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rabotimagines · 3 months ago

Note

I'm so glad my English wasn't bad! I put it on goggle translate a few times to see if it was right 😭 (And I do agree with you on TFONE part haha!)

I was talking to another friend of mine about your newest work and we both loved it very much! We tried to imagine the opposite happening, a Decepticon Reader trying to pull off the same scheme that is, and it all just ended in laughs!

We think it would end with the Autobot worried about you one way or another.

Starscream? You're either VERY desperate or the bar is simply THAT low

Shockwave? They are unsure if he is threatening you or is simply bad at flirting

Soundwave? ...I like Soundwave, so no bad mouthing for him hahaha!

Again, I love your works! I look forward to the next one!

thank you for enjoying my works!! Please don't feel shy to share your thoughts with me too about my certain works please. I eat the talking and comments from you guys about the things I write and use them like energy to power and I can write more because of them :)

Plus I also like talking about these mechs hahaha But let's do flirty Decepticon Reader then!

"Battlefield flirting" pt2! GN BOT Reader x Prowl, Ironhide, Ratchet, Bumblebee

Summary: The Autobots get sexually frustrated by the enemy (you)

G1 characters: Prowl, Ironhide, Ratchet, Bumblebee,

Genre/Theme: Cross faction flirting/annoying and sexually frustrating the Autobots

Warnings: Con Reader being a bit mean to the mechs (You are enemies after all), Mildly horny Autobots

Pronouns: You, Your, Yours

Notes: GN Decepticon! Reader, Reader is written as older in mind. (mentioned in Ironhide and Ratchets parts)

"Hey gorgeous! Hope your medics not busy!" Prowl registers exactly who is saying the phrase, but he's too slow to stop you from shooting him right in the thigh. Prowl almost crumbles but forces his leg to brace, and pain shoots up his frame as a result. He doesn't fall, however, so he has enough time to whip around and block the punch you aim at his helm. You lock optics, and you grin at him. You then do something his logic center isn't even accounting for. And promptly drop your blaster like it wasn't apart of your advantage.

Your now free servo latches onto Prowls arm and yanks him forward. You're suddenly chassis to chassis, and your servo is preventing him from raising his own blaster to use. And then your em field unabashedly runs along his frame. Prowls optics snap wide, and your faceplates are almost touching- "Hey." Is all you say before promptly rearing back and slamming your helm into Prowls olfactory. Pain hits him hard and fast, and you both go tumbling to the ground in a fit.

Prowl does not like you. You were the enemy, and you were high on the Autobot priority take downs list. A nightmare on the battlefield and an even more annoying mech to interact with. Your latest attempt at throwing them off their guard was your new now blatant- flirtatious nature. Names that belong in a habsuite and an em field that's completely and utterly unrestrained. Prowl despised running into you on the battlefield. Now, he didn't have to just calculate your battle actions. Now he had to account for your flirting so the others wouldn't get killed due to being caught off guard by it.

Prowl was far from a fool, so he knows exactly what the heat in his frame is when it starts. Now, does that mean he's accepting of it? No. Prowl denies it and denies it. Prowl tries to reset his logic center multiple times, defrag, and even recharge in hopes it will disappear like a stress glitch. Unfortunately, it does not, and Prowl is left having to acknowledge his sudden inexplicable attraction towards you. (He does so with a gritted jaw and clenched servos.) Prowl knows he can not afford to try and also calculate avoidance measures on top of everything else for something as petty as his confounded frames incomprehensible decisions. So Prowl stands tall and keeps his optics out for you on the battlefield per usual.

Prowl barely comprehends his logic centers idea of using his stasis cuffs to keep you as a non threat for the rest of the battle. All before, Prowl's dismissing the prompt like rust plague when the heat suddenly returned at the thought.

Ironhides trying to put the fire out with Inferno, and they'd split to keep it contained. "Heya hotshot!" Ironhide isn't fast enough to react, and you slam into his chassis with enough force his windshield glass cracks. Ironhide hits the ground hard and scrambles to get his legs back under himself. "Oops! Hope you can handle the heat, baby!" Ironhide realizes you're throwing something- that's a frag grenade sleeve! Ironhide curses and throws himself through a wall of flames to avoid the worst of it but still gets thrown from the explosion. Ironhide grits his jaw and engages his liquid nitrogen cannon while down. He hears the slightest bit of movement, and he's shooting, and Ironhide lets himself grin when he hears a sound of pain.

Ironhide puts the wall of flame out, and through the steam, he sees you standing a bit away with your weapon raised. Ironhide can also see one of your pauldrons is now visibly cracked and lightly steaming. "Aw, what's the matter? Can't handle a lil' ol' cold, Con?" Ironhide can't help enjoying the sharp expression that curls on your derma.

Ironhides known you for vorns. More than enough fights to the death to mild scraps for minor supplies. Ironhide would say he's practically intimate with ya with the amount of times you've spilled each others energon with neither of ya deactivatin'. So he's not exactly too surprised when you start running your sparkdamned mouth a little bit more than usual. The names and the em field were new, sure, but they fit the vermin you were just right. It's almost a touch scary how well the sweetly said but obviously poisonous phrases drip from ya on the battlefield. It doesn't tip Ironhide up too much. it just annoys him. Why run your sparkdamned mouth when you could be dying for Ironhide instead? Now your em field makes his plating instinctively clamp down on itself. (But that's neither here nor there!)

It takes Ironhide a bit to realize what the new heat he's feeling towards you is. Since well, he always got fragging hot with some good ol' fashioned rage when he had to fight you for long enough. So it takes Ironhide a hot klick to realize it ain't just anger that's suddenly making his engine rev loud in response to you. And Ironhide just curses and drags his servo down his own faceplate. Slag it all. Ironhides, been at this for too long with ya. Especially if his frames even thinking about you like that. But honestly- Ironhide ain't as ashamed as he knows he definitely should be. It wouldn't be anything Primus no- but maybe just one time? (Or maybe even a few times?) In a heated corner away from either of your bases? To just rip into each other like you've always done but just in another way? Yeah, Ironhide lets himself think about it, at least.

Ironhide also lets himself think about shutting ya up real pretty like, the next time you smile at him on the battlefield.

Ratchet typically wasn't a front liner, but slag happened, and sometimes he needed to be on the front line. Or he just happened to wind up in the middle of the worst of it. Rather, thankfully, it's the latter, and he's not gauntlet deep in someone's chassis when a voice rings much too close to his audial. "Darling doctor, you lost? Turn around real slow for me." Ratchet jerks, feeling the blaster barrel on his back and turns slow but firm knowing Primus well that if you wanted to, he'd be shot or stabbed immediately. You've got your blaster in your servo- and your em field brushes against him and Ratchet cannot hide his frown. "Aw, don't be like that. Don't you wanna be my sweet hostage?" You purr.

"I think I'd rather be fifty vorns away from you, you old coot." You just smiled at him, and Ratchet wants to punch you for it. Even though he knows it won't do much now.

You grabbed Ratchets' arm and start to drag him towards the others. "C'mon, we can have a cute ol' fashioned club together... don't you think?"

Ratchets patched up enough of them and heard what you'd done to them on the battlefield, and he's even had his own personal run ins with you. You were dangerous and quite the piece of fragging work to put it bluntly. So when you start with your words and your touchy little em field Ratchets unamused. Your words may be sweet, but Ratchets old like you, and he knows exactly what your intentions are. You're just playing the felinoid with the turborat. Your em field, however, is genuine. So that just makes Ratchet believe you must have a serious glitch of some sort to be flirting with the enemy and mean it. He's also a touch miffed because now he's got other Autobots compartmentalizing slag in the medbay about you flirting with them. And now Ratchet has to tell the younger members you just had a wire crossed the wrong way, and they shouldn't focus too much on your nonsense.

It takes Ratchet a klick to realize what the heat is when it very abruptly starts to kick up when you'd interact with him. A smile or your saccharine words- and Ratchet is upset with himself. He's not even mad he's just- upset. Really? It had to be you? You of all mechs? That his array had suddenly decided to find interest in? Primus give him strength. Regardless, Ratchet was a professional, and he's been around for too long to let something little like this get to him. He just accepts it and doesn't let it him bother him too badly. It's not like you interacted with one another all that much since he wasn't typically out on the front of the battlefield. Ratchet would stay professional with you, the enemy, as long as the situation called for it.

And if Ratchet lets himself fantasize about strapping you down in the medbay and teaching you some manners on lonely nights- well then, that's Ratchets business now, wasn't it?

"Bumblebee, look out!" Bumblebee hears Spike call out a nano-klick after he feels an em field trail hot along his frame.

"Oh, lucky me. A Honeybee." Bumblebee jerks around and sees a blur before he's hit hard in the chassis. The hit knocks him flat on the concrete, and he coughs when his fuel tank actually lurches from the force of it. Bumblebee sees pedes- pedes he realizes are yours. You tutted at Bumblebee "Poor thing." And Bumblebee feels vaguely nauseous when your em field practically seeps into his frame from where you were leering over him. Bumblebee forces himself to look upward only to find you kneeling down so you were even closer to him. Your servo reaches out and grabs his jaw, forcing him to meet your gaze.

And you smile at him. Like genuinely. And the sight makes Bumblebee almost assume you were kind. "I'm gonna have to break you a bit dear, sorry about this." Your unbothered smile being the last thing Bumblebee remembered before he got hit hard enough, his frame forcibly rebooted.

Bumblebee doesn't know what he's supposed to think about you. Sure! You were one of the more dangerous cons! But you'd usually never interact with the rest of them like- this. Now you'd talk even more, and your smiles were more common and, Primus, the names- Don't get Bumblebee started on the names. As if there was anything more off putting on the battlefield, then a sweet voice calling you "darling" before nearly nailing you in the optic with a blaster. Or your- touchy em field. Primus, Bumblebee hadn't felt a field that eager in vorns, and frankly, he didn't know how to stop his optics from brightening at the touch of it. Bumblebee makes an effort to avoid you if he can, to let Prowl or Ironhide, or even Optimus deal with you. They all had their own ways of handling your personality. So they didn't fumble nearly as badly as Bumblebee did.

Then the heat starts, and Bumblebee realizes after a few split encounters with you what it actually was-! Bumblebee feels so so disappointed in his frame. Well- it's not like you weren't easy on the optics or anything! But- really!? You!? Oh, Bumblebee feels like such a bad Autobot even if he knows it's not really his fault. Especially when you flirted with all of them like you did. Was it really such a bad thing he got caught up in your charms? Okay, yeah, definitely. Absolutely it was. But Bumblebee knows he's not the only one affected by you! He saw how Ironhide was looking at you when he had to try and negotiate with you on Teletrann 1. So well- at least, Bumblebee's not alone in falling for you a little bit! Bumblebee just had to make sure you wouldn't kill him when he got too distracted by you on the battlefield. He just had to pretend he didn't think about you like that... yeah. Easy...

If Bumblebee pretends hard enough, he hopes he can pretend away the hot urge for his engine to instinctively purr when you'd smile at him.

#transformers x reader #transformers x y/n #transformers x cybertronian reader #prowl x reader #ironhide x reader #ratchet x reader #bumblebee x reader #x reader #gn reader #gn y/n #reader insert #rabot requests #rabot writes #valveplug #i guesss

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jayvikstolemyheart · 4 months ago

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I’m trying to organise my thoughts in dungeons and dragons au inspired by @noodles-and-tea but it’s taking too long so I’m just doing the important jayvik part here:

Basically, Viktor the DM is running a campaign that is basically the story of arcane. Jayce is one of the players. Arcane!Viktor is an NPC that was designed to be a twist villain. Starting off as a harmless looking ally for Arcane!Jayce (and a way to help Arcane!Jayce get out of his failed charisma check in front of the council). Arcane!Viktor would eventually use the hextech to create the glorious evolution and be the final boss.

(Viktor may or may not be subconsciously projecting himself onto Arcane!Viktor.)

Viktor miscalculated how into the roleplaying Jayce would be. How quickly Jayce would make Arcane!Jayce go ‘This is OUR dream now. Viktor’s MY partner’. Viktor takes pride in his storytelling so he alters the plan a bit. Make the inevitable fallout be based on outside factors. Arcane!Viktor starts to get sicker. Piltover’s society focuses on Arcane!Jayce more, which creates a divide between PC and NPC.

But Jayce never gives up on his NPC friend. Even when Arcane!Jayce fails his insight rolls and gets manipulated by everyone and can’t tell when Arcane!Viktor is keeping secrets from him. Jayce, and thus Arcane!Jayce never gives up on his partner.

Viktor is furious by how Jayce’s roleplaying is ruining the plot line he planned, but he wants to stay faithful to Arcane!Viktor’s character (remember that projecting I mentioned before?). So as a last ditch effort, he decided that an NPC he introduced for a different character’s story: Arcane!Ambessa for Mel’s pc. Arcane!Viktor was already dying, but Jinx’s pc provides the perfect way to kill off the character with a bang.

A literal bang.

Viktor has that sadistic DM glee when he leaves that session on a cliffhanger. And the feeling returns when he opens the next session and describes what Arcane!Jayce sees slowly revealing all the chaos before finally revealing Arcane!Viktor on the floor.

Jayce is devastated and that reaches his character as well. Arcane!Jayce tries some CPR, takes of the clothes and sees the shimmer/hexcore corruption, but still keeps going.

Jayce rolls well enough to get the heart beating again, which annoys Viktor but he makes clear that Arcane!Viktor’s spine is broken, he’s on death saving throws with disadvantage cuz he’s already ill. This is the end.

But then Jayce does the unthinkable. He asks “Our lab is still in the building right? Where the Hexcore is?”

And Viktor has to watch as Arcane!Jayce uses his homebrewing against him. Viktor has to move on to the next scene so he can take some time to figure out what the HELL to do next.

But this NPC is Viktor’s subconscious right? And Viktor has a lot of self-hate. Specifically for his body but he’s going to use that self-hate to create this villain and watch everyone attack the representation of Viktor’s self-hatred. And no, Viktor is not in therapy even though he should be. He claims he has enough medical conditions to deal with then do any mental health stuff.

So the campaign goes through the events of season 2. Jayce and Ekko’s player characters have to disappear because the real people won’t be able to attend the next few sessions. Jayce will tell anyone who will listen how worried he is for his NPC friend. And Viktor plots.

Viktor finally arranges things to convince both in-game and out-game Jayce that Arcane!Viktor had to be killed. By using the love of the character against him. By showing how Arcane!Viktor will be met with a fate worse than death, along with dooming the rest of the world if nothing is done. Jayce losses hope over saving Arcane!Viktor. Real Viktor refuses to analyse how that makes him feel.

And then it’s near the end of the final battle. While the road was complicated, Viktor finally got the final boss he planned for in the beginning. Unfortunately it’s looking like a TPK for his players but Viktor’s really in the zone. Plus Ekko’s got that broken homebrew z-drive, so it will probably be fine, Viktor reasons.

Then Jayce says; “Look we’re running out of options. Maybe… can I try and reach out to Viktor one more time?”

No one’s really confident but they don’t have a choice. Ekko even uses the help action. And by that, I mean he throws the Z-drive into the Machine Herald’s face to buy Arcane!Jayce more time to talk.

And Jayce makes his speech. We all know it. Nearly everyone at the table is near tears, including Viktor.

“Why do you persist?” Arcane!Viktor asks, but it’s a question from the real Viktor as well.

“Because I promised you.” “Also, I reach out to hug him, and I’m hoping he can read my mind and see the future Vik that I saw.”

Viktor doesn’t even make Jayce roll any charisma checks by the end. He’s so touched by the speech (again refusing to analyse his feelings). He still takes his DMing seriously though and says that Arcane!Jayce must leave or he will perish, and Arcane!Viktor will stay and sacrifice himself to release everyone.

“WHAT?!” Jayce cries from the table, “You mean after everything Viktor still has to die?!”

“He played with powerful forces Jayce.” Viktor explains. “The least he could do is fix his mistakes.”

Jayce furrows his brow. “If that’s really how it is… then my character is staying with him.”

“Pardon?”

“You heard me. They made hextech together. They should finish this together. My character will say that straight to his face.”

“Wait, what?” Jinx comes out from the bathroom. “Jayce is your character dying right now?”

And so Viktor ‘s twist villain who was meant to break everyone’s hearts and be easy to hate, dies trying to reverse his mistakes knowing that he is loved, and has always been loved by the partner that’s right there be his side.

Afterwards Jayce tells Viktor that is DMing broke his heart. Viktor just laughs and pretends that Jayce just didn’t a witness a deep part of Viktor’s psyche and gave it so much kindness and love.

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flowerwiththemachinegun · 6 months ago

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Regional Music?

