#who knew 12 hours of sleep would fix me? not me that's for sure

[robinsnest2111]

okay another 2 hours of sleep and I feel less insane and my body has calmed down with the pain and nausea 👍

time to get some things done now

[mustainegf]

Can yoh do a dave fluff where dave has wronged you some way and both of yall are like teens. He's in grade 12 and your in grade 11 so like 17 and 16. And dave never comes to prom but when u were there you spot him outta the corny of your eye and he's sad/crying holding a bouquet of flowers hoping for forgiveness.and when u go up to him and forgiv you just dance and hold eachother. While he's just all "I missed you I'm sorry" ect

THIS IS SO CUTE I love dave so much so I spent a lot of time on this one

Wrote this listening to nutshell—Alice in chains cuz it felt fitting

𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊 ¹⁹⁷⁸

The end of the school year was always this sort of meld of excitement for the summer break, nostalgia for the last few months, and a bit of sadness knowing that it was all ending. This year though, it was different. With the upcoming prom looming in the Future, the thought of saying goodbye to friends… particularly Dave, because he would be graduating had me feeling very off balance. This should have been a time for celebration, but somehow the wave length between us had shifted, and I wasn't exactly sure how to fix it.

Dave and I had been inseparable since middle school. The best friend who was always there to make me laugh, to understand my weird sense of humor, and who knew all my secrets. We were different in lots of ways, he was so loud and confident, the guy everybody wanted to know, and I was quieter, more comfortable in the shadows, but with him, I always felt seen.

But lately, something had changed. I wasn't even sure when it began. Perhaps it was back during one of those late night hangouts that got more complicated every year, or maybe it was just the way life makes its own way as you grow up. Whatever it was, it had forged a gulf between us.

The last time we spoke, really spoke, was weeks ago. I had asked him about prom, half teasingly asking him who he would ask. He just shrugged off, saying he wasn't going.

I hadn't been surprised at that, prom didn't seem like his scene. What had surprised me was the way he'd brushed me off, like he couldn't even really be bothered to talk about it. And when I kept pushing, trying to get him to open up, he snapped. He told me to back off, that I should stop acting like I knew what was good for him.

His words stung more than I really wanted to admit. I snapped back, telling him that maybe I didn't know what was best for him, but at least I cared.

That was the last time we spoke. Since then, he'd been avoiding me, and I was too stubborn, maybe too hurt, to reach out.

So, prom night came, still not a sound from him. Perhaps foolishly, I had held onto the hope that he'd at least call or toss a rock at my bedroom window late at night like he always did. But it was all nothing.

I wasn't completely convinced that I even wanted to go to prom after the whole thing with Dave, but my friends were really pressuring me. They bugged me about it, saying I should go, to stop moping around, that it was going to be fun. So, I let them drag me along, dressed in the pale blue gown my mom had insisted on buying, with my hair done up in curls that felt too formal, too unlike me.

The gym looked unrecognizable, twinkling lights falling from the ceiling in threads, a dance floor made hastily, shimmering tables draped in white cloths, roses and candles bunched together in the middle of each one.

Everybody looked great, having dressed up and wearing a wonderfully exciting glow on their faces. However, it just didn’t feel complete, no matter how much laughter and music filled the air.

Deep down I longed for his familiar sleep of leather and cigarettes, that hint of coffee. To see his fiery curls bounce as he laughed at something immature.

I danced for the first hour, trying to have some fun. My friends dragged me onto the dance floor, I wore a smile, although it wasn’t really from my heart. I'd keep looking around, scanning the room, although I knew very well that Dave wouldn't show up. He had said so himself, and I had taken him at his word. Still, I couldn't help looking, hoping.

The night was slipping away, so I began the fight to slip away for some air. I managed to fight my way free to the edge of the room, the shadows deeper, the music less loud. That was when I saw him.

Dave was by the door, almost merged with the shadows, awkwardly clutching a bouquet of flowers. He stood there, completely out of place in his handsome black suit, with nearly lost eyes, looking soft now when his usual attitude of rebellion was replaced.

His hair was a bit disheveled, as though he had run his hands through it in a state of nervousness, and his eyes… his hazel eyes were reddened, like he had been crying.

I stared for a moment, hesitation in my mind about whether or not this was him. Then our eyes met, and his sadness almost took my breath like a blow in the chest. He was here. He really was here, and he looked so broken.

I approached him step by step, without thinking further. Each step seemed like a year, and his eyes never left mine.

Up close, I could see the stress in his jaw and the way his hands were shaking with the flowers. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, like he wanted to say something but couldn't really find any words.

Finally, he whispered, "I'm sorry.”

Two words, only two, yet they carried the weight of all that had preceded them. I wanted to cry, but I blinked away the hot sting.

"Dave…" My voice broke, and it took a swallow before I could continue. "What are you doing here?"

His shoulders slumped as the weight of the world finally came to rest upon them. "I told myself I wouldn't but… I had to see you."

I looked down at a bouquet in his hands. A messy mixture of flowers, which didn't really agree with each other but somehow made sense in his palm. They were beautiful in one way, wild and untamed, just like him.

"Are these for me?" I asked, trying to keep my voice still and vigilant.

Nodding, he gazed down at the floor. "I was gonna take 'em to your place. I know it sounds stupid, but… I guess I was hopin' you might forgive me. For being a dick."

This was what I had always seen in Dave, the duality of nature, who could be so strong and fierce, yet very soft and so unsure of himself, who cared but didn’t for the life of him know how to show it.

"Why not just talk to me?" I whispered faintly.

He lifted his face then, and the raw emotion swimming in his eyes nearly undid me. "I don't know. I thought… you were better off without my ass."

"Dave," I said, stepping close, close enough to feel the warmth of his body through his suit. "You're my best friend. You could never drag me down. I've missed you so much. And I love you."

He drew in a breath, his shaking hand holding out the flowers. "I don't really deserve your forgiveness, but I'm asking for it anyway. Because I love you too…”

The earnestness in his voice, the way his eyes shone with tears he repeatedly blinked away, broke through the last of my defenses. I took the bouquet from his hands, my fingers brushed against his.

"I forgive you," I said, meaning every word. "I just want things to be okay between us again. I've missed you so much, Dave."

HIs breath caught, and suddenly he was tugging me into his arms, squeezing me tight. It was the first time he’d ever hugged me.

I wound my arms tight around him, pressing my face into his chest, inhaling the scent of him. Faint leather, and the usual faint musk of cigarettes was replaced with cologne.

"I missed you too," he whispered against my hair.

Finally, he pulled back far enough to see me. His eyes were still red, but the depression in them had been mellowed and replaced by something warmer, something that made my heart skip a beat.

"Will you dance with me?" he whispered, he was afraid of breaking the spell.

I nodded, feeling that I couldn't trust my voice. He took my hand and led me off to the edge of the dance floor, where it was dark and the music wasn't so loud. He took me in his arms and something about this felt right, being this intimate.

As we began to dance, he held me, his hands firm on my hips. I laid my head against his chest, listening to the beat of his heart. It was all so familiar, despite it being my first time hearing it.

"I was afraid of losing you," he admitted. "Afraid I'd already lost you. That's why I thought if I pushed away, it wouldn't hurt as bad that way.”

I grabbed him harder, feeling my heart break for the amount of pain he'd been lugging around. "You never lost me, and you never will."

He breathed shakily as he continued. "You’re the best thing in my life, and I’ve been a prick.”

"Yeah," I teased, looking up through my lashes at him, with a little smile. "You kind of have been."

He chuckled, the movement rumbling in his chest. "I deserve that.”

"But I'm glad you're here now," I added. “Please, don’t leave me again.”

“Never.”

[skyloftian-nutcase]

My dumb brain is dreaming about work and now I am trying to convince it to go back to sleep, but this also came to me so… here

If only it was as easy as it was in video games. Wild thought idly as he stirred the scrambled egg and mushroom mix. Mix the correct items together and… poof, instant magic effect. Some days, it would be nice if food could give those who ate it extra energy (maybe Legend wouldn’t be living off ‘comes with a warning label the caffeine content is so high’ drinks), or a boost to their strength (Hyrule routinely stuck manhandling patients twice his size), or… Wild looked towards the stairs, and checked the time both on the kitchen clock and his own watch. They were the same. 12:25. The day shifters were at work, except one. Sky had shown up at Lon Lon two days ago, the signs of an eminent ‘slump’ settling heavily on his shoulders and in his eyes. At least the pilot had been aware of the signs and had come home where there were others to help. But the ‘slump’ meant Sky struggled to get up, to get to work, and in the worst of it, needed prompting to remember basic things like eating. If only there was a magic combination of ingredients to lift the ‘slump’ or better yet, banish it forever.

Alas, the world was not like video games. Best he could do was offer support like a warm breakfast, even if it was well after noon. Wild killed the heat on the stove, moved the pan off the burner, and stuck the lid over top to help trap the remaining heat while he made his way upstairs and to the room that he knew Sky was still in, and probably still asleep.

“Sky?” He knocked on the door, waited for a sound or sign of life, then chanced opening the door. The lump of blankets on the bed moved at his second call.

“Wild?” Sky asked, his voice sleepy and slurry.

“Hey, Sky. I made breakfast.”

The pilot rolled to look at the clock, then groaned as he saw the digits blinking back at him.

“Don’t you have a night shift tonight?”

Wild shrugged. “I can go to bed here in the next hour ish and be fine. I wanted to prep something for the crock pot and that took longer than I expected so… I made breakfast for the two of us.”

Sky sat up, pulling the blanket around his shoulders. “‘Kay. I’m coming…” it would be another several minutes before Sky moved from that spot and actually tried to come downstairs, but it was progress.

“Great. OJ or milk?” He asked as he turned to head back downstairs.

“Milk soun’s good.”

Wild chuckled to himself. That might as well have been a rhetorical question but he still asked.

“K, it’s ready downstairs.”

Maybe he couldn’t magically fix a slump with food, but a warm meal made by a friend certainly helped.

(Fun fact, the things Wild cooks or offers this time are high in vitamin D, or fortified to be so. Some claim that vitamin D deficiency is a part of the seasonals and making sure you have enough can ease depression symptoms, but full disclaimer, not medically or nutritionally trained. Just armed with internet search abilities and enough knowledge to make trouble.)

I love this ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ The wishing life was a video game made me smile, adore that, but Wild doing something so simple and impactful just sofuwkwiqwhfid my family does this for me all the time and fufuwworhdiIWWHFKCUAHWOR AHHH 😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ Cookijg as a love language is just SO—aahhhh thank you ❤️

[rishiguro]

12; VISIT

iwaizumi didn't have to wait for long until his best friend picked up the call.

"hello iwa-chan," oikawa sang with a smile on his lips, "can't believe that this is one of the rare moments where you're the one to call me"

iwaizumi's lips curved weakly, rolling his eyes at the setter's antics.

well, he wasn't wrong. usually it was indeed oikawa who called first, usually during his breaks at practice or on his days off, when iwaizumi was either also on a break or already off work, getting ready for bed.

"yeah well, miracles happen," iwaizumi stated, shrugging. his eyes darted to the top of his screen, reading the time. remembering how late it actually was for his friend, he couldn't help himself, scolding him. "and you really shouldn't be awake anymore, you know? i thought you fixed your sleeping schedule?"

oikawa gasped, a hand on his chest as he laid back in his chair. "excuse me, i'm doing perfectly fine, thank you very much?”

shortly after the brown haired man furrowed his brows, carefully examining the image on his screen.

"also, don't try to change the topic. don't think i can't see that you're definitely not at home. at at mattsun's or makki's"

iwaizumi cursed mentally. obviously it was pointless, his best friend has always been incredibly fast to pick up the slightest shift of mood or every piss-poor attempt to divert his attention. "i know, i'm sorry. it's just—" he sighed, ripping his eyes away from the screen in front of him and opting to look at his hand holding the phone, "yeah i don't really know how to say this"

oikawa's face fell as he heard his, body leaning towards the phone propped up on his desk.

"hajime, you're worrying me" he uttered carefully.

the two of them have known each other for all their lives and been through every stage of life together. they've experienced joy, anger, loss and heartbreak together, yet oikawa could count on one hand how often he has seen his best friend so distraught.

silent seconds turned into minutes, words hanging on iwaizumi's lips, yet never really managing to spill over the edge.

slowly oikawa started to get impatient, his leg bouncing rapidly under his desk. there was no way that his best friend would make jokes about such situations, so he knew that the prolonged silence should be credited to iwaizumi's nervousness. and while the setter didn't want to pressure his best to tell him anything, his mind started racing, jumping from one horrible scenario to the next. "i swear if this is just some stupid prank i will fly over there and—“

"i have cancer," iwaizumi blurted out, jaw clenching immediately after.

"what?" oikawa stared at his screen in disbelief as iwaizumi looked away from the camera.

he slowly nodded, pulling his knees closer to him as he sat. "cancer. i don't know much more yet, the doctors told me they're going to do some lab tests and x-rays to figure it out"

oikawa cursed loudly, hiding his face in his hands for some moments before starting to massage his temples with closed eyes.

"yeah. fuck"

silence settled over the two for the n-th time, however this time it was heavy on their shoulders. iwaizumi didn't even dare to turn his face back to the camera, afraid to face his best friend, afraid of what he might see.

he didn't want to be pitied, he didn't want to see the look of horror on his face or the sad look in his eyes.

he didn't want it to be real.

it was the brown haired setter that spoke again, parting his tightly closed lips again. "how far along?" iwaizumi's jaw clenched. " don't know yet. not for sure, that is"

"okay" he nodded.

after moments that felt hours to him, iwaizumi allowed himself to take a glance on his phone screen. the setter was hunched over on his desk, face hidden in his hands. iwaizumi could see his forced deep breaths as his best friend desperately tried to stay calm.

the dark haired man swallowed, trying to get rid of the big lump in his throat. his eyes darted back to the time, instantly feeling regret. "i know it's late and i'm—“

"don't," his best friend immediately interrupted, holding his hand up. "don't you even dare to apologize. i just—" he paused for a second, leaning back on his chair again, arms falling down. his eyes were distant, like he was zoning out. "just don't know what else to say”

feeling ashamed, iwaizumi looked away again, chewing on his bottom lip.

"okay" oikawa took a deep breath, leaning forward before he started rapidly typing on his keyboard.

confused, iwaizumi looked at his best friend. "what are you doing?"

"i'm checking the next flights and getting myself a ticket,” he stated, like it was completely obvious.

"tooru—“

he shook his head, effectively cutting his best friend off, without even looking at the screen. "no, hajime. i don't care. my best friend is in the hospital and has cancer for fucks sake. there's no way i'm not going" he clenched his jaw, brows furrowed in concentration. "don't expect me to just stay here and not do anything. because i won't. i can't"

and if oikawa looked at the screen, he would've seen iwaizumi quickly wiping a tear from his cheek.

evanescent

/ɛvəˈnɛs(ə)nt,iːvəˈnɛs(ə)nt/ — “soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing.”

