back to Madeline, who just stared right back at her.

"You look so much alike," you told her, your throat tightening. "You must be so proud of her."

Another awkward silence filled the room.

Michelle looked like she was about to reply when her cell phone rang, and you could have sworn she looked relieved.

"I'm sorry, I have to take this. It was a pleasure to meet you," she said, and you actually managed a small smile. The two of you listened to Michelle's high heels click loudly against the wooden floor as she made her way out, answering the phone with an authoritative tone when she stepped back out into the hall.

You and Madeline looked at one another for a moment, each of you not knowing what to say.

"Does she know about me and Joel?" you blurted out. "I mean, you know... that we used to have a personal relationship?"

Madeline chuckled and took her glasses off.

"I didn't think she needed to know," she said, offering you a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't know she would be here today," she added with a sigh.

"Did..." you swallowed but your throat felt like sand. "Was my case picked because of their relationship?"

"Oh, no. Not directly, anyway," she said, shaking her head.

"What do you mean?"

"The partners vote on which cases are picked pro bono, so they all have to agree. I can't say one way or another if she helped sway their decision, but I do know the partners in this firm care about helping people. They see cases like yours and they truly want to help. So regardless, just know they are good people who want to see you get the justice you deserve."

You leaned back in your chair, stunned. Would Joel have asked his ex to do you a favor? And then not even tell you? Is that why he's been icing you out? Maybe he was having second thoughts about your relationship. Maybe he changed his mind but can't figure out how to let you down gently.

Stop spiraling. He's not icing you out.

Oh, but it really felt like he was in that moment, and you could feel your insecurities winning the fight.

The last few minutes of your appointment was spent reviewing what you had discussed that day and a reminder to think about the topic of your mother, but all you wanted to do was get the hell out of that building as soon as possible. Once you finally got back to the safety of your little car in the dark parking garage, you finally let the tears fall.

The drive home was long and quiet. Your mind was still spinning with the information about Michelle, and as hard as you tried to put it out of your mind, it kept creeping back in against your will. She was pretty. She was so pretty and smart and fit. She reminded you a little bit of Nikki - beautiful, tall, confident. They seemed so different from you. What in the world did Joel see in you if Michelle and Nikki were the types of women he usually went after?

Your phone began to ring in your bag. Reaching over to the passenger's seat, you rifled through your purse blindly, eyes still on the road, fingers searching and finally finding your phone.

You had to do a double take when you saw it was Joel calling.

Staring at the road, you listened to your phone ring over and over, your finger hovering over the little green button on the touch screen, but you couldn't bring yourself to do it. It finally stopped ringing and with a sigh of relief, you dropped it into your cup holder.

You knew if you had answered the phone, you would have been irrational. You needed time to think, so you slid the bar down on the side of your phone to silence your calls.

Where the hell was he, anyway? Why wouldn't he have told you he was leaving? And why did Madeline know? If he had time to tell Madeline, he could have had time to tell you, too. You wanted to ask her, but in your hurry to get out after meeting Michelle, you forgot.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw your phone light up in the cupholder, and because you had no self control, you picked it up to take a quick peek.

Joel: How did everything go with Maddy?

You scoffed and tossed your phone back into your purse so you wouldn't be tempted to look again until you got home. To force your mind off it, you spent the rest of the drive thinking about Madeline's request to ask your mother to testify. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to call her. Maybe her views have changed. Perhaps she gained some clarity on your situation since you ran. You obviously wouldn't have done that unless things were really bad. Maybe she just didn't realize the severity of the situation.

You really wished you could run this by Joel, but that stubborn part of you absolutely refused.

By the time you arrived home, your muscles sore from sitting in the car for so long, you had decided you would give your mom a call. Just to test the waters. And depending on how it went, you would decide if you wanted to ask her to testify.

Joel sat in a rental car, staring out the window blankly while he fidgeted with his phone. Why weren't you answering your phone? Maybe you were driving and you couldn't hear it. He was fighting the urge to call Maddy to see if you had made it to Austin in one piece. The only thing holding him back was his concern that she would pick up on something in his voice when he spoke about you. He had told Maddy the two of you were over, and at the time, it was true. But now the lines were blurred and it was becoming difficult for him to hide his feelings. It must be written all over his face. Even you could see it, which terrified him at first, but then you climbed into his lap in his truck and his fear melted away, leaving only his exposed heart and his very real, very intense feelings for you on full display.

Those feelings were exactly why he found himself on the seedy side of downtown Philadelphia, staring at subsidized housing with sirens wailing in the distance. He pulled out the piece of paper from his pocket and checked the address again before tucking his gun into the back of his pants and sliding his shield into his pocket, then opening the car door and stepping out.

It was colder in Pennsylvania than he expected. It wasn't quite snowing, but the wind carried tiny flecks of white. Not enough to accumulate, but enough where he felt the cold deep in his bones. He walked up the path towards the housing unit, glancing around to confirm he was alone before looking back down at the paper in his hand.

Nina Hoffman.

He approached the first unit and scanned the numbers on the doors before moving on, then stopping when he found the correct number and knocking firmly on the door. He turned around, watching as two young men eyed him suspiciously as they walked by. Once they were out of sight, Joel knocked again, louder this time.

"C'mon," he muttered under his breath, then rubbed his hands together, trying to warm up as he waited. He was about to give up when he heard some shuffling on the other side of the door. He straightened up and stepped back, then gave his most charming smile to the small pair of eyes that peered out at him through the crack in the door.

"Afternoon," Joel said with a nod. "Would you happen to be Nina?"

The eyes raked up and down his body and stopped at the bulge on his back.

"Who's asking?" her raspy voice replied.

"Sorry, miss. My name's Joel. Joel Miller. You don't know me, but I think we have someone in common," he replied, her eyes still glued to the gun he had concealed under his coat.

"Who?"

Joel took a deep breath, bracing for her reaction.

"Sergeant Patrick-"

She went to slam the door in his face but he was faster. He stuck his foot in the door as she kept pushing back, trying to apply enough pressure to make him move, but he just wedged himself into the crack further.

"I ain't who you think I am," he said, but Nina ignored him.

"Get the fuck out of here! I dropped the charges!" she cried out, and Joel tried to shush her until he realized fights like this likely happened all the time in areas like this and wouldn't draw as much attention from neighbors.

"I wanna help you! There's more victims!" he told her through gritted teeth as she slammed the door against his leg over and over. At last, she stopped yelling and paused, and he took a deep breath. "I believe you," he continued. "And I think I can help you."

"Move your leg," she told him, and Joel dropped his head in defeat.

"Please, just hear me out-"

"I will. You gotta move your leg so I can undo the goddamn chain," she replied, sounding annoyed.

"Oh, right," Joel said, then pulled his leg out from the crack in the door. She shut it and he heard the metal chain slide through the lock before she twisted the knob again, opening the door wider and revealing herself for the first time. She looked to be around your age, blonde hair that looked like it needed to be washed, and blue eyes that were bloodshot.

"You just gonna stand there or you wanna come inside?" she said, turning on her heel and walking into the apartment, leaving the door wide open. He glanced around behind him once again, still reeling from her change in demeanor, before stepping inside and shutting the door.

You had been on the phone with your mom for nearly thirty minutes as you stared up blankly at your ceiling, listening to her drone on and on about your aunt and her newest boyfriend. Maybe you should have waited until you were more well rested to call her. The drive back from Austin was exhausting, but in an effort to avoid calling Joel, you called your mother instead. Once she got over the initial surprise, she launched into catching you up on all the drama you had missed, and you were beginning to wonder if she even gave a shit about your well-being. Not once had she asked why you left without a word or even how you were doing. She either didn't care or she already assumed the answers for herself. You weren't sure if it was the exhaustion or all the information that had been thrown at you that day, but for once you decided to stand up for yourself and fucking say something.

"Mom, I called to talk to you. It's important," you said, cutting her off, and she paused on the other end of the phone.

"I figured there was a reason you finally reached out," she replied. You picked up on the edge to her voice and you rolled your eyes. Great start.

"It's about Patrick," you began, not letting her tone sway you.

"What about him, sweetie? Is he doing okay?"

You had to take a deep breath and steady yourself before replying. Is Patrick doing okay?? What about you?

"Actually, no. He's in jail," you said, and she gasped. "For attacking me and another cop in town."

"Attacking? What do you mean?" she asked, and you scoffed.

"Attacking me like he's been doing for years, Mom," you said, sliding your eyes shut.

