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writerofshit · 3 years ago

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(I mentioned briefly a story of how the Stream Team met. This is that story.)

Somewhere in Los Santos, in the late night hours of a Tuesday, a convenience store is robbed. So is one several blocks southeast. And one roughly in the middle of them both. After all, what's more convenient than 24 hour chili dogs on every other street corner?

Cash. Cash is more convenient. So are guns. Hollering, waving one to get the other. Most important, back alleys that twist and turn, snaking away from increasingly distant sirens. Three individuals find themselves running through these alleys, a couple grand each weighing their pockets down.

It's through serendipity and convenience that their paths cross.

The man from the farthest store arrives first. He's done this a few more times than he'd like to admit, so he'd had a plan. Of sorts. Cut through the park, take a few sidewalks like an upstanding citizen, under the bridge and find a fire escape to utilize from there. There aren't any that reach the ground, of course, because he's smart but not quite enough.

And so this is why Trevor is standing in an dark alley, contemplating whether or not the dumpster will give him enough height to reach the ladder, when the man from the middle store appears. He's around Trevor's height, but would probably win in a fight between them, if he were so inclined. He doesn't seem to be, though. He seems shaken, like he's not quite sure how he ended up in this alley. He's holding a gun almost gingerly, as if it might bite him.

Trevor pulls his own gun.

'dont you fuckin' try anything!'

This does not go over well with Matt. He takes a step back, and then seems to remember that he also has a gun so maybe this is even footing. He holds it aloft, finger nowhere near the trigger.

'same, asshole!'

At this moment the robber from the first store arrives, also, of course, with a gun. And a mask. And an entire purple and orange neon fucking suit, actually, topped with a white cowboy hat. It gives them a few extra inches of height they are distinctly lacking, comparatively. Somewhere in the back of his head, Trevor acknowledges that this newcomer could probably kick his and the other gunman's asses. It is not a pleasant thought.

'oh, what the fuck!?'

Jeremy sounds more annoyed and less scared than one would think, considering they've run into an alley only to find two men with guns. Two men who quickly turn those guns on them.

'who the fuck are you?'

The question surprises them all, including Matt, even though he's the one who asked. As it turns out, people have a tendency to say the first thing that comes to mind when in a stressful situation. Such as, having robbed a convenience store for the very first time and immediately finding himself face to face with other apparent robbers. It would get to anyone, probably.

'i don't want any trouble, but i've already robbed someone tonight and i don't give a shit about felony murder!'

Two lies and a truth, is what Trevor has chosen to play, for some reason. In reality, one does not rob a convenience store at gun point if one is intent on staying out of trouble. And he does, in fact, care very deeply about felony murder. Felony murder is the precise reason he'd shot a bag of Doritos and not a clerk. In his defense, the clerk had initially rolled her eyes at him, asked what exactly he thought he'd get out of this. He'd found this question rude.

The truth, of course, is that he did rob a convenience store. That did happen. No take backs.

'so did i!'

Matt and Jeremy speak so in unison it's almost scary. If they didn't know any better, they'd think the two of them had always known each other.

Trevor's gun wavers between them, unsure which is the bigger threat. The guy who clearly has zero experience with guns, or the weirdo who seems to have far too much? It's a toss up, really. So his aim pinballs back and forth, but his finger does not curl around the trigger. He's serious about that felony murder thing.

The air seems to shift, suddenly, and the sound of sirens is now growing closer. This evidently also annoys Jeremy, and they throw a glance over their shoulder to the direction they'd come from. Red and blue lights flicker past.

'shit. ok. we're all robbers, i guess, and we're all fucked if we keep standing here. who's got a plan?'

Jeremy's eyes are staring impatiently at Trevor. Eyes being the only part of their face Trevor can see. And their hands, a plastic bag in one and a gun in the other.

Trigger finger is an apt name.

He glances at Matt, still wild eyed and glancing back and forth. No, Matt probably does not have a plan. He sort of gives the impression that he's never had a plan ever, actually. That perhaps he'd simply woken up here and decided to wing it. So Trevor makes an offer.

'fire escape?'

There's another moment of tense silence. Well, minus the sirens. And oh, helicopters. Even better. Jeremy shrugs.

'good a plan as any.'

And then they're off, brushing past Trevor and hoisting themself up onto the dumpster. He knew it could work. Trevor blinks and Jeremy has caught the ladder, is quickly working their way up. Shit, how does five foot something manage to get that high on a good day, much less in this situation and with a bag and gun in hand?

Matt's gun clatters to the ground, and honestly, that's probably for the best. He's climbing onto the dumpster now, and he mutters something about not signing up for this shit. Trevor reminds him that he apparently robbed someone, so yeah, he kind of did.

Before Trevor climbs up, he shoves his gun into his jacket pocket. Smart? Probably not. Convenient? More so than climbing with a gun in his hand. He follows Matt up the ladder, wondering what happened to his plan. Yeah, the ladder had been involved. Two other people, however, were not.

Above them, glass shatters.

'warning, maybe!?'

'oops. careful, there's glass.'

Jeremy's voice is no longer directly above them. Instead, it comes from one story up and a little to the left. So they've broken into an apartment. Sure, add breaking and entering to the list of charges, that sounds great. But Matt and Trevor follow, because there's not really another option.

Inside the apartment, Jeremy's mask is gone. The suit is quickly disappearing as well, revealing a rather boring outfit of a white tank top and...sweatpants? The true mystery lies in where the cowboy hat has gone to, because that's a hard item to miss.

'do we really have time for this? don't you think someone might, oh, i don't know, wake up and call the cops?'

Trevor doesn't mean to hiss, it's just that he's sure there's more pressing matters to attend to than an outfit change. Continuing to flee, perhaps.

'nobody's gonna wake up.'

They don't even have the wherewithal to lower their voice. It registers to Trevor that Jeremy's bag and gun are missing as well. Had they dropped them on the way up? It was certainly possible. Trevor thinks he would have noticed a gun flying past his head, but there's a lot going on.

'can we maybe not kill anyone? he brought up a good point with that felony murder thing.'

It's the most words Matt has strung together since he'd shown up. It's damn near a whisper, but at least it's progress.

'i'm not- god, can you two shut up? i gotta make a phone call.'

Jeremy yanks the door open, hand carefully wrapped in the fabric of their shirt. For a moment, Trevor thinks they're leaving and steps forward to follow Jeremy. Instead, Jeremy turns and heads toward the kitchen, pulling open a drawer and digging inside it briefly. They come back with a cell phone.

Something dawns on Trevor.

'is this- do you live here? did you break your own window?'

Jeremy doesn't answer. They put the phone to their ear.

'you're gonna wanna hide whatever you've got. and try not to look like you just climbed in through a window.'

And then-

'hello? yes, hi, i'd like to report a break in, i think? i was hearing a bunch of sirens and then i don't know what happened but some guy just broke my window? he ran through and i just- my friends and i are really scared and we didn't know what to do- yes, we're ok, he's gone, but we- you'll send someone? ok, thank you. the address? oh, uh, it's the del perro heights building, apartment 7. should i shut the door? no, don't touch anything. ok- guys, don't touch anything, she said someone's on their way to check on us! thank you so much- no, i think we'll be fine. thank you.'

It's a marvelous performance. Jeremy genuinely sounds like some poor flustered victim of a crime. Trevor would applaud if he thought Jeremy would appreciate it. Almost immediately, their voice is back to normal.

'check things out my ass. they're gonna show up, ask which way he went and never call me again. feel real fuckin safe.'

Jeremy settles themself onto the couch, choosing the spot closest to the door. Matt, who has apparently gotten over his initial terror, wanders into the kitchen. Searching for something to distract himself, if Trevor had to guess. Trevor is still standing in the middle of the living room, dumbfounded. How did a simple robbery become hanging out with other robbers, waiting for cops to show up?

'i'm jeremy, by the way. they won't ask, but y'know. just in case.'

They're flipping channels on the tv, seeming to arbitrarily skip almost a dozen programs. Finally, they settle on one and stand. Trevor recognizes it as an old Disney movie, and desperately wants to ask why the fuck Jeremy has put this on.

'uh, hi. i'm trevor. why are we watching Mulan?'

'matt. oh hell yeah, i love this movie!'

He sounds remarkably cheerful, considering the circumstances. How Trevor had seemingly switched places with Anxious McGee is beyond him. He needs to get it together. He pulls his gun from his pocket and takes it to the kitchen, sticking it in the drawer Jeremy had taken the phone from. There are several other phones of varying price point. He steps back to the living room just in time.

'that's why.'

They don't elaborate. Apparently Trevor is meant to just figure this out on his own, which ordinarily he might be able to do. After the course of events of this particular evening? Not a chance.

But he can't ask, because now there's a cop in the doorway and he's staring at Trevor and that will never be a good thing. Trevor stares back. He has no clue what he's meant to say. Hello? Welcome? He went that way?

'oh thank god! we've been so terrified, we didn't know if he'd come back or what he'd do.'

Naturally, Jeremy has taken lead on this. They're a phenomenal actor, Trevor has to admit.

'did you see which direction he went?'

'toward the stairs, i think. we've all been rooted to the spot, you know, it's so scary-'

Matt freezes in the doorway of the kitchen. He's just out of the view from the front door.

'right, well. you boys did the right thing by calling. can you give me a description of the man?'

The corner of Jeremy's mouth quirks.

'gosh, it all just happened so fast. taller than me, probably, but shorter than you, wouldn't you say, trey?'

Trevor nods, because he's not quite sure what else to do.

'alright, thank you. someone will be in touch with you for an official statement. in the meantime, if you remember anything else don't hesitate to call.'

He's holding a card out to Trevor, of all people. He takes it carefully, like if he does it wrong somehow the guy will know and arrest them all. The card is simply the number for a tip line.

As suddenly as he'd arrived, the cop is gone and they're all breathing sighs of relief. Jeremy closes the door.

'you guys can stay for Mulan, if you want.'

So they do.

Trevor asks about why Mulan again, and Jeremy explains that they assume most people have seen it, could answer any questions about it if they came up. Perhaps, if LSPD officers were less incompetent, they would have. Although if that were the case, they wouldn't be LSPD officers at all.

Matt asks about the window, and Jeremy says yes, they did break their own window. Of course they'd had an actual plan when they'd entered the alley. They were always going to end up exactly here, give or take the extras. Asking for a plan was simply a test, determining the merit in bring them along. They'd passed.

Jeremy asks if they want to stay for Mulan II, which is apparently up next. They do.

Somewhere in Los Santos, in the early morning hours of a Wednesday, three convenience stores are recovering from three separate robberies. Right in the middle of them all, their respective robbers are sitting on a couch together, watching a straight to video children's film.

It is the beginning of something far greater than any of them can imagine.

#is this dumb? maybe. did i have way too much fun writing it? absolutely.#is this how any of this would go irl? god no. is it still fun? hell yeah.#fahc #fake ah crew #ks writes

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storybookstalker · 4 years ago

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A Helping Hand

- Author’s Note -

➥ Sorry for my absence! I’ve been struggling with my mental illness and with school a lot so it’s been hard to really keep up with anything. Hopefully this somewhat makes up for some of that time! This is a smallish fic I made for my art trade with @yandere-starchild ! I really hope you love it as much as I loved your part of our trade!

↳ Yandere - Platonic - Bruce Wayne : Batman

↳ Yandere - Implied - Tim Drake : Red Robin

It’s insanely lucky that she’d managed to get into Gotham High to begin with, especially without having the whole support thing that seemed to come with having parents. Nor any other kind of support network. She didn’t exactly have friends at the school, regardless of how hard she used to try,— not that she had many, to begin with— but she’d like to think that grades were more important than friendship. She’d found somewhat of a friend in some kid named Tim a while back, but he’d gone and dropped out. Not that she blamed him, even if he was weird with how he just suddenly greeted her as if they knew each other one day. No, Ymir would have dropped out a long time ago if she had the choice. The classes were long, tiring, and too early; and forced her to stay up way too late in a cold effort to keep up with the curriculum. She’d zone out in forced attempts to jot down the teacher’s notes, it’d probably be more fun to watch paint dry than do this. The detention from falling asleep in class only led to more trouble with the dean and with her legal guardians, and more falling asleep on cold desks from sheer exhaustion.

All of this funneling down into why Ymir found herself waiting outside the probably electric, kinda scary looking fence that surrounded the Wayne Manor. Looking back on it, this was most likely a horrible idea.

The other week she had run into Tim again, quite literally bumping into him and pouring hot coffee onto his nice (and probably expensive—) looking sweater. He didn’t seem to mind all that much surprisingly— despite her embarrassment— and somehow the two ended up chatting like old friends in a booth, bonding over their shared frustration with Gotham High.

“Y'know, I actually used to be pretty good with your classes! Just lost the motivation to do them.”

“Haha, yeah I know what you mean,” Ymir agreed, “It’s just really hard to keep up and it doesn’t help that I’m falling behind a bit…”

That’s when he offered to tutor her. It was a little shocking, considering she had just dumped hot coffee on his nice sweater. His logic was that he’d have to go back to the school eventually, so helping her study would benefit both of them.

“Besides,” Tim continued, “we should try to get to know each other better.”

And so, that’s how the very tired girl ended up spending a few days with Tim every week.

Usually, they’d meet at a library or something but Tim asked to study at his house this week, which led full circle back to her standing in front of Wayne Manor. Ymir probably should have known that Tim was a Wayne long before this point, but apparently, it had never come up. Or, rather she probably just didn’t pick up on it, not that it mattered now.

Ymir wondered if he had jokingly given her a fake address until the manor’s gate began opening up. Her nervousness only managed to increase the closer she got to the house, not that she could easily turn around with how the gate shut behind her, everything looked way too expensive for her to even be looking at. The front door was even more intimidating; was she supposed to use a different door? Ymir’s dizzying resolve just barely steadied when Tim appeared and greeted her, calling her inside.

If Tim noticed her awkwardness, he didn’t mention it. He and the manor’s butler, Mr. Pennyworth, seemed to welcome Ymir. Pennyworth, though Tim tried to encourage her to call him Alfred, offered drinks and snacks throughout the study session. The older man would step in to help if either party seemed to have more questions than they could answer but it was mostly just the two teens for the majority of the time. Ymir’s nerves soothed themselves as time went on, by the end of the session she found herself talking to Tim normally. Ymir went home with a smile, maybe she’d found a friend, finally.

Weeks passed, and while her grades did improve, Ymir’s parents seemed unhappy with the entire situation still. It was hard to enjoy her time with the Waynes when her parents would scold her for having “too much fun”, apparently too happy to be studying as she should be. She was sure Tim noticed it, but vocalizing anything happening would just ruin it more for her.

It wasn’t until Tim had to cancel a study session that all it tipped over. Her confusing relationship with Tim, her parents shoving their expectations down her throat, school— all bundled into a breakdown in front of the Wayne Manor. The constrictive lump in her throat dropped to her stomach when Bruce Wayne himself stepped out from the gate and invited her inside.

Ymir tried to backtrack, Tim wasn’t there so why would she come in—?

“Nonsense,” Bruce brushed off her stuttering, “Any friend of Tim’s is always welcome here.”

He waited for her to follow before leading her into his Manor. In which he sat Ymir down and got water for the teary-eyed student. Bruce explained that Tim had mentioned that she seemed overly stressed, “Which is odd, from what Alfred and Tim tell me you’re doing much better grade-wise.”

Ymir’s heart dropped to her stomach, she didn’t really want to shove her family issues onto the most wealthy man in Gotham. Especially not after all the help Tim gave her. What kind of a ‘thank you’ is crying and whining?

Ymir steadied herself, “I am. I’m passing now, I’m grateful for everything Tim’s done for me, Mr. Wayne.”

“Bruce is fine, Ymir. With how often you’re over here you might as well be family.” Bruce smiled, almost in a reassuring way, as if he already knew how overwhelmed she was. “And since you’re basically family, I want you to know that this is a safe place for you. If you need anything, you can tell me.��

The lack of care from her own parents and the warmth from the Waynes came crashing down on her, hot tears came rolling down her face as she attempted to explain herself. There was no rush from Bruce or Alfred, both of which comforting her in their own ways.

She spent the next few hours venting out her emotions about her family and school, Bruce offering advice. Tim appeared later on in the evening, inviting her to watch a movie to help calm down after her comfort session with Bruce.

Meanwhile, Bruce made a call home and ensured that she was allowed to stay over should she want to. The Waynes were more capable of taking care of Ymir, Bruce just had to make sure they could continue to protect her. Not that it would be difficult. With a family like Ymir’s? All he needed to do was pull some strings, her family should be proud to have their daughter be accepted as a ward of Bruce Wayne himself. For now, he was happy to wait until she was comfortable enough to call the Manor her home.

↳ END ↲

#Yandere DC #Yandere batman #Platonic yandere #yandere Bruce Wayne #Yandere Tim Drake #Yandere Red Robin #Yandere x OC #Yandere x Ymir #I love Yandere-Starchild's OC she's so cute #She was fun to write #yandere writing #yandere

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bellaslilpapercut · 4 years ago

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Eclipse reread part 3 bewr bewr bewrrr! Covering the entire rest of the book in ONE post so buckle on in baybee:

1. Absolutely everything about chapter 15 (wager) is disgusting. To a certain extent I appreciate how successfully meyer captures how frustrating assault is as a woman, how futile it feels to fight against it. But at the same time the way she handles the aftermath is unbelievably disappointing and infuriating. Charlie doesn't get up to help his own daughter, Jake trails after Bella into the house and sticks around, there's just no relief or reflection that feels satisfying. Bella can ask where the justice is when she finds out Jake isn't aging but just ignores Charlie defending her assailant? And to some extent I get it, I've shut down after assault before to the point where it took years to recognize that some of the things that happened even were assault. But when there's a pattern within the series of men being narratively rewarded for assault and abuse and women being punished for reacting to abuse it feels like the narrative is reinforcing the status quo of women<men. I'm not stupid, I understand when a book is trying to make me uncomfortable and I don't need villains to be punished to know that they're villainous. This doesn't come across that way at all. Meyers handling of misogynistic abuse and violence lack the nuance to make me believe that she sees this violence as something to be critical of rather than something that just happens to women. And again, because it's a pattern in her writing, women getting no reprieve from gendered harm, I don't believe she's making a statement. There's just no self awareness and that's the key difference between a story like Brave New World or Lolita and Twilight.

2. Also this quote that precedes the assault is just so so frustrating:

Bella is not mean for setting boundaries! She isn't stringing you along! I would love to hit meyer in the head with a rolled up newspaper. Anyway.

3. Bella keeps saying things like "this would be annoying if it weren't so scary" in regards to having her clothes stolen by vampires that want her dead and having to lie to people around her, again because dozens of vampires want her dead. And y'know after the third time she said she would be annoyed if she weren't scared I'm just left to believe she isn't scared at all. I don't feel rising tension, the newborn army feels like a minor nuisance and even after they connect it to victoria (who still hasn't shown up at all) I'm just like...okay well get on with it then! Meyer makes bella "shudder" (I'm still tempted to make a comp of every time she shudders in this fucking book lol) instead of showing us her actual fear. I don't believe she's scared, I don't care about the "threat," and I don't believe anything bad will happen to Bella. There are Literally No Stakes here. I'm not invested in this story at all.

4. Alice is a bad friend lmfao

Girl, you're psychic you know she wanted to wear red why are you just dressing her up for your brother.

5. Okay returning to point 3 because I read chapter 17 and had an epiphany: Bella says she isn't scared for herself and I get that I do. But smeyer also hasn't shown us that she's selfless- just that she doesn't care if she dies. If bella actually cared for her human friends, in any way, I would believe that the newborn army was a scary threat because the people she loves might get hurt. But I don't believe that she cares about that I only believe that she- like Edward- has a weird martyr complex.

6. The Mirror chapter also reinforces this. I can’t stop thinking about how much more impactful it would have been narratively if it had been Angela in Bree’s position (because she’s the only human friend Bella seems fond of but if Bella showed interest in any of the other humans, honestly any of them would do). Imagine the moment where the newborn vampire first lifts her head to look into Bella’s eyes and it’s someone she knows. Someone she cares for. There should have been consequences for Bella beyond “Jake got some bones broken and now I feel bad :(” which was also a shitty punishment because smeyer is inflicting physical trauma on an indigenous character just to make Bella feel bad. Okay. Anyway, it would have built the tension I was missing for- quite literally- over 300 pages of this book if Bella’s friends and classmates and Fork’s residents had been going missing the whole time. Suddenly, at the end of the battle, there’s Angela. Or Jess. Or Katie fucking Marshall. Someone Bella knew should have been there and maybe I would have cared about this book at all.

7. Going back in time to this quote which comes before the battle:

UGH!!! SHUT UP SMEYER! She literally poisoned Jake’s character from the moment she made him a main character and she has zero self reflection to see the damage that she’s causing here. I’ve said before that I don’t think Jake’s actions were a romantic deal breaker and that stands out now more than ever after reading Eclipse. THIS is the moment that Bella realizes she’s in love with Jake too. Smeyer not only sees abuse and aggression as romantic, she also lacks the braincells and reflection to see that she’s playing directly into racist stereotypes. Edward got to grow up- marginally- but Jake had to remain aggressive. I still don’t think she ever once meant to villify Jake- I think that there was no way in a hell a racist woman could ever successfully portray an indigenous character. His tenderness is tainted by the aggression she forces on his character and in the end he never had a chance because- again- he was being written by a racist woman with fucked up views of indigenous people.

8. Okay, I get it. They’re like Cathy and Heathcliff. Fine. I buy it.

This isn’t even the last time she compares them to Cathy and Heathcliff. Kate Bush isn’t gonna write a song about you, meyer! Give it a rest! (Also lol at “like wuthering heights”)

9. Jumping right to the end here because to be completely honest the only actual event in the entire book was the newborn battle. Jane was a bitch, fine. Edward talked at Victoria and bored her to death (presumably) and the action never felt very action heavy. I knew if from the “best friend (and werewolf)” line that this book was presumably written for idiots given how little is left to the imagination at any given time. I can’t stand when books treat the audience like dummies and I especially can’t handle YA books that do this. Teenagers aren’t stupid!! Young adults can pick up on subtlety in literature!! AND young adults can handle suspense and action. smeyer doesn’t do either well and the editors never once said “hey you know teens aren’t stupid right? like your audience will pick up on hints that you scatter you don’t have to forcefully explain everything?”

10. Smeyer can’t stop interrupting herself even in the very last sentence of the book proper:

What, pray tell, is wrong with “Where it would stay for the rest of eternity.” Why did you have to sow doubt in the sentiment right after Bella made her For Real Final Decision???? And why the em-dash!? Again: the editors of the twilight saga are my nemeses but also my favorite conmen. What were they paid for?

11. Back to the editors real quick: if i was given a draft of eclipse I would instantly say: this story is almost 400 pages of nothing, you need to play with the structure of the story. You need to build suspense and if that means playing with POV like you randomly start doing in the epilogue, then do that. Or you can play with the plot. Nothing happens for 300 pages. It takes 300 pages to get to the newborn battle and nothing that happens before the newborn battle makes me feel worried about it. Again, kill off some humans, raise the stakes, do SOMETHING. This was so painfully slow to read because meyer tried to center this book on a love triangle that I didn’t even believe in myself. And even then, it took 14 chapters for the love triangle to get real action (as in an Event, not necessarily physical action).

12. The epilogue. Oh man. Was the r-slur really so acceptable in 2007 that not one single editor questioned its use? I won’t type the quote in full but Jake refers to his fake arm sling as r-word. Like??? What? And THEN smeyer has him call Leah a “bitter harpy.” Shut up.

In conclusion, nothing felt like a bigger waste of time than Eclipse. Genuinely, to be completely honest. Two (2) important things happened, at least in Bella’s narrative (I agree with Vinelle that the Volturi debacle was important from Carlisle’s perspective, it adds nothing to Bellas and Bella learns nothing important from it.): 1. Bella made a decision, she chose Edward. Who could have seen that coming? Whaaaat? 2. Rosalie told Bella her backstory. Not that Bella even used that to reflect on her decision to become a vampire but hey, at least it felt like an important moment. Jasper’s backstory only mattered for the newborn battle which didn’t matter at all (and it never informed his character and no one ever brings up that the confederacy was a terrible dark stain on US history (along with the rest of US history but that’s a full dissertation or two on its own)). I can’t imagine a way to improve this book as a standalone book. You could split up the plot (using that term loosely) so that New Moon and BD are both a little longer and BD a little more organized. But without completely changing the plot beats in Eclipse, its just pointless.

#eclipse reread #saga reread #long post #very very long sorry lolol

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jess-the-vampire · 4 years ago

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Sky And The Forces Of The Multiverse, Chapter 46

Previous / Next

"There!"

Sunny wiped at her brow, happy with their final designs for their costumes, it had taken a lot of brainstorming and they weren't even close to being actually finished but they had made a lot of progress. Actually it was kinda nice to have both lexi and sunny here, they were both creative types like her and that made them perfect to bounce ideas off of when it came to stuff like this.