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taglist: @ninjamomo @not-another-ackerman @midnight-drives-with-sunarin @bloombb @jewlmin

[crushedsweets]

neeed to hear the context behind ur most recent art. please enlighten us

you guys dont even know how excited i get when someone asks smth like this abt my art or headcanons or au.

i actually wrote liek a fucking essay oh my god im so sorry anon ill have the actual drawing context after the big bolded caps

TW for typical creepypasta story type stuff

anyway ok UNNECESSARY BACKSTORY: liu spent a long time trying to just psychologically recover from everything. he hated jeff and he hated the memory of everything. jeff signature murders would occur every now and again, each time liu would fall into a deep depression. the murders stopped for a while, and everyone believed jeff 'retired' or died. liu was conflicted about it. until Jeff committed his final full-blown 'jeff fashion' murder (janes family) in tuscaloosa alabama. liu had another breakdown and ended up moving to tuscaloosa because he was completely convinced he needed to find jeff again because he could fix it (or die trying and he'd be fine with that too)

nina was always one of those girls obsessed with 'true crime' but like.... the murderers instead of the cases. she was 12 when jeff's first rampage happened and she just fell head over heels in love with this freak. she began to act out, miss school for days, sneaking out to meet older people, etc etc. eventually she did the classic jeff smile cut into her face(she pussied out on making it like jeffs, so she has cleaner, less noticeable scars) . she started getting severely bullied (for being creepy and worshipping a literal murderer) and her parents sent her to live with her grandparents in mississpi. she started stalking liu through social media and whitepages when jeff was presumed dead. but eventually, jeff's final murder happened in alabama(a state away from her) and after turning 18, she ran away to go find jeff convinced he would 'save her' from the life she created for herself. nina got wrapped up in slenderman business because of her constant Tom Foolery. she met her idol

JEFF IS A BAD PERSON IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD. he did a beautiful job in using his #1 fangirl and enjoying the worship. she scrambled for pennies to afford an apartment, she'd sleep on the couch if he wanted to use her bed, she's ride her bike hours to go get weed or something from rando drug dealers that give better deals to pretty girls, make him food, do his damn laundry, literally anything and everything bc THATS HER MAAANNNNN (no he isnt.)

jeff DOES NOT GIVE A FUUUCK about everything nina does for him . one day he finds her trying to creepily get into contact with liu (and liu actually responded) and he loses his shit and stabs her and goes on and on about how 'you ruined your own useless fucking life your family is never going to take you back you did this to yourself' etc. he didn't intend to kill her only cuz he knew she'd forgive him and he liked all the shit she gave him

NOW ABOUT THE DRAWING ITSELF:::::

afterwards nina gets patched up from jeff stabbing her, she has some weird 'liu will save me' spiral (not romantically just in a very literal 'he can fix this' way). liu's been on his own spiral since finding out jeffs alive which is the only reason he even gave nina the time of day. eventually she ends up at his house to 'talk about jeff' bc she sent him creepy pics proving she knew jeff yadayadayada.

im not sure the exact conversation i imagined for the drawing, BUT liu eventually says something that sets nina off and she tears at her stitches and breaks down and drips blood all over his kitchen talking about 'I CAN MAKE HIM LOVE ME AGAIN I JUST NEED YOUR HELP PLEAAASEEEE' or something.

liu's a good man, much to his own detriment, and can't help but comfort this kid who's bleeding and crying in his kitchen at the fault of his own brother. he's all too familiar with wanting to repair his relationship with jeff, despite the amount of rage, betrayal, misery, etc he felt at jeffs hands. he doesn't ACTUALLY want to reconnect with jeff, but it's a very deep internal longing for the baby brother he once had that VERY RARELY overshadows his hatred

i want to reaffirm that liu does not feel positively about jeff at all, does not want to see him, and only moved to alabama b/c of a long ass mental health crises and is now too wrapped up in new financial commitments(plus jane) to move again. and now he feels obligated to help nina

he just misses being a big brother :( not so much the jeff part

also none of this at all is shipping at all i am terrified at the idea of people taking anything romantically . even if nina is in 'love' with jeff its purely for the story/horror . ITS ALL REALLY BAD

[deans-baby-momma]

Law & Love Chapter 12

A/N: And this story is back......with a twist at the end......cliffhanger anyone???? BAHAHAHAHAHA (that's my evil laugh)

THEN

As Beau returns to his desk, he realizes that he also likes the idea of going home with her, that his place was considered 'theirs' now.

NOW

After making sure that my attackers are going to be put away, Beau and I head back to his camper, or as he called it- home. Although, almost immediately he is called away on the case concerning his daughter and her step-father; leaving me to quietly relive the revelations made today.

The news of the altercation at the diner was on the evening news and not long after, I received word that the diner was temporarily closed until the whole ordeal blew over. The owner, a nice man by the name of Fred, also offered me a permanent position as head waitress if I want to come back and work at, as he called it, the scene of the crime.  I told him I would think about it and let him know.

After leaving Eric, my douchey cheating ex, I had left with no particular destination. Arriving in Helena and deciding to settle down hours from anyone I knew was a spur of the moment decision;  one I had yet to regret. 

What I regretted was befriending Deb;  allowing her to know the more intimate parts of my life that I would usually keep to myself. Little did I know she was using it as fodder to manipulate and influence her own son to sleep with her; using my stories and life to seduce and fuck her own flesh and blood. 

My phone rings on the side table, causing me to jump out of my recollections. I look to see Beau's number on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Hiya darlin'," he drawls in his Texan accent. I should've never told him I thought it was sexy because now he's just killing me with it. "How're you holding up? I hate that I had to leave you as soon as we got home."

I smile to myself at his words. He called it home again, as in his and mine-ours. 

"I'm okay Beau," I say, trying to relieve his worry. "How's Emily?"

Emily is Beau's estranged teenage daughter who just so happens to be in Montana, on a camping trip with her step-father. And of course, there is a killer on the loose in the woods nearby. 

"Traumatized but holding up," Beau states. "She's a good actress but I know my little girl, she's upset. Apparently she and the victim had become somewhat friends."

He audibly clears his throat and goes into his Sheriff voice. "Anyway, I just wanted to check on you. I'll be back pretty late so make yourself comfortable and I'll try not to wake you up when I come in."

"Okay, Sheriff Arlen," I answer, with a nod of my head. "Be careful."

"Always am," Beau tells me and then in a softer, quieter voice he continues. "This weekend- you, me, a couple of fishing rods and the lake?"

"It's a date, Beau."

Life as the significant other of a law enforcement officer is stressful and worrisome. 

The date at the lake didn’t happen because the killer in the woods upped his game by kidnapping the clerk of the local detective agency, along with Emily. And when Beau heard of Emily’s disappearance? Well, I saw a side of the man I was falling for I’d never seen before.

He was angry, hurt, worried, and fearful.  As soon as word got to him that his baby girl was missing, he bolted out of the camper and was in his truck speeding away before I made it to the door, leaving me behind to anxiously await news.

When Beau returns, he tells me about his confrontation with Avery, his daughter's step-father and the plan to make the man wear a tap to eavesdrop on his meeting with the suspects.

"It's a whole organization," he explains. "Avery stole from them, or has some information they want, and they took her to get his attention."

I can tell that the man sitting beside me is at his wits end and is about to lose it so I wrap my arms around him and pull his body toward me. I know I can't fix this but I can try to give him some comfort.

"She's my baby, Y/N. My little girl," Beau sobs as he nuzzles against my chest. "I saw her first step, heard her first word, bandaged her first injury.  I can't stand the thought of her out there, scared and alone and I can't get to her. What if she is just waiting for me to come save her? What if I'm too late?"

I plant a kiss to the top of his head. "You're going to find her, Beau. You're going to find her and get her back safe and sound. I may not have known you for long but I know when you are determined to get something done, nothing will stand in your way.

"You'll listen in on this meeting, find out the location she's being held and you'll bust up in there and save her. You'll still be a hero in her eyes."

Unfortunately, Avery was killed in a shootout at the meeting and the suspects knew nothing of the kidnap victims. 

Come to find out, the owner/operator of the camping organization was the killer and had kidnapped the two ladies to throw the cops off his trail. 

After some digging, Beau was reunited with his daughter, the clerk rejoined her bosses and Buck Barnes was dead. 

Life in Helena Montana could go on.

I'm wiping down the counter while Shelby, the new waitress, sweeps the floor when the bell alerts us to a new customer. We look toward the entrance to see a tall man in Wranglers and a cowboy hat step inside.

“Beau?” Y/N asks, shocked. 

As soon as the words leave my mouth, I realize that the stranger is, in fact, not Beau. He is much taller, his hair is shorter and the green eyes that I dream about are actually hazel on the man.

“Beau? Beau Arlen?” the man inquires and I can sense a hint of a Texas accent. “Do you know him?”

By now, Shelby is standing right behind me watching the interaction with a questioning look on her face..

“Yea, I know him. Who’re you?”

“Walker, ma’am. Cordell Walker,” he introduces himself. “Do you know where I can find Beau?” 

@spnbaby-67 @sea040561 @delightfullykrispypeach @larajadeschmidt13 @atc74 @vicariouslythruspn @squirrelnotsam  @sandlee444 @blacktithe7 @hoboal87 @mogaruke @supraveng @deandreamernp @akshi8278 @lyarr244 @kazsrm67 @chriszgirl92 @deanwithscissors @raisinggray @fanfic-n-tabulous @hobby27 @stoneyggirl2 @brownbearhusky @purpleeclipseeggslan @deans-spinster-witchs-favorites @yvonneeeeeeee @tmb510 @fallenlilangel99 @globetrotter28

[brown-eyes-and-beskar]

Discovery: Chapter 2

Pairing: Din Djarin x f!reader

Description: You and the Mandalorian attempt to figure each other out as you escape from the Empire across the galaxy together, but there’s still one thing that could prevent your safe journey – something that Mando is willing to help you remedy.

Rating: T

Word Count: 5k

Author’s Note: So excited to share Chapter 2 with y’all! I’m very excited for this series and hope that you will all enjoy and share your feedback with me. Just a warning that this chapter includes some blood in a non-violent scenario, just in case. Please enjoy :)

Link to Chapter 1

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  

The silence in the Razor Crest is deafening. The Mandalorian has been piloting his ship for nearly half an hour now, and he hasn’t said a single word. You’ve responded in kind.

The child, his wide ears twitching occasionally, sleeps soundly in your arms. Despite your grave situation and unknown fate, you can’t help but feel a smile tugging at your lips as you look down at the baby. He’s been drugged heavily, and you haven’t seen his wide, innocent dark eyes in nearly a full day now. You’ve loved this little creature since the first time you laid eyes on him. You know he loves you, too – you are, after all, the only one who’s been protecting him.

Except for the Mandalorian, apparently. You risk a glance to your left where the armored man sits like a statue, occasionally reaching out a gloved hand to flick a control switch or adjust the steering panel.

You can’t help but be unnerved by the fact that you can’t see a single bit of the man beneath the armor. For all you know, he’s a Dathomirian or a Zabrak. Stars, he could be a hyper-realistic droid for all you can tell.

No, he’s a man. You’re almost positive of that. And his reasons for saving the child? For saving you, an Imperial scientist? Those questions buzz in your mind ceaselessly, tempting you to blurt a thousand questions and demand answers from this strange, strange man.

The silence in the cockpit is so thick you could slice it with a knife. Finally, you take a deep breath and break the silence.

“Thank you for what you did,” you say uneasily, keeping your eyes fixed out the front window at the stars hurtling past the ship. “For me and for the child.”

The Mandalorian takes another very long moment of silence. You begin to wonder if he’s going to respond at all, but finally he speaks. “You’re welcome.”

“Why did you do it?” you can’t help but ask.

“The child was in danger,” he says simply. “I couldn’t leave him there.”

He doesn’t mention anything about his reasons for saving you, and you don’t ask. “Why did you leave him the first time?” you ask, hearing distrust in your own voice.

The Mandalorian sighs. “Let’s just call it an error in judgement.”

Your eyes widen, and you turn in your seat to face him, not caring about how forward your actions must seem. “An error in judgement? If you were so concerned for the child’s safety, why would you even bring him to the compound? Surely you knew the Empire had no kind intentions for him.”

He still doesn’t turn his head toward you, but you hear a note of spite in his tone, matching yours. “I decided not to think about it.” Another long pause. “Why do you care about the child? You’re one of the Imps who was experimenting on him.””

It’s a question you’ve been expecting him to ask, and you’re more than happy to answer it. “I’ve been an Imperial slave since I was 12,” you spit out. “I don’t get to choose my assignments.” The child shifts in your arms, and you reach down to tug his blanket more snugly around him.

“I didn’t know Imperial slaves got fancy uniforms and private laboratories to experiment on children,” the Mandalorian spits back.

Anger boils under your skin, but you grit your teeth and force it back down. He doesn’t know you, you remind yourself. To him, you’re just another Imp.

“There are lots of kinds of slavery,” you explain. Still harsh. “The Empire took my whole family and turned us into forced workers. We had no choice but to do what they wanted. I happened to be good at bioengineering, so that’s what they made me do.”

The Mandalorian scoffs a little at that. “Fifteen years is a long time to bow to the Empire.”

“When you’re recruited by the Empire, you either work or you die.” You can feel your anger boiling again. Who does he think he is to judge you?

“Seems like a pretty simple decision to me,” the Mandalorian replies, “considering the number of deaths your work causes.”

You clench your free hand into a fist. He’s throwing a cheap insult at you, one that stings because you know there’s some truth in his words. “Oh, it’s that simple, huh? So you’re saying I should have offered myself up as a human sacrifice?”

A very long moment of silence passes. Finally, he says, “You’re a bioengineer for an empire that kills everything it touches, using weapons that you help design. The choice seems pretty clear to me.”

Your anger reaches a boiling point at that. This bounty hunter thinks he has some moral advantage over you, and you can’t help raising your voice to tell him exactly what you think. “Don’t you dare preach at me, Mandalorian,” you say, your voice low and dangerous. “You’re the one wearing Beskar armor bought with this child’s life. If it weren’t for me, there wouldn’t have been a child for you to save. You don’t get to tell me what’s right and what’s wrong. I made the choices I made, and I’m not sorry for being alive. I had no choice in the direction my life took. The only choice I had was to run away, and I just did that. I know I’ve done a lot of horrible things to stay alive, but don’t you dare judge me when you don’t know the life that came before this. Don’t you dare.”

Your hands are trembling by the time you’ve finished. You focus your attention on the child, tucking his blanket and stroking the side of his round cheek. Silence envelops you again, but this time you’re in no hurry to break it.

Guilt washes over you, followed by sorrow, then anger, then resolve. The same old mixture of emotions that has washed over you like a tidal wave every day since you were put into your first laboratory. The constant reminder that what you do to stay alive costs millions of people their lives. You’re not the leading bioengineer for the Empire – stars, you’re not even in the top tier – but you’ve made your share of contributions to a program designed to eliminate enemies and bring Imperial control over the whole galaxy. Not a day has gone by that you haven’t hated yourself for complying.

Has it been worth it? All the choices you’ve made, all the compromises, the sacrifices – have they been worth it?

You look down at the child. He sighs softly in his sleep, curls his fingers around your hand. It’s worth it.

Another long moment passes. You have no interest in engaging the Mandalorian again, and he is still sitting in silence after your outburst. He presses a glowing green button on the control panel. A small acceleration noise grinds somewhere in the ship.

You’re almost startled when you hear the Mandalorian’s gruff voice again. “I’m sorry,” he says, more gently this time. “I shouldn’t have accused you. You saved my life back there. I should have thanked you.”

His humility is a surprise. You have no idea what this bounty hunter’s true motives are, but you also are perceptive enough to know that there’s more to him than meets the eye. “You had every right to accuse me,” you admit, lowering your eyes. “I’m an Imperial scientist. You had no reason to think I don’t sympathize with the Empire.”

“Do you?”

“No. I don’t.”

