#would have finished this yesterday but I almost fell asleep on my tablet

[jullbnt]

Day 6

Fated to meet again 💜

@zelinkcommunity

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 7

[comfyswitcherblanketfort]

My Darling Cat Roommate

lmao this isn’t lambden, as the title may suggest. sorry folks

@stinastar hit me with some feels over and modern roommate au where Geralt just doesn’t know what to do to make Jask feel better and this happened. 

Warnings: We go into some Seasonal Affective Depression stuff here so like be careful with that if it triggers you, jask beats himself up a little, mentioning feeling numb at things that usually bring him joy, i swear in this one. I haven’t changed, dont worry lol

_______________________

Jaskier trudged home from work on Friday, exhausted but relieved he had the next week off. He wolfed down the leftovers Geralt had heated up for him and almost fell asleep on the couch before Geralt hauled him up and walked him into his room, where he promptly fell asleep on top of his duvet in jeans and his shoes. Sometime around when early morning coffee workers were getting up he undressed and snuggled under the warm blankets. 

When he woke to Geralt making a smoothie he was prepared to launch into a full ‘morning people’ rant, only to check his phone and realize it was 2pm. So, maybe he’d needed rest. 

It was still grey enough out that he shrugged and went back to sleep. 

When he woke up again it was dark and the TV was going. He wrapped up in his comforter rather than putting on sweats and shuffled out to the kitchen only because his stomach growled when he tried to roll over.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty!” Geralt called over his shoulder as he floated past with the pasta he’d left in the microwave. 

Jaskier just grunted a small “Thanks,” before he disappeared back into his room. He scrolled through various apps as he ate and rolled back into bed. 

He might have fallen asleep, he might not, but he certainly didn’t get out of bed until his bladder absolutely demanded it on Sunday morning. 

Geralt intercepted him in the hallway before he could make it back to his room, “You feeling okay?”

“Hm? Why?” Jaskier took a moment to respond, staring at Geralt like he’d grown a second head. He knew his hair was probably greasy but he couldn’t look that bad.

“You slept all day yesterday.” Geralt looked like he was diffusing a bomb rather than talk to his roommate, “Did something happen at work?” 

Jaskier just shrugged, “I’m just tired.” And a little numb.

Geralt nodded, “I’m headed to the store. You sure you don’t want me to pick anything up for you?”

“I’m okay, Geralt…” he sighed, slipping past his brick wall of a roommate to slink beneath his blankets once again and make himself as small as possible. 

It was late January and the Seasonal Affective Depression was in full swing. He should have bought that fucking happy light when it was on sale. Should have bought the Vitamin D tablets he saw last week. Should have let Geralt drag him to the gym a little more when he felt the initial dip. Should have blah blah blah. He thought over every little thing he knew would have helped that he just hadn’t done and sighed, pulling his blankets tighter around him. He knew he wasn’t going to do any of it until it got bad enough that his hair would stick to his forehead once he hit this point. Might as well hurry it along so it could be over with. 

Geralt knocked on his door, snapping him out of his mini spiral. He hummed, not even bothering to turn over until he heard the rattle of the doorknob. 

“I know you didn’t want anything, but… uh. I was in the bulk section. Got you the peach things.” Geralt’s voice was lower and softer than usual as he raised the frankly massive bag of peach rings for emphasis before he set them on Jaskier’s desk. 

“Than-” Jaskier coughed when his voice came out raspy and broken, “Thank you.”

Geralt leaned against the doorframe for a moment, a curious frown on his face, “Bake Off is on in an hour if you wanna watch it.”

Jask forced a smile and shrugged, “We’ll see.”

Geralt pursed his lips and nodded, pausing a moment before pushing off the doorframe, “Okay.” 

Jaskier stared at the peach rings for a while after Geralt closed the door. Eventually he compromised with his brain and rolled out of bed onto his knees, waddling a couple of steps until he could reach the rings then launch back to bed. 

Normally he would have almost cried with happiness that Geralt had gotten his favorite treat. He loved it when Geralt did little things for him or thought of him enough to give him something, but he felt rather indifferent as he shoved the twentieth peach ring in his mouth. 

Without warning his door opened just enough for a plate to appear and be gently set on his desk.

Geralt muttered, “For the sugar high…” before his hand disappeared and the door once again shut. 

Jaskier almost smiled when he saw the neatly arranged concentric circles of Totinos Pizza Rolls on the plate. He got to his feet to fetch them this time. 

Around ten that night there was another knock at his door that pulled him from an hour long scroll through tiktok.

“Jask?”

“Yeah?”

Geralt held a big grey bundle in his arms, “Do you- Uh. I thought- weighted blanket?” He held his arms out with a hesitant smile. 

Jaskier sat up, “But don’t you use it to sleep?”

Geralt shrugged, unfolding the bean-filled blanket and laying it over Jaskier’s legs, “I’ll be fine.”

Jaskier stared at the ceiling for a while after he left, confused by Geralt’s suddenly attentive behavior. He would have expected the grouchy man to enjoy the silence that came with his bad days. For how much Geralt complained about his loud music, he certainly wasn’t expecting gifts. 

Geralt left a note in the kitchen Monday morning saying he’d made Jaskier a breakfast sandwich with instructions on how to warm it up without it turning soggy. Jaskier stood in front of the panini press reading and rereading the note as he heated his breakfast like it was in Old English. He ate at the kitchen table this time, annoyed with the crumbs in his bed, and counted up all the little gifts he’d been brought. He could come to only one conclusion.

Geralt was part cat. 

He’d stopped functioning and Geralt kept bringing him mice. 

He smirked and sent him a quick text, “Thanks for the breakfast. 👌 V  good.”

After breakfast, he decided maybe he could change his pajamas, but he stayed tucked under Geralt’s weighted blanket for most of the day. Every now and then Geralt would text him something stupid Eskel or Lambert did, or a meme he found on his break, and every time Jaskier would grin and send back an emoji. Words were out of reach but Geralt frequently only communicated in emojis and one-word sentences. He should get the message.

Jaskier fell asleep around two, really asleep not just the fitful light sleep he’d been having the last couple of days. He was rousted from a dream about a talking panini press by Geralt tripping over a pile of laundry and softly swearing as he tried to right himself without crashing into the bed or Jaskier’s lute. 

“Geralt? Darling, what are you doing?”

Geralt finally caught himself and nearly blinded Jaskier with a smile as he straightened up, “Didn’t mean to wake you.” 

Jaskier sat up and scratched at his hair, “Yes, but doing what?” 

“Oh! Yeah. Uh. I-” Geralt, still grinning, pointed to a small fern in a bright orange clay pot sitting on his windowsill. 

“You got me a plant?”

Geralt was practically beaming when Jaskier glanced back at him. 

“Has anyone ever told you you’re a cat?” 

Geralt snorted, sitting down on the edge of the bed, “You’re feeling better?” 

Jaskier tilted his head, “I think so? What makes you say that?”

“You called me ‘Darling’.” 

A hesitant smile crept on Jaskier’s face. There was an echo of the usual all-consuming warmth spreading in his chest that he usually felt when Geralt smiled at him. He may indeed be feeling a bit better. Come to think of it he actually wanted to shower.

“I taped Bake Off. If you’re feeling up for a trek to the couch,” Geralt offered, forced nonchalance dripping from every word. 

Jask nodded, “Let me shower, then we can finish off the peach rings.” 

Geralt’s smile nearly stopped his heart, a sure sign he was nearing the land of the living again, “I got lasagna on the way home too,” he chirped as he jumped up and made his way to the door. 

“Hey, Darling?” It felt a little forced and goofy saying the pet name like that, but Jaskier just couldn’t help himself, “Thank you.”

Geralt’s smile softened, “Anytime.”

[ask-voreganronpa-boys]

"Ryota…cmon it's 4am…you need to sleep already…" you groan tiredly as you wipe your eyes. You had been up with your partner since yesterday and he hadn't taken a break yet. And without help from the imposter to lay him down, you were left alone to try and coax him to sleep, though haven't been successful in the slightest. He was just too focused on his work. You understood that he was determined to finish and strongly connected to his ongoing project, but staying up multiple nights in a row was just…insane. Especially since he hadn't eaten anything in a while either. Needless to say, you were worried

"B-but I have to get this done, Y/N…I can't just stop now! N-not when I'm this close!" The brunette retorts quickly, eyes still steadily focused on the screen in front of him, hand still quickly moving like the wind. It seemed nothing was going to distract him…

You sigh and look at the phone on the far side of the desk. The imposter had given you two their number before they left for a few days. They said to text them if Ryota or you were in trouble. You figured tonight would be one of those nights. You grunt and get up, ducking under Ryota's arm, and got to the other side of the desk. You unlock the phone with ease and clicked over to the messages. It didn't take you long to send a text to the imposter and didn't take much longer for a text back saying they were on the way. You sigh and look back at your partner. You crawl back over, maybe you could get his attention this way? You crawl onto his tablet and grab his wrist, "Ryota please go lay down!" You plead to him

"Wh-wha!? Y/N get off my tablet!!" He squeaks out in surprise, grabbing you from the back of your shirt and lifted you off his tablet, and set you down on the table, "I-I told you I can't sleep! I'm sorry Y/N but I can't take a break—" his worried rant was cut short by a soft groan coming from the boys' skinny abdomen, causing him to hug his gut in pain

"Mitarai!" You call to him in fear. You grit your teeth, "You have to eat something! Please! You haven't eaten in days!" You plead and run back over to him, "I'm worried about you!!" You frown, "e-eat…eat me if you have to…" you look down. You were willing to do anything for him…even if it meant something like this…

"Mmn…wh-WHAT!? WHY WOULD YOU—" he was cut off by another sharp pain in his gut. He would whimper sadly. He lays his head on the desk and turned his head to look at you, "mmn…I…I can't d-do that…you'll get h-hurt…" he was almost close to tears. Everything was now building up and now that you asked him of such a thing…

"Dear…you're not going to hurt me…I trust you…I just want to help you…" you frown and lay your hands on his nose, "my darling, just trust me…please…" you plead to him and kiss his nose. You reach up to wipe his tears away, "I'll be fine…you need to eat…" you sigh shakily

He sniffs sadly but takes your words into consideration. After a while, he nods. "O-o-okay…I-I trust you…" he sniffs and sits up. He shakily reached down to pick you up, holding you in shakey, cupped hands. "P-please…please be safe…" he frowns and nuzzled your belly with his nose, causing you to softly giggle in return. He sighs nervously and sits completely up, "s-so…do I just…put you in my mouth?" He asks with a soft gulp

You take a deep breath and nod, holding your hands in your lap. You had to admit, you were nervous. Even though you were the one to suggest this, you were nervous. You gulp and look up into his pale gold eyes, "y-yeah…just like i-if you were eating something just…minus the chewing part!" You laugh nervously.

"A-as long as you're sure…" he'd take a deep breath, the warm air washing over you, soon you would be enveloped by it. He gulps and sticks his tongue out, deciding to taste test you first. He honestly had no clue of what to do. His tongue slipped out of his lips and slowly slid across your form. A chill went down his spine at the taste. "w-woah! y-you...you taste so sweet!" he was shocked honestly.

You couldn't help but squeak and shutter at the deep lick. It was…just a strange feeling…the feeling of being treated as a mere piece of food…you had to admit…it felt wonderful. "D-did I really?" You ask slowly, wiping the spit away from your eyes. You could feel your cheeks flush as you looked up at him, he sharing the same complexion. "I-I uh…I guess i-it's time h-huh?" You nervously smile up at him

"Y-yeah! I-I guess! I just hope you'll be okay with this…" he sighs shakily. "Well, alright then…bottoms up?" He laughs nervously before bringing you above his head and allowed you to slide carefully into his awaiting maw. His mouth already salivated just by the mere taste of you. His mouth shut behind you once you slid in entirely. "Mmmn!!" He let's out a shocked noise of delight. "Mmf! Oh man! So s-sweet!" He said around you, though quite muffled.

"W-woah!" You squeak as you slide into the artists mouth. It was unusually comforting in there. The tongue below you was nice and soft, and it was like a hug from all angles. You giggle at his little awes, but as much as yoh would like to take time to register this moment, the world around you shifted backwards. You slid to the back of his throat and was gulped down like some piece of candy. It wasn't all that bad though…in fact, it was amazing! Or at least that's what you thought of it that is. Being pushed down and down, further into your lover, hearing his booming heartbeat, and slowly traversing into a pale green section…it was pure bliss! There's no way a lover could get any closer to their partner! Soon enough you fell into a small chamber. It was small but you assumed it would be bigger…seeing as it was Mitarai's stomach. But you guessed it made sense, seeing as he hadn't eaten much of anything lately.

He burps softly into his hand and released another sound of awe. You felt the walls indent around you, that being him rubbing his stomach. "A-are you okay in there?" You could hear his voice ask nervously.

"Y-yes dear I'm fine!" You kinda giggle back. Sitting up, you push back on the indents where his fingers were. This was truly fascinating. You yawn, "dear? Please…get some sleep soon, yeah? That's what I'm about to do." You say, with full certainty that the imposter would be here soon to put Mitarai to bed. You lay down. You trusted him enough to sleep in such a usually dangerous organ. Soon enough, you close your eyes and start to rest. "Mmn…goodnight my dear…I love you…" you yawn

"O-oh! I-I'll try to! Sleep well o-okay!" He quickly says before noticing your drowsiness. He was baffled at how you could possibly fall asleep in such a place. "I…I love you too…" a small smile pulled on his lips as he said this.

"Goodnight"

[mascwhump]

Plotting (Chapter 15.5?)

Canon!

-

Crow opened his eyes to see a pair of boots. He rolled onto his back and rubbed his head.

“Hey, mate. You’ve got to move. You can’t sleep here.”

He looked up to see a man staring at him with a look of slight annoyance. Crow got to his feet and leaned on the cinder lock wall behind him.

“Sorry, I’m leaving,” Crow mumbled.

“Must’ve been a hell of a night,” the man said, “Need me to call you a cab?”

“Could... could I call my mate, actually?” Crow asked.

The man pulled out his cell phone and handed it to him. Crow dialed Deke’s number and looked around as it rang. They had dropped him off, unconscious from the drugs they had given him, in some alley.

“Hello?”

“Deke, hey,” Crow said.

“Crow?! Holy shit, where are you?” Deke practically yelled into the phone. Adrian and Ethan began talking in the background.

“I’m, uh- hey, where are we?” Crow asked the man.

“7th and Polar,” the man replied.

“7th and Polar,” Crow repeated into the phone.

“That’s uh... right, okay. We’re coming. Is Charlie with you?”

“No,” Crow mumbled.

“Okay. Shit, okay. We’re coming. Hang tight.”

Crow handed the phone back to the man after hanging up.

“Thanks,” he said.

“Don’t mention it. This is my restaurant right here, why don’t you come inside and have some tea while you wait? It’s about to rain,” the man said.

Crow followed him around to the front. He sat at a table near the window, watching as raindrops began to trickle down the glass. The man soon brought a cup of tea and set it in front of him.

“My name’s Beck, by the way,” he said.

“Crow,” he replied, extending his hand, “Nice place you’ve got here.”

“Thanks, it’s been in our family for years. It’s usually pretty busy, but as you can see, there’s not a lot of business at midnight on a Wednesday,” Beck laughed.

“Why stay open so late, then?” Crow asked.

“I get the occasional drunk crowd that orders enough to make it worth it,” Beck said.

Crow sipped on the tea. His head was pounding, but the hot liquid helped a bit. He noticed Beck was staring at the bandage on his arm, and rolled his sleeve down.

“I’ve got to finish cleaning the back,” Beck said, “but feel free to grab a newspaper from the rack to keep yourself occupied.”

After he was out of sight, Crow took him up on the offer and took a newspaper. He made it about halfway through the second page before he fell asleep with his head on the table.

“Hey, I think your mates are here,” Beck said.

Crow startled awake and looked out the window. The jeep was parked out front, and the three of them were piling out of it. He stood and walked outside to meet them.

“Crow,” Adrian said, walking up to him with a slight limp.

“Your leg,” Crow said.

“It’s fine. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Crow reached into Adrian’s shirt pocket and took his wallet. He pulled out a £10 note and turned back to hand it to Beck.

“Thank you for your help,” he said.

“Anytime. Be safe,” Beck said, smiling.

Crow climbed into the passenger seat. Deke was driving, and Adrian and Ethan were in the back.

“So, what the hell happened? How’d you get out? Where’s Charlie?” Deke asked.

“Long story short, Mallory took Charlie to his house, and I was brought there a few days later. He made this mind control drug, and he almost made me shoot myself. From what I understand, he didn’t intend the gun to actually be loaded. So, for some reason, he let me go. I don’t know if it was to somehow apologize, or what, but I wouldn’t have gone if I wasn’t under that damn drug.”

It was silent for a moment as the group considered what he said. Crow’s chest began to ache as he remembered Charlie’s reaction in that moment.

“That seems... unlike him,” Adrian spoke.

“I know, I don’t understand it,” Crow said.

“We’re going back for Charlie, right?” Ethan asked.

“Of course we are,” Crow replied, “Even though he begged me not to. Once we get home, I’m doing everything I can to figure out that bastard’s address.”

The rest of the drive was talk of miscellaneous details, intel, and ideas. Deke parked the Jeep in front of the house, and they soon went inside. Crow went straight to the shower. He was careful with the cut on his arm, and knew Ethan needed to look at it. He put on clean clothes and went out to the dining table, where the others were waiting. Without saying anything, Ethan went to retrieve his kit and started inspecting his arm.

“I was drugged during the trips to and from his house. I don’t remember how far it was from the compound. I do know that you only need a car to get there,” Crow said.

Ethan put some antibiotic cream on his arm before wrapping it in a new bandage. He didn’t seem too concerned about it, for which Crow was relieved.

“I’ll talk to command. They should be able to find us an address,” Adrian said.

“I hope so. Command doesn’t seem too interested in helping us with this,” Crow replied.

“It’s shite. It’s like they’re acting as if this is no big deal. I had a meeting with them yesterday, and they want this entire mission dropped,” Adrian said, voice slightly raised.

“They’re probably the ones investing in this, especially the Americans. I mean, think about it. What he’s creating would be invaluable to our militaries. Maybe they sent us out there to save face,” Deke said.

Crow stared at him for a moment before sighing. He couldn’t entertain the idea, as much sense as it made. Ethan handed him a couple of paracetamol tablets and a glass of water.

“We all need to get some rest,” Crow said, “we can discuss this more in the morning.”

He took the pills and drank the rest of the water. They said their goodnights and filed into their rooms, while Deke got comfortable on the couch. Crow crawled under his sheets. The relief his muscles felt from the plush bed was immense. He stared at the ceiling for a while, mind racing as he tried to come up with a plan. He ended up falling asleep eventually, but woke from every small noise.

[hateswifi]

Lips are Chapped and Faded

SOOOO I did it again, accidently deleted the text, WARNING FEELS AHEAD. Hope you enjoy this quick fic, can anyone name where the title came from?

The Master: Master List

----------------------------

When he first saw her again she looked broken, she was hunched I’ve the bar with a glass of bourbon, not her usual drink. “Angel?” She sat up straight and looked up at him, her eyes red and puffy from crying. 

“Oh hey Damian,” She greets, throwing back her drink before wiping her mouth and eyes, smudging her mascara. 

“What’s the matter? Why’ve you been crying?” He asks, taking the glass from her hand. She stands, wobbling a bit. 

“Oh nothing just drunk crying. Have you ever done that before? Nah! You wouldn’t do that,” Marinette says, falling forward having tripped on her heels, luckily, he caught her before she could hit the ground. “Oh wow! You’re sooo strong! Have you been working out! You must be. I’m tired.”

“Then let’s get you home,” Damian says, unphased by her drunken chatter. 

“I love you ya know? I shoulda asked you out when I got the chance,” Marinette giggles, putting her head on his shoulder. They walk, in Marinette’s case, stumbling, to Damian’s car. He opens the passenger door, wraps his coat around her shoulders, and buckles her seat belt. He sighs and drives her to his apartment. 

When they get into his apartment, with some difficulties, he gives some food and water. “Here, or you're going to regret it in the morning.”

“Thankssss Birdie,” Marinette says, taking the cup. 

“Come on, I’ll help you get situated,” he says, helping her stumble down the hall. He sits her on his bed and takes off her heels before grabbing a shirt from his draw. “If you want to get changed here’s a shirt, and a pair of shorts that one of my sisters left over here sometime.” He hands them to her and she starts to lift the hem of her dress. He quickly turns around, giving her privacy and hiding his blush. 

“Damiii I’m all done, your turn!” Marinette says in a sing-song voice. 

“Angel, just lay down,” Damian sighs. 

“Why! I’m not tired!” Marinette says, crossing her arms. 

“You are and you’ll fall asleep when you lay down.”

“Will you lay with me?”

