#—with the club is now suddenly going to be fighting the board because of a contract lmfao

[ballsbalb]

it’s 2025 and people are still believing tabloid newspapers talking about “secret meetings with anonymous sources” as evidence for insane uncorroborated claims about players

i thought this was taught to us at the age of, like, twelve, and i cannot believe i have to lay this out, but here goes:

1. fans start a coordinated online hate campaign against a player they don’t like b/c they want him to leave —>

2. newspaper claims “anonymous sources” told them that said player is causing problems at the club due to contract disputes —>

3. newspaper gets engagement from fans who participated in online campaign since story validates their preexisting opinions —>

4. newspaper gets more money

general rule of thumb: if only one source is reporting a story, or the other sources are all crediting that one source as the primary contributor of information, it’s probably not very reliable

[holdinsteddie]

prompt: lollipop

(originally posted on my bluesky here)

au where Steve and Robin had their bathroom floor conversation/platonic soulmate initiation ceremony way back in 1983, like two weeks after Jonathan rocked Steve’s shit and by the time everyone gets back from winter break they’ve become SteveandRobin.

Steve knows all about Robin’s crush on Tammy Thompson and Robin knows all about the fact that Steve thinks one Eddie Munson is really pretty, actually, when he’s not being a grubby little gremlin.

In this au, Steve and Nancy mutually broke it off after the whole monster-fighting thing and so for the next few months after break, SteveandRobin try to wingman each other but also the ‘you rule/you suck’ board makes an appearance, this time in an unused corner of the band room.

So far Steve hasn’t gotten a single tally in the ‘you rule’ column. He is deeply offended by this and is trying to figure out why he seems to have lost his mojo. He needs to prove to Robin that he is very suave, actually, and no, his reputation is not a fluke. Jesus.

Which leads us to a Thursday evening in late May where band practice is getting out at the same time as Hellfire club. Steve suddenly finds himself being possessed by the ghost of Casanova himself or something because the next thing he knows, he’s abandoning Robin with a quick “be right back” and swaggering up to Eddie, who eyes Steve warily before leaning up against the side of the school building with a smirk paired with a dangerous glint in his eye.

“Hey, Munson,” Steve starts, keeping it causal.

Eddie pulls the lollipop he’d been sucking on out of his mouth with a wet pop and Steve fervently doesn’t have any feelings about that whatsoever.

“Steve Harrington,” he purrs. “What can this lowly peasant do for such esteemed royalty as yourself, hmm?”

Steve raises a single eyebrow. “Well, first of all, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not exactly Hawkins High royalty anymore. Apparently jocks and band geeks can’t be friends,” Steve adds with a roll of his eyes.

“Second of all…” Steve glances left and right, making sure there’s no one in earshot before giving Eddie a once-over and taking a deliberate step forward so the toes of their shoes are almost touching. “I think we both know you’re too pretty and too smart to be stuck as a peasant.”

Eddie’s eyes go wide for a moment before narrowing, his dimpled grin somehow managing to be sharp as a knife. “Careful, big boy. You don’t wanna play this game.”

“Who says this is a game?”

Eddie scoffs, putting his lollipop back in his mouth and straightening like he’s going to move past Steve, but Steve stops him with a hand to the wall behind Eddie’s head.

He makes sure to leave enough room for Eddie to be able to walk away if he really wants to, doesn’t want him to feel trapped or pressured in any way. But he also wants Eddie to know he’s being serious.

“Look, you can tell me to fuck off if you really want, and I will, swear to god.”

Eddie stares at him with wide eyes and slowly nods his head.

“But I really hope you don’t,” Steve continues, leaning forward until their noses are just inches from touching, “because it turns out I really have a thing for curly-headed nerds.”

Steve relishes in the way Eddie’s jaw drops open and a blush works its way over his cheeks and up to the tips of his ears. It’s really fucking cute.

“I know I can’t exactly wine-and-dine you like if you were a girl, but maybe I could get us some pizza and beers and you could come over to my place one of these days?”

Steve raises his eyebrows, trying to only let a little bit of his excitement at the idea through — he doesn’t want to scare Eddie off.

Eddie stares for a moment, two. Eventually, he blurts, “Is— Is this— Are you being serious right now?” He hadn’t bothered to take out the lollipop before speaking, seems like he’s completely frozen, actually, making the question slightly garbled.

“As a heart attack.”

“Jesus fucking Christ.”

“So?” Steve asks, biting his lower lip. He watches Eddie track the movement and gives himself a mental high-five.

“I’m— fuck, okay.” Eddie looks at Steve’s lips again before looking into his eyes incredulously. “I’m pretty sure this is a dream, but whatever, fuck it, I’ll go on a date with Steve goddamn Harrington, I guess.”

“Not dreaming,” Steve grins, finally leaning back a little bit. “And I’m gonna hold you to that,” he promises. On a whim, he reaches out and plucks Eddie’s lollipop from between his lips before placing it in his own mouth, making sure to maintain eye contact the entire time. Eddie’s eyes are as wide as saucers as he visibly swallows.

“Uh.”

“I’ll find you at lunch tomorrow, figure out what day works,” Steve says casually, leaning back and starting to walk backwards towards the parking lot. He points the lollipop at Eddie and commands, “Better not stand me up, Munson,” before putting it back in his mouth, shoving his hands in his pockets, and turning to walk back to where Robin is waiting by his car.

He doesn’t look back, even though he really really wants to, because he still wants to make sure he looks cool and aloof.

“Steven Marie,” Robin whisper yells once he’s close enough to hear her. “What the fuck was that? What did you do to Munson?”

Steve ignores her questions. “What’s he doing, Bobbie?”

Robin, bless her, answers him. “He’s just… standing there. And now he’s pulling his hair over his face and squatting. Did you break him?”

Steve grins, pleased. “Not yet.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Wait, where did you get the lollipop? You didn’t have one a few minutes ago.”

“I might’ve stolen it from Munson, right after I got him to agree to go on a date with me.”

Robin freezes, staring at him like she’s buffering as her entire worldview gets rearranged. “Steve, Stevie, I need you to know I’m so happy for you and proud of you. But also I am going to actually strangle you to death in your sleep what the actual fuck.”

“Love you too, Robs.”

+ Bonus:

Steve, 5 min later after he’s started driving to drop Robin off at home: ohmygod. Robin.

Robin: What.

Steve: Eddie and I basically kissed.

Robin: What?????

Steve: His spit is in my mouth as we speak.

Robin: wHAT??!!!?!!!

Steve: Robin stop screaming I’m having a crisis

{send me a 📝 and a one-word prompt and i will try and write a lil steddie microfic for you! (it will almost certainly be much shorter than this one but who knows, i might get Inspired™️)}

[digitaldaydreamm]

After ur done with ‘helping out’ s parts could u do a headcanon on how rafe and reader became friends as kids and how he’s been w her during this whole time?

a glimpse into their past <3

rafe x childhood friend!reader

headcannons 3

masterlist

⋆｡𖦹 °.🐚⋆❀˖°

★ You met Rafe when you were eight and he was nine, at some fancy country club event your parents dragged you to. You were hiding behind your mom’s chair, not interested in playing with the other kids, while Rafe was already causing chaos, throwing ice cubes at Topper and daring Kelce to climb onto the buffet table.

★ He spotted you sitting alone and, in typical Rafe fashion, marched right up to you. “Why are you just sitting there?” You shrugged, not used to kids being so forward. “Dunno.” That was enough for him—he grabbed your wrist and dragged you off, deciding you were going to be his new best friend whether you liked it or not.

★ By the time you were ten and eleven, you were practically attached at the hip. If there was a party, you were together. If there was trouble, Rafe was usually the cause, and you were usually the one sighing, “Rafe, we’re gonna get in trouble.” Not that he cared. You were his favorite person to cause trouble with.

★ He always had this weirdly protective streak. If some other kid tried to mess with you, Rafe would shove in front of you like a human shield, crossing his arms and sneering, “Say that again, I dare you.” Even back then, you were oblivious to how much he cared.

★ At twelve and thirteen, you started sleeping over at each other’s houses more. At first, your parents thought it was cute—just childhood best friends—but as you got older, his dad started raising an eyebrow. “You sure you two are just friends?” Ward would joke, and Rafe would roll his eyes. “She’s just a kid, Dad.” (Like he wasn’t only a year older than you.)

★ Teenage years hit, and suddenly things started shifting. You still saw Rafe as your best friend, the boy who stole your fries when you weren’t looking and let you win at board games. But Rafe? He saw you differently. You didn’t notice how his arm stayed around your shoulders longer, how he scowled when other guys talked to you, how he always found a way to be close to you in a room full of people.

★ At sixteen and seventeen, you were the only person who could calm Rafe down when he got too worked up. He’d storm off after a fight with his dad, fists clenched, breathing heavy, and you’d just place a hand on his arm. “Rafe, it’s okay.” And somehow, it was.

★ If you ever went on a date (which wasn’t often, because, well—Rafe scared off most guys before they even had the chance), he had to approve first. Not that he ever did. “That guy? Seriously? He looks like he cries when his mom yells at him.”

★ By eighteen and nineteen, he wasn’t even subtle about it anymore. He liked that people thought you were his. He didn’t correct them. He let the rumors swirl because, deep down, he wanted them to be true.

★ You, of course, were still oblivious. Still looking at him like he was just your Rafe. Still trusting him with everything. Still thinking his protectiveness was just friendship. And maybe it was.

★ Rafe doesn’t even pretend to let you out of his sight anymore. If you’re out, he’s with you. If you’re talking to someone, his arm is slung around your chair, fingers tapping idly against your shoulder, making sure they know exactly who he is to you—whether you acknowledge it or not.

★ You still leave things at his house like you always have—hoodies, chapstick, a spare pair of socks—but now? Now, Rafe keeps them. Your hoodie stays folded in his room, your chapstick never actually makes it back to you. “I don’t know where it went,” he lies, while it sits in his truck’s center console.

★ He still bickers with you like he always has, pushing your buttons just to see you roll your eyes and nudge him. But there’s a shift now, something heavier in the air when he leans in too close and murmurs, “Say that again?” just to watch you get flustered.

★ When you’re tired, you don’t even have to ask—Rafe just opens his arms, letting you curl into his side like you’ve done since you were kids. The difference? Now, he stares down at you, jaw tight, forcing himself to stay still when all he wants to do is grab you.

★ Everyone knows. Everyone. Topper, Kelce, hell, even Sarah. They all see the way Rafe is with you. “Just tell her,” they say. Rafe just clenches his jaw. Because he’s already told you—in every way but words.

[lunarriviera]

hi hey hello i have started watching a new crime drama and I AM OBSESSED. it's called 雪迷宫 or, for some reason, The First Shot, although it should be more properly Snow Maze. it's a period piece set in 1997 and it's produced by ZHANG YIMOU which must be why the production values are actually good??? anyway i am here to tell you all about it and why you should be watching it okay here we go

first of all there's a big hot dumb cop, zheng bei. yes that's huang jingyu and you might not like him because of his apparently quite sketchy personal life but all i care about in this case is that he's tall, and thoughtful, and a police captain who's protective of his people and a little bit of an idiot. my catnip tbh. (i guess he was in addicted too? somehow breaking the you-can-only-be-in-one-BL rule?)

(ETA that by "dumb" of course he's not dumb at all, only by comparison; cf. my own stupid meta on this fascinating topic)

then there's an effete genius consultant, gu yiran (wang ziqi), who knows everything there is to know about drugs. he comes from the south to help these ignorant northerners form an anti-narcotics unit. he's such a massive nerd, the team doesn't like him until they realize that he runs 10k every morning and can outrun motorcycles and is actually quite useful. then suddenly it's no longer "gu-laoshi" but is all "ran-ge" this and "ran-ge" that. he can't dance for shit. i adore him.

there's a superb seven-samurai style Assembling The Team sequence in which this cop is brought in as the muscle. Her nickname is mad dog yao and she kicks the ass of an entire club at one point. we love her. her only problem is that, not unlike zhang haixing in tibetan sea flower, she will in fact fight a wall. here's gu yiran's face after a drug dealer mistakenly underestimates her and she stomps on him.

one of my favorite things about this drama so far is how poor the police are. it's 1997 in a dinky northern precinct and these cops ain't got shit. no computers. rudimentary cellphones. barely any forenic analysis, and most of that is on pieces of paper. no bullpen. no interrogation rooms. they have to interview suspects at their desks.

captain zheng is so underpaid he can't even afford a real pointer for his situation board, he has to go outside and get a literal stick.

drives his dad's chicken delivery van. has to slam himself against the front door to open it. everything about this is absolutely perfect.

i'm only on episode 7 but this shit is already brotastic. please behold:

yes that is an actual line from the show. yes gu yiran has to live with captain zheng, they can't afford fancy accommodations for him. turns out there's a trundle bed made out of paper clips but that's okay, they still get plenty of cosy domestic time together.

and that's also what i already love about this drama—in spite of being about anti-narcotics, it's also very slice of life, very daily city life, with meals and neighbors and friends and family and did i mention food, there is so much eating in this drama. it's gorgeous. also i'm improving my colloquial chinese by leaps and bounds.

of course you are you stupid service top, now take care of the baby.

and those are just some of the reasons why you should be watching the first shot, which is funny and suspenseful and unexpectedly brainy and well-cast and has beautiful opening credits. there are 19 episodes on youku's youtube channel right now and the subs are shockingly high quality. i'm hooked, and also so mad at my day job because i can't just binge it, pls join me in this handbasket

[the-somwthing]

OFFICIAL DOUBLE LIFE SECRET SOULMATES POST TO EXPLAIN THE PLOT

I will state nothing but facts here for other fans to interpret.