Another stretch of silence. Then, “I care about the kid.” You don’t respond, so the Mandalorian presses on. “I took the job because it paid big. I needed credits, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into. By the time I had tracked him down and started traveling with him, I realized he’s just a kid who’s being used for something much bigger than himself. The bounty hunter’s code is strict – we don’t ask questions about our bounties; we just deliver them. I delivered him and was halfway off Nevarro when I realized I had made a mistake.” The Mandalorian pauses, and you wait for the rest of his words with bated breath. “I didn’t even know if he would still be alive when I came back. I just knew I could never live with myself if I let an innocent little kid be snapped up by the Empire – not when I was the one who brought him to them.”

You let his words sink in. The explanation confirms a lot of the suspicions you had about the Mandalorian’s reasons for saving the child, but you’re still not sure if he’s telling you the full truth. “So you just decided to come back for him because you got attached?” you ask. “You risked everything?”

“Don’t act so surprised. You did the same thing, didn’t you? Risked everything to protect him?”

You sigh. He’s right.

He continues, clearly more comfortable with explaining himself to you. “Besides, I owed it to the kid. He saved my life.”

Now that’s a surprise. “What?”

“Back on Arvala-7,” the Mandalorian explains. You can hear a note of confusion, a note of questioning in his voice. “I had to fight a mudhorn to get some parts for my ship back. The mudhorn had me on the ground, knocked dizzy. It would have killed me if the kid hadn’t saved me.”

You lean forward in your seat, glancing down at the child in awe. “What do you mean? How did he save you?”

The Mandalorian hesitates, unsure of how to explain it. “He… he did something. Something that kept the mudhorn from charging until I could get on my feet again.”

This revelation is astounding to you. Your mouth drops open in shock. The child is powerful enough to hold off a mudhorn? A full-grown mudhorn? You knew the baby was something special, but the Mandalorian’s story opens up a whole new world of possibilities.

“It was like he was doing it with his mind. I’ve never seen anything like it.” The Mandalorian’s voice is a little distant, as if he’s talking to himself instead of you. But then he tilts his helmet in your direction, letting his gaze linger on you. “Is that why the Empire wants him? He’s got some special power?”

It’s your turn to hesitate. You’re not sure how much you should tell the Mandalorian. He seems like an ally, and he certainly has loyalties to the child. But how much information is too much?

You shrug your shoulders a little, as if you’re unsure of the answer. “Something like that. We were still in the middle of testing to find out what’s so special about him.”

“Sorry to have interrupted.”

You shoot a glare over your shoulder, not sure if the Mandalorian’s teasing is friendly or sarcastic. You decide to change the subject. “What happened in the hallway back there? What was that weapon you used on the Stormtroopers?”

The Mandalorian grunts. “Whistling birds. They’re a… special kind of weapon. Miniature explosives that I can control.”

“I’ve never seen anything like them.”

“You wouldn’t have. They’re Mandalorian weapons.”

His comment sends your thoughts into another line of inquiry. Speaking to the hunter has piqued your curiosity about him, and you decide to test the waters a little. “So you’re a real Mandalorian.”

He doesn’t respond. Just flicks another toggle switch. Another acceleration noise from the back of the ship.

“I suppose your armor is Mandalorian, too?”

Again, no response. You wonder if you’ve somehow broached a delicate subject, so you change strategies. “I’ve heard that Mandalorians never take off their helmets. Is that true?”

“It’s true.” His response is curt.

“So you’ve never shown your face to anyone? Ever?” You can’t imagine such a commitment. You don’t know much about Mandalorians, but you’ve heard of their strict devotion to their code of honor. You’ve also heard that there aren’t many Mandalorians left.

A moment passes before the bounty hunter speaks again. “I swore a creed, and part of that creed involves never removing my helmet.”

His answer doesn’t exactly answer your question, but you figure it’s close enough. You have one more question to ask, and then you decide you’ll leave him alone. “What should I call you?”

The Mandalorian is silent, and suddenly you remember what the man on Nevarro called him. “Do people call you Mando?” you ask delicately.

“Yes,” he says simply.

The child shifts in your arms again, this time more noticeably. His whimper catches the Mandalorian – Mando’s – attention, and he turns to look at the child.

“Is he all right?” he asks you, concern evident in his tone.

“I think so.” You reach into the leather bag you brought with you from the laboratory and pull out a vial of clear liquid. “He’s been drugged for nearly a day now, but the effects are starting to wear off. I’d say he’ll be awake in a few hours.” You tilt the vial of liquid up to pour it down the child’s throat, but Mando reacts suddenly, startling you.

“What’s that?” he demands, his hand hovering in the space between you.

You gaze at him steadily. “It’s a mild stimulant,” you explain, continuing your action. “It’ll help him wake up naturally and be more alert when he wakes up.”

Mando doesn’t seem to accept this explanation fully, since his hand still floats in the air, and he keeps his gaze locked on the child’s face. You’re impressed by his attention – if he’s lying to you about his care for the child, he’s doing an exceptional job at it.

The child doesn’t react to the vial being poured down his throat, but once you’re finished and you’ve wiped the corners of his mouth with the edge of the blanket, he nestles into your arms contentedly, still gripping one of your fingers with his whole hand. You smile a little at the sight of his peaceful face. Knowing that he’s safe – at least for the time being – is a relief to your mind.

You glance up and realize that Mando’s gaze has moved from the child’s face to yours. He looks away immediately and turns back to the control panel. The strange noise at the back of the ship continues, and Mando flips an orange glowing light in response.

“Is something wrong with the ship?” you ask. In your hurry to escape, you hadn’t even considered if the Razor Crest sustained any damage.

“Minor damages,” Mando tells you. “I know a place where we can get it fixed.”

Alarm suddenly sounds in your head. You’re an Imperial defector – you can’t go anywhere without being in severe danger. “Mando, I don’t know what kind of underworld operations you spend time in, but I can’t be seen in any public places. The Empire probably has my face plastered over every news feed in the Outer Rim.”

“That makes three of us.” Mando shrugs his shoulders slightly. “Don’t worry. We’ll be safe where I’m taking us.”

Us. I’m not alone anymore.

You swallow that thought fast.

“Where are we going?” you ask, to distract yourself from wondering how long the us is going to last.

“Arvala-7.” The Mandalorian types a few keys into his manual control panel, presses a button, and leans back in the pilot’s seat, letting the ship drift on auto-pilot now. The screen whirs to life, the words Arvala-7, Sector 34, terrestrial, desert flash across the screen. An image of an orange-brown planet appears next to the words.

“What’s in Arvala-7?” you ask.

Mando leans forward to touch the child’s head softly, stroking his fingers across the child’s wrinkled forehead. Your first reaction is to swat his hand away, to protect the baby from any other being, but you soften at seeing Mando’s gentle touch. The child’s eyelids flutter, a sure sign that he feels content and safe.

“A friend,” Mando says simply, his voice hushed as if he’s suddenly afraid of waking the child. “He helped me find the kid and fix my ship. He’ll help us.”

You don’t press that matter any further, deciding that if you’ve trusted the Mandalorian to get you this far, you’ll have to trust him to get you somewhere safe. You immediately start running through all the possibilities in your head, all the contingency plans, all the ways the Empire could track you down and ruin your escape. One glaring error stands out, blinking across your vision like a neon sign.

“Give me your knife,” you say absently, your eyes fixed on Mando’s belt, where a vibroblade is sheathed in leather.

Mando instantly recoils, pulling his hand away from the child’s head to rest on the hilt of his knife. His entire posture changes from relaxed to defensive. “No way.”

You settle your lips in a firm line, shooting your hardest glare into the black visor of his helmet. “You want us to be tracked by the Empire through this entire galaxy?” you counter.

Mando hesitates, a mannerism that you’re becoming very familiar with. “What are you talking about?”

“A tracking implant,” you explain calmly. “The Empire plants them in all their slaves after their first capture. It can be programmed to detonate if the slave runs away from their assigned place, or, in my case, be used as a tracking beacon in case of escape.”

Mando leans back in his seat, studying you. “The Empire has you bugged?”

You almost laugh at his choice of words, but you want to maintain the seriousness and urgency of the situation. “Basically, yeah. If they don’t already know I’ve defected – which I’m sure they do – they can track me anywhere I go using the chip.” You raise an eyebrow at him. “So hand over the knife.”

Mando doesn’t move. “So you’re going to cut out your tracking chip?”

“Yes,” you sigh. “If I can get it out and destroy it, they won’t be able to track us. Otherwise, they’ll follow us right to Arvala-7.”

Mando considers this for a moment, still leaned back in his chair with his hand resting on the vibroblade. “I’m not giving you a weapon.”

You understand his reasoning. If you were in his boots, you wouldn’t give you a weapon either.

“What do you suggest, then?” you ask exasperatedly. “You’re just going to fight off an Imperial squadron when they come after me?”

A quick slashing sound answers you. Mando’s vibroblade glistens in the starlight streaming through the front windshield. “I’ll do it,” he says. “Where’s your chip?”

Your heart suddenly pounds at twice its normal speed. Oh, Force, he’s going to cut out my tracking chip. This deadly warrior is going to use a knife on me.

You stammer out, “I’m not letting you do it.”

His helmet tilts to the side. “I’m good with a knife.”

“That’s what worries me,” you reply softly, eyeing the weapon in his hand warily.

Mando sighs, and you hear your exasperation mirrored in him. “Doc, if I was going to kill you, I would have done it when you threw that clipboard at me in the lab.”

You had almost forgotten about that. His helmet still bears a dark smudge from the clipboard.

You lift your hands in surrender, resigning yourself to the fact that if your tracking chip is going to be removed, he’s going to have to do it. “Fine,” you say. “But is there somewhere else we can do it? I really don’t want to get blood on the child.”

Mando nods, pressing another switch on the dashboard to shift the Crest into full auto-pilot mode. “He’ll be fine here. We can go into the cargo hold.”

You nod in response, standing up and carefully setting the baby onto your seat. He doesn’t stir this time, and you readjust his blankets around him to cocoon him even more securely.

When you straighten, you find Mando studying you again. He jerks his head in the direction of the door you entered the cockpit through, and you make your way to the opening, sliding past him carefully to avoid the vibroblade he’s still holding. He follows right behind you and closes the cockpit door once you’re both through.

When you’ve descended the little ladder that leads down into the cargo hold, you take your first glance around at the surroundings. The Razor Crest is pretty small, but it has enough room to store plenty of crates, panels, and side chambers. A row of heat tanks is settled against one wall, and a carbon freezing chamber extends into the opposite wall. You shudder at the thought of how many prisoners Mando has put into carbonite in this very hold.

Mando lands on his feet from the ladder next to you and motions to a crate that’s pressed against the side wall. You take his cue and hop onto the top of the crate. It’s low enough that your feet touch the floor, sturdy enough that you can sit comfortably on it like a seat.

“Where’s your chip implanted?” Mando asks cautiously, still a pace’s length away from the crate. You realize that he’s nervous about exactly where your chip might be. The vibroblade glints in his hand, and you’re suddenly very, very thankful that you’re not about to have an awkward conversation.

You sweep your hair away from the side of your neck, pulling it to one side. “Here,” you say, pressing your fingertips against a spot just behind your ear, at the edge of your hairline.

Mando doesn’t move for a moment, just keeps his eyes on you. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize nervousness in his body language. “What do I need to do?”

“It’s less than half an inch below the surface of the skin, and it’s only about an inch length-wise. You’ll be able to feel the edge of it through the skin. Just run the knife along the edge, then cut deep enough to pry it out. The chip should slide out easily once you’ve got one side of it exposed.”

Mando nods, gripping the vibroblade and stepping closer to you. Your heart beats faster at knowing he’s about to use the blade on you. “I can’t believe I’m letting you cut my neck,” you quip, trying to break the tension.

“I’ll be careful,” he promises, and something in his voice makes you believe him.

He raises the blade higher, close enough that you can feel it vibrating in the air against your neck. “Do you have anything for the pain?” he asks. His voice is strangely comforting is your ear, and you grip the sides of the crate more firmly to keep your hands from trembling.

You shake your head no. “I don’t need it. I’m used to pain.”

Mando doesn’t ask you to clarify that statement, just nods and lifts the point of the vibroblade to the place behind your ear. His left hand hovers in the air, unsure, before he gently places it on the opposite side of your neck to hold you in place. He uses his right forefinger to explore the skin behind your ear, feeling for the ridge of your tracking chip. He finds it a moment later, letting his finger press against the skin to mark his place. You lose your breath when he makes his first incision in your skin.

The pain is sharp but bearable, and you realize at once that the Mandalorian wasn’t lying when he said he knew what he was doing. His incisions are smooth and even, tracing just beside the edge of the tracking chip. His left hand doesn’t move on the side of your neck, just holds you gently in place as he works on the chip.

You remind yourself to breathe, trying not to notice how close he is to you, how intimate this whole affair is. He’s positioned beside your left leg, his helmet inches from the side of your face. With one hand cradling your neck and jaw, and the other tracing the skin behind your ear, this moment could easily be mistaken for a whole different kind of intimacy.

Mando exhales a shaky breath, pulling the blade away from your skin for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” you ask, eyes widening, but he shakes his head. His left hand is still supporting your neck.

“Nothing,” he rasps. “Just making sure I’m doing this right.”

You watch him from the corner of your eye. The incisions behind your ear are already burning in the open air, and you feel a catch in your throat when you see your own blood dripping off the edge of the vibroblade. It’s not a lot of blood, but it’s still your blood.

Mando raises the knife again, but his left hand shifts, his thumb moving to rest on the side of your chin. He uses this new grip to tilt your head to the side, exposing more of your neck to him. You try not to make a sound when the knife makes another small slice through your skin.

“Almost done,” he says. His voice is very low, very calm.

Your fingers are gripping the side of the crate so hard that your knuckles are turning white. “Is it bleeding a lot?” you ask. You can feel blood trickling down the side of your neck, which worries you.

“A bit,” he replies. The knife disappears from your skin, and so do both his hands. You turn around in confusion to see what Mando is doing. He rips the knife through the cloth of his heavy cape, tearing off a piece of fabric about six inches wide.

When he straightens, he cradles your face in his left hand again and presses the folded piece of cloth against your wound. “That should help the bleeding,” he explains unnecessarily, and you nod slightly.

Mando finishes the rest of the cutting quickly and sticks the tip of the vibroblade into the widest incision, fishing around for the edge of the chip so he can pull it out. The knife makes a scraping noise when it hits the metal chip, and the sound echoes through your skull unpleasantly.

You flinch hard at the sound, and Mando immediately stops his digging and pulls the knife away. “Are you all right?”

You manage a nod, lifting a shaky hand to rake through your hair. “Can we talk about something else?”

Mando considers this, then gives a small shrug as he brings the knife back up to resume his search. “All right. How come you never did this before?”

Your vision is swimming, and your stomach reels when Mando’s knifepoint touches the chip again, this time making contact and pulling it forward under your skin slightly. “W-what?” you manage.

“Why did you never try to take your tracking chip out? You could have escaped before now.”

You don’t dare shake your head with his knife embedded in your skin, but you force strength into your voice to answer. “I couldn’t. If I escaped, the Empire—” You hiss in pain when Mando pulls the chip a bit further out, catching on a torn bit of skin. “The Empire would have tortured my family to force me to come back. I was too valuable for them to lose.”

Mando brings the torn strip of fabric back up to dab away the blood behind your ear. “You’re not worried about that now?”

“My family is dead.” You close your eyes to block out the pain, both mental and physical. “My mother and brother have been dead for years, and my father was killed a month ago.”