Slight Vincent x Ancient!Reader with no established relationship, just interest on Vince’s part. It’s just a headcanon, not an actual fic here but I enjoyed writing it. No smut here. Literally. For once.

This was an idea I had been sitting on for quite some time but not something I was going to turn into a big thing. But the regional music has me in a chokehold and wouldn’t it be cool if one could hear the planet in a far different manner? Maybe an Ancient who hears/feels negative and positive shifts in an area through the music thrumming faintly in the back of their head? The volume and sensation of the beat under your feet increases in battle or any disruptions within the region around you. This of course means you have a limited range and the regional music never overlaps. It can be helped to guide you in the right direction, or on occasion into some of the most grueling battles that would’ve been better off being avoided. Heightened emotions can also have an effect. Reader has a fighting style similar to Tifa’s. Materia use won’t be traditional for you either. Let’s take from the FF8 draw and junction system and tweak it a bit (simplify the shit out of it) and Yes I’m going to be lazy about when reader joins the party because my creativity isn’t sparking for backstory.

****

Vincent had been quite a bit intrigued by you since the moment you joined the party. At first he was skeptical, as most were. Upon hearing your need to seek out Hojo and wipe him from existence, Vincent’s mind changed. He still hadn’t disclosed the full history between himself and the madman, what he learned from you seemed just as bad. There was no way to put on a scale had it the worst from Hojo, anyone that came in contact with him suffered a similar fate. Your capabilities were proven to be of no use to Shinra. Once rendered useless, you were cast into the shadows, only being taken care of enough to keep you alive as one of Hojo’s playthings. The years spent in his lab was a period filled with torture.

You seemed to be more of a loner than himself, another thing that gravitated him to you. Often scouting regions on your own, disappearing without a word only to come back with materials or bruised and bloody. In time he became the sole person to take care of you in the case you came back injured. Vincent easily was your go to for this, the fussing others would do over you was off putting and at times annoying. Getting hurt came with the territory, shouldn’t be a big deal. Only once Vincent made the mistake of chiding you for going out on your own to get into who knows what, immediately silencing himself as he was met with a glare. You were too injury prone for his liking. Knowing you were too hard headed to listen to anyone's advice, Vincent began going on these outings with you, training you along the way to reduce your chances of getting hurt. You were a great fighter, but you fought with so much energy you were a threat to yourself.

Speaking of fighting. The way you moved was like a dance to Vincent. Graceful yet powerful, pure raw energy exuding from you that was so contagious it boosted Vincent in battle. To say he loved the way you had no problem getting in the face of your opponent was an understatement. At times he felt as though he lived for it, you moved to your own beat at all times. Mesmerizing in his eyes with the way your intensity and style would change every now and then. Notably when they reached different areas of Gaia.

Eventually Vincent felt inclined to ask why your fighting style is never consistent for very long. He knew you were an Ancient from what you told him of your past, but he hadn’t considered that one would be in tune with the planet in a vastly different way. Not in the form of music. He almost thought you were teetering on delusional had it not made perfect sense when he thought about your mannerisms on the field. Your uncanny sense of forewarning saved them many times.

“Even the towns have songs. They go along with the history, flora, fauna, and current residents of the town. The songs are created from energy held within the lands from things that have happened over time.” Vincent could hear you talk about this for the rest of his life, or well, the rest of your life. Everything about you was different, even the way you used materia. Instead drawing the power from it, the magic channeled through your hand to the rest of your body. It also happened by accident, holding any materia caused it to fuse with you, like you were a blackhole for magic. You never know exactly where it gets stored, just that you’re able to summon it as needed. The amount of power drawn from various materia increases the level of damage or healing you’re capable of. While you can use magic at any given time, the less materia you’ve stripped, the less effective your magic would be. Drawing was a necessity for you in order to keep up any worthwhile capabilities. This doesn't translate onto Summon materia.

Vincent wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or a horrifying warning, but the presence of Sephiroth evoked a nerve racking tune. One of the most complex you’ve heard thus far, the only sound that riddled you with fear. “That is not human, whatever he is supposed to be, is one that should not exist.” Being in the presence of the robed men sent, what you had dubbed the, One Winged Angel, spiraling in your mind. It was blaring, menacing, it was a warning that nothing other than pure destruction was imminent. No person came with a song, the exception being Sephiroth. What kind of energy could one possess to have such an imposing theme, one that would make the strongest of people coward. It riddled you with anxiety, more or less shaking you to the core. There was something else to it, pain. The pain was evident as the music boomed in your head. Always loud, intense, making you want nothing more than to shut out the entire world until you were the only one left. Remember, you can get a feel of Sephiroth’s history through his song, the longer you hear it, the more you understand him. He’s hurt by this world, leading Sephiroth the being the shell of himself he once was, becoming the tormentor to the world for treating him so cruelly.

You were an enigma alright, somehow getting Vincent to understand the wonders of the planet through music he wasn’t capable of hearing himself. How was he to keep himself from falling in love with you?

#ff7 #final fantasy vii #vincent valentine #vincent valentine x reader #reader insert #sephiroth

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aettuddae · 2 years ago

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hole in one — chapter 100.

⌕ synopsis: at one of the most prestigious universities in the country, where everyone is battling to be the center of attention, yu jimin is just a regular. people want her because of her beauty, but all she cares about is sharing her freaky stuff with her friends and passing her subjects. although there's one thing that might push her out of her comfort zone, revenge. when nakamura kazuha, one of the richest and most well-known students of NCU, starts to spread gossip about her for thousands of followers to see, jimin decides to get back by taking away the thing kazuha cares about the most: her perfect girlfriend, the young golf star, kwon haru.

masterlist | prev | next

[written chapter]

[warning: suggestive]

"good luck with him!" haru's voice filled the entire hotel hallway where the rooms the lordland team players were staying in were located.

"give him lots of water." recommended karina in a loud volume so that seungkwan, who was entering his room carrying a severely inebriated minhyuk, could hear.

the boy was so busy trying to keep his partner on his feet that he only responded to them with a thumbs up as he continued to push the taller one, until finally disappearing from sight. the sound of the door closing was heard.

"poor kwan, he's in for a rough night." took pity the older girl, making the other laugh.

"well, that's the boy he wanted." reminded this one teasingly.

"do you have our key?" asked haru, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall as she waited for her room to be unlocked.

"of course i have it." jimin picked up her bag and opened it to start rummaging through the things inside, looking for the card to open with.

"i told you not to lose it." the golfer complained, standing upright and approaching the girl somewhat annoyed, looking inside the accessory, but not touching.

"i didn't lose it!" she defended herself. "don't touch." she softly slapped the girl's hand which went through her belongings with the intention of speeding up the search.

"hey, does this dress look weird on me?" questioned kwon as she looked down at her clothes.

"haru, you asked the same question all night, we already told you that you look amazing." she replied as she kept trying to find the item.

"i guess this isn't my color." she continued with a listless attitude. "you lost it!" she accused jimin again as she covered her face with her hands in frustration.

"i told you i didn't lose it." she scoffed as she held up the small plastic between her fingers, victorious, and then proceeded to stick out her tongue to tease haru. "and you look beautiful, enough doubting." she pointed the card at her defiantly.

"whatever, either way, the night's over." she dismissed. "open up." she pointed her head in the direction of the door.

"haru, you seriously look great." she took a few steps towards the door, but instead of opening it, she blocked it. "look, i'll even give you compliments so you'll understand how great you look through my eyes."

"no, jimin, open the door!" she asked as she laughed at her friend's sudden proposal.

"are you a water hazard?" she blurted out with the smuggest smile possible as she held the older girl's waist to keep her from moving.

"is that the only flirt line you know?"

"you never let me finish it!"

"i already know the punch line, it's bad." she grumbled, reaching for the door key. "open!"

"how do you know the answer, who used it on you?" jimin hid the card behind her back and feigned annoyance.

"hey, i want to go to sleep." haru pleaded, with an amused expression on her face, bringing her hands to hold the younger girl's cheeks between them, as if it would make it easier for her to understand her words.

"who else told my haru that she has them soaking wet?" she pouted her lips and spoke in a higher pitch to sound cuter, which only caused haru to burst into laughter.

"friends, people who have tried to flirt with me, i don't know. i just know they've told me that one before." she rambled nonchalantly.

"and why do you let them throw that line at you? are they more important than me?" she brought a hand to her chest dramatically. "wasn't i your princess?"

"yes, you are my princess, jimin." she grabbed the opposite's shoulder, reassuring her. "now, please let me into the room."

"if i am your princess then you should deal with me first." she took a step forward, standing only inches away from each other, and rested her touch on haru's neck.

"what does that mean?" she scoffed, holding karina's waist to support her so she wouldn't lose her balance.

"please me." she commanded in a whisper, which, given the closeness, haru could hear clearly.

the older one kept quiet for a moment, her gaze static on jimin, contemplating her, -her or what she should do after that statement-. but she just let go of her body, raised her arm to reach for the key that was on the girl's grip and walked away.

"you're drunk." she accused as she finally opened the door and stepped into the room, tossing her belongings around, and removing her shoes.

"i'm not, you know i'm not." she whined as she followed her inside.

karina set her purse down on a small glass table by the entrance, then moved around to the other side to place the card in a slot in the wall, which made the room light up.

she never expected that with the light, would also come haru's body aggressively wrapping around hers and pushing her, guiding her again towards the gateway of the room, crashing her against the now closed door. and as animals, when she had her locked against that piece of wood, she captured her. trapping her mouth with her own, tasting her cherry lipstick, biting her lips as if trying to tear the skin that covered them off.

karina threw her arms around haru's neck and inflicted force to draw her even closer. the emotions overflowing her body were satisfying, she could tell she was happy at that moment, though not for sure because of how clouded her mind felt by the raw human urges her body was having, but she wanted more. reasoned that the closer haru was, the better she would feel. so all her limbs were working to hold her friend as if they were trying to become one with her.

her leg clung to haru's and slid upwards as if she was about to wrap herself around her opponent's waist, but she never succeeded, for it was just another part of her body seeking contact and warmth. still, kwon's palm twisted around it and caressed it, rising up to her thigh, lifting her dress a little, before the younger girl lost her balance and leaned it back to the ground.

yet with their lips entwined to each other's, them wandering over their bodies, and their arms holding themselves, they began to move around the place, in search of the bed positioned in the middle, right behind haru.

jimin took advantage of haru's grip on her torso and lifted one of her legs into the air, then stretched her arm back and removed with some effort her shoe. she dropped her now bare foot again, and moved into action to take off the other, but haru, who hadn't realized what the girl was doing, kept walking. because of this, the blackhaired girl, who had one foot suspended, lost her balance and fell to the floor.

"shit!" she exclaimed upon landing, as she rolled over to sit up and began rubbing the knee she had fallen over.

"what are you doing?" questioned haru exaltedly watching her with wide eyes in surprise.

"what do you mean what am i doing? i fell." she gave her a frowning look.

"are you okay?" she bent down to help her withdraw her remaining heel.

"yes, i'm fine." she affirmed tossing the shoe away. "please don't let this stop you from thinking i'm sexy." she joked, causing them both to let out a laugh.

the golfer grasped her and helped her up, then they both stood looking at each other in silence, the fall having interrupted and calmed the intense moment they were in. she lovingly arranged the younger girl's hair, who brought her lips close to hers to kiss her again. but haru didn't move, didn't reject her, but didn't reciprocate either.

"are you okay?" karina examined her sweetly, to which the girl nodded. "haru, if you regret this and don't want to do it, we can stop now. we'll go to sleep and tomorrow we'll pretend it never happened. i won't get mad, just say the word." she tried to soothe her after seeing her sudden change of attitude.

karina knew it was her first time being with a new person after so many years, and that it might be hard for her to assimilate what she felt.

"do you want me?" she murmured in a thread of voice so fragile that all desire in jimin's body was forgotten, and replaced by the vehement need to hold her and take care of her forever.

"of course i want you, haru." she wrapped the girl in a warm embrace. "you have no idea how much i want you." she assured in her ear.

the girl's chin rested on the opposite's shoulder, their cheeks rubbing together. jimin lowered her mouth just below her ear and left a delicate kiss there, physically reinforcing her words. haru looked to her side, making eye contact, and the two slowly moved closer until they kissed again.

that contact was much more tender than the previous one, it was a sign of affection rather than need. in the way they caressed and rocked with each other, there was a pact of security and trust.

"i like you a lot, haru." she confessed midway through that kiss, after having felt that way for so long.

"i like you too, jimin." she requited, accepting those emotions that had lived with her for quite some time, but to which she had never given a name.

haru inclined slightly, touching the back of the girl's thighs with her fingertips, giving her the signal for her to mildly jump, which the older one took advantage of to hold her and lift her up, getting jimin to wrap her legs around her waist.

they met again in another kiss, as the golfer walked towards the bed.

"are you sure?" karina wondered again once they were at the edge of the mattress.

"sure." she repeated then leaned her back against the sheets and hovered over her to connect their lips again.

(!)

— taglist: @runawaymazola @chaenniefirst @livelaughchoerry @rinapomu @jeindall777 @petruchiosstuff @winieter @sewiouslyz @minjeongswife @yvesismywife

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cultofdixon · 1 year ago

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Relapsing back to old habits

Daryl Dixon [PLATONIC] • She/Her Pronouns • Youngest Dixon Sister!Reader • It’s been years since the world fell and Daryl thought you would tell him anything that bothered you. But here you were finding out your brother found your stash • ANGST/SFW • TW: Relapses / Marijuana / Scars / Injuries

Requested by: Anon

“Y/N?” Daryl called out when he entered the house after taking his morning watch. “I could use a hand with the snares around the gates”

Nothing. Which…was weird for his sister. But even then, she’s not the excited little girl that would come running at a full sprint to greet her brother anymore. She still would greet him with her presence minus the bone crushing hug.

To be honest with you, Daryl wished she didn’t grow up in the conditions that she did. Let alone grow up in an apocalypse. The end of the world changed everybody.

Daryl decided to make his way to her bedroom to see if she was in there. The Dixons stay with the Grimes given Carol moved to the Kingdom. The two help with the kids, ever since Rick’s disappearance.

It was a lot.

Whoever didn’t feel for Michonne, was just an asshole. Imagine finding out you’re pregnant while your husband explodes.

Then there’s Daryl, you’ve lost so much in this lifetime that the closest thing to a brother just is gone with zero remains…who knows what’s he’s battling internally.

The last thing he’d want is to lose his sister in all this mess. He wanted to spend time with her in that moment but not finding her was irritating him.

“Where is that girl” Daryl frowns knocking on her bedroom door only for no reply so he decides to open it.

He likes to remember when they used to live in a one bedroom apartment with Merle.

During arguments Y/N would storm off and close her door in Daryl’s face that it annoyed him to where he’d tell her “don’t make me remove this door”

But he never did. Hell, he added a lock to the door because of Merle’s high escapades getting more aggressive

Daryl checked around the room for any signs of her leaving but even if Y/N is an adult now and doesn’t need him to know where she’s at 24/7…it’s a security thing for her for him to know. Her calling card is leaving her lucky rabbit’s foot that he got her during their prison days on her night stand to tell him she’s still around. She doesn’t leave the community without it.

As he went to pick it up, he kicked something under her bed and while part of him shouldn’t check it. He decided to do so anyway.

To Daryl’s surprise…a rather unpleasant one

“Fuck…” Daryl frowns opening the box to find her stash. It was two boxes of smokes, a baggie with what he assumes to be weed, and the obvious lighter. I thought she quit he only started to feel worse.

The fuck you have there?!

U-Uhm. Weed?

Y/N. You didn’t get that from Merle did you?! His shit is always laced with something! Please fucking tell me—-

No! I didn’t! I got it from a friend…I wasn’t going to smoke it

For the love of whatever god out there. Don’t ever.

Daryl it’s not going to kill me…

“C’mon Dog, gotta grab my gear before Daryl comes” Her voice echoed the hall causing Daryl to freeze in his place knowing damn well he won’t be able to escape.

Dog nudged the door open with his snoot and stared directly at Daryl. He found a Mal pup in the woods and thought Y/N could use a companion when he was gone looking for Rick.

All the eldest Dixon could do was stare directly at Dog and wait for his sister to shortly come in to notice the staring contest. More importantly the box where she keeps her stash being open in Daryl’s lap.

They’re just cigarettes, bubs. You smoke them

Yeah, don’t mean by baby sister should

As much as I appreciate you being the father figure in my life over Merle. You gotta realize it’s the end of the world. Once the pack is gone, I won’t do it anymore.

You promise?

If it helps you sleep at night, Dar. I promise

Y/N was now the one staring blankly at Daryl as she shoves her hands in her coat pockets not uttering a word. But also not freaking out either. She didn’t want this to become an argument so she walked toward him taking the box from his hands and setting it on the nightstand. Next to be grabbed was her rabbit’s foot as she attaches it to her belt loop on her pants.

