thedarkmaidenn

[sheriffgrimes-archerdixon]

I dont if you could but could you do one where the reader is the younger sister of daryl and Merle Dixon and is in a relationship with rick grimes?

Thank you so much for the request!! I’m sorry it’s taken like FOREVER but I’m slowly working through a ton of requests/ asks!! Thank you so much for the constant support! Love you all so so soooo much!

Not officer friendly no more

Trigger warnings: blood, swearing, brotherly angst, angst in general, mentions of abuse. If any of this makes you uncomfortable please read at your own discretion! MERLE IS GOING TO BE AN EXTRA ASSHOLE IN THIS ONE SO PLEASE BE WARNED.

Fem! Reader. (Readers age around early 20s)

“What do you wanna tell us lil sunshine?” Merle asked staring at you, arms crossed as he studied you, eyes flicking from you before moving to the man you dated: Rick grimes. You and Rick hit it off a year after Lori died. It was difficult for the man to get over his wife but when it came to you he couldn’t help but jump feet first right into the amount of love you had for him. It made him feel loved… he truly did love you. You were both made for each other. Even though it was awful to admit you were glad the apocalypse had happened because if it didn’t… then you wouldn’t of met him.

Rick was capable of calming you down during your worst times… you suffered from your fathers anger when you were younger. Your brothers faced the brunt of each hit of the belt and kick from the boot but you didn’t get out of it unscathed, your mother whilst she was alive burnt cigarettes on your skin to put them out… she neglected you more than she neglected your brothers. Whereas the same couldn’t be said for your dad. He hit you, daryl, Merle and even your mum. It was awful and cruel.

Daryl stood beside Merle crossbow held over his shoulder as he stared at the two of you “Rick and I… uh…” “are in a relationship? Yeah I figured that out quite a while back missy.” Merle said a small smile on his lips daryl giving him quite a perplexed look as if asking why didn’t you tell me? “Uh.. yeah but…” you cleared your throat before looking at Rick nervously, “but? The prick didn’t hurt ya did he?!” Merle asked eyes almost bulging out of his head at just the thought, Daryl quickly shoving Merle “shut up man, Rick wouldn’t ever do that…” “we he sure as hell hurt me! Made me lose my hand!” Daryl glared at his brother “shut. up. They’ve got somethin’ to tell us. Just listen…” he demanded, even though he was the younger brother gods did he feel like the older brother sorting out the childish one… Rick looked at you smiling gently before a soft nervous sigh left his lips before he looked at your brothers before gently taking your hand into his, a small smile on his lips as he gave your hand a comforting squeeze “as you’re both her only parental figures… or living relatives… I want to ask for your sisters hand in marriage.” Daryl’s lips parted in shock yet he didn’t look unhappy, but Merle looked immediately unsure his eyes scanning up and down Rick as if sizing him up

“Why do you wanna marry my little sister huh? You gonna be like that asshole Ed… huh? You better not be-“ “merle. Enough. Please.” You spat out, glaring at your oldest brother brows furrowed in confusion and slight hurt that he would even say such a thing “ricks not like that.” “You don’t know what the hell any man’s like until ya marry him! Remember what d-“ “enough!” Daryl grabbed the back of Merle’s shirt yanking him backwards away from you before standing facing the agitated man “enough…. Ricks a good man. You know that.” He spoke glaring into his soul “don’t speak about dad either. You know what he put her through. Shut the hell up about it.” He demanded, ricks arm wrapping around your waist securely his thumb brushing up and down against your hip, lips coming to press against your head to comfort you his eyes full of held back anger. He knew the abuse you faced… what your dad did to you and he disliked the fact that Merle was using your father against you like that.

Merle sighed “I’m sorry sunshine,” he spoke to you before gently grabbing your hand “I just want the best for you…” he spoke, daryl watching with cautious eyes before his eyes wandered to the fact that merle was inches away from touching the dark cigarette burn buried deep into your wrist but before he could react, Rick had already reacted, shoving merle back into a nearby wall- finger coming to point in his face his other hand stuffing his T-shirt up into his hand keeping him against the wall “you do not… do that… this is something happy. Grow the hell up.” Rick demanded glaring into his eyes, Merle smirking “let her grow up first before you fucking hurt and abus-“ before Merle could’ve even finished his sentence rick had punched Merle in the jaw a gasp coming from you, daryl quickly grabbing onto your hand as he pulled you away, arm wrapping around your shoulder as he held you tight in his embrace. Blood formed on Merle’s teeth as he smiled letting out a laugh “not officer friendly no more…” Merle laughed out Rick giving him an annoyed look “you keep acting like this and I’ll make sure your other hand gets chopped off.” Rick spoke annoyed “is that a threat?” Merle questioned,

“Nah. It’s a promise. Learn some fucking respect you-… are you drunk? Are you-“ “you aren’t a cop no more helicopter boy! Stop spitting ya rules around! No one cares… your an asshole I don’t need respect! You do!” Rick gave him an annoyed look before letting go of him “shut up.” He spoke Merle scoffing “what you gonna do?! Arrest me? Have fun with that pal! Gonna-“ Rick punched merle again, the man falling silent, wobbling a bit before crashing down onto the floor “I said shut up..” Rick muttered before turning around looking to you and Daryl, daryl unfazed yet you looked horrified “I’m sorry y/n.. sorry you had to see that..” he spoke, you soon shaking your head “it’s okay. Well deserved…” you assured shakily before looking at Daryl “are you okay with me marrying him?” You asked softly, Daryl’s hand coming up to cup your cheek as he gazed into your eyes lovingly “of course sunshine…” he smiled gently before pinching your cheek “you’re growin’ up too quick. I don’t like it… but… he makes you happy. Your happiness is all that matters to me.” You smiled lovingly before wrapping your arms around him tightly, him pressing a kiss to the top of your head “love you.” He murmured against your hair before pulling away smiling softly giving your shoulder a squeeze before he walked to Rick, reaching his hand out and shaking his head, both men sharing a brotherly moment you watching with a happy smile knowing you were making the best decision of your whole life.

~

Later on that evening you were having a picnic with Rick, you and him had driven out into a safe place… the place where you both just so happened to make love for the first time. It was beautiful really. It was an empty field of what happened to be an abandoned theme park, old rides still in place, no one in sight.. no walkers… no nothing. Just wildlife and you two. The sun was starting to set, melted chocolate in its packet being used as a dip for strawberries as you gazed at Rick lovingly,

as the time passed the big moment soon happened- Rick dropping down onto one knee your eyes wide and excited tearing up. Of course you knew this was going to happen… he had asked you to marry him prior to everything that happened that day… but this one was real for he actually had a proper ring, and not a plastic ring that children would wear… of course you didn’t mind either way but this ring was different it was genuinely a beautiful ring… “y/n… y/l/n…” he started eyes full of love and a lot of emotion. “Will you marry me?” You nodded excitedly tears growing against your eyelashes before he slid the ring onto your finger, a squeal soon leaving your lips before you jumped right on top of him, him falling backwards soft laughter coming from the both of you his hands grasping onto your hips tightly happiness clear on his face your happiness only growing “I love you so much..” he spoke gazing up into your eyes before cupping your cheek in his hand, your fingertips grazing against his skin gently “I love you so much too…” you murmured lovingly before you soon let your lips intertwine with his as you fell into that deep pool of light and happiness… never in your life did you think you’d ever get married. Especially during this time… you just felt stuck. Screwed. But Rick changed that all…. You had finally fallen in love and gods had you fallen hard for the one and only officer friendly.

[waitingonher]

A LIFE WITHOUT YOU ISN'T A LIFE AT ALL

summary: the aftermath of your injury. [percy jackson x reader]

author's note: finally on break so hopefully i can post more?? also i wrote this all in one sitting so i hope it makes sense...

percy jackson can take physical pain. he’s used to it. he’s seen everything in the book, from blood to broken bones, and it’s become easier to digest over the years. yet, what he can’t ever seem to get over, is the sight of you hurt. there’s nothing that could ever prepare him for the inevitable moments where your life would hang in the balance. today just happened to be one of those moments. 

first, percy heard the screams, then he saw the blood. it was a strategically crafted ploy to hit him where it hurt—you. honestly, if you asked percy, he wouldn’t be able to tell you anything of what had happened in the following moments. all he knows is that he fought like hell to get you back. 

“y/n,” a familiar voice pleads, “wake up, please, wake up,” fuzzy. everything was fuzzy. but then there was the familiar scent of lemon verbena—the candle will always lights in the infirmary. your hands begin to roam as you feel the cotton bed sheets, why are you in the infirmary? your eyes shoot open and immediately meet percy’s. he seems to be frantically talking, but you can only hear the ringing in your ears. 

all of a sudden your hearing rushes back, and you really wish it hadn’t. people shouting orders and people crying over their loved ones wasn’t necessarily what one would want to wake up to. percy’s eyes widen in relief as he kisses your hand, “thank the gods. i almost thought i lost you.” 

pause. you and annabeth were supposed to be leading the charge against the monsters on the northern borders of camp. where is she? how is she? despite being in no condition for sitting up, or for anything in that matter, you attempt to get up, “percy, i- me and annabeth, i need to get back,” an excruciating flash of pain pulses in your gut and you cry out. 

percy immediately ushers you to lay back down on the bed, “y/n you need to-”

“no percy,” dazed, you fight against his hold, ignoring the burning pain, “please, let me go. annabeth, she needs my help and i can’t just-” 

“y/n,” he interrupts, his voice ever so slightly raised, “listen to me,” percy cups your face in his hands, forcing you to look at him. blood. there was so much blood on his face. then you notice the wild look in his eyes, “you’re okay. annabeth is okay. everyone is okay. it’s over, we won.” 

you slowly nod as you take everything in. everything hurt. you had a relentless pounding in your head and an awful pain in your stomach, “what happened?” 

percy pulls in a chair and closes the curtain around your bed, “from what i’ve heard from annabeth, your team arrived at the planned meeting spot, and instead of the couple dozens of monsters you guys expected…there were hundreds. i guess they somehow knew that you were assigned the northern border so they-”

“they focused all their divisions on the northern border, where i was,” you realize. it makes sense, and quite frankly, it was a good plan. why go for the rest of the camp when you could aim for the one person percy cares for the most? you sigh as you sink your head back into the pillow, a potent mixture of guilt and frustration eating at you. 

percy takes your hand into his, rubbing his thumb over your bruised knuckles. he knows all too well what it’s like to be in this position, “y/n please don’t be so hard on yourself. nobody knew that this would happen.” 

you purse your lips, “i know, i just can’t shake the feeling that i could’ve done something differently. i mean look around, this is the busiest i’ve seen the infirmary since the last titan war. and you, you’re hurt too,” your arm weakly raises to wipe away a bit of crusted blood on percy’s cheek. you don’t think you could ever forgive yourself if percy died because of you.

“y/n, you did everything you could. and besides, we can’t control everything, especially when it’s war. we knew the risks the moment we decided to fight back,” his hand meets yours as you caress his face.  

you sigh, “you’re right. thank you percy.”

he gives you a reassuring nod, “and i’m okay, i promise, i already got everything looked at,” he adds, “will said i should be back to normal within a few days.” 

you hum in approval and you two lapse into comfortable silence. percy opens his mouth as if to say something, but lets it fall shut. instead, he reaches for your hand again, holding tightly as if you were to fly away at a moments notice. you look at your boyfriend, finding him deep in thought, “percy what’s wrong?”  

his gaze falls to the floor and a few moments pass before he lets out a shaky sigh, “i was just so scared. i mean, when i got there, i found you and you were just laying there,” he pauses, his brows furrowed and lips pursed, “i don’t think i’ve ever ran so fast in my entire life,” percy’s voice was barely above a whisper. 

your heart begins to ache knowing how hard this affects him. but you also can’t help feeling happy knowing that percy feels so strongly for you.

“then when i got you here, even will was concerned, and you know how good he is. and then he was working on you for hours, and there was so much blood and i just…” he pauses before looking at you, his eyes swimming with desperation, “i've realized that i can’t live without you. so please-”  

“percy," you grasp his shoulder tightly, almost as if proving your existence to him, “i'm alive. you saved my life. and i wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you. you realize that, right?” 

percy nods his head slowly, he himself finally realizing that everything would be okay, “yeah.” 