Mando doesn’t speak for a long time, but his movements become somehow gentler, as if he’s apologizing through his hands. Telling him bits of your history seems excessive, but you’re already trusting him enough to let him slice your head open. You don’t dwell on thoughts of your family; a sudden bout of dizziness erupts behind your vision.

You feel yourself swaying before you can do anything about it. Mando performs the last little pull on your tracking chip and tugs it free, leaving your incisions wider and more sharply painful. Your dizziness intensifies, and you feel yourself falling to the side, off the crate, when Mando catches you with a strong arm around your left side.

He holds you up into a sitting position for a moment more. Your hand instinctively reaches for your open wound, but Mando blocks your hand and replaces it with the makeshift bandage. Your brain is too disoriented from the blood loss and the strange sensations in your head to think much about his arm loosely holding you upright.

“Sorry,” you mumble, feeling your vision beginning to clear again. “I got dizzy.”

“You lost some blood,” Mando responds. “It’s normal.”

He remains frozen, still pressing the cloth behind your ear and using his forefinger to sweep some of your stray hair away from the cuts. His left hand doesn’t move on your back.

After a few moments have passed and you feel strong enough to hold yourself up, Mando removes his arm and backs away a little. Again you push away any thoughts of how intimate the last few minutes have been. He brings up his now-ripped cape and wipes your blood off the vibroblade before tucking it back into his belt.

“Thanks,” you say awkwardly, reaching your hand up to replace his on the cloth. You hold the fabric in place yourself now, and Mando takes two steps backward, putting space between you.

Mando just nods in response and drops your tracking chip on the ship’s floor. He brings the heel of his boot down on the chip hard, shattering it into several dozen tiny pieces. You feel a flutter in your chest as you remember what that shattered chip means: you’re free.

You’re still gazing down at the tiny pieces when Mando’s husky voice breaks into your thoughts. “I’m going back to the cockpit to keep an eye on the kid. You can stay down here if you want to get some rest. We’ll be at Arvala-7 in a few hours.”

You draw a shaky breath and nod your understanding. “I’ll stay down here for a few minutes.” If nothing else, you need to regain your composure after the mind-numbing moment. “Thank you for doing that,” you add quickly.

Another nod. Mando turns around without a word, climbs the ladder to the cockpit, and disappears behind the door.

With him out of the cargo hold, you let loose an enormous sigh and lean back against the wall. Your head still feels swimmy from the loss of blood, and your stomach is flipping in somersaults from the dizziness – and the strange experience you just shared with the Mandalorian. Trauma-bonding, you remind yourself. Bonds are naturally created between people who share traumatic experiences.

As you rest your head back against the wall, your eyes stray down to the glinting remains of your tracking chip. Your chain has been severed, and your life is your own now. That’s something you never thought you’d be able to say again.

Exhaustion slips over you now, and you feel your eyes drowsing shut. You’re not sure if it’s a good idea to sleep after the near-fainting experience, but you also can’t keep your eyes open another minute.

Your mind slowly drifts off into sleep, and over the humming of the Razor Crest’s engines and the pounding of your heartbeat, you try to focus on the still-burning incisions behind your ear – and not the still-burning memory of the Mandalorian’s touch on your neck.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Link to Chapter 3

Tag list: @3zae-zae3

[pretendingday]

"I was quick to want the world rid of its fools an hour ago, I forget sometimes how much an exemplar I am among them." "That’s not how I see you."

A fanmix about James Fitzjames and Francis Crozier from AMC’s The Terror. Chronological and mostly canon compliant.

Listen on Spotify

Keep reading for songs and motivations.

1. All The Old Showstoppers - The New Pornographers

"When John he saw the numbers he lied, made up the whole thing, failed when he tried" This song is about responsibility, good intentions, and failure. It feels like a good place to start. Also, (Sir) John sure did fail when he tried.

2. Get Famous - The Mountain Goats

"You’ve been waiting for this, ever since you’ve been young, be careful not to choke on your tongue" This song will always be JFJ's theme song to me. The tone of it also fits in with the "tell us about bird shit island, why don't you, James" energy.

3. French Exit - The Antlers

"I’m not a puppy you take home, don’t bother trying to fix my heart" Now, this one is about fighting. It's about the "there hasn't been a single meal we've shared, a single conversation, when you weren't morbing on about what you're due." It's about the "keep your pity."

4. Victorian Ice - Sea Power

"And you better keep moving before you get totally cold" They're victorians, on ice. That's all the motivation you need. Also the song is about communication issues and needing each other, so... I rest my case.

5. Not Dead Yet - Lord Huron

"You’re tired of me, I’m tired of you" This song is about self-hatred and alcoholism. But it's also about not being dead yet, so there's... hope? Maybe?

6. The Counterfeiter - Crooked Fingers

"You don’t belong here, your heart’s a fake, the ghosts who chose you were mistaken" James has imposter syndrome, part one.

7. Someone You’d Admire - Fleet Foxes

"One of them wants only to be someone you’d admire, one would as soon just throw you on the fire" Sometimes it's hard to change, and even harder to know whether you want to impress someone, or still hate their guts. I feel like this goes for both of them.

8. Straight and Tall - Iron & Wine

"Don’t tell me all the shit you’ve done, how you push your luck with everyone, ‘cause your mean upbringing’s left you a mess" James has imposter syndrome, part two, but this time Francis goes "that's not how I see you".

9. Your Rocky Spine - Great Lake Swimmers

"I was moving across your frozen veneer, the sky was dark but you were clear" Listen, it's about the metaphors. I can't explain it to you, it's just the vibes.

10. I’ll Be Your Girl - The Decemberists

"I could be your man, but I’d be that much more" It's gender time. Reading way too much into the dress scene is something that can be so personal.

11. After Those Who Mean It - Laura Stevenson

"It’s as if you knew me, and even though it’s briefly, and though it’s not completely, I can feel you reading, reading me to sleep" This song is about persevering, even though you know it's all coming to an end. It's sad hours, and I'm afraid it's all downhill from here.

12. Colder Heavens - Blanco White

"Here I stand undressed, here I confess my doubt, did you know that I would?" The mortifying ordeal of being known, and also being hunted by a monster bear, and also there's a mutiny. That's not what the song is actually about, but it has the vibes.

13. Lucky Man - Emerson, Lake & Palmer

"He went to fight wars for his country and king, of his honour and his glory the people would sing" Something something "there will be poems". This song is the poem.

14. I Will - Mitski

"And while you sleep I’ll be scared, so by the time you wake I’ll be brave" I feel like I don't have to explain myself with this one, but I do have tissues if you need them. I did warn you it's sad hours.

15. The Pugilist - Keaton Henson

"But the truth is I need you to tell me I’m worthy of all this great living that I’ve been doing" James has imposter syndrome, part three, but now he's also dying.

16. Artifact #1 - Conor Oberst

"The world is full of missing persons, all of these unsolved mysteries" James is still dying. Francis is feeling... not great about it.

17. Genesis 30:3 - The Mountain Goats

"I will do what you ask me to do, because of how I feel about you" This is the song that made me start this fanmix. Imagine someone you love asking you to kill them. Imagine being unable to deny them anything. Remember when I said you could have my tissues? I take it back, I need them myself now, thanks.

18. Another New World - Josh Ritter

"I won’t call it rescue what brought me here back to the old world to drink and decline, and to pretend that the search for another new world was well worth the burning of mine" This song is about an arctic explorer surviving, but at much too great a cost. Perfect theme song for Final Girl Francis. It's also extremely long, so you have time to get all those tears out before moving on with your life. Thank you for listening.

[sometimesraven]

Ian's Running Slow

Whumptober No. 12: “I haven't slept in days but who's counting?” Insomnia | “I’m up, I’m up.”

Fandom: Quantum Leap (2022) POV Character: Ian Wright Whumpee: Ian Wright

Ian needs to find Ben. Sleep is secondary.

AO3 Link

Eighty-seven percent. Thirteen percent. Twenty-nine percent. Every roll gave them a different number. Every answer gave them another question. Every new algorithm only had Ian tugging at their hair in frustration.

They tried again. 

Run: Find Ben. If: Janis equipment AND full team. Output: ...... ...... ..... Ninety-six percent.

Good. That was good, right? It had to be good. Unless their code was wrong. They should rewrite the code, just in case they missed a fault that was giving a false positive. That would be fine, right? Would only take a few hours. They glanced at the gap in their curtains, shrugging off the peeking light of morning and reaching for their coffee mug. Empty. Damn. Running a hand through their hair, they pushed themself upright to grab another.

"You're kidding." Ian froze halfway out of the bedroom door, realising with a stifled cuss that they'd entirely forgotten Jenn was here, sound asleep on the bed behind their setup. "This is like... night three."

Ian's fingers tapped anxiously on their mug as they turned around, knowing that without sleep there was no way they were succesfully masking the schoolkid guilt on their face. "It's fine. I'm fine. Go back to sleep."

"No, you-.." Jenn yawned and stretched, pushing herself upright to eye them with the judging gaze that somehow managed to still pierce right through them despite the groggy, half-unfocused haze in her eyes. "You gotta stop this. You can't live on coffee and algorithms, Ian. You need sleep."

"I'll sleep! I just need-.. I have to figure this out, Jenn. I-if I can just figure out how to get Ziggy reconnected with Ben then I'll be able to-"

"For the love of-.." Jenn shook her head, shoving to her feet just to pad over and point at Ian's screen. "This is not finding Ben. You think I didn't notice after day two you started asking it over and over if we'll find Ben? Looks to me like you're using all this as an excuse to avoid sitting down with your thoughts for five seconds. Trust me, I know what that looks like."

"I'm. Fine," Ian reiterated, trying to brush off the way their vision swam a little with the quick change of focus from the bed to the desk. Sure, their hands were a little tingly and the fog in their head was thicker than the one time they mixed pink gin with ketamine as a teenager, but with just a couple more hours they could fix everything. "I just need a little more time."

"In a couple more hours you'll be hallucinating, Ian." Jenn stared them down with more clarity this time, lifting a brow pointedly when the mug they were holding almost slipped out of their hand. "You can't do anything like this. The more you fuck yourself up trying to look for him, the longer Ben's going to be stuck out there."

"You don't-.. You dont understand." Ian laughed, the tiny huff of air making them dizzy. "You don't understand, Jenn. This is my fault. I have to get him back. I have to-.."

Were they hyperventilating? Jenn was across the room before they realised they were falling, catching them awkwardly and dragging them over to sit on the edge of the bed, cradling them gently like a sick child. "Ben knew the risks. He knew what he was getting into. This was always a possibility, Ian."

"Future me's code-.."

"Worked to do exactly what it was supposed to. There was never any guarantee Ben would leap back. And hey-- with the Quantum Leap program shut down there's also no guarantee the apocalypse future will happen." Jenn gently kissed the top of their head, their skin clammy and their hair unwashed. "You saved the world, Ian. It'll help everyone a whole lot more if you believe just for a second that you're capable of that."

Ian blinked, then sharply forced themself out of the daze of sleep trying to take them. "I'm awake! I'm up-.. Just-.. Ben-.. what if-.."

Another blink, and when they opened their eyes again they were laying down, undressed and covered with bedsheets. Their computer was shut down, and there was water by their bedside. Maybe just a little nap wouldn't hurt.

[justekasmindx]

Validated

10/06 12:00 pm

Never thought I'd be journaling at this time of the day

When it's time for me to sleep, I couldn't let this feeling past without writing it down..

I don't even know where to start.

Let's start with some good news - I just got validated.

I now does not pretend that I have PTSD, oh hey, I just got diagnosed.

But what surprised me the most is that they said I have MDD, too. I never thought I am depressed already.

Maybe because I never really validated what I was feeling. Every time I felt sorrow, I have always contradicted it with "Why? You have a stable job, an income that can put some food on the table, you can buy stuffs and you're living in a comfortable home, so why do you feel sad?"

I now realize how much I did not love myself enough, I did not even notice. I just knew there's something wrong that I couldn't fix by myself.

The specialist said that I took a huge step coming to their clinic. I had an hour of evaluation. Imagine me just sat down for a minute in front of her and I cried immediately. "Yeah, that's how heavy it was" she said.

I didn't know where to start, I just remember telling her "I need help because I don't know what to do anymore, I have read self-help books, I have been journaling, exercising, I tried to change my perspective, still I feel the same."

She asked when did this start, and I said it started when I was a kid, then the story goes on, chapter by chapter of my life. I cried and mourned in each of it. She saw it and she said, "Don't be too hard on yourself, anybody who went through those wouldn't feel good as well." And I laughed, we looked each other in the eyes, she said "i know you already know that from the books you read". I said "I've always heard it from the people I know which makes me question, why this kind of advice does not change anything in my mind? It does not help at all, am I that broken?

So the last part of evaluation was her asking if I can hear noises or see myself from a third person's view, maybe this is for other disorder's test, but I'm glad I wasn't seeing or hearing anything at all.

She also asked if I want to hurt myself or someone, i said no but before when I was in high school, I used to hold a knife or a cutter, but I wouldn't do it. Are there thoughts of suicide? I said yes. Like I am no longer afraid of dying. The exact example I told her was me while crossing the street and it was okay for me to be crossed over by any vehicle, I am now preparing for my death, I am paying for my insurance, and funeral plans because I am ready to die, and I want to have something I can leave to my loved ones when I am gone. She asked what's holding me back from killing myself, I said because there's a little hope I hold on to and I have this perspective that I have gone through a lot before so for sure what I am feeling right now would pass by eventually. And there I thought my last statement for that topic will save me from being diagnosed with depression then when I came out of the room, and I saw the diagnosis and it says "major".

Few days since that happened, I kept thinking of it, hoping meds will help and therapies will make me my normal self again.

Despite this little hope I am holding to, I still feel like I am not capable of having a relationship. I know I am being harsh to myself right now, but the reality is it might get difficult and that person's gotta be tough enough and must have a huge understanding of what I went through. If that person stays, I would share my everything to him.

I will be healed. This is the start. My life will improve and I will be better.

[mordenheim]

Fictober 2022 12: You're making my head hurt.

Prompt number: 12. “You’re making my head hurt.”

Original Fiction

Rating: M

Warnings/Tags: Death, Gore, Haunting, vehicle accident, horror story

—

Old John had seen a lot over his years of long-haul trucking, but the accidents were always the worst. He’d been hauling sheets of steel from Pennsylvania up to Detroit when he’d gotten caught in traffic during rush hour. He decided that he’d fudge the numbers on his swindle sheet a little and drive on through the night so his delivery wouldn’t be late. He just marked down that he’d been parked and sleeping when he’d actually been caught in the traffic jam. Almost four AM on a road in the middle of nowhere he heard one of the restraints start flapping loose. He knew he was going to have to stop and fix it, but there was a rest stop about two miles up the road. He could hold out until then, surely. Then he heard a motorcycle come roaring up behind his truck. He had no idea what in the world they were doing out that late at night, but they were in one hell of a hurry. Dropping into what would have been oncoming traffic, they gunned the engine to pass John’s truck. That was when disaster struck. Another restraint snapped, sending a sheet of steel flipping up into the air from the wind breaking around the cab. He swore he saw it strike the cyclist why went rocketing past him, only to miss a turn and crash into the bushes. Slamming on the brakes, he wrestled the old truck to the edge of the road. As he put it in park the air brakes eased with a loud hiss. Hopping down out of he cab, he called out to the cyclist. He could see the mangled remains of the bike itself wrapped around a tree. Imagine his surprise when the rider pushed himself up off of the ground. He looked a little odd, his helmet sitting so low it looked like it just sat on top of his broad shoulders. He was carrying a second helmet in his hands as he approached. John called out to him, “Hey, sorry about that. Lemme get this load secured and we can gather up your bike and I’ll get you into town, okay?”