“My bow is downstairs, I gotta pack my bag. Mind waiting down there?” Y/N knew what his original intentions were, given Aaron was informed what he was doing and when he saw her walking the community he informed her of her brother’s whereabouts.

The eldest Dixon decided to listen and leave to meet her downstairs.

Soon the two were walking the woods tracking a deer, Y/N glances every once in a while toward Dog who happily trotted beside her in a sweater she made for him. Ignoring the worry filled silence coming from her brother. She seems to have to break the silence more nowadays.

“Any news? On Rick?”

“Nah…was thinking of expandin’ my search. Go further up the river”

“Mm.” Y/N frowns turning away from her brother to check some damage done to a tree to see if it’s a walker or something else.

Daryl watches her carefully noticing her saddened expression after telling her plans about heading further away in the search for Rick. He only snapped out of it when they heard the snap of twigs and spotting the deer.

Before Daryl could even ready his crossbow, Y/N stopped him which he then noticed the two babies with the deer.

“You promised”

“So did you” Y/N frowns walking away to go further into the woods without disturbing the deer and in hopes of finding something else.

You said you’d stay this time

I am gonna stay. Michonne just had RJ and the community needs help.

Is that all?

What do you mean?

The end of the world took a lot from me too Daryl. The last thing I’d want is to lose you too

You won’t ever lose me, bug.

You don’t know that.

Y/N…what do you want me to do? To reassure yea that I’m not going anywhere.

Please just stay. Go out until nightfall, come home at the end of the day. Just so I know you’re alive and not…

Okay. I promise.

You better not be telling me what I want to hear.

Bug, I promise.

The arrow pierced right into the raccoon as the squeak it made only hurt Y/N. But meat is meat nowadays. As she went to retrieve her arrow and her catch, Daryl couldn’t hold it any longer.

“Why’d yea hide that stuff from me?”

“Because I’m an adult. I’m allowed to have some privacy with my belongings”

“Fine. But you said you stopped smoking. Hell—-You’ve got weed! Where the fuck do you come across that?!”

“That’s none of your damn business!” Y/N snapped at him as she felt the regret, she felt the pain she’s been internalizing—numbing. “I can handle myself, Daryl. I ain’t an addict like Merle. I ain’t gonna go crazy and tear myself apart just because of some marijuana and cigarettes”

“How can you be for certain?”

“Because my brother never coming home does the job” Y/N felt the tears come on as she quickly turned away to try and stop them. Daryl tried to rest his hand on her shoulder but she pulled away. “You ain’t the only one to lose Rick, but why does losing that man mean I have to suffer and never see the only blood I have left”

“Y/N…”

Y/N tensed to the sound of crunching as Daryl quickly readied his crossbow and shot at the sound. One of many squirrels they’d be getting out there. As he passed her to grab his catch, her tears fell.

“When we found the prison, you promised then you’d always be there for me.” Y/N formed fists to contain her anger and slow the tears. “Then Merle died and you were wrecked…so I took on a lot because I couldn’t process my feelings. He was a dirtbag. But he was my brother. It killed a part of me that I wanted an escape that wasn’t harming myself directly. I couldn’t find shit then so I suffered. Then you got kidnapped and I destroyed Carol’s house in Alexandria. I tore off the wallpaper, broke all the dining room chairs, threatened to kill Spencer and broke all the glassware…I thought I had lost you then and I couldn’t escape that old familiar feeling…then the day after Rick died, you left and I cried for days. I lost someone important to me permanently and temporary at the same time. He meant a lot to me too, Daryl. He saved me countless times and I will forever be in the Grimes’ debt. But why did you have to go back on your promise all the fucking time?” She pulled herself away storming off in a sense as Daryl quickly picked up his catch and followed her.

“Y/N—-I was—-“

“Nah. None of that “I was doing this for more than me” crap. Because Michonne would understand if you took breaks and shit. But you never did. Never even bothered to check on me when you did come home…”

“Y/N…”

“I was 15 when this shit started. Now I’m in my 20s and I want the whole fucking world to just burn because of how many times it’s burned me…” Y/N frowns, tripping on an outgrown tree root resulting in Dog quickly sniffing her and Daryl rushing to her side being pushed off of her at first. “Why did you leave me? You’re my big brother and you left me” she sobbed leaning into Daryl as he wrapped himself tightly around her feeling the tears wet his eyes.

“I’m sorry…I didn’t mean to. I didn’t want to…I thought I owed him something. I do owe him my life and just…I’m sorry I stopped trying for yea. I should’ve done better”

Y/N simply continued to sob and latched onto her brother feeling him tighten his hold.

“Please don’t leave me anymore…take me with you or just stay longer”

A few hours passed since then and Y/N found herself on the porch steps with Dog laid by her feet while she took out one of her cigarettes and her lighter. She struggled a bit for the light and it felt like a sign when Daryl handed his zippo to her after stepping out for his own smoke.

“Supporting my bad habits?”

“Nah, joining” Daryl brought himself to sit beside her causing Dog to stir and bring himself to rest his head on his knee. As Daryl starts to pet the pup, Y/N lit her cigarette smoking it a bit before sharing with her brother. “So I have a proposal”

“You leaving again and trying to butter me up with something?”

“Nah. I want yea to come with me.” Daryl stated watching the confusion write itself on her face. “Two sets of eyes are better than one…and Dog”

“…if you have something of Rick, maybe Dog can pick up something” Y/N suggests taking her cigarette back. “We could make camp out there”

“Exactly. Even visit the other communities.” Daryl started, watching her light up slightly and give him a more curious look. “See Carol and Zeke”

Her smile that he’s missed for so long returned from something as simple as seeing old friends. But she was also happy to have her brother back…

#cultofdixon #the walking dead #daryl dixon #daryl dixon x reader #daryl dixon fanfiction

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rascalentertainments · 6 months ago

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Wish Granted AU: Gabo 😡

THE ANARCHIST— I mean grumpy boi is finally done! I've been wanting to show me redesign of him for ages, and I finally found the time! That being said, I can drop a little more lore not only for Gabo, but for Wish Granted's version of Rosas.

Design wise, he's still inspired by Grumpy, but I added a little more detail from his concept version. It looks like all the teens clothing were really leaning into the Dwarves reference, but it got changed later. Most of the citizens of Rosas wear more regal attire, but their outfits look strangely similar in color and length, with only the style being different. Gabo refuses to wear those conforming clothes, so he wears a really basic outfit that's just a vest (with the rose symbol ripped off) and undershirt. His mom makes him wear the hat though. 😂

(Here's one of his original outfits. It actually looks more unique.)

And notice this little detail here? 👇 Gabo had a dagger at one point.

GABO HAD A DAGGER. The angry guy had a weapon and they cut it out?! You know how hilarious that is?! If this kingdom is so safe, why did he need a weapon? I like to think Gabo had it to defend himself because the original version of Rosas had some shady things happening with the royals. So I'm keeping that little accessory in my AU as well.

Gabo does have a little scar on his face that he likes to call his "battle wound". He claims he got it from fighting off a guard single handedly and got cut by the guard's sword. No one really believes it though.

No offense to people who like the canon movie, but to me, Canon!Gabo was kind of an asshole. Like, the insults weren't even funny, he just was saying mean things to his friends. And the fact that Perrito's voice actor is Gabo makes it sadder. Aside from his best line "What are you, five?" I didn't really like his portrayal.

Wish Granted Gabo's his personality is SASS. Lots of it. 😂 He's also sarcastic, pretty easy to annoy, and pessimistic. However, he can keep a secret better than anyone in the kingdom. Gabo can come off as a jerk sometimes, but he's still got a good heart. He just wants Rosas to finally wake up and smell the.....roses. (That was a bad joke) Especially when finding out Asha wants to take down the royals and is proven right about his belief that the royals are evil. Gabo does have to get adjusted to Star, though. He's a little too happy for his taste, but deep down he's glad to have someone more upbeat around. And he found a kindred spirit with Asha, both of them hate the rulers, are pessimistic and want to tear down the monarchy! Of course he's gonna help them!

Now for some facts about him:

• Gabo is the youngest of the teens, being 15 years old. Though some think he acts younger.

• He's voiced by Landon McDonald.

• He has a mother who is just a regular citizen who's a jewelry maker, (OG Seven Dwarves nod) and is very loyal to the king and queen since they provided a home for them. She doesn't approve of Gabo's anarchist behavior and tries to get him to show a little respect to them. Gabo is also an only child, so its just him and his mom.

•The reason Gabo has become the resident conspiracy theorist is because he actually saw a few of the local citizens disappear shortly after they expressed their discontent with Magnifico not granting their wishes. They were growing suspicious on why it was taking YEARS to grant. One shopkeeper stated he was going to leave Rosas and demand his wish back. Gabo hasn't seen him since. Since then, he's been trying to warn the people that the royals are evil, but nobody believes him. However, Magnifico and Amaya haven't silenced him because he's literally no threat.

• He causes minor problems like breaking the mirror in the center of town, defacing the royals statues, and basically destroying anything that idolizes them. Its his way of fighting back, little by little. This really pisses off Flazino because he has to fix it every single time. Gabo loves screwing with Flazino since he works for the royals, but he has no idea Flazino is a double agent.

• He actually got that scar from Sabor, who caught him sneaking around looking for a dungeon he believes is where the missing citizens are. It left a really deep cut, so it didn't fully heal.

•Gabo does have a wish, but he doesn't want to give it to Magnifico and Amaya for obvious reasons. He also refuses talk about his wish with the Teens or Asha. His wish is to have some friends.

• Finding out he was right about the royals being evil, the dungeon, the missing people, and literally everything he was shouting about is great. HE IS LIVID RIGHT NOW.

•Most of the teens don't really like Gabo since he causes trouble (Dario and Hal seem to be fine with him), but he has major beef with Simon since he's the one chasing Gabo a lot. He's also on Dahlia's bad side because he destroys her Magnifico and Amaya shaped cookies whenever he gets the chance. Soooooo Dahlia is REALLY reluctant on helping Asha knowing he's with her.

Kind of referencing Grumpy and Doc arguing with each other a lot from the original film.

• Gabo might be asexual? I'm dropping a few hints in the story, but I'm not sure if I want to fully make it canonical. One reason is because I kind of got that vibe from the canon Wish movie. And Harvey Guillen is queer in real life so its possible Canon!Gabo is too. I don't think Disney has ever had an openly asexual character in a movie or series either. Second reason is because I don't want to just write stereotypical things for him or just throw it in for no reason. I have a few ace friends here and on YouTube, so I want to learn a little more about how it works for asexual people before making it canon.

And there you have it! The other teens will get full redesigns later on, I just wanted to show Gabo first. Since I'll be busy this week, the only thing I will draw out is the rough draft for the first teaser poster so I can get some help on it. And the next chapter will be written after Christmas. See ya!

@your-ne1ghbor @tumblingdownthefoxden @oh-shtars @chillwildwave

@annymation @thesafireartist @snackara @pinkninja0708

@uva124 @jojo-ker06 @kenihewa

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diamondmeadow · 1 year ago

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as a certified Middle School Teacher, do you have any further thoughts or headcanons on mwpp at that age? because honestly this is a criminally underexplored comedic goldmine.

I cannot agree more! I feel like the first four years at Hogwarts especially have such potential. For gen fics mainly, so it might not be for everyone, might seem boring, but honestly we are writing and reading about a close-knit group of four boys, and by focusing on singular ships only, we might be missing out on so much of their dynamic expansion. I still keep thinking about that snippet of yours about Sirius pyjamas. But then I'm also coming from bands fandom which in a sense is a very similar environment, just a few men closely working and interacting together, plus my favourite trope is (best) friends to lovers, so there's that too. I'm pining for this. AHAHAH Anyway, enough of my ramble, here I come with some ideas, thought I don't necessarily think they are something people haven't come up with before. To sum up the comical possibilities move from bodily humour to more cerebral one over the years with lots of awkwardness thrown in between - i imagine a lot of hilarious situation happen just by accident. - ages 11/12 - they are probably extremely random. the things boys that age let out of their mouth, their associations, are just the wildest. the pranking at this stage must have been insane. a lot of body pranking and really dumb jokes. also there was a lot and I mean A LOT of physicality between the boys themselves probably. boys that age won't stop hitting each other, touching one another in quasi-fights, but there's nothing sexual about it. the boys in my class are at it nonstop, however dangerous it is, they keep smacking each other with cushions, slippers, textbooks, with ANYTHING that comes under their hands. they wrestle and pull at each other nonstop. i fully believe the marauders dorm room was a battle ground - this was specifically prominent between james and sirius. - ages 12/13 - this is the time when most of the boys enter puberty, so all kinds of physical changes you have described start appearing. they start to be more self-conscious about the way they look. as i HC for James to be a little on the vain side, I imagine him spending progressively longer time in the bathroom which might be a source of arguments (that are quickly forgetten) between the boys, they are constantly missing breakfast or well, James is, then he's grumpy because he is hungry. also times of the self-exploration, morning wood, wet dreams, lots of embarrassing moments for everyone. i imagine Peter being on the shy side, his bed has always curtain closed. their dorm room REEKS. Sirius might be the cleanest (pureblood upbringing leftover) lots of mood swings, it's a rollercoaster. a lot of bickering over stupid things. by the time they are thirteen they are a bit more shy with the touch (minus James and Sirius, again I feel like those two would be all over each other because that's their way of showing affection, James is a hugger from home). their pranking would get better, less body pranks, more cerebral pranks. i feel like here Remus might start getting bolder with his ideas. Sirius would get progressively mouthier. bless Mcg and every teacher at Hogwarts. - ages 13/14 - peek peer pressure. whatever their friends are thinking, that's the holy word. this is the peek pranking time. oh lord, Remus would hardly try to stop them. Peter would take a lot of detention to cover up for James and Sirius. and in general, they would be breaking records in detention. they are extremely aware of their sexuality, lots of lewdness, lots of stupid, inappropriate jokes. All the girls are annoyed by them. this is the time they start smoking if they start at all. sarcasm central! the randomness of their early age disappears - this is when everyone really understand just how smart Sirius and James really are. The third year is the year they are done with their mirrors and they are working on the map. they are bold enough to come up with the Animagi idea. this is the year they are invincible. by the way their room is a MESS - a MINEFIELD. Thank god for cleaning charms.

- ages 14/15 - now this is not very different from the previous year, i just think they get a little bit more organised, especially at 15, and increasingly it's possible to have a reasonable conversation with them. i feel like Remus would be a much more polite throughout the years, with his gratefulness for the opportunity he got at Hogwarts, so the difference would be scarce, the same goes for Peter, but James and Sirius would get much better and stop talking back as much. there's more secrecy in their plans. they also start to need their own space and time. their dorm room is tidier and the curtains are often closed on every bed. but all four of them have their opinions now and much more than before these opinions differ. it's not one brain cell/pack brain anymore. there are more discussions, a bit less pranking, they start seeing their behaviour is not as great and I think this is the time when they really only give a hard time to selected few (aka Snape) and whoever doesn't sit well with them. they definitely don't stop, but before they were much less selective. it could be anyone. Anyway, this is not wildly specific, more just like an application of my observation of teenage boys. I feel like everyone could make it work in their own way depending on how they see the individual Marauder.

#ask and answer #diamondmeadow answers #marauders hc

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trelinha9 · 1 year ago

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Every time I see a Friede x Amethio post, ten of my neurons die. I know these posts come from new fans who only watched the episodes released on Netflix (which goes up to 13 if I'm not mistaken), and he's only appeared in 6 episodes at this point (which is a crime against my mental health. What the hell is he doing in that time offscream? I WANT ANSWERS!!!) I remember in the first episodes of Horizontes, that Tumblr and AO3 were full of posts and fics about Friede x Amethio, and they disappeared over time as the episodes went on.

It's funny, because nowadays, almost a year after Horizons officially started, fans who watch the subtitled episodes are all worried about the mental health of this teenager and wondering why the heck they are in Exploradores, while the new fans are in the same boat as most of the old ones were and abandoned, shipping the poor guy with Friede.

I personally never shipped them because:

1: Amethio is, canonically, and confirmed by his original voice actor, a teenager (on bulbapedia it said he was between 13 and 19, but now they removed that part and only added the fact that he is a teenager, without mentioning a possible age) I headcanon him as 16, because, for me, it's the age that makes the most sense for his behavior and mannerisms, but that's just me. You can imagine him as 18 or 19 if that makes you feel more comfortable shipping him with Friede, but it doesn't change the fact that he's still a young and emotionally immature person, with no apparent emotional support base other than his Pokémon and his subordinates (Zir and Conia will get there someday, I know they will), while Friede is a fully grown adult, and clearly more mature than Amethio (there's even a line about it in episode 25). Friede had already been a Pokémon teacher for probably a reasonable amount of time when Liko was around 5 to 7 years old (we find out about this in episode 18), and honestly, Amethio doesn't look that much older than Liko. The clear age difference between them makes me uncomfortable. There are a lot of adults in the Horizons cast to be shipped with Friede, leave the traumatized teenager alone.