“Marinette, I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

“Pleaaaase Birdie only until I fall asleep,” Marinette pleads. 

“Fine,” Damian huffs, laying down. She follows, slipping under the sheets beside him. Not too long after, she falls asleep. He gets up to get changed. He pulls on clean sweatpants and pulled off his shirt and was going to put on a different one, when small arms wrap around his chest. Feather light kisses dance across his back. 

“Dami you left me,” Marinette whispers, her breath making the butterflies flutter in his stomach. 

“I’m just changing, lay down, I'll be back in a second,” Damian said, his breathing a bit uneven. She let go of him and padded back to the bed as he finished pulling on his shirt. He evened out his breath before climbing back in bed he laid on his side, facing away from Marinette. They fell into a comfortable sleep. 

He woke up the sheets being thrown on him, followed by footsteps running down the hall. His bathroom door crashed open and puking followed. He got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. He held back her hair and rubbed small circles in her back as Marinette threw up everything. 

After she finished she leaned up against his tub and looked up at him. “Ibuprofen,” she panted. “Please.”

He nodded before rushing to the kitchen. He filled up a glass of water and grabbed her two tablets, before heading back to the bathroom. “Here ya go, feel any better?”

She took the pill and gulped down water. When she finished she said, “much.”

“You want breakfast?”

“Sure, pancakes?”

“I could manage, but after your done eating we have to talk about the message you sent me yesterday, you know considering I haven’t seen you in months,” Damian said, holding out a hand, she took it and he helped her stand up. They walk to the kitchen and Damian grabs out the ingredients as she sips more water from her spot at the island. 

“Could you remind me what the message said?” Marinette asked, putting her head on the cool countertop.

“I’ll play it,” Damian says, pulling out his phone. ‘Hiiiii Dami! I’m in Gotham for a month or so and I would love to spend it with you hanging out and doing stuff ya know?’ Her voice filled the apartment. 

“God, what the heck is the matter with me?” Marinette said, rubbing her face. 

“So it’s not true,” Damian asks, flipping a pancake, his disappointment hidden because his back was turned. 

“No! No I do, I just didn’t want to ask drunk, ya know?” Marinette said quickly. 

“Uhhh… yeah, here’s the first one,” Damian says, plopping a pancake on her plate. “Sure It’d be fun to hand out with you, just let me know what you wanna do ok?”

“Cool, this is a really good pancake, can I have another one?”

“Sure.”

A week later is when she called him. “Hey Damian, wanna meet up at out cafe for lunch?”

“That would be fine,” Damian answered, looking over some papers before checking the time, ten thirty. “Eleven-thirty?”

“Yep! I’ll meet you then,” Marinette responds cheerfully before hanging up. He sighs, running a hand through his previously styled hair. 

He decided he wasn’t going to get anymore work done before leaving so he just left early. Their cafe doubled as a boon store so he looked around a bit till he saw Marinette. She wasn’t looking good, her hair didn’t look as full and she looked pale. 

“Hey Angel, are you feeling alright?” Damian asks, pulling out the seat across from her. 

“Oh umm I’m fine I just don’t get a lot of sleep and I forgot to put in makeup,” Marinette quickly explained. Not wanting to upset her, he didn’t touch the excuse. 

Their lunch was lovely, they talked about what they would do the incoming week. Half way through they were interrupted by a call. 

“Sorry, this is really important I have to take it,” Marinette said, standing up quickly. Not too long after she rejoined Damian. “I’m sorry that was a client, they had to reschedule a meeting so I’m going to meet them. See you later!”

“Bye Angel,” Damian says, hugging her before she rushed off. As soon as she was out of sight he plopped in his chair and ran a hand through his hair. 

Over the next two weeks, they did a bunch of activities such as going to the arcade, walking in the park, Six Flags, dancing under the stars, and dinner among other things. The day before she was supposed to leave it was almost midnight when he got a call. 

“Hey Damian, I hope I didn’t wake you,” Marinette’s voice, which has progressively gotten worse, came through the phone. 

“No I was finishing up some things for a meeting next week,” Damian said. 

“Can we meet up for a star gaze?”

“Uhh sure I’ll pick you up?” He said, throwing on a sweatshirt. “I’ll see you in a bit, bye.” When he pulls up to her hotel, she gets in the car silently. She was wearing a sweatshirt as well and she looked awful. They get to the park and he lays out the blanket he pulled out of the trunk. 

“It’s hard to see them, but I like laying with you,” Marinette said, her head on his shoulder. “I should’ve dated you when I had the chance.” He sat ip and looked at her. 

“Marinette whatever it is, whatever it was we can work through it,” Damian says, looking down at the girl who’s a shell of who she used to be. “Why didn’t you before?”

“When you asked me I was heading back and you were ready to come with me. But I couldn’t do that to you, you love being Robin,” Marinette said, placing a hand on his cheek. 

“But I loved— love I don’t know you more,” Damian states. 

“Damian, you wouldn’t have been happy,” Marinette says, letting her hand fall to rest beside her. 

“What about now? I know you're not well but let me help you,” Damian says, pulling her up into a hug. 

“I love you Damian Wayne, but I can’t be with you,” Marinette cried into his shoulder. 

“Please let me help you, we can solve this together,” Damian says, rubbing her back. 

“We can’t solve this, no one can, but you made these last weeks amazing,” Marinette said. “Can I kiss you?” He didn’t respond, just leaned forward, it was a short kiss, but that spark everyone talks about, it was there and now it is too late. “Can you take me back to my hotel?”

“Of course,” Damian says, standing before helping her up. He picks up the blanket and they walk to the car together. The drive back was silent and when she got out she left an envelope that had his name on it. It also had instructions to not open it until tomorrow. He wanted to open it and disregard what it said but he couldn’t, it was what she wanted. He sighed put his head on the steering wheel for a couple of minutes to collect his thoughts and feelings before driving back to his apartment. 

It was midday when he got a call half expecting it to be Marinette he picked it up. “Hello this Gotham Hospital, is this Damian Wayne?” an unfamiliar voice came. 

“Hello, yes this is he, what’s the matter?” He responds, leaning back in his chair. 

“We have you as an emergency contact for Miss Dupain-Cheng,” he continued. 

Damian sat up quickly.  “What happened?” He asked, standing up and grabbing his coat. 

“She was brought in after collapsing, she’s on life supports and there’s enough time to come say goodbye,” the doctor says, as Damian is running down the hall before clicking the elevator button multiple times. 

“I’m in my way,” he says, curtly as the elevator descends. He runs his hand through his hair as he sticks a hand in his pocket, he feels a paper. He pulls it out and his breathing hitches, her letter. He tears it open. 

‘Hey Birdie,

I’m sorry that you had to find out this way, but I’m dying of cancer. I found out a couple of weeks ago and by the time the doctors found it, it was too far along to do anything but make my last weeks of living less painful. I decided to fly to Gotham to spend them with you, because even though I rejected you, I loved you more than I could ever express. Thank you for the lovely weeks. I really hope I got to tell you this in words but I love you and I would have loved to have a relationship with you. 

You deserve everything I can’t give you, love,

Marinette.’

The elevator opens on the first floor and there are tears rolling down his face. He gets odd looks but he doesn’t care. He needs to see his Angel. 

He rushes to the hospital, it’s a miracle he didn’t get pulled over for speeding. He ran to the entryway, giving his keys to the valet. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng please” Damian’s breathe out. 

“Down the hall on the right fourth door down,” she says nonchalantly. 

He rushes into the room and sees her there, truly a shell of who she used to be. IVs attached to her arms and breathing on a ventilator. 

He walks to the foot of her bed and falls to his knees. “Angel, why didn’t you tell me? I love you please stay, I can’t live you again.” He whispers pleas and promises of love to her, he hopes she can hear him. Not to long after he got there and started pleading with her to stay the deafening flat line rung throughout the room, leaving a now free Angel and a broken-hearted boy to pick up the pieces she left him with. 

----------------------------

Hope you enjoyed!!

Permanent Tag:

@ash-amg @bee-wrecker @damianette-is-life @mjisntme @i-will-be-your-ace

[crystalwillow]

Trouble Follows Me, Part Two

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Casey Valentine (F!MC)

Features: Naveen Banerji

Word Count: 2.2K

==========================

Naveen rushed to Casey’s side, trying to get her to stand up as Ethan came rushing through, almost standing on Casey’s head, blinded by the alarm he heard in Naveen’s voice. “ETHAN SLOW DOWN!” Naveen shouted, pushing him back. Ethan looked on the floor and gasped at the state his girlfriend was in. “What has this done to you?” he whispered to himself. “Can you help me get her to the couch?” Naveen asked with urgency in his voice. Ethan nodded violently and helped Naveen, together the two men got her to the couch, and they checked her over before Naveen rushed to the freezer to get some frozen vegetables to hold on the spot where she hit her head on the floor. That night Ethan didn’t sleep at all. He sat on the couch next to Casey as she slept, keeping a cold compress on her head, and biting his nails as worry ate away at him. He hated this. He was aware that Jessica had a thing for him, but he never in a million years wanted to believe that she would pull something like this. Spreading lies about something so serious, so game changing in a relationship. Casey was his first official girlfriend and he swore on the ground he walked on she would be his only girlfriend and eventually his wife one day. But now he was more scared than ever before that it wouldn’t happen. As the sun started to rise outside, Naveen came out from his bedroom to use the bathroom, noting Ethan perched on the couch next to Casey’s still sleeping form.

“Have you been to bed?”

“no.”

“Ethan you need to rest too.”

“How?! Naveen! My girlfriends hurt in more ways than one. I need to make her feel okay again. I need to fix her heart, and her physical wounds.”

“And you can’t do that if you don’t go to bed Ethan.”

“I’m not going to bed Naveen.”

“Whatever, I’m not having this argument at 5 in the morning with you.”

Naveen trudged to the bathroom and them back to bed. About another hour passed before Ethan snapped his head towards Casey groaning quietly next to him.

“ooooowwwww. My head.”

Ethan went to speak but the words got caught in his throat, so he just pulled her into a hug instead, so he had time to collect himself to speak.

“Thank God you’re okay. I was so scared.”

“Ethan she only fell and bumped her head.” Naveen commented from the kitchen.

“Naveen with all due respect, she isn’t your girlfriend. She didn’t run away from you because of some stupid whore who can’t leave you alone. Anything could have happened to her whilst I wasn’t by her side. Do you know how terrified I was when she wasn’t answering her phone? I thought-” He rambled but cut himself off not able to finish that sentence. After he had gathered himself together, he pulled back a little so he could look into Casey’s eyes. “What happened?” she groaned quietly as she closed her eyes again. The light too much for her to handle. “You fell and hit your head sweetie. We overheard some things after graduation yesterday when we got home. You ran away, like any rational person would. I thought you’d gone to collect your thoughts and have a few minutes to yourself, so I didn’t follow you. But when I helped Naveen get you to the couch after your fall, it was clear I should have followed you. Your breath smelt so strongly of alcohol that-”

“A-Alcohol?! But I- I don’t drink!”

“Casey. I know but last night must have been different and I’m kicking myself for not being there for you.”

“Wait. What did we overhear?”

“Y-You don’t remember?”

Ethan shot a worried glance all over her features, looking for any injuries they may have missed or something that would reassure him that she was okay. That’s when Naveen came in and sat in a chair.

“She probably drank to forget Ethan. Only remind her if she wants to know because it was pretty ugly. Though, I do wish you stuck around to see how he shoved the bitch out of the apartment. Even my heart fluttered a little at that.”

“Naveen, please.”

“What? I’m just saying if she’d have stuck around.. maybe I’d have also been leaving this place for a couple hours.”

Naveen teased Ethan with a wink and small chuckle before digging into his breakfast. Ethan asked Casey if she wanted to know what happened and she quietly muttered a small yes in response.

“Okay. But before we talk, let me help you to your bed and get you some aspirin and water for that head of yours.”

Casey took his hand as he helped her up and supported her frame, walking her to her bed, tucking her in under the covers, he left the room for a couple of minutes to get her water and painkillers before returning and closing the door behind him. Casey took the tablet and drained the glass of water before laying her head back on her pillows.

“Baby? Can we talk later please? I kind of just want to cuddle now.”

“Oh. Of course. I wouldn’t want to make your head hurt anymore.”

“Thank you.”

Ethan lifted the covers and slid into bed next to her laying his head in the spare pillows, they snuggled down with each other and were asleep in seconds. Later that day Naveen knocked on Casey’s bedroom door and hesitantly opened it, poking his head in.

“Guys? You’ve been in here a while please don’t say you’ve mur- Aw. I’ll leave you to it then.”

Naveen whispered and closed the door quietly when he saw there sleeping forms in Casey’s bed, and headed out to do some grocery shopping. By the time Casey and Ethan had woken up, the sun was starting to set, and they were in the kitchen making coffee, getting ready to talk. Casey placed the mugs on the table and took a seat next to Ethan just as the front door opened and Naveen came in.

“Oh hey you two. How’s your head Casey?”

“It’s almost better. Thanks for asking.”

“So have you two spoken about..”

“We were just about to.”

“I see. But for what it’s worth Casey. Don’t go too hard on the guy. He really loves you.”

“I think she knows that.”

“Ethan. There’s no need to snap at him, okay?”

“Whatever.”

Casey looked at Naveen with an apologetic smile as he left the kitchen to give the two some privacy. Ethan sipped his coffee, narrowing his eyes at Casey as she looked at him with a raised brow, arms crossed over her chest.

“What?”

“I know you’re nervous, but that is no reason to snap at Naveen like that.”

Ethan shrugged his shoulders coldly, and Casey felt the mood shift as Ethan placed his mug back on the table and adjust in his chair.

“Let’s get this over with then. Dump me.”

“Ethan. What?”

“Dump me. You obviously believe what you. What we overheard.”

“E. Why would I dump you when I don’t for one second truly believe you would cheat on me?”

“There we go. Thank you Jessica for contributing to my heart being shatter into-”

“Ethan!”

Casey raised her voice to get his attention as she placed her hand delicately on his forearm. He looked at her with a puzzling look.

“Ethan. I’m not going to dump you like you’re a sack of potatoes.”

“But why? When we heard Jessica in here yesterday shouting at-”

“Exactly. We heard Jessica. Jessica, the person who treats each partner she has like a new toy until she gets bored of them a few days later and just leaves them broken on the side of the road wondering why they weren’t good enough. I’ve dealt with her. I’ve been up longer than you. I’ve messaged her. Of course she had the whole I’ve have photographic evidence thing ready to go. Sent me a picture and everything. But I know you. And I know when you look uncomfortable Ethan. She cornered you didn’t she? Cornered you and forced you into-”

Ethan nodded as tears stung his eyes, and he kept his gaze straight. He knew if he looked at Casey that those tears would fall, and he didn’t want that happening today.

“Ethan? Ethan, look at me. Or say something. Anything. Please.”

“Yes. She.. she cornered me towards the end of a lunch one day. The day you had to leave for the dentist to be exact. She knew you wouldn’t be there, and Naveen had gone to speak to a teacher about homework. It’s like she knew I was alone and vulnerable. The halls had pretty much cleared, and she approached me. I kept my back to her but as soon as I turned to close my locker... She put her hand on my chest, forced me to kiss her and she even tried to...”

“Tried to what, honey?”

“She tried to... she tried to mark my neck and get me to take things further. I tried so hard to push her away the second I realized what was going on, but she was too.. she... she had me stuck in between her and my locker. There was no escape. I was so terrified that it was like... like all my strength just left my body. In that moment, I knew I had to get her off me. I’m your boyfriend for God’s sake. But she knew how to immobilize me. In the moment I was... powerless.”

“Ethan.”

“No, Casey, please. Let me finish. .. I knew if I didn’t keep my mouth shut. She’d tell you how I’d ‘cheated’ the second you were absent. How I came onto her and wanted her. But I didn’t Casey. You have to believe me. I didn’t. she came onto me and she kissed me and forced me back against my locker, blocked me in with her arms. I-”

“ETHAN. Please, stop. You’re hurting yourself!”

At her stern tone, he turned his head to look at her as he wiped the tears that had betrayed him and fallen from his eyes as he spoke. He was expecting her to look mad and betrayed, he was convinced she was only sounding concerned to get his attention, but when he looked, her eyes reflected nothing but support and love. That’s when he knew that he had the best girlfriend in the world. That investing into getting the apartment wasn’t a waste of his money. He pushed back on his chair and opened his arms, Casey moving and sitting on his lap, snuggling into him as he wrapped his arms around her delicately like she was a flower, but held her so close and tight to his chest like he was scared to lose her. It was almost as if he was convinced she would leave the front door any seconds and never come back. “I love you Mr. Ramsey.” Casey mumbled, “I love you too, Miss. Valentine.” Ethan mumbled back and kissed her head. Things returned to somewhat normal that night, as the three friends sat around the kitchen table after dinner playing boardgames and quizzing each other on their medical knowledge. Naveen even gave Ethan and Casey their graduation gifts, which immediately made them feel awful because they hadn’t got him anything. Though he reassured them it was fine because their friendship was already enough.

--- Two months later ---

Casey was in her room boxing up the last of her belongings to move to the new apartment. When Ethan told her she exploded with so much happiness that he could have sworn she temporarily went into space. He had just packed the last of the boxes in the van and was now checking up on Casey.

“Hey pop-tart! Are you almost done in here?”

“Oh, hey sweetie. Yeah. Could you help me though? I still have to pack my clothes into that big box over there.

“Sure thing.”

He said as he pecked her sweetly on the lips, moving to her wardrobe, and taking out her clothes. Folding them neatly and putting them in the box. Naveen stayed in his room out of their way until they were all packed up and ready to go. When they were done they came back into the apartment. “Naveen?” Casey called out and a minute later he emerged from his room.

“We’re all packed now. So um. Good luck with your new roommates when you find them.”

“Man, this place isn’t going to be the same without you two around.”

“We’re gonna miss you too buddy.”

“We are. But. At least Ethan won’t have to put up with your singing whilst he’s trying to study anymore.”

“That’s true.”

“He’ll have to put up with mine.”

Ethan groaned playfully at Casey as she grinned at him. The three hugged before Ethan and Casey handed Naveen their keys to the apartment back. After a brief tight hug and some final goodbyes, Ethan and Casey left the apartment and got into the van, driving their stuff to their new apartment, ready to start the next chapter of their lives together.

[poor-sickies]

What about fevers with Lance and Keith *together* (like at the same time? Or is that too much?) Could you do that? ouo

I am back! Kinda! I sprained my ankle really badly and had to be resting these past few days, so I took the opportunity to finish this! This is one of the classic “caught rain/snow and now we’re sick” kinda fic, so I hope you like it :)

cold outing

word count. 2592 words

prompt: fevers

Read on ao3

*

“I hate this s-stupid planet.”

Lance hugs his arms close, rubbing them up and down, trying to somehow block the dry cold wind that blows against him.

Keith lets out a humorless chuckle, moving forward hunched over himself, gritting his teeth as the relentless cold keeps hitting his skin through his clothes.

“I don’t t-think it matters” he says, “if you hate it or n-not. It’s just gonna keep being c-cold.”

“We’re almost t-to Red anyway. When I get to the castle, I’ll s-slip into a hot b-bath. And I’ll only leave after two hours.”

“Good for you,” Keith retorts, dragging his feet through the sloshy snow, “I just want some sleep.”

The Galra base they had returned from, six full hours after Red landed in Killeon, a snow planet deep within the Dardian quadrant, had been unoperational, but at least they had still managed to save the data logs. With some luck, those could be useful information for later.

They both hope it will be worth it.

The snowstorm was already bad when they had arrived. This planet doesn’t have much vegetation, but the little it does had been blowing strongly with the wind, powdered white from the flakes that fell from the sky.

Landing with Red closer to the base hadn’t been possible - there was a cave nearby that was ideal to keep her hidden. Leaving her out on the snow had seemed dangerous with a Galra base so close, and seeing as they didn’t currently have any support from the castle, they had decided to play it safe.

It was more or less a thirty minute walk from the cave to the Galra post, but after leaving the base, the snow had stopped and it was pouring rain, cold water with some ice on the mix, making the ground wet and sloshy.

And soaking both Keith and Lance to the bone.

They had taken thirty minutes just to get halfway to Red, and the paladin armor was starting to weigh on them, the black undersuit completely soaked. Fortunately, their wrist gauntlets are still working, to lead them the right way, because with all the snow and fog, they don’t see any further than a few meters.

“T-There. I see it.”

The outline of the caves appears slowly into focus, and they make an effort to walk faster.

Red opens her jaws right away as soon as they get there, urging them to get inside. The cockpit is unusually warm, an attempt to try and dry them up, but the or air comes up hot and almost suffocating on their face.

Lance collapses on the pilot seat, before ordering Red to go back home, and Keith stays behind him, on the floor, too exhausted to move.