"Oh honey, you didn't actually call the police on him, did you? I told you, you need to watch what you say. You always have a way of pushing people's buttons, ever since you were little-"

"Mom! Stop!" you shouted, and she immediately went quiet. A dull beep echoed in your ear and you pulled your phone away to look at the screen. Joel was calling again. You clenched your jaw and rejected the call before putting the phone back up to your ear. "This is serious, okay? He raped me. He hits me and emotionally abuses me and I've had enough. I'm pressing charges and we're going to trial soon, and my lawyer wanted me to reach out to you and see if you would be willing to testify on my behalf."

The words rushed out of you faster than you expected, but once they were out in the open, you felt a wave of relief, but the dead silence on the other end of the call made you feel nervous again.

"He has his whole career in front of him. You're really doing this?" she said quietly, and if you didn't know any better, she sounded mad.

"What?" you asked incredulously.

"Everything with you is so dramatic," she said with a sigh. "I don't know what fairy tale you have in your head, but life is tough sometimes. Marriage is tough. It's hard work but you made a commitment to him. His job is very stressful. The last thing he wants is a wife at home who expects flowers and sunshine every time he opens the door."

Your mouth hung open in shock as you listened to her prattle on.

"He went down there to fight for you and this is how you repay him?" she continued as the tears began to burn the backs of your eyes.

"How did you-"

"He provides for you, doesn't he? You don't even have to work. All you need to do is be a homemaker and a mother. Do you know how many women would love to be in your shoes?"

"I never said I wanted any of that," you said, and you heard her scoff on the other end.

"Of course you don't. You've always had some silly fantasies in your head but this is real life. Relationships aren't like the movies. Men aren't looking to trip over themselves to make you happy. Marriage takes work. It's a give and take, and all you ever do is take."

You closed your eyes as the tears began to fall. She was wrong. You wanted to scream it at her, rub it in her face that someone was willing to trip over themselves for you.

"So I take it you won't be testifying on my behalf," you said after a moment of silence.

"You got yourself into this mess, you can get yourself out of it."

Then the line went dead.

You dropped the phone next to you onto the couch and sobbed into the palms of your hands. What did you need to say to make your mother understand? Was there even a point in trying anymore? Maybe Madeline was right. Something must have happened to your mother to make her think this way, because you knew now that love wasn't meant to cause pain.

A month ago, you probably would have believed her. But now, after seeing what Joel was willing to do for you, you knew better.

Suddenly, you felt foolish for reacting the way you did about Michelle. Regret clawed at your ribs as you thought about all the ignored calls and texts from him. Sitting up on the couch, you wiped your nose with the back of your hand and picked up your phone. With shaky fingers, you tapped on his contact and dialed his number, chewing on your bottom lip as the phone rang and rang until you got his voicemail. You hung up without leaving a message, the guilt tearing you in two.

Joel did so much for you and you repaid him by throwing a tantrum because of an old relationship.

As you turned on your TV, flipping through the channels to try to find some mindless show to distract you, hoping Joel would give you another chance and call you back, you thought about your conversation with your mother.

Maybe she was right. Maybe you were too dramatic. Selfish girl.

You just hoped you could still fix it and didn't ruin the only good thing you had going for you.

Loud pounding on your front door jolted you awake with your heart slamming in your chest. Fear and confusion ripped through you as you sat up and blinked quickly, looking around. You fell asleep on your couch, your TV playing infomercials now as the clock on the wall ticked closer to three in the morning.

The pounding on the door picked up again and you scrambled to your feet. Your first thought was Patrick, but logic slowly seeped into your brain when you remembered he was in a jail cell in Austin.

Gripping your phone tightly in your hand, you cautiously made your way down the stairs, ears straining to listen for any type of hint as to who was on the other side of the door.

You opened the door a crack and breathed a sigh of relief when you saw Joel waiting.

"Jesus Christ," he breathed out as he rubbed his chest absentmindedly. You opened the door all the way and sleepily waved him inside. "What the hell? Why aren't you answerin' any of my calls?" he asked, and for the first time you began to pick up on the worry in his voice.

"I'm sorry," you mumbled, looking down at your phone, now noticing he had called and texted you several times since you had fallen asleep. "I tried calling you earlier-"

"I was gettin' on a plane," he said, shutting the door behind him before scooping you into his arms for a hug. "You fuckin' scared me," he whispered into your hair, and you squeezed your eyes shut.

"I'm sorry," you said again, your voice breaking this time. He pulled back and cupped your face, searching your eyes and realizing you were on the verge of tears.

"What happened? Why have you been cryin'?" he asked you softly, his thumbs brushing gently underneath your swollen eyes. You dropped your gaze and shook your head with shame. "C'mon, let's go upstairs, we gotta talk 'bout what's been goin' on."

He tugged on your hand and led you up the steps, tears still burning in your eyes as you tried to hold them back, your eyes scratchy and dry from already crying too much earlier that evening.

"It's so late," you began, but you could see his body was practically vibrating with energy. "Did your plane just get in?"

"Yeah," he said, shrugging off his coat as he began to pace your living room. You sunk back down into your couch, pulling your knees up to your chest as you watched him dart back and forth.

"Where were you, Joel?" you finally asked softly, and he paused in the middle of your living room. "Why didn't you tell me you were leaving town? I was so worried-"

"There wasn't enough time. I had to figure out arrangements for Sarah and reschedule that meeting with her teacher at school... it was all too fast," he rambled, not catching your eye as he spoke.

"You couldn't at least send a text when you were at the airport or something?" you asked, not allowing him to make up excuses. "I had to find out from Maria you were gone. Even Madeline knew-"

"Madeline?" he repeated, finally dragging his eyes up to meet yours. "What'd she say?"

You huffed and crossed your arms, trying to fight the spiteful response that was clawing its way to your lips.

"She didn't tell me anything," you said, watching his face carefully. His gaze drifted away, lost in thought before you added "I just happened to be there when Michelle asked where you were."

Joel's eyes snapped back up to yours in an instant and he felt his stomach twist. You could see the myriad of emotions flitting across his face as he processed what you just said.

"What?" he whispered, his throat tight, his heart pounding loudly in his ears.

"Michelle," you repeated calmly. "Sarah's mom."

His eyes squeezed shut and he rubbed them aggressively with the heels of his palms. He could feel the heat rising from his chest and up his neck, and he tried to take deep breaths to quell the panic, but it was no use.

"Why-" he began to ask but he was finding it difficult to speak. He bent forward at the waist, his hands on his knees as he shook his head from side to side, trying to shake the sudden dizzy spell. He had been up for too long. He didn't eat enough. The altitude from the plane... something was making him feel faint.

"Joel?" you asked, standing up when you noticed something was wrong. You reached your hands out to grip his shoulders, trying to steady him as he struggled to drag in air. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he rasped, but he weakly slumped to the floor in your living room. "Just... dizzy."

"Should I call an ambulance?" you asked, your voice higher than usual. You fumbled with your phone but he managed to reach out and grab your arm.

"No, just... water," he told you, and you jumped up, racing to the kitchen for a bottle of water. You shakily unscrewed the cap and joined him on the floor, bringing the bottle to his lips and letting him take slow sips until his vision cleared and his breathing returned to normal.

You nervously watched him, your phone still ready to call for paramedics if he passed out, but the color slowly began to return to his face the more water he managed to drink. You inched forward, your hands hovering over him, not sure what to do.

"What was that?" you whispered, and he took a deep breath and shook his head.

"I don't know."

You nodded, your lips forming a tight line as you kept a close eye on him. Minutes ticked by as you waited for him to do something or say something, too worried to say anything yourself and risk causing another episode. Scooting closer to him on the floor, you rubbed his back, and his eyes fluttered closed as he leaned into your touch.

"Why was Michelle there?" he finally asked, eyes still shut.

"She came into my meeting with Madeline. She wanted to meet me and she asked about you," you told him, dropping the attitude now.

"But why was she... there? She doesn't work there, she works at a firm on the other side of the city," he said, finally opening his eyes and then it dawned on you: of course he didn't keep her a secret from you. He didn't even know himself.

"She's a partner there," you said, swallowing nervously as the guilt gnawed away at your insides. "She said you didn't tell me so I wouldn't feel indebted to you since they took my case pro bono."

"What?" he asked angrily as he furrowed his brow. "That's not true. I had no fuckin' clue, you gotta believe me-"

"I believe you," you told him, your hand sliding to the back of his neck. His gaze drifted to a blank spot on the wall as he struggled to catch up with the new information you just dumped on him.

"No wonder you were ignorin' me," he mumbled, and you felt your face heat up, embarrassed for acting like such a child and not just asking him about it in the first place.

"I'm so sorry, Joel," you said, tears welling up in your eyes again. "I really did try to call you earlier. I should have heard you out before getting all jealous and nasty."

"Don't be jealous," he said, locking eyes with you again. "Nothin' to be jealous 'bout. That ship with her sailed years ago." He brought his hand up to gently pinch your chin and gave you a small smile. "Haven't even spoken to her in years. I got no idea why she'd even want to see me."