2: The way Friede, especially in the first arc, keeps teasing Amethio, even though he's clearly irritated and on edge, makes me want to punch him. I love Friede. But the way he interacts with Amethio, one minute he's having a good time taking care of Liko and Roy, and the next he's ready to annoy the shit out of a teenager make me so angry. I love this idea that Friede is a complete social disaster who doesn't really know how to pick up cues (scareing a deaf girl, for example, is definitely something he would do by accident 👀), but there's no way he can't see how negatively his actions and words affect Amethio. Amethio wants to prove himself. He wants to fulfill the mission ordered to him, and this idiot adult, in addition to getting in the way, bothers him every chance he gets (ep 5, ep 22 and ep 25 are the best examples). I'm amazed at how Friede either doesn't really realize the harm his actions cause to Amethio, or he does and simply decides to keep doing it.

This post may make it seem like I don't like Friede, which isn't true. I love Friede. I think he's a very funny character, but he also has a lot of flaws, and bullying a teenager is one of them.

I don't want to start fights about ships, because I'm not in Horizontes for the ships, but for the story and the characters. The only ship I really like is Friede with a certain Explorer who erased a child's memory (because for the love of god, they couldn't have made their battle in the last episode any less gay, could they) I don't want to offend anyone who ships Friede and Amethio, I just wanted to give my opinion on the matter and why I, with my interpretation of the story and characters, hate this ship. (Hate is a strong word, but I feel uncomfortable whenever I see this ship somewhere)

I'm really sorry if I offended anyone at any point in this post, I just don't like seeing a teenager and an adult being shiped.

#pokemon horizons #amethio #professor friede #pokemon friede #pokemon #Amethio is my favorite character he needs therapy not romance #I tried to avoid as many spoilers as possible here #I know that this new popularity of the ship comes from new fans #and I don't want to ruin their experience with the story #but be warned: episodes 22 and 25 have a lot of interactions that I consider problematic between Amethio and Friede #“you wanna play tag?” asks Friede to the teenager who wants to throw him into a wall #Dude who you think you are?#The Collector?#And his line in ep 25 is SO MUCH WORSE #WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT TO A TEENAGER MY MAN?#ARE TOU INSANE?#I have a lot of fun when these two interact #it's fun #when Friede isn't being an amoeba incapable of socialization that is

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silverstarsimuran · 6 months ago

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The Сonfrontation

This fanfiction was written before the release of the third Sonic movie, so this story can be considered his alternate universe...

— Great job, guys! We did it! Sonic the blue hedgehog solemnly announced to his friends and brothers, the yellow two—tailed fox cub and the red warrior echidna Knuckles, standing next to a pile of scrap metal that just a few minutes ago was a formidable military machine of the GUN organization.

— I wonder what else we can expect from these soldiers...— sighed Tails.

— I hope that there won't be any more battles or battles for today... — Sonic looked at the fox cub. He couldn't blame the kid for his words, because all three of them were pretty tired from fighting today.

And the hedgehog still couldn't understand why the GUN was so angry at him and his friends, because they hadn't done anything wrong. Yes, the Hanoverians still did not like the motley trio, but they still did not touch him or his friends and family until today. But then the question arises: why did they suddenly decide to hunt them, especially him, Sonic?

Sonic, on the other hand, lived quite peacefully in the town of Green Hills, and did not commit anything so criminal. Of course, he couldn't always sit around, so he could mess around. But all his pranks were harmless enough to be hunted down like that. Did someone really consider his fun to be a real crime?

In any case, Sonic and the others wanted to get to the Wachowski house as soon as possible, where they would definitely be safe.

— On the contrary, I would not mind another battle! Knuckles suddenly responded, flexing his fists. "If that's all these pathetic warriors are capable of, then they're no match for us.

"Knuckles, you'd better keep quiet, otherwise you'll get into trouble," the blue leader chided the red warrior. "What did I say?" — Echidna did not understand. — Battles are the meaning of my life! And... how am I going to get into trouble?

— It's not that important, — said the hedgehog. — Right now, your main purpose should be to save our family from evil people and save our skins.

"Sonic's right, Knuckles,— Tails interjected. — Now we'd better hurry, before new cars arrive here, which may turn out to be much stronger than the previous ones.

— Ha! I'm not afraid of any hardware! The warrior boasted.

"Knuckles, we need to be smarter here, not braver, okay? Sonic sounded tired and annoyed.

—Um... yes, I suppose...— Echidna replied.

— It's wonderful! Now let's go… Tom and Maddie are worried about us.…

— Sonic, Knuckles, look! Suddenly, the fox cub screamed, pointing to his older friends at a bright flash of light that appeared right on the wreckage of a combat vehicle.

—Oh, no! If it's the soldiers from the helicopter again, then there's no way I'm going back to them! — Sonic shouted angrily. — They don't even have a TV with interesting programs and chilidogs!

At the last sentence, Tails and Knuckles cast puzzled glances at the blue hedgehog. He caught their glances and asked in surprise:

- what? That's how it is.

But then the flash disappeared, and a silhouette appeared in place.

— Hello. Glad to finally meet you, blue hedgehog," the stranger spoke in a low but very pleasant voice.

— Who? What? — That's all the hedgehog said in response. He himself did not trust the stranger.

— And to be more precise... — meanwhile the unknown continued. — Sonic the Hedgehog… I'm right, aren't I?

He came out into the light, and the three friends gasped when they saw a representative of their race, the Mobians. But Sonic himself was the most shocked. A black hedgehog with red stripes towered over him, standing in a proud pose.

— Wow! Another hedgehog? Tails was amazed. — And moreover... he looks a bit like you, Sonic…

Yes, even though the black and scarlet hedgehog had the side needles on its head turned up, while the blue one had all the needles turned down, and the alien also had red eyes, like the stripes on its skin, and there was a white fluffy tuft of fur on its chest, and its feet were not wearing sneakers. and the jet boots, nevertheless, Sonic noticed some similarities with him. And it's quite attractive for a teenager, which is also a blue hedgehog. And if you don't pay attention to some of the eye-catching details of the exterior, then the striped hedgehog could quite look like a reflection of the blue hero, only maybe dark, or like his ... shadow.

— It's been a while since we've seen each other, Sonic, right? — the stranger was still talking to his fellow.

—Sonic, do you... know him? — Tails asked Sonic uncertainly.

- N-no… It's... the first time I've seen him... — was all he said, and then suddenly he screamed. Putting his hand on his forehead, he clenched his teeth, and some fuzzy images appeared before his eyes: as if at first he was playing and laughing with someone, then horror and fear came, and then complete darkness.

"Sonic, are you okay?" — The fox cub was worried about his friend.

—Yes... I'm fine... — Sonic whispered, having overcome a sudden headache.

— Are you sure about this, hedgehog? — Knuckles also expressed concern.

— Yes, yes. It's okay, guys. Everything's fine, — and then blue turned to his kinsman. "Who do you even think you know me?"

"Have you really forgotten me, Sonic?" Striped asked, feigning surprise. — Maybe those nasty people who hunted you can help you refresh your memory?

Then suddenly it dawned on Sonic…

"So you set me up, huh?" Is GUN following us because of you?

- Hm. Well... you could probably say that..." the black and red hedgehog grinned slyly.

"So you're the criminal the GUN soldiers are looking for!" — Sonic got angry. "You should be put in jail!" — he glowed blue all over.

—If you think so... then try and catch me,— Tabby said mockingly.

Sonic angrily rushed towards the stranger.

— Sonic, wait! — Tails tried to stop him, but the hedgehog did not listen to him. Sonic was too angry at the hedgehog, who had, in fact, put him and Blue's family in danger! He could not allow the attacker to escape deserved justice so easily.

At the same time, he remembered how he left his first family on his home planet, the owl Longclaw, who took him under her wing. He just couldn't make another mistake and lose the second family he had found on Earth.…

Here the hero jumped up, curled into a ball and rushed to attack the dark hedgehog. Knuckles and Tails couldn't believe what was happening in front of their eyes: Sonic had never been as furious as he was now, so they didn't understand what could have angered their prickly friend and brother so much.

—Take it, You Faker! Sonic exclaimed, continuing to charge at his kinsman. As for the black hedgehog himself, he stood calmly, keeping his composure. And then he said faintly:

—Chaos Control, — and then he disappeared.

And Sonic just shot forward until he hit the asphalt, leaving a decent dent in place.

— Oh... what happened? Where did that hedgehog go? — shaking his head and coming to himself, he said.

— Sonic! — soon his sworn brothers ran up to him.

"Aren't you looking for me, blue hedgehog?" — three guys turned their gaze to one of the high-rise buildings, where the unknown man was now standing.

"Is he really that fast?" — Sonic was amazed. "Is he even faster than me?"

—I... I don't think it was speed, Sonic..." the fox cub hesitated. And the stranger continued a moment later:

— Ha! Nothing compares to the power of Chaos itself... and only the Ultimate Life Form, which I am, can master it.…

— Oh, yeah? If you're not a coward, but come down and fight me! — challenged the Ultimate Life Form of the blue hedgehog.

"You shouldn't underestimate me, little hedgehog..." he giggled. — I really shouldn't have... — but still went down to the ground, although he did not approach the heroes.

— Come on! Fight me one on one if you are not afraid of me and my power! — Sonic got ready to run. — Just watch it without tricks!

— Sonic, maybe it's better not to? — Tails was afraid for his best friend, after all, they know so little about the striped hedgehog. After all, it is not known what he is capable of.

—And we're a team, hedgehog,— Knuckles also reminded.

— Guys, I can handle it, don't worry. I can handle it," Sonic informed them confidently, turning to them briefly.

—Well, since you're bragging about your strength like that, Impostor, then show it to me,— the black-and-scarlet man said arrogantly.

— Well then... turn on the maximum! — and Sonic raced down the street, soon his brother chased after him.

"Let's go after them, Knuckles,— the fox cub then suggested to echidna. — Something tells me that nothing good will come of this.…

"I agree with you, fox. Let's hurry after the blue hedgehog then," Tails nodded, and the friends set off after their leader.

Meanwhile, Sonic kept trying to figure out what kind of super-fast hedgehog was next to him. And... why did it look kind of familiar to him, albeit vaguely? — Heh. Now we're alone, hedgehog. Show me what you can do without your... "friends," the black and red hedgehog sneered.

— With pleasure, Faker! — and Sonic tried to kick his kinsman, but he deftly dodged, and then struck back at the blue with his fists until he collapsed to the ground. But quickly recovering, Sonic rushed back into battle. However, the enemy easily repelled his attacks, it was clear that the hedgehogs were equal to each other in strength and were not inferior to each other.

— Ha! Is that all? Tabby scoffed. "I thought you could do better."

"Then how do you like it?"

Sonic went on the attack again, but, alas, he missed, as the other hedgehog managed to jump back in time. Nevertheless, the blue one did not give up and continued to strike, until one of them hit the same boastful striped tribesman.

— Hmph. Not bad, — he involuntarily praised the hero, which made our blue even a little embarrassed. "For a beginner,— and the black one hit Sonic right in the face, knocking him aside so that he bent a lamppost. "And yet... I'm a little disappointed with you… Sonic".

Sonic, admittedly, has already managed to run out of steam. He already had a difficult day because of the soldiers, so the addition is still now an unfamiliar hedgehog, running as fast as he does, and also possessing the energy of Chaos itself.

Therefore, he continued to lie on the ground, catching his breath.

— Sonic!!! — soon screams were heard, and after a couple of minutes, his loyal friends were already next to the prickly hero.

"Sonic, are you okay? Sonic?" The little fox's voice was trembling with undisguised excitement and fear for his older brother.

—It's okay... guys... now... I'll get up..." he muttered, trying to get up, but after an unsuccessful attempt to get to his feet, he fell.

— No, hedgehog. Then we will fight to protect your honor! — Knuckles said, and stepped in front of his younger companions. "Listen up, hedgehog! More precisely, the dark hedgehog! Leave our brother alone and fight with me!"

— And with me too! — Tails volunteered, standing next to Echidna.

The striped hedgehog didn't even look towards his rival's loyal companions, as if they were nothing to him. He rolled his eyes in boredom.

"I don't care about you two. You are not worthy of my attention.

—Oh, right! — Knuckles said angrily. —Then I'll make you pay attention to us, dark hedgehog! — and the red warrior attacked the insolent man. The man only stole a glance at him, and then suddenly disappeared, so Knuckles couldn't get to the stranger either. — Argh! You're dishonest, dark hedgehog! You're only bringing shame on yourself by hiding from me and my righteous wrath!

— You are not my rival, Red, so give up. We can fight in another one, but now I've come for the blue hedgehog," the friends were surprised to see the black and scarlet one on top of the lantern.

— You won't get Sonic, no matter who you are! Tails stood up for his best friend. He was all fluffed up in anger.

- Yes! And are you really afraid of my fists? — Knuckles quipped, striking his fists apart, and small red lightning bolts ran across them from the impact.

—You two are just a waste of my precious time,— the hedgehog calmly replied to them. — And I came here only for the sake of the well-known "Blue Justice". However, I thought that our glorious blue hero was much stronger and more capable than the way I see him now.…

—I... Haven't... Finished... Yet... You Faker! — Sonic shouted, all lit up with lightning. "And I'll show you what heroes can do when they're underestimated and belittled!" — the blue hedgehog rushed at the enemy again. He grinned contentedly.

"That's what I expected to see from you, Faker," his striped kinsman broke into a smile, after which he also sparkled with lightning, except perhaps in red, and then, curling up into a ball, rushed towards the hero.

Sonic also curled up into a sparkling blue ball on the fly, and then both hedgehogs hit each other. They were thrown in different directions, but that did not stop them from returning to the fight.

With each attack, there were bright blue-red flashes of light.

It felt like someone had staged a light show.

Tails and Knuckles even had to turn away, squinting so as not to be blinded by such a sight.

Well, the two prickly tangles continued to spin and spin for some time, colliding with each other along the way, until with one powerful blow they bumped into each other, unwilling to yield to their opponent in strength.

And after such a powerful blow, a huge wave swept through the area, which caused windows to be blown out in houses and other buildings and even cut off electricity.

Tails and Knuckles were also affected, and the two of them were thrown aside.

And two hedgehogs bounced off each other after their big collision with each other. Each of them, breathing heavily, managed to exhale decently.

"Very impressive, blue hedgehog,— the black and red hedgehog said, catching his breath. — You really managed to show me your strength.

Sonic didn't even know how to respond to the praise. Besides, he expected a trick after the opponent's words, just like last time.

"However, you..." the striped one soon continued, "still have a lot to learn...— he straightened up. — Join me, Sonic… And you... will know the true essence of the power contained in you.…

Sonic was shocked by what he heard. He turned to his friends. They were recovering from a powerful explosion caused by hedgehogs. And then, having regained control of himself, the blue hedgehog replied to his fellow:

— No way! There's no way I'm going to help a criminal like you!

—Humph,— he snorted. — That's a little sad to hear.… But I'm sure you'll change your mind eventually, especially after running away from those soldiers..." and as if to confirm his words, loud sirens of police and special military vehicles, the noisy chirping of helicopters, and light circles from searchlights appeared nearby. — And now goodbye, Sonic. We'll meet again. You'll see," the striped hedgehog smiled mysteriously and, before leaving with the help of "Chaos Control", added goodbye. — And yes… I'm Shadow... Shadow the Hedgehog..." and then he was gone.

— The blue hedgehog! Don't move! You're under arrest! Put your hands behind your head, stay where you are and don't resist! — it was heard later from the loudspeakers.

— Sonic, what are we going to do? — the fox cub shouted to his friend. Sonic didn't immediately figure out what to do, because he still hadn't recovered from what had just happened to him.

—You and Knuckles get out of here, as fast as you can!" Go back to Tom and Maddy! And I'm going to stay here and distract the GUN's attention on myself! — the blue hedgehog commanded and was already preparing to run when his friends called out to him:

"But, Sonic, we can't leave you!"

— The fox is right, the hedgehog! We are clansmen, one family, and therefore we must cope with difficulties together!

— Guys, I appreciate your help, honestly! Sonic asked them. "But I know what to do!" Besides, if something goes wrong, then you, Tom and Maddie can come up with a new plan! Now go away! Right now!

"But… Sonic..." Tails said, because he didn't want to leave his best friend alone with the GUN people.

"You heard him, fox. Let's go quickly,— Knuckles urged him, and the little fox, casting a sad glance at the hedgehog, flew up on his tails and headed away from the city with echidna.