His voice a little muffled from the closed visor on his helmet, the rider waves with his free hand. “Yeah, thanks. Say, could you toss this in your truck for me?”

He underhand tossed the helmet to John who tried to catch it. It was a lot heavier than it looked, however and slipped from his hands. His blood ran cold as he looked down to see his hands covered in slick, red blood. The cyclist’s voice came, not from the form standing in the road, but from the helmet on the ground in front of him. “You’re making my head hurt.” Through the broken visor, he could see the dead, empty gaze of the rider’s head. Looking towards the body standing about ten feet away he saw the helmet perched oddly on his shoulders totter and fall away to reveal his ragged neck stump. His arms thrust out in front of him as he ran blindly towards John, who bolted for the cab of his truck! He dove into the cab, slamming and locking the door behind him. Deciding to hell with the load, he turned the key, the engine roaring to life as he heard fists banging on his door. He slammed the rig into gear and took off down the road, scattering more sheet metal in his wake.

He was a good half hour down the road when he heard something that made his blood run cold. “Hey buddy, thanks for the ride.” He turned his head to see the helmet in his now bloodstained passenger seat, the decapitated head peering up at him through that broken visor. He let out a bloodcurdling scream just before his rig slammed through a guardrail and into a tree.

[impulsivewcrewrite]

Chapter 13: Rocky Foundation

< Chapter 12 | ToC | Chapter 14 >

Still buzzing with excitement, Rusty hardly knew what to do with himself after waking up before the sun rose. His first gathering! What would it be like meeting the other Colonies? Would they know he was a kittypet before? Would they even like him? He felt an edge of fear.

The entrance tunnel rustled. The Mog slowly crawled back down into camp. Perhaps she had woken up early too. He headed over to her. Maybe she’d be less spicy in the morning.

“Good morning, the Mog,” he chirped. “Did you sleep well?”

After fixing him with a hard stare, she grunted. “I slept fine. Don’t you have a mentor to bother?”

“Bloom’s asleep. Plus, I’m not allowed to go to the leader’s den without permission,” Rusty clarified. Then, feeling bold, he propped a bit further. “Are apprentices in Shadow allowed to wake up the leader?”

Surprisingly, the Mog cracked a wry smile. “Not usually, but they often bother the druids at all hours of the night. Since being brought here, I’ve had the best sleep in years!”

“Oh, awesome!” he beamed at her. “I’m glad. I was a bit afraid you’d have a hard time adjusting… but then again, I don’t know much about ShadowColony.”

“I may be a bit biased, but ShadowColony… at least the one I grew up in… is the most noble Colony in the forest,” the Mog’s voice took on a dreamy, child-like wonder. “We believe that the Stars are closest to the pine forest, so much so that any old warrior can read signs and omens. My father was a ranger, he showed me much about Twoleg culture. In camp, everyone is equal, and everyone is expected to get along…” she trailed off. “But that was many moons ago. Now I don’t recognize the Colony. My friends and kin are long dead or exiled.”

A soft sadness engulfed the pair. The Mog gently wiped away a tear. “It’s not all bad. I believe that StarColony will make things right again. I know I’m not the only one who prays for peace in Shadow.”

Rusty nodded. From what he knew, there were a few spirits you could pray to for certain things. At the moment he wasn’t sure what Star Shadow represented, but he quietly sent her a prayer. 

“If you have the time, say hi to Slug for me,” she cut across his thoughts. 

“Slug?” 

“My apprentice. ShadowColony’s druid. You’ll know him when you see him,” the Mog yawned. “Little gray and white kid, runny nose.” She paused. “Not so much a kid anymore. Anyway, I’m going to try and sleep.”

“Goodnight,” he mewed. 

. . .

The following day was a blur. Night couldn’t come soon enough. Rusty spent the day with Scarlet, helping her clear out bad herbs. While she did this, she told Rusty about the other Colonies, and who their leaders, druids, and deputies were. Rusty found it difficult to listen, as he kept getting distracted by her gorgeous red eyes and velvety fur. His heart felt light around her.

He was so distracted he didn’t hear when Pebbles started calling for him. Only when his friend headbutted him did he realize it was time to leave for the Gathering.

Bloom led the patrol out of camp and towards Fourtrees. With each step, Rusty felt more and more excited.

They finally reached the bushes around Fourtrees. Beside him crouched Raven and Pebbles. The air was thick with the warm scents of cats from the other Colonies. They stared down at the many cats already mulling around in the clearing. Under the light of the full moon, the cats all looked pale gray. 

“That’s a lot of cats!” Raven whispered nervously.

“Don’t be so worried, there’s a truce! Hey, is that Star Shatter?” Pebbles pointed to a huge brown tabby.

“No, Shatter’s on the rock,” Rusty squinted at the cat Pebbles pointed out. “Look at that jaw!” The tom’s face was twisted, as if his jaw had been broken and healed wrong. “That must be Star Storm, of RiverColony.”

Beside him, Raven shivered. “Oh, I think I’m going to be sick. What if Shatter attacks? What if he doesn’t know the truce exists? He’s only been a leader for a few moons. Maybe they haven't taught him the truce yet!”

“We’ll just have to see what happens,” mused Rusty. 

“No sign of WindColony,” Pebbles noted.

“They were chased out, remember?” reminded Rusty. “Hang on, Bloom looks about ready.”

As he had said, Bloom stood up and flicked her tail at the Gathering. The Gathering patrol immediately descended upon the clearing. Rusty felt the adrenaline rush as he burst out and into the growing crowd.

Pebbles was right. The warriors who walked around were fearsome looking. A huge gray RiverColony tom gave Rusty a side glance, but all Rusty could see were his strong muscles flexing under his fur. Beyond that warrior was an elderly ShadowColony molly, with faded scars all across her pelt. Rusty felt intimidated.

“Rusty, Raven, Pebbles,” Bloom’s voice startled Rusty. She had snuck up behind them. “This is a valuable opportunity to meet your enemies up close. Keep your eyes and ears open and your mouths shut.”

“I understand,” Rusty nodded. He didn’t want Bloom to doubt his loyalty ever again. She nodded and walked off towards Star Storm. To his surprise, the two struck up a polite conversation. Didn’t she care that her deputy had been killed by Storm’s own brother? 

“Now what?” Pebbles wondered aloud. 

“We go out and meet the other Colonies, I guess,” Rusty responded. He began aimlessly wandering through the crowds. Pebbles quickly scampered after him.

“Woah! Look at that tom’s paws!” Pebbles blurted out as a large white tom walked past. Rusty stared. The tom’s jet black paws had extra toes! That must be Shrike Holly, ShadowColony’s deputy, he recalled what Scarlet had told him. Shrike glared at Pebbles, who ducked his head bashfully.

“It’s rude to comment about other cats’ appearances!” chided Nightshade. 

Looking ahead, Rusty nudged Pebbles. “Look, that’s Slug, the druid of ShadowColony.” He pointed to a small gray tom.

“I can see why they call him Slug,” Pebbles remarked. Slug’s nose was wet with snot, much like a slug’s slime.

“Don’t be rude,” Rusty shook his head. “He’s talking to Scarlet. Let’s listen in.”

Despite his sickly appearance, the tom spoke with an air of absolute confidence. “Since those Twoleggeds came and uprooted the natural plants, none of the Goil plants will grow there!”

A large brown tom nodded. “It’s been seasons since I’ve found Goil either. The Twolegs have the blood of many kittens on their paws.” Rusty guessed that was RiverColony’s druid, though he couldn’t remember his name. He looked surprisingly rugged for a druid. 

“Catnip can still cure kitten-cough, though. We should look at the positives, not the negatives,” Scarlet mewed simply.

The brown tom frowned. “If I were half the warrior I once was, I’d slay the Twolegs myself.”

“Warriors can kill Twolegs?” piped up a small brown tabby apprentice. After he spoke, he nervously covered his face with a paw. All eyes turned on him. 

Slug too, suddenly seemed rather shy. “Well, no, Mud was just fantasizing. Tiny, it’s rude to listen to other cats’ conversations!”

Tiny, the apprentice, nodded, but continued to stare at Mud with wide eyes. 

“Tiny’s one of the new apprentices, right? He’s named appropriately. How many moons old are you?” Scarlet asked. Her tone was gentle, but her eyes revealed concern.

“He’s six moons,” Slug moved and patted Tiny on the head. 

“My mom and dad are small too,” Tiny added quickly. 

“Go run along now, find some other apprentices to converse with, won’t you?” Slug’s pats turned into shoves, and Tiny vanished into the crowds. “Anyways, I do have a few seeds which I believe to be Goil in my den, so I plan on planting this coming New-Leaf…”

“C’mon, let’s go find Raven. He’s found something more interesting than whatever Goil is,” Pebbles muttered. As the pair turned, they instead spotted Tiger in the midst of a story. This was the first time Rusty had ever seen Tiger look happy, engaging with his eager audience.

“Then I was blinded by blood,” the huge tom pointed to the scar on his nose. “But I still managed to best Stone. As he was fleeing, I heard Oak scream in rage!”

Rusty and Pebbles padded closer. This was Rusty’s first time hearing the events of the night from Tiger himself.

“I turned just in time to see Ruddy running towards me, yowling “Oak is dead!” But the rogues kept fighting. If a fight is what they wanted, a fight is what they got!”

Rusty felt a chill run down his spine. Raven had just said that Ruddy had killed Oak. How could Ruddy be killed by Oak if Oak had died first? Maybe Tiger was mistaken.

“Excuse me? Are you ThunderColony’s kittypet?” a curious voice asked.

Rusty turned, confused. There stood a silver tabby molly, from RiverColony. Her blue eyes glistened with concern. Behind her stood another RiverColony apprentice, this one a brown tabby.

“My name is Rusty, I’m a ThunderColony apprentice,” he asserted. “But can I help you?”

“Hi Rusty, I’m Aurora,” the silver tabby mewed meekly. “I just wanted to ask you about Smudge. We used to play and fight, but I haven’t seen him in a few moons, and I’m getting worried. He mentioned you a few times, and I thought I could ask you about him?”

Smudge. The name almost brought a tear to his eye. Biting back tears, Rusty tried to explain his last encounter with Smudge when a loud yowl signaled to all the cats for quiet. 

He looked up to see where the yowl had come from. Three cats sat silhouetted against the moonlit sky on top of the Great Rock. They were Bloom, Shatter, and Storm. And yet, there was another cat trying to climb on top. It was a scruffy brown tom with angry orange eyes. He looked half starved, and carried a faint WindColony scent. Where had he come from?

Shatter had been the one to yowl. His fur was bristled and his claws extended. “You are no leader! You have no right to be here!”

The stranger growled back. “WindColony deserves representation after you threw us out!”

Gasps and shouts of protest echoed around the clearing.

“Rocky, Shatter is right. Please step down!” Storm bellowed.

“Tell them why you did it!” Rocky demanded. Now his fur spiked in fury. “Tell them why you killed my family and chased us out!”

At this, the crowd fell into an uneasy silence. All around him, Rusty could smell the acrid tang of fear. Shatter slowly lowered his hackles, and turned to the crowd. 

“As many of you know, my father, Tatter, was murdered by a WindColony patrol. His death was brutal, and unprovoked. It deeply affected me as a young tom,” Shatter spoke slowly. “As Colony leader, it is my responsibility to protect my Colony. I take this role very seriously.”

“You’re a monster!” Rocky shouted.

Shatter closed his eyes for a brief moment, then opened them and continued. “I strive for peace in the forest. That is the desired outcome for everyone, yes? We all want to be well fed, uninjured, and free from disease. We want to protect our queens and kits.”

“Your warriors tore our kits from their mothers!” protested Rocky. ShadowColony cats began yowling with protest. Rocky threw his head back in a loud shout. “Right now, four of our kits have been trapped in ShadowColony!”

Along with many others, Rusty found himself standing up, claws extended. Was this Gathering going to devolve into a battle?

“Kit-knappers!” someone shouted.

“Liar!”

“Monsters!”

“WE HAVE PROVIDED FOR THEM WHEN YOU COULD NOT!” Shatter shouted. Everyone fell silent. Even Shatter seemed surprised at his own outburst. 

Then he let out a sigh. “Rocky, truly, I am sorry. WindColony, and all the Colonies have suffered losses over this past Leaf-bare. All Colonies except ShadowColony. We remained strong. Our kits are strong, and we need more prey than the other Colonies. When I saw we could help WindColony kits, I took the chance. You want your kits healthy and safe, correct?”

“Healthy and safe in WindColony,” Rocky spat.

“Then I will personally see they are delivered to WindColony, once they are at the appropriate age,” Shatter purred. “I saw their needs were not being met, so I took them into my care.”

“You’re sick!” Rocky took a step towards Shatter. Bloom and Storm immediately stepped forward to protect Shatter. 

“Rocky, listen to me, there is a truce,” Storm blubbered. “Please sit down.”

“You don’t know what I’ve seen,” Rocky’s voice dropped to a growl. 

“You’re very determined. Shame you aren’t a part of ShadowColony. You’d be a great warrior if you joined me,” Shatter noted casually.

“I’d rather die than fight for you!” Rocky spat. “Cats of all Colonies, listen to my words!” The tom turned to face the crowds, spittle flying from his mouth. “Shatter is a traitor, and has broken the warrior’s code! His Colonymates have slain my Colonymates, they killed Raincloud, Marble, Gristle, they killed my own sister, Doe! They are monsters, and all of you are in danger.”

ShadowColony once again erupted with fury. Cats of all ages threw their angry words up at Rocky. Rusty watched the ShadowColony leader. He seemed genuinely hurt by Rocky’s words. The tom was quiet, and finally stood up and let out a loud yowl. Shatter’s voice finally raised above the noise. The crowds’ shouts fell into silence. 

“I tried to be diplomatic! I told Star Magpie I would avenge my father. I gave him enough warning to turn over the killer to me to be dealt with. And yet he refused. They are harboring a murderer!” Shatter righteously yowled. “Rocky is short sighted. To deny me is to deny StarColony. They were the ones that chose me.”

“Can we please get on with the Gathering?” shouted a RiverColony elder. This was met with nervous laughter. Rusty noticed Bloom quietly saying something to Rocky, and although his fur slowly flattened, he remained in an aggressive stance.

“I do have something to propose to the Colonies,” Shatter continued. “As I have mentioned, ShadowColony is strong. Our nursery is bursting with kits. Our apprentices are many, and our warriors and merciaries are growing numerous. The needs of ShadowColony are simple. In order to survive, we must increase our hunting territory. That is why I insist that you allow ShadowColony warriors to hunt in your territories.”

A shocked but muted growl rippled through the crowd.

“Share our hunting grounds?” called the outraged voice of Tiger.

“It is unprecedented!” cried a tortoiseshell molly from RiverColony. “The Colonies have never shared hunting rights!”

“Should ShadowColony be punished because our kits thrive?” questioned Shatter from the Great Rock. “Do you want us to watch our young starve? You must share what you have with us.”

“Must!” spat Shrew furiously from the back of the crowd.

“Must,” repeated Shatter. “WindColony failed to understand this. In the end, we were forced to drive them out of their territory.”

Snarls of outrage burst from the crowd, but Shatter’s caterwaul rang loud above them: “And, if we have to, we will drive you all from your hunting grounds in order to feed our hungry kits. Their hunger drives us!”

There was instant silence. On the other side of the clearing, Rusty heard a RiverColony apprentice start to mutter something, but he was quickly hushed by an elder.