- Grian finds out Scar is his soulmate. He’s devastated by this but obviously tries to keep him alive, not telling him that he’s his soulmate until the end of the first session

- Important to note that when Grian was still trying to find his soulmate and tested with BigB, upon finding out they weren’t soulmates Grian said he had “never felt so heartbroken”

- Scar, upon finding out Grian is his soulmate, doesn’t really care about that much, already insisting the Jellies are his soulmate and it was even his thumbnail. He lets Grian drag him to his new home but doesn’t make any other efforts to work with him

- Eventually, Grian decides he wants a new soulmate, and sneaks into Box with the intention to “steal Ren’s man”

- By chance, BigB finds the heart and cookies before Ren does, and takes down the evidence as instructed so Ren won’t find it. He is on board with having a secret soulmate.

- BigB ends up being unable to hide things from his soulmate, he just can’t stand to lie to him, so he tells Ren about the secret soulmate, not revealing who it is but telling him that he has one

- Ren seems to misread the situation and believes BigB just has a secret admirer, which he declares is okay, because they can “look but not touch”

- BigB then of course misunderstands believing that Ren thinks this whole thing is okay to Ren, which I don’t blame him for because he DID explain things that (spoilers) Ren gets upset about later. But also Ren definitely somehow misunderstood, and maybe BigB should’ve caught onto what he was saying.

- BigB and Grian hang out as secret soulmates, BigB telling Grian that Ren doesn’t know who it is, but that he couldn’t hide it from Ren (“you know me”)

- Eventually the Relationship Ranch happens. BigB and Ren go there and despite getting into a few fights and failing some games, things seem to be going okay at the end… until BigB mentions that he saw his secret soulmate. Side note, I freaking love that part, Scott’s like “okay I’ll just step away to evaluate your score” and talks to his audience like “yeah I think I’ll tell them they need to work through some things” and as soon as he comes back Ren is yelling “YOU SAW THE SECRET ADMIRER?!” and Scott’s just like “oh that changes some things”

- Ren logs off in a fit of heartbreak. BigB then celebrates. After returning home he cries about it. He doesn’t want to lose Ren

- Grian and BigB continue to see each other, exchanging goods. Scar sees them at some point.

- btw, I forgot about the Broken Hearts Club, but I will say, you’re all probably thinking it happens after the Relationship Ranch. It doesn’t. Ren joined BEFORE that. Why? Because he went home and BigB wasn’t there once 😭 he came back later and Ren was happy again. Back to the plot

- Ren and BigB, who are now red, are forced back together. Neither one really wants to leave the other so it’s pretty awkward, until BigB reveals the gifts Grian gave him (that he wasn’t supposed to share with Ren I think. He of course cannot hide things from Ren and loves Ren so he shares them with Ren). Ren suddenly changes his mind on the whole secret soulmate thing, and decides he likes it and BigB should continue to see them.

- Scar gives Grian some cookies “for his secret soulmate” as you know an iconic call out line. I will say he literally did not care about anything Grian was doing up until this point. They do not discuss this further, Grian denying he has one.

- Grian Freaking Kills Ren (Which Kills BigB Too)

- As ghosts, Ren says that he and BigB were “loyal to each other till the very end”

- Grian holds a funeral for BigB. BigB as a ghost accepts Grian’s apology and forgives him. Grian declares they are “still secret soulmates”

And that is the entire Secret Soulmate Drama summarized. If I got anything wrong, let me know.

[alex31624]

Duck Comic Reading Club Week 18: Paperinik New Adventures: Carpe Diem

Shame on me.

Shame on me, to let all this time pass and not do the reviews. Well, let's do one at least. This one has Raider on the cover and he's my favorite character. I'm sure this will be good.

This, we're in the future, and we all know nothing good comes from that place. In this mysterious lab, an experiment is going on, and it turned out wrong.

So wrong. Imagine being in you bed reading before going to sleep, or watching the big game, and suddenly be erased from existence. That would suck.

But is even worse.

The time and space fabric itself is exploding. We're doomed.

Talking about raising the stakes, this is the biggest threat ever for PK. We're no talking about the destruction of the west coast or even the planet conquest, we're talking about the destruction of our reality.

Now, this is something that would hook any reader.

Turned out that an evil organization was the one who found out about that problem and they'll be the ones who are going to fix it. I didn't see that one coming.

They want to send their best agent, Raider. Only problem, he's in prison. But, there's one duck who can take him out of there.

This issue gets better with every page.

The organization brings PK to the future and they make crystal clear the fact that the existence is dying, and the time police won't do anything about it. What an assholes.

Well, the next page is so funny to me.

The time police won't interfere in the accident that will destroy time and space, because is what meant to be. Just like in Day of the Cold Sun. That sucks, but that's their way to do things I guess.

But it turned out, that they suck at they work of protect the past. Look at the loot the organization has, not even Scrooge stole that many treasures. Or maybe he did. Freaking tomb robber.

And then, the organization is called, The Organization. They spent four days thinking on that name.

Back to the comic.

PK and a droid called Newton (he was the one who brought PK to the future) sneak in the prison, but the plan failed almost immediately.

Newton jumped through time, leaving PK behind. Our hero fought valiantly against the time police, but he was done for.

No way, when the mask is on, the goddess of luck always smiles at Donald.

And now, Raider is here too. The Dream Team is back together.

Now, this is a comic about Donald Duck being a superhero who fights aliens and time traveler's. You have to be ready for some nonesens here and there. And I totally on board with that.

But this plan bothers me. PK and Raider have to go into the future to stop the experiment to happen, saving the time and space. Simple.

Here's my problem. If time and space are dying while they speak, how is even possible to travel into the future? Even worse, to the exact point when time stopped. Future should be a void by now.

Maybe I thinking way to hard on that one. Either way, this is a great comic.

Raider and PK make their way into the lab, ready for their mission. In The Darkest Night, we saw a timer, and I said that it didn't have any purpose. This time, that timer is essential. We now know we only have 29 minutes until the end of existence. That's how you make the tension grows.

No amount of guards would be enough to stop PK and Raider. Sadly, PK is such a hero, and that leaves an opening for one of the guards to warning the rest of the lab of their presence.

The experiment is starting right now.

The next four pages are comic greatness.

It looks like PK and Raider were done for, but they never gave up. The fight until the very last second, and PK retrieved the chronal unit, saving the our whole existence.

And how PK saved us? Using Newton's weird tie, that he gave to PK as a good luck charm. It sound ridiculous, but is not, because every droid become an ally of PK. Is one of his powers.

The issue ends with Raider free and his alliance with PK terminated, by now at least.

This one was excellent. A taste of how good Paperinik New Adventures can be. This is the kind of comics that turns casual readers into fans.

We also have a short story, and it doesn't have Fangus as protagonist. Nice.

Hey! Is the son of Raider, Trip.

The kid is destroying the house maid robot to modify his chronosail wristband, that didn't go well with Raider.

Trip gets mad because Raider didn't award him for saying the truth and started talking about good old Georgie W.

Raider had enough and does what any other parent would do, he travel in time with his son to confront George and tell him to stay away from the tree. But...

Raider was the one who destroy the tree. And George blamed himself because he knew nobody would ever believe him. Talking about time paradoxes.

This short story is irrelevant and weird, and I would have skipped, but @puffywuffy8904 loves Trip, so I had to read it.

Hey, sorry for not doing the reviews. My bad. I hope to do one more tomorrow. Only five more to go.

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for breaking up with my kind of boyfriend?

I (M18) currently go to a boarding school. I can imagine you can guess where this is going. For the past 3ish years my roommate P(M18) and I have been having a secret. Relationship?

P is gay. He's 100% sure about this. But I'm not so sure, and a huge problem is my faith and my parents. Obviously being gay is not well regarded at my school, and it's even less well regarded by my parents, who expect me to graduate and go to a good college and eventually join my dad's law firm. My dad is extremely against gay people and when I quit the golf club he asked me if I was gay (except in stronger words that I can't exactly say). I know if I were to tell him about P and me, he would immediately fly up here and beat the shit out of me and then disown me.

Recently P has been acting really weird. He's been more affectionate in public (he tried to kiss me at a rave and also at our friend's birthday party, both when other people were around). He managed to rope me into our school's production of Romeo and Juliet, which my dad is totally gonna freak out about.

Today, in rehearsal, we were practicing the fight scene between Romeo and Tybalt (I'm Romeo) and M, (17M) who plays Tybalt, suddenly tackled me and called me the f slur. P had to physically pull him off of me.

So obviously I was a little frazzled, and then P decides to tell me that he saw a divine vision of the Holy Mary and she told him to come out to his parents, which is, obviously, a horrible idea. He was spouting some bullshit about how we'll graduate in three months and then we'll be free to do whatever he wants, which is obviously not true. I told him he was delusional, and it was never going to work out between us, and I broke up with him. Now he's been ignoring me, which really sucks because we're roommates. I feel bad, but he doesn't understand that my father would literally kill me if I was gay.

So, AITA for breaking up with him?

[mymbios]

Born into a family with deep ties to organized crime, Alfie was raised in an environment where money was fast, rules were flexible, and the only real crime was getting caught. His father, Colin Lambert (58), was a well-connected fixer, smoothing over legal troubles for more powerful men, while his mother, Elaine (55), ran a string of high-stakes poker games under the guise of a private social club. His older brothers, Eddie (35) and Martin (32), followed in their parents’ footsteps without hesitation.

Even as a kid, he understood the mechanics of the family business, the way cash flowed in and out, debts were enforced, and favors were traded like currency. His talent for numbers made him useful—whether it was helping Eddie keep track of the earnings from a dodgy car reselling operation or spotting patterns in Martin’s bookmaking ventures. But unlike his brothers, Alfie had no taste for intimidation, no stomach for the violence that sometimes came with collecting debts. He saw what happened to people who got in too deep, the ones who lost everything, the ones his family had to make an example of.

Despite his reluctance to get involved, he wasn’t immune to the thrill of risk. In his late teens, Alfie started gambling heavily, partying until dawn, and getting in fights. When he wasn’t out partying, he was at the casinos, trying his luck at poker, blackjack, or anything that promised a win. He wasn’t just playing for fun, though—he was playing for control. Alfie had a knack for numbers, and that, combined with his ability to read people, led him down a path of counting cards at the casino. But the house always has a way of fighting back.

At 20, his skill caught up with him, and he found himself caught in a bind, being banned from casinos and on the verge of legal trouble. His father, Colin, swooped in to get him out of it—paying off debts and smoothing over the mess.

Things continued to get more serious for Alfie when he found out he was going to be a father. Her name was Emma, and though their relationship was short-lived, the moment he found out they were having a baby, something inside him shifted. His parents, especially his mother, were ecstatic about becoming grandparents. They had always talked about the joy of family, and suddenly, it wasn’t just a distant dream—they had a granddaughter on the way. Alfie wasn’t ready to be a father, but the news of his daughter’s impending arrival forced him to confront the reckless path he’d been on.

For the next few years, Alfie tried to juggle fatherhood with his chaotic lifestyle, but it wasn’t until his daughter, Sophie, turned four that he realized he couldn’t keep doing what he was currently doing. He knew if he didn’t get out, he’d either be working for his brothers or buried because of them. He knew he needed to change—for her, and for himself. It was then that he finally decided to clean up his act. He enrolled in a local college to study accounting. He understood money better than most people ever would. He knew how it moved, how it could be hidden, how it could ruin lives if mishandled.

Now, at 29, Alfie works as an accountant, mostly for small businesses—restaurants, construction companies, people trying to build something real. He specializes in cleaning up financial messes, making sure his clients stay above board, never letting them fall into the traps he grew up watching. His past still lingers—there are places in he avoids and debts that may never fully be forgiven.

Despite his serious demeanor, Alfie has a dry wit and a quiet charm that makes people trust him. He keeps his circle small, preferring the company of a few close friends rather than large crowds. His relationship with his daughter, Sophie, is his proudest achievement, and he works hard to show her that she’s his top priority. When he’s not buried in spreadsheets, he finds solace in strategy games, running, and cooking. He still loves poker, but now, he only plays for fun. No stakes, no risks, just the game.

[hollandorks]

shadows in the night

battinson!bruce wayne x f!reader

chapter seventeen

summary: more than a year after the events of middle of the night, y/n and Bruce are happily engaged and working to lower the amount of crime in Gotham. However, a new killer calling himself the Riddler has other plans for their happiness…set during the events of the movie, mostly canonical, some changes made to fit the story

a/n: I won’t lie, I really enjoy this chapter! I’m a bit nervous about it and agonized over it too, which is why it’s a day later than usual. I hope you enjoy it! 

Series Masterlist

word count: 3194

It was time to catch an asshole in a mask. It was time to end this.

The Gotham streets were still slick with all the rain from the past week. Y/n slipped through the shadows easily, one eye on the crowds around the Iceberg Lounge–even more popular now that men patronizing it were being murdered, apparently–and one eye on the the darkness around her. She started across the street from the club, watching the entrance where Annika and the mayor had been photographed. Things had changed a bit since she had worked there, but the essence of the club was still the same. 

The pictures had definitely come from the building right across the street. 

She waited for a minute, watching as the door of the club opened and one of the bouncers stepped out, confused. She blinked and almost missed the shadow that darted inside behind him and shut the door in his face. 

She hid a smile into one hand. Bruce. 

After a moment of watching the bouncer banging on the door, y/n turned back to the task at hand. 

She was suddenly completely aware of how out of her depth she was. 

She wasn’t a detective like Gordon, or a genius like Bruce, so how could she expect to find the Riddler? How could she expect to figure out this puzzle piece? She wished she’d gone with Bruce inside the club. At the very least, she could fight. He’d made sure of that. 

She took another deep breath and calmed her mind. 

No. The Riddler was like her, except yeah, he was smarter. 

But he’d been chewed up and spit out by the corruption in the city, just like she had. 