Sunny even helped her with adjustments for nora's hat.Sunny had made her own costumes back home, not that they were well made ones or anything, but she wasn't unfamiliar to the process even if it wasn't very good. Plus she liked sharing her own ideas, especially since she knew what she was going for, to be performers they needed an idea in mind and well...better sunny then anyone else, she liked to perform back home.

"Maybe this time you'll get to see me actually perform!", she said cheerfully.

"Yeah...can't wait to watch you run around with a mustache", sky joked, smirking, but she was a little bit serious after hearing how sunny's last performance went.

"Thank you!", she was all too cute, She was a light spot in a lot of this, always trying to make others feel good as best as she could. It didn't shock sky at all she and mason became friends, they had a lot in common. Though since their shared father was a demon with a fond love of soft small animals, sky had a feeling he was the main culprit for this similarity.

"So...how'd you get into acting and singing and whatever exactly?", sky cleaned up some of their mess as sunny hummed to herself, trying to clean sky's extremely messy room to the best of her ability, though with a little demon magic help on her side. "Oh? Well, When i was stuck in our castle all the time i was lacking in many things to do...so i wanted to find new ways to entertain my little brother...so...i started writing stories for him...then starting acting them out with puppets...then costumes...it just...sorta...became fun for me".

"Locked up like...how nora was?", she felt a bit of concern considering nora's situation beforehand.

"Well...not exactly...more freedom...but the only reason we stayed inside as often as we did is cause people tried to attack us all the time when we went out...so they felt it better we were protected a lot...not to say we never went out a bit regardless...but i have a bodyguard, trust me when i say it's weird walking around without a knight following me to protect me...i mean it's happening now but when i first arrived-", something about that seemed to surprised sky, maybe with how tough sunny was, but the mention of it all made sky remember something.

"So...the knife-?".

"Protection purposes...i learned self defense young".

"Huh".

Somehow that made sky even more terrified of sunny then before, but also safer as well, sunny seemed too innocent to be just as scary as she actually was but boy did it make you want to be on her good side all the more. Otherwise you might quickly meet a bad fate by underestimating her and her strength and power. Gee and all sky usually did was taze people and might occasionally get a blast at them if he wand was working properly that day.

A 14 year old prodigy with bodyguards, self defense skills, a knife, and who loves musicals and plays.

Behold princess Sunny, one strange young girl.

She still seemed a bit sheepish about the whole thing with her dagger, her shoulders tightning, "I never meant to hurt judas...it's just a part of my training, usually when a giant tentacle comes and grabs you like that you're not expecting it from a friend, I know he doesn't hold it against me but when you're so worried about being attacked that you end up hurting a friend, it does get to you...sometimes this stuff affects making friends...they think you're too scary".

"Eh...friends who hate you for that probably aren't worth being friends with anyway", sky simply grumbled, "We're all pretty bad socially...none of us had the best environments to grow up in and make friends in...i'm lucky just to have judas as my friend, otherwise i might've just been by myself for years without any friends...and...yeah, that'd be kinda depressing".

"A life without any friends is a sad life...", the small princess finished cleaning up, helping her sister Galexia get her drawings together. "We're only alive so long, better we enjoy that life as much as we can...when i get home i hope to make more friends then i ever could before...perform more, just get to enjoy myself a bit more instead of being stressed or scared".

"That...sounds nice".

"What about you sky?".

"Eh?".

She turned to face her directly.

"When we're back home and everything is back to normal...what will you do first?".

She blinked at her, waiting for an answer, but sky had to just respond with a shrug.

"Honestly? Not sure...i actually think i'll just...rest...i think there's no need to rush into anything and well...rest is something i need before i could do much of anything anyway.

Sometimes you gotta take the time to like...breathe right? Can't spend every moment busy or you might not like...get to enjoy everything, i might wanna slow down for a little after this...i think".

"Planning on getting some therapy?".

"Yeah, definitely.".

That got her to laugh, sharp teeth being exposed upon her laugh.

"Yeah...i think i might need rest when i get home too...", she seemed to be lost in thought, probably thinking about her family back home. It had honestly sounded overall like her parents were rather nice, maybe protective but overall rather great to be around. Maybe in truth the first thing sunny would do was hug them tightly and never let them go after this.

Sounded like something sunny would do.

"Thanks for being a big help sky, you're super talented! I'm really glad to have you as our kinda sorta leader...", Sky was being pessimistic but it was coming from sunny, so she probably most certainly meant it. And considering Sunny was considered such an important and brilliant person back home that probably meant a lot coming from her, even if sky didn't know the full weight of it.

"Y'know sunny?".

"Hmm?".

"Whether it's my fault you're here or not...i'm...happy you guys are here...i mean i'm not happy you're separated from your families and friends or anything of course, i just mean i'm happy i got to like...meet you all...even luna...it's just kinda been nice...having sisters. I've seen judas deal with his brothers for years and sometimes i wondered about if i had an older or younger sibling so...i guess this turned out to be a weird blessing for me...though i hate that it hurt you all".

"Well i never would've gotten to meet you and judas and angel, mason, landon...galexia...any of you without this happening either, it's going to make one heck of a play when i get back home i tell ya!", sky was just imagining sunny pretending to be all of them on a stage, acting out all the stuff they went through and found herself snorting with laughter.

Oh what a sight that would be.

She could just see sunny wearing fake spider legs for angel and stilts with a fake tentacle arm for jude.

"Wanna get some food...?", she perked up, her stomach growling and ready to head out for a break.

Sky was more then happy with that idea, maybe they could run into angel or nora on the way, though maybe they'd also run into Meteora if they weren't careful. Sky also wanted to check up on judas, after all he was getting his arm looked at more and sky wanted to hear what they found. Judas probably needed this check up, even if they didn't find anything.

Plus judas would probably like having company, even if sky and the others weren't there for very long.

Though they were being very closely watched on, reminding sky of the first time they had bodyguards, except this time they were so close sky could smell their breath. But this time, sky didn't mind them so much, in fact she liked having them there then she used to, it added just a bit more safety to their situation even if the guards probably wouldn't last long in a fight against Her.

The more meat shields the merrier at this point.

They hadn't even gotten far however when exactly what sky was worried about was standing nearby. Meteora writing something down in her little notebook, interviewing some other guards and knights in training that knew luna as well, she took her job pretty seriously it seemed. She was pretty good at getting people to talk, though it seemed the knights were MORE then eager to spill dirt on luna.

Geez, so much for nobility and loyalty.

Sunny was baffled at seeing her, and that's when sky remembered meteora knew sunny in her home, Sunny had been pretty open about that part. Sky wondered just how different the two meteora's were, guess if meteora was a spy for sunny she might've been able to figure that whole thing out way before though. Judging by her expression it seemed this meteora was quite a bit different.

If even in just appearance.

Though as much as sunny wanted to talk to her, she had to keep her mouth shut, she didn't want to draw attention to themselves and come off even more suspicious then they looked before. They were just going to have to walk past her and let her do whatever she was doing, sky taking the lead with the girls behind her, but even though sunny knew the drill.

Galexia clearly didn't.

She waved to meteora as they walked past, making sky and sunny both panic for a moment as meteroa glanced up and looked at them walking past her. She didn't react much however, though she did give lexi a smile and sunny a curious look before getting back to her interviewing. The girls heading past, trying to seem as normal as possible as they headed out of her sight.

"Meteora looks very pretty...", the demon noted, keeping her head forward to sky.

"Yeah...pretty...but also...intimidating...".

That's when sky thought of something, but the guards being there made it hard to really ask.

She waited till they headed to the kitchens, were the noises were as loud as ever to pull sunny aside, lexi looming over the freshly baked cupcakes. "Hey...question, meteora exists in your world so uh...why are you next in line for the throne? Why isn't she and eclipsa in charge?".

Sunny eyes for anyone who might be listening in and answered the curious girl, "Well, it wouldn't hurt to say but...she didn't like being in charge so she thought my parents outta do it instead since they were more interested...meteora and me just grew up kinda like sisters...it was something that just kinda worked out for everyone, plus eclipsa likes not having that pressure anymore.".

So it was almost like what eclipsa said happened in this universe, except with a lot more secrets and sadness attached that felt like it screwed some people in the process.

Gee if it weren't for the constantly being attacked and constantly put under pressure thing, sky would argue the world sunny comes from is next to perfect, having a happy family unit with no secrets between them. It really was no wonder sunny was the person she was, and it was no wonder sky had the problems she had. It was nearly like night and day, nearly.

She had a lot more in common with her siblings then she had actually thought, more then just being princesses and just sharing a single parent. No they had situations and issues that repeated between them, it was almost eerier in that regard, that sky ended up meeting girls who knew how she felt in several ways. She easily could've have gotten several sisters who were just...normal people.

Or killers.

If this wasn't somehow on purpose she had gotten seriously lucky with the girls who had shown up.

Hmm

Something about that got her thinking.

But she wasn't able to ponder on that too much longer as sunny helped lexi pick out some snacks for the three of them, grabbing something bonus for judas just in case he was hungry. The servants were staring at them as they grabbed stuff, to them these girls were just helping themselves to their treats without a care in the world, and the only reason they didn't tell them off was because sky was here.

Imagine living your life as a princess and then going into a world that just saw you as a peasant.

That had to be a weird shift.

Then again, not having that pressure must've been super relaxing for once. Sunny could honestly just chill if she wanted to, though if sky asked it was clear sunny would rather be with her family again and take the pressure then be away without it. If Sky had been transported to one of their dimensions without judas she knew she'd have a straight up heart attack.

She'd rather be queen with him around then not be queen without, that was for sure.

And that led her to pick out a treat for him as well, something she knew he liked the best.

Thanking the servers and staff before leading the girls out, munching on some fresh cookies and laughing together, she liked the vibes these two had, hey were just so...positive. They were the opposite of luna and celeste, positive, friendly, and easy to talk to and hang out with.

Hanging out with them as so nice, sky felt bad she had never really done it much before. She had been so stressed hanging out with her sisters felt like it would just waste time, but she really liked spending time with them, she didn't have that many friends who were female when she thought about it, nora not even counting much because they had only truly become friends recently.

Even though they were being followed by guards and barely allowed to properly talk it still invoked a nice feeling. Sunny and Galexia had clicked since day one and barely left the other's side since, hanging out more with each other then anyone else. Even now they were laughing among themselves, having a good ole time, and before sky could feel left out sunny was inviting her in to talk.

it was a nice break from the stress.

Judas was being checked up in the butterfly kingdom hospital wing, though thankfully in a room away from where they usually seemed to go when stuff happened, clearly his parents wanted to give him some more privacy and sky and judas both couldn't protest against that.

Last thing they needed was the press to get out about jude's arm acting funny when they already spread lies about his arm for years.

He was waiting on the bed when they were allowed in, his face lighting up at the guests coming to see him. He looked tired, but a long few hours of checkups will do that to ya, so much so he seemed happy when sky sheepishly handed him a snack. "You got me peanut butter chocolate chip cookies? Thanks so much sky! I've been hungry waiting in here", he beamed as he took a bite from her tray.

"They haven't brought you any snacks in here?", that sounded out of characters for either of his parents though judas finished swallowing as he made things a bit more clear. "No, i had a bit to eat, but i couldn't have much, they were worried it'd affect the tests...but thankfully i'm about finished so i can finally eat properly, i'm super happy you guys got me some stuff besides water and stale crackers...".

He was quick to chow down, taking some of the treats sunny got him as well with a pat to her head.

"So...what exactly did they do to you?".

She was making it sound like they experimented on judas like mad scientists or something but but clearly that wouldn't happen on the Lucitor's watch. Judas laughing and feeling his arm, "They uh well...may if gave me a few shots...and uh...my arm may of reacted a little...swatting at the needles and uh...everyone in the room for a bit". That's when sky noticed the floor looked like it had just been cleaned and the counters nearby weren't as neat as they usually were.

"Oh, ouch, i'm really sorry to hear...".

"No sky, it's ok, they eventually got it to hold still enough and turns out...it actually did seem to put it to sleep...though i'm kinda drowsy...but at least they were finally able to get more dna on it...i mean none of this is new to me, they did stuff like this since i was made but...maybe this time we can get somewhere with it since things have changed since then...".

"Don't you wanna control it rather then cure it? Like how are the these tests supposed to help with that?".

"Well, yeah, i've been considering that maybe the best thing i can do is stop trying to remove something i can't and learn to take it over but well...knowing more about how it works is not a bad thing...might be able to really help me deal with it and everything...though i have to admit...it does scare me a little, it's years of trauma I'm attempting to battle. The tests are just here to well...discover new things about my body, might help me with future choices i make...whether i cure it or not".

"Well, it's noble you even want to do it...no one would blame you for just wanting it gone, but i think it's cool that you wanna like...conquer it of all things".

"I guess to some extent it feels like i'm trying to fix something i can't really fix...if i can't remove it...the next best thing i can do...is not let it take me over...if that's really what's going on...sky i just don't want to keep being afraid of myself anymore...even if you trust me not everyone does and i don't want to be scared of myself...or...have you be scared of me...so...maybe...maybe this can work".

"You really think it's possible?"

"It's worth a shot...i've never really tried before...i mean maybe a little when i desperately tried to will it away as a child but i was too scared at the time...so i'm not sure what'll happen this time...it could work really well or really fail and i wouldn't be surprised either way...i just...it's something i've been thinking about, so..." he rubbed at his arm, sighing.

"Judas...you shouldn't pressure yourself into-".

"I'm not...sky i just...i'm going to be king and...i don't want to be king...with this lingering over me...", he nearly almost cried but pulled himself together last minute, "I'm running out of time before i'm coronated...the sooner i do this the better...i can't wait for a cure...i know nora did what she could...and she can still help...but i have to try something else right now".

"Then maybe you shouldn't be king...".

The two turned to see Sunny, who had been patiently watching and listening to the conversation, her words making judas pause. Sunny must've realized she came off a little harsh when she said it, quick to explain herself before judas and sky said anything else. "I don't mean it in that way judas, i promise...sorry if that came out the wrong way or anything-".

"I can't not be king sunny", he mumbled.

"I don't mean never or anything, i just mean...maybe your parents should push back your date to be king...until you're ready and aren't having all these breakdowns and everything...sometimes you just have to admit you're not ready and have to wait until you are...and if you're so worried...i...i just think your health should come first...before being the next king of the underworld...it's enough pressure without issues...".

Judas seemed to be actually considering what she said, though he shook his head, "This coronation plan has already been set up, i'm not backing out on it if it can really finish all of this...I care more about solving this right now...saving the kingdom, ". Though sunny and sky seemed to both share a concerned look, maybe sunny had a point, though sky rarely heard of many royals who didn't take the crown at least at 18.

Though granted, some had taken it younger, so maybe allowing for some to take it older wasn't a bad idea. Judas could have some time for himself to sort out his problems and come into the position more prepared, he had barely even gotten to focus on the responsibilities of being king, the situation had taken up all his attention, did he really want to put someone like him on the throne like this?

But that didn't only depend on judas, but also his parents, their family, and most of the other kingdoms who had been ready to adjust to his rule. It was no simple task and they needed more time to really work it out, but now that sunny said it and brought it out there, sky couldn't help but put it in the back of her mind for later. Judas was her best friend, and if she needed to, she'd help anyway she could.

She didn't like seeing her best friend dealing with so much pain throughout all of this, she just needed to be there for him.

But for now, her presence seemed to be just enough, judas looking delighted again, even if he was going through a lot in his own mind. Galexia already back to drawing before handing judas one of her drawings, which caught him off guard. He was scared at first knowing what he knew about lexi and her seemingly strange abilities, but he was quickly soothed seeing a drawing him himself.

Happy.

His brothers and parents at his side, with his grandparents as well.

He didn't even know for sure if this were a normal drawing or a premonition , but it was still something rather nice of lexi to give him. She might not have been his sister, but she was a welcoming presence here all things considered. He sent her a soft smile and nodded, "Thanks lexi, this is very sweet of you...you really know how to draw...that's for sure".

He folded the drawing up and put it in his pocket, "I'll hang it in my room...when the castle is finally back together".

"It's nearly done?".

"Yeah i think so...it wasn't nearly as bad as what your castle has been through after all, just a lot of damaged rooms and hallways...but i think we're nearly back and ready...with uh...a few changed just in case that happens again". He didn't seem so sure about the ideas they had in mind, but if it prevented THAT from happening again, it was better then nothing.

"Well maybe it'll be way better then our system...".

"I mean, i'm not too confident...at this point i just assume nothing works on her, she's just too smart for us...well...maybe they are...luna thinks otherwise and i guess it's a real thing to consider", sunny blinking at them both curiously, and sky remembered she never updated sunny on what they spoke about with luna yet, having been distracted with their work.

"Luna thinks what?".

"Ehhh...long story...but she had a few theories that maybe we're being bamboozled by someone whose making things up as they go along? Not that we're sure or anything like that it's only a theory...but we did have her say that to us when we were there, we're honestly on the fence mostly about the whole idea but she just wonders if maybe we think this person is smarter then they are".

The demon girl responding with a bite to her lip and a tap on her chin, clearly thinking more about this idea herself.

"Anways...we're close to getting everything fixed...of course not that i'm sure how much we'll be staying there...but at the very least we'll have a castle that doesn't have holes in it anymore...which is better then before. It's in part thanks to your moms and my grandmother, having a larger demon help with construction makes the progress go a lot faster then it would without".

"You helped too", she pointed out.

"Eh...not as much...", he looked off to the side, though sky clearly was telling him with her eyes not to ignore his own efforts he put into all of this. He smiled but went back to his point,

"But i guess we'll be bunking for a good while before i'm allowed to sleep alone again, so i guess we have a lot of sleepovers ahead of us, whether we like it or not".

"Is it really a sleepover if your parents, my parents, other kingdoms, and even your grandparents are also staying in the same room? At that point it's not so much of a party and more like a one room hotel...", she could hear sunny giggling at that nearby as judas shrugged, "I mean, we got no choice, but your safe room is rather cozy...even if there isn't as much to do in there".

"Don't brag, not my fault my granny was so picky about things".

But she knew judas meant no real harm,if her moms had been given their way the room would probably have a large pool in there, but having a grandmother like queen moon meant dealing with a grandma who lectured everyone on proper queen ways and the best use of their resources and time. Naturally, games and toys aren't really as important and others things in a safe house, at least according to her.

Though sky would argue boredom and preventing it was a major need that of course needed fixing in a place like a safe room.

"Not your fault sky, at least we have each other in there, how's the plan coming along by the way?", he glanced to his half sister nearby and sunny looked like she had just been WAITING to go on about their ideas for this mission. Though they'd have to cut it short, hearing noises nearby, and for now they couldn't tell whether the person speaking was even friend or foe.

Then quickly enough, the voices dropped and judas's ears twitched.

"It might be my parents, they'd around talking with the specialist who checked me over", he listened out to see if they were coming in, but it seems they had merely passed by the room instead, allowing everyone to relax. "Alright i think we're ok, sorry, sometimes i get caught up talking i forget there's still a ton of people around, we should really talk more quietly just in case", his voice getting a bit softer in response.

"It's ok, we can talk later...i'm just happy to see you", and sky felt judas tug her into a hug, making sure not to hold her too tightly, sky snuggling into his chest as she wrapped her arms around her best friend. They had only been separated for a short time and she still felt overdue for a hug right now, even judas felt pretty happy to have a hug to ease some tension, kissing his friends forehead affectionately as they parted.

"I needed that".

"I could tell", she crossed her arms, smirking.

"I really just...appreciate your support sky, i might not say that enough, but i'm really glad to have you by my side...throughout all of my issues these last few months and everything, i know i might be acting a little crazy sometimes and changing my mind all the time and not keeping myself focused and being tired...and you get it, but you still stuck around with me through it...and it means a lot", the princess patting his shoulder playfully.

"Dude, look at what you put up with by being MY friend?! I nearly blasted my mom in the face and got send to frozen prison, seems like you can't catch a break by being my best friend, of course i'm sticking with you throughout all of this...we said we'd be best friends no matter what went down in the future, we're ride or die for each other...and that ain't ending for any reason".

"What about if i killed someone?".

"I'd probably help you hide a body to be honest...hey at least we'd end up in prison together", she stuck her tongue out at him and sunny giggled nearby.

"You guys are cute".

They both stuck their tongues out at her.

Sunny only stuck her tongue out back, "The sweetest best friends i've ever met, don't try to hide it". Sky just rolled her eyes, hearing jude's parents coming back down the hall, but this time it seemed they were actually heading into the room itself, the doorknob turning and everyone getting into position, he king and queen of the underworld heading in so fast they nearly didn't notice the other guests.

They did, however, notice the food right away.

"You know a doctor's room is really not a good place to be leaving crumbs everywhere...right?".

"Oh um...sorry mom", judas quickly covered his mouth and tried to clean up the mess around him as the girls moved the treats aside for later, tom and marco greeting the girls with a wave, "guess that explains the additional guards outside...though maybe you girls could've given us a bit more of a heads up, you could've walked in on important shots or something".

"Sorry about that!", sunny was quick to apologize, lighting up at seeing the adults. They were quick to forgive though, honestly if one of them had been in a similar position the other probably would've done something very close. Both parents walking over to their oldest child to give him news of the tests, judas shaking a little in his seat as if expecting to be told something horrible.

Though their faces were trying to be more reassuring.

It had been a long while since they had really tested it to the extent they were doing, so what may come of it could go in many directions, it had time to grow and change with jude's body, it could be so many things at this point that his parents weren't sure how to tell him. Judas's mind had been running through every possibility they could give him, even ones where nothing had changed.

Whatever it was, he needed to trust them on it and keep himself together, it couldn't get really any worse...hopefully.

His parents seemed to be reassuring each other with looks as they looked for the best words they could say to explain whatever it was they needed to say to their eldest son.

"Alright jude...so we knew going in there was no guarantee these tests would change much, we've done this kinda thing before to get more info on a cure and it never worked...but with your arm acting more funny then before we felt better taking you in to get it more looked at then doing nothing just to be safe...and we'll break the news...we still haven't found much about a cure...", marco was trying to be ggentle, as if expecting this news to hurt the teenager but judas didn't react much at all, it wasn't that shocking to him.

"But what's the catch?".

The adults looks to each other, a little surprised at jude's reaction.

"Well..um...the catch is...there might be an answer as to why your arm reacted how it did...to the magic flowing through it so much...". Tom eyeing his partner as marco put their hands together, "So you see...the monster arm spell...is kinda a dark magic spell...i got infected with it when star somehow thought it would fix my broken arm...and as tom has told you...the spell that still lingered in my dna latched on to you...though it did transform".

The demon nodded.

"Point being, you may of... whether intentional or not...purged the dark magic cells in your arm...from the curse...and that clearly really hurt your arm...burning your arm and purging out the dark cells...even if it did take a bit of time to fully do so...even now, it's apparently still doing it", judas rotated his arm, of course he couldn't see what was happening but he had felt it for sure.

"Guessing it didn't take it well?".

"It?".

"My arm was supposed to be alive...remember? Everyone thought it would take over my body and kill us all? With how it kept swelling up i guess it really didn't like being purged from dark magic how it was ", but his parents had more to say, marco especially, rubbing their neck nervously. "Judas...so...with this test...we uh...about the arm situation...".

"hmm what's going on here that you guys are acting so funny about?".

"What your mom wants to say is...if that your arm was never alive...really".

Judas's face twisted to confusion, as if not understanding what his parents just said at all, looking between the two of them with all three of his bright red eyes.

"What are you talking about?".

"It's just been you".

Judas still seemed utterly confused, searching his parent's faces for answers as they both attempted to try and explain. "Judas...what we're trying to tell you...is we always thought this curse...was exactly like your mom's...but after these tests we were told there's actually no trace of another lifeform outside of yourself...yeah it was filled with dark magic...but no other lifeform was in your arm".

"Judas...", marco started, "It appears...through the years of having your arm the arm never showed up upon it's own will...but more that perhaps you triggered it through emotional response...whether intentional or not." Though it didn't seem like judas was fully taking it all in, at the very least he wasn't having a strong negative reaction either to this news.

He seemed...unsure what to respond with, which was expected.

He spent 17 years with this idea his arm was a bloodthirsty killed out to destroy him and everyone around him, how was he really supposed to process this information and take it like normal? Was he even supposed to believe this anymore? This wasn't a thing the last time he got tested! How could he trust this kinda word, for all he knew his parents were lying to him to make him relax.

Everyone in the room seemed to notice judas was struggling in his mind a little, all rushing to help him.

But instead he stood up, "I need a minute".

And he didn't even wait for a response before leaving the room, everyone standing dead silent as he shut the door behind him.

Sky quickly turning to the Lucitors with mixed emotions, "Wait...is that true? Is his arm really-?".

The two nodded, "We were so anxious for years because we never fully understood much about what happened when the curse was transferred but...if there's really no trace of another living being inside of his arm, then that means judas can be the only culprit as to it moving how it did...and well...we still don't fully understand how it all works but...it seems like the most likely candidate is judas was somehow doing it".

"He once reached out to grab me with it".

They all glanced to sunny.