"At least they'll be safe..." flashed through Sonic's mind. He looked after the guys with a smile on his face, and then ran forward to meet the soldiers.

Also, while running, the striped hedgehog, who introduced himself as Shadow, appeared before his eyes again.

Ha! Shadow... is that really his name? The guy who looked kind of blue? Surely it's not possible that Shadow... turned out to be Sonic's doppelganger?.. Or at least a kind of doppelganger?..

But here's what's weird… For some reason, Sonic found that strange hedgehog... really familiar.… But only... how could he know that?..

"Now is not the time to chase after visions, Sonic! Concentrate! We need to get the soldiers as far away from Tails and Knuckles as possible so that they don't get hurt! Concentrate! Run faster!" the young hedgehog thought, growling to himself, not stopping to run. Soon, the chase began again.

Sonic could have laughed or made some jokes, but he didn't, because the situation was too tense and serious, which required the hedgehog's attention if he wasn't going to be captured by the military.

***

Well, at the top of the cliff, at the edge of the forest, Shadow was looking at the chase from the side. — Ha! Stupid hedgehog… You still don't know what awaits you next.… Still, I have no doubt that when you find out the truth, you will change your mind and return to your family... your real family... after which, we can take our revenge... in the meantime... run, Sonic… Run while you can..." he grinned. — And be ready for our new meeting ... brother... — he laughed ominously, and then with the words "Chaos Control!" he disappeared in a bright flash.

#sonic the hedgehog #miles tails prower #sonic #tails #my au #my sonic au #fanfic #sonic movie 3 #sonic movie #shadow the ultimate lifeform #shadow the hedgehog #sonic fanfic #sonic movie 3 au

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starkstruck27 · 10 months ago

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My final fill for @harringrovesummerbingo!! I can't believe this event is already over, and yet I feel like I was scrambling to finish lol. Anyway, I'm glad I got to end with this one, and I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I do. Prompt + Space: Accidentally locked in the community pool store room, B1 Title: Monsters in my Head Major Tags: None Rating: Explicit Word Count: 8676 words Additional Tags: The Upside down, Steve Harrington has PTSD, Bisexual Steve Harrington, Bisexual Billy Hargrove, Billy Hargrove has a crush on Steve Harrington, Steve Harrington needs a hug, Nightmares, Blow jobs, Pre-relationship Summary: Steve blacks out on his way to work one day, and when he wakes up, he's stuck in the Upside Down. He does his best to hide, and eventually ends up hunkering down in the community pool's storeroom for a few days. He's sure he's going to die, but then he hears something around him, and he realizes it's somebody that came into the storeroom in the real world. He tries to get their attention, and when it works, he just hopes that it won't take long for them to get help and get him out of there. Also on: Ao3

Steve had no idea how he had ended up here, in this dark, cold, damp place that he’d heard about, but was glad he never had to enter before. And frankly, it didn’t matter how he ended up here, because now he was, and he had no clue how to get out. He was stuck in that weird alternate-Hawkins that the kids called the Upside Down, and it scared the living hell out of him to be trapped the way he was.

All he’d wanted to do before he got stuck was go into work. He was going to meet Dustin, and they and Robin were going to keep working on their Russian code thing, but before he could get there, he blacked out, and he woke up cold and wet with vines starting to wrap around his limbs. Luckily, he was able to get an arm free, and using the scoop in his pocket, was able to fight his way out of the vines.

After that, he ran. He knew from what Dustin and Nancy had told him that the way Will survived down there for so long was by hiding as best he could, so he figured following his lead was his only hope of getting out alive. He wanted to get back to his own house, but then he remembered what Nancy said about Barb getting dragged there through his pool, and he decided he didn’t want to see that, so home was out. That didn’t leave him with many other places to go, though, so he had to figure something else out, and quick.

Finally, he decided that anywhere he went was good, as long as it wasn’t out in the open. He’d seen a demogorgon himself before, even battled the babies, and he did not want to do it again, especially when he was armed only with an ice cream scoop. So he just got up and walked, avoiding touching anything gross for fear that it might be alive, and hoped to find some kind of shelter wherever he could.

Meanwhile, in the real world, Dustin was sitting in the back room of Scoops Ahoy, pestering Robin as she ran about trying to manage the store by herself. Neither of them had seen Steve, even though they had agreed to meet earlier that morning, but Steve hadn’t shown. Robin was both annoyed and worried about him, and Dustin was just plain worried, coming up with increasingly horrible scenarios of what could’ve happened. He was working himself up into such a frenzy that Robin had to tell him to either shut his mouth or leave before she strangled him with her ascot. He did quiet down, but when Steve still hadn’t shown up the next day, he only became more concerned.

Finally, he went to try and track Steve down at his house, but when he got there, nobody answered the door, no matter how much he knocked. After trying again the next morning and getting the same results, he called in a code red to the rest of the party, informing them of his disappearance.

And as this was going on, Steve was still fighting to survive in the Upside Down. He ran around for what felt like hours searching for a place to rest, but found nothing. Everywhere he went seemed either too exposed or too infested by monsters, and he wasn’t about to go into any place that looked like it might collapse on him, either. Finally, he ended up at Melvald’s, and was able to find something on the shelves that was safe to eat. It gave him just enough energy to keep going, but he was becoming exhausted quickly, and if he didn’t find someplace safe to rest soon, he would surely end up dead.

But just as he was about to give up hope, he found what he was looking for. He had stumbled out of the woods to find the community pool only a few feet away, and he knew that there was a storeroom in the main building that locked from the inside. That and all the changing and bathroom stalls made it the perfect place to hide out, so he ran inside and hunkered down in the darkest corner. He stacked some extra equipment around himself for some extra cover, and finally, he succumbed to the exhaustion plaguing him and fell into a light, fitful sleep.

He spent the next two days hiding in that corner, locked in against the world outside and hoping that the lock on the door was strong enough to keep out the monsters, even though he knew deep down it wasn’t. He was afraid to let himself do anything, so he just stayed down and tried to think of things that he would do once this was over and he got back home. A hot shower would be his first priority, and a nice hot meal after that. Then he’d get a nice long night of sleep in his warm, cozy bed, and then he’d take a week off work and just relax at home, eating his weight in junk food and watching movies until his brain turned to mush.

But as he sat there, trying to come up with more things to keep him going, he was becoming more and more hopeless, and soon it became a list of the things he’d miss when he inevitably ended up dead. And just as he added ‘making Dustin laugh until he cried’ to the list, he froze, sure his moment had come. He could hear shuffling around, and what sounded like voices, but they were muffled, and he almost couldn’t make them out. But when he really listened, he heard a voice he knew, and he realized who he was hearing.

He had heard Billy Hargrove had started working at the pool as soon as summer started, and that was precisely why he hadn’t gone back that year and had instead gotten the job at Scoops. They weren’t quite enemies anymore, but they weren’t best buddies, either. They were polite at best, and they still butted heads more often than not, so working together was just not going to work out. That being said, Steve knew Max had explained more about the Upside Down to Billy after another scare in April, and even though it had been a false alarm, it turned out to kind of be a good thing. At least now Billy knew what was going on, and Steve had a hope of getting some help to get him out of here.

Back in the real world, Billy had just slipped into the storeroom after a long shift, tired and ready for a shower, but not quite ready to go home yet. That was the main reason he was in there, a girl he couldn’t remember the name of (maybe Cheryl?) by his side, just so he wouldn’t have to go home yet. He was sweet talking her now, feeding her lines and starting to feel her up a bit, and she was eating it up. That is, until the lights started to flicker.

“Billy, what’s going on with the lights?” Cheryl asked him, but he just shrugged it off.

“It happens all the time. The electricity in here is shitty,” he said, but soon he became suspicious, too. The wiring in here was pretty bad, but it never went on for this long, and it was never as consistent. Something was up, but it took him another few seconds to understand what it was. As soon as he realized, he made up some excuse and kicked Cheryl out, then went to his locker and found the stupid walkie-talkie that Max insisted he carry around with him at all times. He supposed that it might not be so stupid if he was using it, but he had no time for philosophical shit like that now, because the lights hadn’t just been flickering in the storeroom. They had been signaling an SOS.

After the events of last November, Max and her little friends insisted that anybody who knew about that weird other world knew some kind of morse code, and at the very least how to signal SOS. Three blips, three holds, and another three blips. That was what everybody had to have memorized, and once Billy had noticed that pattern coming through the fixture in the storeroom, he knew something was wrong.

“Max?” He asked once he retrieved the radio, but nobody answered. He was back in the storeroom now, seeing the light still flickering, but it wasn’t SOS anymore. Now it was just three blips, over and over again, like whoever was on the other side had forgotten to put the ‘o’ in the middle.

“Max, come on, talk to me!” Billy said, growing more frantic. “Somebody’s signaling SOS at the pool and if it’s you, I swear to God, I’ll kill you!”

“What do you mean someone’s signaling SOS? Over,” one of the kids answered. It wasn’t Max, but Billy was happy he’d at least gotten a response.

“I mean the lights are flickering, and it was SOS for a while, but now it’s just S over and over again.”

“You have to say ‘over’ when you’re done, over,” another one of the kids said, and Billy just rolled his eyes.

“Did you not hear the part about someone being in trouble? Fuck saying ‘over’, just get your asses over here now!”

“Wait, wait, you said it was SOS and then just S? Over,” a third kid asked. Billy couldn’t keep all their names straight.

“Yeah, and it better not be Max or else I’m killing all of you for getting her into this in the first place.”

“Holy shit,” kid #3 said, “It’s not Max. I think it’s Steve. He’s been gone for a couple of days, and since you saw his SOS and responded, the rest of the S’s are him trying to tell you who it is, over.”

“Alright, Dustin, don’t freak out,” Max finally came through, and Billy couldn’t help but sigh in relief. “El and I are on our way. You guys meet us there if you can. Billy, make sure Steve’s alright, and if you can, let him know help is on the way, over and out.”

After that, the radio went dead, and Billy was left to his own devices. The light was no longer flickering, and everything was quiet. Billy had no idea how to do this, if Steve could even hear him, or if he could talk back. He supposed not, otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered with the lights, and he guessed that he could hear him, otherwise how would he have known to start signaling in the first place? Still without them both being able to talk, he had no idea how they were supposed to communicate until the kids got there.

“Hey, uh, I don’t know if you heard any of that,” Billy started, feeling kinda silly for talking to himself like this, “But Max and the rest of the kids are on their way, they’re gonna try and help you.”

The lights flickered once, so Steve must’ve heard him. He didn’t know what else to say though, until he remembered something Max had told him about the first time this happened when her friend was taken, the quiet one. His mom had figured out the light thing, and she started asking him yes or no questions before she came up with the alphabet-light-wall thing.

“So, uh, Max asked me to make sure you were okay. Are you? Flick the light once for yes, twice for no,” Billy said, keeping his eyes fixed on the light as he sat on the floor, leaning his back against the wall. It flicked three times, and he sighed.

“I guess that means maybe, then?” He asked, and the light flickered once.

“Okay then,” he said, then went quiet for a second as he thought of something else to ask. He had never been very good at holding conversations with people, but he figured that if Steve were alone in that place for the past couple of days, any effort he made would probably be appreciated.

“Are you hurt at all?” He asked, and the light flicked twice. “Okay, that’s good at least. Are you scared?” The light flicked once. “I guess anybody would be, if the stuff I heard about that place is true. But like I said, the kids are on their way, they said they can get you out, so it won’t be long now.”

For the next twenty minutes, Billy had about as much of a conversation as he could with Steve through the yes or no questions, until finally, the kids showed up. Sinclair and the quiet one were the first two to come, followed soon after by Dustin, then the rude one, and finally, Max and the weird girl, El. He led them to the storeroom, and before he even knew what was happening, everybody was standing back as El raised her hand to the wall, her nose dripping blood as she started screaming in agony. He wasn’t quite sure what he was looking at as the wall split open and Steve fell through the slimy crevice, scrambling along the floor until he was huddled against the opposite wall. El continued to scream as she held up her other hand, too, and, just like that, the wall was restored to its former glory as if nothing had happened at all.

As soon as El put her hands down and collapsed down next to Steve, all the rest of the kids ran over, some checking on El and the others checking on Steve. El recovered quickly, and then all the attention was turned to Steve, the kids crowding around him and trying to make sure he was okay. Dustin was especially clingy, going on a big rant about how nervous he was and how glad he was that Steve was safe. Steve thanked him for his concern, but he looked like he was getting easily overwhelmed, and the fact that he was still covered in muck and stunk to high heaven was not helping matters.

“Alright, alright, step back, dipshits. Give him some air, then say your goodbyes. I’m taking him home,” Billy said, crossing his arms and making sure to speak in a tone that they couldn’t question. Of course, they questioned it anyway.

“You’re gonna give him a ride? That’s… oddly nice of you,” Sinclair said, giving him a weird look.

“Well, I don’t know how else you expect him to get there. He’s not walking, he doesn’t have his own car, and do you really wanna give him a lift on your bikes?” Billy asked, and the kids said nothing. “Didn’t think so. So I’ll give him a lift, and you all go home. Why your parents even let you out so late is beyond me.”

“Be glad they did, otherwise Steve wouldn’t be here right now,” Max said, matching her brother’s attitude.

“Don’t remind me,” Steve mumbled from where he was on the floor, and the fretting over him started all over again.

“Alright, seriously, that’s enough,” Billy said, pushing the kids out of the way and holding out a hand. He helped Steve to his feet and led him out of the storeroom, stopping only to grab a towel from his locker, and then took him outside, the kids following like ducklings.

“Here, Pretty Boy,” Billy said, handing Steve the towel, “Lay this down on the seat and I’ll be right there.”

Steve nodded and did as told, spreading the towel on the passenger’s seat and sitting on it, and once Billy saw that the door was closed and Steve was alright, he turned back to the kids. They were gathering up their bicycles and such as he walked over, and in a more gentle tone, he asked, “Is there anything I should know about this before I get in the car with him? Like, he’s not gonna go nuts and get messed up by that goo that’s all over him, is he?”

“He should be alright, but if he starts to act strange, call for me and Will,” El said, picking up the bike her dad had just taught her how to ride.

“And just know it’s never easy when you get stuck down there to forget what you’ve been through. If you can, just try to keep his mind off of it, and that should help. But don't treat him like a freak,” the quiet one, Will, apparently, said.

“Okay, thanks” Billy said, then turned and headed back to his car. He waited until the kids cleared out to back out and start heading down the road, a tired and shivery Steve in the passenger’s seat.

They were mostly quiet on the drive from the pool to Steve’s house, not that there was much time for them to have a conversation anyway. It was only a ten minute drive, and most of those minutes were spent by Steve staring out the window and Billy trying to come up with something to say. He was coming up blank, though, and by the time they got back to Steve’s house, it seemed almost too late to even try. But when Billy pulled into the driveway and unlocked the door for him to get out, Steve didn’t budge.

“Hey, uh, we’re here,” Billy said, feeling stupid for having to point out the obvious.

“I know, I just…” Steve sighed, “I kinda don’t wanna go in just yet. It’s just dark and empty and… I don’t know, that’s how the Upside Down was. I know it’s stupid but I just… need to take a second.”

“That’s alright, I get it. Take all the time you need,” Billy said, but after a few more minutes of Steve not moving, he sighed and got out of the car himself, walking over to the other door and opening it for Steve. “Or,” he added, “I can go in with you so that you’re not by yourself.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’ll be okay, really,” Steve said, his face going a bit red.

“I know I don’t, but I want to,” Billy smiled, holding out his hand. “C’mon, Pretty Boy, you really need a shower.”

Finally, after a few seconds, Steve took his hand and let Billy pull him from the car. The two of them went up to the door and Steve fumbled with his keys, clearly still nervous, even with another person with him. Eventually he got the door open and Billy followed him inside, and while Steve was hesitant to go out of the glow of the porch light seeping inside, he went further into the darkened house, finding some light switches and flicking them on. Once the house was sufficiently lit up, Steve closed the door and stepped further into it, finding Billy in the kitchen, starting to root through his fridge.

“What are you doing?” He asked as he saw him there, crossing his arms and feeling a bit awkward.

“I assumed you were hungry, so I was gonna make something. You don’t have much, but I assume there’s a box of pasta around here somewhere, and I can make that at least,” Billy explained, closing the fridge. Steve looked a little unsure, and he didn’t want to make him uncomfortable in his own house, but he had to eat. “Look, if you don’t want me to cook, I can order takeout from somewhere. But whatever you want me to do, you seriously gotta go shower, man, or else neither of us is gonna have an appetite for much longer.”

“Takeout is good,” Steve said, nodding.

“Alright, I’ll call and order, you go clean up,” Billy said, turning to look for a phone, but Steve stayed put.

