#yes yes yes i know he just got 13 years older like i did but you know. he did it very gracefully is all i'm saying

[littleragondin]

"But Kikunosuke-sama ... please don't give up on trusting others."

[angel-eyes05]

to leave the warmest bed i've ever known

pairing: spiderwoman!reader x miguel o’hara 

summary: after miguel’s fight with miles, you confront him in his office

warnings: this whole thing is basically one big argument there’s SO much angst, implied suicide attempt, HUGE ATSV SPOILERS DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS MOVIE, im projecting a little in some parts of this ngl (i cried writing a certain section of this, you'll know it when you read it lmao), mentions and descriptions of blood, gore, and death

word count:  4.1k

notes: i watched the movie yesterday…and miguel is on my mind. but i remember reading this namor x reader fanfic after i watched wakanda forever of a similar idea to this and i loved it so this is HEAVILY inspired by that fic, but just make it miguel. i would link it but ngl that was so long ago and i dont remember the author. if i end up finding it again ill put it here. also, just pretend miguel has been doing this whole spider society thing for a couple of years at least, it just needs to work like that for this ik its probably not canon but just roll with it lmao. and yes the title is a taylor swift lyric im so glad you noticed (im so sorry she's in my brain rn with the eras tour)

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The anger boiled up inside your chest as you stormed your way across the lobby. Hundreds of different Spider-Man variants were scattered across the area, some more injured than the others. It sickened you sometimes. How he had so many people under his grasp and just decided to throw some of them at the walls sometimes, not caring how hard they hit the floor because they were all just ammo to him. How despite his denials of it, that’s probably what your role was to him as well. Nothing more than a bullet in his massive machine gun.

You normally tried not to think about it, how his determination towards his goal sometimes meant lack of care for others. But this time he had just gone too far. You always had a soft spot for Miles, watching closely on him whenever Miguel would let you go though scanners of all the different variants. You admired his struggle, but eventual success to taking up the previous Peter’s mantle, and always hated how Miguel talked about him. You knew there was no way Miles could’ve asked for any of this. For the pressures and struggles of being a Spider-Man, for everything causing such a strained relationship with his parents, for the death of his uncle, and for what will be the eventual death of his father. You definitely didn’t.

Ok lets do this one last time. Eh, whatever, there’s probably gonna be 50 other introductions after this one so it doesn’t really matter.

Being Earth-837’s Spider-Man has never been easy. Especially since you were bit when you were only 13 (another reason you sympathized with Miles and Gwen). Your life had followed the order of canon events to a perfect T, your older brother killed in a fight with a robber only two months after you were bit. You tried to overcome the burden of your powers by trying to live as normal of a teenage life as possible, but it was mostly in vain, having to give up multiple friendships and relationships in fear of those you love getting hurt. This was only elevated when your boyfriend Peter was murdered in the crossfire of an encounter with Doc Ock. You didn’t understand. You couldn’t. What you had done to deserve all of this. All you did was just be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You wonder sometimes what would happen if someone was in the same place you were when you got bit. If someone else went to the closed down area of that museum and ran into that spider. That stupid spider that ruined your life. Those thoughts slowly started to disappear for a bit. For a few years things were easy. Things seemed like they were finally going in your favor.

You were 25 when it happened. The last canon event. Ever since you were a little girl you hated your mother’s job. Losing nights of sleep over if she would come home or not. She always did though. She was good at her job. Too good though. Good enough to get promoted to police captain, which for who you were, was basically sealing her fate. She saved so many people that day. You were too busy fighting Venom to notice how much collateral damage you were causing in the process. Your mother’s job was to evacuate all the citizens away from the fight. She died shielding a child from incoming debris. A noble way to go. But god was it gruesome. You found her after the fight was over, two metal poles impaling her. One through her stomach and one straight through her face, pools of blood growing bigger below her as she was left there, all the paramedics busy trying to save the heavily injured. You froze when you finally recognized her, unable to at first due to how mutilated her face was from the pole. Suddenly, you were transported back to being a six year old, falling asleep outside the door to your mother’s bedroom so you would know exactly when she would come home. Purposefully falling asleep in her arms so that she couldn’t go anywhere.

When you used the key she had given you to get into her apartment that night, and you slept in her room, desperate to intake anything left of her before she was fully gone. You doused yourself in her perfume so it still felt like she was standing right behind you. You had always loved her smell. The smell of vanilla, curl product, and fancy perfume. They were attached to memories you had of her. Trying on her heels when you were a kid to try and be fancy like her. Smelling her hair in the morning before school to comfort you before she left for work. Despite all of this bringing you comfort, all it really did was cause further denial in your heart. That one day you were gonna hear the keys clacking in the keyhole to your apartment one more time. That’s all you really wanted. You would give everything up in a heartbeat just to hear her police scanner go off one last time. But it wasn’t going to. And it was your fault. Deep down you knew it was. You should’ve done a better job controlling the debris. You had always been a messy fighter, but you didn’t know it was going to mean anything until it was too late. 

How you got up to the top of that building is still a blur to you to this day. But next thing you know, you were looking at the New York City skyline from the very top of the Empire State Building. And at the very edge too. You heard some sounds behind you, but you just decided it was the wind howling from how high up you were. You were just so tired. Everything and everyone you loved was cursed all because of you. And with your mother as the most recent victim, you decided you finally had enough. You took a deep breath, eyes overflowed with water, as you set your foot forward.

Your plummet was interrupted by a sudden contact you felt to your forearm. Shock filled your body as you turned around to look at what had stopped your attempt. The blue hand was massive, nearly wrapping back around onto itself as it held onto you for dear life. You finally looked up at face that the hand belonged to. The mask that covered the massive figure was a strange one. Blue with strange red silhouettes for the eyes. It kind of reminded you of…your own costume? That couldn’t be though there was no way. This must be the afterlife or something. You already jumped and that's why you didn’t remember your way up to the top. This was some kind of creature trying to stop you from jumping down to hell below. His breaths were heavy and loud, almost like he was desperate to stop you. This convinced you that this was real, which caused you to try to escape from his grip. He was stronger than you, and was putting up a huge fight. You were slick though. Once you were out of his hand, you closed your eyes and quickly made your jump. Everything flashed before your eyes. Your brother, Peter, your mom. You were hoping to see them soon. This was very quickly interrupted again when you suddenly stopped falling. Something had attached itself to your stomach. You opened your eyes. A web? This web was much different than yours though. It was glowing a bright, neon orange.

The man was holding onto the end of it tightly with both hands. His mask then disappeared to show his face. His was long, matching how big the rest of his body was, defined cheek bones sticking out. Brown wavy hair slicked back with a few loose strands flying out in the wind. The look of desperation on his face stook out most of all. Why did he care so much? He didn’t know you, and you definitely didn’t know him. “Let me pull you up. Please,” he said to you between shaky pants. You stared at him for a bit before nodding. He slowly pulled you up with the string of his web, each move more careful than the last. As soon as your feet were planted safely back on the roof of the building, he wrapped you up in his massive arms. You appreciated the gesture, but you didn’t return it, still very confused about why he was so concerned. He was so big around your body though, you couldn’t help but feel a little comforted, feeling his still shaky breaths against the hairs of your neck. Soon after, he clicked on some buttons on his neon orange watch and led you into a portal.

The rest is history. You’re grateful he found you that day. It allowed you to meet so many people, Peter B., Jess, Gwen, Hobie, Ben, Pavitr, Margo. They all related to you and you felt like you could share things with them that you couldn’t do with anyone else. You had grown especially close to Peter and Jess, both of them having been in the game for a long time, just like you. They both knew how you felt, having lost so much and growing so tired after so many years. Peter even named you as Mayday’s godmother when she was born, a gesture that caused you to nearly kill him with your hug. Miguel though was different. He wasn’t nearly as social as the rest of your friends, but you found yourself having much more intimate moments with him (in more ways then one). You eventually found out why Miguel was so concerned for you the day you met. He had taken interest in your abilities early into looking for variants for his little “project”, but refrained from roping you into something so dangerous while you were still in your teens.

Once you were old enough though, he started paying more and more attention, hoping to catch you in a fight and recruit you then. But he was always pulled away with more important duties to attend to. That was until he witnessed your canon event. He had seen it happen so many times before through his scanners. It was going to happen. It had to in order for your universe to not collapse in on itself. But for some reason, yours hurt more than the rest to him. Especially how you coped with it. Seeing you wrap yourself up in her blankets and clothes broke his heart. He knew where this would lead to. That’s why he was there that day. To save you. He had to, or he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. You got your own watch immediately, along with your own room in the Spider Society headquarters. He stayed close with you for the first month of you being a member of the team. When he wasn’t out on missions, he was with you. You didn’t really know what to label you two as, but whatever was going on, you liked it. And he did too.

That is until Miles came into the picture. Once Miles was bit, all hell broke loose for Miguel. He was always in some alternate dimension catching some Spider-Man villain who got out and rangled them back over here, falling back over to you more beat up and bruised than the last time. You couldn’t imagine how much stress he was under, the fate of the entire multiverse up to him. You had some ways of helping him relieve his stress, but you wish you could convince him that he wasn’t alone in this. But nothing ever got through to him. He had become distant, aloof even. You tried bringing it up to Jess every so often, but she would just brush it off.

“That’s how he’s always been.” Not to you he hasn’t. This week has been hell though. With Spot making it over to Miles, Miguel had been going into rages all week. You had put up with it for now, but that was all about to stop. Watching how harsh he was being on Miles, throwing so many Spider-Men at an innocent boy, risking all of their lives in the process. Disregarding everything Gwen and Peter were feeling and then throwing Gwen back into her broken world with nothing. He had gone too far. No one else was going to stand up to him about it, so you knew it had to be you. Maybe he would listen, maybe he wouldn’t. It didn’t really matter. He just needed to hear it.

“It’s not worth it you know.” The voice snapped you out of your thoughts, stopping you in your tracks. “You know how stubborn he gets over these things,” said Jess, trying to convince you to save your breath. “I don’t care. I have to at least try,” you responded, monotonically. “I just don’t understand how you can follow him so blindly and not see what he’s doing is wrong.” “Because he isn’t wrong. I don’t know about you, but I’m not just gonna stand by and let some kid’s stupid decisions destroy another Earth,” Jess argued. “He’s just trying to save his dad, I can’t understand how that makes him such a bad person,” you said, finally turning around to face her, shocked when she was closer to you than expected.

“You know exactly why. Don’t be so naive, y/n,” she shot back. “You can’t stop me,” you said staring straight into her. She shrugged. “Then I can’t help you.” She began to walk away. You did to, until you heard her say. “You don’t know how much he cares for you.” You turned around to face her again, but her back was still to you, her head tilted ever so slightly to look at you. “If you really do care for the kid, watch what you say to Miguel right now. Cause you might just give him the final push he needs to do what needs to be done.” You didn’t give her a response, and just simply kept walking. You felt Jess’ eyes on your back as you entered the elevator to get up to Miguel’s office.

The elevator ride up felt longer than it should’ve, as you tried to gather all of your thoughts and emotions together so even if he didn’t listen, your words would still stick with him in some way. You didn’t necessarily want to hurt him (though your fists were telling you otherwise), but you did want him to be aware of what he’s done. Once the doors finally opened, all of that work flew out the window as rage took over your body again, seeing Miguel up there looking at the scanners. The fact that he looked just as normal as he always does made you furious. It’s like nothing happened.

“You know, I could hear you coming in from the lobby,” he said, almost stopping you in your tracks. You hated when he did that. Claiming that he knew what your every move was going to be. Like you were under his control or something. “Yeah, well then you must’ve heard me talking to Jess, which means you know exactly what this is about,” you shot back, stopping to where you could see him perched up there. “Why don’t you just save me the conversation about morality and just come up here and kick my ass already. It’ll save both of us time,” he said, not even taking his eyes off the scanners to look down at you. This only added to your fury. “That’s not what I’m here for Miguel, so don’t you dare try to twist my words here. What you did to that kid was fucked up and you know it.” “Oh yeah, then why didn’t you try to do anything to stop me?” he questioned.

“Because I’m not stupid Miguel. I’m not gonna try to take down hundreds of Spider-Men at once.” “Oh, cause you’re so much better than that?” This wasn’t like him at all. That gentle, kind, and caring Miguel you once knew was gone, taken over by some sort of personal vendetta he had against Miles. “Listen, I don’t know what’s going on with you, but this all needs to stop before it gets taken too far. You’re getting into a fight you can’t win. That kid’s strong and so are his allies. And if you go any further into this, I won’t be here to help you.” He stayed still and only turned his head to look at you. “And what makes you think that you’re so important to my plan that it’ll fall apart if you leave? Have you really become that pretentious?”

Your body froze. Have I really? No no no, that’s exactly what he wants. If you begin to doubt yourself now, you’ll stay and nothing will change. You knew you were right. He was trying to crumble you down, but you wouldn’t let that happen. “And you really think that one kid is going to ruin something that you’ve been working for for years? How insecure you’ve become.” “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, turning back away from you. You did the same, wiping off your face in anger. “I hate it when you do tha-,” you said as you turned back around, but were cut off to find Miguel standing there right in front of you. He was close. Too close to your liking, although in any other circumstance you would’ve found this attractive.

He tilted his head up, but his eyes were down staring daggers into yours. You hated how much he tried to make himself seem more superior to you. “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” he repeated, this time slower as if you were a child. “He’s just a kid Miguel,” you said in a low, quiet voice. “An anomaly. And a dangerous one at that.” “God Miguel, all he wants to do is protect his dad, do you know how insane you sound right now?” you said letting out a slight laugh when you finished. You backed away from him a little. “He doesn’t know how much damage he’ll do with this. Saving his father will only prolong the inevitable. His world will be gone within hours if he does this. All I’m trying to do is make him understand,” he tried to explain. “By trying to kill him.” “You always have to exaggerate the situation,” he said palming his face. “But that’s essentially what you’re trying to do isn’t it? Why not snuff out the problem entirely by taking him out!”

He signed and began to walk away while you were talking, bringing up your anger even more. “Yeah, use all the power you’ve accumulated over the years and just take out the small problem! Except this isn’t just a fly on the wall Miguel. This is a child! An innocent boy who didn’t ask for any of this to happen to him, just like how we didn’t. I get it, I’m sorry that this job is stressful, I really am. But that gives you zero right to act the way you are!” You were screaming at him at this point. You didn’t want to. You didn’t want your emotions to get the best of you. But he was being too stubborn. This was the only way you thought you could get to him. You might not have wanted to, but you needed to hurt him now. It was the only way.

“You can’t be so power blind that you refused to accept the fact that there could be a way around Captain Davis’ death. You said we saved Earth’s before, I’m sure we could do it again.” Your anger only kept rising when he kept walking away and didn’t respond. “This is a personal thing isn’t it?” you asked calmly. You knew it was working now when he stopped walking. “Yeah, it it. You won’t let Miles get his happy ending. Because why should he be pardoned of his burden while the rest of us have suffered so much. While you’ve suffered so much.” The answer to your question was confirmed when Miguel stayed silent. “Just because you didn’t get the life you wanted Miguel, doesn’t mean you have the right to stop other people from getting theirs.”