“good, now give me a hug, my love,” you chuckle, “you’re too tense.” 

and he does not need to be told twice. percy practically jumps (very carefully) into your arms, squeezing you in a tight hug. at the end of the day, you’re going to be alright, and that’s all percy’s asking for.  

“i love you,” he whispers. a quiet oath to always be the one to find you, to always be the one to save you. 

“i love you too, percy,” a promise to do the same.

[nobitchs-world]

When you want to read fanfic on a older character and it’s full of that character x reader that’s half their age I CAN’T FUCKING TAKE IT ANYMORE does it physically hurt you to make the reader close in age?!

I can’t take being a controversially young girlfriend anymore 😫😫 I want to be a milf or gilf please 😫🙏🏽

[percabething]

this is a call to all the pjo writers on here!!!!!!

When are yall writing a fic based on but daddy I love him by Taylor swift where reader is like defending their s/o to their godly parent?????

if anybody uses this pls give creds lmfao

[iheartgirlzn]

FIRST DATE HEADCANNONS

pairings: og three x gn!reader - separately

characters: annabeth, percy, grover

🍿 notes: GROVER MY UNDERRATED BOYYY (if u saw this before i edited it.. no u didn’t)

ANNABETH CHASE

a movie date 100%

while painting or drawing

like y’know those couples on tiktok who switch their canvas’ every couple minutes

thats you two!!

only if you watched the movie at home ofc!

i also think that if you liked painting she’d want to include your interests

otherwise she’d take you (or you’d take her) to the cinema

i think she prefers books over the tv

but she loves watching a movie/new show every now and then

when the movies finished you two would go out for food at a restaurant or something and talk about the movie

but also about each other

because a date is about getting to know the other person!!

and she would listen to every single word you say

she’d just hope you’re doing the same

(and even if you’re already super close she always want to know more about you!)

i just think dates with her would be super sweet <33

PERCY JACKSON

the aquarium or the beach

i think

or somewhere nice

like a restaurant

but i think a beach date would be more his style

he’d take you there midday and you’d go swimming, get ice cream, sun bathe, etc

whatever you wanna do

as long as you spend time together

i also think you and him would already be friends before you start going out

but he’d still want you to tell him everything about yourself

like i said with annabeth

he’d always want to know more about you

dates are always fun with him :)

GROVER UNDERWOOD

strawberry picking at camp

i think you two would have lots of fun with this as well!

just walking around and picking/eating the fruit you find and talking about everything and anything

but first he’d ask your opinion of where you wanted to go

and where a better than what you call home?

(but he’d try keep and your date away from the nymphs because they’re super nosy)

and if you haven’t eaten all the fruit by the time your done

(which would be surprising)

(chb fruit would taste amazing fight me)

you’d make a strawberry cake

grover would just be so sweet

anyways live laugh love grover!

[ameagrice]

Capsize

percy jackson x fem reader

chapter thirty-six | everything in its right place

It wasn’t a real spider. Not completely. But it moved like one over your hands, and so you’d thrown it so far away with one almighty shriek that the spider jumped—a tiny automaton thing, built by Hephaestus himself.

The whole thing felt like one, big joke on you.

It begun as a silver chain previously in Eurytion’s possession. He said he didn’t need it, and had no need to go into the Labyrinth or make contact with Hephaestus. If you needed to find the god, this would lead you right to him. At first, turning it over in your hands, you felt grateful that finally somebody was helping you properly. Until you pressed down on the tiny button in the middle, and it turned into a spider.

The good news: it led you straight to him. Right to Hephaestus’s doorstep. Or, entryway, for a better word. The spider had been scuttling and crawling along the tunnels for a good distance, enough so that you were starting to get tired. Percy had been nearly bouncing in place, both with anticipation for what you might find, and eagerness to get this over with; he wanted out as much as you and Grover.

If you weren’t so good at running, you might have lost the creepy little thing. By the time it finally stopped, all eight legs perched like broken wires, you were hot on its trail and pretty breathless. Grover slowed to a pace at your side, raising his hands to run over his sweaty t-zone from the exertion that was chasing the mechanical spider. Percy slid into your back, and brushed himself off like nothing happened.

You could have described it as developing a funny feeling that something was about to happen.

You stopped only because of one thing.

The giant cave, a spectacular hole in the ground inches away from the tips of your Converse. You watched from the corner of your eye Grover settling back from the jagged edge, and became aware of Percy’s fingers winding round your backpack. Human nature or stupid curiosity, you dug for your flashlight in your pocket, and leaned forward over the abyss. Percy tugged violently on your strap.

“Hey, come on, dont.” He sighed. “If you fall down there—”

“I’m not gonna fall down there!” You protest.

“Do you see with your own eyes right now? You’re literally leaning over a cavern.”

“I’m not gonna fall. But if I did I’d just take you down with me. For company ‘n all.” You drawl, turning to face him with a sly smile. Your brows jump, and Percy huffs, giving your bag one last tug until you avail, and step back.

“How kind,” he deadpans.

“I try my hardest.” You shrug.

“I think we have bigger problems than falling right now,” croaked Grover. He raised his flashlight and flicked it on and off to highlight the problem: a series of metal bars strung up to the ceiling, half-corroded.

You bark a sudden laugh at your luck. “Hope everyone’s had their tetanus shots!”

Between the rotting bars jammed into the cave roof, the tiny spider was swinging across with its strange silky webs, and crawling with its sticky feet across the ceiling. Unless you wanted to stay stuck down here at this junction, you’d have to follow it. And heights were not your speciality.

You clap your hands together; it echoes in the vast space. “So, any first takers” Neither boy answers you. “Brilliant. So, the thing is, I’d rather die than do the monkey bars. Do you guys see my arms? They weren’t made for this shit.”

“Have a little faith,” gulped Grover. “If a mechanical spider with no physical brain can do it, we totally can!”

“I like your enthusiasm!” Percy snapped his fingers. “It’s just the kind of leadership style we need!” He leaned forward and clapped Grover on the shoulder. “Onward, my friend!”

Grover tittered on the spot, and a nervous belch boasted loudly in the air. All the while he argued back and forth with Percy over how he should go first, you decided that it was best to shove down your nerves for the sake of the ever-furthering spider, and stepped back twice. The boys hardly noticed, caught up in their silly back-and-forth debate. You made your choice, and decided to make a run and jump for it.

The second your hands touched the first metal rung, they stung from the impact. You couldn’t prevent the shriek escaping your throat, but everything after that was blocked out. The brain has a funny way of focusing when it senses danger; it blocks out everything it deems unneeded. In this case, you knew though you couldn’t hear them that the boys were probably yelling something. You focussed on the strain in your shoulders, reaching forward for the next bar with halfway decent momentum. Halfway across, your palms started to sweat, and the panic set in even further.

“Guys—” you swallowed, choking on it. “What are the chances I die on impact? Don’t answer that—I already know the answer. It was in this book I read a while ago. It was 31,000 people in 2000. That’s the last time they looked at the statistics. They’ll probably go up—”. Your hand slipped from the bar, and you wiped your palm on your pants before reaching for the next one. You take deep breaths as your body is suddenly hit with panicked sweating and heat, and you know you’re not too far from a panic attack. There’s nothing anybody can do to help you here—it’s all on you. And it’s a horrible feeling knowing that.

It’s hard to move when your fingers start to tingle and grow stiff, another oncoming sign that your body has had enough, it’s working too hard. The brain works in tandem with the limbs—the control centre tells everything else what to do. If it says calm down, it’s going to calm down everything else; even hundreds of feet above a plunging cavern.

When you touch the ground again, you feel rather shaky. But there’s no proper time for rest, or to wait for the boys. The spider is scuttling further away, and it’s literally a race against time to catch up to it. With legs like jelly, you bolt as fast as you can after the spider, the tiny clicking of its mechanical legs sounding through the narrowing tunnel. It’s dark and damp, and your flashlight is beginning to flicker as the batteries run out. You lose all sight and sound of Percy and Grover, and your chest screams with the exertion of holding yourself above ground for so long and then moving instantly into a sprint.

The spider really doesn’t care, though.

You run and run, until something crunches under your feet. You ignore it until you can’t anymore, and gradually slow down, as the crunching becomes too loud. You bend down to inspect the pieces: wood chips, like from…pencils? There’s a shard of lead from the end of one just laying around, and another a bit away from it. Who the hell needs pencils down here? Is somebody else lost, too? The pieces slip through your fingers as you get to your feet, falling back down.

You pick up your flashlight from between your neck and shoulder where you’d been holding it, and twist it in your hand. The light still flickers, except this time it has enough of a glow to show you just who left the pencil scrapings.

Skeletons. Dead, very dead skeletons.

And they look a little different to the ones in gothic movies.

Some are white, like they’ve been bleached, but mainly they’re a weird yellow-brown and mottled, rotting away. They don’t smell, weirdly. They could almost be props. You’re not naive enough to believe that though.

A set of footsteps is growing louder nearing your position. It’s Percy, calling your name. And when he falls to step next to you, a hand on your shoulder, you can’t help but nodding grimly to the skeletons he hasn’t seen yet. You flash your light on them, and he gags.

“Let’s keep going,” you say, and nod to the literal light at the end of the tunnel. You can already see it opens into a big room. “I don’t wanna meet the thing that left those.”

You wait for Grover to catch up before you move on towards the bright light at the end of the tunnel. It feels weirdly intimate, all quiet and settled as you near it.

But…yeah, you take that back. Because you meet the thing that left those skeletons pretty quickly. Just when you thought things couldn’t get weirder down here.

You stop short, and can’t help your jaw dropping in disgust at the creature perched on the glittering dais on the far side of the room. With the body of a lion and the head of a woman, you quite honestly feel like vomming. She wore makeup like a clown, and her stringy hair was tied back way too tightly—how the hell did she even do her hair, with paws?

Grover gagged. It echoed. “Sphinx.”

You scrunch your nose in response. “Ooooh, are we talkin’ that weird thing that does riddles?”

“Funny way of putting it, but yes.”

You want to reply to Grover, but you’ve lost sight of the spider, your only way forward. You can hear it in the quiet, tapping away down the only exit: right next to the Sphinx.

You try your luck; you suck in a deep breath and make a run for it, but the creature is quicker than you are, and it dives down to block your path, roaring in your face with such ferocity that you’re left only with shock. Your face stings with the heat. You gag, and step back. Metal bars slammed down across the exit, and the way you’d come in, blocking your way out indefinitely. Looking longingly through the bars, you lost sight and sound of the spider, heart sinking.

When the bars were settled, the creature smiled. Somewhat horrifying, the voice to leave its mouth was on par. “Welcome, lucky contestants! Are you ready to play…GUESS THE RIDDLE?!”

Spotlights cranked into place and blinded Grover, who slapped a hand over his eyes. Canned applause blasted like there were a dozen soundbars in the room. Something popped from the ceiling, and glittering rained down, sparkling purple, pink and silver in the spotlight.

The Sphinx prowled the room and flicked back her head like you would tossing your hair over your shoulder. “Pass the test, demigods, and you get to advance! Fail, and I eat you for dinner! So! Who will be our contestant tonight?”

“Grover,” you point instantly, and then feel terrible because he looked rather sick. Coincidentally, both boys looked at you. “What, you think I’m smart enough for this shit?” You hiss.

“Absolutely!” Percy encouraged. “And we’ll be right here to fight for you!”

“Totally!” Nodded Grover. He reached into his pocket and produced a stick, and began munching on it instantly. A nervous habit, you’ve come to realise.

“How romantic,” you roll your eyes to Percy, but inside your stomach says SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! You deflated at the shoulders, and squeezed your flashlight between your fingers. Approaching the CONTESTANT podium, it wasn’t difficult to notice the dusty skeleton in a school uniform still leaning over the platform, jaw hanging open.

Holding your flashlight by the very end, you gave the skeleton a shove, and then a kick for good measure. It toppled off the side and clattered to the ground, bones rattling. You side-eyed it and quickly looked away. “So sorry, man.”

“Welcome, daughter of Athena!” The Sphinx cried in a cheesy, televised tone. “Are you ready for your questions?”

You point your flashlight at her. “Uhhhh—no.”

“I need an answer!”

“Sure, yeah. Give me the question, then.” At the side of the room, Percy sends you what is supposed to be an encouraging set of a thumbs-up, and a large smile, nodding his head.