That’s why he’d called her an inspiration, right? Even as her gut churned to think about it like that, she forced herself to dig deeper into the thought. She pulled up the memory every single cop and crime show and true crime documentary she’d ever seen and tried to draw on the knowledge to figure it the fuck out. 

The Riddler was playing the long game. That much she was certain of. 

He had planned and planned and planned before executing any part of it. The ciphers, the riddles, the staging of the bodies. The photographs being leaked. The cards. The bomb mailed to Wayne Manor. 

All of it coming together like pieces on a chess board, because that’s how he saw it, wasn’t it? It was all one long game to take out the corruption in the city. 

She stared up at the apartment building as mist drifted down from the thick clouds overhead. 

He probably lived in one of the apartments. Or at least rented one to use for whatever his nefarious purposes were. 

Alright, think, y/n told herself as she continued to study the building–part of her was hoping one of the windows would open and the Riddler would shout down at her, revealing his location. 

How best to figure it out, then, if he wasn’t going to give himself away? 

She headed for the fire escape and started climbing. She’d start at the top, see if the roof held any clues towards the Riddler’s whereabouts. He might have used the roof to take the photos. If that didn’t work, she’d make her way inside, maybe see if she could find someone awake at this late hour and ask if there were any weirdos with clear framed glasses living there or dropping by. 

Legs burning as she climbed, y/n wondered exactly how Gordon and Bruce had the patience for this shit. She felt stupid thinking that she’d just ask around and see if she could find the Riddler. She berated herself as she neared the top of the fire escape. She really should have gone with Bruce. This was stupid. So he had taken the photos from across the street. So what? That didn’t mean he was still here. Did it? Did she really think she was going to get lucky and just stumble across his location, take him in, and that be that? 

But what if she did? 

She thought about her promise to Bruce to not do anything rash. To let him and Gordon know. The Riddler was dangerous, so she couldn’t go rushing in if she did somehow manage to find him. She had to be careful, because otherwise the outcome might be bad. She wasn’t holding her breath on actually finding anything useful, but at least she was chasing down the lead. Just in case. 

When she reached the roof, flashes of blue and red illuminated the misty air around her. 

No, around the club. 

There were no sirens, no sounds, nothing, just the lights. Curious, she peered back down and saw tons of cops gathering around the club, every single one of them aiming at the front door. Based on the way the lights were bouncing around in the mist, they had the back entrance and alleyways covered, too. 

Her stomach dropped. Gordon had gathered the troops, and Bruce was in there. She really, really hoped the cops down there weren’t trigger happy. Bruce was already on GCPD’s shit list for escaping from right under their noses on their own turf. Hopefully capturing Falcone and delivering him to Gordon would earn him some much needed brownie points. She took a breath and firmly told herself that Bruce’s suit was bulletproof, and Gordon had his back. 

Y/n shook the thoughts off and focused on the task at hand. Because how nice and perfect would it be to deliver Falcone and the Riddler into GCPD’s waiting hands? How good would that make Gordon look? She smiled to herself as she nosed around the dirty roof, finding nothing but trash, cigarette butts, and an empty paint can that smelled suspiciously like urine. 

Nothing. She wasn’t great at looking for clues like Bruce was, but even she could tell that the roof had nothing to offer. She blew out a breath, the sound almost too loud in the quiet night. 

She pulled out the now-crumpled photos she’d taken from the desk and studied them. She held them up and peered over the edge of the roof, comparing them to what was before her. On the far side of the roof, she could barely see the front of the club. But closer to where she’d come up the fire escape, the angle was nearly perfect. It was just slightly too high. That, compared with the fact that there wasn’t much on the roof to begin with, made her think that the photos had been taken from somewhere inside the building, most likely the top floor. 

On a whim, she tried the door that led inside the building, and had her first stroke of luck. 

Unlocked. 

She glanced up at a security camera above the door and really hoped she didn’t get arrested. The small, blinking red light told her that the camera actually worked and wasn’t just for show. 

Wary, she quietly took the stairs down to the top floor of the building. 

The hallway was dim and dingy, the doors of each apartment painted with chipping red paint. There was a window at the end of the hallway. She crept over to it and peered outside. With a tilt of her head, she was able to see the flashing lights and cops gathered below. 

This was it. 

The apartment to her left didn’t have a view of the club, but the one on the right would. 

She fumbled for her phone and texted Bruce and Gordon both the apartment number. She needed to get out while she still could, let Gordon and his men surround the building and corner the Riddler. He was cunning, too cunning, and she didn’t want herself to be at the mercy of another bomb. 

Y/n slowly started backing away. 

The door swung open. 

“Y/n,” the man said, his face utterly unremarkable. His face was round, his eyes wide behind familiar glasses, his hair a light brown. He looked almost boyish in the light. “What a surprise.” He didn’t seem surprised at all to see her.  

Her heart stopped. 

The security camera was probably his. 

The man called the Riddler gave her a chilling smile. “Come in, I want to show you something. I won’t hurt you.” He stepped aside and held the door open for her. 

Y/n couldn’t think beyond the panic that was thrumming through her. Should she run? Would he come after her? Shoot her? Blow her up? She had no way of knowing, and that was the worst part. He said he wouldn’t hurt her, but he’d already mailed a bomb to her home. He’d already had the DA crash a car into a memorial she was attending. He’d already threatened her fiance, outed her as a confidential informant to a lot of very powerful people, and was likely the reason the Gotham Project had burned down. He’d already hurt her.

“Come in,” the Riddler said again, more firmly this time, his chilling smile morphing into something threatening. She hated that he looked so normal but was still so frightening. 

She stepped into his apartment, heart in her throat, palms sweating. Her taser was in her belt, her phone in her pocket, and her only backup was busy making the biggest arrest in Gotham history. 

The apartment was a wreck. 

That was the first thing she noticed. 

For someone so organized in his murders and schemes, the Riddler’s apartment was…messy. Beyond messy. There was stuff everywhere, so much stuff her mind couldn’t make sense of it all. One of the walls was covered in newspapers and painted words, the biggest of which said LIES. 

The door closed beyond her. The lock sliding into place was as loud as a gunshot. 

“I didn’t expect to see you,” the Riddler said pleasantly, as if she’d merely stopped by for a chat and nothing else. 

“I–” she started to say, but her throat was so tight with fear that no sound came out. 

There were notebooks, shelves upon shelves of them, cages, parts of weapons, bomb schematics, so many things scattered over every surface that screamed serial killer that her fingers were going numb with fright. 

He pushed past her, further into the dim and shadowy apartment like he was about to ask her how she liked her coffee. 

“What do you want from me?” she finally managed to ask. 

The Riddler didn’t turn around. He merely went towards an open window and a gun–a rifle–sitting on a tripod aimed at the streets below. 

Her heart stuttered again. All those people, she thought in a blind panic, stumbling forward with one hand out. The Riddler either didn’t notice or didn’t care what she was doing. 

“You’re like me,” he said quietly. “An orphan, chewed up by the city, drowning in its corruption…doing what has to be done to exorcize it. Like an infected wound.” 

She wanted to throw up at his words, almost the exact same words she’d thought earlier before heading up to the building’s roof. She watched his back, one hand edging for her taser. If he started shooting all those cops, the patrons and employees of the club….He could kill a lot of them while they all stood in the street, waiting. What if Lena stepped outside at just the wrong moment? Or Gordon? Or Bruce? 

“I didn’t expect you to find me here before it was all over,” the Riddler continued. “I should have known you would be more clever than I thought.” He seemed…delighted. “How did you find me?” 

“The pictures,” she managed to choke out. “Of Annika and Mitchell. I compared the angle up on the roof. Got lucky I guess.” 

“Hm. Yes. I’m surprised our bat friend didn’t figure it out. No wonder he likes working with you.” The Riddler looked over his shoulder at her, eyes almost twinkling in the low light. 

“What are you planning?” she asked, because that’s what she was here for. Maybe, just maybe, if she distracted him long enough she could take him by surprise. Bruce or Gordon or both had to have gotten her text that she’d found him. One of them would come. They had to. She just had to keep the Riddler talking until then, and not let him take a shot. 

“Oh, that’s not for you to know quite yet. Like I said–I wasn’t planning for you to be here, but that’s just as well. You’ll get a front row seat.” 

“To what?” she asked, anger making her words sharp. She tried to smother her anger, her rage, her fear. If there was any truth to any of the crime shows she’d watched, she knew she needed to stay calm, to play along. That was the safest thing. And she’d promised Bruce she wouldn’t be rash. Just her luck–the one time she was trying not to rush headfirst into danger, it found her first. 

“You’ll see,” he said. “Though I hear you did get a front row seat to my last target. I should have seen that coming.” A flash of something dark in his eyes when he looked at her. “A shame I didn’t succeed.” 

It took her a second. 

He was talking about Bruce. 

He was sad he didn’t kill Bruce was that fucking bomb.

“You fucking bastard,” she snapped. “You try to kill the man I love, then act like you’re just having me over for fucking coffee or something? I’m glad you didn’t succeed! If I could, I’d blow a bomb up in your face, see how you like it!” 

He was facing her fully now, though she could tell he was still paying attention at least slightly to what was going on down below in the street in front of the club. She was suddenly very, very aware that the rifle was the only weapon she could see. Especially since he kept one hand behind his back when he turned towards her. She had her hand on her taser, but it wouldn’t do much good against a gun. And wasn’t it a thing for killers like him to booby trap their own homes? The whole place was probably rigged to blow. 

She swallowed thickly. 

“It’s for your own good!” the Riddler snapped. Darkness and pure, fiery rage flickered in his eyes. “Bruce Wayne and his lying daddy are part of the problem! You of all people should see that!” 

She’d pissed him off. The look in his eyes showed just how unhinged he was, even as the rage banked and died away. The almost blank look that overtook it was scarier than anything else had been so far. 

“Bruce isn’t corrupt,” she said, voice soft. She held one hand out in a placating gesture. “He’s good. Do you think I’d be with him if he weren’t?” 

The Riddler tilted his head to study her, the movement almost predatory. “But you didn’t know about his father, about Falcone, or any of that when you met him, did you?” 

She bit her lip. “No,” she said honestly. “But Bruce would never hire someone to kill someone. Especially not for power.” 

“Then why does he let the Renewal fund continue? Why does he leave Wayne Enterprises to run itself into the ground, connected to people like Carmine Falcone?” He seemed genuinely curious about her answer. 

“I don’t know,” she said, again telling the truth. “But he helped with the Gotham Project. He–he supported me last year, when I–” 

“When you almost died.” The Riddler hummed and turned to look outside briefly. She gripped the taser tighter, ready to strike, but he turned back around again before she could. “I will not miss a second time, y/n,” he finally said after a moment of thought. 

He meant he would kill Bruce next time, given the chance. 

“I’ll kill you before I let that happen,” she snarled, stepping closer. 

The Riddler’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t back down. “Bruce Wayne and all he stands for is just as much a part of the sickness plaguing this city as anything else. Remember how I said it was like an infected wound? If you don’t get out all of the infection, it will fester and grow and take over again. Bruce Wayne may only be a small part of that infection, but it will grow and grow and grow if you do not treat it!” 

He was nearly shouting by the time he finished speaking. Y/n flinched. 

The anger was back, brighter and hotter than before. “Then why didn’t you kill those assholes who’re still in prison? Williams and his ilk? Huh? Why’d you leave me to do all the hard work last year while you cowered away here, watching, waiting for your time to shine? Is that it? You wanted me to get most of the ‘infection’ so you could look good finishing it off? So you could look clever?” 

They were standing almost nose to nose now, her hand gripping the taser. 

His eyes flashed behind his glasses. “No!” he cried, voice almost anguished. “You inspired me. I wasn’t cowering and waiting! I was making my plans! It was all leading to this!” 

She scoffed and stepped back as the hand behind him moved. He was going to shoot her, she realized. He was going to kill her. Her chest squeezed tight with fear. Shit. She shouldn’t have made him mad. Shouldn’t have insulted him. 

And then something worse occurred to her. It was all leading to this, he’d said. 

Ice filled her veins as she realized this might be a plot against Bruce–against Batman. The rifle, the clues, the cards, all of it leading Batman towards this night, this place…

Towards the Riddler’s gun. 

He wanted her to have a front row seat–

To Batman’s death. 

“Put the gun away,” y/n said in a low voice. The Riddler flashed her a smile, all traces of his anguished cries gone in a flash. It was disconcerting, how quickly his emotions wavered back and forth from one moment to the next. 

Please, she thought, getting ready to strike. 

There was a commotion outside the window, a shout. 

Unconcerned by her, the man calling himself the Riddler turned back to the window, adjusted the rifle, and took a shot all in the span of a few seconds. She lurched forward, expecting him to shoot again, but he merely picked up the rifle as if to put it away. 

One shot. He’d only shot one person. 

He stepped away right as she gasped out an anguished “No!” and darted to the window, the taser forgotten in her haste to make sure Bruce was alright. 

Her eyes scanned frantically over the sea of cops and people spilling out of the club until she saw a dark shadow. A ripple of a cape. Pointed ears. He straightened from a crouch. 

Bruce was fine. 

Carmine Falcone was dead at his feet. 

Y/n barely took a breath of relief before pain exploded in her head. 

She thought she heard the words “For your own good,” before darkness overtook her and the world fell away.