You knew you overstepped the line when Miguel turned around and started walking towards you, fury burning in his crimson eyes. “Yeah, so what! What if that is what this is all about! You should know better than anyone how much this job takes away from you!” he screamed at you, backing you up into a wall. “Why should he get to be let off so easily, while people like you and me have to suffer so much? Don’t try to turn me into the villain here when I know you’re thinking the exact same thing, y/n.” He wasn’t entirely wrong. You had wondered it at some points. “I won���t let you turn this onto me Miguel, this is about you,” you fired back. “Oh no, you’re not getting off that easily. I know you’re thinking it. And you’re right. Why should Miles get let off so easily when you’ve lost so much.” He held your hands in his, trying to connect to you. “And you have mi vida. You’ve had so much taken from you and it’s unfair. Why should he only have lost one person when you’ve had three taken from you. Your brother, Peter, your moth-.”

He was cut off by your hand striking against his face in a harsh blow. “If you’re smart, and I know you are, you’ll keep those three out of them. I won’t let you drag their names through the dirt for something as stupid as this.” You both stood there for a while, both of your eyes looking towards the ground, hoping it would open up to swallow you both as an escape from this god awful conversation. You never wanted it to come to this. In all honesty, you cared for Miguel. You might’ve even loved him, if you were even capable of doing such a thing. You hoped he felt the same way about you, but in a job like this, he always had at least one wall up around you. It just wasn’t worth it anymore. You were too tired to keep trying for something that was most likely going to fall apart in the end. 

“You’re still going after him aren’t you?” you asked, finally breaking the silence. Miguel looked back up at you. “You can’t ask me not to. You know better than anyone why this is so important to me.” He moved his hand up to cup your cheek and kissed your forehead gently. You let it sit there for a minute out of habit before pushing it off your face. “And you must know why I can’t stay anymore then.” His shoulders dropped. “Whatever this thing between us is. It’s over. I can’t stay beside someone who can’t see what he’s doing is wrong.” Miguel’s dropped hand turned into a fist of anger. “Fine,” he spat in your face. “I don’t need someone like you in my way. You’re just a liability to this anyways.” He began to walk away from you back to his scanners. “Just don’t come crying back over to me when your little plan doesn’t work out, cause I won’t help you.” He used his webs to pull himself back up to the platform to keep looking for Miles. You stood there for a second, gathering yourself.

Five years. Out the door just like that. It bewildered you how easily a bond like you two had could be broken all because of one teenager. You began to make your way for the door before you said. “When this is all over…don’t try to find me.” He didn’t respond. Once the elevator doors opened, you rushed inside, desperate to get away from him. So many thoughts rushed through your head as the doors closed and you sunk down back to the lobby to leave. You didn’t have much of a plan. This could end up being a horrible idea. Your gut told you it was the right thing to do though. And that was enough for you. You walked out of the headquarters lobby with a new heart and a new mind, ready to take action for your new plan.

First though, you had to find Gwen.

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a/n: god that took longer than it should've. dw dw i'll do a part 2 if enough people ask for one. im not 100% sure how im gonna do a part 2 cause yk....idk how beyond the spiderverse is gonna go so tbh, we're just gonna make it go the way i want lmao. thanks for reading, ik this was kind of a long one lmao

NEXT CHAPTER

[igotanidea]

Different lives: dad!Jason Todd x wife!reader

Request: Family au, I believe that Jason Todd is a family man and he would totally have 2 older boys like 15-13 a five year old daughter who has him like wrapped around his finger and the wife and Jason get like a call from the school saying there was a fight and Jason is all like hey no no we don't do that but then asks who won

***

It seemed like they were dancing at Dick and Babs’ wedding only five minutes ago.

Holding onto each other for dear life, like they knew that that person in their arms were the one. Like this little celebration, that was not really little, and not even theirs, made them think about future much more seriously.

And for the first time ever, Jason actually believed that maybe there was something more for him in this life. Something more than rejection, pain, fear and constant loneliness.

Of course, given the fact that he and Y/N had been together for a while, he knew that before. But at that moment, in the middle of the giant dancefloor, surrounded by other couples and guest and yet – having eyes only for her – he knew.

Two different things.

***

When he came back home from his work (he had regular work now! That scrawny kid and rebellious young adult turned into a responsible head of the family, though the moment of change somehow skipped them both) Y/N was on the phone with a concerned face expression.

“Yes. Yes, I understand. I’ll be there right away. Yes. Yes, absolutely.” She turned to Jay and send him a smile, tired if not exhausted, but a smile regardless.

He let her talk, instead focusing on his little princess daughter playing on the blanket next to her mother’s feet. That little being totally had him wrapped around her finger and all it took was a sight of her pretty eyes that looked so much like her mother’s and he was dropping everything and rushing to the girl’s side.

“What happened?” He asked taking Leah on his knees and settling on the couch next to Y/N, wrapping an arm around her shoulders trying to relieve the obvious tension. He had his girls therefore he had everything and there was not a single thing he wouldn’t do for them.

“It’s Liam and Dylan.” Y/N sighed pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Oh, right” Jason smirked at the thought of his two older sons. 15 and 13 now, looking and acting just like him at this age. Causing troubles wherever they showed, not taking anyone’s bullshit, but with a deeply hidden heart of gold. He was so proud of them, even if saying that out loud was a rare occurrence. “What did they do this time?” he chuckled, mischief dancing in his eyes.

“Jason!”

“What?”

“This is not funny!”

“Of course it is! They are boys, they are allowed to-“

“I’m warning you, do not finish this sentence!” she placed both hands on Leah’s ears “I don’t want my baby girl anywhere near trouble.”

“You know she’s got our blood in her veins, so that gives her a lot of genetic burden in the troublemaker area?”

“Jason!”

“What?” he shrugged casually “It’s true and you know it.”

“Mhm. Yeah, we’ll see how you act when he grew up on causing troubles with boys-“

“WHAT?!” Jason jumped off the couch, holding Leah’s little body close to his chest, his grip on a girl tightening significantly. “Over my dead body! That’s my little girl! No one is taking her away and-“

Y/N only laughed observing the jealous dad display and fairly enjoying the show of care. It was heartwarming, seeing Jason put so much care into someone. And him having it reciprocated as Leah nuzzled into his body with multiple happy chuckles playing with the fabric of his shirt, fisting and twisting it mercilessly.

“Daddy…” she chuckled enjoying his embrace. Even as a child she was always calmer when he was holding her.  

“Shhh, shh baby. Daddy’s gotta have a word with mummy.” He caressed Leah’s hair and kissed the top of her  head. “Stop laughing at me Y/N, this is serious shit! I need to start planning my predicaments for boys who might want to steal her heart and-“

“She’s five Jason!” Y/N laughed even more “I think you have a little bit of time.”

“This is serious!” he perked up.

“Of course. The same way it’s serious with Dylan and Liam.”

Jason grunted in annoyance seeing how she tricked him.

“Dammit Y/N…” he grinned immediately flinching inside at the thought Leah heard the cussing. “Sorry, pumpkin…” the little kiss planted on girl’s forehead did not stop her from repeating the word however.

“Dammit!” Leah cried out the word on the top of her lungs happily.

And that was how Jason knew he was up to a serious conversation with his wife.

***

An hour later, all the family was sitting in the car, Jason driving, Y/N shotgun and the kids on the backseat, with Leah in the middle being simultaneously entertained by both her older brothers. Under  any other circumstances Y/N would probably let her motherly instincts come to the fore, but this time was different.

“Liam, Dylan, stop using my soft spots and family love for your own purposes.” She warned “you may love your sister, but you’re still in trouble.”

“We didn’t do anything!”

“Liam Thomas Todd!” she almost turned around ‘you got into a fight at school.”

“But it was not our fault mom!” the other son, immediately came to his brother rescue, having his back, which – again – awakened her motherly pride. A feeling she was not going to subdue to. Those boys needed a little reaming out regardless of siblings’ solidarity.  “That guy just came at us and –“

“Dylan Roy Todd. Violence is not an answer and-” She said, with conviction at first but then stopping, having realized that those kids did in fact have Jason’s and hers blood and those words were a hypocrisy in purest form. Fuck. She hissed to herself, hesitating in the middle of the sentence. A mistake Jason was more than willing to jump at.

“A fight huh?” he smirked looking into the rearview mirror to sneak a glance at his sons. Liam with already bruising eye and Dylan with a swollen nose, clutching it tightly to prevent any blood stains on upholstery. “So, did you use those blows and punches I’ve been teaching you?”

“WHAT!?” Y/N turned from facing her sons to facing her husband so fast that something snapped loudly in her neck. “JASON PETER TODD!”

“Y/N, Y/M/N, Y/L/N” Jason grinned in response, not paying her that much attention too curious of his offsprings response “Who won?”

“You should have seen the other guy” his boys smirked in the same way he was, and his fatherly heart could not be bigger at that moment.

Even if he knew Y/N was already planning her revenge on them all.

[circeyoru]

Collection of Overlords _ Part 6 = Requested

[Alastor x Soul Owner of All Overlords!Reader]

Part 1 — Part 1.5 — Part 2 — Part 3 — Part 4 — Part 5 — Part 6 (here) — Part 7 — Part 8 — Part 9  — Part 10 — Part 11 — Part 12 — Part 13

Alastor nearly dropped the tray containing your food when he felt your darkening aura. He immediately got over and set the tray of food in front of you while explaining what was cooked for you. Ignoring the obvious death glare you were sending across the table at Lucifer who was still proudly introducing you

It was amazing for Alastor to see you silently seething with annoyance yet do nothing. Perhaps it was because Lucifer has yet to step out of line? Or because you had your dose of terror because of the Vees?

You were introduced as the mentor of Lucifer when he came to Hell all those years ago, meaning you were older than ancient. A hellborn, so you were able to travel throughout all of Hell, basically to other Rings that’s why you weren’t around for so long

Now the ‘Collector’ title was an interesting one. They didn’t know you hold the souls of the Overlords, they only know you hold a number of souls at your command. How you can do so while being a hellborn was beyond them. But they were aware that there were hellborn nobles, and that’s what they chalked it up to

Still though, it doesn’t help the fact that your cover was blown

“Dear student of mine.” You spoke softly with a smile. Alastor got a chill at the gentleness and eerie feeling of an incoming scolding.

“Yes, Teach?” That got Lucifer’s attention as he stopped with his flattery and turned to you with a brighter smile.

“Do shut up now.”

Your disguise dropped, revealing your true form to the others. Your eyes now closed, and an aura of authority and power radiated from you that commanded control and pressure

You politely asked Lucifer to leave the seat and continue with the hotel tour with his daughter. You had Alastor sit down while you two enjoyed a meal together. Alastor took the liberty of casting a barrier around the two of you to ensure privacy and uninterrupted moments

Peacefully, you listened to Alastor as he told you tales of what happened during his 7 years absence. The poor deer was gone looking for you after he realized your absence was a bit uncalled for, even going as far as to submit to demonic summoning in the human world to see if you would call him back to your services

It was amusing and you chuckled at the silly stuff humans had your deer do, Alastor’s cute ears pinned back at your mocking laugh, but returned to their position with joy when you said you meant to offense

So Alastor continued to share his stories to entertain you, all while you listened and enjoyed his cooking with a content smile gracing your lips

Never has he asked question about you, for you’ll never tell. You have your secrets and sacred knowledge and information that is only for your knowing. He knew, everyone else in your elite  collection knew. All they ask for was your presence and support in their time in this Hell realm

It was obvious how while you have all this power to squash them like mere insects, you never did so and instead supported them and given them a title that would be feared. You established a system for them that will be recognized by all of Hell

“I was afraid you’d be gone forever, My Liege.” Alastor’s ears drooped down.

You smiled, “Forever’s a long time. I should know. I’ll never be gone, no need to fret.”

Alastor remembers that day well, when he was approached by you. The shadows he controlled ran rampened, out of his control. He was suddenly brought to a forest, he saw the city buildings over the treelines, but he couldn’t leave this forest no matter what. Even when he tried to use his powers and his more demonic form, nothing worked. Something kept him there by force

For the first time since his descent to Hell, he felt powerless and caged. There was no one in that forest to exploit or ask questions. It was truly just him

It felt like he was held prisoner yet not since he was free to do as he pleased. He could conjure things, so his daily necessities were met. Then there were the deers that were nothing like the hell creatures, it was one he was familiar to back when he was alive. So he enjoyed the game of hunting

It felt like he was well-provided. All but his freedom to leave

He didn’t know how long he stayed there, but there were whispers here and there. Creatures that were a blend of ravens and crows were in the trees watching him, Cages as they introduced themselves

The Cages whispered ideas into him, he ignored them. Then they continued to repeating the same thing to him. He had enough and tried what was suggested to him. For some odd reason, it worked. It was like a power upgrade from what he was capable of, a boost if you will. The Cages spoke words of praise that felt oddly pleasant

From then on, he looked forward to the Cages’ suggestions. Everytime he accomplished what they proposed, compliments came to him with a wash of comfort, then another tip came. He found himself growing more and more reliant on the connection he had with the Cages and anticipated their presence every time his eyes opened from a nap or long rest

Yet the time came when all the Cages seemingly disappeared from the forest. He searched high and low, turning desperate for their presence again. He long forgotten his goal of escape since this place made his entertainment worthwhile and his power was growing

At the sight of that one Cage, he followed it. He knew then, it was on purpose, everything that happened had a purpose. The Cage led him to you. You who sat in the clearing tending to a number of Cages that were around you

When he materialized out of the shadows and saw your form, he felt like he was in a trance. That presence he was feeling through the Cages, it was all so strong around you, passing by those winged creatures, he confirmed it was all you. Everything that happened here was all your doing

Instead of rage and bloodlust like he had in the beginning of his time here, there was a longing of passion and an urge to stay by your side so he wouldn’t be separated from you. He didn’t understand it, but he knew you were the key to his pillar. No, you are his pillar

“Radio Demon, Alastor. Overlords before you has met me one way or another.” Your voice was so angelic that it felt like a crime that you’d be in Hell. Wait. He was in Hell? It felt like paradise. “I have a collection of souls at my disposal and I control the Overlords I have picked to be in my collection.”

“I wish to join.” He spoke so urgently as he fell to a kneeling position with his eyes staring at your form, he felt like if he delayed, it was life or death. 

A melodiously chuckle came from your curved lips that was a small smile. Your hand that had a Cage perched on it flicked and the Cage was airborn. You offered your hand to him, “If you do, you’ll be giving me your soul. I’m sure you know what that means.”

“I don’t care.” Alastor spoke with confidence firmly. “As long as I am by your side.”

Alastor held his heart stop when your eyes opened, it was captivating that his eyes focused on that the moment your eyelids revealed them to him. It felt it it was his birthday present and Christmas gift all wrapped in one. He saw his reflection from your eyes, the softness of your hand broke him from his trance, and the joyous tone from your voice got him melting into you, “As you wish. My Dear Alastor.”