"I ran away, he tried to stop me and it turned into that thing to grab me, it obeyed him completely...reacted to how he was acting. I never questioned it really beforehand in the moment considering i kinda maybe reacted by stabbing judas...but um...i guess when you really think about it...that was kinda a little strange. It seemed in the moment judas had control over it".

"But shouldn't it happen more often then?", sky mumbled, "i mean, if it reacts to stress and stuff if should happen often enough for us to tell...right?".

"Maybe, we need a little more information on it...but what we do know is there isn't any monster hiding in his dna, that's the best thing we can tell you from this whole thing".

Sky turned to where judas left, "We should follow him, before he...gets hurt...". Not to say judas would do anything stupid but the way he had stomped out like that had sky very worried for him, this clearly had really gotten to him, it was one of those things that had flipped over his entire life that he had known up to this point. There must have been a lot of thoughts swarming in his mind, he couldn't catch a break.

"Wait...maybe we outta give him space", marco held out their hand, preventing sky from following the young demon, gazing off at the door themsleves with a sigh. "You care a lot about our son and it means a lot to us he has you for a great best friend...but this is his own fight, he might need some time to really think about it...if he needs to talk...we should be the ones to do it...as well...we're more responsible for it".

Sky couldn't argue with that logic, even if she wanted to.

"You know a lot about curses?", sunny asked suddenly, getting their attention quickly with her innocent voice. The adults sadly only replying with a shrug and nervous expression, "I mean outside of the arm...well of course there's the blood moon curse...but those two curses are very different from each other and we don't know much outside of that".

"What about the blood moon curse?".

The adults looked to each other and back to sunny before sky butted in, "Uh...sunny? I'm sorry but that's kinda off topic...why do you want to know about any of that? That whole thing is long gone in the past...". Sunny bit at her lips, her fangs pricking out as she thought about what she wanted to ask a bit more, "Nothing important...just um...i had questions about it and magic and stuff...

Tom leaned down and got onto her eye level, putting a hand on her shoulder in reassurance.

"We'll talk later if you want about that, in private...sound good? After we get out of the hospital wing?".

Sunny nodded, thankful, even if sky was left in curiosity.

"Let's get cleaned up, save these treats for judas...we can put them in the safe room for him later when he's hungry", marco quickly started grabbed snacks, encouraging help from lexi, who was collecting her doodles, "Boy...you really do draw a lot don't you?". Lexi didn't respond much outside of a thumbs up, grabbing a plate of snacks to head out on, everyone heading out.

"Hey...uh...Mr Lucitor?".

Tom turned around to sky, who was right behind him as the others went forward, stopping in his tracks.

"If judas has really been in control this entire time, we're not actually in danger from his arm...are we?".

He seemed to pause a moment, his eyes turning to the side, "Well...theoretically no, judas would never want to hurt any of us...but on the other hand that's not to say the arm couldn't hurt any of us if judas either didn't know what he was doing or his body was under someone else's control...it's still something we should be very wary about...but the nice thing we can say is the demon that once lived inside marco's arm is gone".

"Yeah i guess that's good...though yeah i know as much as anyone about being not in control of your magic and nearly hurting someone...and with everything jude is going through...i mean i trust him but at the same time...i'm just...worried", the king patted her head gently and moved her forward to follow the others. "Yeah, i understand...maybe just in case keep that zapper for his arm...better safe then sorry.".

"I'd hate to zap jude if he's just...himself though, it was easier to imagine he was under control and i was zapping something possessing him...but if it's just him...then i'm hurting him...", she felt the zapper and it's button inside her pocket, she always somehow seemed to remember it, at least as much as she could. But what originally felt like judas trusting her to save him now felt much more uncomfortable.

Even tom seemed to understand her concerns, truthfully not sure what the best advice he could give her would be. Most teenagers didn't usually have to go through a dilemma like this, then again most teenagers didn't have to go through any of the wild stuff that they were dealing with in the first place. The best he could do was try and comfort her, "Hey...my advice? If judas were to ever almost hurt you...i'd think he'd be ok with you protecting yourself and us...much rather that then him actually landing a tentacle on you".

"Even if i feel bad about it?".

"You gotta make hard choices to protect your friends, i know that feeling...but i trust you'll make the best choice if it ever comes to that, and i trust judas to try and avoid it ever coming to that if possible...and if we have to, we'll make sure to come in and help ourselves...we won't let anything bad happen to all of you...we'll figure out all of this...it's just as freaky to us as well", he ran his fingers through his pink hair, "To think after all that...the arm...was just judas...".

"Does...it make you feel better or worse considering-", she hated to ask, but she had to know.

"Well...i...i think it makes me feel a little better...though it is still my fault this happened at all...i just wish i'd known sooner to avoid the years of fear we had". though it wasn't just that, had they known sooner, maybe judas wouldn't be how he was these days. They could've saved him before he had to deal with years of trauma and fear, and tom didn't even need to say it for sky to know he was thinking about it.

"Hey uh...sunny brought this up earlier...but...maybe judas needs more time...before he should be on the throne", she hadn't planned to bring this up right away but with his father next to her, worried about his son it just sorta came out. The demon king glancing at her and not saying much in return, "I know it's tradition and everything but...she has a point, i don't wanna watch judas suffer on the throne with this either...".

"I'll talk about it with my parents and marco...thanks for the suggestion, i'll thank sunny later...", it still depended on if judas wanted it, but at least his parents could consider the idea of it. They headed on their way to catch up with the others before tom and sunny branched off to talk, leaving sky with marco and galexia, who ushered them to come with.

"We'll drop these snacks off and since you girls are here i want your help, the more hands the merrier, plus i prefer at least one of us keeps an eye on you as much as possible.".

"Wait...with what?".

"Angel's father is arriving tonight...with everything happening i could use the help to welcome him in and make him feel comfortable, star would've been in charge but she's dealing with her mom instead and janna sure isn't doing it, in fact i think she's currently dealing with fae actually...even though fae was returned to her family she kinda keeps coming in for further questions and help and well uh...janna and mason were the only ones brave enough to deal with her right now...janna seems to find the fact she seems cursed to be rather cool, because of course she does.".

"Wait...mason? What's that about? I though mason already interrogated her? I'm not sure how much he could get out of her at this point, it's not like she spent a whole lot of time with the person or anything... ".

"Well it's not exactly that, it's more...fae is going to be the one actually doing the asking...long story, it's janna suggested having her there might actually be helpful...she has knowledge on rumors spread by the kingdoms and well...actually it might just be because the other stable servants just wanted her to do a job away from them".

"Hold up a minute...fae is going to interrogate someone? She's like...i dunno...twelve or something?".

"We were against it for the same reason, but apparently jackie is going with them too so it made me and tom feel a little better about mason handling it, they're actually not doing a regular interrogation, this time they're trying something new...basically going through the evidence we found and having fae there because apparently they think just her presence might scare the guy into talking...".

Who? Like you obviously didn't capture the real masked person so...", sky suddenly felt extremely clueless to what the queen was talking about, who got arrested recently?

"The guy who was letting masky keep a child and a evil lair under his bar...that's who, they took him into custody...he didn't really get very far, something about him running right into a giant plant who likes stuffed animals...", sky's expression was enough to tell him that no one had really been talking about that capture in comparison to the luna one. "Eclipsa wanted to go but she and globgor need to deal with angel's kingdom, so they decided if janna herself wasn't scary enough...well...fae seems to have an off knack for things falling off the ceiling when she's in a room".

"Wait...why's mason there?".

"Fae asked for him, it seems they're actually friends, and she wouldn't help unless he was there.".

"You guys brought in a CHILD to interrogate a criminal?", marco snickering to themselves at the way she asked that, "Well, we were against it obviously...but having her there was better then not, she does have some additional knowledge after all...that and...i'm worried if i said no in her presence we might have an...unfortunate accident...after mason told me about her bad luck...i'll admit...she makes me nervous...and well...i also might not have wanted her left in a room alone...our castle is damaged enough as is".

"Well...actually if you put her in a room with anyone there tends to be the lingering worry the room might collapse so maybe you have a point.", the idea her mom would take a child to use as a threatening weapon actually sounded really in character for her somehow. At least then maybe they might get a reaction from the guy if janna wasn't enough, though she usually was.

"Me and Tom are not exactly happy about having you involved in this danger but at the same time we know we need your help if we're going to get anywhere...and thankfully with jackie there that guy won't be getting into any funny business, she tends to always be armed...it's actually rather scary when you think about it, but more for him then it is us".

"Well, thanks for trusting us...even if it's a little...it means a lot to us".

"Don't think this means we want you fighting anything dangerous directly, fae is only allowed to help because she has info that is helpful to us...we would neve have allowed her to help otherwise...but having a citizen give us info from a citizen point of view is just kinda helpful...can't get much as that as a ruler...not unless the servants gossip like crazy".

"Well for our sakes, let's hope the guy spills everything in a few minutes...any longer with fae and he might combust".

Marco laughed but somehow they didn't actually doubt that and it slowly became a more concerned and nervous chuckle.

"Anyways...they're taking care of that...we just have to focus on the king's arrival...angel's still in the safe room to my knowledge so we'll get him when we drop these off, though he seems to be a bit uneasy so be careful around him". Guess with his dad coming to visit he was going to be sick in the stomach for awhile, like how he had been when he was about to be on trial.

His father being forced to deal with the kingdom after him, their prince, started working with an enemy to mewni, made him scared...he was disappointed in him and he knew it.

He was going to be forced to talk to him about what had happened directly and everything going on and that was something hard to be fully prepared for, no matter how much he was expecting it. Sure, he could bring good news in terms of his mother but even he was worried about what his mom would say about everything he had done since she had been sick.

So yeah, he was in quite a mood when they arrived passed the guards, angel was by himself, not interacting with any of the others, in fact he seemed to be talking to himself. Judas or sky was usually there to reassure him or calm him down but with the both of them having been out for most of the day he had been left to his own person. Sky noticing nora was also out, otherwise she would've expected her to be here with him.

She didn't hesitate to approach him after the others sat down the snacks, angel actually startled as she approached, as if he hadn't seen her even enter the room because of how distracted he had been. Though he was relieved, probably expecting someone way worse to have come for him, the monster prince trying to pull himself together and make himself look less of a mess.

"Hey...how you doing?".

She probably knew the answer to that already but she still felt she should ask.

Angel sweating in his seat as he tried to pull his hair back into a ponytail, having a hard time making eye contact with sky, "My dad's coming...he can't see me like this, i'm a mess...i never used to look like a mess...what if he sees me like this and thinks i've gone off the deep end or i'm no longer much of a prince?! Sky i don't know if i can do this...things went so bad last time i saw him...".

"You didn't get much of a goodbye after the trial...did you?".

He shook his head.

"I didn't want to show my face to him and he left without a word to me...probably for similar reasons...i haven't seen him since then, he just...let me here...in the care of your families...i'm terrified of what he might think of what the other arachs have been telling him...they all already hated me and i can't think anything got better after you saved me...i...he'll probably tell me i'm dethroned...".

"You don't know that, your dad seems mostly nice...i mean he's never been THAT bad".

"Maybe not...but i'm not taking any chances...i probably deserve it though...he's had enough time to really consider it as an option, even after what happened at the trial...plus no one wants me as king back there anyway".

"Angel, c'mon, that's not true, we've talked about this...you want to be king and you can do it too! Who cares what your dad thinks!".

"I care!", he said that a little too aggressive then he had been intending, suddenly sheepish.

"Sorry sky...didn't mean to lash out at you...it's just...being king means nothing if the current king doesn't think i should...even if i really want it, he does have the power to transfer the crown if he wants to...even if it's to the farther out cousin i have somewhere...i wasn't a good prince...even if i want to do things right now...that doesn't change much if they say no".

Sky couldn't argue that no matter how much she wanted to, angel was the rightful heir but that didn't stop plenty of other kingdoms from giving the crown to more distant relatives before. Gee, now she was thinking about what meteora said before when she had trashed on the guy, she, judas, and him seemed to be favorites to hate in mewni for reasons...some much more fair then others but still.

"Well...maybe your dad will be happy to see you...a lot has changed since then after all right?

You can't be completely sure of how he feels, since you've been helping us out maybe he understands you have really learned and want to do better...i mean, you screwed me over a lot...but i'm a but better about it then i was at the time."

"I want to think that...but after what i did...i keep doubting myself sky...i don't know why i'm like this...i just can't be as positive as you and judas...even though i want to...I...", he thought back to the advice nora gave him, taking a breath and trying to remember what he did was all in the past, and there was nothing he could do about it now but work to do better.

"You really think my dad will forgive me? He's not like you, he's been away from me all this time...I'm scare to face him.".

"I mean if he doesn't forgive you i'm sure eclipsa will have no trouble signing adoption papers for you", she was joking to lighten the mood but in actuality that was a likely outcome if things were really to get worse. Angel standing up and streching his legs, "Hey...can you at least help me get ready to meet him?...i think i looks like a mess...i don't want to look like one when i see him...and your way better with clothes then i am".

"Well...how do you wanna dress? More princely? Or more like..."

She motioned to his borrowed clothes from judas, because judas was taller then them his clothes, while looking nice on the prince, were a bit more oversized. It wasn't the most ideal prince look.

"Why ask...you know what the better option is?".

"Just saying angel, maybe you outta see your dad as yourself...not trying to be something your not, better way to judge you then to pretend to be perfect after everything...i mean if formal is what you feel like wearing i ain't stopping you but i'm just saying you should dress as who you are now and not what your dad wants you to be". Angel shuffled in his place before taking out the hairband, his hair free again, "We can figure it out while you show me some options...if that's ok?", she nodded and followed him back to the group, marco happy to see him.

"Angel! Hey, i hope you're doing ok...if you need anything just ask us...we'll be happy to help you in any way we can...but just always stick with one of us, for your safety and ours...at this point we have a buddy system, as well as way too many guards...but it's better then you or any of us getting in any sort of danger...so just stick by and find help if you need it".

"Don't worry, i don't plan to leave anyone's side...not yours, sky's...anyone's...if i can help it...at this point i get anxious from being alone...", that was when sky awkwardly held out her hand, "Look, don't take this the wrong way, but if you need to hold me to feel comfortable...judas tends to do it with me when he really needs it so...just in case you might have some kinda panic attack about the masked guy or whatever".

Angel's small grin was very appreciative.

"Thank you, i'll keep that in mind...".

"You ready?", marco started waving to everyone still inside the room as they made their way towards the door, the kids following suit, lexi trotting along in the back. She looked happy to have angel with them as well, patting him on the back as if welcoming him. Galexia did have a way of making people feel rather welcome around her, whether she knew them or not.

"Were we headed first?".

"Marco looked back at the others, leading the way.

"The kitchens...we have a lot to do, he's going to be having dinner with us tonight...with former queen moon, the sooner we prepare for tonight, the better".-

Landon felt he was starting to get somewhere, if even it was just a little.

At the very least his marks were slightly more consistent then they were before, which was an improvement to an extent. He'd been training for hours, barely leaving the room. It was nice to get away from the others, for now this was mostly private and something he wanted to keep mostly private until he figured out his best course of action. Maybe after figuring out how to activate his marks he could then really work on magic with some help.

He'd considered looking at sky's spellbook but no way would he ever get permission to be in her room without asking her first, and she'd be suspicious of his actions for sure.

She had already been before, she'd probably assume he wanted to look into some of the darker magic.

But he also couldn't claim she wasn't completely wrong about that last bit, he did feel a bit curious about some more of the magic of the butterflies. It was forbidden for most people to see it unless a butterfly showed them so even getting a chance to see what was inside would be interesting, landon was a special case after all, he wasn't even a butterfly.

He should be allowed more permission then anyone out there, otherwise this was a missed opportunity.

Not many queens could ever claim to something like being able to train those who weren't apart of the butterfly family with their magic, though at the same time the queens ,were so picky with who got to use it maybe at the time it wasn't even considered an option.

Regardless that wasn't the point, the point was landon had powers, and if he wasn't trained to use them now he might never get to.

He was the forgotten brother after all.So forgive him if he had his doubts that anyone would train him in magic after things may of gotten slightly better. He hadn't exactly had a lot of attention like his own brothers had had, there was no reason to him this would make a huge difference. But if everyone was distracted, it only meant more time for him to learn more alone, not judged, not controlled.

So maybe there was benefit to being ignored.

He wasn't going to be a powerful magic user anytime soon, but this was bringing him some confidence he never had before without either bernard, or his mom cheering him on. He never thought his music was capable of magic before, it was like making his own spell, even if he hadn't been doing it on purpose. If he could figure it out just a little more maybe he could make something happen.

Hopefully a good something.

He was taking notes, testing what worked and what didn't, it was like a strange musical puzzle. Maybe if he knew more about magic he could figure this out a lot easier, but his wand was catered to him right? So it should paly by his rules, his music rules. On the other hand, he wasn't using his wand, he was using a normal violin, having a wand would make this process so much faster.

He might as well have been trying to dip down.

No queen had been able to do this without some practice, so yeah, no wonder he was making little progress.

He put down his instrument, sighing, maybe he really would have to approach celeste for help, cause boy he wasn't going to be using sky's wand in it's condition, and he doubted sunny would just hand it to him. Granted, maybe if he tried to convince lexi he might have better chances if she didn't think about it too hard, otherwise he might not finish any spell till sky was queen.

But that was enough progress for today, he outta take a break and eat something before everyone did start wondering where he was and found him trying to do magic, he didn't want to have to make up a fake excuse so he didn't look suspicious. Everyone was already on edge enough, they might assume he was mind-controlled or something if he started acting weird around here.

Violin strapped to his back, he started heading his way out of the guarded room.

Mason promised to meet him later, something about a hangout with fae he had to do first?

Either way if he was going to finally talk to his crush he was going to need help, he'd tried doing it by himself and he chickened out, so maybe it was about time he had a bit of help...even if it was from his younger brother of all people. It was a strange priority to have right now of course, but if he didn't do it now, he might not get to again.

He was being tailed of course, by guards who needed to watch him, which made him only more anxious, but he found them easier to ignore when his mind was more distracted with other thoughts. He was thankful he had been allowed to practice in private at all, he half expected them to sit and watch him, which would not have worked with his magic practice at all.

Until mason came to help he already knew what he wanted to do first.

Talk to celeste.

Celeste was still not in the greatest of moods, but when was she ever in a good mood in the first place? Seeing luna again seemed to have made her grumpier then she was before and that was saying something, she went right to bed and never spoke once in the morning, she clearly had wanted to be left alone to deal with her feelings towards luna after how rude she had been to everyone.

Yeah, celeste herself hadn't been the peak of niceness, but luna was...oof.

How she made everyone feel, how she hurt everyone, how she treated everyone who had been helping her. Something about her really seemed to annoy celeste, and in ways that didn't seem to suit to anyone else. It didn't start that way, luna came to her first for help when they wanted to go home more desperately, seeing her as an ally, but it seemed anyone who worked with luna for more then a few minutes were quick to get annoyed.

Landon could relate.

But he had to check on her, he'd feel like an awful technical brother if he didn't.

Once he had made it to the safe room he saw her on a nearby couch, she wasn't even doing anything, no reading, no music, nothing, instead she just seemed to be thinking to herself.

Everyone who really did talk to her wasn't here, leaving her all by her lonesome, and landon's shoulders sunk as he knew this feeling more then he wanted to remember.

He approached her, a small wave as he tried to her her attention.

"Hola".

She glanced up at him, speaking a small bit of spanish in return.

"Hola...".

Was it just him or did she seem to be...sad actually? Like she was in some sort of a slump? She was moody often but right now she seemed more...sad...less mad...and just odd for celeste overall. She seemed to mostly be huddled up on the couch, lost in thought as she looked landon over, noticing he had his violin on him, "Hey...i didn't say it before but...nice job on the spell".

A compliment?

"Thanks cele...i know me using your wand sorta felt...mixed for you...but thanks for letting me use it, really".

"Don't mention it, though don't assume i'm going to let you have it again right now...cause i'm not, i just...y'know...it's a hard spell for anyone to do...", she turned her head away, landon taking a seat next to her, "Hey uh...maybe this sounds like a bad idea, like a really bad idea, but maybe the two of us should see if we can head out and pay luna a visit or something...".His words quickly earned him a confused scowl from the girl, though he had been expecting it.

"What?".

She said it with a tone that felt rather nasty and that quickly got landon to change the way he talked about this idea, he didn't want to make a scene and get celeste more upset. She was clearly upset enough as is, and of course so was he, but he had at least kept himself distracted enough to not fall into a slump about it. Celeste in this state was someone to be cautious about.

"I'm thinking well...maybe we need some closure...with luna...you and me seem to be...torn up about her and mad with her and everyone can tell we both dislike her in particular...so i dunno...maybe we should talk to her...or something, maybe help us feel better...so we might work better with the others...so we can move on from all of this...y'know?", he didn't like the idea any better then she did but the idea might work.

Angel and Sky became friends despite not liking each other like this.

So did his own parents.

It had to have crossed his mind, and it was what his mom would suggest them doing if he had asked. If he was going to confront his crush, confronting luna was at least a good way to help landon progress with confronting his problems rather then letting them weltch up inside of him for long periods of time before bursting randomly in a fit of rage.

Granted, this was luna, so it might not even work, but maybe it would be better then them both being bitter as they were all the time about her. At the very least they might have an ending to all of this mess and be able to move on without falling into anger the moment the blonde was even so much as mentioned by anyone. "Hey...you don't have to if you don't want to...i was just making a suggestion if you were interested", he tapped his foot on the floor, shrugging.

She didn't respond.

"I just wanted to check on you ok? So sorry if i'm bothering you...i just wanted to make sure you were ok...i get it if you want me to leave".

"No.".

He paused, standing in place, worried if he had said something wrong as celeste seemed to cool down some more, though she wasn't looking at him. "Thanks for...checking up on me, i'd thought you were too busy to really care...but...it's nice, i've...i've been kinda alone all day...the others have been out mostly so...i haven't had anyone to talk to.".

"It's not a big deal, we're friends...kinda...right?".

Her brows furrowed, and landon could tell she wanted to say "Yes", but wanted to avoid the cheesyness of having to admit to it. Instead he rubbed his boots into the carpet, sighing, "Well, i'm glad we're friends...even if it's kinda complicated...and um...thanks for the compliment, it really does kinda mean a lot to me". She still didn't look at him, her eyes elsewhere as he took a step back, "Well, if you aren't coming i still want to go, it's important to me, if you want you can wait for me here and we can hang out for a bit after i'm done since i'm waiting for mason-".

"Wait.".

He turned to look at her, the girl getting up and off the couch, "Let's go talk to her...i have some things i actually would like to say to her...", she glared at nothing in particular, fists clenched. Landon suddenly wishing he hadn't said anything at all, as he might of just accidentally set up a fight between two sisters instead of actually making things better.

"What exactly do you want to tell her ? Not assuming anything celeste, it's just-".

She turned to look at him, still stern, and not looking to waste any more time, "Let's go, before someone else gets there before we do".

#star vs the forces of evil #sky and the forces of the multiverse #tomco bby #tomstar bby #starco bby #ostar bby #tom the demon #tom lucitor #marco diaz #marco #my art

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neerasrealm · 4 years ago

Text

Porridge and Panic

Fun fact, this is a complete rewrite of my first ever creepypasta fanfic. This story focuses on Slender and EJ meeting for the first time, and is based on my hc that EJ formerly worked for Zalgo. Warning for some swearing and jokes about murder if you’re not into that.

Word count: 2000

"Just go do this job for me," Zalgo had said. "It's only a small gathering, you can take it." He'd said.

That "small gathering" ended up being a CULT MEETING with TWENTY SEVEN PEOPLE.

Fighting off twenty seven people at once is not an easy task. Even if you're a demon like Eyeless Jack.

Sure he’s strong, but he's not a fighter. He went to college to be a doctor for god's sake! And he's definitely not immune to knives. Being stabbed hurts. Like- a lot. A lot a lot. But that's not important. What is important is getting away from the murder scene. He'd managed to find a first aid kit earlier and patch himself up, thank god. What he really needed now was rest. Of course, he couldn't do that. He'd just killed twenty seven people. He'd managed to limp into the nearby woods and-

"Shit!"

Aaand fall over a tree root. Great job. With a groan he rolled onto his stomach, burying his face, or rather his mask, into the cool, damp grass. He curled his hands into fists, gripping the grass. It felt soft and cold, which was nice, considering his pounding head.

He closed his eyes, or rather his eyelids- he didn't have eyes, not anymore- and proceeded to doze off to sleep in the grass.

When he awoke, he wasn't in the grass anymore. He grunted and rubbed his face against the soft pillow. A pillow- he was in a bed. He relaxed. Zalgo must've found him, or maybe Jason had been sent to grab him. He was fully prepared to fall asleep again when he realized something.

It was quiet. Far, far too quiet. Zalgo's realm always had some kind of noise in the distance, be it wailing, grinding or even screaming, but this room? Completely quiet. Come to think of it- the smell of sulfur wasn't present either.