“I am not asking for your answer now.” Shatter continued “You must each go away and consider my words. But bear this in mind: Would you prefer to share your prey, or be driven out and left homeless and starving?”

Warriors, elders, and apprentices looked at one another in disbelief. In the anxious pause that followed, Storm stepped forward. “I do not want kits to go hungry. ShadowColony is permitted to hunt on the territory-” the leader’s words were cut off by loud outcries.

“The council was not consulted!”

“That’s against the warrior’s code!”

“Star Storm, no!”

“This is best for all Colonies,” Storm loudly explained. His voice was heavy with exhaustion and resignation. “The river is plentiful. It’s better to share prey than spill blood fighting over it. StarColony knows we fight too much.”

Bloom shot Storm an angry stare. The tom winced but ignored it.

“I will make no such agreement until I have discussed this with my council and Colony,” Bloom cooly said.

“Yeah, Star Bloom!” Pebbles yowled, startling Rusty. He’d forgotten Pebbles was beside him.

“No bother, Bloom. I am confident you will come to the right conclusion,” Shatter mewed. “But I have another announcement. A ShadowColony cat has turned rogue and spurned the warrior’s code. We chased her out of our camp, but we believe she has not left the Valley. I will not say her name as it is a disgrace to all who hear it.”

Rusty’s fur bristled. Could he mean the Mog? 

“She is dangerous, despite her feeble appearance,” he continued. “Until she is hunted down and killed, keep your kits close.”

Rocky laughed cruelly, and spat something about Shatter being the dangerous one.

Around him, Rusty knew the nervous growls from ThunderColony meant that they too had thought of the Mog. None of them spent enough time with her to see past her prickly exterior. 

Shatter leapt off the rock, and his warriors converged on him like ants on a crumb. Seeing all of them together, suddenly Tiny didn’t look too tiny. All the other apprentices seemed equally small. And yet, he couldn’t spot a single adult who was shorter than average.

“Did you hear what Shatter said? There’s a dangerous Shadow exile. Do you think he meant the Mog?” Shrew’s voice carried towards Rusty. More ThunderColony cats were gathering around the elder, voicing concerns.

“But she was so nice to Frost’s kits the other day. Was that a trap to lure them in?” worried Speckle.

“Oh, we’ve left her behind with the camp unguarded!” wailed Lily.

“Since the first moment I saw her I knew she was trouble!” Nightshade hissed. 

Tiger strode up to the group. “We must return immediately and deal with her.”

There was no point in listening further. Mind racing, Rusty knew Shatter wasn’t telling the truth. From what he knew of her, the Mog would never dare harm a kit. ShadowColony kit or otherwise! It wasn’t in her nature.

“Don’t let anyone know I’m gone,” he hissed to Pebbles, before charging up the hill and into the forest. If it cost him his place in ThunderColony, he didn’t care. He refused to let the Mog suffer because of Shatter’s words.

[osamiiya]

𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚜

--♡--

want to request something but not sure what? feel free to choose up to 3 prompts per request from the list below.

OR

you can request a song that you like, and let me know if you want the fix to be based on the lyrics or vibe of the song.

when requesting, please make sure to include what character you want, or any additional details you would like me to include. the request can be between two characters or an x reader

*these prompts are property of osamiiya. if you would like to use any prompts for your own works please dm for permission and tag me.

fluff/slice of life

-> dialogue prompts

1. “Wow… You’re stronger than you look”

2. “And you do this every day?”

3. “A kiss under the stars…how romantic!” “Those are my glow-in-the-dark star stickers.”

4. “You fainted!!” “I think you mean, ‘I fell for you.’” “Your forehead is bleeding!”

5. “That’s my hand.” “Oh!” … “You’re not going to let go?” “Nope!”

6. “Yeah!” “Yeah!!”

7. “And you like me?” “That’s what I said.” “Like, romantically?” “That’s what I said.” “Why?”

8. “Did you just kiss me?” “Um, I’m pretty sure.”

9. “It’s so weird how whenever I see you my heart starts beating really fast. Like really fast.” “Hm… you should see a doctor for that.”

10. “You thought I would like this?” “I did.” “You were right”

11. “I never thought I would enjoy having mud everywhere.”

12. “How many kisses do I get if I do ____?”

13. “Write that down!”

14. “Guess who!” “Put your hands away.”

15. “You’re a nerd.” (Affectionate)

16. “Watch this!” … “What am I looking at?”

17. “Kiss it better?”

18. “We just made out for an hour and this is what you’re embarrassed about?”

19. “I love you.” “You just got your wisdom teeth removed”

20. “I think i’m in love with you.”

21. “You know, they say that if you witness the first snow with someone, you’ll fall in love .”

22. “I never knew you could be this beautiful.”

23. “You know my coffee order?” “I know everything about you.”

24. “You’re so fucking annoying… kiss me now.”

25. “That’s hot.” “Me?” “No, the stove.”

-> scenario prompts

26. I made my video game character look like you so I would never have to go without looking at you

27. I accidentally pavlov-ed my crush into liking me back, but it turns out I didn’t even need to.

28. Driving them home after getting their wisdom teeth removed

29. We’re both summer camp counselors and I told my group of kids to start shipping us because I like you

30. The cute cafe worker keeps spelling my name wrong in an attempt to strike up a conversation with me, but I’m too shy to correct them.

31. You keep taking your shirt off in an attempt to flirt with me, but i’m too preoccupied with you possibly getting sunburnt

32. You like bugs and I like you, but that spider is a lot bigger than I thought it would be

33. I’m being super inconspicuous about my crush on you, but we just spent 24 hours in the library together and in a sleep deprived act I kissed you on my doorstep

35. We’re childhood best friends and I didn’t think I liked you in that way, but this specific event happened and now I think I’m in love with you

36. I’m painting your nails and when I look up you’re looking at me with so much love in your eyes

37. We’re exes who never stopped loving each other seeing each other for the first time in years.

38. I didn’t think you liked me back but my friends are able to list all of the different things you’ve done for me as evidence

39. They say you always meet someone you love twice, I just thought you were a jerk the first time.

40. I never thought someone would be able to love me in the way I never knew I needed to be loved.

angst

-> dialogue prompts

1. “I love you.” “Not in the way I needed you to.”

2. “You just…weren’t enough for me.”

3. “Isn’t loving you enough?” “I never asked you to.”

4. “I’m tired of loving someone that will never love me back.”

5. “Do their lips on your skin feel the same as mine did?”

6. “I can’t do this anymore, not with you.”

7. “Do you love me because I’m me, or because I’m similar enough to who you really love.”

8. “I’m tired of pretending to be someone I’m not so you don’t feel ashamed to call me yours.”

9. “You can’t love someone and treat them like you treat me.”

10. “Was I enough?” “You were… I just was never good enough for you.”

11. “I don’t know if I can learn to love someone the way I loved you.” “You will.”

12. “i don’t think i’m capable of being loved, when i was neither made with love or by two people who loved each other”

13. “I wish i could’ve loved you.”

14. “Do you ever shut up?” “Funny coming from someone who said they liked how much I talk.”

15. “There’s someone else right?”

16. “I’m sorry I can’t control who I love.” “But you could’ve controlled where your eyes went.”

17. “You’re not even going to try long distance?” “I can’t do long distance when I don’t even see our relationship going anywhere.”

18. “Don’t call me anymore.” “Wasn’t planning on it.”

19. “You’re so good at lying you even lied to yourself that you love me.”

20. “I’m not upset that you don’t do these things, I’m upset that you don’t want to do them for me.”

21. “I thought you hated flowers?” “No girl hates flowers.”

22. “You’re just going to leave like this?” “I’m done trying!”

23. “It would be kinder for you to breakup with me than force me into a relationship where I know you want to leave.”

24. “Leave.” “I can’t”

25. “You only wanted me because you couldn’t have my sibling?” “I couldn’t let them go.”

-> scenario prompts

26. I love you, but I can’t love you if you don’t love yourself

27. They thought they wouldn’t get caught, but they forgot their phone was connected to their laptop

28. I still love you, but we need to be our own people for a while

29. I told you about an insecurity I have, and you used it against me in an argument

30. We’ve been dating for a while, but I realized that none of your friends or family knew about us dating

32. I supported you in everything you did, but you couldn’t bother coming to any of my events

33. I’ll give up, if it means my sibling will be happier with you.

34. Every time I look at your kids, I see you in them, and wish I could see myself in them too.

35. Coming home and seeing traces of them everywhere.

36. Slowly falling out of love

37. We’ve been dating for years but you still couldn’t remember I was allergic to ____

38. You’re drunk and calling me by another persons name

39. The way you picture your future doesn’t leave space for me in it.

40. We’ve been together for so long that we can’t seem to break up, even though we should

[ducknotinarow]

[87]

They're supposed to be quiet, on a stake out, watching out for the general lawbreakers. It's supposed to be easy, if not boring. But Casey had a one track mind and was ready to smash skulls, and the plan could be followed without an issue...

Until Raph began cracking jokes.

He'd love to blame the fact he was tired, or really anything, but he couldn't. Casey snickered at one of their damn puns, and though he was quick to cough it off, it gave Raph what he needed. Casey could feel the grin on his own face, hidden by his mask, watching as Raphael grew more animated as they just kept going.

And even Casey, stone faced as he is, couldn't hold back forever...so he started to laugh. Really laughed. Loud and hard and boisterous. He bent over, holding his stomach as he kept going, shaking his head as tears formed in his eyes. He couldn't remember the time someone got him to laugh so much!

"St-stop!" He manages to yell, "We're supposed to be hunting lawbreakers!"

It takes a moment, but Casey does calm. He stands up, having to pull up his mask, revealing his smile and reddened face, a hand wiping his tears away. Shaking his head again, he calms fully, but something soon settles in. Something he may never be able to voice. He's glad he puts his mask back down, before Raph can see that realisation,

"Since when did you become the 'funny one'?"

...And since when did Casey fall in love with them.

| Muse interaction

Eyes were fixed up on the dark sky over his head, staring out at stars that littered the city sky. Such a nice deep dark color, not that Raph was really admiring the sky over him. Once more he shifted around on his perch on top the monkey bars of the park he and Casey seemed to make their stake out spot pretty often actually? Sure maybe he should be on the ground or in a bush more hidden out of view. Like a ninja would do, but they had been out here for hours and haven't quite noticed anything going on. Police scanner seemed pretty quite as well that they had as the only noise to fill the quite between them. Raph just sighed and laid back over the bars drawing out the sigh he gave for all its worth, expelling all the air out from his lungs. Letting a arm fall over the side and idly left it to swing a little.

The night was a bust safe to say, it had been about three hours going on to four here soon and just nothing seemed to be happening. Hell Raph felt he and Casey were the only souls awake at all in the city said to never sleep. There was barely any cars out and about Raph had started keeping track of the ones that passed by, a whole total of three. Beak quirked a little shifting it left and right, eyes fixed up on the sky but he couldn't keep the restless feeling in him at bay for long. Soon moving to sit up at last

"Think I gotta get my eyes check," he remark suddenly and randomly "Seems my burglarzie. just ain't working tonight Case. I haven't seen a crook all night!" He slightly complains "I think the nights a bust, Heck I settle for a guy stealing a calendar!" he huffs a bit swinging his legs over to hang over the side of the bars. "think he get about 12 months for it but still." Theres a slight huff as Raph sets his hand down ready to jump off from where he been resting this whole time.

"Eh I think we should call it in Casey-" cut off a moment when he heard something. He knew what it was. It was a snicker, a small tiny little laugh. One you don't even know is about to slip out of your own mouth. Near snaps g his neck when he looked over towards Casey who was trying his best to cover that up with a obviously fake cough.

"uh, do my ear deceive me? Or is it possible that the Casey Jonas is actually able to get his funny bone tickled?" Raphael moves on to ask more teasing if anything really.

Casey seemed to stick to the quiet act, pretending nothing happened. Raphael just crinkled his snout at that. As if he was gonna play along and act like he didn't just hear what he knew he heard. Hadn't even phased him yet that Casey had laughed at his joke, but more he laughed at all. Hey, the nights a bust, but Raphael wasn't going home empty handed he decides moving to hang over the bags a bit as he started searching his mind a little. Oh, Raphael had plenty of amono to break out even at that. What with the hours spent watching all the comedy shows and late night talk shows he loved so much. Raphael also knew the basic rules of comedy, which was known as your audience.

You can tell jokes all you want, but not everyone's gonna like the same joke. Looking casey over a second, green eyes settled over their usual weapon of choice theri bat. Raph crossed his arms over his plastron. Casey was going to laugh, and Raphael was going to make it happen. They barely spoke but now he was curious and his interest was suddenly sparked back. Sure, not on the right thing, but what does that matter?

"I need a change of base, don't you?" He starts with eyeing the silent vigilante wanting them to know what he was up to. As he firmly sets his smirk thier way. "We could just hang out, I heart baseball players are great at hitting it off after all. No ones breaking any rules tonight only bunting it." Swinging his arms around to try and explain his joke just then.

He contuines on just eyeing Casey as he speaks on and on. Honestly, this was easy Raph could drop baseball puns all night. "How about a movie I tots bet you like Star Wars, cause the Umpire Strikes Back is clearly your favorite right?" He swears he sees them near about to break. As he mines out being a umpire. Hanf moving let he was setting the mask over his face and then puched his hand to shiw the glove. Lowering him self a bit where he sat to look more like on even.

"Glad ya don't play outfield or these baseball puns might go over your head." He says letting a hand fly over the top of his own head. "Maybe we should check the fields I hear there's a real issue switch players stealing bases. Sure itll be fine cause hit and runs are allowed in baseball at all if we smash their skulls in long as we aint in a car when we do." He contuies on moving around as he talked and cracked joke after jokes towards Casey. "Gotta feel sorry for them fellas though, even a lofe a crime ain't earn them no diamonds." He knows how dumb these are but that's kind of hid point and aim "eh pitches be crazy though am I right?"

He heard it. It was loud and boastiours rocked out of Casey slightly muffled by his mask but not for long if anything that made it more impressive how loud it came out. Raph looking down at Casey as he had to hold around himself, leaning forward as they seemed to have trouble standing from how hard he was letting the laugh work out of himself

"St-stop!"

Casey just about managed to say but it wasn't easy between his fit of laughter still working through him.

"We're supposed to be hunting lawbreakers!"

"Oh mine I didn't think ya could laugh at all!" Raphael simply remarks on having long stop caring about the lawbreakers they actually needed to deal with. Not that it seemed even the disruption of the night seemed to lure out thier ways. Hooking his leg around a bar before he dropped down to meet Casey as the lifted thier mask up likely needing air from how much they were busting a gut just then.

Any jokes or taunts he had ready to thrown away in that very moment as he settled his gaze over Casey's face. Red from lack of air and how hard they just had to laugh. Bright and wide amused grin over thoer face trying their best to keep serious, but clearly Casey was losing that battle. As Raph couldn't help but just soak it all in. The way their face colored over with bright color, how their lips cruved into such a smile, how they softly chuckled out still under their breath as they wiped tears dry from thoer eyes. To stunned at the feat or maybe something else he can't quite explain at that time as he watches Casey shake his head. Before they returned thier mask over thier face. Seeming to clam back down and ease into their usual tone.

"Since when did you become the 'funny one'?"