Over the next few days, you have been observing the hotel residence after you little reveal

Lucifer was acting like a kicked puppy but soon recovered after you joined him in making breakfast for the others. He happily started singing and skipping around to make your smile last. Of course, he apologized for not realizing you were trying to hide your identity

You brushed it off since what’s done is done. Better now than later since no bonds were formed just yet. It was similar to how you gave Alastor a taste of what was to happen after he gave you his soul that day. The entire situation in the forest was to show him that he was free yet caged in your hold, he knew what he was getting into

Well, Alastor did seem to be the type of soul that wanted dominance so you did that to test and see if he can obey commands before offering him your contract. You expected him to fight for control longer and more fiercely, yet that wasn’t the case since he committing to you and proving himself the moment he saw you

Charlie was an interesting case. There was some time where she was more careful with her words around you, perhaps scared that you’d snap at her like you did with her father. And the fact that you were his father’s teacher that he respects and prides himself with associating with you. But then when Alastor gave her a word of caution that you weren’t as scary as you seem, then she took her chance

You got it through to her that she could act the same with you as before. She did not hesitate after that, of course, still keeping in mind some boundaries. She was back to her cheerful and fun self around you. Even enjoying feeling like a grandparent was taking care of her and spoiling her. Though that didn’t mean you were lenient with her that you’ll overlook things

You offer advice from time to time when Charlie was busy planning activities. You advised her on how to use her authority and power when necessary, her kindness is her strength and weakness. More on the latter since this was Hell, a number of demons will take advantage of her and push her down. Sure she can fight back, but it wouldn’t be enough when they are perfectly aware of what buttons to push

Vaggie showed obvious suspicion and caution around you. She went as far as to avoid you and not stand in your path. When it was obvious Alastor listens to you without another word, it raised even more red flags in her mind because you were that powerful. Lucifer speaking highly of you was even worse

She heard of ‘The Collector’, some demons she killed when she was still an exterminator screamed that The Collector will reign supreme or that a terrible death will be passed down as judgement to them. Hellborns move to other circles when it’s extermination day, some might be unlucky to escaped but exterminators weren’t taught to tell the difference between hellborn and sinners

When she was abandoned in Hell, she learned that The Collector holds a vast ocean of souls at your command. It was a terrifying thought to know that if you wanted, war can beginning at the drop of your command

Hell has 7 Rings, each represents a sin and only the Pride Ring has sinners of human souls. But Heaven was just that one. A paradise on top of the clouds. Now that angels can be killed, if you so wished, can’t you take over Heaven as well?

You were aware of all Vaggie’s little fears. You didn’t mind it at first, but her paranoia was getting out of head when she tried to deter the others to stay clear of you. Namely Charlie since you have been caring for her since you was too young to even remember. Though being the sweet princess she is, tried to have Vaggie under you weren’t a threat

A duel, you offered Vaggie. If she won, you’d leave the hotel and never step near any of them under any circumstances. Alastor nearly snapped when Vaggie pushed you to offer since an absurd wager, you own all of Hell, why would such a rule even apply to you? But you raised your hand to Alastor so he’d calm down. If you win, well, Vaggie will stop with all this ‘you’re the bad guy’ talk

Everyone came to watch. Charlie tried to persuade Vaggie to call it off but failed. Meanwhile, Lucifer urged you to hold back since this was his daughter’s beloved girlfriend. You planned to do so anyways and everyone stayed on the sidelines

Vaggie readied her spear and summoned her wings. You smiled, your form changing to a familiar one. Carmilla. You skillfully dodged all the attacks Vaggie launched at you as though you were dancing. While the duel was still ongoing, you pointed out Vaggie’s flaws and weak points before you attacked once and the winner of the fight was decided

Afterwards, Vaggie was persistant in asking for your fighting lessons and techniques. It got to the point where Alastor would try to move you to another spot so that his time with you wouldn’t get continuously interrupted. To his dismay, you found amusement in the entirety of the situation

“How dare you try to steal what precious time I have from me!” Alastor glared at Vaggie.

“This is a connection between warriors! You butt out of this edge lord!” Vaggie remarked back.

You merely chuckled at the exchange and never said anything to side with either. 

Angel hid his discomfortable of you from the others and acted as his usual self, as much as he can. The only ones that noticed his awkwardness was probably Husk and you. You had a hunch it was due to the fact that you own too many souls to count, he was under contract with Valentino. The poor soul

Pity as though it may be, it was his choice to be under that sorry excuse of an Overlord in the first place. He’s merely living the life he signed himself for. The same for Husk

Now Husk had the best reaction. He was the latest Overlord to be rejected from your collection, but not the fastest. He didn’t get anything guidance like how your current Elites (excluding the Vees) had, certainly never having Alastor’s treatment as well. For you saw gambling as a dangerous bet to support in. Where there’s a win, there’s always an even bigger lost

This was something you warned Husk after accepting him as an Overlord among your ranks. It certainly didn’t help when he was hosting more and more gambling parties and inviting other Overlords to join in. They participated but were quick to give him their input and warn to change a domain since you’ll be more supportive of it

Husk didn’t listen. He was winning and was blinded by that. So the other Overlords counted down till Husk was removed from the collection. It didn’t take long for your Overlords to realize they had a chance to pin down the former Overlord Husk to their command and show you their ability. Alastor took the job and the role of relying that he was abandoned

He didn’t know, he never knew. He reflected on that and found times when his fellow Overlords tried to help him and teach him the ropes, since these things aren’t something you’ll tell them. You like it when your Overlords are independent when they need to

So he shifted his focus like you advised so long ago. He gained the ability to read demons like a book as time gone by, so much so that he’d love to show it to you, but Alastor would never let that happen

When he saw you near, he tried offering you a drink or two. He wanted to talk, to say that he was sorry and that he was wrong. It’s always when he got to a suitable time to tell you that you were pulled away by one thing or another

He thought he lost his chance again until you met him in the hallway when he was retreating to his room to get some shuteye

“Husk, my former soul.” Your words made him freeze and turn to you, there was that small smile on your face that made you look so serene and neutral to everything. “I hope you continue your time here in service to the dear Princess and the hotel as Alastor has assigned you.”

“But I…”

“Until I call for you.” You cut him off as your smile widened, “Don’t worry about anything and try to build your power back, I see that you have learned your lesson.” You snapped your fingers and a card with an eye design on it appeared, you passed it to him, “Alastor knows my thoughts on the matter, so I hope you won’t disappoint me again.”

Husk bowed deeply, his wings relaxed that they touched the floor almost entirely, “Yes, I will, Master.”

You chuckled and showed him a hologram of him protecting and caring for Angel. “Do you know?” Husk looked up, unsure of why you showed him something like this. “That an Overlord can challenge another to gain the soul contract that’s signed?”

Husk’s eyes widened at the message you conveyed.

You made a hush motion over your lips as your eyes peeked open, “Let’s keep this between us. If you manage to prove yourself, there’s more to come and more to receive. Though that all depends on your willingness. Husk.”

Note: I'm so curious on your thoughts for this one~ There's Alastor's little backstory to how he became the way he is and then the little ending here~ Hehe

Well~ Like I said before, the next uploads are for {Unwanted Soul}

Circe Y. 

My Works: MASTERLIST

Taglist: (those that don't specify to being in all the works' taglist will automatically be assumed to be in whichever series they comment on)

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[obx-paradise]

What Happened To You?

Summary: You and Rafe have always been close but when you both get involved in the chase for the gold on opposing teams, some things change

Pairing: Rafe x Adopted sibling!reader; JJ x Cameron!reader (if you squint)

Warnings: Violence, Manipulation, Basically all of the shows warnings

Word Count: 2.7k

—

Growing up as a Cameron was easy. You got everything handed to you on a silver platter, as did all the other Cameron siblings.

Your mom and dad weren’t sure if they were going to be able to have any more children after Sarah came along so they decided to adopt since they always wanted a minimum of 3 children.

It came as a shock when they found out that she was pregnant with another baby, Wheezie.

That’s how they ended up with you as a part of their family.

Growing up, you had a strong bond with Rafe. Your mom would tell you that he had always loved you, from the first time he saw you at 3 years old he wanted to help his mom take care of you. She said it was the same way with Sarah but as you got older you saw that it wasn’t.

Rafe never treated you and Sarah the same. He was gentle with you, not to say he wasn't with Sarah, he just wasn’t as kind. It was a different kind of relationship. 

Although being a Cameron had its benefits, you didn’t want your last name to define you. You weren’t some rich stuck-up asshole who uses their money to gain power. You were a kind-spirited, humble person. 

Over the years, you had been taught that the people who had less than you were less than you. You grew out of that once you met the one person who would change that whole perspective. 

—

You had been assigned an experiment in school that day and you had to pick a location and do a good deed.

What better place to go than the cut. 

You were walking from house to house, knocking on doors, asking if anyone needed help with anything. Most people, knowing who you were, said yes but unfortunately the jobs were too big for a 13-year-old so you weren't able to do them. 

Finally, you came up to a house that didn’t look to be in the best condition. The door opened and standing there was a boy. You had seen him around Figure Eight doing odd jobs here and there. His name was JJ. He was cute. He looked like he was as old as you, 13 maybe 14 years old. No older than that.

You began to recite the same speech you had given to everyone who opened their door for you. It’s engraved in your brain at this point. You were tired and if he refused then you would probably go home and try again another day.

“Hi! My name is Y/n. I’m doing an experiment for a school project where I find someone who needs help with anything around their home, and I do it for them. Is there anything I can help you with today?”

Rather than accepting your offer, he said, “Do I look like I need help?”

As confused as you were you answered with, “Um… yeah kinda. It could be anything like washing your car, cutting your grass or cleaning your porch. Anything like that.”

You were desperate for him to say yes to anything you had just suggested. You needed an A on this project considering you were close to failing the class.

It was the only class you had a C in and you needed to pass, or your dad would sit you down and talk about how doing the best you can is all he could ever want but you know that he wants you to be the best. 

“You’re a kook?” he asked you as he stepped out on the porch and closed the door behind him

“Yeah, I guess. I don’t see how that matters though”

“It matters because we don’t take charity” He seemed very set on his answer

“Well, it’s not –” You were cut off by the sound of glass breaking coming from inside his house, then by the door flying open. You immediately saw JJ freeze and tense up at the sound of the man's voice. 

“JJ! Boy, what are you doing out here!? Get your ass inside!”

JJ looked at you with what looked like fear in his eyes. “You need to get out of here. Now.”

You went to question why but before you could, the man, who you assumed was his dad, grabbed him by the arm and dragged him inside. Looking back at you he yelled one last “Go!” before the door was shut behind him. Leaving you standing on his porch, worried, thinking about him.

—

Ever since then, you visited him almost every day because you were worried about him. Over time you both became good friends then, eventually, best friends. 

When he introduced you to the rest of the pogues you felt a sense of comfort that you had never felt while you were around your other friends. 

You knew that this was going to be your new normal. Hanging out on the cut with your best friends, with not a care in the world.

You have been shielded your whole life and although you like the safety of it all, you wanted some excitement. 

So when you got involved in everything with the Royal Merchant and the gold you realized that you had gotten what you wished for. Later on, you found out that Sarah had also gotten involved along with the shock of her dating John B. 

You and Sarah had a good but complicated relationship. She’s your sister and you love her but you couldn’t help but be jealous of her at times. But not always.

She had all the attention on her at all times, she was the “kook princess” as many people put it. Everyone loved her, including Ward. It was no secret that she was his favorite and always will be.

That was probably why you have always been closer to Rafe. Something was holding you back from having a full relationship with your sister.

But standing here in front of Rafe, you have a feeling that some things are about to change.

—

“You jumped him, Rafe!” You just found out that Rafe and Topper, but mostly Rafe, had jumped Pope on the golf course earlier that day. 

You couldn’t believe him. You knew he hated pogues but you could’ve never imagined your brother would beat up your friend. 

“Yeah, I jumped him, Y/n. They pulled a gun on Top!” You could tell that he was angry. Maybe not at you, but at the situation.

“Pope didn’t do anything. Topper was drowning John B! What else would’ve made him stop?!”

“Why are you defending them? Why is it okay for them to pull out guns on us?” He was definitely using up all of his patience on you. However much he had.

You let out a sigh “It’s not okay, Rafe. But it’s also not okay for you to do what you did. Can you please, just, not do it again? For me?”

You were really hoping he’d agree to stop hurting your friends. With everything going on you didn't need him hurting anyone. 

“Fine, but if they cross me, I won’t hesitate to beat their asses.” With that, he walked away.

—

As time went on, things kept getting worse and worse with the chase for the gold. Turns out all the gold was on land, in Parcel 9. Finding it was surprisingly easy and once you guys had a couple of pieces you decided to melt it and pawn it off.

The lady at the counter had told JJ that she would give him the money but she didn’t have that much cash in the shop so she had to send you all to the “warehouse” that was practically in the middle of nowhere.

After a couple minutes of driving, a cop pulled you guys over.

“Cops? Out here?” Kie had said 

“God! Are you kidding me? What did we do?”

As the cop got out of the car you quickly realized that the “cop” was not a cop at all. The man had walked up to John B’s window and shoved a gun in his face, yelling at him to get out of the car.

When you were walking out of the Twinkie, the guy pointed the gun at your face and yelled at you to lie in the ditch, threatening to shoot you. JJ came to your defense and started yelling back at the man, but you knew if you didn’t stop him, he would get shot.

“JJ, stop it!” You yelled in hopes that it would get him to stop provoking the only person with a gun. 

Eventually, he found what he wanted and went back to his car, ready to drive off, when John B attacked him from the inside. Once he was down, you took off his mask and recognized him as Barry. The local drug dealer.

“I know this piece of shit! He sells coke to my dad.” JJ said glaring at Barry on the ground

“Probably knows my brother,” Sarah said with disgust

It was no secret that Rafe took drugs. You had never seen him doing them but everyone knew.

JJ bent down, grabbed Barry’s ID, and checked his address. He decided that you all would go to Barry’s house.

Unfortunately, JJ’s “plan” had gotten you in trouble with your brother. 

—

You were walking through town, minding your business, when you heard a motorbike coming up behind you. You turned around to find Rafe on his bike, stopping beside you. 

“Hey,” You said as you stopped walking

“So you’re going around robbing drug dealers now?!” He sounded angry at you, which was unusual because of the relationship you both have with each other. Although, recently you have been drifting apart. 

“What are you talking about? I didn’t rob anyone.” You played it off as if you had no clue what he was talking about.

“Oh no, you’re right, it was your pouge boyfriend! That asshole is dragging you into shit you don't need to be in!”

“Don’t talk about my friend that way. JJ is not my boyfriend, and he didn’t steal anything from anyone.”

You didn’t know what Rafe would do if you admitted the truth. If he would go after your friend. You didn't want anything to happen to JJ if Rafe decided to go through with anything. 

“You’re the good one, Y/n! Sarah can go off the rails, your “friends” can rob people and shit like that but you…you’re supposed to be the sane one.” He said as he walked toward you, getting in your face.

“I don’t know what you want from me, Rafe.” Once again you were trying to push the issue aside. You didn’t want him to get aggressive with you as he tends to get with others.

“I…I want you to stop hanging around them. I want you to be my sister again” He spoke softer, having calmed down a bit.

“I’m still your sister, it’s just that the stuff you do doesn’t help the situation we’re in and it hurts to know that you would willingly do something to hurt me or the people I care about.”

“I would never do anything to hurt you” You would later come to find out that his statement wasn’t true but in the moment you believed him.

—

When Sarah walked into your room one night and told you that Rafe shot Peterkin, you refused to believe her. You didn’t want it to be true.

“What’s happening, Sarah?” You said while pacing the room “This shit is crazy, I don’t know if I can do this anymore” 

“I know, but I’ve told you, he’s psychotic. He’s going crazy and Dad is defending him. Can you believe that?” 

You knew Ward would protect Rafe no matter what.

“I can actually. He would protect any of us if we did something like that.”

—

All of these events led up to where you are right now. You were with JJ getting the Phantom for John B so he could get off the island.

While JJ was going on and on about the boat, you heard a motorbike pull up. Assuming it was Pope, you both ran over to the other side of the boat hanger only to find Rafe and Barry walking towards you. 

You haven’t seen Rafe in a few days but you could tell that he did not look good.

“Rafe, what are you doing here? You need to get out of here. Please” You were panicking. Especially with Barry also being there, it made it worse. 

“See, don't think I forgot about me and you on the side of the road,” Barry said, more like yelled, while pulling out a gun and pointing it at JJ “I'm here because I want my motherfuckin' money”

As Barry started swinging at JJ you pleaded with Rafe, asking him to stop them

“Rafe, please get him to stop. I’m begging you. Please”

“This isn’t about you, Y/n.” He said walking toward you “Where’s John B?”