“Riddles, actually, get it right dear. Anywho! Twenty riddles coming your way!” A drumroll sounded overhead, rattling your organs the bass was so deep. There may as well have been a band up in the ceiling. Hell, maybe there was. “What is…the Capital of Bulgaria?”

Embarrassingly, you almost fall flat. “Pffttt, I know this.”

“You know this!” Encouraged Percy from his place, except when you turned to look at him, he was leaning against the wall and sweating. Very encouraging. “You’ve got this, B!”

“Isn’t it, like Sofia, or something? And that isn’t even a riddle, that’s just basic knowledge—”

Applause screamed above. The Sphinx smiled too sweetly, and her sharp canines showed. “Correct! Now, mark down your answers in the booklet with the yellow pencil.”

You eye your empty hands. “What pencil—?” With a solid POP! the pencil, sharpened to a point, appeared on top of the little booklet like magic.

“Now,” said the Sphinx. “If you need to erase an answer, be sure to do it COMPLETELY! Or else the machine is unable to read the answers.” She smiled with closed eyes. A horrible sight, really. The nightmares will be anticipated, when you’re out of here.

Waving around your pencil, and growing slightly annoyed with the creature, you huff. “What machine?”

With a large paw, the Sphinx made a pointing movement to the giant bronze thing situation to the side. It had appeared under a spotlight, and was covered in the Greek letter Êta. If you weren’t wrong, that was Hephaestus’s mark.

Another nail in the coffin of life being a total joke.

“Now!” The Sphinx clapped her paws. “Next question!”

“Shit question,” you mumbled. You set your hands on either side of the podium and waited.

“I beg your pardon?” The Sphinx grew still instantly, clearly annoyed.

“Nothing. Continue.”

“What is the square root of sixteen?”

“Oh. I cant do math. Uhm…”

“Ten seconds on the clock!”

A loud and irritating ticking began with an audible countdown from invisible voices, making your eyes ring. Suddenly uncomfortable, you dip your head and discreetly look at Percy, whose hand moves at his side.

“Four?” You frown.

A bell rang off. “Correct! Which United States president signed the Civil Rights Act?”

“Lyndon. B. Johnson? I th—”

“Correct! Which planet spins clockwise?”

“Venus?”

“Which part of the human body is incapable of healing itself?”

“I think it’s your teeth?” You shift on your feet, feeling way too under pressure.

“Need a definite answer!” The Sphinx pointed to the ceiling with a paw, and the countdown began.

Tiredly, you drawl, “It’s your teeth.”

“Correct again! What comes into the world with more bones than the adult human?”

“A baby?”

“Correct!”

The questions go on, and on until your mind feels like a battered sieve, bent out of shape and a little corroded. You passed twenty questions, and stared at Percy, unimpressed, as a dozen layers of glitter and confetti rained down upon you. A techno electric song began blasting over the invisible speakers in celebration. Grover was taking deep breaths, mumbling under his breath, probably thanking the gods. When you found your place next to Percy, he huffed a laugh, and glitter shifted from your face as he did.

“Oh, you did great!” He offered. The metal bars ground out a horrid noise as they rose back to where they came from. “I knew you could do it.”

“You offered me up like paint at an artist’s house.”

Grover, still praying, took off with his eyes closed, doing a little jig. The Sphinx took a seat at dais, eyes closed. She looked somewhat frozen, barely breathing. When Grover passed on by, it was as if she’d never moved at all.

Clapping a hand down on your head, Percy shook the confetti and glitter like dust from your hair. “I’m sorry,” he said, though he said so with a humoured smile. “I’ll never do it again. Friends?”

“Suppose so,” you shrug, and glitter dances to the ground.

“Let’s go, disco ball. We need to find that spider.”

You skedaddled past the Sphinx whom paid you no mind, and out the tunnel way, leaving a trail of glitter. After a few wrong turns, and following Grover’s voice, and finally managed to locate your friend and the spider, which threw itself at a metal door, a little bit of light spilling out underneath it. In the middle of the door, old and creaking despite not touching it, was nailed a big sign, wilting like it had been melted, dashed with the same sign as the answering machine ten minutes ago: the Greek Êta.

“Are we ready to meet Hephaestus?” Grover asked nervously.

“I’m ready to ask why he spends his time down here,” you grumbled. “Why not somewhere nice?”

Deciding you’d done enough today, Percy reached out around you for the door handle, and gave it a good push. The door screamed, slowly opening, revealing all inside.

The room was bigger than words could describe. It was filled to the brim with machines and makings, some working, some not. There were cars, half-built just lying around, and bits of mechanical animals waiting to be put together. A fire burned in the corner of the room, not tended to though. A dozen tools hung from the walls and were splashed across work tables.

Nobody noticed him until the door slammed shut, you screamed, and he shifted out from underneath a car. A giant man in dirty work pants, and a leg in a metal brace.

“Well, what do we have here?” He boomed. Maybe it was wrong to be so terrified, but you were, and you found yourself shifting slowly, subtly, taking your place beside Percy.

Unfortunately, your slinking act didn’t last for long. When Hephaestus stood properly, he towered way over the three of you.

“I didn’t make you demigods, did I?”

Percy coughed. “No, sir.”

He was tall, and his beard was smoking. The metal spider perched on his head.

“Good. Terrible workmanship.”

“We’ve met, sir,” said Percy.

“Have we, now?” His tone indicated that he couldn’t care less. “Well, if I didn’t get rid of you the first time I won’t need to now, I suppose. And a Satyr. Wow. You’re all far from home. There better be a good reason for disturbing me.”

“We’re looking for Daedalus—”

The god’s beard flickered ten times brighter, and he seemed to get taller. “Daedalus?” He roared.

“Yes, sir, please.” Grover pleaded nervously.

“You’re wasting your time.” He stomped over to the corner of the room, and began to tinker with some pieces of metal. “I understand you met my mother.”

“Yes, sir,” Percy nodded.

“What did you think of her, daughter of Athena?” You jolt at your place, and wish the ground would open up and take you. Side-stepping, you remain half behind Percy, grimacing. “She’ll smile to your face and talk about important values, family values. Didn’t stop her pitching me off of Olympus.”

Why me? You wish you could ask. Why are you asking me?

“I thought that was Zeus?” Percy tries to deflect.

Hephaestus spun on his feet like a top, facing you. “She likes telling that version. Makes her more likeable doesn’t it? The truth is, my mother loves families, but only certain types of families. She influences, and she lobbies. She likes to get involved.”

Finally, he looked up from the metal in his large hands, and focused on Percy. “Oh, this one doesn’t like me. I’ll bite, demigod—what do you want?”

“We told you,” Percy snapped. “We need to find Daedalus. It’s important. There’s this guy, a son of Hermes, and he’s working with Kronos. They’re trying to find a way to navigate this maze to take over everywhere. If we don’t get to Daedalus first—”

“And I told you, son of Poseidon—you’re wasting your time. He won’t help you.”

Hephaestus shrugged his heavy shoulders. “Some of us are thrown off of cliffs and some of us learn not to trust people. Ask me for gold, or a new sword. I can grant you those things. But a way to Daedalus? Well, that’s an expensive favour.”

“So you know where he is?” Asked Grover. “He’s down here at least?”

“It isn’t wise to go looking.”

But isn’t looking the nature of wisdom?

Hephaestus made a deep, rumbling sigh. “If I help you, there will be a price. I need a favour, too.”

“Name it,” demanded Percy.

“You heroes! You like making your promises. How very…refreshing.” The god reached out with a giant hand to push a button in the wall, and it instantly changed. The concrete and metal combined twisted and glowed until it became a television screen, showing mountains, and a forest. Smoke bellowed from the background.

“One of my forges gone, but this used to be my favourite.”

“But that’s Mount St. Helens!” Pointed out Grover. “But you said it used to be your favourite?”

“Well, the monster, Typhon, is trapped there.”

“What do you want us to do? Fight him for you?” Ah, Percy; ever the brave.

Hephaestus snorted meanly. “Well that’s suicide. Someone or something is using my forges there. They sense me coming, and they go, when I try to search it. There is something ancient and evil waiting there, and I want to know who has invaded my territory.”

“You want us to find out who it is.”

“Correct!” Your brain aches, thinking back to the Sphinx. “Find what you can and report back to me, and then I’ll tell you everything I know. Promise.”

“Fine,” Percy nodded. “How do we get there?”

Hephaestus clapped his hands together, and the mechanical spider fell from the rafters, right at your feet. You jumped about ten feet in the air, and screamed so loud it was bolstered by the metal walls. “My creation will show the way. Try to stay alive, young ones. Humans are much more fragile than automatons.”

For a while, you followed the spider without any trouble. The paths seemed unusually normal, just straightforward tunnels of concrete, or metal park slides the whole way down. But the ground began to change to dirt, and trees sprouted in the darkness, and a singular tunnel led away from the original path—Grover was headed straight for it, as if in a trance. He slowed, and slowed and stopped, just before the entrance.

“Come on,” you groaned. “Let’s go, man, It’s not far.”

“This is the way, guys!” Grover mumbled. “This is it! I can feel it!”

“What way?” Probed Percy. “You don’t mean…you know he’s there? Pan? Really?”

“Yes!” He exclaimed, suddenly reinvigorated. “This is it, guys!”

You followed after the spider, intent on not losing it, but held back when neither Grover or Percy followed.

“I have to follow this. I won’t get this chance ever again. You know that, right?”

On the one hand, you wanted to tell Grover to not be selfish. This was the original quest and it was important. But on the other, saying that would mean you were being selfish, holding Grover back from the only thing he wanted. He’d gone along with your plan for a while now, and outwardly telling him that he shouldn’t be doing the one thing he’d ever wanted would feel like stabbing him.

“Percy,” said Grover, “we will find each other again. We have the empathy link, remember? I have to do this. I have to; he’s…so close!”

Because, at the end of the day, this was all Grover had wanted for so long. Really, it felt cruel to tell him no.

Percy sucked in a breath through his teeth. “I hope you’re right.”

“I swear it, I am.”

“Just be careful, yeah? And find us, afterwards.”

Maybe it was to be your last sight of Grover. Perhaps you’d never see him again, although you really didn’t want to think so. You looked after him, as he wandered into the tunnel surrounded by darkness and tree roots winding from the ground until finally he’d gone completely.

It left a strange feeling that something was going to happen.

“We shouldn’t have split up,” you shake your head. “This is a horrible idea!”

“We’ll see him again…” Percy tried to sound confident, but even he fell a little short. He chewed his cheek, still looking at the tunnel Grover had left through. “Don’t worry. Come on, let’s catch up with that spider. It won’t wait for us.”

And it didn’t. The tiny spider scuttled through tunnels and tunnels, down slopes and up them. They grew tighter, and hotter, until your face dripped with sweat. The flashlight slipped in your hand, and you’d been forced to put away your dagger for fear of it slipping away.

More than once you had to stop in place and wipe the sweat dripping into your eyes, sticky and slippy. Your hair grew damp, uncomfortable around your face.

Percy seemed to be struggling the same way. When you turned back to him, his cheeks were bright red like cherries, highlighting the green in his eyes. Somehow, he managed a smile, nodding encouragingly. You swallowed hard, throat as dry as anything.

“Keep going!” He urged. “It’s not far, now, I know it.”

You didn’t want to tell him that he was a little too optimistic for it to be true, but who were you to burst his bubble?

It realistically didnt take a long time, but it certainly felt like it did. Eventually, the spider stopped short and curled into a ball, rolling down a little decline before it popped back open, and crawled a small distance. At last it waited for you and Percy.

The room before you now was the size of a large football stadium, times two thousand. It was so big you could scarcely see each end. The worst part, when you pushed aside the fact that you couldn’t really see properly, was the fact the floor was not floor at all but a plaza of bubbling lava, and your only way to get across should the need arise was two lengths of metal bridges, which ultimately, if the pool of lava was anything to go by, would be too hot to walk across for human beings. Here and there on little platforms were machines bigger than you, rumbling, whirring. Perhaps they weren’t the weird things though—the creatures, dark and shapeless and moving around the solid concrete platform around the lava, paid you no mind. Maybe they’d yet to see you.

“Let’s go, while they’re not looking,” hissed Percy. He snatched up your hand and pulled you along, despite how sweaty you were.

“Hold up!” You pulled back on him, but he persevered. “Percy, wait! We need a plan.”

“We don’t need a plan. We just need to get some information and get out of here.”