“Actually, uh,” he said, biting his lip, “This is gonna sound weird, but… could you come with me? You don’t have to, like, come into the bathroom with me, but could you just sit outside the door and, like, talk to me? I just… I don’t wanna be by myself, y’know?”

“If it’ll help you, sure,” Billy shrugged, then smiled. “Not like I haven’t seen your dick before anyway, right?”

Steve snorted and agreed, but didn't look up from the ground as he crossed his arms and headed towards the stairs. He flicked on a lightswitch that lit up the upstairs hall and started trudging up the steps, Billy following behind him. Once they got to the top, there was a long hallway with doors lining either side, and as Steve led the way to one in the middle of the hall, Billy took a second to look into each room.

The first one they passed must’ve been a guest room, it looked like something straight out of a home magazine, all frilly and white with pastel green accents and wood furniture. On the other side of it was a closed door, presumably a linen closet, since the next door down was the one Steve turned into, the bathroom. It looked like someone had painted the walls with pepto bismol, and the tiles of the same color glinting in the yellow lights made the place look more orange than anything. The shower itself was cream colored, and the curtain was something resembling green, but it didn’t quite hit the mark, and the fluffy towels hanging on the wall were the same. It was certainly an eyesore, but Billy didn’t mention it. Steve was probably not in the mood to hear about how ugly his bathroom was right now, anyway.

“So, uh,” Steve said as he gathered up the things he needed from beneath the sink, “I’m gonna run to my room to get a change of clothes, and it shouldn’t take me long to clean up. Once I’m done, if you wanna call for a pizza or something, there’s a phone in the guest room.”

“Okay, sure,” Billy replied, noting the way Steve’s hands were still a little shaky. “I can go grab your clothes for you, if you want. That way you don’t get ‘em dirty or anything.”

“O-okay, thanks. My room’s just across the hall and down one,” Steve said, pointing the way. Billy nodded and went in the direction he pointed, finding the room easily and flicking on the lights as he went inside.

If he thought the bathroom was ugly, he was physically repulsed by Steve’s room. The wallpaper alone was enough to make anyone cringe. But something about it felt homey, like no matter how ugly it was, it was still nicer than any other room of the house. There were books falling over on the wall shelves, papers scattered across the desk, shiny plastic sports trophies and medals collecting dust on a shelf beside the bed. There were some clothes on the floor around the laundry basket and a half empty glass of water on the nightstand, and a few pictures on the walls that the kids must’ve done for him. It was a nice room, the kind Billy might’ve wanted when he was growing up, if he had had a choice in it.

As he surveyed the room, Billy spotted an open dresser drawer overflowing with socks, and he remembered why he’d come in here in the first place. He went over to the drawers and got out the first comfortable looking clothes he could find, a plain t-shirt, some sweatpants, a pair of boxers and socks. He shut the drawers and took one last look at the room, smiling at the pile of shoes next to the door, and as he ventured back out into the hall, he realized why the room seemed so much nicer than the rest of the house: It was the only room that actually looked lived in.

When he got back to the bathroom, Steve was already in the running shower, his disgusting sailor uniform tossed in the corner of the room to be dealt with later, and a bit of steam rising up over the curtain to start fogging up the mirror. Billy set the clothes he’d brought for him on the counter and sat down on the lid of the toilet, studying his nails as he tried to come up with something to talk about.

“So, um,” he said, raising his voice enough to be heard above the shower, “Why is it that only your room looks like someone lives there and the rest of the house looks like a Sears catalog?”

“Because nobody else really lives here but me,” Steve said, sounding a little sad. “My dad is away for work most of the time, and my mom is usually at her country club during the day and only really comes home to sleep. And clean. She’s kind of a neat freak. And right now they’re on a vacation in Italy, they’re gonna be gone all summer, so as of right now, I am the only person who lives here.”

“God, that sucks. Although, it could be worse. You could have overbearing parents and a little sister that thinks you’re her own personal butler, so there’s that,” Billy shrugged, though Steve couldn’t see him.

“I’d rather have that than being alone all the time. It wasn’t so bad when I was with Nancy, because at least we always had a place to fool around and be stupid kids, but ever since we broke up, it feels like the house has only gotten bigger and emptier.”

“I get the exact opposite feeling. It always feels like I’m under a microscope when I’m at home. If I start going out with a girl, suddenly every conversation is a game of twenty questions, and it makes our house feel so much smaller. It’s weird how that is,” Billy chuckled, “Maybe we can pull a Freaky Friday and switch places tomorrow and we’ll both get what we want.”

“If only,” Steve said, and Billy was glad to hear what sounded like a little laughter in his voice. It made him smile, and the conversation continued from there, until finally, Steve was ready to get out of the shower. Billy handed him a towel and then left to give him some privacy, instead heading into the guest room to order a pizza before the parlor down the road closed. He didn’t envy the poor delivery boy who would probably have to get home later than usual, but he was planning on tipping, so it shouldn’t have been too much of a problem.

As soon as the pizza was ordered, Billy went back into the hall and met Steve there, dressed in his comfy clothes and toweling off his hair. He looked fresh as a daisy now, and a lot less nervous, though he still didn’t look at Billy’s face much. He was probably still spooked after everything that’d happened, though, so Billy didn’t mention it.

“I ordered pizza for us, should be here in, like, a half hour,” Billy said, slipping his hands into his pockets and shrugging. “So, what now?”

“I don’t know. I was gonna go to bed, but since there’s food coming, I guess we can watch a movie or something to pass the time,” Steve said, tossing the towel back into the bathroom, right next to his ruined uniform.

“What’re you gonna do with that?” Billy asked, nodding towards the clothes.

“Probably burn them. I hated that outfit, anyway,” Steve said, shrugging as well. Billy nodded and went into the bathroom, using the towel to pick up the clothes and carry them down the stairs, taking them through the back door he’d seen earlier and finding an old trash can out by the shed in the backyard. Steve trailed behind him, not exactly enthusiastic about going outside again now that it was dark, but Billy reassured him, so he stuck it out. Billy put the towel and the clothes into the old trash can and pulled out his spare lighter, flicking it until it sparked a flame, then depositing it on top of the pile. It took a minute for it to catch since the towel was still damp, but once they took some dead leaves and put them on top of the pile too, it quickly went up in flames. The two stood out there for a minute, just watching the fire as it raged, standing close enough that they were almost touching.

“What was it like?” Billy asked, his eyes never leaving the fire, “Down in that place, I mean. The Upside Down?”

“It’s just like Hawkins, only…” Steve paused, shifting a little closer and grabbing hold of Billy’s arm, “Only it’s gross. It’s cold, and it’s dangerous. No matter where you go, you’re never safe. One wrong move and you’re stuck in the jaws of a giant monster. And your only hope of surviving is hiding, but even then, your chances are slim of getting out alive. No matter where you go, they can find you.”

“But they didn’t find you,” Billy said, turning to look at Steve now, but Steve’s eyes never strayed from the fire.

“I got lucky. Insanely lucky. Even when Will got stuck down there, he was nearly dead before The Chief and Mrs. Byers got to him. I really thought I was gonna end up the same way, only nobody would’ve found me in time and I would’ve been the next one to die down there.”

“But you didn’t. You made it out, and now you’re safe.”

“None of us is really safe. We can pretend we are, we can get on with our lives, but no matter how many times we beat this thing, somehow it alway rears its head again and knocks us down twice as hard as the time before. I don’t know if we’ll ever truly be safe again, and it’s only a matter of time before we all get stuck down there. Only, by then, there will be no more places to hide.”

Billy didn’t say anything in response this time. He didn’t know enough about this place to be able to really assure Steve that they’d be safe, and he was right, just because Steve was back in the real world, that didn’t mean this bout with whatever this place was was over. It had only just begun, but who knew when, where, what or with whom the next attack would happen. That was the part that was truly terrifying. And by the time the pile of clothes in the trash can was reduced to embers, Billy realized that maybe being outside at night was not the best idea. After all, they didn’t want to be the ones to find out the answers to those questions.

“C’mon, let’s go inside. Pizza should be here soon, and we still have to pick a movie to watch,” he said in the lightest tone he could manage, and with Steve still clinging to his arm, he made his way back inside.

“What do you want to watch?” Billy asked as they finally made it inside, Steve going over to sit on the couch after pointing him to the cabinet that held his movie selection.

“I don’t know. It doesn’t matter to me. I’ve never seen most of the movies in there, anyway, so pick whatever you want,” he said, shrugging and grabbing a pillow to hold onto.

“You haven’t seen most of your own movie collection?”

“Nah. My mom had a whole thing about buying whatever was popular at the time when she first bought us our VCR. I don’t even know half of what we have in there.”

“Jesus, alright, well then I guess I better choose wisely,” Billy said, scanning through the titles until his eyes settled on one and he broke into a smile. “Ever seen this one?”

“I can’t see it, which one?” Steve asked, squinting at the box Billy was holding up. He brought it over, and Steve shook his head.

“Oh my God, this one is amazing! You’re gonna love it, it’s a comedy,” Billy said, taking the tape and loading it into the player. “My aunt took me to see it when it first came out in 1976. I was only nine, and I don’t think she knew exactly what the movie was about, but she saw that Rita Moreno was in it, so she didn’t really care.”

“Well, what’s it about?” Steve asked, but Billy shook his head.

“Just watch and find out,” he said, as the title filled the screen, a caricature of the characters chasing each other over the words ‘The Ritz’.

As the Warner Bros. logo flashed across the screen with a fanfare in the background, the doorbell rang twice, and Billy left Steve on the couch to watch the opening scene while he paid the pizza guy. The opening credits were still playing as he returned with the food and two cans of Pepsi, clearing a space on the coffee table so that they could eat. Steve must’ve been starving, because he wolfed down three slices and was halfway through the fourth one by the time the opening was over and the plot was starting to unfold. And he must’ve been exhausted, too, because by the time the first big plot point was starting to play out, he was dead asleep on the other end of the couch.

Billy turned the volume down on the TV so that Steve could sleep peacefully, and continued to eat his pizza as the movie went on. He considered just turning it off, slipping out the front door and calling tomorrow to check in on Steve, but he decided against it. It felt like kind of a dick move to just leave him and not say anything beforehand, but he also didn’t want to seem creepy or like he was just looking for a place to crash. Still, Steve had been so scared to come home to an empty house, and Billy wasn’t about to just disappear and freak him out all over again. Even he wasn’t that mean.

So he stayed, and continued watching the movie, being careful not to laugh too loud so he wouldn’t wake Steve. He didn’t, and he was also beat from a day of supervising children while sitting in the hot sun, so as the movie got closer to its end, he felt his eyes starting to droop as well.

He had just grabbed the remote to turn the TV off so he could doze off, too, when suddenly, Steve’s eyes flew open and he sat bolt upright, screaming bloody murder as he scrambled back into the arm of the couch. He was sweating and panting like he’d been running for hours, and he looked as white as a ghost.

“Whoa, whoa, hey, calm down,” Billy said, pausing the movie and turning to try and help him settle. “It’s just you and me, you’re home, you’re safe, it’s just us.”

Steve just stared at Billy for a second, but his brain must’ve gotten back to itself by then, because he let out a breath and calmed down, rubbing his hands over his face and sighing.

“I’m sorry,” he said, shaking his head, “Nightmares are pretty common for me after dealing with this shit again, especially since Nancy left. When I had someone with me it wasn’t as bad, but since I don’t… I really shouldn’t have let myself fall asleep, but I’m just so tired.”

“Uh, yeah, you should’ve. You need sleep, dude. Even if it’s fitful sleep, at least you’re getting something,” Billy said, trying to get Steve to look at him.

“And what if I get a heart attack from it? What then?” Steve sighed, “No, I’ll just stay up until I literally pass out. Maybe then I’ll be too tired to dream at all.”

“Or, you know, you could just do something to take your mind off of it,” Billy shrugged, slightly appalled at the idea.

“Oh yeah? Like what?” Steve grumbled, leaning back on the couch and crossing his arms.

“I could suck your dick if you want,” Billy shrugged again, amused by the way Steve’s face contorted in confusion. “I mean, a good orgasm or two usually puts me out like a light, I assume it’d work for you, too.”

“Are you out of your mind?!” Steve asked, getting a little panicky, “I’m not gay, dude!”

“Neither am I,” Billy said, still cool as a cucumber, “It’s not a gay thing. It’s a health thing, if anything. And it’s not like it’s a big deal or anything. I used to do it with my friends out in California all the time.”

“You used to give your friends blowjobs all the time in California? I find that a little hard to believe.”

“They did it for me, too, so don’t make it sound like I was the only one going down. It was really nothing, though. We were just letting off steam. You don’t have to say yes, it was only a suggestion.”

Steve went quiet for a minute, unsure of what to say. He had never in his wildest dreams imagined that Billy Hargrove would be offering to blow him, but here they were. It’s not like Billy was bad looking, and from what he’d heard, he was pretty amazing at this kind of thing. And he was right, it was a lot easier for Steve to sleep after getting off once or twice, but could he really trust Billy not to blab about it? If he did, he would be telling on himself, too, though, so Steve supposed it was a safe bet. And honestly, for a good night’s sleep, he’d try anything at this point.

“Okay,” he said, keeping his eyes trained on the frozen TV screen. “I guess I don’t mind if you blow me. It’s only to help me sleep, right?”

“Yeah, right,” Billy said, “Are you sure? I don’t wanna make it weird or anything.”

“Yeah, I’m sure. Just do it before I get in my head about it.”

“You’re already in your head about it, but use that to your advantage. Just imagine I’m a pretty girl and you’ll be just fine.”

Steve wasn’t so sure the advice would work, but he was willing to give it a try. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, and as he felt Billy’s hands start to touch him, he did his best to imagine a pretty girl in his place. He tried to imagine Nancy, at first, but she never liked doing this, and he was over her, anyway, so it didn’t work. Then he tried to imagine Robin, but she was a germaphobe, she didn’t even like taking out the trash at the end of the night, so the thought of her touching him like this was unrealistic, even to his imagination. But then the picture in his head morphed from Robin into someone else as Billy finally got his mouth on him, and as soon as it did, he could feel himself growing more excited by the second.

The picture in his head now was a pretty blonde, with bright blue eyes and bloody red nails. Her eyelashes were long and her lips were full and red and pretty wrapped around his cock. And Steve knew who it was, but until the feminine features melted away and he couldn’t imagine her like that anymore no matter how hard he tried, he didn’t want to admit it.

It was Billy, of course, and while at first he didn’t think it was possible for him to be turned on by a man, Steve couldn’t deny the attraction he felt to Billy even before he had gotten his mouth on him. He was nice, once you got to know him, and he seemed to care about everyone’s well being, even if it annoyed him more often than not. He was a genuinely decent dude, and that above anything else is what Steve liked about him. But, if he had to be honest, his looks were definitely a selling point as well. As was the tongue that was currently mapping out every inch of his dick.

“Oh God, baby. Keep going,” Steve sighed, his hands balling into fists and his mouth falling open into a moan.

Billy was really good at this. He hummed in acknowledgement and kept going, just like Steve had asked. He had his eyes open and trained on Steve’s face, wanting to see every reaction to what he was doing play out. See, he hadn’t exactly lied to Steve earlier when he said he wasn’t gay, but he had only really told half of the truth. He still liked girls, but there were also quite a few guys that he wouldn’t mind being with, and right at the tippy top of the list was the one he was currently pleasuring with his mouth.

“Oh… Oh God… Billy, I’m gonna… I’m gonna come,” Steve panted, pulling at his own hair as he shivered, ready to blow his load. He expected Billy to pull off of him, but he didn’t, he held himself still until Steve was finished, and then, while he calmed down, got up and found his empty soda can from earlier. He spit whatever was in his mouth into it and then swished his mouth out with some water in the kitchen, and when he was done, he returned to the living room to see Steve already starting to drift off again. He had tucked himself back into his pants and was cuddling up against the pillows again, yawning as he settled down and still shivering a little bit.

Billy smiled a little as he saw him. He looked cute, kinda flushed and sleepy, and overall just sweet. He got him a blanket and threw it over him, and turned the TV back on again, turning the volume down and watching whatever was on. It turned out that there wasn’t much, but he found an old episode of Three’s Company and figured that was good enough. He cleaned up the living room a bit, and then turned off the lights as he settled in on the floor, Steve having stretched out in his sleep and now taken up the whole couch. He looked at the clock in the kitchen a minute ago and saw that it was a little past midnight, and when Three’s Company finally ended and was taken over by another show that he didn’t know, he finally turned the TV off and laid down to get some sleep.

