#your dead to me hit so hard he faked his death

[junespriince]

Pirate au no name yet

Bruce and Dick having a huge fight

King Bruce: you are dead to me!

Prince Dick: fine! *Faked his death and became the pirate*

Wally: you did tell your siblings you were faking your death out of pettiness, right?

Dick:

Dick: shit.

[romanticintheory]

thinking about fellow soldier!reader coming back to ghost after having been mistaken for kia

gn!reader x simon "ghost" riley

-maybe he's back in your shared apartment, holding the last photo he took with you.

-it was taken the day of your birthday, with your arms around simon's waist and a gleeful smile permanently etched on your face.

-you were looking directly at the camera with your eyes crinkled at the corners. simon, however, was looking at you and only you with an expression only a lovestruck fool could manage.

-he had long since stopped crying about what he believed was your death. when price came to him with a somber expression and the news that you were on the wrong end of an explosion, the only thing he could do was cry or be angry.

-now, he felt nothing.

-you could imagine his surprise when he hears the front door open. did he forget to lock it? was someone breaking in? he didn't care enough to prepare himself for a potential attack.

-but, no, you walked in with an ungodly amount of bandaged wounds and a tired look on your face.

-you expected him to stand from his place on the sofa to meet you, but he didn't. he thought he was imagining things, again, so he said nothing.

-"simon," you said softly, not bothering to take off your shoes and throwing you things onto the ground next to you.

-still, he said nothing.

-"i'm sorry. i'm so, so sorry. price said he tried to contact you but that you never answered," you continued. nobody knew where you and ghost lived, and simon's grief took the form of self-isolation.

-he still didn't answer you at this point, and it was becoming unsettling.

-"simon, can you hear me?"

-"you're not real," was all he could muster. he didn't have the heart to tell "fake" you to go away or beg himself to wake up from his supposed dream. "i can't do this again. you're not real."

-you realized just how hard your false death had hit him.

-"i'm real. i promise. i was able to take cover last second and-"

-"no. you're dead with not even a body to recover because i wasn't there to protect you. god, i..." the words got stuck in his throat as he leaned forward on the sofa, holding his head in his hands and near trembling.

-you dropped to your knees in front of him like a follower worshipping their god. taking his hands, you held them tight as you could in a silent attempt at convincing him you were alive.

-there was a moment of silence between the two of you before he drew his hands away from yours. it made your heart hurt.

-"simon..." you were grasping at straws, now, trying to figure out how to convince him of what was true. maybe there was something in your luggage that might help.

-as soon as you turned your body to your bags by the front door, you were pulled right back in by a pair of strong arms.

-he was hugging you like the moment he let go, you'd disappear into thin air (and, in a way, he believed it to be a possibility). after being pulled from your shock, you immediately brought your own arms to reciprocate the embrace.

-"(y/n)," he said, trying to keep his voice stable. there was still a part of him that couldn't believe he had you with him. if he weren't so thankful, he'd be lecturing you about acting wreckless on missions and convincing you to quit your job so nothing like this happened again.

-but, for now, he was content like this.

[deadtired-highkeyenergetic]

By Your Side Always

Summary: You comfort Astarion after he breaks down due to your near-death experience.

The last thing you feel before the ground hits you is a burning hot pain in your stomach where a sword had run you through, your mouth opening in a small ‘oh’. The last thing you hear is a familiar voice screaming out your name, filled with anxiety and fear. The last thing you think about is how Astarion would react when he saw your body. Would he mourn? Would he continue on with his life as though nothing had happened? You hoped that he would find the strength to carry on and become his own person, unafraid of others. With the last of your strength, you try to search for his face, wanting to see the vampire you had fallen hard for one last time, but darkness claims you before your eyes can lock with his.

“Y/N!”

The first thing you feel when you wake up is the coldness of someone’s hand tightly wrapped around yours. The first thing you hear is the soft whisper of his voice telling you that you’re safe, that he’s right here with you, sending waves of reassurance through you. The first thing you think about is whether you’re in heaven or hell, but that wouldn’t make sense since Astarion was here. You were pretty sure you died or something when that sword ran you through.

“Y/N.” You look up into ruby red eyes filled with concern.

“Star.” The word catches in your dry throat, sending you into a coughing fit. Astarion quickly hands you some water and makes sure you finish it all before speaking again.

“Where are we?” You rasp.

“At camp, darling. Don’t you worry,” he presses a quick kiss to your forehead.

“The goblins –”

“All take care of, dearest!” He chirps, far too chipper for your liking.

“Astarion, what happened to me?” The smile falls from his face, ruby red eyes downcast. He stares at the bedroll you’re lying on, playing with the cloth of his tunic before looking back up at you, his smile no longer reaching his eyes.

“Nothing Shadowheart couldn’t fix.” The smile is plastered to his face, a facade perfected over the course of almost 200 years but you see right through it immediately.

“Did I die?” You decide to go straight to the point.

“Well, I don’t believe I’m dead dead so I doubt you’d be seeing me if you were in the afterlife,” he gives a hollow laugh.

“Astarion,” you frown. “You don’t have to fake anything around me, I won’t hurt you.”

His face falls, his genuine feelings shining through at your words and you automatically reach out but he pulls away to compose himself. He fears he will simply break down if you were to hold him right there and then, giving you more problems. He’s on the cusp of baring himself to you, and the very thought scares him. He searches your face, looking for signs that you will tear him down after he’s shown how vulnerable he is but as per usual, finds nothing. The nagging voice in his head, however, says otherwise and he’s torn between trusting you and trusting that voice.

“If it’s too much for you, you don’t have to say anything. I’m just worried about you bottling it all up, I don’t want to see you suffer.” You force yourself to sit up despite the sharp pain the action brings, schooling your face to ensure Astarion doesn’t notice the pain you’re feeling. He’s already struggling with his own emotions, you don’t want to add to his burden.

“I thought you were dead.” The words leave his lips in a whisper. “I was afraid, far more afraid than I’ve ever been. Your barely conscious body scared me far more than Cazador ever could. You were lying so still with that damn sword sticking out of you and all I could do was wish that you were still alive, still breathing as Shadowheart did everything she could to heal you.”

He squeezes your hand so tightly it begins to hurt, his bottom lip trembles and he bites down on it to stop the trembling. Astarion can feel tears pricking at the edges of his eyes, a lump swelling in his throat that he tries to choke down.

“Didn’t work for me,” you grin, pressing a kiss to his tear-stained cheek. “I’m right here, alive, and the goblin who tried to kill me is dead.”

He clutches at your sleeve, desperately hugging you as he inhales your scent and feels the warmth of your skin against his. You’re here, alive, warm. Your heart is beating, a steady thrum in your chest that fills his ears and reassures him that you’re safe.

“I’m sorry,” he presses his forehead against yours, “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have left your side, I should have been faster, I should have seen the attack coming.”

“I failed you.”

He shrinks at his words, body tensing up. Sharp nails dig into his palms as terror floods his mind. He failed you. You’d punish him for it, kick him out of the party, leave him to fend for himself. He can’t bear the thought of leaving your side, he can’t envision a future where you’re not there, lying right next to him as you hold him in your embrace. He doesn’t want to.

“My star,” you murmur, reaching out to wrap him in your arms despite the twinge of pain in your chest. You can feel him shaking and your heart shatters, an ache that is replaced by a wave of anger at Cazador for what he did to your lover. You nuzzle into his soft silver hair, pulling him close so that you can tuck him in your embrace. The pain from your stab wound is nothing, not when your beloved so clearly needs you right now.

“You didn’t fail me. I’m alive, you killed the goblin who attacked me, and you’re right here, by my side. That’s all I need.” Pressing your lips against the top of his head, you gently rub circles on his back all whilst cuddling him. He leans into your touch, gripping your shirt and curls against you, biting back his sobs. He’s supposed to be taking care of you, not the other way around and yet here he is, getting all emotional while you console him.

“I’m sorry for worrying you,” you whisper, pressing comforting kisses all over his face. “I promise, I won’t leave or abandon you. You’ll always have a place with me.”

“You…mean it?” He hates how pathetic he sounds but the soft look in your eyes eases some of his worries. You look at him with such genuine love and care, eyes devoid of the lust he’s used to seeing in the prey he brought back for Cazador and devoid of the malice Cazador’s eyes always held. Your every touch is filled with gentleness and warmth, flooding him with a nice feeling he can’t quite describe, he only knows he can never get enough of it.

“Of course, Astarion. You’re my star, I’ll get lost without you.” If your younger self could see you right now, they would never believe their eyes. It wasn’t long ago when you would do anything to avoid physical contact, hissing whenever anyone brushed against you, even if by accident, and yet here you were, initiating a hug so tight that Astarion would have suffocated should he have needed to breathe.

Astarion squeezes his eyes shut, imprinting the feeling of your arms around him in his mind. He feels safe, loved, needed in your embrace.

“Promise me,” he chokes. “Promise me you’ll never put yourself in such danger again, innocents be damned. I don’t care what happens to anyone else, I just need you to be safe.”

“Then I’ll need you to continue fighting by my side to guard my back, don’t I?” You run your fingers through his hair, admiring how soft it is despite its owner clearly not having taken care of it in a good while.

“I suppose you do. After all, what will you ever do without me?” A hint of confidence floods back into him, a small smile playing on his lips. He gives you a grateful look, undead heart soaring at your declaration of your need for him.

“Hmm, I don’t ever want to find that out,” you give him a peck on the lips, “but I would like my star to at least clean himself up before cuddling with me any further.”

“Anything for my love,” he happily nuzzles you. “I’ll see you in a bit, Shadowheart should be here any time now to check up on you. After that I’m all yours.”

“And I’m all yours too,” you smile. “Now go.”

With one last kiss, he reluctantly leaves your side and you let out a sigh of relief. He was dealing with your near-death experience rather well considering how new he was to having someone to call his own.

“No more martyring then,” you chuckle to yourself, “not when there’s someone who cares so deeply about me.”

[irisintheafterglow]

One-Shots

Gojo Satoru

You Are In Love - "you're my best friend," and you knew what it was

...Ready For It? - knew he was a killer first time that I saw him

Hits Different - it hits different 'cause it's you (or, struggling in a situationship with gojo satoru)

Never Grow Up - meeting megumi for the first time

The Archer - all of my enemies started out friends, can he hold on to you?

invisible string - the first time megumi uses ten shadows

even in my worst times, you see the best in me - being the strongest has its downsides, but at least you're suffering with him

life's no fun without a good scare - you have the brilliant idea of playing hide and seek in a corn maze against the most powerful sorcerer in the world. should be fun, right?

it's all me, just don't go (meet me in the afterglow) - satoru is jealous but refuses to admit it.

every dead end street led you straight to me - former fuckboy gojo has some things to say at the top of a mountain

i hate accidents, except when we went from friends to this! - coworkers to lovers with a healthy amount of teenage eavesdropping

he's the death you chose (you're in terrible danger) - married life with husband!gojo means cleaning up bodies at 2am.

Geto Suguru

The Great War - somewhere in the haze, got a sense I'd been betrayed

Back to December - you gave him all your love and all he gave you was goodbye

say you'll remember me - you were destined to fail from the start, so why does it hurt so badly when he's gone?

dazzling haze, mysterious way about you, dear - need some fluff after reading all the angst above?

tell me that you love me, love me 'til my lips turn blue - being partnered with suguru on a mission takes an unexpected turn

what if all i need is you? - after failed attempts to find a date to a relative's birthday party, your best friend acts as your fake boyfriend.

Nanami Kento

of daisies and collisions - nanami kento felt a little out of his element, with a small bundle of flowers sitting in his lap and brooding in the dark corner of the jazz bar. yet, you play that song he likes again, and nothing else matters.

Blurbs/Drabbles

the stakes are high, the water's rough, but this love is ours - holding satoru and letting him rest, even if it's only for a little bit

it took so long to know someone like you - he doesn't know who he is with you and it scares both of you

bad days and blanket burritos - good ol' satoru bf fluff

Imagines/HCs

And the touch of a hand lit the fuse

how gojo and geto react to their partner being obsessed with them (fluffy !!!)

Gojo Satoru

What, like it's hard? -> law student!gojo

general hcs

when he buys a motorcycle

I'm with the band -> rockstar!gojo

rockstar!gojo meet sexyy

the valentine's day show

quiet moments and teaching you guitar

awards show

Falling for you, on and off the ice -> hockey player!gojo

someone steals your usual rink slot

watching a game

living in winter, i am your summer - he's terrible at figure skating

Kachow -> professional racer!gojo

on the radio

smoke his ass! - pro racer!gojo needs some motivation after a newcomer to the track pisses him off

Geto Suguru

oops? - satoru finds out that you've been seeing his best friend

a quiet moment in the aquarium

napping with you :)

scare actor!suguru

Save a horse, ride a cowboy -> gunslinger!suguru

gunslinger!geto au

big iron - he's not the first to go after the crystal-eyed bandit, but something tells you that this one will keep his promise to buy you a drink when the hunting is done.

Theta Phi Fuckhead -> enemy frat!suguru

ancient grudge, new mutiny

move fast, keep quiet

half the things that haven't happened yet

Series Masterlists

End Game (volleyball captain!gojo x you) COMPLETED

Co-Parenting Megumi with Satoru COMPLETED

I Don't Wanna Live Forever (gojo x you during shibuya) COMPLETED

[spideyhexx]

tw; death

being Coriolanus’ friend in the Capitol and Sejanus’. Sejanus was more-so, since he’s a bit more friendly given the fact you always showed him kindness. You flirted with him, and he flirted back. He might’ve held your hand a couple times. Hugged you tight in your bed during difficult moments. Maybe you kissed him on his rooftop garden after he told you how pretty you were. Nothing more than that.

Coriolanus wasn’t that close. You spoke to him, gossiped with him, studied with him, but there was always a wall put up, and you were not one to break it down. Still, he was a friend.

You’re devastated when they leave to be peacekeepers. Only for a few months to pass and Coriolanus is back, alone. Sejanus’ death already spread to you and his family before Coriolanus came back.

And it hits you hard. You don’t leave your room for weeks. You’re given some of Sejanus’ belongings, courtesy of his Ma, who thought her son’s most talked about person deserved a remnant of his. You sleep with his blanket until it doesn’t smell like him anymore. You wear his necklace. When you finally get yourself outside, maintain your appearance to what it used to be, it’s still a facade. Inside, you’re cracking at the seams. If one person utters the name, you’d be sobbing at a street corner.