Next Chapter

taglist:

@pop-rocks-and-skittles​ @calumspupils​ @n1ght5h4d3-24​ @keepingitlokiii​ @11mb0​ @illicitghosts​ @cat-purrsonified​ @blue-aconite​ @junggoku​ @ohheyitsrowan​​ @angxlictexrs​​ @avengersgirllorianna​​ @brynhildrmimi​ @takeyour-pants-off​​  @twilightdollie​​ @p-writes​​ @lady-x-red​​ @xingqiusliegee​​ @scxrletwitches​​ @justine-en​​ @philiasoul​​ @srryxmate​​ @thecherrybombcom​​ @minstens​​ @call-me-nayo​​ @cosmicbreathe​​ ​@blossomedfloweroflove @zaminoo​

[idiotthatdrawsakaartist]

so while yall are waiting for the season 4 rewrite and wizards redesigns I've decided to post some ideas i had for a remake if fate the Winx saga. I've been working on a sort of rewrite but i gave up on it long ago because the point of that rewrite was to keep everything as intact as possible and still tell a good story.

long story short i failed : D miserably

so all my ideas amounted to was a few mood boards of the girl's looks, il run you through them :3

Bloom : 

her casual form is quite simple and monochromatic, I like to imagine my version of Bloom fixated on the idea of fairies so much that it became a sort of coping mechanism. thinking of herself as a fairy as a sort of confidence boost has been her go to so her look includes lots of pastels, cute skirts , simple shapes and butterfly motifs. her whole point is : mi like fairies , mi want to look cute :3.

her fairy form is low key a funny story XD basically in my cancelled rewrite, the only thing you get when you transform are your wings. making your outfit is a requirement in order to become a guardian fairy. its sort of like a uniform. it actively shows that you're using your magic and what your here to do. its not taken lightly. a fairy transforming to fight basically means: u, my friend, are fucked :D

this is done ether during your fairy education or right before graduation. and since in my version Enchantix vanished a long time ago, any Enchantix fairies lost the power and any fairies in training have lost the hope of receiving it your base form is treated like your final form since for many fairies of that past, it was. all fairies thus are told

"make your fairy form fancy as shit, people gatta look at you and piss themsleves bc of how badass you looks"

but since Bloom didn't get the memo she made hers incredibly simple, which low key makes her a laughing stock in Alfea. my plan was to use this to deepen hers and Stella's bond since ide like to imagine Stella would help her redesign her outfit XD also I'm diversifying the body types, Bloom is now skinny fat 

her form very closely based off of her OG form bc of that since their base form was quite simple.

Stella :

her casual form is very in line with the types of things her og counterpart would wear, since in my version Solaria would be called the crescent queendom  with fate version of Luna running it. were keeping the whole her mom is abusive thing but where changing a few things.

Stella grows into her own in the Winx club and thus begins showing off her sunny disposition which in a moon queendom is looked down upon. but her outfits would do a 180 once her mom is present. she's suddenly in dark blues, purples ,and silver.

her fairy form is her trying to morph herself to be exactly what her mother wants, everything is moon themed. again dark blues and silver everywhere. Also i changed her body type to being Chubby bc yes :3

Flora :

she's pretty straight forward, her fairy form and casual form follow the same theme of nature. I just made her main colour for her casual form sage while her transformation pink just like in the OG. also I kept her plus sized bc plus sized Flora was a great idea, and than they white washed her :,)

in terms of her fairy form, I leaned in to the cute pink girl horror rpg asthetic aka pocket mirror. i want her to be as custey as possible bc

y e s

Musa :

oh boy her casual form was fun : D , i hate how they feminised her in the later seasons and took this as an opportunity to go FULL IN to the alt fashion she was meant to wear uwu she a lil alt girlie, she's quirky like that uwu.

her fairy form is based more on her culture but still has the edge of her alt fashion sense ^^ I've decided to keep her as skinny since most of the cast now are leaning heavily to the plus sized of the spectrum, I thought ide include the skinny girls in here too ^^ and when i say Skinny i don't mean an hour glass, i mean no boobs, no butt, no nata.

Tecna :

i decided to dive into the hacker aesthetic but make it fairy :3 her wings ( in her base form at least) don't flap, they put her body into a 0G state which allows her to "fly". lots of neon lights with her uwu

her casually outfits are just generally geometric. also i decided to make her thin but to an unhealthy degree. perhaps she could be dealing an illness and we could explore how she feels being mostly in solitude for most of her life :p

Aisha :

she's basically the sporty girl aesthetic incarnate. lots of neutral tones with hints of green and pink :D her basic form is simply meant to be kind of mermaid inspired, also ide like to imagine her Enchantix would give her afro with cute water drops in it and pearls :3

Jesus that was long. anyhow as stated, this rewrite isn't being made anymore bc I've concluded that my challenge wouldn't work. keeping most of it intact and making it good would just simply result in a decent at best show. and us in the Winx fandom aren't going for just fine were going for MAJESTIC UWU

[balls-into-laundrybaskets]

"must've been the wind..."

Read Part 2

suggestions: OPEN

Eddie Munson x Reader!Gender Neutral **[18+]

summary: You are Eddie's neighbor and he hears you and your boyfriend get into a heated argument. He goes to check up on you.

tw: !domestic abuse

tags: hurt!comfort ; friends to lovers ; protective!Eddie ; !switch ; oral!male receiving ; mutual!masturbation

wc: 18 k (love me a long fic)

****

It was the grossest, hottest night in July. The humidity clung like cellophane to each surface, making wearing clothing nearly unbearable. This was why Eddie Munson was lounging on his stripped mattress without anything on but his boxers. His sweaty arm covered his eyes like a shield. A Sabbath song burst through the tape player in his room. Everything was set for a night of blissful sleep but the lack of good AC kept him from slipping under. 

Frustrated, he rubbed his rough face with his hands. He peeled himself off his mattress and jabbed at the stop button on the machine. Reaching into his stash, he pulled out a blunt and stuck it between his lips. 

This will work for sure, he thought. 

With the blunt dangling from his mouth, he traveled into the kitchen for a glass of water. That’s when he began to hear the muffled sounds of an intense argument happen outside the window. He rolled his eyes. Hearing a fight wasn’t anything new around the trailer park. He assumed it was the older couple down the road; they were infamous in the park for how often they yelled at each other. It had almost become his own source of sick entertainment, in a way. 

But there then came a sound of shattering glass and immediately he knew this wasn’t any old-timer argument. He made it to the window and pushed the blinds open between his fingers. The trailer just across from him still had lights on inside. Suddenly, the front door crashed open and a burly figure stormed out. In less than two minutes, he had boarded his car and drove off, leaving fresh prints on the dusty ground outside. 

Eddie swallowed thickly. He knew who lived there across from him. 

You were one of the first people he met around his age when he moved in with his uncle. In fact, you were probably one of the only people his age that lived where he was. The relief and excitement were mutual. 

Because of this, you became thicker than thieves. You two were constantly skipping town, taking smoke breaks in the woods, and actively giving your teachers and family gray hairs from the mayhem you caused. He taught you about music and Dungeons and Dragons, which gave you a brilliant idea.

“You should start a club!” you exclaimed, smiling your biggest smile. 

Eddie paused, taken aback by your sudden burst of energy. “A w-what?”

“A D&D club,” you clarified. He brought a finger to the side of his lip in mock concentration. You pushed his shoulder, laughing. “I’m serious, Munson!”

“Who would join? I’m not exactly a social pariah,” Eddie said. You raised your hand high and proud in the air. He bit back a smile. “You don’t know how to play.”

“You could teach me,” you said, poking him in the shoulder again. He tilted his head and held eye contact. He searched for a crack, something that gave away that you weren’t serious about it at all. Something that told him that he wouldn’t be able to make it happen. 

But you held your ground. In fact, you began to lean in. This was a challenge. Your parents always went on an on about you two, teasing you every time you were leaving the house.

Going out to see your boyfriend again? 

You found their jabs annoying at first but you couldn’t help but begin to wonder. Did he really feel that way? Was it so obvious that everyone else could pick up on it but you? If he kissed you right now, you would know. 

You would know he felt the same way.

Eddie’s eyes widened and his heartbeat sped into high gear. He glanced at your lips, which were pulled into an easy smirk. He could feel heat rising from his neck onto his face. The tension proved too much for him and he cleared his throat and looked down at his hands. You tried not to let your disappointment show. 

That year, however, he started Hellfire Club and extended an invitation to you. It was just you and two other sophomores at the time but you all had a blast together. Eddie was a natural as the DM, drawing inspiration from fantasy dime novels he took from the library. You saw him come more and more out of his shell with every session. He began spending a lot of his time and energy into creating campaigns, even asking you what sort of events or encounters he should include. The nights you spent together became longer with each new brainstorming session. His room became a second home to you. 

But then, you graduated. You left and Eddie stayed. He continued expanding his club but it was hard not to notice the glaring hole you had left in the group. At least you were still his neighbor but, with college classes now taking up the bulk of your time, he began to see less and less of you. 

Eddie couldn’t help but kick himself a little bit. He was supposed to graduate with you that year. You two even had plans to attend Indiana University together. Both of you had no idea what you wanted to do for your futures but it was certain that you were going to do it together. 

And then you brought home a boy. Eddie first noticed the new car parked beside your trailer. He then saw the tall, tanned man with the greasy blonde hair hold open the passenger side door. His heart plummeted to his stomach when he saw you step out and wrap your arms around this guy’s neck, giving him a sweet kiss. That was the nail in the coffin. From then on, he stifled whatever feelings he had and tried to forget you. 

Seeing this jerkwad storm out of your trailer, something deeply buried climbed back up to his consciousness with a vengeance. He wanted to rush over there and check up on you. He needed to know if you were okay. 

He pulled his fingers from the blinds and began to pace. 

You haven’t spoken to them in two years, he thought, What do you think you’re gonna say? ‘Hey! I know we haven’t spoken since senior year but I’m pretty sure your boyfriend is a piece of shit who throws things at you and I wanted to make sure you were okay!’

He ran his fingers through his hair. Just do it. Just go over there you coward. 

He abandoned his glass of water to go put on a pair of shorts and a tank top. Tightening his hands into fists, he took a breath and opened the door. 

The cicadas screamed as he found his way back to your front door. He started to sweat but, whether that was from the muggy heat or his nerves, he couldn’t tell. He began to stall.

Knock, he thought, Just knock you dumbass. Yet his hands stayed rooted to his sides. He sighed and started to turn back the other way when he heard sniffling come from the other end. His eyes squeezed shut and gave a curt knock.

It took you a few moments before you two were face to face between the screen door. Your hair was disheveled and your eyes were puffy. You almost didn’t recognize the man standing in front of you. But then those concerned brown eyes became clear and all your past memories came flooding back in a tidal wave of emotion.

“Eddie?” you said timidly. 

His eyes brightened at hearing his name escape your lips again. “Uh, hi! I -uh… happened to be in the neighborhood. Well… I guess, of course I was in the neighborhood, I live here.” He ran a hand through his hair, “You knew that, already, though.”

You smiled as he floundered. “You look different,” you said, “You look good.”

Eddie nearly choked. “Thanks. You look-,” Sad, nervous, “-good too.” It was then he realized that you were wearing a t-shirt that he hadn’t seen since he left it at your place after a sleepover. It also occurred to him that you weren’t wearing any pants either. “Really good.”

You gulped, looking down at your bare feet. It had been so long since you’d seen him and he still managed to make butterflies explode in your stomach. “I-Is there something I can help you with?” 

Eddie drew his mouth into a straight line. “I uh… I heard a noise. And I wanted to check up on you.” 

At this, your body went rigid. You instinctively began to hide yourself behind your door. “That’s funny,” you said, putting on a smile, “I didn’t hear anything.”

Eddie sharply inhaled but didn’t change his expression. He didn’t want to scare you even further. “I thought maybe it was some drunk asshole throwing bottles but I couldn’t be sure.” He watched you closely. You fidgeted with the hem of your (or rather his) shirt. He scanned you for anything out of the ordinary. He’d seen this behavior before with his mom. It broke his heart to see you go through it too. 

You shook your head, “I don’t know what to tell you,” you said finally, “It must’ve been the wind.”

Bullshit, Eddie thought bitterly. Instead he bobbed his head and stuck his hands in his back pockets. “Well, I thought I’d stop by in case. It’s really good to see you again.” He scuffled his heels and began to retreat back to his trailer.

“Wait, Eddie,” you blurted, before realizing it. You silently cursed yourself. “Would you… wanna meet at the picnic table? Catch up a little bit?” You couldn’t help but look in the direction that your boyfriend had left, afraid that you’d see his headlights reignite. 

Eddie couldn’t suppress a smile from creeping on his face. “You want me to bring anything?”

You nodded, “Yeah. Something strong. I’ll meet you in five, I just need to put on some pants.” 

He stole a glance down at your beautiful bare legs before clearing his throat again. Get a grip, Munson. 

“Yeah, I’ll see you in five,” he nodded in confirmation. 

When you closed the door, he practically sprinted to his trailer. He barreled through his room, grabbed his black tin lunch box, as well as the stray blunt he left on the kitchen counter on his way out. He ran up the road, past the sleeping RVs. 

The picnic table sat crumbling next to a rusty trashcan. It creaked under Eddie’s weight as he sat down. His leg bounced as he waited for your arrival. 

As you promised, you came walking up the path, a flashlight shining in your hand. You still donned Eddie’s old t-shirt but now wore a pair of jean shorts. You smiled when you saw him sitting there. He stood when you arrived. You took a seat across from him and he presented you with his loose joint. 

“As promised,” he smiled. 

You took it and placed it between your lips. He rummaged around his box for a lighter and flicked it. The orange light reflected in your eyes as he brought it to you. You held his gaze as you took an extra long drag. The smoke flooded your lungs as the back of your throat burned. You held it inside you until you tipped your head back and exhaled. 

“That’s the stuff,” you breathed. Eddie watched you in wonder. His heart thumped in his chest as he saw the muscles in your neck relax. You passed him the joint and he cradled it between his fingers. 

“How’ve you been?” you asked, “We haven’t spoken in forever it seems.”

“Well, y’know, still getting through high school but I have a feeling this year is gonna be different,” he grinned as he exhaled, “This year is gonna be my year.”

You smirked, “You still doing Hellfire?”

“Oh yeah, never stopped,” he said, passing the joint back to you, “Although it hasn’t been the same since you left.”