-

Upon arrival, it all goes by in a numb haze. Dragging their feet, Lance and Keith make their way out of Red, and towards their respective bedrooms. Both get their soggy clothes off, dropping it off in a corner of their room to be washed later, take a quick warm shower and lay in bed, aching and exhausted.

They don’t actually get to sleep right away, because Shiro and Allura come back from their mission a while later. Fortunately, the post mission debriefing is quick and to the point. Everyone is tired and it’s late, so all of them shuffle to their own rooms to get some sleep.

-

Lance rolls over in bed, his sore muscles protesting as he moves.

It’s the middle of the night, he’s alone, and his sore throat is keeping him awake.

It feels like he swallowed sandpaper and broken glass. Lance coughs weakly into his elbow and sighs in frustration.

It was a long day, and exhaustion tugs away at him trying to pull him under.

But then another coughing fit brings him back up, doubling forward as something tickles again in the back of his throat.

His head aches with the effort, and when he’s finally able to stop coughing, his chest hurts as well.

He reaches for his bedside table, and turns the alarm towards him.

It’s seven AM, earth time, and the others would be up soon. Lance swallows painfully, and props himself up to stand and go out the door. There’s no point staying in bed if he can’t rest.

Walking feels even worse than laying down somehow. It’s harder to focus on keeping his feet moving, and his coordination is completely off. His muscles hurt, and it’s not easy to drag his limbs along when they feel like deadweights.

To his surprise, the lounge isn’t empty when he gets there, despite being so early. Coran is frantically opening and closing cabinets, with bundles of fabric in his arms.

“What’s goin’ on…?”

Coran looks behind his shoulder.

“Lance…” He trails off, clearly surprised. Lance isn’t sure why is presence is so unexpected, but Coran walks towards him with a worried look on his face. “Oh, I should have figured…”

Coran touches Lance’s forehead with the back of his hand. Lance closes his eyes, focusing on the cold feeling of Coran’s skin on his face.

“You’re ill as well… come on, let’s get you to the infirmary.”

“Sick…?” Lance questions, as Coran nudges his shoulder to guide him. Now that he thinks about it, he does feel warm.

“Well, after yesterday’s ordeal it doesn’t surprise me,” Coran explains, “and I should have known after I saw the state Keith was in… you were both in that planet after all.”

Lance frowns. “Wait… Keith? What’s going on with Keith?”

“Ah, don’t worry too much. He just woke up in the middle of the night with a high fever. Similar to the symptoms you seen to be having.”

Lance lowers his eyes. “Oh.”

Suddenly, he feels much weaker, and Coran has to steady him for a moment.

“Sorry,” he mumbles.

“It’s alright, lad. We’re almost there.”

Surely enough, there’s a bed set up in the infirmary, where Keith is curled up, shivering below a layer of blankets. Shiro sits on a chair by his side, rubbing Keith’s arms to warm him up.

“Coran,” Shiro calls out, “did you get more blankets?” Then he looks off to the side, noticing Lance with a surprised expression. “Are you sick too?”

Lance nods, hazy, and lets Coran guide him closer to the bed Keith lays in.

“Blankets,” Coran hands the bundles to Shiro, who in turn drapes them over Keith’s shivering form. Lance is gently pushed to another nearby mattress, and takes the opportunity to lie down.

“Ir seems that human bodies do not deal so well with cold,” Coran comments sadly, as he covers lance with a blanket as well.

Lance frowns, as he pulls the blanket closer to him. “We don’t deal that badly, that planet just sucks.”

Shiro sighs, hands still around Keith’s arms. “Well, it seems like you two just got a bad cold. Hopefully you’ll be okay within a few days.”

“Unless it turns to tonsillitis,” Lance adds with a mumble.

Shiro grimaces. “Hopefully not.”

-

When Lance wakes up again, his fever seems to be worse. He rolls over, his blanket kicked away in his sleep, and lifts his tshirt a little. His skin is sensitive and hot and sweaty, and his throat still hurts.

On the other bed, Keith looks asleep, no longer curling up beneath the sheet, but his flushed face is enough to tell that he’s got a fever too.

“Lance! Hey, you’re awake!”

It’s Hunk’s voice, to his right. He rolls over again, slowly, and sure enough, there he is, plopped on a chair with a tablet in his hands.

“How do you feel?”

Lance shrugs. “Not too good. I think my fever is higher now.”

Hunk frowns, and leans forward to touch lances forehead with the back of his hand.

“Yeah… it is,” he concludes, before getting up. “Try to drink some water,” he says, handing him a water pack with a straw, “I’ll go get Coran.”

Lance closes his eyes. With Hunk gone, there’s only the small breathing noises coming from Keith’s bed to break the silence.It’s relaxing somehow, so he lets himself being pulled back to sleep, water pack forgotten at his side.

*

It’s only a matter of time until the others move Keith and Lance to the living room.

“The sofas are big enough,” Hunk argues, “and we can check on them at the same time.”

No one disagreed, but Shiro and Pidge made sure to bring more pillows and blankets to make it extra comfortable.

Both od the paladins are wrapped in fluffy blankets, sleeping peacefully in opposite ends of the sofa, feet touching on the middle.

“I’ve already told Allura, and she’s going to stop by a peaceful solar system. With two of us down, it’s not a great idea leaving us vulnerable to any attack,” Shiro says.

“They look so peaceful,” Pidge comments with a sly smile.

*

“Achooo! Achoo! Ugh…”

Lance reaches out to pick up another tissue from the table. With an involuntary kick, he’s finally able to stretch enough, but he winces when his foot hits Keith’s side.

He hears an annoyed grunt coming from the bundle of blankets in front of him, and blows his nose, waiting for the inevitable complaining.

“Ow- Lance…” Keith says hoarsely. “Why did you just kick me!?”

It’s no secret for anyone this stupid cold is irritating Keith to no end, and Lance understands it better than anyone. Even though Keith did spend more time in the cold, and maybe being prone to migraines absolutely sucks in this situation, but Lance feels miserable too. Having Keith snap at every little thing is really getting in his nerves. He can’t help being sick!

But happy about his circumstances or not, he’s stuck here with Keith, at least for a few days. If he can keep each other’s presence amicable, Lance will at least make an effort.

“Ugh, Keith… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

“Could you be more careful then?? I’m  trying to sleep.”

Lance rolls his eyes and puts the tissue away.

“Yeah, yeah… go back to sleep.”

Lance rolls over and buries his head on the pillow, hunching over his shoulders to keep the blankets closer. His throat burns all the way up to the back of his mouth, and a slight brush of the covers against his nose is enough to-

“Aaa..choo!”

“Lance!!”

*

“Oooh, what’s that you’re making?”

Hunk turns his head to see Pidge curiously slipping into the kitchen. He puts down the spoon, and grabs a sharp knife and some white fruits from under the cabinet, placing them on the counter, ready to cut.

“Oh, you know… since we’ll be stuck here for a while, I figured I’d experiment a little with the some of those fruits they offered us in Arus… and Lance and Keith look like they need some nice broth, to get their energies back and all that,” he explains with a gentle smile, as he expertly cuts the white fruit on the cutting board, and sweeps the pieces down to fall inside the bowl.

“Cool.” Pidge jumps up to sit on the counter. “Find out anything remotely close to garlic yet?”

“Nah,” Hunk sighs, “that’s gonna be a hard one… also-”

He turns around, slipping a baker glove on his hand and opens the oven, taking out a tray with some pink cookies.

“They finished baking a few minutes ago, though the tray is still hot. Taste one.”

Pidge frowns a little, but takes one and tries it.

“I know it’s pink, but I think I may have figured these out.”

Her eyes brighten, and she looks up at him.

“Gingerbread?”

“Not really, but it tastes close, right? Lance loves gingerbread. I know Keith prefers cinnamon, but we don’t really have that here… maybe he’ll enjoy these when he’s feeling better. I got another batch coming up anyway, so you can keep those.”

“Awesome! Thank you, Hunk!”

“No problem!” Hunk smiles, as he picks up the cookies from the tray, one by one, hissing when they burned tips of his fingers, and putting them on a plate. “I’m gonna see if those two have killed each other already.”

Pidge chuckles, still chewing on her cookie. “Lance is whiny as heck, and Keith is a thousand times grumpier than usual,” she says, “good luck.”

*

“So how are you two feeling?”

Hunk sits down next to Lance’s legs, and places the plate of cookies on the edge of the sofa. Despite looking terrible, both Lance and Keith seem at least intrigued by the cookies, and gingerly roll out of the sofa to get one.

Lance suddenly grips his cookie tighter and squints at the lights.

“A - Achooo! Ugh…”

Hunk watches as he pitifuly scrambles for another tissue, and doesn’t miss the way Keith groans.

“My throat hurts from sneezing,” Lance says, after blowing his nose once again.

“My head hurts from his sneezing,” Keith complains, burying himself deeper in his blanket, chewing on his cookie.

“Wha- Keith!!”

“You’re loud.”

“At least your fever is gone, right…?” Hunk asks with a forced smile, adjusting the blanket around Lance’s feet.

“No.”

“I think it’s coming back.”

Lance goes back to his reclined position on the sofa, leaning against a pillow. Keith reaches for the plate once again, and takes another cookie.

“These are really good,” he says quietly, his voice low and raspy.

“That’s not fair, I can’t even taste them…!” Lance pouts, “they feel crispy though…”

Hunk laughs. “I finally got the oven temperature right… you’ll be able to taste them soon enough,” he says, patting Lance’s leg.

*

“Keith…?”

No answer.

His fever wasn’t so bad during the day, and with the others keeping him company and distracting him, it was actually bearable.

But now it’s dark, and everyone is sleeping, and Lance cannot stop shivering.

He has three blankets on top of him, which he’s hugging close, and Pidge had even brought his jacket for him to dress, just in case. But even in his pajamas and the jacket, he can‘t get comfortable.

And, admittedly, he does feel bad for trying to wake Keith. He’s sick too, and needs to rest, even though he spent most of his day sleeping…

Eh, it’s still bad.

But Lance stands up anyway, blinking away the black spots at the edge of his vision, hugging the blankets around his shoulders.

Keith lays close to the back of the sofa, leaving enough space Lance to sit down next to him.

He gives his shoulder a light shake, but he doesn’t wake.

He’s not too warm, at least, which is a good change from his feverish state during the day, but that also means he’s getting his needed rest after all that.

Lance shivers again.

He shakes Keith again.

“Hm…? What - Lance.”

Keith groans.

“What do you want…?”

He doesn’t sound mad, just tired. Rolling over, he lays on his stomach with his head on his arms, and stares at Lance, squinting.

“H-Hey man… sorry for waking you up…”

“You’re shivering,” Keith notices. “You should be in bed.”

“That’s the thing, I, uh… it’s cold. Can I lay here?”

Keith only stares back in silence for a moment.

““With me…?”

“Ugh, yes. I can’t warm up at all on my own, and you’ve been pretty much behaving as a furnace the whole day…”

Keith doesn’t interrupt his rambling, much to Lance’s surprise. Like before, he’s probably too tired for that now. He sighs, and scoots over a little.

“If you steal my blankets, you’re out.”

[robertdowneyhiddlesbatch]

Why do you have to be so damn perky every morning?

For @nerdy-bookworm-1998

Stephen Strange was ready to drop his head on a pillow and slip off into a coma. The last seven calendar days had brutal, especially counting how long it had really been for him. The Sorcerer Supreme didn't know if it was a curse or a blessing that Ironman had joined him in action this time.

It was a blessing that Ironman was there to have his back and be non magical. It was a curse that Tony Stark couldn't shut up for one second. It would have been the worst hex in the universe if something had happened to Tony, all because of Stephen.

Stephen woke up in a hospital, his ears ringing and head hurting. He tried to sit up, but his head brutally punished him and back to bed he went.

"Signore, mi senti?"*

Someone was speaking... Italian to him? Was that the universal language in hospitals now?!

A bright light flashed in his eyes, checking his vitals.

The woman yelled again and then she went away, probably to get the doctor. Stephen had gotten his eyesight back and looked around him. Someone was sitting by the window, legs crossed, looking at a tablet in their hands.

"Morning, Stephen Veven."

Great, Tony was here.

"W-where am I?"

"Benvenuto in Italia." Tony acted as he came to sit on the bed.

Stephen groaned.

“I told you I didn’t want to come on your business trip."

"And I left you home. You ended up here by yourself. What're you doing here?"

Stephen sat up and Tony grabbed his arm and shoulder, helping him.

"Saving the world, probably."

"Against what?"

Before Stephen could talk, the doctor came in.

"Buongiorno signore. Vedo che sei sveglio."**

Stephen wanted to knock him on the head. OBVIOUSLY he was awake.

The doctor took the clipboard from the end of Stephen's bed and flipped through the pages.

"Where's the cloak?" Stephen whispered to Tony.

The phone rang and the doctor took it.

"Oh. Levi's sleeping right there." Tony pointed to the cloak, folded up on the bench, probably sleeping.

"Quella era la reception. La polizia è qui per essere interrogata."***

Tony abruptly turned and stood up. Stephen smiled. He loved it when his boyfriend got all business.

"I thought I said no police!?" Tony yelled in English, his irritation making him forget about where they were.

The door was open to Stephen's room and he saw the police coming there way. Something told him it wasn't police.

"Levi." Stephen called for the cloak and it immediately came over.

"Tony..."

"I-I am sorry, Signor Stark. I...." The doctor was dead before he could finish. Tony quickly closed the door and fused it shut with blasters.

Stephen had ripped the needles from his arm and fell as he got off the bed. Ironman was immediately by his side.

"Let's go, babe."

They were shooting at the door. The hospital alarms rang and Stephen cried, his own head ringing sharp. Flying would be too risky for Strange, so they took the back stairs, Levi helping keep the sorcerer up.

They ran away to an empty penthouse, which Tony joked was courtesy of the consulate. Stephen fell asleep on the sofa again, this time awoken by horrible images of the apocalypse. Tony was by his side in an instant, having found some painkillers in the house.

"What's wrong?"

"I see images in my head."

"Can you show me?" Tony worriedly asked.

Stephen looked at his boyfriend. He himself couldn't bare the pain in his head, he couldn't subject Tony to it. Strange shook his head.

Tony smiled and snuck a kiss. He then brought up a paper and pen. Stephen's photographic memory helped him draw the primary image in his mind. It was a shaky copy of a familiar drawing.

"I've seen that before. Probably high school reading."

"Yeah. Dante's Inferno."

Tony figured out it was related to the geneticist he had been following. The map of hell was the first in a series of clues that lead them across Europe, ending up at Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. It was a center of magic, but tonight there was an annual public event being held. Tony Stark went into the billionaire party while Stephen waited in the cisterns below.

Stark found the bad guy and began to follow him, chasing him to where Stephen was waiting. The villain threatened to release a deadly plague virus, while also being an evil warlock. The Sorcerer Supreme magically battled the warlock and his conjured up creatures while Ironman took on the cronies. Stephen captured the evil wizard while Tony contained the plague at the very last second.

Strange gave the villain to the European sorcerers and Stark gave the virus to SHIELD's European group. The party upstairs went on being none the wiser. The fight had taken its toll on Stephen and he collapsed, and Tony happily carried his damoiseau in distress to their waiting jet.

The mission was now yesterday's news, and he couldn't think of anything better than nodding off for 72 hours straight; even better if he could actually get Tony in bed with him. To sleep.

He didn't even get 72 minutes of REM sleep.

"'CAUSE YOU'RE A NATURAL!!

A beating heart of stone

You gotta be so cold

To make it in this world...

Given the amount of times Stephen was exasperated by Tony's immaturity, you'd think they were each other's nemeses, and not lovers.

Stephen groaned and got off the bed, Levi immediately around his shoulder. Imagine Dragons blasted through the entire penthouse, throbbing in his eardrums. Stephen quickly threw a spell at the speakers, lowering the volume. He finally made it to the lower floor and turned the corner to find Tony in the kitchen, dancing as he made some breakfast.

"Mornin', sorcy!" Tony called out as he danced over to Stephen. Tony quickly pecked a kiss and returned to the island.

Stephen pinched his nose and leaned against the cabinet.

"Why do you have to be so damn perky every morning?!"

"What? You want to waist this precious short life sleeping that's fine. I'm gonna dance."

"Does it not at all unnerve you that we almost died yesterday?" Stephen whined as he sat at the counter.

"You new to the gig, Strange?" Tony leaned over and kissed him, lasting a long, two minutes. Stephen finally took in a relieved breath and settled a little.

"I make the world better ten times before breakfast."

"And how have you made today better since I fell asleep?" Stephen sarcastically asked.

"Hey, Mr. Stark?" Peter Parker's voice rang through from the first floor.

"Is it cool if I stay over for the weekend? May's gone..."

Stephen toned the kid out, staring at his amazing boyfriend.

"I thought you'd be more at ease with all of us together." Tony smiled.

"Have I ever told you I love you?"

"Oh, just about..."

Friday: 14,000,605

This time Stephen went in for a surprise kiss.

"I love you."

Friday: 14,000,606

*Sir, can you here me?

**Good morning sir. I see that you are awake.

***That was the reception. The police are here to question

[cilldaracailin]

A Kind of Magic

Here is the next part. Thanks again for all the lovely love :)

5

“It's in those quiet little towns, at the edge of the world, that you will find the salt of the earth people who make you feel right at home.”

Snuggling deeper into the squishy softness under his head, Taron exhaled deeply as he felt so comfortable and content. His body had melted into the mattress under him and the duvet that covered him was silky and warm and sleep which had been so hard to come by since Sunday, finally caught up with him. Taron inhaled, the freshness from the pillow making him smile, his smile growing more as he remembered that he was in Robyn’s bed and it was one of the most luxurious he had slept in although that could have been because he hadn’t slept in a plush bed in days.

He stretched but quickly recoiled back into himself as his body protested after lying so still despite the comfort of the bed. He winced as he tried to stretch again, his upper body objecting, taking it slower this time as he rolled onto his back, throwing his left arm over his face as he slowly woke up. Robyn wasn’t lying when she said she liked complete darkness when she slept as when he opened his eyes the room was dark, apart from some light that shone in the bedroom door to his right. Using the palm of his left hand he rubbed his eyes, wincing again when he rubbed his right eye, the movement chaffing grazes at his temple that still hurt and stung. As he fully woke, he wasn’t feeling as relaxed as he had been and more like he had almost run a marathon and his body ached with the effort of it, feeling like he did as he as he lay in the hospital bed after his pain medication had been reduced.

Taron then realised that he hadn’t taken any of the tablets he had been given since he got on the flight to Dublin and that was probably why he was feeling so achy and very sore. Groaning, he wasn’t looking forward to trying to make a move off the bed as he knew it was going to hurt but in order to get to his pain killers, he had to move and he also desperately needed a wee.

Deciding it would be easier to get up from his knees, Taron rolled to his left onto his stomach and then using his left arm to take his weight he pushed himself to his knees, took a moment to steady himself as he sat back on his feet, taking a breather to counter the pain that rippled through him. As the wave passed, he shuffled off the bed and got to his feet and it was then he realised that he wasn’t wearing his shoes.

“Robyn.” He said quietly, knowing she was the one who had made sure he was comfortable, feeling how nice the temperature was in the room, despite the heat outside, remembering she had said something about having air conditioning in her room too.

He made his way, as Robyn had shown him, through her closet and to the bathroom, his eyes blurry with the light from the window. He had absolutely no idea of the time but as it was still bright outside, he was guessing late afternoon. After washing his hands, he looked in the circle mirror that was above the sink and groaned as he looked at his reflection. It was going to take more than a couple hours sleep to get rid of the horrible dark circles under his eyes and he was still very much getting used to the marks and bruises on his face. He cupped some cold water and threw it on his face, hoping it would help to wake him up.

“Ugh pain killers.” He whispered as he brought his hands to his head, trying to rub the pain away from behind his eyes. He hadn’t felt this bad on the airplane or even in the hospital and as he walked back into the bedroom, he was desperate to find his tablets. With some medication, Taron hoped he would start to feel somewhat more human but with the blackout curtains it was still very dark in Robyn’s room and he didn’t want to fall over anything so he walked around the bed to the curtains and pulled them back closing his eyes as the sun blinded him. Turning around, he blinked a few times as his tired eyes got used to the new light in the room. He looked to the bed and towards the pillow’s he hadn’t slept on and saw three folded up pieces of paper. He picked the nearest one up with curiosity.

‘Hey Taron,

You have finally gotten your chance to have your cosy bed sleep and I cannot wake you from that so….

I have nipped back to work to finish my shift. I will be home at four thirty but here is my work number 6287777 and my phone 087 9055555. Just call me if you need anything.

Wifi code is XY7H8MN77.

I was serious when I said make yourself at home. Alexa is around if you need company and the key lime pie in the fridge is yummi.

Robyn xx’

Smiling at Robyn’s letter, he felt comforted by this one and not at all panicked as he did with her last, enjoying the smiley face and picture of the fish she drew. He picked up the next letter and opened it.