When Steve woke up, it was still dark, and he was alone. He’d had another nightmare, and even though he didn’t wake up screaming this time, he was still terrified. Alone, and terrified. He couldn’t even tell if what he remembered from the night before was real or not. Billy was gone, the living room was clean, the lights were off, and the TV remote was in its regular spot on the coffee table. He was alone, and apparently, hallucinating. Steve couldn’t take it anymore. He was scared and alone, and he couldn’t help it when he started to cry, quietly just in case there was something in here trying to get him. He shrunk back into the couch, pulling the blanket over his head and trying to hide, his heart pounding as he heard something start to shuffle and he made himself shut up.

He screamed in fear as something started tugging at the blanket he was under, exposing his foot. He tried to scramble away, but got caught in the blanket, and squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to prepare himself for the feeling of teeth ripping into him, but it never came.

“Hey, Steve, chill out, it’s just me,” Billy said, pulling the blanket away from his face and turning the lights back on. Steve blinked hard as his eyes adjusted to the light, and he looked like a deer in headlights as he shook like a leaf in autumn.

“Billy?” He squeaked, his eyes filling again and blurring his vision, but he could still tell it was him.

“Yeah, I’m here. Are you okay?” Billy asked, and Steve shook his head. “I guess that was a stupid question. Was it another nightmare?”

“Y-yeah,” Steve whispered, curling himself into a ball. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it’s fine,�� Billy said, moving to sit next to Steve now, but making sure to give him some space. They were quiet, neither of them really knowing what to do now. They were navigating uncharted waters, and neither of them had the faintest idea of what that meant. So they just kept each other company, staring straight ahead and listening to the ticking of the kitchen clock.

“I thought you left,” Steve mumbled after a while, keeping his eyes forward, even though he could feel Billy turning to look at him. “Why did you stay?”

“Did you want me to go?” Billy asked.

“No, but…” Steve sighed, “But I thought you did. Why didn’t you?”

“Because you were scared, and I know what that’s like to have monsters in your head. And in real life.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I’ve got ‘em, too. They might not be as freaky-deaky as the ones you’re dealing with, but I get it. I’ve been dealing with mine since I was just a little kid, and I never had someone who knew what I was going through that was there for me to help me deal with it. I thought I did, when I was really little, but then she left, too, and I was on my own. Nobody should have to deal with this shit on their own, and I knew that from experience, so I stayed with you because I didn’t want you to feel as alone as I do a lot of the time.”

“You really feel alone all the time?” Steve asked, finally turning to look at Billy, too.

“Yeah. It’s hard not to when nobody else goes through what I do.”

“When I was stuck in the Upside Down, I felt like that, too. I only know one other person that’s been through that and survived, and he’s just a kid. If I tried to talk to him about it, I might traumatize him all over again. So I either do that, or I suffer in silence, and I don’t want to do either. I just wish I could make it all go away.”

“And that’s the shittiest part about it. We can’t make our monsters go away, our only two options are to get over them or give in to them, and neither is a particularly good option.”

“Did you ever get over your monster?”

“I’ve tried. It’s hard. But someday soon I’m at least going to get away from him, and that’s the first step. After that I have to work on getting over him. I’m not going to let him take any more of my life away from me, especially when he’s not even gonna be in it anymore. Once the monsters are physically gone, the emotional stuff can be dealt with. It’ll just take time.”

“How long do you think it’ll take you to get over yours?”

“A long time, probably, but I’m not gonna give up. I’ve got too much that I can look forward to once it’s over.”

“When I was trapped in the storeroom,” Steve said, a tiny, sad smile peeking through on his face, “I spent a lot of the time trying to come up with things that I had to keep fighting for. Now it’s over, and I’m home, but I feel like if I do any of them, I’ll only be putting the people I care about in danger.”

“But that’s what I’m talking about,” Billy said, “Now you’re out, you already got the first step done, and now you get the chance to deal with the emotional stuff. You’re already kind of doing that just by talking about it. It’s not easy to get rid of the monsters, but you’re already way ahead of where I’m at, so that’s something.”

Steve didn’t say anything else, just nodded. He didn’t know if Billy was right, he seemed so much more together than himself, but maybe that was because he couldn’t afford to not put on a brave face. He didn’t know, but he hoped he was right.

The two of them went back to being quiet then, staring ahead just like earlier, and listening to the clock. Eventually, Billy looked back at it, seeing that it was nearly four in the morning, and he suppressed a yawn as he rubbed his eyes. He wanted to go back to sleep, but he wasn’t going to let Steve stay up by himself. He was trying to think of something that might help him sleep, and just as he was about to offer to blow him again, he remembered something.

“Are you still tired?” Billy asked, and Steve nodded.

“Yeah, but there’s no use in trying to sleep again. It’s almost morning, anyway,” Steve sighed.

“Morning isn’t for another few hours, and if you stay up, you’ll just crash later on,” Billy said, standing and holding out his hand. “I’ve got an idea, though. C’mon, trust me.”

Steve wanted to protest again, but finally, he sighed and took Billy’s hand. Billy led him upstairs and down the hall until they were in his room, and before Steve could ask what he was thinking, Billy pulled him over to the bed.

“What are you doing?” He asked, stopping when Billy let go of his hand and went to the other side of the bed.

“I remembered something you said earlier,” he said as he climbed in, adjusting the covers. “You said that when Nancy was with you, you didn’t get the nightmares as often. I thought that maybe if you had someone with you, it might help. It’s worth a shot, right?”

“I guess so, but why don’t you just let me stay up? I don’t mind if you sleep in front of me, as long as I know you’re still there if I need you. Why do you care so much if I get back to sleep, too?”

“Because believe it or not, I care about you, and staying up like that isn’t going to help you. It’ll only make you more paranoid, and your mind will start playing tricks on you. I know because I’ve been there. So instead of just giving up, why not try to find a solution? I don’t know if this’ll work, but it can’t hurt to try. And if it doesn’t work, then I’ll let you stay up as long as you want, alright?”

“Fine,” Steve sighed, climbing into bed next to Billy. He laid there stiff as a board, his heart beating faster than normal, until Billy turned to look at him. He made himself settle down and relax, shifting until he was comfortable on his side, facing Billy. He let him throw his arm over him, holding him gently as they both felt sleep overtaking them.

“I know I was being stubborn, but thank you for still trying to help me,” Steve whispered, his eyes blinking slowly as he tried to stay awake just a little longer.

“You’re welcome,” Billy murmured back, brushing some hair from Steve’s face and tucking it behind his ear. “Goodnight, Pretty Boy.”

And just before he lost his nerve, Billy leaned forward and kissed Steve’s head softly as the other boy’s eyes closed slowly. Neither of them felt like they could keep them open any longer, so they stopped trying. They fell asleep quickly after that. And when they woke up late the next morning, it was only to sunshine and lazy smiles.

#hsb2024 #billy hargrove #steve harrington #harringrove #stranger things #fanfic #max mayfield #dustin henderson #will byers #lucas sinclair #eleven #mike wheeler

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real-reulbbr-band · 1 year ago

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Guys, Bustopher deserves better, so here's what I'd imagine he'd do in the rest of the show if he didn't disappear from existence after his song. (hypothetically)

(Reul totally doesn't have a white rose and mole Bustopher bias.....)

quick clarifications before we start!

Bustopher won't be in his song costume when "old Deuteronomy" happens or for the rest of the show. So, imagine him in a sort of chorus costume in this, like Jennyanydots after the Gumbie Cat number. (like the image below but with more white areas)

But because he's fancy, he would be dressed this way if it were entirely up to me, and I could choose. It would also somewhat lessen the shock factor (at least for me) associated with Grizabella wearing clothing when nearly everyone else is completely naked. Instead of dressing like a huge, stuffy coat with a giant tail, he wears suspenders in my imagination, and the look is still suitable for the remainder of the performance.

Also note that Asparagus and Gus are different characters to me, and that applies here. Sorry if that's bothersome.

ACT 1

"Mungojerrie & Rumpleteazer"

He shows back up at the end of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer after the two are caught and everyone's surrounding them; he's still quite shaken, thinking they are Macavity, and so he hides behind Asparagus, who's walking towards the crowd, clearly annoyed at the two. When he does get close enough, Bustopher peeks at the action before stepping away from his fellow tom and huffing, crossing his arms. He collects the "swag bags" (seriously, why are they called that?) off Munkustrap and Alonzo and waddles off stage. Where the actor would then change into the chorus costume.

"Old Deuteronomy"

The Jellicles sing old Deuteronomy, and around midway, Bustopher shows up again, leaning by the oven. He smiles at how enthusiastic everyone is over the arrival of the jellicle leader but isn't too pushy to greet old Deuteronomy himself.

(In my headcanon, the two run into each other outside of the junkyard, often due to Bustopher being "the cat about town" and Old Deuteronomy being known in his poem for sitting in the street on market day.) Bustopher simply greets him with an acknowledging nod and smile as he arrives.

"The Awefull battle of the Pekes & the Pollicles"

He sits at Deuteronomy's side, just behind where Victoria does during the number. Despite being close by, Bustopher isn't as generous as old Deuteronomy is when it comes to the Pekes & Pollicles performance. Not in a cruel sense, but more like he can't help but raise a brow and laugh as everyone keeps messing around. Maybe even sparing old Deuteronomy some telling glances when the Rumpus cat shows up late.

(I skipped the Jellicle Ball because I honestly don't think he'd do anything noteworthy if he were to be one of the dancers or realistically off stage like Old D and Gus.)

ACT 2

"The Moment of happiness"

If we're doing a transitional thing, I think he'd purposefully sit next to Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer just to make sure they don't start giggling during the song or messing around with everyone else. He'd probably shush them, though, and gesture for them to sit. Other than that, he'd listen and repeat like everyone else.

"Gus the theatre cat"

I think it would be funny if Bustopher sat next to Skimbleshanks on top of the car boot. Probably to catch up and enjoy the song, but when Skimble inevitably starts falling asleep, Bustopher feels offended on behalf of Gus and Jellylorum and tries to wake him by bapping Skimble's paw or tail. Skimble still falls asleep, however, and Bustopher simply rolls his eyes and enjoys the rest of the song. It's bittersweet at the end of the day, but enjoyable none the less.

"Skimbleshanks the railway cat"

Bustopher's a little cross with Skimble after what happened before but gets over it quite quickly and joins the other elder cats watching on the tire. I think it would be kind of funny if Bustopher wasn't aware they were going to be building a train (because his visits are occasional) and sort of got roped in to holding the umbrella, or better yet, one of the pipes. He's confused and keeps turning to the cat beside him for guidance, but comes to enjoy it. Even when the train breaks down.

"Macavity's appearance"

Macavity appears. Bustopher out. I want him to be the first one to run off too. It could be a nice running joke. But yeah, I think he'd leave before old Deuteronomy even gets kidnapped; he's that scared of the red bastard.

"Magical Mr. Mistoffelees"

Going from Mistoffelees being an eager fan and respecting Bustopher so much as if he were family, I think it would definitely encourage him more if Bustopher was cheering him on along with everyone else. I think it would be nice if he stood next to Jenny here, after she's disappointed about not being selected, Mistoffelees's assistant Bustopher gives her a pat on the paw, and they sit and enjoy the magic and celebrate with everyone once Deut's back.

"Memory"

I think this is the first time Bustopher's seen Grizabella? So you bet he's taking longer to turn around and look her in the eyes. Other than that, that pretty much had the same reaction as every other cat in that scene. Anyway, when Grizabella is welcomed back, I think it would be nice if Bustopher shook her paw instead of just brushing against it. "But Reul, they're cats!! Tugger does hip thrusts and fist pumps. Bustopher can shake paws."

Anyhow, that's all I got for him, but I think with different actors, this process and how he interacts with the jellicles could be very diverse and interesting. I'm all for reimagings, and this post was kind of an excuse to do that or a "what if," especially with a cat as underappreciated as Bustopher, which is no doubt because of his lack of stage time. I think a few more moments with him could really make him more memorable and justify him having a song rather than cutting him and his song completely.

for you: @kirbyssketchbook

#bustopher jones #cats the musical #Long post #This is mainly my own interpretation of Bustopher so maybe my details are a little off but I thought doing a post like this would be fun #Also If I didn’t include a song it’s mostly because I don’t think bustopher would do anything interesting there / his song hasn’t happened #yet

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electronickingdomfox · 2 years ago

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"The New Voyages 2" review

Another collection of short stories submitted by fans, similar to the first volume (which I reviewed here). This one was published in 1978, and was also edited by Marshak and Culbreath. More uneven than the first volume, but there are still some solid tales in here. It would have been better if Marshak and Culbreath had chosen other stories (ANY stories) to replace the ones written by themselves. But I guess that's the privilege of being the editors...

Some spoilers under the cut:

Surprise! (by Nichelle Nichols, Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath). Nichelle is credited as one of the authors, though judging by the info in the introduction, as well as the unmistakable style, I'd guess that most of it was written by the dreaded couple, while Nichols just provided the general idea and the ending. It's Kirk's birthday, and Uhura, together with the rest of the crew, try hard to keep the party a surprise, while Kirk gets more and more annoyed in the process. The story drags too much, since the plot doesn't really have all that meat to begin with. And everyone behaves weirdly out-of-character, supposedly because it's a comedic story. I found the whole thing more silly than funny, to be honest.

Snake Pit! (by Connie Faddis) is much better. Chapel and Kirk are abducted by an alien tribe who has recently turned hostile, and ceased commerce with a nearby scientific station. The tribe has also started to kill people in sadistic rituals involving snakes. Kirk is tortured in truly Kirk-style, and put naked inside a pit full of snakes, that bite him. He'll die if he isn't given an antidote soon. Then Chapel offers the natives a bet: if she can rescue Kirk from the pit without being bitten once, they'll have to release both of them. If she fails, well... you get the idea. So Chapel jumps also naked into the pit, armed just with a knife, and battles the snakes in glorious cavewoman fashion. There's action and tension, and the opportunity to see Chapel's most badass side.

The Patient Parasites (by Russell Bates). This author wrote the TAS episode "How Sharper than a Serpent's Tooth", and this story is actually the script for another TAS episode, which got rejected. Thus, it's presented in TV script form, not as a narrative. Some crewmembers are captured by a strange machine, whose mission is to retrieve knowledge from any species out there, and bring it to its masters. Kirk and co. must find a way to weaken the machine's force field and rescue the crew, before their allotted time expires. It ends with Kirk making the machine self-destruct through the power of logic. Pretty "meh!" and generic argument. It's no surprise it was rejected as an episode, given the static scenery and lack of action.

In the Maze (by Jennifer Guttridge) turned out to be my favorite story. This is the same author of the also great "The Winged Dreamers", in the first collection. Kirk, Spock and McCoy are investigating a strange cube building, which doesn't fit that planet's culture, when Kirk disappears through a portal. Spock and McCoy follow him, but end up in a total different place of the maze. Kirk is being held in a cage by a disgusting alien, with whom he's unable to communicate, while Spock and McCoy must brave the maze and several dangers to rescue him. All part of an intelligence test by the alien. Spock and McCoy suffer a lot (specially McCoy) and embrace a lot. And they even have to fight a tentacle monster, similar to that one in the lake before Moria (from "Lord of the Rings"). It's dark, it bears a resemblance to "The Empath", and it would have made for a great episode of the series.

Cave-In (by Jane Peyton) is a strange "free texture" poem, so it's up to interpretation, and it's not entirely clear what's going on. The dialogue seems to happen between Spock and McCoy while they're trapped inside a cave, and McCoy is prodding the Vulcan about his mixed heritage. Not much to comment. I don't get this stuff.

Marginal Existence (also by Connie Faddis) has the crew investigating an eerie planet, where all the inhabitants have been placed in "sleeper chambers" and pumped up with drugs. Most of them have been dead for centuries, anyway. It all turns very sinister once automated robots, which respond to the sound of voices, start putting crewmembers inside the chambers, and piercing them with needles and tubes filled with drugs, which causes them great pain. As it's discovered later, this hedonistic society chose to live permanently under the effect of drugs, but it all backfired once the pleasure turned into pain. Poor McCoy also suffers a lot in this one, this time from too painful pleasure. Yeah. It's an interesting, a bit macabre story.