“Exactly why we need a plan!”

Your eyes began to burn from the heat of the lava, and your lungs ached from the smoke. It became difficult to even see, so it didn’t take long at all for something to go wrong.

“Agh!” Percy screamed, and you reached out blindly in the smoky haze to slap your hand over his mouth—you missed, and your palm found his eyes instead. “Ow!”

“Shut up, idiot!” You couldn’t help but laugh. “What did you do?”

“Kicked a cart by accident. I can’t see a damn thing with all this smoke.”

Near enough four years ago, when you met Percy, you wouldn’t have thought you’d be creeping around a pit filled with lava and carrying a deadly weapon in your backpack. At most, you’d believed you’d go through high school and eventually Percy would find other friends. You would see each other in hallways in brief glances and walk on by. Maybe in another life. In a normal life, if you’d been born to both mortal parents. You might have even had a dog in the mix. It was strange to think about, as he pulled you down behind a crate, not caring even a little bit about your sweaty palm, or the fact that you’d accidentally slapped him in the face. Life worked in funny ways. The Fates certainly chose you two for a reason, though you couldn’t be sure what that reason was, yet. Maybe, when you’d asked to be born again, the Judges in the Underworld decided you needed some more excitement in your life. Or maybe they hated you, and you’d done wrong before, whoever you were before, because to be here now you’d have to have been here once—after seeing the Underworld with your own eyes, there was no more questioning life after death. Did you reach Elysium? Were you a nice person?

Being a demigod had its pros, its cons, and its questions. It enabled deep thinking.

“Come on, just go around it,” you nodded to the sight up ahead. Percy went to climb to his feet…

That was when you heard the voices.

“Shit! Get in the cart!”

Pulling back the tarp, stinging your fingers, Percy clambered over the edge and into the pile of metal pieces, flat and smooth between the hot cart. He raised his hands, holding up the tarp as you shot a hasty look in the direction of the voices; shadows were growing bigger on the wall. You flopped into the cart in an uncomfortable position of squashed-up legs, Percy’s longer set digging into your side. You tried to move over as far as you could to make room for him but really there wasn’t much point. He flipped the tarp over your heads, and together you held your breath.

It turned red. With the tarp now covering the pair of you, light from the flowing lava pit illuminated the red tarp, casting an amber glow.

Riptide? you mouthed to Percy. Your dagger sat in your backpack, crushed under your weight and between the cart.

He raised his hand ever so slightly, and twirled the pen in response.

“Bring it in?” One voice asked. It was deep.

“Yeah, movie’s just finished.”

Lowering your gaze from the side of the cart, you meet Percy’s. Movie?

Suddenly, the cart jerked, and tipped forward. You jostled into Percy, and thrust your hands out to either side of the cart. The metal was warm. You slammed your mouth shut, hoping nobody heard the surprised squeak.

“Hey! Thought you said this was a small load? Thing weighs a ton!”

Rude.

“It’s celestial bronze, idiot,” the other voice laughed. “What did you think, it’d be light? Hurry up and set it in the back, for crying out load. Hey, younglings! Watch the damn movie. I’ll answer your questions later.”

Had you found some secret school? Were people living here? Younglings didn’t sound very human, however. Nobody in their right mind would use that language.

But a movie did play. You strained your ears, trying to make some sort of sense of where you were. Growth spurts, and hygiene working in the forges.

“And lastly, don’t neglect your flipper hygiene!” The soapy voice rang over speakers. “Good flippers equal good mind!”

Percy spun Riptide between his fingers, dashing back and forth and swapping hands. His dark brows furrowed in concentration, tired eyes pinned on nothing in particular. They seemed brighter in here, somehow. More ‘calm before the storm’ rather than their usual ‘storm’.

“So, younglings, what is the correct name of our particular species? You, at the back!”

“Sea demons!” A voice cried.

“No,” the ‘teacher’ flatlined. “You?”

“Telekhines!” Another voice grumbled.

“Brill! And why are we here, guys?”

“Revenge! Revenge against the Greek god Zeus, for casting us down to Tartarus!”

“Indeed! And only after we created their weapons, might I add!”

So, you were dealing with a bunch of salty monsters. Great.

“Zeus cast us away,” the teacher continued in a mocking, sad voice. “Down to Tartarus. We had no control in this, young ones, no choice! Which is why now is our perfect time for a takeover! We will start here, in the very forges of Hephaestus! And soon after, the undersea furnaces, too!”

There was a huge uproar of applause and yells, some barking, some screaming. Terrible noise, honestly. And that was only the very tip of the iceberg.

You’d done your research after being at camp for so long. You’d come across their names, the Telekhines, but the gross result of the previous Titan takeover remained a subject to be avoided. To you, even reading about the ugliness of that period was enough, never mind looking at pictures of the creatures produced then. Maybe Ares was right, so long ago—you valued prettiness and vanity so much that you may as well have been a daughter of Aphrodite rather than Athena. Is that why your mother wouldn’t connect with you? Did she see her sister, rather than her daughter? Brains and beauty go hand-in-hand, but the Gods have their own set of values and expectations. You didn’t live up to too many of them. Maybe you were vain—perhaps a little too much. Probably ignorant, too.

On your head it was, then, that you had clue what you were up against.

“Who do we serve, Telekhines?”

“Kronos!”

“And when you all grow to full maturity, who will you serve? Whose army will you fight for?”

“Kronos!”

“Lovely. Now, at the back we have brought some scraps for you to practice making weapons with. Go ahead and take a look—but share! We don’t need any arguments today.”

You scrambled in place. Percy’s elbow kneaded into your stomach as he tried to set up Riptide early. Reflexively, your foot shot out at the feeling, and booted his knee cap. Your hand fell to his shoulder, urgently whispering, “backpack. Open my backpack!”

Alas, you both prepared too late. The tarp was thrown away by…human hands. Except the creatures they belonged to one-hundred percent were not human beings. A dozen faces looked in, with snouts like dogs, wet and slimy, and bodies of sea lions, all black and shiny.

“Demigods!” One growled.

“Eat them!” Cried another; from the back of group, there was a sound like nashers clashing.

Fortunately for you, they had also prepared too late. Riptide appeared in full form, and in one strong swoop, Percy decapitated the whole row. They disappeared in puffs of dust, sent straight back to where they came from.

“Back off!” Percy yelled, jabbing at another one.

You swung your arm back with your torch still in hand, and swatted one on the snout. It barked, but retreated, giving you the room you needed to clamber out of the cart.

You came face-to-face with a hunched over, crouching Telekhine with the features of a Doberman, snarling. Your shoes squeaked the further you backed up, right to Percy’s back. The back of his head very briefly knocked the top of yours. He had your back, and you most definitely had his. Very slyly, his free hand rose and made contact with your side, following the strap of your backpack and skimming across it blindly. What was he doing?

“New lesson, class,” said Percy. You clutched the flashlight harder, as the six-foot Telekhine began to advance, its fangs making an appearance briefly. The zipper of your bag jingled, and—ah, Percy was trying to get your dagger. “Monsters tend to vaporise when slashed with a celestial bronze sword. Just like this—!”

The Telekhines dove, driving Percy into gear. He abandoned your backpack, taking one firm swipe to the next set of monsters. They dissolved instantly, little clouds of ash and dust sending puffs in the air. The warm handle of Riptide was pressed into your palm straight after, and you dropped your flashlight. With both hands around the hilt, you swung the sword over your shoulder and back again like you would a baseball bat. The speed at which you did so enabled you to get a surprise hit on the advancing, taller monster, and you split him down the middle. Its essence went up like a bomb. The rest of the monsters were backed up, but you didn’t have long.

You threw the sword back to Percy blindly. Turning, he reached out a hand for yours. “Let’s go!” With eyes wide in anticipation and adrenaline, still furiously red in the face, he pulled you along. In tandem, you made a dive for the exit tunnel, where a door had been placed.

Bingo. Sliding into the safe space, you threw your body back against the door and held it in place while Percy’s deft hands made quick work of the wheel handle, spinning it until it locked. Monsters thudded on the other side, the sound like thunder in this winding tunnel.

Back in the open lava room, you noticed a couple of things that weren’t there before: one, four sea demons even taller than the rest, at least nine-feet; two, the statue and work of which they hammered away at in the middle of the room by the first bridge; three, the harsh language they spoke did not register in your mind. An old language, then. Old as hell.

“What are they making?” You muttered, trying to get a good look without exposing yourself. Sparks flew from the large piece of metal between them.

Percy sighed. “Whatever it is, it isn’t good. They were banished to Tartarus by Zeus for a reason. Now, I don’t like the guy, but I’m pretty sure he’d have a good enough reason for doing something like that.”

You’d nearly forgotten about the locked door at the end of the tunnel, until the creatures came falling through. Crawling over each other, they began to run towards you.

Percy grabbed you by the shoulders, sword dangerously close to your face. He’d never let it touch you, you trusted, but even the aura of it was unsettling so close to your skin. “Start running. Get a head start.”

You shook your head and scoffed. “Ha, no. We leave together.”

“We don’t have time to leave together!” He exclaimed, “I’m gonna hold them back while you get a head start. If you get to Hephaestus first, he might help us. Tell him what we found out, and I’ll be right behind. Got it?”

You liked to think, later, that the final look in Percy’s eyes was determination. It certainly seemed that way, storming bright, his mouth set firmly. You weren’t to fight a whole army with a flashlight and a dagger stuck deep in your bag with no time to grab it.

“Just go!” He ordered. You took a single step back, unsure, until he reached out with one strong hand and gave your shoulder a confident push. “I’ll be right behind you. I promise.”

The army advanced and by this point, the taller, grown ones had taken notice of what was happening. More of those came out of the walls, too, and the dark shapes from earlier finally paid attention to the two of you.

In one movement, not thinking at all, you threw yourself forward, and threw your arms firmly around Percy’s neck. He smelled like sweat and boy and dirt from being down in the maze for so long, but you didn’t care one bit. He was warm and solid and sure and here, and his free hand touched your back, before tugging on your shirt. You moved away, to see something not unlike real desperation on his face.

“Now go,” he ordered, one last time.

And you listened.

You made a run for the way you’d came, and the sounds of the forge were drowned out the further you ran away. At first, it was fine—lights like the metal ones of an old Cold War bunker lit your path. Nausea reigned, until you and your heaving chest took a break against a wall just for a second. You hadn’t gone too far, but the Telekhines weren’t here yet. Percy said he’d be right behind. You’d wait here for him.

Or you could go back.

Kneeling, you slid your bag from your back and unzipped it. Percy had moved the zipper not even halfway in his mission to get your dagger for you. It sat between your jacket and your packets of food. You pulled out a water bottle and sipped slowly. Shrugging your bag back on your shoulders, you waited a second on weak legs, trying to regain some strength.

The tunnel remained silent if you excused your laboured breathing. The lights on the ceiling began to flicker, dimming and brightening again, probably trying to move you along and change itself. It wouldn’t have been unsettling if Grover and Percy were with you, but they weren’t, and you felt completely alone in this maze despite knowing they were still down here too. You laid your hand on your forehead and ran it through your sweaty hairline, trying to wipe the remains of your overheating from your face. As you did, and slowly got to your feet, the lights flickered even more intensely.

That was just before the ground began to shake. At first it was a tiny amount of trembling, and soundless, beneath your feet. Its intensity grew in size pretty quickly, from a little shaking to full-blown rumbling, like an explosion was popping off and heading your way. You stepped back once, trying to make sense of the direction, and only looked up the way you came just as the lights went out silently. It was like a bomb exploded, or some part of the tunnel had blown apart. A fierce gush of wind blew, so forceful you had no choice in being shoved to the wall, hot air hitting you square in the face. Bits of debris and dirt were blown in your eyes, gritting and painful. Just as it began, it ended, and the sound of the maze changing again came through loud and clear.

Which left you with two bouts of knowledge:

One: Percy had definitely just been killed.

and Two: you were totally, utterly lost, without even a flashlight.

Standing in the aftermath of hot, diffusing air from the direction of the forges, breathing in bits of explosion, there was absolutely no denying that your best friend had just been blown to smithereens. Nobody survived an explosion like that. Nobody.

Even so, your mind turned on autopilot. What happened after the explosion was numbed and distorted, like looking through murky water and only half-awake.

“No,” you mumbled, “no, no, no. Not happening. This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening.”