Leaning forward, you gently slotted your lips over his, breathing in deep and inhaling his familiar scent. The same scent you chased after it faded from your sheets.

"You gotta talk to me, baby," he reminded you quietly after he pulled away and pressed his forehead against yours.

"I know, I'm sorry," you told him, a single tear trickling down your cheek. "Today was so awful and I just missed you so much."

"C'mere," he murmured, pulling you into his lap, your face burying itself into his neck.

"Where were you?" you asked him again, realizing for the first time he never answered you, and he took a deep breath.

"Philadelphia."

Your eyes went wide and you flung yourself upright in his lap.

"What? Why?"

He caressed your chin and gave you a sad look, his eyes red and tired as his shoulders weakly slumped forward.

"There's other victims."

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Taglist: @harriedandharassed@merz-8@sarap-77@nandan11@anoverwhelmingdin@fandomscollide@survivingandenduring@honeyedmiller@pedropascalsbbg@southernbe@pedrosfanny@gobaaby-blog-blog @eloquentdreamer @yomiyasxx @mrsparknuts@missladym1981@spacedoutdaydreamer@prettyinpunk85@maried01 @sunnyskyapplepie @sawymredfox@gobaaby-blog-blog@stevie75@mxtokko@sleepylunarwolf@lizzie-cakes@laurrrra@annieispunk@here4thedilfs @navystandardheatingoilcap @slugz-writes-shit@devilbat@ashleyfilm@scp116@tragerlover@iveseenstrangerthings50 @yvonneeeee @brittmb115@lulawantmula@abbysgirlll@ro-nahime-things@whxtedreams@ashhlsstuff@little-pookie@serenadingtigers@paleidiot@ashy-kit@lizlil@detectivejuliuspepperwood@buckyispunk @krispeenuggiez @flippittygibbitts@picketniffler@pedroslittlelady @noisynightmarepoetry @ameagrice@stevie75 @sunbellylou

#joel miller #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller fic #joel the last of us #joel miller smut #joel miller x f!reader #joel miller series #joel miller angst #joel miller fluff #joel miller x reader #pedro pascal characters fanfiction #pedro pascal #the last of us hbo #the last of us fanfiction #the last of us #sheriff!joel #waitress reader #STR fic

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meowmeowmeowmeow4x · 11 months ago

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Supersons +1 prompt answer

If you asked Danny, 12 year old half-ghost hero of Amity Park, how half-life was going, he'd tell you things were mixed.

On the one hand, he had just spent the last three or four months in family/scientist/'this house is a death trap waiting to happen' therapy with Jazz, and by some miracle, it worked. He wasn't sure if this was some kind of dream as his parents poured over years upon years of research, crossing out lines, rewriting equations, and reevaulating everything they thought they knew about ghosts.

Was the shudders family therapy worth not going over how they'd like to dissect him? he's still not sure. The horror.

Not to mention the attention. Danny was sure he was going to throw up if his parents drag him away for more bonding time, only for a ghost to attack and for him to run off to transform. What made it worse was when the Fentons came barrelling out, guns blazing, alternating between getting mad that he'd interrupted their family time, and asking him questions about "Your suspicious spook culture, if you even have one you dangerous delusional delinquent!"

At least they were trying, but Danny was very much comfortable not spilling the beans on the whole half-ghost situation, thank you very much.

And that's why, when Dad proposed to take him to Gotham to show off their latest invention, he jumped at the chance. The home city of the Batman, one of the greatest heroes known to man (except for Martian Manhunter and Superman of course) and Dad promised to take him to Gotham Observatory too. Not to mention how much he wanted to get away from Jazz's smug looks of superiority. Gotham here he comes!

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

Damian Wayne scowled as he scanned the crowed of scientists with more smarts than sense. Really, a flying toilet seat. For what deviant?

"Maybe they're for people who can fly." Kent piped up beside him. Father had let the two of them run off together, and his company was mildly more appealing than being alone with his thoughts.

"Why would Superman ever need to relieve himself mid-air. I do not believe you would appreciate your father's rear end being on display for all the world to see."

"True." Jon hummed. His voice lowered to a whisper. "You think indecent exposure is what your dad meant by "scoping out any potential future villains?"

Damian gave Jon a flat look. The sooner this convention ended, the better.

The crowded shifted, and the mass of visitors pushed toward a certain corner, where a man large enough to rival Superman's build stood upon a podium, with a boy their age off to the side.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you the latest in FentonWorks' innovations, the Fenton Ghost Zone Radar, soon to revolutionise the study of ghosts!"

"I thought ghosts were a magic thing." Jon said. "You know, stuff Constantine and JLD deal with."

"They are."

"Mixing magic and science is like, like, oil and water. No way this guy's serious, is he?"

"His name is Jack Fenton. That's Daniel Fenton, his son." Damian pointed to the boy in question, looking like he'd seen this scene a hundred times before, but with that knowing glint that promised something deeper. "They're normally spotted alongside Jack's wife, Madeline. Widely regarded as quacks by the larger scientific community for chasing paper-thin theories about ghosts, they've nonetheless gained funding from the government. This is the first time they've left their base of operations in Amity Park for years."

"Woah, you know your stuff, Dami!"

Damian glared at the young Superboy in disguise. "I read the briefing files. Didn't you?"

Kent looked uncomfortable and looked away. "Uhh, maybe?"

"Typical."

"Well, if he's so crazy, then why'd your dad even let him in." Upon another scathing glare, Kent relented. "Oh right, the whole supervillain thing."

"Enough chatter. We'll zero in on the younger Fenton. I intend to squeeze him like a grape, and make Father proud."

"Dami maybe you should be a little nicer-" Only for Damian to march off without him.

Honestly, inane niceties were above someone of his status. Those things were Superboy's job, and if Daniel Fenton wouldn't crack, then Damian was itching to try a new torture technique.

@impyssadobsessions

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hauntedbythefanficsofmypast · 5 months ago

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Dead-ends and Surprise Visits

Masterlist

Of Meetings and Musings

“Welcome back to the channel, GalacticPhantom here and today we’re playing Vikings vs Pirates!” The camera pans over to a ghost pirate ship zooming in on a kid's face. “And we’re gonna kick his—!!!YAAA!!! Oh wait, SKOOOOL!!” The camera zoomed out to show two large floating ships one obviously an early age pirate ship and the other clearly Viking.

Tim paused the video smirking as his eyes scanned the town below him, noting a few landmarks he’d be able to search out. He hummed before taking a sip from his tea cup. While finally off the mandatory rest, Alfred was still displeased it ended sooner than he wished. That meant Tim was still subjected to his coffee ban, something he’d lamented the last hour.

He was under the firm belief that the reason it took him fifteen minutes to find this video was because he didn’t get to enjoy his usual three am coffee.

Tim would not be telling Alfred that he thought so, that would be a death wish and he’d be banned from being active in the current, ah ghost hunt?

Tim grimaced at the thought, shaking his head as he didn’t want any association with the GIW, he’ll just refer to it as a manhunt. Sounded slightly worse but less ‘were just gonna decide an entire universe is non-sentient and undeserving of basic rights and protections’.

One last skim over the video had Tim turning back to his notebook noting the areas he had written down.

Nasty Burger

Casper High

Fenton Works

It wasn’t much to go on but Tim had worked with less before so this should be easy work for him.

It was not easy work.

Nasty Burger was a fast food chain said to have completely shut their door in 1974, no reasons were given they all just shut down overnight and disappeared. Any searches just lead to conspiracy theorists talking about how the food chain appeared out of nowhere one day in the seventies. Tim had to give them credence though, he was also scratching his head on how the chain just appeared. It was quoted to have ‘Good food but a creepy vibe, like I don’t really know what I’m eating. They don’t say beef, lamb or chicken, just well, meat patties. It was good though so I didn't question it.’

Tim had a feeling that Nasty Burger was somehow linked to the Infinite Realms, he was convinced Danny’s entire town somehow had a direct link. Of course in order to follow that path he’d have to find the actual town in question!

Casper High was also a dead-end, it did not exist anywhere, ANYWHERE even in Casper, Wyoming. Where one would expect the high school to be named Casper High! He’d even hacked into government servers to see if the GIW had them in a media and information lock down but there was nothing! The most mentions he could get was that the GIW had been driven out of a town years ago after a few failed attempts of catching a ghost named Inviso-Bill, stating large property damaged that left them deciding to never return. That would've been a lead if they actually mentioned the town in question! Like seriously!! It wasn't even redacted or hidden from clearance, it just wasn't mentioned!