When Coriolanus is back, he feels cold. Distant. You blame it on yourself. Maybe you’re the one that’s cold and distant. And you give him a fake friendliness back. He plays along, but his guilt is eating at him too much.

He gets it in your head that Sejanus wanted to marry you. Wanted to live a nice life in the districts, helping people alongside you. Or even that Sejanus would suffer in the Capitol if it meant being at your side. That he wanted to call you more, but his actions as a traitor preoccupied him.

Not all of this was false, but Coriolanus exaggerates it. He wants your grief to end because it’s stressing him out. He tried to tell you anything he can come up with, he spends nights thinking of what Sejanus has said of you and how he can make it more so that you’re quenched, accepting of the boy’s death.

But it never comes. Instead, one day, Coriolanus is so fed up, he plans to yell at you when he sees you. To get it through your head that your beloved Sejanus Plinth is dead and gone and you need to move on, or else you’ll end up a shadow of yourself the rest of your life.

But when he goes to your home, your mother is crying. He expects the worst but somehow the words that fall from your mother’s lips are worse than death. You left for district 12. To be where Sejanus was. Where he died.

Coriolanus learns you left a note, took all the money you had saved from allowances and hopped on the next train. How you got past the peacekeepers who knew you, knew your family, he isn’t sure. But he never hears from you again.

Part of him aches about it. Wanting to know if you’re alive. If you made it to District 12, if you could even stand it. Your mother was sure you’d come back as soon as your feet hit the mud, but you didn’t.

Coriolanus eventually comes to think you were better off running away. Once you got over the grief, Coriolanus was sure you’d question him too much about what happened. You’d come to your senses and wonder more about the circumstances of Sejanus’ death. Coriolanus can lie, but you were always a pry-er. Another part of him wanted you to be dead so he didn’t have to worry.

But again. He never hears from you. Never again. Nothing to worry about.

let's chat, here :)

psst. let me know what you think pretty please :)

[jingyuqn]

JING YUAN — THE GENERAL'S ADVISOR

[17:56]. Being the general's lover while being his advisor was a challenge. Between falling for his charms and having to force him to complete his work. (slight spoilers for 1.2, gn reader) word count ★ 498 note ★ second work after like a year lmao.

Rushed footsteps sounded through the corridor, arms struggling to hold stacks of papers. You opened the door in a loud slam muttering a not so sincere apology. The sight of your superior sleeping peacefully halted your walk. His hair covering that beautiful face of his, head nestled in the warmth of his crossed arms set on the table. Jing yuan looked adorable.

You walked toward him, gently setting the papers down. You fished out your phone and set an alarm to ring in the next ten (10) seconds, as well as setting the volume to the highest point. 

Putting the phone close to his ear, you slowly backed up, counting the seconds in your mind. 

7…6…5…4…3…2…1!

The loud ringing of the alarm shook the sleeping man awake. You smiled at his alerted face, now making your way back to his desk. “ glad to see you awake sleeping beauty~” Your hand gently stroking his disheveled hair. “ What makes you so alert? ” the general looked at you, unamused. You tried to bite back the smugness, but it was so hard when you caught the dozing general off guard. 

Jing yuan noticed this and sighed, “ I can't believe my own lover would do this to me, how cruel.” he fake cried. 

You stared at him with a dead panned face. 

“ I wouldn’t have to if you weren’t sleeping more than you work.’’ You took a few papers and started what jing yuan calls ‘ bore to death talks ’. Funny title if it weren't you who made the talk.

Not even ten minutes in has jing yuan started to doze off, and each time you hit him with the papers. Hard. Ignoring his whines, you continued on with your reports occasionally finding yourself waking him up more often then you’d liked. 

“ These are the reports from the divination commission, Miss Fu Xuan would like you to get back to her as quickly as possible.” you left out the part where she threatens him if he doesn’t. Glancing up, you sigh at the general. Fast asleep already.

‘ I don't blame him, after all he’s been through with the stellaron hunters and that phantylia..’ a part of you wants to smack him awake again so he can finish working, however another part wished to let him. 

As his advisor, you should’ve chosen the first one. 

But the soft look on his face as he dreams of whatever warms your heart. If it’s for a while, it won’t hurt to indulge him, right?

Placing the paper works on the table, you set an alarm for two hours. This time you lower the volume. Crossing over the table separating you both, by gently placing his head on your laps you start playing with his hair. Unconsciously braiding a few strands. 

“ For now, rest well Jing yuan.” 

Unbest to you, said man was aware of your actions. A soft smile spread across his lips. But for his sake, you pretended not to see.

©—jingyuqn. 2023

[crithaus]

It's 2 am but I'm awake so tlovm fans get this right in the episodes where Percy and gang are retaking Whitestone, specifically the ones where Vax is mind controlled and they've just escaped the residuum melting acid tank, Keyleth and Vex both call him via the magic earrings trying to snap Vax outta being bisexually mind controlled and keyleth gives him a half seconds pause, barely anything but Vex fakes dying in the ACID on her turn, lies through her pearly little teeth to him and that stops Vax dead in his tracks for a second, it's enough to shake him outta damn mind control by former cerberus assembly archmage delilah goddamn briarwood for a moment

I will scream a new singularity into the universe, and they keep talking for a moment actually and right after Matt-as-delilah asks Vax just who tbe fuck he's whispering to he LIES, RAW Vax should have told Sylas and Delilah right then and there that the acid trap failed but he lies by ommission to protect his sister and family and girlfriend, sobs, and then when they're all seconds before the actually ziggurat fight Matt is explaining the parameters of mind control to Liam, yea sure Vox Machina is still technically your friends but the Briarwoods are your new friend-ier friends now and if shit pops off youll be protecting the briarwoods, and Liam's like :/, mostly accurate quote, "so if I see," points to Laura, "her, the most important person in the world to me, I wanna fight her?" Like twinnies on top forever I fear, he would punt scanlan off of the ziggurat for free at that moment but Gods forbid he has to lay a hand on his sister, and then he's like well I'll just guard Delilah's body and not hit anyone anyway, he isn't even willing to entertain the idea of fighting Vex (and co but...)

And then like during the fight after sylas dies, like sam said that tlovm is its own canon and also that the twins specifically got so wicked pulverized throughout the entire campaign that he had to start giving all but their very biggest owies to everyone else so the runtime wasn't 140+ minutes of footage from exandrian intensive care but I'm still SAD about Keyleth getting Delilah's last hurrah attack instead of vex cuz Vex was DYING, in a room with a magic dampening sphere too so no healing and Vax was like hey dm I will run up this 90° wall to reach my sister take those laws of gravity and shove them up ur ass my boy, like she was getting tossed around like a ragdoll, Liam was going to cry it was awesome, he had tunnel vision and it was getting vex somewhere safe and blowing all their useless potions on her, he wouldn't put her down until keyleth started testing fate fucking with the endless abysmal orb, Vex was fine but oh man the future of her death at the hands of something Percy was involved in?? Foretold tens of episodes before, insane how an unscripted dnd game shakes out

Anyway twinnies goes insanely insanely hard in the campaign it's unreal it's wild, Liam spent 2 and a half whole hours in one of his trials of the take episodes mourning by his own admission his sister being gone for about 8 hours away from Him, i am a codependent siblings enjoyer and this shit will feed you

also I fear I need to reiterate, twinnies? Perfect, no notes. Twincest? An abomination, please do not misconstrue my affections here abeg

[bensonsbobblehead]

The Village it Takes 

pairings; Spencer Reid x Mom!reader (ft Daughter!oc)

Spencer fakes his death ( basically how Emily did) leaving you and your 11 year old daughter behind.

Content Warnings; angst, sadness, talks of death and grief.

a/n; Hiii, I am working on a taglist and how to make one for the future im so sorry im still fairly new to this.

wc; 1.0k [ first ]

Spencer was always better with her, you were her best friend but Spencer was her diary. He encouraged her to do things he knew he would never be able to do. She was so outgoing, thanks to you, even though he was shy Ronnie brought out another part of him. After he died everything changed for the household. It was harder for Ronnie to adjust specially as she’s approaching womanhood.  

The two of you had argued almost everyday just for it to end with her breaking down in the end. You knew this was just her way of dealing with her father being taken from her. That didn’t make it any better for you though. Seeing Cameron like this was the hardest thing ever.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so mean mom.” She spoke after two hours of silently watching tv, “I just miss dad so much I want to scream. Some days it hurts to breathe and it makes me so angry. I miss him” she said randomly as you both watch tv together.

Thirteen was suppose to be a fun age where you begin to learn who you are or could be. Camerons chance was taking from her now she’s consumed with this grief. The same grief you were dealing with in your own way. It hurt you so much he was missing his beautiful creation grow up. 

You pushed her glasses up off the bridge of her nose, “I know its so hard, I miss him so much it hurts to breathe but I have you and you have me, this is how we get through it.” Kissing her on the temple.

You pulled you daughter into your side rocking her until she fell asleep. You were both abruptly awoken by the sound of your phone ringing. A call from Aaron Hotchner, which wasnt rare but why was he calling so late? He said in a few words that you needed to head to the BAU. 

You gathered your things wondering what in the world this could be about. You held Ronnie’s hand as you headed up to the office. Your heart was ponding reminding you of the last time you were here. You had came to clear out Spencer’s desk and collect his badge. You remembered it like it was yesterday. All the sad eyes watching you attempt to pick up the pieces of what was abruptly left behind. 

“Do you think something bad happened again?” She asked squeezing your hand harder. 

“I’m not sure Rons” you tried to reassures her also wondering the same thing. You all were led to the bullpen with Cameron opting to sit at her dads old desk. The room was filled with your husband family, Jennifer, Aaron, Emily, Penelope, Rossi, and Luke.

“As you all know Dr.Spencer Reid was pronounced dead three years ago.” Confusion spread across everyone’s face and Aaron continued, “Three years ago I made a decision to keep the identity of Dr. Reid and I take full responsibility.” 

“What do you mean keep the identity of him a secret?” You asked still completely confused, 

“Mr.Scratchs son was caught and killed by the fbi a few hours ago. Three years ago he couldn’t know Spencer was still alive and neither could any of you. Once again I say I take full responsibility” Your face cringing at the name of the man who caused you and your family so much pain. 

Then it hit you Spencer was still alive?

“Aaron what are you fucking saying to me? That my husband is alive?” If this was true all those days spent talking to his grave meant nothing. The picnics or visits to the grave after Ronnies competitions were nothing. Spencer was walking this earth while you were here going through the worse pain in your life. Asking with glassy eyes, you were pulled out of your thoughts by Penelope head snapping toward the door. 

“Oh my God” she said with tears falling from her blue eyes. 

There he was Spencer Reid, the love of your life, the man that made you a mother, he’s alive after three years. He stood tall and a bit bigger with his long curly hair. 

“Y/N I’m sorry, all of you really.” He walked in giving hugs to everyone in the room. You hadn’t even moved, you didn’t know rather to be happy or angry at him. For never saying anything for letting you believe he was gone. 

“Y/N, can — can I hug you?” He asked sincerely not wanting to startle you. Before you could even think your hand was moving to slap him across the face, your angry completely took over. 

“THREE YEARS SPENCER?!?, you left me and your own DAUGHTER and still slept at night?” You yelled causing the entire room to become silent. Spencer stood there with no response which only made you more upset. 

“Say something! Say why you did? Just fucking give me a reason to put us through this” you were hitting him in the chest causing Hotch to grab you. 

“YOU don’t fucking touch me!” You snapped toward him, the man that watched you break down silently after putting your daughter to bed every night. Aaron had been there for you and Cameron since he “died”.

Jack and Cameron were always friends before her dad passed and were even closer as time went on. Most of the time having Ron distracted helped you deal with your grief with Aaron by your side, he was one of your husband’s closest friends.

“Daddy?” You heard Ronnie’s voice from the door, you completely forgot you even brought her. 

Everyone turned toward the teenage who stood tall just like her father. She was even wear their matching converse they decorated together. Spencer turned taking in his daughter, immediately regretting everything . She grew so tall and looked so mature, he missed it all. 

“Cameron I’m so sorry honey, I never meant to hurt you sweetie” he didn’t move allowing her to feel whatever emotion she needed. Her eyes filled with tear with a small weep escaping her lips. Her breathing became uneven, she was gasping for air. 

“Dad? You’re alive?” She asked grabbing her stomach looking for some sort of comfort.

“Yes, I’m here sweetie.” Spencer said walking toward Cameron causing her to step back while shaking her head.

“No, No, I—-I, Mama I can’t —-” she said falling to the floor, gasping for air. you pushed pass Spencer immediately hoping into mom mode. Spencer stood still unsure of what to do to help his own daughter. His heart shattering seeing the pain all of this has caused.

“Im right here baby, just keep following my breathing.” You told her as you sat on the floor with her, Emily coming to sit with her too. 

“In and out” you guided her as her breathing evened out, “I’m right here with you love” you pulled her into a bear hug while looking back at Spencer.

You all got up from the floor as you headed toward the elevator with your daughter not saying a word to Spencer as he silently followed behind.

[yona049]

𝐀𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 ♤

Joker x fem!Reader x Jason Todd

Part 2

°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○°○

°°°°°°°°°°

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺

Disclaimer!

>Head crushing.

>Parent death

>ptsd

>mental patients (Arkam Asylum)

༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺༺

Y/n just captured by Batman and Red Hood. Only for them to come face to face with her in Wayne mannor. Y/n took the first opportunity she got to dive Jason.

"I'm gonna KILL you, Jason!"

She yelled looking down at the blue eyed boy, dark fluffy hair with a white streak through the front. Jason Todd. The one and only Vigilante Red Hood.

He slowly smirks and moves his hand onto Y/n's cheek giving it a gentle rub with his thumb.

"I missed you too, babe."

He whispers watching Y/n smile for a second before growling again.

"You could've been a little more gentle with the dart! Fake blood is hard to clean out of a clown costume!"

She stands up slowly wobbling a bit, but Jason quickly slips his arm around her waist.

"Gotcha!" he mocks while holding her steady.

"Can't be that bad? Atleast the bullet looked real? Might leave a bruise."

He boops Y/n on her nose making her look back up at him. She sighs and pushes herself onto her toes giving Jason a delicate kiss.