Horror began to sink in, and you felt suddenly extremely, permanently wounded. Percy was, without a doubt, very, very dead. You scarcely moved, scarcely breathed. Staring at a wall replacing what you thought was where you came from, but now couldn’t be completely sure, because you’d dropped your flashlight back in the blown-up cavern, and your best friend was lying in bits and pieces of body somewhere you couldn’t reach. The mind runs rampant in panic. All you could think of was blood, and bones.

You might have screamed. You thought you did. Your throat turns sore and raw, and you figure you’ve been screaming for a while in the darkness on your own.

How strange it was that Percy had been the only thing keeping you safe this whole time. Without him, you feel exposed even when nothing can see you. They can definitely sense you. You hear something coming, like a body being dragged along the ground, and decide now would be a good time to get up and go. But your hands and feet are numb and tingling, evidence of a panic attack. Your head swims without sight, and you can’t feel the wall when you touch your fingers to it.

Your feet hurt when they take step after step until you’re running, dragging your fingers blindly along the dark tunnel as some semblance of a path finder. The walls change, and twice you fall. It’s embarrassing, scraping your chin on brick, eating dirt. You stumble up stairs, walk through cobwebs and feel things crawling up your neck, and scream now and again out of sheer annoyance, sheer exhaustion. You begin to pray, muttering insanely under your breath to anyone who will listen: first your mom, and you beg her to forgive any doubts you had. Then you beg Hermes, the patron of travellers, to at least give you direction here. And finally Ares, because the only thing fuelling your body is determination to not die down here.

Someone has your back.

Just as you’re beginning to freak out again, you feel the wall begin to curve around, and dip. And…grow…lighter? And it is, growing lighter. There’s a glow coming from a door at the end of the tunnel, and you’ve seen this door before.

You’ve made it back to Hephaestus’s workshop in one piece.

You think about knocking. And then you realise how stupid that idea is, and burst right in.

Heaving, sweating, and rubbing your sore chin, you stand wilting in the doorway of his workshop. He’s hanging from the ceiling on some sort of platform, but jumps down when he notices you.

“Ah,” he cleared his throat. “It’s you.” Hephaestus raises his hand to his beard and pats at it, putting out a great deal of fire burning there.

“Percy’s dead. And Grover is as good as.” You swallow, and kick the door shut blindly. “I want a way out of here, and you’re going to help me.”

“Look at you, making all the demands!” He laughs. It’s bellowing, and it rumbles the room. “Little demigod. Get a hold of yourself. You’re getting tears on my floor.”

You flinch in place at his cruelty. “My best friend just died!” You yell out. “Percy’s dead, because you told us to do something. This is your fault.”

Hephaestus looks up from the screwdriver in his hand, to meet your eyes head on. It’s like tiny fires are burning there. “Hold your tongue, daughter of Athena. It’s unbecoming. And I didn’t kill the other one—whatever was in there did that.”

“Telekhines,” you spat. A gritty tear rolls down your cheek. “That’s what’s in there. Or, was. It’s all blown apart now. So we went there for nothing. I hope you know they’re all against you. Kronos’s army is rising, and they’re coming for you.” And I can’t say I blame them.

He paused, raised a brow briefly, and scoffed. “Demigods don’t scare me.”

“No, but Kronos does. And he’s still coming whether you like it or not. You killed my friend. So I have a request.”

Hephaestus threw down the instrument in his hand, colliding with a metal worktop and echoing somewhat off the walls. You cringe, but refuse to back up. “Look at you, demigod, making all the requests.” He pauses for a moment. “But I cannot deny you, I suppose. You did as I asked. You want a way home.”

“Of course I want a way home,” you seethed.

He cocked his head and huffed. “Go out of here. Follow the tunnel left, and all the way down. You’ll find your way home, daughter of Athena.”

Without a ‘thank you’ you find yourself marching out of his workshop, abandoning the door. You do as he says, and it feels ridiculously easy, hand on the wall again and sliding your fingers across to follow the way it bends. Left, and all the way down. Your fingers hit a bump in the wall, and that little bump instantly begins to glow dark blue.

It makes you think of Percy, but you have no energy left to cry with.

Hephaestus wasn’t misleading you, then. Stepping away from the hole opening up over your head, dirt caves in and crumbles around your feet. A dirty ladder begins to shake its way out of the dirt wall, all the way up to the new gap in the earth.

You hear voices, as you heave up the ladder. It’s short, and doesn’t take long to reach the opening at the top, where a hand has reached down to help you up, a face peering in—Clarisse.

Her expression is one of apprehension, and it’s as serious and firm as ever. Her muddy eyes flick over your face, and you imagine you must look a state. Your chin still burns with your ground collision, cheek smarted.

For a second, as she pulls you with a strong hand from the Labyrinth, she doesn’t say anything. You barely look at Clarisse, crawling out of the hole. A distance away you can hear voices.

“They’re all patrolling that way,” she grumbled. “Bit of a stupid move on our part. You’re lucky I was here, and not…” she trails off. You’re not quite short who you were lucky she wasn’t to be, because you can’t find anything in yourself to question her.

Instead, you shake your head. Clarisse pulls you to your feet, and you’re vividly aware of the smell of camp, strawberries and the smell of the trees. The air is a cold shock above ground.

Finally you look up. You meet Clarisse’s somewhat concerned look. She stares expectantly.

“Percy’s dead,” you swallow. Clarisse’s eyes widen for a fraction of a second, then everything falls from her face. “Grover’s gone. And I need to talk to Chiron.”

“Wait—” you stumble past her, tearing your arm from her grip. The world feels blurred. “They’re—they’re both dead?! They’re gone?”

“That’s what I said, Clarisse!” You snap, raising your arm to wipe your eyes.

“We all thought that you’d be fine down there!” She follows after you. “You’re—capable, at the least! I don’t understand!”

You walk quickly through the woods, tearing past groups of people on guard, and some kids playing by the cabins. Up ahead is the Big House, your destination. People call your name when they see you, but there’s nothing left to answer them with.

You wished you could smiled, walking into the house. You wished Grover and Percy were right behind you, laughing at something stupid as usual. You might have been greeted by your friends with cheers, quest completed successfully.

Murphy’s Law says anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. If you have a handful of opportunities of things that can go wrong, the one most likely to cause damage will occur. You’ve deducted that Murphy’s Law is charging your life.

So, you walk the creaking, fading steps of the Big House and along the porch. You thought of Percy at the very beginning of all of this, recovering on this porch. It made you think of returning here after Bianca passed. You throw open the door, bordered by white drapes, met with silence.

“Hey,” calls Clarisse. “Hey, look, I know how you feel. But we should get you to the med bay first. You look about to pass out.”

And you feel it, too. But you can’t rest until you’ve settled this.

Chiron’s face lights up when he hears you, standing in the doorway. Brown eyes warm and welcoming sadly fade, like he knows.

You choke on a sudden flow of tears, the back of your hand flying to your mouth. “He’s dead,” you tell him outright. “Percy’s dead.”

That’s the most important thing to tell. Not that you didn’t find Daedalus, or that you insulted a god down there, nor that you abandoned Nico. After all, it is the worst thing imaginable, in your eyes. All-consuming horror, taking over every inch of you. Your best friend, your longest friend, is dead.

“He saved me,” you whisper shakily.

There’s a lot of hush on camp, after that. The daylight was already fading when you came up above ground again, and it’s nearly gone now, the sky a dull, sad shade of dark-blue. Clarisse declared the time to be six o’clock in the evening exactly when you climbed out of the Labyrinth. You spend two hours going over everything in excruciating detail, from the second you stepped foot in the maze and the meeting with Hera, the blown-up forge, and what you saw. Everything feels strange after spending, as Chiron tells you, a week in almost complete darkness, with no way to tell time, in a setting altering itself every few minutes. The distant sound of laughing campers and the kids playing by the lake are long gone, as if the whole camp knows what has happened—maybe they do know. But nobody can feel the grief you feel, the struggle to really accept what happened. Logically, Percy is very, extremely dead and gone. Your heart is beginning something to change.

You don’t sleep well that night. Chiron writes down every little thing you say, and has Clarisse bring up some food for dinner for you. It’s kind, and unusual for her. She keeps her gaze lowered the whole thing you’re there, but she isn’t mean, so that’s something.

It’s nearly nine o’clock, and you’ve washed and dressed, ready for sleep in the spare room on the third floor of the house. There’s absolutely no way you can face company tonight—you’re drained completely, and know the second you hit the pillow you’ll be out. Nursing a cup of hot chocolate with extra marshmallows per Chiron’s sympathy, you settle at the table, swirling around the pink and white delicacies in your mug with a teaspoon. It’s a kind thought to make it for you, but you don’t need hot chocolate; you need to scream. You need to grab the nearest bat, and smash up the kitchen. You notice a rolling pin hanging from the wall…

“We need to talk about the maze,” says Chiron in a low tone.

It’s late and you want to sleep. “We already did.” You clink the spoon against the mug.

“It’s just…my dear, nobody navigates the maze like that. The way you described, coming back in the dark… Chris Rodriguez and Clarisse were down there for weeks, separated, and neither managed to find a way out alone. Someone found them. Alone, they might have been stuck down there for a lot longer than they were. They were the last people to go down before yourself, Percy and Grover. You walked alone, and found your way not only to the workshop, but back out of the maze again in one short go.” He pauses. “How did you do it?”

You swallow and breathe in order to ebb away the annoyance you’re feeling a lot of. You shrug. “I uh…I just knew what to do. Hephaestus told me which way to go before Clarisse found me but—well, I just walked the rest. Couldn’t see a damn thing.”

“You just knew?” He repeats. Raising your head, Chiron is frowning deeply. “To me, it doesn’t seem right. Put it this way, my dear—nobody has been able to navigate the maze like that since Luke.”

You slam down the mug in an instant on the hard wood table, spilling the contents all over the table, dripping to the floor. “Alright, so you think I’m working with Luke? Because I walked a couple of tunnels alone? If you really believe after my best friend was killed by the very people Luke is working with, that I’d work with that guy, your head needs a good tap, no offence.” You stand up swiftly, knocking the chair back. He calls your name but you ignore it and stomp up the stairs to your temporary bedroom.

In there, you lock the door, get on your knees, and pray. Your tears soak your clasped hands at the side of the bed. You get on your knees, and you beg.

I’ve added the song ‘everything in its right place’ by Radiohead to the capsize playlist on Spotify if you want to give it a listen! Figured it worked well with the end of this chapter. After all, these things are Fated to unravel whether our main gal likes it or not ☺️ the song absolutely hits me in the gut. It’s the epitome of ‘oh, it didn’t go the way you planned? tough. it’s meant to be this way’ and the realisation that things are falling as they should.

taglist:

@bl6o6dy @embersparklz @lilyevanswhore @rottenstyx @rory-cakes @i-am-scared-and-useless-bisexual @marshmallow12435 @lantsovheiress @distinguishedmakerpandapatrol @twsssmlmaa @gayandfairycore @padsfirewhisky @emu281 @charlesswife @jessiegerl @tojismassivemantiddies @xx-all-purpose-nerd-xx @nothankyou138 @obxstiles @mxltifxnd0m @cxcilla @itzjustj-1000 @sp00kcanwrite @randomesthings @fratbrochrisgf @prongsflower @bugszi

[stinkygirl009]

Dear lord, when I get to heaven,

Please give me all my middle aged men.🙏

[rafeyybabyy]

✨june 2024 fic recs✨

please please please reblog to show your support for these incredible creators! and please check out/reblog their work!

also if anyone would like to send me fics to read i would love that!

this rec list includes fics for: bucky barnes, peter parker, andy barber, rick grimes, evan buckley, harry styles, and chris evans

don’t mind me just randomly popping up after a year with a new fic rec list!! 🥰😜

marvel

bucky barnes

my mom thinks your hot - @bluehourbucky

“your son tries to set you up with an avenger in a grocery store”

jealousy, jealousy - @malum-forev

“you're usually someone who preaches love but there's something about a new recruit that makes your blood boil.”

peter parker

interception - @waitimcomingtoo

“ flash’s pool party turns into a kissing party and peter fears you’ll kiss someone else”

c. evans characters

andy barber

crossing lines - @speechlessxx

“the line between best friend and lover is so thin. but can andy’s arrival in the reader’s life force ransom to cross it?”

twd

rick grimes

ghost - @sayafics

“her name was casper graham. at least, she thought it was.

after waking up in a hospital room with no recollection of how she got there, casper was forced to navigate the world of the dead.”