‘Hey Taron,

I’ve gone back to work but same rules apply as before. You have both my numbers so just call me if you need too.

The lemon meringue pie is also quite tasty and Alexa is hooked up to Spotify so your music wish is her command.

Robyn xx’

Another grin filled his face as he laughed at her drawing of a stick man in a rocket and picked up the last letter.

‘Hey Taron,

The preschoolers were asking me where ‘my boyfriend’ was. I have left a picture on the bedside locker that one of them drew for us. I shall let you try and decipher it yourself.

The white chocolate chips cookies on the counter won me second place in the Kilcreen bake off, so they must taste good.

Don’t bother asking Alexa about the weather. It’s so fecking hot, Ireland could give Florida a run for its money and Emma has finally caved and said my air conditioning was not a stupid idea after all.

Robyn xx’

Taron moved and picked up the crayon drawn picture that Robyn had left on the locker and squinted as he tried to make out what the circles and lines meant but decided he was going to need Robyn’s help with that one. The letters made him smile but he was confused by why she had written three for him. With the brightness of the sun, he was convinced it was the afternoon and couldn’t fathom how she had been to work so many times in the space of a few hours.

Leaving the letters and picture the children had drawn back on the locker, he walked slowly around the bed and pulled open the door of the bedroom and walked out into a brighter light, which only hurt his head more. Taron had loved the glass when he first walked into Robyn’s apartment but now as the light caused his headache to worsen, he wasn’t too sure. He could feel a light breeze and when his eyes had finally adjusted to the light, he looked up to see that the glass doors had been pushed all the way back and Taron got his first glimpse of Robyn’s garden. A level wooden deck led straight to a large green grass area and he could faintly hear the sound of running water. Within the apartment easy piano music played and Taron looked for Robyn and saw her sitting on the couch, in the corner she had told him was her favourite, with her back to him. Her hair was out of her messy bun and fell straight down her back and she was wearing a blank tank top so he could see the corner of a white dressing peeking out of the left sleeve. Taking some wobbly steps before he found the strength in his legs again, he walked around the side of the couch.

“Hey Robyn.” He said as he delicately sat in beside her, a sigh leaving his lips as sank gloriously into the couch. “Jesus, is every piece of furniture you own this comfortable?”

Robyn smiled as she quickly saved the word document she was working on and closed her laptop, placing it to her right on the couch. “I did extensive tests before investing.” She moved to sit cross legged beside him. “How are you feeling?”

“Honestly?” He turned his head to look at her. “Everything hurts but I know that has something to do with the fact I have missed a pain killer. Last one I took was before I got on the plane to Dublin and your bed is stupidly comfortable too so I just conked out.”

“I did tell you it was going to be your cosy bed sleep.”

“It was a nice few hours, until I woke up achy and stiff.”

“Taron, it’s been more than a few hours.”

He let his body sink further into the couch. “What?”

“Taron it’s Friday. You have been asleep for about fifteen hours.”

She smiled at the look of shock on his face. “What?” He asked again.

“You went to sleep about twelve yesterday. It’s five eighteen on Friday afternoon, the next day.” She smiled some more as she watched his facial features move from shock, to confused to a small smile. “You were exhausted Taron and once your head hit the pillow, your body was going to sleep and I’d imagine it’s not done resting yet. You could do with at least another five or six rounds of fifteen hours sleep straight.”

“That’s why there were three notes on the pillow.” It finally made sense to him. “Thank you by the way for them. They made me smile when I read them. I especially liked the picture of the stick man in the rocket.”

“Thought you might.”

When she came back from work yesterday afternoon, Taron was in the same sleeping position as she had left him in, looking completely at ease and relaxed. As he slept, Robyn kept herself busy listening to music, reading and spending some time outside in her garden, enjoying the late evening sun but checking Taron ever hour or so, making sure he wasn’t too cold or warm as he slept.

She had spent many a night sleeping on her couch so did not mind spending another but she didn’t sleep. She was constantly checking Taron and even more so after another nightmare woke her from a dreadful restless sleep, tears on her cheeks, her breathing laboured. It seemed that having Taron in her apartment was not making her dreams any less horrific and she had to double check her hands twice to make sure they weren’t really covered in blood. She sat with Taron for about an hour just watching him before she moved back to the couch and put Netflix on to pass the rest of the night until she had to get ready for work in two hours. She had written him another quick note and ignored the look she got from Emma when she arrived in the office at seven.

“Seriously? I told you to take the day off.”

“He’s asleep.” Explained Robyn simply as she put her phone, keys and purse away.

“Still?”

“I told you he was exhausted and I’ve been doing sleep checks on him.”

“You need to sleep too. Robyn! Don’t walk away from me!”

“I need to do these room checks.” Robyn picked up her clipboard and walked out of the office ignoring her manager who called her back.

Robyn’s day had started out with the preschoolers giving her a picture they drew of herself and Taron at the playground and she was touched that they had asked about him but as the morning drew on, Robyn found herself on the phone with a very angry parent who had been told by Valerie that their child was not ready for school. Once Robyn had calmed the parent down and reassured them, Robyn had called Valerie into the office to talk to her about what had happened, offering her advice and guidance, genuinely wanting to help Valerie but the young staff member wasn’t impressed and Emma had to step in when the conversation turned nasty on Valerie’s part, bringing Taron back into the discussion as well as insulting Robyn along the way. Robyn took the conversation with a grain of salt, keeping her cool and still offering to help Valerie but her attitude towards Valerie changed once she came back from lunch as the new staff member had been telling all the other staff that she had been hooking up with a man in the office yesterday in front of a group of children.

The office door was only closed for five minutes as that was how long it took Robyn to enlighten Valerie with the truth, Emma present too to make sure the conversation didn’t get too heated but there was no need. Robyn was as cool and collected as always in tough situations.

“It is something that you have no right to talk about with others, especially when you have no understanding of the circumstances of what you saw and now that you have made up such rubbish, I have to go and speak to each of the girls to explain something that is nobody’s business expect mine and Taron’s. You cannot comprehend what you have done and how you have twisted something so simple as a hug into something that is full of malicious intent and sabotage. It’s disgusting how you spread rumours. We are a small setting with an incredible reputation to uphold and with some spiteful gossip you have put that reputation on the line. I have been very patient and tolerant of your behaviour and I will continue to treat you with respect as a co-worker because at the end of the day, we are a team but if I hear you speaking about this to anyone else, outside of this creche, I will be taking this further. It’s not only our reputation but mine and seeing as how I have been here for eleven years, it’s a considerable reputation and not too mention Taron’s too. Now if you excuse me, I need to go and fix the mess you have made.”

Thankfully, the rest of the staff in the building had known Robyn for a number of years, some before she was promoted to supervisor and would never believe any of the lies that had been spread about her and Emma had immediately issued Valerie with a warning, making sure she had apologised to Robyn.

It had left the atmosphere in the creche tense for the remainder of the afternoon, and even though Robyn was annoyed beyond belief she kept her annoyance to the side and continued on with her day as normal, ecstatic when four thirty came around and she could go home.

Taron was still asleep when she arrived home and she threw on the air con to cool the heated apartment down. Her bedroom was lovely and cool for Taron and he still lay on his left side so she figured she could risk taking a shower, one that was desperately needed to wash five-day old hair. She tried to use the falling water to ease the built-up tension in her shoulders but as the water hit her hurt shoulder, the relief lasted about a second before she gave up trying and turned the water off. She dried her hair and pulled on a black tank top and pair of demin shorts, the day still incredibly hot and pulled open her glass doors to let the fresh air in, hoping it would clear her head and pissed off mood better than the air con would. She sat on her couch, got Alexa to play her favourite piano playlist, pulled out her laptop and started to work on some policies she never got the chance to finish that morning with all the chaos in work. As she typed, she heard the toilet flush and gathered that her guest had finally woken up and she felt the couch sink as Taron eased himself in beside her, her smile wide as he was finding it hard to believe had been asleep for so long.

“That air is nice.” Commented Taron as he lay his head back and closed his eyes. “Fifteen hours.” He said quietly.

“You needed it. Also, you haven’t taken any pain killers since yesterday? No wait, since Wednesday?”

“Hmm.”

“Where are they?”

Taron opened his eyes. “In my bag. Somewhere in my bag.”

Robyn hopped to her feet. “Do you mind if I look for them. They will help take the edge of that pain your in.”

“I can help you.” Said Taron as he started to move and sit up but he stopped, his hand going to his side.

“Take it easy.” Robyn hunched in front of him. “You are still nursing some injuries. Nice and slowly.” Robyn took his left hand and helped to pull Taron to his feet, her hands going to his waist to steady him. “You good?”

“Yeah.” He answered but Robyn could see he was lying through his gritted teeth.

“It’s been nearly two days without pain relief. You are bound to be feeling a lot of pain, especially after being so still while you were sleeping.”

Together, they walked over to the island in the kitchen where Robyn had left his bag and hadn’t touched it since. She pulled out one of the stools from the breakfast bar and put it beside Taron, holding him until he was settled, pushing his bag over to him and then stood beside him.

“Thanks Robyn.” Taron pulled the zip on his duffle and routed around in the mess in his bag for the three small plastic brown bottles that held his pain killers. He stopped routing and pulled out the charger to his phone and sighed. “My mam is going to kill me.”

“What? Why?”

“My phone died on the bus yesterday as I said good bye to her and I promised her I would ring her back once I got to you.” He lifted his left hip a little from the stool and pulled his phone that was still in his pocket of his jeans, dropping it on the island. “It’s very much dead.”

“Your mam is not going to kill you Taron. I have only spoken to your mam twice but I can tell she is a very lovely lady who loves you dearly and will understand that you haven’t rang her back because you were sleeping. Let’s get your phone plugged in now and charged and as it is charging you can call her.” Robyn took his phone and the charger from him that he still held in his hands and plugged it into a socket at the side of the island and left the phone on top of the counter. “Now keep looking for those pain killers.”

With another route, Taron found two of his three bottles of painkillers and pushing all the clothes to the other side of the duffle, found the third. As he searched, Robyn had gotten him a glass of cold water from the fridge and placed it beside him. He opened each bottle and took the required number of tablets out.

“Do you need to take any of these with food Taron?”

He looked to Robyn with a blank face and she picked up the bottles and read the labels. “’Take with food’.” She read. “Cookies count as food, right?” She asked as she walked a little into the kitchen and picked a cookie from the plate she had left on the counter. She handed it to Taron who was smiling. “Well I think cookies count as food.”

“Second place in the bake off?” He asked taking a bite, remembering the little note she had added in the letter about the cookies. “You sure you didn’t buy this from M&S?”

“Absolutely not. Home made.”

“They are good. Second place good.” He grinned. He quickly took the four tablets from the counter, drinking the whole glass of water. “Two are antibiotics for my shoulder and two are pain killers.” He explained taking another bite from the cookie. “These are really good.”

“Thank you. Once they kick in, you will be able to move a bit easier.”

“Yeah I know. Doctor Hart said they were pretty strong. They definitely work. Don’t think I would have made the plane journey without them.”

“I haven’t thanked you yet for coming, have I? It was such a journey to make Taron, especially after you left the hospital early.” Robyn filled another glass of water for him, after he had polished off the first one.

“I was given the all clear by Doctor Hart but to be honest, he wasn’t completely happy. It was your doctor, Doctor Keane that helped sway him. She was your doctor, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Told me she gave you some stitches of your own but she also persuaded Doctor Hart that discharging me early was going to help us both. You…” Taron hesitated a little. “You don’t mind that I came here, right? I mean I just appeared and…”

“And I am very glad that you are here. Thank you for coming. Really thank you. I am…” Robyn couldn’t get the words out but she felt Taron’s hand on her right shoulder and gave her a supportive smile. “Do you want to give your mam a call?”

“Do you know, I have a feeling that conversation is going to be a long one, because I know she will want to talk to you and as much as I want to call her, I am desperate for a shower. I have been in these clothes for God knows how long and I feel gross and hot and just yuckiness all over.”

“Yuckiness? That a technical term?”

“I learnt that one from you Robyn.”

“Oh, shit you did.” Robyn laughed, remembering she had actually used that word in front of him and Richard in the 7/11. “Will you be ok to stand in the shower by yourself?”

“Robyn Quinn!” Laughed Taron faking shock. “I have only been in your apartment for less than two days.” He enjoyed the blush that rose to her cheeks.

“Stop that.” She scolded. “I only meant it from a safety concern Taron Egerton and how on earth do you know my surname.”

“Doctor Keane gave me your name and address. She broke hospital protocol to do it too and I know you are only thinking of my safety. It’s what you do for me and yeah, I think I will be ok. The pain killers act quickly.” With the easy conversation and bit of sugar running in his blood, Taron could already feel his headache lifting. “I will be fine.” He assured her when he saw the concern in her eyes.

“Ok well if I have to rescue you from the shower, I don’t want any complaints about you being in the nudey nudes, alright?”

“Nudey nudes?”

Robyn loved hearing Taron laugh and this one seemed to come from deep inside him. “Learn a new word every day Taron!”

“Alright, nudey nudes but seriously, no. I will be ok.”

“Ok well let me take your bag into my room for you and I will get you some fresh towels too.”

Robyn zipped his duffle back over and lifted it onto her right shoulder and carried it into her room, Taron getting off his stool much more easily then getting on it and followed her. She dropped his bag on her bed and walked out of the bedroom and to her closet near the front door and picked out a large fluffy blue towel and a matching smaller one. She walked into the bathroom through the door in the closet and hung the towels on the silver towel warmer on the wall and turned it on. She walked into the closet and opened the door to her bedroom. Taron was routing in his bag on the bed, pulling out clothes and throwing them on her bed.

“I have left some towels on the warmer in the bathroom for you. Shower is pretty self-explanatory to use. Take as long as you want or need. You won’t run out of hot water.”

“Thanks so much Robyn.”

“No worries. You hungry?” She asked as she sat on the bed.

“Too be honest, my appetite has not been great since before I went to Florida and I haven’t really been eating much since, apart from cookies it seems.”

“Ok well how about something simple like eggs and toast? Mine hasn’t been great either, apart from cookies too. We can sit in the garden and just chill with something really simple.”

“That sounds perfect.”

“Great. Ok well I will leave you to it but Taron please shout if you need anything.”

“I will.”

Robyn got up from the bed and went to leave but turned back to him. “There is actually an Alexa set up in the bathroom too, so if you want some music, just ask.”

“Seriously? In the bathroom?”

“Yeah seriously.”

“Ok well I think I might take advantage of that.”

“I think you should.”

Robyn walked out of the bedroom and closed the door before moving to close the door to the bathroom in the laundry room, closing the closet door too, giving Taron complete privacy. She then made her way to the kitchen to start prepping some simple food for the two of them.

[breg21]

Ladynoir: A TickingTock

@ladynoirjuly2019

Ao3 FFN

Some things connect.

Some don't.

But in the end, things will come together, I promise.

And flufffffffffffff

A ticking clock. That was what their identities were slowly but surely becoming as of late.

A countdown until they would know, until secretes would be gone and their masks would fall. Ladybug knew that. She knew that there was a big risk when she started dating Chat. But she accepted that, and the danger that came with it.

The reality of his identity was staring her right in the face. They were just finishing up with an akuma, ready to knock it down and be done with it, when things took it unexpected turn in the worst way possible.

Chat's miraculous started to beep, singling he was now down to four pads on the paw. Which, was okay for the time being. They've done this plenty of times before on a timmer, this should've been a sinch.

But it wasn't.

Just as she was about to wrap the lucky charm— a cloth to be used as a makeshift blindfold; the victim had been teased for 'not using their eyes right' when they were playing basketball, and thus giving them the ability to literally blind people— the akuma was able to get in one final blow.

And it was to Chat. Beep. Three pads.

Tick tock.

She finally was able to tie the garment around the akuma's eyes, and quickly climbed down to swipe the watch around his overly large wrist where the akuma laid hidden in.

Just as her she was about to come into contact with the watch, the victim frailed around, knocking her off balance and back onto the ground.

Meanwhile, she could tell Chat was overwhelmed with not being able to see, no ability to cataclysm, and had no idea what direction to run off to detransform to at least recharge Plagg so he could help.

It was all becoming too much too soon. Another beep, another pad. He was down to his last one.

Tick tock, tick tock.

With one last attempt and the monster still blindfolded— he seemed to not be able to reach behind to pull the cloth from his eyes— she charged forward, winding her yo-yo around his writ to trap them together.

Using all the energy she had possibly left, she leapt forward, bringing her leg up above her head, and slamming it down on the watch, smashing it to little pieces and freeing the evil butterfly.

But it wasn't over quite yet. She purified the butterfly as fast as she could but she heard the telltale sign of one final beep.

She threw the cloth in the air as the ladybugs did their job.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.

She immediately went to distract the person, as to make sure that they wouldn't see a detransformed Chat. That wouldn't be good. Thankfully, the streets were cleared of any life other than the person, her and Chat, so they had no worries there.

Once the person was taken care of, she turned to see no sign of Chat, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

That… that had been a close call. Too close.

Tick tock, tick tock.

---------------------------

It kept her up well into the late hours of the night. Tossing and turning, because she didn't know just what she was supposed to do. The events of earlier that day kept spinning and spinning inside her head and she just couldn't get them to shut up.

Tick tock, tick tock.

Tikki was sound asleep, so Marinette tried her best not to disturb the kwami. The little creature didn't need to be weighed down by her late night thoughts. She couldn't even talk to her parents about this, she had to keep the conversation to herself, as much as she hated it.

She knew she told Chat that if it came to it, identities were not near as important in dire situations, like today, but it felt like it was just becoming a hindrance to them. Especially after the events that they went through hours ago. It was just getting to the point where she had more or less force herself to care about identities, she was questioning it at this point if she even cared.

Tick tock, went the clock inside her head.

What if she didn't, though? Was she supposed to still care? Her mind was screaming yes, to not do anything rash, but her heart was saying the opposite. If they knew, maybe they could've avoided mishaps today, she would've been able to lead him somewhere safe and make sure that he recharged Plagg, while watching his back fo him while he couldn't see.

She needed answers to questions, and she needed them as soon as she could get them. She knew what she had to do the next day.

Always with a brazing tick, tock.

She would go talk to Master Fu.

-------------------------------------

Adrien was aware that sooner or later, time was going to run out and their identities would be known to each other, they were pushing his luck as it was already.

Like the tick of a clock that taunted anyone who was watching it, waiting for a specific time to pass.

Yesterday, he had a long, strenuous photoshoot, in which he had missed a lot of notes for class, and he needed to borrow some to copy them down himself. When he entered the classroom, he instantly spotted Marinette, and rushed over to her.

She must've sensed his presence right away, because as he approached, her head shot up from her sketchbook and offered a bright smile. "Hey, Adrien. What's up?"

He was grateful for the months that had passed and allowed the two to grow in their friendship. With Marinette actually having moved on, she was able to have coherent conversations, which was really awesome. He liked talking to Marinette. "I had my photoshoot yesterday, and I could really use someone's notes, would you mind if I borrow yours for a few minutes?"

She nodded. "Of course. Let me just grab my tablet." She lifted her backpack up from where it rested at her side on the floor, and sat it on the table to unzip it, fishing out her device.

And that… that was when his heart missed a few beats.

Because clasped around the handle of her homemade backpack, was a golden chain.

A very ...familiar golden chain.

Tick tock, tick tock.

But it… it couldn't be. While it was very similar to his mother's chain, that was nowhere near proof enough. Besides, just because he thought he knew the chain well, that didn't mean he did. There were millions exactly the same, and the rest of the necklace with the actual jewel fell into the bag, hidden by any public eye, and as much as he wanted to, he felt rude asking to see it. So, he decided to just let it be.

It matched up too well for it be true. She wasn't her. The universe wasn't laughing at them that hard.

Tick tock, tick tock.

---------------------------

"Master Fu? Are you busy?"

Marinette made sure to knock first, before poking her head in, but only her head as she found Master Fu in the middle of his tea time with Wayzz.

He looked up, smiling in kind at the sight of her, and his eyes brimming with some unknown knowledge, as if he knew she was going to be stopping by that day. "Ah, Marinette. It's good to you see you, please, come in." He sat his tea off to the side as he motioned for her to take a seat across from him. "What's troubling you, Marinette?"

She took the spot, folding her legs underneath her, fiddling her fingers together. "Well, as you know, Chat and I have been together, for a while, actually. And I wanted to talk to you about our identity."

He nodded, understanding what she was trying to convey. "And you want to know if you're allowed to reveal who you are."

Nerves swayed in her stomach, but she didn't back down from what she wanted. "Yes."

He sighed, dipped his head before looking back to her. "Marinette, there has been many, many Ladybug's and Chat Noir's before you. Many reveals, too. There was never a question about if they would find out, only when." He paused as he went over his thoughts. "It's hardly ever how they want to find out— and if it is, the timing itself is never perfect, be it villains, or something else."