Just to confirm Jack's suspicions, a bird chirped outside. The only birds found in Zalgo's realm were the mechanical ones Jason made, or leftover KFC.

He was about to open his eyes when he heard the door to the room open. He kept them closed, not wanting the person to know he was awake. Not yet.

He heard them walk closer and place something down on a nearby surface. He could smell something- it took him a few moments to recognize the smell. Porridge. God he'd loved the stuff growing up-

Maybe it was his mom that had put him here. That'd be a twist.

"‘Ow is 'e doin'?"

WELL THAT'S A VOICE HE WASN'T EXPECTING- it had an extraordinarily thick cockney accent, and was deep and gravelly. The voice's owner was surely intimidating to look at. Jack was suddenly glad he'd decided to play dead- or well- unconscious.

"He's still asleep." The second voice was closer to his bed, and much softer in tone. The voice's owner seemed kind, and friendly. These two were a stark contrast, it seemed. "He's either very smart or someone was with him. His wounds were all patched up when you brought him in."

"Ya fink 'e 'as a frien'?" The cockney voice got closer. Oh, the scary one had found him? So clearly they at least didn't plan to hurt him. Maybe.

"Perhaps. We'll return him home, if he has one." A hand ran through his brown hair. The touch was gentle, far more gentle than Jack was used to.

"Alrigh'." He felt someone sit on the end of the bed. "Sally was askin' fer 'im, worried abou' 'im."

"Why am I not surprised?" Jack could hear the smile in the kind one's voice. "She's a good girl…"

"Yeh." The person sitting on the bed, presumably the intimidating one, shifted where they sat. "I 'ope 'e's alrigh' too. 'E's only a kiddo."

"He's fully grown, Jack." Jack! The intimidating one had a name! And- it was the same as his. Heh. What a coincidence.

"Everyone's a basin a' gravy when ye're two 'undred." Jack, the other Jack, replied with a tone of amusement. What- what the fuck does that mean- basin of...gravy? Two hundred? What?

"I hate how well I understand you." The other person replied bluntly.

"Aw no, ye loooove me."

"...If I find out our guest heard you say that you'll be in big trouble." The other was firm now, but there was fondness in their voice.

"Oh will I now~?" The cockney Jack replied before Eyeless Jack heard a light slapping noise. "Ow-!" Cockney Jack laughed lightly and stood up off the bed. "Alrigh', alrigh', I'll stop." He could hear the cheesy grin in the other Jack's voice. "Call me if ya need me, ya 'ear?"

"I will."

Once he heard the door close Jack listened intently for the other person. They didn't seem to be moving. Maybe they-

A hand came down and ran through his hair again. Despite himself, Jack relaxed. He wasn't used to being touched so- gently, but he loved it. He felt safe, strangely. Slowly, he opened his eyes and took in the room. He was indeed on a bed. On the bedside table in front of him was a clock, a glass of...something, he wasn't sure due to his vision being completely black and white, and the person- Jack could only see their legs, but they were wearing a frilly apron.

"Hello?" The person said. Their hand withdrew from his hair. "Are you awake?"

Jack grunted and stretched, trying to wake up his aching body. He rolled himself onto his back and sat up. The person by the bed placed pillows behind him to rest against.

"How do you feel?" The person asked. Jack blinked and finally looked up at him. Then froze. In an instant all the trust he'd built for this person was replaced with utter terror.

He knew them, or rather him, in an instant. White skin, no face, tall- well he was actually far shorter than Jack had expected but maybe that was because he was a shapeshifter and the room wasn't tall enough but still! He knew him.

Slenderman. Zalgo's biggest nemesis. The one Jack had been told to attack on sight, should he ever encounter him. He'd heard stories of Slender. About his 'home', the children he kept prisoner, his lackey Laughing Ja- that was the cockney voice!

Which meant Jack was in Slender's home. With the rest of his proxies. And if Slender, or anyone else for that matter, learned that he worked for Zalgo, he'd be dead. Immediately. Super dead. Deader than a dinosaur.

"Fuck-" was the only word Jack could say. His voice was hoarse and full of the terror he should probably be hiding.

Slender seemed caught off guard for a moment. Suppressing the instinct to scold Jack for that, he cleared his throat. "I mean you no harm," he said. "I- realise my appearance may be unsettling but I assure you I don't have any ill intentions."

Jack gulped. That was at least a little reassuring, knowing Slender didn't intend to hurt him for now. Slender tilted his head.

"Might I ask for your name...?" He asked softly.

Jack panicked for a moment. His name could potentially have it click that he was Zalgo's minion right? He realised Slender was still watching him. "Greg." He blurted out of panic. Ah, his old roommate, the perfect alias.

Fucking hell he's going to die here isn't he?

"Greg, I see," Slender seemed to smile despite his lack of a face. He grabbed a tray Jack hadn't noticed before from the bedside table. The bowl and glass were on the tray, which had legs that fell down when Slender lifted it. The tray was gently placed over Jack's lap. "I'm sure you're probably hungry, so I made you some porridge. Unless you'd rather something else?"

Jack was not about to make any requests. He felt as if any word he spoke would give away his identity. He shook his head. Slender nodded.

"Well you eat up, I'll be back in a minute, alright? Do you need anything?" The faceless cryptid asked. He was nice, almost too nice, and it unsettled Jack even more. He shook his head again and watched Slender leave.

Immediately Jack looked at the window in the room. An escape! He quickly moved the tray and tried to climb out of the bed, only to wince in pain the second he put pressure on his leg. Fuck, of course he'd been stabbed in the calf, of course he had! He limped weakly to the window and-

He was on the second floor, at least. There was only a drop to meet him. And he was definitely in no condition to jump out a window. "This is bad, this is bad, this is bad-" he buried his face in his hands, panicking. Too injured to escape via window, on thin, thin ice with Slender…

And the smell of porridge was too good to dismiss. Resignedly, he limped back to the bed and grabbed the glass and took a couple gulps from it. Good old fashioned water. Good to know. He grabbed the bowl of porridge and ate a spoonful. Then winced.

His tastebuds had long since been altered along with the rest of his body. Anything that wasn't meat tasted way different than it should've. The porridge tasted way blander than it already was, and the small hints of honey were more tangy than sweet.

He still ate the entire thing within two minutes though because he was starving. Then again he was always hungry.

Just as he was drinking down the rest of the water, Slender opened the door again. He'd removed his apron now and was looking...oddly casual. He wore a button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, which was odd considering Jack had been told the man practically lived in a suit.

"Ah, you've finished." Slender seemed pleased. He moved towards the bed and sat on the edge of it. "Can I get you anything else?" He asked, looking at Jack, who shook his head. "Alright," Slender adjusted his tie. "I'd like to ask you a few things, Greg, if that's alright."

Jack hesitated for a moment before answering. "Go ahead."

"How did you get injured?"

Okay, right off the bat he has to answer a question that'll require a teeny lie. "Got into a fight. People don't really uh- like seeing demons around their home y'know-" that was mostly the truth! He did get into a fight, and those people definitely didn't like seeing him!

"That's what you are then, a demon?"

"Y-Yes, I uh- I'm not evil if that's what you're thinking. I don't really like fights and stuff-" I mean- it's true he doesn't like fights, and Jack wouldn't describe himself as malicious. He only killed people when Zalgo told him to or when they wouldn't just quietly succumb to a concussion and allow their kidney to be stolen. He wasn't an evil person.

"I understand," Slender seemed to smile. "You seem like a good person."

Hah. Yeah. Good person. Definitely not the reincarnation of a godlike demon that works for another godlike demon.

"And how old are you?"

"Uh- twenty one, I think. I could be off but- y'know-"

"Ah, I see." Slender seemed almost pleased for some reason. "Do you have a home?" He asked.

"Yeah- kinda I- have a place to go to but I wander a lot." Jack shifted uncomfortably at the question.

"I see." Slender seemed thoughtful for a few moments. "Is there anything you need?" He asked for what must've been the third time. Jack, again, shook his head.

"I think I just need rest." He said. Slender nodded and stood up, grabbing the tray from beside Jack.

"Alright," he said softly. "Call if you need me alright?"

"I will." Jack replied. With that Slender left the room. Jack slumped against the pillows behind him and sighed out. "Fucking hell…"

#creepypasta #writing #eyeless jack #slenderman #slender mansion #laughing jack #creepypasta fanfiction

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dyscrasia-eucrasia · 5 years ago

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Part 25

"So… what now?" Angel asked as Demie shoveled the last few lettuce leaves into his mouth. "You wanna just go home?"

Demie slumped back in his seat, looking out of the windshield at the diner. He turned the camera over and over in his hands. "Which road are we on?" He asked.

"WV-2."

Demie turned and looked out the passenger window. He seemed pretty deep in thought, but like he was conflicted about something.

"Y'know," he said after a little while, "if we turn around and keep on 2, up through Point Pleasant, we could be in Wayne National Forest in about forty minutes."

"Isn't that in Ohio?"

"Yeah." Demie left it at that.

"I thought you wouldn't like Point Pleasant, with the whole Mothman thing," Angel said.

"I'm not saying we stop in Point Pleasant," Demie said tersely. "I'm saying we just drive through it to Wayne. I don't wanna go home right now, and Wayne Forest is like… really pretty and shit."

"Okay, okay," Angel said, putting his hands up. "I gotcha, no need to get heated." Going to a national park with Demie actually sounded pretty idyllic. Angel didn't really get out into the wilderness much - his parents had worked all day every day, including Christmas, so they never had time for vacations. He'd been camping a few times, at the insistence of an ex-boyfriend, and while he had hated the mosquitoes and the lack of running water, there had definitely been something very intimate about sharing a tent with someone under the open sky.

Demie reminded him a bit of that boyfriend - they were both bearded white guys who were really into making their own food and who were lowkey hipsters. But that ex had turned out to be an asshole who thought that 'free love' meant that he could cheat without consequences.

Angel wasn't sure if Demie was like that. He didn't know what Demie's philosophy on love and sex was, and he didn't want to pry. He was, after all, supposed to be a friend, not a lover. But he hoped, on the off chance that anything did happen, that satyrs were monogamous.

As Angel pulled out of the parking lot, Demie rolled down his window and hung his arm off the side of the door. Out of the corner of his eye, Angel could see him lean back against the seat and close his eyes. He inhaled deeply, and then exhaled in a loud whoosh.

"Feeling any better?" Angel asked.

"Yeah, I…" Demie rubbed one of his horns, seemingly trying to piece together his thoughts. "It sounds fuckin' lame but I get these, like, panic attacks sometimes when I leave Billy Brook."

"Doesn't sound lame at all," Angel said. "I sometimes get panic attacks when I go out into the country. I get it, y'know. I'm an outsider out here and it's scary being in a place that you aren't sure is homophobic or racist or whatever."

"No offense, dude, but sucking dick isn't the same as not being human," Demie grumbled.

Angel frowned. He did take offense to that, but he wasn't sure if he had the right to. He supposed Demie was right - he had no idea how it felt to live being mistaken for a literal monster. Still, he didn't like the way Demie had said it.

"So, do you go up to Ohio a lot?" Angel said, switching subjects. He didn't really like hearing Demie talk about homosexuality. He had it in his head that he could eventually change Demie's mind on the subject, but being trapped in a car for an hour didn't feel like the right time to attempt to do so.

"Yeah, sometimes," Demie replied. "Most of my cousins live up in Ohio."

"How many cousins do you have?" Angel asked.

"Mmm…" Demie shifted in his seat, pulling his hand back inside the car so he could silently count off on his fingers.

"Like… eight first cousins?" He said. "And then maybe fifteen second and third cousins. And some more that I don't really know how they fit in, since they're half maenad."

"What's a maenad?"

"Crazy ladies. That's what it literally translates to, that's not an insult. They're human chicks that worship Dionysus, when we have Bacchanalias they go fucking insane. In ancient times they'd get so crazy that if someone who wasn't one of them or a satyr crashed a party, they'd tear them apart with their bare hands."

Angel whistled. "Wow," he said.

"Yeah. It's nuts."

"So, you said you've got cousins who are half of whatever they are--"

"Maenads."

"Right, maenads. You've got cousins who are half maenad, so does that mean satyrs can like… breed with humans?"

"Yeah, I mean, you kinda have to these days, unless you're cool with marrying your third cousin," Demie said.

Angel glanced over at him. "You're kidding," he said.

"Nope. There's only like a hundred of us in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio. I think there are some more in the deep south, but it's not exactly easy to take a road trip and go see them."

"So… wait, you said that the Bacchanalia or whatever is everyone getting drunk and having sex in the woods. Does that mean you guys go have orgies with your cousins?"

"What, like that's any fuckin' weirder than a gay orgy or whatever," Demie said, bristling at the question.

"What do you know about gay orgies?" Angel said, looking over at Demie for a moment.

"Nothing, but I'm sure you're about to tell me," Demie grumbled.

"I have never been to an orgy in my life, gay or otherwise."

"Really?" Demie sounded genuinely surprised. "I would've thought… I dunno…"

"What? You would've thought what?"

"I dunno, you're just like… a really good looking guy. I would've thought you'd be going to, like… a bunch of sex clubs or something. No homo, though."

Angel knew he probably shouldn't be flattered by that, but he kind of was anyways. He wasn't sure if the conversation had answered his question about monogamy, though. Not that he had asked it aloud or anything. It did raise another question as to whether or not Demie had ever committed incest, however. That wasn't something he particularly wanted to think about.

Fortunately, it was Demie's turn to change the subject now.

"Hey, what kind of music do you have?" He asked. "No offense but I don't really like The Cure."

"Some offense taken, but I'll forgive your lack of tastes. Here," he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket and opening up his music app. "Knock yourself out."

Demie took the phone, holding it delicately, like he was afraid he was going to accidentally crush it. "What happened to your screen?" He asked.

"Dropped it walking up the stairs," Angel replied. He didn't want to bring up how Demie's brother had responded to his DM. Even if it had been a positive interaction, he wasn't sure if he should bring up Marius at all. The subject seemed to be a bit of a tricky one for Demie, and he didn't want to make it seem like he was stalking his family. "I need to get it fixed, but for now just be careful touching the screen and it'll be fine."

Demie was quiet for a bit as he scrolled through Angel's music collection. He held the phone awkwardly, holding it in his left hand and using his right index finger to scroll and tap. It was like watching an old man try to use a smartphone.

"You listen to Queen?" Demie said after a minute.

"Of course. Why, do you like them?"

"Fuck yeah, they're amazing."

"Huh. Sorry, I didn't expect that from you. Since Freddy Mercury was gay and all."

"I'm not a homophobe, you know," Demie said, that bristly tone back in his voice. He didn't dwell on that thought for long, though, as he hit play.

Angel had expected him to pull up Bohemian Rhapsody - that was the song everyone defaulted to for Queen - but instead what started playing over the car speakers was The Prophet's Song. It was a good song, in his opinion, but it was one of those album fillers that people never talked about.

They sat in silence through the guitar intro, and when Freddy began singing, Demie did so as well, clearly knowing the lyrics from memory. His voice was much deeper than Freddy's, being a thick, deep baritone, but it provided a counter melody to Freddy's voice that gave Angel shivvers.

There was the blast from the guitar as the time signature changed, and Demie lifted his hands and began to air guitar. It wasn't the kind of air guitar Angel was used to - it wasn't big and flashy, and Demie's fingers moved as if he were actually playing the chords. It was more like he just really, really wished he had a guitar in his hands.

Demie continued singing along, his voice swelling and filling the car. Angel got a bit of that same feeling he'd had watching Bacchus in concert - that massive flood of emotion that washed over his whole body. This wasn't as angry and violent as Bacchus had made him feel, though, instead making him feel powerful and epic, like the main character of some fantasy film. He still felt horny, though.

Angel wasn't usually the kind of guy to sing in the car, but the energy radiating off Demie was infectious. He couldn't help it. He opened his mouth and began singing along as well. His voice was out of key and he stumbled over the words - he hadn't sung his high school and didn't really pay attention to the song when he normally listened to it - but he still did his best to meet the high notes.

Somehow, Angel managed to make it through all eight and a half minutes of the song, trading off on the round parts with Demie (which were made a lot easier by virtue of having another person in the car to sing them). When the song finally ended, Angel let out a manic shout, shaking his head and shoulders, which had tensed up over the course of the song.

Demie jumped. "Sorry," he murmured sheepishly. "Got carried away."

"No, dude, that's fine, oh my God," Angel said. "Don't ever apologize for singing around me, holy shit. I fucking love your voice, man."

"Ah… thanks," Demie muttered, sinking lower in his seat.

"Holy shit, that was epic," Angel said. He was out of breath and had started sweating and he didn't even care. "Dude, bring up Bohemian Rhapsody, I'm sure you'd absolutely kill that song."

"Y-yeah, sure…" Demie said as he fumbled with the phone. They spent the rest of the drive singing along to Queen, though none of the songs really filled the car with the same energy as the first one.

#writing #writers on tumblr #original fiction #gay fiction #lgbt fiction #mlm fiction #original characters #wright art #w:demie and angel

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stevie-writes-the-pain-away · 5 years ago

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Chapter Seven

"Good morning, princess."

I smiled at his text, replying back with tired eyes. "Good morning, princey."

Murdoc had texted just a few minutes after my 6:00am alarm. I was finishing my breakfast when he messaged back and I placed my dishes in the sink. "Plans today?"

"Working from eight to five at the café, you?"

"Damn, I'm heading into work as well. Perhaps I could visit during my lunch break?"

"Haha, I don't see why not."

I began to wash my dishes, including Cassidy's leftover breakfast as well. I put them away one after the other and carried on my usual morning routine. I had a quick shower and fixed my hair, putting on my uniform before brushing my teeth. I got back to Murdoc's text as I headed out the door. "Then I can't wait." It made my morning.

Despite working in London, this café didn't get any busy days. Surprisingly, the busiest days we got were on Saturdays and I didn't even work a lot then, so I never really saw how many costumers typically stopped by. There were usually three workers at a time, leaving me plenty of shifts to get in extra hours if I wanted and wasn't too busy with my other jobs. My manager wondered if I could juggle three jobs at a time but she didn't know how desperate I was for both money and distraction. From many, many things.

I worked as both a cashier and waitress at the café. I even stocked shelves a few times, but there were never many shelves to stock considering how small the place was. It was a simple desk with one register, a display case, and only five tables, not including the front window where we kept the highchairs. That's probably why I loved it so much. I actually got paid well enough to stand and not do much of anything most of the time.

"Hey, (Y/N)," I heard from behind me. I turned to find my coworker setting a box down and turning into the other room, most likely to get another one.

"Hey, Lawerence."

He came back out, stacking boxes of food for me to show off. "How're your other jobs doing?" He was a lanky green-eyed kid with long brown locks and warm, pink skin drowning in countless freckles. He was only twenty and he just started working a few months ago. We talked every now and then but it never went anywhere, I couldn't even call each other friends yet. You could say he was your stereotypical hipster if I'm being honest.

"They're alright, but you know this shift's my favourite for obvious reasons," I said, struggling to converse.

He smiled at me, looking out at the empty tables with understanding. "Well, nobody else was able to come in, so would you mind stocking these while I fetch a few more boxes?"

"No problem," I smiled.

I had many opportunities to make friends around me, but none who I thought would want to deal with me. We could hang out until they found out about my drinking problem and soon enough, I would be alone again; like everyone I knew before I hit rock bottom. But meeting somebody from the clinic who actually understood the struggle of quitting really lifted a weight from my shoulders. When I went into work I felt like it was another job to try and make friends, but I finally knew I didn't have to do anything apart from the actual job I was being paid to do. I just had to keep at it and be respectful, which made me feel a lot better realizing.

I spent the next few hours charging and serving customers, putting things away little by little as Lawerence worked in the back. "(Y/N)! Help me lift something!"

I turned on my heel and walked through the back to give Lawerence a hand when I heard somebody walk through the front door, the same familiar bell notifying our assistance. Lawerence and I hauled the box towards the front and I glanced back, "I'll be right there!"

As I set our items on the ground, I heard a familiar voice address me. "(Y/N)?" I could hear him smiling. I instantly straightened my back and looked across the other side of the counter.

"Murdoc!" I exclaimed with surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"What? Thought I was joking when I said I'd come see ya?"

All I did was smile and lean on my folded arms. "Would you like to order anything?"

"Just a large black coffee," he said. I placed the order and handed him his cup.

"3.50."

"Aww, you're not gonna give it for free?"

"Nah, I'd rather keep my job, but maybe some other time," I smiled.

He chuckled and pulled out change from his pocket, leaving me to count it for him. He left me at my station to get his drink and on his way to his table, he leaned against the counter. "You're free to join me for lunch," he said.

Looking up at him I sighed. "Not sure if that's very professional," I winced.

"Who cares about profession," he rolled his eyes. "Nobody's here, anyway."

I shook my head slowly and gave in, picking a muffin from the glass case beside me and following him to the table at the very back. He pulled out a chair for me and I laughed at his gentlemanly behaviour, sitting down. He took his seat across from me and sipped his coffee. I wondered how one could ever stomach black coffee but figured asking would be pointless. "How did you know where I worked?"

"Told me the last night," he answered.

"Right," I corrected myself. The night before was a blast. Murdoc's vision of a hangover cure was multiple glasses of water, juice and caffeine with sunglasses and a movie marathon. I couldn't pay attention to any of the classics that played, they were simply playing in the background as Murdoc and I conversed, telling each other about ourselves. I learned a lot about him; his religion, what interests him, random facts. He told a lot of stories, too, and I didn't remember the last time I had laughed so hard with somebody. Whenever it was my turn to speak, I felt bad. I didn't have anything to say but he still seemed almost hypnotized by anything I said. I didn't understand his patience, but I was grateful. "What've you done today?"

"Helped a few people think of lyrics and what-not." I watched him shift his cup, focused on the coffee stirring around inside.

"Is that an everyday thing? Are you a producer?"

"Oh, no, I'm nobody important," he said. "All I do is organize files, as I said before."

"Oh, come on, organizing files is just as important as writing the lyrics."

Murdoc chuckled, taking another sip of his coffee. "I guess it can be," he gave in. "What about you? How long have you worked here?"

"Not long, actually. I've had quite a few jobs before the ones I have now. I've only worked here for about a year."

Murdoc nodded and it became quiet between us. "Ever thought of getting out of here?" he asked.

"A lot . . . a lot, a lot, a lot . . . Never had the money to, though." I didn't consider where the question came from, so out of the blue like that. All I could think of was how strong of an answer I had. Nearly every second - morning, noon, night - I would contemplate the day I'd finally leave London, England and start over somewhere else; somewhere fresh and new and away from all the poor memories I made in that Hell hole. "What about you?"

"Plenty . . . I've actually been quite a few places," Murdoc answered.

"Really?" I replied with interest. "Where?"

"All over Europe, America . . . Even visited Canada and Asia a few times . . . It was a job thing."

"I never knew you had a travelling job," I said. I began to daydream, wondering what it was like for him to get around so much. It must've been amazing checking out different landscapes and cultures, meeting new people everywhere you went.

"Yep, I've even spent months overseas . . . far away from here. Though travelling gets a little bothersome nowadays." I snapped out of my daze, confused at how bored he could get hopping from one country to another that much. "I-I mean, I'm grateful, of course, but there's the packing and airports and bumpy roads and difficult weather . . ." he rambled.

"Damn . . ." I sighed. "I don't think I could ever not be excited to leave and voyage all over the world."

"Maybe I'll bring you with me eventually and you can see for yourself how stressful touring can be," Murdoc chuckled.

I laughed back, shaking my head. "I've never been on a plane before . . . and I don't remember the last time I went on a boat," I said, biting my lip with a sudden nervous whole in my stomach.

"It may seem scary at first, but it's actually pretty fun. It's pretty luxurious," he smirked. "Y'know, people bring you appetizers and beverages, you can listen to music, watch a movie . . . And if you're brave, you can look out the window and look at the breathtaking view," he expressed.

I smiled at his appreciation of nature, trying to picture all the recollections he was remembering. I couldn't help but feel a strong urge to be apart of his journey. "How long have you been home?"

Murdoc took a second to think about it, "A few years. Um . . . The band I mainly worked with took a little hiatus so I haven't been working a lot lately. They've gotten around to seeing each other, however, so I'm beginning to help them more and more with songs . . . It'll be a bummer when I leave again, though."

"What, you're not ready to take a lavish cruise around the world again?"

Murdoc chuckled to me, "It's not that . . . Touring isn't even all it's cracked up to be." His smirked faded, "I'm just not ready to . . . I don't know . . . Leave what's comfortable, I suppose."

My smile dropped the slightest, but I still tried to remain bright. "What'll you be missing when you're gone?"

"As much as I hate to admit it . . . you know me," he added, ". . . but therapy . . . It's more helpful and not as stupid of an idea as I always imagined . . . It's actually pretty eye-opening to listen to others who go through what you go through, y'know?" I nodded, remembering back to last night. Murdoc had expressed a lot about himself, including his self-aware stubbornness, ignorance and tendencies to lack cooperation; and therapy was no exception. "I'd also miss you . . ."