911

evan buckley

you get me so high - @mvltisstuff

“whoever brought those brownies in was an angel to y/n. yeah, a felony for sure, but she’d be lying if she said she didn’t secretly enjoy it.”

the calendar - @imagineshere-forall

“an unexpected person stars for the 118 in the firefighter calendar”

other

harry styles

just give me a day, or two… - @meetmymouth

“in which y/n and harry have been broken up for a while but the internet is still rooting for them. featuring a footballer and lots of tweets.”

luke hemmings

apartment 716 - @valentiyne

“paper-thin walls and numerous noise complaints.”

chris evans

love at coachella - @astranva

“in which chris and singer!Y/N show their love at coachella and fans freak out.”

just you - @astranva

“13 years apart, chris and y/n are everyone’s favorite couple until y/n stars alongside harry styles in don’t worry darling and chris gets insecure over how good they look together.”

[yourimagines]

Hi can you perhaps make a one shot about Ross, Norman, Andrew and others about how you guys met? Fluff 🥰

Sure

How you met fluff P.1

* English is not my first language I apologise

* Gif is not mine

* Triggers: Fluff

Part two

Ross Marquand:

You met him on the set from the walking dead. He was all covered in blood and to you he looked absolutely handsome.

"You look weirly enough very handsome." You said to him, making him laugh.

"Oh well thank you. I'll asked them if they will cover me in blood more often then." He said while giving you a wink.

You giggled and blushed as he teased you. You both became very close over the weeks and he eventually asked you out on a proper date.

Andrew Lincoln:

You met him at a party from a mutual friend. He wasn't really having fun till he saw you, laughing and having fun.

"You have a beautiful laugh." He admitted to you as you stood next to him.

"Oh really? I actually hate my laugh." You said while blushing about it.

"Yes, you should laugh more often, it makes your eyes light up. It's beautiful." He was flirting with you and you fell for it. You even convinced him to dance with you and made sure you got his number to see him more often.

Norman Reedus:

You met him at a gas station, you were driving a motorcycle and he was impressed by you.

"Is that yours?" he asked while checking out your motorcycle.

"Yes it is, you like it?" You said full confident as you saw he was riding a motorcycle himself.

"Yes very impressed." He smiled at you, you checked out his motorcycle and you both exchanged numbers to meet up and ride together.

Chandler Riggs:

You met him through gaming, you both played the same online game and started a friendship.

"Wow, your very good at this game." You said as he just shot the enemies dead.

"Oh this is nothing, pure luck." His voice sounded beautiful to you, a little bit raspy as it was late in the evening.

"Well it was still impressive, i would love to you in my team. I'm not so good at this game myself." You joked, hoping he would be your new friend.

"Sure, I need a new friend to have fun with and i don't think your that bad tho." You both laughed and gamed nights and nights together till he confessed his little crush he has on you.

Steven Yeun:

You met him during an award show. You both won and met each other afterwards.

"Congratulations." You said as you went in for a friendly hug, he accepted your hug and placed a soft kiss on your left cheek.

"Congratulations to you too, you deserved it." You both where big fans of each other and you both didn't even tried to hide it as you were smiling at each other.

"Thank you, You deserve it as well." You took a photo together making your fans crazy about it, shipping you guys big time.

[your-averagewriter]

"I thought they killed you."

Summary: (y/n) is isolated after the disaster on the beach but luckily she's found just in time but just the right people. (Rick Flag x reader)

Word count: 1.0K

Warnings: Blood, injury, violence, weapons, swearing, (usual Suicide Squad things)

-

-

I stumble through the forest patting the fire out on my arm, the burnt cloth scratching against my wounds. The mission wasn’t meant to go like this - I can’t believe Blackguard sold us out. Actually I can believe it because I don’t know him, barely any of us know each other which is one of our problems, you can’t just trust strangers on a suicide mission.

So far, I imagine most of the squad is dead and those that aren’t are isolated waiting to be picked off by the soldiers hunting us through the forest.

But I keep going in the hopes that someone is alive or finding anyone at this rate would be good, friend or enemy.

Holding onto the branch above I steady myself as I try to make my way down a hill but I trip falling. I can feel my stomach reeling and despite my head feeling heavier than ever I pull myself up off the ground and continue, desperately, not knowing what’s ahead. It would be nice if next time (if there is a next time) Waller would come up with a plan B or an evacuation tactic but she doesn’t care about what happens to us so I doubt she will.

Soon after I realize that I’m bleeding from my arm, a cut, not deep but not shallow either so I rip off some cloth from my dirtied trousers and tie it around the wound, making sure there’s adequate pressure. At this rate I could bleed out from my wounds before I even get anywhere.

I hear footsteps and voices, although my head is pounding so badly that I can’t hear properly and can’t bring myself to care. Maybe if it’s some soldiers they can finish me off.

Turning the corner I can barely hold myself up but I see a familiar face I certainly didn’t expect to see.

“DuBois?” I question quietly, wondering whether I’ve lost enough blood to start hallucinating. But before I can even take another step I feel my body go limp and I collapse on myself, falling to the ground. All I hear is DuBois saying my name, worriedly before I feel my consciousness leave me.

I feel my eyelids flutter open as I’m met with a pale canopy roof. My head is killing me and my mind is fogged over with confusion and questions. I look down at my body and see all my wounds have been properly dressed and some stitched up. My skin is still dirty along with my clothes but all traces of my blood have been removed. I question why I’m here but that’s when I remember what happened before I must have passed out.

“DuBois?” I say again, quietly as I sit up. I instantly regret it as all the blood rushes to my head and I feel myself becoming faint again but it passes after a few moments.

Looking around the room, there are a couple of wooden chairs and the floor is planked - I can see through the slither of the entrance to the canopy that we’re still in a forest.

Suddenly I hear footsteps from outside the canopy and I instantly reach for my weapons but they’ve been removed so I look for the closest, best option which ends up being a syringe - it hasn’t got any liquid in it but any object in my hand becomes a weapon. I realize my shoes have been removed as I place my bare feet onto the planks, it takes me a second to stand up but after, I manage to limp quietly to the entrance.

My back is pressed up against the fabric of the canopy as I await the impending footsteps, ready with the syringe in hand.

Someone pushes the fabric aside and walks in but as soon as they do I throw my arm around their neck, effectively choking them and placing the needle so it presses against the skin of their neck, not quite piercing it but could easily be if needed.

They don’t struggle and I notice by their uniform that they’re not a civilian but whether they’re friend or foe remains unknown.

Another figure walks in behind the uniformed stranger.

Rick Flag.

My face is a painting of confusion as I look at him and then to the stranger. He walks slowly towards me.

“(y/n).” He says gently. “Put the needle down.” He says again in a soft tone as he walks towards me, hands reaching for mine. “You’re okay.”

“Rick?” I question, not entirely sure he’s there or why. “What are you-What are you doing here? I thought you…” Tears start to brim my eyes as I look at him. “I thought they killed you.” I say, my voice wavering, unable to stop the trembling.

“Put the needle down.” He’commands’ but it’s still gentle. I lower the needle slowly and release the person from my grip. Dropping the needle to the ground, Rick immediately wraps me in his arms.

“You’re okay, you’re safe here.” He reassures me, his hand stroking the back of my head as I bury my face in his chest.

“I don’t understand, I saw them, they had you!” I say. “I saw it with my own eyes!” I exclaim, tears flowing from my eyes now. “I tried to help you but they- they.”

“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter now. I escaped, you escaped. That’s all that matters.”

“And DuBois? I saw him! I swear.” 

“He brought you back here, he said you fainted just after he saw you. You were hurt pretty badly.”

“Why is DuBois here?” I ask and all the confusion is only making my head hurt more.

“Waller went behind our backs and set up a second team. We were a distraction.”

“A distraction? Fucking brilliant.” I mumble, shocked but not surprised at Waller’s actions. “We were sent to die?” He sighs but nods.

“I’m just glad you’re alive.”

“Waller can’t get rid of me that easily.” I say with a small smirk and I can tell that he’s glad I’ve kept my humour throughout this shit show.

-

AN: First piece of writing I've done in a while!

I've been doing exams and working so I haven't posted much but I've finished my exams now so you can expect me to post more (hopefully more Suicide Squad content because I LOVE the movies).

Hope you enjoyed reading and requests are open!

[drghostwrite]

another walking dead x reader fic idea coming at cha

carol comes across a pregnant reader, alone in the woods. not far along. reader has no one else. carol is cautious, but can see truth. she asks the 3 questions.

they get closer as the pregnancy progresses. reader wants to help more and carol is protective, telling her it’s not safe. she needs to rest.

reader follows anyway & her water breaks out on a run

Pairing: Carol x reader

So I haven't gotten this far yet, just let it be lol... I tried my best and I hope that you enjoy, if there are some things that aren't by the show just overlook it, please lol.

it’s been a LONG time coming but here it is… and it’s a long one so strap in.

********************************************************

You scrambled over the leaves and downed branches, roots reaching out for your feet, you were absolutely exhausted but the adrenaline was still pumping, you had just watched your husband die in front of you. Your group had been stranded in a local, now deserted sporting goods store while trying to gather supplies someone opened a back room full of starving walkers, you and your husband took off but he later decided to stay back and fight them off while you ran.

Except you didn't run you stayed you hid yourself, and when you returned he was there bleeding, dying, you held him before you saw the life drain from his eyes, taking his wedding ring you put it on your necklace and that's when you heard the remaining walkers, taking off in fear of your life.

You quickly dodged a tree, your breath becoming heavy as you propelled yourself forward, you found a clearing and ran to the other side sheltering yourself behind a large tree, you were trying to steady your breathing when you heard the footsteps... two sets one heavier than the other, your breath caught in your throat, you turned ready to give it your all, to run but you stepped on a branch the loud crack heard throughout the clearing.

"Hey!" a man called out.

"Daryl!" a woman angrily whispered. This was it, it could be your last moments alive, most survivors weren't very forgiving of a lone traveler, one hand ghosting over your still forming bump you leaned your head back against the tree closing your eyes.

"Is someone there, if you are just come out... we don't want to hurt you." the woman gently called.

You reached up feeling the rubber grip of your machete in your backpack, pulling it out, ready to make the fight of your life, you turned to look around the tree.

You tried to step out and that's when an arrow flew past your head, quickly jumping back. "Daryl you damn idiot, stop for just one moment."

"She has a machete..."

"Doesn't mean she's going to use it." she scolded, "Please excuse him, just come out, weapons down, see..." she waited until she knew you were watching and they both dropped their weapons, you stepped out into the clearing, machete still at your side. The woman and man before you looked like they were in good health, both strong and healthy, you could feel their eyes searching you, she stopped at your bump, you weren't far enough along that everyone knew but, for those that have been around pregnant women before it was noticable enough.

"I'm Carol and this is Daryl..."

"Y/N..."

"Hi Y/N, can I ask, how far along you are?"

"18 weeks."

"a little over 4 months is a long time to be by yourself."

"I'm not...err...I wasn't, until today..."

"What happened today?" she said, you felt as though you were being interrogated.

"Our group, they got caught by a heard... my husband, he saved me, he saved us..." you said a hand coming to your still growing baby.

"Ahh okay... can I ask you some questions?" you slowly nodded.

"How many walkers have you killed?"

"Too many to count..."

"How many people have you killed?"

"I..." tears started to run down your cheeks. "6... too many."

"Why?"

"3 of them got sick and asked me to, `1 of them tried killing me, they cornered me in an alley and I pushed them into a crowd of walkers."

"And the last two?"

"The last... she, she was my best friend, she was pregnant, needed surgery for her baby and I couldn't do it... she ended up bleeding out, we lost her and the baby."

"Hmm...Y/N will you come with us?"

"Where?"

"Home..." she motioned you forward.

---time jump---

3 months later and you were moving around a shared house, they had found you in the woods and taken you back to the Alexandria safe zone, you were now 30 weeks and it was very known, you used to be a nurse so they had repurposed you to work in the infirmary.

You were restocking some supplies when you heard a knock at your door and the shuffling of feet, you turned sideways to be greeted with a smiling Maggie.

"Hey mama!" she said coming up to wrap you in a hug, she had just returned from a two day supply run, she moved her hand down to feel your baby moving.