"Thanks for getting me out of there." she whispers against his lips until a certain bat clears his throat.

Y/n smiles and turns to the batman before jump-hugging him.

"Hey, Bruce!"

Batman was much bigger in size, so a hug from him lifted her off the ground until he sat her back down.

He pulls the cowl off his face and gives Y/n a pat on the head.

"Sorry about the wait, Y/n. We weren't sure when you'd be out again. Jason went out on every patrol."

"Awww! Jason!" she teases tossing the Red Hood helmet onto the bed.

She follows shortly after and sits on the fluffy duvet before pulling off the polkadot socks she wore.

"Joker had a long business period! I couldn't get him out of base for anything! It was constant paperwork and gun shipping."

She pulls a small piece of paper out of her sock and hands it to Batman.

"All recent shipments and crate numbers are there. You should be able to find some other interesting numbers."

She falls back onto the bed with another big sigh.

"We eventually went out, but it took a bit of teasing to get him to draw attention to us. I thew a grenade into an empty shop. I hope it helped you find us."

She glances over at Jason who had an annoyed look on his face. Y/n figured it was probably the kiss he walked in on, between her and the Joker.

Batman quickly pulls her from her thoughts.

"I'll look at this. In the mean time I'll have an armored truck take you to Arkam in two days. Best you take a shower and sleep before then. Joker is sure to take you back."

He places his hand on Jason's shoulder heading for the door.

"Y/n. Good job."

Y/n smiles getting some well deserved praise from Bruce Wayne. He finally walks out closing the door, leaving Jason and Y/n alone.

Outside the room Damian Wayne was leaning against the wall with crossed arms. The newest Robin to the family, dressed in a black turtleneck looking mature for his age. Once Bruce walks out he follows him to, presumably the Bat-cave.

"Father! Why have I never heard of this Y/n?"

Bruce unfolds the paper Y/n gave him and starts reading.

"Well, Damian. She's been undercover for a long time, and Jason talks about her alot."

Damian stops dead in his tracks in shock.

"That is his girlfriend! I thought he was making her up since we've never seen her!?"

He runs down the hallway catching up with Bruce who walks up to the piano in the middle of the study. He hits a few keys until the platform underneath their feet starts going down.

"She was before your time. I can give you her file."

Damian nods walking off the platform and into the Bat-cave.

A large caved out space with drip stone covering the walls along with Platforms holding all sorts of other bat related things. The Batmobile, Batman's suits, and finally the large screen, the bat computer.

Damian lifts himself onto the counter watching Bruce pull Y/n's file onto the screen.

A picture of a young Y/n pops up, with short hair and dyed streaks in her hair. She looked like a typical rebellious teen with an angry expression.

________

Y/n L/n. (Alias : Y/n Caster.)

Age : 20

Gotham resident.

Occupation : Criminal.

Parents : James Caster (Deceased)

Abigail Caster (Deceased)

________

Damian lifts an eyebrow and glares at Batman.

"How can her parents have the same last name as Y/n's alias?"

Bruce smirks and hits a few more buttons before another profile pops up on screen. This time a picture of Y/n with a bright smile and longer hair.

"This is her real file, albeit a little out dated."

________

Y/n L/n.

Age : 17

Gotham resident.

Occupation : Student.

Parents : Marideth L/n (Deceased)

Harrion L/n(Deceased)

________

Damian looks settled with his thoughts then asks another question.

"How did This Y/n come to work for Joker? Surely he wouldn't trust some mentally challenged girl!"

Bruce quickly snaps.

"Hey! That's rude Damian."

"Sorry. But I'm still curious!"

With a sigh Batman sits down on the chair.

"It's a long story."

Damian wiggles himself into a comfortable position and hits a button on the bat computer.

"Please bring some popcorn down to the Bat-cave, Pennyworth."

A small confirmation from Alfred and Damian eagerness to listen made Bruce chuckle.

"Very well, If you're so willing. Here's the story of my secret adopted child."

○○○

"Y/n was young at the time. Maybe just 8? Her parents worked at psych Wards all over the world, but eventually they settled at the toughest one of them all."

"Arkam Asylum." Damian answers.

"That's right!" Bruce congratulates.

A large medieval castle with a looming darkness over it. It held the laughter and cries of all their patients.

A young couple rushed into the building holding their coats over their heads. One older man is the first to shake off the droplets with his wife following behind.

"Well! Wasn't expecting your first introduction to our work to start out like that, huh, Y/n?" Her father pats her on the head as she hid underneath his coat.

Mother takes her hand and walks with her down the hallway.

"Now, honey. Remember our deal."

Y/n nods looking around curiously.

"Stay close! Only go where mom and dad says. Don't talk to patients."

Mom giggles and kisses Y/n's forehead.

"Good! Now let's get to the office before we get to the really scary patients!"

Once the family was in the cozy office, Y/n immediately took to the bookshelf covered in different old books.

Dad walks up behind her and points to one specific red colored book. 'The Phycology of a Disheveled Mind.'

He hands it to Y/n who smiles and takes a seat at the big desk with a spinning chair.

A small chuckle from dad as he kneels down beside her.

"We'll be back soon to give you a better tour, first we need to go check on some patients. Read up so I can discuss with you after ok!"

Y/n nods excitedly watching mom place a packet of gummy candies on the table.

"A surgery snack for a buzzing mind." she uses her finger to imitate a bee and makes a buzzing noise before landing her finger on Y/n's nose.

"Love you, Bee!"

Y/n laughs.

"Love you, Mom! Love you, Dad!"

They make a swift exit with clip boards in hand. Soon their both in the ward with patients all around them in cells. Bane, Scarecrow, and a few empty ones awaiting their escaped patients. Like Penguin and Dr Freeze.

"As you can see, Mr Wayne. Your sponsorship is greatly improving our necessary medicines and holding cells." Mom shows.

A young Bruce wearing a tucks and neatly combed hair looks around intently.

"I see, and The patients are treated well?" Bruce asks.

"As well as they can be treated, the staff almost treat them too nicely unfortunately. We had a Doctor try sneaking a machine gun in, a few weeks ago."

Bruce sucks air though his teethad they reached the end of the hallway.

"Well! Keep up the good work you two. I'm glad to see my funds are helping better the mental health of patients."

Saying their goodbyes, Mom and Dad make their way back down the long hallway.

Mom smiled scribbling down some notes.

"Let's get back to Y/n, I'm sure she's pretty sick of that book by now."

Dad laughs and shakes his head disagreeing.

"Our little girl is brilliant! She's probably studying that book cover to cover."

He walks up to a cell and smiles making notes. He looks up at a man wearing a top hat and a grin on his face.

"Good evening, Jervis. How are you feeling tonight."

The man only smiles with a glare towards dad. Dad sighs but keeps his smile.

"You're doing better than yesterday. Don't tell the others. But I brought you a snack!"

He places a round cookie in a tray and pushes it into the cell. With a warm smile the patient grabs the cookie and takes a small bite of it.

"Thanks, Doc!" he grumbles and continues eating the cookie.

Dad smiles happily and nods.

"Your welcome-"

A sudden explosion sends a Shockwave through the hallway causing mom and had hit the wall hard.

The entire building shakes causing Y/n to Scream. She hides under the table as the heavy bookshelf falls straight down onto the ground.

Y/n calls for Mom and Dad but the open office door beckons her to run out to find them.

Back in the Cell block. Scattered debris welcome a Crown Prince of crime, like a red carpet.

Joker was still a very young and very new Criminal in Gotham, so no one expected him to break into Arkam for reinforcements.

He laughs at the chaos he caused with alarms going off and a few Criminals running wild.

He snaps his fingers and points some of his Joker Goons towards Bane's cell.

They make use of another explosive to blast the cell door off its hinges.

Y/n runs in just in time to see her dad hunched over her mom. Mom was trapped under the heavy wall that had been blasted off.

She runs closer already starting to feel the tears run down her face.

"M-mom!"

Dad was bleeding from his head when he looked up at Y/n running towards them. A dark shadow followed behind her.

Bane was about to grab her until dad pulls Y/n behind him and out of the way, just in time for Bane to grab him instead of her.

Dad yells and struggles as Bane holds him off the ground by his head.

"Stop this Bane! We can help! We can Change what happened to- Ugh!"

Y/n stares at her dad in horror, her mom's body unmoving and bent in so many unnatural ways.

"Dad! No! Leave my dad alone!"

Y/n watches in horror before charging towards this huge man. Bane, now only using one hand to hold the entirety of Dads head, smacks Y/n into the wall with great force. A small child getting hit into a hard wall.

She blinks a few times, dizzy from impact but crawls towards her dad. A laughter fuzzy in the background, until a horrible sound fills her ears.

The cracking of bone and a mush before a final thud, as her dads head is crushed.

She froze looking at both of her parents infront of her. But only for a second until a big black cape crosses her eyesight.

"Don't look!" a growled voice. Batman came to save the day, but just too late.

He pulls her into his arms, squeezing her broken terrified body. Once he knew she was in his arms safe, he uses a grappling hook to pull them out of the chaos.

○○○

"After that, we brought her back to Wayne Manor. Even after revealing my identity, she didn't react. She was like a ragdoll for months. Dick tried everything to help her grieve."

Bruce taps his foot thinking back, feeling her little traumatized body.

"It was only after that, when we found Jason again. Jason was so battered and bruised once Joker brainwashed and tortured him. After what Joker did to him, and Joker did to her. They bonded over it."

Damian looks down at the empty popcorn bowl in his lap with a growl.

"How did she manage an under cover mission around the man who killed her parents! I would've taken the first opportunity to cut him with my katana!"

He slips off the table with an angry growl. Before he could storm off Bruce lightly pats his head getting him to calm down.

"Y/n took alot of time to train and work though her anger."

Batman quickly looks to the side when his attention is pulled by a Zooming engine.

A motorcycle echoes though the bat cave and with a screeching holt it stops on one of the platforms.

A blue bird on his chest and incredibly strong build, Dick Grayson also known as Nightwing steps off the bike and lifts his helmet off his head.

"Hey Bruce! Hey Damian!" he walks up to them lifting his mask off his face with a satisfying sigh.

He looks up at the Bat computer and his eyes light up seeing Y/n's picture.

"Y/n's back? It's been forever!"

Batman smiles and nods.

"7 months to be exact."

Damian gasps and growls annoyed.

"You knew about Y/n too?"

"Yes! I helped train her." Dick assured grabbing the empty popcorn bucket Damian was holding.

"I wanna go say Hi before she goes back undercover."

He takes a few kernels, chewing on them a little before patting Damian on the head. Bruce shakes his head and presses a few more buttons.

"Not yet! She's catching up with Jason right now. She needs rest."

Dick stops chewing for a second then places the popcorn bowl down. He looks straight at Bruce with a serious face.

"How long is this gonna go on, Bruce? How long does he have to stay near that phyco?"

Batman stops typing for a second and turns to look at his two boys waiting anxiously for an answer.

"She doesn't want to leave, I've asked her. She's determined to stay." he looks down a little worried.

"Y/n has been undercover for a long time. I'm worried that before long. She'll become Ace instead of Y/n."

[ticklishraspberries]

Ren Faire (Eddie/Steve)

Summary: Steve, Eddie, and Robin go to a Renaissance Fair and see some interesting demonstrations. (This fic is for my lovely friend @gigglyrambles!! I literally just pulled this whole plot out of my ass and wrote it in one sitting, so I really hope you like it, LOL. Also, shoutout to @wordstrings because I know she has written something similar for Our Flag Means Death, I hope you don't mind me taking inspiration!!)

Steve isn’t sure how he ended up being dragged along to a Renaissance Fair with none other than Robin and Eddie, but he found it hard to say no to either of their puppy dog eyes and incessant begging.

His outfit is simple, consisting of a white, long-sleeved shirt with laces at the neckline, tight brown pants, and brown boots. He feels only a little bit ridiculous, but after seeing what his friends are wearing, he supposes he isn’t the weirdest looking one.

Eddie is decked out in black, an intricately detailed top with ruffles and buttons. A fake sword sits in a holder on his waist. Robin has gone for a more masculine look, a cloak over her shoulders and a bow and arrow in her hand.

“Screw historical accuracy,” she’d said.

“The fact that you’re a girl isn’t the problem, it’s that you couldn’t hit a moving target with an arrow to save your life,” Eddie had teased, and Robin had elbowed him in the ribs, making Steve laugh.

Now that they’ve arrived, Steve has relaxed a bit. He used to feel out of place whenever he attended events that he wouldn’t have been caught dead at in high school. Corroded Coffin concerts, DnD campaigns, and that one time he drove Eddie and Robin to the nearest gay bar in Indiana. It had definitely been more awkward sober, and before he realized that he’s bisexual, and could have totally had more fun if he’d been aware of and okay with that information at the time.

He’s sort of glad he wasn’t, though, because kissing Eddie Munson during a childish game of truth or dare was a much funnier way to have your queer awakening, and dating Eddie Munson is way more fun than hooking up with random guys in a bar.

“They have really good beer here,” Eddie comments, to which Steve holds up his car keys and jingles them. No medieval mead is going to keep him from being the designated driver.

“I can drive us home,” Robin says, absolutely joking, but Steve still gives her a horrified look and makes a show of sliding his keys back into his pocket, patting the denim for safe keeping. She sticks her tongue out at him, and he flicks her cheek.

Eddie does end up getting some beer, and Steve allows himself a few sips. They’ll be here for at least a few hours, he’ll surely sober up by then. He also samples the gigantic turkey leg that Eddie gets, and Robin wrinkles her nose in disgust at the messy nature of the food.

As they walk around, Steve finds himself getting into the spirit more than he had expected. They eat, watch musical performances, and shop at the little stalls set up by various vendors. Eddie buys a few rings for himself, and buys a handmade mug for Uncle Wayne. Robin indulges in candles and soaps, and even dares to see a fortune teller.

“She said that I’ll meet my future husband soon,” she says, giggling. “Clearly she’s a fraud, or she’d know I’m not interested.”

When Robin runs off to find a bathroom, somehow, Eddie and Steve end up standing around a demonstration about medieval punishments and torture, which Steve expects to be gruesome, and quickly finds he would rather hear gritty, gorey details than stand her and watch this happen.