"M-me?" I questioned with surprise. Murdoc looked up with a rather nervous expression but quickly smirked at my response. "I-I mean . . ."

He laughed, holding up his mug, "I honestly don't think I've met somebody who understands me more . . . It's nice having friends that listen to you, of course, but bonding with somebody who really gets it hits differently." I sat in near awe, trying to blink the surreal feeling out of my head. "Thanks for that," he concluded. This was very hard for me to process - somebody like Murdoc acting so out of character he felt like a totally new person. "I may be a reserved man, but I know how to show gratitude and thanks," he said, catching onto my bewilderedness. "Though, I barely tell anybody that cheesy bullshit about therapy and friendship, let alone act so soft, so don't think this corny stuff is staying." That would explain a lot, I told myself.

We were startled by a sudden bell ringing, started both me and Murdoc. Conditioned stimulus rose my head to the door, causing me to shoot up from my spot in alarm. "I-I'm sorry, I've gotta . . ." I said, pointing to my next costumer. Murdoc excused me with a shrug and I quickly made my way over to the cash register, apologizing for my absence and serving the consumer before they left. I looked back at Murdoc who had risen from his seat and made his way over to me.

"I should probably head out," he said, leaning towards the exit. "I'll see you soon though, I hope," he smiled.

"Yeah, sure," I smiled back.

He gave me a small wave and I couldn't help but laugh. "Farewell," he said, leaving through the door.

I walked home after my shift completely exhausted and a disgusting sweaty mess. I entered my apartment, proceeding to make myself supper in time for Cassidy to be home as well.

"I saw a recipe for chicken with a red wine sauce," she texted me.

I gave in, "Sure thing :)." I'd just have chicken without the sauce, it's as simple as that. Although pulling out wine from under the sink was tempting, to say the least, I knew it wasn't worth it. I ignored my shaking bones and swallowed my drool, preparing our dinner.

Ever since I met Cassidy I always pondered if she knew about my addiction. Even if there was never any closure, there were definitely signs and hints towards my unhealthy relationship with drinking, and I knew she wasn't dumb enough to ignore red flags, right?

The front door abruptly opened, disturbing my peace as I spun around with panic. "Hey, (N/N)," Cassidy smiled from the entrance.

I calmed myself down, wondering how deep in thought I was to not hear the door unlock in the first place. "Hey," I responded with a smile.

I looked back down at the pan in front of me, Cassidy catching a whiff of her meal. Both of our stomachs growled, mine craving more than just the chicken. "Smells good," she complimented. I know, I thought.

"Well, it's done," I concluded, turning off the stove and grabbing two plates from the cabinets.

Cassidy walked over and took her portions, leaving me with the rest. As I put my plate together she addressed me, "You're not gonna have any of the sauce?"

I looked up at her, "Nah . . . Not that hungry."

"If you say so," Cassidy shrugged. She sat at the dining table, but I felt my heart sink in my chest, as well as lightheadedness from the scent of my demons in the air. I left her alone in the kitchen and quickly escorted myself to my bedroom where I closed the door and rubbed my eyes.

Rehabilitation was never easy. It looks so effortless when you're standing on the outside, but I didn't know what I was in for when I started taking therapy. If I wanted to, I could've gone into the kitchen then and there and drank until I choked on my vomit before blacking out. It was always easier to give up, but I didn't get as far as I did by falling back into my routine again, did I?

I distracted myself with dinner and my laundry, cleaning up after myself for the first time in another long week. However, when you're picking up the pieces of your distressing life, it's hard to find a reason not to ignore it and let it destroy you more and more. At that point, I felt like anything and everything I did, no matter where I turned, I would always find a reason to drink rather than find a reason to live anymore. Nothing felt worth staying for that night . . .

Except for Murdoc.

#gorillaz #2-d #Stuart Pot #murdoc niccals #Russel Hobbs #noodle #Damon Albarn #Jamie Hewlett #x reader #murdoc x reader #fanfiction #romance

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brunette-kween · 5 years ago

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Fire Escape

word count: 1976

tw: none?? i’m pretty sure

Mush felt like he couldn't breathe as he jerked awake, his eyes snapping open. His chest was tight, his hands were shaking, he felt like he couldn't breathe, and a thin layer of sweat coated his whole body. Carefully as to not wake anybody up, Mush sat up, using his sleeve to wipe his brow before taking a minute to scan the room. Nobody else was awake, it looked—and sounded—like with the rhythmic rise and fall of shoulders and erratic snoring patterns rumbling throughout the whole room. How anybody could even stay asleep in that room would forever be a mystery to Mush.

Carefully as to not wake anybody, Mush sat up, throwing the remainder of the blanket that was covering him off before climbing down from his top bunk. The floor beneath his bare feet was cold, nearly making the boy yell at the sudden change yet he kept quiet, cringing at the creak that sounded. For a second, he froze, shoulders tense before continuing on towards the window, relieved when only Albert rolled over, a snore right after confirming that he was still out cold. Since the summer was always so hot, especially with so many bodies in one room, they usually kept the windows open so hopefully some breeze would keep them cool. It never worked unless, you know, there was an actual breeze. Just to be sure, Mush threw one last glance over his shoulder before slipping out the window to the fire escape.

The air outside was warm, not much different than inside, but there was definitely a noticeable breeze out there, pulling a sigh of content from Mush at the feeling as he situated himself on the ladder, his elbows rested on his knees while he looked up at the sky. The stars that shown in the clear, moonlit sky were shining down on the city, shining down on him. It was peaceful, watching them twinkle every few seconds above the tall buildings that he could see. No wonder Jack spends all his time up in his "penthouse"; it was quiet at night. It was quiet, nice, calming, and pretty out there.

"Mushy?"

Mush snapped his head to the window, his eyes meeting another, the other eye being covered with an eyepatch. The one and only Kid Blink had woken up, probably from all the climbing around Mush had to do to get to the door.

"What're you doin' out here?" Blink asked, his voice scratchy from sleep. Mush opened his mouth to answer, yet stopped when Blink started climbing through the window, stumbling a little while getting his other leg out. The brunette immediately moved to grab him, but Blink caught himself, his hands grabbing onto the metal bars lining the fire escape before he steadied himself.

It wasn't until Kid Blink started moving towards him did Mush bring himself to open his mouth, a curious frown now on his face. "What-What are you doing?" he asked, scooting over when Blink gestured to him, his gaze landing on the window to make sure nobody woke up from the ruckus Kid Blink just caused before turning back to him.

"Sitting. What's it look like?" Blink asked before settling down beside the brunette on the narrow metal step, letting his legs stretch out across the others under him, leaning back with his elbows holding him up.

"There's three other steps you could'a sat on," Mush pointed out, pointing to where his pal's legs were currently occupying. "Not to mention all of the ones behind us."

The commentary didn't do much for Kid Blink because he didn't budge, simply looking over at Mush. "Stop griping," he dismissed, pulling himself back into a proper sitting position, his feet planted on the step before the one they were sat on. It nearly brought his knees completely to his chest, but whatever. "So, how come you's is up so late?"

Mush heaved a sigh, his shoulders slumping as his gaze returned back to the sky. "Just... Y'know, bad dream," he answered simply, his hands connecting.

That caught Blink's attention and he rose a brow at the brunette beside him. It wasn't rare for Mush to have bad dreams, but it was close, maybe just a level above rare, whatever that would be. "'Bout what?"

Mush shrugged, his gaze falling for a second before going back up. "Same thing as always," he murmured, pulling his hands apart to rub at his eye.

This wouldn't be the first time that Kid Blink and Mush had found one of the other on the fire escape after a bad dream, usually a really bad one. The first time they were out there was a couple years ago, and it was Kid Blink instead of Mush that was out there first. Blink didn't even remember what he had dreamt, but it was the thought of it was terrifying for him. Mush even remembered seeing him shake that night when he mentioned it.

"Your pa?" Kid Blink guessed.

Mush shook his head. "No, the other same thing."

The Refuge. Of course. It was a common nightmare for almost all of the boys, mostly the ones who had been, but some of the younger ones would wake up from their mind making up what it must've been like there. Kid Blink had only been thrown in there once, and when he got out, he made damn sure he didn't go back.

"Mushy, you know they locked that place up," he reminded gently. For a second, he contemplated on grabbing his hand yet thought otherwise when he remembered the window was wide open and all of the boys were inside. That'd be one hell of a risky move and Blink wasn't about to be caught while trying to comfort Mush, so he put his hand down, playing it off as a hopefully subconscious movement. "Snyder even got locked up last year, remember? Crutchie came hime then."

Mush chuckled and nodded, remembering the bright beaming faces of all of his friends when Jack had announced that they had succeeded in what they had all been hellbent on finishing. They won the strike, Crutchie came home, and Snyder got locked up. They got more than they asked for, really, but that was perfectly fine.

"I-I know, it just..." Mush paused, sharply inhaling before his head fell again. There was silence for a while and neither boy moved, accepting the remaining noise of the city instead of their own. There was barking down the street and some laughter down the other way, making Mush relax just a bit, some tension dispersing. "It was scary in there, Blink." That was all that was said.

Blink sighed and nodded, restraining himself from instinctively reaching out and holding Mush, scooting over a half inch instead, their shoulders an inch or two from touching. If anybody came out and saw them, the two could simply blame it on the narrow step they were seated on and pray that whoever acknowledged them wouldn't acknowledge the fact that there were plenty more steps that either could've chosen to give each other more room. "I know, Mush," he murmured. "I know, but all that's gone now, yeah? It's all over. Snyder left with it, he ain't gonna get you. I won't let 'im."

That caused Mush to finally look over at the blonde again. His brown eyes were glazed over and they were starting to become red, along with the tip of his nose as he sniffled before finally moving again, bringing his hand up to wipe at his eyes. "What if they let him out?" he asked.

Kid Blink gave his companion a pointed look. "We won't be kids no more when that happens, Mush," he assured, the urge to hold his hand for comfort even harder to fight against. "If that even happens." Blink hoped to God above that it didn't ever happen.

That seemed to be all that Mush needed because he nodded, sniffling again before he gave Kid Blink a little smile. "I guess you're right," he sighed, nudging the blonde's shoulder with his. "I ain't got nothing to worry about with you around, huh?"

That brought a smile there was no way he could even try and hide, along with a blush on his cheeks. "Nothing," he confirmed.

With the smile on his face and the way his hair was all tousled from sleep, Mush couldn't help but smile even bigger at the sight of him. His chest was tight again but, this time, it was a good thing. His heartbeat sped up, he felt like he couldn't breathe, and it was all Blink's fault. The way the moon illuminated the blonde's face, how it made his green eyes shine a bluish color and blonde hair nearly white. He just looked so... so beautiful.

"Is that a dog?" Kid Blink jumped up, not even trying to keep quiet as he rushed off of the steps and to the black, metal, rusting, dirty rail that traced the platform. "Look, Mushy, it's a dog!"

Mush shushed him while standing up, peeking inside to make sure nobody woke up before heading over to join Blink's side, leaning his arms on the rail. "Yes, Louis, I see the dog," he chuckled, staring at the animal as it followed a couple who were just trying to go home, shooing at the dog to get it to leave them be. "You think Jack would ever let us get one?"

The question made Blink's eyebrows raise in surprise and he pulled his attention from the fuzzy beast over to Mush. "A dog? Of course not," he answered. "Why?"

"Because I'm this close,"—Mush lifted his hand and used his thumb and index to demonstrate his words, barely any space left between the digits—"to going down there and bringing that animal inside."

"Well, if you did do that, then you'd be on your own and I'd sit back and watch Jack raise hell on you, Mikey," Blink told him, turning his gaze back on the dog, the corners of his mouth tugging into a small smile when Mush looked over at him, eyes narrowed.

"Did you just—?"

"Yes I did."

Mush rolled his eyes and shook his head, though a smile of his own came to his face and he let out a little laugh, his cheeks turning a soft pink at the name. "Are you happy, now?" he asked.

Kid Blink nodded once, a look of satisfaction gracing his features as he answered with a confident air around him. "Very much so, yes."

And with that, the boys stayed out there for a little while longer, enjoying the night's silence it had to offer them, along with the lack of newsboys to interrupt it all (except for a snore here and there). The occasional breeze that would come and go every few minutes, making both Mush and Kid Blink lower their voices to make sure the wind didn't carry their words inside and risk anybody hearing them.

It was just them in that little period of time and they were okay with that.

"You think we should head inside, now?" Blink asked as they watched the sky turn from black, to blue, to pink, then finally, to a soft orange and yellow as the sun started coming up.

Mush sighed dramatically yet pulled himself up from where he sat on the floor of the fire escape, Blink right beside him. "Yeah," he nodded. "Besides, Jackie'll be coming down soon enough."

They climbed back through the window, trying to be as quiet as possible, especially in the early morning before climbing back under the covers of their bunks with quick and quiet goodnights just in time for Jack to come into the room several minutes later with a wake up call.

#newsies #newsies 1992 #newsies blush #blush #mush meyers #kid blink #mush #my writing

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amora-recs · 6 years ago

Text

god save our queen┊bae joohyun┊pt. 2

des: deep inside the Black Forest lies a secret. I fell for this secret. I died for this secret. (warning: lots of teenage angst)

word count: 4.0k

parts: i. iii.

An uneasy feeling took over all of my body in a matter of seconds, the trembling of my lips all too obvious to the girl in front of me. My fists clenched the mud underneath me, supporting myself on my knees. Ever since I knew how to walk, I've been told about how scary people can be, so I knew not to talk with any stranger that comes my way. So I didn't talk to her. I just looked at her for a very long and awkward amount of time. God, she was glowing with glee! Though her last words lingered in the very corner of my mind, creeping me out little by little. I was contradicting myself over and over again until my back felt cold... And wet. I turned around only to find myself face to face with a green rock. I couldn't help but mock myself as I became aware of just how scared I actually was. I winced as I saw the sadness clouding her features. Did I offend her? Now I was more terrified than ever. "I didn't mean to scare you, y'know..." she mumbled as her warm brown eyes fixated on me. Her pupils were huge, full of stardust probably. "It was only a joke –"

"A bad one." I was quick to reply, the corners of those same starry eyes all crinkled in a grin. Even I, a still hyperactive enough kid, felt uncomfortable with the pace her mood tended to change.

"So you can talk,"

"Of course I can," I whispered all of a sudden. "But I don't think I'm supposed to talk with you." I continued as if papa could hear me from miles away. For a moment, she looked puzzled, grasping and processing everything I just said. "How old are you?"

"How old are you?"

"Definitely older than you,"

I couldn't help but scoff at her reply. "It sure doesn't seem like it." was soon followed.

As her sugary chuckle echoed around the rocks, gravel fell on my thigh, just a few inches away from my face. Her laughing stopped and her face went blank. Maybe the new paleness gave her such a stare. A muscle on her jaw twitched as she got up, holding a hand out, supposedly for me to hold onto. Although a little hesitant, I grabbed it, walking away from the rocks while dusting myself off. I had enough dirt and grass on already. Even though her mood swings were indeed odd, the sudden new look worried my little heart all too much. I wanted to ask her what's wrong, I really did, but the tight, sweaty and overall stressful hold of her hand made me chew on my lower lip instead, watching silently as her breathing became hectic. In a few minutes, after several deep breaths, whatever bothered her soon was a distant memory as her cheeks flushed, letting go of my hand. It felt a little too cold all of a sudden. "Sorry about that..." she cleared her throat. "I think it's time for you to go home." it was my turn to blush.

"Where is home exactly...?" it seemed like I waited for an eternity to hear her laugh again. "I'll show you the way – If you can trust me that is."

"Tell me your name first."

"Irene." a pretty name for a pretty girl.

I had no choice but to follow Irene around the forest. After all, I didn't plan my grand adventure all too well. Nonetheless, I didn't regret it. I don't know if it was because of her, or because the sun was setting, but everything seemed so much... More. I don't know if it was because of the bits of star carried in her veins, or because of the lunar mist surrounding us, but everything seemed so much more magical. For many nights I looked outside the round window of my room wondering what was out there. Now that I finally saw it, I loved it. I laughed, danced, got lost a few times, but I still loved it. I hope Irene loved it too. The first summer I spend with her was really precious. For one night, I forgot the tragedy also known as my life. I forgot about my dad, my mother, everything, "Do you think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are?" for a moment, I died. Was she talking to me – no she already did. Was she complimenting me? As if she could read my mind, Irene laughed, pointing earthwards, at the bunny in front of her. Even though she didn't compliment me, I cherished those moments, deep in my heart, wondering if I could stay by her side in the soon to come winter.

"I think this is it," Irene spoke, touching my shoulder gently, pausing my daydreaming just like that. I took one, two steps in front of her, confirming myself that this is it. I was home. I hated it. I hated coming back from my dreamland. I hated coming back to see Patricia's face, keeping my dad preoccupied, and all to herself. I sighed, studying the not so little cabin with distaste. Looks like today is finally over.

"Hey, Irene –" there was no Irene. When did she leave? How come I didn't hear her? I was too tired to think. Drowsiness invaded my mind and body, making me drag myself inside, ready for a well-deserved bath.

Lethargic. That's a new word. I wasn't sure why or what caused it, but I became lethargic. Maybe the daily forest walks caused it. Maybe my never-ending fantasizing caused it, waiting again for a next time. The next time I'd meet Irene. The next time I'd look around and smile. The next time I'd awe and flush. The next time I'd encounter magic and sparkles! Those God damned sparkles. I missed them. I missed them so much. I waited all over again for that next time... But just like before, it never came. I became tired of waiting. I hated waiting.

In the end, I waited so much I had to leave. But I didn't want to leave! I wanted to stay. Although I hated it, I wanted to wait. I didn't want to leave and forget all those things. I made sure not to. As autumn came by, I never forgot. As winter came by, I never forgot. Even in spring, I still remembered that day. I remembered it so well I came back every summer, searching for that moment, searching for Irene. I searched for her four summers. And with the end of every summer, came a new feeling. Sadness. Disappointment. Anxiety. Depression. It all hit me like a ton of bricks.

I was sixteen when saw her again, back in the Black Forest, right beside the small waterfall at the end of the glade. It was around mid July. It was pretty hot outside. Yet she was as beautiful as I remembered her to be. A real-life fairy tale princess. I took everything in: the visuals, the sounds, the smells. Nothing changed. It was as if the forest itself waited for Irene. I wouldn��t be surprised if that were the case. After all, I did the same thing. Just like last time, I unintentionally stepped on a twig, drawing her attention with ease. I held my breath. Will she recognise me? I’ve grown a little bit since I was twelve after all. While fidgeting timidly with my fingers, I felt the need to look down. She was watching me so attentively I almost fainted. Almost, “Oh, it’s you!” she finally said, placing beside her what looked like a flower crown. This time, she wasn’t wearing a cloak, her white dress in full display as she tried her best to not trip over herself. Her hair was also different. Now it was neatly braided on the side, showing more of her rosy cheeks and radiant smile. My face already hurt from all the grinning, but it was worth it as long as she smiled along.

“Hi there,” I managed to mumble out, waving weakly. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” I sounded so lousy in front of her, only one thought went through my mind. ‘Heck, heck, heck, heck, heck’. I blinked and she was in front of me, far enough to not feel uncomfortable, but close enough to sense the daisy perfume lingering in between us.

“It sure has been – ugh…”

“Heck.”

My hand went over my mouth, feeling my ears burning hotter as soon as I heard Irene’s laugh. 'Is it going to become a tradition to embarrass myself in front of her?' Not that I minded. "That's quite the unique name you have," she winked, making my heart beat just a tad faster. Everything from the atmosphere to the lack of sounds felt nice. It felt pretty. I missed pretty.

"I know, right? Most people prefer to call me ___, unfortunately."

"Heck suits you so much better though..." Irene insisted with her arms crossed, a pout taking over her features. Even her pout was lovely. Never in my life, I have ever seen someone so beautiful. I felt so overwhelmed, yet so happy. It was an odd sensation I couldn’t get tired of. For just a few moments, things were silent. That I didn’t like. I felt pressured by her presence. Like I needed to say something all the time. “Flower crowns, huh?” I asked, trying to change the subject. “Is that why you hang out around here?”

Her face dropped. It was obvious I touched a nerve, “…Yeah, sure.” she replied as she walked away from me, back to the flower crown, proceeding to sit down. All I did was follow. “What about you? What are you doing here?”

“Recreation! I really like,” I looked down. “Daisies!”

“Judging from our previous encounter, I can clearly tell that.” oh God, that last time. Her smirk didn’t help my situation as I felt my ears burning. After a nervous laugh and clearing my throat, everything was silent again. She wasn’t much of a talker, huh? I wouldn’t call her boring – I knew the personality was there – maybe I was the one boring. Wouldn’t surprise me, I would be annoyed too if a kid suddenly decided to get all friendly with me. Unfortunately for her, I wasn’t going to give up. “Where are you from?” her shoulders seemed oddly relaxed. Was she not bothered by that question.

“South Korea,” she responded oddly fast.

“That’s cool! So, are you here on a holiday or –”

“More like a school trip. With less school and more friends.” soon our conversation became an interrogation. I would ask the questions, she would answer. I couldn’t tell whether or not she was lying, her empty expression failed to give anything away. I soon found out she was nineteen years old, herbalism major and that she had two cats: Buttercup and Poppy. It was around late afternoon when I lost count of the questions. I knew so many things about her, some random some more important, yet all she did was play with those flowers. I wasn’t too sure she was enjoying herself. And it broke my heart. No one could keep their cool for that long. Irene was no exception as her eyes narrowed and knuckles whitened at her firm grasp of the delicate flowers.

“Ok, one last question,” I sighed, twirling a daisy in between my fingers. I felt bad for those little guys. “You said you’re on a trip with some friends, right?”

“Yes.” she exhaled, her nostrils flaring.

“Why would they leave you here, then?” I studied her as her brows knitted. “They don’t sound all that nice if I’m being honest. Isn’t it lonely staying around here –” I stopped myself. Way to go me! Insulting your crush's friends right in front of her! Too preoccupied with my mental breakdown, I failed to notice Irene talking.

“… Dead.” that’s the only word I was able to hear through her whispering, though I didn’t fail to notice the crack in her sudden petite voice. She seemed to pick that up, so with glossy eyes and scarlet cheeks, she repeated herself. “I am dead. They left me here because I am dead.”

I laughed. That was it. All I did was laugh. I knew – I was one hundred percent sure – there was no way she was serious. As soon as I looked at her, I couldn’t help but bite my tongue. She was crying. Her pretty brown eyes were flooded with tears, and she was uncontrollably sniffling. My chest hurt all of a sudden. “H-hey… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you,” I was devastated. I wanted to slap myself. I felt like I had to. Why was she crying? Did I say something wrong? Did I insult her? I panicked. Without thinking, I put my arms around her shoulders, hugging her tightly. I could feel warm tears staining my clothes, but I didn’t care. In return, I stained her shoulder as well. We stayed like that for an eternity. Just hugging each other, crying. I didn’t even feel her hugging me anymore, it became part of me. “Please forgive me,” I mouthed in a hoarse voice. “Whatever I said that upset you, please forgive me…” with red eyes, I looked up. The sun was setting, orange puffy clouds taking over the sky. Irene wasn’t saying anything. It worried me beyond relief. Only after a few more sobs, she ended our hug.

“It’s not your fault.” she laughed at herself, wiping a few tears away from her face gently. “I don’t know what got into me all of a sudden. I should be the one apologizing.” I must have done something oddly horrible in my previous life to deserve seeing this.

“Don’t say that. I shouldn’t have laughed at you.” a sudden thought crossed my mind. Was she serious about the whole dead thing? Was she a –

“I would have laughed too if someone came up and told me they’re a ghost.”

“If you really are a ghost,” I stood up, still sceptical. Irene didn’t sound like such a nice person all of a sudden. “How come I can touch you? And do I need some sort of board game to talk with you now?”

“Look, horror movies and whatever ghost documentaries are out there on the internet aren’t exactly right,” she groaned, standing up as well. I just saw how dirty her dress became. “Just because I’m dead that doesn’t mean I don’t have a body… I think.”

“You think?”

“I died four years ago! Not even ghosts understand how these things work! All I know is waking up here, in this dress…” I didn’t know whether or not I should take her seriously. I thought this was all a joke. I thought my feelings for her were a joke.

“How did you die?” shortly after my question, Irene disappeared. As in she wasn’t there anymore.