You raised an eyebrow at him. It felt nice to hear him say that.

“How’s uh… how’s college?” he asked tentatively. 

“Kicking my ass,” you admitted, “It’s not like high school. Not to mention stupidly expensive.” You started giggling to yourself, “And the weed sucks.”

Eddie laughed with you. “That’s probably the best compliment I’ve heard all year.” 

“That’s kinda sad,” you said. 

He shrugged nonchalantly. He could feel the awkward air hang between you two. He knew something wasn’t right but he didn’t have all the facts. He could feel questions forming on the tip of his tongue but he bit them back. 

“I know you want to ask me something,” you said. He shut his eyes. You were always able to read him well. “Spill it.”

“I won’t ask you anything,” he said, “But I just want you to know that I’m here.” Your face relaxed in surprise. “And, for any reason you need to come over, my door is always open to you. No questions asked.” 

You could feel a sharp sting behind your eyes. Your lip began to quiver and you tried to hide it behind your hand. 

“Are you okay?” Eddie asked, his face softening. You let out a shuddering sigh and finally shook your head. A guttural sob erupted from your throat and you hung your head in your hands. Eddie left his spot and circled around to you. You pulled him to you and he enveloped you in his bare arms. He stroked your hair as you wept.  

“He scares me so much,” you whimpered. Eddie closed his eyes as he held you. His blood began to boil. He was never one to look for a fight but, at that moment, he was ready to kill. 

He pulled you away and cupped your face, using his thumbs to brush away your tears. You leaned into his touch as you blinked the last remaining drops from your eyes. 

“You don’t need to feel alone in this,” he said, searching your face. 

“Will you hide me?” you hiccuped, “Just for tonight? I don’t want to go back there.” 

Eddie nodded, already reaching over to pack his things. You could’ve asked him to move the planets and he would’ve found a way to do it for you. He kept a protective arm around your shoulders as you two found your way back to the Munson residence. He locked the door behind him once he was sure that no one was watching. You took a seat on his couch, steadying your breathing in an attempt to compose yourself.

Nothing changed in there since the last time you saw it. The same pieces of mismatched furniture from the Salvation Army decorated the space and you were sitting on the same old couch that Eddie’s uncle picked up from the side of the road. 

Eddie jogged from room to room, making sure the blinds were closed, encasing the two of you in comfortable darkness. When he was satisfied, he returned to your side with a glass of water he picked up from the kitchen. You chuckled through your nose as you took the glass in your hands. 

“Would you like anything else?” he asked. You met his gaze and shook your head.

“Thank you,” you managed. Your voice was growing hoarse. He gave you a reassuring smile and brushed your hair away. His hand stalled on the side of your face. You found yourself leaning into his comforting touch, twisting to kiss his palm. 

He reacted as if he’d been poked with a hot iron. Your face fell and a blush spread across your cheeks. 

“I’m sorry,” you said quietly. You’re so stupid for doing that, you thought miserably.

“No! It’s okay, really!” he stammered, “I-I wasn’t expecting it.” To prove everything was fine, he took your hand in his and gave a delicate kiss in a similar spot. You felt your heart seize in your chest as his hot breath lingered on your palm. 

“Eddie,” you gulped, “Would you kiss me?” 

His gaze snapped to yours. “You want me to?” 

You nodded gravely, “Ever since high school.” 

He bit his lip to keep from smiling like an absolute fool. Taking your jaw in his hand, he molded his soft lips onto yours. You pressed deeper into each other, the longing of the past years you spent apart blossoming between you both. You snaked your fingers up his neck and into his unruly waves. His hand pasted onto your lower back, supporting you as he leaned you down onto the cushions. 

“I’ve wanted this,” he moaned between kisses, “I’ve wanted you so bad. I’m so sorry it took this long.” 

Your hands left his hair, trailing down his spine with your fingernails. A current of energy ricocheted up his body, nearly making his arms give out. You weren’t making it easy. 

“Let me be yours tonight,” you murmured into his ear. His hand clenched around your waist, letting out a short whine. He crashed his lips into yours before getting to work on your jaw, making his way down to your neck. He never wanted to taste you as bad as he did in that moment. 

“You make me fucking crazy,” he growled deep within his throat. This caused something inside you to throb hungrily. You needed his skin to touch yours, to consume you. Your breathing became shallower, the more excited you got. You could feel his erection rub against your bare thigh. 

One hand continued to trace the curve of his spine while the other started to palm him against his shorts. Eddie whimpered against your skin and you knew he was absolute putty in your hands. He nipped at your neck, a bruise blooming between his teeth.

Let that asshole see, he thought viciously, I’ll break his neck. 

His hand wove its way under your shirt and began to massage you. He pinched your nipple, already sensitive and alert. Your hips bucked in response. 

You pushed yourself upright, desperately ripping your shirt off your body. He followed in tandem. His mind became goo at the sight of your bare chest on display for him. Yours wasn’t too far behind as your eyes absorbed all the new tattoos he’d gotten. 

“You’re so gorgeous,” you swooned. 

He flashed a crooked smile, “That’s my line, sweetheart.” 

You both collided in sync. You climbed onto his lap as you leaned him against the adjacent arm rest. Eddie’s mouth attached itself to a nipple, his tongue twisting around it. You hissed as you tossed your head back, relishing in the feeling it gave you. 

Your hand made its way into his pants and past his boxers. Your fingers grasped his shaft as your thumb stroked the opening on his head. Precum slipped onto your fingers, acting as lube. He gasped against your breast. 

“Fuck!” he moaned, “You’re going to kill me!” He shot his hand into your pants and began to stimulate you back. “Two can play at this game,” he said darkly. 

Your mouth gaped in a silent scream. Pulses of energy shot through your nerves, making you tense up. You needed to concentrate extra hard in order to stroke him. But, fuck was it difficult…

You ground against his fingers, pings of lust coursing through your body. Eddie’s hand found its way to your ass and squeezed hard. 

Never in his wildest wet dreams could he ever imagine the sounds he coaxed out of your pretty mouth. If he was dreaming, he hoped to stay asleep forever. He prayed to whatever god was listening that he could keep you in this state of bliss for as long as possible. He wanted to make you forget all your pain. He wanted to make you feel safe with him. He needed you to be okay. 

Fuck me, he thought incredulously, I’m in love! 

“Ed,” you whimpered. His romantic feelings channeled through in his performance. He was going to town on you, never letting up. His thumb pressed down harder, his movements became more quick. “Eddie, please! Don’t stop!” 

Your breath heaved as you lost all of your feeling in your bottom half. Abandoning your task for the moment, you clutched the couch cushions for something to ground you as you finally were able to release. Your back arched as you emptied yourself onto his fingers, letting out a guttural whine. 

Eddie slipped his fingers out of your underwear and brought them to his lips. He had waited long enough to finally know what you tasted like and he was going to savor it. 

Your vision swam as you blinked away stars. He propped himself up on his elbows and watched you come down from your high. He smiled widely at the blissed out state of your eyes. 

“Not bad for your first time with me,” he chuckled. 

“You’re a god,” you managed finally. His erection twitched at this. Your attention was brought back to it. “It’s time to return the favor,” you said slyly. 

He gulped as you placed kisses against his neck. You trailed down his body, taking your precious time, teasing him a little. 

“That’s not nice,” he moaned. You peered at him through your lashes, causing his heart to turn in somersaults. 

You reached the base of his erection and licked up the throbbing vein in his shaft. His nails dug into the couch as he stifled a string of curse words. 

With a free hand, you massaged his balls as your mouth attached to his head. Eddie’s breathing caught in his throat. 

This is it, he thought dramatically, This is how I die. 

Your tongue swirled around his engorged tip. Drool pooled from your mouth and dripped from your chin. He swore to god he’d never seen anyone more attractive in his life. 

Finally, you took him into your mouth, your free hand stroking along as you bobbed your head. 

Eddie threw his head back, his muscles tensing. If your throat felt this good, he wondered how he’d feel inside your walls. 

His mouth hung open. The only words he could manage was your name. The only thoughts he could think were of you. His hips bucked to your rhythm, fucking the inside of your mouth. 

You took as much as you could. He was bigger than what you were used to. Going back to your boyfriend (if you even wanted to after this) was never going to feel the same. 

Eddie’s hands tangled into your hair. “Fuck, I can’t hold it!” 

You detached your mouth from him with a pop. “I’ll swallow,” you responded huskily. 

I’m dead, he thought. 

You reattached yourself at the same pace. Eddie’s toes curled as a scream that would make Axl Rose proud tore through his vocal chords. His seed gushed down your throat, hot and thick. You took it like a champ, swallowing it all. 

Eddie crumpled back to earth a hot and sweaty mess. Strands of his hair clung to his face as you came up for air. He looked as if he were beached and you couldn’t suppress a giggle at the sight of him. You removed a few tendrils of hair from his face.

“Are you good?” you asked innocently. 

Eddie plastered his hand over his eyes, “‘Are you good?’ they ask,” he mumbled, “Sweetheart, you sucked the life outta me.” 

He propped himself back up to your eye level, a stupid grin spread on his face. You dipped your head into his chest affectionately. 

“Is it bad if I don’t want to leave? Even tomorrow?” you asked. 

He wrapped his arms around your bare torso and pulled you into him. “No, of course not.” He kissed the top of your head, “You can stay forever as far as I’m concerned.” 

You laughed against his neck, “Don’t say that or it might happen.” You raised your head to look into his eyes. Those beautiful dark brown pools stared back at you with such admiration that it took everything in your power not to break apart. “You make me feel safe.” 

Eddie inhaled sharply, his heart breaking, hearing those words. He swore then and there that he would protect you from anyone who had ever done you harm. Who will ever do you harm. 

“I’ve got you,” he said finally, emotion bubbling in his words. You gave him a strained smiled and kissed him gingerly once more. You knew that whatever lay ahead for the two of you wouldn’t be simple. It wouldn’t be without pain. But tonight was yours. 

You wrapped your arms around his neck and finally closed your eyes, listening to the sound of the wind outside. 

[one-time-i-dreamt]

Admin's dream

I myself rarely dream, but last night I had an interesting dream that I remember fairly well, so I thought I should share.

I traveled to another town for a university meeting and I was being hosted by a girl who lived there and went to a similar school to mine. We became fast friends and spent a few days exploring the city with some of her friends, who helped to show me around.

Soon, they revealed to me that they were members of an organization fighting against some shady people living there. They had a mission and took me with them, even though I wasn't fully briefed about what was going on.

It turned out that we were taking infant twins to their grandfather. With the help of my friend who also lived in that town, we got the grandfather's location. We left the twins on his door and went to spend the evening at my friend's flat.

Some of my other friends from Zagreb arrived and they took me out, and we went to a late night book signing and I got a present from a columnist I loved as a teenager. My friends went clubbing, but I kept thinking about the twins.

I went back to the place we left them, and found them to still be there, out in the cold, despite their grandfather allegedly being informed that they were out. I took off my hoodie and covered them in it and rang the door, risking revealing myself, who was already unrelated to the mentioned organization, to the "other side". For some reason, all of this should've been done in secrecy, but I didn't care anymore, because I was worried for the children.

I knew the other side was dangerous, but I thought the kids were much more important than me, as they were innocent. A handsome man arrived at the place where the twins were (which was in front of somebody's front door) and I tried to stop him to get him to take them, but he didn't even notice them.

He bared his fangs at me and I realized that he was a vampire. The street where we were at was so busy and I couldn't understand why nobody noticed the kids nor tried to help them before me, as they were crying before I came.

The man entered the house and I was left there, in the middle of the night, holding the basket with the kids, feeling extremely cold. I decided to take the kids to the police station, which was just down the street.

After I was sure they were safe, I went back to my friend's flat and found the door unlocked. I changed into something warm and went back out, because nobody was answering me and I got worried. I found my friend dead drunk and carried her home on my back.

A neighbor of hers, who was also her coworker, came out to help me. She arranged a place for me to sleep, and I went to bed and woke up early and went to meet my host. I didn't tell her what I did. I realized that none of the people from the organization went to check on the babies and they would likely have died if I didn't save them.

We went to an old aqueduct, sat on an old wall and talked. They explained to me that they were fighting against an organization of vampires and that the grandfather of the babies was also a vampire, but they were on cordial terms with him. They had some sort of a pact to eliminate his son's faction.

We went out again at night and I saw the handsome man again. Our eyes met and he smiled sinisterly, but I knew he didn't recognize me from the day before. Him and his crew were at a club, and my friend tagged along with them. I realized she intentionally gave us the wrong location so we'd give his kids back to him, but didn't bother checking on the babies herself and would've allowed them to pass away because she only cared about the father.

I had a bad feeling. Through one way or another, the father and I met and struck up an unexpected friendship. He kept teasing me like a friend would and I realized that he thought my friend brought back his babies to him.

As we became friends, he revealed to me a shocking truth - his ex was a member of my host's organization and he really loved her but she used him for information and then left him and broke his heart and didn't even tell him she was pregnant. She died on another mission and nobody wanted to take care of her babies, so the organization wanted to give them to their grandfather.

I felt sad for the handsome vampire boss because it was clear he would've forgiven his dead lover anything, if only she said she was sorry and came back to him, but she would've never done that because she didn't care for him nor did she love him.

It felt like he started falling in love with my friend. He was extremely grateful to her for saving his children and brought presents to her all the time and treated her nicely. I sometimes tagged along when they were going out with his crew and I started feeling wrong about the way she was using him. It felt like past was repeating itself, but at least I knew this friend wanted him, even if she was lying to him.

I got ready to go out with them again and I realized I was a bit jealous. That was a weird realization to me, because up until that moment, I didn't think I was falling for the boss, but now it became apparent that I was and that I was angry at my friend for lying to him and wanting him for all the wrong reasons.