A pretty girl, probably around their age, is locked into a pair of wooden stocks, and—

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Steve mutters, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

Eddie looks absolutely delighted as he leans in close. “What’s wrong, Stevie? The demonstration isn’t bothering you, is it?” he asks. His cheeks are flushed, too. A few months ago, Eddie would probably be the one stuttering and staring at the ground right now, but ever since he introduced this little world to Steve, he’s gained a confidence about it that only comes out when he gets to tease Steve into oblivion.

“Shut up.”

“You shut up, I’m trying to watch. Maybe I can get some pointers from these guys.”

‘These guys’ refers to the two men who have started tickling the girl’s trapped feet, and frantic giggles fill the air and make Steve’s stomach flip.

“Oh, she’s handling this better than you would,” Eddie continues to tease. “I’d already be called every insult under the sun if you couldn’t kick me instead.”

“I will kick you right now,” Steve threatens. It’s a complete lie. He’s frozen to the spot on the grass, torn between watching and focusing on the grass. Everyone else in the crowd is behaving like this is so normal, no big deal, just a silly show.

One of the men has moved behind the girl to tickle her ribs, her arms secured above her head. Steve crosses his arms over his chest, subconsciously protecting his own sensitive spots, like just watching her could tickle him, too.

“You love that spot,” Eddie coos. “You make the cutest sounds when I tickle you there.”

“I’m gonna fuckin’ kill you,” Steve grits out.

“Sure you will, sweetheart. Can it wait ‘til after I’ve made you cry real pretty for me?”

Just then, Robin appears at his side. “This looks like my worst nightmare,” she says. “I hope this girl is getting paid well.”

Steve makes a noise of agreement, but can’t bring himself to look over. Eddie Munson is going to be the fucking death of him. Thankfully, Robin is immediately bored of the display and drags them off to explore. Eddie subtly gives Steve’s side a quick pinch as he walks past him, and Steve suddenly can’t wait to go home.

***

“You are a fucking menace,” Steve accuses the moment they’ve made it through the door.

His parents aren’t home, Robin was dropped off back at her house, and now, Steve is alone with Eddie for the first time all day, and he refuses to voice how excited he is for whatever Eddie’s got planned.

But Eddie just grins, tugging off the more elaborate pieces of his costume, leaving himself in socks, boxers, and a white t-shirt. He makes his way to the kitchen, comes back with two cans of beer, sits on the couch like he isn’t ignoring the clear tension in the room.

Steve gapes at him for a minute before joining him on the couch, kicking off his boots and taking a beer as well. Maybe Eddie’s changed his mind…Maybe he just isn’t the mood, and Steve isn’t going to pressure him into anything.

But…Well, he has a sneaking suspicion that isn’t the case at all.

“If you’re waiting for me to ask, it’s not gonna happen,” he says.

“Ask for what?” Eddie tilts his head curiously, but there’s a glint in his eye that proves Steve’s theory.

“Nothing,” Steve replies, playing along. “All that talk back there just made me think you had a plan for when we got home. But if you’re not interested, that’s fine too.”

“Did you want me to have a plan?”

Steve huffs. “Maybe. But if you don’t, then let’s forget about it.”

“Oh, c’mon baby,” Eddie says, throwing an arm around Steve’s shoulders and pulling him close. “All you’ve gotta do is ask if you want it so bad.”

His cheeks burn. Stubborn as ever, he shakes his head.

Eddie sighs with exaggerated disappointment. “If you insist. I guess I’ll just keep my hands to myself tonight…”

“Good,” Steve says, and turns the television on.

It takes two beers and a stupid scene in a film to break him. It’s a quick, barely there tickle, but the character’s laugh makes Steve perk up like a dog hearing a doorbell ring.

“Fine,” he says.

“What’s fine?” Eddie asks.

“Just fucking tickle me, you dick.”

Eddie grins and wastes no time, lunging across the couch and pinning Steve to the cushions.

“I knew you’d crack eventually, sweetheart,” he teases. “Sorry we don’t have quite the same set up, but I’ll hold you down real nice, okay?”

Steve is already grinning. He can’t help it, he’s so lovestruck by his boyfriend and desperate to laugh his head off. And laugh he does when Eddie goes straight for his ribs, scratching at the dips between each little bone.

“There’s that pretty sound,” he says, pressing a kiss to Steve’s jaw that is both sweet and ticklish under the current circumstance.

The stupid shirt with the laces is pulled over his head and discarded on the floor, and Eddie pins Steve’s wrists and tells him to stay still before exploring each ticklish spot on his torso, making him shriek and cackle and snort like a fool.

He doesn’t stay still for very long, arms shooting down to his sides when Eddie attacks his belly with blunt fingernails, and Eddie scolds him but doesn’t stop.

As he squirms on the couch, giggling like mad, he wonders if they sell some of those bondage contraptions there. He thinks that they should go back to the Ren Faire sometime. 

[iamjucie]

Astarion the Musical

Today, I spent several hours creating a playlist that tells Astarion's story (a version of it) through songs. I want to share the playlist with you, along with this post as a companion to describe the context.

In my mind it plays out like a musical would- context and dialogue happening between musical numbers. I hope you enjoy.

Song explanations:

The Code: Post game Astarion introducing his story to the audience. A synopsis of his story from the POV of the person who lived through it. 

"I, I went to Hell and back To find myself on track I broke the code, whoa-oh-oh Like ammonites I just gave it some time Now I found paradise I broke the code, whoa-oh-oh"

The story starts when he is attacked by the Gur and is approached by Cazador.

The Killing Moon: Cazador turns him into his spawn.

"Under blue moon I saw you So soon you'll take me Up in your arms, too late to beg you Or cancel it, though I know it must be The killing time Unwillingly mine Fate Up against your will Through the thick and thin He will wait until You give yourself to him"

Dead Arms & Dead Legs: After he has turned, coming to terms with his new undead self. 

"I have been out walking with these Dead Arms & Dead Legs And the mysteries of the universe are patterned in my head The terrain becomes unbearable - too steep to stick your heel I imagine myself here again in 50 million years I run to the left... I run to the right And all my fears become a life And what is left... and who are you in the end?"

Queer: He is seducing victims and luring them to Cazador using his body and charm.

"Hey boy, take a look at me Let me dirty up your mind I'll strip away your hard veneer And see what I can find The queerest of the queer The strangest of the strange The coldest of the cool The lamest of the lame The numbest of the dumb I hate to see you here You choke behind a smile A fake behind the fear The queerest of the queer"

The Dead Come Talking: Feeling guilt about the victims he led to death. He can't seem to forget them.

"Feel the worms eating holes through my mind Like regrets that'll kill me in time Walking backwards is always a guess Distant faces burn holes in my chest, mm-mm, mm-mm Shadows floating, they're out in the hall They still haunt you long after they're gone Buried in the basement, cold cement Dead come talking, can't put them to rest"

rises the moon: Montage of his life as a slave under Cazador, time passes and his hope for an escape becomes less and less. 

"Days seem sometimes as if they'll never end Sun digs its heels to taunt you But after sunlit days, one thing stays the same Rises the moon Days fade into a watercolour blur Memories swim and haunt you But look into the lake, shimmering like smoke Rises the moon"

Abbey: He is out in the city hunting, daydreaming of freedom. 

"There is a light, I feel it in me But only, it seems, when the dark surrounds me There is a dream and it sleeps in me Keeps me awake in the night Crying, "Set me free" And I wake every night Crying, "Set me free" "

Kidnapped by the Nautiloid.  Nautiloid crashes. 

Hand Me My Shovel, I’m Going In!: He wakes up at the crash site and is freaking out. He is in the sun, and not burnt to ash.

"This is not enough, this is not enough to prove it yet No, I need to hit the bottom This is not enough, this is not enough to prove it yet No, I need to hit the bottom Gotta get to the bottom of this Gotta get to the bottom of this Gotta get to the bottom of this"

Meet Tav.

Survival: He realizes he has an actual chance at freedom now that he met Tav.

"You won't pull ahead I'll keep up the pace And I'll reveal my strength To the whole human race Yes, I am prepared To stay alive I won't forgive, the vengeance is mine And I won't give in Because I choose to thrive Yeah, I'm gonna win!"

Biting Down: Drinks Tav’s blood for the first time. His first time drinking blood from a thinking creature and he realizes why it was kept from him. He feels alive. He feels powerful.

"Skip a hit, don't make a sound (It feels better biting down) Breathed so deep I thought I'd drown (It feels better biting down) Listen to the beats resound (It feels better biting down) It feels better biting down (It feels better biting down)"

Little White Lies: Gaining Tav’s trust, making her fall in love with him for protection.

"Would you leave me for dead, or would you come to my aid? If I don't tell you some pretty words Should it keep you coming my way I never meant to lie, but there are things we do and say to get by Little white lies, a small surprise, how big they grow in size It all starts simple enough Your present is dark because your childhood was rough So you shed your skin and you change your name in the hopes of Putting air in between you and the pain, so grab a mask Fill up a flask, slither like a snake into the mascaraed"

Terrible Thing: Seduces Tav enough for her to sleep with him.

"I know what you're doin' here Made your intentions clear Oh you, you terrible thing, you Terrible thing, you Terrible thing, you Beautiful thing Honey, you're so cold You left me on patrol Lose my self-control with you (when I'm with you) Do things I don't want to do, ooh"

Laplace’s Angel (Hurt People? Hurt People!): Feelings for Tav are growing, and the guilt of manipulating her is starting to get to him so he tries to justify his actions.

"It doesn't take a killer to murder It only takes a reason to kill We've all got evidence of innocence, it's "everything's coincidence" The difference twixt fate and free will is whether you're singing Ooh, could you take a look at me? Am I bad, am I bad, am I bad, am I really that bad? And now we're singing, ooh Whatever you think of me If you were in my shoes (yes, it's only natural!) You'd walk the same damn miles I do Oh, oh, right!"

Gilded Lily: After Tav does not force him to drink Araj’s blood. He is processing his trauma. He realizes that Tav cares for him more than anyone ever has.

"Haven't I given enough, given enough? Always the fool with the slowest heart But I know you'll take me with you We'll live in spaces between walls Every city's got a graveyard The service bought and paid for Now I'm sleeping in the backyard Passing out as night turns into day"

Against the Kitchen Floor: He confesses to Tav that he was originally manipulating her but now has genuine feelings for her. He has never known the feeling of somebody wanting him for more than his body and he doesn't know how to handle it well.

"I don't owe you my heart And I don't owe you my body But you should know that I'm sorry For being careless with you Lord knows I owe you more Than I'm pretty sure I ever could give anybody But I can't pin down what normal people want from foreign objects Bottom shelf erotic products like me So, I could hold your hand but keep you at arm's length Or hang me from a branch too high to climb and shake Less rare than scarce, less diamond than rough Unlikely to be more than just the coal you fail to crush, and I swear, I'm really trying It just don't come natural to me to think that you'd want me for me I swear, I'm really trying Oh, I'm sorry, I promise, I'm doing my best I just haven't learned how to be human as you are yet"

you should see me in a crown: They find out from Raphael what his scars on his back mean, and about the Ritual of Profane Ascension. He is fantasizing about what he would do if he managed to overtake it in private. He wants the power it would grant him.

"You should see me in a crown I'm gonna run this nothing town Watch me make 'em bow One by, one by one, one by, one by You should see me in a crown Your silence is my favorite sound Watch me make 'em bow One by, one by one, one by, one by one"

Perhaps Vampire is a Bit Strong But... : Astarion fights and confronts Cazador for the centuries of abuse he put him through. 

"'Cause all you people are vampires And all your stories are stale And though you pretend to stand by us I know you're certain we'll fail I've seen your eyes as they fix on me, full of confusion Your snarl is just so condescending Try to explain that we're onto a win If the fee we are in near recoups what we're spending"

He can choose to complete the ritual in Cazador’s place, or kill him. Tav convinces him to not go through with the ritual, he kills Cazador:

What Was I Made For?: He kills Cazador and doesn’t complete the ritual expecting a sense of relief and gratification but feels nothing. He thought he would feel free without a master to rule over him, but he feels lost.

"What was I made for? Hm 'Cause I, I I don't know how to feel But I wanna try I don't know how to feel But someday I might Someday I might"

Two Coffins: He is coming to terms with Tav’s mortality. He is mourning the loss of the opportunity to have her forever by not going through with the ritual.

"Two coffins for sleep One for you one for me We'll get there eventually In the dark of our graves our bodies will decay I wish you'd never change How lucky I ever was to see The way that you smile at me Your little moon face shining bright at me One day soon there'll be nothing left of you and me Two coffins for sleep Two coffins for sleep All the things that I have yet to lose Will someday be gone soon Back into annihilation All things will fade Maybe it's better off that way I wish you'd stay with me"

Rain: For a moment, he regrets not going through with the ritual and feels a slight disdain for Tav for stopping him. This song is when he comes to realize it was the correct choice and is thanking her. He knows that he would have just become just like Cazador, and thanks to her he is breaking the cycle of abuse.

"For so long, I have waited So long that I almost became Just a stoic statue, fit for nobody And I don't wanna get in your way But I finally think I can say That the vicious cycle was over The moment you smiled at me"

My Instincts Are The Enemy: He is confiding in Tav that he wants to be with her forever, but explaining what that means for her. He is tied to the night, and she is tied to him. Is she ok with that?

"I'm paralyzed, engaged in civil war What can I do? Either way, I lose You lose, too Days are nights, and nights are unbearable What can I do? Chained to this mood You're chained to me Keep asking different questions The same answer I receive I need you more than ever To tell me what you've seen"

Sunlight: The Netherbrain is defeated and the tadpoles are gone from their minds. Without the tadpole he is now unable to withstand the sun. He is coping with the lack of sun by replacing it with Tav. From now on she is his sunlight.

"I had been lost to you, sunlight And flew like a moth to you, sunlight, oh, sunlight Oh, your love is sunlight Oh, your love is sunlight But it is sunlight All the tales the same Told before and told again A soul that's born in cold and rain Knows sunlight, sunlight, sunlight And at last can grant a name To a buried and a burning flame As love and its decisive pain Oh, my sunlight, sunlight, sunlight"

Fin.

[roseastralis]

✦ — YOUR BLOODIED BLADE II A TRIP TO MEMORY LANE.

blade x gn!reader

✦ summary ; you were willing to do anything he asked, you were used to it. so when he asked you to meet him in stargazer navalia, you obliged. when you arrived, what awaited you there was not blade, but a group of cloud knights sent to arrest you on a crime you did not at all dare commit—soon realizing that blade pinned his crime on you.