Tim’s last chance was Fenton Works which wasn’t a complete dead-end but still a dead-end. He was able to drag up a little information on them but not much. Jackson Fenton and Madeline Fenton nee Burgess, a couple that got married years ago in a courthouse wedding in Madeline’s hometown of Spittoon, Arkansas. He thought for sure he’d find more but their file was gone, just gone, any existence of them past their home towns was gone including that of their families. He groaned, flopping back on his couch after hitting his third dead-end of the search, even his searching systems were coming up with nothing. Like none of them actually exist, which is impossible because Tim had been watching Danny’s videos for a few months now. That adoption bait definitely existed the question was where the fuck was he.

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and trying to settle his thoughts before complete unease set over him. Shooting off the couch and into a fighting stance his eyes scanned the room as he pressed his bracelet emergency alert three times. Someone was in the living room with him, someone had been, something was off. Tim could feel it. He didn’t move until Bruce burst through the door and in second he had moved behind his dad and in front of his siblings that stood in the hallway still.

“Someone was here B. I don’t know how but they were and then they were gone in seconds, not even. I had closed my eyes and things immediately felt wrong.” Bruce scanned the room waving Dick and Cass inside, the two oldest immediately doing a top to bottom inspection of every corner trying to find any clue.

“Are you sure Tim? The security systems caught nothing, and I would’ve been notified immediately of a system shut down no matter how small.”

“I’m positive Bruce, I don’t know what happened but someone was in here.” Bruce watched Tim for a second before nodding looking at Duke.

“Can you sit in on your lectures over video call today? I want everyone in pairs until we discover who stepped foot in the manor.

“Sure won’t be an issue. I’ll pair with Tim today since he is working through an investigation. Dick frowned, moving forward wrapping an arm around Damian’s shoulder only earning a fake dirty look.

“I’ll pair with Dami, we already planned an outing to the zoo today. We’ll stop and pick up Babs along the way and bring her back to the manor afterwards.” Bruce nodded, turning to Cass with an upturned eyebrow, the girl hummed before shaking her head. She looked around the room one more time before looking back at him.

“Steph.” She said and the blond was seemingly at her side in seconds grinning, linking their arms together.

“I’ll text Babs for a weekend sleepover so Gordon won’t accuse Dick of trying to date her again!” Steph crowed grinning at Dick who gave her a mock offended look.

“So mean to your favorite older brother! I can’t believe this betrayal.” Steph laughed, punching his shoulder.

“I don’t know about favorite Dickie.” She said, earning a gasp that quickly developed into playful banter between the two most outwardly cheerful of the Batfamily. Bruce smirked slightly before looking at Jason, a suggestion of him and Babs pairing up on his tongue before he noticed the slight glare Jason directed at him.

“Don't even think of it. Babs will be fine with Cass and Steph. We're pairing up assshole, you don't get out of this just because you're the big bad bat.” Bruce thought about arguing for a second but instead just shook his head. A rare fond smile took over his face as he looked at Jason.

“If you insist Jaylad, we're gonna have so much fun at the Gala tonight. You know a lot have been asking how you're doing, so this will be a perfect opportunity to reconnect with some old friends.”

“Oh fuck I didn't think this through.” Jason groaned, earning grins from his family as he knew this night would be painful. Alfred knocked on the door calling the attention of the family who quickly clocked a panting Harley Quinn standing beside him.

“Miss Harleen arrived a few moments ago in response to Tim’s distress signal going off. I've assured her everything is being handled but she wished to make sure as well.” Harley gave them a grin as she stood straight walking into the room.

“Messy.” Cass said with a teasing smile as Harley did look very disheveled. One pigtail up with mismatched clothes and one pink and the other blue shoe on.

“Ya know it baby cakes! As soon as I got Birdie the third's signal I rushed over. Brucie gave Pam-a-lamb and I a run down since we could be at the original meeting, I nicked a com from him before he left.” Bruce smirked slightly, rolling his eyes as his kids looked at him surprised.

“Harley has proven to have your health in her best interest since her reform. So yes I let her take a com from me, I knew she'd get to one of you as soon as possible.” Harley grinned before walking over plopping on the couch. She nodded to Alfred as she kicked her shoes off and moved to sit criss-cross. “As you can see she did.”

“Of course! Ya know Bruice and I were close in college before he dropped out! like siblings really along with Crane and a few others! That makes you all my little nieces and nephews!! All the better now that my minds mostly back to normal cause I can spoil and tease you all!” Harley laughed, earning Some grins from the others. She paused, staring at Tim's computer confused. “Hey Timmy, why are you looking up Jackie and Mads? Wow I haven't seen those faces in forever! Look Brucie You remember them right! Jackie, Mads, and good old Vladimir! Though his picture isn't pulled up.” She paused, grabbing a sticky note that Was a glowing neon green. “Sick stick notes I want one, Amity Park? With coordinates too? Is that Where they moved to?” Tim stared at the sticky note in complete shock looking quickly at Bruce.

“That's not mine B-wait wait you know them Harls???” Tim said looking between both of them torn by either examining the note that randomly appeared after Tim’s intruder scare or grilling Harley and Bruce, maybe even Crane as they were his only leads now. Bruce put a hand on his shoulder, halting his runaway thoughts.

“Later, for now let's get this analyzed. Something tells me someone decided to give us a little help finding them.” Tim nodded as he carefully took the sticky note from Harley with a thank you.

‘Latitude: 41° 19' 27.60" N

Longitude: -87° 47' 25.19" W

Amity Park. -CW’

Whoever this CW was somehow managed to get in and out in seconds. Tim's mind was sprinting with all the different possibilities moving about. His determination settled as he handed it off to Bruce who waved Jason along to follow him. He gave Duke a small smile as the other punched his shoulder playfully.

“Let's grab my stuff from my room and we'll settle down here until dinner ya?” Tim nodded moving toward the door with him before turning to Harley.

“Are you staying for dinner?” Harley hummed dramatically before placing her hands on the couch arm and pushing into a handstand.

“Can I invite Ivy over?” She carefully tipped over in a slow back bend before pushing off and landing on her feet.

“The more the merrier, can she look over the garden though? Damian is trying to grow tomatoes and struggling horribly. He doesn't want to ask her as he feels it beneath him.” Harley snorted as she followed them out the door, all three ignoring Damian's indignant yelling.

“She’d love to, you know how she is with plants!” Tim nodded before grinning abit deviously.

“And while we wait you can tell me about Jack and Maddie Fenton and what B was like in college.”

“Oh you got yourself a deal there Birdie!”

Danny stared blankly at Clockwork, who acted as if he didn't even notice. His mentor was in his teenage form, Danny knew it meant something, if only the Titan would acknowledge it. The others on the Council glanced between the two a few times until Frostbite decided To speak up.

“Your Majesty, you rarely call Council meetings, might I enquire on why this meeting has been called.” Danny stared a little harder at Clockwork before sighing and turning back to the others.

“Thank you all for coming so suddenly, I know it was last minute and I apologize.”

“My Lord apologies are not needed! Anything that is this important to you is something we are thankful to be privy to!” Pandora said confidently grinning at Danny who smiled appreciatively.

“I am still very thankful. I was hoping Clockwork would help clue us in but I can see he has chosen to keep his end quiet.” Danny sighed slightly knowing whatever was happening was important. “As you know my full title clues me in when spoken aloud. As we use this when I am needed for things in the Realm. Early today someone not of the Realm used my full title.” Ghost Writer hummed, crossing his arms leaning back.

“Could it have been someone in Amity Park?” Danny shook his head with a sigh as he thought about it.

“No, I would've felt the proximity, and given how close I'd be, would've known who spoke of me like I can with our people. This was further much further and by someone I don't know. It left me rather stumped and uncomfortable.” Danny paused for a moment glancing at Clockwork, who kept a serene expression. “Given that Clockwork is still silent, I can only hope that means I have nothing to really worry about.”

Princess Dorathea looked between the two before giving Danny a serene and gentle smile.

“Well, I believe we must not fear this too much. If it was something truly dangerous I am certain Lord Clockwork would alert us immediately. Perchance it is just some new magics being told of who rules our Realm, please fear not My King.” Pandora nodded along enthusiastically, still grinning, causing the other to smile as well.

“Perhaps we should have a few of the guards patrol Amity Park.” Frostbite announced after a moment of thought. “I have no doubt Princess Dorathea is correct but I can still see the worry in your posture. Amity Park is officially a part of the Realms, so I have little fear of it being found. Especially with Royal Secretary Foley adding his own intense firewalls.” Tucker nodded in conformation as he put his PDA down.

“I think that would be a good idea, have a few patrols. I am not overly worried. I've essentially wiped the town off the maps, it can only be found by chance and coincidence.” Danny nodded, thinking it over before giving them one of his normal bright smiles.