The night was windy like the first night I saw him, the cold night when I saved the twins, and I was shivering. He put his coat around me and was closer to me physically than ever before. He took a whiff of me and said he knew my perfume.

I realized it was the same perfume I was wearing on that first night. He realized that I was the one who saved his kids, but didn't say anything. His people finished getting all the surveillance images and background info on all the players involved, including me.

He found out I was an unrelated stranger who decided to help his kids when everyone else abandoned them. He started seeing me in a different light, and my friend realized that. She confronted me and told me that I shouldn't be getting involved with the supernatural and things I knew nothing about and that I should just go home while I still can.

I felt sad, but knew she was right. This wasn't my home, wasn't my place to be. I packed up my things and got ready to go back. I talked to her kind coworker and she told me that I shouldn't be listening to anyone who didn't have my best interest in mind. I also knew she was right and that my friend wasn't really my friend, she didn't really care for me. She just used me. She was the one who set me up with that host, so she could orchestrate everything through them.

I boarded a bus and waited for it to take me home, when it was stopped by a convoy of armed men. I didn't know what was going on. A man entered the bus carrying two babies. It was the man, my vampire man. He told me I was going back with him, and I got up and nodded my head. Everyone else was flabbergasted, but the vampires erased their memories.

I went back to the vampire boss' place and finally learned his real name. He told me his whole story and I realized that he was a good person underneath it all. I started to question my host's organization. The vampires weren't the bad ones in all of this, I was sure.

And I was sure that I loved this man and that he has cared for me from the first time that we met, though he felt he should be grateful to my "friend" for saving his children, and was giving her attention out of that and nothing else, but was inviting me everywhere as well because he was drawn to me as much as I was drawn to him.

I started living with him and we started getting to know one another. The children loved me and took to me right away and I adored them and adored their father as well. We grew closer by the day.

He went on a mission and didn't come back from it and his men told me he was lost in action. I was crushed and started crying and breaking things and shaking in anger, I blamed everybody including myself and was mad at them for leaving him. They went on a recovery mission and could not find any trace of him.

I waited for days and kept hoping for good news. I was sure he was still alive and that I would feel if something had happened to him. Suddenly, he had appeared. He was alive and well. He was hiding until then because he was setting a trap.

I threw myself into his embrace and started yelling at him. I told him he wasn't allowed to do that ever again because his kids loved him and I loved him and we couldn't live without him. He was so happy to hear that, because it was the first time anyone ever told him they loved him and meant it. He told me he loved me as well.

I was so happy.

I knew it was real, our love was real.

Then I woke up.

[wellthebardsdead]

Riiju-Lei: *quietly walking across the bridge into windhelm* gods I forgot how cold home is.

Kaidan: I’m still trying to wrap my head around why you’d willingly live here.

Riiju-Lei: it’s where I was raised. My parents used to own the stables. They’re buried in the hall of the dead here too. It’s home. *walks through the gates immediately seeing another dark elf being harassed* even if it doesn’t feel like it… *walks over wedging himself in front of the woman* What did I tell you about harassing us Rolff…

Rolff: oh look if it isn’t the knife eared lizard boy~ what are you going to do about it outsider? Hit me?

Riiju-Lei: I’ve lived in this city longer than you you your fathers before you. I’ve seen it fall into ruin under ulfrics rule. And I’ve watched countless of my friends die for his senseless war. So I’m warning you now. *folds his arms, his hair floating up like fire as arcane energy crackles through his skin making his birthmark glow like hot metal* Leave us alone. Because your brother won’t be able to save you from me…

Rolff: … *backs off a little*

Riiju-Lei: *glares at him before turning his back to address suvaris*

Rolff: *suddenly goes to hit him while he’s not looking*

Kaidan: *socks him hard across the face knocking him out cold, the claws on his gauntlets ripping half of his skin clean off* Oi! You want to fight like a coward then you deal with me! *shakes his hand cracking his knuckles* Stone fist more like stone head- *glares at Angernor* You want a focking round too ay?

Angernor: *jumps and quickly runs off with his tail in between his legs*

Suvaris: well then. Thank you for that, it’s good to see you again Leilei. We all thought we’d never see you again given your house burned down.

Riiju-Lei: …what?…

Taliesin: *hurries through the gates after getting the horses boarded for the night* right I’m h- *looks at the bloodied and possibly dead nord on the ground and the look of shock on Riiju’s face* …what did I miss?

*a few minutes later*

Riiju-Lei: *staring at a burned wreckage that used to be his home, now blanketed in snow and the remaining brickwork covered in slurs written in soot* …my house… it’s… gone…

Taliesin: I wonder if anyone saw what caused it…

Kaidan: *looking at the slurs* Or who caused it- LeiLei be careful-

Riiju-Lei: *climbing through the wreckage, seemingly emotionless as always as he moves boards and snow out of the way, hoping, praying, then sighing with relief as he finds a small chest*

Taliesin: Leilei?…

Riiju-Lei: *opens the chest up and pulls out an old piece of fabric before draping it around his shoulders like a scarf* I’m okay… *climbs out of the wreckage and sighs*

Kaidan: what’s that? *gestures to the scarf*

Riiju-Lei: the sling my mother brought me to skyrim in… it’s all… all I have left of my parents now…

Taliesin: *gently pats his back* at least… something important survived…

Riiju-Lei: *sighs and nods* I suppose we should go see if the corner club has any rooms… *walks down the street and pauses as a little girl runs out in front of him*

Sofie: mr? Would you like to buy some flowers for your pretty lady?

Riiju-Lei: pretty lady?

Kaidan: *snickers and nudges Taliesin* I think she’s talking about you~

Taliesin: …Well she got the pretty part right at least~

Kaidan: Pffft, if your ego got any higher we’d need a permit to grow it.

Riiju-Lei: *suddenly picks Sofie up putting her on his back* You two are going to have to put your bickering on hold until we get back to whiterun. I have a daughter now, Sofie.

[adrianasunderworld]

Since you finished with chapter 6, I want to add on your chapter 6 view well mostly the first part. I would say that Cinderella was the one who got her arm scratch by Grimm and she was found by Meg as she helps her along with Deuce and Ace especially on finding Grimm until it is too late. The next few days turn out the same as the game as Vil having a meeting with the VDC participants same goes to Snow White, Aurora, and Ariel. Cinderella was just listening since they stay to take care of Cinderella. Jasmine also stayed since Jamil's relationship is doing well and wants to listen while the rest of the princesses are busy with other things outside. It all played out the same even the part of the Styx attacking. Everyone is devasting especially Cinderella, Snow White, and Jasmine as they witness Jamil, Vil, and Grimm being taken away.

Now moving on how the other overblot victims go. Alice is being taught how to horse back ride by Riddle with the help of Mulan, Merida, Sebek, and Silver when suddenly Styx attack. Riddle being kidnapped which shocked Alice as she tries to save him only to fail.

Leona was sleeping while Belle brought some snacks and Nala asking Leona to help out with her fighting when the attack came. Belle and Nala was surprised to hear that Leona surrender and even witness him being taken away.

Meg is a member of the board games clubs she is with Azul and Idia. Ariel, Tiana, and Elsa being there when attack came. The girls are hiding from the attack but witness the conversation between Idia and Azul. The moment they were taken away, Meg looks angry as she tries to follow but they already left.

And so the meeting came with temporary dorm heads and dorm leaders. Elsa and Tiana being representatives of their dorms as well as Meg and Snow White. They also learn that Crowley is kidnapped which saddened Snow White.

Snow White: Oh my, they kidnapped the headmage. How terrible...we need to bring him back just as much we have to being back the rest.

Of course no one sympathize regarding about Crowley but they did try to calm her down.

Once they learn about this, Meg is super angry about it especially when she follows Cinderella, Alice, Nala, Ariel, Jasmine, and Snow White about it. Epel also joins in with them as they aren't sure what to do until Rook came.

Now this is part that I will end since I am not sure how the plot goes since Rook and Epel are riding in their broomstick with Yuu tagging along. I wonder if would be just one or more girls. I also thought of Elsa and Anna joining since they are relate to the chapter 6 story too.

Absolutely everyone is distraught about the whole situation with Grim and then Styx and Dorm being destroyed. Its a lot and even the most optimistic of the girls are finding it hard to cope.

For Elsa and Anna and how they can tag along, look at this post for context. But if Elsa at least has magic and can use a broom, then she can fly with Anna on board. Or she uses her ice to propel a broom forward like an ice rocket. Whatever works.

But anyway, Meg runs into the Arendelle sisters, after Elsa goes to see if Rook will let some of them crash at Pomfiore. They run into Epel as well and find Rook as he is rushing off to look for Vil. Once Rook leaves, the four of them decide to go after Rook, not content to stand idly by. Meg is the least enthusiastic about this since she hates flying. She is holding onto Epel for dear life the time they catch up wtih Rook.

For the most part, tings go about the same as they did in the book. Elsa makes a patch of ice on the water for them to land on and Idia is flabbergasted that they came all the way out here.

Once Cerberus is down because of Ortho and Idia, the four of them find the housewardens like normal and the three princess split off with the others. Anna goes with Jamil and Leona. Elsa with Azul and Riddle. Meg with the Pomfiore trio.

On the trek downwards into Tartarus, they encounter many fights and talk. Anna brings up how her and Elsa were separated for so long. That like Leona she sometimes felt like the "spare" to her sisters "heir" (reference to a deleted song from frozen). Elsa ice magic saves all their hides from the magma titan, since her magic does not have the same cap or limits as Azul or Riddles does. Meg talks about how familiar a lot of this is. The underworld. Tarturas. Cerberus. All names she knows very well and the dread she feels because she has no good memories of any of it.

The book continues on as it did with the addition of the princesses help. They fight OB Idia and Ortho. They find Grim. Vil sacrifices himself. etc.

When everyone finally gets back, they are all greeted by their dormmates. The princesses all hug the returning trio and check on the other housewardens. (Jasmine tackles Jamil right after Kalim. Belle is asking Leona if he's alright. Tiana expressing that Azul had her and the tweels worried sick.) Malleus helps Vil return to normal and after a few weeks, Idia has Ramshackle repaired as promised and everyone welcome their new classmate Ortho as they all play games.

[coalitiongirl]

Fic Recs (under 300 edition)

So I wanted to get back to reading Swan Queen fic regularly, and I asked people to rec longfic that they'd read (not written) and loved that had fewer than 300 kudos! I haven’t read most of these, but I’ve collected them here so y’all can go through the list and discover some new fics with me! Please try to kudos and review every fic that you read! It means the world to the writers and will keep em writing, and then we all win. 😁

Atonement by SgtMac (M): With Regina's magical heart failing thanks to years of previous evil, Emma and Regina and Henry (and Granny!) set out to save her life by traveling to the Enchanted Forest and requesting help from ancient magical beings known as the Guardians. Given a mission as simple as it is impossible - to achieve atonement by creating peace - the ladies find themselves joining a rebellion and fighting for the very soul of the Enchanted Forest all while trying to help Regina to understand that the self-loathing and guilt which have driven most of her actions don't have to doom her chance for a new beginning or even, a chance to live and love again. A S4(ish) SQ love story set against the turmoil of war and the chaotic savagery of the old world.

Blood and Sand by cheshire6845 (E): A/U The Savior is a slave forced into the role of fighting as a gladiator for the House of Hearts. The odds are against her survival as she will have to win in the arena, navigate Cora's schemes, outlast a general's vengeance, and not be killed out of spite by the current House of Hearts Champion - Regina the Undefeated. This story follows the major plot points of Starz Spartacus with some twists along the way.

But what if there was no time by KizuRai (M): When she wakes up, it's dark. She can't move, she can't see, she can't feel and she can't hear. Where am I? She feels a forceful oppression, pressing her down, draining her of her energy and she's powerless to stop it. How did I get here? The question of here is relative, she's not even sure where here is. What happened? There must be some reason for being stuck here but her memory is fuzzy, like all her thoughts are being sifted through a filter. Who am I? She's not sure if she actually exists or she suddenly became sentient in the darkness.She hears a voice reverberating in the distance, it's distorted and quiet but she hears it all the same. It breaks the monotony of the silence. Someone's coming for her, they will get her out. She's just not sure she wants them to as the price might be too great.

Finding Home by evl_rgl (T): “I wanted to remember you so badly that I pulled back your cursed town just so that the memories would make sense. I needed you so badly that even when I had no memory of you, I still tried to find you.” Regina gave Emma and Henry memories of a happy life together before they fled Pan’s curse, leaving them with no memories of their lives in Storybrooke. However, when the memory spell shows signs of failing, threatening to rip apart the minds of both Emma and Henry, Regina makes a drastic choice to go back and fix it, understanding that it will mean living alone in a world where her son doesn’t know her. Was the spell really faulty, though? (swanqueen)

Five Flames by MariaComet (U): In the past, Emma Nolan disconnected from her peers in high school, preferring to keep to herself. In her sophomore year of high school, she decided to try and join the boy’s wrestling team because she was bored. She didn’t expect herself to become the champion of the most bullied kid in school or the secret best friend of the school queen. She also didn’t expect to join a club that would change her life. In the present, Emma is trying to cope with a humiliating loss in her martial arts career. She claims to be “training” but is stuck in limbo between wanting to retire and try again. She is isolated from her former best friend, Regina Mills, a local celebrity chef and the rest of her old friends. When one of them calls her with an idea to honor their deceased teacher, she is confronted with unresolved feelings and questions about how powerful love truly is.

A Glamour of Truth by PrincessCharming (T): After 2x10, Regina uses magic to show Emma the obvious truth. A tentative trust forms between them amid hilarious bickering. With Emma's help, Regina struggles to regain a place in her son's life... until Cora arrives, wanting her daughter back. Pieces of Regina's past emerge showing that the board was set long before the game started. The final battle begins soon.