"Aren't you the one that puts the identity rule in there in the first place?"

He nodded. "Yes, but you have to understand where it comes from, take Chloe for an example. Her identity became jeopardized and so did her family. It became too dangerous for her to be Queen Bee. And that can be you too if you're not careful."

She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I know."

"But." And her head was back up, looking at him. "That's your choice to make, your risk to take. Queen Bee had her identity broadcasted to the entire city, it's too risky for everyone to know. Ladybug and Chat always find out. As long as you keep it to you two, then you must hold the weight that it bears."

Her mouth dropped opened and closed a few times before her words tumbled out. "S-so, it's okay…?"

He titled his head, and have a one shoulder shrug. "Maybe, maybe not. That's officially up to you now. I won't interfere from this point on."

It… it was officially her choice. Her choice who knew and who didn't.

Tick.

------------------

Adrien was hit with the almost eye watering smell of pets, cat litter, and animal business heavily in the air.

But what else could one expect to smell when entering a pet shop.

"Seriously, thank you guys so much for coming with me," Alya said as she dragged her two sisters at her side. "I don't think I could deal with two girls by baby animals. No matter how much experience I have with them."

He, Nino, and Marinette all nodded in agreement. "It's no problem, Alya," Marinette spoke up for everyone. "It's a good way for us to all hangout and to get away from homework for the weekend." Alya rolled her eyes at her best friends usual antics. "Plus, we get to see cute baby kittens. How could we not say yes?"

Alya brought her hand up to her chest, right on her heart. "Girl, I can't believe it, am I only a means to you for some fun? I'm so appalled."

Marinette rolled her eyes good heartedly and nudged her shoulder with her own. "That's a lie, and you know it."

The blogger laughed, but motioned them to go on and to look around at what they all wanted.

Adrien was instantly drawn to the cats, and was surprised to see Marinette in his lead. "You gonna look at the kitties too?"

She bounced in her place. "Yeah. I'm really fond of cats. Especially lately. I wanted to see if I can hold one."

He nodded, and decided to pull her along to the cage where they were located. When they got there, they were greeted with the most adorable sight of all the cats either laying down resting, or wrestling with each other with playful nips.

Marinette eyed a black kitty almost right away. "Aww, look at that one." she went to go and reach for it, but before she could make contact, the cat arched his back, and hissed.

His friend was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered and tried for another one.

But it was with all the same results. Hiss after sad hiss.

Adrien felt bad, he couldn't fathom why they would act the way around Marinette. She was sweet, and kind. She would never hurt a fly, let alone a cat.

But… she seemed okay with it. After the last attempt, she even rolled her eyes and chuckled, muttering under her breath, "Territorial cats." She looked back to him. "It must be my perfume or.. something."

That was downright strange. And then, for some unknown reason, his thoughts went straight to Ladybug, and how she was probably having the same problems now with every cat she came into contact with. He couldn't help to admit his heart swelled in pride at that.

But why was he thinking about that when he was with Marinette? Why was he connecting that to her?

Something screamed inside his head to sniff the air, it wouldn't stop. Even as Adrien, his senses were still somewhat enhanced from being Chat for so long, but definitely not as much as when he was in the suit. So, when he sniffed the air his face, turned sour almost instantly.

He could still smell cats, litter, and poop, and not much else after that.

But… but he could've sworn for a brief second, that maybe, just maybe he caught a whiff of his scent.

He knew it was impossible. Marinette, who had just gotten over him, could not be Ladybug, who he had been dating for well over a year now. She just wasn't. It didn't work that way. He'd lock it away, not to bother with it, because there was no reason to get excited over something that wasn't real.

But… but that was the first time ever that the smallest part of his heart, for the briefest second, hoped.

Tock.

I'M SO READY FOR TOMORROW.

WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME FUNNNNNNNNNNNN.

I need sleep! Night all! Lemme know your thoughts! Lots of love! :D

[jade-soulbear]

My Wellbeing 4/4/22

Hello again! We have made it through at least one day with this diary thing. I really enjoyed it yesterday, so I'm gonna try write something today and hope I don't give up any time soon.

Believe it or not, I went to bed a whole 20 minutes earlier than usual last night, so as to be expected, I was even more tired this morning. I was really late this morning that I had to run out the door before I could even brush my teeth or wash my face. This is becoming a reoccurring trend and it's getting on my nerves because my skin gets on my nerves on a good day, I'm gonna brush my teeth and wash my face as soon as I'm finished this entry. I surprisingly made it to school 2 minutes early despite being late earlier, almost fell asleep during during my language class (not sure I want to disclose what country I come from, but it is the language of that country, which no one uses anymore, and I kinda dislike it because what's the point of even learning it if I can't speak it to anyone besides the pretentious assholes who like to talk about how they are more patriotic than everyone else). I sat on the far end of the class from my friend FW (doing the initials to protect identities again), and im sure they didn't mind but I was too tired to talk to anyone, and I expected they were talking to their other friends, I hope they didn't take it personally though.

So the cool thing about today is that I got to miss half my classes because I had a seminar (what a fancy word) on wellbeing. So, just to preface, I'd say I have the best wellbeing out of my friend group, and they would say the same. Most of them are in therapy and I've never had a panic attack or been depressed or anything so I think I'm doing alright. That being said, we had this questionnaire and I know you probably can't rank your wellbeing with a number but I still got a really low number for this kind of thing? Sure I rarely get enough sleep but I'm doing better than the average teenager and just because I don't attend a club of some sort doesn't mean my wellbeing is poor. I find that clubs take up too much of my time but I still use my time wisely to hang out with my friends and stuff. Either way I know I'm reading too far into it lol.

My friend CW was in today and I was talking to him about it and he told me he only got 30 minutes of sleep last night. I know there's that joke of everybody's got that friend who brags about how little sleep they get but this is just insane. He suffers badly from ADHD and he got prescribed sleeping pills but he's still not doing so well. That being said, he's probably the most upbeat guy I know, even though he was very sleep deprived he did his best to act lively and energetic (he left after the third class)

Overall the seminar was alright, nothing great, there was a slide of a PowerPoint about suicide helplines with a quote from "Avatar: The Last Airbender" beside it that I couldn't stop laughing at. The rest of my school day was pretty boring, I got to laze around in politics because I'm ahead in my project, I got loads of homework in religion classes because I was out last Friday because my Mam let me take a "mental health day", basically I didn't have to go to school because my little brother didn't and she felt bad for me and thought it would relieve stress, which I am forever thankful for because waking up really early only to be told I can go back to bed is the best feeling ever. After that I had English, which was okay but kinda slow and I'm going to be getting an essay soon which suckkks, I don't understand why they don't leave me be since we're so close to the holidays.

Oh and I forgot to mention, had lunch between Politics and Religion, OF, MC, and FW and I went to the store across the street from the school, because MC needed food and OF wanted to buy monster. While we were in there me and OF got really sidetracked in the medication aisle (I think OF was looking for caffeine tablets, the guy has got some bad habits). In the end, he didn't find any and we started reading the names of condoms and "intimate gel" which is comedy gold to me for some reason. Oran eventually got a packet of biscuits (which I paid for, because I was pretending I was richer than him and basically constantly flexing and stuff so he was like "prove it, since paying for my biscuits won't mean anything to you" and I'm willing to go far for a joke so of course I did).

When we got back to school, lunch was awkward for some reason, we just didn't have much to talk about I guess, but I'm sure it's nothing.

So anyways, I walked home from school with OF and MC (after almost missing them because I lost my coat in the school) and that was the end of the school day. Idk what else to say, had steak for dinner and started my homework wayyy too late but I have a good excuse so it's all cool. Bye.

[artyblogs]

Launch Date ch9 Gently

Star Wars the Clone Wars, Ahsoka/Riyo

Launch Date summary: In which Ahsoka mistakes Riyo for an office secretary, Riyo is sometimes too gay to function, and R7-A7 is determined to be a trollish kark.

First Chapter : Previous Chapter : Next Chapter : 

Chapter Summary: Riyo and Ahsoka are in danger of missing dinner, but it's okay. They eat out instead.

Ahsoka is a comforting weight at Riyo’s back, with her arm draped over her waist. She seems to have been awake for a while, and instead of getting out of bed, is content to play big spoon and to read something off of Riyo’s white data pad, which hovers at eye level thanks to the Force. Riyo lies still for a moment, as if she’s still sleeping, and tries to peek at the data pad without moving her head.

“I can sense you thinking,” Ahsoka says, her voice soft. She kisses the back of Riyo’s shoulder and lets the data pad fall onto the bed. “Good morning.”

“Is it good though?” Riyo asks. She has questions, an incredible headache, and a queasy stomach. She feels Ahsoka smirk against her hair.

“Feeling sick?”

“How do—Yes.”

Ahsoka gives her one last kiss to the temple before she gets up and pads over to the kitchen, leaving her to take stock of her room.

She’s wearing a t-shirt she doesn’t remember putting on and has a couple bruises she doesn’t remember getting. The dress she wore yesterday is a white and silver pool of cloth on the floor just inside her closet. Ahsoka’s dress and coat are piled on the seat of the vanity chair and the fox hood leers from its place draped over the back of the chair.

Riyo tries to get up, but a sudden wave of nausea makes her groan and lie down again. Eventually, she shifts into a sitting up position against the headboard.

Ahsoka appears in the doorway, holding a glass of water and a packet of effervescent tablets, which she gives to Riyo. She sits down on the bed, making it shift under her weight.

“How are you?”

“I feel like a million credits.” Riyo rips open the packet with her teeth and drops the tablets in the water. They fizzle and she helps them along by swirling the glass a little bit.

“You look like a million credits.”

“Hah!” Riyo laughs, then winces and holds her stomach. “Look at you, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. How are you doing that?”

Ahsoka gives her an apologetic smile. “Force-sensitives have pretty good constitutions.”

“That’s not fair.” Riyo sips at the water at first, careful not to take too much at once and make her stomach worse, but then decides to drink half the glass anyway. She sets the glass on the nightstand and steels herself.

“Ahsoka.”

“Yeah?”

“I-I don’t really remember much after we left the ball and I…” Riyo stops, unsure of how to proceed. Ahsoka’s blue eyes turn guarded, but she doesn’t turn away, so Riyo continues.

“I have a bruise on my hip.” It’s a familiar bruise, and it’s in a place where, if Riyo was grabbed in just the right way….

Ahsoka smiles in relief. “Oh, that. You bumped into the corner of the kitchen table. Does it hurt? I could get you an ice pack.”

“Thank you, but I think I’ll be alright. Did-did we…?” Riyo makes a gesture that makes Ahsoka’s lekku stripes darken.

“No.” Ahsoka answers quickly.

“Did I…?” Riyo points at the refresher.

“No,” Ahsoka says again. “Wow, you really don’t remember, huh?”

“Mm. No.” Riyo closes her eyes tight and digs deep for what she does remember. “There was that man in the alehouse, and then I asked you to take me home.”

She vaguely remembers Ahsoka holding her almost possessively close, and how she willingly folded herself into Ahsoka’s arms, but everything after that is a muddled blur.

“Yeah. You fell asleep in the taxi, and then I woke you up when we got back and made you drink some water. And then you changed out of your dress and fell asleep. Riyo?”

“Yes?”

Ahsoka hesitates. “Are you okay? I mean, that guy was such a creep.”

Riyo stares down at her hands. She doesn’t know how much of what she’s feeling can be attributed to the hangover, or to the Incident in the Alehouse. There’s also this irrational thought that maybe it’s all her fault. Maybe if she weren’t so incredibly trusting, then she wouldn’t have gone with the Stratt in the first place.

Wait, no. That’s wrong. Good people just don’t attack other people like that.

“I don’t know,” she finally says. “I think I’m more okay than not.”

“You’re handling this really well.”

“It’s not the worst that’s happened to me, actually. Someone once came at me with a knife, and that was much more frightening.”

Ahsoka’s jaw drops and Riyo shrugs.

“Terrible, I know. Magnus happened to be there, and he handled it. I hired him on the spot.” Riyo falls into another thoughtful silence. “If you weren’t there….”

“Don’t do that. I was there.” Ahsoka holds out her hands. “May I?”

Riyo takes her hands and tugs her closer. The both of them end up lying in bed once more, cuddling, and Riyo brings the covers back up over them both. Ahsoka’s cheek presses against Riyo’s forehead and all the clenched muscles in Riyo’s neck and back immediately relax. She might say that what happened wasn’t a big deal, but just talking about it still made her tense up.

“I’m going to call the Ball organizers about it today.”

“Do you want me there?” Ahsoka asks, her voice gentle. Due to their position, with Riyo’s ear pressed to Ahsoka’s chest, she feels Ahsoka’s voice more than she hears it, and she finds herself lowering her own voice to match it.

“Yes, they’ll need your statement.”

“Okay. What else can I do? What do you need?”

“Just this.” Riyo closes her eyes and listens to the steady thump of Ahsoka’s heart.

R7 rolls into the open doorway, whistling. Ahsoka lifts her head a little to look at him.

“Yeah, she’s hung over. Why?”

One of R7’s manipulators pop out. He reaches into one of his compartments and pulls out an air horn. The two women gape at him.

“Don’t,” Ahsoka says, but R7 rocks back and forth as if to psych himself up. “I’m serious, you better not do it.”

R7 presses the button on the valve.

B-B-B-BRRR!

Riyo recoils from the piercing sound and holds a pillow over her head to muffle it.

“Oh hell!” Ahsoka leaps up, her hands outstretched. She swipes at the airhorn, but R7 dodges. “Stop!”

For ten thousand credits, I will stop, R7 beeps.

After a couple failed attempts at taking the airhorn away, Ahsoka flicks her hand and takes the airhorn apart using the Force. The sounds tapers off as the canister twists and falls out of the valve onto the rug. R7 tries to grab it, but Ahsoka summons the canister into her palm.

“You are grounded,” Ahsoka shouts. R7 drops the valve and zooms out of the bedroom, shrieking. Ahsoka runs out after him, ordering him to hold still, dammit.

The comlink on the nightstand beeps and Riyo gropes blindly until she finds it. She brings it under the pillow to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Good, you’re alive,” Magnus says from the other end.

“Barely.” Riyo emerges from under the pillow for air. “I’ve got a terrible hangover.”

“But your voice has returned! Do you need anything? I could stop by with supplies.”

“Thanks, but that’s alright. I don’t think I’ll be leaving the apartment today.”

“That’s probably for the best. Feel better, Riyo. Get plenty of water, rest, and carbs and you’ll be back on your feet in no time.”

Riyo thinks about telling him about the Stratt. She decides not to.

“Thank you, Magnus. Enjoy your vacation.” Riyo sets the comlink back on the nightstand and finishes the rest of her water. The tablets seem to be working and when she tries to get up this time, she’s able to keep her balance and stagger to the refresher without incident. While she washes up, she hears the holoscreen turn on in the living room.

“Convicted of Sedition against the Republic, multiple first-degree murders, and conspiracy. Miss Offee has been sentenced to life without parole and is currently being temporarily held by the Jedi Order in a secure facility. Sources tell us that the transfer of custody into Republic hands is set to take place later today. Here with me now is Jedi spokesperson Tamlin Grogat. Master Grogat, can you please explain why Miss Offee’s trial was conducted by the Jedi Order, while the previous one for Ahsoka Tano was conducted by a Republic Tribunal?”

“Ugh.” Ahsoka changes the channel. R7, who sits in the corner with his camera facing the wall like a punished youngling, cautiously turns to look. “Nope, one full hour.”

R7 grumbles.

“Wanna make it two?”

R7 bleeps and his camera snaps back to the wall. Riyo walks into the room—her hair pulled back in a messy bun—and sits down next to Ahsoka.

“Are you alright?” Riyo asks.

“I’ll be fine after some meditation. Are you hungry?”

“You know, I actually am? Did you cook?”

Ahsoka shrugs. “I made toast?”

Riyo chuckles, then leans over to kiss Ahsoka on the cheek. “Food is food. Thank you.” She gets up and goes to the kitchen. “I’m going to make some pasta, do you want some?”

“Yeah.” Ahsoka listens to the sounds of Riyo rifling through cabinets in the kitchen and feels the lingering tingle of the kiss on her cheek and finds that she can’t summon the anger that would necessitate having to meditate right now. Instead, she pushes off the couch and joins Riyo in the kitchen.

“Need any help?”

Later that morning, Riyo receives a hologram comlink call from Padmé Amidala.

“Odd,” Riyo says to herself. She’s alone in her office, sorting out stacks of data cards. R7 has long since been released from his time-out and Ahsoka has taken over the living room to meditate with her kyber crystals. Riyo answers the call and sits back in her chair.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Riyo.” The corners of Padmé’s eyes crinkle as she smiles. “Enjoying your vacation?”

“Very much! I got my voice back.”

“That’s good. I must let you know that I might be taking a leave of absence from the Senate.”

“A leave of absence?”

“Yes. Starting later this week. There are some things that I must attend to.”

“This is a secret, isn’t it? I only ask to make sure that I shouldn’t tell anyone.”

Padmé’s eyes widen in surprise. “It is. How do you know that?”

“If it wasn’t a secret, then you’d be sending a Senate-wide notification through the data pads, which you haven’t.”

“Clever girl,” Padmé says, impressed. “Ahsoka tells me you’ve also figured out my great secret.”

“I…well….”

“Thank you for keeping it in confidence.”

“Of course! Padmé, I would never betray you like that. And it’s really none of my business.”

“I know, and I appreciate your discretion. Is Ahsoka there too? I need to talk to her.”

“Yes, although, she’s meditating. Let me get her for you.”

Riyo leaves for a moment, then returns with Ahsoka. Ahsoka’s eyes light up when she sees Padmé.

“Hey, Padmé!”

“Hello, Ahsoka. How are you? Is Riyo treating you well?”

“She’s a wonderful host,” Ahsoka says.

“Splendid! I must congratulate you both on your new relationship.”

Ahsoka and Riyo share a stunned silence for a moment, and a sly smirk spreads over Padmé’s face.

“H-how did you know?” Riyo asks, internally cursing her stutter.

“You’re not the only observant person, Riyo,” Padmé says. “And you’re not the only crafty one, either; I didn’t have any proof until just now. Oh I can’t wait to tell Anakin, he’ll owe me a candlelit dinner.”

“Force, they’ve been gossiping about us,” Ahsoka says to Riyo. Riyo flushes indigo and Padmé laughs.

“If it helps, you two make a very cute couple, and I’m very happy for you. You’ll be able to give your relationship the effort and attention it deserves if you aren’t hiding it from the Jedi Council. Which reminds me; have you noticed worrying things about Ahsoka yet, Riyo?”

Riyo gives Ahsoka an apologetic glance. “I have. Is it like that with you and Anakin?”

“Yes. It comes with the territory. My comlink is always open to you should you need it.”

“Thank you, Padmé.”

“What things?” Ahsoka asks.

“You know how you’d come to me to vent?” Riyo asks. “The things you’d vent about…you’ve been through a lot. I worry.”

“Oh.” Ahsoka’s eyes become unfocused as she thinks back. “Huh. And you said Anakin’s like me?”

“He is. I called to talk about him, actually. He’s still a little paranoid about me and my health. I’ve seen the doctor and everything’s fine, so he’s content for the moment, but I can tell that it’s still eating away at him. Has he mentioned anything to you, Ahsoka?”

“Not today. He doesn’t talk to you?” Ahsoka asks.

“He’s actually been quite open with me lately. It’s very refreshing. But I must cover all the bases. You understand.”

“I do. I’ll let you know if anything comes up.”

“Thank you, Ahsoka.”

Ahsoka sits cross-legged on a bedsheet spread over the floor, then lines up all of the unpacked lightsaber parts in an arc before her. As far as she remembers, everything she needs to create both lightsabers is here, but she won’t really know for sure until she’s halfway through.

She hopes she doesn’t blow herself up. Riyo is on the couch a few feet away, watching, and if Ahsoka blew herself up now, that’d be kind of embarrassing. Ahsoka reaches into her shirt and pulls out the leather pouch containing her kyber crystals. For the past couple days, she’d peeked at the Force through the crystals like a youngling with a magnifying lens and every time she’s looked, she’s found the Force as mesmerizing and kaleidoscopic as that first immersive time on Mortis.

She undoes the drawstring and shakes the crystals out onto her palm. When she first got them, they were tinged green. Now, however, they’ve been bleached into a frosted white.

“Huh,” she whispers, but a crystal is a crystal. She takes one in each hand, straightens up and and slips into meditation. The colors of the room ease into bland monochrome and the sounds soften to mute as the crystals levitate from Ahsoka’s palms and take to the air. They glint and shine against the gloom.

Ahsoka breathes in and out. She empties herself of thought and feeling not unlike how she did in the machine shop in the market. There is no time when she’s in this state. No hunger. No thirst. The Force washes around her like music and she lets it flow through her. The lightsaber parts on the floor around her tremble, then lift off of the sheet and into the air around her in a swirl before splitting up into two groups around each crystal.