“Alright, then we are in agreement? Moving forward I will have five Knight patrol Amity Park throughout the day. Knight Wes will obviously remain with me so I will have Fight Knight pick four Knights to patrol with him. Now with that determined, why don't we have lunch together?” A chorus of agreements sounds from around the table.

Past, Present, and that of Space

#dc universe #batman #danny phantom #danny phantom aus #dp x dc #dp x dc au #dp x dc crossover #tim drake #clockwork #princess dorathea #harley quinn #pandora dp #ghost writer #bruce wayne #danny fenton

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local-limebug · 5 months ago

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everything i know about interview with the vampire (amc), from someone who has not watched interview with the vampire (amc) and has only consumed it via mutuals rb'ing gifsets but plans to watch it soon

this is my pre-gaming for watching this show. dipping a metaphorical toe into the fandom. i haven't read the books either.

there are 3 vampires: lestat, louis, and armand

armand's name may or may not be amadeo?

lestat and louis had a daughter named claudia

claudia was unhinged (which is fair. i would be too if i was stuck at age 15 forever)

claudia had a girlfriend named madeline

claudia and madeline died together (without even having kissed each other. true love? sapphic teenagerism? perhaps both)

claudia's death caused lestat and louis to break up after like a century of dating or something

armand killed claudia?

there was a play involved in claudia's death...? i am incredibly confused about this one

either it was a play or an execution

the love triangle seems convoluted

armand is in love with louis and lestat is also in love with louis and lestat & armand have definitely also fucked each other

louis should just get the hell out of there actually. free my boy louis !!!

the interview is being done by daniel molloy who is bi (?) and definitely into that kinky shit

daniel molloy fucked either louis or armand in his youth (during the 80s maybe?). possibly he fucked both. the human pet of the marriage

daniel's memories got messed with to... forget fucking the vampires? idk. p sure armand did it though

that seems to be the consensus for most things in this show

armand did it.

claudia died? armand did it. daniel's memory got wiped? armand did it. louis stubbed his toe? armand probably did it.

armand needs to be sent to vampire jail this guy's a menace

also lestat had a midlife crisis after louis left him for armand and became a rockstar. i hope they release his songs on spotify as marketing. i wanna hear it

BONUS: lestat's album flops? armand did it.

anyway now daniel is old and interviewing armand and louis in dubai?

armand eats suicidal ppl?

daniel causes armand and louis' marriage to fall through

that's louis' 2nd failed marriage

surprisingly not his fault either time i think

armand turns daniel into a vamp

this is signficiant because armand has never turned anyone into a vamp

armand is going to fuck that old man

that old man has kids apparently

and swore someone out on live tv

BONUS 2: daniel got turned into a vampire? armand did it.

seriously what the hell is armand's problem (said affectionately. i have a feeling he's gonna be my fav when i watch)

does lestat know daniel?

claudia may or may not return from the dead

if she does i'll blame that on armand too

is armand french or not? he lives in dubai. has a french accent (?) but also not.

lestat is french. louis and claudia are american.

surprisingly, the americans are the nicest of the bunch. rare american W

also can lestat fly? did he throw louis from like... a 4 story height? ppl on twitter were mad abt it like last year

are there any other characters in this show except the ones i've named. it's been 2 seasons. 6 characters cannot be all there is.

#this post flops? armand did it #limebug's original posts #amc iwtv #interview with the vampire #iwtv #lestat de lioncourt #the vampire lestat #louis de pointe du lac #the vampire louis #the vampire armand #armand iwtv #claudia iwtv #the vampire claudia #madeline iwtv #daniel molloy

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ive-been-timebombed · 18 days ago

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CHAPTER FIVE

Danny remembers when he first got Jason. And then they meet in a run down apartment.

Danny was already nervous, and he wasn’t even in the mortal world yet. He had gotten new clothes and a hair cut. Now he was standing in front of a portal that would take him to his old apartment that was in Gotham. The same apartment he first taken Jason to when he was given to him.

Danny thinks that was one of his favorite days but also the worst. He was in college walking home from his part time job. When a woman with a damn near newborn baby approached him.

________

Danny groaned as he got up from his bed. He was just about to go to bed but a knock on the door stopped him. He walked through the clean apartment to the door. He took a deep breath before he opened it and looked around. He didn’t see anyone- a baby?! He quickly bent down and checked on the kid.

He picked him up feeling the soul of the small human made him scared he was gonna hurt it. Cradling the baby to his chest he then paid attention to the letter on the ground.

‘Daniel. This is your baby. I can’t take care of him anymore. All his documents are in the bag. I’m sorry I pushed the burden to you’

Danny glanced at the black backpack before he looked at the baby.. he had his nose.. oh what bad luck. He picked up the bag and dragged it inside putting it on the table he then sat on the couch holding the baby. He couldn’t believe.. he didn’t know how to take care of a child. He could barely take care of himself! He didn’t make barely enough money to take care of both of them. Especially a baby.

Oh but he was now forced to care for him. And he would do a damn good job if he had any say.

______________

Jason had looked into the Fenton family also. It was bizarre stuff. The site looked to be completely abandoned everything was unedited since 2016. All dates were old and pictures never updated. So he looked up individual people.

Jack Fenton, Jason hummed when he noticed he had the same middle name as his first, he was a big burley man the skipped leg day often. He had the.. same white hair by his nape as his dad. Blue eyes like him. He had died in 2016 in some freak accident in his home.

Madeline Fenton a lady who had many PHDs and seemed like a great mother. Her hair ginger and eyes purple? Jason didn’t know peoples eyes could be purple. She had records of being in martial arts and had her guns licenses. She had also died with her husband in 2016 in the same freak accident.

Jazmine Fenton a girl who looked like her mother. All As in high school and was on the road of being a therapist. She was accepted into college and planned to go before he died in the accident along with her parents.

The last one, was Daniel Fenton. He was- Jason stopped when he saw the screen. He expected the son to be dead dying in the accident. But he had a missing persons case.. that had a picture of a very similar man. The same man with a scar. Jason figured out who his father was. And he was gonna figure out everything he could.. starting with going to his apartment. It was an abandoned building left to rot due to mold and unkept problems.

_______

Danny looked around his old place. His stuff was still here.. he knew the building was going to be destroyed so he thought he would’ve appeared in old alleyway or something. Not have a trip in memory lane.

The pictures of him and Jason still hung on the wall. The hole that was made by Jason when he threw a baseball at him. The messy living room that was never cleaned up because he left as soon as he dropped Jason off. He stepped around the toys as he stopped in front of the door that had an old paper pinned to it.

It had the faded words of ‘JASONS RUOM. Sta out dad! IL throw the bal at u agin!’ With stars and rocket ships decorating the sides. Danny smiled at the memories of Jason’s sounding out the words on the table. He walked through the door not risking ruining anything by actually opening the door. He teared up at the room. The old books still on the bookshelf and the bed still unmade. The teddy bear on the bed tucked in on the other side. The room a mess with toys and glow in the dark stars that fell off the ceiling.

Danny shoot up hearing the sound of the front door opening. He turned invisible not risking being caught this early on the mortal realm. He would leave immediately but.. he could feel the ectoplasm in the air. It was similar to his.. could it be Jason?

______

Stepping into the apartment was weird to Jason. He could feel the memories in there but he couldn’t remember them. He closed the door behind him looking around. He reached up and took off his helmet. This was Jason’s moment not Red Hoods. Setting the helmet on the table he glanced at the pictures on the wall. Stepping to them picking it off the wall and looking at the picture.

It was him.. and his dad holding him up under his arms holding him up to reach a book. Grabbing the next picture it was of his Dad with a bunch toilet paper wrapped around him and Jason in a doctor getup wrapping more around him. He set the pictures on the wall swallowing the lump in his throat as he moved to the living room glancing at the papers and crayons on the table.

He took a deep breath as he stopped in the doorway. The apartment was small but it was well lived in. The layer of dust on everything made it worse. He could imagine before it was left to dust.. how it would look. How he would run in and his father closing the door behind him. How he would watch TV hoping his father wouldn’t notice his bedtime had passed.

He’s eyes looked at the toys on the ground a story he would never know in each place spot. Maybe the stuffed dinosaur was a doctor in his childhood mind or even an evil he had to defeat. Maybe his dad played with him and that was his Dino he force him to play with. He would never know.. he ignored the tears appearing in his eyes. He walks to his door if the paper was to go by. Before he went in he looked over to the door next to it. He went and opened it. It was another bedroom his father’s. The layer of dust was suffocating.

The forgotten remains of his past. The bed was made and seemed thin. The stopped in front of the desk.. it had bills on it. Eviction notices.. he would have never guessed.. with all the toys. He bit his lip in an effort to stop the attention to his feelings. Focus on the pain. He walked around the bed. A picture of him and his Dad smiling at the camera. He’s eyes looked left the room before he started crying in the middle of the ghost of his dad.