✦ info ; backstory of blade and reader from your bloodied blade part one, gn!reader

✦ warnings ; toxic relationship, sensitive topics, mentions of murder and death

✦ author's note ; part 2!! focusing on the backstory this chap so that u know the history. i'm well aware ren is not blade's real name, it's his chinese name. but let's pretend it is for now... also planning to make part 3 tbh

✦ masterlist | part one | part two

It was a restless night, you could not sleep at all, not after what happened in the Stargazer Navalia earlier. Your injuries caused by Blade took a toll on you, making it difficult for you to lay in any position that you almost considered sleeping while standing instead. The recent events that occurred just a few hours back played throughout your mind constantly—and you were annoyed that all you could think about was Blade. Fatigue hits you soon enough, shutting your eyes instantly as you try to get some rest. 

— ✦

“Meet me in the navalia later.” Blade said nonchalantly, hugging you from behind as you sheath your sword. “The usual spot?” You inquire, smiling as you kiss his chin. “Of course.”

“Don't tell me we're going to spar again. Give it up Rèn, I don't want to hurt you again. Sometimes, I think to myself that you're losing on purpose just so I could personally treat your wounds.” You state, sighing as you fix his messy hair from covering his sight.

“No, it's important.” He grabs your hand and interlocks his fingers with yours, as worry hits your face. “Whatever you say, Rèn. I’ll meet you there.”

— ✦

Strange, it was awfully silent when you arrived. Not a single sound could be heard, aside from the harsh winds of the late night. He told you specifically to meet you here, was he running late? Just then, you heard footsteps approaching. It didn't sound like it was coming from one direction—no. It was from multiple people, and it was only a matter of time when you were surrounded by multiple cloud knights with their spears pointed to you.

“If you do not want to make this difficult for you, then stand down and drop your weapon. You're coming with us.” A cloud knight shouted, raising his spear to point at you.

What? Under arrest? Thoughts clouded your mind and you found yourself being apprehended by one of the cloud knights, and you couldn't do anything about it, nothing. 

— ✦

There you were, sitting across from him—hands chained and head down low. Rèn, whose new identity is now Blade—had the face to visit you in this rotting prison and had the audacity to ask how you were doing. You hated how his eyes showed no emotion, how his face had no remorse. If only you could break free from the chains restraining you, then he would have been dead by now.

“(Name) Just listen to me.” Rèn—no, not Rèn. Blade said, sitting across from you and eyeing your frail figure. “Listen? Oh my dear Blade, the nerve you have to order me to listen to a single word you’re going to let out from that mouth of yours.” He raised his eyebrows, surprised at your sudden attitude. This was going nowhere.

“It’s sweet of you to visit me here in this place that you put me in. I have suffered long enough because of you. It's hard to believe that the man I fell in love with would betray me of all things. Aeons, maybe all of this was fake in the first place.” You spat, rage evident on your face. Thank goodness that both of you were given privacy, and that no one could interrupt you, and no one could hear the venom reeking off your tongue.

“I trusted you, I loved you, and I dedicated my whole life to you—but I never meant it like this. You’re cruel, you’re evil, you’re a monster who only cares about their own gains and won’t hesitate to throw someone into the dust for their own satisfaction.”

“I can help you escape—I’ll do anything (Name). Just tell me what to do and I will do it all for you.” 

“I don’t need your help, and I don’t need your pity. What’s done is done.” 

“(Name). I’m giving you a chance to be with me again—”

“Be with you? Hah, you’ve lost your mind Blade. Answer me this. Have you ever wondered who took the lives of the Lan family? The family, who was always so kind—so humble. Who, in their final moments, smiled up at the person who just reaped their souls—to take care of themselves? Tell me Blade, because I know that it certainly was not me.”

Blade’s face lit up in horror. “How did you—”

“Tell me, who was it?”

“...(Name), please—”

“Who paid for your sins. Who had to rot in jail, just for you to live free as a bird with no guilt carried on your back? I’ve had enough, Blade. Years and years of endless torture is what I had to endure—and yet you, the person responsible for all of this, had the nerve to pin the Lan family murders on someone else. Not just someone else actually—their own lover, the one who loved him endlessly. Yet you took them for granted, and now you are right here, sitting face to face with the one person you betrayed.”

— ✦

You woke up from your nightmare, beads of sweat covering your entire forehead as you continuously gasped for air. You were horrified—as you did not expect for your memories to come flooding back to you. This was the first time you ever dreamt about the incident, despite it being on your mind everyday. You didn’t think it would have such an impact on you, but after your encounter with Blade—you knew that you wanted to seek him out again.

The night was cold, and you were shivering more than usual until you realized that your window was wide open. You sigh, standing up from your bed. As soon as you close the window, something catches your sight. You slowly open the window again, only to find a bouquet of red spider lilies wrapped with dark blue paper and tied with a red knot.

Of course he did. Flowers, it was always on rare occasions that Blade would hand you a bunch of nicely wrapped flowers—usually consisting of roses or chrysanthemums. But that was long ago, and you did not expect this at all. What weirded you the most though, was the fact that he sent spider lilies. Of all flowers he could choose from, he had to choose the ones that were hardest to find. 

You gulped, face flooded with worry. Not only did he send spider lilies, of all things—you remembered that spider lilies symbolize final goodbyes, or even worse—death. That was what he told you before, once when you asked him if he liked flowers. Examining the bouquet, you saw a small note card shoved deep into the stems of the flowers. Your eyes widened slightly as you read it out loud.

“I will always protect you.”

reblogs are deeply appreciated !!

✦ those who asked for part two / to be tagged for part two :)) @rennieeeees | @jnyuan | @enviouspeanut

[holylulusworld]

Deranged Marriage (9) – Two tidal waves

Summary: Your father wants you to choose a husband. Your chosen one doesn’t like the idea one bit.

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky Barnes x (Mafia daughter)! Reader

Characters: Steve Rogers, Alexander Pierce

Warnings: mentions of character’s death, language, strong/bratty reader, banter, sexual tension, enemies with sexual tension, making out, still idiots in love, hand around throat (non-sexual), threats, implied torture with knives

Deranged Marriage masterlist

<< Part 8

“Fucking hell, get it over with, James Buchanan Barnes. You’ve got a dick and she got…uh whatever that bitch is hiding under her cheap fake designer clothes,” you argue with Bucky again.

You cross your arms over your chest, huffing as Bucky refuses sex with Natasha. This is to make it more believable that he’s on her side.

“I don’t want to,” he bites back. Bucky points out that the same applies to you as well. “I’m not some breathing dildo you can use for your liking.”

“Yeah, but not so long ago you loved to fuck her on our dining table so,” you cock your head, “what’s the problem? Can the old man not get it up anymore? Do you need Viagra? I can ask Helen to get you some.”

“You fucking brat,” he growls in your direction. “One day I’ll put you over my lap and spank the life out of your bratty ass. You are frustrating and annoying.”

“Asshole.”

“I should just,” he throws his hands up, “leave you to yourself. I have no idea why I’m helping you. A bullet to my brain would be less painful."

“I can’t believe you are ruining our chance to bring the people attacking my father down over a quickie. Just put it inside a little and disappoint her like every other girl you fucked.”

“That’s what you want? How about you watch me fuck her too, huh? I bet you are a kinky bitch." He smirks at you. “Go ahead and tell me about all the dirty fantasies you have about me and my sex life.”

“You mean your non-existent sex life,” you retort, mirroring his smirk. “I heard through the grapevine that you didn’t get any lately.”

“Because of you,” he’s in your face, breathing hard. “Every woman in town believes we will marry and they are afraid of you and your father.”

“Aw, I’m cock blocking you?” you coo. “What a pity you refuse to fuck Natasha. Your dick would feel so much better after going for a ride with her.”

“I told you,” you gasp as his hand wraps around your neck. He grips your neck tightly, forcing you to look up at him. “I don’t want to fuck her.”

“Why? She’s your type.”

“Dead is not my type.”

You frown deeply. Just a few days ago Bucky and you talked about getting closer to the person who ordered the hit on you and your father through Natasha. “What do you mean by...dead?"

“Oh…did I forget to tell you she’s dead?” He smirks darkly as he watches your lips part.

“What? But we made all these plans and now…” You knit your brows together. "Wait, you killed her, didn’t you?”

“It was an accident,” Bucky leans closer to whisper in your ear. “Maybe I let slip that she’s a mole and that Natasha tried to warn your father. Pierce is no one to mess with, you know.”

“You—” you groan. “Why did you do this? That's stupid, Barnes. We had a plan.”

“Your plan included fucking Natasha.”

“Hell, I would’ve fucked her myself to get one step closer,” you huff. “You’re a coward, Barnes. Why couldn’t you fuck her…?”

“What’s done is done. I’m more of the hit them where it hurts guy. Not the one sneaking around to get information. While you made all these nice plans, Steve and I did your job.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“We caught Pierce and two of his minions. Steve has a blast interrogating them. He just loves to toy with them,” Bucky purrs in your ear. His hand tightens around your throat, making you whimper. “If only you could see yourself now. So afraid I will choke you just a little harder.”

“We already confirmed that you are not man enough, sweetie,” you grit your teeth as he loosens his hold. It only takes Bucky's hand around your neck to show you what he can do. “Do it or stop toying with me.”

“You wish I would toy with you, doll,” he chuckles. “What a pity I won’t…”

“Alexander Pierce, in all his glory,” Steve laughs as Pierce fights the ropes holding him to a chair. “You see, Y/F/N and Y/N are my allies. They are Bucky’s allies. If you attack them, you attack us.”

“The thing is, we will let you live your pitiful life. We all tried to kill each other at least once." Bucky looks at the knives he placed on a table in front of Pierce. “What I want from you is to tell me who was involved in the hit. Who is the rat among Y/F/N's people?”

“I won’t tell you shit,” Pierce spits while talking. Even though Steve has already roughed him up over the past few hours, he refuses to give up.

“We will see." Bucky chooses one knife and wields it in front of Pierce’s face. “Did you ever hear about my talent with knives? I just love the feeling of metal cutting into skin and flesh.”

“Why won’t you let me interrogate him, Barnes?” You pace the room, huffing as Bucky refuses to answer. “Did he give you a name?”

“Romanoff was all he said,” Bucky huffs. “He’s a tough little bastard. I give him that. But no one withstood my knives forever. I will find the mole for you…I mean your father. I will find him for your father.”

“We already knew about Romanoff,” you grunt. “Why did you get her killed? This was stupid."

“Your face is stupid.”

You giggle at Bucky’s words. “Your face is stupid, and your beard…the hair…the muscles. Why are you always wearing a suit but no tie? That’s stupid too.”

When he grips your right arm roughly, he says, "I use all my ties to restrain brats. I leave them there for me to use.”

“You’re so…” you squeak when he roughly cups your face and crushes his lips to yours. Bucky devours your mouth. The kiss is all tongue and teeth. He won’t let up until you weakly push against his shoulders. “I can’t breathe, you…”

He silences your protests with his mouth again. Bucky keeps you from running your mouth by slipping his tongue into your mouth.

His hands move to your waistline to easily lift you and slam you into the wall behind you.

“What the fuck?" You can barely catch your breath. Bucky is all over you. He forces your legs around his waistline before his mouth is back on you. His hands grip your ass roughly as you grind against his swelling length.

“Shut up for a moment," he whispers against your lips. “Just stop talking. I only want to hear you moan my name from now on.”

In response, you fist his hair, making him growl. “If you want me to shut up, do me good, Barnes…”

>>Part 10

Tags in reblog.

[downthe-f4ndom-rabbith0le]

The Way Back Home (Spencer Reid x Reader) - Chapter Two

The Way Back Home (Spencer Reid x Reader) - Chapter Two Reader Insert: she/her pronouns Word Count: 4514 Warnings: major angst, major fluff, mentions of murder, graphic descriptions of dead bodies, crime scenes, near-death experiences, slow-burnish romance, death, canon violence, rape, swearing, guns, knives, prostitution, canon cuteness of the team. Spoilers: Maeve's death, mentions of previous cases or canon events from seasons 1-10.

Spencer and you have an unspoken connection with one another. Nothing has ever happened between you two, especially since everything went down with Maeve, but your love has grown and overcome and is now clear as day to everyone. However, just when Spencer builds up enough courage to ask you out officially, you're requested on an undercover mission that halts your budding relationship in its tracks.

Months go by without a word from you until bodies of prostitutes start showing up in New York and the BAU is brought in to help. Spencer and you finally reunite as both your cases collide, but your lives and your love are both on the line now.

Will you and Spencer be able to find the way back home this time?