His Dark Materials 'verse by MoonlitMidnight (M): A modern Alternate Universe in which Dæmons (the external physical manifestation of a person's 'inner self' that takes the form of an animal) are present. In which Emma and Regina have led slightly different lives and they make slightly different choices.

How Many Miles to Avalon? (WIP) by RavenOutlander (E): Regina would do anything to save Emma from the darkness and bring her back home safe and sound. Even put up with the two idiots, Captain Guyliner and a bunch of dwarves she decidedly wanted to drop off at the nearest exit. But in their search for Emma, they find that she might not need that much saving after all. Caught up in a search for the infamous Philosopher Stone, an all out war between DunBroch and Camelot, and ghosts from the past to haunt her every waking moment, Regina finds herself scrambling to keep her and her family's happy endings from falling apart.

The Hyperion by FrankenSpine (M): After wishing upon what she believes is a shooting star, Emma Swan finds herself aboard the Hyperion, the royal starship of an alien Queen from a faraway galaxy. She quickly learns of the tensions between the Queen's people and her own, but the Queen takes an interest in her and agrees to take her away from Earth forever. Adventure awaits. *(Loosely based on Guardians of the Galaxy with just a hint of Farscape)*

If Wishes Came True (It Would've Been You) by Angeii_K (M): After Regina films a guest appearance on her friend Neal’s popular show, he invites her to spend the weekend with him and his girlfriend. What she never expected was to actually like the woman. Sparks fly between the two, which results in them questioning everything and making choices they will later regret. 4 years later, they meet again in the most unexpected of ways. Now co-stars on the same show, they are forced to work through the emotions from their last encounter. What will happen next? Only time will tell.

The King Doesn’t Have To Know (WIP) by highheelsandchocolate (M): The White Knight had never seen anyone like her before: the Queen was nothing short of mesmerizing. Her possessive yet neglectful husband, however, was another thing entirely.

The Lich by Dangereaux (M): Gay disaster Emma, exasperated Regina, and a monster. A Halloween special.

Maybe if We Close Our Eyes we Can Reach the Stars by wellthizizdeprezzing (T): Emma is a lonely astronaut. Regina is an adventuring alien. Their paths cross leading them onto a journey of new discovery. Between galaxies and many miles of cold black space, despite not speaking the same language, they manage to fall for each other. An out of this world love story.

A prisoner long forgotten by sugarsweet_19 (M): ‘I wish I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood and as black as the wood of the window-frame. Soon after she had a little girl, who was as white as snow, with lips as red as blood and with her hair as black as the ebony of the window-frame. She was therefore called Snow-white.” This is how our story starts but how will it end?The evil queen as been locked up in a tower and forgotten that is until princess Emma looks for a place to hid from her parents after they tell her she has to marry Neal the son of the dark one.

Revenge of the Three Little Pigs by mskyo (M): Regina and Emma find themselves alone and looking for the rest of their party. The Evil Queen must face the consequences of her past actions. Will Emma come to her aid, or understand that justice must be served... *Some chapters have fairly graphic sex, and violence*

Things I Almost Remember by cheshire6845 (T): A/U Despite an oncoming war between the Dark and the Light, Emma and Regina are best friends growing up in the Enchanted Forest. When war does come, they find themselves on opposite sides. Regina will have to defy her mother to save Emma. Will Emma be able to save Regina when Cora curses her daughter to live in the Land without Magic?

What We Make (WIP) by DiazTuna (M): “My mother.” He says calmly. He’d known all along, she’s aware. But he’d known that today would be the day that would get this going. She wants to ask what it was like, to have woken up this morning, laced up his boots and walked into hell just knowing. “It’s programmed the cyborg to kill her. Before I have a chance to be born.” -In which the leader of the future sends his best soldier back to the past to save his mother from a killer cyborg. Terminator AU.

The Wrong Way by pcworth (M): Takes place right after Zelena steals Regina's heart. Zelena offers Regina a chance to go back in time with her and change both of their lives for the better. But what will be the price of that decision. Slow-burn to SwanQueen

zombie trash by 13pens (T): Zelena could have her brain and eat it, too. Fic operates on three premises 1. this takes place in any universe where zelena is a reformed asshole 2. zombies are a thing and exist iZombie style 3. i have NO chill

[allandoflimbo]

Ashens (Part 24)

Summary: She falls in love with Bucky Barnes from the moment she sees him. Bucky, still in love with a woman from his past, hates Y/N and plans to make her life miserable. To both their dismay, they are assigned together to go undercover into The Capitol for six months. There, they develop a heartbreaking friend with benefits agreement. Dystopian.

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 4,700

Rating: M for Mature, E for explicit. Enemies to lovers trope, sharing a bed trope, friends with benefits trope, temporarily unrequited love, heavy and angry sex, heavy on the angst, and very strong language.

Waging wars to shake the poet and the beat

I hope it's gonna make you notice

“…I’m in the military, sir…”

“…James, that’s my father, okay? If anything, let’s just be glad he didn’t kill you. He’s like that with everyone…And the soldier thing, he’s weird about that. I’m not sure why…”

Bucky lies awake in bed, fluffy pillow behind his head and one leg peeking out from the blankets, as random memories knack away at his brain in pulses. They weren’t new memories, but they were memories that he never looked at the way he was now.

He doesn’t know why now, he doesn’t know what triggered it, but they were clicking together.

After years of replaying the same moments in his head, there was a nagging feeling that was telling him that there was something not adding up.

He doesn’t know if it’s because he’s seeing things differently, if he’s feeling things differently.

Whatever it was, he knew there was something…off.

There was something off about Daisy’s story about her dad’s story, something was off about the way he was against Bucky fighting in the military, and her death was coinciding so much with his capture.

He doesn’t like the feeling in his stomach as he remembers.

When Bucky asked about her brother and what that whole commotion back at the club was she was blatantly honest with him.

“My father’s not a good guy. He’s been wanting some something from one of these performers that was suppose to be there last night, but turns out they weren’t even on the set list. He had lied about it, we don’t know where he is.”

Bucky raises a brow at this, “You do his dirty work for him?”

“No, I don’t like to get involved in that. It’s a dangerous lifestyle. I have to think about my future family. I was only there yesterday because my brother wanted to get me out of the house for once.”

Bucky isn’t too gleam on the fact that her family are borderline criminals and that she basically supports it, and for a fraction of a second he almost doesn’t buy it, but he decides to mention this later on, not wanting to ruin their moment.

Bucky shifts his leg as he continues to remember that conversation. Why was he not against it? Why did he never question the crimes? Was he that distracted by her?

Bucky smiles at her comment, but then his brows furrowed together in an adorable way that made Daisy giggle and bring her hand to his cheek, “What is it, James?”

What is it, James?

Bucky looks over to see you laying next to him, sat up with your back against the headboard reading some book with a beige cover.

You hadn’t taken notice of his self discomfort yet, emerged in your reading, tucking your bottom lip into your mouth.

Why was he remembering all of this now? Why was he feeling sick?

When they pulled away she slowly dragged her thumb across his plump bottom lip. He watched her like she was the most gorgeous and interesting thing on the planet.

“James?” He responded with a sound on confirmation and she continued, “do you think we are moving too fast?”

He grabbed her hand that was on his face and for a fraction of a moment she thought that that was it, they were over. This was clearly too unrealistic. But instead he brought her hand up over both his lips and he kissed her gingerly.

“Yes.” He whispered behind her hand, making sure he was making direct eye contact with her.

Her face dropped. “Yes?” Her voice was worried, cautious.  

He started trailing kisses down her hand, her wrist, her forearms. He leaned down and kissed the side of her neck making her groan.

It wasn’t that Daisy didn’t like being pampered but she wanted to take this very seriously. With a reluctant sigh - because what he was doing to her flesh just felt so good - she delicately removes her arm from Bucky’s grasp. He narrowed his eyes as she moved away towards the head board, suddenly wondering if maybe he said the wrong thing.

Her eyes trickled his features and down his perfect little nose.

“I knew it since the moment I laid my eyes on you. That’s how you know it’s real. This isn’t crazy, it’s ludicrous. But it works for us. I want to be with you.”

After his little speech Daisy looked him dead in the eye, not batting one lash.

“Then come have dinner with my family.”

Was it too fast? He had barely known her and she was asking him to meet her family. Criminals.

But why would she give away such dire information if it were true?

Bucky sat up slowly, as if if he were to move too quickly, the bed would collapse underneath him.

His eyes had a far away look in him, and he was as pale as he felt.

You feel him shift and your eyes flicker up to him.

You frown.

Her blue eyes glisten with gentle tears, probably thinking the same exact thing. None of it still feels real.

Her, she, doesn’t feel real.

They spent nearly every night together just talking about what Bucky would do when he came back home after camp. Things like how they would have to go see the stars on the back of an outskirts farmhouse, how they would have to go to every club in the city and laugh their night away, how he would take her to coney island with him and Steve and show her a “good time” on the ferris wheel, and how they would definitely have to meet her family.

“They’re great, you’ll love them.” She had said as they laid in bed together just hours before, merely cuddling with clothes on.

“Oh, come on doll, even your Dad?”

Daisy hesitated for a moment and her hand that was rubbing his chest stopped suddenly.

Bucky noted this and they met eyes.

Bucky feels his heart palpitate and he opens and closes his right hand, sitting up.

“Bucky, what’s wrong?” You ask softly, closing your book.

“Dad has been gone for four weeks and I don’t know why. Jimmy has gone with him- it’s just me and mother. I overheard her saying something about Germany but I’m not quite sure.. Or maybe it was something else. Though none of that matters to me, James- I want you. Please come home to me.”

For some reason, a chill ran down his back as he reread the words “something about Germany”.

Like an awful memory that has never happened, he sees a child in front of him. It was a little girl and she screamed in agony for mercy. She was getting strangled to death by his own hand, a silver glint caught his eye-

“James!”

“Bucky.”

Your voice pulls him out of his trance for just a moment.

He looks up to you, your eyes interlacing in a silent conversation of understanding.

He was revealing something to himself and you could tell that whatever that was it was leaving him overcome by feelings.

At the end of the day, he knows that he’s just insanely protective of Steve. Which is why his arm instinctively goes around him when Rogers almost gets hit by a speeding vehicle that abruptly stops to halt in front of them on the curb. With his mind far away, he hadn’t realized they were already standing on the sidewalk in front of one bright sign labeled Cotton Club.

Had Bucky known better, he would’ve had him on his left.

After that introduction, the two boys look over to the object that almost killed them.

It was pure black, the countless lights coming from the surrounding buildings and cars bouncing off its surface. The rain must’ve made it even shinier, the lights made a reflection so bright that it had everyone staring. Men looked in awe and a young paper boy, standing on the corner working over time, wondered if that would someday be his future.

With a look of disgust, Steve was repulsed by the obscurity of the man’s driving having nearly hit him. He wondered why people had no respect and he desperately wanted to punch his face in. Either that or give him a pep talk about general safety.

“What a twit.” He snarls, dusting off his small suspenders and kicking the invisible debris off his lapels.

Bucky’s face held something different. It explained why the woman staring had looked on in pure jealousy. He stared forward completely emotionless. He was neither annoyed at the fact that he almost just got run over and killed and nor in obsession over the Duesenberg J.

It was the beautiful goddess emerging from the passenger seat that caught his full attention.

On her left hand was a pearl and diamond bracelet and she used it to skim over the top of the priceless car door for leverage to push herself gracefully up from the leather seat. Her other hand was wrapped up in a prestige white glove. It held onto the hem of her silver sparkling gown, a long white cigar between her digits. Her gorgeous dress looked heavy, you could tell it was so properly made and expensive because it must’ve weighed as much as her petite self. The reason being that it hugged her body at just the perfect places, showing off her curves gracefully.

Her perfect blonde hair was pulled slick back by a diamond hair clip to the side in huge voluminous waves. The dress showed just enough back, the material dipping down towards the floor, the dip ending just above her bottom. The entire thing was held by two tiny silver straps on her shoulders.

In a sentimental Mood by Duke Ellington seemed to have played perfectly in sync with the exact moment she shut the door behind her. She looked up to read the sign, her perfect profile looking up in awe.

Bucky stands up from the bed, back rigid and face hard with anger.

No.

It couldn’t be.

He swallows thickly, gaze going towards you again.

He doesn’t know why he keeps looking at you.

Ironically, beneath his anger and betrayal, he also began to feel embarrassment.

He’s momentarily startled out of his trance when he feels a small hand grab his elbow.  He looks down and his eyes meet a small concerned Steve. Well, to be fairly honestly, he looked more pissed than concerned.

Bucky doesn’t feel the patience to deal with talking anything out, he’s too busy thinking about Daisy. But he feels like he should at least say something so he can get everyone off his back, “What is it?”

Steve looks at him likes he’s crazy and then manically gestures towards the entrance of the club, probably pointing to where Daisy just left through.

“Bucky, what the heck was that? Who was that? You know her?”

“I didn’t know her. No.” Bucky doesn’t realize he’s saying it out loud.

He’s shaking his head to himself, mumbling.

“Bucky, who are you talking to?” You’re growing even more concerned by the second now.

The silence was broken by his strong voice.

“You’re real.”

She smiles in a way that makes him smile too. It was contagious and bright. He caresses her skin one more time.

He felt her own hand come over his and she whispers, “I’m real.”

“Not real.”

You are more than concerned at this point.

“What are you talking about?”

“Maybe it was the fact that my body had finally developed into a women’s body. My breasts were now fully perked and my legs were long and porcelain gorgeous; all I knew was they figured I could be put to good use.”

He shook his head and Bucky blinked away heavy tears.“I-“

The pretty woman rolled her eyes and crossed her legs, revealing a long slit that ran up her dress. It was just enough skin for Bucky’s hand to get sweaty.