A shaky breath and a hand over his mouth he walked into his old room resolving that he would cry when he went in. But he stopped as he looked at a man. The same man that was in the pictures. The man would looked so strong in the pictures next to a kid Jason yet so much smaller and frail now next to him. He felt to big. To much.

They looked at each other one in shock and tears falling from his eyes. The other looking at him in guilt but all the same with the tears falling from his eyes.

“I’m sorry..” The voice broke the silence with a startling start. That was Jason’s dad. He was here in his old room. The voice that was smooth. Less echoey than before. He had questions about so much. His father was right there to answer them.

@vasia-k

Sorry for any misspellings or grammar issues. It’s late and I had a headache when I wrote this.

#danny phantom #dc x dp #red hood #dad danny #dpxdc #ghost jason todd #more so ghostling then ghost but meh #ghost king danny #my mission is to make someone cry #did I complete it?#womp

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lordgrimoire · 2 years ago

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The Goonion would like a Word

Bruce had never had an experience like this before, letters of ransom from any of his rogues? Certainly! But the Goonion only ever left messages when they were paying bail for their own, and he was becoming worried as to why Jason’s Goons had posted a message to him via The Goonion.

“To Batman of Gotham, New Jersey, United States of America, We would like to have a word with you in regards to a pair of Meta Adjacent individuals we would like to harbor here in Gotham, we are only extending the courtesy to you regarding them due to the fact that the United States Government refuses to acknowledge them as people due to their conditions, the Boss said he would tell you himself, if he has not already he likely will soon. Suffice to say a family of three is coming to Gotham as their last chance at a safe harbor and we would prefer it if you did not get on their cases. We hope to receive your response without any broken bones, The Goonion, Gotham, New Jersey Branch.” Tim was staring at the paper, the stationary of The Goonion, with confusion, Dick, Barbara, Cass, and Stephany seemed rather accepting of it, and Damian was confused.

“What is this, Goonion?” His youngest asked, staring at the paper as Bruce read over the return address, the Iceberg Lounge, a server named Thomas.

“Ah, we haven’t told you about them yet have we?” Dick began, sitting back. “They’re nice folks, help get the Goons payed and are usually the ones to put their feet down when Rogues get outta hand for normal folks, for instance, the Joker does not have the stamp of approval for, many reasons. But primarily it’s due to his former Henchmen, including Harley, snitching on him to the Goonion.” Dick typed something into his phone, Damian’s own device pinging in his pocket, likely more info. “The Goonion has an odd relationship with us, we don’t go after them and they try to keep things regulated, Jason could probably tell you more, and it seems from the letter we do have to talk to him.” The door to the cave opened, and while Bruce looked up to see his second son come walking down the steps he seemed, tired, run down even.

“The Goonion already got to you? Good on them.” Jason huffed as he sat next to Damian, ruffling the boy’s head much to his exasperation and attempted swatting. “Situations fucked, the letter doesn’t even touch on the bigger parts but it gets, real fucky like, possibly gonna want to get Uncle Clark and Aunt Diana in on it fucky, definitely Constantine as well.” Well Bruce knew his flags rather well and if Jason was advocating for not only a League intervention but one headed by John Constantine? Bruce decided to address the original topic first.

“They can stay, but they will have to answer questions.” Jason huffed and leaned back.

“Ground rules then, the two younger kids? Meta Adjacent? They have a similar situation to me, and it turns out Ra’s is playing with not even a tenth of a full puzzle with the Lazarus Pit.” Everyone around the table stiffened, save Alfred who had come in behind Jason with a tea service, as Jason took a sip from the mug placed before him and nodding to Alfred. “Thank you. The details are spotty but the abridged form is this, the Lazarus pit is the remains of a bunch of people from a dimension to which we all go when we die, the residents therein call it the Infinite Realms since it services everyone that means every Person who has a faith or doesn’t has a place there. Furthermore these three’s parents who passed recently in a Government Sanctioned raid made a Portal to the Infinite Realms, and Lazarus Water? Corrupted, dirty, a literally soul eroding form of what makes up matter on that end of the divide, Ectoplasm.” Jason withdrew a vial from his pocket, a bright green and sluggish substances was held within. “This is pure ectoplasm, The Parents, a pair known as Doctors Jack and Madeline Fenton, introduced me to a Doctor from the Infinite Realms, suffice to say I am feeling much less angry and far more at peace with things, though apparently being angry is normal for the type of “Dead but Brought Back” I am.” Jason placed the vial on the table and slowly pushed it to Bruce, taking his hand back when he reached for it.

“Jazz, the eldest, is a student at Gotham University, or she is now, identities and the like will be handled later but for the younger two it’s time for some non starters, because apparenlty if you ask an Ecto Entity or anyone touched by the Infinite Realms how they died it sets off a “I Must Kill You Now” trigger in their head, essentially forcing them to suffer their deaths all over again until they deal with who or whatever asked the question, so no being a little nosey punk about it Tim.” Tim jolted at his name being said instead of Jason’s nickname for him but he nodded when he realized that his elder brother hadn’t looked away from him. Bruce was still proud the two had started to mend things so well, but as he stared at the vial a question swirled in his mind.

“Why did the Goonion send a letter then?” Jason stiffened slightly and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Alrighty, so you know how I’ve been going to College classes since a year ago? I met Jazz at one of them, as Jason Todd, son of Bruce Wayne and card carrying member of Red Hood’s Goonion. This was, sometime around Spring Semester, soooooo” Steph lunged up, mouth open with a squeak until Cass pulled her back down. Jason sighed and continued. “We started dating last year, she wants to be a psychiatrist and maay have started working for The Goonion in Star City when one of their guys ended up on her mentor’s patient bench. Her academics are already transferred to Gotham U but she’s still looking for a new Mentor.” Bruce made an affirmative noise at that, encouraging, Jason was holding something back, the younger siblings hadn’t been named yet. “The Goonion hired her former mentor and Jazz followed them in since they have really good benefits, and she has experience with the whole Capes and Crooks thing already. Though she told me she would rather she and her siblings explain that.”

So, Jasmine Fenton, after being a student for at least a year in Psychiatry, became a Goonion Psychiatrist, and then when her Parents died she takes her younger siblings, one of whom is rather recently adopted into the family by the looks of it, and flees her hometown, one Amity Park Illinois, which has a disturbingly blank file in the League databanks. “Yeah,” Jason began, looking over at the Batcomputer, scanning the total lack of data from two year ago on. “The Government locked their hometown down quick, they have a branch called the Ghost Investigation Ward, who managed to get a law in before our current Shining Dome of a President, was sworn in, apparenlty old Lex has been trying to rip that law to shredds since he found out about it and there’s something akin to a coup attempt going on from the GIW towards Lex. I looked into those guys already, I think it would be wiser to side with the current President and not a bunch of Loons who would dissect Uncle Clark and his kids if they got the chance.” Damian jerked slightly, turning to face Jason.

“What?”

“Yeah, Krypton is dead it’s a dead world, by some of the smaller parts of the Anti-Ecto Acts that means that all Kryptonians are ecto-beings and by that law have no sentience, and are just emotions imprinted on ectoplasm, given the fact I died once they would pick me up as well in a heartbeat, for “disposal” as they call it.” The room had become Still, Dick seemed furious, staring at the damning lack of info alongside a pale Tim, Damian who was still staring at Jason realized just why his brother had looked back to him and was also looking at Cass, they had been brought back by the pit, they were by Federal Law non-sentient. Bruce felt the arms of his chair bend slightly under his grip before breathing out his frustration.

“You have a plan?” Jason nodded, he seemed to be expecting worse, you really didn’t give him a reason not to, and began speaking.

“The Goonion will be dealing with protecting people who fall under the acts, we just need the JL to take this problem and light it on fire, drag it into the public eye and raid a few of the GIW’s bases that may have people, both from our side and theirs, in captivity. I will be going tonight to get Jazz and her Siblings from a bolt hole of theirs, an Aunt in Arkansas whose bound to be investigated is hiding them, I just need to borrow something.” Bruce allowed an eyebrow to climb up his forehead, he wants to borrow the Batplane for it.

“I’ll allow it, go and get them once it starts to become dark out, I’ll expect you back by dawn, do you have a place set up?” Jason blinked at him before nodding.

“Yeah, one of the safer corners of Crime Alley, closest part to Gotham University, three bedrooms, two bath, someone maaay have helped me pick it out.” Bruce nodded, he would get nowhere in trying to guess which of his other children, Alfred, or any of Jason’s friends, or even some of their own collectively reformed Rogues could have helped Jason in this, but suffice to say it was a safe harbor and one backed by some rather tough figures. The Goonion alone would give anyone trouble, but with them being in Crime Alley that meant that they were essentially in an invaders nightmare. Dead ends, construction, dilapidated or abandoned buildings, it was a natural ambush site. Jason then put a box on the table, it was a scanner of some sort.