“I don't know!”

“Hey! Don’t fucking lie to me! Where is he?” He was now completely in your space. Walking towards you while you’re walking backward until he has cornered you. 

Instead of answering his question, you said, “Sarah told me what you did,”

“What? What did I do?”

“You murdered Peterkin” you muttered considering his closeness. 

As soon as you uttered those words, Rafe did something you never thought he would do. He wrapped his hands around your neck strangling you while doing so.

“Don't you ever say those fucking words again”

“Rafe!”

“Understand?”

You had begun crying at this point, hyperventilating, trying to take in as much air as you could before you were cut off completely.

“Rafe…it’s me, it’s your sister, please…”

You looked up into his eyes and saw nothing but anger. It was like he wasn’t conscious of his actions. 

As soon as you felt like you were about to faint, you heard a muffled voice yell “Don't touch her!” from behind Rafe, then a second later, Rafe’s hands let go of your neck, causing you to start coughing, and gasping for air immediately. 

You looked up and saw Pope punching and kicking Rafe and while Rafe did fight back, Pope’s anger made him stronger.

Within the same minute, JJ had managed to overpower Barry and the gun slipped out of his hand.

“Y/n! Kick it!” and so you did but when you turned around you saw Pope strangling Rafe with some type of hose that had been lying in a pile of equipment. 

“Pope. Okay, Pope.” You weren’t freaking out as much as you should be, considering Pope could, very well, kill your brother right now.

“Pope, that's good! Stop!” He still wouldn’t stop

“Pope, that's too much!” You yelled out while JJ followed with, “Dude, come on! Stop! Stop, dude!”

You were starting to wonder if Pope would ever go that far but after you and JJ yelling a bit longer, Pope finally let go. Letting Rafe fall to the ground, face bloodied, and hyperventilating.

The same position you were in a couple of minutes ago, minus the blood. With him on the floor and Barry knocked out you were able to get a good look at him. You could still see the anger in his eyes as he looked up at you.

You couldn’t help but wonder where it all went wrong. Was it the drugs, the gold, or has it been this way for a while and you were just noticing it now? 

“What happened to you?” You whispered with tears in your eyes as he lay there saying nothing back, so you continued “What happened to my brother who said he would never hurt me or put me in danger?”

With that you walked away, joining JJ and Pope who had already hooked up the boat to the back of the truck.

“You good?” JJ asked when you entered the car, “Yeah, let’s go”

With that, you both drove off without looking back. 

Knowing that you would never let yourself wonder “What happened?” ever again.

—

A/n: First post is done! I really hope you all like it. Please let me know if i could improve anything.

[clownin44]

Not to demonize Ben's parents,

BUT, if someone like MAVERICK can admit the adults in his life failed him, I can too.

This drives me insane.

I have SO many questions.

Why did Shane want Ben to be in his group? Yes, he's tall and intimidating, but surely he's not the only one in their grade who fits that description. How long did this go on for? Aiden said It happened "every day," but how many days is that? How come Aiden literally can't remember if this happened in 6th or 7th grade? Where did the bullying take place? At school? How did he leave the building with those injuries without an adult noticing that something was wrong? How come his parents didn't say anything to the school board when their son came home, covered from head to toe in bruises? And if they did, why was nothing done?

"Clownin44, that's a little harsh. Give them the benefit of the doubt!"

He (11-13 year old boy) was sneaking out of the house, coming home late, and getting into STREET fights. The main and only reason he stopped was because he put his family in danger, and while I understand you can't help someone who won't accept help, they had EVERY opportunity to help him before it got to that point. He is a child. They are his parents. What if Ben never fought with the young boy whose older brother was in a gang? How long would this have gone on for? I don't know if you know anything about street fighting, but experience matters. This wasn't an act of rebellion. This was incredibly dangerous.

The worst part about it all is that Shane got what he wanted. Sure, Ben didn't join his group, but he did "fix" what he thought was wrong with Ben and inadvertently taught him how to fight. He wasn't expelled for putting him in the hospital. He wasn't expelled for bullying him or for getting his "group" to gang up on him, too. Shane was still in school by the time Ben recovered, and he would've continued to go to school with him if he hadn't moved in with his aunt and uncle. The entire thing was a disaster from start to finish.

Now, consider this; Ben has a younger sister he is incredibly protective of that he doesn't get to see very often. He physically can't be there for her if she ends up going through the same things he did. How can he trust that their parents won't fail her, like they failed him?

side note; the fact that we don't see Ben interacting with his parents, while Lily is basically racing into his arms, hurts me so bad. ARE THEY NOT CONCERNED? DO THEY NOT MISS HIM? DID I MISS A PANEL OF THEM OR SOMETHING? GOSH!!!

I get that it might not be that serious, and we never got to see how his parents handled the situation, so maybe they really were just doing their best, but I had to rant about this because I'm sooo sick and TIRED!!

[greeniegirl23]

Alastor As A Father (Daughter Version)

- Boy howdy, this man plays NO GAMES about his little girl. From the moment she was born, he vowed to burn the world of anyone even thought about looking at her the wrong way.

-He treated her like his personal porcelain doll. You swore this baby had more clothes than you'd had both alive and dead. He shoes were always shined, her socks had little ruffles on them, and there were bows EVERYWHERE ON EVERYTHING!!

-Over time, Alastor quickly learned that his daughter was a bit different. When she took her first breaths, she didn't cry. In fact it was rare for her to cry at all. She also had a fondness for black objects, sharp shiny things, and something that concerned him the most was that she hardly ever smiled.

- Even as she got older, he never caught her smiling nor giggling as typical toddlers do. Instead she was a stoic little one. Cute as a button, but as monotoned as a black and white painting. Even her voice didn't change in tone very much unless she was trying to express something urgently.

-Alastor brought this up to you and you tried to assure him that everything would be alright. You knew how much smiling meant to him and he felt somewhat sad that he couldn't share that with his daughter.

- After 4 years of no smiling, Alastor finally talked to her about it and found that they had very different ideals.

- Apprently your daughter had a different phlosophy compared to Alastor and believed that her Dad's ideas could be applied in the same way to a face that was unchanging. Openly she expressed to him that she didn't agree with his philosophy and that she would prove her idea to be just as good, if not better than his.

- On one hand, Alastor was proud of his daughter showing the promise of being a potential Dealmaker. On the other hand, he was concerned and slightly offended that she couldn't see the beauty or the power of smiling 24/7. He truly believed he'd never see her do it.

- Until one day, he took her with him to Rosie's Emporium in Cannibal Colony. He enjoyed some coffee and a chat with his dear friend while his Little One played with the other children. Everything seemed to be going well, until it wasn't.

-Out of the corner of his eye, Alastor saw a young boy push your daughter out of the sand box.

-A high pitched whine shook the air, but before he could do anything about it, your daughter had swiped the lad's arm clean off. The same filthy arm that had decided to push his little darling in such a bold move of audacity.

- Horrified screams filled the air as the boy ran off to his mother who seemed to be in a state of distress. The other children rallied around her and started thanking her for what she'd done. Turns out that boy was a big bully to the other children, but was also the strongest on the playground.

- Happy at the attention she was receiving, she ran too him with her little arms up in pure excitement. It was her first real fight and Alastor was so proud, but what made it with all the more was the beaming white smile she gave him.

"Daddy Daddy, I got the bad boy! Did you see?!"

"Yes my little Bambi! That was quite a clean cut, right at the joint just as I've shown you before!" He beamed right back at her, hugging her close and poking her nose.

- Of course all the other parents were slightly concerned, but who was going to come up to him and complain and ruin his babygirl's precious moment? He fucking dared them...

- Of course, you didn't find out about this juicy little story until her 12th birthday when she let it slip and you held both her and Alastor captive by the ears until they confessed.

- After that day though, Alastor and your child grew closer as he prided himself on showing her more techniques for disarming a potential threat. He also showed her everything she'd ever need to know to both care and protect herself. She could shoot, cook, bake, sew, dress fashionably, summon her magic, clean, and was even sword trained all before 13 years old.

- "Daddy's going to make sure you are a strong independent young lady! That way of some vile man comes along thinking he can take you away from me, you won't be impressed by any of his mediocre skills." said Alastor, growling at that last part as if your marriage to this idiot was irrelevant.

- Even though she was a die hard Daddy's Girl, she also enjoyed spending time with you. Baking, crocheting, and anything artsy she loved doing by your side. You even had dedicated days where you'd sneak out of the hotel to go shopping while Alastor was away.

- All in all, she loved you both and swore to be the best version of herself she could be. P.S She also promised her Father that any of the men that tried to court her or broke her heart would end up on the dinner table.

Hehe Oops :D

[sinnabarmoth]

Tribute for the Dragon (8/18)

Pairing: Dragon|Sylus x Fem|Reader

Summary: Sylus takes you to witness a dragon celebration and things take a rather fiery turn.

Content Warnings: Adult language. Thigh riding.

Length: 3k

Chapters: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18)

Read on AO3

Life in the mountain was different.

You hadn’t noticed it at first but things were different. Ever since you and Sylus actively started getting to know one another the mountain felt more homey. You weren’t just a servant wandering these halls, both mystified and turned on by the dragon you served. He had become a friend.

Things had never gotten as personal as they did the day he told you about what life was like for him growing up. It had been a lot for him to admit, even under the initial guise of a draconic folktale. He never mentioned it again and you didn’t pry. But you were glad.

Your dragon was someone you knew. Questions you had no longer had to be filled with your imaginings. When wanted to know something about him, he just told you.

You were happy and you felt trusted.

You had noticed a shift in Sylus too. It was more subtle but he was around more. He went out of his way to seek you out and talk to you throughout the day. He was gentler, not as aloof. He still teased you but it felt more like a joke between the two of you instead of him trying to antagonize you.

You also just had fun together now. When you were bored you’d go to the hoard room and make towers out of the gold coins and jewels for fun. You taught him human card games and even tried to teach him human dances too. You quickly realized that dragons were not the most graceful of creatures when not flying.

“It’s really not that hard. Try again.” you held him at arm’s length as you tried to get him to copy your moves. “Out and in and your arm goes up and I duck under. One and two and three and four.”

You tried to do the move but again Sylus twisted the wrong way when you ducked under. “Are you purposefully getting this wrong to spite me?”

“I would never.” he settled his hands on his hips. “I just don’t understand how I am supposed to angle my body so that it doesn’t end up twisted.”

“I keep telling you, just arc backwards, follow the movement the way it flows. You’re the one that’s supposed to be leading, I follow you, you don’t follow me.”

“Why are we learning this again?” he asked.

“For something to do.” you shrugged. “I grew up doing this dance every year at the village festivals. My father would always take me out onto the dance floor when I was little and then when I got older and I could have other partners, I always made sure to save a dance with him. Dancing was always my favorite part of the festivals.”

“Your festivals sound like they are more fun than dragon celebrations.”

“Really? I would have guessed that a dragon party would be far more interesting than a human festival. I mean, what do a bunch of dragons do at a dragon celebration? Food? Games? Dancing?”

“Food definitely. Games, maybe. Dancing, never.”

“So what do you do?”

“Depends on what the celebration is about.” Sylus thought for a moment. “Actually, there is one that should be starting soon.”

“Really?”

“Yes. We cannot exactly attend but we may still watch the events from a distance.”

“That doesn’t sound like so much fun.”

“It might not be. But I thought perhaps you’d like to witness a little about dragon culture.”

“I would. You’ve piqued my curiosity. When is this celebration?”

“Three days I believe, during the half moon. Shouldn’t take more than a couple hours by flight.”