What was there, though, was a sudden cold chill. It went all the way down my spine. I felt sickening. I felt scared. My heart was thumping and my gut was telling me to run. So that’s what I did. I ran and I couldn’t stop. Everything around me was a green blur as I ran so much my feet hurt. It didn’t matter which direction I went, I just ran. If it weren’t for the rock I tripped over, I would have much longer. I could feel my muscles pulsating, exhausted and soon to be sore. Once again, I was laying on the ground. I didn’t want to get up, I was too tired. I was so tired I could have fallen asleep right there. A sudden neigh was what made me rose up panting. I looked up only to see a… Horse? It was more like a draft. He, apparently, wasn’t very big, one or two inches shorter than me, with a chestnut coat and flaxen mane. Nonetheless, his stare made me feel uncomfortable. What was he doing here? I didn’t have enough time to continue my never-ending monologue as he soon reared, standing up on his hind legs. I felt my left shoulder pop as I tried to avoid getting squashed. The sound his hooves made as they hit the ground made my stomach turn. That could have been me. The sensation I felt earlier in the glade returned. They say most animals are more scared of you than you are of them. But this one – He sure wasn’t scared of me or anything surrounding the meadow as he went for it one more time. I was petrified, eyes closed, curled up in a ball, waiting for him to crush me. All of a sudden, the neighing stopped. I stood up in a sitting position, opening one of my eyes. He was still there, that’s for sure, but to his left, petting his tame softly was Irene, studying and observing me with a hollow stare. I could finally breathe.

“Thank you,” I said absentmindedly, feeling my eyes tearing up for the second time that day. A frown took over my features as I looked at Irene, searching for any sort of reaction. She smiled as I cried.

I couldn’t stand it. This house was so dull. I was unable to stop my mind from lingering, thinking, even speculating, about my meeting with Irene and her little secret. I was unable to stop my heart from throbbing. I almost died. I was saved by a ghost of all people. What a sappy story I would never tell anyone. Who would have thought those damned YouTubers were right? Were there any other ghosts around? If so, where were they? Why was I able to see Irene only? There were so many questions that needed answers. It all felt too unbelievable, too unreal. Could this possibly happen to someone so miserable like me? What kind of messed up story is this? As I held tighter onto the flower crown Irene made me, I looked outside. I was back at square one. I was back at looking through the window, musing. I was still musing on my way downstairs, ignoring the side eye Patricia gave me. It became part of my daily routine. Before I knew, I was already seated, laughing along whatever bad joke my dad made. For once, it felt good to be so mundane. Unfortunately, my moment of bliss wasn’t long-lived, as I sensed a retort was about to come from the other side of the table. “So where have you been all day?” Patricia asked, twirling around her glass. I didn’t like her tone. Most of the time, she wasn’t too concerned about my being. I would be surprised if she even knew my name. So why was she so interested in me all of a sudden?

“Where else could I have possibly been? I was outside.” I squinted at her. “I went for a walk, exploring.”

“Really now?” her smile wasn’t a good sign. She brushed few of her blonde bangs away from her eyes. “Looks like your exploring went pretty well,” she looked at the bruise on my exposed shoulder while taking a sip of wine, making me immediately pull the collar of my loose t-shirt up. How could I possibly forget about that?! I wasn’t going to let Patricia of all people have the last word.

“If you’re insinuating what I think you are – Shocking. I am truly stunned by the display of idiocy. If you know what that word even means.” and that was the beginning of what one would call an utter disaster.

So, there I was, passive-aggressively washing the dishes, muttering every curse word I could think off. Poor dishes, they didn’t deserve that kind of abuse. “She loves you, y’know?” my father’s sudden entrance scared me, making me drop a glass in the sink. I didn’t say anything, I just waited for him to continue defending her. Just like he always did. “In her own peculiar way, she loves you.” I turned around, an exasperated sigh leaving my lips.

“It’s been four years, dad,” I grumbled, sitting down beside him at the dinner table, holding his arm gently. “Four years and all she has done was yell and make assumptions about me.” I could feel my voice cracking. I had enough of her insanity and obnoxious personality. The way she teased – even tried to make fun of me in front of him was the last drop. It may have come out of nowhere, but after what I went through that day. “I am tired…” I was able to tell my dad was mad. The way a vein popped out in his neck, the way he clenched his fists. It was too obvious. It was obvious he loved her more than me.

“Sweetie –”

“Don’t ‘sweetie’ me, dad. That’s all you’ve been doing these past years!” I stood up, feeling my cheeks get wet. I wasn’t going to cry in front of him. “I know you love her, I really do, but just because you love her that doesn’t mean I do too.”

I didn’t stand around too much after that. I grabbed a hoodie and went outside. Just because I was depressed that didn’t necessarily mean I also wanted hypothermia. It was pretty chilly outside after all. Soon after, I was sitting on the bench of our little wooden gazebo, just outside the forest, crying my eyes out for what seemed like hours for the third time that day. I knew, as soon as I touched my under eyes, I looked like a mess. Ignoring the fact that I almost died, I just had to go out of my way and ruin the whole day. I felt disgustingly miserable. The whole point of this trip was to stop feeling this way, yet there I was, bawling my eyes out.

“God, you are such a cry baby.” a flush crept up my face as I became aware of Irene’s presence. “You’re way too loud. Just for how long exactly do you plan on crying?” she whined, blowing away the few strands that landed on her face.

I winced. “Sorry my suffering is bothering you so much…” I whispered as I continued to sniffle. Irene was the last person I wanted to get mad. Who knew what kind of other freaky powers she had?

“You are either way too naive either trolling me,” I could already see her adorable smile, even without lifting my head. “And guessing from the way your face lit up, I can assume it’s the latter.” she continued, pinching one of my cheeks. My smile soon faded as I grabbed her hand and placed it in her lap as soon as she sat beside me. I took my time while observing her. Her white dress was still dirty with grass, mud and flower petals. Instead of ruining the dress, it added to it. It was as if the dress was made for that exact reason, while her hair wasn’t any better as it was a complete mess. A beautiful mess. Irene’s blush took both of us by surprise. Her coffee-coloured eyes seemed to shine brighter than ever as the fairy lights surrounding us turned on, illuminating the dewy honeysuckles and jasmine attached to them. Everything about that moment was too ethereal in my mind. From the sparkly little stars shining up in the sky to that damned gazebo, it all felt perfect. It was so serene, so beautiful. It was the moment I waited so long for. In which I could forget about all of my worries. In which I felt happy.

“Do you ever just…” I sighed as a hand went through my hair. “Do you ever just cry because life sucks and everything is falling apart, but you know things are going to be fine eventually, but right now it’s horrible and you don’t want to –”

“Slow down.” her voice was soft. When I said soft, I meant soft. It rang in my ears so flawlessly I stopped talking immediately just so I could enjoy it more. It was so silent I could hear my heartbeat. It was slow and calm. Just like our moment. “What happened?” she asked and I answered. I told her everything. From my parents’ divorce to my recent fight with Patricia. All she did was listen.

#red velvet #bae joohyun #irene #kpopworksnet #thekpopnetwork #female reader #ghost #forest

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mysticdragon3art · 6 years ago

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butterfly & dragonfly 6

Ryuji-fairy helps Akira-fairy move into his nest. Inspired by Faebruary. Daily writing practice for 4/15/2019.

------

Akira set the apricot down in his new nest, an empty tree hollow, very different from his old home in the fairy village.

"First thing we gotta do," Ryuji surveyed the tree's opening, "is get a big piece of bark."

"For the door?"

"Yeah. Ya don't want squirrels or owls coming in while you sleep."

"Does that happen often?" Akira's red and black wings twitched unconsciously.

"Not too much." Ryuji turned and hopped out of the tree hollow. "C'mon, I know a spot with some paper birch trees!"

Akira followed.

They spent the day gathering the necessary pieces for a home. A strip of paper birch bark, large enough to barricade Akira's nest entryway. Then some bundles of grass for him to sleep on, topped with a leaf.

"Don't you need a second one?" Ryuji paused, reaching for a second broad maple leaf.

"I prefer flower petals." Akira shifted the bundle of rolled leaf stuffed with grass in his arms.

Ryuji shrugged and picked up his bundle of grass. "Fancy!" Maybe that's why Akira smelled so fragrant.

"Yup."

They flew to drop off their bundles at Akira's nest before finding more supplies. Before long, they had most of the essentials.

"We better finish up for today. The sun will go down soon, and I still need to get some dinner." Ryuji almost turned to leave, and Akira had the urge to catch him.

"You can have more of my apricot. I don't know if I'll be able to dry it all properly."

"No, man. That thing's yours." Ryuji waved the idea away.

"Then what were you thinking of eating?"

"Hmm." Ryuji looked up at nothing. "Haven't really thought about it yet. Maybe some pine nuts, if the birds have dropped any."

An opening. "Ryuji, I really don't eat much. I can't finish this apricot. You could stay and have some."

"Naw, not when you did all the work to get it."

"You helped.” Akira quickly added. Why was he desperate to not see Ryuji go? “You don't have to go out there to find food." Akira tore another piece off the apricot and walked it over to Ryuji. "Here. Go ahead."

"Really? Thanks, Akira!" He grinned and eagerly dug into the fruit. "To tell the truth, I' haven't had apricot in a long time before today!" He chewed happily and swallowed loud. "Can't go near the village's tree 'cause of the guards. And no way I'm going near the humans'! Well," he laughed a bit, "that's what I thought before today!"

Akira took his own piece of fruit and sat across from Ryuji, hoping he’d follow.

He did, sitting on the floor as well.

"Hey, are you gonna be okay tonight? I was just thinking about my first night out here, and it took me a while to get used to it."

Akira had questions about Ryuji's experience, but was afraid to prod. He didn't want to see those secretly sad eyes and false brave front on Ryuji again, as when Akira had stepped on the landmine of reminding him of being separated from his mother. "Is there anything I should know?"

"Well, I guess we took care of the worst thing. With the door and the bedding stuff." Ryuji glanced around Akira's tree hollow.

"Squirrels and owls?"

"And cold! It can be pretty scary!"

Akira imagined Ryuji on his first night of exile, cold from lack of bedding and not realizing in time before sundown to grab some leaves as blankets. It must have been horrible to venture out for maple leaves in the dark night or wait through the cold until the next day to find bedding. Not to mention the number of times Ryuji must have been awoken by squirrels and owls, before he realized his own hollow needed a barricade. Akira pulled the apricot close to them and tore off more pieces for Ryuji and himself. "Ryuji, I'm really lucky you were here to help me. Thank you." He passed him more fruit.

"Hey, no big deal!" He bashfully clutched the back of his head, though his posture was proud. "You're doin' me a favor, being around!"

"Hm?" Akira slowed his bite into his apricot piece.

"It's just been kinda...um...boring? Without anyone else around." Though boring didn’t seem quite the word. Spending time with Ryuji and never before meeting someone so eager to interact, lonely would probably be more fitting.

Then Akira thought, maybe he was describing himself instead. Heh. "You do seem the talkative type." Akira smiled into his fruit.

"Is it annoying? I'd sometimes try to talk to people in the village, when I was a kid. But they'd always walk away after we barely talked. I was kind of afraid I just bugged everybody."

"No, Ryuji. You're not bothersome. They were just ignorant. I like hearing you talk."

"Ignorant? About what?"

Akira smiled. "Your company."

Ryuji turned pink. and quickly turned his back.

"Are you blushing?" Akira tried to peer around Ryuji to see his face.

But Ryuji wouldn’t dare face Akira’s teasing smile. "No!" Ryuji stood up. "Y-Y'know, uh, maybe I should get back home."

His wings began to flutter, but he felt a tug on his tunic as he hovered off the floor. He looked back to Akira, who stared back, seeming just as wide-eyed surprised as him.

"A-ah-I'm sorry!" He quickly let go of Ryuji. "I didn't even realize..."

Ryuji landed his feet back on the floor. "Akira, do you want me to stay?"

"...I think maybe," his eyes scanned everywhere on the floor, "I just realized this is really my first night in exile." He admitted quietly.

"Hey..." Ryuji stepped closer to him. "I can stay the night if you don't want to be alone."

There was a long pause, as Akira continued looking everywhere except at Ryuji. When he finally could look at him again, he nodded. "Thank you."

#writing practice #daily practice #fanfic #akiryu #fairy #fairies #belated faebruary 2019 catchup

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kayasurin · 7 years ago

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A long-time lurker of @suzie-guru, I’m tossing this Strange Magic story idea under the cut. I blame (and thank) Suzie because I might not have found the fandom through her stories, but they are what kept me in the fandom (and inspired me to get the DVD as well as get ideas of my own).

Please find below 10 pages of notes for an idea I’m just calling the Accidental-Marriage-and-Pining AU. If someone decides they want to take it over, just give me a heads up. Otherwise, in my (non-existent) spare time I might take a swing at writing it myself.

· Instead of kidnapping Dawn when the love potion gets stolen, Bog King declares war. Still crashes the elf party, but only to yell at people and tell the king that hey, war.

· Roland is defeated & injured early on (shiny armour! No use! He looks very good in a parade but has never actually, y'know, fought before.) Not even by Bog, just some foot soldier goblin. Maybe Brutus with a backhand.

· Dawn's still hit with a love potion BTW, and falls for a married elf who is devoted to his life-partner and, uh, it's flattering but he likes... guys. (Dawn literally cannot understand the idea right now, when normally she's as passionate about people being able to marry the ones they love as Marianne is passionate for denouncing love, period.) Dawn is kept in her room.

· Sunny gets hold of the love potion and hands it over, along with his guilt - he is able to say it's Roland's idea, since Roland went from "respected" to "ridiculed". The triplets come forward and admit that they may have suggested Roland use a love potion on Marianne (who is very scary and they're very sorry). People remember that Roland's been talking off and on about war with the Dark Forest for a long time.

· Bog is not about to stop the war now, even with the Fairies offering the potion back and they're really sorry - the Elders of the Forest would overthrow him in a heartbeat if he did.

· Sunny is punished, but not as harshly as if he were the sole cause of the war. Basically confined to his rooms helping with the routine paperwork everyone else is too busy with the war to deal with. He might have nightmares about being unable to tell Requisition Form A-7 from Requisition Form A-8.

· The Imp steals the love potion. It was well guarded but not well enough. Marianne hunts the Imp down (while everyone else is on the battlefield - her dad thought it'd be great for keeping her away from the fighting) but not before several fairies, elves, and a sparrow are dusted. Lizard/Lizzy still fixates on Sunny because he got dragged along with. (Everyone knows Marianne asking him what the hell he was thinking about a love potion and her little sister is more punishment than requisition forms.)

· (Sunny is really, really sorry. But at least the lizard fixated on him. Guy who had a sparrow fall in love with him got carried off. No one knows where he is. Everyone is varying degrees of worried)

· (He's okay and shows up later after escaping when the love potion wore off. Maybe, haven't decided yet.)

· The war, meanwhile, has lasted a month so far. The final battle happens.

· Bog goes after Dagda, has to fight his way through the battlefield.

· Marianne, who is not supposed to be there, gets between Bog and Dagda. She is a fresh fighter, compared to Bog who just spent a couple hours beating his way through elves and fairies and Dagda's guards. Also, Marianne is angry someone's threatening her dad. Also-also, there might be some high-pitched and painful-to-goblins screaming going on.

· Marianne wins. Bog's hurt, very badly. (I'm sorry boo!) He's mistaken for dead for a little bit, actually.

· Dagda, trying to signal to the goblins that their king is dead, please stop fighting and go have a civil war on your own side of the border, tries to pick up the Bog King's staff of office. He gets burned. It's wood (or... something?) but it just heated up like a sword fresh from the forge and not yet quenched. Marianne takes the staff, mostly because Dagda drops it, and is perfectly fine.

· Battlefield turns into a different sort of chaos, of course. It's sorted out that Marianne is now Queen of the Dark Forest by right of personal combat with the Bog King - who, it turns out, is still alive. Marianne orders he be taken care of immediately (Maybe she can give this stupid staff thing back? Seriously, it's twice her height or something and really heavy and also she doesn't want to rule the Dark Forest! Heal up so she can give it back, now!)

· Marianne, however, isn't going to be a bad ruler. She's got a bunch of terrified Goblins watching her and a bunch of scheming fairies too. She tells her dad to hand Roland over, since he was the real source of the conflict, but she'll be nice and accept him going to the Stone Reach * for investigation and trial.

· *I envision the Stone Reach to be this rocky outcrop on the south border between the fields and the forest and, possibly a swamp or something. Not associated with anyone, considered perfectly neutral and called on in cases where the royals might have a conflict in sentencing, ect. Since three generations back they've also dealt with passing messages across the field/forest border, because Bog's grandfather refused to talk to Marianne's great-grandfather, and no one's changed the status-quo since. They do other things too for both sides, but the main one is being neutral.

· They also run around fully cloaked, so no one can tell what species/race they are. Other than weird. The head of the group, AKA main investigator, I envision as something like Sam Vimes from Discworld, except covered head to toe so no one can actually see him. The right personality, though.

· Back to the story though - the goblins had expected Marianne to just kill Bog on the battlefield, but weren't complaining when she wanted him healed instead. He's moved to the castle, sort of a prisoner and sort of "the prison cell is the only other place in the castle with beds long enough for this guy, and the Queen's taken over the Royal bedroom, and someone this injured cannot sleep on the floor."

· Marianne also moves to the Dark Forest castle, immediately after telling the fairy council where they can stick their plans for the Dark Forest. (She's going to be a good queen and also hand this nonsense back to the Bog King once he's conscious. She can't hand the place back if the council gets their way.) The goblins are obedient, but not helpful. Griselda spends her entire time watching over Bog in the prison/sick room.

· Griselda and Marianne encounter each other whenever Marianne's down there interrogating Sugarplum about the love potion. Dawn's still dusted after all, never mind everyone else. (Griselda: not impressed with this fairy who nearly killed her baby boy.)

· Some of the goblins start actively plotting against Marianne. They're kinda bad at it because goblins go for "in your face" things like actual challenges, instead of backstabbing and what have you. Most of the plotting, therefore, is "who can we all agree to back and who has a chance of defeating our new Queen - shh she's coming" and not "let's poison her drink."

· Seriously, goblins have standards for overthrowing their monarchs and solving political problems. Who'd be low enough to resort to poison or stabbing someone in the back when these sorts of things are important and should be seen by everyone! (Fairies. Fairies are low enough. Marianne is aware of the plotting but is expecting them to rebel the way fairies would - AKA knives in the dark or poison in the food. The lack of action in that direction is confusing her.)

· The plotting goblins loosely fall into the following categories - those who want to back Bog in taking the throne back, those who want "new blood" on the throne (and if that blood happens to be related to them, so what?) and then there's a very small group of goblins who think Marianne's not the worst thing in the world, but only if she marries a goblin and has goblin babies.

· Around this point (approx 1 month after Marianne takes over) Bog wakes up. It takes him a little while, but he regains his health pretty quickly once he's conscious and isn't being force-fed (or unconscious-fed) broth. He sees Marianne when she visits Sugarplum and gets full reports of everything going on thanks to Griselda, Stuff, and Thang (as the ones most able to visit him without being noticed and what have you). He's annoyed at the plotters manoeuvring and spends his time thinking of how he can possibly get his throne back without relying on those plotters who back him.

· Seriously if he accepts help from any of the plotters he can say hello to a new life as a political puppet. As for anyone else ruling his forest, hah! He dealt with that fly-shit as a kid when someone stole his father's throne (from Griselda, Bog's regent, since Bog's dad kind of died when Bog was a newborn) and then Bog had to kick the imposter off the throne - and not doing that again, thanks.

· Between his informants and reports about captured goblin soldiers, Bog figures out that any rebellion will likely be met with fairy soldiers setting the forest on fire. It's the main stumbling block to his plan of "kill or kick the fairy out and take the throne back" and he and Griselda spend a long time trying to figure out how to prevent the fire happening. At the very least they're expecting Marianne to turn the Forest into a servant-state of the Fields.

· (The fairy council, despite her telling them what to do with their plans, expect the same. And are very annoyed that it hasn't happened yet. It's a temper tantrum, that's what it is. Sure.)

· (There's tension between Marianne and Dagda for this reason, among others, especially since Dagda only "let" Marianne go to the forest to try and get a cure for the love potion.)

· (Marianne is super unhappy at being in the forest, but as long as she doesn't go outside or look out a window she doesn't panic or anything, which is one way to avoid talking face-to-face with her dad.)

· After a while (couple weeks) Bog's judged as healed as he can get just lying around and to start getting up and moving to build his strength back. He and Griselda have no answer to the probable "fairies with fire" thing, so Griselda instead begs Bog to capitulate to Marianne, swear allegiance so she doesn't kill him to strengthen her rule. (They've figured that's why she's having him healed up, so she can execute him in front of the Elders and properly strengthen her claim.) Griselda: "I've buried my husband. Please don't make me bury my son."

· She doesn't fight fair. Bog, meanwhile, might not be king any more but the oaths he swore when taking the throne still count, okay. He still has a responsibility to protect and serve the goblins, and obviously a rebellion isn't the way to go (fairies with fire). If dying keeps them safe (or safer, anyways) he'll do it. He'd rather not, but he will.

· Marianne finally gets the story of Bog using the love potion, and what the antidote actually is, from Sugarplum. Bog is unaware of this, by the way. He is aware that Marianne's yelling at Sugarplum ("What, real love is the only cure? Are people aware that you're peddling something fake? Seriously, all you're doing is making longer-lasting BEER GOGGLES you fraud!") but can't make out the words. Probably for the best.

· Marianne contacts Dagda (those weekly messengers are finally good for something) with the cure - true love - and tells him Sunny can cure Dawn, now stop sending me constant messages telling me to come home, I'm BUSY ruling my new COUNTRY. Dagda obviously does what he's told re: Dawn and Sunny, and keeps sending Marianne messages asking her to come home, the forest is no place for a fairy, ect, ect. They'll set up a subsidiary of the council to take care of the day-to-day humdrum of ruling the forest. (HAH! No.)

· Sugarplum is shipped off to Stone Reach. Her actions are going to be evaluated for treason. No, Marianne's not being petty and it's not revenge for the whole "Dawn got love potioned and Roland was going to use the potion on Marianne" thing. And absolutely nothing about feeling sympathy for a young, love-lorn Bog King who then got his heart broken because Sugarplum was selling lies. No sympathy for the stick-insect-man at all.

· Bog requests an audience with Marianne during her next open court. Either his (horrible) plan will work, or it won't and he'll die. Either way, it'll be over with quick. And he's figuring on the "I'm going to die" side of things, because it's a terrible idea but no one can come up with anything better, and it will hopefully keep the plotting idiots from doing something to bring fire-and-fairies to the forest.

· Oh yeah, little tidbit that this story relies on - there's a second, smaller throne beside Marianne's. The goblins brought it in. When Marianne asked why it hadn't been there to start, they explain that Bog had it taken away, but she hasn't told them the policy about the second throne yet, ect. They do not explain who the second throne is for, figuring it's obvious. It is not. Marianne figures it's for - like in the fairy kingdom - the chief advisor/heir, depending on whether there's an heir or not. The goblins, meanwhile, know it's for the ruler's partner. Both sides think the other side "knows" what the second throne is for.

· Bog shows up in court looking like he's just barely mobile, because he is. He's got some fresh new scars showing. First time for the majority of the goblins to see his wounds. People are either impressed he survived or disappointed he survived. First time Marianne really sees his wounds - or him - as well.

· (This is a slow burn, people. They've finally met properly. That's not the end of it yet though.)

· (Bog's worst wound is, I'm envisioning, a cut high up on the inside of his thigh, in the small area between hip and leg not covered by chitin. Yes, there. A few others include healed cuts on his face and hands, and a crack on his chest, which has healed but won't go away until the next shed or two.)

· Bog explains to Marianne that the goblins don't want to accept her as Queen, that she will face challenges to her rule as long as he lives, even if he is not the one challenging her. (Simplification of all the nonsense the plotters are coming up with, of course.)

· Marianne challenges Bog that he wouldn't be saying that if there wasn't another way, unless he wanted a public execution. (Outwardly calm, inwardly panicked. She hasn't killed anyone yet, not even on the battlefield. She really doesn't want to start by chopping someone's head off.)

· Bog kneels and says he will swear to accept her as the rightful ruler and abide by her rules. He'll even live in the fields if she wants him out of the forest, ect. (Inwardly going "Oh hell no I do not want to live in that horrible place - but I will if I have to and that might help protect my people too, yes self you just volunteered to be a hostage but whatever.)

· After some back and forth, Marianne accepts Bog's oath. The goblin Elders are annoyed because they didn't factor this possibility into their plans at all. Griselda is resigned but relieved that Marianne's not going to kill Bog. The common goblins are confused, but relieved, ect.

· Marianne then announces she has made a decision about Bog. Bog is there expecting to be sent to the fields in exile, maybe with a few goblins. Instead, Marianne tells him to take the lesser throne. (The spouse seat. The Elders are freaking out. They REALLY weren't expecting THIS.)

· Goblins, shocked. Bog, shocked. Marianne, confused and hiding it. She just wants to keep the former ruler as her chief advisor. (Why didn't she just take the chance and shove the throne back at him and flee as fast as she could?! She could've done it but nooooooo...)

· The slow burn BEGINS, MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHA

· Bog is moved into the previously closed spouse-bedroom attached to the royal chambers through the washroom. He's constantly sitting to Marianne's right during dinners and things. He is very confused and bemused and worried, because now he's Marianne's husband? That's literally all it takes for the ruler to decide yup, this is my life-partner, just an announcement and the life-partner sitting in the lesser throne. (Most do throw parties of some sort or other, but that's not required.)