"You think I'm funny?" Raoh simply asks in return. Sure, he was always quick to give a joke or a sparky remark, but his brothers never claimed him to be funny. Actually, no one did they often got annoyed, and no one even got half his jokes or watched his favorite shows where most his jokes came from. Raph just smiles back at the usual white expressionless mask he knew Casey for, but all he could see what thier red face sporting the best smile in the world. "They don't call me a wise guy for nothin' ya know." Raph offered finally answering Caesy back. As he dropped down from the bars finally, landing on his feet. Good timing to he was feeling quite light headed at the moment. Though he kind feels it wasn't because of him hanging upside down just then. Before he turns back to casey slightly rubbing at the back of his neck as he stares at anything thing that wasn't Casey.

"Ya know you got a great laugh there." His eyes darted off to the side a moment as he moved to stand straight and tall "and don't think I aint gonna stop trying to make ya laugh since I know the big tough Casey Jonas is a sucker for a good one liner after all." He teases a little, trying to cover the sudden thought that crossed his mind then and there. Raphael found his favorite sound in the world thar night, and he planned on making Casey laugh again, forever, maybe even.

[sammyboyimagines]

terrible liar

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Reader

Summary: You and Eddie managed to keep your relationship off the radar of everyone in Hawkins...until a certain someone catches you. Will they be able to keep a secret? Word Count: 2.1k

Warnings: Fluff, slight smut, MINORS DNI 18+ (I'm serious, children.)

//so there is a chrome extension that lets you replace Y/n for your name. Please use it, it's a lifesaver for me when I read! It's called InteractiveFics I believe! Also, can you tell that I think Dustin is absolutely iconic? Because he is.

The pounding sound of a knock on the door woke you from your sleep. You squinted at the bright light from the window pouring into the bedroom. Usually, you woke up early to get ready for school, but you didn't today because you were at Eddie's trailer. Then reality hit you. You were at Eddie's trailer and were about to be late for school!

"Fuck fuck fuck.." your quiet rambling woke up the sleeping man next to you. As you fixed your hair in the mirror, you were thankful you took a shower before bed. "Y/n, what's going on?" you turned around to look at the stupidly adorable smile on his face. If you weren't about to ruin your sparkling attendance, you would have stayed in bed and kissed that face. But no, you just rolled your eyes and pointed to the clock before pulling the blinds back to see who was at the door. "Fuck, it's Dustin. Did you promise him a ride again?" Dustin's bike was on its last leg. It was broken often, causing him to need a ride from Eddie.

"Shhh, it's too early. Come back to bed, sweetheart.." he begged, his voice raspy and hoarse from sleep. He grabbed your waist and attempted to pull you back onto the bed, but was unsuccessful as you pushed him off. He whined and shoved his face into his pillow. You gently shook him to wake him up. "Eddie! Dustin is outside pounding on the door and we are about to be late if we don't leave right now!" Eddie sat up and pulled you into his lap, tired of your loud voice so early in the morning. "It doesn't matter.." you scoffed at his nonchalant response.

"Eddie, nobody knows we're dating. If they find out that I stayed at your place: they'll know we're together! Make Dustin go away!" you were trying your best to stay angry, but the second Eddie started gently pressing kisses on your neck, you began to give up. "Shh, just 15 minutes. All we gotta do is stay quiet, sweetheart.." his hands gripped your hips tighter as he left a couple hickeys on your neck, making you wriggle out of his lap. "Eddie! Go deal with Dustin!" as much as you want to stay the extra 15 minutes, you were worried about your relationship with Eddie's friends. What would they think if they found out you were dating a fellow party member?

You loved Dustin, Mike, Lucas, and the others to death, but you knew that it would be an extremely awkward situation if you told them you were dating Eddie. Eddie didn't care much. He preferred to let you tell everyone when you were ready. This didn't mean he would be totally distant in public whatsoever. He would slap your ass when nobody was looking, or sneak a kiss every now and then. You would always pretend to be mad at him, but he knew you secretly loved it. He was completely fine with keeping everything a secret until you were ready, as long as he got to spend time with you. 

Eddie pulls you back and holds you tightly. "Are you sure, sweetheart? I have a campaign tonight, so we won't be seeing each other for-" he looks at his watch. "Around 12 hours...can you really go 12 hours without another round before we go?" He slips his hand up your shirt slowly. Well, it wasn't really your shirt. It was his. You thought for a moment. Surely, Dustin would go away...

"Fine, 15 minutes." you laugh when Eddie flips you onto the bed before climbing on top of you. "You have to stay quiet, babe," you warn, making him chuckle between heated kisses. "Same to you, sweetheart.." he returns to your extremely heated makeout session. The window to Eddie's trailer suddenly busts open. "Eddie, I'm coming in! Are you dead or something?" Dustin calls out before quickly walking into his trailer and slamming the window shut. You panic and give Eddie an "I told you so" look before trying to look for a place to hide. Unfortunately, Dustin was too fast. "Y/n? What are you doing here?" you were speechless, so Eddie spoke for you. Dustin had found out your secret in the worst way. You underneath Eddie.

The boys watch as you maneuver yourself out of Eddie's grasp. "Please give us a minute, Dustin. I'll drive you to school." Eddie was beyond angry that Dustin broke in but also a little proud. You were wearing Eddie's Hellfire Club shirt, and it finally clicked. Dustin's jaw dropped dramatically. "You slept together!?" Dustin's expression of disgust mortified you. You rolled your eyes and pushed past him to hide in the bathroom. "You better fix this, Munson." You pointed your finger at Eddie, who put his hands up in surrender before nodding. "Dustin, buddy, you need to work on your timing." Eddie chuckled before pulling a shirt over his head.

Dustin was still in a state of shock. "I can't believe this. How long have you two been...?" He looked almost offended that he wasn't informed about your relationship. Eddie sat on his bed. "For a while. Listen, you can't tell anyone about this. Understand?" Eddie put on a serious face to make sure Dustin got the point. You eventually came back into the room. "Why aren't you telling the rest of the group, Y/n?" Dustin wasn't as judgemental as he was a couple minutes ago. You took a deep breath and held Eddie's hand for comfort, something you often did under the table at lunch or during his campaigns.

"I didn't want you guys to think of us differently. Because we're a group of friends, you know? I don't want to ruin what we have. We haven't ruined it, have we?" you felt Eddie squeeze your hand. He knew how long you had been worrying about this. Dustin shrugs. "Of course not. Now can I get a damn ride? Because of you two, we're all late!" Eddie stood up. "Hey, don't be a brat. We're in love." his statement made Dustin gag. "Shut up and drive."

Once you arrived at school, Dustin got out. "Hey, tell anyone and you're dead, Henderson!" You warn, knowing he would listen. He nods quickly. "Got it, you're the best, Y/n!" He laughed and walked off. 

"Relax. I'm sure he won't tell." Eddie tried to stay positive. You sigh and shake your head. "Out of all the people, why did Dustin have to catch us? He can't keep a secret. You and I both know this!" you rub your temples as you feel a headache coming on. Eddie kisses your cheek, something he often did when he wanted something from you. "What is it?" you look at him. He felt terrible seeing you in such a stressed state. He decided to leave it. "Let's go."

During lunch, you grabbed your tray and headed to the Hellfire table. You caught a glimpse of him, Dustin. The sight of him talking to everyone at the table was just enough to make you sick to your stomach. You didn't know why you were so worried, but you were. You sat next to Eddie and smiled at the many "hellos" you got from the others. Despite you being a new member, they treated you with respect. Little did you know, Eddie was forcing them to respect you. He threatened to kick them out if they didn't. Eddie had been crushing on you hard ever since you asked to join. How could he refuse?

Dustin coughed awkwardly. He looked like he was physically struggling to keep the secret. Literally, he was bright red in the face as he ate his lunch. Eddie quickly tries to distract everyone while you quietly tell Dustin to keep it together. "So how was everyone's day?" Eddie chuckles awkwardly. He was terrible at small talk.

"Pretty good. Hey Y/n, why were you at Eddie's trailer last night?" Mike questions, making Eddie practically choke on his drink. Mike knew. He had been with Harrington dropping off Max when he saw you hop out of Eddie's van and makeout with him against the door to his trailer. He wanted a confession, the sneaky brat. You calm yourself by holding Eddie's hand under the table. "He was showing me some guitar. I've been listening to some Metallica and Iron Maiden lately." You give Mike an innocent smile. Gareth immediately bought it. "Finally! You've been refusing to listen to them for so long!"

Mike rolls his eyes. "Really? There were some pretty loud sounds coming from Eddie's room-" Dustin looked like he was going to fucking explode. Mike continued. "Didn't sound like a guitar to me, but if you say so.." You shrug, squeezing Eddie's hand so hard he thought he was losing circulation. Dustin slams his drink down. "Dustin- don't you dare. I will kill you.." you look at him from across the table, making him jump. Dustin has to physically cover his mouth. "You look nervous, Y/n. Something got you worried?" Lucas asks, making you nod enthusiastically.

"Hey Dustin, you hiding something?" Mike knew his best friend better than anyone, so naturally, he knew when Dustin hid something from him. "I'll give half my lunches for the rest of the semester.." Dustin whines and looks at you. Eddie was blushing now, trying to pretend like nothing was going on. 

"Dustin, I swear to god I will fucking hurt you-" you were interrupted by him sighing dramatically. "It's food, lunch for an entire semester..." as Dustin faced this tough moral dilemma, you gave Eddie a nervous look. He just smiled and shrugged. "Let it happen." He mouthed.

"Okay, what if I add dessert in the deal too?" Mike smirked, knowing he couldn't resist. Before you could react, Dustin started. "IsawY/nandEddieinhistrailermakingoutandtheytoldmethatthey'resleepingtogetherandtokeepitasecret" Dustin spoke at the speed of light, making the entire table erupt in laughter. This earned looks from other cliques, but that didn't worry you at the moment.

Mike put a hand on Dustin's shoulder. "Slow down. Say that again?" You put your head into your hands, the embarrassment too much to bear. "I saw Y/n and Eddie in his trailer making out and they told me that they're sleeping together and to keep it a secret!" you waited for angry rants and complaints, but there was just silence.

"That's it?" Lucas tilts his head. "We already knew that, dingus!" You look at Eddie, who shakes his head. Dustin's jaw drops again. "WAS I THE ONLY ONE WHO DIDN'T KNOW?!" he sighed when everyone at the table nodded.

"How could you not know? They're literally holding hands under the table as we speak!" Mike points out, making you remove your hand from Eddie's. "You two aren't exactly subtle. Everybody knows why Eddie let you join, because he was in love with you." Lucas laughed.

Eddie blushes, knowing it was true. "You guys are okay with it, right?" He asks, making them shrug. "Just don't make it awkward," Gareth said.

After a long day at school, Eddie drove you back to his trailer after his campaign. "You really need to help Dustin lie or something.." you laugh, holding Eddie's hand as he was driving away from the school. He smiles brightly. "I'm glad the secrets are out now, though. I've wanted to show you off for so long. Let everyone know you're mine.." you could tell he was thinking about something because he was mumbling. He only did that when he was deep in thought. "What is it, Eds?" you yawn.

"I think I'm in love with you, Y/n." He looks at you for approval. You tried to hold back the big smile forming on your face. "I think I love you too, Munson." You lean over and kiss his cheek. "Focus on the road so we don't crash." you giggle. During the ride home, you catch him staring at you longingly, like had been waiting to hear those words for years. He had.

He opened the passenger door for you. "Wow, and they say chivalry is dead.." you laugh when he bows dramatically. "What do you say we continue what we were doing this morning before we were rudely interrupted, sweetheart?" He ushered you inside. "That's the best idea you've had all day, Munson." with that, he pulls you in for a deep kiss.

"After you, m'lady." He bows and motions for you to walk to his bedroom first. "God, you're such a nerd." You laugh and walk ahead of him, yelping when he slaps your ass for the 15th time that day.

[bratshaws]

goodness gracious 53. brb x oc

i love this man

a/n: I'm just creating a buildup cause it's possible that the chapter where Bea surprises him will be quite l o ng ....WE'LL SEE! anyway, feedback is welcome and encouraged!!

check out the fic's playlist made by the sweet @wiipes !!

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: fluff, Rooster is good with kids more news at 11

chapters:

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35/36/37/38/39/40/41/42/43/44

45/46/47/48/49/50/51/52

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!!)

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @shrimping-for-all @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix

@lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

@peachiicherries @mak-32 @lizziespidiepridie @roosterswifey @ollyoxenfrees @piceous21 @sqrlgrl22 @hofficoffi @lexhalstead3 

@lorilane33 @legendarydreamersharkparty @luckyladycreator2 @emilybradshaw @j-6o @louisahale @leobabbyyy @kulicny @winter-run @ktjmac

-

When the 23rd finally rolled around, Beatrice had already separated and fixed everything for the surprise. It was very well hidden, in places Bibi would never wonder about. She did that on Monday, right after helping Penny and Shells at the bar and during the time Rooster called.

For a second she wondered if he knew something was up and wanted to know if she would share something about it, but it was just to let her know that Bibi could come with them.

She had to admit her worry diminished but it was still present, now it was because of Bibi joining a Navy ball more than her finding out what her aunt was planning. She knew her niece would be curious and maybe ask people things once they get there, so she had to have a conversation with her before they left.

Thankfully, she didn’t have to go to work that night nor during the weekend since it was Christmas and she’d only be needed at the bar a few days before the New Years.

Penny wouldn’t be able to join Beatrice’s NYE party since she,Pete and Amelia would go on a trip together and celebrate the New Year out of the country. Which it was fine, it was completely understandable to her, they deserved to have some family time together.

Beatrice took one last look around her house, making sure nothing was out of place before Bianca arrived, which according to her brother it wouldn’t be too long, they just left their house after all. She sighs, looking down at Jolene who’s lying on the couch with her sock monkey under her chin, “Well, I think now it’s just wait until they get here.” she says, sitting down next to her dog to scratch her ears, the pittie makes a happy noise while fluttering her eyes closed.

With her eyes going between her phone and the front door, Beatrice tried to calm her anxious heart down. So much was going to happen in a matter of hours: the ball, then Bianca sleeping over, then the Christmas Celebration and then…the surprise, which she was the most nervous about. The original plan was doing this in his place, but now that Jolene was going to spend some time out of her house she had all of this space to use.

That was a lot of space.

She’d have to move the coffee table out of the way and maybe push her couch a bit…but she could do it, she hoped. She was trying to not chicken out already, not only because this was something she’s been planning for weeks but also because she wanted to surprise him! But what if he gets weirded out by it? What if what Shells suggested wasn’t even something he thought about? What if he got horrified by her doing that? 

She sunk deeper into the couch, rubbing her face with both hands. She’ll be completely fine, she’ll be okay, she doesn’t have to worry about that right now. Luckily her line of thought was completely broken by the sound of a car parking and a high pitched voice saying ‘auntie!!’

Beatrice couldn’t help the smile, especially after Jolene perked up when she heard it too, leaping out of the couch to check who it was by the window. The brunette opened her front door as her older brother did the same, her little overexcited niece bouncing on the toddler seat begging to be released from her childish prison.

“Auntiee!!!” comes Bianca’s voice from inside the car, Leo trying to unbuckle her safely but his daughter was just too happy to keep still. Bianca slid from the toddler seat once her father unbuckled her, crawling between his parted legs to the floor before Leonardo could stop her. “Auntiee!!” she says again, this time louder and clearer, her little legs running in Beatrice’s direction.

Her aunt crouches to engulf the little girl in a hug, her niece latching around her neck like a little spider monkey and there she stayed even after Beatrice turned to Leonardo, “Hey.” she laughs at his tired expression, holding up a backpack that was filled with Bianca’s clothes “Thank you.”