He waited until the perfect opportunity when the man had walked towards the direction of the stage, making his way into the back behind the curtain.

“It wasn’t real.”

“You do his dirty work for him?”

“It wasn’t real.”

“My father’s not a good guy.”

Bucky remembers them poking him with IV drops and then sticking his head in a blender. His owns screams fill his head. It was so painful.

“Reason unknown, ongoing investigation"

“I wasn’t going to let you keep her. She enticed you. She won you. It was always supposed to be you.”

“…blonde 21 year old was found shot…”

“Daisy,” he whispered. He traced her features with his hand, and just like that the fear escaped his eyes, and instead of scared he was now feeling complete love and he was ready because knew this is what he wanted forever. He wanted her, “Will you marry me?”

“…Her family has been under investigation after her father’s disappearance —…”

“But you jeopardized it, Soldat. It wasn’t real.”

The memories are sucked out of him like a vacuum and his dark eyes meet yours, again, across the bed.

You had never seen his pupils so blown before.

You were terrified.

Your eyes go down to his flesh hand that is twitching against his thigh.

“Bucky.” You say cautiously, one more time. It was almost like you were afraid to get closer to him.

“I—“ his voice was hoarse.

He looks away and clears his throat. He blinks away the heavy daze, allowing it all to sink in until it settles in his stomach in a surprising pool of acceptance.

He sees you again and for some reason he feels okay.

It scares him.

It scared him how you took something that had been bothering him for so long, away that quickly.

In that moment he knows.

“I remembered something.” Your eyebrows came together suddenly. Nearly moments ago he looked heartbroken but now he just looked shocked and angry.

“What did you remember? I thought you had your memories back. In Wakanda.”

“I-I did,” he squeaks out running a hand through his hair, “maybe I’m just remembering differently, or adding pieces together, I don’t know, I can’t tell. It has to be, because it makes sense. It makes so much sense now, and I can’t—and she—”

“Bucky you’re rambling,” he stops and you continue to look at each other. His face drops all traces of anger and it softens, “Talk to me, I’m right here.” You whisper.

Bucky looks down at you and nods. No hesitancy.

“Give me your hands.” You say, reaching for him. He doesn’t hold back from doing so, and once you have his hands in yours, you pull him up onto the bed so he’s kneeling on it next to you.

Bucky takes a few minutes to compose himself before he says it:

“I think Daisy and her family were Hydra.” He says it like he’s afraid of his own words.

As if every word in that phrase was a curse word.

Somehow, it relieves him.

His chest feels light, shoulders worn. He can breathe.

+ + +

“I should’ve known it was too fast. Too perfect,” you’re also stunned as he tells you everything, his hands still in yours, “but—but I don’t think she was always hydra. I think she wanted out when I was captured and they killed her for it.”

You don’t deny it, that hurts. Despite never knowing the girl and secretly holding envy for her, it pains you.

“Oh, Bucky.”

He shakes his head, eyebrows furrowing together.

“But it was a lie. She enticed me, she fucking—“ Bucky sucks in a deep breath, “she was trying to lure me in. There was nothing real about it.” He says the word like it’s venom on his lips.

You feel him rub his thumb over the back of your hand.

“You don’t know that -”

He shakes his head again, “She was Hydra!” He doesn’t say it angrily as much as he says it in a way to announce it to himself.

He needed to say it out loud. He needed to let it sink in.

You watch Bucky as he becomes completely numb, and somehow free, in front of you.

For some reason you expected more heartbreak from him for discovering something so horrible about a woman he claimed he loved so much, a woman he wanted to marry, but instead all you got from him was anger and acceptance.

Little did you know, Bucky was in the same boat as you.

Why wasn’t he as heat shattered as he’d expect?

“I-“ he’s speechless as he looks around, trying to find something, but he does’t know what.

You think you’re more shocked than him and you quickly grab his arm, bringing him against you for a tight hug.

He hugs you back immediately, hand running up your shoulder blade and onto the back of your hair.

Minutes pass by. Many minutes.

“It was all a lie,” he whispers still holding onto. you, “All of it. I really was alone. I thought I finally had someone, but—It wasn’t real.”

You don’t know what to say as you run your hand up the back of his head.

It’s not until you pull him in tighter that he realizes it.

It was you.

You were there reason this didn’t hurt as much as he thought it would. His heart no longer wanted to be with someone who was long gone.

It wanted to stay here.

Here.

He never thought he would ever feel this way ever again, and he never thought he would trust this hard ever again.

Realizing truth relived him of buried pain, and he wanted you to keep holding him, to keep helping him go through this.

He says your name softly.

“Yes?”

“I want to talk about everything.”

You stiffen for a moment as you let his words sink in. You weren’t exactly sure what he was talking about.

“What are you talking about?” You ask.

“All of it. Everything that I did. I need to get it out, I can’t keep doing this, holding it in, keeping it inside —”

The euphoria through your blood is addicting.

“Tell me.”

He loved slow dancing.

He loved the Yankees.

He loved math and Howard Stark.

He went to the Stark Expo every year.

He loved The Hobbit and he loved jazz.

He loved New York City.

He loved Brooklyn the most.

He misses flat hats.

He loved telling jokes.

His mother died when he was young.

His sister was taken away from him.

He cried when he couldn’t see her.

His father died not too long after.

He never enlisted despite his love for the military.

He was drafted.  

He experienced World War II but on the enemy side.

He fought with Hitler’s and Hydra’s men.

He was loved by the KGB.

He loved Prague.

He trained the girls in the red room.

He remembers every young girl.

He was told to kill four kids on a mission once in Bucharest.

He was tormented, beaten raw, and kept in a concrete cell between cryo periods.

He was only occasionally fed, most years spent asleep.

He was treated like an animal. They tied him to the wall once in the cell, with a chain around his neck.

He was brain washed.

He was sexually assaulted by Hydra.

He doesn’t remember if he was raped, which could be his brain’s way of protecting himself from more trauma.

He reminds you that loved Howard Stark.

He killed Howard Stark.

He killed Maria Stark.

He was the one that stole the super soldier serum from the Stark’s and provided it to Hydra.

He was the fist of Hydra.

He killed many other good men. Over two dozen assassinations.

He killed JFK.

He never wanted to do any of it.

He remembers all of it.

They named him a hero on the Wall of Valor before S.H.I.E.L.D fell.

He was taken into Wakanda, freed of his trigger words.

He still loved New York City.

He was pardon him, despite everything.

They named him an Avenger.

He remembers it all.

You’re laying down facing each other and you continue to watch him as he tells you everything.

It’s one of the most surreal experiences of your life and you find yourself in total awe.  

This was the Bucky Barnes you had been longing to see. This was the man you knew was hidden beneath layers of hurt and anger.

You had seen it before he even told you.

The fact that he even trusted you enough to be this transparent with you is what makes you so happy.

His eyes brightened as he played with a string on the blanket between you.

“And Friends,” his voice is small and there’s a little smile on his mouth. Your heart swells as you watch it, “I love Friends.”

You bite your tongue as you smile.

Bucky stared at you, just as amazed at himself as he was at you. He couldn’t believe he told it all to you.

It was as if Daisy’s image had begun to dissolve and he was finally seeing clearly.

He didn’t hate you. He never hated you.

His fingers peak out slowly to take a hold of your pinky.

It was the opposite. He wanted you.

He feels himself breaking when you pull away from his touch. His smile falls.

“I’m proud of you,” you say quietly, sitting up again, “For finally talking about it.” You mean it, “Thank you.”

It takes him a few seconds to eventually look away and he turns onto his back. Bucky drapes an arm over his stomach, letting out a long breath of contentment.

He felt free.

To do what?

He looks over at you again as you pull your book back out.

This. This is what freedom got him. You.

But it you weren’t his. He clears his throat.

“How are things with your boyfriend?”

You don’t like talking about Pietro with Bucky.

“It’s fine,” you answer anyway, “We only had one date. And I got sick, so hopefully the next one will be better.”

Bucky swallows thickly. Why was he feeling like this? He should be happy for you. You wanted this. You deserved this.

“What do you plan to do when it’s time for us both to leave and go back?” He asks.

You don’t miss the way he mentions both of you to leave and your eyes quickly flicker to him.

“I don’t know yet,” you say hoarsely, filled with unexpected relief.

+ + +

Bucky doesn’t remember experiencing this kind of happiness since he was nineteen and him and Steve went to go see a baseball game after scoring a date with two pretty girls on the F train.

He’s happy.

Ashen peaks up at him from behind dark lashes, smiling so hard his eyes peak up at the side, turning them into thin slits. Bucky’s aren’t too far off as he mimics the boy’s laughter.

“Connect four?” Bucky asks, chuckling.

“Yeah, you’ve gotta try it. It’s so fun.” The Ashens says happily, pulling out the little game from underneath his bed. Bucky wants to ask him why he has it hidden, but he doesn’t. He just reminds him that they need to stay quiet, “plus, it’s the only game I have anyway. But it’s fun Mr. Bucky.”

“Haha, alright lets try it.” Bucky says.

They sit across from each other on the floor, setting up the little game and dividing their colored chips. Ashen’s goes first, dropping in a yellow one.

Bucky picks up a red one with his flesh hand and drops it right next to the yellow. They continue for a bit until Ashens notices Bucky isn’t connecting his colors.

“No, you have to try to get a straight line and connect it!” He laughs, “you suck at this."

“Oh, no! What did I do?” Bucky exclaims, laughing.

“You’re not very smart for an Avenger.” Ashens remarks.

“Okay,” Bucky points at him playfully, smiling, “That’s mean.”

“I’m sorry but it is true.”

“Cut me some slack.” Bucky says, smiling.

They play for a little longer until Ashens ends up beating him.

Bucky sticks his tongue out at the boy, but smiles. He eventually caught on to the game and let him win. But he doesn’t need to know that.

“Mr. Bucky,” Ashen says after he slides the game back under his head. He brings his legs up to his chest and hugs them, "Will you tell me now why you are here to save me?”

Bucky licks his lip and sighs. He looks out Ashens' high rise window and then back to him again. “Not yet.”

“Should I be afraid.”

“No. I won’t let anything happen you. I promise.”

Ashens doesn’t say anything as he lets his Mike Wazowski slippers hit each other.

“Do you have any kids? Like my age?”

The question surprises Bucky, and for a moment a feeling of longing hits him. “No. I don’t.”

“Aww okay.”

Bucky stares at Ashens little sad face and his heart breaks.

“I always wanted to, though,” Bucky whispers, “But that was years ago.”

“When you were in world war one?”

Bucky smiles.

“Two, not one, but yeah,” it’s not a lie, Bucky knows that if his loved would’ve went a different way, he would have definitely had kids. To know he could never go back to such simplicity broke his heart, “Something like that.”

There was something, that even so many months later, still bothered Bucky. It was something so small, and it probably didn’t really affect you as much as it affected him, but it was something you said to him.

It was one of your many fights and the way you had spatted at him about buying you plan B after you had sex.

He didn’t want to burden you. What you two had done had been irresponsible. An atmosphere like this was no place and time for an unwanted baby.

You weren’t ready for one, let alone his.

At the time, it wasn’t that he wouldn’t want the baby, if you were to have gotten pregnant, he would have loved that child with everything. He was thinking about you.

He hated to think that he gave you that pill as a gesture to say that he wanted nothing to do with you.

If so, you were wrong.

He wanted you to be happy, just smart.

He cared about you.

And now, possibly more.

As he continues to watch Ashens giggling over his slippers, that feeling of longing washes over Bucky again.

He knows he needs to tell you.

+ + +

You still weren’t feeling well. Maybe it was your nerves. The end of the mission was getting closer by each day and you never expected you’d have to leave with a little kid. You still hadn’t met Ashens, but Bucky says he’s a delight.

Ashens has changed him. You took notice immediately and it made you happy. This whole experience would be good for him.

After Bucky had poured out his heart to you, you knew you needed to get away again. That was the dance now. You get pulled, you take a step back. You couldn’t let yourself go there anymore, no matter how hard it was.

Pietro would be the driving force to help you.

You just wish Bucky would stop doing things that he probably realized he wasn’t even doing. The way he touches your face and your hand, or some times the way he looks at you, was not appropriate for two fuck buddies who stopped…fucking.

You were still convinced that he wanted you two to go your separate ways at the end of this mission. Him indirectly saying he was going to walk out with you made you happy, it could’ve been Ashens that helped him have a change of heart, whatever it was, this thing between you had to dissolve anyway.

You couldn’t keep doing that to himself, even when he would blur your lines.

You really wished he would stop doing that.

That night you after the ball, you were almost sure that he was developing feelings for you - finally - it’s why you tried to get him to finally tell you why the kiss bothered him.

Bucky never told you the truth, and you were too tired to keep digging.

You were glad that was the last time.

It was over. All of it was over.

Your stomach churns again and you decide to make yourself some tea and head to bed.

@snakeeatery17 @utterlyhopeful-fics , @marvelfan1017, @iheartsebastianstan , @annathesillyfriend , @redhairedfeistynerd, @perksofbeingabookworm, @amyrose051, @meegggoooo, @morganclaire4 , @captainchrisstan, @bxndys , @shoesonpointe ,  @writerwrites, @rainbowkisses31, @lindatreb , @littlemissner98 , @dezzylou24, @ayeitslelee , @hardygal69 ,  @emmabarnes , @redbarn1995@thequeenreaders@ilovemysupersoldiers@maximumplaidzonknerd@ceapa-mica @s-trawberryv-eins@buckysknifecollections@sobangie@lindatreb@theseuscmander@nervous-plant @wildmoonflower @aya-fay@appreciating-fanfics@kaitlynisinfinite@justreadingfics@kaitieskidmore1 @mrsdancing​ @everythingiloveandcherish @shinykoalacat​ @dragongirl31 @kaitlynisinfinite​ @alwaysclassyeagle