· Marianne does not help by having a discussion with Bog, immediatley after court, about what his duties will be, once he's healed. Advising her about goblin law and customs, primarily. Nothing "active" until he has a clean bill of health. (She's thinking sparring, maybe, or sending Bog out to be the royal face so she doesn't have to fly through the forest - no she's not getting better on her own. Bog's brain maybe shuts down a little, though, because married + active = error does not compute.)

· They set up a routine: breakfast together, usually with a group, very informal. Mornings are spent separate, Bog going to the healer, his mother, dealing with the guards and messengers, ect. Marianne reviews proposed laws/drafting proposals herself, dealing with household complaints, ect. (Marianne asks Bog why the hell he let things get so bad the linens were taken by field mice. Bog is confused they ever HAD linens. There's a reason why Marianne's the one in charge of the household. Mostly because Bog's pants at it.)

· They eat lunch together, then court if it's a court day. Or the library the rest of the time, for Marianne's "how to rule the Dark Forest" lessons. History, politics, who wants to kill who, how property rights are handled, inheritance law, ect.

· Dinner together, and then Bog gives lessons in staff fighting. At the start he gets to sit down and correct Marianne's stances, then as he gets better he starts moving around and eventually they begin, very carefully, sparring.

· Bog, during this part, transitions from hating Marianne with a passion (she beat him and stole his throne!) to respecting-but-disliking her (okay, she stole his throne, but she's not horrible, for a fairy) to respecting and liking her. It helps that she admits she didn't actually want to take his throne, he was going for her dad and she just reacted, and she's really sorry but she's determined to do a good job of it. (She may or may not have started to offer to give the throne back, but it won't work that way, because Bog lost and would need to win a serious fight to get it back. No-go right now, and depending on how that leg heals, maybe never.)

· Marianne, meanwhile, is also transitioning during this part, from distrusting everything and everyone (she's a fairy and fairies are good with backstabbing) to trusting that she's accepted, for now, as the ruler. The plotters have stopped their plotting until they figure out how to handle everything that's happened. She relaxes, trusts Bog but is feeling guilty over stealing his throne, even though she didn't mean to. She also finds herself, by the time they're sparring, admiring Bog's fighting ability (and absolutely not his body. Just the fighting ability. Juuuuuust the fighting ability. Not his hands, or the way he can twirl a staff with just his fingers, or the way his shoulders flex, or that smirk or - just the fighting abilities. Yup. That's her story and she's sticking to it.)

· By this point it's autumn and the harvest starts, so it's all hands on deck. Bog's delegated to the kitchen, because he can be trusted not to chop his own fingers off and he's still only allowed to be only so active. Marianne assists with winterizing the castle and the hidden outbuildings (archives, ect) because she might not know how to hunt and she can't tell the difference between a poisonous berry and a safe one, but by golly she can slap mud and moss over a crack in the wall like a champion.

· Word from the Stone Reach arrives. After the (date to be determined - probably hunter's moon, or maybe harvest moon, before the first frost but only just), Roland and Sugarplum's trials will be held. Marianne can't avoid it, Bog has to go too, ect.

· Marianne and Bog have had multiple personal conversations by this point, everything from brief, "this reminds me of" and in-depth, hours-long conversations. However Marianne stops sharing her personal history/views/values/experiences. They had stopped sparring because Super Busy for harvest, but they take it back up again. They still discuss laws and culture, but not as much. They're also still busy doing what they're allowed to do for harvest. (Marianne is too busy to get freaked out bringing stuff to people outside, and anyways everything's changing colours and she's not reminded of things that happened, so it's okay.)

· Harvest festival with the goblins - Dawn and Sunny visit. Most goblins are unaware Sunny was the elf that stole the love potion, so they treat him decently, and Dawn's okay because she's their Queen's sister. Dawn asks Marianne to come back for the fairy's harvest festival. Marianne tries to get out of it (she really doesn't want to talk to Dagda in person by now, she's been avoiding him for most of the year now - Primroses stop blooming around May) by telling Bog if she goes, he goes. By the end of the night Marianne and a small group of goblins, including Bog, have been selected. She's not sure how that happened.

· (Goblins, for the most part, wear jewellery and not clothes. For the most part they're all wildly different in shape anyways, but what one of them can wear as a necklace another can wear as a bracelet, ect. Tasteful bling happens.)

· Bog warns Marianne that he only has his traditional outfit and there's no time to get anything made for his new status. She tells him to wear the traditional. (She's expecting, like, maybe a crown, maybe some armlets or something.)

· Bog's outfit is a royal great kilt. (I put the Scottish-accented Bog in a great kilt, I'm so proud of myself.) Where fairies use magic on flower petals and leaves, goblins have weaving - which takes so much longer, since they spin cattail fluff and thistle-down or tufts of fur into yarn, and then have to do the weaving. Marianne's given a wrap with the same pattern as Bog's kilt and they started making it the moment she was officially Queen - so about the time she sat down on the throne for the first time.

· (Telling Bog to wear the great kilt provided to the forest's king - not the prince, not the consort, but the full king - reinforces the "married" thing. She doesn't know that. Bog assumes he hasn't been asked to 'perform' his 'marital duties' because Marianne doesn't find him attractive, and he is totally 100% relieved about this and not even slightly regretful someone he considers a friend thinks he's too hideous to touch. Yup.)

· (Marianne, meanwhile, is all but punching herself in the face because she's started humming, goddamn it, whenever she and Bog are alone or plausibly alone. She totally has feelings she refuses to examine, mostly because Bog's kind of like her employee now and he probably still hates her for the whole 'stealing the throne' thing.)

· (Bog may or may not have the odd wish that Marianne would sing to him, because fairies sing to the people they lo - like. Right? Right. Yes. Friendship songs, toooootally friendship songs. They'd be nice.)

· Then the fairy harvest festival. Marianne sees Bog in a kilt and nearly walks into a wall, because - clothing. She's seen him naked, technically, but hooooooh boy now that he's wearing clothes, of a sort, all the can think is getting him out of them and there may or may not be some (a lot) of blushing and mental beating herself up going on. (Marianne has read romance novels, of the sort that go into details a young and impressionable and curious thirteen year old was curious about.) (Bog, in contrast, is quite innocent, poor guy. Doesn't know what's going to hit him...)

· The entire festival basically goes as follows: Fairies are polite but condescending to the goblins. Fairies are polite but condescending to Marianne. Goblins get annoyed at the fairies being rude to their Queen - the group was chosen by Bog half because they'd be useful in a fight, half because they happen to genuinely like Marianne by this point. Marianne doesn't notice the fairies being condescending to her but she does notice them being rude to her goblins. Most fairies end up acting like catty brats.

· At least one fairy accuses Marianne of having gone native to the forest. She does not deny it. At least one council member warns (threatens) her that her actions are risking her inheritance of the Fields. Bog overhears the threat, but not Marianne's response of "Dawn would be a good queen (and Sunny, you know, her elf fiancée? Would be king. Won't you enjoy that, you wrinkled old prune?)"

· The trial at Stone Reach is probably immediately after the party, so the goblins ride their dragonflies there and the fairies fly. Marianne spends the entire flight snubbing Dagda who probably spent the entire fairy party trying to ask her who she wants to take over the day-to-day ruling nonsense so she can come home, and also would she please reconsider any of these charming fairy bachelors (who were rude to her goblins so not just no, hell no.)

· (She might be a little a lot protective of the goblins, now. She really likes them and their way of life and sure it's different from what she's used to, but that's hardly a bad thing. Also, Bog. Who has nothing to do with her "hell no" about the fairy bachelors, of course.)

· The trial. Evidence is presented, including Roland cheating on Marianne and how often, her breaking up with him, all because it goes into his motivation for wanting a love potion. (Someone gets to observe if Roland had just kept it in his pants for one more day, he'd have been married and thus the next king... up until Marianne caught him cheating and killed him, anyways.)

· The Stone Reach provides it's judgement of Roland to be treason to the Fair Fields (knowingly and deliberately taking actions that led to the war) and conspiracy to act against the Dark Forest. Roland is sentenced to death.

· Plum is judged to not have committed treason by reason of mental instability. She is to stay at the reach until she is judged sane. Also she is to not make any more love potions, because the spell-masters at the Reach believe creating love potions did not help with the mental stability. (No, that's probably not an excuse to make her stop, they're from the Reach. They certainly wouldn't lie. Tell only part of the truth, sure, but out-and-out lie? Never.)

· Marianne does not stick around for Roland's execution, but instead leaves as soon as she can, taking the goblins with her. She remains distant to everyone - having her blindness to Roland's true character and the many times he cheated on her revealed to everyone hurt - but especially avoids Bog. She does her duties, but without her usual enthusiasm, and doesn't spar.

· Bog ends up confronting Marianne in her bedroom. They fight, both verbal and physical, though not much of the later. Marianne ends up threatening to send Bog to live in the fields if he can't keep his nose out of her business. He retreats after that.

· (I mentioned slow burn, right? Also, threat to the trust they've built up to this point, along with their friendship.)

· Bog goes around snarling at everyone, Marianne is upset with everyone, and it's just in time for the first snow to hit.

· Griselda tries to talk to Bog and gets nowhere, so she ends up confronting Marianne. "I'm a mother and you should fear love me" works where nothing else did, and Marianne ends up confessing about the fight and how bad she's felt since defeating Bog, and taking away his kingdom - and just everything, really. Up to and including how she has 'no right' to feel as she does for Bog, ect.

· Griselda does manage to direct Marianne to talk to Bog. Marianne does, and apologises for what she said, confirms that she'd never ask him to move to the fields, never mind order him there, and that she relies on him more than anyone, ect. Finishes by saying he's her best friend - and apart from Dawn, kind of her only one, really.

· This is the moment Bog falls head over heels out of friendship and into love. He's sunk.

· All the pining happens from this point on. Sparring resumes, the duo begin to notice (and admit) their physical attraction to each other, and their conversations become awkward (but so exhilarating). They have more personal conversations, including Marianne eventually discussing how she felt about Roland, how she felt about being cheated on, ect.

· (Marianne does say, in retrospect, she loved the idea of Roland more than the person, and her upset was as much for losing that 'idea' of him as being cheated on. Also, in hindsight, not that Marianne tells Bog this, but she didn't feel much for Roland, physically. He was too pretty to lust over, or something. She just figured she'd get the physical attraction once they were married.)

· (Of course, Marianne is comparing her memories of how she felt about Roland to how she feels about Bog now, and she is noticing Bog physically a whole lot. Primarily his eyes, hands, wings, that scar high up on his thigh, and how careful he is with his strength. She maybe wants to wreck his self control, which is not something good fairy girls are supposed to want.)

· (Bog, meanwhile, really wants to know what Marianne's hair feels like, and really likes her eyes, and her wings, and her neck keeps catching his attention, and she's so tiny but she's so strong and it's really impressive how she can just, like, go toe to toe with him and even overpower him at times. It gives him fluttery feelings inside.)

· With winter in place, Bog starts taking Marianne out on trips in the forest. Short trips because it's cold, but he gets the chance to show her places he feels are the most beautiful - things like waterfalls where the plants and rocks are coated in ice from the constant spray, or the glow cave, flying through the thorn bushes only this time it's daytime and they look like they're carved from crystal because there's just so much frost everywhere, ect.

· Mutual pining continues. The goblin midwinter ceremony happens - no set details right now, but probably something about staying up all night until dawn, dinner being 'starvation food' (like super-thin soups and salads made out of things you'd only eat if you had no other choice), putting all the fires out and lighting candles, then lighting the fires from the candles, ect. Marianne does the fairy tradition of giving gifts - those closest to her get personal gifts, everyone else gets generic gifts like sweats (or socks - goblins love the idea of socks). She ends up giving Bog a traditional engagement gift - possibly a wire and gemstone bracelet?

· During the first council meeting of the new year, the Elders of the Forest make preliminary noises about potential heirs and merging new Royal blood with the old. (They have finally decided how to handle Bog being married to Marianne.) Marianne finally discovers she and Bog are considered married. The goblins finally discover she had no freaking clue. The goblins are stunned. Bog's heartbroken, because of course there was no chance, Marianne's reaction just proves that out.

· (Bog assumed, his feelings for Marianne aside, she was just making the best of their marriage and doesn't feel anything more than friendship for him. He figures it's a one-sided situation again, only worse, because a) no way he'd ever consider using a love potion again and b) they're married.)

· (Marianne is heartbroken, as she figures this means Bog was just making the best of a bad situation and maybe they are friends, but how the hell can he love her? Not only did she steal his throne but she told him they were married the first day he was barely mobile... ect.)

· More pining! Not helped by the goblin Elders, who are pushing for a proper marriage that both sides know is a marriage.

· Griselda is just so done with everything, from the Elders to the mutually pining idiots giving each other sad, longing looks over the breakfast dishes (and not realizing the person they're sighing over is sighing over them right back. They're sitting right next to each other, how are they this dense?!) She sends messages to Dawn explaining EVERYTHING, especially about the mutually pining idiots. (Griselda may or may not have spent multiple hours with each idiot bemoaning their sad and sorry fate. At least Marianne's honest about wanting to shove Bog against a wall and oh yeah you're his mother, sorry...)

· Dawn sends a letter back saying she won't be much help until the snows help in spring, but be encouraging (and blunt) with the idiots.

· Griselda sets up the romantic dinner from the movie, only the song is "kiss the girl" from The Little Mermaid. The idiotic and pining duo get angry, tear up the decorations, and go off to spar (and pine.)

· After they spar, they go outside to stargaze a little. They grouse about the Elders and the romantic dinner (blaming the Elders, not Griselda). Someone slips - probably Bog - and probably along the lines of "after all, I know you wouldn't - well, I'm me (gestures at self) and you can do better."

· Whoever is self-deprecating is reassured and the initial confessions of feelings happens. They retreat to Marianne's private office to talk in the warm. Further confessions of feelings happens. Kissing happens. Someone (probably Bog) gets shoved against a wall and ravished. There is no complaining.

· Their relationship escalates quickly (probably same day, TBH) to sharing a bed, but no sex. They do end up with lots of heavy petting every night as they figure out what feels good, what doesn't, ect. Marianne discovers Bog's spine thing, Bog discovers Marianne's thing for necks (both hers and his - she's equally enthusiastic having her neck kissed (and nipped) as she is doing the kissing (and nipping) as well as Marianne's ear thing.

· They try to keep it secret from Griselda and the Elders. They are not subtle and they fool no one. The Elders, however, have to shut up about it because Marianne has a sword and tells them what she'll do with it if they don't move on to the next subject, NOW.

· Griselda sends Dawn an update with no reply, but isn't surprised.

· Marianne and Bog end up with smut. Bog is quite happy to be shoved around and Marianne is quite happy do shove him around. They take turns turning each other to mush. Marriage proposal once they're able to do words again afterwards.

· Close out with a wedding under the cut primroses, some combination of goblin and fairy traditions. (Okay, more fairy traditions than not, because fairies actually need a ceremony to be married and goblins don't, but details.)

#Strange Magic #fanfic #a wild plot appears #slow burn #misunderstandings

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solarbird · 7 years ago

Text

Old Soldiers, Chapter 13: feeding the spiders

AO3 link

"Good girl," Amélie cooed to Ourson, her little black tarantula, a surprise gift from Lena the previous Christmas. "Back into your habitat. I will give you two crickets, one at a time."

She'd spent an hour cleaning Ourson's tank, replacing the soil, cleaning the little shelters where the spider liked to hide, scrubbing the shallow water dish, making sure the spider-safe plants were healthy in their hidden pots. The curlyhair didn't really need, or care, about the plants - but Amélie liked how it made the enclosure look more real, more like the Costa Rica from which the species originally came.

"I think you will be moulting soon," Widowmaker said, quietly, more to herself than to Ourson, who surely knew the truth of it better than her keeper. "I should make sure you are happy before you begin." The large spider did not need very much care, really - as pets go, Lena picked a nicely low-maintenance animal - and Amélie did more than really necessary, and enjoyed it.

"Go on," Widowmaker said, prompting the spider to the ground. It took a moment, but Ourson figured out that this was her home, and stepped lightly onto the new bedding. A moment later, and then there was a cricket, and she pounced, frighteningly quick, surrounding it with her legs and stinging, venom paralysing her prey in moments. Amélie cooed again, "oh, you were very hungry, weren't you? Well, there will be another once you are finished with the first."

When she was very young, Amélie had a fear of spiders, which she now found a little embarrassing, and more than a little ironic. But that was long ago, before she knew herself how to sting.

"Amélie!" shouted Lena, bursting in from the landing pad's exit corridor. "I'm home!"

The Widowmaker replaced the habitat's lid and turned to her lover, smiling the broad smile reserved only for her, and spread her arms wide. "Come to me, cherie!" The two women collided and spun around in the common room that they'd started thinking of a little bit as the family room, which is fairly silly for a Talon base, but not untrue despite it. "I am so happy to see you again." She leaned back and looked into Venom's brown eyes. "I see you've been dropping the sniper kit - have you checked in with Dr. Mariani yet?"

"Nah," said the junior assassin, "I wanted to see you, first." She kissed her wife, gently. "I've missed you so much. Overwatch is wretched. Please tell me we have a mission this week, I want somethin' to go right."

The spider chucked. "Oh, no, I'm so sorry." She returned Venom's kiss, and pet her head gently, running her fingers through that mop of hair. "A mission - pleasantly, we do, and it should be stimulating. I was saving that news for tomorrow, but... what happened?"

"Lemmie get checked out by th' doc first," said the occasional sniper. "It's a long story."

-----

"You're doing well," said the Sicilian doctor, from behind her scanner console. "Could you shift your eyes the rest of the way back, please?"

"'Course, doc." Lena pushed the last of the gold out of her iris. "How's that?"

"Very good. Dilate your pupils, let me check the cornea? Thank you." The doctor had Venom look across eight compass points as small white lights danced around Lena's vision. "All very good. No visual centre confusion around the lack of blind spots?"

"Nothin' I've" - she chuckled - "...seen..."

Dr. Mariani smiled. "Yes, yes, your jokes are terrible. But your eyes are not. Shift dilation back to baseline? Thank you. Yes, everything looks very good."

Venom blinked a bit - shifting her iris felt like nothing, but somehow, dilating and undilating her pupils still felt just weird.

"Well, this is all, ah, very healthy," she said. "There is one thing, but - do not worry, this is not a health question, you are fine. Did you use your chronal accelerator as Mockingbird?"

"Yeaaaaaaah," said the assassin, stretching the "a" sound. "Sorry. I knew it might mess up your data collection, but when Angie pulled that little demonstration of hers, I just... wasn't ready for it. I teleported across the room."

"I thought so. Quite understandable, from what you described." She smiled wistfully. "I wish I could've seen it myself."

"Some of the data got messed up?"

"Eh, there is a... very small bias shift. I can, ah, compensate, yes. It is probably from the slipstream - unless you happened to be near a powerful antineutron entanglement array at some point."

"Wot's that then?"

"A big hummy thing, might make you tingle."

Lena laughed. "Amélie didn't go with me on this one, doc."

The doctor smirked. "I didn't think so. But I understand, your ambassador friend, he is a scientist, yes? He might have one."

"Might do. Want me to ask him?"

"Eh," she waved her hands, "it is not important. I will remember it can happen." She closed the padd and shut off the scanner. "Your blood chemistry is perfect, your metabolic tests are exactly on track - you'll feel warm for a little while, like usual, eh? And hungry in, ah, probably a few hours. Drink extra water until you feel the hunger. Good?"

"Yes'm. And... thanks for comin' out on such short notice."

"It is no problem, I want these readings for my own work, you know. Thank you for letting me take them." She backed away from the examination table and motioned to the door. "Now, shoo, get out of here - I want to make the last ferry home."

"Roger that. Thanks, doc!"

-----

Venom fanned herself as she sat on the couch, back up to her normal temperature, and feeling it. "Terrible, yeh?"

Widowmaker - sitting across the low driftwood-grey coffee table, apart from her wife until she fully recovered - frowned, and shook her head. "I do not know where even to begin." She cast about, and picked one topic of the many. "I would not think one of Gabriel's plans would be so fragile. I know that no plan fully survives first contact with the enemy, but still."

Lena nodded, and drank from her rather tall glass of water. "It's not all his fault. The intelligence wasn't accurate, and those weren't ordinary Los Muertos street rats, but t'be honest - we were sloppy. And y'can't be sloppy like that."

"I hope you, at least, hit your shots," the elder sniper said with sardonic amusement.

The younger assassin snickered. "'Course I did, luv."

"So now, it is our turn?"

"Nope. I've agreed to give 'em another shot."

"When you voted against even the first?" She gave her wife a thoughtful look. "I am surprised."

Venom frowned. "I... I didn't want to. I moved to hand it over, in fact. But..." She ran her hand through her hair. "Y'shoulda heard Mei. You'd understand if y'did. Her whole team got left to die in Antarctica..." She shivered. "I'm not the only one who wants t'see him pay. She just wants it done all out in the open."

The spider hummed, and sipped at her afternoon glass of wine. An Italian table wine, a bit sweet, but not so far as a dessert wine, with hints of almost apricot. "Public justice, courtroom justice - but there is no small amount of revenge to that, as well."

"I dunno?" Lena said, sipping again from her water. "Mei..." She looked over at her wife with half a smile, not sure how to put together the words, realised she was trying to say two things at once, and picked one. "She's not like that. She reminds me of... who I used t'be, y'know? I used to believe in all that a lot more than I do now - and I don't want to be the one to take it from her."

Amélie gave her a knowing look across the top of her wineglass. "You know the only justice he'll face is whatever we deliver ourselves."

"Oh, yah, I know." Lena leaned back against the couch. "If I thought tryin' him would do any good, I'd maybe have different ideas - no matter how much I hate him. But they'll rehabilitate that bastard in nothin' flat. You and I both know it. People like him never get what's comin' to them."

The spider smiled. "Which makes this exactly the sort of job you like us to take on."

"Not so sure of that, either. You haven't seen the video yet. Lemmie show you."

She replayed the Amari video, highlighting the key points, and then her own, more recent video, showing the identical outcomes. "We'll need Angie's help to take him down - keep him from doin' this trick - and even she doesn't know how to make that happen yet. Figurin' it out's gonna be hard work. I don't think she'd do it to help us kill him - but for Overwatch, for a capture? She'll sort it in a week."

Widowmaker frowned. "That is indeed a complication. But I can't imagine even the best nanosurgeons could restore an adequately pureed brain, and I have some delightfully messy rounds."

Venom's grin returned, this time properly wicked. "Maybe. I like the idea. But I'd rather not risk it - you didn't see her revival demonstration." She frowned, and maybe even shuddered a little. "That was scary, and I know from scary. If he can do that..." She shook her head, and put it out of her mind. Why ask for trouble?

"It sounds to me like we should get her and Doctor Mariani together sooner, rather than later." She pointed with her wineglass in the direction of the base's medical laboratory. "Even if it's not on our preferred terms."

Tracer took another sip of her water. "I did get her to admit she's not ageing."

Amélie hummed, a little pleased sound. "So, at least, that much was accomplished."

"Yeh. Baby steps."

"So. The plan is that we let Overwatch fail again..."

"I'm gonna do my level best to help 'em succeed. I have to. But yeah, assuming..."

"...then we know how to kill him. But if we're wrong, and they take him into custody? Can you live with that?"

"Then..." the junior assassin scowled. "Then... I suck it up. Overwatch hands him over to the ICC, they score big political points, which'll help keep PETRAS act pressure down to a simmer. He gets off light - least, for a while, 'till he's out of the news." She smiled a very hungry smile, "And then, when everyone's forgot him again, we take him out for good. On the quiet. Everybody wins."

Widowmaker smiled. "Ah - the best of both worlds. Finesse, across time."

"I can in fact time-travel, love." She took another big draw of water, and felt her stomach shift. "Oooh, there we go. There's the ol' appetite. I am peckish. Feel like dinner?"

"I thought you would never ask."

#widowtracer #tracemaker #tracermaker #widowmaker #talon tracer #tracer #geanna mariani (oc)#venom #cw: spiders #also on ao3 #overwatch #overwatch au #domestic fluff #pet care #presents

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darke15 · 3 years ago

Text

Hello Rhymie!!!!! @rhymingtree

It has been a long day, and I have done nothing productive. I shall reward myself with reading.

awwwww, i hope your day was good tho

Also I accidentally hit post before I had even read the whole thing.... Either I am stupid or reading the summary has already made me cry and I can't see through the tears

looooollllll

Darke keeps giving Turner new material for his nightmares.

😬😬😬

Nia was curled up under her covers, her face barely visible under the blankets. Nea’s bed was empty, she’d wandered into her sister’s bed in the middle of the night. They were cuddled together, and Babar was hugged tightly against Nea’s chest.

🥺🥺

🥰🥰🥰

Oh hey Duke, why didn't you open the damn lights, you scary.

he's being moody and angsty

Boone's doin' all the dirty work in the middle of the night.. that's one thing we have in common.

she does her best work right before and right after 3am

(F/N) in the blue dress.... makin' me feel some feelings...

same tho ☹️ sorry

At this point with their lack of sleep, I'm just imagining Duke and Boone to be like ghosts themselves. Pale as fuck and slower than usual.