“What do you mean flight?”

~~~

“This is the best thing ever!” you shrieked with glee as Sylus and you soared through the warm summer air. Sylus had you wrapped tight in his arms as he flew. The wind stung your face but you couldn’t stop beaming.

“That was right in my ear, little bird.” Sylus said. “I know you’re excited but I’d still like to be able to hear.”

“Sorry.” you knew that it was easiest for him to fly when you were still but you were just so excited all you wanted to do was bounce around. “I cannot believe that I’m really flying!”

“It’s very freeing, isn’t it?”

“It’s amazing!” you clung tighter onto his neck. “I wish I could fly myself. It must be annoying that you have to carry me.”

“I don’t mind. Just try to keep still, we have a long flight ahead of us until we get to the shore.” He reminded you. It took a couple of hours of straight flying but eventually you saw the blue of the ocean in the distance. The only time you had been to the ocean before was when you were very small and you didn’t remember much of anything. It was still impossibly big, even from a distance.

Sylus touched down on a high cliff about a mile from the beach. “Why don’t we go down?” you asked. “I’d love to get my feet in the sand.”

“Not today. This is dragon land and this is a very important tradition that is happening today and I’m afraid if they smell a human has been tromping around down there, we may get in some trouble.”

“And being on the cliff is better?”

“We’re downwind, also, what is most important is the sand. They should not care that we’re up here so long as we don’t touch the sand.”

“The sand? What’s so special about the sand?”

“You’ll see. Now, how about we have some of the food you packed.”

You slung the pack off your shoulder and opened it up. Inside was a blanket, a large skin of water, and a lot of food you had wrapped tightly in paper to avoid leaking all over the pack. You knew Sylus needed a lot of food and after such a long flight he was bound to be ravenous. You laid out the blanket over the grass and sat down to eat.

Even if you couldn’t go on the beach it was nice to be by the ocean. The salty sea air blew across your skin and the sun warmed your face. You watched as the waves rolled and crashed down below. It was so peaceful.

The peace was abruptly broken when a deafening roar echoed across the air. You had immediately scrambled next to Sylus, searching the sky for what had made such a noise. Sylus chuckled and pointed out in the distance where a swarm of dots in the distance were growing larger and larger. “Are those all dragons?”

“Yes. Now is when we have to be quiet and keep our heads low. They shouldn’t know that we are up here but I’d rather not risk it.” he wrapped an arm around your shoulders, “Stay close to me, it’ll help mask your scent.”

You huddled close and watched as dragons landed on the beach. They were beautiful and frightening. They came in many shapes and sizes and colors. Some as green as glittering emeralds, others had opalescent scales that reflected the sun like a mirror, and then there was the largest of them all, a hulking red and black dragon, with eyes of molten fire and two long silver whiskers.

Sylus pointed to the largest dragon, “That’s the elder of this tribe, Tengya. It’s said that he’s lived for over five thousand years.”

“Is that why he’s so big?” you whispered, afraid to talk any louder.

“Yes. Unlike humans who stop growing at a certain point, dragons only get larger the longer they are alive. His size is testament to how long he has been on the planet. Many battles he has faced and he remains.”

“Do dragons die naturally or are they immortal?”

“They can die of old age, most don’t make it to that point. Most dragons end up dead battling other dragons or being felled by humans. Not Tengya though, no one that has challenged him has survived.”

“I can see why. He’s terrifying.”

“Yes he is. Imagine living with him.”

“Live with him? Did you live in his tribe?”

“I did, for a bit.” he gruffed. “He’s about as approachable as he looks.”

You didn’t ask any further questions and instead watched the dragons on the beach. The sound of their roars only got louder now that they were all gathered together. As the sun began to set the elder, Tengya, stepped forward and the beach fell silent. He sat back and nodded to one of the smaller dragons to step forward. It was a sky blue dragon that stepped forward and bowed their head.

There was an expectant silence as the blue dragon dug its claws into the sand, arched its back, and then blew a hot wave of fire out of its mouth into the sand. It was then you realized what it was doing. It was the same as what your father did in his shop but on a much larger and less precise scale. The dragon had turned the sand into twisting tower of glass.

The dragons on the beach thumped their tails against the ground, almost like applause.

“What is this?” you whispered to Sylus.

“It’s a rite of adulthood.” he explained just as quietly, “Adolescent dragons have to demonstrate their power by blowing a fire into the sand to create large craters and statues. The bigger the formation, the more powerful they are seen.”

“Amazing.” you watched as the next dragon stepped forward to a new patch of glass. This one used its wings to pick up more sand as they blew their fire and made an even taller sculpture than the last. “What do they do with the glass afterwards?”

“It is considered treasure and taken back as the first piece of their proper hoard and usually given a place of honor.”

You thought back to the hoard room back at your mountain. You had explored it quite a few times now and you could not recall seeing a giant glass sculpture anywhere in there.

One by one you watched as the young dragons stepped forward and made their creations. It was amazing to witness but the sun had long since set and you were starting to get cold up on the cliff. A shiver ran through your body and Sylus pulled you onto his lap, his wings extended from his back and folded in around you to shield you from the wind. You leaned against him, sapping whatever warmth you could get from his body.

“You know,” you said, “I’m glad you were the dragon that moved into the mountain. Before meeting you I would not have thought I’d feel so safe in a dragon’s arms. ”

“Nor did I think I’d embrace a human like this.” he said, nuzzling his nose against your hair. “I’m glad it was you that hiked up the mountain. Anyone else would not have been nearly as interesting.”

Your heart was beating terribly loud again. You picked your head off his shoulder and looked him in the eye. “Sylus,” your cold hands rested on his broad warm chest. “I’m scared I’m going to do something foolish.”

“And what foolish thing is that, little bird?” he asked. He stared back at you through half lidded eyes, once again letting nothing show on his face.

“This.” you leaned closer, your eyes falling shut as you pressed your lips to his.

He had gone rigid in your arms, his lips unmoving against yours. Immediately you worried that you had done something wrong. You pulled back slightly, embarrassed beyond words. “I’m sorry. I told you it was foolish--”

Sylus grabbed the back of your neck and pushed your mouth back against his. You gasped and his tongue swept into your mouth. You wound your hands into his silvery hair, trying to pull him even more into you. He tasted like heat and spice, as if you had taken a drop of the summer sun and let it coat your tongue.

“You continue to surprise me.” he murmured against your lips.

“And you worried me. I thought I had ruined everything for a moment there.” you chuckled.

“Took me a moment to realize you had actually done that.” his hands landed on your hips, adjusting you so sat more comfortably on his lap. “You taste even sweeter than I thought you would.”

He pulled you back in, pushing your entire body flush to him so not a part of you wasn’t on him. His teeth gently worried your lower lip and you could feel the sharp point of his canines graze your skin. You felt something slide across your ankle and squeaked, worried for a moment it was a snake before realizing it was Sylus’s tail.

“Don’t mind it.” he said, “I feel it sometimes has a mind of its own. But this, is all me.”

His tail had slithered under the fabric of your skirt and wrapped around your thigh, pulling your leg over him so you were straddled on one of his legs. “What are you--ah!” you got your answer when he jostled the leg you were straddled across.

“Ride it.” his voice had dropped to that low growl you had heard him use when you were both in the hot spring.

Oh gods, were you really doing this? You lowered yourself so your cunt was pressed right to his thigh and ground your hips down. The bit of friction sent pleasurable ripples through your body and you could feel heat pooling between your legs. His hands roamed up and down your body, touching you in a way you had only allowed in your fantasies.

“You’re still so cold,” he said, the pad of his thumb teasing your nipple through the material of your dress. “Just look at how you shiver.”

“Sylus,” you ground against his leg a little harder. “Please Sylus.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep you warm.” his mouth latched to your neck, biting and bruising the sensitive skin.

You moaned aloud, pressing yourself more into his touch. You knew that you had to have soaked through the material of your undergarments. You normally went without since it meant more laundry to do but considering that you had to fly here you wanted the extra cover. Right now it was very inconvenient. You wanted to feel the leather of his pants rubbing against your clit. Wanted to stain his leg with your arousal.

“Sylus,” you panted, “I want to feel you more.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright, I can do that.” he said. You thought he was going to let you shuffle about so you could get the undergarments off but instead his hand slid under your dress. “Lift your hips up.”

You weren’t sure what he was doing but you lifted yourself off his leg. You felt the pressure of his claws, cold and hard press against the soaked material and a grin spread on his face. Then the sound of cloth ripping as he cut a slit at the crotch. “There, keep going.”

You lowered yourself again, this time feeling the leather of his pants directly against your soaked and sensitive cunt. You moaned again and he plastered his mouth to yours, swallowing the sound.

“Keep going. Don’t stop until you come.” he commanded. “I want you looking in my eyes as you come undone.”

You threw your arms around his neck, your forehead pressed to his as you rode his thigh. Your cunt spasmed and clenched around nothing longing to be filled. It was all getting to be too much. You were dizzy from pleasure, so close to an orgasm but it was right out fo reach.

Sylus kept his hands on your breasts, rubbing and pinching your nipples through the cotton. His tail was still wrapped around your one thigh, squeezing it tighter and pulling your leg back down when you tried to wiggle off his leg. He switched from biting and bruising your neck to kissing you fiercely. Every little sound you made he wanted it poured down his throat instead. And at this point there were many sounds for him to feast upon.

You were panting and moaning his name against his lips. “Come for me.” he said. “I need you to come for me, my wildfire.”

“Sylus!” your voice cracked as you came.

“That’s it, that’s my girl.” he grabbed your chin and forced you to look in his eyes. Your cunt twitched again, flooding with arousal but nothing to cling onto. All of your juices spilled out onto his thigh, making the leather supple and soft underneath you.

You collapsed forward, your face buried in his neck. His hands gentled up and down your back, easing you back from the high. “Breathe, you did so good. You were so good, little bird.”

“I…I’m feeling much warmer now.” you muttered into his neck.

He chuckled. “Yes. Me too.” For a minute you sat there catching your breath before Sylus moved you off of his lap.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s probably best we head back now while you’re still warm.” he said.

“But--”

“Trust me, I want nothing more than to tear this dress to pieces and fuck you till you’re screaming. But we also don’t want to garner too much attention up here.”

“Attention?”

“Remember what I said about dragons having an excellent sense of smell?” he nodded towards the beach. “I would really rather not have everyone down on the beach realize that there is a very horny human and dragon nearby.”

“Oh right…” you had forgotten where you were for a moment.

“Come along. Quickly.” he stuffed everything back in the pack and handed it to you.

You gave one final look to the dragons down on the beach surrounded by their giant glass sculptures that glittered in the half-moon light. Sylus scooped you into his arms and you were back to the skies. You held tight to him, pressing a kiss to the side of his neck as you began the long flight back home.

[joelswritingmistress]

Neighbors With Benefits: Chapter 13 (Joel x f!reader)

Pairing: Joel x f! Reader

Word Count: 2000

Warning: Angst

No one said anything for a moment. You were trying to process that your mother was standing right there. You were sure your mother was trying to process what she was witnessing. Joel just remained silent and it felt like everyone behind your mother in the lobby was on pause.

“Mom..” You took a deep breath and you knew the next sentence wasn't the one that should have come out of your mouth. “What… what are you doing here?”

“What am I..” She shook her head, noting that she wasn't the one who needed to provide an explanation. Her eyes transferred you to Joel and back to you. It all seemed to click and her mouth dropped open as the realization came to her.

You were scrolling through your mind for lies, but there were none to tell. You had to come clean. Your hand was on top of Joel's on the table as you ate breakfast in a hotel lobby early in the morning.

“Can I talk to you?” You just asked simply.

Your mother was still in a state of awe, though she finally thawed out enough to answer.

“Your father is right over there making a waffle.” She whispered the words as if he might hear her; but you suddenly realized you didn't want your father to catch the two of you like this. Neither did your mother; you knew that's why she said that.

You retrieved your plate having hardly touched it, whispering, “I'll meet you back upstairs,” to Joel. He went to open his mouth to speak but you shook your head and trailed your mother away from the lobby, tossing your plate of food in a garbage pail as you did.

When the two of you were settled in a nook by a pair of vending machines, you took a deep breath.

“I've been seeing Joel.” There was no hiding it or sugarcoating it. “I was trying to find the right time to tell you-”

“(Y/N), he's married.” She yell-whispered the words.

“They're separated,” you explained, “They're in the middle of a divorce.”

“Not according to Cecille.”

“She's.. lying.” You shook your head. “She came back out of the blue and Joel doesn't want anything to do with it.”

“Honey..” Your mother shook her head, and you knew she had your best interest at heart. “You can't..”

“Can't what?”

“You can't.. do this.”

“Well, it's a little late for that.” Your tone was stern and other than a few stray times as a teen, you had never spoken like that to your mother. The two of you were close and she was always understanding; but you felt stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“Have you.. you've..”

“What?”

“You spent the night here with him?”

You swallowed hard, knowing she already knew the answer. “We've been seeing each other since I got home early in the summer.” You added, “Yes, I've been spending the night with him.”

“Next door?”

You hesitated and then gave a nod. “I didn't want you to find out.. like this.”

“I don't even know what to say,” she said quietly, now the one clutching her necklace. “I can't.. I can't wrap my head around it.”

“He's not with Cecille, Mom.”

“He's not divorced, either, (Y/N).” Her motherly tone came out in full force. It halted you a bit.

“I know,” you confessed, “But they aren't living together anymore.”

“They just bought the house this year.”

“So-”

“So, this is a very slippery slope,” she went on. “He's older than you.”

“Dad’s older than you.”

“By two years,” she shot back. “Honey..” Your mother closed her eyes and put her first two fingers on the center of her forehead.

You knew this was a lot. From the outside perspective, especially - and finding out the way your mother just did.

“Mom, I really care about him.” You didn't dare drop the L-word. “And he cares about me.”

“He's too old for you.”

“Stop saying that. I'm an-”

“Adult? Then why are you sneaking around like a teenager?”

“Because look at the reaction you're having. If I had just brought him over for dinner and said he was my date, you would've had the same reaction.”

Fuck. You felt tears welding up in your eyes. You knew your mother’s first reaction was viable, but you were also going to stand up for your relationship with Joel.

“Please don't tell Dad yet.” You blurted that out because you couldn't handle this double reaction in one sitting. “I'll tell him eventually.”

Your mother put a hand on the side of her face now. The two of you stared at one another, not seeing eye to eye for perhaps the first time in your life - at least on something significant. It already stung deep down.

She let out a decompressing sigh and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “I'm not going to tell him.” She added, looking around the corner, “You better get back.. upstairs. I don't know what his reaction would have been if he saw the two of you sitting there.” She shook her head.

“Mom, please just let me explain everything to you. This isn't as bad as it seems.” You looked her in the eye, “Please.”

She let out another deep breath from her chest. “Okay.” That was all she said. “Your father has probably already seen Joel.”

“He got him the room.”

“I know,” she concluded. “And the golf course comped him a second one, so we decided to make a staycation of it for the night.” In a slightly irritated tone she added, “That’s what I'm doing here.”

“I didn't mean..” you shook your head, “Mom, what's-”

She silenced you with a hand. “We’ll talk tonight. Just go upstairs before Dad sees you and we have to do this all over again.”

You were thankful that she would keep your secret for now, but, again, all of the feelings of elation were replaced with that of disappointment and dread. Lately, the highs in your world were skyrocketing but the lows made you feel dead and buried.

First Cecille came back to town. Now, your mother catches you and Joel and is stuck in disbelief.

We knew there would be hurdles, you thought, noting that jumping them would be worth it. Still, in the moment, it didn't make you feel any better.

It wasn't long before Joel joined you back upstairs in the hotel room, leaving the two of you in another stalemate of stares for a moment.

“Did you talk to my parents?” You asked.

“Mostly your dad.”

“What did my mom say?”

“Nothing.” Joel shook his head, “She went back up to the breakfast line until your father and I were done talking.”

You plopped down on the bed and let out a sigh. “Fuck..”

“What did your mother say?”

“She’s under the impression that you and Cecille could possibly work things out. She reminded me that you weren't divorced. She pointed out our age gap,” you then added sarcastically, “You know, just the little things.”

Joel stood with his hands on his hips and you could tell he was thinking. You just hoped that this wouldn't put a damper on your relationship.

“I don't want this to ruin things.” You had tears in your eyes again. “I know my mom will come around eventually..” You hoped anyway.

“I have to figure out where I'm going to stay.”