The Force seems to look at each part in turn, inspecting it thoroughly before moving on to the next one. To Ahsoka’s relief, every part she needs is here. They hover into formation, ready, then they slowly come together and click into place. They do this even though Ahsoka created some of the parts from scratch, without any plans. The tolerances are still perfect. It would take the other machinists in that shop the better part of a week to design the necessary plans for the same set of parts, and it would take another week for them to manufacture them.

The cores of the lightsabers, now complete, slide into the handle casings and once they lock into place, the dials and switches sink into the casings with a series of snaps, completing them.

The lightsabers float down and rest in Ahsoka’s palms.

Ahsoka breathes in. Out. The light of the Force fades from around her. Colors come back. So do sounds. Ahsoka eases back into the world and opens her eyes to look at her lightsabers for the first time.

They’re slightly curved, much longer than her previous lightsabers, but thinner, with flat sides. One of them is much shorter than the other. Ahsoka’s fingers curl around them and finds that they’re the perfect shape to fit into her hands. Because of the welding and the sanding, both look as if fashioned from one piece of metal; elegant and sleek.

Ahsoka points the longer lightsaber away from her face and activates it.

KYSHHOO.

The blade, like her crystals, is silver white. Ahsoka adjusts the length of the blade, then deactivates it. She does the same with her shoto lightsaber, then stands up. When she activates them at the same time, she basks in the familiarity of it all. It’s as if she’s been missing a limb and only now has regained it. Ahsoka flips the lightsabers into her usual grip, then does a few basic katas to acquaint herself with the balance and weight of the lightsabers. As she does this the Force sings through her.

When Ahsoka deactivates the lightsabers, she’s smiling hard enough to hurt her face.

That afternoon, Ahsoka is pulled out of lightsaber practice by a hologram comlink call from Anakin. She sets her lightsabers aside and answers it.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Snips.” Anakin looks as if he hasn’t been getting any sleep lately. “You lost me a bet.”

“Jedi shouldn’t gamble,” Ahsoka says with a grin. “It can lead to anger.”

“Ha ha. At least you figured yourself out.”

“Yeah, that was a trip. Any other outstanding bets I need to know about?”

“No, that’s it. But there’s something else I need to tell you.” Anakin hesitates, and Ahsoka senses some trepidation on his part through the Force bond they share.

“What’s wrong?”

“I need you to go to Malachor.”

Ahsoka opens her mouth, closes it, and frowns. “Malachor, considered by everyone in the Galaxy to be the literal manifestation of Hell, that Malachor?”

“Snips, please. It’s for research. There’s a Sith holocron on that planet….”

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No!”

“Am I being punished for something?”

“Will you let me explain? I’ve heard of a Sith parable that I need you to verify for me.” Anakin tells her of Darth Plagueis and how he was a Force-wielder who was powerful enough to reverse death. The more he talks, the more pronounced the crazed glint in his eye gets and the more concerned Ahsoka feels.

“…And if it saves Padmé, can it really be that bad?”

“Who told you this story?” Ahsoka asks.

“The Chancellor.”

“Why would the Chancellor know Sith lore?”

“He’s a widely-read man, Ahsoka. He craves knowledge for knowledge sake.”

“Okay, but Sith lore? I mean…please think about it, Master. I know he’s a good friend of yours, but what if he’s selling you something that’s not for you?”

“Of course I’ve thought about it, Snips. That’s why I need you to go to Malachor and find the Sith holocron. If the power the Chancellor told me about doesn’t exist, then I’ll know something’s wrong.”

“Oh yeah, because there’s nothing wrong about this situation in the first place.”

Anakin grimaces. “Snips, please.”

“Okay! But what if it does exist?” Ahsoka asks. “This power that we know not? This is the Dark Side of the Force we’re talking about. What will you do?”

“I don’t know.” Anakin and Ahsoka stare at each other, both of them surprised at that. Ahsoka’s eyebrow marks scrunch together in concern.

“I may not have any right to ask you this, but don’t go somewhere I can’t follow, Anakin. Please.”

Anakin solemnly nods. “Don’t worry, Snips, you’re stuck with me. Look, I know this is a risky trip. If you need credits, I can pay you for your trouble.”

“How do you have credits?”

“Ah ah. I gotta keep some secrets for myself. Speaking of secrets, Padmé and I are going into hiding soon. Padmé’s doing great, which makes me think that my visions are due to an assassination attempt. I won’t take any chances.”

“What about the Council?”

Anakin grins. “Someone once told me that they can’t work with the Council if the Council wasn’t going to trust them, and I’ve found that I agree with that sentiment.”

“Huh. Just like that?”

“It was a long time coming.”

“Have you told anyone else about going into hiding?”

“Just you, and I guess Riyo too if she’s as smart enough to figure it out like Padmé says she is. I can’t decide if I should tell the Chancellor.”

“Don’t.”

“What?”

“Riyo told me that political offices leak, and I might have experienced it firsthand. If you tell the Chancellor your plans, then it’ll be leaked, and it’ll all be in vain. It doesn’t matter if he turns out to be a good person or not, it’ll still happen. If you don’t tell anyone where you’re going, or when you’re going - not even me - then you and Padmé will be much more safe.”

“Hmm. I’ll talk to Padmé about it. Will you go to Malachor for me?”

“I will. But only because you’re my master and you’re desperate.”

“Thank you. May the Force be with you, Ahsoka.”

The call ends and Ahsoka sinks boneless into the couch. Malachor. Why did it have to be Malachor? After internally groaning about it for a minute, she sighs and sits up so that she can place another comlink call. Right before it goes to voicemail, it’s picked up.

“Hello?” Asajj Ventress asks, her voice as dark as tinted glass. One elegant eyebrow goes up in surprise. “Ahsoka Tano.”

“Hello, Ventress.”

“How did you get this comlink code?”

“Does it matter? I have a job for you.”

“You want to hire me? To do what?”

“I’m going to Malachor to steal a Sith holocron and I need a guide.”

Asajj cackles. Ahsoka makes as if to interrupt, but Asajj holds up a hand. When she’s done laughing, she wipes her eyes dry on the back of her hand.

“If you want to try the Dark Side of the Force so badly, you could just ask. I could give you some pointers.”

“No way,” Ahsoka says, highly insulted. “It’s strictly for research.”

“So you say. Malachor’s still not a place for tourists, Tano, you send people there to die.”

“I’m going to Malachor and I need a guide. You were Sith, but you’re not anymore. That means you could be that guide.”

Asajj scowls. “That’s suicide and you know it.”

“I can pay you.”

“How do you have credits?”

Ah, so that’s how it feels like to be on the receiving end of that question. Ahsoka squares her shoulders and glares at the hologram.

“Credits are credits. Do you want in, or not?”

“What information could a Sith holocron possibly provide you?”

“I’m doing this for a friend.”

“So it’s a job. You’re getting paid to do this.” Asajj strokes her tattooed chin in thought. “I want half.”

Ahsoka sputters. “Twenty-five percent!”

“That’s an insult and I should hang up right now. Forty-five.”

“Thirty!”

“Forty is as low as I go. I’m not going to thrice-damned Malachor for chicken poodoo, Tano.”

“Ugh,” Ahsoka groans. “Fine. Forty percent. And you’re providing the transport.”

“You’re lucky I already have a ship. Where are your coordinates? I’ll pick you up tomorrow.”

Riyo’s apartment technically has two bedrooms, but the second one has been converted into an office. Ahsoka lingers in the doorway and watches Riyo re-shelve stacks of data cards. She’s been at it all day and now she’s almost done. She sits on the floor so that she can shelve the few remaining stacks into the two lowest shelves. When Ahsoka finally comes in, she glances up at her before continuing her work.

“Hey you,” Riyo says.

“Still have a hangover?”

“I’ve recovered. Is it time for dinner? Sorry, I got carried away with all of this.”

“It’s not that.”

There will never be a good time to tell Riyo about her upcoming trip, so Ahsoka figures that she might as well just tell her.

“Anakin called.”

Riyo chuckles and moves on to the next shelf down. “Is he mad about that bet with Padmé?”

“He needs me to do something for him.”

Riyo glances at Ahsoka again and catches her stony demeanor. Her hands drop in her lap and she gives Ahsoka her full attention. “What did he ask you to do?”

“He needs me to go to Malachor.”

Fear and disbelief leaks into Riyo’s gold eyes. “What?”

“There’s a Sith Holocron there that has information that could help him. I’m gonna get it for him.”

Riyo looks hard at her, then bows her head to hide her face. She doesn’t say anything.

“I know it sounds bad.” Ahsoka sinks to her knees before Riyo, her hands open and pleading. “I know. Malachor’s not just a bad Force thing; it’s a bad Galaxy thing.”

“Then don’t do it. Please! People don’t come back from that place.”

“He needs help, and this is how I can help him.”

“You could die.”

“I’m still going. Anakin never abandoned me, and I won’t abandon him.”

Riyo looks away, blinking furiously. Ahsoka reaches for her, but she shakes her head and pulls away. Ahsoka feels as though she’s been punched in the gut.

“Riyo, please.”

“I cannot watch you destroy yourself.”

“If Magnus asked you to do something nuts, you’d do it.”

“Magnus would never ask me to do something like this in the first place!”

“But if he did, you would do it!” Ahsoka says. Riyo clenches her jaw. “I have to do this; he’s desperate. I’ll come back.”

“What if you don’t?”

“But I will!”

“Don’t,” make promises you can’t keep, remains unsaid.

“Anakin wouldn’t ask me to do this if he thought I wouldn’t be up to the task,” Ahsoka says, her voice hard. One way or another, she will get through to Riyo. “He has faith in me. And now I ask you to have faith in me too.”

Riyo finally looks at her. “It could still go so wrong,” she whispers. Ahsoka leans forward and touches her forehead to hers.

“Do you trust me?”

“Yes.”

“So trust me when I say I’ll be back,” Ahsoka says. “I’m a lot tougher than you think.”

Resignation flickers across Riyo’s face right before she closes the gap to put her mouth on Ahsoka’s.

The kiss is hungry and desperate. Ahsoka is lost in the wet glide of Riyo’s mouth and she presses forward, pinning Riyo onto the cool, wood floor. Riyo fists her hands in Ahsoka’s shirt.

Ahsoka sneaks a hand under the hem of Riyo’s shirt to feel the smooth plane of her stomach. Riyo’s thin, but her body is soft, like she doesn’t have any muscle. She jerks and too late, Ahsoka remembers the calluses on her palms, but instead of pulling away, Riyo gasps and catches her mouth again in a rough kiss.

Intrigued, Ahsoka lets her hands roam over Riyo’s soft skin. She wants to trace her tattoos. She wants the unmarked places for herself. Ahsoka pulls away from the kiss so that she can latch onto the lovely pulse point of Riyo’s neck.

Do we have Berko-8? R7 bleeps from the open doorway. Kark. Get it.

Ahsoka breaks away from Riyo’s throat with a growl, her eyes dark. “R7!” she roars.

Bye! R7 screams as he tears out of the apartment. Ahsoka turns back to look down at her handiwork. Riyo’s gold eyes are unfocused, and her chest is already heaving for breath.  

“Are you okay?”

“I’m good. Great,” Riyo mumbles. “Help me up?”

“Sure.” Ahsoka takes Riyo’s hand and pulls her to her feet. Riyo doesn’t let go, however, and she leads Ahsoka down the hall to the bedroom. Ahsoka shuts the door behind them.

Note Bene: It’s a good thing R7’s such a troll, otherwise I would’ve had to write a lewd, which is NOT IN THE OUTLINE, RIYO. THIS FIC IS RATED T. (All she was supposed to do was wish Ahsoka luck, not jump her bones. God.) I digress. Sometimes characters do what they want and you can’t stop them.

Want more Launch Date? Read it on AO3 or Fanfiction.net.

[yuki-setsu]

12 Days of (Lance) Whumpmas! - Day 1 [Fever]

probably the softest whump with the cheesiest ending LOL don’t think that’ll stick through the rest of this writing challenge though welp

part of the 12 Days of VLD Whumpmas hosted by @vldwhumpmas2017! check out more info on the challenge here if you want to participate!

It had been Lance's idea. When Pidge had casually mentioned that she figured it was almost Christmas back on Earth, he didn't hesitate to suggest they hold a Christmas celebration.

“Come on, it'll be fun!” Lance plopped down on the couch next to Hunk, slinging an arm across his shoulders. “We'll have some good food—courtesy of Hunk—sing some Christmas songs, all that jazz. I would say we exchange gifts, but there's not really much to find on the Castle that can really be called a present, so I say it's the thought that counts.”

Hunk was all for it, and it didn't take long for the others to warm up to the idea. Keith had been the hardest to get on board, but Lance's excitement was contagious at that point. Once Allura and Coran learned what Christmas actually was, they were as excited as Lance was, maybe even more.

“I'll find a place to hide the Castle for a bit.” Allura grinned, eyes shining. “We'll still be able to receive and respond to distress signals should they arise, so we should remain on guard for those.”

They decided to have the party in 2 days, mostly because Lance argued that things needed to be perfect for them to have a great time. Hunk had rummaged around the storage area and found some material that was somewhat similar to construction paper, and everyone went to work making a bunch of decorations and streamers. That part had been fun, especially when they discovered Keith was horrifically bad at making snowflakes.

“Dude, you just keep it folded and cut any shapes you want into it.” Lance laughed, busy unfolding another one he'd finished. His were great, since he'd had plenty of practice making them back on Earth during the holidays.

“I am cutting shapes.” Keith grumbled.

“You just keep cutting across in a straight line. That's not a shape. Look at Shiro!” Lance leaned over, grabbing at a small and delicate snowflake. “If he can make cute snowflakes like these, I'm sure you can make a normal one.”

Shiro coughed, the tips of his ears tinged a slight pink as he cut another pattern out. Keith, however, didn't look amused. “What the heck is that supposed to mean?”

Lance patted his shoulder, a solemn expression on his face. “I'm saying you'll get there one day, buddy.”

And he did, eventually. Lance had made it his mission to see Keith cut out a decent looking snowflake before the day ended, and after five more tries, Lance held up a perfectly symmetrical snowflake in triumph, saying that Keith should autograph it and frame it after the party was over. Even Keith cracked a smile at that.

The first day passed relatively quick. Aside from the decorations, Hunk looked through the pantry in search of ingredients that could be used for Christmas-like snacks, and Pidge occupied herself with a “secret project” on her laptop. Lance was glad to see everyone getting as excited for the party as he was, especially since their days had been filled with nonstop missions and alliance meetings lately. They all needed a rest. Tomorrow looked like it was going to be great.

...Was what he thought, but Lance was quickly rethinking that notion when he woke up in bed the next morning. He swore he saw the ceiling swirl before he sat up. The room tilted almost dangerously when he tried to slide out of bed, and he bit back a groan at the sharp pain that shot through his head. Well that's great. Getting sick on a day like this was just his luck. He could probably get through the day and sleep it off, though... Probably.

He gave it a few seconds before he tried to stand up again, catching his balance before he had the chance to fall flat on his face. It took way longer than usual, but he managed to get washed up and changed. The others were probably waking up as well, and Lance wrapped his hoodie around him a bit tighter as he shuffled down to wait in the lounge. Halfway through his trek, it became apparent that he might be a bit sicker than he thought. He was seriously ready to take a breather along the wall for a while, his legs feeling like lead. Wow, he was really cold.

Resting on the couch sounded a lot better though, so Lance forced himself to keep walking, although he did resort to leaning against the wall as he walked as a support. It was nothing short of a miracle when he finally spotted the doors to the lounge, catching his breath as he stumbled inside. It was empty, albeit filled with the Christmas decorations they'd worked on yesterday. Allura and Coran had a field day finding places to stick and hang them along the walls. They looked really nice, even though it was kinda hard to see at the moment.

He all but collapsed onto the coach and groaned as he curled up on his side. Maybe he could nap a bit of it off before the others got here. He shivered, adjusting to pull his hood up over his head in an attempt to get warmer. He should've brought his blanket with.

The doors slid open again and Lance heard more voices and footsteps echo into the room. He easily picked out Hunk's voice getting closer, and he grumbled. So much for taking a nap.

“Lance?” Hunk called out, voice bright. “Whatcha doing lying down like that? You're tired before the party even started?”

If Lance had the energy, he might have laughed. “Dunno. I think I'm a little sick.”

“Sick?” Pidge's voice. “How bad is it?”

Lance wasn't really sure, to be honest. He saw Hunk pop into his line of vision, a look of definite concern on his face as he kneeled down so he was level with Lance's head. A hand touched his forehead, and Lance barely had time to savor the cool touch before Hunk yanked it away with a yelp.

“Dude, you have a fever. And a high one!” Hunk cried out in dismay.

Lance tried for a small smile. “Gotta keep warm for the holiday season, am I right?”

Pidge appeared behind Hunk, peering over his shoulder with a pensive expression. “Woah. You look terrible.”

Before Lance could even think of a reply, Hunk grabbed him by the shoulders, gently sitting him upright. He grunted at the movement, not even having the strength to resist and stay lying down.

“You need to go back to bed and rest, man.” Hunk started, and Lance's eyes widened. He swatted at Hunk's hands, although there was barely any force put into it.

“Uh, no, we have a Christmas party to celebrate. I'm not sleeping through it.”

Hunk huffed out a breath. “We can postpone it, not cancel. It's not really gonna be a fun party when it looks like you're gonna keel over any second.”

“I don't wanna postpone it either.” Lance was sounding whiny, and he even knew it. But he'd been so ready for this day that he didn't want to push it back. Another rush of dizziness swept over and he groaned, letting his eyes shut as his head fell back against the coach.

“What's going on?” Shiro's voice rang in from behind.

“Lance has a really bad fever, but he still wants to do the party.” Hunk said, unhappy.

“Which is ridiculous.” Pidge supplied unhelpfully.

Lance heard more footsteps before another hand was on his forehead, this time a bit longer. It felt nice. He heard Keith whisper something before the hand disappeared, although he couldn't catch what it was.

“Lance...” From Shiro's tone, Lance already knew where this was going. “That's a really high fever. We need to get it down before it worsens and gets dangerous. We'll have the party as soon as you're feeling better, alright?”

“Shiro's right, your health comes first.” Allura piped up, voice gentle. “Rest assured, we will have the celebration once you recover.”

He couldn't really argue at this point, so he just sighed and gave a weak nod. Hunk shifted his grip, moving to carry Lance bridal style as he volunteered to take him back to his room. Coran was talking about some sort of medicine for the fever, but Lance was getting too sleepy to really pay attention. Hunk talked as they walked down the hallways, but Lance already fell asleep before they reached his room.

Lance woke to numerous voices, most of them hushed in an attempt to keep quiet. He blinked, trying to clear away the bleariness. He felt something cool against his forehead, which was comforting, but he still felt like crap. Not as bad as before though, thankfully. He still heard the others talking, and he shifted to sit up in an attempt to see what was going on.

“Lance!” Hunk was the first to notice, by the bedside in an instant. He picked up the washcloth that fell off of Lance's forehead, handing it off to Pidge. “How you feeling?”

Lance pondered it for a moment, trying to swallow down his dry throat. “...Thirsty.”

“Here you go, my boy.” Coran made his way over, water pouch in hand. He held out his other hand as well, which held two small tablets. “Medicine for the fever. Pidge and Hunk here helped me concoct something that might have similar healing effects to the medicine you all might have on Earth.”

He took those gratefully, downing both the water and medicine. The water felt great, and he finished the entire pouch in no time. Hunk took the empty packet just as Pidge returned with the washcloth.

“Alright, back to sleep with you.” Hunk ordered, letting Lance lie back down before placing the cloth back on his forehead. It had been rewet, and the cool sensation coaxed the tendrils of sleep back once more.

“Where're the others?” Lance mumbled, his eyes fluttering closed.

Hunk's voice was already growing distant, but he managed to hear it this time. “They're, uh, working on something. Don't worry about it. You focus on getting better, man.”

When Lance woke up again, it was in a panic. How late was it? How long had he been asleep? He couldn't even look out a window to gauge the time of the day since they were in space. He burst upright, ignoring the slight pang in his head. Wow, definitely an improvement from the splitting headache he had earlier. But even if the headache had been bad, he wouldn't have noticed it amidst the surprise that washed over him when his vision fully adjusted.

His room was... colorful.

It was littered with familiar snowflakes and cutouts of snowmen and Christmas trees. Somewhere to the side, there was a small hologram of an actual Christmas tree, fully aglow with a bright assortment of lights and ornaments. The star at the top was the brightest, covering half of the dimly lit room with a warm yellowish tint.

Only then did his eyes fall on the others, who were standing in different areas of the room, all looking at him like a deer in headlights. Clearly caught in the middle of finishing something.