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Epilogue

~~~

Eleven months.

Eleven months you had been Serena Vanguff: Brooklyn born and raised, with a dream to live life to the fullest. You'd built and sold your sob story of growing up with your single-parent mother and her single job income to six different clubs and brothels in those eleven months. You'd built up trust, inserted yourself into the upper ranks of each establishment. It had taken patience, precision, and a lot of self-discipline.

And Dr. Spencer Reid of all people was about to ruin all of that.

You hadn't registered the voice until it was too late. From the door of the loading bay, you could only make out your fake name being called, not who was calling. You'd been in the bay by yourself for most of the morning, the voice startled you so much you hit your toe on one of the boxes of spirits. But even bent over, eyes focused on your injury, you'd heard him as he rounded the corner, heard his voice, and there was no mistaking it.

'Are you okay,' he said, and you heard him rush over to help, but you held up a hand in the hopes to create some distance between you two.

'Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, doll,' you replied hastily, shakily. 'Just hit my toe, is all.'

'Well, here, let me get you some ice-'

'That's not necessary, hun. Really.' God, he was persistent as usual.

'Well, at least let me have a look at it. You might've gotten a splinter in it or-'

'Stop.'

You couldn't help it, your voice just slipped out. The voice you worked so hard to hide everyday. The voice you only let out in whispers or in the shower of your apartment to remind yourself you were still you. With him, it came out naturally, like it had never been hidden away.

He listened, but you knew it wasn't out of politeness. Spencer Reid had an IQ of 187 with an eidetic memory - he knew straight away. And when he slowly raised his head to look at you, you saw what he saw: a ghost.

'Y/N?'

You hadn't heard that name - your name - in months. The higher ups you reported to once a week didn't even use your name in case someone was listening in. You weren't prepared for the first person to call you by your true name after all this time to be the person you held most dear.

And the person you'd left behind without a word.

His voice was so soft; you'd always loved how he said your name. Like you were something to be revered and cared for. But realisation slapped you hard, and so you grabbed his head and pushed it down to make it look like he was looking at your injured toe. You also did it to avoid his shocked, pained gaze.

'Oh! You know, it actually does hurt a little, yeah. You're such a gentleman,' you said obnoxiously loud, holding his head steady as you bent slightly over, hair brushing his cheeks. Then, in a low voice you said, 'My name is Serena. I don't know you, and you don't know me. Make sure the cameras see that, okay?'

He nodded ever so slightly and you took his hand off his head. He slowly stood up, those amber eyes immediately locking onto yours. You followed him as he did, until you were craning your neck slightly upwards in a manner that pained you where it once was second nature. His gaze burned with so many unspoken things, but now that the shock had subsided, all you saw was hurt.

To his credit, he didn't express it verbally. Instead, he smiled a tight-lipped smile, slipping easily into his polite, greeting mode. 'Hi, I'm Dr. Spencer Reid with the FBI's Behavioural Analysis Unit,' he said, introducing himself like he would to any other person.

Even though you hadn't been expecting him or the rest of the team to be called in, it didn't take you long to realise what he would be doing here. 'Madame Lacroix said the feds would be coming around sometime,' you said, making sure you sounded both indifferent and concerned at the same time. 'Poor Roxy. She didn't deserve that.'

You held Spencer's gaze for what felt like an eternity, silently pleading with him to go along with what you were offering. You willed for him to see that you had many unspoken things to talk about with him, too. But now was not the place nor the time.

He watched you for a moment longer, his inner turmoil visible in his clenching jaw, his fidgety fingers. It warmed your heart when he tucked a loose curl behind his ear. His hair was longer. You'd always liked it that way. The last time you saw him, it was close-cropped.

Had it really been that long already?

Spencer seemed to silently agree with your logic, coughing to clear his throat before diving in with the questioning you both were more familiar with than your home addresses. 'How long have you been working at the Chateau, Miss...'

You plastered on a big smile, waving a hand dismissively at him. 'Vanderguff, but you can just call me Serena, doll. No titles except for Madame Lacroix 'round here. And about three months now.'

'Okay, Serena. Were you two close?' he asked. 'You and Roxy?'

You shrugged nonchalantly. 'Sure, we all are here. But I guess you could say there was a small group of us in particular that looked out for each other. You know, like sisters of sorts.'

'We spoke with Madame Lacroix just before,' Spencer said. 'She said Roxy and her group didn't usually let people in until they'd earned their keep. But you just... slipped right into the group?'

You didn't like how pointed his question was. It was passive aggressive, like he was having a dig at you personally and not your alter ego. You crossed your arms over your barely covered chest, your face pinching in an offended manner. 'What can I say? I'm a charmer.'

'Were you popular at your old establishment, too? The Guilty Pleasure?'

'Look here, doctor,' you said, daring to take a step forward, appearing to get up in his face out of annoyance. When really, you just needed to look him in the eye when you said, 'Instead of asking about me, maybe you should be asking about Roxy and what she was into that might've gotten her killed.' You surprised yourself when tears sprung to your eyes, the memory of finding that poor girl all bloodied and mutilated flashing forward.

You redirected your gaze to the bay doors, giving a subtle nod in their direction. 'Found her just lying outside in a pool of her own blood. I had the midnight shift so I finished at around two in the morning, but I'd forgotten my phone in my dressing room so I circled back around to collect it. But when I did... there was Roxy.'

Spencer followed your gaze, his expression softening as he took in the scene. CSU had finished up just before Spencer got there, leaving behind nothing but a dark stain where Roxy had bled out. You tried not to think about her cold, lifeless body now laying under a sheet on the M.E.'s slab in the morgue.

You were broken from that thought when Spencer turned back to face you. 'Did you see anything or anyone when you found her? Anything out of the ordinary?' he asked outwardly. But you heard his silent request: profile the unsub.

You shook your head, face falling serious as you fell back into old habits. 'I didn't see anyone, but her body was still warm when I checked for a pulse so the sicko who killed her must've just fled before I got there.'

'Or could've been waiting somewhere nearby to make sure the job was done,' Spencer added, concern morphing his handsome features. Concern, you realised, for you. 'What did you do after that?'

You'd wanted to notify your superiors straight away on your secret phone you only used to receive texts from your unit, never to. But you'd come to the same conclusion as Spencer and decided you'd have to wait for a safer time to contact them.

'I waited for a bit,' you answered, putting on a frightened front as you pouted and hugged yourself a little. 'Mainly because I was so shocked to see her just lying there. I mean, I hadn't seen her in like a day, but I just assumed she took a rest day to go shopping or something. Then I pulled it together and ran inside to notify Madame Lacroix. She was in the middle of a business meeting when I told her. She called it in immediately.'

'You did the smart thing, Serena,' Spencer said gently, offering a small smile out of comfort.

You nodded your gratitude. 'You know, people don't think much about prostitution. That those who sell their bodies don't love or respect themselves enough to get a corporate job like everybody else. But it takes a different kind of smarts to do what we do. Especially if its something we had no choice but to do.'

'Was that the case with Roxy?' he asked carefully, his words soft-spoken but full of double meaning. His eyes locked with your eyes now, amber upon (E/C). 'Is that your case, Serena?'

You nodded, too afraid to speak in case you cracked. Eleven months of hard work would not go down the drain because of your silly little feelings for the wonderful Dr. Spencer Reid.

You swallowed the lump in your throat because, you reminded yourself, you didn't know this man. 'You don't get to choose the cards you're dealt, doctor. Not in my line of work, anyways.'

'Had Roxy been acting off lately?' Spencer asked. 'Was she more anxious, more jumpy than usual? Did she think someone was following her?'

'I couldn't really tell ya. Like I said, didn't see her from the night before last until early this morning when I found her,' you answered. 'But that wasn't really unusual for her.'

Spencer raised an eyebrow. 'How so?'

'She took days off every second or third week - she was more a workaholic than the rest of us so she didn't have a designated rest day.'

'Do you know what she did on these days off?'

You shook your head. 'Could've been anything really. Shopping, spa day. Even figured she might've been visiting a secret boyfriend or something because she once came home with dark hickeys on her neck. But we're quite close as it is thanks to our line of work. It don't seem wrong to want a little privacy, so I never asked her about it.'

'Reid? You in here?'

The lump in your throat returned at the sound of Derek's voice, mainly at how close it sounded. You couldn't run away, so you steeled yourself as Serena Vanderguff ready to face the glorious figure that was SSA Derek Morgan as he rounded the stacks.

'There you are,' he said, walking up behind Spencer. 'I just finished with Madame Lacroix. How is Serena-'

That's when his eyes fell on you, and he pulled that same shocked expression Spencer had before. His mouth gaped as he looked over you. You couldn't tell if he was surprised by your appearance, or that he could hardly recognise you. Some days even you found it hard to find the true you underneath all the makeup and big hair.

Derek's gaze finally landed on your face, shaking his head in slight disbelief. 'Holy-'

'Thank you so much for your time, Serena,' Spencer intervened thankfully, flashing you a smile that resembled more of a grimace, and grabbed Derek's shirt to pull him back. 'You've been really helpful. We'll be in touch.'

Just for the cameras, you plastered on a Cheshire smile and gave them both a flirty wave goodbye. 'I'm looking forward to your call, doctor. But may I suggest that you keep asking the people upstairs, if you get my drift. They're the ones with answers.'

Derek was still too stunned to respond let alone speak, but Spencer held your gaze with an understanding that told you he knew what you really meant. So he just nodded and said. 'We'll keep that in mind... Serena.'

And just like that, they were gone. Spencer was gone. Again. You sucked in deep breaths the moment you heard the door open and they left, using the stacks to steady your exhausted body. You had not anticipated all that happening today, that was for sure.

The door opened again. You pushed yourself upright and steadied your breathing back to normal just as Madame Lacroix came to stand in front of you. Her billowy, silk sleeves slid down to her elbows as she crossed her arms over her chest, her frown giving away her displeasure.

'Did you speak with the agents?' she asked in a low voice. You nodded, prompting her to say, 'What did you tell them?'

'Exactly what you told me to say,' you said calmly, almost robotically.

Her frown lifted at your words, and she stepped closer to cup your cheeks gently with her hands. 'That's my girl,' she said, tapping your cheeks lightly before stepping away and walking back over to the door to the Pit. She paused at the door, green eyes piercing you even from so far away. 'Don't take too much longer, Serena. We've got real business to attend to, still.'

You nodded and she left, and you were once again left alone to ponder your situation. You were getting so close, but now your old team was involved. If you didn't expose these guys soon, your team would expose you.

And then you'd all end up dead.

~~~

'...may I suggest that you keep asking the people upstairs, if you get my drift. They're the ones with answers.'

'Reid... Reid... Hey, wait!'

Spencer stormed from the elevator, through the New York FBI office and into the conference room that had been set up as the BAU's personal office temporarily. There he found Hotch talking with Rossi and another man Spencer didn't recognise. But he didn't care who the heck he was, not as walked right up to them and said, 'Y/N L/N.'

The three men looked up at him, halting whatever they'd been discussing to give him incredulous looks. All except for the mystery new man.

'I'm sorry?' Hotch asked.

'You said she got a new job,' Spencer said lowly, almost growled out. 'That it was an offer she couldn't refuse. Now I understand what you meant by that.'

'What's going on?' JJ asked, walking through the door with Kate in tow. Derek closed the door behind them and went to close the blinds to the bullpen outside.

'I don't know,' Rossi answered, sitting up in his seat further. 'Reid, what are you talking about?'

'Y/N!' Spencer cried, curling his fists by his side so he didn't slam the table or break something, namely his hand. 'You made it out like she was happy, but she was forced to leave!'

Hotch's confusion quickly faded as guilt replaced it. 'That is classified information, Reid,' he said in a quiet voice very unlike the stoic and stern SSA Aaron Hotchner. 'How do you know that?'

'Because she told me herself,' Spencer said, leaning over the table that separated him and his boss. 'Does the name Serena Vanderguff ring a bell?'

It was the most emotions Spencer had ever seen his boss take on in such a small time, because his guilt turned into shock realisation as he turned to the mystery man on the other side of Rossi. 'Why didn't you tell me this was your case already, Steve?'

Steve. Spencer mentally ran through all the unit chiefs in the FBI and only one man came up with that name.

'Steven Holt, Unit Chief of Organised Crime,' Spencer said, eyes flicking to him as recognition dawned on him. 'You were Y/N's old unit chief before she transferred to us.'

Holt let out a sigh that said he knew he'd been caught. 'That's right. Y/N went on a lot of undercover missions for me back before she joined the BAU. She was the best of the best. I came down to inform you of the situation, Hotch...' Holt's gaze flickered to Spencer briefly before returning to hi boss, '...but seems as though you've beaten me to it.'

'I hate to admit that maybe my age is showing,' Rossi started, 'but I'm not following. What has Y/N got to do with any of this?'

'And this isn't old age,' Kate added, 'but I also am not following. Who is Y/N?'

Spencer's gaze flickered to Hotch, who seemed to be having an inner battle about what to do. He looked up at Holt for moment, and Holt nodded.

Hotch nodded back and stood from his seat to address the room properly. 'Eleven months ago, I was contacted by Unit Chief Holt about a potential underground trafficking network that dealt in young girls and women in the prostitute industry. Holt needed a profiler on the team to go undercover and find out who was in charge, then gain their trust, become part of their gang, and report back to the unit.' Hotch turned his attention solely on Holt. 'It wasn't my decision, but the Head Chief specifically requested L/N join the task force for this mission, as she has plenty of experience and success in undercover scenarios. I haven't been privy to anymore details than that, I'm sorry to say, since L/N is technically no longer part of the BAU. I trusted Holt would update us if anything had happened to her.'

'So she didn't leave us?' came Penelope's soft, hopeful voice. Spencer wasn't sure when she'd been phoned in - just now, or maybe before he'd even entered the room - but that meant everyone was there. Everyone was about to hear the truth.

'Not by choice, no,' Hotch said regrettably. Spencer saw and heard his shame, but he couldn't bring himself to feel sorry for his boss right now. Not when he'd lied to for eleven months about the one person Spencer thought would always be there with him.

'I can take it from here, Hotch,' Holt said, also standing to address the room. 'L/N was the best of the best when we first worked together, and these past eleven months have only proven that she still is. She has found proof that girls from each of the establishments she's infiltrated never existed before they were hired at their respective establishments, which for some of them dates back into their mid-to-late teens.'

'Let me guess,' Derek said, 'all four of our victims are some of those girls.'

Holt nodded grimly. 'We believe these girls were just the beginning of an intricate trafficking system where young girls are picked out from low risk communities when they're impressionable, then groomed in the formative years of their lives by their owners before they're given new identities and hired at their owner's establishment. Agent L/N has been hopping from one establishment to the next trying to get a better idea of who these people are that are running it. The managers of each establishment are buyers, but there is a big seller that they're paying that is still unknown. Agent L/N's mission, now that we have a better idea of the linkage between each manager, is to work her way through the upper ranks of the Chateau to find out who that seller is so we can shut down the operation for good.'

He spared a quick glance at Hotch. 'In fact, we think these killings are being caused by the same person. That's why we brought you and your team in, Aaron. The pressure of Federal involvement could cause them to slip up, and we'll be ready to catch them in handcuffs when they do.'

'But we've profiled the unsub as a sadistic, calculative narcissist,' Spencer argued, anger rising in him once more. 'Have you seen what he does to his victims? What if they find out about Y/N? Will she be the next dead body we examine? You have to pull her out of there now!'

'Spence, calm down,' JJ said, but Spencer just brushed her off.

'No, I won't!' he said, voice cracking with annoyance and frustration. 'Because it seems to me like I'm the only one who actually cares about her still. Like you all just forgot about her as if she never existed.'

'Trust me, Reid,' Hotch said gently. 'No one has forgotten about her. But right now she is still our best chance at bringing this whole operation down and bringing these girls' killer to justice. She knew the risks involved, and she's lasted this long. Have some faith in her, Reid.'

'Aren't you forgetting that she was forced into this damn operation?' Spencer spat back. 'She's risking her life because some higher ups were too coward to do the job themselves.'