“One of the reasons they’re coming here is this,” he flipped a switch and the machine began to frantically beep, practically sounding a long tone before Jason flipped it off again, “Gotham sits on a similar point to Amity Park, and as such we are LOADED with ambient ectoplasm, constantly stirred up by magic based curses of one sort or another it essentially blinds ectoplasmic tracking devices.” Bruce nodded, accepting the device as it was pushed down the table to him. “Jazz had apparently decided that they would run to Gotham if things went sideways like this anyways, we’re the closest ambiently effected city to Amity not ringed by GIW outposts and scanners.” Bruce paused in his observing of the machine, the GIW had surrounded other cities that had high ambient ectoplasm?

“Where?” Jason pulled out a small notepad.

“Well, Jazz wouldn’t tell us, but the Goonion has it’s ways, The GIW has encircled the following cities, Salem, Boston, and Springfield of Massachusetts, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia and Gettysburg of Pennsylvania, Chicago Illinois, Savanah Georgia, D.C., and then San Francisco and San Antonio of California and Texas respectively, I asked for this list at 6 this morning, I was handed this current version at Noon, these were just the overt ones. Metropolis, Bludhaven, and Gotham, are currently not surrounded, there are locations between them but not many.” Bruce stood, watching as addresses were placed on the table, each assigned a sticky note and details.

“You should get ready to go get Jazz and her siblings, we’ll deal with this.” Bruce tapped on the sticky note closest to him. Jason nodded and stood, following Alfred out of the Batcave as Bruce looked to the rest of his family. “We have targets, we have details, Tim, dig up what you can on the GIW, Damian, Dick, Cass, Stephanie, your with me, we’re going to raid as many of these places as we can tonight, Barbara,”

“I’ve got comms, got it.” She interrupted, rolling over to the Bat computer and preparing for daylight operations

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pixeltwix · 2 months ago

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Life After Divorce for Emma May

For awhile now I’ve struggled to figure out what job Emma May could’ve taken up after the divorce as for so many reasons this is SUCH a messy topic.

Firstly, do y’all ever think about how the only reason Fiddleford was even going to Gravity Falls in the first place was to secure more money and provide a better financial future for his family (something he’d always dreamt of doing) only to then lose his memories, leaving the family in shambles, and ultimately leaving them in a worse financial situation with Em as a single mom?? Cause I think about this ALL the time-

To me it only makes sense that Fiddleford would marry someone just as lovely and sweet as him, but also someone who is tough enough for both of them. Let’s all nod our heads and agree that Fiddleford is a pushover and a major people pleaser. Most of his kindness to Ford is him outwardly wanting validation from an old friend he admirers because otherwise he feels useless and unintelligent. Ie Fidds whole, ‘I’m the builder, if I’m not building something than I’m useless’. So when he becomes too exhausted to build and Ford grows frustrated with this he tries to make up for it with gifts etc :,). That paired with some chronic anxiety is a recipe for a man who needs someone who can understand that and is willing to help him- his wife. mutually patient and kind as he, is happy to be that for him.

Regardless as far as her career goes, smart as she is, I don’t see her as book smart? Rather people smart? Emma May knows how to talk someone up, knows how to make a deal, knows how to defuse a situation, and could probably sell someone their own shirt off their back. Perhaps that could stem from the cult background I explain here and here, but regardless she’s witty in conversation and great at pretending she’s an expert on something she’s never heard of.

Naturally I thought sales would be a good place to put her, maybe rise the ladder that way? One of those late night tv marketers? But it didn’t feel like enough? The 80’s were a prime time for women to put themselves into the workplace, incredibly toxic as the environment was for them it didn’t stop women from being excited to be there. Ironically it’s the perfect time to divorce? Even if she didn’t want to, after the giant homicidal pterodactyl robot it sort of felt like a, ‘even if I still love my husband, if I value me and my sons life, I have to do this’ sort of thing

After taking that into consideration I thought ‘honestly bigger is better’ so I brainstormed harder to figure it out. And after a few lengthy rabbit holes I believe I figured it out. While Fiddleford acts as sort of the Bill Gates of the Gravity Falls universe I thought ‘who’s someone else deeply recognizable in Americas pop culture, but tv related?’ And then it hit me, ‘oh my god what if Emma May acts as the Oprah of the Gravity Falls universe? The Emma Dixon Show?’ (In the sense of a beloved tv personality that unexpectedly rose to great fame in the mid 1980s) The-match up felt perfect enough and a mid 80s timeframe feels realistic too as it gives her those three years to struggle and figure something out to provide for her son.

But also hi hello, I needed Emma May to peruse some sense of tv fame for the sake of her last name becoming a synonymous one. Considering I have no idea where miss Emmaline Butternubbins wound up after the fall of Billville (or hell if she’s even alive some twenty odd years later) but I love the idea of Emmaline recognizing the name ‘Dixon’, seeing the similarities on tv between Emma May and what she remembers of young Madeline, and wanting to reach out. Mainly out of fear that Ciphertology is rising again and she wants to talk some sense into her, sure, but once they meet or get in contact and Em couldn’t be further from that?? She’s relieved. Plus the two can bond over the absolute madness of the cult (also Emma May gaining a mother figure that isn’t Fiddleford mom? I love Bobbie Jean, but Em needs even more maternal support)

Also also?? I always envisioned Emma May as the type of gal to be super into photography. She just loves taking pictures of memories, people she cares about, and stuff she likes.

So this especially grew once she had Tate, the kid naturally being used to getting his photo taken for scrapbooks, and he loved being photogenic

But once his mom becomes a tv personality he begins to detest the public eye and the cameras of others

Its a hatred he keeps to adulthood especially, having zero tolerance for anyones cameras (other than his moms polaroid camera) pointed towards him

#gravity falls #emma may dixon #fiddleford mcgucket #tate mcgucket #the book of bill #book of bill #gravity falls fandom #gravity falls fanart #gravity falls oc #oc #fanart #young fiddleford #ciphertology #bill cipher #emmaline butternubbins #fiddemma #gravity falls thoughts #gravity falls analysis #ford pines

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bulletblade · 9 months ago

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You know something that I'm surprised no one talks about, at least from what I've seen. Cyclops was tricked into naming his kid after one of his enemies.

Let me break it down:

Nathan Charles Summers, also known as the mutant, Cable, but we won't talk about his alias.

Summers is Scott's last name, no problems there.

Charles named after his mentor and founder of the X-Men, also no problem.

So that leaves Nathan, which was suggested by Jean at least in the show, but as we know, that isn't Jean. It's her clone, Madeline Pyror, who was created by Mr. Sinister a.k.a. Nathaniel Essex.

So yeah, another reason why Mr. Sinister is a piece of sh!t.

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etoileee · 6 months ago

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MY FRIST DAY IN MY PERCY JACKSON DR. ψ

au; sorry this took so long! I ended up getting sick and goddamn did I feel like a sick orphan in the 1800s. I was also debating the format I wanted to share this experience with you all.. informative or in first person, but I settled on both! I hope you all enjoy it! ❤︎

PLOT;

the storyline of it is that I'm the only child of NYX. the goddess of the night. Since she is a primordial goddess, to me it made sense that she wasn’t up to the same shinagains that the gods would be up to. for example, having demigod children like they’re being paid to, so to me, her only having one child in her entire existence is fitting.

In my dr it isn’t the prophecy of seven, it's the prophecy of ten. (I added Nico and Reyna!) and of course, me being the last member.

In the Sibilene books at camp Jupiter, they mentioned a prophecy of nine but they eventually found out it was supposed to be ten, not nine. so the prophecy of ten is what was engraved into the floor of the Jupiter temple.

by the type the prophecy is formed, everyone else in it but I was already there and had formed relationships with each other, some coming in did throw them off a bit.

‘the tenth member of the prophecy’ had become more like a legend as people wondered if there was one person left;

since every member of the prophecy but I had come together and there were more documents of there supposedly being nine instead of ten, everyone just assumed that the documents were wrong, but then I came along and was the last and final person.

FRIST SHIFT;

when I woke up I was in one of the beds in the infirmary. I didn’t script where I would wake up but I found out that the reason I was there is because when I got to Camp Half-Blood I passed out when I saw Chiron (LMAO??) but I didn’t find that out till later.