“Uhh... Surprise!” Hunk called weakly, hands holding a tray of... cookies? Now that he realized it, the room had the faintest scent of gingerbread, warm and soothing and so like Christmas morning at his home.

Lance was stunned silent for a good few seconds. “... What's going on?”

Shiro shifted his feet, holding a few unhung snowflakes in his hand. His own snowflakes, Lance noted. “We figured that since you needed to rest in bed, we'd just bring the party to your room.” He gave a small smile. “It's more cozy this way, anyways.”

They all watched him, almost eager for his response. Lance felt his eyes sting with tears. He almost feared this was just a fever-delusional dream his brain was cooking up, but he shoved that thought away. This was real.

“This is amazing, guys. Seriously.” Lance finally managed, a smile growing on his face. “Thanks.”

The atmosphere instantly relaxed, and Allura was the first to go back to sticking more snowman decorations along his wall. Shiro and Keith followed along with the decorating as they handed Coran his own share of snowflakes to hang. Hunk made his way back towards the bed, balancing the tray on one hand as he put his free hand on Lance's forehead. He grinned, wide and relieved.

“The fever's definitely gone down. I think this finally calls for a celebration!” Hunk turned around, pointing at the corner of the room. “Hit it, Pidge!”

Lance glanced over, spotting Pidge on the ground with her laptop. She tapped at something before music started to fill the room, light and happy.

Lance blinked. “Is this... Is this 'Sleigh Ride'?” A laugh escaped him, mostly out of disbelief. “How the heck did you get that?”

Pidge smirked, wagging her finger. “That's a secret.”

Hunk laughed, waving a hand towards the group. “Alright, enough decorating! Let's enjoy these Christmas cookies, courtesy of me. I know they smell like gingerbread, but they taste more like peanut butter cookies. Don't ask me why.”

“I'm sure not complaining.” Pidge grinned, setting her laptop down and making her way over with the others.

But before anyone could grab at a cookie, Hunk held the tray away. “Wait, we almost forgot. Ready?”

Lance didn't understand what that meant, but the others seemed to realize, huddled together by the bed with various degrees of smiles on their faces. Hunk counted off before they all spoke in unison.

“Merry Christmas, Lance!”

Lance's heart felt full. It really did. So much that he almost choked up when he replied with, “Thanks, guys. Now let's get to those delicious cookies Hunk made.”

They happily obliged, filling Lance in on how they managed to set up the tree hologram and transferred all of the decorations to Lance's room. Hunk apparently set his first batch of cookies on fire, but he insisted those had been a test trial. Lance listened, munching on the cookie (which was delicious) and watching the others talk and laugh.

He was gonna tackle them all with a hug once he was completely better. Even Keith.

[buckyscrystalqueen]

Fate: Part 4

Pairings: Alpha!Bucky x Omega!Reader

Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Swearing.

Word Count: 6,062 (Sorry, I had to cut it where I did though...)

A/N: First time writing A/B/O so please be gentle. Figured I’d drop a new story for the new blog. Enjoy it, y’all!

My {Heart in Ink} Masterlist

Fate Masterlist      Aesthetic by @ravenangel33​

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

“What are you doing?” Aaron asked as you headed down stairs to grab one of the blankets from your basket in the living room.

“This one is too hot.” You said absentmindedly as you finished rolling up one of your top three favorite pink fleece blankets and put it in the basket. You grabbed your blue cloud print throw; your favorite blanket to watch movies with and turned back toward the stairs when Aaron lurched in front of you.

“Freeze, missy.” He said as he studied you. He scented the air as his eyes searched yours. “You smell different.” You rolled your eyes at him and tried to take a step around him.

“Everyone keeps saying that since we bonded, I smell different so you aren’t…”

“No, (Y/N)… I think you’re pregnant…” You couldn’t help but laugh at him as you tucked the blanket up under your arm.

“You’re out of your damn mind. I’m on birth control.” He shook his head and chewed on his lip.

“No… no, sunshine, you’re definitely pregnant. I’ve been around you basically every single day for the last eleven years. I know every variation of smell you have. This isn’t the bond I’m smelling. And look, your re-doing your nest. You never, ever fully re-do your nest, you just pack it up and move it with you.” He moved out of your way and pointed at you as he flopped back down on the couch. “I’m tellin’ you. You’re gunna have a baby.” You rolled your eyes and headed toward the stairs to, in fact, fix your nest for the fifth time that morning.

——

“THREE?!” You screamed as you looked at the three distinct, bean shaped blobs on the screen. “No, no, no. Look again, that’s not right.” You said as you waved your hand at Dr. Helen Cho. You heard Bucky’s weight slam down into a chair next to you.

“My technology doesn’t lie, (Y/N). You are definitely pregnant and there are definitely three pups. Congratulations.” Your jaw dropped as you stared at the screen; incapable of wrapping your head around this new information. Aaron wasted no time sharing his theory when Bucky had gotten home from his ‘casual’ 10 mile run that morning and your mate instantly brought you to Stark Tower. While Dr. Cho wasn’t an OB/GYN, she was able to do a fast ultrasound, effectively changing your life forever.

“But… she’s on birth control.” Bucky said as he stared at the screen. Bruce Banner, who was working on something ‘top secret’ when your Alpha literally carried you in and had joined the party, shrugged as he grabbed a small stool and wheeled it over between the two of you.

“My assumption. With you being affected by the super serum, my initial guess would be that your sperm weren’t affected by the progestin of the birth control during the rut/ heat cross over and made it past the thicker cervix…”

“Alright, alright.” You snapped as you sat up and put your head in your hands. “Science lesson’s gunna make me sick right now.” You looked back over at the screen as your mind reeled in shock. Bruce’s words ran through your head again and you looked over at the two doctors. “So what does that mean for them? How is the serum gunna affect them?” You heard Bucky slowly stand up as that thought permitted his brain. Bruce and Helen both looked at each other as Bucky sat down behind you on the exam table.

“That we don’t know. They already appear to be a little larger than fetus’ at this point in pregnancy but…” Helen said softly as she looked back at both of you. “We have no notes to compare it too. You are the only two in the world that could ever be in this situation.”

“Are they going to be OK?” Bucky asked, a little more forcefully than necessary. You immediately reached back and put your hand on his knee to keep him calm as Bruce slowly shook his head.

“We don’t know. The only thing we can do is wait and see. Keep a close eye on the progress…”

“You’re moving into the tower.” Bucky said as he looked over at you before looking at the picture of his three pups.

“I’ll call Aaron to help pack.” You whispered in agreement as your hand spread across your barely bloated stomach. Neither of you could move out of fear.

“I’ll call Steve and Tony, too.” Bruce said as he gently grabbed Helen’s elbow and pulled her toward the door to give you both a minute to process… and to figure out what the hell to do with this kind of pregnancy.

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

“This isn’t normal.” You said softly as you looked in the bathroom mirror at your stomach before bed. Tears softly fell on your cheeks as your fingertips danced across your baby bump. It had only been two weeks since you found out you were pregnant, four weeks and one day since conception, but if you were to go by all three of your pups, you were 12 weeks along. Like he did every time you found yourself in front of a mirror, Bucky came over and gently pulled your shirt down.

“Come on, Omega. All five of us are going to be just fine. Let’s go watch a movie, OK?” You nodded your head and let him lead you out of the bathroom as you wiped the tears off your cheeks. You knew he was just as terrified as you; no matter how hard he tried to hide it, you could smell it on him, but he was forcing himself to be a positive rock for you. With a small sigh, he climbed into the middle of the massive, blanket and pillow filled nest you had built and re-built almost hourly and situated you between his legs.

“We’re gunna be able to know the genders soon at this rate.” You said as you ran your fingers over your stomach as he picked a movie on Netflix. “Do you want to know now or wait until they’re born?” He hummed as he picked one of the movies you had saved on your ‘things I want to see and see again’ list, started it but immediately paused it and set the remote next to him to wait.

“Well, how would we pick names if we don’t know what we are having?” He asked as he grabbed the blanket, pulled it up, and handed it to you, knowing you would move it around about twenty times until it was just right.

A smile spread across his face as he leaned back against the headboard and watched you begin your nesting process for the night. It was moments like this that no matter how stressed, or how scared he was, he knew it was going to be alright. He had you and little things like making sure you arranged the blankets just right or researching baby cribs until four in the morning (where he literally had to drag you to bed) to find the perfect one just showed him that no matter what happened with his pups because of the serum or how fast they grew in your womb, you would do everything you could and then some to ensure their safety.

“Well, some people pick out two names for each baby, one of each gender. So, say the first baby would be Adam or Anna and so on. But then you’re coming up with six ‘good names’ and it’s kinda impersonal, ya know. I read that if you don’t know it makes delivery easier.

BUT I also read that most Omegas delivering multiples usually have to have a c-section, so waiting to make delivery easier is kinda a moot point. So, I kinda want to know just so each pup gets their own name and just one name, ya know? Ooo! Did I tell you there is a company I found on Pinterest that makes these blankets that… why isn’t the movie playing?” You turned around in your spot once you had that blanket situated around both of you how you though you wanted it to look at Bucky with your eyebrow cocked.

“Just waiting on you, doll.” You huffed as you turned around and faced the TV.

“I don’t take that long.” You grumbled as you grabbed a blanket from the outside of the nest and pulled it toward you. “You’re the one who asked the question.” You balled the blanket up and put it between Bucky’s leg and the outside of the wall of blankets on the other side of the bed. You took one look at it before coming to the conclusion that it was wrong and moved it again. After a few move adjustments, you finally deemed it right and looked up at the TV to watch the movie. “James, hit the thing!” You wined as you bopped his leg.

“God, you’re so adorable, Omega.” He chuckled as he grabbed the remote and hit play. You huffed as you settled back against his chest and pulled the three blankets you had covering you up over your chest. You felt your mate’s hands slip under your arms and come to a stop on your bump as the opening credits to ‘Mean Girls’ started up.

Within minutes of the movie starting, exhaustion hit you hard and you fell asleep with a peaceful smile on your face. After checking to make sure you were 100% out, Bucky simply chuckled and flipped back to his list to find the Star Wars movie Steve told him he had to see.

——

“So pup A is now 7.7 centimeters. Pup B is now… phew, 7.9 and pup C is now 7.4 centimeters. Blood levels look good, pups look good.” Helen looked up from her tablet at the small group of people in the med bay and sighed. “Collective total of 1.7 centimeters gained since yesterday morning.” You looked over at Bucky with your bottom lip caught between your teeth. He rubbed his hand down your back as he processed the new information that felt like it was getting more and more worry some.

“So what now?” He asked. The room stayed quiet for a moment before Tony stepped forward and cleared his throat.

“Well, now you need to go back to work.” He said as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and started pulling something up. You were just about to scream at him with Omega rage; you couldn’t dare think about working when your pup’s lives were in the balance but he pulled up the layout of part of a wing you recognized in the compound upstate. “Now, these offices hadn’t been put to use yet, and while they were perfectly decorated the first time around, we did a little bit of refurbishing to make it more… home like. I had them turn it into four bedrooms with a big play room. Plenty of room for the pups to crawl around and…”

“Wait, what?” You asked as you got off the exam table you had been sitting on for the past hour. “Wha…?”

“What, you think I was gunna let the best designer in New York raise pups in your small apartment? I know Barnes’ room isn’t big enough for that either. Now look, you have these two floors…” His words were cut off as you gave the Alpha a hug. You had never really been close to him but he knew what you meant to Pepper, so helping you out was a no brainer to him.

“Thank you.” You whispered with tears in your eyes. You pulled back to look at him and he simply waved you off.

“Don’t thank me. It was Pepper’s idea. Now, any furniture and decorations you want or need and I mean ANYTHING, goes on the company account… ut! Company account. Pepper is setting up a different account to help you out financially because, despite the fact that I know we pay you handsomely, three pups is a lot and well… you’re family. Now go get to nesting. Your partner in crime is already moved in…”

“Wait, Aaron?” You asked as he practically shoved you out the door. You missed his nervous glance over his shoulder to the rest of the group; he prayed that this would be enough of a distraction for you to stay (sort of) calm until they could figure out what was going to happen with the pups.

“Pepper said I couldn’t split you two up by leaving one of you in the city and moving one of you to the country. So yes, Aaron is there, too. Now go pack; leave the furniture. I’ll make sure everything gets moved out to the compound before noon.” You nodded as Bucky guided you toward the elevator. Steve had told him about the idea he, Nat, Tony and Pepper had come up with a few days before that morning when the two of them were working out. Bucky had been the one to suggest Aaron and Max go too, knowing full well that you would need your family with you… just in case.

“What am I gunna do about doctor stuff?” You asked as Natasha pushed the button to the elevator.

“Pepper has that covered. Helen is going out to the compound to keep an eye on things and we are staffing an OB as well.” Tony said as he sent a text to Pepper to let her know that Operation Distraction was working so far.

“And Steve and I are moving out there as well. We’re gunna be on the floor right below you with Aaron and Max.” Nat said as she stepped into the elevator with you, Bucky and Tony.

“This tower isn’t really that home like anyways and most of the team are already out there as is so might as well keep everyone together.” Tony stated with a smile.

“I think this is a great idea.” Bucky chimed in as he draped his arm around your shoulder and rubbed your shoulder, using his pheromones to keep you calm. You nodded in agreement as the elevator opened on the floor to the living quarters. “Now, the pups get their own rooms once they are big enough.”

“Yea… it’ll be great.” You said with hardly any hesitation. Your head bobbed of its own accord as you headed into your room to start packing.

——

“Now this is high living.” Aaron said as he helped you unpack all of your clothes the next morning. “Have you seen the kitchen? It’s incredible! Ten times our kitchen at home. Imagine how much easier Thanksgiving dinner is going to be to cook now.” You nodded your head absentmindedly  as you hung up all of Bucky’s jackets and your dresses in the (unnecessary) walk-in closet.

Your pups had all hit at least 8.5 centimeters; three little lemons, this morning and your stomach officially stuck out farther than your breasts. Your skin itched from the quick stretch, your body ached and you were absolutely exhausted, despite the fact that you had slept for nearly 13 hours the night before.

Your new OB/GYN, Cara Smith, had been briefed on your case by Dr. Cho, Dr. Banner, and Pepper but you could still tell the Beta was not prepared for what she saw. Aaron, noticing how distracted you were, walked over and sat down on your new, king size bed in front of you. You were, however, able to learn from a fancy blood analysis (thank God for Bruce Banner’s brilliant mind) that you were having two boys and a baby girl.

“Hey, sunshine.” He said softly as he pulled the hangers out of your hands and set them down on the bed next to him. He smiled softly as he held your hands in his. “We are going to make if through this. You and me? We are fighters. Do you remember what you said to me when you found me at the run?

I was bruised, bloody, dirty, starving, and hiding in a tree. You climbed up and sat down next to me and said ‘no matter what happens from this moment on, you will never be alone again. You are a fighter to have made it this far and I know just by the fire in your eyes that you aren’t done fighting yet.’” Tears filled your eyes and with a nod, you sat down on the bed next to him. “I know you’re scared, all of us are. But you’re a fighter, (Y/N). I know you. You are gunna fight. So the pups are fast growers. Is that gunna make you love them any less?” You shook your head as he reached up and brushed the tears off your cheeks with a smile.

“None of us are. These pups, no matter how fast they grow up, are going to be loved by each and every one of us until our dying days. Especially by their mommy. We’ll make it through this together. I know your scared but look at it this way. You’re a third of the way through the pregnancy and you haven’t even been pregnant a month. Do you know how many pregnant woman would kill for that? Pregnant, puff out and boop! You’re done.” You couldn’t help but huff a laugh and nod.

“You’re right.” You sighed as you rubbed your hand across your stomach. “You know, I hate it when you’re right.” He giggled as he pat your hand and stood up.

“I know you do. And I know that you know, I love it when I’m right.” You rolled your eyes as you stood up, grabbed the hangers off the bed and headed toward the closet.

“Don’t let it get to your head, Aaron.” You called out. “That’s big enough as is.”

“Hey! That’s not very…”

“So, we have all the furniture moved in and set up where you wanted it and all three nurseries and the play room are set up with the fanciest cameras Stark has. Said he’d show you the tablet thing when he comes back when we get back with the stuff for the pups.” You came out of the closet and smiled as Bucky leaned against the bedroom doorframe. He brushed a strand of hair that had fallen out of his bun back behind his ear and sighed. “Ready to go take care of the nurseries?”

“Yay! Break time!” Aaron cheered as he grabbed the last empty box off the floor. “You two have fun shopping.” You smirked and kissed his cheek.

“Just be glad I’m not making you go with us.” You sassed as you headed back into your closet to grab flip flops. “Will you please get me one of those fruity protein smoothie shake things Nat made me? The strawberry one.” He nodded more to himself as he broke down the box and added it to the large pile outside the door.

“You enjoy the pup store.” Aaron teased as he pat Bucky’s shoulder on the way to the kitchen. “I brought her in there one afternoon just to look and I had to drag her out six hours later so they could close at nine.” Bucky sighed as he stumbled into the room to change out of sweaty clothes he had on from building and moving furniture with Max and Steve all morning.

“Alright, Omega. Let’s go shopping.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

“Stay calm, Omega. It’s all gunna be OK.” Bucky said softly as you held a little pink dress in your hand. Tears welled in your eyes as he gently wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you a step back against his chest.

“I know.” You whispered as you ran your fingers over the pink bow in the middle of the dress. “It’s just a lot.” He nodded his head as he kissed your shoulder.

“I know it is, Omega. How about this… we know they may grow fast. It could or couldn’t happen. Since I know you wanna get all these cute little outfits and don’t wanna have to settle and only get a couple, let’s get them all and we’ll just change them all a couple times a day. We’ll take lots of pictures… how about that?” A small smile spread across your face as you turned in his arms.

“Have I told you lately how much I absolutely love you?” He smiled and nodded.

“You have but it’s never gunna be as much as I love you.” You leaned up and gave him a chaste kiss before resting your forehead against his.

“I couldn’t have done this without you.” You said softly as you cupped his jaw in your hand.

“I feel the same way, doll.” He gave you a chaste kiss before giving you a small pat on the ass. “Come on, sweetheart. We have three pups to dress, diaper and put in beds we don’t have yet. So let’s see that list of yours.” You smiled as you pulled away from him and grabbed your long list out of one of the four empty carts you had grabbed. You heaved a sigh as you looked down the list you had made from a collection of websites you had found.

“So I think to start out, we’ll obviously keep them in bed with us but after a while we should put them all into one room. Move them into their own rooms when they get a little…” You bobbed your head, unsure of what word to you; older or bigger.

“Sounds like a plan.” He agreed simply as he took the pink dress from your hand and put it in the cart onto of your purse gently. “So what’s the first group on the list?” You smiled up at him for his ability to keep you positive before looking down at your list again.

“Basics.” You looked around the Babies ‘R’ Us store you were in and pointed toward the sign marked ‘Diapers and Wipes’ just past all the clothes. You shoved your list in your pocket and you each grabbed two carts and weaved your way through the racks.

“How many do we… My God, how many different kinds of diapers are there?” You smiled and looked for the brands that were rated the best.

“Lots but not all babies like the same thing.” You paused in front of the Pampers and looked for the size you needed. “So, what we’re gunna do is buy two of these. And… these.” You said as you tossed 2 boxes of Pampers into a cart and did the same with 2 packs of Huggies. “And two of these.” You grabbed 2 packs of Honest diapers and set them on top of the other boxes as you grabbed the list from your pocket and a pen from your purse. “That way, we can try them all and see which pup prefers what. And after that, we can just order them online. I have an account on Amazon and they deliver in New York in an hour.” He nodded as you crossed off ‘diapers’ on the list and turned to look at the wipes.

“When did you do all this research?” He teased as he stacked the boxes up to one side of the cart to optimize space. You couldn’t help but smile as you looked over your shoulder at him.

“Alpha, I’m an Omega. I’ve done research for my future pups for years.” He chuckled as you handed him three different boxes of wipes. “It’s an Omega thing.” He nodded as you crossed ‘wipes’ off the list and moved your carts down to the end of the isle. You turned to your right to head down the ‘bath’ isle and a book of baby names caught your eye. “Here. Read out your favorites. There’s a pen in my purse to mark off the ones you like and just dog-ear the page.”

“Alright, let’s see.” He said as he followed you down the next isle of bathroom stuff. His eyes danced down the list as you grabbed four packages of different patterned wash cloths and tossed them in the cart. “What about Abigail?” You paused with your hand on a package of plain blue and a package of plain green hooded bath towels (so they can be embroidered with your pups names) and looked back at him.

“No. Let me say this, if you heard the name when you were a kid, there is a good chance I’m gunna say no.” You cocked your eye brow at him as he simply laughed and turned a few pages. “You like these?” He glanced up and nodded before looking back down.

“Chloe?” He asked, more to himself as he tapped the pen on the side of the book. “Chloe Barnes. I can do that one.” You nodded in agreement as you tossed a package of plain pink towels in the cart.