“Yeah,you are welcome.” Leonardo sighs, placing his hands on his hips when his daughter looks up at him, “Alright, kiddo, listen up. You are going out with auntie Bea and Bradley–”

“Prince Rooster!”

“...prince Rooster, so you behave, okay? Don’t wander away from auntie and if you don’t know where things are you need to ask her of Br-Prince Rooster.” he was grimacing so hard when he said it,that Beatrice laughs, “Then you go home tomorrow, after we stay at nonna and nonno.”

Bianca looked over her aunt’s shoulder where Jolene was, wagging her long tail happily upon seeing the little girl, “With Jojo!”

“Yes, with Jojo.”

“Yaaay!!” Bianca throws her arms up, thankfully Beatrice was holding her because the little girl’s spine bent backward in a way it’d definitely make her fall, “Thank you daddy!” Leonardo just chuckles softly, leaning forward to press a kiss to the top of her blonde head then another one on his sister’s forehead.

“If you need any help give us a call, okay?” he says quietly, “We can come and pick her up.”

Beatrice smiles, “I know, enjoy the night off though.” she says as she slides the smaller backpack strap on her shoulder, laughing when her brother just rolled his eyes with an exhausted expression but he waved until he got back inside the truck. The two watched him reverse then leave her driveway, disappearing from their view.

Beatrice carries Bianca inside, lowering her to the floor so she could greet Jolene by hugging the dog’s neck. Her aunt just smiles, removing the child backpack from her shoulder so she could unzip it and see what was inside. She could see Bianca’s blue dinosaur onesie that she liked to wear to bed, a baby pink colored dress with her tiny shoes on top and a Tigger travel case with her toothbrush and toiletries. 

After placing the backpack on top of her desk, Beatrice returned to see Bianca sitting cutely on the couch with her red sneakers hitting each other as she smiles towards her aunt, “Alright,Bibi,” she begins, sitting down next to her and combing some wild strands of blonde that escaped her hair band, “Do you know where we are going tonight?”

“I’m going out with you and Prince Rooster!” she announces happily, tapping her shoes vigorously with her hands on the couch.

“Well, yes, but do you know where we are going?” Bianca pauses, then shakes her head with the smile still present. Beatrice turns her body so she’s facing the little girl completely now, “We are going to a gala, do you know what a gala is?” again she shakes her head, “It’s a big party with a lot of fancy people, most of them are Rooster’s friends. It’s like Cinderella’s ball, remember?”

Honestly it was the only way she could explain to a five years old in simple terms. And it was enough for Bianca’s eyes to double in size and a soft gasp make it’s way out of her mouth, “...Cinderella’s ball?” she repeats, looking at her aunt with pure wonder, “...you are a princess…” she whispers with complete resolution, something in a child’s mind to only grasp parts of what you told them was still amusing to Beatrice.

She laughs softly, shaking her head, “No, no, I’m not a princess honey. We are going to a ball like we see in the movies.” but her niece just kept staring at her, already made up her mind that one of her deepest wishes just came true and her aunt was indeed a princess. Beatrice decides then to just leave it like that, because now the damage was done and there was no way Bianca would understand what she was talking about.

Clearly the little girl was over the moon, she was bouncing on her seat and squealing with pura delight at the information her aunt was now part of royalty…like Cinderella was. Beatrice lets out a soft laugh, reaching for her phone so she could message Rooster 

Bea (13:32)

Hey Roos, Bibi is here already. I just told her about where we are going and she’s very excited.

Roos (13:33)

Hey gorgeous, that’s good :) I’m going to pick you both up around seven okay?”

Bea (13:34)

Yeah, of course Roos! :3 We’ll be waiting for you. Then you are going to spend the night too right?

Roos (13:36)

Of course ;) I promise I’ll behave but that depends on how good you’ll look.

Bea (13:37)

Bradley Nicholas Bradshaw, do not start.

Roos (13:38)

Because you know I always finish it, don’t you?;) But I promise, I will behave. Bibi will have a good time too, you’ll see.

Her smile and gaze softened at his reply and she thanked him, telling him she couldn’t wait to see him later. He said he couldn’t wait either and that he ‘was annoyed the time wasn’t going by any faster.’  much for her amusement. After she set the phone away she turned to her niece who was still grinning now that her aunt was a princess and decided that she could get some of her old drawing supplies for Bianca to pass the time.

Once she grabs them, she sees the canvas hidden behind her armoire. She finished it a few days ago but she was still nervous about it, much like the surprise on the 24th this was also…something she planned. Well, not planned, it happened before she could stop herself and she feared that Rooster would be a bit…weirded out by it? Well, she had the time to think about it, especially how she wanted to show it to him after the main event tomorrow night.

-

Rooster parks the Bronco in front of Beatrice’s house at seven sharp, he steps out of the truck running his hands down the suit to prevent any crinkles when he stands up. He gives himself another look by checking his reflection on the window and then turns on his heel to reach the door.

He’s already smiling even before arriving, seeing four pairs of eyes - one green and human and the other brown and very canine - looking at him out of the window. Bradley is still looking at the two as he knocks on the door, hearing Beatrice say she’s coming but he’s surprised when Bianca is the one who opens it instead.

Her aunt’s shocked voice comes from the loft, where he could hear her rushing inside the bathroom to finish touching up as Bianca looks up at him. She gasps softly, her blonde hair combed back with a light pink headband keeping it back. The baby pink poofy dress she wore once again made her look like a little pixie, “Woaahh…” she whispered, “...just like Cinderella…”

Bradley chuckles confusedly but holds his hands by the wrist in front of him,  “Hi,Bibi, did your auntie tell you to open the door?” she steps back so he can come in, closing the door behind himself and petting Jolene behind the ears.

“I did not!” comes Beatrice’s voice from the bathroom, “I told her to wait for me but she didn’t! She knows not to do that!”

Rooster turns to face Bianca, who is still looking at him with wide amazed eyes, “Well, your auntie is right, you can’t open the door for a stranger.” the little girl’s eyes turn guilty and she scuffs her shoe against the floor.

“But you aren’t a stranger,” she says, “You are prince Rooster.”

“I know but even then, you should wait for your aunt, okay?” the little girl nods, and Rooster holds up his pinky “Pinky promise?” Bianca’s eyes lit up and she giggled, holding up her much smaller finger to hook around his the best she could. Once they did that, Rooster looked back up to the loft area where he could see the bathroom light was on. He didn’t go up the stairs, he chose to keep Bianca company instead.

Which was fine to him, the little girl was always very talkative and asked him a lot of things. She asked him about his medals, told him he looked just like a prince and that she couldn’t wait to go to Cinderella’s ball. Bea must’ve explained to her that way so she’d understand it better.

He hears the bathroom light click and he turns his head, his eyes widening and mouth parting when Beatrice comes into view. The dress looked amazing on her, hugged her in the right places and gave her such a sexy silhouette he was having a hard time keeping his eyes still. Beatrice smiles shyly, the light red lipstick she wore only made her mouth appear even fuller than it was, as she makes her way down by holding the ends of her dress, “So? What do you think?”

Bradley drops his eyes over her figure for a few more seconds, “I think I need to pay Evelyn a drink.” he says breathily, making his girlfriend laugh sweetly. He grabs her hand to bring her closer, eyes still looking all over her body “God damn.” he whispers so Bianca wouldn’t hear, “God damn you look amazing.”

Beatrice laughs again, leaning up to peck his lips before she touches his clothed chest “You look quite handsome Lieutenant Bradshaw.” and she sees in his eyes how those exact words affected him, the way his pupils enlarged and his breath hitched. Well, that is one theory proven right already, that’s a great  start, “So, shall we go?”

He hesitated, dropping his brown irises down her body then meeting her eyes again, the way his chest heaved subtly meant he was trying to figure out what to do next. He knew there was nothing he could actually do because of Bibi, who was now bouncing by his side chanting the words ‘Cinderella’s Ball!’ over and over, “...yeah, let’s.” he says then, giving her one last once over as she walks past him to grab her clutch, the toddler seat and Bianca’s cow printed jacket.

Bradley licks his lips, trying to regain his composure as he follows Beatrice out of the house, the brunette telling Bianca that she should never open the door for anyone unless an adult is close by and just because it was Bradley it didn’t mean she could do it. Bianca nodded, holding her aunt’s hand and then turning to Bradley who was still looking at Beatrice, her green eyes blinking at the two adults. 

“Okay, now, let’s put the seat on.” Beatrice smiles as she turns to Bradley, waiting for him to open the Bronco but he remained immobile and his eyes were so dark she felt she’d be sucked into them “Brad? The car?” he snaps out of it, shaking his head and muttering ‘right, the car,’ while making his way over to the Bronco to open the door for her. He stood to the side, trying so hard to not stare at how her ass looked in that dress and trying to focus on Bianca who now held his hand.

He looked down at her, watching the little girl bounce on the spot still holding his hand. He chuckles, letting her hold her weight on his arm as she leans back, stopping when her aunt turns around to pick her up and place her onto the seat. He watches Beatrice say something to her niece, then peck her forehead while placing her cow print jacket and a toy on her lap to play with. 

When she leans back, she’s not surprised to see his eyes still on her and she hid nothing from roving her own eyes on him. God he looked really good in uniform. He steps closer, giving one quick look to where Bianca was playing with her giraffe toy, too busy to pay attention to the adults outside.

 His hands are on the flare of her hips, feeling the fabric touch his fingers as he tugs her closer, chest touching and his head dropping on the side of her neck that wasn’t covered by hair, “Fuck you look so good.” he mutters against her ear, kissing below the earlobe and avoiding her earring.

Beatrice smiles hugging his neck, humming happily when he presses a series of kisses on her skin, “You said you’d behave.” she whispers, pushing against his chest after he makes an annoyed noise, “Remember?”

“I do,” he replies once he’s facing her once again, “I know nothing can happen tonight…but there’s always tomorrow,right?”

Beatrice inhaled sharply, fearing that he somehow knew of her plans but…no, no he was just saying it. There was no way he’d know, she was being very careful about everything, but still she had to keep her focus on getting everything done right. “Yes.” she says finally, easing out a breath, “Of course.” he leans down to kiss her again and she couldn’t help the deep sigh that leaves through her nose. That kiss was full of promises she knew he wouldn’t achieve tonight but it was still wonderful.

He waits until she sits down, smirking down at her before he shuts the door. “Okay,Bradley,” he whispers to himself, closing his eyes as he inhales and exhales courage, “Focus, she looks beautiful but you have to focus.” he repeats, flitting his gaze to her smiling form and feeling his own words disappear from his mind, “Fuck.”

Beatrice waits until Bradley is inside giving him a grin before she turns to Bianca who’s still playing with her giraffe toy, “We’re ready.” she says and her boyfriend just inhales one more time, nodding firmly and turning the car on to drive them away. It didn't take too long to arrive at their destination, it looked like it was a social club of some sort, it was huge and had giant palm trees adorning the outside.

She saw other officers making their way up the steps, some of them accompanied and others alone. She felt a pang of insecurity when she saw how the ladies accompanying them were thinner and looked like supermodels, even if they were clearly much older than she was. Bradley noticed her hesitance but didn’t say anything until he parked the car, waiting for her to get out and grab Bianca.

The little girl just gasped in awe, holding onto her aunt’s hand as Bradley locked the Bronco. Beatrice was still chewing her lower lip nervously, her posture changed too, she was trying to hide herself, “Hey,” he says softly, snapping her attention to him, “You look beautiful.”

Her smile spread immediately, cheeks reddening to its usual tomato red color, “Yeah, auntie!” Bianca agrees, bouncing next to Beatrice, “You look beautiful! Like a princess!” the brunette laughs, thanking her niece then turning to Bradley with the same smile.

“Thank you.” she whispers, but her eyes turn back to where the other officers were, “I’m just nervous.” he knows, he can see it. He places one of his hands on her lower back after she leans down to pick Bianca who immediately hugged her neck.

“I know, babe.” he says as he guides the two up the stairs, nodding to a couple officers that were outside chatting, “But you’ll do fine, you are with me.” She still looked worried, chewing the inside of her lower lip as her niece looked around the area with wide eyes, incredibly amazed by her surroundings. It takes him a few minutes to figure out where exactly they would sit, until his eyes stopped on Mav who had just stood up from the table and was waving them over, “Come on.”

Beatrice speeds up her step to keep up with Bradley’s long strides, all the while preventing from hitting any other officer along the way. They stop at the table where Mav, much like Bradley was wearing his uniform, smiles sweetly at the three of them, “Hey you two.” he says, wrapping his arm around Rooster in a hug before he turns to Beatrice, “And who is this one?”

Bianca blinks when the question is directed towards her, looking at her aunt for permission which was granted, “I’m Bianca Marie!” she says, “I’m five!” just by those few words she already snagged Pete by the heart. Beatrice turns to where Penny and Amelia were seated, giving them a little wave before she sits down herself, thanking Rooster when he pulls the chair for her.

“You look gorgeous.” Amelia says, “I don’t think I’ve seen you this pretty before.”

The brunette just laughs softly, setting Bianca down next to her and next to the empty seats that she had a feeling would be occupied by Shells and Bob real soon, “Thank you, you two look great as well.” she smiles, placing both of her hands on her lap as she finally takes in her surroundings.

 Everything is beautifully decorated with flowers and dark blue drapery, there's an area that she was sure it’d be used as a dance floor later and a large white screen stood behind the stage. From a distance she could see Evelyn following her parents to their own table, the woman lifted her head and met the brunette’s eyes, who smiled and waved. Evelyn did the same, but held up her phone and pointed to it, questioning without words if they could text via there later.

Bea nods, holding out her own phone before Evelyn sits down herself. Beatrice chews her lower lip, still overwhelmed by the amount of Navy personnel surrounding them, she had never seen so many uniforms in her life before, even in the Hard Deck. She notices a few of them, the wives mainly, looking her way and she immediately feels like she’s being judged, dropping her gaze away to play with her thumb ring.

Bianca was in a deep conversation, well as deep as a five years old would be, with Amelia and Penny, telling them about the several stories she had from her preschool. Especially the time she saved a squirrel from drowning in a pond not too far from the playground. Bradley and Pete were busy chatting quietly, her boyfriend asking him something about the Admiral who passed…she unfortunately couldn’t hear the name correctly, but she noticed how Pete pointed to the stage then back at a table behind them. 

She saw a family, well, mainly a woman who she could only assume was the Admiral’s widow and their family. For a second she wondered if– no, no no thinking about that, not now. Not now. What happened to him wasn’t even aviation related from what Bradley told her, but still…she tried to change her focus, running tapping her hands together nervously as she kept looking around.

She jumped when a hand touched the exposed upper back, a thumb gently touching the line of her spine, “How are you feeling?” Bradley asks once Pete turns his attention to Penny, Amelia and Bianca who was still talking. 

“I…” she laughs softly, “Still overwhelmed I guess…” but the warmth of his hand on her back was helping her calm down a bit. Beatrice tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, muttering a curse when some tresses get stuck on her earring and she has to tug them off, “But I’ll be fine.”

Rooster smiles, “I know you will,” he leans closer to kiss her cheek, loving how it was already warm “Just talk to me during the night, okay? If you need anything I’m here.” she knew, and she appreciated it. Her gaze softened, one of her hands coming up to touch his cheek and thank him with a peck to the lips.

Mav watched the whole thing from his seat, smiling proudly at the interaction and then leaning closer to Penny, “Remember when I said seven months?” She makes a confused noise, but her eyes turn to the young couple,”Might be sooner than that.”

“Mav.”

“Mark my words, it might be much sooner.” he chuckles, “Much much sooner.”