'Reid, walk with me,' Rossi said, not giving Spencer a chance to reject the instruction as he walked around the table and grabbed his arm so forcefully it almost popped right out of its socket.

They walked to the break room, but Spencer barely registered any of it. His anger was a buzzing white noise in his brain, stopping rational and logical thoughts from computing with his mouth. His heart had a stronger hold on that, it seemed.

'Sit,' Rossi instructed Spencer, pulling out a seat for him to do so. Spencer silently complied while Rossi started to make two coffees at the kitchenette bench.

'...it takes a different kind of smarts to do what we do. Especially if its something we had no choice but to do.'

For eleven months he'd thought you'd left them, left him. Eleven months, anger and grief for the loss of his closest confidant had festered into an ugly, mad creature that's only reason for living was to be angry at you. But you and Spencer had always been good at reading each other, even when your words told a different story entirely. You were someone else now, almost to the point he almost hadn't recognised you underneath all the glitz and glam. But he'd looked into your eyes and he had seen you, your fear, your guilt, your apology.

You hadn't wanted to leave him. And it was that one thought that fuelled his anger at Hotch, at Unit Chief Steven Holt of Organised Crime for all the lies and deceit.

'One cup of sugar with a dash of coffee,' Rossi announced as he placed Spencer's drink on the table he sat at, then pulled up a chair for himself, his own coffee in hand. 'Just how you like it.'

It was then Spencer realised how exhausted he was. Between the early flight, the long car rides, and then seeing you, his body was screaming for a reprieve. However, he couldn't even bring himself to pick up the sweet concoction no matter how much he craved it.

'Eleven months,' Spencer eventually said, his voice meek and quiet compared to the rage it spat out minutes before.

'I know,' Rossi said glumly. 'I can't quite believe it myself. All this time... and she's just been here?'

'I just-' Spencer caught himself, feeling his voice crack at the threat of hot, frustrated tears burning at the back of his eyes. 'Surely they could've let her say goodbye. Or let her contact us from time to time. This isn't like when Emily faked her death and we all believed her gone.'

'You know they couldn't risk it,' Rossi countered. 'This is how undercover operations work, Reid. If she tried contacting us at any point, it could've been her on the M.E.'s slab alongside those girls.'

'Maybe they should've faked her death like Emily,' Spencer muttered, but more to himself than to Rossi. 'Maybe it would've been easier to think she wasn't out there somewhere and just choosing to ignore us.'

'You don't mean that, kid.' Rossi paused for a moment to think about what he would say next. Spencer appreciated that about Rossi, how he always spoke with thought and meaning behind his words. 'Look, I don't like being lied to either, but you and I both know the team couldn't have gone through another cover up like Emily's. Use that logical brain of yours and tell me I'm wrong.'

Spencer tried reaching for an argument, but even he couldn't grasp onto anything even remotely logical to argue with. So he remained silent, prompting Rossi to continue his lecture.

'I understand you and Y/N have something special,' he said gently. 'And I get why you're so upset. But Y/N is an incredible agent who has survived this long before we came into the picture, both before joining the BAU and now. We pull her out now, they will kill her; or we alert them that they have a mole in their network and they go underground and we never catch them. The best we can do to help Y/N right now is to keep playing along. We treat this like any other case, and the quicker we do that, the quicker we can get Y/N back. All right?'

Spencer remained silent for a moment, running Rossi's words over and over again in his head on a loop. Somewhere in there was an image of Maeve, and a sudden wave of sadness hit him. He couldn't go through that again, never again.

He clenched his hands into fists in his lap. It won't. I won't let it.

He forced his gaze to match Rossi's and he silently nodded. Rossi nodded in return, lips upturning slightly. 'All right then,' he said, and pushed Spencer's coffee closer to him. 'Now, drink. We're going to need you at your best if we want to solve this case and bring Y/N home.'

Home.

Amidst his dark thoughts, he found a sliver of warmth in that one word, and what it insinuated. That you belonged with them, you always had.

He took a sip of his drink and was pleasantly surprised at how it tasted exactly how he liked it. The surprise must've extended to his face, as Rossi chuckled and clinked his coffee with his. 'Don't act so surprised. I'm a profiler after all - it's my job to observe behaviours and habits. And you, my nerdy friend, have an exceptionally unhealthy dependency on sugar.'

'Actually, pasta has a higher percentage of causing heart problems in middle-aged to elderly men than sugar because of the amount of carbs on top of sugar is in it,' Spencer stated, taking a sip of his coffee without breaking eye contact with Rossi.

Rossi narrowed his eyes on Spencer. 'Comment on my age and love for pasta again and see what happens.'

And for the first time that day, Spencer smiled.

[echantedtoon]

Until Death Do You Vow Ch9 Family Secrets P2

(Warnings: Mentioning of Elias's illness and abusive family situation. Mentioning of Ian cheating. Some innuendos.)

The stress you felt now pounded in your skull. Or was that your heart actually beating a mile a minute? You couldn't tell at this point. It felt like you could feel your heart pounding all over your body and heard it up close right in your ears. Before it wasn't so bad because you had at least the comfort of Taylor in your ear in case you needed any help but now the weight of being completely alone hit you harder than if you ran face first into a brick wall. Great. You were now completely alone now- Well not really. Elias would be back any minute now and then he'd be insisting on having that ceremony. From what you could figure, this ceremony would either give Elias the closure he needed to move on or only seal you further into this mess. You didn't know what that meant for you to begin with. 

You groaned holding your head in your hands. But Taylor was coming here. You had no idea how that was going to play out especially when Elias saw him. You didn't know if that was comforting or not either. Your thoughts were all jumbled up and hard to pinpoint down. 

"My dearest, are you still there?"

Ah. Speak of the ghost. There wasn't any point in delaying the enviable now. You were never great actor anyways... Also it might just be better to come clean to Elias about the entire situation anyways. You simply just turned to the door with your head still in your hands with a sigh.

"Yeah. I'm here." You mumbled not sure if he heard you or not but in a moment the blue body of the ghost turned around to peer into the doorway with a smile.

"Ah. There you are, Dear!" He smiled as he floated on in. "Everything is finally prepared. There's only the matter of-" Elias paused blinking as he took in your numb face staring at him before looking worried. "Oh dear. You look even paler than me." Yeah. You probably did. "What on earth happened while I was gone?"

You opened your mouth... before sighing and again rubbing your head. "I'm fine..." Now seemed like a good of a time as ever before Taylor showed up and surprised Elias and Taylor did say to stall for time right. "I just lost contact with someone important to me just now."

"Someone... important?"

Great.. What's a good way to explain this to him? "Have you ever been contacted by a spirit medium?" You looked up at his face. "He's kinda like that. He's been helping me through the mansion and talking to me..Well until my phone lost power." You held up your dead phone unsure if Elias knew what it was.

"You were talking with someone else?" His face furrowed into a look.

"For my own safety. I didn't know what to expect."

"I thought you expected me."

"I didn't know what to expect. Maybe you weren't here or the rumors were faked or maybe it was a different ghost haunting this place.." You shrugged. "I needed his help in case. For my own safety. You understand that right?" 

Elias pouted. Which honestly did look cute on his features. "And did you just meet this friend today or...?" 

"I've known Taylor for almost three years now. That's my friend," you explained to his pouting face, "We've been doing a few hunts for the paranormal and that's why I'm here. I already told you about trying to go see if there was any ghosts here right?" 

He smiled a little bit. "Then how marvelous you've come to meet me. Although would you have accepted any other ghosts that sought your hand?"

"Probably not." That answer seemed to please him more. "I don't think a lot of ghosts outside you would be interested in this though."

"And this..'friend', how exactly has he been serving as a medium?"

"With this." Your hand reached up to gently pull the earpiece from your ear, the size of an earbud and held it out in your palm as Elias blinked at it in confusion. "You might've seen other paranormal investigators have them. This is an earpiece. It goes in your ear and sorta acts like a phone, but when my phone lost power so did this. We use it to talk to each other."

"So im order to contact him again, you'd have to leave?," he asked slowly as if he didn't like that idea.

"Actually he's on his way here." Elias looked up in surprise. "He's not planning on leaving me here alone. For safety reasons.

"Oh. Is that so?" Elias looked up at the ceiling suddenly fiddling with the ring on his finger. Wait..Was he getting jealous of Taylor? "Well he's heard about the wedding right? OUR wedding?" You nodded. "Well, I suppose a wedding without guests isn't much of a wedding. All preparations are nearly made anyway, and I hope he realizes how safe you are with me by now. He may wait outside until we've finished fully."

That made you pause and this. Could Taylor even get into the mansion? Was he locked out? WERE YOU LICKED IN HERE?!...No. No. Elias didn't give you the vibes of holding anyone hostage but could you leave with this pact thing tying you here? Could he even make it before you married a ghost?!

"Shall we put the final touches on this affair?"

You blinked snapping out of your thoughts before lowering your hand. "Oh. S-Sure. What else do you need? Decorations? Maybe you need help cleaning the room for the ceremony?"

He chuckled at you waving a hand. "Nothing like that although the kindful offer is most appreciated. No. I'm talking about gifting you my wedding gift." You paused. "You shall now be presented to the family jewels." 

He turned and you were glad he did because you tried hard not to laugh or snort having to bite your tongue to not laugh as Elias floated to the wall just above the vanity. Confused you rose a brow only to stare in shock as a piece of the wall pulled inward where he pressed and the vanity MOVED. It shook a little bit before it sank lower revealing a hidden compartment tucked deep into its wood. A secret passage in a haunted house. There was a classic you could mark off the bucket list. Elias hummed again and smiled widely reaching inside only to pull out a wooden box.

"Ah. Here we are then." Smiling he turned back to you and headed over before holding out the box and opening it as he spoke. "Behold."

"Elias, I really don't think-" Your voice died in a choke as you looked inside the box. Jaw dropping. Eyes going wide.

HOLY COW!!

An entire set of jewelry was staring at you in the face. All it was missing from was a bracelet. A small pair of orange earrings with a love knot at the base with an opal centerpiece and green sapphire near the bottom. A diamond ring with a golden band and as you squinted at it, you could vaguely make out the word Gallagher written inside the band in fancy cursive. And a very expensive looking...Your eyes nearly bulged out from your skull as soon as your eyes laid on the necklace laid neatly inside a cushioned box. Smooth chain of pearls with a swinging ruby amulet.

That's the one Violet Dupont was wearing in the first vision you saw! How was it still here?! Did Elias take it back before he died? Did he take it back after death? Did Violet end up giving it back for whatever reason? You didn't know how long you were staring wide eyed and shocked at the set but when your senses returned it was to Elias slipping the ring on your opposite hand with a smile. 

"There we are. Gorgeous." He almost cooed looking at both your hands and admiring the two rings he placed on each hand. 

Your jaw snapped closed and your face turned a red. "E-Elias." He hummed looking at you half lidded. "I'm really f-flattered. Really I am. But are you sure you're ok with me wearing this? Didn't these belong to one of your sisters or your mom?"

He sighed nodding. "They were my mother's and at one point they would've gone to my eldest sister or to the first woman that married one of my brothers. Or to.." He paused again before shivering and letting go to reach back into the box. "But as you're the only lady who shall be married into my family, they rightfully go to you."

It was sorta a soft blur. One minute you were trying to politely decline his gift and then the next you were wearing two thirds of the set with Elias behind you gently clasping the last piece, the necklace, around your neck phasing through the long veil without tearing the delicate material. Your hand went to hold up the shiny ruby staring at you. It felt very heavy with all the implications behind it. So many unanswered questions and so much pressure weighed on your mind. As sweet and kind as Elias was, this just didn't feel right.

"There. You look beautiful, Dear." He smiled wider leaning around to gage your reaction but paused seeing your sad frown staring at the amulet around your neck. "Darling? What's wrong? Is the jewelry not to your liking?"

...You shook your head slowly still staring at the amulet. "N-No. They're all really pretty but it just doesn't feel right." F/c eyes turned to look at his expression. "I know you said it's ok, but it just doesn't feel right wearing something that means so much to someone else. I'm not saying I don't appreciate your gift. Any girl would be lucky to get these, but...They come with a heavy background and I-.... I don't feel like I know about your past enough to accept this."

There was a stunned silence as Elias regarded you for a long, LOOOONNNGGG moment looking over your sad state before sighing and coming to sit on the bed next to you. Eyes looking at his clasped hands. You didn't say anything either. Not exactly sure what to say. The only sounds being the storm outside with the rain still hitting the roof...Until Elias finally spoke without looking up.

"Where shall I start?"

You hesitated without looking up either before sighing. "Well... Your life story would be nice. I promise I'm a good listener." You've had three years of listening to Taylor's ramblings to back that up.

The silence and rain continued for a little while longer.

"....How much of my life do you know about me? I can start from there depending on how much you do know?"

You shrugged. "I know you lived and died during the Victorian era almost two hundred years ago. And I know that you're about my age." Physically at least. "And I know your mom and dad's names and I saw some old death records on your family. And some newspaper clippings on what happened to you..." You said honestly and as gently as possible. "And I heard rumors about you still haunting the place but I didn't know if that was true until I met you."

Elias fell silent once more before he inhaled deeply. "I must confess that I was born quite sickly, and my birth came with so many complications that it nearly killed my mother. Even after that ordeal there was nothing the doctors could do to help my weak constitution." You slowly looked up at him but he only kept looking at his hands. "I suppose that's why my father and siblings me the way they did. I was seen as a nuisance. A problem. I don't entirely blame them."

Your hand reached out hesitantly before you gently grabbed his arm. "I'm...so sorry."

"It's  far away in the past now, so enough about that."

You decided not to press about his family anymore but there was something else that still bothered you. The necklace felt heavier on your throat like it was a bowling ball hung around there instead of a little charm.

"Then...What about your previous wife-to-be?"

There was an instant reaction from the ghost. His face went completely blank. Pupils small, and hands clenched into fists. You instantly winced and felt so bad as the silence stretched onwards...but he eventually turned his head exhaling.

"Her name was Violet. Violet Dupont and the sister to our groundskeeper. We never wed because she betrayed me the day before our wedding. I suppose she and Gerald were desperate. I should've been on my guard when they continued to ask about the location of the family Jewels day after day. I thought the necklace, the grandest piece in the collection, would be enough to hold her interest. I promised to share the rest with her after our ceremony. But before I could even cry for help, Gerald held me down while Violent-..." He trailed off again and you squeezed his arm in reassurance.