“I can't believe Cecille just..” you didn't finish the sentence. You swallowed hard and shook your head.

“We have to figure some shit out.”

Your eyes lifted to meet his. You weren't sure what he meant by that but you simply agreed with a quiet, “Yeah.”

“I'm sorry things happened this way with your mother,” Joel said.

“I wish I had just told her.”

“Your old man is going to hate me.”

“She's not going to tell him,” you explained. “I asked if we could talk tonight just me and her. She agreed not to say anything.”

“I should call my brother.. see if I can stay on his couch for the time being.”

There was an extended silence and you finally looked back directly at Joel. It appeared, at least in your mind, that he was almost too scared to approach you.

“I don't want you to leave me,” you said honestly.

When he came and sat down beside you on the edge of the bed, you felt the tiniest hint of relief - even more so when he kissed your temple and put an arm around your shoulders.

“I have no intention of doing that.”

You turned to him and closed your eyes when his hand combed through your hair.

“I don't think I'm even capable of doing that,” Joel added.

“You say that now.”

“I mean it.”

Your eyes reopened when he stopped what he was doing and you looked back at him.

“You might be the one to end it,” he challenged, playfully lifting the corner of his mouth in a barely-there smirk.

“I'm not capable,” you echoed his words. “I'm in love with you.”

Joel brushed your hair back and kissed you on the lips, letting it linger. He let out a breath into your mouth as he parted. “I'm the one who’s done wrong here.”

“How?”

“Pursuing my neighbor’s daughter.”

“Adult daughter.”

“Daughter nonetheless.” He sighed, “I can see how bad this looks to your mom. I'm not even divorced yet. I'm in my forties.”

“I'm going to talk with her.” You let out a deep breath. “This is our relationship. What we do.. is ultimately our business. I'm not sixteen. I'm twenty-three.”

Joel ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah.” He looked around the room and then back to you.

“Don't leave me.” You wondered if you said it enough that it would be programmed in Joel’s brain and he wouldn't.

“Stop saying that.” He looked at you more directly now with a serious stare. “You mean a lot to me, (Y/N). As long as you want to work this out, it'll work out.”

You finally gave in and nodded, feeling more confident about everything after he spoke to you more sternly. “Okay.”

“Okay.” He pulled out his phone. “I have to text Tommy. I'm taking today’s events and assuming I'm uninvited to your parents' picnic.”

“I'm not going-”

“You need to go.”

“Why?”

“Keep the peace,” he told you, “Blowing off the party will only draw the wedge further between you and your mom. Go. Help her. Talk to her. It'll be good for both of you if you're there.”

“You're right,” you agreed with a nod. “Can I call you afterwards? Can I still see you?”

“Yeah.” Joel nodded. “I'll be waiting for your call.”

“Where does Tommy live?”

“In town.”

“Okay, good.” You were relieved to know he was close by.

Joel’s eyes were reading you like a book again and he pulled your body against his, hugging you to him and leaving another chaste kiss on your forehead.

“I'll meet you tonight wherever after you talk to your mom.”

“Fishing spot?” You asked, speaking next to his ear.

Joel pulled back to look at you more directly. He nodded. “Text me the time and I'll be there.”

“Okay.”

The two of you leaned toward one another at the same time and exchanged a short series of kisses. Joel let out a hearty breath through his nose before kissing you a final time.

“Okay,” he echoed.

CLICK HERE FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER

@mellymbee @pedropascal111 @axshadows @mybritishstyle @untamedheart81 @amyispxnk @goodvibesonly421 @cosmic006533-blog @ashleyfilm @maybetomorrowgirl @rebeccawinters @cuteanimalmama @vickie5446 @writlingerz @drewharrisonwriter @churchofjoemiller

[fuk1ngb1tch]

Kids and my AU Flowey + Extra

Raaah more Undertale au art upon thee!! I love my silly au<33 but this time it isn't just the au- (which is called Mutated Cores) but I'll talk about that last. Anyway talking about the drawings and characters under the cut to save space, which will also have cropped versions of the image<3

First, I'll talk about my AU version of Flowey the Flower. Look at this silly mf

He's MUCH bigger. Context: Frisk is 10 years old!(A little short for their age, but yk) "Normal flower size" is how big he used to be. He's still got the same personality as og Flowey though.

Anyway, I made an OC! And drew Clover!! The OC is the integrity soul, the soul that fell before Clover! Her name is Quaver (Eighth note) and they go by She/They pronouns^^ (oh, and, she's clover's older sister^^)

Btw individual closeups of Clover and Quaver cause I feel like it<3

She fell into the underground when she was 13, and when Clover was 7, Clover going to the underground 4 years later, when they were 11.

Man, I wonder why two siblings both fell in the underground. Definitely had nothing to do with their shitty parents 👁️👁️(headcanon of mine for clover considering things said in undertale yellow, but their main reason was still to do with the fallen humans ofc)

Also NERD (I love him)

Also mini comic?? Wanted to draw my au Clover and Quaver together (as I unintentionally made certain things of their hair very similar which I found neat and wanted to compare them) and it turned out as lighting/shading practice. So proud of myself bro<3 (did not wanna draw that background tho lmao)

Also ended up drawing Starlo and Frisk for it too (I was gonna draw Chara too but I didn't know what to do for em) so ye😋

Anyway wanna learn about my Mutated Cores AU? You can find Frisk&Chara, Papyrus, and Sans too for additional context about the AU! Frisk&Chara will have the most info about the AU itself though currently, along with Papyrus!

Anyway, Finally, the Grillby! He's from a roleplay au:) he's got first that looks like hair just cause it looks cool.

You can find papyrus of the same au of the random Grillby here^^ hope you liked my drawings:)

[kay-elle-cee]

@jilytoberfest 31 Prompts: Day 22 || 675 Words || Read on Ao3 —

13 October 1986

“Did you always know you were going to marry dad?”

Harry’s talent for asking blunt questions was bound to land her here one day, but still, Lily finds herself momentarily frozen while putting away a host of dinosaur plushies. There’s a simple answer to this: Yes, of course I did! I’ve always loved him and I knew we’d live happily ever after!

But she was very opposed to lying to her child.

So instead, Lily gives her six-year-old son a small smile, putting the stuffed toys in the basket in the corner of their living room and crouching down to his level.

“Well, no,” she starts simply, looking for the words to be honest and simplistic at once. “Your dad and I didn’t really get along much for a long time.”

“Why?” Harry asks.

“Well…” Lily trails off, looking for a way to skirt around the truth of he was a bit of a bully. One day Harry would get the full picture with all the nuances, but those specific details seemed unneeded at the current time. “We were very different. We liked different things and different people.”

“Then when did you start to like each other?”

Her lips twitch up in the beginning of a smile. “Your dad says he liked me from the moment he saw me on the Hogwarts Express,” Lily tells him. “But I think that’s a load of dragon dung. We started dating in seventh year.” Again, a little bit of a fib, but their six-year-old doesn’t need to know about the five-month secret-relationship that predated their public relationship.

“Seven years?” Harry exclaims, dumbfounded. “But if dad liked you, why didn’t you like him back?”

“Oh, Harry,” she laughs, smoothing down his hair. “When you get older you’ll learn that people don’t make much sense, ever. Less so when there are feelings involved. Your dad and I became friends in sixth year and that helped me to really get to know him, and fancy him.”

“You didn’t like him at all?” He’s slightly horrified, and she feels a blush creep up her neck.

“If I tell you a secret, do you promise not to tell?” Harry nods vigorously, and Lily leans in. “There was a time—when we were in fourth year—where I fancied your dad something awful.”

“But then why—”

“Just because you like someone doesn’t mean you want to marry them. There was a lot going on at that time, and though I liked your dad, there were other people that I was better friends with, that I had known longer, and they were more important to me.” She shrugs. “But when I got older, I realized those people weren’t really my friends, and your dad was there to make me laugh and feel better, and I realized that we had more in common than I expected, and when we started being friends, it all just clicked into place.”

Harry’s silent, ruminating on all this information, and Lily rises to her feet, affectionately smoothing his hair down again. “So I didn’t always know, but once I let myself see it, I knew pretty quickly.”

“That sounds really confusing,” he decides, face scrunching up, and Lily can’t help but laugh.

“You have no idea, my love. Now go get washed up for dinner.”

Harry scrambles out of the room, and when Lily passes through the doorway to the kitchen, she’s surprised to see James leaning against the wall, a smug smile on his face.

“I thought you were doing dinner with the boys?”

“Remus has been powering through a splitting headache all day and Peter got called in for a surprise audit, so we’re rescheduling,” he explains with a half-shrug.

Lily nods, going over to inspect the bag of take-away James has brought home and placed on the counter. She keeps her voice light and unaffected. “How long have you been standing there?”

He pushes off the wall and comes to stand across the counter from her, the grin wider. “Longer than you’d like. Fourth year, huh?”

[issdisgrace]

FAMILY DINNER

WARNINGS: None

Another week, another family dinner. I don’t even know why I have to attend to these damn things. I got better things to do. I sigh as I enter the manor. Making my way to the dining room, knowing everyone would be there already, considering I’m 5 minutes late. Walking into the dining room, there is everyone as expected. I take note that next time I should be 10 to 15 minutes late rather than 5 minutes, so I can just eat and leave.

“Look who finally arrived.” Bruce says everyone’s attention turning to me. 

“Fuck off. You’re lucky I’m even here.” I say as I go to sit down next to the short stack. Of course, they would sit me next to the short stack. As I sit, the talking amongst one another continues up again. I pull out my phone to check if Roy responded to my text about going bowling and getting plastered this weekend. Of course, he didn’t respond yet. God, I wish it didn’t take literally fucking hours for him to reply to one text. Sighing to myself, I switch over and text Y/n. 

‘When I’m done here, can we go out and get drinks? I already feel like I’m going to one or four.’

‘I have a business meeting at 7 tomorrow that I have to get up early for so unfortunately no, but I can go out and grab you whatever.’

‘Ok. Could you get me a bottle of the good Russian vodka?’

‘Sure. Do you want anything else?’

‘No.’

‘Alright.’

I turn off my phone and place it down on the table. I go to listen to everyone else conversations when Damian asks,

“Todd, why are you wearing a wedding ring?” His question causes everyone to stop talking and look at me, leaving a oh so lovely silence. Great, I didn’t expect to be telling everyone tonight I was married. I guess it’s been a long time coming.

“Because I’m married.”

“What!!” Everyone exclaims.

“Since when.” Dick asks.

“Since a year ago. After being with my partner for 3 years.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Bruce speaks up.

“Well dear ole dad. I didn’t tell you guys I was dating anyone because I didn’t need any of you snooping into my life. Then I didn’t tell you I got married because I didn’t need you guys snooping into my life.”

“Pretty valid.” Tim says, looking up from his phone. 

“That’s what I thought too, Tim tam.”

“Rude, we just want to know if who you’re seeing is good for you.” Dick says.

“They are good for me and Alfred already approved of them, so do with that what you will.” 

“Alfred knew.” Dick practically shouts.

“Yes, I did, master dick. ‘’ Alfred says, coming out of practically nowhere with dinner. 

“I don’t know why you’re surprised dick, Alfred knows everything.” Tim said. 

“Well, does Alfred know everything about the person Jason’s married to?”

“I know quite about Master Jason’s husband, but I wouldn’t say I know everything about him.” Alfred says as he begins placing food in front of everyone, one by one.

“Husband!!” Dick exclaimes.

“Oh no, I’m married to a man.”

“He didn’t mean it like Jason. It’s just a little shocking.” Bruce says 

“I don’t care what way he met it…” 

“What is his name Todd?” Damian asks cutting me off. 

“Why do want to know, short stack?”

“I am curious as to who in their right mind would date or marry you.” 

“Oh fuck you. If you really want to know who I’m married to so badly, I’ll tell you guys but after that I’m going to eat and go home and you’re not going to bother me, ask me questions about my husband, or stalk my husband and do a background check on him. Alright.”

“Alright.” Most of them respond.

“His name is Y/n L/n.”

“Isn’t he an actor and like 40?” Tim asks.

“Yes, and he’s not 40, he is 38.”

“Damn.” Dick says.

“You got a problem with it, dick head.”

“No, he’s just what 13 years older than you.”

“Yes, and I don’t care. He loves me. He helps patch me up when I need help. He cooks for me. He gets me anything I want. And the sex is good, so what more could I want or need?” 

“We didn’t need to know the last part, Todd.” 

“Well, count your blessings that I didn’t say what we did.”

“Thank you for sparing the details, Jason.”

“Your welcome, old man. Now I’m fucking hungry and want to eat and go home, so no more questions.”

“Alright, Jason and we will respect your on not stalking, running background check, or anything of the sort on your husband. Right boys.”

“Right.” The others respond.

[newtonsheffield]

Do we ever see Kate face off against any of Anthony's old tennis partners? Possibly a previous tennis flame? I was just imagining an incredibly dramatic Olympic heat/QF/SF, a hard fought battle, but not for athletic reasons?

Oh it’s a well known fact that once upon a time Anthony Bridgerton wasn’t just a player on the ATP tour. He was a player. And most of the time, that doesn’t really bother Kate. Anthony’s 13 years older than her, he obviously dated before her: Whatever. It is what it is. Anthony has to put up with Kate doing sponsor shoots with Tom Dorset all the time. It’s fine.

Except sometimes it’s really… fucking annoying. Especially when the women feel duty bound to remind her constantly coupled with the fact that Anthony’s enjoying a (well deserved in Kate’s opinion) surge in popularity and notoriety after his Wimbledon win and their doubles bid for the Olympics now.

“I’m surprised you got Anthony out of bed this early.”

Kate’s head jolted to the left to the practice court next door, missing the ball Anthony lobbed across the net to her. “I’m sorry?”

The other woman’s lips curved in a slow smile. “From what I remember he was such a grumpy boy in the mornings.”

Irritation flickered through Kate’s chest. “Well, maybe he has more reason to get out of bed now.”

Anthony jogged over, stopping a little short and shifting nervously on the spot. “oh! Hey Jess.”

“Anthony.” She smiled falsely at Kate. “Kate.”

She strode away and Kate pushed down the strong desire to throw a tennis ball at the back of her head.

“Everything okay?”

“Just peachy!” Kate cleared her throat, “Get back over there.”

It didn’t bother her. Kate reminded herself constantly. It shouldn’t matter. She and Anthony were happy and in a good place and it shouldn’t matter. But every time she stood across the court from one of the women who’d taken it upon themselves to wink and smile at Anthony it made her boiling mad. Not because he ever noticed, in fact, Kate was fairly sure he never did. But in a way that made it even more annoying. That he couldn’t be less interested as they fluttered her eyelids at him while he carried her kit bags to the car.

“It actually bothers you doesn’t it?” Edwina laughed, as Kate smacked the tennis ball at the fence where yet another player turned pundit was sat beside Anthony, flirting and laughing her way through an interview.

“Sorry!” Mary called out to the woman with not a trace of apology, dropping her voice. “At least try to make it less obvious, Darling.”

“It doesn’t bother me.” Kate bit back.

“Really?” Edwina chuckled, “Because you know you’re not actually supposed to treat that thing like a blade right?”

Kate rolled her eyes, “Does it bother you when people flirt with Josie?”

Edwina’s face flickered with irritation. “That’s different.”

“Is it?”

“Yes! Everyone wants to date a football player! That’s the pinnacle for people attracted to athletes!”

“I think a lot of people would disagree with you.” Kate mused, grunting as she sent the ball sailing back over the net.

“Stop changing the subject!”

“No!”

[lillaydee]

Head Over Heels

Jackson!Joel / Reader

Special Guest Appearance by a Certain FBI Agent who may or may not look a lot like Joel.

You left the loneliness of your home and headed to Jackson with Joel and the teenage girl he was with, hoping your new life would be less lonely. You should've stayed alone.

WARNING:

Non-canon Compliant, Pining, Fluff and Angst, Hurt Joel (The Last of Us), Joel is Bad at Feelings (The Last of Us), Joel Needs a Hug (The Last of Us), Joel Lives (The Last of Us), Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Soft Joel (The Last of Us), Jealousy, Loneliness, Trauma.

MEGA WARNING: Descriptions of Attempted Sexual Assault.

@copperhalfcent @joelalorian @vickie5446 @peelieblue @nandan11

SERIES MASTER LIST

---

***Okay I know I said 21/1/2025 but I'm weak, okay? The next chapter will be uploaded Wednesday. Twice weekly. Yes. I can do this. I can stick to a schedule. Yes. I can. I can too stick to a schedule. Yes. I definitely can.

😳😳😳

Also, please let me know if you want to be added to the taglist, or be removed from it. Hope you like the story.***

---

You will never forget that day. You were on a bus going back home. Your Papa called you at work. Your Mama’s cancer was back, and the prognosis was not good this time. She had beaten it once when you were five, you didn’t remember much from that time, and again when you were 12, but apparently, by the time they found this one, 13 years later, it had spread. Your Mama decided against treatment, wanting to live the last of her days anywhere but in bed recuperating from yet another chemo.

That was why you were going back. To try to talk her out of it. She had a year left, at best, maybe two or three with aggressive chemo, but no, Elena, I’m done, she had told you. You kids are grown, I’m a happy Mama, please, let me live what’s left of my life happy, let me live among you, not in bed being sick, counting the days death comes for me.

No. You packed up your desk and told your boss you needed a few days. You worked in the city, a few hours’ drive away from home. Nothing special, just a secretary. Not like the world would collapse if you took a few days off.

Alas, it did collapse. While you were on the bus. You remembered how the smooth ride just… veered. There were people running everywhere. The bus got trapped between crashed cars and people just started… losing their minds. You remembered just grabbing your bag and gunning it for the forest next to the highway, your survival instinct just kicked in.