“Circle it. What about Tessa? I liked that name as a kid.” You looked back at him as he said the name out loud with his last name.

“Not a fan.” You nodded as you moved a few steps down to the baby washes. “What about Mia Barnes?” You paused and tilted your head to the side as you ran the name through your head a few times.

“I like that one.” Bucky continued to flip through the book, going back and forth between girls and boys names as you casually strolled the isles and grabbed every thing you could without his help. After two hours, you had two half full and two overflowing carts of essentials (and about 30 names you both really liked down) and found yourself in front of the cribs. You sighed as you looked at your half finished list before looking up at the crib you fell in love with online.

“So I think our best bet is to get this kind. The ones you can convert into beds over time.” You said as you pointed to a display that showed the crib set up and turned into a toddler and kids bed. Bucky nodded agreement as he shoved the pen in the book and put it on top of a pile of crib sheets so you would remember to actually buy it since you marked it all up.

“Sounds good to me, doll. Which ones are you thinking?” You shrugged as you took a step back and looked at all the options.

“The first question is, do we get three sets that have the changing tables for when we split them into their own rooms or do we just put changing mats I grabbed right on the dressers?” You looked over at him as he brushed his metal hand through his hair and leaned against the cart handle.

“Realistically, we’d be better off with doing the dresser thing.” You nodded as you looked back up at the dark wood crib you loved.

“OK… now, what do you think about doing white for her and different shades of brown for the boys to differentiate?”

“That’s fine. I just have one request. I have only one little princess. You got all that princess stuff for her…” He stepped around all the carts and walked down to an extravagant looking white crib. “Can she sleep like a princess, too?” You smiled as you rubbed your hand over the left side of your stomach where your daughter was and nodded.

“Absolutely.” He walked over to you with a smile on his face and rested his hand on top of yours over his baby girl.

“Have I told you lately that you are beautiful?” You couldn’t help but giggle as you shook your head.

“Thank you… but I feel like a small balloon.” He chuckled as he gave you a chaste kiss before going back for the first crib box.

“You’re not a balloon, doll. You’re the mother of my pups and the love of my life.” He put the box in the cart with the baby proofing stuff and gestured to the wall of cribs. “Which other two, Omega? I don’t wanna have you on your feet too much longer.” You sighed as you looked up at the shelf as you rubbed the right side of your bump where your boys were.

“I love this one. The deep color would look great against a pale light yellow for the first boy.” Bucky nodded as he came over and grabbed the box for you was you strolled down the rest of the line. You passed a light brown one and almost kept walking but something made you stop. It was a rustic looking, light brown crib and you knew, it was the one. “This one.” You said softly as you reached up and ran your fingers over the wood with a smile. He came over and smiled.

“Yea. Definitely this one.” You smiled at him as he grabbed the box and you crossed off ‘cribs’ on your list. “Alright, what next?”

“Let’s see… furniture I plan on ordering separately, the stroller we’ll have to order off line or we can see if Tony can build one for us…”

“Have Tony do it. It’ll be like a mini tank. Safest stroller in the world.” Bucky said as he moved the lighter carts toward you so you wouldn’t have to push or pull the weight. You nodded as you looked over the rest of your list.

“Car seats, pack-n-plays, bouncy seats and then clothes.” You looked up at him and back at him and the carts full of stuff. “I think we’re gunna need another cart.” He nodded as the two of you started heading toward the car seats.

“It’s a good thing we didn’t drive here. I don’t think this would all fit into a car.”

“I don’t think this stuff is gunna fit into the Quinjet!” You laughed as you looked down at your list for the name of the car seat that was deemed the best by the 18 different websites you checked.

“Thank God Tony is helping us out, too. I don’t think we could afford all this on a designers and an Avengers salary.” You nodded in agreement as you pointed to the Chicco KeyFit 30 carseat on display.

“I don’t care if they are only in it for the ride home from the hospital. This car seat is the best carseat out there. I won’t put my pups in anything else.”

“That’s fine, doll. I won’t fight you on it.” You nodded as you looked at the boxes for the colors you wanted.

“These two, Regatta, for the boys and this one, Ombra, for our girl.” Bucky nodded as he came over and grabbed the first two boxes. You watched him set the two boxes on top of the pile of diaper boxes, bathroom stuff, toys and play mats and you could help but smile. His hair was pulled back in a bun with a few stray strands falling in his face and he had this small, seemingly permanent smile on his face. He didn’t notice you staring as he came over and grabbed the last car seat box. You reached out and gently grabbed his arm.

“Parenting looks good on you.” You said softly. He looked over at you and his smile got even bigger.

“Looks good on both of us.” You nodded as he set the box on top of the various nursing accessaries, bedroom stuff, diaper pails and other miscellaneous trinkets. “We should get married.” You couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“Yea, because that’s the most romantic way of asking.” You teased as you started pushing and dragging your two carts toward the bouncy seats and pack and plays.

“I’m serious. We’re mated and having pups. Might as well…”

“I’m gunna stop you right there.” You said as you paused at the end of the isle and looked back at him. “I’ll say yes one way or another, but you’re asking again when you have a ring and it’s all ro…”

“I already have a ring.” He said as he reached into his pocket. Your words audibly caught in your throat as he handed a small black box to you. “I know you’re not a big jewelry person so I kept it simple.” You flipped open the top and looked at the beautiful diamond ring inside. It was simple; a single diamond set in white gold and it was perfect.

“Doll, I know we’re a little backwards with the whole get married, have pups thing but…” He reached up and brushed his thumb across your cheek with a smile. “I knew you were meant to be mine the second I saw you. True Mate or not, I need you in my life. I have never met someone that I wanted to open up to, someone I wanted to talk to about the goods and the bad I’ve seen and done and dream. Someone I trusted with my deepest and darkest thoughts, fears and secrets. Someone I wanted to wake up next to every morning and fall asleep wrapped around every night. I love you, (Y/N). My beautiful, kind, sweet, amazing Omega and the mother of my pups. Will you marry me and make me the luckiest Alpha in the universe?”

“Yes!” You squeaked. He instantly crashed his lips to yours and wrapped his arms around your waist. Tears fell from your eyes against his cheeks and you suddenly heard soft clapping behind you.

“That was so beautiful.” A pregnant woman said as she wiped tears off her cheeks. You blushed hard and hid your face in Bucky’s chest as he took the ring box from your hand.

“Thank you. I meant every word.” The woman smiled at him as she pulled a bouncy chair box off the shelf and put it in her cart.

“You’re one lucky Omega. And by the looks of it, you’re gunna be one tired Omega as well.” You smiled back at her and nodded.

“That is an understatement.” She laughed as she turned her cart the other way.

“Good luck… and congratulations.” You blushed again and you and your mate both thanked her as she walked away.

“God, that’s embarrassing.” You joked as he slipped your engagement ring on your finger.

“I’m not sorry either. Now, tell me what I’m grabbing from here so we can get the clothes and get out of here. I wanna make love to my fiancee.”

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

You groaned as you tried desperately to find some sort of comfort for even a minute at 3 in the morning. You were three days shy of your third month of pregnancy but if anyone looked at you, they would assume you were full term. Your stomach was massive as were your pups. For the past two days, Allie, on the left, weighed in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces and she was the smallest of the three. Ryan, on your right was 7 pounds, 8 ounces and Mason, front and center was a whopping 8 pounds, 4 ounces.

You had been on forced bedrest for the past three weeks as your pups continued to grow. And just your luck, at least one of your pups was always active. Every inch of your body hurt and itched. Your hormones were insane and you knew you had to have been driving anyone in a ten mile radius crazy. But you wouldn’t trade it for the world.

You shifted in your nest and gently pushed on Ryan to get him to stop his direct kicks to your lungs as Bucky softly snored next to you. You glanced over and glared at him; it had been at least two days since you had gotten any sleep, and turned up the TV a tiny bit. You sighed as you pushed at Ryan again, silently begging him to move when suddenly all three pups kicked hard at the same time and went still. Your heart clenched and you jabbed at Ryan again, receiving no reaction.

“Alpha!” You screamed as you jabbed at Allie and Mason. Bucky sat bolt up right in bed as tears started pouring down your cheeks. “Something’s wrong.”

Part 5

[homeofthelonelywriter]

Friends to Lovers Pt. 12

(A/N) Oh my god! I’m so sorry! I completly forgot what day it is! 😰 I’m really sorry! Okay, what else is there...right. This part is completly from Eric’s POV. And in the next part the first fear simulation will take place...I don’t really know how to make that part trigger free.

Warnings: swearing

Tags: @beltz2016 @sammysgirl1997 @magellan-88 @iammarylastar @scorpio2009 @buried-in-books @supdarling @hello-i-dont-have-a-name @kenzieam @jaihardy @pathybo @fuckthatfeeling @letssweetvivialwaysloved @sister-of-plenitude @mom2reesie @maskedpenman @demonsunshine @sandramaric88

If anyone else wants to be tagged, just say so! :)

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fourth part

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eight part

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eleventh part

eleventh part (2)

twelfth part

thirteenth part

fourteenth part

fifteenth part

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

Eric POV

After lying down with Y/N, both of us quickly fell asleep. The next time I opened my eyes, I only saw a big ball of hair curled up to me. Y/N’s hair was all over the place, which caused me to chuckle a bit. Apparently, my chuckle wasn’t as quiet as I thought, because Y/N began to stir in my arms. “Mmm…Eric?” Her sleepy voice was so cute…ahm…I mean manly. “Can’t sleep?” Her arms tightened and I buried my nose in her hair. “Nah, just used to waking up early…wanna go for a run?” At that, she pulled away and looked at me. “A run? What time is it?” “Around three…” “You’re officially crazy.” She snuggled up to me again, trying to keep me from leaving. “Come on Y/N, I need to go. It’s my morning routine.” “Fuck your morning routine.” I was already sitting on the edge of the bed, her arms still tightly locked around me. “Well, there’s something else I would like to fu-“ “Okay! Leave!” She finally let go, obviously not interested in proposal. Putting on some clothes, I took one last look at her form, curled around the blanket, a small smile found its way onto my lips. “Sleep tight.” I kissed her temple and left my apartment. Running through the city always calmed me down. Especially if it was still dark and there were almost no people. Especially after yesterday I needed something to calm me down. The fact that that guy even dared to show his face. He is just disgusting! And I will kill him, no matter what. I kept on running, through the different factions until I found myself back in Dauntless. Walking through the compound, I encountered some soldiers that were on guard duty. Nobody else was awake. It was four in the morning when I finally entered my apartment again. Y/N was still sound asleep and it was still a few hours until I needed to wake her up. So I decided to take a shower and finish some paperwork I got left over from the last few days.

Getting a change of clothes to take with me to the bathroom, I observed Y/N again. She wore on of my, way too big, Shirts. She hugged the blankets to her body and her ass stuck in the air. Oh my, she is really going to be the death of me! Quickly walking out of the room, I felt myself hardening in my pants. Dammit. I turned the shower on and took my time. On one side, I had to take care of myself, on the other, I had to scrape all the sweat off my body. Finishing up, I put on my clothes and grabbed my tablet, sitting down at the kitchen bar.

I worked for about one and a half hours when my bedroom door opened and my sleeping beauty walked towards me. “Good morning…” She mumbled, sitting down beside me. “Care for some breakfast?” I stood up and walked to my fridge, taking out eggs and bacon. Throwing it all into a pan, I pushed a cup of coffee into Y/N’s hands, observing her back from the kitchen counter. Her hair was all tangled up, the shirt swallowed her body. Her feets dangled in the air and she rested her elbows and her head on the counter. Loading the eggs and the bacon onto two plates, I put one down in front of her and the other in front of my stool. We ate in silence, neither on of us wanted to talk about what happened yesterday. “Thank you Eric. For the breakfast and for yesterday.” Her quiet mumble reached my ears and I looked up, sending her a small smile. “Anytime, sugar.” “Seriously? Sugar?” She laughed at the nickname I chose for her, I think it suited her. Shaking her head, she stood up and walked to the bedroom, colleting her clothes and put them on. Before she walked out again, a knock came from my door. Naturally, she poked her head out and shot me a confused look. Showing her that she should hide in the bedroom and close the door, I opened the front door and saw Max and Four standing there. “Good morning Eric.” Max voice was firm, as always. “Good morning, sir. Four.” Four and I nodded at each other, while I waited for Max to tell what he needed from me. “We are currently searching for Y/N, the initiate. Her father was here yesterday, as you know, and he acted up. So, we took him into custody. Now we have to talk to her.” Max pushed past me, Four closed the door behind him. “The man told us that you two were friends back in Erudite. Is she here?” Max continued. Rolling my eyes, I walked back to my tablet and scrolled through some mail. “Yes, we were friends. No, she is not here. At this hour, she is normally either in the training hall, or helping in the cafeteria. Maybe search there.” I tried to sound as passive as possible, not giving away that the person they searched for was literally in my bedroom, waiting for them to leave. “Okay, we will. But just to be sure, can I check your bedroom?” Max was already walking towards the door, making me panic. “I wouldn’t do that.” Max turned around and glanced at me. “And why is that?” “Well, just because the initiate isn’t here doesn’t mean I didn’t have company last night. And you know how women are, she will be complaining and I already have an headache.” Chuckling in understanding, Max walked back and bid his goodbyes to me and Four. As soon as the door closed, Four turned to me. “Where is she?” I pointed to the bedroom door and Four immediately stalked over and yanked the door open. “Get. Out.” Y/N bashfully walked out and towards me, taking up her cup of coffee again and sipping what’s left. “How many times are you going to be so stupid?! You almost got caught this time!” Fours screams echoed through the room. Y/N shrunk together in fear, I don’t want to know how many times her father yelled at her like that. I put my arm around her waist and pulled her to me. Shooting Four a glare, he shut up and stuck to shaking his head. “Are you okay?” Y/N nodded and shot me a small smile. “Well, I should leave…see you guys later.” She kissed my cheek and walked out the front door. Four turned to me. “You like her.” He stated the obvious, still I shook my head and turned my attention to my tablet. “You know, I think that you two would look good together. And maybe she can bring out a better side of you. Just…stick to a minimum, okay? At least while she is still an initiate.” After that Four left. Trying to concentrate on my mails, I finally gave up after I read one sentence for the sixth time. Four was right, I like her. More than I should…

[redditnosleep]

A Site Called "Cash for Confessions" Has Changed My Life

by Hayong 

I’m not usually the type of person to click on ads, but I was completely broke and still living with my parents. Before a bunch of you guys come at me and tell me to get a job and to stop being a bum. I want you guys to know. I do have a job. I work 55 hours a week and I give all of my money to my parents. They are the ones that don’t have enough to pay their bills. After everything is said and done, I have maybe 40 dollars a month to spend on myself. Fuck, they are my parents, but I make sure they have enough to eat before I feed myself.

That is why when I saw a simple black square take up the bottom right corner of my screen with the words “Cash for Confessions” inside of the box I clicked it. I was using an old beat up tablet and hooked up to really shitty Wi-Fi coming from the modem and router Comcast rents out to us, but the site opened up on my tablet in an instant.

Like I said, I’m not normally the type of person to click on ads so my guard was up high, but the website seemed completely safe. It was pretty much solid white with a small tan box in the middle of the screen. On the box were two generic words. “Create Account” I quickly made a throwaway e-mail address and clicked on the box. It took me to the next screen. It only asked me for three things.

User Name

E-mail Address

Currency Desired

My favorite superhero is Flash so I made my username BarryFlash, I typed in my e-mail address, and then typed in USD on the last slot. As soon as I finished typing the screen turned black. It stayed that way for a couple of seconds before two words appeared on the top of screen. Thank You. The two words faded away and were replaced by a series of rules.

”Cash for Confessions

1) All of the confessions must be completely true.

2) Do not use the money to help others out. This is your money that you have earned.

3) You may tell others about Cash for Confessions, but you cannot send this into anyone that will cause us any type of trouble.”

I impatiently tapped on the screen until the screen flashed a completely white screen before transitioning to a gray screen. An endless list of confessions filled my screen. I wasn’t really interested in anyone else’s confessions. I wanted to see if this thing actually paid us. After a couple of seconds of searching around I finally found what I was looking for.

“Once you click this you must confess.”

Without a second thought, I tapped on the link the other confessions disappeared from the screen and was replaced by an empty white box. I tapped on the box and my keyboard came up on my screen.

After a small sigh of anticipation, I typed out “I was a virgin till I was 22 years old.” Right after I finished typing the keyboard disappeared and the screen went completely black. I waited for a couple of seconds before the tablet vibrated. After a couple more seconds of waiting, I pressed the power button and my tablet came to life. There was a new e-mail. I tapped on the notification and the e-mail app came up and slowly started to load.

I almost let out a scream of joy when I saw that the e-mail was from Cash for Confessions. I tapped on the e-mail and quickly became sketched out and slightly pissed when all it said was, “$15 has been deposited into your bank account. If you would like more money please give us a better confession.”

Shit. I would have been happy with just $15, but I knew that there was no way they could have deposited the money into my bank. They didn’t have my account number, they didn’t even know what bank I used, shit, they didn’t even know my name. After letting out a depressed groan, I turned my tablet off and went to sleep.

I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of my tablet vibrating continuously. Once I got out of bed, I nervously walked up to my tablet and turned on my tablet. E-mails. Thousands of e-mails from Cash for Confessions. I nervously clicked on the first e-mail and almost dropped it on the ground. I closed out of the e-mail and looked through the rest. They all said the same thing.

“Don’t doubt us, Samuel Harrison. We know who you are. We gave you the money. Please check your bank account and see that we are a legitimate business. We miss you and we hope you come back.”

Curious and scared out of my mind, I clicked on my bank app and logged in. I had 14 cents in my bank account before (I checked earlier to see if I could eat Taco Bell the next day) but I now had $15.14. I was scared. I really was, but I was also excited. I mean, it was the first opportunity I was given to actually make a little pocket change for myself.

I don’t really know when I fell asleep, but I do know the sun was rising when I finally did. I kept writing out confession after confession. I mean, they knew who I was, but the people that were reading it had no idea who I was. All they saw were my confessions. I didn’t really put anything juicy, but a couple of them managed to make me around 30 dollars. That was 4 days ago.

I woke up the next morning and realized I was already 4 hours late to work. I don’t know why I was so dumb, but I called my manager and told him that I quit. In the middle of his rant, I hung up on him and checked my bank account. My jaw dropped when I saw that $1560.14 in my bank account.

For the next three days, I wrote as many of my confessions as I could, but yesterday morning I realized something. I was out of things to confess.

That is when I started to mess up my entire life in the span of 24 hours. I broke one of the rules. I started to make up confessions.

It started off with small shit like “I stole 100 dollars out of my grandma’s wallet when I was 12.” and quickly escalated to “I have a gun in my drawer. I am going to kill my parents tonight and they won’t be able to do anything about it.”

Right after I made that confession I checked my e-mails. A couple of my made up confessions made in between 15 dollars to 750 dollars, but my newest one made me $15,000.

I was ecstatic. Everything finally felt like it was perfect, but about an hour later, my tablet started blowing up again. Nervously, I checked it and saw that I had over 800 e-mails waiting for me. I opened the first one and instantly knew how bad I fucked up. I knew they all said the same thing, but I spent the next hour clicking through all of the e-mails and checking to see if it was maybe just a warning. It wasn’t. They all said the same thing again.

”Samuel,

Why would you lie to us? You knew we would figure out if you were lying or not, but there is a way to fix it. If you look in your first drawer you will see a gun. Kill your parents if you want to live. Fulfill the confession or we take your worthless life.”

I checked my drawer, and sure enough, the gun was in the middle of my drawer. I picked it up and felt goose bumps cover my body.

When my parents sat on the couch for our weekly movie night I took the gun downstairs. I sat next to them for the last time. I enjoyed every single second, every single laugh at dumb moments from the movie, and every single smile we gave each other.

As the movie ended I took the gun out of the back of my pants. Tears filled my eyes as I knew what I needed to do.

I placed the gun behind me and ran out the front door. I didn’t look back at them. I didn’t want to see their confused and concerned faces as I ran off into the night.

I went to my friend’s house that night. I knew I was putting him at risk, but I was honestly hoping they would kill my friend and me off, but unfortunately, I woke up this morning. I woke up and saw my friend cooking breakfast. With a feeling of dread and sadness, I turned on his tv and turned it to the news.

The main story was about my parents. They were found in our house. Both of their heads were mutilated by several bullets. I choked back my tears and sobs. I know they are after me now.

I’m writing this out on my tablet and leaving it at my friend’s house while I try to get as far away as possible. It’s my fault that my parents are dead, but it is now up to me. It’s up to me to get revenge for their deaths.

Until then. I want to leave you guys a warning.

Please be careful if you use Cash for Confessions. It is fine if you need a bit of money, but please don’t be like me. Don’t make up confessions.