"It's alright. You don't have to say anything else about it...Tell me something else about you. What did you really like aside from reading and the flowers in the greenhouse."

There was a moment of Elias not looking at you before he slowly tilted his head back over with a small smile. "Well..aside from the flowers there was a family heirloom that belonged to my grandmother. It was an antique silver mirror and a charming one at that. At least..." He frowned again. "That was before it shattered." Elias stood (floated-) back up phasing through your grip and went back over to the vanity. You had an idea of what he was going to get and your thoughts were confirmed when he picked up the box, turned around, and opened it tilting it enough to allow you to see the shards inside. "I liked it quite a lot and ended up taking it out of the attic during my early childhood. I used to look in it and imagine myself as some fair prince."

You giggled. "That's pretty cute,and suiting since you're pretty handsome.~"

He again turned a deep blue before looking away. "T-Thank you. But alas my siblings would often mock my love of the mirror, and with such a weak constitution and gentleman demeanor, there was little I could do. When six people who aren't very fond of you get physical..well you can imagine what might happen." Elias gave the mirror one last sad look before he closed the lid with a sigh turning. "The mirror shattered and I was the one blamed. Grandmother didn't seem to mind but I cried for days. Maybe it was guilt, sentimentality, or fear but I couldn't part with it. I forbad and of the servants to remove it and kept all the pieces." The box was carefully placed back onto the vanity. "It was supposed to be a wedding gift, and I was determined to have it fixed one day."

And it could also very well be the source of the curse but Elias doesn't know that. "Sounds like that day never came."

He nodded again. "Indeed. It was one of my biggest regrets from when I was alive as silly as it sounds."

"I don't think it's silly. That mirror meant a lot to you, and I think it's sweet you'd want to fix it."

He smiled back to you. "Thank you, Dear. It means a lot. And I hope it's not too much to ask..." He hesitated for a second. "Can I ask what had happened between yourself and your past beloved?"

You paused blinking before looking at him. "My ex?" ...You shrugged. "Well there's not much to say about him that I haven't already told you." You again placed your head into your hands frowning annoyed. "We did go to the same highschool and took theater..Well, he really took theater. I only took in one year in highschool because I thought it'd be fun. I never knew him much back then...Never really interacted much but he seemed like an ok guy. Didn't see him after graduation until his first year in college. See I didn't go to college right away. I wanted to work a year first and save up some money."

You weren't sure if Elias understood the concepts of a highschool or much else but he nodded with his arms crossed before gesturing for you to go on. "And where did you two really meet?"

"I had a job at Zephyr University's cafeteria. That's where people go and buy food to eat. Ian seemed to visit there a lot and was alone a lot of the time. I felt bad for him and I started talking to him." You shrugged. "He seemed cute and sweet, and I liked how hard he tried to do things. We started dating about halfway through his first year there and everything seemed fine. ... Although I guess it being my first relationship blind sided me. I was young and dumb as they say and didn't see the signs."

"But didn't he leave you for another woman?"

"No. I WAS the other woman. I just didn't know it yet." You scowled at nothing. "Then I started college after the first year we started dating and I met Taylor in a similar way. He's a really good friend who saw through Ian's acting. I guess that's why they didn't like each other. Then Ian started forcing himself to be more affectionate with me and he proposed to me and I dumbly said yes. Things were moving way too fast but I was 'in love' and didn't care and ignored the marching red flags in my face."

Elias tilted his head. "Pardon but why would he wave red flags in your face? That seems like a rude thing to do."

"It's a figure of speech. It means I was ignoring his suspicious behavior." You scowled harder glaring in rage at the floor. "I didn't find out anything UNTIL the wedding which he never showed up too until everyone already left! Then I find out not only did he already have a boyfriend or girlfriend the entire time we dated, but the only reason he shoved love down my throat was because that person found out and broke up with him and he thought he could force himself to actually like me! So not only did he actually not like me to begin with, he also lied to me, cheated on me, made me look like an idiot in front of literally everyone, made me feel terrible for a really long time, and then humiliated me even more by revealing that I wasn't even the center person. I was the side piece!"

Elias looked a mix of disgusted and angry placing a hand to his chest. "What a rat! He wasn't even man enough to call it off before your ceremony! If he ever as so much as even talks to you again-"

You held up a hand. "Relax. He transferred to a different university two weeks after that. Taylor really gave him an earful in the cafeteria though, nearly got us kicked off campus. I haven't seen him in almost three years... Taylor was there for me the entire time. He might be stubborn and annoy me a lot with his antics..but he's a really good friend."

In fact he was probably the only one who was there for you during the time after. The only one who waited as long as you did waiting for Ian who never showed up-

Tears streamed down your cheeks hot and blurry from all the running make up. You only looked up when footsteps came up beside you and you jumped when a dozen napkins were pressed into your face.

"Here. Your make up is running all over your face."

Through blurry eyes you looked back up to Taylor and snatched up the napkins from him. "G-Gee! I w-wonder *hic* why!" You glared at him through the hiccuping and messy make up.

Taylor held up his hands. "I didn't mean to step on your toes, Bud. What happened?" His gaze temporarily turned to the venue. "I guess he called off the wedding huh?"

"H-He *hic* cheated on m-m-me," you somehow managed to choke out.

"WHAT?!" His head snapped to you so fast it might've went flying if it wasn't attached to his neck. 

"H-He s-s-said that h-he L-Loved his ex a-and I w-was..."More tears were already replacing the ones that spilt out of your eyes as Taylor scowled.

"He did that!? I can't believe it! UGH! I knew it! I KNEW HE WAS BAD NEWS!!...Bud, c'mon." A hand awkwardly patted your back. "Are you alright?"

"I w-wanna go home.*Gasp* I j-just w-wanna go home."

"Yeah. Yeah...I-Ill drive you home. We can get some pizza from that cheap joint down the street a-and we'll just eat all the grease our stomachs can handle. Sounds good?"

"Well fear no longer, for that snake shall never know a ceremony like ours." You were jolted out of memory lane to Elias close again and taking your hand in his. "I'm quite eager for our ceremony. I think it'll be something glorious. I've always wanted a grand wedding, and to think I'll be marrying someone as lovely as you. Come. I have much to show you."

There really was no more stalling it was there? You didn't say anything. There wasn't really any good excuses to make anymore as Elias made his wants clear. You only silently nodded with a sigh and took your time slipping on your uncomfortable heels again and slowly stood up only for Elias to kindly hold up the bouquet you carried with you all night. Right. Wouldn't want to forget about that you guessed. You only gave a sad smile when you took it, and then Elias tugged you towards the doorway. The sounds of your heels echoed throughout the halls, mocked and laughed at by the rain outside. The annoying front of the veil once again covering your face as if it was in a last ditch effort to hide your uncertainty unease. He lend you down the stairs one last time, your new accessories adding weight to your body.

"Soon we shall be wed, my darling Y/n, and we'll have the rest of eternity together. Are you excited?"

"Oh. I certainly am speechless, and feeling a lot of emotions at once." 

That wasn't a lie and your answer seemed to please him. He lead you to the bottom of the stairs back in the foyer careful not to let you trip on anything before strangely leading you to a door you hadn't seen before behind the stairs. He let go of you to float over, place one hand on the doorknob, and smiled back to you.

"Are you ready, my love? I have worked tirelessly to prepare the old ballroom for our ceremony, and while we may not have any guests, I do hope that you'll be pleased."

Your throat felt tight. Where was Taylor?! He should've been here by now! There was barely anything to stop this now and if you declined then you weren't sure what to do. Elias wouldn't force you into marriage, you know that, but the entire situation was too difficult for a true answer.

"I'm sure whatever you did will look beautiful, Elias. Y-You worked really hard on it a-and that's all that matters," you could barely force out to be polite.

He lit up. "Excellent. Then without further ado."

With that he pushed the doors open.

[bensonsbobblehead]

The Village it Takes

pairings; Spencer Reid x Mom!reader (ft Daughter!oc)

Spencer fakes his death ( basically how Emily did) leaving you and your 11 year old daughter behind.

Content Warnings; angst, sadness, talks of death and grief, fluff

a/n; Hiii, so so sorry about the wait, I've decided not to make a taglist because I don't know how and I don't want to do it the wrong way. Im also back active for a while now so please send request. {first , second}

[masterlist]

You held your daughter as she was shaking in your arms watching as Spencer ran to catch the elevator before it closed. You ignored him only squeezing Ronnie tighter as she calmed down.  He hit the emergency stop causing Ronnie to cry harder burying her head into your chest. 

“What the fuck Spencer? You're scaring my daughter." You never referred to Cameron as just "yours" until now, you knew how badly it would hurt him especially after seeing the shock in his eyes.

“Just listen, I’ve spent the last three years trying to get back to both of you. I hate that I missed so much of your lives especially you, my moon.” He grabbed Ronnie’s chin and wiped her tears.

He started calling her that on the long nights when she couldn’t sleep. Spewing facts about the moon with a little Cameron on his chest. Making her completely fall in love with the nighttime. Cameron had so many questions and ideas about the night sky and it was something special the both of them shared.

He never could wrap his head around why she loved his voice so much as a baby. Probably because of the countless hours he spent talking and reading to your pregnant belly at night or even over the phone when he was on a case. 

“I begged Aaron to bring me back I’ve looked for loopholes for years so I can get back home to you both, You guys lost one person but I loss both.” He said with tears in his eyes, it was true this entire time was hard for Spencer. Not being there for his daughters birthdays and christmases. Missing your anniverises and birthday it was hard. 

“I’m so sorry my Ronnie, you didn’t deserve this. I know I missed your ceremonies and games and I wish I could go back in time to change it all. I’m so sorry, Please accept my apology whenever your ready.” Looking at his daughter and taking in her beauty, he never wanted to hurt her. 

She looked liked the both of you and was an even better person than you both. She looked up at her father with tears still falling taking a breath before speaking, “I just missed you so much daddy.” She buried herself into his chest and they both sobbed together. 

“My life sucks without you in it, please don’t leave again. I wouldn't know what to do” the teenager begged,

“I won’t baby, I won’t” Spencer said rubbing the top of her head. 

“Let’s go home” you said turning the elevator back on. You all headed to the car Spencer getting in the back with Cameron, holding her tightly, you watched them in the rear view mirror. 

You had no idea how to feel. You had him back, your husband, your first real love was alive after three years of thinking he was dead. Yet you were still so angry at him and everyone involved for faking his death, especially Hotchner and JJ.

They watched you breakdown at family dinners that they were so kind to invite you to. Barley holding it together until Cameron was in the back chasing the other kids. 

Aaron was there a lot, with Jack and Cameron going to the same school, he would take her on the days he knew you couldn’t handle it. You hated them, this all could have been avoided. Why not make us all disappear? Why just Spencer? 

You were pulled out of your thoughts when you arrived at the house. All of you hopping out and heading in. 

“Go shower and get ready for bed Ron” you said as you took of your shoes and sat your bag down. 

“Can I sleep with you guys tonight?” She asked softly looking at you for approval, Spencer allowing you to answer. 

“Of course sweetie.” You said as she smiled and headed to the bathroom, you waiting until she closed the door and started the shower before turning around.

“Y/N.. I have no idea about how you feel—“ 

Before he could finish your anger took over, you had never been this upset, especially with him. You smacked him again before you could stop yourself, and continued to hit him in the chest repeatedly. 

His chest was bigger and stronger which made you even more upset, he was here, and you thought he was gone.

“Y/N, Stop!” He yelled grabbing your arms and pulling you into his chest. You fought back but he pulled you into his chest.

“No idea how I feel? It was so hard to breathe without you Spence. Raising a teenage girl who was grieving while grieving myself it was impossible. And you were still here? Jeez Spencer maybe a sign you were still out there?” You cried harder as he wiped your tears falling into his touch. It was like home no matter how upset you were, Spencer could and would always make you feel better.

“I’m so sorry, I hate that it happened this way. I fought y/n, every chance to get back to you and Cameron.” He broke down as you watched silently before you burst pushing him away.

“Not hard enough! Look, I understand it was to keep you safe and it worked and I’m so thankful for that but you weren’t here. 

On top of the way Cameron was grieving, I almost didn’t make it without you.” Thinking of her first panic attack since his death and the long hospital visit that followed after. It was when you really saw the effects of grief. Helping her heal was your only priority but it took a toll on you. 

Now wasn’t the time for that cause you finally let yourself go and buried yourself into his chest.  You were one of the very few people to be this lucky. Your husband was dead but now he’s back and holding you tighter than ever. 

“I know that was unbearable and I know I can only apologize. Y/n I promise I will never leave you or our daughter again. 

I spent three hundred and seventy eight days away from you and I never want to again. You both are life and I was nothing without either of you. 

I even sometimes wish I was really gone. The thought of never getting back to you guy’s consumed me. I’m just glad to be back”

 He cried harder causing you to whisper sweet nothings into his ear. Your heart broke more for him knowing how much he struggled, he lost you both too.

“Don't say that Spencer, you knew you were coming back to us. I’m just so glad you’re home and safe.” you said pulling away to look him in his eyes. Moving to connect your lips, kissing him was always perfect. You fit into each other perfectly. You both pulled away as you heard the shower turn off. 

“I love you Mrs.Reid.” He said kissing you on the forehead causing you to smile. You all continued to get ready for bed until you all were finally laying down, with Cameron in between you and Spencer. 

This was the first time you genuinely seen a smile on your daughters face. You’re so grateful she has him back that you both have him back. 

"Are you going to leave us again?' Cameron spoke up as you all watched the movie together.

"Because I don't think I would be able to handle it dad" her voice broke with a tear falling from her eye as she looked up at her. It was a good question, would he leave again?

"Oh honey, I promise I will never leave you again, it was a mistake to go without you both ill never do it again" he told her looking at you both so you knew too. You smiled at your wonderful husband still in awe at the fact he's home.

Cameron snuggled into her dad laying her head on his chest with you snuggling into her back. You all sat and watched your favorite movie Ron was fast asleep with you following behind. Before you fell asleep you heard Spencer. 

“I’m so sorry I left. I love you both so much” as he leaned in to give Ronnie and kiss and then you. 

“We love you too” you muttered as your eyes shut with a smile on your face. Having Spencer back was everything you needed.