There were a few people with you, one was an FBI agent. Marcus, he told you. Those first couple of days you travelled with him and others, he made a few calls, found out what they thought happened. You managed to call your house with his phone once, telling your father you were on your way. Your brothers were on deployment, and your parents hadn’t heard from them since the whole thing happened. The next day, everything shut down. No cell service, no electricity, no nothing. All the advancements the world had worked towards for hundreds of years just sort of stopped.

In those ten days you travelled with this group, you watched as common social etiquettes and civilisation collapsed, even if just among the few of you. The perfectly nice, caring, considerate, selfless people who gave the clothes off their backs to help strangers suddenly turned into snatchers and robbers out of pure desperation and loss of hope.

Not to say you were any less guilty. You stole too, you had to. But you tried, at least, not to kill anyone who was still human while doing it. Marcus protected you as best as he could, but even he got more and more ruthless as the days went by.

You were thankful growing up with two older brothers then. They had forced you into taking every martial arts classes you could get into, Benny sparring with you every chance he got, Will encouraging from the sidelines. They wanted their sister growing up tough, they said. No men will ever take their little sister down without a fight. They took you out camping, roughing it every time, wanting you to be okay should the needs arise. Despite your many tantrums and eye rolls, you went along with their demands. You looked up to them. You mourned the days they joined the army, looking forward to them coming home. Every time, they had a new skill to teach you, still wanting to make sure their sister was as safe as you could be, even if they were not around. But the one thing they refused to let you do was enlist. No Elena. We taught you these things to keep you safe, not to have you running head on into this life we didn’t want in the first place.

You spent the nights talking to Marcus, getting to know him more and more, and when the day came for you to go your separate ways 15 days later, he begged you to go with him, to not separate. No, you told him. You needed to get home to your family. You needed to know. He couldn’t come with you, he himself needed to find his own family. His Mama was alone, he needed to get to her. The world had gone to shit, everyone needed to restart. So the two of you went your separate ways, but not before he took you in his arms and kissed you, telling you how much he wished he had met you in a different world. It took everything in you to pull away from him, and he stood there watching you walk away until you disappeared from his sight.

**********

You got home four days later to an empty neighbourhood. You ran into your house hoping for a miracle, but your parents were nowhere to be found. No one was anywhere to be found. You walked around the cul-de-sac looking for someone, anyone, a person who could at least tell you what the fuck happened, to no avail.

You were about to walk back into your house when the sound of a gun cocking stopped you. You immediately raised both your hands, telling whoever it was not to shoot.

“Miller Girl? Elena?”

You turned around, willing yourself to go slowly, and came face to face with your reclusive neighbour, Bill. He was a bit… odd… so you didn’t want to chance it. You kept your hands up, asking him if he knew what happened to your parents.

He lowered his gun slightly, telling you to go inside. He followed, looking around to make sure no one else was around.

“You alone?”

You nodded.

He sat across from you, gun still in his hands, his eyes looking around for any threats. He told you the army came five days ago. Took everyone, your parents included, off to God knows where. So far, the neighbourhood didn’t have much threat from those things, he told you. He killed maybe ten in these two days. He planned to lay low for a day or two more, and then he’s going to start setting up.

Setting up?

Yeah, he said. Get supplies. Raid the stores, get fuel, build up a storage for everything. Water, food, medicine, guns, ammo.

Okay Bill, you said, remembering all the rumours you had heard about the guy. Although, that was a good idea, when you think about the shit you saw in the last three weeks or so.

Then he asked when you were planning to leave.

Huh?

“I’m not leaving. Where the fuck would I go?”

“Well, you can’t stay here.”

“Why the hell not?”

“I haven’t got the time nor the will to take care of some girl.”

“And who, exactly, asked you to do that?”

He stood there, raising his gun at you. You didn’t care. If the world had gone to pot, maybe he was doing you a favour. He eventually left in a huff.

You went about collecting your own supplies, though limiting yourself to the area. You were a woman, a lone woman, threats to you were more than just those things and men robbing you. So you made do with the smaller stores and pharmacies in the cul-de-sac, the houses in it, you went through them all. You siphoned the fuel out of the cars, got the guns and ammos from the houses you knew had some, got whatever you needed to basically live for a few weeks. You’ll think of the next few weeks after that next week, you thought.

Bill either left those places for you to raid, or avoided you, huffing every time he saw you. He had gone all out, not that you were surprised, he would drive out and not come home for hours, always coming back with his truck full of supplies, even bringing home a boat at one point. He’d had… a reputation, let’s just say, since you had known him. His late mom was always nice to you, but he was an odd one. Benny told you there were rumours that he dug a secret basement under his basement. He’s a prepper, apparently, believing since he could form an opinion that the world was going to shit. And when it did, he would be ready.

Well, he wasn’t wrong there.

You stayed out of his way but couldn’t help but keep an eye out for him. Having him across the street made you feel safer, less alone, as cuckoo as he might be. One day, about a month in, having not heard him putter about for a couple of days, you got worried. His truck was there, but he was nowhere to be seen. So you armed yourself with a gun and a couple of pistols, a baseball bat too, just in case, and went over. The door was locked, obviously. You went around looking for an opened door, a window, and saw the bathroom window upstairs slightly cracked open.

Here was when Benjamin Miller’s climbing lessons turned out to be a good thing, despite the broken arm that resulted. You climbed up the gutter pipe and went inside. The house was dusty, but otherwise rather clean. You went from bedroom to bedroom, and finally found him, shivering in bed, almost delirious from a ridiculously high fever.

He was so out of it, he didn’t even protest when you tended to him. You did as best as you could, giving him medicine, getting his temperature down, making sure he ate something, sleeping on the floor in his bedroom just in case he needed you. Took you days, but you woke up one day to him sitting up in bed, sweating profusely, gun pointed at you. You rolled your eyes at him and told him you’ll be back with some food for him.

He kept his gun on you throughout the day, but cooperated, nonetheless. You didn’t even speak to him, per se, unless it was to tell him to eat or drink something. A couple of days after that, he was feeling better, able to move around and take care of himself, so you went home, sending him meals for a further few days, just to make sure he had something to eat.

For about a week after that, things went back to normal. The two of you went back to ignoring each other in relative peace and harmony. Until one day when there was a knock on your door, him standing a good distance from the door when you opened it, asking you if you wanted to come with him to scavenge a chain store. Might as well, he said.

And that was how you and Bill became friends.

Well, sort of, if friends worked together and never talked to each other unless it was discussing how to fortify the area.

As much as Bill was the stoic man he was with you, you sort of knew he cared about you. Always had your back. Checked on you daily. If you were late in answering the door, he would come in, making sure you were okay. You slept in once and woke up to him prodding you with his gun, grumbling that he thought you were dead as he walked away when he saw you were awake. You lost count of the amount of times you opened your front door to see firewood stacked up on your porch, or dead rabbits or pigeons on your doorstep, or some delicious stew he had concocted. Say what you want about the man, but he could cook.

He was your neighbour Bill. And he sort of cared for you, just as you sort of cared for him. You and he got along just fine, so long as you left each other alone.

**********

Frank joined the two of you a few years later. Frankly you were shocked Bill allowed him to stay. But you understood. He was lonely. And as much of a sort of company you were to him, he never saw you the way he saw Frank. You were the little girl he grew up around, you were Will and Benny Miller’s little sister. And Frank… well, he was his soulmate. Didn’t take you long to figure that out.

Having Frank around was like a breath of fresh air. He was just a shining ray of positivity. Very unlike Bill. You felt like you had the best of both worlds since Frank came into the picture. A friend, and a protector.

Frank was also, you found out really quickly, Bill’s Achilles Heel, apparently. Cause suddenly lawnmowers were no longer a waste of resources, neither was making the place a bit more… presentable. You and Frank would spent hours gardening, making the place look better, chattering endlessly, with Bill loitering somewhere near doing whatever it was he was doing, and you and Bill would go on rounds checking the perimeter, the traps and everything else, making sure things worked. You knew how it all worked, obviously, you helped the man build everything.

But the most shocking change of all, was the fact that there were people visiting for lunch, a couple from the Boston QZ apparently. Bill had somehow persuaded you to stay out of sight, just in case the two attacked, you would be the next, unseen line of defence, much to Frank’s chagrin. But you told Frank it was okay, give him this, you know what a big deal it was for him to open up the place for strangers. He’s not wrong, if you think about it.

So there you were, perched on a treehouse in one of the neighbourhood front yards, hidden from view with a camo blanket and a sniper gun, watching as the couple walked in.

And that was the first time you set your eyes on Joel Miller.

**********

When you first saw him, you felt like time stood still. It was like seeing a ghost. He looked so much like Marcus. You had often wondered what happened to him. If he got to where he was going. If he was alive after all these years. But of course, you later found out his name was Joel Miller, from Austin. No relations to you, obviously, despite the similar surname. He had a brother named Tommy. And that he was a contractor, not an FBI agent. It took a few more visits over a whole year before Bill trusted the couple enough to introduce you to them. And even then, the first meeting wasn’t exactly planned, nor the most… conventional of meetings.

You were on that treehouse as usual. Frank was taking them to the boutique down the road, and they had to walk past the treehouse to get there. As they got closer, you saw Bill, who was walking behind Joel, look at you. He gestured with his head for you to come out. So you jumped down, landing to Joel’s right side.

He was startled, taking a step back and ended up falling backwards, rolling head over heels before ending up on his knees, gun cocked and aimed at you. You stood over him, gun aimed right back at him, Bill with his own pointed at Joel, shouting at him to put his gun down. You and Joel were at a standstill, neither willing to disarm, until Frank swatted the gun away from him, telling you to stand down.

You straightened as Joel got back up, taking the camo blanket off your head. When he realized you were a woman, his expression changed. He picked his gun up and stood there, eyes away from you, as Frank introduced you to the two of them.

“Our neighbour, the closest thing we have to family, Elena Miller,” he said. Joel’s head turned slightly at the mention of your last name. He nodded in acknowledgment, but his eyes were surveillant of the surroundings, in case more of you would pop out.

Tess, the woman, stepped forward, having stood in shock as the whole thing took place. She shook your hand, telling you how impressed she was that you managed to shock Joel Miller. She was tough, but friendly. She wore the pants, apparently, Joel was merely her guard dog. She did the talking, and Joel loitered, watching, but never participating. That first day you were introduced, you felt as if he was watching you the entire time, but every time you turned, his eyes were always somewhere else. Bill’s, as usual, were always on him.

As the visits got more and more regular, things with Joel never changed. In those first few years, you heard Joel speak maybe five times, never to you. He wasn’t a talker. He was Bill the Second, basically, seen, but not heard.

Every time they visited, you and Tess would spend some time together, and you felt normal again for a few hours. It was nice, having a woman to talk to. Joel would loiter when you and Tess hung out or do business with Frank, but generally, he stayed away from you, just watching from afar.

She told you things. Her husband, her son, Joel’s daughter, and you, in return, told her about your parents and brothers. You mentioned Marcus maybe once, in passing. Marcus was, as far as you were concerned, an unmentionable. You couldn’t live your life wondering about him. You needed to let go.

She told you the arrangement she had with Joel. They were… together… sort of. He was not her boyfriend per se. Just a trusted friend. A partner. Someone she trusted with her life. He was… damaged. His life ended when his daughter died. He wouldn’t let anyone in, and Tess wasn’t going to try. She loved him, you could tell. But she loved him enough for herself to not want to force his hand, she would rather be in this one sided lovefest than lose him. She knew if she told him how she felt, he would leave. So she didn’t.

Over the years, when the two visited, Tess would bring you stuff. Trinkets. A wooden carving of your name, at first, tied to a piece of black string. You used it as a keychain. A bracelet next, a series of wooden dices with your name carved into them, a letter each, followed by a necklace of similar style. Your happiness must have been obvious, she always looked so happy whenever you put the things she brought you on. If they got damaged, she would ask for them back and brought you a replacement the next time she was there. If you talked about missing a certain book or movie every now and again, she would bring them to you, and never asked for anything in exchange. And every single time, Joel remained at a distance, just watching, in case you decided to attack his woman.

You had two brothers in your new life with Bill and Frank, and a friend in Tess.

Joel was your… you were not even sure.

You couldn’t help yourself sometimes. He reminded you so much of Marcus, but all you could do was steal a look every now and again. He was not Marcus. You knew this. Of course, eventually, you stopped thinking about Marcus when you look at him, and he became just Joel.

But that in itself presented another problem.

The five of you would have your meals together when they visited, and every single time, after Tess and Joel left, you spent the night crying yourself to sleep. The sight of the two couples together, even Tess and Joel, the two who had never shown any physical romance at all, made your heart ache. He may not declare his love for her, may not hold her hand, but he showed her he loved her in his own way every single day. You saw how protective he was of her, how he always had her back.

You wondered if push comes to shove, would anyone come to your rescue? Would Bill choose to save you over Frank?

So you went to bed after every one of these visits and cried. Cried about how lonely you were. Cried that there was no one there for you, and only you. Cried that you were doomed to live in this fucked up world a tagalong in someone else’s perfect relationships.

Inevitably, you developed a helpless crush on Joel.

Then again, your life revolved around four people. One was a woman, two were gay and might as well be your brothers, and the other one was taken. But even the blind could see Joel Miller was an attractive man. And apart from the old pictures in the magazines you managed to sneak from Frank’s private stash, Joel was the only living, breathing man you had access to, albeit only mentally, in Fantasyland. Tess was a sweetheart, you wouldn’t do that to her. You would never act on it, of course, you were raised better than that. But you couldn’t tell her you thought of her man every time you rutted yourself against your pillow at night. So you indulged. Stole some looks for later use, studied his arms and imagined what it would feel like being held in those arms. What it would feel like to kiss him. A harmless crush, one that you could never, would never act on. You promised every time he visited it would be the last time, but you couldn’t help yourself. Heck, he was the only man around you could crush on. There was literally no one else.

It got to a point that you had to deliberately stay away from him. You were convinced that people could see. That Tess could see. Frank could see. So you conveniently found other things to do whenever he was around, far away from him. Tess would always come find you, sans Joel, so things were okay for a while.

It wasn’t as if the man had ever looked at you anyway. In fact, you were convinced that he hated you. He never spoke to you, never looked your way, and managed to make you feel as if you didn’t exist whenever he was around.

One day, Joel came alone. He had a bit of a limp, having snagged his foot on a root on his way over. He stayed over for two nights in Bill and Frank’s guest room to rest his ankle. You were working on a new vegetable garden then, the weather just turned, and it was the perfect time to plant. What you did not count on was that Frank was feeling rather under the weather, and Joel came out to help you instead. For two whole days, he helped you plant seeds and watered the ground. You made sure never to look at him, scared out of your mind that you might do the unthinkable. Not that there was a chance, anyway, he stayed away from you, never talking the whole time.

But being alone with him… it wasn’t helping. Each grunt or heavy breath he produced was making you imagine things, feel things.

He’s with Tess, you kept telling yourself. Don’t.

The day he finally left, you cried for hours. You just felt so fucking frustrated. So lonely. You lived in a world where there were more infected than there were humans, and you had access to a handful of people, only one who you were attracted to, and there was nothing you could do about it. You had exactly four friends in this world, and acting on your desires would mean losing at least one friend. And Tess’s friendship meant more to you than anything in this fucked up world.

The last time you saw Tess, she said something to you after a whole day of you ignoring Joel’s presence, and he yours, yet again, after almost 15 years of knowing each other. She was hugging you goodbye, and whispered to you – “You know, we have been lucky thus far, but our luck might run out sooner or later. You should be nicer to Joel. He’s really not a bad guy if you give him a chance. Cause you never know, this might be the last time you saw him, and if something happens to him, you don’t want to regret being an asshole to him, right?”