Yesssssss. Very pale and gaunt and pissed looking

Wow, this sounds very Batman-y with all the corruption and the elections and the-...

HEY WAIT A MINUTE

😏😏😏

Can't wait to see what Boone has in store for Manette... nothing can top the knife to the chest though, that was amazing.

She got good plans for both Larry and Manette 😏

“You’ve been thinking about it too?”

She shrugged, “Maybe.”

Duke sat up, looking over her with half-lidded eyes, “What have you been thinking about?”

“Nothin'. What have you been thinkin' 'bout?”

“Somethin' tells me we're thinking the same thing,” he said, staring her down with a raised brow.

Boone smirked, “Are we?”

I might be the only one here who isn't really thinking about anything.

same. head empty. zero thoughts

Is this what happens when you're sleep deprived? You go crazier than you already are?

from experience...yes annnndddd they get very very annoyed very very easy

Telepathy isn't their thing...

they're trying their best

Didn't even know it was gone in the first place, kinda just thought they had it in a really big garage somewhere.

it kinda got left behind after the ambush

IT WAS WAITING IN TEHRAN FOR WHAT- TWO YEARS? THREE YEARS?

21 months

Hehe but what if someone broke in like in that Star Wars movie? When Rey and Finn and the ball-droid thing broke into the Millenium Falcon and tinkered around with it?

looooolllll yessss

And then Han Solo and Chewbacca came in... can't remember what happens in the rest of the thing but there was a big octopus creature involved

i'll be real I don't think i actually watched the sequels

EXCUSE ME WHAT

HE CALLED OFF THE DATE

😬😬😬

UNACCEPTABLE

I'm sorry

I'VE BEEN WAITING MONTHS FOR YOU TWO TO HAVE ONE (1) CONVERSATION AND YOU CALL OFF THE DATE!?

😳😳😳

Y'know... I've told a lot of my friends about this series, and they know I call it one of my comfort reads... but every time I talk about what happens in it, it isn't comforting at all.

oof i'm sorry, this chapter turned out a lot sadder than i anticipated

I don't know what comfort I find in this, but whatever it is I like it and the angst is worth it.

🖤🖤🖤

So much has happened to them and they're not even 10 years old yet...

I really do feel bad for them

The women in this series... I would trust them all with my life. But if I ever saw them coming towards me I'd probably shit my pants.

same tho

“What are you two—” He paused, watching as Nea hopped to her tippy toes to lock his office door and Nia shoved a chair under the handle, effectively barricading them inside the room.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Turner shook his head, working his way back to the door and slipping the chair out of the way before he unlocked the door, “Don't do that.”

“But daddy, what if the bad guys come again?” Nia asked, looking up at him with a frown.

This isn't even the finale yet... I'm a mess of tears right now...

😬 the finale will be better i promise

There are so many beautiful traumatized bat shit crazy people taking care of these lil angels

it's amazing that they somehow came out a little normal

Hehe.. Belov wiggling his fingers. It's so cute.

Angry Russian is cute Russian

Turner is best dad ever. God fucking damn it. He's too fucking great. It ain't fair.

it really ain't

I love how she's working for the Turners and taking care of Nea and Nia because she loves and respects them as family. Because when we were first introduced to her in BS:A, I genuinely thought she was just a disgruntled employee.

lol that's how she started out for me too but I decided that she needed more of a backstory

I'm so glad we got to know her more. It's beautiful to see someone who folded herself into the whole team so naturally, not having been part of Aftermath in the beginning really, but having always been part of and stayed in the family.

She's like the grandmother of Aftermath

Edith is so much more than a babysitter, at this point she never has been. She's been another parent to Nea and Nia, like Boone and Duke have been.

I see her more as a grandmother bc i don't think turner's parents are around v much...or, at least, he doesn't allow them around his girls.

I don't think we've gotten to see how Nea and Nia's relationship with all of Aftermath grew as they grew up too. 'Cause they'd be significantly older in BS:A, but they're still surrounded by the same people, who have all matured in their own ways too

they made a short appearance in one of the aftermath shorts but idk if they'll ever show up in BS:A

OH. And the older they got, the more they'd see Belov as a brother; I think he'd have a different dynamic with them, especially because of his sister.

Just like Yelena, he would take them in as his little sisters and he would have been their big badass brother

And despite all of them living incredibly dangerous lives, they all still manage to give Nea and Nia a somewhat typical upbringing; crazy, definitely, but because of them, safe.

That is what Turner would like. Even though he's a senator and the leader of a military organization, he doesn't want them to get involved with politics or the military. He'd rather them take an artistic approach like their mother and have relatively normal lives. That being said, they were raised by Alpha 2 and their stubborn like their father and confident like their mother so they kinda do what they want

And when they're older, everytime they gossip about anything, no one can figure out what they're saying because they've learned 15 different languages from Raf, Belov, Boone and Zac and no one can figure out what they're saying. They've developed their own secret code made up of Spanish, Mandarin, French, and Russian.

They would def be polyglots and they would def use different words from different languages to communicate with each other.

Belov is waddling. There is a little girl latching onto his leg like a baby koala to her momma koala. And momma koala is waddling.

yesssss angry russian koala mom 🥺

Yeah. These two are gonna learn Russian somewhere down the line.

definately

Playing in the garden. Duke is playing. Yes. Legos with tomatoes.

LEGOS WITH TOMATOESSSSS 😂😂😂

“We don't care,” Dugan said, throwing a jalapeño at him. Belov glared at him, flinching as the pepper hit his shoulder. He turned, about to snap a string of curses at him before two more peppers went flying at him.

This made me laugh too much.

I like to imagine Nea and Nia just chucking peppers at the poor guy with the most determined faces

NIA CALLED HIM ANGRY BOY HAHAHAHAHAH

🤣 i love her so much

I'm not even sad about the cancelled date anymore.

Whatever happens won't change the fact that Jack and Duke are gonna be calling each other husband one day.

i would like to remind everyone that when duke proposes to him he says they've been together for three years (this happens in 2016) which means these motherfuckers had the biggest crush on each other for years before they decided to actually get together

No Jack, you're gonna happen. And you two are gonna be a big pain in the ass for everyone because you two will have no limit when it comes to flirting.

that do be true tho

AWWW so he is watching Duke do his gardening. Don't worry, he'll be plowing you soon as well, Jack.

RHYMIE!!!! 😳

What I didn't say that you didn't hear anything

👀👀👀

Did he actually get the ice cream before they brought him to the medbay tho? Because ice cream comes before all else.

he did

WHAT WHAT

HE CALLED HER WHAT

😏😏😏

OH MY- SGDFIOSJIODFSJIDGSJIDGJIOEFAJIOJIOJIOIO

heheheheheheheheh

Of course it was the freakishly tall and the little tiny dynamite that were gonna be an OTP. Of course.

OF COURSE

As a very short person, Jesse is living the dream.

She really is tho

So Zac's good at keeping secrets... Noted.. (my trust issues are burning)

leave him alone, he's fiiiinneeeee

Zac is a mood.

he really is

LIKE PRINCESS TIANA

she's my fave princess

It's 1 in the morning and this is setting off my midnight cravings...

You know what fuck it I'm gonna go see if there's anything in the fridge.... came back with a tuna spread sandwich oooh yeaaaah

ohhhhhh yummmmmmm

Is there a word for a jumpscare but instead of a scare it makes you sad? Like... a jump-sad?

ooooooffff sorry

Because what the fuck Darke. A flashback out of nowhere.

I'M SORRY

His family. HIS FAMILY.

🖤🖤🖤

Currently, I am crying over a plate of tuna sandwich. Not a pretty sight.

i'm imagining it wonderfully

Turner is once again. A mood. Yes. Be avoidant. Be in denial while there's still nothing to deny. Good job.

🤣🤣🤣

Boone the supposed Anarchist, one of Senator Johnson's biggest supporters. Nice.

she might not support the government but she can support him

Boone and Duke's friendship were founded on their mutual love for (F/n), at the same time that one thing they have in common can easily tear them apart.

unfortunately yes

... Can I also have a beignet?

yes i make some for you

Aaaand flashback again... ok. Thanks.

you're welcome 😉

I'm only now reminded of how difficult it must be for anyone to adjust to being a Super Soldier. They never delved into it that much in the films other than the changes in physical build and strength... but now she can hear everything. But nothing's loud enough to drown out the noises in her own head, which is now going miles a minute.

it's something really interesting that i would like to see delved into because it's confirmed that everything is enhanced, right? That means more than muscle, that means all your senses. You can hear better and farther, you can smell more things, your sight would be enhanced, your taste, your touch. And dealing with that all at once would be agonizing imo.

Your reflexes would become better, faster. Your brain would be able to take in more information and remember it vividly.

It's terrifying...

it really is

That last bit.

Yeah.. no... fuck you... that hurt.

yeah i deserve that

I mean... they did find each other in the end, right?

yessss 🖤

This was fun but it also hurt and now I'm crying because of the last line but I wanna laugh because in the back of my head, I still see Scary Russian Momma Koala with lil baby koalas hanging onto him.

i like that visual so much, let's just remember that part

Also, don't know if this was originally why the lil baby koalas are named this, but I googled it just now... Nia and Nea both mean lustrous and purpose.

Yes! The babies and their mother's name was very on purpose. I was looking for Swahili names when i found them because i wanted Imara to be from East Africa originally. Though that changed, I still think her roots are East African and i wanted a way to display her heritage (plus I fell in love with the names) i wanted the girls' names to be similar and I wanted them to have a purpose/goal.

They were made to be cute, I'm not gonna lie, but i also was thinking ahead to season two and i wanted them to have a definitive role in the creation of alpha 2.

And, Imara, it means strong. Turner needed someone strong in that time and she is just, overall, one of the strongest women i've written and i love her to death

And the whole reason why Alpha Two formed was to protect them. They showed them how to unite. They showed them their purpose.

yessssssss

Aight. This one was a lot I'm going to bed.

Goodnight rhymie! Thank you so much!

SEASON 2 : EPISODE 9 — THE SENATOR

┍━━━━━━━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━━━━━━━┑

“It’s official,” Duke said, handing a glass to both Turner and Imara before taking another from Boone and raising it toward them, “Congratulations…”

“Senator Johnson,” Boone crooned, a smooth grin working to her face as Imara jumped, waking both the girls as she threw herself into Turner’s arms.

Turner blinked, almost dropping his drink as he took in their words.

Senator Johnson.

“Thank you,” he said, completely breathless as Boone handed him her phone.

He’d won by a landslide.

— “How do I look?” —

— The two soldiers cocked their heads to the side, looking him over before a pair of sly smirks spread across their faces. —

— “You look surprisingly sophisticated.” —

— “Nah,” (F/N) shook her head, biting her lip as she looked him over again, “You look like a politician.” —

— “God help us if he ever goes into politics.” —

— “The country would fall apart.” —

— “Up in smoke.” —

Turner smiled, looking up at them, “Thank you.”

┕━━━━━━━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━━━━━━━┙

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selinenuli · 5 years ago

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MADE of STARDUST

Ch. 1

Ch. 2

Ch. 3

Ch. 4 - flying can feel a lot like falling

On wednesday, Lauren said it was time it was time to test Astrid's powers. She pushed all the furniture in the living room towards the walls and layed out some yoga mats. Astrid couldn't stop herself from jumping up and down. Her hair was in a ponytail, jumping in the air along with her. "Okay, so how do we do this?" Astrid shrugged "I dunno". "Just... to fly, I guess". "How?" "I don't know... focus, think about the feeling you get when flying?" Astrid wasn't sure. It sounded kind of dumb. But she missed flying, and Lauren was giving her a pleading look. So she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She tried to imagine her feet leaving the ground and the wind in her hair, that weightless feeling. And for a moment she was back in a different place, up high in the sky where no human has ever been. She could feel the warm hug of the darkness all around her. But then she opened her eyes and found she was still standing barefoot on a green yoga mat. Her eyes stung. She sat down with a pout on her lips. Lauren sat down next to her, offering a comforting smile. Astrid looked away.

"It's okay. You will fly", Lauren whispered. "Maybe not now. You will fly, star-child". Something hot started burning through Astrid's chest. She wasn't sure what.It was colored red. Anger, maybe. She snapped "Why do you keep calling me that? I'm not a star. Not anymore". se felt single tear roll down her face. "I'm just human". "You're really not, y'know. Your blood is gold. You're over a hundred years old, but look only nine". she paused and offered Astrid a hand. "Com'n. Let's get this place back to normal. And then make some cookies?" Astrid nodded and took her hand. Cookies were always good. She sat on the counter top and helped Lauren make the mix, occasionally stealing a chocolate chip or two. Lauren talked a lot. Maybe she was trying to make up for Astrid's lack of talking. Astrid didn't mind. "...and that's that. Hey, leave the chocolate alone". Astrid pouted. Lauren was smiling. "Hey, you have something on your face". "What, where-?" Lauren reached to put some cookie mix on the tip of Astrid's nose. Astrid groaned, than giggled. She dipped a finger on the mix then launched herself off the counter to throw it at Lauren. She shrieked and ran away, Astrid close behind, giggling. She caught up to Lauren and crashed into her. They both fell to the ground. When they got up, cleaned the mix of their faces, they realized that in their little game they had knocked the bowl of cookie mix over. "The cookies..." she whispered sadly, biting her lower lip. "Oh, it's okay. We'll buy some later". Astrid shrugged. Buying cookies wasn't as fun as making them. "Hey star-child, look down". Lauren was smiling. Slowly, Astrid shifted her gaze downwards, to find she was floating a few feet up in the air. "I can fly", she whispered, smiling. She was flying. And it was the best feeling ever. Lauren laughed "Of course you can!" Astrid floated upwards leaning towards Lauren to grab her hands. She laughed. Flying higher and higher. Closing her eyes and pretending everything around was sky blue, imagining the stars and the moon and the sun. And then she was falling. The memory of the long fall to the ground struck like lightning. She gasped and opened her eyes, still high up in the air. Too high up. She felt sick. The ground seemed to be too far away. How was she supposed to get back down? Her breathing was coming quick and rasp. The room was spinning. Her head ached. What was happening? It was scary. She wanted it to stop. "Hey Astrid, Astrid, are you alright? Com'n... just breath. It's okay. You're safe". Lauren's voice seemed to be coming from somewhere far, far away. Yet when she opened, Lauren was right there. Arms reaching up for her, expression worried. "You okay?"

Astrid shook her head. Her eyes were swimming with tears. "I wanna get down". "Okay. Just, fly towards me, just let go, yeah?" Astrid shook her head, choking back a sob. "It's okay, I'll catch you if you fall". "Promise?" Lauren nodded, offering a comforting smile "Promise". Astrid tried to concentrate. To let go of that drowning fear. Down. She willed all her energy into that one thought. Gravity. The ground beneath her feet. Air rushed past her, and she let out half a scream. But soon enough she was safe and sound, Laurens hands on her shoulders. She was no longer falling. Nor was she flying. Lauren wrapped her arms around her, and at first Astrid wanted to push her away. But then she remembered this gesture was called a hug, and it meant Lauren cared. Also, it was kinda nice. Warm. Made her feel safe. She hugged Lauren back. "I think that your powers, your ability to fly and glow, these are connected to your emotions", she said, voice soft. "You were sad earlier, and scared. And during the night, maybe you were dreaming?" Astrid nodded. Yes, she was dreaming. A bad dream. So the key to her powers was emotions. She wasn't sure whether that was good or bad. Good, because now she knew. She could access them, if she wanted to. Bad, because she didn't want to find herself flying or glowing ever time she felt a little bit scared. She was human now. And humans were scared a lot. Right now she didn't want to fly. At all. Flying could feel a lot like falling, and she hated falling. It was scary. Looking around, the knocked over cookie mix caught her attention. She tugged at Lauren's hand. "Can we get cookies now? You said we could buy cookies!" "Sure. Go find your shoes and coat while I clean up here". Astrid nodded and ran upstairs. She found her coat thrown over a chair, and her shoes under the bed. She even managed to tie her laces without any help. The room was chaos. Which Lauren said was a bad thing. Astrid disagreed. She loved chaos. The walls that were previously boring were now covered with drawing and pictures of the sky, the stars, the moon, the sun. They all made Astrid a little sad, but also made this place feel a little more like home. She grabbed her dragon and wand before running back downstairs. A few days ago she had decided the dragon's name was Tiu. He seemed to like it. They drove to a small bakery a few blocks away, where they got a bag with all kind of cookies. And also milkshakes. Then they were headed for the park. Once there, Astrid ran off, her cookie and milkshake in hand. The grass was soft and green, the skies... she would have liked to say the skies were blue, but they weren't. They weren't anything, really. It made her a little sad. Who knows how long she would have stood there and stared up, 'cause next she knew someone ran into her, knocking them both to the ground. "I'm so sorry, are you okay?" Astrid groaned and rolled over so she was lying on her back. She had a great view of the sky from there. And the other girl, standing over her with a worried expression. She tried to help Astrid up, but that only made them both fall over again. It was then Astrid realized she had some sort of shoes with wheels on her feet. She stared. "Are you okay?" Astrid nodded, pushing a piece of hair out of her face. The other girl had dark skin and wild curls, covered by a weird helmet. She had weird plastic stuff on her knees and elbows, too. "What are those?" "Oh, those. Protective gear. My mom makes me wear them while I'm skating". Astrid stood and helped the other girl up as well. They seemed to be at the same age (in human terms). And Astrid had suddenly realized she had never interacted with another human child before. She wasn't sure what to do. "Hi, I'm Mallory", the girl said, smiling. "Astrid". "You wanna play?" Astrid nodded, still hesitant. But, well, maybe that was how humans made friends. Astrid thought having a friend would be fun, even though she never actually had one. They shared some of Astrid's cookies, then played tag, which seemed to be nothing more than running around at full speed. It was fun. Mallory had to take her wheeled shoes (rollerblades. She said they were called rollerblades) off, 'cause she kept falling over or running into people. And then they played hide and seek, which was exactly as it sounded. Astrid wasn't sure whether that's what friends did, but it was fun. She didn't feel alone. They sat on the grass, out of breath. "What is that?" astrid asked, pointing to something nearby. A big puddle, with some cute furry little creatures. "A duck pond. The ducks live there". "Huh". "How did you not know that?" Astrid shrugged. She didn't wanna talk about how she wasn't human, how she was a fallen star. She didn't wanna be sad again. She fell back onto the grass, staring up. The skies were still gone. "Do you miss it?" Mallory asked, laying down beside her. "More than you can imagine". "My mom says it's gone. Just like magic was so many years ago". "I wish I could do magic". Magic did sound fascinating. "No one can, though". "I don't get why". "I guess that's just how it is now". "I guess..." Having a friend was fun. And Astrid had to wonder... did Lauren have any friends? Mallory stood up abruptly "My mom's calling me. It was nice playing with you!" and ran off. Astrid waved her goodbye. Then she ran back to where Lauren was sitting and climbed onto the bench beside her. Lauren smiled, though she still hadn't taken her eyes of the book."I see you've made a friend". "Yeah". She paused. "Do you have any friends?" Lauren grimaced. "I... do. Sort of". "Sort of?" "Friendships are very complicated, star-child. I have a few friends at college, but we're not very close. And I have some very good friends, but they live far far away". "Oh." Astrid looked down, fiddling with the hem of her dress. "Don't you get... lonely?" "Sometimes". "Well, I can be your friend!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. Lauren chuckled. "Sure". Astrid beamed. Now she had two friends! Lauren listen intently as Astrid told her about Mallory. "I think it's time for us to go home, don't you?" she suggested when Astrid paused for a breath. Astrid shrugged. She didn't really wanna go home. But she let Lauren take her hand and lead her towards the car. She glanced back as they passed by the duck pond. They were so cute. Small and fluffy. They would have made great friends. One of them made a very loud noise, and Astrid flinched. They sounded scared. That boy standing with his feet in the water, he was scaring them. Waving his arms around and splashing water. He was definitely scaring them on purpose. She growled and let go of Lauren's hand. Scaring ducks on purpose wasn't nice. She ran to the pond and stood in front of the boy with her hand in fists, ignoring Lauren's calls for her. "Stop it, you're scaring them!" The boy snickered. "So?" "So stop it!" "Oh, you're gonna make me?" Astrid pushed him. But he was much bigger than her, and her small, human body could do nothing against him. He pushed back and she stumbled to the ground. And once again she could feel red fire creeping through her body. She recognized it immediately. Anger. At that boy, at that stupid human world. Why were humans so mean? She got up. Her knees hurt and her eyes stung, and her feet were no longer touching the ground. She didn't care. She didn't care if she was flying, if she was glowing as bright as the sun himself. She was so, so mad. She felt like something heavy was crushing her chest. Is that what anger felt like? She couldn't tell. The boy was looking at her with fearful eyes, frozen in place. She was flying just high enough to be looking down at him. "Wha, what the hell?" he muttered. Astrid pushed him, hard. This time he landed on his back in the water. She didn't know what she was gonna do. She just knew that she was seeing red, that she was angry because that human boy had hurt her friends. But she heard footsteps and felt the presence of someone standing behind her, then a hand yanking her back. "Astrid, that's enough!"

That was Lauren. She dragged Astrid away from the boy and the ducks. She sounded angry. Astrid wasn't sure why. She struggled, trying to push past her, but Lauren was strong and just as stubborn. "We need to go, now". "...no!" People were starting to gather around. She didn't care.

"I wasn't asking. Let's go!" Astrid let out a high pitched scream. Lauren gritted her teeth and wrapped her arms around Astrid, picking her up. "I know you're upset, but we really have to go now". She stopped struggling. Tears were streaming down her face for no apparent reason. She closed her eyes, and only opened them when she heard Lauren start the car. The red in her vision was starting to fade. She looked over at Lauren. She seemed tense, ears bright red. Was she, too, angry at the human boy? For once, Lauren didn't try to spark up a conversation during the ride home. So Astrid stayed silent, small hands still in fists. Her knees were bleeding. and her clothes were all muddy, and now she was starting to care again. Stupid human emotions. She hated caring. Silently, she followed Lauren inside the house, where she collapsed onto a chair. She buried her face in her hands. Astrid stood a few feet away, eyes on the ground."Sit down, Astrid". She obeyed. She got the feeling Lauren was angry at her, rather than at that human boy. Why? she had no idea. "Look, I'm not angry with you for standing up to that boy, okay? He was mean and it was the right thing to do", Lauren said. Her voice was stern, but she wasn't shouting. Astrid though that was a good sign. "...And throwing a tantrum is a very human thing to do". Astrid crounched her face in confusion "What's a tar... a tantrum?" "It's like... it's when you get all angry or frustrated over something, and you scream and cry and won't listen to a word I say". "Oh".Lauren was quiet for a while, which gave Astrid the courage to speak up. "Why are you angry, then?"Lauren sighed. "It's just... your powers. They're powerful and amazing, but they can also be very dangerous. To you and to people around you. And what if someone saw you, what if the police or the feds found out about you...? Do you remember those comic books I gave you?" Astrid nodded. "If someone found out you're a star, it's possible they would want to cut you open. They'll take you away". "Why? You know I'm a star..." "Not all people are like me. Some people are mean, like that boy at the park". Astrid took a shaky breath, reaching for Tiu and hugging him close to her chest. "But hey, I'm not going to let that happen, okay? I just need you to be careful. Don't use your powers in public. Ever. I get that it's hard, but... I just want to keep you safe. Okay?" Astrid nodded, and Lauren offered a comforting smile. "C'mhere". She leaned forwards to envelope her in a warm hug.The remainings of the red fire died out. "You're not mad anymore?" "I never was, star-child".Astrid breathed in relief. Lauren wasn't mad at her. But her knees were still bleeding. Golden liquid dripping down her legs. Lauren got her into the shower and helped her scrub off all the dirt. Then she got her into a clean dress and patched up her wounds. They sat down in the living room, Lauren reading and Astrid playing with her dolls. "Tell me more about this world". Lauren looked up, and Astrid got the feeling she was disturbing her. "Tell you... why??" Astrid shrugged. "I'm bored. And curious".Lauren sighed "Okay, then". She moved over so Astrid could sit on the couch next to her. "What'd you wanna know?" "Just how it works". This world was complicated, and kind of scary. She wanted to be able to understand it better. Lauren tried to explain. The world was a round planet, with lots of water. It sort of just floated there, in deep space. She said it was complicated. She described the government and how people got elected. Astrid was surprised to find out there was no king, like in her books. Lauren said something called the internet was a big part of this world. And that there were rules, and there were bad people who broke the rules. And there were the police who fought the bad people, but they weren't always right.And Lauren promised to tell her more later. Maybe tomorrow. Then they watched three disney movies in a row, with Astrid singing all the songs. She felt like herself again. She might be too scared to fly, but she was still a star. Or a star-child, as Lauren called her. She had to believe one day she would fly again. Meanwhile, she had Lauren and a bunch of furry stuffed animals.

#stories #story #stars #fallenstar #original stories #My Story #My characters #please review #what do you think?

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