"Oh no, what happened?" you chuckled, looking her over.

"Nothing, why do you ask?"

"Because, you came to find me witch usually means either really good news, or that you had a rough run... and seeing as you have no supplies."

"Oh..."

"Yea," you smirked disappointedly.

"Rough run, I guess."

"Wanna talk?" you said setting some of the things down that you were holding.

"No, it's okay." she softly scoffed. you eyed her carefully, you opened your mouth to respond but that's when you heard yelling.

"You son of a--" you heard a booming voice call, you saw as Rick took off towards Daryl. The two men started fighting right there on the dirt in the middle of town.

"Oh hell no..." you said as you started towards them, Maggie close behind, people quickly coming outside.

"Y/N don't!" you heard Carol yell from behind you.

"Hey, HEY!" you yelled. Glenn quickly ran up to try and help separate the two, Carol jumped in front of you, Maggie going around to help Glenn. "No way you think you're getting into that, nuh uh mama."

"Carol.." you growled.

"No Y/N."

"Fine," you pushed past her to stand in between both men as they stared each other down.

"Okay, what's going on?"

"He took Carl out..."

"No, the boy followed us..." they both started yelling back and forth.

"HEY! shut up for two seconds..." they both stopped talking, you listened, a hand tightly pressed under your bump.

"So Rick you didn't want Carl to go, and Daryl you knew he was following..."

"No I didn't..."

"Daryl..." you gave him the look and he quickly shut his mouth a growl still lingering. "You both know better than this, we need you both you don't belong out on the courtyard fighting, and you better not end up in my infirmary."

"I wouldn't but he would..." Daryl said, a cocky grin on his face.

"You..." Rick said turning back around to storm towards Daryl, knocking you aside, you met the ground a little harder than you would've like, Glenn jumped in pushing Rick back, Carol rushing to your side as Michonne stepped in laying a good punch to Daryl before standing in between them.

"Gahhh..." you hissed grimacing, Carol helped you up looking you over.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so..." you said brushing yourself off, you looked at the scene around you before quickly grimacing again, leaning into Carol, who wrapped an arm around you, one hand quickly coming to support your hand that was wrapped under your bump.

"Okay no, we're taking you home..." she said.

"Y/N are you okay?" Rick said worried, flashbacks of Lori quickly flooding back.

"I'm fine... Rick I'm fine, both of you go home, and so help me God I better not find either one of you back out here again."

a couple minutes later and you were laid in your own bed in the house you currently occupied, Carol next to your bed as Maggie came in followed by Hershel.

"Well looks like your little scare was some premature contractions..."

"I could've told you that," you said shifting to a more comfortable position.

"Y/N..." Carol said, she'd gotten the closest to you other than Maggie and she could tell when you were frustrated and she knew you had a tendency to give attitude when you didn't get your way, even if you were wrong. You were stubborn and headstrong but that's what kept you alive.

"Let me guess bed rest."

"Well that's what I recommend but you also run the infirmary so I would just say take it as easy as possible, we don't want to put you into premature labor."

"Thanks..." you grumbled and they both left the room, leaving you alone with Carol.

"Y/N..."

"don't start..." you ran two hands over your tired face.

"fine, but take it from me you need to be careful." She rested a hand on your leg.

"what was I supposed to do let them kill each other."

"No but that doesn't mean you jump in between them, leave it to us, you can just yell at them after."

"Oh okay." you chuckled.

"Please..."

"whatever you say..." you scoffed with a smirk.

two weeks later, you were still back to your usual ways, except this time, Maggie came into the infirmary to distract you, "So why are you in here and not out there prepping for a run?" you prodded.

"Well..."

"Maggie?"

"We're good on supplies, so I didn't want to go."

"Didn't want to go?... yea right, while I stand here knowing we need a restock."

"I-I..."

"Omg they're doing a med run and don't want me to go..."

"No, Y/N we're good, really."

"Hah no ma'am, I need a med restock... which means Carol is leading the run and doesn't want me to go, well that's not her call, let's go."

"No Y/N you can't..."

"right, let's go." you said before climbing in the jeep to drive out to the runners point.

Carol immediately spotted you, "no Y/N."

"Tell me no one more time."

"You should be back resting..."

"I'm fine..."

"No, you're not you should be back resting."

"I'm cleared..."

"Hershel cleared you?" she said sarcastically in disbelief.

"No I did, I know the signs, I'm fine, I have at least 6 more weeks."

"I don't wanna test that theory, you can't go."

"watch me... I'm the only one that can identify what we need, I'm going."

She let out a large sigh, having a stare down with you, she gave up looking at Maggie and giving her a signal, which meant the three of you were riding together.

“Any pain and you tell me right away.” She demanded.

“Fine.” You shrugged with attitude.

The ride to the location was silent as you drive there, you watched out the windows as carol kept a close eye on you as she drove. Once you stopped you looked around it was a cluster of stores, a supermarket, urgent care, and a few other odd shops.

“Okay team me Maggie and Y/N will take urgent care… another group the market and then the rest filter through the other shops. You know what to grab clothes shoes, food, supplies anything we can carry, let’s go, quickly.” You knew she was upset with you so you silently followed to the boarded up building, they pulled down a few boards and you all went through. You grabbed whatever meds you could find raiding the pharmacy and medical supplies, gloves masks, gauze, even a few scalpels which you found odd. As you were all grabbing what you could you heard rustling and then a bang.

You locked eyes with Carol as she stepped forward, “someone there?” She called. Maggie guarded her from behind, before you knew it a small critter jumped out and scrambled across the floor making you all jump, “oh I thought…” you started, as you turned though you saw movement, a groan as a figure lurched forward at you, knocking you to the ground you felt pain shoot up you body and wetness between your thighs, pretty sure either the impact caused bleeding or your water broke. You tried pushing them off of you, tried protecting your bump, “help!” Carol fired off a shot and ran over pulling the walker off of you. Maggie slid in behind you helping you to sit up. “You okay?” They both asked

“not sure…” you said trying to stand. A contraction quickly causing you to lean back forward, “no no no…”

“Y/N?” Carol asked sternly.

“shit, she’s in labor.” Maggie said, tension and panic filling the air, from all the commotion her hand had collided with your thigh and she felt the wetness lifting her hand to see the clear liquid.

“no I’m fine, just some preterm contractions.” You tried waving off a worried carol.

“Y/N, are you?”

“I think your water broke, Y/N.” Maggie said looking to you and Carol.

“I should be fine, okay?!” You snapped, you knew you weren’t fine, you were most likely in labor and there was no stopping it now.

“should be?!… we’re leaving now!” Carol said demandingly. You stood with a grimace from another contraction, Maggie helping you one arm wrapped around to your side the other helping you to support your bump. Just then a blood curdling scream ripped through the air, one of your runners, “move, let’s move!” Carol said rushing out in front of you.

“wha-what’s going on?” You fought through a contraction.

“I’m not sure, but we’re not staying to find out.” Carol said opening the door for you, Maggie climbed in the back seat offering you a hand.

“Carol, what if someone’s hurt or dying.” She looked at you, you could see the decision being made behind her eyes. She watched as you sat in the passenger seat grasping Maggie’s hand grimacing through pain.

“Y/N you’re having your baby, this is happening whether you want it to or not…” she started.

“I can make it a little bit longer, we need to make sure they’re okay.” You said trying to breathe.

“your water broke…”

“Y/N this baby is coming.” Maggie said trying to help Carol.

“carol…” you said a tear running down your face.

She picked up the walkie, “Daryl… Daryl come in.”

“Yea.”

“what’s going on?”

“walkers, but I think we got it under control.”

“okay, Y/N went into labor, we gotta get her back… can you get everyone out of there?”

“hah perfect timing, you go we got it from here, take our girl home.” She looked at you again but this time you weren’t paying attention to focused on getting through the next contraction, Maggie nodded to her from the back seat.

“okay, okay let’s go, let’s go have a baby.”

“a baby, I’m having a baby,” you laughed through tears, “get me back, this baby isn’t going to wait.”

“on it!” She said stomping on the gas, Maggie was terrified behind you and you could tell, could you blame her she watched Lori die, flashbacks flooding her mind as she watched you moan in pain. Carol let silent tears fall also remembering, “it’ll be okay.” You broke the silence.

Maggie gulped and Carol eyed you, tearing through the dirt roads. “I’ll survive, I’ll be okay, just hurry.” The other two women shared a knowing look, they knew you were trying to reassure them.

when you got back they rushed you into your house, “here put her here.” Maggie said swiping everything off the kitchen island.

“no…n-no the couch, get me on the couch.” You pointed and they helped sit you down on the end, you grasped at the corner and let your head fall back into the cushion, your other hand cradled your bump. “o-okay pants…help me…” you were trying to breathe but these contractions were coming one after the other, Carol helped you unbutton and peeled them off.

“Uhm… Maggie?”

“oh God…” she said looking between your legs.

“what… what’s wrong?!”

“Y/N, you’re…”

“what?!”

“you’re…well the baby is… I can see the head.”

“Ahh…” you hissed, “that’s okay, that’s good… I ju-just need to pu-push.” you tried catching your breath, letting your head fall back gritting your teeth.

you pushed, “help me, please someone help me.” You threw your head back, chest heaving, sweat coating every feature from your forehead and hair to your shoulders and exposed baby bump, the tank top your wore had a v-mark of dripping sweat.

“okay, here I’m right here,” Carol said grabbing your hand and settling next to you wiping sticky hair from your face, Maggie nervously sat between your legs.

“Maggie… Maggie…” you called her name and she looked up at you fear in her eyes, “I trust you, it’s gonna be okay.” She slowly shook her head.

“okay, okay time to push…” Carol held you close as you strained, bringing your baby into the world. Before you knew it you were holding a little girl in your arms. Carol had you pulled into a side hug as Maggie put a blanket over your bare legs.

“she’s beautiful mama.”

“she is isn’t she, sweet girl.” You ran a gentle finger on her soft features tracing her face, “your daddy knew you were gonna be a girl and I told him he was crazy.” You let tears fall.

“Y/N…” Carol trailed gently.

“I have a beautiful baby girl and her dad is dead…” you started crying.

She hugged you, “you have us, you have me… Y/N you have a village supporting you and as far as I’m concerned we’re not going anywhere. So we’re gonna help you to raise this little girl no matter what it takes.”

“thank you.” You whispered through tears looking down at your little girl, the little girl with her full head of hair and dark eyes like her dads, as her tiny hand was wrapped around your finger, cooing up at you.

[sheriffgrimes-archerdixon]

The hat

Summary: reader goes missing and only leaves one sign of life: the sheriff’s hat Carl had given to her.

Tw: angst, gore, walkers (both characters are 18!!)

Rick grimes’ sheriff’s hat had been passed down many times. And Carl took it upon himself to give it to you, as a sign of protection of some kind. Carl when he was little always stated that when his dad would wear the hat then he would be protected from all the violence in the world, and in some ways he was correct… but all of that hope and belief turned into some sort of horror as soon as Carl stumbled upon the sheriff’s hat left discarded on the floor.

“Y/n!!” Carl yelled as he ran around desperately searching for you, running upstairs of the home and downstairs, the gated community of Alexandria was safe.. always.. but you’d never leave without telling him. The hat was held in his hand before he eventually put it down on top of his head as he sprinted back downstairs palm skimming lightly against the banister before he stumbled outside seeing Rick talking to michonne. “Dad!!” Carl practically screamed, making the former sheriff’s head snap in his direction seeing the sheer fright on his sons face “woah… what’s wrong?” His hand came to rest against carls shoulder to try and calm him down “y/n’s missing!”

“Missing?” Rick spoke confused, Carl nodding breathing heavily “I found the hat discarded… I looked all around but I can’t find her. I asked Eugene and Rosita but they said they didn’t see her go out.” Rick’s face twisted with concern, his hand coming up to rub against his forehead, pinching against the bridge of his nose “she doesn’t just leave she would’ve told me!” Carl spoke with wide worried eyes, Rick nodding, hand quickly tentatively grabbing onto the boys shoulder “I know. I know… it’s unlike her. I’ll get a few people to go out and look for her. She couldn’t of gone far.” And as Carl’s lips parted Rick only shook his head already knowing what he was going to say. “No. You stay here… I know how much you love that girl. I don’t want you getting hurt by jumping into action..” he spoke simply, Carl disliked that, but knew damn well his dad was right. And so he would just have to sit and wait around for good news.