. Honestly, I'm starting to think that in the Percy Jackson universe when it rains, it RAINS. like full thunder, lightning and everything. I haven’t met Zeus but he seems very theatrical judging by the state of the weather was in when I woke up.

eventually, I got up and started walking around, I made my way out of the building and once I was outside there was this girl on her way to the infirmary to check up on me. She isn’t someone from the books but honestly, I was pretty excited to meet her (though I didn’t show it because that would’ve been weird) one of the things I was most excited about was meeting campers who weren’t in the series.

she told me her name (Madeline) and that she came to see how I was doing and if I was okay she'd take me to speak to Dionysus and Chiron because they needed to speak with me.

once I’m there I like to stand there awkwardly in front of Dionysus and Chiron, like zoned tf out staring at the wall while they stare at me probably thinking there’s not a thought behind my eyes.

a few minutes later the rest of the prophecy comes in, as they were walking in a few of them were talking and laughing, but once they saw me and the serious looks on both Chiron and Dionysus's faces they settled down.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS;

— PERCY JACKSON

the first thing I noticed was his eyes. I know that sounds cheesy as hell but truly he has really pretty eyes. In the books, he’s described as having ‘sea green’ eyes and they didn’t disappoint. I at one point ended up smiling at him. I couldn’t help it lolz but I think once I did that he seemed to relax a bit. his face softened and he smiled back at me a little bit. that’s when he let his guard down with me. Alexa play Ocean Eyes by Billie Eilish!

— ANNABETH CHASE

she was looking at me very attentively. I won't lie I got nervous it felt like she was looking into my SOUL I was shaking in my boots low key. she’s beautiful though I hope I wasn’t blushing I have a sick-ass feeling I was, unfortunately. She watched me and Percy smile at each other and I think her guard went up MORE?? after the campfire me and her got the chance to talk a little bit. I think at that point she started to accept me a bit more but she was still a bit wary of me but PROGRESSSS!

— JASON GRACE

HUGE. BIG ASS GUY. gorgeous eyes as well. he and Annebeth were both very serious at the moment, but he didn’t look at me suspiciously the way Annebeth was looking at me, he looked more curious than anything. very well-mannered and respectful, charming ahh smile, I did however notice he does have a bit of a habit of pushing his glasses up his nose? like they’ll slide down and he pushes them up.. now I don’t if it’s because his glasses or too big or if its a habit but either way I counted how much times he pushed them up because I noticed, 36 TIMES.

— LEO VALDEZ

unserious mf. Of course, he was serious when he had to be but he was having a field when he found out that I was the last member of the prophecy. I and Percy were both ON ME on wanting to know more about me, and my ‘story’ if you will. he also got very excited about the fact that I’m also Mexican and now he has someone to talk shit with in Spanish. he genuinely was making me smile not to get all sappy lol. and he was flirty just as expected.

— PIPER MCLEAN

GORGEOUS GORGEOUS GIRLS LOVE SOUP! I was blushing again. I won't lie she’s genuinely so cool. She was also watching me very attentively but she seemed more relaxed and curious than the others. I think I and I connected well honestly. I didn’t script anything about my love life but I can see us getting closer.

— NICO DI ANGELO

I couldn’t really read his face during the meeting, he seemed both uninterested and intrigued at the same time. we made eye contact a few times and every time he didn’t look away ONCE. we did end up speaking a little bit later at the campfire, we said probably five words but I think we got along. I also think a made him smile a tiny bit, which is a win.

— RENYA RAMíREZ ARELLANO

my gay ass was so excited to meet her like I've had such a fascination with the amazons since I was a little girl, even though it looked like she was psychoanalyzing me. She and Annabeth both had their guard but the most around me. THEY WERE SUSPICIOUS. I don’t know if she likes me but IT'S OKAY.

— HAZEL LEVESQUE

She is so cute truly. she was also very friendly! She was the first one to smile at me and let her guard down. she’s also very talkative which was nice! when me and I started talking she asked me how the ride to the camp was and we bonded over our motion sickness LMAO

— FRANK ZHANG

HUGE MF #2 he is genuinely so nice and calm, it’s almost calming to be around. very soft spoken, likes to listen to others talk. at one point later in the night we were making s’mores and I was speaking with Leo so I failed to realize that my marshmallow was on fire and BURNING and he ended up taking the stick from me and blowing it out for me. thanks, frank. :(( </3

DURING THE TALK;

(my pov)

I stand there before the nine demigods,

A GOD,

and a man with fucking horse legs,

‘What the hell am I doing here?’ I think to myself. Well, I know exactly why I'm here, apparently, I'm a demigod myself, but this is not what I thought I’d be doing during this summer.

“We've brought you all here for a serious discussion,” Chiron says calmly, his hands clasped together in front of him while that other guy pours himself a glass of red wine, filling it up basically to the top.

not very classy.

I turn back to the nine other teenagers in the room, making eye contact with the tall boy with raven hair and green eyes. his gaze is unwavering against mine, his eyebrows are furrowed and the tip of his tongue sits at the corner of his mouth as his gaze zeroes in on me.

pleaselookawaypleaselookawaypleaselookaway

he doesn’t.

This interaction didn't go unnoticed by the blonde girl that stood next to him, her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed at me. her eyes attentively studying my expressions and body language. making me feel like a bug under a magnifying glass.

“you all know how we thought there being ten prophecy members was a legend, right?” Dionysus takes a sip of the red liquid in his glass, letting out a sigh of relief before putting it back down and leaning forward on the wooden table in front of him. resting his arms against it.

“We found the last one,” he says nodding towards me, like this is a normal thing that happens on a Friday night for him. “HER?” the boy wearing overalls and a tool belt says loudly pointing a finger at me.

“yeah, her,”

Dionysus takes a longer sip of his wine and I look back at the other demigods, my eyebrows furrowed together trying to understand what the hell the wine addict just told me.

prophecy of what and why the fuck am I in it?

horse legs— sorry— ‘Chiron’ notices the look on my face. “how much did your father tell you about yourself, child?” his voice is comforting, and his eyes are soft and wise. very different from the man standing up next to him.

I feel bad for calling him horse legs.

“he told me I was a demigod.. in the car,” I shrug and fix my bangs spread across my forehead. “he’s right about that,” he nods. his expression thoughtful. “what else he tell you?” Dionysus cuts in, his pointer finger circling the rim of his wine glass.

the world outside flashes something between blue and violet. the large windows letting the hue into the room. I turn my attention to the widows looking at the lighting in the sky creating different shapes, and eventually stroking far into the distance. creating a loud boom.

“damn,” I murmured to myself before looking back at everyone else, only to find them all staring at me, waiting for my answer.

“oh! Sorry— um—“ I look up trying to remember whatever the hell my dad told me in the car but my memory is fuzzy. as if it was a dream. “don’t think too hard, you fainting probably messed with your memory,” the tall blonde boy urges me, pushing his round frames up his nose with the tip of his middle finger.

I like his voice. It's nice.

“So you don’t know who your godly parent is?” Dionysus's eyes narrow on me waiting for my answer. “uh.. no, I don’t,” my gaze goes to a random spot on the floor.

”Well, we know who it is,” a wicked smirk on his lips, enjoying that he knows something I don’t, and it seems like he’s enjoying the anticipation and suspense he’s creating. “who?” the blonde girl next to ocean eyes, clearly getting tired of his act.

Dionysus drinks more of his wine in large gulps, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallows. he sets the glass back down on the table and wipes his lips with the back of his hand.

“Nyx,”

the room goes silent. the name hanging in the air.

In this moment I realize I don’t know shit about greek mythology.

In the 6th grade, I did a Greek gods and goddesses program and I painted myself green because I got assigned to be Gaia and sang a song about peace. that’s about it.

“You know about greek mythology?” repair boy asks me raising his eyebrow at me, his lips tugging upwards teasingly finding my lack of knowledge amusing

“I know some things, but not a lot,” my voice quiet and I shrug. apparently, I’m a demigod who has no idea about Greek mythology. my eyes meet the emo boy’s eyes before I look away hearing Chiron's voice. “Nyx is an ancient, powerful, goddess. she’s been around longer than most gods,” I take a deep breath in and breathe out, taking all this information in.

my eyebrows pull together in confusion still not knowing what she’s the goddess of. “the goddess of the night,” Dionysus says to me simply, seeing the look of confusion and curiosity on my face.

the goddess of the night.

They continue to talk, probably about me, amongst each other as my thoughts begin to run wild making their conversation sound like fluffy background noise.

everything begins to make sense. the way I find comfort in the night, my hyper fixation on stars and the moon, the fact that my room always looks like a damn bat cave from never turning the light on.

huh.

“We don't even have a Nyx cabin,” that snaps me out of my zoned-out state. “She’ll stay in the Hermes cabin,” Dionysus says simply taking another sip of the red liquid in his glass.

“you guys will be spending a lot of time together, go get to know each other,” Chiron walks over to the door, opening it up so we can walk out.

time for icebreakers.. I guess.

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