The Procrustean Petard (by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath). This one gave me actual brain damage. The awkward prose is mostly gone, at least, and replaced with supposedly witty banter (it isn't), and repetitions of the same bad pun that gives the story its title. It also takes a similar plot as "Turnabout Intruder", but turning the misogyny up to eleven. Let me explain. In the TOS episode, Lester can't be a starship captain because a law (described as "unfair") doesn't allow women to be captains. However, Lester doesn't become any better once she gets Kirk's body. She's just as deranged and tyrannical as before, no matter that she has now Kirk's muscles and hormones; that doesn't make her a better leader. And similarly, Kirk doesn't become a hysterical crybaby simply because he's now in a female body. In the end, what counts is the attitude, what is inside, and not the body in particular. This is completely subverted in this story. The Enterprise approaches a planet, which has the stupid quality of luring spaceships just to reverse the sex of everyone on-board, whether they want it or not (the point being what??). As soon as Kirk is turned into a female (not just any female; he's the same James Kirk, just with one chromosome changed), he becomes the most useless being in the universe. Nobody believes him capable of being a leader anymore, and the story proves this point time and time again. He faints in the bridge just because the ship is shaking a bit. He can't go alone anywhere. He distracts all men because he's too beautiful now. Starfleet wants to take away his command and give him a desk job. He can't even drive a shuttlecraft anymore because "oh! the controls are too big". This is a world where aliens of all shapes and sizes are accepted, but it seems that human females are still the most pathetic things in existence... Is Spock also turned into a woman? Hell no. The authors are Spock supremacists, so they spare him that indignity. Instead, the planet gives Spock an extra Y chromosome (because it does that to the strongest male on-board, of course) and this turns Spock into a super-macho, and an insufferable asshole. At once, he stops calling Kirk "Captain", since he's no longer worthy of the rank. Needless to say, everyone reverts back to their usual selves at the end, save Spock. Because super-macho Spock = good. There's also an appearance of the Klingon Kang (from "Day of the Dove"), which has lost his whole crew because they're all now useless women. No matter that in the series, Kang was married to a very capable female Science Officer... Sigh. The only one who remains more or less the same is McCoy, who doesn't see so much difference, save the purely biological, in being a woman. But I think I know what's the logic behind this. As McCoy is the most emotional of the triumvirate, the authors probably saw him as "less of a man" to begin with. Or, in their own rhetoric, as a "beta male".

The Sleeping God (by Jesco von Puttkamer). This author is an interesting case, since he's a NASA scientist, who later would help with technical details for TMP. (He's also, by his own admittance, one of the victims of Shatner's "habit of kissing men on the mouth"). This story is a bit longer than the others, and separated by chapters. A massive super-computer intelligence, called the Nagha, has conquered her own universe after millions of years, destroying every living being in her strive to become the only, supreme intelligence that exists. She's a malevolent counterpart to V'ger, even referenced as a "child" too. Which is curious since TMP wouldn't be released until 1979. Unless it's purely coincidental, it could be that Jesco knew something about the movie script beforehand, and took inspiration from it. Or it was Roddenberry who was inspired by this story instead. Anyway, the Nagha has found out how to invade the normal universe too, and is destroying planets. So Starfleet decides to wake up their ultimate weapon: a mutant with extraordinary mental powers, put in a sleeping chamber years ago. Of course, it's the Enterprise's task to carry the sleeping god and confront the Nagha. But it soon becomes apparent that the mental powers of the mutant are interfering with the crew. The plot isn't terribly original, but it's well-written and keeps the interest. A bit heavy on the technical details (as expected, given the author's background), but not to the point of being boring. McCoy keeps bitching about all the bullshit that's going on, which is fun.

After this come two short poems (Elegy for Charlie, by Antonia Vallario, and Soliloquy by Marguerite B. Thompson). I can't comment much on them, since poetry isn't my thing, sorry.

Spirk Meter: 9/10*. Not evenly distributed, but very much there.

Surprise! has Spock offering to tuck Kirk in bed, and after Kirk accepts, he becomes flustered. Spock also carries him in his arms for a minor injury (though there's a reason for it, since he's preventing him to enter the room with the surprise party). Both of them also share a chess room between their two bathrooms, and it's obvious they're going into there after taking a shower or such.

The Sleeping God has Kirk finding a naked Spock tied to a lab table, immediately running to him, and then being stripped himself and put on another table next to him. Spock keeps calling him "Jim" all the time, even when discussing mission details. Before the whole complex self-destructs, Kirk's last thoughts are for Spock to be safe.

And Soliloquy, a first-person poem about Spock, ends with the bold words: "I love you, Captain, written on my heart". Maybe I should give this book a higher score based in this line alone, but the poem is such a little thing in the scope of the book, that I don't know...

Spones also deserves an honorary mention. Cave-In has Spock and McCoy trapped in a cave and McCoy is really hot ("Hotter than you know"). Presumably because of the stuffy air inside the cave, but this is during an intense banter between both and... well, you get the idea. In the Maze has lots of love between the two, as they're both badly injured and keep comforting and healing each other. So yeah, it's like one of those episodes.

And Kirk is a bit touchy-feely with McCoy in The Patient Parasites.

*A 10 in this scale is the most obvious spirk moments in TOS. Think of the back massage, "You make me believe in miracles", or "Amok Time" for example.

#star trek tos #star trek #spirk #k/s #novel review #star trek novels #spones

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mikaela-granger · 6 months ago

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The Long Wait (Season 6) Chapter 5

Chasing My Demons Away

Fandom: Grimm

Pairing: Sean Renard/OFC

The Long Wait Masterlist

A/N: Meisner’s presence continues to cause problems for Sean. Meanwhile, Olivia has a surprise for Sean.

***Sean’s POV***

Once the girls were settled in bed, Sean headed for his own bedroom determined to get a full night’s sleep. As he was grabbing his sleepwear he paused, sensing another presence. “You gonna follow me everywhere?” Sean asked with a sigh.

“I imagine it feels good to be home, Sean. But I’m not following you.” Meisner replied. “I’m haunting you. There is a difference.”

Sean turned to face him. “Well, it’s annoying in either case.”

“You know, it’s been a while since I’ve seen her.”

Sean frowned. “Seen who?”

“Diana. I was there when she was born. It’s quite an experience” Meisner commented. “I’m not really used to bringing life into the world.

“Is that what this is about?” Sean asked feeling frustrated. “You want some thanks for being there when I couldn’t be? Well, thank you, really. Thank you for being there. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for Diana and me.” Sean turned away from him and started unbuttoning his shirt.

“It’s too bad you didn’t think of that.” Meisner replied. “Before, you know, that betrayal thing.”

Sean looked at him and let out a bitter laugh. “Now is this gonna be a regular treat with you? You’re gonna keep showing up here and making me feel sorry? Because I don’t do sorry very well.”

“Do I look shocked?”

“Look, we had some good times together, and I really appreciate everything you’ve done for all of us. For Diana, for Adalind, and me. Did I leave anybody out? Because I would really like to be done with this, once and for all.”

Meisner shrugged. “I’m not sure I can commit to a half-assed haunting, Sean.” Sean sighed. Of course it wouldn’t be this easy. “I mean, you wouldn’t respect me if I were to take a cheap thank you and drift off into whatever awaits me. I think we have some real issues to work through.”

“I’m tired. I just wanna get some sleep.” Sean said, almost pleading with him. “I’d love it if you got the hell out of my room.”

“Well, there’s the problem. Am I in your room or am I just in your mind?” Meisner asked. Sean just stared at him. “Now, that’s just awesome. Am I even here?” He said, sitting down.

“Ok. Fine. You take the bedroom.” Sean told him before storming off downstairs. Breathing heavily, he headed straight for the bar. He wasn’t going to get drunk, he just needed something to take the edge off.

“Now we’re getting somewhere.” Sean froze. Dammit. “I’ve heard the only way to battle your demons is to take a trip to their hell.”

The sound of a gunshot had Sean woging as he spun around. As he did so, there were more gunshots and multiple Meisner’s laying on the ground, dead. With every gunshot, another body appeared. What was happening to him?

Sean didn’t have the best night sleep. Eventually the gunshots stopped, and the bodies disappeared. Meisner left him alone, but Sean was sure he would return. Despite the lack of sleep, Sean was grateful when the sun rose. It meant the girls would be waking up. Meisner hadn’t bothered him when he was with them, so he was hoping their presence would keep Meisner away. Olivia was the first to wake, calling out for him. Sean felt himself relax when he entered her room to see her smiling at him. Diana woke up not long after that. He got the two ready for the day before the three of them had breakfast. Angela arrived while they were eating, and both girls were happy to see her. Eventually Adalind arrived to pick Diana up, and Sean headed to the hospital to visit his wife before he headed to work.

Later that day, Sean decided to seek help for his ghost problem. Luckily, Angela was willing to stay with Olivia for a little bit longer. Knowing his youngest was taken care of, Sean headed to meet an old…acquittance. “Things haven’t been going so well for you.” Steiger commented upon seeing Sean.”

“They haven’t.” Sean confirmed.

“I voted for you. Why’d you quit?”

Sean sighed. “It wasn’t me.”

Steiger raised an eyebrow, looking sceptical. “Looked like you.” Sean gave him a look and Steiger chuckled. “You’re telling someone used a Verfluchte Zwillingsschweste on you.”

“That’s not why I’m here. I…I need your help.” Sean said awkwardly. He hated asking for help or admitting weakness. But he needed this issue dealt with.

“Well, I didn’t think you came in to buy a guitar.” Steiger straightened up, crossing his arms. “What’s the problem?”

“I’m being haunted.” Sean admitted.

“Hmm. Anybody you know?”

Sean nodded. “Yeah.”

“Were you responsible for the death?”

Sean clenched his jaw. “In a way.”

“You wanna narrow that down a little?”

Sean huffed. “Look, I killed him to put him out of his misery. And this is the thanks I get. I just wanna know if it’s real or if I’m losing my mind” Sean told him, starting to get worked up.

“All right, all right, all right.” Steiger said in a placating tone. He sighed. “This isn’t going to be simple. Would did you bring me in order to find out?”

Sean held up his right hand before pulling the ring off. “This was my father’s. And his father’s before him.” Sean told him before handing the ring over. Despite the pain caused by that side of the family, Sean wore the ring as a reminder that he didn’t need them, that he had made his own way in the world.

Steiger took the ring from Sean, examining it closely. “All right then. Let’s go find out if this ghost is real.” He stared walking towards a double set of curtains. “This way.”

Sean followed, pausing as Steiger opened the curtains revealing a large glass box. He moved behind it, pushing it into the main shop. Sean stepped forward to take a closer look. “Aspirateur d’Esprits.” Sean read out. He gave Steiger a confused look. “A spirit vacuum?”

Steiger nodded. “If any spirits are attached to you, this will pull them out.” He informed Sean.

Sean sighed. “What am I supposed to do?” He asked, looking at the box sceptically.

“Take off your clothes and get in.”

Sean stared at him in disbelief. “Seriously.”

“You want to find if your haunting is real, don’t you? If it’s all in your head, nothing will happen.”

With a sigh, Sean stared removing his clothes. He had to find out for sure. Once Sean had undressed, he stepped inside, and Steiger closed the door behind him. “You ready?” He asked.

Sean nodded. “Let’s get this over with.” It was hot inside this box. Was it supposed to be this hot?

Steiger flicked a switch and machine came to life. It was loud. Sean watched as Steiger adjusted different knobs and switches. Sean stared to feel unwell and in pain. It felt like…something was being sucked out of him. He groaned before crying out as the pain grew in intensity. “It shouldn’t be too long now.” Steiger informed him before giving him a thumbs up.

Sean clenched his eyes shut and gritted his teeth as the pain got worse. As he shouted out in pain, he became aware of some kind of mist inside the box with him. He stared at it in surprise. There was more pain, and he cried out again. As he opened his eyes, he saw Steiger fall to the ground. As the man stood up, Sean saw that it wasn’t Steiger, but Meisner dressed as he had been the day he died, bullet wound in the centre of his forehead. Sean stared at him in fear as Meisner hit another switch. The noises coming from the machine grew louder. Sean yelled out as banged his fists on the door, trying to get out. This was it. Meisner was getting his revenge. The pain intensified and Sean felt himself starting to lose consciousness. The last thing he saw was Meisner’s face staring at him.

When Sean regained consciousness, he was surprised. The shop was empty. Truly empty. There was nothing in it. As Sean slowly got up, he realised he was wearing his clothes, yet couldn’t recall getting dressed. What the hell? Sean slowly walked towards the door, glancing outside. His gaze fell on the hand that once held his father’s ring. It wasn’t there. Hearing something behind him, Sean spun around, finding himself face to face with Meisner. “The mind is a terrible thing to lose.” And then he was gone.

Sean had no idea what the hell happened. Maybe he was losing his mind. But he clearly remembered entering a shop, speaking with Steiger, the pain associated with being in the Aspirateur d’Esprits. It had to have happened. His ring was gone. But where was Steiger? What happened to his pawn shop? Rattled, Sean decided to get out of there. He needed to go home. By the time Sean arrived home, he’d convinced himself nothing had happened. None of the events of the past couple of hours occurred.

“I’m sorry I’m so late.” Sean told Angela after entering the house.

Angela had been about to walk upstairs. She had Olivia and a bottle in hand. “That’s fine Sean.” Angela assured him. “I was just about to put this one to bed.”

“I can do that.” He told her.

Angela nodded, handing Olivia over to him. “I left a plate in the fridge for you. She’s been fed, bathed and has a clean diaper. I’m a little late getting her to bed because we went to visit Mommy and she had a nap on the way home.”

Sean pressed a kiss to Olivia’s head. “Thank you. How was she today?”

“Good. Although there were some tears when we left the hospital.” Angela informed him.

Sean glanced down at Olivia who was resting her head on his shoulder, sleepily rubbing her eyes. She was definitely ready for bed. Sean looked back at Angela. “Thanks again Angela. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

As Angela let herself out, Sean took Olivia upstairs. “Did you have a good day today?” He asked her as settled in chair in her bedroom. Olivia nodded. Sean shifted her so he was cradling her before handing her the bottle of milk. As she drank her milk, Sean gently spoke to her, telling her about his day. Well, not everything, of course. Once the milk was gone, he stood up and tried to lay her in her crib. But she was having none of it, she started crying and clinging to him. “Hey, what’s all this?” Sean asked softly as he held her close.

Olivia quietened down, only letting out little sniffles as she snuggled against him. Sean returned to the chair, keeping his daughter close, gently rubbing her back and pressing little kisses to the top of her head. “It’s alright. Daddy’s here.”

Eventually his little princess fell asleep, and Sean was able to transfer her to the crib without any fuss. He moved downstairs to grab the plate Angela left for him. Once he’d eaten his fill, he returned upstairs to start getting ready for bed himself. Hopefully, hopefully, he’d be able to get a good night’s sleep. As he settled in bed, he sent a message to his wife wishing her a good night. The house felt so empty without her, the bed even more so. Sean hoped she wouldn’t be gone for much longer. Dr Brody had discussed inducing Lorelei on Sunday if the twins didn’t start to come on their own. In light of that information, Sean had advised his higher ups that he would be starting paternity leave on Saturday and would be on paternity leave for a minimum of two weeks.

Glancing at his phone, Sean was disappointed Lorelei hadn’t replied, but she was no doubt sleeping. At least he hoped she was. She needed her rest. Rolling over to Lorelei’s side of the bed, Sean buried his face into her pillow, inhaling her scent as he drifted off to sleep.

“Daddy. Daddy.” Sean slowly opened his eyes as he heard Olivia calling out for him. He froze when he realised her voice wasn’t coming from the baby monitor. His daughter was standing beside the bed. She beamed at him when she saw he was awake. “Hi!”

“Hi.” Sean said returning her smile before glancing at the clock. It was five in the morning. He looked back at his daughter, a look of confusion on his face. “Is Angela here?”

Olivia shook her head. “No.”

Sean frowned. “Who got you out of your crib?”

Olivia patted herself on the chest. “Livy.”

Sean looked at her sceptically. “You got yourself out of your crib?” Olivia nodded. How did she do that? Sean rolled out of the bed, rubbing his eyes. “How did you do that?” All he got in reply was a cheeky grin, identical to her mothers.

After using the bathroom, Sean grabbed Olivia and carried her into her bedroom to get her dressed and change her diaper. Once that was done, Sean stopped before leaving the room as he turned back to look at the crib. If Liv was starting to climb out of her crib it might be time to get her a convert it into a toddler bed. Sean walked over and placed Olivia in the crib. “You wanna show Daddy how you got out of your crib?” He asked her.

That same cheeky little smile crossed her face. Sean almost stumbled back when he saw Olivia’s blue eyes glow, the same way Diana’s did when using her powers. The pieces holding one of the sides in place unlocked and the side swung down. Olivia got down on her hands and knees before crawling backwards out of the crib. Once she was clear, the side swung back up and locked into place. Olivia turned to look at him, her eyes returning to normal. Sean stared at her in surprise. Olivia had powers? Was this a new thing or had it happened before? No one had mentioned anything. Then again, his wife failed to mention she herself developed some kind of power.

Sean picked his daughter up. “Very impressive.” He told her. “But no more jailbreaks, ok?”

A/N: Finally, we get to see some of Olivia’s personality shining through. And some sweet Sean and Olivia moments.

Next Part

Taglist: @zoexme, @nu1freakshow, @star-yawnznn, @bella250

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