You remember giving her an annoyed look, rolling your eyes at her.

“The man hates me, Tess. Let him hate me in peace, and I, him.”

She laughed and gave you a big smacking kiss on your cheek before leaving. That was the last time you saw your good friend Tess.

**********

That day Frank didn’t feel too well didn’t stop. He never got better. You helped care for him, kept his spirits up, but you could tell that as the years went by, there were less and less of it to keep up. Joel and Tess helped, bringing him medicine, anything that could help make him more comfortable, but eventually, the inevitable would happen.

Bill came to see you one day, telling you that he and Frank were having a romantic dinner that night. He brought you a plate. It was a special meal, he said. He asked that you come over in the morning and help him with Frank. Of course, you said, don’t I always, Bill? He nodded slowly, looking at you with a different expression than you had ever seen him with before.

“You know, I never thanked you for saving me when we first started,” he said.

“Oh, come on Bill, you’re not getting all sappy on me now are you?”

He laughed a little, shaking his head.

“Glad to have you in my life kiddo,” he said, taking a step back to leave. You were about to close the door when he came back, pulling you in for a hug. It startled you. 20 years since the outbreak, 45 since you were born and lived across the street from him. And your neighbour Bill just hugged you for the first time.

“Love you kiddo,” he said, his eyes glistening.

“Love you too, Bill,” you replied, still shocked by his gesture. He nodded, gave you a teary smile and walked home. “See you tomorrow!” you called out, but he just turned his head slightly and kept walking.

**********

You found them the next morning, lying in each other’s arms, looking so peaceful you couldn’t help but sit and stare at them for hours. Bill left you a letter, telling you everything that had happened. Frank’s request, the pills, the wine, the wedding, all of it, telling you he already sent the radio signal to Joel and Tess – they should be here as soon as they could. Please stay with them, Elena, here or otherwise. He’s sorry he was being selfish and leaving you alone. But he couldn’t imagine a life without Frank, and he was too weak to say no to his love’s one request.

Be safe, Elena, find people again. Be free. Love again.

You buried them near the strawberries. Took you a while, but you got it done, eventually. You sat with them for a long, long time, feeling like the life you knew had gone. You realized that you didn’t even mourn your parents or brothers like this, seeing as you didn’t know exactly what happened to them. The likelihood that they had survived was slim to none, but you hoped. Somewhere in your heart, you hoped. Until you know for sure, you hoped. But with Bill and Frank…

You sat with them every day since then, wondering what would happen next. Wondering if Tess and Joel would even show. You remember Tess telling you it takes about two days to get here by foot. You were even wondering what you would do if and when they did show up. Would you even want to go with them? Go where? From what you understood, the QZ was not exactly safe. And there had been rumours that QZs were about to be obsolete. Frank left one years ago, so why would you go running to one? Might as well stay here and wait to die. At least you get to die somewhere familiar, where you loved, where you were loved.

You could ask them to stay. At least you wouldn’t be alone. And then what? Watch the two of them live the life you would never have? The way you watched Bill and Frank? At least you were not pining for either of them. But watching Joel, your long time crush, live happily ever after with the woman you considered your best friend across the street from you? The thought alone made your lips tremble and your heart cold.

You laughed out loud at the thought. You were a 45 year old woman. Having a crush. Like a silly little girl. On a man who was so closed up, hated you, and would never reciprocate. A man who didn’t even openly love the woman he’d been with for the past 15 or odd years. Stupid.

The sounds of the gate opening snapped you out of your stupor. You got up and slowly made your way to the gate. As you turned the corner, you saw him. With a teenage girl. No Tess in sight. He was looking around, clocking in the less than perfect area. You and Bill ran behind the upkeep of late, Frank needing more attention than the potted plants and lawns. He saw you and said something to the girl. When the two of you finally faced each other, you saw it. The empty look in his eyes. And he saw the same in yours. No words were needed. You both nodded, lips trembling a little, before he introduced you to Ellie, the teenager with him. You invited the both of them over to your place, made sure they had something to eat, let them rest and shower. You waited on your porch – still mulling what to do, now that Tess was no longer in the picture.

The door opened, and Joel came out, two cups of coffee in his hands. He sat in the chair next to yours. The two of you just sat in silence, drinking your coffees, silently mourning the three people you had both known and come to rely on in this life after the outbreak.

“She got bit,” he told you.

“They took pills.”

You both nodded.

“What now?” he asked. “What’s your plan?”

“I don’t know. Bill asked me to go with you and Tess, or ask you guys to stay, so… it’s up to you, I guess. It’s okay if you don’t want me tagging along. I’ll be fine.”

“The girl,” he said, “Ellie, she’s immune.”

Your head snapped towards him.

“She got bit three weeks ago, and the wound just healed. She got bit again yesterday, so did Tess. Tess’s wound spread, hers remained a scratch.”

You kept quiet, processing this information in your head.

“We were hired to take her to the Fireflies, they were taking her up north for some testing, maybe come up with a cure, but the Fireflies are gone. So now she’s with me, and I don’t know what to do with her. Tess told me to take her here, but now…”

“Where were you planning to go if Bill and Frank had still been here?”

“Look for Tommy. He’s in Wyoming somewhere, Jackson.”

“Well… rest, decide, let me know,” you said, getting up. You stopped at the door, telling him that you were sorry for his loss.

He nodded, thanking you, before telling you he’s sorry for yours.

“Sorry for our loss,” you said, and he nodded, before quickly turning his head the other way, drinking his coffee with shaking hands.

**********

After dinner, he came to find you. He was taking Ellie with him. Tommy might know where the Fireflies were headed.

You nodded.

“Come with us,” he said. “I don’t feel good about leaving you here all alone.”

“Why? Cause I’m a woman?”

“Come on, I don’t mean it like that... It’s just… Ellie… she might need you.”

“Cause I’m a woman?”

He huffed a frustrated breath, looking like he was about to implode.

You laughed softly in return, “Just pulling your leg Miller.”

His lips twitched slightly.

You took a deep breath.

“I just don’t see how that would work out though. We hardly know each other, and you hate my guts. I’m struggling to see how you would trust me enough to have your back on the road. I don’t even know if you would want to have my back. I might slow you down. I don’t know, Joel.”

He stared at you a while.

“Well,” he said, getting up. “I’m gonna start prepping for tomorrow. Can I at least take what I need? Bill’s car? Some food and clothes?”

You nodded.  

He called Ellie out. The teenage girl came bounding out, smiling shyly at you.

“Think about it,” he said, beckoning Ellie to go with him.

You thought about it as you laid in bed that night, Ellie in your guest bedroom, Joel in your brother’s old room. 20 years since the outbreak. 20 years you had been in the safety of these fences. Sure, you helped defended it, and Bill taught you well. Not to mention your brothers way back when. You could take care of yourself. Everyone who survived outbreak day had to learn somehow. But the thought of leaving this place made your heart tremble with fear. There would be no electric fence, no landmines, no booby traps for your enemies out there to protect you. All you would have was yourself, a teenage girl you barely knew and Joel – the man you had barely spoken to ever.

Those two conversations you had with him were the longest you had ever heard him speak. And the man was distraught – he just lost his partner of more than 15 years. He was also the man who did not make any attempt to get to know you in the past 15 or so years, who did not hide the fact that you were no one to him but the woman who talked to Tess sometimes. Not that you were any better, ignoring him because of the stupid, one-sided crush you had on him.

Can you trust him to have your back? He met the girl a few days ago, apparently, and already he seemed a lot more comfortable with her than with you – a woman he had known for 15 some odd years. If you were to leave with them, you felt as if it would just be a repeat of the past 20 years – you will be the tagalong, yet again, as if that role was the role you were born to fill. Already, that thought made you feel lonely.

But then… if you stayed, you would be alone. Alone, alone. No Bill, no Frank. You would just be a sitting duck. Someone or something will come. Raiders, infected, disease, injuries, illness. And the defences will fall. And you will be killed.  And truth be told, the prospect of just dying and rotting with no one to put you to rest, no one to mourn you was just…

Not to mention the silly, stupid 45 year-old grown woman teenage crush you had on him. Of course, you would never tell him about it. You had kept that information to yourself for 15 years, you could keep it to yourself a little longer, forever, even, perhaps. But what if you slipped? What if you couldn’t hold it in anymore and told someone? You could just see his disgust if he were ever to find out you’d been pining for him all these years, all the while being friendly to his late partner. Worse, what if he laughed at you?

Then again, maybe, just maybe, spending more time with him, getting to actually know the real him, could snap you out of your stupid love-filled stupor. People say never meet your heroes. Maybe he was just the perfect man in your head because you didn't know him all that well. Maybe you'll end up hating him and the crush would just dissipate.

Maybe.

You went to sleep not really knowing what to do.

But when you woke up, you knew. Somehow, you just knew.

So when Joel and Ellie came downstairs, they were greeted by a good breakfast spread and a packed bag of your own. You went to say goodbye to Bill and Frank, and as Joel drove out of the compound that morning, you found yourself not even looking back, worried that you would tell him to stop and run back.

20 years. Time for a new start.

---

Part 2

[eddiediazismyhusband]

okay no bc i actually need to see abuela having a meaningful talk with christopher about how shannon wasn’t a good mother and that he’s old enough to know the truth rather than eddie just over-romanticizing the whole thing

christopher does not need to be shamed for being upset at his mom leaving. the whole “she didn’t leave, she died 🥺” argument is just factually untrue when she fully intended to leave again before she had her accident

he does not need to be coddled and told about how hard it was for her when she was actively being just as ableist as ramon and helena. he is 13 years old; if he can make a decision on where he lives, he can hear the truth of how awful his mother was so that maybe he can actually provide sufficient context to the actions his dad has taken

yes, she was very young when christopher was born, and no eddie was not a perfect husband/father in the beginning; but the point is she didn’t even give him a chance to even begin processing his PTSD when he cane back, immediately vilifying him for everything before doing the same exact thing as what… petty revenge? giving him a taste of his own medicine? you’re an adult woman with a son who needed you and you walked out on him because you didn’t want the stress. okay, that’s fine, that’s your choice

but don’t show up once he’s older demanding to see him because “he’s my son too” and then proceeding to shame eddie, the one who HAS been there for him after you left, for something he already has made clear he regrets, and has also atoned for by stepping up and actually taking responsibility rather than shirking them the moment it got ‘too hard’ when his parents would have been more than willing to let him do

and then to try and manipulate him with the whole “he’s my son” “we can be a family again” bullshit as a way to get back into his pants— only to dip as soon as things start to get serious again?

and on top of that, the “she was just a girl” argument doesn’t even hold up because yeah, she WAS just a girl. she’s not just a girl anymore. she’s a grown adult woman shirking her responsibility because she doesn’t want to be a mother. That’s all well and good; she doesn’t have to be a mother. But once you make that decision, don’t go crawling back acting like you weren’t the one to actively decide to leave. You’re an adult, making adult decisions, and you need to handle the adult consequences of those adult decisions.

sorry no one will ever be able to convince me to like shannon and im sick of the writers trying to force rose tinted glasses on her existence bc of tim’s obsession with bringing devin back out of nowhere every two seconds

anyway sorry for the shannon rant i saw thay post i reblogged and it just reminded me how much anger i hold towards her for everything she did and how i hate it when people are like “oh she changed she wanted to try again 🥺” when she quite literally didn’t, as is evident by the way she immediately tried to run away again the moment she had to be an adult.

also there is no way buck would EVER look at the way she treated chris and eddie and then actively be friends with her. friend-ly maybe, civil at best, but he would never look at the lasting hurt she caused those two and actively chose to persue a friendship with her.

anyway getting off my anti-shannon soap box and i just needed to get that off my chest lamo

[shallow-between-stars]

So like... hear me out and feel free to tell me if I've been proven wrong already or my maths is off or anything and I have only had about three hours of sleep here (because my body responded to ALL THE SLEEP I've had the past three days by refusing to acknowledge the passage of time yesterday) but the more I play and the more I replay the more convinced I become that...

...Taash could possibly be Bull's child. (Hear me out!)

As evidence I provide the following three points. The first is...

The math checks out.

Look, okay, I've been bored. I don't do well with enforced idleness and I've been sick. So I sat down and did the math. I have recollection of Bull being 39 during Inquisition. I don't know where I got that number from but it is a number that feasibly works with his military history. So I'mma go with it. This math works out -anyway- with Bull just being 'late 30's, early 40's' in either direction so I'mma just gonna go with 39 for the sake of convenience.

Taash is said to be early 20's. This math does get a bit more iffy the closer to 20 they are and I think the sweet spot is if they're about 23. So that's the age I'm gonna use. Again, math still checks out if slightly older or slightly younger, but gets more dicey the closer you go to 20.

Let's take the timeline and play with it now.

Fact one: We have Taash at around 23, which puts them at around 13 around the time of base Inquisition.

Fact two: Bull spent 7 years in Seheron, plus a year or so with the re-educators, plus two years in Fisher's Bleeders, plus a couple with the Chargers before we meet him in Inquisition. So all up let's say... 11-12 years total since leaving Par Vollen for Seheron.

So it checks out that Bull is in Par Vollen being a baby Ben Hassrath (26, 27 years old) at the same time that Shathaan is an ashkaari in Par Vollen.

And look, Ashkaari are teachers, right? I had a look and it's not specified as to which part of the Triumvirate Ashkaari are part of, but logically you would need teachers for Ben Hassrath training. My own personal standing on how much I hate the "Hot for Teacher" trope aside, (comes with the territory of being a -responsible- teacher) it is fully possible that Bull... well... got Hot for Teacher.

Whether or not Bull was involved, Taash's conception happens some time around the time Bull is 22-25 years old. He's in Par Vollen, so is Shathaan. It's possible. (Par Vollen is a big place, but it's still possible.)

Physical similarities

Bull and Taash look similar in a lot of ways, and not just in a whole "All qunari look alike" (ew) kind of way. I give you that this is the weakest point on my list because a lot of these features Shathaan also shares, but onto the points.

All three qunari have green eyes. (Well, eye, as the case may be) All three greens are a pretty similar shade.

Taash's horns hit a middle-ground between Bull's massive rack and Shathaan's curly horns. This is less convincing than I want it to be because we know that qunari can and do manipulate their horns into growing a certain way but horns also do need a form to start from.

Taash is significantly taller than their mother. Bull is pretty freaking HUGE for a qunari. Yes, we do see other huge qunari, but both Bull and Taash stand head-and-shoulders above pretty much every other qunari out there, including Inquisitors and Rooks. Taash also has an incredibly muscular frame, which Bull shares. They stronk.

Taash and Bull share cheekbones and have similar underlying bone structure to their jaws and chin. Add in genetic variation from Shathann and...

Personality similarities

Yes, yes, this could just be "They both love dragons" but it's more than that. Taash and Bull are both extremely blunt tell-it-like-they-see-it people who are both significantly more intelligent than they appear at first glance. Taash doesn't like learning about qunari, but retains what they learn fairly well (despite their mother being, in my professional opinion, a shit teacher.) They're both able to find connections and alternate pathways to getting what they want, and both usually choose the path of least resistance. (Even though Taash absolutely fails their stealth check the first time you meet them, they still try to talk the Antaam down from trying to take the dragon before resorting to violence when this doesn't work.) Taash evades questions about themselves like the plague, similar to Bull when you first meet him ("You writing a book?") and both are incredibly loyal once they've decided where their loyalties lie.

Also, they both lack confidence in their identity and turn to others for help choosing who they want to be, and both struggle immensely within the structure of the qun and crave freedom. Both also are willing to repress this desire if told that it's better in the long run.

And, y'know, both love alcohol, dragons and fighting.

In conclusion

Look, I just wrote this for fun, okay? And also because I love fucked up family dynamics. I'm presenting this as a possibility and nothing more and am mostly doing it because I'm tired and sick and trying to make the most of my weekend. That said, I do believe there's a case for Taash being Bull's kid and it would absolutely make my fanfic heart delighted if it were more than just a pipedream

Yes, I know I wrote like 500 words just now but don't take it too seriously, it's mostly just for lols and 'what ifs'.

But yeah. In conclusion Bull is Taash's daddy and I will be taking no questions at this time. (Kidding, kidding, give me any questions you have, rebut me with grace and kindness if you want. Just don't be a jerk.)