—

Hours had passed by and although multiple search groups had been sent out, they had returned empty handed and now it was dark. The sheriffs hat was still planted firmly upon Carl’s head. He couldn’t sit still. He couldn’t calm down either. You and Carl were best friends, you had been best friends for a long long time even before the apocalypse and now with you missing he was beyond terrified for you.

Carl had dinner with his dad and michonne, not being able to eat much- too nervous. “Do you think she’s dead?” He questioned, Rick giving him an almost warning look to not give up before silently shaking his head. No one else spoke a word, as often times if you speak of something you fear then it will happen. Even as dinner was finished and everyone went to bed, Carl remained wide awake, now sat upon his bed packing a bag. He wasn’t going to give up. He was going to find you. As he zipped up his bag he threw it over his shoulder, opening the bedroom window and carefully climbing out, carefully so, until he felt his feet hit the floor before he immediately but quickly fled towards the gates that were left unattended, he silently slipped out of the gate shutting it behind himself before he began the long hike to try and find you.

-

Carl walked for ages and now it was pitch black, he continued searching around for you, but it was practically impossible to find you. He was growing worried and more sure about the fact that you had been killed until he heard an abrupt scream- his head snapping in the direction of the sound before he began sprinting wasting no time to come to this persons rescue hoping it was you. He saw and heard walkers all around but he didn’t stop, until he blindly slammed into something or rather someone. He feared it was a Walker but as he pulled back and saw your familiar face, dirty and mucky his eyes widened “y/n!” He exclaimed his eyes remaining wide, watching as your eyes teared up “Jesus Christ where were you?!” His hands came to caress against your face the groaning of incoming walkers getting closer and closer but Carl was in too much shock.

“I wanted to impress Daryl. By hunting a deer… he has been teaching me all these techniques and tricks to follow the markings on the ground but.. I— I guess I’m not ready.” Carls brows furrowed, but he knew how you always critiqued yourself way too often and constantly wanted to impress “fuck y/n.” He murmured shaking his head before he stood up grabbing onto your hands and pulling you up, instantly noticing the limp you had but he didn’t question it, instead wrapping your arm around his shoulder as he began helping lead you away from the herd of walkers. Your breathing was heavy as you gripped onto him “I- I just wanted to try and be an adult.” You spoke to him quietly “well you’re not. And if you keep pulling dangerous shit like this you’ll get yourself killed!” His words were harsher than they intended to be, and he immediately felt guilty for the way he spoke to you, murmuring an apology to you as he helped guide you somewhere safe.

-

Eventually the two of you found an old abandoned house, in the middle of no where. He helped you sit down before he sat down keeping his eyes on you worried and upset before he shook his head “you could’ve been killed.” He murmured and you nodded slightly embarrassed before looking down. He exhaled softly before he pulled the hat from his head and slowly popped it back onto your head leaning in to press a kiss to your cheek “next time you do that… wear your hat.” He spoke with a small smile, hand caressing against your cheek.

“Okay… deal..” you said with a small smile, you knew Rick and michonne were going to kill you and murder Carl for being this stupid. “You missed by the way.” You spoke with a playful grin and Carl raised his brows before you puckered your lips making Carl laugh “god you’re unbelievable sometimes.” He muttered before nonetheless leaning in and kissing you on the lips gently. “My dads gonna kill me.” He murmured against your lips and you smiled “oh no.” You spoke sarcastically a playful offended look appearing on carls face before he rolled his eyes “unbelievable.” He chuckled shaking his head.

(Part two on reuniting Rick and michonne+ their reaction?? Maybe? Lmk!!)

This took me forever to get out. Im sorry!!!

[velvetcloxds]

come over- you asked for twd requests so what about dbf!rick who has been trying not to fall for you since he saved you from the woods while still at the farm and after lori's death you help him clean up after his breakdown and he realizes he's already fallen for you

'TIL ONE OF US CAVES | R.G.

word count: 1k

warnings: age gap, lori's death, little angsty but mostly hurt comfort- I haven't written something in like two months pls go easy on me lol

You were sort of lost when Glenn called you away from guard duty, counting guns and amo with Maggie seemed a priority, especially after everything that happened but then he said that Rick needed you and you'd never moved that fast before. It was an odd thing, whatever you and Rick had going on, nothing more than stolen glances and moments in the midst of the madness, neither of you willing to risk doing anything for Lori or Carl's behalf. But it was a sort of unspoken rule that you'd always be the first to show up for each other when the moment came and one of you needed it.

You found him sitting on his cot in his cell, lost behind blood you knew wasn't his but it didn't ease your mind at all, hands reaching out slowly towards him as soon as you sat down in front of him. He wasn't with you yet, not completely, dazed still, angry still, so you were careful when you took hold of his stained wrists, pulling them away from his head, hoping that seeing you would snap him out of it.

"Rick," your voice trembled, you wished it didn't, wished you were calmer than you were, but it was sort of terrifying, you'd seen him at his lowest before, lower than he deserved to be, and yet here he was even lower, even darker. "Rick, look at me," you were pleading, an awful sound coming from you and you wondered if he thought the same because it was merely a second later when his eyes met yours, the oceans that crashed around his pupils seemingly darker than ever, drowning with the very emotions that suffocated him. "Hi," you breathed and he sighed, a gentle breath, something that stopped your heart in its place because with it came his own desperate, pleading motions as he gripped your hands in his.

"Carl-"

"He's okay, most of us are okay," you nodded, cooed far too gently for any other day but it had his shoulders dropping ever so slightly from their tensed stance. "You're not," you explained and he would scoff if he was himself, he nodded instead and you froze when he brought your hands to his face, your fingers taking no time to cup his cheeks, his eyes closing at the touch, the comfort of such a simple gesture but it came from you, grounded him despite everything, brought him right back to the four grey walls and it didn't make his heart burn any less but the pain was bearable for at least a second, as long as he could feel the inside of your soft hands against his sticky skin he could breathe again, think again, be again.

You allowed him a second to savor it, let it sink in, panicked for a moment when he leaned his head onto your shoulder, kissed at your exposed skin, gripped at your waist, nothing he'd ever done before, nothing you'd ever allowed him before but you held his neck, brushed a hand through his hair, silently begged him to stay all while hating yourself for taking something good from such a horrifying day.

"We need to get you clean," you whispered after allowing yourself far too much time with him, squeezing lightly before forcing his head up to look at him. "You've got a little girl waiting to properly meet her dad out there," he nodded to that, and in a second the guilt found him too, but he still held onto you as you led him to the water. He refused to look away as you dragged a wet cloth over his skin, over and over, over and over, as best you could until you could see him again. He did the same for you, your comfort had left you stained as well, with his terror, with his pain, he didn't mind being the one to rid you of it, you'd rid him of his after all.

"Y/n," you weren't sure when he'd found his voice again, when he came too, but it was him holding you then, rough hands but gentle hold as he cupped your cheeks. "Baby," you shook your head, he couldn't cave now, not after so long, not after all you'd made it through, you'd been so strong, so good at hiding it, fighting your heart every moment of every day- he couldn't cave, not after you'd fought so hard not to. "She's gone, Lori-" he took in a sharp breath, coming to terms with it all over again. "I screwed it up, the last few months, I've been making a mess of everything but you- this, baby, I can't make a mess of this too."

"It's too soon, Rick," he tutted, it made you melt, stole your sense right from your mind, your heart, and led you against his chest.

"It's not, it's late, I'm too late but we've lost too much to fight this anymore," he rested his forehead against yours and closed his eyes again- like the reaction came without any control. "I cave," he whispered and the admission tingled right through your body. "I cave, Y/n, I love you and I cave."

[https-evan2]

grover requests huh? I gotchu! here's two ideas for grover, you dont have to do both, or any. but since you were asking for requests; 1. Grover x Child of Demeter!reader. (next one is more detailed :)) 2. Grover x reader who isn't too fond of nature, scared of it, even. Grover tries telling reader about how lovely it is, and tries to get them... more comfortable in outside environments <3 hope u have a lovely day!! stay nuts and berries!! (the titans curse reference...)

I’m going to go with the second one but might do the first one later because i love ‘em both

no pronouns gor reader + no description of appearance (my fics are for everyone)

warnings: poor grammar and misuse of punctuation. Excuse me if grover is ooc!

requests are OPEN

You tried to keep your cool every time you went out with Grover but no matter how hard you tried you just could never seem to get over your fear of the wild. It terrified you just the fact that you didn’t know when or if something was going to jump up from bushes or if you’d be stepping on ground wasp nest.

You managed to avoid forests for most of your life still going outdoors just in the more open parts. But now it’s near impossible because you just so happen to be dating the lord of the wild, Grover.

You love him so much but he never realised how someone could fear nature and all its critters.

You tried spending most of your dates in your cabin or around camp but Grover was a bit bored of it.

He loves you so much so he wouldn’t even say anything at first but later when he got selected for the role of lord of the wild he realised just how much time that he couldn’t spend with you because of your fear.

He tried talking to you snd trying yk get over your fear for the entire time of your relationship but now he felt it was extra important.

One evening he tried to show you how beautiful nature could be instead of explaining.

.

.

“Grover i don’t like this…” you stammered as you were clinging onto him as if your life depended on it. With every move you jumped closer to him and you couldn’t bear to leave his side as you were shaking in his arms.

“Sweetie it’s fine, everything is completely okay” he reaffirmed as he rubbed your back tracing circles around your skin. He sat down and picked up a pretty big bug.

”look! It’s a praying mantis! This little guy has given everything hes got to the ecosystem without even knowing it! Isn’t that amazing that this small critter can help maintain all this” Grover exclaimed obviously passionate about the wildlife

“P-put it back on the ground please its legs freak me out”

You, still being absolutely terrified tried to not step on the bug he just showed you know it would decrease the chances of marriage by 50% and maybe a break up.

“T-that flower is pretty” you stutter pointing at a wild pansy. You might find nature terrifying but you had to admit thst it could be beautiful.

“And so is everything here you just got to look for it” after Grover made that statement he took your hand and you started walking around just looking for the smaller stuff as Grover pointed out some of them snd facts about them. You loved seeing Grover really get into a subject that he’s passionate about. He could easily be pushed aside at camp but when it was just you and him he felt like he wouldn’t be in the shadow.

“hey Grover, are these safe to eat?” You point at a bush of lingonberries.

“yeah there should be a bunch of edible stuff around here i like to go here when I’m hungry before dinner”

“Grover, you’re always hungry”

With that you both began picking berries and other edible goodies. When you were done you ate them together as you looked for animals around.

Safe to say nature wasn’t as bad as you thought

[storywriter12]

You sitting at the kitchen table chatting to Maggie and Michonne, rick comes in slamming the cupboard doors

(you) what's up with you?

(Rick) IT'S NEGAN!!! He keep nose booping me!

You all smile

(Maggie) I'm sure he doesn't do it all the time

Rick looks at Maggie and roll his eyes

Later that day

Negan comes from the sanctuary looks. For rick finds him standing and talking to some person he smiles

(negan) hay... Hay rick

Rick turns around and before he says anythink he hears

Boop

(Rick) NEGAN!!!

Negan laughs

[iheartgirlzn]

QUIET NIGHTS LIKE THESE

pairing: piper mclean x gn!reader

scenario/prompt: your secret spot where the two of you can talk in peace ♡

🌳 notes: SORRY THIS IS SO SHORT, ANYWAYS PIPER MCLEAN SUPREMACY!!

“you do know half of camp thinks you’re dead right?” piper’s teasing sing-song voice rings like a melody in your ears, encouraging you to turn around fighting a playful smirk off of your face.

“please, if i were dead you would’ve marched down to the underworld already banging at hades’ front door.” you reply, shuffling your body to create room on the ground beside you.

her eyes lit up with something close to mischief at your words, followed by a shrug and she moved to sit next to you. “can’t argue with that.”

you let out a giggle at her seriousness and gently bumped shoulders with her, a cheeky grin playing on your lips. “any new gossip i’ve yet to be informed on?”

piper smirks, moving closer so she could lay her head on your shoulder, getting herself comfortable before the long gossip session to come. (where the two of you would talk about the demigods and immortals at both camps, playfully criticising them and ending the conversation with: ‘but no offence’ - as one does when they’re bored.)

“oh have i got the story for you.”